The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-02 00:00:00

PROTECTION AGAINST FIRE.

The report was issued yesterday of the select
committee of the House of Commons appointed to
inquire into the existing legislative provisions for
the protection of life and property against fires in
the United Kingdom, and as to the best means to
be adopted for ascertaining the causes and prevent-
ing the frequency of fires.
The committee, after stating the course which
they have pursued in making these investigations,
and describing the general character of the
evidence they have received, proceed to offer a
series of recommendations. They advise a general
building act for all towns and places in the United
Kingdom governed by municipal corporations, &c.,
similar to the Metropolitan Buildings Act and to
the Building Acts of Liverpool, the sugges-
tions of professional witnesses as to the thick-
ness of walls and other details being taken advan-
tage of in passing such an act. In all buildings
composed of shops below and dwelling houses above,
the committee recommend that the floor immediately
above the shop should be made fireproof, and that
there should be a ready means of escape from the
roof ; also that the floors of all large lodging houses
for the poor be made fireproof, and that there
should be ample means of escape. It is a somewhat
singular fact that the architects, builders, and dis-
trict surveyors who were examined before the com-
mittee, deposed that when a fire takes place in a
warehouse iron is of little use in stopping its pro-
gress. Generally speaking, they prefer wood well
plastered for fireproof purposes to iron, and some
of them give a preference to wooden stairs instead
of stone, as the latter crumbled with the heat. It
seems that bills for the supply of water by com-
panies or local authorities containing clauses that
water need not be constantly laid on have been
allowed to pass without investigation, and the com-
mittee recommend that it should be made a stand-
ing order of the house that such bills shall be re-
ferred to the referees to inquire whether sufficient
reason exists for such provisions. Where it is proved
in au investigation that the fire was caused by culp-
able carelessness, the person or persons implicated
should be deemed guilty of a punishable offence.
Other recommendations of the committee relate
to the igniting point of mineral oils for illuminating
purposes, which ought not, they think, to be sold
with an igniting point under 110 Fahrenheit. All
such ois imported ought to be tested in this respect
and marked before being stored, and more stringent
regulations should be made regarding the storing in
warehouses and keeping in shops of turpentine,
camphine, and similar spirits. In very few other
towns save Loudon and Liverpool is this subject
attended to. There remain fires that are wilfully
caused. On referring to the evidence the committee
find that these are to be traced to several sources.
Ist, to individuals and organised gangs of men who
make a trade of it to defraud the insurance com-
panies ; 2d, to parties who have been unfortunate
in business, and who cannot meet the claims made
upon them ; 3d, to persons in warehouses to conceal
theft of goods made by them on the warehouses ;
4th, to malice. The witnesses concur in the belief
that an inquiry made into all the fires would reduce
the gross number of them. The police, or fire bri-
gade, should initiate the inquiry and report to an
authorised officer, whom the committee think should
be the coroner, anything that appears the least
suspicious ; the officer should examine witnesses,
or, if he thinks proper, impanel a jury; and any
person shown to be implicated should be prosecuted
at the Central Criminal Court. The coroner should
be paid partly by fees and partly by salary out of
the rates. The committee specially recommend that
no claim should be settled by any insurance com-
pany without a certificate from the police or fire
brigade, or offic r app Anted to conduct the investi-
gation into the origin of the fire ; but this certifi-
cate should not debar the insurance officers from
opposing the claim if they think proper.