The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-05-21

defect by the Board of Health. The third de-
feet, so-caled by the Board of Health, consists
wholly in their rather irrational supposition that
expansion and contraction will take place in
pipes subjected to uniform temperature far
above the freezing point In their fourth spec
ification the board don't seem to know for what
use the Objectionable pipe is intended. But they
object to it. IF it is to be employed as ven
tilating shaft to the sewer The pipe referred
to is down spout from the roof, and is trapped
at the sewer, and no sewergas can enter It. The
sixth. seventh, eighth and ninth specifications of
the board substantially contained in the
expert plumbers report to them, and are fully
answered in the comments above on that re-
port
In the boards tenth specification they say
"they do not approve of the system, as they
found it, of the plumbing and house drainage
made use of in the construction OF
the building. The Commissioners. having
no knowledge of the requirements of the
Board Of Health in sanitary science.
and as current history has wholly failed to pro-
vide any information of their achievements in
that direction adopted system of plumbing
and drainage without consulting them, which.
no viewer, has been employed by the best known
sanitary engineers of the day. in the most i'm
portant structures recently erected all over the
country.
The Board of Health say that they have been
informed by member of the board of State
house Commissioners Hthat many Of the de-
fects which existed at the time of our inspection
have since been corrected and that other I'M
provements are contemplated To this the
Commissioners reply that no such information
was ever furnished the Board of Health by
Commissioner, and the statement Is wholly I'M
true. The entire work of the plumbing so far
has been done in the manner originally provided
for in the specifications of the architect, and will
be completed under his specifications, unless the
Commissioners are furnished with more salts
factory reasons for changing them than the
Board of Health have yet offered.
The Commissioners, in conclusion, desire to
present few facts in relation to this contro-
versy over the State-house plumbing, for the in
formation of the public. which they think win
explain the true lnwardness' Of the whole mat
ter.
The contractors for the plumbing employed
non union men. They were notified by the
Journeymen Plumbers Union to discharge these
men AMI employ union men. This they refused
to do Therefore a species of boycotting was
begun upon them Squibs were published in one
of the city papers limiting that bad work was be-
ing done in the State-house plumbing; inferior
materials were being used, ETC., when, in fact,
samples of the very best material manufactured
were deposited in our Office at the time, and are
still there.
Shortly after Mr. Hudson, the president of the
Journeymen Plumbers Union, with others of
the association, acting a committee, waited
upon the Commissioners with his complaints.
Not getting what he thought satisfactory con-
sideration, he published articles in the city pa
pers detailing the wretched condition of the
State-house plumbing. The Commissioners re-
piled, exposing his. false statements. This did
not satisfy him. ~ does not usually satisfy any
man to be convicted of fasehood. Finding pub
lie opinion gave him little or no credit for his
newspaper attacks. he next appeared at the con-
ference of the city, township and county health
officers held in this city, and induced that body
to call upon the State Board OF Health to come
to his aid The State board and he
formed an alliance. The former ordered an my
vestigation of the plumbing, and appointed an
expert plumber and their secretary to make it,
and published the reports in which they ac-
knowledged that their information was derived
from their plumber and secretary. That report
contains the Identical specifications of defects,
and very little more. that Mr.. Hudson originated.
The board say they visited the building several
times" making the impression that they ex-
amined the plumbing themselves The superin-
tendent of the building says that he knows only
two visits by the board, at one spending about
half al hour, and at the second visit, not over
three-quarters of an hour in their examination
of the plumbing. Then they published their re-
port of defects, nearly all of which were the al
legged discoveries of Mr.. Hudson long before, and
by him supplied to these impartial Investigators.
The Commissioners believe that the public,
knowing these facts, will form correct conclu-
sions as to the value Of such report, ever if it
be sent out under the sane ton Of the Board Of
Health of the State of Indiana.
The Commissioners will repeat here what they
have heretofore published, that when the plumb
ING is completed, strict examination and test
will be made by competent sanitary engineers
and If 1t is found defective in any particular the
defects shall be remedied before it is accepted
from the contractors hands
By order of the Board Of State-house Commits
sioners. JOHN M. GODowN, Secretary.
INDIANAPOLIS, May 20.
nnMm~~zu@.~u...~~aE.Hzzu.-=
CATARRH is very prevalent and exceedingly