New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-02-04
THE ELm-sTRRET TRAGEDY.

OF late years, since Land has grown so dear and
life 80 cheap, in the City of Eew-York the poor have
been compelled to hudde closer aud closer to-
petber until at length they have almost ceased TO
possess the right to the traditional six feet of earth
supposed TO belong to all humanity. For their
abtdes, they now have nothing but tall, towering,
lettering piles Of masonry, where the clean and the
unclean are herded unfortunately together be-
tween the cellar and tee clouds These habitat'ons,
called tenement houses, ale hastily built of poor
materials in the cheapest manner, and as lorg IS
they last pay greater percentage to their owners
than the mansions along the fashionable avenues.
They are built after the style of the dwellings of
Paris end Edinburgh, but far less duraby, and
without the accessories of health and cleanliness
which characterize such buildings in Europe. The
common practice here is to cover the entire lot
with tie building, which is run up to the hight of
FIVE OF six stoIes Considerations Of health, clean
lIess, safety, fort, rarely have any weight
With the owners OF such structures, and it is sim
guar fact that Re who makes the slightest attempt
TO tepart from tie OLD, steIeOtyped, insecure un-
comfortable, packing box style of building such
DIV eInes is at once hailed as phianthroplst, and
public beDefeetor.
From careful survey of the city in 1856, we
learn that there were then $1,000 buildings of al
kinds in IT; and while "a, 465 of thee dwellings
sfelrered 36,2l3 families, the other 1893 had to
cover $500 families. Since then the dspropOrtion
has become much greater About three-fourths Of
the population Of the city are now estimated to
average seven iau lilies 10 house. Weare assured
that there are many blocks Of tenement houses in
New-Yolk which hive twice the number of people
tibt reside ia the whole Of the Fifth avenue.
AS We base said, these houses are FIVE or six
stories in hight, and made to cover the whole Of the
ots in Whch they stand. Running up through the
center Of TIE buildings are narrow dark, dank
etairways connecting the several floors. Four
families are allotted to each hoor each family occu
~ ing ore room and ODE dark bedroom, for which
ttoy pay from "a 10 Sc, and even as high az 50 per
month. The water.clOsets are either in the
cellar or u TIE balls on the several floors, and their
txbaIations infect the stifled atmosphere of the
dwell Dg. The building destroyed in Elm street
VAS OF this character. 1t was % by 60 feet, and
siy stories high, and was designed for ~ families
'r 10 persons, at rental of over 81, 300 year,
two of the upper suites of rooms being set apart
Cor laundry purposes. The walls of such buildings
are shells, with beams, floors, and partitions
OF wood, ard the steep and narrow stair-cases,
barely three feet wide, are made Of the same CON-
bustlble materials. In this case there was narrow
covered stairway from the rear of the second story
to the yard; but the majority Of such buildings
have not this second mode Of exit.
just look at II for moment. Here were nineteen
families crowded into space where two might
have lived decertly together. A FIRE occurs under
the only stairway, sweeping upward like furnace,
snd IN few minutes the wretched inmates are
h,mmed IN, and compelled to endure the agonies Of
death by the flames, or to throw themselves from
root and windows into the streets, with almost the
certSny Of icing dohed to pieces, the hight OF the
building precuding the use OF the Ere ladders, the
highest of which was % feet too short, while the
situation of the house, between two squat two.
story structures, rendered escape across the house
tops impossible.
The Legislature should enact, at once, that every
tenement house should be subject TO the supervision
Of ctmpet. mt architects in its construction, v no
should prescribe the manner in which it should DO