Endless Amusement Part 29

N.B. Water-rockets may be made with any of the above compositions, with a little alteration, to make them weaker or stronger, according to the size of the cases.

_A Sea-fight with small Ships and a Fire-ship._

Having procured four or five small ships, of two or three feet in length, make a number of small reports, which are to serve for guns.

Of these range as many as you please on each side of the upper decks; then at the head and stern of each ship fix a two-ounce case, eight inches long, filled with a slow port-fire composition; but take care to place it in such a manner that the fire may fall in the water, and not burn the rigging; in these cases bore holes at unequal distances from one another, but make as many in each case as half the number of reports, so that one case may fire the guns on one side, and the other those on the opposite. The method of firing the guns is, by carrying a leader from the holes in the cases to the reports on the decks; you must make these leaders very small, and be careful in calculating the burning of the slow fire in the regulating cases, that more than two guns be not fired at a time. When you would have a broadside given, let a leader be carried to a cracker placed on the outside of the ship; which cracker must be tied loose, or the reports will be too slow: in all the ships put artificial guns at the port-holes. Reports for these and similar occasions are made by filling small cartridges with grained powder, pinching them close at each end, and, when used, boring a hole in the side, to which is placed a match or leader for firing them.

Having filled and bored holes in two port-fires, for regulating the guns in one ship, make all the rest exactly the same; then, when you begin the engagement, light one ship first, and set it a sailing, and so on with the rest, sending them out singly, which will make them fire regularly, at different times, without confusion; for the time between the firing of each gun will be equal to that of lighting the slow fires.

The fire-ship may be of any size, and need not be very good, for it is always lost in the action. To prepare a ship for this purpose, make a port-fire equal in size with those in the other ships, and place it at the stern; in every port place a larger port-fire, filled with a very strong composition, and painted in imitation of a gun, and let them all be fired at once by a leader from the slow fire, within two or three diameters of its bottom; all along both sides, on the top of the upper deck, lay star-composition about half an inch thick and one broad, which must be wetted with thin size, then primed with meal-powder, and secured from fire by pasting paper over it; in the place where you lay this composition, drive some little tacks with flat heads, to hold it fast to the deck; this must be fired just after the sham guns, and when burning will show a flame all round the ship: at the head take up the decks, and put in a tin mortar loaded with crackers, which mortar must be fired by a pipe from the end of the slow fire: the firing of this mortar will sink the ship, and make a pretty conclusion. The regulating port-fire of this ship must be lighted at the same time with the first fighting ship.

Having prepared all the ships for fighting, we shall next proceed with the management of them when on the water. At one end of the pond, just under the surface of the water, fit two running blocks, at what distance you choose the ships should fight; and at the other end of the pond, opposite to each of these blocks, under the water, fix a double block; then on the land, by each of the double blocks, place two small windla.s.ses; round one of them turn one end of a small cord, and put the other end through one of the blocks; then carry it through the single one at the opposite end of the pond, and bring it back through the double block again, and round the other windla.s.s: to this cord, near the double block, tie as many small strings as half the number of the ships, at any distance; but these strings must not be more than two feet long each: make fast the loose end of each to a ship, just under her bowsprit; for if tied to the keel, or too near the water, it will overset the ship. Half the ships being thus prepared, near the other double block fix two more windla.s.ses, to which fasten a cord, and to it tie the other half of the ships as before: when you fire the ships, pull in the cord with one of the windla.s.ses, to get all the ships together; and when you have set fire to the first, turn that windla.s.s which draws them out, and so on with the rest, till they are all out in the middle of the pond; then, by turning the other windla.s.s, you will draw them back again; by which method you may make them change sides, and tack about backwards and forwards at pleasure. For the fire-ship fix the blocks and windla.s.ses between the others, so that when she sails out she will be between the other ships: you must not let this ship advance till the guns at her ports take fire.

_To fire Sky-Rockets under Water._

You must have stands made as usual, only the rails must be placed flat instead of edgewise, and have holes in them for the rocket-sticks to go through; for if they were hung upon hooks, the motion of the water would throw them off: the stands being made, if the pond be deep enough, sink them at the sides so deep, that, when the rockets are in, their heads may just appear above the surface of the water; to the mouth of each rocket fix a leader, which put through the hole with a stick; then a little above the water must be a board, supported by the stand, and placed along one side of the rockets; then the ends of the leaders are turned up through holes made in this board, exactly opposite the rockets. By this means you may fire them singly or all at once. Rockets may be fired by this method in the middle of a pond, by a Neptune, a swan, a water-wheel, or any thing else you choose.

_Neptune in his Chariot._

To represent Neptune in his chariot, you must have a Neptune (made of wood, or basket-work) as big as life, fixed on a float large enough to bear his weight; on which must be two horses' heads and necks, so as to seem swimming. For the wheels of the chariot, there must be two vertical wheels of black fire, and on Neptune's head a horizontal wheel of brilliant fire, with all its cases, to play upwards. When this wheel is made, cover it with paper or pasteboard, cut and painted like Neptune's coronet; then let the trident be made without p.r.o.ngs, but instead of them, fix three cases of a weak grey charge, and on each horse's head put an eight-ounce case of brilliant fire, and on the mouth of each fix a short case, of the same diameter, filled with the white flame composition enough to last out all the cases on the wheels: these short cases must be open at bottom, that they may light the brilliant fires; for the horses' eyes put small port-fires, and in each nostril put a small case half filled with grey charge, and the rest with port-fire composition.

If Neptune is to give fire to any building on the water, at his first setting out, the wheels of the chariot, and that on his head, with the white flame on the horses' heads, and the port-fires in their eyes and nostrils, must all be lighted at once; then from the bottom of the white flames carry a leader to the trident. As Neptune is to advance by the help of a block and cord, you must manage it so as not to let him turn about, till the brilliant fires on the horses and the trident begin; for it is by the fire from the horses (which plays almost upright,) that the building, or work, is lighted, which must be thus prepared. From the mouth of the case which is to be first fired, hang some loose quick-match to receive the fire from the horses. When Neptune is only to be shown by himself, without setting fire to any other works, let the white flames on the horses be very short, and not to last longer than one case of each wheel, and let two cases of each wheel burn at a time.

_Swans and Ducks in Water._

If you would have swans or ducks discharge rockets into the water, they must be made hollow, and of paper, and filled with small water-rockets, with some blowing powder to throw them out; but if this is not done, they may be made of wood, which will last many times.

Having made and painted some swans, fix them on floats; then in the places where their eyes should be, bore holes two inches deep, inclining downwards, and wide enough to receive a small port-fire; the port-fire cases for this purpose must be made of bra.s.s, two inches long, and filled with a slow bright charge. In the middle of one of these cases make a little hole; then put the port-fire in the eye-hole of the swan, leaving about half an inch to project out; and in the other eye put another port-fire, with a hole made in it: then in the neck of the swan, within two inches of one of the eyes, bore a hole slantwise, to meet that in the port-fire; in this hole put a leader, and carry it to a water-rocket, that must be fixed under the tail with its mouth upwards. On the top of the head place two one-ounce cases, four inches long each, driven with brilliant fire; one of these cases must incline forwards, and the other backwards: these must be lighted at the same time as the water-rocket; to do which, bore a hole between them in the top of the swan's head, down to the hole in the port-fire, to which carry a leader: if the swan is filled with rockets, they must be fired by a pipe from the end of the water-rocket under the tail. When you set the swan a swimming, light the two eyes.

_Water Fire-Fountains._

To make a fire-fountain for the water, first have a float made of wood, three feet diameter; then in the middle fix a round perpendicular post, four feet high, and two inches diameter; round this post fix three circular wheels made of thin wood, without any spokes. The largest of these wheels must be placed within two or three inches of the float, and must be nearly of the same diameter. The second wheel must be two feet two inches diameter, and fixed at two feet distance from the first. The third wheel must be one foot four inches diameter, and fixed within six inches of the top of the post: the wheels being fixed, take 18 four or eight-ounce cases of brilliant fire, and place them round the first wheel with their mouths outwards, and inclining downwards; on the second wheel place 13 cases of the same, and in the same manner as those on the first; on the third, place eight more of these cases, in the same manner as before, and on the top of the post fix a gerbe; then clothe all the cases with leaders, so that both they and the gerbe may take fire at the same time. Before firing this work, try it in the water, to see whether the float is properly made, so as to keep the fountain upright.

THE END.

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