II. Saltpetre one ounce, ditto melted half an ounce, and camphor two
ounces. When you would make stars of either of these compositions, you
must wet them with gum water, or spirit of wine, in which has been
dissolved some gum-arabick, or gum-tragacanth, that the whole may have
the consistence of a pretty thick liquid; having thus done, take one
ounce of lint, and stir it about in the composition till it becomes
dry enough to roll into stars.
For Stars of a yellowish Colour.
Take four ounces of gum-tragacanth or gum-arabick, pounded and sifted
thro’ a fine sieve, camphor dissolved in brandy two ounces, saltpetre
one pound, sulphur half a pound, coarse powder of glass four ounces,
white amber one ounce and a half, and orpiment two ounces. All these
ingredients being well incorporated, make them into stars after the
common method.
Stars of another Sort.
Take a pound of camphor and melt it in a pint of spirit of wine over a
slow fire; then add to it a pound of gum-arabick that has been
dissolved; with this liquor, mix one pound of saltpetre, six ounces of
sulphur, and five ounces of meal powder; and after you have stirred
them well together, roll them into stars proportionable to the rockets
for which you intend them.
Of the Colours produced by the different Compositions.
As variety of fires adds greatly to a collection of works, it is
necessary that every artist should know the different effect of each
ingredient; for which reason, I shall here explain the colours they
produce of themselves; and likewise how to make them retain the same
when mixed with other bodies: as for example, sulphur gives a blue,
camphor a white or pale colour, saltpetre a clear white, yellow amber
a colour inclining to yellow, sal-armoniac a green, antimony a
reddish, rosin a copper colour, and greek-pitch a kind of bronze or
between red and yellow. All these ingredients are such as shew
themselves in a flame, viz.
For a white Flame.
Saltpetre, sulphur, meal powder, and camphor, the saltpetre must be
the chief part.
For a blue Flame.
Meal powder, saltpetre, and sulphur vivum, the sulphur must be the
chief part: or, meal powder, saltpetre, brimstone, spirit of wine, and
oil of spike; but let the powder be the principal part.
For a Flame inclining to Red.
Saltpetre, sulphur, antimony, and greek-pitch, the saltpetre the chief
part.
By the above method may be made various colours of fire, as the
practitioner pleases; for, by making a few trials, he may cause any
ingredient to be predominant in colour.
Of such Ingredients as shew themselves in Sparks when rammed in
choaked Cases.
The set colours of fire produced by sparks are divided into four
sorts, viz. the black, white, grey, and red; the black charges are
composed of two ingredients, which are meal powder and charcoal; the
white of three, viz. saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal; the grey of
four, viz. meal powder, saltpetre, brimstone, and charcoal; and the
red of three, viz. meal powder, charcoal, and saw dust.
There are, besides these four regular or set charges, two others,
which are distinguished by the names of compound and brilliant
charges; the compound charge being made of many ingredients, such as
meal powder, saltpetre, brimstone, charcoal, saw dust, seacoal,
antimony, glass dust, brass dust, steel filings, cast iron, tanner’s
dust, &c. or any thing that will yield sparks; all which must be
managed with discretion. The brilliant fires are composed of meal
powder, saltpetre, brimstone, and steel dust; or with meal powder and
steel filings only.
How to make Cotton Quick-match.
Quick-match is generally made of such cotton as is put in candles, of
several sizes, from one to six threads thick, according to the pipes
it is designed for, which pipe must be large enough for the match,
when made, to be pushed in easily without breaking it. Having doubled
the cotton into as many threads as you think proper, coil it very
lightly into a flat-bottomed copper or earthen pan; then put in the
saltpetre and the liquor, and boil them together about twenty minutes;
after which, coil it again into another pan, as is shewn in Fig. 4.
and pour on it what liquor remains; then put in some meal powder, and
press it down with your hands, till it is quite wet; afterwards place
the pan before the wooden frame, Fig. 5, which must be suspended by a
point in the center of each end; and place yourself before the pan,
tying the upper end of the cotton to the end of one of the sides of
the frame.
When every thing is thus got ready, you must have one to turn the
frame round, while you let the cotton pass through your hands, holding
it very lightly, and at the same time keeping your hands full of the
wet powder; but if the powder should be too wet to stick to the
cotton, put more in the pan, so as to keep a continual supply till the
match is all wound up; you may wind it as close on the frame as you
please, so that it does not stick together; when the frame is full,
take it off the points, and sift dry meal powder on both sides the
match, till it appears quite dry: in winter the match will be a
fortnight before it is fit for use; when it is thoroughly dry, cut it
along the outside of one of the sides of the frame, and tie it up in
skains for use.
N. B. The match must be wound tight on the frames.
Ingredients for the Match.
Cotton one pound twelve ounces, saltpetre one pound, spirit of wine
two quarts, water three quarts, isinglass three gills, and meal powder
ten pound. To dissolve four ounces of isinglass, take three pints of
water.