Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1883-01-11


IA. terrible loss Of life at the burning
O the Milwaukee hotel, Will excite a
pre, lea! of comment, wise and other
wise, on the part of public Mortified at
!, iLe.. of such terrible death. The
d .:,And is likely to be lively for the exc
cr-inn of the law relating to fire escape
from public buildings. That law, being
a law, ought of course to be enforced
though i: is doubtful whether it is one
altogether wise. It is dead letter now.
.nl laws which arc dead letters, gener
al y have something wrong about them.
TIE Pennsylvania statute requires
buildings Of three stories iii height anu
over, except private dwellings that arv
not tenement houses, to be provided with
fire escapes. But it is in comparative
ly few buildings that such an appi ance
would be really useful. To require
costly and unsightly fire escapes to be
b ,ilt w@.re they are not necessary
seems to be mistake. \ re::Sonab"
discretion should be left to the local au
thorities in requiring them. 1t is very
e,sy 20 point cut the structures where
fire escapes would be needfu! attach
ments but it is not easy to icScrIb,.
them in general law. Large, high and
isolated buildings shot.d all have tlcm,
and if they mad been piacei on all tie
sides Of the Milwaukee hOtei they woull
Certainly have saved lives. Bat it is not
likely that they would have alto
gether prevented the loss Of life.
The hotel seems to have been
provided with interior starways,
at it's several corners, which would have
sulIiced for the escape of all its inmates
if they had not been bewiIdered by their
danger and blinded by the smoke which
filed the Corridors. The greatest loss OF
life occurred among the servant girls.
who roomed on the top story. Yet they
knew the location Of the StairwayS which
would have conducted them to safety
The only explanation of their not resort
ing to them is that they were pGraiyzctl
il mind or body, or both, by their fear
They were not sufficiently il possession
of their faculties to find their way
to the stairways through tl't
smoke. They lacked the couraS.
and self-possession to help themselves
and there do not seem to have been men
about among those called to the scen'
courageous aud self-sacriiicing enough
to 20 up the stairways through the
smoke 10 their rescue. If fire escape
ladders had been upon the outer walls il
is likely that the women VIII peciShet
would have failed to find their way t<
them and if they had reached then
they still would ilye lacked the courage
to descend b. them. Their great ua'
would have been in ;afTor,ling a safe wa,
for outside aid to mount up to them
Fire escapes are useful to the iiremen
but with the improved fire ladders nOv
in use firenen are sufficiently provide;
with facilities for speedily scaling a!
ordinary buildings. If cur state lay
was modified 50 as to require the ilacin
OF fire escapes where they are ordered b.
the local authorities, The public woul
he sufficiently protected.
What the public safety needs far NOR
than fire escape ladders outside the wall
of public buildings are avenues Of escap
inside. Theatres and places IF publ
assembly Should be- required TO have on
lets that viii enable t!e a~,!;"rce to gc
outside o. them in Il space Of time nc
exceeding che n:nutc. This is practi
cable and shouli be required.