no

TESTIMONIALS.

tested; the brass knob and brass proves that the back-work about the lock were melted kte of the d0Qr mustoff ^

“ Charles boyd & son.” ^ave ^ een red-hot, and

consequently would havediscoloured the other papers and books in a similar

manner. If the plate was red-hot, then it cannotbe reconciled with the apt illustration of a kettle

boiling on the fire.

Whilst commenting upon these testimonials, theamount of evidence against my hypothesis, viz., thatit is a physical impossibility to preserve parchment,leather, and sealing wax uninjured in a temperatureof 212°, the only means by which paper and books,bank hotes, plate and specie, can be preserved fromdestruction in an iron safe, when the latter is sub-jected to the influence of fire, appeared so over-whelming, that I began to doubt whether my senseshad deceived me, and immediately had a saucepanof boiling water brought to me, in which I placedtwo pieces of parchment, on one of which wasa wax seal,* the result being that the parchmentimmediately diminished in size one-half, and thewax seal run and spread upon the decreased surface,and in twenty minutes after the water had com-menced boiling upon the fire, the parchment hadlost two-thirds of its original dimensions, and thesealing wax remained in a liquid state, having lost

* Solicitors appear always to have been aware how heat affects parch-ment, as they invariably drop the wax upon silk ferret, which is attachedto the parchment deed for that purpose, well knowing that the heat of themelted wax w r ould irreparably disfigure the deed by shrivelling it.