Children are allowed to burn dry leaves in the fall, and their clothing catches fire from the flames; women pour kerosene on the fire in their kitchen stoves, or cleanse clothing with gasoline near an open blaze; thoughtless men toss lighted cigars and cigarettes into a heap of rubbish, or drop them from an upper window into an awning; the head of a parlor match flies into muslin draperies; a Christmas-tree is set on fire with lighted candles, or a careless hunter starts a forest fire which burns for days and destroys valuable timber lands. There are hundreds of different ways in which fires are set. The majority of these fires, which cause great loss of life and property and untold suffering, are preventable by ordinary precaution.
This little book has been written for the special purpose of teaching children how to avoid setting a fire, how to extinguish one, or how to hold one in check until the arrival of help. Each story tells how a fire was started, how it should have been avoided, and how it was put out: Mr. Brown Rat builds his nest with matches which were left around the house; Careless Joe pours hot ashes into a wooden box; or boys light a bonfire and leave the hot embers, and then old North Wind comes along and has a bonfire himself.
At the end of each lesson there are instructions regarding the fire in question. There are also chapters on such subjects as our loss by forest fires, the work of our firemen, common safeguards against fire, how to act in case the house is on fire, and first aid to those who are injured by fire,—how to treat scalds and burns, how to revive persons who are suffocated by smoke, etc. A thoughtful reading of this book should make the present generation a more careful and less destructive people, and the entire country richer and more prosperous.
CONTENTS
| PAGE | |
| Preface | [v] |
| Brownie's Misfortune | [1] |
| "Careless Joe" | [9] |
| May Day | [18] |
| Camping Out | [30] |
| Thelma's Birthday | [42] |
| The "E. V. I. S." | [52] |
| Forest Fires | [61] |
| Pinch and Teddy | [67] |
| The Busy Bees | [77] |
| The County Fair | [86] |
| "Little Faults" | [98] |
| Ten Young Rats | [105] |
| How Not to Have Fires. I | [116] |
| The Kitchen Fire | [123] |
| How Not to Have Fires. II | [133] |
| The Sunshine Band | [140] |
| Vacation at Grandpa's | [148] |
| The Fire Drill | [159] |
| Fighting the Fire | [169] |
| Vernon's Brother | [176] |
| The World's Great Fires | [184] |
| New Year's Eve | [189] |
| Christmas Candles | [200] |
| What to Do in Case of Fire | [211] |
| First Aid | [216] |