The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-02-23
UP HISTORY sKY-sCRAPER IN 60
 SECONDS BY ELEVATOR.

Tower Tenants of New Singer Buildlng
 to Reach and Leave Their Eyrie oGi-
 ces by Mems of the Safest and Most
 Remarkable Cars Ever Cnstructed.
 New York, Feb. 15. 1907 An inter- esting chapter in the construction of the new sly-scraper wonder-the A. story Singer Building at Broadway and Liberty street-has just been con cluded with 8 series of tests made by Architect Ernest Flagg and staff of engineers, to determine the absolute safety of the massive elevators to be
 installed. The tests are pronounced satisfactory in every detail.
 Of fifteen elevators to go into the wonderful structure, four will actually scale tile 6l2-foot tower, feat with out a parallel or precedent in elevator building Not only vii the convey pas sengers to and from the eyrie offices with a relay but, what is even more astonishing, they will each rise or de- send fl stories in less than 50 seconds This Is faster than any elevator ever ran on schedule, and each ear is guaranteed to run as swiftly, safely and evenly with a full load as with one passenger.
 Heretofore the most improved hy- draulic elevators have always operat- ed more slowly-often stalling between hoorsz- when crowded But the Otis Traction elevators, constructed for the Singer Building, are so powerful that each has maximum capacity of $500 | lbs, or approximately 25 persons. When the Singer Building was first projected the elevator problem was the hardest to be solved. Contractors, engineers and architects almost un- animously agreed that sucil a giant l tower, in fact, was not feasible and could never be built. In reply to such critics, and ss tribute to the care and forcthought of the concern, the Singer Company has ordered tempor- ary elevators installed at once. This 1 has never before been done in con- struetion an office building and it will cost many thousand dollars-a fortune well expended in that 1t will afford workmen on the tower the same pro- tectiop that tenants will nave.
 That elevators suitable for such a l lofty journey are not built in day is attested bl the expenditure of several thousand dollars experimenting, i'm anticipation of the new era in sky scraper construction which this build marks. Over 400 mea have been em- ployed in the task, besides @ congress of consulting engineers. As it was necessary to reach height Some 20 stories above the present skyline of | New York an entirely new system was imperative, and tlle one to be in- trduced in the Singer Building is the result.
 How, it will be asked, is the absolute safety of passengers guaranteed? No one has ever been elevated IS or 20 stories above ground but has anxiously asked this question, and the following reply is necessarily more interesting to one ascending twice as far.
 Each car, made of copper, crucible steel and special forged steel, will be supported by wrought iron and steel safety frames and girders to which the lifting cables are attached. This frame will be provided underneath iwtb an improved double acting wedge clamp safety device. Should the car exceed a predetermined speed in either direction, it will slowly but surely and securely be clamped to the guides, Every care is equipped with an emer- gency lever enabling the operator to bring them to rest in 8 fraction of 8