New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-11-10
TENEMENT HOUSE LITIGATION.


The decision of Justice Freedman upholdins
the consttutionality of the tenement mousse law
is an important victory for sanitation ana
health. 1t is much TO be feared that the present
efficient execution of that law will not be con-
tinued after January /, but that instead the
tenement house owners will rejoice TO ueal
with IAN administration with heart ana not
have to obey heartless orders to make their
premises decent and sanitary. 1t is hlghly llo-
portant however, that the great advance maze
in the standard of tenement houses be MAIN
tanned, and that no legal excuse be found for
any deterioration in conditions.
No doubt the tenement house law was one of
the clements that contributed to Mayors Lows
defeat But we do not believe that any sincere
friend Of the Low administration would nave
wished the tenement house law OF the statute
book or unenforced. If the Low administration
had not welcomed the new law which went I'D
force with its accession to power and sought to
enforce it, it would have deserved defeat. The
law was unquestionably unpopular with large
class of owners aud builders and the most
violent opponents of the measure were owners
of particularly disgraceful structures But it
has accomplished great good. 1t has abolished
intoIerable nuisances and safeguarded not mere
IL the jewellers in the tenements but the whole
population among whom these people circu-
late, from a host of breeding places of disease
It was worth while to have an administration
that would do this worth while TO have 1t done.
though the doing was a stimulus to opposition
contributing to defeat So do we make progress
slowly. with many ups and downs, but each
cycle of progress leaves US on q little higher
plane.
No part Of Commissioner De Forests admi-
rabe and important work has been more adj
BILE and important than his infexible In
sistence upon simple but decent and sanitary
plumbing in tenement houses. The present
litigation grows out of an attempt to maintain
the old ndescribably foul conditions which pre-
vailed in hundreds of tenement houses. 1t is
disappointing to note that the test case to main
tain them was brought by a woman. just as the
test case in a previous attempt to resist better
ments for the sake of humanity was Brought
by church Justice Freedman holds that the
police power of the State is competent to order
these changes. Much is made of the fact that
formerly the forbidden arrangements were toll
Grated or even considered a great Improvement
on what had gone before. That is doubtless
true, but yet there is not the slightest question
that they are menace 70 health and otherwise
utterly vile. Once there was no plumbing to he
found at all in cities, but nobody would dream
Of permitting such a condition to exist now.
Things were permitted years ago which 1t is
proper to forbid now, because people then did
not know any better than TO permit them.
Moreover, the city is now so congested that it
will not do to allow things which were prop
erly allowed even twenty years ago. And no
doubt things are lawful now which will be so
wicked and deadly in the light of sanitary
science twenty years hence that it will seem
sheer murder TO permit their indulgence Shall
not the people have the benefit of new discOv-
cries? Is property much more sacred than
life that a person must be allowed to go on
poisoning others just because of old time it
was not known that what he did was injurious?
We think not The police power Is not I'M
limited, but it must certainly be ample to keep
tenement houses up to the reasonable require
ments of present day sanitary science. Justice
Freedman is convinced that it is, but the case
for the landlords who want to keep their tenants
in filth will be carried TO the higher courts 1t Is
to be hoped that the Corporation Counsel will
so diligently prosecute the appeal that n strong
case may be presented, even if a decision is not
reached before January 1t would be most I'M
fortunate if IAN administration with a heart"
through tenderness for the poor landlords should
present the city's case so weakly, and so fail
to give the judges a full understanding of the
unspeakable conditions which the property own
ems seek TO maintain, that Il reversal was Sc
cured. Such thing is hardly possible if the
case on appeal presents all the facts in their
full force.