The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1874-08-06
Mr.. Watkins Fireworks.
EFrom ths pstroIt Free Press. I

IRON the detroit Free frees.l
Mr.. Watkins is gentle old man living
on Ninth avenue. He believes in Fourth
of July, in long-winded orations, and es-
pecially in having fireworks in the even
ing. He. has no children, but the neigh
bors have them by the square acre, and 1t
was generally understood in that neigh
borhood that Mr.. Watkins was going to
give the children treat Saturday night.
| He laid in ga pile" of rockets, Roman
candles, fre-wheels and 80 on, and rugged
up post and had everything ready
against the coming of night. When dark
ness fell, and the glorious day of liberty
was skulking away into obscurity, Mr..
| Watkins yard was filled with expectant
neighbors and their children. They sat
on the stoop, on the fence, and were three
deep on the grass. The hour came, and
Mr.. Watkins prepared to unloose the fire.
fiend. If he had ever seen any fireworks
touched off he had forgotten how they
did it, but his ignorance did not weigh
on his shoulders like grindstone. He
took out sky-rocket; boy showed him
how to set it up and where to ignite it,
and away she went, striking plump against
the house opposite. The owner of the
house, who had been on q steamboat ex-
cursiOn, and had hiswatch stolen, leaned
over his gate, and said he could, and had
good mind to knock Mr.. Watkins into
eighteen fragments, but the boys Missed
him into the house. The next rocket
was more of success. 1t went straight
up, and the stick came down on a baby's
head and produced grand jubilee con-
cert. They took the baby home, and
the next rocket was balanced with care.
1t started to rise, fell to one side, and
went into house where red-headed
young man sat squeezing the hand of q
cross-eyed girl. 1t bobbed around awhile
and then leaped out of the window, and
the red-headed young man nearly twisted
off letter-box in trying to sound fire
alarm.
Then Mr.. Watkins selected mild-eyed
boy to go on with the remnant of the dis
play. The rest of the rockets went knock
ing around the neighboring roofs and
everybody over the fence. Mr.. Watkins
ran out to say that they must be careful,
when n Roman-candle commenced shoot
ing at him. His hat was Knocked off, his
hair singed, and as he cried, "Good
land!" and jumped through the gate, a
fre-ball hit him in the back and tore a
foot of cloth out of his Sunday coat.
More boys offered their services, and de-
spite the protestations of the good old
man, they decided on having grand
"whoop de grease as a wind-up. Two
of them touched off the rockets, while
the rest danced around the road with the
Roman-candles, and Mr.. Watkins cried
"good land" again, and said he'd give
ten dollars tosee policeman. He stuck
his head out of the bay-window and a
rocket grazed his nose. Women ran,
men shouted, and children whooped, and
six punches of fire-crackers on the stoop
went off like the roar of musketry at
Gettysburg. The last rocket hit the
corner of the house and glanced and
struck a man in the back, who leaned
against fence and said he was fatally
wounded, but that before he expired he
was going to drink enough human gore
to make second Lake Erie.