The sun., 1908-06-07
SAVING FOR THE FOURTH.
The Old Timer Recalls tho Limited Firc,
crackers OF HIS Youth.

u
This was about the time, when i. waa
growing up, when us fellers d begin to
figure on how we were going to grab out a
few packs Of fireorackers for the Fourth Of
July observed Mr.. Fattipose.
"The youngsters growing up nowadays
don't know anything about the pfans and
schemes the tykes OF another generation
had to work to have any fun. The parents
OF most Of the young 'uns OF to-day stake
them to about all of the Fourth Of July
ilrecrackers they need and can use, but
only the extremely opulent parenta Of my
growing up period did anything 30 reokless
as disbursing real money to provide for the
amusement Of their progeny. and most Of
us had to cook up some kind Of dodge to
get our own firecrackers. .e
AT that day too freorackers were 10
cents a pack. whereas in recent years I've
seen 'em sold for as low as two packs FOR I
nickel-a heap Of difference in those figures
to a boy ambitious to get all the noise that
he can out of his money. They were three
packs for quarter then, and three packs
were usually as many as We ever dreamedof.
We had TO sort O. nurse our firecrackers
along. you see. and stretch 'em out through
the long. long day. The first time ever
saw boy fire Off whole pack OF fro
crackers at once-he was q Fauntleroyiah
kidlet Of the rich in our town. was 20
profoundly impressed with the barbario
lavishness Of the performance that could
hardly get over it,
But we had the art of nursing our ANAL
supply Of frecrackers down to fine art.
We'd crawl out Of bed just about the rosy
hour OF dawn on Fourth OF July morning
nd n old f,ct
over, and with heavy rock on the planks
to hold 'em down, and we'd begin our oelo-
brating there. There wasn't any kick from
the older folk about the early morning
racket. The grownups didn't have 80 many
nerves as they have to-day.
'Gee-min-ently, but how fine that ffrs&
pack Of Grecrackers. when stripped OF its
smooth red paper covering. did look in the
light of the dawn Of those old Fourth Of
July mornings! Maybe I'm wrong. but it
seems to me the firecrackers when was
gro wing up made more noise than do the
frecracsers OF to-day.
Specially the green and yellow fro
crackers that were fastened. one Of each, to
each package We'd always save the green
and the yellow ones till the very last, for
every boy knew perfectly well that the green
and yellow ones made terrible lot more
uls that, but we just naturally knew it.
We'll after setting off three or four out
there on the old cistern-very stingtly, and
with the idea of making EN- last just as long
as possble-we'd get the tin wash basin that
rested on the bench back Of the kitchen and
that the whole family washed in OF morn
ings; and we'd fire few tirecrackers under
the tin wash basin. so as to get full action on
the noise.
Il remember that Of all the dogs owned
/
was crafty enough to crawl under the front
porch or under the shed with the sound
of the first trecracker on Fourth Of July
ros I and arsn stay for hee firmly %ngsSmantg dsSSng
until the next day. Fact is l had dog
once that began to get sort O sulky and
suspicious three or four days before the
Fourth of July. He seemed to know that q
his nerves. But it didn't take any Of his
| foxiness away. He'd plant two or three
bones under the front porch on the day
| before the Fourth of July and when we got
| the shooting we'd find Towze under that
! porch although it wasn't his regular sleep
| ing place at all, and there he'd remain,
blinking and munching on the bones he'd
cached, until the next morning That dog
| probably had had firecrackers set off under
him, or while attached to his tail, before
| got him, and he knew.
The day after the Fourth of July was
| always a day of enormous gloom for US
feIers, Just like the day after the circus.
We took a melancholy pleasure in trotting
around the ruins of the vanished circus
! ring on the day after the circus, and on the
day after the Fourth of July we'd extract
the same kind of dreary pleasure in scout
! ing around among the ruins of the fire.
crackers that had been let off on the great
| day, trying to pick up one here and there
, that had failed to go Off Once in great
while we'd actually pick up a whole fire.
F, cracker that had been accidentally dropped
on the day before.
And say. right now, to-day, wouldn't
| have half so much fun in picking up bright
new $40 gold piece on my way to the Of
| flee as | did on a few occasions on the day
| after the Fourth of July when came upon
| sure enough alive and charged fire.
cracker that had got lost out of the pack
| OH the previous day"