# If he had seen the sawdust, he wouldn't have died **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 12, 2002, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477 "2002-08-12T03:34:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mandicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Mandicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mandicus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/41 "2002-08-12T17:08:43Z")
Which I guess leads to another question: _Was_ it a person that performed the action that created the sawdust? …that lived in the house that Jack built ---
**Author:** ![Politzania](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ab097/32.png) [@Politzania](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Politzania)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/42 "2002-08-12T19:52:57Z")
Was the cause of his death suicide? ---
**Author:** ![Politzania](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ab097/32.png) [@Politzania](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Politzania)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/43 "2002-08-12T19:59:41Z")
Was the cause of his death suicide? ---
**Author:** ![iampunha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/74df32/32.png) [@iampunha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iampunha)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/44 "2002-08-12T20:04:40Z")
According to the link, **Sivalensis** , **Grim** is right… ---
**Author:** ![The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Ace_of_Swords)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/45 "2002-08-12T20:36:13Z")
Got it. Was he a magician? ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/46 "2002-08-12T22:35:54Z")
Readers of mystery anthologies should be able to work this one out. ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/47 "2002-08-12T22:41:41Z")
Readers of mystery anthologies should be able to work this one out. ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/48 "2002-08-12T22:52:52Z")
Was the activity that produced the sawdust a normal occurance at this performer’s circus? NO Did the person(s) who performed the activity that created the sawdust mean for the circus performer to die? YES Was it a person that performed the action that created the sawdust? YES Was the cause of his death suicide? NO Was he a magician? NO **iampunha** , according to the link, you’re right that **grim** is correct. But I know a different version of this particular one though, and that’s not the solution I was thinking of. ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/49 "2002-08-12T23:24:47Z")
Although the performer was not blind, at the time he met his death was there anything obstructing his normal vision? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/50 "2002-08-12T23:43:26Z")
here’s my guess The guy was a high wire walker and a rival cut a notch in his balancing pole so that when he did the ‘hand stand holding the stick across the wire’ trick The pole snapped and he fell to his death’ ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/51 "2002-08-13T02:07:48Z")
Although the performer was not blind, at the time he met his death was there anything obstructing his normal vision? NO **wolfman** the answer is no but you’re definitely on the right track!!! ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/52 "2002-08-13T03:37:52Z")
back in the morning everyone! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2002, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/53 "2002-08-15T07:59:43Z")
Welllllllllllllllllllll…? ---
**Author:** ![DAVEW0071](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19b73/32.png) [@DAVEW0071](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DAVEW0071)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2002, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/54 "2002-08-15T11:25:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by LifeOnWry \* > \*\*Did he not know there were termites, and the house fell on him? > > (On second thought, that seems really far-fetched, so if I’m actually right, no one will be more surprised than I.) \*\* Slight hijack…well, total hijack, actually, but I can’t let misinformation like this stand. TERMITES DO NOT LEAVE A SAWDUST RESIDUE. They actually consume the wood, therefore nothing is left. Carpenter ants, on the other hand… Sorry. We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Bird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Little\_Bird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Bird)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2002, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/55 "2002-08-15T17:54:20Z")
Here’s my guess!He was a trapese (sp?) artist and someone sawed through his little swingy-bar and he swung and it broke…right? ---
**Author:** ![Kn\_ckers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/96bed5/32.png) [@Kn\_ckers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kn_ckers)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2002, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/56 "2002-08-16T12:46:51Z")
Ooh, ooh! I have an idea!! The person who died was an assistant (though not the MAGICIAN) in a magic trick - namely, being sawed in half. He got into the box, as he usually did, and waited for the magician to use his trick saw to fool the audience into thinking he was sawing the box in half (I don’t know how this trick works, so I can make up my own rules). HOWEVER, the saw the magician was using was not the trick saw at all, but a REAL one! Oh, no!! Alas, the assistant didn’t see the sawdust (and maybe he was deaf, so he didn’t hear the sawing sound, either), and he failed to realize it was a real saw until the magician had sawed right trough his body. At which point it was too late. Did I get it??? ---
**Author:** ![Kn\_ckers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/96bed5/32.png) [@Kn\_ckers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kn_ckers)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2002, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/57 "2002-08-16T12:50:36Z")
Oh, and as for him not seeing the sawdust - he wouldn’t have seen it if he were locked up in a box…Though I think those magic person-sawing boxes usually leave the head and feet open, so maybe that’s a poor explanation. ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2002, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/58 "2002-08-16T12:58:18Z")
Why is any of the gueses the wrong one? It seems that the answer to the question is completely arbitrary on who is asking the question. ---
**Author:** ![monica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@monica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monica)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2002, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/59 "2002-08-17T04:56:24Z")
Is he inside or outside? Did he have any sort of disability? Was he a circus performer? Did he have an SO? If so, does the answer involve the SO? Did he die a quick death? Did the people after him have a personal complaint? ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2002, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477/60 "2002-08-17T07:04:10Z")
> [@](#): > > ## quote: > > Originally posted by LifeOnWry > Did he not know there were termites, and the house fell on him? > > ## (On second thought, that seems really far-fetched, so if I’m actually right, no one will be more surprised than I.) > > \*Originally posted by DAVEW0071 \* > \*\*Slight hijack…well, total hijack, actually, but I can’t let misinformation like this stand. > > TERMITES DO NOT LEAVE A SAWDUST RESIDUE. > > They actually consume the wood, therefore nothing is left. > > Carpenter ants, on the other hand… > > Sorry. We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread. \*\* Oh. Let me rephrase, then: Did he not know there were Asian Longhorn Beetles, and the tree fell on him? (Ha **DAVEWOO71**! I just read that ALB’s leave piles of sawdust. And even though my guess is still wrong, at least I’m not guilty of misinformation!) 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-he-had-seen-the-sawdust-he-wouldnt-have-died/123477.md?page=2)