New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-06-18
UOTSES THAT TUMBLE DOWN.

On Saturday night in East Twenty -third-st'
happened Qhough happened" Is not just
the world another of those consequences when
we most improperly call accidents" Three
brick tcnements, true to the law OF gravlta-
ton. simply tumblcd down. There was no
eartbouake and no tornado the buildings were
not weighed down 10y imprudently heavy con-
tents they just fell because they were too
weak to stand Fortunately the inmates had
sufficient warning to save their lives II not
their properly, and it is believed that no one
WAS buried beneath the ruins. 1t would have
been far otherwise if the crash had come In
the night, for in such case several hundred
lives must have been lost. But the fall IL not
the less discreditable to our arrangements Tor
securing public safety. These houses were put
ND about 2G years ago. Eight years since they
began TO show signs of impending ruin, ana
then the usual expedients were resorted to
braces and props and other devices for post
ponng the evil day. Last Winter the cellars
were full of frozen water, which is supposed
TO have split the masonry OF the foundations
Everybody who knew anything about the mat
ter knew that the houses were Wretchedly un-
safe. Complaints were made, it is stated, to
the proper persons, and it is also said that they
were disregalded, until last Saturday morning
an Inspector of Buildings came and inspected,
as the event has shown, somewhat tardily.
The tenants continued to live in considerable
numbers in this wretched, disrcputable, and
dangerous old block, the fall OF which was
only question Of time, and of no very long
time at that.
We are told that the authorities have had
their eyes upon these premises for good
WHILE but that the laws are such as to make
il difficult for them to order the demolition OF
unsafe houses. If this he so, then the sooner
the laws are amended the sooner they will
cease to disgrace our civilization. 1t is not in
the least to our credit that on this occasion no
lives were LOST but If there had been some
10 or 80 of them, would the warning have
been needed, and a repetition OF the horror
have been rendered less probable? Burnt
children, it is said IN the adage, dread the
fire; but so far as children of larger growth are
concerned, there are railway collisions, ex-
plosions conlla2ntlons, all manner of murder
Gus troubles, with no corresponding access OF
caution The buildings in East Twenty
ST. were perhaps as safe as many Others OF the
same class in other parts of the city. Possibly
the prOpllctOIS ol Idiinndchio c"'i''O' maj
some of them, take warning, but if month
hence another house or two should collapse
under the same circumstances, nobody would
be astonished. The public has unfortunately
subsidized into frame OF mind which renders
establishment impossible. If man Kills
another in the street lie is imprisoned and
possibly he is hung; but if he lets house to
a score of poor families, and it proves to be
so badly built as to fall down and kill num-
Der of men, women, and children, the loss Of
his property is usually thought to h n
sufficient punishment, and he is rather pitied
than otherwise. The only remedy which we
can propose is for the Building Department to
do its duty without fear, favor, or affection
That it has not done so was proved to "A
demonstration on Saturday night. How about
the future