New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-12-16

4 WEARY CITIZEN plscorEsES EMpHATI'ALLf
on THE WRONGS oF NETWORK TENANTS
"rr NOT an .Acrarian' nor a Land Lacquer
s.id n Disguised citizen OF Scw-York In the hear
Ing Of a Tribune reporter. but regard the New
York landlord the common enemy OF m"hk"'"'
The legal proposition that every wrong mas lis
remedy has only limited Application TO cases Oh
landlord and tenant. The landlords sol" remedy
for a long and varied list Of wrongs Is. Get out
.It s..ns 10 be an axiom. though don't know
thai n has been accepted such 10y sociologists,
that every reform has ts succeeding abuse me
reform Of aboshlng distress for rent IN TINS state
many years ago has resulted IN the UNIVERSAL
adopiion OF an iron-bound form Of lease by land
lords which leaves the tenant no rights and priv
leges whatever. except that Of paying rent In al
vance OF course. the prospective tenant Is not
compelIed to sign such lease. but his only alter
native is to live IN tn" street or move out oi FOWL
for everywhere H. goes the same document Is
s,uck under his nose with it's list Of a thousand
things the tenant must not do, Its proVso tha' the
landlord can kick him out at any time ana Tor
any reason on five days notice and IT'S express
r,.,so NJ the owner from every kind OF liability.
.rb. ccilinr may fall and ruin his furniture the
sewer gas may creep in and poison his chldren'
but the. poor serf OF tenant Is without remedy
or relief.
..Nor Is this all. The development OF mats ana
APARTMENT houses has given rise to species Oh
and enforced by each particular landlord accord
ING 70 his whim such as none but frce-born Amer
lean citizens would endure. The landlord Is IN"
and lord and the ianor is his prophet Th's satin
tho landlord. Thou shalt not have more than so
many bods OF thine own coal sent up each day
and onIy al specified times. Thou shalt not carry
bicycle up AMI down from thine apartments.
Thou shalt not allow the baby carriage to stand
ov., temnorarlly I'M the hall. Thou shalt not have
,neress 10 nor cgress from the building after 1890
n m neither thou nor the stranger within thy
gates Thou shalt not keep a pet dog. etc
These are Few actual cases or nat ana apart
ment-house sumptuary laws
.When these interferences with the citizens
rights to life. liberty and the pursuit OF happiness
are coupled with the enormous rents charged. It's
M wonder that hotels and boarding houses are
filling up with fugitives from the Warehouses;.
Another scarcely less autocratic creature is
certain type Of office buildns landlord Take as
specnen the owner OF a big building near tne lily
Hall who L. millionaire OF Natlohai Ieputa'vuh.
Ills rule is that freight can be carried IN the
elevators at any time OF day. so that the heaviest
pieces OF Office furniture have to be dragged up ana
dnun stairs when the tenants move. but when
~. IA ndorl's library was be sent uptown to his
neu nn lace big boxes of books choked the elevators
Tor week The landlord orders all window avn
irys taken down for the winter. one tenant, VINO
"unod his own window awnings, refused last year
m take them down and ordered the Jahitot nor 10
hin IN climb around from the window OF adj
ioinIng room and steal the obnoxious AWNINGS "r III
business hours The landlord aoesn snok H. an
customary no smoking sign has always been Oh,
,,Iau, In The e'evators but recently the e.evateh
rra,,road formula no carrying OF lighted cigars.
csaretss or Plpes Vim VEN freshly lighted Havana he
,nust throw II away or walk up lnnunerapie nls.
OF stairs. Many clients ana h s, r,n,,on Thai
thev have taken their business 70 persons lhnapl,
Ing buildings which do not su'er "o"i ~ "'N"