New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-07-03
Fire i'm Johnny's
Hip Pocket Rings
In Sane Fourth
Of Smoke From the
Seat of His Discontinue.
Screams and Firemen
in Brooklyn's Celebration

Burdened with the interdictions Of a
safe and sane Fourth, Johnny Niewhor
and some of his friends evolved a plan
for celebration that would not be
without it's thrills and probably would
be picturesque in the extreme. Johnny
is twelve years old and his follow gun
powder plotters are about the same age.
They assembled in Johnny's back
yard at 444 Evergreen Avenue, Brook
Ign, last night for a series of expert
mental tests and rehearsal. Their
plan involved smcaring the sidewalk
with sulphur so that every pedestrian
that passed would become glorious,
Tuning, suffering display in honor
Of the birthday of the republic. The
friction of his heels, the boys figured,
would ignite the sulphur and the more
swiftly the involuntary piece of fire
works moved, the more brilliant would
be the display
When his friends had arrived
Johnny came running out of the house
with pocketful Of sulphur and
matches. Midway between the house
and he group Of boys Johnny's feet
slipped from under him and down he
sat, squarely on the pocket containing
the sulphur and matches. Smoke bill
owed upward in a boiling cloud from
the seat of Johnny's discontinue and
there assembled also the piercing
screams of Johnny and his fellow
scientists.
Johnny and Mothers Washing Get Wet
Rear windows went up with the
banging of drumfre. Some of the
neighbors shrieked at sight of the
pillar of smoke whose wriggling, yell
ing base was Johnny Niewhor, while
those who prided themselves on their
presence of mind flung pail after pail
of water into the Niewhor back yard.
where it descended impartially upon
Johnny, his friends and his mothers
washing.
Out in the street Patrolman Wixted,
OF the Ralph Avenue police station, saw
the smoke pouring up from the rear of
the Niewhor house and sent in fire
alarm. Three engines, two hook and
ladder companies and a battalion chief
came gathering up, but by that time
Johnny had been extinguished and an
ambulance surgeon was attending to
the seat of his tribulation Then
Johnny was put to bed, where he lay
on his stomach, rejecting with the OPP
tlmlsm of his twelve years that at least
it would be some time before his par
cnts could WELD slipper with clear
conscience.
Scientists Vanish With Smoke
Out in the backyard Johnny's
friends, undaunted by the mishap and
undazzled by the brilliant results that
ensued. were proceeding with the
pertinacity Of the true scientist to
test the value of their original scheme
Painstakingly, they smearcd the flag
glng of Johnny's backyard with the
sulphur, and then went down on thcir
knees and scrubbed at it diligently with
papcrbags.
Tho power of friction was illus
trated. First here and there came a
curling wisp Of smoke, and then a
mighty puff Of dense vapor which quite
put Johnny's individual efforts in the
shade. Once more smoke came rolling
up from behind the Niewhor house,
and once more vigilant passerby
haetoncd to the corner and sent in
q fire alarm.
The success Of the experiment had
been somewhat of a shock to the ex-
perlmenters in its suddcnness, and the
changing of the engines in the street
convinced them that it was time to
abandon the laboratory By the time
the rubbcr-coated fremen came troop
ing into the yard the last scientist had
vanished over the fence and only the
sulphur smudge. now dwindling to a
smell, remained.