> Actually, fires can be started from a match if a mouse chews on the strike-anywhere kind. These matches are now virtually extinct, for this reason among others. The next time you find one, hit the head with a hammer!

> zK


But why would a mouse chew on a match? Does he plan to eat it? Is he going to build a nest out of it? Who knows what goes on in a little mouse brain, but unless he has a purpose, he won't waste his energy.

On the other hand, I bought a 23-year-old Honda the other day and there was a mouse nest under the seat. The little beast had chewed the insulation off all of the wires that go to the tail light, brake light and turn signals. The whole aft end of the scooter had to be re-wired!

> I am not responsible if you are blinded, set >ablaze, or killed by actually doing this. The >match will EXPLODE though! I forget where I read this, some encyclopedia or something.

No problem. I don't even need to look in an encyclopedia. When I was a kid back in the 40's, I used to buy a 5 cent box of kitchen matches and they would keep me entertained all day. I leaned to throw one down on the sidewalk is such a way as to cause it to ignite. We also learned to make "match shooters" out of a clothes pin. They struck the match and shot the flaming little missile about six feet. I never mastered the art of striking a match with a fingernail, or on my pants, but a lot of kids could do it. It took a crack shot to light a match with a bullet. I saw my father do it once. He stuck a match in the top of a fence post, stepped back about ten feet, and with a .22 rifle, he lit it up with the first shot. After 60 years, I'm still impressed by that.

And yes, we used to hit match heads with a hammer. The explosion is small, but loud.

I don't remember ever getting burned or starting a wildfire while playing with matches. Those safety folks spoil all of the fun.
Howard