A Premature Explosion

Adam Seyfried, a tearaster living on N. Maiu si, just south of the oity limits, met with a most distiessing accident shortly after noon on Wednesday whioh will leave him a cripple with bnt one hand for the rest of nis life. He and nis sou, Oscar E. Seyfried were blasting stone a short distance from their houie at the time of the accident. Mr. Seyfried had put the powder in the hole prepared for it and was tauaping the paper wad intothe oavity when without any previons warning the blast went off. Mr. Seyfried's left hand was shattered to pieces by the force of the explosión and his son was knocked down, alt-hongh he was standing fonr feet away. The son wears spectacles and one of the lens was smashed to pieces, but fortnnately no glass went insidehis eye and he escaped with no worse injury than a cut under the eye and some of the powder lodged in his faoe. As soon as the son got on his feet he ran off into tho house totell his mother of the accident leaviug his father standing by the stoue holding his mangled hand. With great fortitude Mr. Seyfried started to walk home and then discovered his shirt sleeves had been set on fite by the blast. He promptly laid down on the ground and by dint. of rolling over and over he put out the ñames, but not nntil both his anns were severely burned. Drs. John and Leo Kapp and Martin L. Belser were called to attend to the suffering man and found it neoessary to ampútate the hand just above the wrisfc. Ihey described it as one of the worst looking hands they ever saw. All the fingers were blown off, the thnmb was torn from the stump of the hand and huug by a shred of flesh, all the bones in the hand were more or ess smashed aud broken and the tendons huug out like ropes. At last accounts Mr. Seyfried, although suffering considerable pain, was doiug as well as conld be expeoted, and the wound looked in a good condition for healing. Had he been using giant powder or dynamite the results svould have been far worse than they weie.