Every boy, to properly celebrate Independence Day, should be well
stocked with torpedoes, large and small, fire-crackers, cannon, and
gunpowder. He should know that the starry flag flutters from his home,
and that the red, white, and blue is a part of his attire.
Early in the day a battalion of patriotic boys should march and
countermarch up and down the principal streets, while all the
while martial music is heard, and the shrill bugle call answers the
exultant drum beat. A banner should lead such a procession, and the
Star-spangled Banner should triumphantly wave throughout the entire
line.
Jolly fun may be had in the after part of the day, by setting an old
barn on fire.
Very often the boys’ fathers or uncles own a barn that they would
rather have out of the way than not, and the Fourth of July is the most
appropriate time in the entire year for a conflagration. When a barn is
to be fired, be sure that it is carefully prepared beforehand, with a
coating of tar and long wisps of tarred paper, and the boys cannot be
too cautious not to get on fire themselves.
Should boys not be successful in finding a barn to burn up, perhaps
they could find a dead tree on a friend’s vacant lot. A tree would
make a perfect tower of flame, and could be seen for miles around.
It, too, will blaze all the fiercer if you apply a coating of pitch.
Those engaged in this sport should wear their oldest clothing, in order
not to make themselves a nuisance to their mothers and sisters or
thoughtlessly waste their fathers’ money.
Perhaps some of the boys would like a receipt for a powerful noise. It
is simple enough—nothing but chlorate of potash and sulphur mixed; you
should put several pieces of paper around it, though, and hammer it
down as heavy as you can.