COURANTINS. 231 



shower of fire, which is called golden rain. The method of con- 

 structing them is as follows. 



Fill the barrels of some goose quills with the composition of fly. 

 ing-rockets, and place upon the mouth of each a little moist gun- 

 powder, both to keep in the composition, and to serve as a match. 

 If a flying-rocket be then loaded with these quills, they will pro. 

 duce, at the end, a very agreeable shower of fire, which on account 

 >f its beauty has been called golden rain. 



CHAP. VI. 



SOME ROCKETS DIFFERENT IN THEIR EFFECT FROM 

 COMMON ROCKETS. 



very amusing and ingenious works are made by mean 

 of simple rockets, of which it is necessary that we should here give 

 the reader some idea. 



SECTION I. 



Of Courantintj or Rockets which Jly along a Rope. 



A COMMON rocket, which however ought not to be very large, 

 may be made to run along an extended rope. For this purpose, 

 affix to the rocket an empty cartridge, and introduce into it the 

 rope which is to carry it ; placing the head of the rocket towards 

 that side on which you intend it to move : if you then set fire to the 

 rocket, adjusted in this manner, it will run along the rope without 

 stopping, till the matter it contains is entirely exhausted. 



If you are desirous that the rocket should move in a retrograde 

 direction ; first till one half of it with the composition, and cover it 

 with a small round piece of wood, to serve as a partition between it 

 and that put into the other half; then make a hole below this par. 

 tition, so as to correspond with a small canal filled with bruised 

 powder, and terminating at the other i nd of the rocket : by these 

 means the fire, when it ceases in the first half of the rocket, will be 

 communicated through the hole into the small canal, which will 



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