The Indianola Enterprise. (Indianola, Okla.), Vol. 4, No. 41, Ed. 1 Friday, July 3, 1908 Page: 4 of 8
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VEOS,
\JHT ~~ 1 1. ftv,
GP.KARD C/1AP.1.1/V - C i
Gee, don't I wish the Fourth wuz hercj
For I c'n hardly wait
Until the days jest catch up with
That Name red-fiR^cr date. (
I got a lot o' fire-works.
Oh, morc'n \ou Could think;
A bully:tannon made of hra^^-
-knjiry'makes you blink- ,
/ \ .I
C Tft'c minute that I get awake,-
^^ou, four O'clock or vo,
\( Yoii -bet I'll hi/ttlv in my. clothcs
: The Fourth:
I in Boomville\
Celebration At I>escribwl
the Small Boy.
by
'^Xii^An' grab my ho*, an' «o
! A-k|tin' out behind the tarn
v /\n' light my punk - an'
Vim won't |hear nothin' i^iuch but noise /
• -th, r„,.hul,A*^j^
r\ I \f\
grt.sh ! t^lar ain c
VTOy^hat'll happen ^ _
It -gctVfight dark. You jest be jherel"
^You'll ^scc some Join's, then.
We'll -break in Si tlje blaoksmithy sbopj
And, k<M hks qnvlls out * , f
An' M)(> ot them all around tiie town:
Then there'll be itaise, don' doubt.
^ Xs.. }
-'x\
Afore each house we'll set on^. doJn .
An' P°«rl ,he( PP*der in, ^ ^
,-An' set the jothe^tW on top- ^
v-tjien jqs^ youSfiear\he din! J! \\
mstanc
v;
Aortic)folks^fcom^ n-ruyi^in' out mkiV^
An' and jrAsxf Jpaurful, row; ' ' x
/ Rut ,inost'l} Jlaut b, like' f^rn, an' shou;
Vj st get along), bov
), v\a | i 1
Oh, gee
hh the Fourth
But Ma se/\^1ercy me!
Why you're so set on gettin'^burtiSi
An' blisters, I can't see."^^.!"
But shucks! who cares for things like that?
A boy's ma never learns
As how he has jest loads o' fun
A-gettin' an those burns!
; On the Glorious ;
j Fourth ;
And when «t eve lu wandered home,
Am tired as he could be,
lit* unld "I love the Glorious Fourth
'Tin u day w hat J«'St suits iih< "
j Br MAUD WAIXfJl *
+* +**** **** * * + * ?
w
1T11 many fit. . i ui lu in in his hand
Jome mflMiei Ui J.il* | «HK«M,
Hip f !p fnir«•> ! !>* i.-hf'W
And one Immense U> rocket
Thus little mily wandered for •
Moot Joyously to try
To i'l'lcbrato In the right
TI. (ilorlous Fourth of Juh
lie fell In line b. 1 hid t \ and
That pltt.vod "It.,I \> 11 and I .
H« san* to help tin • along
Though the words ! «• tu-ver Knew
Then t<. the Cel^t'i. t .-n ■ oourd*
He marched with gaM.tnt ti. ui
And listened ul-.i:<> a W.Mwlr.-.jf \tnn
"Th*- l>e« laratlon read
Then eome the picnic dinner
Spread 'neath n greet on u tret
And little HiHv at.- his till
While the bund played ' "Liberty."
And all the rest the day was spent
In making fan and im'*,
•hooting lots of flre*rack Mb off
With all the girls and boys
THE ONE DAY.
I SI//.! lloosn! HftnK'
Vou can't k«4I nwny.
- you may n« well ^t«y
To tho big show.
It will positively appear
Mm onro this venr.
I'romptly at midnight
The rod light
ltoglt\K t > Turn
\ud ^o one dares tu
1 Tt low
Until tho last flrecrackti ha- I" • n « \.
plodrd
Hark, children, tho day i« loaded,
And you'll Know It when yon hiv It
j I'lihsa yotir oar muffs tit
Protty quick.
| it is tho r«'llc\ action ( f tho hip stick
Tho only and original grand aggrega-
tion of noise.
Come and bring your boy*
AN EXPLANATION.
Why is Fourth of July anyhow,
I Fiddle?"
Why —- ©r — you see — Christopher
ColunkbuB or George Washington dls-
| covered it in 1492. an so we don't
have no school on that day!"
U^M^UOMVIUJ. Win cv.
M' '31 hiati th* \.
Sammy Smith and
I ftOlHi with out
bandit In our pocket■
fa! Day.*'
and road the uotlce lu flainiitK red !•••
tern as "C> Smith unrolled the poHt* r
r«-, .t:story to taekiBi it on Dm
Maston * shoo nhop We didn't und«:
■Uad what tbat
natal duv" btifl
nets meant, hut
celebrate" — that
could only mean
one thing this sea
son of the year.
W hoopoe!
Cracky! iiootu'
and Sammy and i
shied a tin can at
"Doc" Hlaston
wtter pup and dui.
down the alley a
Tied a Can on the fust "h broMU
pUp legs could carry ti?
Hey! Stub. It's
a goin' to be; they're puttln' the bill
! up now." stub dropped tho bait can
half full of worms and Joined the pro
clalmers of the Klad tidings Two
minutes lator we ended up iu front of
the bill to read further
"1 call that a mighty neat Job of
prlntln'," said the editor of the Week
ly Banner, who had happened along
"We broke the claws holdln' the ar
rows off our eagle wood cut two years
ago and blamed If we could find the
piece this year The old bird looked !
mighty squatty until we hit upon |
bavin' him sit on that lojr from the
Mink I.umber Company's ad "
"Looks like that old turkey buzzard
that roosts on the rotten log in i)ea
con Shulfeeorn's pasture," sniffed old
Prnf Kraln. Krain hat! started u
paper in opposition to the Banner
three years before, but it had fizzled
out after Intermittent issues for six J
months.
Hut there wasn't anything squatty j
about the birds of freedom, as far as wi
kids could st^ Hcnidei we were busy I
rending down further what was going |
to happen.
"Fine shade, grand music, magnlfl |
cent parade, most eloquent speakers |
In the state. Races' Haces! Races! 1
Hall games, climbing tho greased pole, j
catching the greased pig. a grand
spectacular exhibition of tight-rope
walking by Capt. Me Main.
"The grand finale, $95 50 worth of
fireworks, let off from a stand In
front of the city calaboose." These
were a few of the features that would
mar tho usual lethargy of Uoomville
on July 4.
"Shore goin' to have worth of
fireworks; there'll be pin wheels, giant
Are crackers and skyrockets, till you
can't rest," said Sid Girkens. "I
know, cause dad was at tho meetin'
the night they voted to have 'em "
It had been five years since Moom-
vllle had had a celebration. For 11!
years before that
time the eagle
hud screamed in
vociferous I ash-
Ion as regular as
Independence day
came around. That
was when the
boom was on the
town. In those
days .leff l>ascom
gave $150 to buy
fireworks. Jeff bor-
rows his chewing
tobacco now The
bubble had burst-
ed. the lean days
[lad ci>m^ and patriotism had waned
in Boomville
The celebration this year was due
if young Leon Talbert who had bought
out old Shoebucklet's general mer-
chandise store He had offered to
give |2.r as the first contribution. His
rival in business, old "Han Turner,
across the street growled and said he |
did it Just for advertisement
A man's business was the last thing
attended to in Boomville dining the
next three weeks Floats had to ho
built for the Uoddess of Liberty and
her attendants to ride on lloomvllle
had no trees that would do as a shade, !
for the drought three years before had 1
killed even the trees in the city park.
W here the young cottouwoods. -U feet I
tall used to grow was an oat field.
Beside the oat Held was a stretch of
ground that once bore the appella- i
lion of "Baseom boulevard Joe"
Skinner said he'd have the la t crop
of potatoes on that ground this year
ever raised in Boomville. if the bugs
didr'# hit 'em or the hot winds blow.
"I reckon they ought to b< better j
than ordinary, bein raised ou that
hlgh-flutin' ground," he used to tting ;
at Joe Daseom. who helped him hoe
them.
\ thin lint of cottouwoods and a
few scragged elms on Cow skin creek, !
five miles away, were the nearest i
trees to Boomville now. Jim Metiood j
solved the shade problem lie would ;
build an arbor, himself, if they would
give him the sole privilege of seUiug ,
lemonade and Ice cream near by Jim's ;
offer was accepted.
On July 3 Sammy Smith and 1 were
pretty busy. We kept the road warm j
between the place where Jim McGood i
was putting leafy branches of cotton-
wood, brought from the Cow skin
grove, over a frame work of plunk, and
the back part of the liverv stable
whtre the floats were belu£ docked lu
Turned the Freezer.
tinsel and red white and blue banting.
W« nevei bad any real fun until late
in th" afternoon, when we tied a can
on "iJut " Bias:on'* setter pup and set
• /flP a bunch of flreera* ken In It.
We hated "Doc" Blanton and had
even less regard for his setter
pup. becanh wouldn't chase a
Jack rabbit We were sorry after-
wards we did It. for that premature
ran spoiled a whole lot of fun next
Jay. Kvery dop in B •<mville de
< atiiped that night even the cats
ousted In the tr« •• ft r two davs
\ houin ti.i i.lUbd the w.udow
ames awakened me before da^ next
moitiiuK With no hat and only orie
- i itender ovet my shoulder 1 scurried
iown to t m V Billy's blacksmith shop
t n«*|e Bill) was out in front sheading
off the amil He had a whole quart
• an of powd'-r Carefully the squaie
was filled with pew
d r and a hardwood plug whittled to
tit it A goruve iu one side of the plug
was left f< t the fuse Uncle Blllv
• ratched the match down the leg of
li■ > overalls, touched the fuse and then
hurried behind the shop door. Th*
aged blacksmith was slU'htlv deaf and
liked a noisy Fourth. Thirteen times
the powdej was poured in and touched
off.
The events of that day crowded
ipon each other fast and furious The
•trade started half an hour late be-
«ause the (ioddoss couldn't get her
brown hair waving to the best, effect
\fter the parade things dragged a lit-
le until the speaking began We
wouldn't have
stayed around near
the speaking ex-
cept we sometimes
got a dish of Ice
cream for turning
a freezer for Jim
The Hon. Tim
othy Todhunter
gave the oration
and Deacon lleffle
tower read the
Declaration of In-
dependence. That
Is he started to
read it. He had
taken a copy of
the declaration
from his hip pocket and started to read
when Sammy Smith touched a cannon
cracker off behind the speakers' stand.
The deacon was naturally very excit-
able. He tried to proceed but his
hands Jerked spasmodically. Sudden
ly tho declaration parted in the mid-
dle where It had been folded in the
deacon's pocket. They sent after a
new declaration, hut the crowd had
left before it arrived.
The greased pig had been caught
and tho entries were Just in for the
slippery pole climbing exhibition when
my recollection came to a vivid close
That night about nine o'clock ' wantu
up with a bandaged eye, a swollen
Jaw and one arm in a sling. They told
me Sammy Smith had climbed 'er and
I went to sleep happy.
UNCLE DICK'S 0 «
"WONDERFUL
KlROCKE
J
He Bf*t thp men if work untwUtin*
rope* until tliey liail tuurc than ,00
feet all unraveled 1'nrle Dick went
up the derrick and | the end of th
unraveled rope Into tut bottom part of
tho rocket. Then he [>oured kerosen#
oil all over tt and rubbed gunpowder
Into It
That afternoon t'nele Dick v nt out
Invitations both by mail and by mes-
senger to places as far away as L'OO
miles, saying:
"Jimmy Broderlch respectfully in-
vit«s you to his Uncle Dick's farm to
see him set off the biggest skyrocket
in tho world on tit evening of th«
Fourth of July."
Uncle Dick also sent word to th*
papers about it, and on the evening of
the Fourth more than 10,000 people
were at (he farm, wondering at the im.
The Dracon Was
Very Excitable
For the Babies.
"I want to get some fireworks for my j
little boy—something that will be safe !
for him to set <>fT by himself," explains
the young mother.
"Yes, ma'am," replied the courteous
dealer "How old Is your little boy?"
He'll be 14 months and two days
old to-morrow."
"I don't believe we have anything he J
could be trusted with."
"Oh, dear! Haven't you any safety
pin-wheels ?"
1M.MT BRODKK1CK S Uncle Dick
was not only a meat inventor.
but one of the kindest men that
ever lived.
Although lie earned his living by in
venting useful things like automatic
, plows that Would plow a whole Held In
the night time while the farmer lay in
bed a>leep, and automatic fish poles
that would bait their own hooks and
throw out their own lines and pull in
I their own fish and lake them off and
; halt the hooks over again, still Uncle
Dick was ready at a minute's notice to
drop all that sort of thing and invent
bomeihlng to give a boy pleasure And
you will agree thai a nephew who has
an uncle like that has a treasure.
Jimmy Broderlck knew this and he
took great care of Uncle Dick, carrying
an umbrella for him when it rained and
watching to see that he ate his meals
regularly, for like nil great inventors.
I nele Dick could not take care of him
self very well.
"What would you like for the Fourth |
j of July. Jimmy?" asked Uncle Dick
about a week before that important
day.
"I would like most of all to have a
great big sky rocket." s:ild Jimmy.
"You shall have one," said Ills uncle.
and immediately went into his inven-
tory shop, which 1s the funny name
that he gave to tlie Utile room where
he invented things.
The telephone bell rang a good deal
that day. On* the very next morning a
big truck arrived from the cltv with
lwo big casks on it. They were painted
red and marked "Danger! Powder!" in
big letters There were also huge rolls
of thick pasteboard, each sheet big j
enough to make the whole side of a j
house and there were so many of
th-m that the horses could hardly pull j
them.
Uncle Dick rubbed his bands and I
chuckled like anything when he saw.
the material.
"You shall certainly have a sky-1
rocket," said he to Jim iv "And the I
best of it Is that the i eater part of j
the country for hundn ils of miles 1
around will have one, too."
Jimmy was very curious and still
moio puzzled, but he knew that Uncle skyrocket and trembling al!
Dick did not like to explain his lnven- [ l>ver at ,ho thought of the explosion
Hons beforehand, so he asked no ques- wlien she went off And all over the
tlons, but merely kept his eyes open ' land PeoP'o n'ho could not go to the
and did not go out of sight of the In- j fann were watching the heavens and
ventory shop all morning. i WlnR very little attention to the oth-
Before noon a great gang of men ar- I "r "reworks of tke United States, ba-
rived, and under Uncle Dick's orders j ''ause the papers had told all about the
they began to carry all the material to! roclfet and had explained that it could
the pasture, where they deposited it I 1,0 seen I'undreds of miles when it
around a huge old dead pine tree that j wen_t up.
stood smooth and straight reaching! When the time came. Uncle Dick
"Ten Thousand People W*re There."
)
into the air fully SO feet without
branch to break it except on the very
top, and that was soon gone, too. for
I tide Dick sent men up there and
they lopped it off so that then the
tree stood sleek and smooth like a
mast.
Then the sheets of pasteboard were
laid on the ground and rolled into a
great cylinder .10 feet long and at least
ten feet in diameter.
As soon as a sheet was rolled into
shape the nun tied it tightly with
yards on yards of rope and then an-
other sheet was rolled around the first
gave Jimmy a big piece of lighted punk
and the.i he stood in front of the tree
and said:
"Ladies and Gentlemen: You will
notice that this tree is inclined toward
the north. My calculations tell me
that when the rocket is lit it will pull
the tree clear out of the ground and
go north for at least 1,000 miles, which
will bring it over uninhabited country,
where it will fall without hurting any-
body, unless a bear or a moose should
set In the way. Now. Jimmy, touch
her off!"
Jimmy touched the end of the fuse
Ouoth Tom •
noT 1o honoi' "1fte
July-
Id consider
U.tTiri£>' diXgy,5.<^e •
Me honored -
is line sjwd veison.vvhy
Younj lomrrvy t's
tAjlino' "Ihvo' $ fAV.!
A Bit Of Advice.
'l*1e th« thumbs on little Willie
As* h«« wanders forth to play.
It inny look a tittle silly.
But hell need tho thumb? some day
He may chafe at the restriction
And protest against the plan.
But you'll have his benediction
When he gets to be a man
Where to Draw the Line.
We hear a good deal about a sane
Fourth, but what Is really needed is
the ability to draw the line between
harmless noise and a combination of
train wreck, dynamite explosion and
war with the improved implements of
modern warfare.
and more rope tied around that and ; and then everybody ran away to a safe
so on until all the pasteboard had been | '^stance. The fire climbed swiftly, and
used up. and that was such a lot that j suddenly with a bang that shook the
It took the men all day w ith the hardest | l!"ls an(' broke the windows even in
kind of work. towns 100 miles away, the giant rocket
1 he next day they opened the casks went off.
of powder and began to load it In and ' came the tree roots and all, and
in. hour after hour, until the last grain ! sailed grandly Into the sky with a hiss-
ing trail of fire behind i! The amazed
spectators watched it for more than
half an hour, getting smaller and
smaller, till it disappeared in the
northern sky.
For days after that the paper printed
reports from distant places from peo-
ple who had seen a wonderful fiery
thing in the night. By means of these
reports, it was possible for Uncle Dick
io pursue the course of his wonderful
rocket until he found that it had gone
far over Canada but he could nop
learn where it had fallen and he did
not learn until recently
But about a week ago a hunter who
had been in the very far north of Can-
ada. near Hudson bay shooting mirk
oxen, visited Uncle Dick He told a lot
of interesting hunting adventures, and
finally said:
"The queerest thing that I saw was
far up in the barren lands where there
are no trees. One day I saw something
odd some distance away, and 1 went
there on my snow shoes.
What do you supiwise I found? A
mighty tree! That was queer enough
up there. But queerer still was the fact
that this tree did not stand in tho
So! There's 800 pounds of powder ground as other trees do. but stood
in there. 1 hat ought to make her fly j roots up with its crown buried deeply
Hut how about the stick?" thought in the soil. It was the most marvelous
Jininiv Ho did not say it. knowing sight I have even seen, and I can hard-
how easy it Is to spoil an inventor s ly believe it yet. 1 wouid give a good
"A Great Cylinder 30 Feet Long."
was pounded in good and hard, and
Jimmy's Uncle Dick said:
ideas by interrupting him with friv-
olous conversation.
He was to learn very soon how about
the stick, for ns soon as the mighty
cylinder was all finished. Uncle Dick
deal to know what caused this strang®
freak of nature "
Uncle Dick chuckled and winked at
Jimmy.
"Did you ever hear of Jimmy's won-
had a derrick rigged, and up went tl.e derful skyrocket?" he asked
big thing until it dangled alongside of "No, never," said the hunter You
thu dead pine tree near the dizzy ton know I have been in the wilderness a
°t It. - long time."
Tt-en mighty cables were sent up So Uncle Dick told him After he
and the men lashed the loaded paste- Kot through the hnnter sa^ri 1 am
board cylinder to the tree until it was glad to know this I intended to write
ci mpletely hidden by ropes. a book about it. but now 1 shall be
Now for the fuse, said Lncle Dick able to save myself the trouble."
1)
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Williams, B. W. The Indianola Enterprise. (Indianola, Okla.), Vol. 4, No. 41, Ed. 1 Friday, July 3, 1908, newspaper, July 3, 1908; (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc269298/m1/4/: accessed April 23, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.