The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-06-06
Disasters Care Might Have
Prevented.
CASES TAKEN TO LAW
J1mcson's Raid Due to Misplace !
Pcriod--Typhoid Fever From
I've Cent Blankets-InscCts anl
ecds Which Allowed an IN.
nee, Cost Enormous Sums.

L as The misplacement of pcr.O,
WAS the cause, it is said, OF tn,
Jameson raid and therefore indirc Il
1y the cause of the Boer war.
When there seemed a prospect o
q conflict between the Boer Govern
ment and the Uitlander population d
letter was sent to DR.. jameson fror,
johannesburg, signed by Colonel
Rhodes and others.
According to the Grand Magazine
the original contained the following
sentence:
I'VE feel we are justified in taking
steps to prevent the shedding C..
blood and to insure the protection
of our rights. 1t is under these cir
cumstances that we feel constrained
10 call upon you to come to our aid
should disturbance arise here. Cir
cumstances are so extreme that We
cannot avoid this STEP etc.
In the message DR.. Jameson re
ceiyed the full stop was placed after
the word laid" instead OF after
''here." Thus the qualifying clause
was cut off and became a part of tho
next sentence The Rhodesians came
Instantly galloping across the from
tier on their Ill fated mission.
In May 1908, eleven boys on
board the training ship Cornwall, ly-
ing off Purlleet, were suddenly
struck down by typhoid fever, and
inquiry proved that the outbreai;
was the result of their sleeping be-
tWeen fever infected blankets
brought from South Africa. In fiat
Gontravention of army regulations
no eewer than 100000 blankets re-
turned from service had been sold to
two dealers at the Cape at five cents
each, and of these 900 dozen were
shipped back to London, those that
were tainted being unfortunately
mixed with those free from suspi-
cion carelessenss of this sort is In
vc"y truth a crime of the deepest
orse than all in It's financial ef-
upon a great industry was the
essness which introduced the
lied Bathurst burr into Aus
ala. Wherever this plant has
g. -ad sleeps fleeces are thick with
tle clinging burrs These spiny seed
pods, difficult beyond measure to get
rid of, reduce the wool that is full OF
them to fraction Of It's value.
The results of carelessness all too
often are beyond the power of man
to remedy. An instance in point was
the collapse of the Campanile in
Venice. For twelve long years before
its final collapse Signor Vendrasco.
an architect In municipal employ, had
been urging and imploring the town
and Government to repair the tower
before 1t was too late.
But in matters Of this sort the
Venetian. alas, too strongly resemble
the Spaniards with their everlast-
Ing "manana. 1t is q case OF
never do to-day what can be left till
tomorrow. Poor Vendrasco received
nothing but jeers or abuse, and at
last, just month before the day the
Companile fell, was summarily dis
missed for making last urgent ap-
peal that something might be done
before 1t was too late.
Another irreparable loss to the art
world was caused In the winter OF
1903 by the carelessness of the own
srs of the Rosso Palace, also in Ven
Ice. Because they could not or would
not take the trouble to find out who
was competent to be lntrusted with
the task they sent ten "old masters"
to be cleaned by totally incompe-
tent person.
These pictures included two Of the
finest Van Dycks In existence and
two Guido Renis and were all of i'm
hense value. both from an artistic
and monetary point of view. The in
competent cleaner washed them with
an alkaline solution and totally de-
stroyed them all.
An official OF an American bank
once told the writer that II was not
professional swindlers who constitu-
ted the chief danger TO the banking
profession. 1t was rather the careless
methods Of customers In drawing
checks and thus giving opportunity
III iiauu' Ab al luSlduCG, Hb quoted
q case tried three years ago before a
Maine court of justice.
The cashier of a certain electric
company drew a check In favor OF
man named Longacre for the sum of
800. The treasurer Of the com
pany wrote the words "one hun
dred" in the very middle of the
check and the figures thus. s 100,
with space wide enough for the in
sertion Of another figure between the
dollar mark and the 100.
When the check was presented the
words read "Eighty-one hundred
dollars" and the figures $500 The
bank paid 1t unquestioningly, and
the electric company promptly sued
to recover the $4,000. The case
created a good deal Of interest. espe-
cially when the Courts decision was
given that the company, not the
bank, should be the losers on ac-
count Of gross carelessness" in
drawing the check New York Sun.