Mix and dissolve, and in the solution place unsized paper; raise to nearly a boil and keep at this temperature for 20 minutes. If the paper is to be “slow,” it may now be taken out, dried, cut into strips, and rolled. If to be “faster,” the heat is to be continued longer, according to the quickness desired. Care must be taken to avoid boiling, which might disintegrate the paper.
In preparing these papers, every precaution against fire should be taken, and their preparation in the shop or house should not be thought of. In making the solutions, etc., where heat is necessary, the water bath should invariably be used.
Pyrotechnic Magic.
[Caution.—When about to place any lighted material in the mouth be sure that the mouth is well coated with saliva, and that you are exhaling the breath continuously, with greater or less force, according to the amount of heat you can bear.
If the lighted material shows a tendency to burn the mouth, do not attempt to drag it out quickly, but simply shut the lips tight, and breathe through the nose, and the fire must go out instantly.
In the Human Gas Trick, where a flame 10 to 15 inches long is blown from the mouth, be careful after lighting the {611} gas, to continue to exhale the breath. When you desire the gas to go out, simply shut the lips tight and hold the breath for a few seconds. In this trick, until the gas is well out, any inhalation is likely to be attended with the most serious results.
The several cautions above given may be examined with a lighted match, first removing, after lighting the match, any brimstone or phosphorus from its end.]
To Fire Paper, Etc., By Breathing On It.
Half fill a half-ounce bottle with carbon disulphide, and drop in 1 or 2 fragments of phosphorus, each the size of a pea, which will quickly dissolve. Shake up the liquid, and pour out a small teaspoonful onto a piece of blotting paper. The carbon disulphide will quickly evaporate, leaving a film of phosphorus on the paper, which will quickly emit fumes and burst into flame. The once-popular term Fenian fire was derived from the supposed use of this liquid by the Fenians for the purpose of setting fire to houses by throwing a bottle down a chimney or through a window, the bottle to break and its contents to speedily set fire to the place.
For the purpose of experiment this liquid should only be prepared in small quantities as above, and any left over should be poured away onto the soil in the open air, so as to obviate the risk of fire. Thin paper may be fired in a similar manner with the acid bulbs and powder already mentioned. The powder should be formed into a paste, laid on the paper, and allowed to dry. Then the acid bulb is pasted over the powder.