Rensselaer Republican, Volume 27, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 June 1895 — A HOME-MADEFOURTH [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

A HOME-MADEFOURTH

HE boys in and j 8 about Barton expected every season to •#h aT ® a E°°d time at Fol'y Farm, where they were sure to congregate on the Fourth of July to be entertained. Joe and ,17 Ernest Folly - were Si, Hl?'' more than /ordinary !IfetUVP 5 ®? 8 - and the saying went the rounds that what they could not ' invent in the way ot amusement was not worth seeing. These

two farm boys prided themselves in doing very original things, and not infrequently they produced very astonishing results, especially to the young city boarders in the region. The last Independence show they gave the visitors decided was the best of all. It was a fine Fourth of July night, and everybody was in the best of spirits. After it had become quite dark the older brother, Joe, announced that t!je first display upon the program for the evening would be a balloon ascension and a shower of dewdrops. Ernest brought out an armful of tissue paper of various colors, which proved to be a home-made balloon. They inflated it by means of a ball of candle wicklng saturated with coal oil. The burning ball was held in a light wire frame and the flnme kept from spreading by means of cardboard tube that had been thoroughly saturated with’ a strong solution of aluqi to make it noncombustible. The great paper sack soon filled with hot air by means of the tube, and began to get uneasy and anxious for an upward flight. “Let ’er go,” cried Joe; and ‘as he did so it was noticed that he placed a siring which hung loose in contact with the flame. Away went the balloon and all the company watched it. It had reached an altitude of perhaps 200 feet when there came the so-called shower of dewdrops. The air beneath the ascending object became suddenly filled with Hashing, sputtering, glowing lights. This display continued for several minutes, a portion of the scintillating dewdrops rising with the balloon and others floating slowly toward the earth. “Splendid! Good! Beautiful!” were the expressions of the spectators. The next scene on the program was the firing of a cannon by means of a teapot of water. The cannon itself had been made by the Folly boys. A two-inch auger hole was bored into a curly maple block; the wood had been cut into the shape of an iron gnn, then some iron bands from the hubs of an old wagon heated red hot wercdriven on and suddenly cooled. The expanded hot iron shrunk down so as to bind the wood firmly, and after they had applied a coat or two of black paiflt they had a fine home-made cannon, but, of course, they had to be careful about overloading. ,the piece. The improvised‘gnn had been charged with powder find wadding, and lay upon the ground all ready for service. Joe took an old teapot, turned it over and hit it with a stick to show that it was empty, then placed it beneath the pump spout and filled it to the brim with water. After taking a swallow from ; • ----- ■

the spout he placed it near the cannon. His wapd—a piece of. broomstick —was passed several times over the tin vessel while a jargon of senseless words was spoken. Ernest meantime lighted a match and applied it to the water. Instantly a flame shot up, and placing a fuse from the teapot to the piece of artillery, the boys stepped back, A flash was followed by a loud report, and-tbe assemblage shouted with wonder. The third display was what the rural lads termed the" “fiery serpent.”’ Joe produced a'long, ragged cloth object that looked something like a huge black snake with a wooden head and two irregular wings. After holding it up so that all could see it, he passed out upon the lawn into the darkness, followed by Ernest. Pregently the spectators saw, a glow of light; a crackling sound, and a peculiar whizzing followed; then a stream of fire mounted the air with marvelous speed. The fiery serpent flew skyward higher’ aad-kigher, throwing out a brilliance that made the lookers on hold their breath. The sputtering, squirming reptile formed an arc, and after a long flight came hissing down to the earth. The visitors were really amazed. "Three cheers for the Folly boys,” cried Ben Slade, swinging his hat. The cheers were given right heartily, followed by a tiger. Explanation. “Now, tell us how it .was all done,” thej begged, and Joe explained. “The shower of dewdrops,” he began, “was produced by attaching a lot of long fine threads to a wire rim at the base of the balloon, to which were fastened the strings taken from a lot of firecrackers, interspersed with little rolls of tissfieJHfc... per containing wet and dry powder. Some of these became detached while burning and floated earthward, while others were carried on. A slow fuse kept those upon the threads front-igniting until the balloon was well up from the earth.” “But the firing of the cannon with a teapot of water?” “The old teapot contained a little coal oil, which I was careful not to turn out when -upsetting the vessel. Of course it arose to the top when the water was put in. and was easily ignited.”— The boys laughed heartily. “That was a good one. Now what of Uhe-fiery pent?” “That was a mass of rags -and cotton, very slightly dampened with benzine, and rolled into the form of a o snake, but it contained also a lot of wet and dry powder. The serpent was attached to a crotched stick, the end of which formed the reptile’s head, and the branches the two wings. A stiff spring-pole was set firmly in the ground and then bent over and held by a catch. The crotch was set aside the spring-pole at an angle of about 45 degrees, the serpent lighted and the spring-pole set loose. That threw the hissing reptile high in the air.” “Bully!” cried impetuous Fred Bruster. Shout after shout sounded out on the night air as the large company of boys left Folly Farm thoroughly delighted with their home-made Fourth of July entertainment. . .