The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-02-26

last year under authority Of an act OF
the Legislature, to examine into the tene-
ment house question and report q code Of
tenement house laws. has sent TO the
Legislature a long statement Of the re
suits Of its work \ proposed code Of
tenement house laws. which contains les
radical departures from the provisions Of
the present tenement house laws. on
paaies the report of the commission.
and with the main report are sent TWEEN
ty-siE special reports which were made
to the commission during The inyestiga-
tion. Early in the commissions state
ment appears the declaration that the
chief evil TO be remedfed IS the tenement
house itself and the hcpeIsssn s. OF the
situation in this city Is stated Ia The fol-
lowing language:
Adequate light nd air. perfect santa
ton, even passabIe home environment.
cannot be provided By the best tenement
house which IS commercially possible IN
Manhattan Island-that is. by the best
tenement house when can be built with
sufficient prospect OF income 10 warrant
its erection.
The most serious evils recognized as
existing in tenement houses in the city
are grouped together and are declared TO
be:
Insuficiency of light and air. due to
narrow courts OF ai-sEafts. undue height
and TO The occupation by the building or
by adjacent buildings OF too great q pro-
portion Of lot area.
Danger from FIRE
Lack Of closet ana washing facilities.
--OvercrowdiRg
Fou! cellars and courts and other like
evils. which may be classed as bad house
keeping
To attempt the correction OF all such
evils BY enacting a code that would pro-
hIbIJ them entirely. the commission
thinks. would prevent the erecrICn Of new
tenement houses by making them com
UeTcIaliy too costly and as respects the
old tensmenIs 10 YacaIe many Of them for
living purposes. because the cost q such
alterations would be mere than would be
JuStIhed by any probable revenue that
could be expected from them after the
changes had been made
The commission declares Jhat '-teue-
Inent house reform would MOI Dc practical
which went SO far as 20 pat a stop TO
building rev tenement houses Nor would
. II be practical II II compelled such ex-
tensive changes in ole tenement houses
that owners would turn them 10 other
uses
The commission has come 20 the conclu-
sion thai the solution OF the tenement
house problem IN New York lies along
the following lines Of action:
To provide proper types OF new tene-
ment houses for the future by means Of
adequate restrictive legislation and To for
bid The erection of any others
To remedy the errors Of past years by
altering &nd improving old tenement
houses 50 as 10 make them fJ for human
habilation
To maintain present and future teue-
ment houses in sanitary condition by ade-
quate supervision
The commission. therefore. has pre-
pared complete code of tenement house
laws. and has sought TO so arr92g and
express their various provisions as to
make the Law plain 10 all persons In so
doing IL has endeavored SO far as possible
10 retain the language and substance Of
past legislation
IN ihe=e0HTse of its Investigations the
commission became convinced that dan
ger from fires and the spread OF disease in
tenement houses was due in great measure
10 the narrow aiTshafts which have been
allow ed in the construction OF such
houses The commission therefore recon
mends and makes provisions in the code
against permitting narrow airshafts in
any future tenement houses.
The commission recommends the crea-
ton Of a separate and permanent tene-
ment house department in the municipal
government II expresses belief that the
continuous attention, year in and year
out of some one body charged with the
enforcement Of the tenement house laws
is essential 10 their administration. The
commission has therefore recommended in
one OF the bills which accompany the re
port that this department shall be organ
lied along certain definite lines: that al
its head shall be a single commissioner.
VINO shall have complete control Of INSIDE
partInent, and who shall be the sole il
diyiuual whom The people of New York
can hold responsible for any violation Of
the laws in relation 20 tenement houses
OF the growth of vice in tenement hous-
Is the report says in parI.
The steady growth OF vice in the tene-
ment houses has come under the personal
observation Of members Of the commits
SIGN It's special investigations. ZEN
forced by the unanimous testimony Of
many witnesses including the tenement
house dwe.lers. labor representatives and
phiianJh-opic workers. lead It TO most
earles-'E protest against such conditions
TT temptations Of the game of policy,
II appears. are especially open to the ,ene-
mCut house dweIIer and the CON mission
urges upon the Legislature that every
means be taken 10 stamp out and eradi-
cate his serious menace TO the welfare
Of he community
The report Of the commission contains
several plans OF model tenement houses
designed by leading architects Of the city
in harmony with The proposed code Of
tenement house laws. These plans are
offered merely as suggestions.
Fourteen Of The fifteen members Of the
commission have signed the report
Capt. F. Norton Goddard did not sign
the report. in letter TO the chairman
Of the commission he said
i believe that q code can be de--sed II /
accordance with the provisions Of which :
reuemeuts which are commercially posi- /
bic would also afford adequate light and +.
air and sanitation and pasSable home en-
yiToHmEnF- ! also regreI that I cannot
join in all The conclusions OF the tenement }
house commission
4 an convinced. from al examination :