The Hawaiian gazette., 1897-07-06
GLORIOUS FOURTH
Operations Began on Saturday
MIGHT.
GRAND PROTECTING DISPLAY
Wind Interfered With the
Water Carnival.
Waterfront Crowded With Spec
tators-Explosion on Com
mittee Scow.

The commencement of he dual cele-
bration of the declarations of Ameri-
can and Hawaiian independence te-
gan most auspiciously Saturday night
by the most magnificent display of
fireworks ever seen in the harto..
They were set off from scows anchored
between the Philadelphia ami Malion.
Barring a premature explosion by
which two of the set pieces au1 several
hundred small bombs and rockets we're
lost the affair was complete success.
During the explosion several men en-
gagged in setting off rockets, etc. re-
ceived unexpected charges in various
parts of their anatomy and il the eX
element they jumped overheard to nd
themselves of any suspicion Of fire.
The display began at 7:30 and con-
tinued for nearly four hours. Crowds
of people gathered along the wharves
from one end of the harbor to the
other At the Healani and Myrtle boat
houses special arrangements were made
for the guests and between the two
places the Hawaiian Government band
was stationed and played at frequent
intervals. The Healani Club had the
Hawaiian Quintette Club to play dance
music and sing and ample provision
of the same character was made at the
Myrtle Club House.
The celebration began with what was
intended to be grand water carnival
but, owing to the high wind prevail
ing, this was in measure failure.
The harbor was one perfect multi
tude of lights-red, white and blue of
course playing the most prominent
parts. From the houses toward Wal
kiki to the Philadelphia and even out
to Mauliola, where two strings of lights
appeared, there was brilliant illumina-
ton.
On the Philadelphia there was a
string of red, white and blue lights
extending from the bow up and across
the masts and then down to the stern
where there was an American flag in
electric lights. The Naniwa was light
ed and both the American and Japa-
nese men-of-war kept their search
lights at work, out on the bay and
again upon various parts of Honolulu
None of the other vessels in port were
decorated to any extent. The boat
houses were Respondent in Japanese
lanterns and electric lights. The feat
ure of the illumination on the Healan
house was a large star of red, white
and blue lights with blue H" as {
center. This was set up at the highes
point and extending from it to thu
landing below, were strings of Japa
nese lanterns The Myrtle house wal
strung all about with Japanese Ian
terms
At 1880 o'clock the band, stationed OF
the small wharf midway between thu
Healani and Myrtle boat club houses
struck up with music and the pleasur
of the evening began.
From the dredger and two larg
scows, anchored between the Philadel
phia and Marion, there shot forth
perfect shower of rockets, Roman can
dies, bombs and other fire works, keep
ing busy a large number of men.
At intervals followed the variou
pieces skyrockets shooting in differ
ent directions, exploding high up in tn
sky and showing golden showers o
balls of red, white, blue, green ant
yellow fire; shells bursting in air
rosette wheels, colored China flyers
trumpet wheels, colored geysers, re
volving comets; star mines, bomb
shell mines and a hundred and on
other pieces, set off from differen
parts of the dredger and scows.
The railroad scow was used for rock
cts alone, the smaller scow for tel
large mortars and the dredger for al
the other pieces. The members of tn,
fire works committee were each givel
rot in ND tn
but complications crept in later.
1t was along about $50 o'clock whel
many of the spectators thought the,
saw one of the grandest displays eve
witnessed in or out of the water
grand explosion with a combination O
a part of nearly all the fire works o.
the dredger and scows 1t certainl
was a beautiful sight. Human SIX
rockets with tendency to go towar
the water Such was one of the piece
not on the program.
One of the American bluejackets wa
walking along on the railroad scov
with his right arm full of fire work
and lighted punk in his left hand
Some one called but he did not heal
Some one called again and that tim
he did hear, and turned from left +
right to see where the voice came from
In doing this he, brought the punk int
contract with the fire, works and tn
unexpected happened Notwishing t
hug to himself an apparently unwill
ing bundle he dropped the fire work
into the small barrel which containe
the charges of powder for the MOI
tars. Again the unexpected happened
The bombs caught the contagion an
some of these sent sparks into tn
large Mosaic which w E. Rowell wa
fixing up on the dredger This wer
off prematurely. ]. A. Kennedy Gale
to the man who started the impropt
piece to kick the bombs off the SEQ
but before the words were out of hi
mouth. that individual was climbin