The morning times., 1895-08-10
HUMAN LIFE NOT VALUED
Government Contractors Reckless
as to Their Employees Safety.
Charles Beach's Death-If a Flooring
Were Laid the Accident Could Not
Have Happened.

One of the most expert steeple climbers
in this section of the country has made
an examination into the causes which led
up TO The death OF Charles Beach, who fell
from the seventh story OF the new city
post office building yesterday afternoon.
He found that the Ironworkers on that
structure have no flooring to work upon,
but are compelled 10 climb about and lift
heavy weights at a height of nearly 200
feet from the ground on narrow iron
girders five feet apart and freshly painted.
This. he said, was almost criminal
The seventh floor is finished, so far
as the ironworkers are concerned said
the man who climbs steeples, land should
be floored temporarily with heavy two
inch plank The timber a us employed
could be otherwise used in the construc-
ton OF the building The only expense,
there fore, would be the time of a few
laborers in laying the flooring. The awful
price, so far, of not doing this has been
several precious lives
However, we Cannot = iL-T at this
when weconsider how the average govern
meDt contractor struggles and schemes 10
save money wherever he can. IN order that
his total profits on Job shall be so much
greater Labor and material cost him
money. Human life costs him nothing. If
the contractors on the new city postoffice
were to employ the time OF few laborers
several hours each day in Ia ying this floor
ing, il would save life and limb, but would
cost them a few dollars On the other
hand, should dozen men fall TO their death
from the top of tue high structure, the
cost to them would be nothing-oniy an
other human flame gone out. Iron, lime,
mortar or stone are reckoned in his esti-
mates. Human life is not
"Only last Friday poor fellow, named
Morton, fell from the iron work of the
ninth story the seventh Luckily yhestruck
upon some boards that had been la id in one
corner BIZ the brickia yers Then before he
could roll over and complete his downward
Journey to the basement and his death, he
was seized and held by a fellow workman.
His injury was a broken hip, and he is now
an inmate of the poor ward in Providence
Hospital
''The men on the postoffice have to pos
sess agility as well as strength. They work
all day on four-inch girders, five feet apart.
Standing on these insecure perches the
workInen are compelled to handle great iron
beams and girders weighing from hundreds
of pounds to several tons, with only the sky
above them and the concreted basement,
| nearly 200 feet below.
The postoffice is a government building
and adequate means to prevent the loss OF
! life should be adopted. On private work the
contractors are more humane and lay floor
ing for the iron and other workers. But on
| this job the men have only the narrow
| girders, slippery from fresh paint, to go
about upon, carrying heavy loads or tugging
with might and main to get refractory
| girder in place.
"a single misStepand certain deathawaits
them below, / say the government has been
criminally negligent in this matter and
| poor Beach's death cries out for reform
in the building methods before more lives
| are sacrificed. Even trapeze performers
| have nets.
IAN iron bridge builder calculates that so
many lives shall be lost during the construc-
ton, but this great government should adopt
means, especially when they are as simple as
those have suggested to save the life, even
| of its humblest citizen"