New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1854-11-11
BUILDING TO BURN.

For what else bat the FIRE are buildings erected
in this City, The walls are stone or brick from
two stories below the surface to ak stories above
and perhaps furnished with iron shutters to doors
and windows; and yet from bottom to top made
all are full of light pine lumber. The floors sad
beams are both pine-ptch pine at that; the
stairs are pine, with clear draft up to the root
and that is tin outside and pine inside. Doors.
window shutters, shelves, partitions an are pine.
But this ia not all that tempts the fire. Furniture
bedding, curtains, are almost as combustible -
finder, and the whole house seems to be built and
furnished to burn, and that too with the slightest
proyocstion. and almost without hope Of saving
single thing after the first fash.
ia fire kindles In tho lower partof scweling-
house. it is wonder IL d is not up the open stair
WAY to the roof and out through the pine scastle.
in ten minutes. If it kindles in the garrett. there
is nothing in the way of progress to the cellar
all is pine True, it may stop, on Its way down.
upon each floor, just long enough to burst out
through the pine sash and lace curtains CT each
window. If the FIRE is on the outside, what 10 10
hinder 1t from coming in, for half the wall is con-
posed of doors and windows-not for necessary
light or air, because they are never openod-ssd
the only guards against fye are green, Venetian
blinds. They are built to burn
But this is not all. Look up to the top ofstA,t
new, fashionable, splendid, costly, brown stcas1
fve-story house. You see an i'm nense cornice
projecting from the caves. 1t looks like s0se.
Wait till fire tries it. The very first LAP Of the
forked tongue of flame will set the whole in
blaze. 1t was built to burn. tie nothing but
pine boards, painted brown to match the stone.
Ii is a sham, cheat, made Of the best materials
for torch. When it is lighted, 1t will set fire
to dozen other houses, built in the same way-
built to burn.
Are we rational beings thus TO continue 10 Pile
up cob-houses which will tumble or burn doaa ct
the fret touch of the destroying clemens We
have fire laws but not the FIRST law of comrn
sense. There are not dozen 6re-proof buli-
ipgs in the City. The Custom-Hou may be %,
but the Post Office is most VIGOROUSLY and shame
fully food for FIRE. though Its destruction, with
it's contents, would be far more disastrous than
the loss of the Custom-H House. Just so with
many of the public buildings of the City. They
are built to burn. What s strange is, not that
they do burn, but that they do not burn oftensr,
and more ofthem; they are made for it,
1t is a notorious fact, that as houses are now
buat in New-York, they are more insecure, moro
likely to be wholly consumed when fire he's
commenced than if built wholly of wood: becssss
in a frame house fireman feels more secure, md
while he can see the frame standing, he is no.
afraid to trust himself within its reach. For
anything but general conHagration frame buud-
ings would be safer than our present style Of
brick and stone walls, with the whole interior
and roof combustible as finder.
There is very great need ofreform in this part
cular. We might as well heap up bank notes and
set fire to them as to erect such costly rilss, |
which are almost equally combustible.