The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1878-08-08
JAPANESE FIREWORKS.
Rockets Iha4 are Fired Half = Mile into
the Air. -Elrds; Beasis, DtsAEora, and
EIaxs that COEAle OuI OF Them

n OeIets Iiias are Fired Half = Mile into |
the AIr--.Elrds, Beasts, DtsAgofls, ana
Flags that COhse cut OF Them.
Japanese night fireworks are of two
kinds, ground displays, and rockets.
Day fire works are exclusively OF the
latter kind, for Obvious reasons. Effect
can only be produced by them in the
air and at distance, and as many of
them consist of mere or less sombre
imagery traced in smoke or cloud, cleat
blue sky ID the best background for their
disclosure The full success of this,
again, is dependent, not only upon a
clear atmosphere, but also on perfectly
calm weather or the gentlest of zephyrs.
The morning of our visit exempliied
this; the heavens were as lead in color,
and brisk breeze was blowing off the
land. Notwithstanding this, the pro-
prietor courteously insisted upon
sending up a couple of his magic cases,
as unlike the foreign rocket as can we'll
be Conceived. Out of one of these burt
clouds Of variegated hue, with fantastic
accessories, but which were blurred and
smothered by the murk behind. From
the other emerged a tricOlOr flag, which
was seiz. by the wind and borne rapidly
far out into the bay, "mere waftage of
the air." Night and day rockets--we
must use this word for want of a better
--are neither of them self-propelling.
Tney are shot perpendicularly into the
air from mOrtars Embedded into soil at
right angles to the horizon. Perfect
accuracy of flight is thus insured, a result
hardly attaiDable with the western stick
and self-propulsion system. The Ordi-
nance is made of wood--very often mere
pine, though camphOr-woOd is preferred
Every mortar is composed OF two pieces,
each like half o. one of the metal mOrtars
in use among our armies, supposiUg the
instruments to be split downward
from the meuth to the breech. A
touch-hole is bored in the lower
extremity of one of these half tubes.
and the two are then solidly and tightly
bound together with bamboo strip, just
as buckets and tubes are coopered, con
tinuously from end to end. The engine
| is then complete. It only remains to
plant the solid portion of the butt firmly
! in the grouEd, and all Is ready tor action.
! These toy mOrtars are of various sizes,
! from a foot or Is inches to feet in
! length, and with diameter, within the
| tube, OF from J to inches. A good
one will bear 700 or 800 discharges. The
extreme ordinary range is 1900 yards,
| though q higher elevation can be at
tanned by afhxing wings to the missile
! This latter is sometimes of spherical but
more generally of cylindrical form. In
the latter case the bursting charge is
! contained in a globe st the bottom of
the cylinder. Suppose one of these
| about TO be discharged. a mortar OF
suitable size Is sponged out, charge O.
powder is dropped into the muzzle,
quick fuse is put into the
touch-hole. If you have looked
closely at the proiectile you have seen
at the fat extremity two little loops OF
Irvine, the of which may have puzzled
you 1t IL now apparent. The operator
passes through them, from side, a piece
of stout cord, with the aid of which he
lets the fire.wOrk carefully down till it
touches the charge, and then withdraws
the cord. A fire-stick is applied to the
fuse, and instantly the contents o the
gun are hurled straight into the air
Now. as we said above, the bursting
charge is in the g!obular portion of the
bomb, and this part is lowest in the CUR
80 that its time fuse, eating with
the detonants, may ignite with the dis
charge. But the whole case is soweigh.
ted that, as soon as it leaves the muzze
top and bottom are reversed, with the
result that the fuse burns, and the ex
plosiOns take place upward, the wisdom
of which arrangement will be at once
apparent. There is practically no end
excepting the period of descent fthe case
or its component parts, to the number O
surprises" which could be put into one
rocket, in which both for night and day
exhibitions the system followed is the
same. Explosive charge, compartment
dragon or stars; explosive charge, flag
or luminous crysenthena explosive
charge, etc, to the end of the chapter
We will now tell as much as we dare, o.
it would be fair TO say, of what Mr.
Hirayama puts inside his missiles. AuC
we frankly confess that, compared witt
what we do not know, what We do know
of the matter is very little indeed
Certain q Questions cou id neither have beer
properly asked or wiseIy answered
! ! Moreover, it his own artist keeps him il
! the dark as to many OF their opera
tons, what could be expected of hin
or them toward a stranger. The
brighter and more expensive of tn,
9 figures emitted from smoke or clouC
: are made of silk; by far the greater
number, however, sre formed of a very
| soft, light. but singularly cohesive paper
In the case OF dragons, tigers, fish, birds
3 and such like, the material is cut, sewl
/ and psinted in the form and colors o
the object intended to be represented
But this is not enough. 1t is necessary
that the image shall assume its prope
; posture in the air, when released from
the space in which it is folded anC
packed as lightly as possible; that i
shall not float lightly, and descend bu
gradually. To insure this requires, q
= msy be imagined, great n Getty of adjust
ment of the fimsy texture. Small
isaden weights are disposed her
! and there about the figure, an
small circular holes are cut il
: carefully determined spots on the belly
: : back, legs and head for the admission
and exit of the air which keeps it III
fated. Flags and banners, pictures ant
' screens, are in one piece; their folds ar
: opened, and they themselves are KEEP
8 continually in a visible position to tn
/ eye in the flight and descent, by smal
/ | weights, as above, but only on that edg
Y which should be downward. All of tn
e simple, and many of the more elaborate
2 cloud effects are produced by colore
e eartbs If fine consistency, judiciousI
e disposed; others are the resu of tn
+ combustion of aerial commixUure of Gel
tain chemical substances.
Il |