The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1895-04-20

Aa"haua ~ Witoh INV Whllu IOll,
STRENGTHENING his belief as to which
wall started tho collapse.
CD, Love, who had tho brick contract
o tho Chapman building was next
callod to tho stand. lilo testified az to
tho cutting OF now joist holes In tho
Hutchinson aud Greer 4 Laing walls for
tho Chapman building. Tho holes
wore cut into tho Hutchinson wall to
tho depth Of four inches, and Ia tho
Greer & Laing wall eight inches. Thev
woro twelve inches apart. Tho wltuo,s'
opinion rs to tho stability OF both walls
was not worry high. In his opinion, tho
crookcdnous Of tho .nlloy wall aud tho
Weakness OF tho party wall near its baso
combined to cause tho accident. The
brick In tho walt near tho ba,e, said tho
witness, wore soft.
Walter Worls and Otto Tyson testi.
flod, but 10 mother witnessed the tall.
Ing walls, they could not form an
opinion rs 10 lie cause.
Alex. Boabout tho builder, said that
tho will Of Il l~lvo.story building should
DO eighteen inches thick. Putting two
stories on q three.story thirto on.inch
wall ho did not consider within tho
limtts OF safety. In his opinion tho
disaster was caused by tho heavy wind
OF Sunday night previous, which had
twisted tho party wall aud caused tho
ioists to become 30 loosoned that they
could not stand the strain.
Mr.. Bodioy wal recalled aud said that
tho alley wall was eighteen inchos thick
to tho fret floor. aud tho party wall and
tho Greor 4 LaiDg wall were thirteen
inches thick from tho ground up.
Mr.. @. d. Thompson, OF tho board OF
public works, told OF tho condition Of
tho ruins Immediately after tho disaster.
RELEASE OF TuE rRUssEs.
Charlie, p. Hamilton, tho architect,
wa, next called. Ilo knew nothing OF
tho Improvements on tho Hutchinson
building, but thirty years ago no had
helped to put in tho brick partition in
the old Melodian hall. 1t was not built
with tho intention OF supporting any.
thing, but was merely as a partition.
The witness did not consider tho walls
ne they stood just before the accident Us
safe. AZ to the immediate cause OF tho
accident. he said that In his opinion |,
was caused by tho collapse OF the alley
wall. which had been released from its
support, the trusses that originally held
it TO tho Greer & Laing block.
John Giesey, a sub.contractor, told
practically tho same story az Contractor
Love. Ifo was OF the opinion that the
alley wall first collapsed, taking the par.
ty wall down Immediately after.
James Giesey was superintendent OF
construction on the Chapman building,
aud he. too. was aure that the alley wall
was the first to give way.
Mr.. E. b. Franzheim, the architect,
said that the wall for 4 building to hold
as large n stock as Mr.. Howard enumer.
ated should be thirty inches thick at
tho bottom and thirteen at the fifth
story. Asto the cause OF the disaster
Mr.. Franzheim said that it 10 primarily
due to tho desire to build too cheaply.
Ho thought that tho alley wall went
down first and rave as evidence the COLI
dition Of the ruins just alter the col.
lapse.
Mr. Gilmore Brown, the well.known
civil engineer, wal called upon to tes-
THY, although he was no. a witness OF
the disaster. He said that tho thick.
ness Of tho walls OF a five.s.ory building
should be twensy-four inches at the bot.
tom. Going over the matter Il. length
the witness said that the additions to
the Chapman and Hutchisson buildings
were OF unsafe construction.
"Where did the trouble begin?" ask.
ed Mr.. Howard.
Tho witness replied tina. It began
near the base Of the party wall, caused
by tho additional weight being placed
on i, aud BY the heavy load sustained in
both building, at the time. lie was
also ostho opinion that Sundays heavy
wind might have weakened the s.ruct-
ure to d considerable extent
H PARTY WALL STARTED IT.
Mr.. Lee Wood, OF Wood Brothers
Planning Mill Company. was the next
witness. lilo said that he did not know
much about the Hutchinson building,
as his firm had no. bid on the improve
ments made there. His firm did bidun
tho Chapman Improvements. When
nsked as to his opinion OF the cause OF
the collapse the witness answered that