davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

ment house blocks are considered bad but 1t
would be almost impossible for the entire dis
trfct to become involved. The section is cut off
from all others by parks or rivers, and is only
exposed by the upper East Side tenement dis
trct and here the exposure is slight, except
under the most extreme circumstance.
The Bronx section of forty square miles is not
confagration hazard and conditions are uni
formly good, except among the undivided sec
tions along the Harlem River. Here is ex-
tensive railroad yard. which has no internal pro-
lection. and city hydrant service along the
northern, or street, side only. Lumber yards
and wood working plants interspersed with
coal docks. Conditions favorable to quick
spreading fires and. in view of the inaccessibilty
of large part of the area to street hydrant pro-
lection and to the fact that there is no fireboat
service there are latent confagraton possib1l-
tiles which, under very adverse condltlons OF
light wind and low water pressure, might in
voIve all of the blocks south Of East 13oth-st
The Bronx is well isolated by the Harleln fIIFel'
and is not exposed by any other district
An analysis of this careful study of the city's
fire risks shows:
The highest value sections are freest from in
ternal hazard, but they are badly exposed by
other sections involving all the elements OF
conf1agratfon.
The section at the southeast end of the island
while dangerous in itself is shut off by bull
wark of fireproof buildings which would protect
The danger Of confagration from the grocery
district is less than generally supposed owing to
the isolation of confiagration breeders
The entire southeast portion of the island ex-
poses, without firestops, the high value section
nearly the entire length of long Vulnerable
side
The past immunity of this southeast section
from bad fires has encouraged the dangerous
belief that such immunity will be perpetual.
The chemical and leather sections are likely TO
be future cause of great trouble unless there
are substantial reforms in building construction
The danger of the tenement district must not
be underrated. The fires are generally caught
in their incfpiency, but conditions are ripe for
sweeping fire
The national underwriters propose many rem
edies and in most of them they have the support
of the heads of the Fire Department II Is not
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

cent of the buildings are of fireproof conslIuC ,
lion The section of bad blocks lies about Broao'
Pearl and Beaver sts., but 1t IS too sinai @@ ~ ~ 10 ~
xeIon more than purely local fire Ihere are re
no confagration breeders of any description. II
the onenings in freproof buildings were pro
fec+ed with wire glass there would be little oalr
cor of q serious fire Owing to the grouping OIL
these fireproof structures the district shouId re-
mel the attacks of an ordinary conhagraloli et,o'
or west, though a serious conflagratton nortn-
east aided by the explosive and 1nnahilildple ~ g
contents there, might cause a hetl'v losS oii ~
norton southeast of City Hall Park .
The machinery section, Of hfty-hVe pIocks'
bounded by the North River, Battery Fark,
t~hambers-st and Broadway, shows bulIolIs
trend from cheap tenement houses 10 heSGN ny
constructed storage warehouses. Ihrty-three
NJ the fftv-five blocks are considered bad' anu
many of them very bad. There are severll
blocks northwest of Vesey-st and Broadway
which might easily become involved in a COM
mon fire owing to the prevailing light construc-
tion mutual exposures and combustibie occu.
na11cies The two blocks at the intersection OF
Washington and Fulton SITS. are CONSIDERED col-
1apratiOn breeders and the block between hec-
+or and Morris sts and west of Washlngt gton-St-.
fs nerhaps the worst in the district, containing
as il does a large soap factory Of great height.
This section together with the one which ad-
ioins n on the north and which would readily
ioin in q common confagration, seriously exposes
fhe high value financial section to the east, but
there is expressed the hope that the strip of big
freproof buildings along Broadway would prove
TO he an effectual frestop under most clrcum-
Sta
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
The Procedure About To Be Followed in England
Important Part Played by the Hing.

the House Of Lords as Peer of the United
Kingdom is debarred from taking any part in
the election.
With regard to the representative peers Of
Ireland they are elected as follows: The Lord
High Chancellor of England. who is the pre-
siding officer of the House of Lords, on receiv-
ing a certificate from two temporal peers, COM
munIcating to him the decease of a repre-
sentative peer of Ireland. directs a writ, under
the great seal of the realm to be issued to the
Lord Chancellor of Ireland. containing the
Kings commands for the election of q new
representative peer of Ireland. There is no
meeting of the Irish peers for the purpose, as
in the case of the representatives of the peer
age of Scotland al Holyrood Place in Edinburgh.
Ireland's peers in response to the invitation of
the Lord Chancellor Of Ireland address
their votes in duplicate, by mail. TO the clerk
of the Crown and Hanaper at Dublin. One of the
duplicates is retained by the crown office in
Ireland, while the other. duly certified. is dis
patched to the clerk Of the House Of Lords.
and the election is complete.
Few people outside the judiciary and Parla-
ment. even in England. are aware that the
Judges of the High Court Of Justice, who are
neither ordinary peers nor yet life peers, re-
ceive summons by writ to the House of Lords
and occupy seat in the upper chamber of the
national legislature. They there merely in
an advisory capacity. have no votes, and take
their places OH the woosacks more remote from
the throne than that occupied by the Lord High
Chancellor as President of the House. For.
contrary to the general belief. there are several
so-caIled woolsacks in the House of Lords.
With regard to the prelates of the State
Church in England. there twenty-six of
them. who occupy seats in the upper house Of
the national legislature. not, however. as peers
of the realm but merely lords spiritual Of
Parliament The lords spiritual. who headed
by the Archbishops of Canterbury and of York,
have no right to demand trial by the House of
Lords as peers but amenable 10 the juris-
diction Of the ordinary courts of law, the last
instance I believe. OF a prelate tried in this
manner being that of Bishop Fisher, I'm the
reign Of King Henry VIII. The prelates vote
on every subject brought before the Lords. ex-
cept in trials for high treason and other cases of
n criminal character on such occasions they
never vote this. however. being in Difference to
those canon laws which forbid them from par
ticipating in matters likely to lead to the taking
of life and not owing any parliamentary re-
uurement There can he quorum in the
House of Lords without the presence OF an
Archbishop or Bishop the quorum consisting Of
two peers and a prclate. and the spiritual lords
cannot vote or even take their seats In the
house unless rohed in their ecclesiastical vest
inents. with rochet. lawn sleeves and mortar
board cap complete
The number OF electors entitled to vote at the
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

not contain the name of the legislator sum
,oonad which is not known until the result of
tho yoI1 has been ascertained, when 1t becomes
the duty Of the returning officer to communl-
cate the name of the duly elected MEMBER TO
the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery by means
of a certificate. 1t is not until the latter reciieS
the hands of the Clerk of the Crown ana is en-
tered by him into a book kept for the purpose
that the election Of the member In questloh 10
Parliament is complete. l may add that Win
reoard TO Great Britain the writs are dispatched
hy what is known the crown o1Ice' Wilile ~
the case Of ireland the same duty is discharged
-, .,, ca oo,,ed officer of the Crown and Hama
per at Dublin.
The Scotch representative peers are called III
q different and entirely distinct manner the
mode Of procedure being as follows: whenever
a new Parliament is summoned a royal pFocld-
nation is posted at the Market Cross IN f-uiii-
burgh and in all the county towns OF ScQudliu
ordering the election within a given numoer Oh
davs of the sixteen peers Of Scotland ov "Iol''
tho latter Is represented in the House of Lords
al Westminster The election takes place at
Holyrood Palace at Edinburgh, the meeting OF
all the peers of Scotland who are Of age beng
nrasided over by the Lord Clerk Register, as the
principal judicial dgnitary of Scotland Names
and proxies are handed in and then the Lord
Clerk Register declares the result ana MAKES
his return to the Clerk of the Crown in Cham
Gerry and by him to the Clerk of the House of
Lords The representative peers of Scotland
are therefore, not summoned by writ, and
moreover hold their seat in the House OF Lords
merely for the duration and life of the Parlia-
ment for which they elected, differing in
both these respects from the representative
neers of Ireland who are elected for life. The
election at Holyrood on this occasion will at
tract n certain amount of attention by reason Of
thesract that among the names that figure on
the Great Roll of the Peers OF Scotland. and
which will be read out, there will be one name
and title belonging TO an American citizen
namely young Lord Fairfax. who will be de-
barred from recording his vote because he still
remains legally speaking. alien The Great
Roll of the Peers OF Scotland bears the date Of
1907 since which time no Scotch peerage has
made thereto consisting exclusively of peerages
created previous To that date which had fallen
into temporary allegiance through the non-ap-
pearance of claimants but which have been
subsequently revived by the Crown in favor of
heirs VINO had proved their genealogical rights
to ancestral honors. The Great Roll contains
112 names But there are not than
eighty peers of Scotland in existence. many
honors having become extinct since the date os
The union, two centuries ago Moreover the
number of voters is still further reduced by the
fact that any peer of Scotland having a seat in
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

The old cry of Fire B1rel London's burn
ing"' Inodernized to the extent Of placing Man
haitian in London's place, may be heard some
day on the neighboring shores Of Long Island,
in The Bronx or in the New-Jersey towns across
the Hudson. What a fire that fire will be, If 1t
ever comes!
But Manhattan could not be swept with a
confagration." laughs the careless Gothamite
1T has the best fire department, the most fire
proof buildings an exhaustless water supply,
and fires are always put out before they spread"
But what if fire should spread into a sweep
ing confagration asks the thoughtful one
''Supposing IT gets beyond the bravest and most
skilful body of fremen in the world? Is Man
hattans water supply adequate? Is its fire alarm
system in the best condition? Are there many
natural fire breaks as in the average American
city? Are there not multitude Of blocks which
are confia grafton hazards?"
"Croaker, Croaker,'' exclaims the Gothamite
Yet within a week no less an authority than
the committee of twenty of the National Board
Of Fire Underwriters has formally declared that
Manhattan is in danger of being swept by
onfia grafton that in extent of property loss and
resulting panic would make the Chicago fire, the
Baltimore fire and the other historic fires of this
country fade into insignifcance. The commit
tees declaration. furthermore, is fully indorsed
even criticised for being too moderate, by two
engineer officers of the United States govern
nlent who are in no way connected with fire
insurance.
The National Board Of Fire Underwriters
which is composed OF one hundred and twenty
of the leading fire insurance companies doing
business in the United States, discovered some
time ago that the fire waste in the United States
greatly exceeds that of other countries. They
believed that the Baltimore confiagration would
impress upon the public the danger to most If
not all of the great cities Of like disaster The
committee of twenty. which has just reported
on Manhattan and The Bronx, was appointed to
organize an engineering department to carry on
detailed investigations in all the large cities Of
he
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
NewYor City Has Many Blocks Where Such Disaster
MieF1t Start ANY Day When All the Conditions
Happen To Be just Right.

groups of old weak buildings with frame rear
walls, in which highly combustible stocks are
carried. Dilapidated frame buildings are wen
interspersed throughout the section. and in other
places accumulations of combustible material IN
the courts and on the roofs add to the danger
Owing to the absence of any street worthy the
designation of fireStOp, a well developed GONNA
grafton in this section would probably lnVoIVe
portions of those Immediately adjoining, and
cause heavy loss of property in the high value
section east The hreproofs along Broadway
should, however act as barrier to any further
spread.
The wholesale drygoods district. of 13O blocks
to the north and east. has only eleven bad
blocks. This is encouraging, when one cons1d-
ers that so far as the contents of the buildings
are concerned it comprises the largest concen-
trat!on of values in the country. There is a
steady tendency to the construction of hreproof
buildings. The report says:
THE hazards of the district have concentrated
the attention Of underwriters for years, and
there is perhaps a traditional attitude main
tanned with regard to it which may be inclined
TO disregard certain transformations that have
occurred. It is certain that in large percentage
of the drygoods district risks of Importance are
now either sprinklered or f1reproof, or both
Yet it continues to include the greatest con-
fla grafton breeders in the city, the highest val
ues the greatest congestion and the busiest
manufactu turing element
The retail mercantile section, of sixty-seven
blocks shows tendency to better conditions
and f1reproof construction. A particularly bad
block is bounded by 18th and 18th sts 6th and
7th aves. and is serious menace to the sur
roundings The poorest parts of this section are
those Immediately adjoining and exposed by
the poorer tenements and manufacturing sec
tons A sweeping fire in these exposed sec
tions would cause heavy loss. but there should
be general spread.
THEATRE DISTRICT.
The theatre district of ffty-two blocks
has few danger spots, and these are danger
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
THE CHEMICAL DISTRICT.

The chemical district, of ffty-six blocks.
bounded by the East River. Battery Park. Pearl
st, Maiden Lane. Nassau and Beekman SITS, is
considered a most dangerous district. The
buildings are principally brick. Of from three to
six stories in height Few new buildings have
been erected in many years, and little new work
is contemplated. Many of the buildings are
filed TO the roof with drugs. chemicals oils and
other highly irfammable stock. Only twenty
four Of these hfty-six blocks can be classed as
satisfactory, while the remainder. especially
those within three blocks of the river. are bad
Fulton Market is cassed particular danger
spot though almost any Of the explosive oil
risks might more properly be classed con-
fseration breeders. The report declares:
Sowing TO utter absence OF fire stops gen
erall confederation in this section might spread
rIninterruptedIy through the territory south of
BROOKLYN Bridge: il might be arrested by the
heavy groupings Of freproofs in the financial
section west and should be, save under the
most extreme conditions. but the loss from such
p fire would be nearly total on this section. and
very heavy on all adjacent ones"
THE financial district. comprising 1fty-seven
Irregular blocks is essentially one Of very high
value but owing 10 the preponderance OF fire
proofs it Is the safest in the city. About 80 per
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

Gus largely by comparison. Among these are
two small blocks west of Broadway and 3oth-st.
where there are theatre stages in the centre OF
the blocks with numerous unprotected openings
on all surrounding buildings. On West 3Sth-St
are hazardous groupings of automobile garages.
livery stables, lumber yards and small shops.
The theatre district is somewhat exposed by
the West Side tenement district, of 217 blocks
from 23d to 59th ST. but conditions there are
not of a highly serious nature and should be
confined to blocks of their origin The most
serious grouping of hazardous blocks is to be
found IN several blocks north of 42d-st. and
west of 9th-ave where there are great manu-
featuring plants of light construction and
numerous lumber yards
The high class residence district consists or
288 blocks and is divided into east and west
sections by Central Park, with conditions prac-
ticaIlv the same. There are few bad blocks in
the entire district and confagration originating
here or elsewhere could hardly gain serious
headway in this section unless 1t was a sweeping
one from the lower part of the city which skirted
Central Park.
Then there is the vasc East Slice tenement
district Of 500 blocks. extending from Delaney
st 70 Fast 10th st. The greatest danger seems
to lie in the blocks below 23d-st-. where the con
ditions are almost identical with those of the
lower East Side. The fire companies and fire
alarm boxes are considered insufficient in num-
her Delaney st. might prove an adequate nre
stop on the south save in most extreme cond1-
tions but any general conf1agration in the lower
end could sweep with ease into the high value
retail and residence section west across Lexlng-
ton
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
PRINTING AND LEATHER.

The printing and leather district, south of the
Rrooklyn Bridge with it's newspaper offices and
leather houses, comprises thirty blocks. over
half of which are bad. A fire getting beyond con-
troll would involve practically every block in the
district the freproof buildings being so scat
tered as to be of little avail Practically any fire
in the chemical or the East Side tenement house
district would spread without interference
through this section.
The wholesale grocery section. of eighty-three
blocks bounded by the North River, Chambers
St. West Broadway and Spring-st,, has twenty
three dangerous blocks. which form a serious
menace to the whole section There are many
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
MANY DANGER SPOTS.

That the general public may realize the ex-
tent Of the danger Of general con1agration and
the sources from which It is most likely to
come the National Underwriters have issued a
map showing in detail the danger spots The
very bad blocks-indicated in deep black-are
scattered all over the city and fairly colonized
in many places. There are vast areas of shaded
blocks. indicating that the fire hazard is more
than normal. The absence OF fire breaks of any
considerable size. with the single exception Of
Central Park. will also be noted.
Another feature which contributes greatly to
the danger Of confagrations is the size and
hollow square formation of the blocks. making
an entire block a single risk in many cases.
Then there are wide areas which, while not
units, form conhagration feeders" and abut
upon dangerous territory. The high winds
which frequently prevail and the practically
uniform inability Of the water distribution sys-
TEN TO supply third alarm fires other
factors
The experts in figuring on the possibilities Of
q sweeping coniagration. have divided the city
into fifteen arbitrary sections which possess in
dyidual characteristics
The most dangerous of these districts as I
breeder OF a general cOnhagration is the lower
East Side tenement and manufacturing district
of go blocks south of Delancey-st. and east OF
the Bowery. This is an irregular section of
about one square mile in extent occupied al
most exclusively by cheap tenements and small
factories It is one of the most heavily con-
SeSleu GlSLlClS lAES CITY, Out the Nd1OeS dA .
lower by virtue OF the cheap class of buildings
and occupancy The buildings Of from three 10
seven stories in height are cheap, constructed
of brick. and many OF them old and weak
enough to warrant condemnation. The streets
are very narrow. and the few wider streets are
obliterated fire breaks by the elevated rail-
roads. Practically any block in the whole area
is subject to one fire. and as there is almost g
total absence of fire shutters fire might in
vove blocks In any direction. There is no ade-
quate fire stop either in the way of open space
or mutually sustaining groups of freproot
buildings In summing up this district the re-
port says:
The Delancey-st bridge. the northern bound
cry Of this section, forms fair cutoff save ir
the most extreme cases, and any but a general
confederation should be arrested at this point
the sections to the west and southwest, how
ever. are fully exposed TO any confagratton be
coming general here. Indeed this lower Eas
Side forms a dangerous exposure to the lower
high valued district -
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

At Sacramento this week the court decided
that most of the property. left by the VIII ol
Mrs. Ora Runyon Buckman to Stephen n. Nea4
should go to him although he was no relation
In her will she declared that she would have
married Neal had it been possible to DO 50.
Mrs Buchanan came of the we'll known RunyOn
family, of Sacramento but she estranged her
mother and friends by marrying Il saloon
keeper.
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

George AIDES THE College Widow has had
the greatest success at the Columbia Theatre
of any play produced here in recent years. Its
three weeks run ended this week and after the
first night the company played to capacity
houses Dorothy Tenant. a former San Fran
cisco girl, played the leading role.
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
Very bad blocks are those IA

within the scope of this article to even outline
these recommendations, but it is encouraging to
note the great public interest in this conia-
grafton danger. interest which means that
eventually New-York will take measures to
minimize the risk
New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
HARLEM AND THE BRONX.

The conditions in the Harlem district, compris-
ing 700 blocks at the forth end Of the CITY, are
generally good. In a strict sense there are no
condensation breeders A number of the apart