Show n ahn I 1 adte 61 s about the fourth of july dy pa HE legislatures of seven states and the city councils of scores of cities have passed laws prohibiting hi the use of fire works on the fourth ot july this adverse legislation which began na as early as 1901 has haa so 80 swept over the country that the ot of july celebration this year will bo be a radical departure from rom the old time methods of honor ing this auspicious day dak the terrible loss of life that has accompanied every fourth of july celebration in recent years yeara la Is the cause ot of this legislation the present generation does not remember that during the latter part ot of the eighteenth century aid aed even during the greater part of the nineteenth there were no such fireworks and explosives as an are used today in celebrating the anniversary of independence pen dence our forefathers fore fathera in knes breeches and powdered hair celebrated the day chiefly by patriotic speeches and dInne rii every club every society and organization net met around tho the festive board and honored the day in song and story the nature of the speeches and dinners varied with the locality but tn in ono one respect all were the same they agreed absolu absolutely tey in tho the number of toasts it was the custom to have thirteen toasts representing of course the thirteen original states with the admission of new states this custom died out probably because the banquet banque tera bre were unable to drink so BO much parades in the larger towns were w cre features of the celebration during the early years of the republic but the principal part of the celebration was the banquet lan ani and its oratory in recent years however there has been a great falling off in I 1 the he exuberant qualities of patriotic oratory and the day has been celebrated with mere noise the tha prophecy of john adams has hag orne true the day Is celebrated wl with h pomp and parade with shows gages bathes sports guns bells bonfires and illuminations from one end of the country to the other oratory prayer and draese are forgotten and the old time decorous celebration of the day has haa seemingly passed away forever it should not bo be taken from this that there was no noise connected with the ea early aly celebrations quite the contrary nry salutes ot of guns were fired bells were rung anti and in the evening tar barrels were burned but there nasr wn not the continuous succession nt f noises which mark the celebration today nor was there any list of dead and injured injure on the day following nearly every jf a 4 city who can do so goes out of town to avoid tho the noise ot of the fourth just the re verae was true of the erly celebrations the first big celebration was held in boston in 1779 all tho the vessels in tho the harbor fired salutes in the morning and the day given up to oratory prayer anti ami praise SIet societies les mid organizations hold held banquets banque tg at noun noon and in tha evening tf nd the eele celo bration was waa concluded with tha burning ax of 0 tar bareisis and more moie salutes roro rom th tb ships in the harbor early earli iii la tho the nineteenth century are clr works began to have a place in tho celebration these were harmless and simple compared with the nerve shat bering explosives which are put on the market today pt only were they less dangerous arid and noisy 1 bl b ut the their ir use was r restricted estrict ed to a comparatively small number of people those who were wera unable to get fireworks got out their muskets and shot them oft kofl others fired improvised cannons even blacksmiths got out their anvils and by placing powder in little holes were able to touch it off so that it made a satisfactory amount of noise with the increase of the noise came the decrease in the patriotic orations ora tlona and prayers before the fiftieth cafe bration of the day had bad been observed noise had almost entirely supplanted oratory tho the question today Is how should the fourth of july be celebrated the manner in which it Is celebrated many declare Is not in entire keeping with the spirit of the day nor the comfort tind and pleasure of the majority of c citizens I 1 t IZ en a those who would reform the manner of celebration say the day should be kept not so much in remembrance of the feats of american firms arms as for the spirit of liberty and progress it should be a true festival without for getting the claims of the young there should be civic banquets gatherings at which the progress made la in all lines during the past year could bo be reviewed there should be oratory and speeches in every community with an effort to make tho the celebration celebi atlon more like the early observances a aces there should be professions processions process g ions but they should be less military in char actor acter than formerly and quite as important there should be no monster concerts and entertainments where nobody has a good time but divers where every one can enjoy himself the tha day should be uslie ushered red in with martial music and sufficient je U t ra military display to be in keeping with the acirit of the occasion iut but orations feasts itna banquets exercises for children and public gatherings should be bb the real features of the celebration in the evening there should be fireworks the less dolsy and the more spectacular the better tin the day Is 1 celebrated in this way there will be ba EO 10 occasion for people of refined and sensitive nerves to leabu the city to escape the noise and crowds say the reformers in fact tho the celebration list proposed will attract nth act rather than disperse them and it if maxims new nevy noiseless gun la Is adopted there Is no reason why tho the problem of a safe nate and s tie ne fourth cannot be ba solved for till iu time |