The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-10-21

BRICKWORK IN EAST TORTY-SECOND
STREET C.tTING ~ TWICE
Granite stones that Dropped Out. and Cement
TINT Can be Crumbied by the Fingers
Tenements Threatened with Destruction.

Granite Stone. that Dropped Out. and Cement
that Can be Crumbied by the Fingers
Tenements Threatened with Destruction.
Persons living near Forty-sccond street
and First avenue were aroused by n low. rum
bling noise followed by dull. heavy explosion.
soon after 8 o'clock yesterday morning. Thirty
feet Of the nrchway connecting First and Soc
ond avenues at Forty-sccond street had cnvcd
in. filing up tho cnstcrn entrance. Tho sound
rcsembled that accompanying heavy blrst
Tho windows Of Frank A. Seitz's house. ut 332
East Forty y-sccond street. were shaken. and tho
bod trembled ns II there had been an earth
quake. Mr. Scitz's three -yenr-od daughter ran
into his room crying. Pnpnwhnt Il tho nnttcrP
Everything is moving" Solomon Lyon thought
that n big cannon Ind bccn discharged under
his windows ut 759 First avenue.
Formerly thcro wns rising grade In Forty
second street beginning nt Third avenue and
ending in n rocky prccipice. hity feet in height.
at First avenue. The summit OF this cliff. tho
edge protected by nm iron railing. was a ia
vorite resort for children and nurses living in
the brown stone houses of Prospect place. In
August 1877. tho Aldermen yielded to the re-
| quest Of merchants and tradcsmen in that
neighborhood. who complained that they had
| to go out OF their way four Ave blocks to de-
| liver goods nt houses half a hock distant. and
authorized the construction ot tunnel, begin.
| ming nt FIRST avenue and extending to the level
first made through the block. Then NIulhol-
| land Brothers finished their contract to build
nvonue to the river. Tho contract to construct
u" tunnel mn pr2per was given To- JeT9miah X
| work was begun in March ast.
massive blue stone wnll. with granite trim
mfngs mi, * was cscc'cd ut First avenue Is four
| top. and IL the width OF Forty-sccond street.
| Two flights OF granite steps on its facadc lend
wall. The entrance II an arch about thirty
| feet in width and eighteen or twenty fc,'t In
mel. On either side granite wnls we're laid to
| support the brick nrchway. wooden frame
work. scyenty,fyc feet In length. formed Ike
| tho interior of tho arch. WINS usei 70 lny the
| hrick upon. hnd Kept in place until the cement
had hardened. The, arch wns composed Of six
| layers Of bricks laid cdl.cwi-e. thin layer OF
cement WINS placed on the last layer of bricks;
| and when IL could be safely done the wood
work was moyei forwar!i md n brtcklnying
| structrd in sections yonty-nye feet IN length
After the brick work was completcd. rocks were
| thrown In nj the sides until they were level
| with m" cap u the arch; Then earth was
dsumrS,d snlI,r, ,, upon t%hrm % a making ~ cv"n grade
the opening at Second avenue.
=. On the afternoon u tile 29th Of June two OF
these SECTIONS had been compl.ted, and earth
was being hauled upon the third when II fell.
| Thomns Joyce laborer ot $40 First avenue.
and lntrick Lynch of 677 Second Avenue. known
|
| paper in the shadow Of the arch. were crushed
| TO death. a cOroncrs Jury censurcd Mr.. Byron.
| and civil suit against the city for <5.Oon WINS
| begun by Lynch's family. Tho debris WAS
| cleared away and the work went on. with the
| following alterations In the former Ilans: In
| stcnd oi six layers ~ hrick laid rdg'wis" seven
| layers were used. and instead Of throwing in
| lous" stone ut he sidas Of th"nrch Sold musonry
| was used to keep the foot oi the arch in place
| Tho third section was rebuilt with those nitora-
| tons and the fourth Is now goin!; up. But the
| first and second sections remained ns they hnd
haa Y A. la
| is highest ut the eastern cut Of the tunnel moro
earth must bc supported hy that part Of the
| that pnrt Of the tunnel for several months.
| On Monday last danger signals wore placed
| on the top OF tho cn~tcrn end of the tunnel
Boards bearing the following Inscription were
| placed on either side of the street:
wAEsIss-Ail persons arc forbidden going under or
over '' tunnel 'N'spu"' 'no'e employed on s s,o w.k
| Investigation showed that the brick arch Of
the first section had settled four or five inches (:
| that there were cracks running through II for
| many feet. and that tho Garth over tho arch had
| also settled. leaving gaping crrvces in the sur
| close examination proves II 10 hr n nimsy struc-
ure. In many places mortar has fallen from
| between tn" stones md In one place Il stone has
| fallen from It's position. making u hole near tho
foundation, The northern end OF the wall rests
against cliff Of rock. Tho wall WINS built close
to and cemented against the clin. Now Il has
| moved from It's original position SO far that n
hand can be- passed between the inner edge Of
| the wall and the ledge. The ccmrnt il soft nnd
| can be picked from the stone in pieces wcigh-
ing half Il pound and crumblrd by the fingers.
The walls scom 10 have hulged ont half way up
| to the top. leaving the hnsr and summit nearer
their original positions. Ia some places there
amning it. said: sure. that ledge would have
| never moved away from the wall II must be
! tho wall that's shAky or I'm liar"
| The southern wal Of a row of tencments on
| the eastern side of First avenue Is about four
feet in front Of the northern side OF this tower
ing. totterng masonry. On Monday the tenants
| OF the southern house in tho row We're informed
that the wall might falli and thnt II 4 lid 1t
would crush their cGI hGase ss benc9ih IL With the
room in the ground story. front. the tenants
vacated immediately. on rhursday afternoon.
| only partly barricadcd. lenving clear passage
| through the tunnel and under tho defective
| part. He Immediately ordered that n high
board fence be built across the entrance and a
| warning placard he placed on II.
The falling oi the first section Of the tunnel
was known to he only matter OF time. and no
one whose attention had hcen called to the
slowly droHplnG arch wns surprised that i fell
about thirty fcct % in di"mcicr liam M The "n mass ao o
| bricks and earth, weighing hundreds nf tons,
dropped into the tunn,I lillng II M 10 with ia \
cach side of III" opening ut the top was sur
rounded by rope BEARING red iinG Of danger,
and peering down into the h"le yesterday NJ
! t"rnOon. No efforts To clear away the debris
were made. When II wns suggested TO Capt
Mount tnat there might be- bodies mudur the fall
| en- earth. he said: "Oh. no danger OF that
This. occurred at tho most opportune hour ot
tramp. would sleep in thdt place last night with
n cold wind from the westward whistling
through there, IL is qbou, the roldest spot he
| could have found. He would huYc been more
| comfortable in the middlrof the street"
Those who Vowed the ruins thought that tho
stones were used to mi mp III" sides OF tho nrth
| when there should have brrn solid masonry
Other contractors snl Tint Byron bid was too
| low by slOWm. md that hr had 10 be cconomi-
cal to save himself from Oss.