Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1908-01-16
Carelessness With Matches.
Homes and Lives Destroyed.

q i
1 Homes and Lives DESTROYED
In South Dakota care:essness with
matches during last year fred 50 build
lngs and burned to death four children.
/ The "parlor' match in common use
/ is the greatest convenience and the
greediest incendiary ever invented by
man. In this state it causes 10 per
cent, OF all fires The "parlor match
referred to herein is III no way associ-
ated with loves sweet dream.
4 Ii all the people were taught the dan
[ gers from this match the present enor-
nous fire loss from them, ofwhich each
producer pays part, would be reduced
to almost nothing. But teachers who
warn against the lire dangers in this
life are few.
The dangers OF the 'sparlor' match
are manifold. In igniting the head
often eXplodes or the stick breaks and
flaming chemicals fly and ignite waste
paper, sweepings, lace curtains and the
clothing of women and children. The
smoker, and often the housewife too,
after using the match gives it a twirl
and toss without looking to see if it is
still glowing If it is kept alight long
enough for the stick to be burned
through it will, in two thirds of all
matches, remain a red hot coal half an
inch long during an average interval Of
AZ seconds. A large proportion of match
| tirac rac,Y1t Fran, Of k>t
being thrown upon intlammable sub g
stances.
Wicked Carclcssness
! The careless leave these matches ly--
ing about although one of them may
I ignite by the SUMS rays focused upon it
by bubble i'll window pane. by q
q water bottle, bya fish globe, by spheri-
Cal paper weight Or by grandma's spec
. tacles Loose in drawers or on desk S
J, they are liable to take fire from rubbing
: or a blow. On the mantlepiece they are
often ignited by the heat from CRATE or
stove. They may be brushed or blow b
Off and ignite when thay alight, or they
may be fired by tramping upon them
! tive possibilities; they are from fire
y records.
: In each 100 match fires Al are from
: flying match heads or glowing sticks
thrown into rubbish. This fact says
= 'clean up the place.. The greatest
- number of match fires occurred in cell
= lars; the next largest in closets by the
9 use Of match to illuminate them. The
= sparks or hot sticks of parlor matches
. started destructive fires by igniting 2
carpets, pieces Of clothing, 3 bed GOV :
y erlngs, lace curtains, 2 touches, i
: mantle drapery and basket of clothes.
In 3 cases the fire started from a match
. being trod upon andinl from the match
% box falling.
The 'sParlor'' Against ssI4,Icifer,.
: The name "parlor' is given 10 arr
matches, except the safety" which are
made without sulphur, thereby avoid
ing the odor given out by the "lucifer''
match which it drove from the market.
y It's head contains PHOSPHORUS, chlor-
ate OF potash rosin, whiting and pow
dered flint held together by glue. Phos-
phorous ignites at l40 degrees Fair.
The heat produced by friction ana the.
20 particles OF flint in the head when it is
20 struck ignltes the PHOSPHORUS, the
a. chlorate gives up the 80 per cent. OF
. oxygen it contains with explosivesplut-
j terlng and intense heat which fires the
- rosln, and they together fire the parafan
70 with which the sticks impregnated and
~ the stick itself. by substituting either
~ saltpetre or sulphur for the chlorate q
~ silent and slow match is made which
. does not snap and fly. But when the
g chlorate or parlor match is trod upon
10 or otherwise ignited it sounds its own
= IRE alarm this is it's only good charac.
Il tefistiis.
70, saltpetre is little used because it ADDS
= :. greatly 20 the danger Of manufacture
~ ing The sulphur match does not snap
10 and fly but it's odor bars it from gooc
~ society, The head of The sulphur match
has no sulphur IN 1t. A solution of sui
phur is used to impregnate the stick
ne 1t is too slow in lighting FOR the ner-
yous Americans use.
The sale of the parIor match should
wv be prohibited. This would be no hard,
tie ship to manufacturers because safety
t matches, which can be lighted only by
Sc rubbing them on the box, are made on
re the same machine.
FRANK A, CRAFT,
:, State Fire Marshal, y
vi ------------sns-----
Sc Vermillion Republican,: w. G. Bow
4 or returned to Pierre this week, cutting
GhQlt his "a I,1ar, -