The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-12-12
The Late Calamity In Thirty-second Street.
CORoNER3 INyKsTiGAl0N NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
AGAINST THE CONTRACTORS.


This morning at the hour, the iuycstig ston
continued relative to the falling Of the building In
Thirty second Pussday last causing the death
OF Two workmen, engaged ut the time the building
The FIRST witness called was
Daniel Rolf. sworn, says-I nm . policeman Of the
Eighteenth ward police am BY trade snd served
my time in this city have worked over twenty years
Al the business did not the building In question,
previous TO the fa ing Yesterday morning visited the
iuins and examined the mortar took Of the
from brick pile that was then standing my exami
nation found 1t to be much better than expected
wettsd some of it up and found 1t to work freely have
used better crtsr and have also used much
suppotd to be pretty good for rough think the
mortar was sufficient for the building II il had been
aged properly have uied much worse for such build
irRs
Qu,sIIoN NY CoRoNER-Can you tell the jury how Is
that only these tenant bouses fsll'
ANswER-l think that the hostiDg OF heavy beams in
one place, and not dpersing them properly over the
building, was the main Of the brick work giving
way but II the beams had been properly spread about
snd the building then fell the must have been
fl the foundation giving In manner Almost
any vail built with the beet materials; II loaded
with beams while the mortar IL yet will give way
You can make The mortar too rich well too In
this case think the mortar good enough, X IL had
been left dry but II they work putting beams
eaIeessy and shake the walls and disturb the mortar,
IL will never set sgaiu 20 well although. the wall re-
msins plum it will held but OF course sonnd. The
mortar in this case is much better than it looks.
by aJuror-H you were putting up house OF the
like description WI ud you have used such materials
Antw.r-If l were building house for myself
should usa better materials
by Juror DO you know how much sard Is requisite
for "A barrel of lime!
Answer-I do not know exactly some barrels Of lime
are better and stronger than others tell with
trowel when the mortar is good If there Is too much
lime 1t works sticky and 10 not strong; the mortar Is
always stronger when sufficient cuSting sand
James Rbn+a being sworn, said i reside the east
corner OF Twenty ninth street and Third Im,de
all he r'ar for the brick work used the buildngn
question did not make IL for the stone work have
worked at making mortar six years and half In this
city bave made all kinds of mortar | made
much bad mortar the sand used In this mortar
good; it light and and yellew Of 1t white
have seen good deal woree sand and also batter used
the rock lime had about forty barrels Of lump lime
had perhaps about two hundred barrels Of ground
lime; on Thursday last week ago, made the last NOR
tar for the buildings in question my instructions were
om Mr. Fielder 10 make good strong mortar made all
the mortar alike not present when the buildings
fell consider the mortar good good as would wish
put into building OF my the hod carriers a. the
buildings Paddy Mooney and Owen Hurley they
reside at The Of Twenty nfh street and Second
avenue did not hta that portion Of the wall had
given way
BY Juror-Did you make the lime for the two front
buildings better than you did for the buldings
Answer-I made all the mortar, and made 1t all alike;
did not put any more sand in the lime tor tho
buildings; made all the mortar alike for both buings
the sand all screened
John Johnston being sworn said / reside in Thirty
hfth street near Third avenue; my place of business Is
No 90 East Thirty street my business house
carpenters was engaged about the buildings in question
from their commencement until they were topped off
By the Coroner-What the quality of the mortar,
inyour opinion, used in these buildings?
ADswer.-I saw the sand used; very coarse.
and at other times much finer it seemed to be used just
particular notice Of the me the mortar appeared to be
good
Question. When were those walls completed,
ADswerTbe latter purt OF last week; cannot say the
day Ivos rot present when the building fell; there
few minutes after do not know about the grders put
the Ioof don't think any Of the beams put the
building the pght pieviour noticed there three
uprights pnt under the eirders In the cellar they
j. Joist did not notice bout any Of the other grid
err the orig yinal contractor for the building John
Mey and it subsequently given to Mr. Fielder; 1t
wa taken from Meyers becaue he did not give sasfac
ton to the owIer Meyers not at work the build
ing when i fell hs had nothing TO do whit; Mr. Robert
ID. Field was the contractor for tho brick work; the
greui which the building stood very solid;
there every csution tkeu timber had been placed
under the foundation wall to guard asaiast aoy effect
gave way. In reply to queiions put BIZ sjuror the
witness riber stated conider the sand good;
the work taken from the fret
did not 1urnifh sufficiently good materials at that time
the building bad reached the first tier Of beams the
ecrnd contractor put this second tier OF aud
ali the tiuber from that up there three gi iders
under tbe first 1oortwo in tie second and from the
third the grd der besms required to be twenty four
teet org and ten incl wide they would be sufficient
without braces; when nailed up they would apring
the wall; cid not SEE beams piled up in place.
DO beams mp there at all the grders spliced
in the centre that s they hs we'd and nailed with
braces ON each side did not work the building my
place Of work Is hard by and hal occasion 10 Look iDto
the building after 1t was taken from Mr. Myers.
Robert b Lloyd swo,n-I reside at No 142 Fast
Twenty. eighth street. ani builder saw the build
Ing in Thirty second street when In ruins think the
mortar was good and such as is generally used by
builders mortar to lay day or two after beng made is
tDis time OF the year in the summer season 1t woald
found lunps Of lime in the mortar mortar used Ia
Of the year If there is frost 1t 10 the better to
lay a day two; ut this you cannot calcu.
late on the weather the lime will slack psr.
fectly II the mortar lays II the wallis wtre finish
ed On Thursday and the beams were laid upon next
Tuesday, the walls should be sufficiently secured at
this time OF the year there Is little dependence 20 be
placed in mortar matter how good II the bricks
wet at the time the walls went up think the
suncepty long for the mortar to tet TO sustain the
hen aNel wt fbpy in.
tended for would state that the of the weather
has great deal TO do with the weakening the strength
enDg Of wall if the weather wet and rainy al
time. Il would weaken the WALL If the walls
through they would be weaker in three four than
when hrst set.
At this stage of the proceedings the Court took re-
cess for fifteen minutes Upon It's re assembling
John Buyar was duly sworn-the oath being repeated
to him by German nterpreter-he dsposed:-I reside
at No III Eighth street; l am builder at work
the building 10 Thirysscopd street the day it fell
at the fourth story when the building fell Question
ny the CoonerStste what sed that building TO fall
In my opinion tho walls not sufa b ntly sub
stsptsl; raw portion Of the wall on the Lexington
side buged out the day before the accident IL
the part of thc wall up ct the top 70 the roof
when / went there 10 work on Tuesday morning
this portfsn OF the wall had fallen down this
the fsme portion that was buged out IL was
the only part which fell this was TO the
front OF the buding the inside course of brick did not
fall the outside Gid; the portion which fell
tended about three feet ia length and two feet In depth
upcn The wall the masons vent to work Tuesday morn
ing and built tbis portion again; heard from my
boss George Weber how particular tho who owned
the building was about the materials. ~ beams &c
when the afops went to re build the portions OF the
wall which had fallen they asked for better mortar there
four girders the frat floor four the second
and four the fourth story; there four posts all
the way up; these posts measured three by four; the
tin bers which hosted up for the roof put In
their proper places when boisted up; OF them
hoisted up on Monday night there four Of them
and they thus put: two were left In the place TO
stand upop and carried away and laid ia their
places at the mont Of the budiDg the Others put
in their places the next day fast they hodted
there had been twenty five beams when the building
fell. they AL in their places; there other
tin hers there except what for and they
in their pisces; tbe wood which lay thu chimney
short beams, called 4 fire headers which come
mp to TIE hearth; as in the act Of raising up
these 10 my brother, to put in the beams the
building fell; there were no tmbers piled up
where my brother except what In their place
that the beams laid fiat but not Fixed in
psrnsnept POSITION there not Of the mbers
placed top Of another the walls propped some