The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1908-06-24
COST OF THE FOURTH
Heavy Price We Pay In Celebrat.
ing independence Day.
MANY KILLED AND INJURED.

sible Without Danger or Noise.
Mrs. Isaac l.. Rice, leader of the anti
noise crusade in New York city, who
makes cut strong case against "our
barbarous Fourth In her destructive
and constructive discussion of the ma
tional holidays abuse and possibilities
in the Century Magazine for June.
says:
"The fitting celebration of Independ-
ence day Is question on which pa
triotic Americans are separated into
two widely divergent parties, one
claiming that it ought to be observed
as noisily as possible, the other believ-
ing that our national birthday Is too
glorious an occasion to be marred by
din and disorder. OF course we know
that even among those who favor a
boisterous observance there are many
who cannot tolerate 1t themselves and
escape to the country in order to avoid
the tortures of the awful Fourth
Just as we know that a large proper
tfon of the noise makers, including the
small boy and the big boy, too, is heed
less, IL not ignorant, of all that our
holiday stands for and thinks of it only
as time when clamor may reign un-
restrained.
"The figures which indicate the price
that we pay for each of our yearly cele-
brations are so appalling that one
would suppose a knowledge of them
would be the most powerful deterrent
to our annual massacre. This, unfor-
tunately. is not the case For the past
five years the Journal of the American
Medical Association has endeavored to
collect statistics setting forth what the
celebration of the Fourth costs in life
and human usefulness, and, although
these are admittedly incomplete COM
piled as they are almost entirely from
newspaper reports instead of from rec
ords of hospitals, dispensaries and
physicians-the form the gravest pos
sible arraignment of the recklessness
which is willing to pay such price
for oily day They show that dur
ing the celebration of five national
| birthdays, from 1903 to 1907 inclusive,
| 1,153 persons were killed and 22,520
We're injured! OF the injured, so suf-
fered total and $50 partial blindness,
$50 persons lost arms, legs or hands,
and 1,670 lost one or more fingers. But
these figures, startling as they are, con-
yey only a faint idea of the suffering,
both physical and mental, which went
to swell the total cost of these five holi-
! days In this we must also include
the weeks and often months of anguish
of the injured, the suspense of entire
| families while the fate of some loved
one hung in the balance, the horror Of
a future OF sghtless years, the pinch
| ing poverty now the lot of many be-
cause of the death or manning of the
breadwinner."
Mrs. Rice follows her condemnation
OF present deadly conditions with q
] plea and suggestions for a wiser cele-
bration of our country's national birth
day.
| II sincerely believe" she says, that
our national birthday can be observed
with heartfelt patriotic rejoicing and
yet without the slightest danger to life
or limb, without any nerve racking
noise or display of hoodlumism and
without any Of the extravagant outlay
which has characterized our former
celebrations. Flags can float, national
music be played and sung In places
now given over solely to the deafening
din Of cannon firecrackers, the Declara.
tion of Independence be read at all OF
our public buildings, where inspiring
addresses may also be made and street
displays, such rs professions with
floats, beautiful as well as instructive
furnish delightful object lessons of the
greatest events In our history. Then
at night, we may have illuminations
both private and municipal, and dis
plays Of fireworks In open places
where the exhibitions can be conducted
by experienced men, thus avoiding al
danger of the shocking accidents which
now sadden our celebration.
"Let us on this day forget the noise
of battle and the passions of interna
tional strife and remember only the
wonderful spirit of sacrifice and pa
triotism and brotherhood which ami
mated our Revolutionary heroes. lie
us who know what the day means en-
deavor to make it both memorable an(
illuminating to those who do not By
opening the hearts Of the children, o
the poor and ignorant, of the distressed
and disheartened alien within ou
gates, to at least a partial significance
Of what we honor in our glorious fes
tival.
LET us enter personally into tn
work. giving tender endeavor as wei
rs means, to the task of making tn
occasion the happlest Of all the year t
the ignorant and the wretched. Let u
Igive them day of liberty In the coun
try or In the parks, where they will Sc
our beautiful flag floating everywher
sabout them and where their untraine
ears will become accustomed to tn
ringing rhythm OF our national mele