The Bullet That Traveled Half a Mile
A quiet morning in Seattle turns into a medical mystery when a stray bullet from a distant rifle finds a local man in his own shop.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Krook Smith, a resident of the area, was standing in his shop on the morning of the accident. While busy with a peculiar task in his hand, he suddenly felt a sting and found his forefinger missing. Terrified, he gripped his hand and ran into the street, finding the finger lying on the ground. Many citizens gathered; none had heard the report of a gun and naturally were very anxious to account for the mishap. Smith went to his neighbor, who was a physician, who dressed the wound. The mystery was cleared up some time later, as it was determined that a man who was target practicing at a range several hundred yards from where Mr. Smith was walking had accidentally discharged the weapon, and the bullet flew through a plank wall and did the mischief.
“Many citizens gathered; none had heard the report of a gun and naturally were very anxious to account for the mishap.”
This incident serves as a stark reminder of the rapid urbanization of Seattle. In 1876, a target range could be positioned within hundreds of yards of a downtown commercial center; today, the dense residential and retail footprints of Seattle leave little room for such perilous recreational practices.
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