New-York tribune., 1884-12-20
THE LESSON OF THE BURNED ASYLUM.

THE LESSON Or IHE Do"A
Tho burninc of the Roman Catholic Asylum
in Brooklyn was attended by larger loss Oh ll'c
tbor wos at first supposed. Yesterday the
bodies of nine more persons were ''heh i'o"'
the ruIns of the in6rmary. The wonder no"
: thot mara hovs were not burned. When the
osv,um WAS built the boilers and much OF Ihe
heating apparatus were placed ma siha'' p'iho-
ing about six feet from one end Oh 'hc i'''"
structure. This was tor saiety iio"'
fire and was wise prccaution. bu'
what mnst be thought of the Judgment OF .ne
persons who placed the inlirmarles over 'n'S
do,oorous fire room Was it not exposing the
sick children and their attendants to terrible
rsl Was it not almost courting precisely the
.nd calamity that has occurred 7 Moreover,
the third and fourth floors OF TINS annex VIZ
not connected by iire-escapes to the mann pui'u-
ing. only a few feet away, Is it possible 10
condemn too strongly such neglect Oh ah easy
precaution like this
The destruction of the man ou'lui,'s
ornears TO have been caused NANNY ny
tbe fimsv character of its interior struct-
ure The rrcsunpiion ia that the PROJECT
ors wore anxious TO secure IA much room rs
nossible and that in seeking this end they
o,-or,oo,,od tbe importance of solid building
;,s;da "a a nrotection against fire. As 1t was
,ho tb;, and rroil narttions offered no effective
obstaclc to the flames and their progress ne
came 81 rapid "a seriously to interfere WIN 'he
r,nntvine of the great building. The height oi
ihp building practically disabled the iiledepar'-
mont, the water not having sufficient heau w
,or,, Il Ia the ,tnret stuiius But this shnhlh
have been known and provided against ~ 'he
tooinnine That Il was not is another strange
n,e,sisll, OF course rhilnnilioric frhl'
vas AZ The hnltnm er the arrangements when
have al hmontahif milod tr stand the test oi
ane,p,ue,, bnt philanthropy Ia bound to thhe
n,aelioai requirements into consolidation, ahd
whom II nogioots these, ia meet ehlhnal ahd
SINGLE minded Efforts may he productive ol
serious mischief, And there Is nola hook and
ladder company stationed within two miles ''
the asy lum
The desire To erect building of great con
tanning capacity, 20 that as many orphans ~
possible may be taken cago ot Is undoubtedly
prascworthy. But when not directed by tore
thought and practical knowledge OF what Is
necessary for safety, such humane purpose
NAV after ali prepare great disaster; ana a
disaster proportoncd to the breadth ot the
original undertaking. Common sense teaches
that wherever large number OF helpless
beings are collected under one roof, the utmost
care should be taken to protect them against
fIe All such structures as orphan and insane
asylums should be absolutely iireproof. True
such buildings would cost more than the ilimsy
death traps so commonly constructed, but they
would be cheaper in the end. 1t is little short
of crime for anybody to rear Al immense
building and crowd into it IA mass OF helpless
beings who are fable to be sacrificed on the
first outbreak of fire. The Brooklyn Orphan
Asylum building mas supposed to be hrcprooi
but the result has shown that serious mistake
was made in its construction.