At Christmas, we have crackers made of paper shaped like a tube with a small strip inside which can be pulled at both ends to produce a BANG like a cap pistol or a fire cracker. Hence the name , I suppose. The paper tube usually also contains a paper hat, a motto/joke, and a little toy. Some are very expensive and the favours inside are quite elegant. Most of us just buy the inexpensive ones as a reminder of times past.