The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1907-09-05
FoURTH's GRIM LIST.
1G4 Dead and 4,249 Hurt in This
Years Celebration.


Official tabulation of the death toll and
the list of injured as a result of the last
Fourth of July celebration in the United
States has been completed by the medical
authorities. The grand total of dead and
injured for 1907, directly traceable to the
deadly toy pistol, the giant firecracker and
The practical joke, is placed at 4.4l3,
which is less by 1000 than the returns for
last year. The dead are 164 and the in
jured are 4,249.
The figures have been compiled by the
Journal of the American Medical Assoc
citation. the reports being received from
Noteworthy, from the standpoint OF the
medical profession. is the number of
deaths due to Fourth of July tetanus.
Statistics were first collected by the
Journal FIVE years ago and in 1908 there
were recorded 466 deaths from all causes
chargeable to the Fourth. 400 of these
being tetanus cases. The lowest number
of tetanus deaths yet recorded is the pres
ent years showing.
There can be no doubt that this de-
crease comments the Journal, lis due en-
tirely to two causes one bein~ a popular
understanding of the grave danger that
lies in blank cartridge and in other
Fourth of July wounds, and the other is
the more thorough surgical treatment Of
these wounds by the practicing physicians
and the frequent prophylactic use of anti
toxin
Illinois led all the States this year with
twelve cases of death by tetanus, furnish
ing just one-sixth of the total Eumber of
cases contributed by twenty-three States.
New Jersey was second and Pennsylva-
MIA third.
Blank cartridges were responsible for
II per cent of the tetanus. Giant crack
ers caused only eight cases this year, as
against seventeen in 1906 while toy can
non caused six cases this year and one
case last year.
Besides the deaths due TO tetanus, there
were 102 other persons who lost their
lives this year because of the ''celebra-
tion.' The total number of deaths this
year, therefore. including tetanus, was
164, or six more than last year. The
annual slaughter still continues, although
tetanus is becoming a less potent factor.
OF the 1O2 deaths aside from tetanus,
gunshot wounds caused twenty, giant
crackers thirteen and various explosions
thirteen.
Ten deaths were due to falls or run
Always caused by frecrackers. One per-
son was drowned because practical
joker" threw giant firecracker into a
boat crowded with young people.
The extremity of tolerance is reached,
however" declares the Journal, when We
know that thirty-one persons were burned
to death, the majority of them being
young girls and children. whose dresses
easily catch fire. Comparisons show that
deaths from causes aside from tetanus
are 102 in 1907, as against ninety-ive in
1905.
Ia the table of all casualties New York
takes the first place with 152, Pennsyl-
van,a second with 491, Illinois 46S and
New Jersey 402.
There were 4.249 non-fatal injuries. a
decrease of 1859 below last year. when
the total was J.3OS. Only twelve persons
were completely blinded this year, or ten
less than last year; seventy-fve persons
lost one eye this year. or three more than
last year, but thirty-one less than in
1905: fifty-seven lost an arm or hand
this year, or one more than last year.
and 237 persons lost one or more fingers
this year, this being ten more than last
year.
The principal cause of the most mutt
lating wounds, says the report, is the
giant cracker. This year 1,4S9 injuries.
;rcf,Jspo fl,;rfoap daofbs and aiDhf cases
of lockjaw, were due to this agency. Fire
arms rank second in causing mutilating
wounds, being responsible for SOP injuries
and twenty-four deaths, including four
cases Of tetanus.