To Make Touch Paper
Dissolve in some spirits of wine or vinegar, a little saltpetre; then
take some purple or blue paper, wet it with the above liquor, and when
dry it will be fit for use. When you paste this paper on any of your
works, take care that the paste does not touch that part which is to
burn.
The method of using this paper is, by cutting it into slips, long
enough to go once round the mouth of the serpent, cracker, &c. When
you paste on these slips, leave a little, above the mouth of the case,
not pasted; then prime the case with meal-powder (see p. 165) and
twist the paper to a point.