WONDERFUL FIRE-WORKS.
BY A. W. ROBERTS.
Among the many ingenious devices of the Chinese and Japanese in the way of Hirayama, or day fire-works, is a huge bomb, which, when fired off, ascends to a great height and explodes, at the same time releasing hundreds of highly colored paper figures of both patriotic and comic designs.
Other varieties of this new Japanese day fire-work set free innumerable miniature Japanese fans, parasols, and small toys, or produce grotesque and beautiful designs in colored smoke. I have tried to give you in the illustration an idea how they look.
As each one of you boys who are well enough to go about is sure to set off a certain number of "paper caps" before night comes on this Fourth of July, 1882, I want to call your attention to a little toy that is not only most novel and comical, but which will insure you against all dangers from these explosives. It consists of a clown's head with a movable jaw. At the top of the head a long string is fastened. A paper cap is placed in the clown's mouth, and by means of the string the head is caused to strike the pavement, the concussion causing the cap to explode. All first-class conscientious dealers in fire-works are refusing to sell the dangerous and so very often fatal toy cartridge pistol, for which the clown's head forms such an excellent substitute.