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The manufacture of explosives in this country is an industry of very considerable importance and from all points of view economic, industrial, engineering and military it is worthy of close attention. The appallingly distructive effects of an explosion are caused by the almost instantaneous conversion of the solid explosive into gases at a very high temperature, with the simultaneous exertion of enormous pressure - to which must be added the asphyxiating action of the same gases. TRINITROTOLUENE is one of the most recently developed of high explosives and though it has been manufactured and used for some years was not until the present war that it came into such prominence. At the beginning of the war it was discovered that it was being used in German torpedoes. The letters T.N.T. were found printed on the sides of captured torpedoes. Trinitrotoluene is now extensively used in the filling of bombs, shells, hand-grenades, torpedoes, etc. In the filling of shells it has to a great extent replaced picric acid for that purpose. T.N.T, has greater stability and a sensibility to shock, also it is not an acid substance and does not attack metals or their oxides; consequently it does not form highly sensitive salts and is thus much less dangerous than Picric Acid. Other names such as Trotyl, Trinol, Tritolo and Tritolhate been given T.N.T. and it is known astiTolite in France and Trilit in Spain. Trinitrotoluene is a nitro explosive belonging to the Benzene Group and is hence a coal tar product, and therefore similar in origin to Aniline, the basis of Aniline Dyes. Toluene (sometimes incorrectly called Toluol) is a colourless liquid and is obtained by the fractional distillation of coal tar - a by- product in the manufacture of coal gas. It is lighter than water, having a sp.gr. of .8824 and it boils at 110°C.