The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-05-02

months. To what an alarming extent
property is being wiped out here by
Confiagration is indicated by the re-
port which shows that these losses ag-
gregated for the period the enormous
sum of $12,470 900 or more than ST.
100000 a month. More significant
still is the fact that this figure repre-
sents ar increase of nearly so per cent
over the total of 1881, 900 for the pre-
ceding year. At this rate of increase
the end of the present decade, that is
the year 1920 would show an annual
fire loss of about $500, 900, 200. The
most important factor in this great in
crease ~eems to exist in the city's
larger buildings, since although the
loss for 1911 far exceeded that of 1910
the fires in the last year were less by
537 than in 1910 while the average loss
from each fire in 1911 was 1855 as
against $596 in 1910. AS usual care
lessness with lighted matches ac-
counted for a large number of fires,
1866 in all. Lighted cigars or cigarettes
caused $40 fires and carelessness with
lighted candles 500. To handle the
work of protection the city now has
APO uniformed officers and men and
$50 civilian employees in various bu-
reaus. Perhaps the best idea Of what
the fire fighting problem as it now ex-
lists in New York really amounts to is
found in the estimate of the money
needed for the maintenance Of the fire
department this yea 1t is $S,537, 900.
The golf ball has now been added to
t > list of deadly weapons and now
that the season is beginning it be-
hooves golfers throughout the country
to take warning from the fate of a
local golfer m to refrain from too
much curiosity as to how a golf ball
is made. OF course many persons who
have intercepted the flight of the
guilty" with various portions of their
anatomy nave for years considered it
a deadly weapon. But in these cases
it was merely a missile and not inner
entity dangerous. Now, however, it
has been discovered that the golf ball
must also be classified as an explosive.
This Unexpected state of affairs was
brought to light here because Of the
curiosity of a golfer to discover what
sort of a liquid center the ball with
which he had been playing contained.
AS the easiest manner of finding out
he was proceeding to .vivisect it with
his pocket knife when it suddenly ex-
ploded, the liquid center entering one
of his eyes. AS a result. 1t is feared
that he may lose his sight although
this will not be known until he emcrges
from the dark room to which the acct
dent will confine him for several weeks.
Just what the liquid center of the ball
which caused it to burst consisted Of
no n seems to know although the eff
feet was that of al acid or caustic
which burned the eye in question.
Whether golfers carrying a half dozen
balls through the city streets will be
arrested under the concealed weapon
law remains to be seen, but now that
they have entered the category of ex-
plosives the game may take on a new
feature Of sportiness.
A feature Of metropolitan life which
for years has gradually been disap-
pearfng is soon to suffer complete ex-
tinction. New York's last horse car
Is to go. The city has heard this
statement made a number of times
before but there seems to be NO room
for ~incredulity In this case, since the
information comes from the highest
transit official in the city. 1t is not SO
many years since these horse drawn
cars bumped about in the heart OF the
financial district to say nothing of 9th.
er parts Of the city. One by one, how
ever, they were replaced until there
remained only two cross town lines,
and that one known as the belt line
which pretty well encircIed the whole
of Manhattan. Recently the cross
town lines put on storage battery cars
and now last of all the old horse drawn
cars are to disappear from the belt line
In many ways this line is unique, be-
inr the longest hnraa nai