The Washington times., 1901-07-30
AFFAIRS OF THE DISTRICT.
The Question of Leaving Vault
Doors Open in Sidewalks.

The Trouble Experienced by Ten
ant on Fourteenth street North
west-OpiniOn on Stringing Wires
to Premises of A. GOnurd
Thomas J. Fisher & Co. some days ago
requested permission for the tenant of
premises ll05 Fourteenth Street north
west to leave the trap door to the base
ment open during the hot weather.
/ Mcssrs. Fisher & Co. were Informed by
the Commissioners that trap doors are
permitted in vaults for the purpose of
allowing access from the street and are
not supposed TO be open longer than nee
essary to take in or to carry out goods.
! The Commissioners stated that allowing
the doors of vaults to remain open so
! that the opening may serve window
is permitting the use of the sidewalk i'm
properly and the District cannot allow it.
The Commissioners said the remedy was
to provide doors which by their construc
tion would permit light and ventilation.
In reply to the communication of the
! Commissioners, Messrs. Fisher & Co.
stated that the doors supplied to the
premises in question were such were
capable of giving light and ventilation.
! and they supposed that this would be
sufficient, but they say that the officer
| on the beat has informed the tenant that
/ the doors supplied are not such as the
/ law requires. Massrs. Fisher state that,
as they understand the letter of the Com
missioners, the tenant is allowed to keep
| the doors in question open for the pur-
pose of light and ventilation.
| Commissioner Beach has now referred
the matter to his colleagues with the fol-
lowing recommendation: THAT Messrs
Fisher & Co. be informed that it is be-
lieved to be inadvisable for the Commits
sioners to permit vault doors to remain
open for ventilation purposes in this case,
as they form an unlawful occupation of
the sidewalk. The remedy would be to
take such doors from their hinges and
replace them with grating DOORS which
will permit ventilation when closed, the
doors, being made interchangeable with
, the closed doors at the hinges, can be
replaced by them at times VIII IN the
weather is such that ventilation is no
longer necessary or desirable
Andrew B. Duvall, the Attorney for the
District. yesterday submitted to the Com
missioners his opinion upon the communi-
cation of A. Gonard with reference to the
stringing of electric wires to his premises.
The Attorney states that the premises
of the complainant are outside of the
city of Washington and east of Rock
Creek. and then says:
The last Congressional legislation upon
the subject of overhead wires for electric
lighting is the provision contained Iii the
Sundry Civil Appropriation act for the
year ending June 80 1898, viz:
Until Congress shall provide for a
conduit system it shall be unlawful to
lay conduits or erect overhead wires for
electric lighting purposes in any road.
street, avenue, highway. park, or reserva-
ton, except as hereafter specifically
authorized by law; provided, however,
that the Commissioners of the District
of Columbia are hereby authorized to
issue permits for house connections with
conduits and overhead wires now existing
and adjacent to the premises with which
such connection is to be made; and also
permits for public lighting connections
with conduits already in the portion of
the street proposed to be lighted
This was in terms a reproduction of
similar provision in the appropriation act
for the preceding year.
THE application under consideration,
however, involves the extension OF exist
ing electric wires. The only provision
contained in the joint resolution of Con-
gress approved July s. 1895. which relates
to territory west of Rock Creek, viz:
of Columbia are hereby authorized to
issue permits to existing electric light
companies in the District of Columbia
for the extension of existing overhead
electric wires outside the fire limits and
west of Rock Creek, to be used for light
ing purposes only
Il am, therefore, of the opinion that
the Commissioners are without authority
to grant the present application.
At a result of the trial conducted Satur
day afternoon of the Eastman nozzle and
deluge outfits, Chief Dutton. of the Fire
Department, yesterday gave the Eastman
company an order for three of the deluge
outfits and for two of the nozzle outfits.
at a total cost of $500. Saturdays trial of
these fre-fighting appliances was wit
messed by the District Commissioners,
Col Theodore A. Bingham, the officer in
charge of public buildings and grounds;
Captain Harding, assistant to the Engi
neer Commissioner; a representative of
the Bureau of Yards and Docks of the
Navy Department: w. A. Mcfarland, Su-
perintendent of the Water Department;
the assistant chiefs of the Fire Depart
ment, and number of the foremen and
men of the department A representative
OF the Southern Railway Company also
witnessed the trial, and those present ex-
pressed the greatest satisfaction with the
work of the appliances.
The preliminary trial was made at Fiji
teenth and B Streets, engine No. being
placed in service there. With the East
man outfits solid streams of water were
thrown 200 or more feet, while with noZ-
Zles now in use in the department the
streams not only did not reach so great
a distance, but also broke badly a few
feet after leaving the old nozzles After
the trial at this point was concluded the
party moved out to Sixteenth and U
Streets, where the same outfits were given
a plug test. Without the services of a
seventy-seven pounds, the Eastman out
fits threw a two-inch solid stream of wa
ter l6S feet the old-time noZzleS not max
ing more than half that distance.
It is the intention of Chief Dutton to
equip the central companies of the de-
partInent with the noZzles ordered yester-
day so as TO give better protection to the
business sections of the city.
|. Thomas Armat, of 100 Oregon Avenue
northwest, has entered complaint rela-
tive to the excessive water rent charged
against the above named premises. Mr..
Armat states that it is mistake to re-
gard the house as five stories high. He
says the building is four stories high
counting the English basement as one
story. Mr.. Armat states that when he
purchased the house the water rent was
Sc per annum and there was an abundant
supply Now the rent has been raised.
as Mr. Armat shows, to sl5 per annum,