The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-08-18
BRICK ON PIKE STREET
City Engineer Thomson Says 1t
Is All Right.
HAS BEEN THOROUGHLY TESTED
Quality the Only Question - Paving
Ought TO last Ten Years-A Dis
senter Answered.

IN the city engineers office. among the
property owners on Pike street and other
people who are taking interest n the
matter. there is a great deal OF discus
sion these days as 10 the merits and de-
fscts OF the two kinds Of brick used in
the paving OF Pike street. Briefly, the
matter stands this way: The south SIDE
OF the street has been paved with brick
furnished by the Denny Clay Company.
and on the north side brick from the yard
or the Seattle Brick and Tile Company is
being used. The brick from the former
company costs SIC thousand. and the
latter about s. less. Some of the bush
ness men on Pike street have been great
Is alarmed by the stories that have been
circulated concerning the cheaper brick.
L IS said that il IS not a vitrified brick;
that the clay has been taken from
common blue clay bank, ard that v.tri-
ned brick cannot be made from blue clay;
that the brick viii soak mp and wear out
IN a year or two; wAile for the Denny
company brick IL is claimed that the clay
is taken from a thousand feet under
ground, and is vitriiied brick.
In regard 10 this question, City Engi-
neer Thomson said yesterday: If the
Denny Clay Company or any one else
knows anything wrong with any of the
brick on Pike street, will be very glad
10 be informed what il is. l have one
man engaged all of the time and sec
ond man a large part of the time in su-
pervising that work and in testing ma
terials used. From their reports OF tests
and examinations I am under the impress
sion that the brick along the north side
. OF the street IS. IL anything. superior 70
that on the south side. / do not know
OF any fairer way Of testing the COM
mercial values of two competing makes
OF brick than that now being employed
on Pike street, viz: that OF laying one
entire side with one make and the other
entire side with another make. If. under
this character of test, the Denny brick
fails. shall be sorry. / charged my in
spector 10 use the utmost care in select
ing and laying those brick. 50 that they
could not fail through any neglect of
ours"
From the foregoing interview. 1t can De
plainly understood Row Engineer Thorn
son stands on the brick question. He said
that so far as the cost OF the brick was
concerned. that need not enter into the
question; the only thing TO be considered
was the quality. He had studied the paw
ing question for a good many years; had
read all kinds OF literature bearing on the
subject. and he and his subordinates had
made test after test OF the different
makes OF paving brick Mr. Thomson
said that his department was interested
in having used the best kind of brick pos
sible to get so that before the expiration
of the ten years which the property own
erS on Pike street nave IN WDlCD 10 pay
their assessments the pavement now be
ing put down would not be worn out and
useless.
In this connection a story is told by
Street Commissioner Alexander on Con-
tractor Spurr-or on the other man. Since
this brick discussion started the side
walks on Pike street have been lined
With people voicing their sentiments and
making known their knowledge of brick
One day recently a man was holding forth
on street corner to a little knot Of lis
teners about the poor quality of the Seattle
Brick and Tile Company's brick He said
that ii would break up, get water-soaked,
and. in short, was brick without
straw" Contractor Spur was standing
near watching the workmen. and heard
the speaker make a remark of a not very
complimentary nature about the contract
or doing the job. So he edged in and
said:
do you want to see the contractor?
Havo you got anything TO say to him.
mo; oh. no. was the reply. II was
just remarking about the poor quality Of
this brick
How do you know it's poor brick
"Oh, can tell by the look of it,
But the man who knew bad brick by the
look of il oculd not be induced to point out
the signs by which he knew.