Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-11-24

sixty miles an hour for period OF three
minutes.
BUILDING INSPECTOR ENTwIsLE rEsrIFIEs.
The first witness of the morning was the
building inspector. He was examined by DIR.
Patterson and said that the walls of the Metze-
rott building were eighteen inches thick
and quite thick enough. They were
green walls. however, and could not
be expected to withstand such a gale as
that of Yesterday. The building was braced
with scaffolding and was as strong as could be
until the roof could be put on. The walls
could not have stood such wind even if they
had been made of cement.
Ii was simply chance that a gale of sixty
miles an hour should strike walls of that
height just before the roof was put on. There
was no fault to be found with the con-
struetion of the walls. The crumbling
not perfect. Any builder knows that
it takes several years for mortar to harden per-
fectly. The fact that the side walls went up
before the front had no effect in weakening
the former. as Is shown by the fact that the
worst of the break came in tie middle of the
wall. The front might have hell. section of
the side walls, but nothing could save the
whole of them in such a storm.
Mr.. Entwisie said that he had not spet ted
tile building while IL course of construction.
his assistant did, however. He examined TIT
walls himself this incoming and founo that IL ere
was no fault In the construction of the work.
The building was carried il. accCi dance will.
the building regulations t. tie thickness
Of the walls They were two feet tLick uI to
the first story and eighteen inches above that
This closed Mr. Entwisles examination, and
MIR. Il. e. King, his assistant inspector was
next called AID sworn by the coroner.
ASSISTANT INSPECTOR KING.
MIR. King stated that he had inspected the
work of building the music hall at frequent in
tervals and was satisfied that it was a good
piece of work. He had examined the founda-
ton this morning up far as the
stone work goes ard found no evidence of
its giving way. About ten feet Of the walls
will remain good The accident was simply
the result of blowing in by the wind, and
there was no evidence of defective work in the
building anywhere. 1t was not a giving way
OF the walls or springing of the foundation.
Mr.. IAlng exhibited piece OF plaster that he
had picked up haphazard this morning from
the side wall He characterized it as of a SUI
perior character and made of sharp river sand.
lie described the construction Of the buildin:
briefly and bore out Mr.. Entwisle's opinion
that If the front wall had been put up it would
not have materially strengthened the side
walls.
Questions were asked by number OF the
jurors as 20 the rule of the building regulations
that forbids the erection of front walls more
than story above the side walls. He said that
this requires the Interpretation of the rule to
the letter. In music hall this might all be
regarded as a single story. The staging and
scaiiolding certainly offered some support. He
would admit that ii the girders had been
In place they might have sufficed to hold the
walls \ network of scaffolding ran between
the SIDE walls and worked to press the north
wall out He expressed the opinion that there
was no fault to be found with the construction.
The building would have withstood any ordi-
nary wind. but the accident was one of those
unfortunate occurrences that could neither
have been foreseen nor prevented.
BUILDER HARVEY on The WALLS.
Mr.. Frank L. Harvey, the builder, was next
called to testify to the character Of the walls
of the music hall. He was questioned by the
jurors, who, DIR. Patterson said were probably
better qualified than he to ask questions of a
technical character. As to the rule of build
ing the front wallis up within a story of
the side walls he said he could
not say what the ruling Of the building in
spectors would be as to the definition of a
story II the front wall had been up to the
full height it would probably have been a