New-York tribune., 1874-06-01
LESSONS OF MILL RIVER.


.t. Brookp.
The Mill River disaster was chosen as tho
subject OF a morning sermon tho South Congrega-
iona Church. Brooklyn, by the Rev Albert J. Lyman.
whose text JOB xxxiy, 20: +" In a moment shall
they die and the people shall be troubled at midnight
and pass away" few OF the extracts are gwen below'
II is not yet too late TO speak OF Williamsburg. Tho
investigation not yet concluded and far 1t Ia
nous. In calling attention 90 this calamity I would
shun undue assumption. Whatever impression you
have gained the accounts Of the press assured
the half been told you because 'he half could
not told spent the whole OF the Tuesday following
the food in walking through the whole length OF tho
valley, and found that the bait could not be told Wa
think OF water, but there was no white foam. IL
was black, dense with mud and sand In room
where the water scarcely reached the ceiling ceiling
aud In this dense torrent were Jagged splnters,
shreds OF iron ripped from machinery, 80 's tnss
suDcate and drown, but would ,mte IKE cannon pdlI-
peseTpon y 'ae5es VI hye e e we" Wa w Yoa
know the man facts. neod not recite them Ana II
yi%a OPT OF plaee dsirast dspser clerical expIana-
The best TO study the fact Ia 10 study hrs
that part which ia next IA, begin with God aud
reason down to the water torrent aud the defective
DAM but begin with thes" latter and reason up as Tar
theology by the side OF great disaster thas III your
quiet library.
There are three OF approaching these d asters.
(i) To assign them the criminal gcD1" g.: men; D
to resolve them into the neyablef tpf nstarai law;
There IL one other idea. but ni .nab'e. Ireier
Ia t simply stamp II as non-tbn. viz: that tho
disaster "a punishment IL wgs punishment.
unless indeed, there the wO.a Jat OF "a moral
retrbnton upon criminal irr"spo aoty that mado
dam Ia the presen instance IL is stern
ly, especially true that the disaster was owing 10 Iha
reCk!eSsneSs OF men.
But there another side Of this matter There hu
responsibility for the DISASTER aad the weight ofi 10
terrible. Let lt De rolled them To WHOM belongs
Responsibility rests with the men who built The ddm,
perhaps upon the who employed them 10 build u,
perhaps upon the Commissioners who inspected the
work. perhaps upon the legal PROVISIONS under Hhieh
those Commissioners acted. Does not responsibility
somewhere for shutting In such m ss of waters Dy
a wall of stone less than six feet thick at the base
What shall say OF men Who seemed 10 have Ignored
the expressed condition OF the c0ntractt
MY friends, the responsibility Of life and death Is
bound up not few OF our business transactions You
hold ply yscan to the responsibilities Of life and death.
and hold the III Ot 10 like responsibility. But tue
builder who builds house. or the manufacturer who
fills his factories with dangerous machinery, or the con-
tractor who builds reservoir over peoples heads,
have also the responsibility OF life and death Tho
responsiUility OF men Is just IN proportion
to the dependence or person ana property
upon the work and here 100000 of property and 500
lives dependent upon tue STABILITY or rev docks
of stone How and how honorable, then, should
have been the hand that moved and LAID and left in their
places those blocks OF stone. That band should haye
worked with as rigid and Responsible accur-
aey as the hand or surgeon In guiding .
knife through the tissues OF the human DOdy.
Let Us have Integrity under responsibility Let US DO
fair TO nature and fair and fair to GOd ana true
to the responsibilities under which our business Hour
ishes the and intricate web OF the 0usi-
ness and social life these sp0nsl 0es become sooner
or later responsibilities ct life and death.