The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1872-01-11
FIRE PROOF -BUILDINGS--A LETTER
FROM THE StULPTO2
$3.50 POWERS.

uH iOtlOWlbS interesting icbLcr from lIf |
POWERS, the sculptor, TO citizen Of Rhode !
Island, is printed in the Providence Jomrnat
FLORENCE. Dee "a, 1871
MY DEAR SIR: Your letter recalls TO my
mind what have more than once said TO my
eo1nirynf@n, viz: that he day was not dis
i;nJ Whei, one or more OF our American
c'iles would he destroyed by fire | made
his prediction TO you. remember. aud am
sorry, indeed, that it has been SO soon tul-
flied.
II only requires combination of circum
stances SINH ar TO those which eXis.ed AT Chi
cago, to ay In ashes any other American
ciy Let he cold be be ow zero with
tempestuous wind and the hour the dead of
he nigh, when ali are at rest and a fire be-
gin in some huge block of buildings full oil
combustioies, petroleum, etc and lust in
the spot TO be taken by The WIND and swept
through the city. and there will be another
Chicago disaster. 1t is true that Chicago
was butt for q bonfire. Even the roofs were
OF pitcn, [ have been told II was the strond
wind, however,, which did the business ang
viii 90 it again with q comhustibic CITY
And [ fear there is not in America a ciEy
which is not combusribe. There NAV he
some fire proof buildings, but more depends
upon their isolation than their structure
! The fire at Chicago swept away fire proofs
! and all in its way.
But it may be asked, SIS it possible to
make til city fire proof?" / answer yes and
|
| this have only to say that although there
have been frequent fires in the city OF Flor
ence dnrIDg tue thIriy tour years OF my resi-.
dence a 1t, not oRe house has been consnn,-
! ed, except a theatre, aud that was not entire
! " d .-lrOyed Rooms tuii of goods have been
heated Ike ovens by igniLed callcoes straw
hats etc, bu as the floors above and below
were Ill covered by thin brck tiles. the
goods burned aUjthoUt Ueit1Z0t5on AS there
was no flame, $melt like that OF a coIl-pt
soon gave he alarm and the fire was soon
! eX InguIShed by no other engine than
Sqnlrt holding about a gallon, which dis
charged Il we.-dIr1cted stream through
some aperture | once heh~d some tiremen
marching 10 fire IN Florence Foremost
were thre" men with picks, next tour men
| with buckets, then three men with highly
| polished brass COURTS on their shoulders ali
marching with All arr OF ponp and i'm port
ahce. The tire was at the residence OF Mr..
! Clcvcnger the American scu p;Or. and mad
been burning twen' y-t0ur hours on The end
Of Il jolst just under his fir place II had
smeIt something like II c0"l-pit for some
time and al length perceived snuxe rIsln.r
from the brick floor. On going below ii,
| found the room full OF smoke. ana Il rush-
bottom"d char just under the jost was par
TALLY consumed But the josl was not vet
burned off, and why ? Because the fire was
hrlcked down. 1t could not rise and burst
into flames
The secret ct fire proof building, then. is
this IL must be made impossible for the
fl tmes to pass through the floors or up the
stairs. Ii you viii have wood floors and
stairs, lay IL flooring OF the tmnnrst shoe :
iron over the jos' and your wood upon that ::
and sheath the stars with The same material;
A floor viii not'5urn without u supply OF air
under it, Throw ii dry board upon a perfect
~ fiat pavement, and kindie it as it lies il
you can. You may make tire upon it aud
III ilIne consume L., but it VIII req IRE a long
Prevent
sllll be fires, no house VIVA be CONSUMED Fba
combustion will go on SO slowly that discov-
cry is certain in Time 10 prevent auy great
ca iamily. But the roots. the roofs-how
about them Slate or lilies? Zinc mats LOO
easily. / helieve that hard-burned tiles il
Hat, would stand the frost at home and. if
SO, they constitute the best roofing NV
house ha, no jolss All the floors are OF
tiles resting on arches. One OF these arches
was made over Il room % feet so are bv fonr
men IN tour days. The bricks ar. abont on.
a d )ne-half inches thick, laid elgewisp. With
plaster OF paris. There Was no Iramework
prepared to lay them on, unless Won womb
SO term tour bits OF wood which a man could
carry under his arm And yet this arch IS so
strong as To be perfectly sale with a Iarv.
dancing party on 1t. | have never heard 0t
one of these floors falling, and they are abso-
lute'y fire-proOt. OF course, Slight arches
like these would not do for warehouses. II
would pay. think, to send out here Tor an
Italian brlck-inason wno knows how 10
build these thin, but Strong arches for dwell
lighthouses. | know that there is prejudice
~ home against brick or composition floors
TOO cold in winter" it is said. And so
they are If bare, but cover them with several
thcknesses Of paper, and then carpet them,
and one can distinguish the slightest dit
ference between their temperature and that of
wooden floors. Who doubts this let him try
the experiment. with The feet or the ther-
mometer. The truth is, that the brick or
composition floor is no colder in itself than
wood-the thermometer attests this-but il
is a better conductor.
do not insure my house, as know that it
is not cOmbustible
Yours truly, HIRAM Powers.
Henly Howard, Phenx, r. /.
i Wearcrs Of tight, boots WILL no doubt, find
the following interesting reading: