The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1915-08-05
BOYS PLAY ENDS IN ACCIDENT
Eight-year-old Boy Followed Example
of Elders and Sought to Watch Ex-
plosion Of Calcium Carbide - Stop
Such Play in the Future.


side have not learned the lesson of
Safety First Charles Keul, the s.
year old son of Mr.. and Mrs. Peter
Keul, well known residents of the north
side Of the city, is confined to his bed
! in a darkened room at the family home
on Lake avenue and physicians are
hoping that they VIII be able to save
the sight Of his right eye which was
terribly burned on Sunday morning by
an explosion Of calcium carbide. The
little boy with his face badly disfgured
lis bearing up bravely under the strug-
gle against possible blindness and he is
not blaming his boy companions for
his injury. Calcium carbide under GER
tain conditions is just about as explo-
sive as gun powder and this fact was
known to lot of the larger boys in the
Lake avenue district. In fact they
knew this fact so well that they have
been staging celebrations down on the
lake front there with the calcium car
bide as the explosive. Sunday noon
one of the older boys had taken guam
| tity of the explosive and had buried it
| in the sand on the beach. The method
| that had been used by the boys has
been to take the carbide and pour water
over it and then cover the seething
mixture with tin can with hole
punched in the top. Then the smaller
boys were invited to hold their finger
over the hole in the can until such a
time as gas enough generated to cause
the explosion. 1t was great fun as
the explosive would throw the can high
into the air and scatter the sand in all
directions. So popular had these ex-
plosions become that it is declared
that some of the older boys were buy
ing the calcium carbide Just like they
bought fire crackers for the celebration
of the Fourth of July and many cans
of it had been used just to stir the sand
of the beach. On Sunday morning
young Keul and several Of his compan-
ions found the carbide buried in the
sand. They followed the example of
the older boys and got can and COW
Il cred it with water and then Keul held
his finger over the can. He waited too
long and when he started to run away
the explosion came and the can and the
burning carbide were blown into his
face and a lot of it struck him in the
right eye. Some of the other boys
carried him to his home. He could not
see out of the eye and his face had
been terribly torn by the twisted tin
of the can and it was blackened as by
the explosion of gun powder. Since
that time young Keul has been in the
darkened room. DR.. George Pugh has
been attending him and this morning
the doctor declared that he was hope
/ full that the boy would regain his sight
but he will be unable to tell the full
result of the accident for another week.
The boy companions of Keul gather
told of the accident. They declare that
the calcium carbide explosions will be
barred from the north side in the fu-
ture. In the meantime the matter has
been reported to the police department
and any further explosions of calcium
carbide will result in the immediate ar
rest of the men or boys connected with
such explosions.
The Keul boy was not old enough TO
know his danger but a lot Of the boys
and near men who had shown the lit
tie fellers' the way knew lot better
and they are the ones who are to blame
for the terrible injury of the boy.