BLASTING TREE STUMPS.

Greymouth Evening Star, 22 May 1906, Page 3

BLASTING TREE STUMPS.

(Our Own Correspondent.) A large number of the residents of Eeefton and the settlers in tho Inangahua Valley were present yesterday afternoon at tho invitation of Mr K. Suisted, of Tane, 40 Mile Bush (representative of Messrs Bannatyne and Co., Sew Zealand agents for Nobel's Co., of Glasgow) to witness the blasting of tree stumps by electricity. The site selected was tho paddock owned by Messrs Patterson Bros situated on the boundary of the town. Mr Suisted had selected four black birch stumps, one of which covered a large space, two of medium size, and one small one. The plan of operation consisted of boring three inch holes in the stump or tree when it is solid, but in this instance the stumps being hollow to a great extent, holes were dug in the ground underneath them, and in these holes several plugs of blasting gelatine were put ; to one of them was a detonator, attached to fuse wire, and this was then connected with the cable to the battery, about a hundred yards distant. Everything being in readiness, the onlookers were asked to betake themselves to a safe distance. Mr Suisted then grasped the exploder firmly by tho left hand, and with the right hand turned the handle three or four times as rapidly

as possible. When a high speed is atT~ tained he presses the tiling button, and immediately the explosion takes place. The stumps were lifted fully twenty feet in the air, while a shower of small stones and soil went to a height of close upon two hundred feet, and scattering in all directions. On arrival at the scene, each person was filled with astonishment at the excellent, manner in which tho work had been performed. The largest stump was split into ..a large number of pieces, the hole where it came out of the ground being fully twelve feet across, and in the centre four feet deep, not a particle of the roots remaining in the ground. The same result was attained in tho other cases. The amount of blasting gelatine used was lOlbs, which at Is 7d per lb. costs 15s lOd ; 11 detonators at 3d each, 2s 9d; total cost of material 18s 7d, less than 5s per stump, while several of the settlers who were present stated it would tal«\a man fully a week to extract them. Immediately afterwards Mr Suisted allowed Messrs Patterson, Betts and Blackadder to operate on a large brown birch tree, standing fully forty feet high. Four holes were sunk in the roots of the tree, and 51bs of Nobel's gelignite was inserted. Mr Patterson connected the fuses and the cable, and immediately exploded the charge, with the result that the tree was instantaneously lifted roots and all fully six feet in the air. falling on the ground split in several pieces, the total cost being 7s sd. while it would have taken two men at least two days to get a like result. The prices of the batteries, we learn, are £8 15s and £l2 10s, and should be weli worth their money to anyone having land to stump. This idea of removing trees and stumps was introduced into the colony by Mr R. Spragg, of the Nobel's Explosivo Company.