Guard Against the Dangers in Your Home

The accidents that befall a person inside the home do not strike by chance; they are the result of various causes, and we can put an end to them by searching out those causes and avoiding them as far as possible.

1 - More than half of the accidents causing death, and of the serious injuries that occur in homes, are for the most part the result of falling, slipping, or stumbling. So if you wish, Madam, to wipe the electric light fixtures or to hang the curtains, beware of climbing on old boxes, for instance; use a sturdy ladder instead, for standing on rickety, unsteady things makes you lose your balance and fall to the floor. And if you take care that your house is kept in order, and that the floors of the rooms are clear of children's toys scattered here and there, you will be safe from many a fall — for how many a leg has been broken, and a hand bruised or sprained, as the result of a simple tumble on the floor of the house, its cause negligence and unconcern!

2 - Burns hold the second degree of importance, especially as we live in an age in which the use of fuels has multiplied in homes and kitchens. Matches are everywhere, within reach of little hands; benzine for cleaning clothes may lie within the children's reach, or in a corner of the kitchen not far from the fire; gas, so gravely dangerous, spreads wider day by day; and the electrical appliances of every shape and purpose, without which no modern house in this age is complete — all these things are sources of dangers and of burns of varying seriousness, striking young and old alike as a result of negligence and carelessness. The alert housewife is the one who is aware of these things and takes her precautions before they happen. Benzine, and every other quickly flammable substance, belongs far away from any source of fire, and out of the reach of the little ones... The wise mother can make her children understand, talking to them about the dangers of matches and telling them true stories to magnify their importance in their minds — for how many a small game has ended in a great tragedy whose first cause was a matchstick, or a cigarette end...

So it is, too, with the electric iron, the heater, the washing machine, and the other electrical appliances whose use has become general these days, and which are not free of dangers if the little ones take them up to explore and play with. Nor is it hard for the housewife to train her children from their tenderest years to keep away from what is no concern of theirs; their toys and their own books are their property, and in these they have full freedom to do with their hands as they please.

Your home, Madam, is your little kingdom, and on your precaution, your good care, and your wisdom depends in great measure the safety of the members of your kingdom and the warding off of dangers from them. So let your eye be sleepless and watchful; avoid the occurrence of accidents, lest you be accused of recklessness and ignorance, and receive from your neighbors a biting criticism you can well do without.