Artificial fire-works — Reading Companion

ARTIFICIAL FIRE-WORKS,

Improved to the MODERN PRACTICE,

From the MINUTEST to the HIGHEST Branches;

Aigrettes Amber-lights Balloons Batteries Chinese Fire-Ships Cohorns Cones Crackers Cascades Dodecadrons Ducks Earthquakes Flights Flyers Fountains Gerbes Globes Gold-Rain Grand Volutes Leaders Lights Mines Matches Mortars Marrons Moons Neptune’s Chariot Potts Pumps Rain-Fall Rockets Sea-Fights Silver-Rain Spur-Fire Squibs Stars Sky-Rockets Swans Swarms Thunder in Rooms Towering-Rockets, double and single Tourbillons Trees Water Fire-Works Wheels Yew-Trees

With all their Ingredients, Compositions, Preparations, Machines, Moulds, and Manner to make them, refining Salt-Petre, and to extract it from damaged Gunpowder, &c.

With about 100 of the principal Figures beautifully engraved on Copper Plates.

With the ADDITION of many new and beautiful Fire-Works, and 3 large Copper-Plates.

Lieutenant in the Royal Regiment of ARTILLERY.

Printed for J. MILLAN, near Whitehall. (Price 7s, 6d.)

TO SIR CHARLES FREDERICK, KNIGHT OF THE MOST NOBLE ORDER OF THE BATH, SURVEYOR GENERAL OF HIS MAJESTY’S ORDNANCE, AND FELLOW OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY, AT LONDON. THIS TREATISE ON ARTIFICIAL FIREWORKS IS HUMBLY INSCRIBED BY HIS MOST OBEDIENT AND MUCH OBLIGED HUMBLE SERVANT,

I shall not pretend to say any thing here concerning the origin of Fireworks; those who are willing to be better informed of that point, may have recourse to the treatise of M. F***, on that subject, who has handled this point in a most elaborate manner; and perhaps it may be no displeasing surprize to the reader, to find that, while he imagines himself only concerned about an invention which, he could not have thought to have subsisted above 422 years, he is carried gradually back to the age of Augustus, and from thence to the time of the Trojan war.

It is sufficient for me that Fireworks have subsisted a long time, and still continue to do so among the politest nations of both Europe and Asia. I am very well aware that it may here be objected, there are already treatises published on this subject, and some of those voluminous ones; but then those are either translations from the French and Italian authors, &c. which in themselves are both imperfect and erroneous; or else they are very small abridgments, and those little, not of the art itself, only on some particular branches of it.

I have endeavoured, in the following treatise, to avoid prolixity as much as possible without being obscure; the rules I have laid down, are as plain as was in my power to make them, and I have endeavoured to carry the reader in by the most gradual manner, from the minutest circumstances to the highest, and have been careful to keep to the subject I first proposed, only as an Essay on Artificial Fire-works. I own I cannot help reflecting with some kind of chagrin, that, whenever we have had occasion for any of these sort of diversions to be exhibited in England, we have almost always had recourse to foreigners to execute them; if this has been owing to the ignorance of our own people on this subject, I shall be very happy if it is in my power to correct it; if it is only owing to that prevailing fondness we entertain for every thing that is foreign, I know no remedy for that evil but time and experience.

Colonel Amherst Lumney Arnold, Esq; Captain Anderson Mr. Thomas Ardesoif Thomas Appreece, Esq; Lieutenant Abbot Mr. Nenon Armstrong John Archbold, Esq;

Sir Richard Betenson, Baronet Lieutenant-General Belford Lieutenant-Colonel Brome Captain Buchannan Captain Richard Bowles Charles Booth, Esq; Captain Burt Captain Bothwick Captain Basset Captain Henry Balfour Captain Henry Brasier Christopher Bath, Esq; Captain Bettesworth Lieutenant Blomfield Lieutenant Bellew Lieutenant Barbutt Lieutenant Bruere Lieutenant Burton Lieutenant Brady Lieutenant Burgh Lieutenant Burrows Lieutenant Brietzcke Lieutenant Barber Lieutenant Browne Ensign Bertie Mr. Bertie ―――― Burk, Esq; Mr. Burford.

Lieutenant-Colonel Chenevix Lieutenant-Colonel Cleaveland Lieutenant-Colonel Carlton Major A. Campbell The Honourable Lucius Ferdinand Cary Captain Campbell Captain Clark Captain Charlton Thomas Cunningham, Esq; John Cockburn, Esq; Cecil Calvert, Esq; John Cathcart, Esq; Partrick George Craufurd, Esq; Lieutenant Chapman Lieutenant Richard Chapman Thomas Chowne, Esq; ―――― Cooke, Esq;

Lieutenant-General Durand Sir Charles Davers Colonel Desaguliers Lieutenant-Colonel Dalling Major Dade Captain Debbeig Captain Dixon Captain Desbrisay Captain Davis George Durant, Esq; Henry Pelham Davis, Esq; Lieutenant Durnford Lieutenant Dixon Lieutenant Douglass Lieutenant Downing Mr. Decosta

Lieutenant-General Elliot Sir John Eyles Styles, Baronet ―――― Edmonds, Esq.

Sir Charles Frederick, Knight of the Bath William Farrell, Esq; William Charles Farrell, Esq; Captain Christopher French Captain Fuller Captain French

The Right Honourable the Marquiss of Granby Lieutenant-Colonel Godwin Captain Gordon Captain Garth Captain Gray Captain George Lieutenant Garstin Lieutenant Grose Lieutenant Gossip John Henry Grose, Esq; Jacob Grose, Esq; Mr. Gresse