My three older brothers and their friends always seemed to be involved in exciting adventures in the neighborhood. They built "forts" on Niles Hill in a mysterious place known only as the Big Rock. They had a cabin in the back yard and once even began digging a deep hole until my mother discovered that there was iminent danger of collapse and put an end to it. Then there were the wars with the kids who lived across the river on Woodlawn Avenue.
As the pesky kid sister, I wasn't included in their adventures but I took advantage of one of their abandoned tree platforms, spending many a summer afternoon there with fictional girl sleuth Judy Bolton. I did not endear myself to them when I snuck into the cabin one afternoon while they were off fighting their wars and tattled about the contraband cigarettes I found there.
So when I was introduced to my friend Jeffrey's "Cousin Artie," I heard tales of their childhood adventures on the family farm ....cap guns, caps being exploded with rocks and carbide cannons.
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| carbide cannon fun on Crandall Hill Jeffrey and Arthur demonstrate to a young Tommy Gilliland |
A carbide cannon is still known to be among the safest noise makers. The carbide reacts with water to form acetylene gas and when mixed with oxygen inside the cannon's chamber, it creates a small explosion. Google showed me examples of pre-made carbide cannons for fun and for chasing pesky birds
Arthur tells me that coffee cans worked the best back when coffee cans were really cans with a lid that you removed using a key to twist off the seal. What worked even better were glass jars and that process involved knowing exactly when to throw them against a tree. He scanned his palm to find the scar from the time he held on to the jar a little too long.
That little can of carbide is still around here somewhere ...
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