The new enterprise. (Madison, Fla.) 1901-1908, 1907-01-03
WHAT CARELESSNESS
COSTS.
DISASTERS AND DEATHS THAT
MIGHT HAVE BEEN PRE-.
VENTED.

Sometimes the most insignificant
piece of carelessness has produced re-
suits which have shaken continents
The displacement of period was the
cause, II is said, of the Jameson
raid and therefore indirectly the
cause.
when there seemed a prospect OF a
conflict between the Boer Government
and the Uitlander population a letter
was sent to DR.. jameson from johann
nesburg, signed BY Col. Rhodes and
others.
According to the Grand Magazine
the original contained the following
sentence:
1--WE feel we are justified In taking
steps to prevent the shedding OF blood
and to insure the protection OF our
rights. 1t Is under these circum-
stances that we feel constrained to
call upon you to come TO our aid
should disturbance arise here. Cir
cumstances are so extreme that we
cannot avoid this step, &c, &c"
In the message Dr.. Jameson
received, the full stop was placed after
the word aid" instead of after mere.
Thus the qualifying clause was cut on
and became part of the next sentence
The Rhodesians came instantly gallop'
ing across the frontier on their vi
fated mission.
Carelessness pure and simple was
the cause of shocking catastrophe
near st. Petersburg during the army
manoeuvres four years ago. A sham
fight was in progress, and an officer
in command of cavalry regiment was
ordered to move around the flank of
the opposing force. Instead OF throw
ing out scouts and proceeding eau
tiously he calmly trotted off in the di-
rection indicated and when the regi-
ment reached a point where some or
the opposing force were supposed to
be awaiting them ordered one squad
ron to charge,
The troops put spurs to their horses
and galloped furiously forward. The
result was appalling. The supposed
enemy's trenches turned out to be a
narrow but deep, swift running river
into which the whole squadron rode
at full speed. Men and horses crash
ed over the almost vertical bank in a
living torrent. OF more than ninety
dragons barely forty reached the OPP
posite bank alive.
One summer morning in July, 1903,
the peaceful village of Collonges was
startled by huge object descending
apparently from the skies with a ter
rife thud, In the centre of the main
street A moment after, with Shrek
ing whistle; came another OF these
alarming visitants which struck the
church roof, knocking a hole in it,
The terrified inhabitants fled tor
their lives, pursued by shell after
shell. Many houses were struck, but
by a miracle no was killed. After
wards it turned out that the perilous
bombardment was the result of a trial
of some new long range guns at the
Savatan forts. The officer in charge
had apparently never taken the
trouble to inquire the range Of the new
weapons and had been firing with a
reckless disregard of consequences.
In May, 1908, eleven boys on board
the training ship Cornwall, lying off
Purfeet, were suddenly struck down
by typhoid fever, and inquiry proved
that the outbreak was the result OF
their sleeping between fever infected
blankets brought from South Africa.
In fiat contravention Of army regula-
lions no fewer then 100000 blankets
returned from service had been sold
to two dealers at the Cape, at five
cents each, and of these $4,000 dozen
were shipped back to London, those
that were tainted being indiscriminate-
ly mixed with those free from sus-
picion. Carelessness OF this sort Is
in very truth crime of the deepest
dye.
While on the subject Of infection,
the American town of St. Paul, Mimi,
got an unpleasant scare two years ago.
An English doctor was travelling
across from San Francisco to New
York, when, at st. Paul, negro porter
in charge OF the travellers bag care
lessly mislaid 1t,
Imagine the feelings Of the railway
officials when they heard that among
the contents Of the lost piece Of lug
gage were several tubes Of living
plague bacili the doctor had brought
from India. For some days the whole
surrounding country was in state Of
semi-panic, but eventually the missing
bag was recovered with the tubes in
tact.
Carelessness introduced the gypsy
moth into New England and allowed