The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-07-05
OId-Sty|e Fourth Or July Is Gone;
It Was Fun. But Mighty Dangerous


Mighty pretty little lass.
this Susan Hayward Of the
movies. shown here in = SYM
bolic Fourth Of July scene.
Susan represents two traditional
Fourth Il July sports fireworks
and swimming although ws sar-
peel the swim suit " for publicity
purposes. and . wee bit too fire
- put into the wAterl.
One = sport that " rapidly
declining in favor
In the FIRST decade az this CEN
fury. most ~ s remember the
lurtd. loud and gsrlsh Foarths af
July. It's = wonder were here 10
remember them
sold hy Chinese
The aim og every boy ~as Ia
set the biggest. loudest and most
dangerous cannon cracker in town.
In those days practically all the
we're imported and sold
by Chinese. and in old wsIls wslls
We isds used to haunt the fss-
cinatlng and mysterious To va
Chinese stores during the Ions hot
days that preceded the Fourth.
looking over the wares
There were the little lady fin
ger firecrsekcrs. Those powder
filled explosives we're purchased
for the tiny fellows AZ three and
four. 80 that they would become
adept at firing the hig ones whca
they became little men OF six
Then the firecraokers ranged up
10 foo, long ones that reared like
eannons and would make every
horse within a block run away
Rattle. Crash. Hang
Any boy who wouldn't hold a
cracker In his hand while II hurst
was . Sissy. The crackers didn't
oftenl
IL was rattle. crash, bang from
the evening 81 July > until the
Of the NTH and even
then. for q day or 50 there would
be an occasional pop an some hoy
found an unexploded cracker that
was hidden In the grass. Thess
last were particularly fascinating. |
a. they usually had only . 18th /
Of an inch fuse attached. and
exploded almost instantly when
by the lighted punk.
One feature Of July Z night was
particularly spectacular Nearly /
everyone sent up . lighted paper /
balloon. filled with hot air given .
off by some eomb,stibls substanos
held in a wire flame beneath the
mouth Of the balloon. Occasion.
ally one would burst into flames
In the air,
Then Came Change
Imagine what would happen In
a city today II hundreds OF these
torches were sent through
the sky' I have often wondered
why every building IN Walls waiin.
for instance. didn't burn down.
Just before the war, the great
change came. Newspapers cam.
psisned eesselessly against The
death toll from burns. the
Ioss Of fingers and eyes. the scars
that resulted from fireworks.
The campaign has succeeded 20
sell that fireworks have lost much
u their early popularity and thu
i@ath toll now IL . minor factor.
Fireworks are made safer. too,
OF course, deaths from sut0mo-
,ilss now far exceed the old fire.
works tragedies. but that Ia an
,ther storyj
So II In tss,.zy mat We have
lappisr, saner Fourths. with pie
lies. swimming. fishing boating.
Ianelng and laughter replacing
he flaming days 81 the past
And shils We may sigh once In
while as ws think ~ the ting
ing. nerve-wrseking THRU Of those
I'D Fourths, there isn't one who
would want 10 10 back 70 the Old
Ihoot ism-off, biow-'sm.up and 10.
Yell fingers and-eyss Eourths
Il yesterday.
10. little movie gal in the pie
urs. get your pretty swim suit /,
vet. and be careful with those /,
irexorks'
And by the way. lady, you /
ant light q nrsers1ksr with thu
lp os . skyroesst, anyway. You ,
ICED a punkD
,AIcS RIlSINESS TAX