Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1888-11-16
TWO TRUSTEES RESIGN.
Messrs Qnigley and WO0liey
go Out of the insane
Asylum Board.
The Rete ton of Superintendent
ksaH on The Work as the
Last Straw.
A Distinguished Architectural
Committee and its White
washing r. port TO this
Board.
two TRUSTEES RESIGN.

Committee amG Its Whlte-
washing II port TO this
Board.
These are tsouhlons days in insane
asylum circles. s majority OF the board
of trustees is determined to fly In the
face If the return Of the %coroner's jury
and go ahead with the construction OF
the inssae asy lam man trap uader the
supervision of W. msu undef arrest for
u criminal charge. The minority obi scts
and w%ithdraxs. Proceedings in detail
are given below.
ARCHITECTURAL Kali IEERs
Last evening l.. b. Jenney. of Chicago,
and Sidney Smith, OF Omaha, committee
OF architects employed by the board of
insane asylum trustees to investigate
the cause of the accident at the asylcm,
made their report to the board. 1t runs
rs follows:
La regard TO the causes Of The fall of q
portion of the east wing, which occurred
October %, after q careful C, pstderatlon
of all the circumstance as Related ~
the workmen and others. and which
statements substantially agree IN oil i'm
portant particulars, and also from what
We are able to learn from the designs
and from the building the Undersigned
would state that from the best of their
knowledge and belief tie accident was
| caused by tae failing OF a floor arch OF
/ the third floor, aoj AGENT to the outside
| wall, causing the floor arches OF tie
several other cells to follow, and push
ing q O portion of the outer wall. The
said floor arch, the fall OF which was, as
we belieYe, the sole cause of the
accident, was OF very recent
construction and the mortar still green.
The outer wall adiecent was scarcely
higher than the spring OF the arch, not
high enough to receive the end of the
tie rods and not he yet assisted by the
weight of the stories Above 1t mad nc
power to resist the thrust OF said floor
arch. This arch was held in place solely
by the center below n it is alleged thai
the removal of said center was followed
Immediately by the fall of said arch anC
the attendant consequences. After q
careful examination it is the conviction
OF the undersigned that the accident wal
solely due TO the removal of said center
for 80 long as said center remained
in place the arch could no
fall and no such accident coult
have occurred. The undersigned can
not learn that there was any cause, o
that any person in authority ordered tn
removal of this center, or that the sup
erintendeDt of construction was awar'
that il was being removed until too late
to prevent the accident. We believe i
wes done by unauthorized workmen
ignorant of she inevitable consequences
The undersigned would further stat
that IN their opinion this accident Wa
one that could not be guarded against
it being always r%bssisie, dnsing III
construction of large buildings, for a.
Ignorant or thought!ess workman {
knock away q temporary support and b
the immediate cause of a serious accl
. dent.
: THE FOREGOING REPORT
. embraces more particularly the views {
MIR. Jenney, but in them Mr.. Smith 81
quiesces. Mr.. Jenney ls an old tin
friend of Mr.. Ke8n, the superintendent
OF construction at the insane asylum. M
Gale has been with these architects
/. considerable portion OF the time sine
they began their investigation and it
r not necessary for Us to elaborate o
what happens when Gale is around.
The report of these architects ma
: have been designed as q profound dir
eertation upon cause and effect. but
falls very far short Of what was expect
q ed OF them. They inform the board
e trustees that the fatal accident at I'll
a insane asylum was caused by the fallln
a of on arch on the third floor. and tht
i; the falling Of This arch caused sever
v other arches TO fall and also caused
9 portion of the outside wall to fall. The
attribute as the cause Of the collapse
the first arch the premature removal
a wooden support which sustained
They ssy the mortar in the arch whic
first fell was very green. This is as Il
as their evidence as experts goes. "
pause to remark that ninety per cent
i the school boys of Yankton could hs'
reached the same conclusion by viewir
the ruins. So it was not really neee
sary to send to Chicago and Omaha I
g architectural talent for the productie
of such a conclusion.
These architects incidentally mentit
i that the wall enclosing the arch viii
first fell was not high enough for the i
= troduction OF o tie rod. They omit
mention that the stories below this fas
arch were not bound by tie rods, thoul
ts the enclosing wall was manifestly mo
than high enough for the introduoti
of such safeguards. The fact renal
that there were no north and south
rods in the wing, but this omission
1t passed in silence by these whitewas
ing experts. They attribute I
accident to the removal OF I
support from underneath the first al
j. which feil-to nothing else. when ii
ia. evident il the wall below had be
bonded by the rods and the arches bel
strengthened by supports the disas
would have ceased with the falling
or the first arch and no one would be
killed.
From the mint vbers the evidence