New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-08-09
BUTLER ON THE TRAIL.
TO WEED OUT DEAD WOOD.
Big Shake-Up Promised Soon IN
Tenement House Department.

Commissioner Butler of the Tenement House
Department is gradually wedding out the in
competent officials In the department and re-
placing them with men better qualified TO do the
serious work required 1t was learned yester-
day that despite the cry against recent up
heavals in the department a bigger one is COM
ing Changes are TO be made in every borough
of the city.
The Commissioner was out of town yesterday.
but it was learned that in the last few weeks he
has been stOrmed with protests about the incom-
petence of many of the inspectors employed I'm
various parts of the city. A big upheaval in
the department in Brooklyn is expected this
week
There is said to be an active organization
formed in the department TO fight the Commits
sioner to finish in the courts because Of the re-
cent dsmissals The Commissioner has told his
friends that rather than keep one incompetent
man in the department he would resign.
Louis L. Flick, an inspector recently dismissed
was quoted in a paper yesterday as saying that
he was dismissed without hearing j. A. Hola-
han says he was dismissed for being sick.
Among twenty inspectors recently dismissed
were George Kuhn, Clarence S. Graves. Neville
DOugherty, Joseph A Holahan. e. NJ. DoughS
erty, l. Lichtenberg, F. r. Thomas Lee L.
Andes. John Marcus. Abram H. Goldberg, Jo-
seph l. Baum and Emanuel Franghiadi
The Commissioner refuses to go into details
about these cases. but is confident that the
courts will support his contention.
The Commissioner has completed the report OF
the Tenement House Department for 1908. II
was published yesterday in THE City Record. -
The report shows that the population of the city
is drifting rapidly northward Last year was an
almost phenomenal one in the building line and
this year, according to the report, promises to
exceed last year.
The figures show that in Manhattan the
gradual shifting of the centre of population from
south to north is still going on In proportion
as the building operations are decreasing in the
downtown districts. they are increasing up-
town. While the number of buildings planned
below 14th street fell from 172 in 1904. costing
S6,952O00. to 81 in 1905. costing only So $50 500
the number OF dwellings in the district between
10th and 1ooth streets rose from 1853 in 1904
TO 147 in 1905. At the same time the total
estimated cost Of buildings In that district was
increased from S16,SOS.OOO in 1904 to S32 2S7 900
in 1905.
Taking the whole city into consideration. the
most interesting point of the report is the i'm
mensity Of the effort made to provide housing
for the millions. While 3.177 new buildings
planned in 1904. nearly twice that number.
or 5,9lS' was reported in lMa and the total
S146.0OO,175 last year.
There is one phase Of the report that is dis
couraging. This is the tendency in certain dis
tricts on the East Side to decrease rather than
increase the cost of building. This means that
although the builders comply with the Tene-
ment House law. they just barely do so. On the
East Side below 14th street, the average cost of
buildings has dropped from $173.272 in 1904 20
S152.J00 last year. There has of course been
a reduction in the number of buildings con-
structed. but not sufficient to balance the diff
ference
Commissioner Butler has said frequently that
he would make the East Side builders come to
time and build houses that people could live in
with perfect safety. The Fire Department has
Lotto @fFr0n
houses constructed recently on the East Side
We're nothing but fire feeders.