The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-08-15
,y.on wiuItBe Remedied9

and property from boiler explosions, by the
| massage of law providing for their proper
inspection. But our city authorities, with that
proverbial neglect of the interests of those by
whom they were placed in power which has at
last become criminal, have taken no action in
the matter, although their attention has been
called to the subject, again and again, both by
the press and by juries of practical and intelli-
gent engineers. In the SAMSON street disaster
more than twenty-five lives were lost; and the
death of each and every one of the unfortunate
victims of this sad occurrence was the legiti-
mate effect of the criminal neglect of
which we are speaking. The result of
the Coroner's investigation showed that
there was a radical defect in the construction
of the boilers used in the establishments de-
feet which would have been detected by the
most casual inspection. But our City Fathers
learned no wisdom from a contemplation of the
charred and mutilated remains of more than
score of their fellow-creatures; the lamenta-
tions of score of suffering women, and the
pitiful cries of twice as many fatherless chill
dren, did not touch their hearts. They still con-
tinued to disgrace the city by their mockery
of legislation; and while they are rolling about
in the luxury of their summer vacation, an
other calamity Of the same character visits
our community, by which one man is sent to
his last account in a moment, and two others
are brought to the very verge of the grave.
Last evening, the Coroner's jury to whom
was committed the investigation of the causes
of this last disaster, returned their verdict,
which will be found in full in our local
columns. This jury was made up of men who
are engineers by profession, and they assert
that the explosion is to be attributed chiefly
to ''gross carelessness and a want of practical
knowledge concerning steam and machinery
on the part of those having charge of the
boiler" That an accident endangering the
lives of our people should result from such
cause, is as disgraceful as it is melan-
choly. There should be an ordinance
prohibiting, under the severest penalties, the
running of steam machinery by any one who
has not been found fully qualified, by study
and experience, to discharge such duties. 1t
is asserted by the friends of the unfortunate
victims of the Ninth street explosion, that
they were unable to pay practical engineer
the high wages demanded by that class of
mechanics. If that were the truth of the
matter, they were unable to carry on the
business which they had undertaken and the
law should have stepped in and prevente
them from risking their own lives and peril
ling those of their neighbors.
! But the jury say further that the engine
was "totally inadequate to perform the work
required of it, without causing greater pres
sure in the boiler than it was able to bear"
| For this state of affairs there was but one
remedy, and that was thorough inspection
of the boiler and machinery by men compe-
| tent for the task. That there are scores OF
boilers within the city limits which are thus
overtasked, and that there are numbers which
are defective in construction, as was the case
in the one which recently exploded on Sansom
street, we are assured by those who are fami.
liar with the subject. Other disasters may
therefore be anticipated, and no man whose
daily labor takes him within reach of steam
machinery can assure himself that he will no
be the next victim, unless the members O
Councils undergo a sudden reformation, anC
pay some little attention to the duties for tn,
discharge Of which they were elected.
In concluding their verdict, the jury in thi
case protest against the custom of taking prac
tical engineers from their employments to in
Vestigate the causes of boiler explosions, "a
their verdicts and recommendations in forme
cases are totally disregarded by our cit,
authorities, who have been implored time an,
again by bereaved community to enac
l some wholesome law to remedy this CROWN
= evil" And they give the public timel
warningth future explosions "mlust necessanil
occur under the present system Of management.
We are at the mercy of those to whom we hav
confded the care of our lives and property
and again we demand to know if they inten
to discharge the plain and clear duties whic
they have assumed?