New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-04-06
NETWORK IN A TORNADO
WOULD TIE CITY LIE IN RUINS AFTER
SUCH 4 VISIT?
OPINIONS OF A NUMBER OF wELLKSowN ARCHr
EXPRESSED - THE WEIGHT OF THE
TALL BUILDINGS THEIR SAFETY

pleasure 50 absorbing what some people would
call visitation Of Providence rarely becomes
than nine DAYS wonder BIT the Louisville disaster
Is still fresh in the minds of the public and it has
created apprehension in other sections Of the country
besides Kentucky IT Is not impossible that
Ncw-York may ut some time be the
tire Of tornado Of an intensity. equal TO
that experienced In Louisville. There Is really no
scientific tenablc ground for pooh-poohng such an
idea. Some Eastern people in reading Of the terrible
disasters Of one sort another which occur from
time +, time in the West have way Of consolinr
themselves vita the reflection that these things are
peculiar to the West and that the East, with its older
civilization ard dense population, somehow has Sc
cured exemption from the whlms Of the elements.
TOrnad0cs may occur anywhere.
II is always the unexpected which happens. and ii is
not altogether improbable that storm. after
gathering strength in the arid plains Texas Kan
sa-. might hurry along regardless OF intermediate
points 81 interest and concentrate It's energies upon
The metropolis in the form Of a tornado.
New York is pecullar among the great cities Of the
world. because Of it, many towers Of Babel To look
mp these immense structures produces iechnS OF
dizziness In all but the genuine New Yorker. ihcN
are the wonder o al foreigners landing these shores
nix apartment buildings were common In l.ris many
year, before their Introduction here, but though New
York M. not ANYTHING to compare with the Louvre,
il takes precedence Of all elite, In the maennccnce
Il It's drciine hives and Of its temples dedicated TO
the almighty dollar in the business part OF the city.
within the last twenty five years there has been
revolution IN the methods employed In buluihg III
View York and in the character OF III" buildings erected.
Their many people in Ncw York who remember the
shaking ~ head; and the amazcmcnt occa-ioncd hy
the erection of The Tribune Building. IS story rose
upon story Tie vi.eactcs looked more and more
omlnou,y wise and the general interest increa- ed,
until upon the compl. tion Of the tower New YORK was
cNu,.ant and declared building to hc orc Of the
wonder, Of hc world II ard iae Old Equitable Build
Ing hccaHc Places II pilgrimage for sight ,ccrs' ana
were pa; into all the encyclopedias ~ two OF the
crcatc.t structures In America. cw-iorhs clam To
pre- c.iucncc In the architectural line doc, not now
DE lu one particular bllldng. but IN the multiplicity
Of such o;y structure.
VIEWS OF THE ARCHITECTS.
And now that the cy contain, millions and millions
Il dollars invested 10 buildings, 1t j, in order to con
,dcr anything which misat bring overwhelming
ic-t,ucUon and loss oi he boo u, tain. Accordingly
a. Tribune reporter .ei the other day T. obtain the
opinion. II some wc hnown architect, In town as t.
tlc probable result Of tornado the city II New
Nork.
Tie soy o. member ~ the firm Of Carrcrc Hastings
dl JOG Ike the Intrusion 81 Wludstorm during hu,i
n- hours lut be- finally consented talk about the
ma.i~-. really DO not believe that tornado viii
eyer A. ID Ncw-N orl." ho said but 4 it dd % would
probably strike u, from tho West The city Is pro
t.ett by the orange Mountains and Jersey 'lii
l.lrht which would probably break the force of the
Storm defect it irlm it- ooIfs,. aai END 10 over the
cts "a mile high. bat even II New York encountered a.
torn to In . ncrcc.t intensity believe tlnt all the
sr..t hrll.rrs c.n-trirfcd undcr Che JiIliins laws
rs reputable architect, would remain intact. That B.,
DIS opinion. Dat. a. coure. 10 i, 10 Doe taken merely
~ what it is worth Il, aI opinion. have had con
siderable exp ,icuce iu binding, bat have no cN
Icl 90 torladoc.. DO nYt Auo" whether tornado
.a.i,i, enter into the Huil,on, Il western archi
ter. bat uc d. NOT build here to resist more than the
pressure ~ 1920 ordinary gale
Most 81 the building, erected On Ncw-NorS within
recent wears are built. believe. to Withstand wind
pr .uf, 81 rv pounds ~ tie square foot. They could
i,ubti~.. stand 4 BE- necessary. There arc
numbers II ;hr Dig downtown blocks OF or.crs waic
. tilnh ,,it .tini pressure - over 100 pounds 90
the square f,t. hut what they woull d. with the
fierce rotary acton Of q tornado ptied against them
Il il. impossible 20 say. suppose from the accounts
have road Of The vcociy and ncalcuatc strength
4 A tornado t'ai % is not within human power 10
Iryl.r "A luld.u- which would not hc liable . wreck
Az. Iu' "a great drh pend, upon the particular
way in which . building b. caught. and. Of course.
upln II, Site = the wind struck large wInfo" sur
.acc and n~no'f 'cd building the probabilities "i
vr. a- woul ie vastly in rca,ei. There /, srca,
tyci.ii, IN the stability II the hoasc, IN his o''
10 is lmrn DIE - d.an tie lonndirc, Of Tie "ca.c''
ro-tiof # tie c.tt SOLID. -uh.tt n.h palace, stand
heck g., llvl with oll fashioned. ill huut ho'-os
Rh..h have ifated time and weather 80 lon- bcchn'
.lcy age supported Oh either side h' other bniidin.
rih~. fr Instance. th..t oil "a lu ned hip"h'toh'
isont.d residence. IN flfh ave. II a tornado pcnc
ir,'cd tlc ,ty and cat clean ,wath through li'
centre. lu a northery or c."'lf direction those
house. proiniiy would fall Ike pack II cards. on
fhe other hand some 90 the old hoisc, winch nave
..ad -o lons might c.,ipc, while the more recently
Quilt Dig apartment block, would come crashing 10
Garth
Sr LIKE LOUISVILLE HOUSES
Mr. Rich Of the firm Of Lamb 4 R'h IN answer
to thc r.p1r.cr', Inquire, said; " Inc n"i"lhE' III
Louisville which were destroyed hy tie tornado "eFt
II 4 very different character AZ far a, l can Judge
f,,o, ,. cl,, Of bnIldn-, erected here within the
las, fsr wear. Int although share in the general
Incredibly hat such atmospheric conditions Should
prevail here / confess there is no reason why Ne"
Nor. might not Dee visited by tornado The
people hc.c used regard Billiards a. peculiar 1"
NE ~ the Wild West. ana ondy Thought mat DAKOTA
Montana and Manitoba, IN Canada bad monopoly OF
them Hut when they got wee taste OF genuine
blizzard thy got scared and II has not been i'to.'ch
We have many thing, learn in the construction oi
buidlngs. IN spite Of the rapid progrcat "i inc ii''
few years ard the .rumph' we have accomplished
IL IS almost useless to prOmulgatc any theory wien
"A tornado il involved IN the mater Dc,a"sc II i
ioc winch, hhc an eAi'n,Anr' WIZ" ,', XII am IN
these largo structures us IRON nct"Yrrn' posums
uud bfAcIns Cn.pof cd-thcy wonli De aDic " WIN
stand the wort tempest that could pn"', ,
some pcDpl, VINO have not s'unlou inc r'ch'
dcycopmcii. III the science cl huldns thlh thit t-s
tal billdn., are extremely dangerous. A. a utii'i
OF ct the, are great d, al mort secure ih no'fa'c
4zD1 budine, erected before the system "l pvIuHS
ana bricng the iron skeleton frame now aunptcd came
lutn V0.lc dunk thai genuine tornado IN New
Iorl. Would probably bring some oI inc iv"ct9 40"
Iuf The building, proper. believe, WouIh pc abc 10
resist the grtic-i possible pressure because dhcy
sr ~, ,"ml,,,t .nd AFFORD each Other protccuon.'
H. Edwards fichrn, The popular uptown ai,",r, t.
said Your uiics ton opens up such broad h'lu "l III
nuiry that feel "A little n If were sliH'h ~ d
tornado I'M attempting To- answer H. nave p'el Qua
In A good hurricane at sea, but have never c'"hht
cred a Genuine tornado. People living cO"ped up ia
thcso streets. protected by iliiHablc vsta' OF bfi'A
and mortar cannot comprehend the strength WIN
which the ,.lnd blow. am lhchnci 10 l"ih
That II we had tornado here. only the out kirt' ." ie
clfv would suffer. \ number of Ola rall'nt hc
hudiue. which are comparatively lsOlied wouu ~
", th G,r,r of The storm would be- broken before II
cn1ld ncn, trfc the centre of the city. Any opinion
nn thc effect. 81 unknown power must De 7"pv,
Gcal. and am diildcnt Of gNhg any "plni"n' w
If seems 10 NE that the superior skill ana lnos""sl
NO. cmnlo,cd In tlc construction oi bnldlhh1 ~
mi. CITY render them perfectly Hhfc. y lew H.
.f..f,t Ia. .slt