The times dispatch. [volume], July 03, 1910, Society and Current Events, Page 5, Image 29

About The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914

Image provided by: Library of Virginia; Richmond, VA

                
For a Same Fourth?Whole Nation Arousecl?Scores of Cities .
Enroll Uedler Bairaer?Some Ghastly Statistics of Carnage
.V "Joliy Fourth" VI. tlm Arrlving nt ilonpltnl, Mornlng After tbe Fourth.
Tableau Contumes, Cbarlottcavillr, \ u.,
"Snne Fourth," 1000.
There aro golng "safe and sane" on
thls vexed Fourth of July questlon
almost as many communltles as havo
Sone dry on the Ilquor questlon. A
natlon-wlde propoganda for the re
ductlon of the red casualty roll of In?
dependence Day ls on ln dead earnest,
and I have juat come from the na?
tional headquarters here of the Amer?
lcan Clvlc Aaaoclation, whlch ls uslng
lts machinery to uwakon the nation
to the nccesslty of preventing such a
slaughter of innocents as occurred on
Independence I)ay a year ago.
Last Fourth waa bioodier than the
previous one, accordlng to the lately
complled statlstics of the American
Medlcal Association. Thero were only
a. thlrd more deaths and double the
number of lockjaw cases due dlrectly
to exploslons and flro used ln cele
bratlng independence. Thls gory rec?
ord has spurred to action leaders in
the various clvlc Improvement move
mentB. A list of communltlea that
wlll have "safe and sanV Fourths
thls year has been furnlshed to me
by Rlchard B. Watrous, secretary of
the American Clvlc Assoclatlon.
The dynamlte cracker, toy pistol and
blank cartrldge havo been put out of
business in the wholo State of Massa?
chusetts by a blll lately signed by
/Governor Draper, and twenty-one
other Governors have enllsted under
the sane Fourth banner.
Cltlesi Korbldding Fireworks.
The sa'.e and exploslon of fireworks
of all klnds are forbidden in Wash?
lngton, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Toledo,
Baltimore, Lafayette, Ind., Le Mars,
lowa, and St. Petersburg, Fla. 'U'ash
Ington, Cleveland and Baltimore
showed the country last year how
great cltles may hold an unexplosive
Fourth, and the capital clty as a re?
sult reduced lts 104 hospltal cases of
1908 to none, whlle there were no
deaths whlch could be attributed to
the celebratlon. The chlldren denied
the handlli.g of exploslves enjoyed.
instead. a public display of "daylight
fireworks" in the Market space in the
mornlng and in the Mail in tho after?
noon, a gorgeous automoblle parade
later ln tho aftrenoon and elaborate
nlght fireworks on the elllpse behind
the Whlto House. N'ot a cracker was
exploded by any IndSvidual cltizen
durlng the day, and not only were
thero no "Fourth of July accidents,"
but fewer arrests than usual. Cleve?
land op the same day was protected
by an ordlnance fixing penaltles for
selling or uslng fireworks, flrearms,
explosives or flre balloons up to 5100
flne and thirty days imprisonment in
the workhouse. And instead ot handllng
these thlngs themselvesv the*. young
aters wltnessed pyrotechnlc displays
in the public parks. under the man?
agement or the Board of Public Ser?
vice. In this mannor the death record
?was reduced from twelvo In 190S, to.
Bone in 1909. Baltlmore's Mayor re-'
fused to use tho power vested in hlm
to. grant permlts for the exploslon of
tit'eworks, and as a result there was
only one death and a marked reduc
tlon of latallties.
Restrteted, But Xot Prohlblted.
One ot Boston'a city ofllclals an
nounced just before last Independence
Day, that he wanted tho people to
"warm up and let the world know
they were alive." Then when tho
smoke of carnage clearod away fivo
wore found dead?two shol down, three
givlng up their llves as human torches
?and 1G7 lay injured, some wlth "eyes
fclown out and others wlth hands,
fingers and ears torn off. So thls
year Boston, in addition to rooeivlng
the protection of the new State law,
Tlie children of blood taintod parentago inherit a polluted ciroulation to
burden thelr existence wlth dlsease and suffering. Swollon glands about
the neck, weak eyes, runnlng sores and abscesses, palo, waxy complexions,
and fraiL pporly dovelopod syatems are the most usual -ways in whloh tho
dlaeaao j^ manifosted. In some cases the blood is so fiUed with the sorofu
lous germ3 that from birth, life is mado missrablo with sufforing, while iu
othor cases it is held in ohock during young, vigorous life, bvtt when tho
Bystora begins to weaken, ospecially after a spell of sickness, tho ravages of
the disease will oommence. S. S. S, is Naturo's perfoot ouro for Scrofula,
made entirely of healtMful roots, horbs aud barks, a safe raedicino foc
young or old, S*. S. S. goos into the ciroulation and drives out all.scrofu
lous mattor, and entirely removes the cause. It supplies the blood with
the healthful properties it is in nood of and ia this way builds up wealc,
frail, disoase-burdened persons andmakos them strong, robust and heaithy,
8 S. S. cures Sofofula, because it is the most perfoot of all blood purlfiera.
Book oa ttt? Slood ftad any medioal advioe free to all who write,
THE SWIFT SPECIFIC CO., ATLAtfTA, GA.
Patrlotlo Klont, Sprlnga eld, Mnss., "Sane Fourth."
has been preparing for the Fourth
by giving a courae of lectureB ln which
parents are made acquaiated wlth the
rlska they allow thelr children to run
ln permltting them to purchase fire?
works other than the tabooed cannon
crackers and blank cartrldges. Tho
Boston Globe at the aame tlmo has
been holding a letter contest, ln which
$150 ln prlzes has been awarded for
plans for a safe observance of tlie
day of days. And a "safe and sane"
Fourth committee haa aent out cir
culars to representatlve organlzatlons
suggestlng that, ln the playgrounds,
school yards or other open apaces the
children be entertained with. moving
plctures, storles about hlstorlc eventa,
plays, paradea and aporte. The com?
mlttee propoaes also mammoth bon
fires, for which the ' children may
gather inflammablo materlal during
the previoua days.
A great publlc pageant of floats de
picting bjstorlcal events rtslated to
Independence ls to pass through the
Boston streets tne mornlng of the
Fourth, the example for this means
of colebrating the hollday havlng been
set two years ago by the Hub's slster
city of Sprlngfleld. In the Springliold
pageant there were not only floats
with tableaux deplcting the "Signing
of tho Declaration" and other patrlotlc
events, but representatlve groups de
vised by foreign-born elementa of the
clty. Thla latter feature included
Greeks parading ln classlc robes,
kilted Highlandors blowing bagpipes.
Norweglans in a Viklng ship, Irish
bards, Chlnese in a float exhlbiting
beautiful tapestrics, and Ensllsbmen
in a tableau representlng the Magna
Charta. Other features ot Sprlnglield's
model programs have been band con
certs, parades of school children and
clty ofncials, athletlc contcsts and
aciuatic aports on tho Connecticut
Biver.
Some Substitiite Dellgbtat.
A "hlstorical patriotlc pageant" has
been arranged this year by the Chl?
cago "Sane Fourth Association."
United Statea troops have been ordered
to the clty, to be led by Major-General
F. D. ,Grant ln a grnnd mornlng pa?
rade, including the National Guard,
various race elementa in emblematic
floats, organlzatlons of forelgn-born
clttzens in national unlforms, repro
ductions of AYnshington's state coach
and the llberty bell; a float repre?
sentlng the slgning of tlio Declaratlon,
a detachmect of Continentala headed
by a stately rlder dlsgulsed as Gen?
eral Washlngton. and bodies represent?
lng troops ln the War of 1S12 and
Mexlcan War. In the afternoon and
evening there wll] also be mllltary
tournaments by regulars, and at nlght
a public fireworks display will delight
the childlsh heart. Chlcago has fur?
ther provided for a sane Fourth by
limiting the size of firecrackerB and
strictly forbldding blank cartrldges
and plstols, the chlef causes of Inde?
pendence Day lockjaw. These re
strictlons were also in effect last
Fourth. whose death record was there
by cut down to nll as compared to
twelve on the prevlous anniversary.
The pageant scherae for dlverting
the youthful mind from its biiherto
dangerous forms of celebratlon has
been adopted also by Pittsburg. The
parade has been arranged through
popular subscriptlon, and John W.
Alexander, the artist, with Percy Mac
Kaye, the playwrlght, has designed
the hlstorlcal features.
Phlladelphla, whlch heretofore has
had to dlstrlbute Red Cross hospltal
tents about tae clty to care for the
vlctims of the glorious Fourtn, has
been preparlng for thls year by hold
lng in tho public schools courses of
lectures warning chlldren of tho dan
gers of exploslve enthuslasm. They
wlll be entertalned by a day mllltary
parade and by a nlg.... pyrotechnlc
display under expert supervislon.
Children's games have also been ar?
ranged for j day prograrn. Xowark
ind Indianapolis, too, wlll ..ave grana
pageants.
San Franclsco has provided for three
grand colebratlons in separate play
grounds, where . patriotic exerclsos
will be accompanled'by gymnastlc ex
hibitlons, ehoral slnging, flag drills,
tableau, folk danees, salutes to the
flag, a di'ill by- school girls, a "ball
game, band concerts and a parade to
ono playgrounu by tlie chlldren them
selves.
Snfe llut Xolsy Prograrn.
A sale but noisy prograrn devlsed
by the Denver Patriotic League in
cludes many of these features adopted
by the Clty of the Golden Gate and
Minneapolis prepared for lts celebra?
tlon by havlng lts orators who spoke
to the chlldron Memorlal Day devote
a part of their addrestres to safe and
sane precautlons for the jolly Fourth.
Thls sort of preventlva campalgn has
also been wagriig through the froe
:iCture course of New York City's De?
partment of Education.
-To dlsoharge, expiode or have in
possesslon" any "toy pistol uslng a
percussion cap, scjulb, rocket, firo
crackcr, Roman eandlo or other com
bustlble fireworks," is made unlawful
by an ordinanoe just passed by fhtj
Councll ot Dayton, 0
Cards warning the publio agalnst
lockjaw dangers lurking ln Fourth of
.Tuly wounds have been distrlbuteri by
the Rochoster authoi'ltles, while Wor
c*B,t.er' ^,ft68-' "as hatl poated ln all
of its milla and pub}lo plaoes placards.
in several languages, warning against
tho firlng of plstols. Lynn, Mase,, haa
forbiddon the use of firocraokors over
two ? inohes long. Sprln&tlald, Mass.,
has. tabooorl them when more than
three inches in length, and SyraouBo
Jias put the ban on them if measurlng
Tyvo Flnger* BIotv d Off b>' Caeuon
Crncker.
over five Inchea.
Other citles which have arranged
safer and saner programs are: St.
Louls. Kansas City, Provldence, Tren
ton, Utlca and Binghamton, N. Y.;
Grand Raplds, Mich.; De Kalb, Wauke
gan and Danville, II).; Phoenix, Ariz-;
Harrisonburg-, Pa.: Colorado Springs,
Frankfort, Ky.; Oshkosh, Wis.; Jolpln,
Mo.; Lebanon, 0-. and Provo, Utah.
Lebanon's City Council repealed a
safe and sane ordlnance previously
passed, but its Mayor has vetoed the
repeal, and Provo's clty authorlties
were preparlng to pass an ordlnance '
_ood as
LU2IANNE1
Let no such
argument^re
vatl,to wean
you from,
your tlme.-tried
friend^"
The best of leathers only
are used ia "Battle Axe"
Shoes.
Buy ? Pair?Try a Pair.
mmmteameememeeBBemmemeaemeemmmmmemmemamemmmmemreJ
hlldren'a Parade, "Sane Fourth,"
Plttsfleld, JIM"., 1000.
allowlng fireworks dealers to sell out
Lfaeir atock ln hand when the State
Federatlon of Women's Ciubs pounced
down upon them and prevented thls
provlso.
Women la the Forefront.
Women are everywhere in the fore?
front of the crusade. Secretary Wat
rous glves credlt for the greatest ac-'
tivity ln the whole movement to Mrs.
Isaac L Rice. of New York, president
of the Society for the Suppression of
Unnecessary Noise, who, besides speak
ing and writlng on the subject, in
defatlgably haa Intervlewed the Gover
nors of all of the States, the mayors,
health offlcers, pollce and flre chlefs
of most of the cltlea, ln order to get
thelr vlews as to what can be done
in their communitlea. And she has
enrolled a large proportion of the
Governors upon a "national commlttee
for the promotion of a safe and sane
Fourth." A part of Mrs. Russell Sage's
millions ls being devoted to the same
end. The department of chlld hyglene
of her "Russell Sage foundation" has
this year been lndustrlously circulat
lng throughout the country a model
Fourth of July program substituting
for fireworks in the hands of indi
vidual children such means of enter
tainment as patrlotlo tableaua. folk
dancea, flag drllla and salutes, besldes
concerta of patrlotlc muslc, the public
reading of the Declaratlon by elocu
tlonists and orators, the rlnging of
bells, blowing of whlstles, release of
small balloons bearing flaga, drllla by
achool children, picnics, games and
municipa fireworks dlsplays ln charge
of committees. And speaklng of wo?
man's part in thls propaganda, lt must
lot be forgotten that Julla Ward Howe
seventeen years ago wroto ln favor
of safer Independence Day celebra
tions, Including proceaaions "less mlll?
tary in character and more pacifl? fn
suggestjon.
Model ordlnances passed by citles
already enrolleu for a non-explosivo
Fourth have been circulated broad
cast by Secretary Wairous, wboso of?
fice ln the National Civic Association
headquarters ia the great clearing
house for such data. He has been re
celvir.g more than a hundred com
municatlons per week from municipai
and clvlc officers battllng for a 8ane
Fourth, agaln the local pollticlans,
who fear that the reform will make
them unpopular with the massea, not
to mentlon tne manufacturera of In?
dependence Day exploslves.
An Army of Sliceted Corpsea.
That 1,531 deaths have been due ln
the paat seven years to the old meth?
ods of celebratlng our natal day ls
shown by the score which the Amer?
ican Medical Asaoclatlon commenced to
keep in 1903. The injured in the
same period have amounted to 33,073,
which means a total of over 31,11000
caaualtles, or over thlrty tlmes as
many as resulted from tho seven
greatest battles of tho Revolutionary
War. Due diroctly to the last Fourth
there were 215 doaths, a large ma?
jorlty of them (125) due to lockjaw,
and of the others who died seventeen
were kllled outrlght by firearms, slx
teen by explosions of powder, aevon
by glant firecrackera, and seven by
miscellaneous means of celebratlon.
Thirty-seven were Uterally burnod to
death by fireworks, many by amall
flrecrackers and threo by "harmless
sparklers,"
And over 5,000 were Injured on that
fatal Indepondence Day of a yoar ago,
slxteen of these being totally bllnded
(flvo more than the previoua Fourth),
three dozens losing one eye, forty-one
loslng lega, arms or hands, apd 176
losing flngers. 'i.ie 150 lockjaw cases
of last year's celebratlon inade the
largetv record alnce 1904.
TheBO flgurea stand out ln acarlet.
l'orcing?parents to road and head. They
show that the flrecracker has, in thaao
seven years, clalmed the most victlms;
lOJSl, and that for mutllating wounds
the cannon cracker holds first rank,
being responslble, too, for the ma?
jorlty of losses of eyes and llmbs.
Powder and flroworka, generally, rank
noxt, with 10,560 victlms, and then
comea the deadly blank cartridge wlth
6,374 victlms and causing three
fourtha or more of the lockjaw con
tracted.
Next rank firearms and cannon, wlth
nearly 3,000 victlms ench
Fourth of July lockjaw spread last
yoar to five more States than aaw it ln
1'OS. It oecurred In twonty-flve 8tatea
all told, and lt kllled wlthln ten and
a half daya, in the average fatal case,
whlle nearly all (84 per cent.) of lts
victlms succumbod to it.
The Illiiikent Hecord.
The blackest reoord for Fourth of
3JNES,
mfflLXMS:
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that can be universally worn
without discomfort and without
that suggestively "old" appear?
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like plain glasses, but give you
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?teadily increasing patronage ne
cessitated enlargment of our opti
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plant, which insize, completeness
and up-to-date methods is not
only without its equal in the
South,. but-amongithe mosticom
prehensive in the United States.
This means the best optical ser?
vice obtainable.-and maintenance -,
of a?.weH-earned^reputation as
Bwilders of All That
is Good for the Eyes
THE S. GALESKI OPTICAL CO.,
Main
and
8tli
Broad
and
TMrd
ruly carnage last year ?was made by
3ennsylvanla, whose great cltles are
uidly lacklng from the list of those
?jirolled for a non-explpslve colebra
lon this year. Its vlctirns were 3S6.
vhilo those of the more populous
itato of New York numbered but 5-1'
>"ew Jersey came thlrd, wlth. 4SS
asualues, and Massachusetts fourth,
vith 430.
If the grjm stare from the slxty
ight eye-sockets made empty by last
'ear's celebratlon does not appeal to
.uthorlties unwilllng to enrol] under
he "safe and sane" banner let them
jo to the nearest cemetery and count
. thousand little mounds of' sod and
hen half as many agaln and still
nore. Such a clty of the dead will
measure the numbers who have glve.
up thelr little ghosts amld the curling
smoko of seven national turtnaays?a
mero week ot them -when put together.
Or let these conservatlve offlcials b,
haunted once ln their midnight dreaml
by the pandemonium chorus of th<
35,000 who wero maimed or mutllated
or crlppled for life by those seven days
of carnage. And let the truth gouga
deep, that thls vast army of vlctlms,
walllng ln ambulances. moanlng upon
operating tables or lying silent, stift
and cold ln morgues or darkened
death chambers, were chlldren?littlo,
helpless. innocent, improperly guarded
childron.
(Copyrlght, 1910, by John Elfreth'
Watkins.)
Tor . Good Cup ""
V 0 U N C E R's
HE1JABLE
lHOCHAiiraJAW
C YOtlNOt1'
licnmond. V? , j j
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Casb Prerniums.
For Sale by AU Dealers.
THE WAY OUT of a SOCIAL DDENMA
GETTING a fourth hand for "bridge"
is only one of a thousand social
uses of the Telephone, and Telephone
Service promotes sociability and good fellowship
because it brings neighbors closer together. Your
friends all Hve within talking distance.
It is the same with your out-of-town friends ?
the upiversal service of the Bell System makes them
your neighbors, too. Your voice can reach all by
means of the Bell Long Distance Service.
Are YOU a subscriber?
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OF VIRGINIA.
Buery Bell Telephone la the Oenter of the 8yatem. s