Alexandria gazette, commercial and political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1812-1817, 1817-05-08
PRO BONO PUBLICO.

the tnlteu states IMAM I'D any christiaH
country in this world. There are more
fires in the city of New York in month
than in London, Bristol, Manchester and
Liverpool in a year. Philadelphia has
many, though not quite so many. Thi:
is partly owing to the viciousness Of the
young boys, who at one time we're in the
practie> Of throwing FIRE into the cellar:
to make blaze, for the fun Of the thing
partly to the supineness Of the Law
which ought 10 annex the same penal tt
arson rs 70 murder, but does not-and
partly to the exceedingly combustiblS
nature Of the materials with which our
houses are rooted. While states Of The
BEST quality abound in the country, is ii
nat stupid and indeed criminal negli'
gence 10 use shingles. and thereby to put
SO many lives to hazard, TO me il ap'
pears little less unreasonable, while slate
caR be had, TO roof with pine or cedar Oh
any other wood, than it would lie to stow
the garrets Of every house with barrels o.
gnnPowder.
Some years ago, that scientific noble
map, Lord MAHOx, tnCw Lord StanhOpe)
directed his attention to the invention Of
means to prevent houses from taking fire,
and so completely succeeded that he pub
hely exhibited the extraordinary specta-
Gle OF house filed in AL parts With com
bustibles which were burnt to ashes with
out communicating tire flames 20 the edi-
Gee that contained them. Having asccr-
tanned his success, he laid his plan be-
fore the great national societies, accom-
panied with the evidence Of the London
magistrates aud several o. the highest
characters in the country, tcbe published
For the good of the country.
send YOU for publication copy OF his
plan, extracted from the Philosophical
transact;ns. The process is, when com
pared with the value OF the thing ex-
,eediagly chcap--pattius lives oat OF the
question. Aud it is certain that with
slated roofs aud this method, there would
not be a FIRE in the United States in a
century, unless puS p0seiy kindled -ErenI
wooden houses might be eItctaalIy Sc
cured by the adoption Of it.
LORD MAHnN's
EEectual method Of securing Buildings
against Fire.
Taken from the Philosophical Tran.rc-
tons, London, 1879.
Tie new aud very simple method which
/ have discovered of securing every kind
of building, (even those constructed OF,
TIMBER against all danger OF lire may
properly he divided into three parts
Namely list. UndSfooriug
Cd. Extra lathing
Sd. lntersecuriRg.
Which particular methods may be ap-
Piled, in part or in whole 10 particular
buildings, according 20 the various Cir
cumstances attending their construct ton.
and according to-the degree of accumu-
lated FIRE TO which each of those buildings
NAV be exposed, from the different uses.
TO which they are neant to be appropria-
ted.
1st. The method Of nrderfoorin- may
be divided into two parts-sINeLE and
DOUBLE uaderhOorins
SINGLE UNDERFLooRISG is as follows |
A strong lath of about quarter of an |
inch thick, should be nailed against each
side Of every joist and Of every main tim
Der which supports the floor intended to
be secured. Other similar laths ought |
then to be nailed the whole length of all
the joists, with their ends butring sgain.t
each other. These are what call the
rILLETs. The top of each filiet ought to
be at one inch and half below the top Of
the joists, or ,.mbers against which they
are naileG. These Glles will then form,
as it we're, sort OF small ledge on each
side y the jcists.
When the fillets are going 20 be nail
&c on, some of the rough plaster see 4
must be spread with trowell all along
that side Of each OF the ti,lets which is to
lay next to the joists, in order that these
fillets may be well bedded therein, when
thew are nailed on, so that there should
not be any interval between the fiIlets
and the joists.
A great number OF common lsths muS,ll