Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1871-05-09
INCIDENTS FROM CARELESS
MESA .

damages to limb, or lie, or properly.
The usual reason given for such events
"carelessness." That word would
,eem to include nearly all the causes
IF mischief in the world. 1t Is worth
while sometimes to examine what care
means. Take the common
calamity Of fire. A shop or a house
full of carpenters may work all Winter
when fire for heating purposes, or In
aid Of their operations, Is necessary.
They are surrounded by materials the
most combustible. A stranger who
looks in upon them, whether their
labor be In an unfinished house or In
that magazine Of kindling stuff, a
carpenters shop" will receive the
impression that the chances for n de-
structive conflagration are as ninety
nine in a hundred. Yet the fact is that
the occurrence OF a destructive fire
from the legitimate pursuit of the car
penter's or builders trade is nearly or
quite rs rare rs the same disaster from
any other pursuit. 1t is not even sure
that the increased risk induces In
creased attention. W~atchfulness, how
ever, being an evident necessity, the
danger is probably less than In cases
where apparent safety leads to negli-
cence. The 'carelessness" which Is
really the cause Of disaster usually
consists in doing among unsafe sur
roundings things which ought not to
be done, or at any rate need not be
done at all. Among the latest cases
in point Is the reported destruction by
fire of half the town Of Fairmont,
West Virginia. The fire originated In
n carpenter shop. The careless" per-
sons who caused It were drunk. They
were playing at cards in the morning
by candle light-having, of course,
made a night of it." They dropped
u light in the shavings, roasted them
selves out Of their quarters, and In
licted q damage on their neighbors for
which they can never make compensa-
ton. This instance illustrates the
origin Of n great many cases of scare
lessness." Many "accidents" result
in even more harm, involving the loss
of life. But the only propriety Of
applying the term "accident" hero
il, that as card-playing Is not an sin
cident of joiner work, by false logicit
may be termed an accident. These men
had no right to be drunk anywhere.
They had no occasion to make the
workshop n gambling place even in
daylight. And they had no business
with a candle among shavings, for any
but necessary purposes, while they
were sober, and then under proper and
careful superintendent. 10 put the
question in few words, then, careless
ness, rs the cause Of a great deal OF
mischief that is thus accounted for, Is
simply doing the wrong thing, in tho
wrong place, at the wrong time and
by the wrong persons. The explosion
by accident of n magazine OH ship
board, or in an arsenal OF fort, Is
among things most unusual. Danger
ous substances can be so carefully
handled by experts and prudent men
with their wits about them rs to DO
perfectly safe. But safe agents, like
fire or gunpowder or nitroglycerine,
may be made highly unsafe under the
tamperlng with them by persons who
never should touch them. Another
description OF so-called accidents re-
suits from Ignorance or idleness.
Houses and churches are burned down
by the criminal negligence or parsi-
mony of builders or contractors, who
construct chimney flues and hot air
ilues as il they were purposely laying
trains warranted to facilitate the pur-
poses Of combustion. Steam boilers
and other machines arc constructed Of
wntested materials, or arc permitted to
run till their weakness Is demonstrated
by destruction. This sort Of neglect
is really worse than carelesSness. 1t
is deliberate counting Of danger and
death. or carelessness proper there is
quite enough In the world. Ii may be
better termed heedleSsncss, Or blum
dering; and perhaps no very severe
moral blame attached to 1t. But what
is moro commonly spoken Of as care
l~essness deserves no such mild designa-
ton, and what are too commonly
accidents are no accidents at all,
but the natural and necessary results
of causes either promoted or permit
ted. 1t may be IN accident" which
the hammer Of n gun down OIL
the cap, but it Is by no accident that
percussion powder explodes under n
blow. The explosion Is in obedience
to fixed laws.