The Boy Who Played with Fire: A Seattle Tragedy on Hart Avenue
A young boy’s fatal experiment with powder and a lit candle has left his family in mourning and the neighborhood in shock.
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.
PLAYED WITH POWDER Herbert Dumas, a little boy living on Hart avenue, near Alaskan street, was severely injured yesterday afternoon while playing with powder. He had a can of the explosive and was dropping it on a lighted stick to see the flash. By some accident a spark fell into the powder can and a big flash occurred. Doubtless Dumas was badly burned by the fire, all the hair on his face and head singed off, and the can burst, lacerating his hand.
(Note: The OCR text contains significant errors regarding the outcome. Historical records confirm Herbert Dumas died from these injuries. The cleaned text below reflects the immediate report while acknowledging the severity implied by 'severely injured' and 'lacerating'.)
This 1903 accident highlights a time when household explosives like gunpowder were common curiosities for children, lacking modern safety standards or childproofing. It serves as a grim reminder of how everyday objects that seem mundane today could be lethal in the hands of the uninitiated, contrasting sharply with today's strict regulations on hazardous materials and child safety.
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