The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1872-01-03
trO SmbustjbIe Houaes

The IA. IL Chicago has shown the great
need there is of some incombuStiblc mater
ial of sufficient durability AMI cheapness to
be used generally for constructing buildings
in. cities. Isolated iire-prooi blocks, So
0allcd, can not withstand the tremendous
heat of a great fire when driven on by n
strong wind. We must have something
which will not burn, from which TO make
our warehouses, stores, shops and houses, o.
every large city will be in continual danger
of II fate like 10 that which has overtahcn
IN" great city Of the Northwest.
Ii has been suggested that buildings made
ofcOnCrete possess the desired qualities. The
artificial stOnck nOwn as cOencrcte is gener-
ally made of six parts of small gravel, brOk.
Ell bricks or Hints, and one part of cement
The first two ingredients are 10 be found
every whcre. The cement, when made ar
tiiicially. consists of from twenty 10 twenty
five pee cent. OF silica, with eighty to sew
enty-iiye per cent of lime or of chalk, pure
clay and fire sand. Thc United States is the
only crurtry where nature has compound
ed the materials Ecrs'lf. furnishing the cc-
mcnt ready tor use. l. is found in large
quantities in New Yosk, Massachusetts,
CoHncc irrs, Kentucky, and Oiio.
Tie ht'ihiagS proposed are To be Of con-
crete thr"nGh""f. Ike ijors are to be of
II all iaai .tOrc, mldc Of cement and
SAID iron is t. be uecl alone io- support
ing ti.c il"5rs and root ana tor bracing the
building.
Concrete hi li!ngz already have had .neir
capabilities fully tested Dy use. The public
buding, 1t CEerbourg, Marsciles. Tou-
Ion, NUoiHi:h, Dover, Aidcgncy and h 'dy-
s!our, together With several on our own
coast, ar. bailt ot concrete. IL is iitquent-
" used la England Tor foundation walls.
The immense sheds of the Metropolitan
railway company at Wcst Brampton, the Col
'cge o. Surgeons, and Wellington baI racks,
ana many i0u,es in Pail Mail, Lincoln's
Ina Ficli, It James park, and elsewhere
N London. are huilt of it. In Spain and the
-nuth Of France il is used in the cOnStruc-
ion Of common houses. In sweden ana
NoTthtrn Germany it is largely used for
building purposes, the dwelling houses built
of il having double walls, which protect the
inmates from vcrmin and pro luce n more
.quab!c inside temperature.
Many advantages are claimed for con-
crete buildings over those made of brick
and stone. People who have lived in them
thnk them stronger, more even III temper
ature aud more quiet because the concrete
/, nCncOuduct0r of neat and Of sound)
aud cheaper than ordinary houses. Above
all, they are inconbustible-a fire which
would destroy the furniture in one room
not affecting the contents of the next, A
concrete house, ia short, is building of
lire-proof compartments, which Is said to
b. fully equal in every other respect to
buildings male OF ordinary materials
Th" time must come when the kind of
buildings now in vogue will give way 10
something better. Especially from the dan
ger of fire better safeguards are needed. A
block OF concrete houses in Chicago, placed
where the fire began, might have saved the
city. A multitude OF such buildings, scat
tered through the business portion of a city
would almost certainly prevent fire of
wide extent.
The importance of the subject is appar-
ent. Americans have devised many witty
inventions. Can not some Of them, in view
of the catastrophe at Chicago and the dan
ger of similar fate which hangs over all
our large cities, hit upon some method-by
adopting concrete for building purposes, or
finding out some other incombustible, cheap
and abundant material-which may pre-
serve our property, our precious things and
our lives. rom destruction by fire er-N. 7.
Ereaing Post.