New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-07-05
FIREPROOF BUILDINGS.


The question of fircproof construction Of
buildings is always important. How vital it
may be in the case of even single-story struct
ures the Charity, Bazaar disaster In Paris and
the Ellis Island fire show. In permanent edi'
fees of many stories 1t is prOportionately more
important, so important that any wilful neglect
Of It may we'll be deemed a crime. In New
York 1t is more important than anywhere else,
because in this city the construction OF lofty
and numerously tenanted buildings has been
carried to an extent unknown elsewhere, and
the material interests that would be sacrificed
in a serious confagratiOn are much greater
than In any other American city
There Is no use in discussing anything else as
substitute for freproof construction, as a
saving resort I'm a case of fire. The city Is to
be expected to provide an efficient Fire Depart
ment for all ordinary purposes. To require 1t to
provide one that could cope with fires at the
tops of buildings twenty to thirty stories high
would be unreasonable and unjust. Frees
capes and other devices may be adopted. They
are at best makeshifts for emergencies, totally
inadequate to any real DEVIATION Of the dangers
and losses Of fire. Precautions against fires Oc-
curing within the buildings themselves are
equally incomplete for every building is sub
plan is to require every building to be made
thoroughly proof against fire, whether the fire
assails 1t from without or occurs within its
own walls That this can be done is beyond
further question The question is whether it is
being done In all the great new buildings which
SO numerously are being multiplied in all parts
Of the city.
This is not difficult to determine. build
ing to be freproOf must DE constructed so far
as possible Of fireproOf material, that is Of ma
terial that will neither burn nor, when attacked
by intense heat, bend or dsintegrate The
outer walls must be Of such material to afford
protection from the flames of adjoining con-
dagrations. The floors and stairs must be. to
prevent an internal fire from spreading from
story to story. The partitions, down to the
smallest, must be. to prevent fire from spread
ing from room to room. 1t is therefore evident
that walls Of iron, which will melt or bend or
warp, or Of marble or any stone that Will crum-
BILE before intense heat, are not to be considered
fireproof. Nothing will answer the purpose but
hard brick or some stone that will resist great
heat and walls Of these must be sufficiently
thick to protect against any attack the inter-
ral structure and contents Of the building. The
floors and partitions may have steel or iron
framework, Dut every Dlt Oh metal H1uSt De
fully protected from heat by fireproOf and non
conducting tiles or other material. Then the
building may be considered freproOf.
The making Of such buildings is possible and
easy. 1t has been done in this city. The first,
In point Of date Of construction Of all the mod
crn tall office buildings Is noteworthy exam
pie 1t is q statement, not Of a theory. but Of
a demonstrated fact, that The Tribune Build
ing is fireproof 1t answers perfectly the re-
uuirements Of such structure Its external
walls are Of a material and q strength suffi-
Gent to resist the attacks Of fire and heat
should all its neghbors be transformed into
raging furnaces Every floor and partition in
it, from cellar to roof, is impermeable by fire,
and every metal post and girder perfectly pro-
tected You may fill one room with Oil-sOahed
kindling-wo and set 1t afre. and the fire will
burn itself out without injuring the rest Of
the building, or even disturbing the occupants
Of the next room That is no idle boast 1t has
been demonstrated by actual experience. A
fire has occurred In The Tribune Building so
furious and intense that the entire contents Of
one room were utterly consumed, even the steel
and bronze gas fixtures and other metal work
being melted and made indistingushable In the
ashes. Yet all the time men remained at their
desks In the next room in safety and comfort
and the occupants Of other floors were not even
conscious Of what was going on. To what ex-
tent the great business buildings which are now
thronHng the city could stand such test, and
other tests, is yet to be demonstrated Those