The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-02-13
THE HIPPODROME DOORS.
Bars Up and Bars Down Necessity for Stricter
CautiOn-A Herald Survey.

inspectors Of the Department OF Buildings appeared
certifying TO their having made a thorough examna-
ton OF the means Of ingress and egress OF the
Hippodrome, and declaring that they amply suf-
cent in every respect While assembiage OF some
thousand people listening TO the persuasive
discourse OF Moody and the musical pleading OF
Sankey Thursday night HERALD reporter, under
the conduct of sergeant Of police was traversing the
corridors and byways of the vast structure, peepng
into the hooks and and examining the facilities
offered the rapt multitude the great hall to make
a sudden departure of emergency. From
entrance to entrance he passed. trying every door
and exploring every of the labyrinth until
plete Of the building had been made. The in
vestgation showed that the odd doors opened outward
and In some instances swung backward and forward.
Inside newly constructed doors swinging both
ways and giving admission TO different parts Of the
building. The north door Of Madison avenue, how
ever, which to DO the principal entrance was
sliding one, running a trough, which, on the first
night Of the revival became clogged with dirt
to make the door unmanageAble and cause
it to defy the most strenuous efforts OF
half dozen able policemen to It, This door,
contrary to the report OF the Department Of
Buildings it's nature could open neither outward
nor inward and the management evidently led
appreciate the Importance of this obstacle for box
door lately been constructed inside and the Of
the old door has been dispensed with According TO
the OF the police attendance, this door
placed there only when the statement appeared
the HERALD touching the insecurity OF the building.
From the doors the reporter passed into the OF
halls and chambers underlying the great hall Here
are kept the furnaces which supply heat and here such
apparatus as needed keep the building
stored. Entering through doors in the framework par
tition. these unoccupied sections traversed.
| ofvr hara at init
against the walls groanng under the weight of
| the throng seated them Huge wooden stead
fasts stretch from floor to roof and from the
boarded ceiling. AS the reporter passed along
could be heard the hum and rustic of the vast multi
tude above. On entering these deserted halls and
corridors the first subject of remark to the reporter
the curious and varied accumulation of lumber which
! had found storage there There was timber every
where Nor It boards sticks that appeared
sometimes Once or twice in passing the furnaces a
odd pile Of shavings showed itself at no too great dis
from the fires, and occasional heap OF monde
script but positively nhammable debris TO be
in nearly every nook and corner. The reporter took
occasion suggest the chances OF confagraton but
was informed at that the furnaces and apart
| mebfs had been thoroughly examined and declared
| perfectly safe by competent authorities
From these Interior sections the reporter passed
through an amorph6us collection of ante rooms Offices
and closets traversed by wooden Partitions connected
by complicated wooden stairways, and invariably
empty and unmatched Through these a corridor gave
the upper terraces OF seats in the great hail.
| POLICE ARRANGEMENTS.
During the services ON Thursday evening accident
occurred in the gallery OF the main hall while Mr.
Moody speaking which showed that the police
were acting independently or The management and
Superintendent Thorne who has All the responsibility
of the arrangements his shoulders Sergeant Taylor
OF the Twenty ninth precinct had taken the
HERALD reporter through the Hippodrome and had
taken particular pains to investigate the different doors
the entire number being examined carefully. 1t was
discovered that the large wooden beams that
bars for each door standing up end at the
frances ready TO be put up On Monday and Tuesday
night these bars were stretched across each pair OF
doors which constitutes one entrance and exit There
was one door Twenty sixth street. by which Chris
tan Workers" and the choir enter attended to by Mr.
De Bar who stated that he had no wooden bar
THURSDAY night but admitted to the bar being used
Monday and Tuesday nights Sergeant Taylor, in
making his perambuations through the building came
to the door in Tewnty seventh street by which
This door was tested Monday Tuesday nights by
the HERALD reporter and at eight O'Clock precisely IL
was found that this door closed fast ana that
wooden pine placed the box DOORS out
| Side tbe man door. number OF reporters provided
with adrsslon tickets tried this door sought ad-
| mission but the doorkeeper inside on the two
evenings referred 70 you'd not open the door,
it takes time to take down the bar which fits the
came TO the door on Thursday evening the bar could
not DO found and the attendant declared that the door
had always been open from the beginning, which was
not true.
"where is the wooden bar" asked the reporter
when the doorkeeper said that there no bar The
reporter looked around and a found bar
about feet in width, which looked II IL would dt
across the doorway TRY this said the reporter to
Sergeant Taylor land II IL will The Sergeant
took up and placed 1t little awkwardly across
II did not fit The doorkeeper, forgetting himself
shifting the wooden bar il fell into the groove as II Il
had been fitted There small group standing in the
porch at the time and somebody said THAT settles to
so the party passed The Sergeant noticed the
great OF lumber in his circuit around the build
Ing the innammabe material amounting TO perhaps a
hundred wagon loads vain attempt made to
lind BY what authority the doors were thus barred
alter eight O'Clock Most OF the attendants denied that
the were closed Thursday night barred but
acknowledged that the HERALD was correct in stating
that the doors closed and barred during the
vices Monday and Tuesday nights but the investiga-
ton OF the trouble had opened the doors wondrousy
wide on Wednesday and Thursday evenings II seems
that the police had acted without orders in taking OF
the and leaving them open during services
Wednesday night, as will be shown.
During the services Thursday night Sergeant Tay-
lor was standing at the head Of the stairs on the gallery
OF the main hall which Is very edectuay screened
from the audience by huge wooden partition. While
conversng with the HERALD reporter young gentle
man named Demarest who wore the badge OF usher,
came 70 the sergeant and stated that he wanted the
sergeant TO stop the audience from going out OF the
hall into the street
Sergeant TAYLoR-I cannot prevent any one from
leaving the ball II would be infringement of per-
sonal liberty, and dare not do 1t The law Is against
that, and there are prisons TO keep offenders In but
the police are here only 70 keep order and see that
there Is disturbance well TO that they get
MI DRMAREsr-Wen, will you not obey the ORDER Of
Mr. Thorne, the superintendent He says that you
stop tho people from going out during the
vices and you must keep the doors closed during the
Sergeant TAYLoR-I will keep order But bow do
you expect that can tell one man or ten men or
women stay in arrest them unless they are dis
orderlyq
Usher DKxARxsr-weu. thought you knew your
duty, and Superintendent Thorne says that you must
not allow any one TO go out OF the building.
HERALD RKroRrER-Did you come from Mr. Thorne
with orders that the police TO prevent people from
getting out Of the building II they choose 70 cavef
Usher DKMAREsT-Yes Mr.. Thorne insists that the
audience must remain the building during services,
and that the police should close the doors prevent
their egrees
Sergeant TAYLoR-But how is II possible for me to
stop any man woman when they not committing
any disordery act or creating any Disturbance
Usher DKnAREsT-Do you mean to say that n the
Police Commissioner ordered you 10 arrest a citizen,
even though he were committing offence, you would
not do III
Sergeant TAyLoR-I TO say that none OF the
Police Commissioners would ask arrest any one
unless be had committed crime or was suspected OF
one.
Ueher DKnAREsr-very well sir II you will not obey