Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1907-07-06
MAKING FIREWORKS
And IL Has All Been Worked Out
from the Ancient Chinese Fire
cracker - How They
Are Made.


vast proportions in the United States
Also from the humble and compare
tive harmless cracker, the product has
been developed along the most COM
pick yet scientific lines until the mas
ter of ceremonies at full fledged mod
ern fireworks exhibit must needs be
a man with a comprehensive knowl-
edge of the explosives he is handling.
The Chinaman, having invented
gunpowder a few thousand years be-
fore it came into use in the western
world, invented the fiTecracker so long
ago that the incident of its birth has
been lost in the shuttle Of history, but,
curiously enough, the Chinaman in
this respect has stood at the initial
point of development, as he has in all
else that pertains to his life. He still
makes good firecrackers, but they are
of the same model and power as he
has used for hundreds of years. The
American, having stolen the idea, pro-
ceeded to develop it along lines truly
indicative of the American character
-famboyant, pyrotechRic and loud.
The Chinese cracker is a small affair,
considerably more so than the crAek-
er to buy which the small boy toiled
in the gray dawn carrying water to
the elephant, but at Chinese New
Years and other festival times a
string of their firecrackers suspended
from the end of bamboo pole will
explode-every one of them-and
there will be no "sizzlers" nor blanks
found in the string. Which goes to
show that the handmade Chinese
article is still honestly made and that
western methods of cheap machine
manufacture have not invaded the
cradle of the firecracker.
But as all things American have de-
veloped 10 prodigious proportions,
leaving in the past the memory Of sim
plicity, so the firecracker of history
each year finds a smaller place in the
demonstrations Of America Instead
there have come the rocket, the bomb,
the set piece and the appliances for
pouring forth torrents and volcanoes
of multi-colored fire. 1t. is the manu-
facture of these goods that has grown
to such size and commercial conse-
quence.
The preliminary in the manufacture
of nearly all fireworks is the making
of the case. The quality Of paper
varies from the commonest straw
board to the finest bank note paper.
Cases for skyrockets require a fine
grade of paper called rope board. The
paper is first pasted and then rolled
over q mandrel. The drying process
takes four or five days and the case
vaBy from two to 20 inches in length
and from one-quarter of an inch to two
inches in diameter. The loading of
skyrocEets, up to the last four or five
years, has been done by hand, but the
machine now takes the place of the
hand loader. A spindle placed id the
center Of the case causes a cavity as
the material is packed in around It.
The materials are scooped in, ham
mered down until it is of rock-like
hardness and then the spindle is with
drawn. When the rocket is fired the
large surface Of material in the spin
die cavity catches fire at once, caus-
ing a tremendous pressure Of gas
which pours out Of the spindle cavity,
The colored stars, which 30 in the
head of the rocket or bomb, are COM
posed as follows: Red, nitrate of ba-
ryta, chloride of potash and shellac;
green, nitrate of baryta; yellow, oxil-
ate OF soda Purple and blue are COM
posed of various preparations Of cop
per, while the making Of the other
tints are trade secrets.
The Roman candle is charged as
follows: Sets of cases are placed on
pins and there is scooped in first a
quantity of clay, which prevents the
explosive composition from burning
the hand; then a charge of gunpow-
der, and on top of this are placed the
oolored stars in the proper sequence
OF color. On top Of this comes a COM
position called fuse, which makes the
intervals between the discharge of the
stars. After the fuse hammers are
brought down to pack the material,
the operation being repeated as often
as required. The candles contain from
two to IS stars. The finishing con-
sists Of covering the candle and pro-
viding . quick match for easy iSni-
ton.
Quick match, one Of the important
features of fireworks manufacture, is
made from specially prepared wick
soaked IN q solution Of gunp0Wder. At
the proper time It is wound OF on
frames and just before it is dried 1t is
sifted over with very fine powder in
order to make it extra quick in action.
It is then cut in lengths of about six
feet and worked into what is known
as match paper, after which it is
placed in manila paper cases and
joined together. Fire at one end Of
quick match leaps to the other and al
most as quickly as would electricity.
The quick match is fitted out on what
are known as lances, or rods Of bam-
boo. For set pieces the design is
xketched by an artist and then scaled
- ~ road ~ 81 hn