The evening world., 1912-01-15
1t Wouldn't Be Safe to Tackle
Mercantile Safe Deposit
Vaults Sooner.
NEW DANGER IN THAW.
Ice Support to Tottering Walls
MeltS-NO One Permitted
in Burned Structure.

resented in the securities, cash and
Jewelry buried In the vaults Of the Mer.
camille Safe Deposit Company On the
burned Equitable Building. An officer
OF the Equitable Life Assurance So
ciety pointed out that hundreds OF the
largest brokerage houses. bonding and
mortgage concerns, and banks kept all
their securities in the Mercantile
vaults. Several OF the wealthiest nnan-
ciers In the witty. he said. were patrons
OF the company, and he named the
Harrimans and Goulds among them.
Despite the assurance of officers Of
the Mercantile, who have established
temporary quarters at No. 20 Nassau
street, that tho contents OF the vaults
are uninjured, Wall street will be
anxious until they are opened. Chief
Inspector O'Connor of the Building De-
partment said II might be two weeks
or q month before the vaults were even
accessible.
THE walls Of the Equitable Building
will have to be torn down. said In
spector O'Connor. before the hundreds
of tons OF debris that cover the Mer-
camille vaults can be removed. Then
the debris will have TO be removed. and
before this can be accomplished there
are tons Of ice that. unless the cold
out.
CAN'T TELL WHETHER VAULTS
ARE CAFE OR NOT.
There has been no n any nearer
the vaults than inspectors Of the Build
ing Department No one can tell abso-
1utsly whether or not they are unin-
jursd. This won't be known until they
are opened. From the little that ear
be seen Il - surmised they are all
right"
9. III. Walker. safe expert of the Hall
Safe Companl. No. 800 Broadway. is con-
adent the Mercantile vaults are in good
condition.
However," said Mfr. Walker. mo ono
can state that absolutely untfl they are
opened. They may have suffered from
condensation. The excessive heat inside
the vaults during tho fire. then the cold
Of the freezing water afterward will
cause moisture on The inside. But I
don't think this would penetrate the
safety deposit boxes. because hters 10 an
air chamber between the exterior walls
OF the vault and the boxes"
'If I had anything to DO with Il !
would not allow tho vaults opened for At
least a month. The Baltimore fire con-
WINGED US hat It Is dangerous to open
any vault that has suffered intense heat
unless We are positive the interior Is the
same temperature as the outside. To
be safe about this, the metal must be
thoroughly chilled
The Mercantile safe Deposit Company
sheltered In its vaults at least l0,cT
boxes. In price they ranged from 81 10
G00. There Is no record kept Of the con-
tents, and officers of the company de-
clared they could give no idea OF the
wealth they concealed.
BUILDING PROTECTION SHED
OVER BROADWAY SIDEWALK.
Because the rise in temperature has
softened the ice which has been prop
ping UP the tottering Broadway walls
Of the Equitable Building since II
burned hast TUESDAY, the Building De-
pavtment to-day ordered that NOBODY,
on any business whatever. should be
permitted under or near that part OF
the ruins. except men OF the Depart
ment who are cautiously building a
shed Of heavy beams over the Broad
way sidewalk from Cedar to Pine
streets.
From the protection OF this shed ar
effort will be made to shore up the
walls and to pull parts OF them down
gradually. Every able-bodied man who
applied for work was hired by supt
Shannon of Canavan Brothers.
The Building Department. was very
strict In enforcing the order against al
lowing anybody to enter the ruins Dill
lion Broderick, examiner for the State
Insurance Department, was forbidden &c
try to reach his former offices In search
Of papers which ne said were OF very
great value.
~Stceplejack Frederick Walker. hired BY
the Equitable officials to go NJ through
the ruins hunting for stray papers. was
told he could not even enter the rotunda
Inspector O'Connell said there might be
q crash of the walls at any moment.
An acetyline blast apparatus was Sc
TN on the Cedar street side OF thu
building at noon. With 1t was begun
the work OF melting away the steel bar
at the windows of the second vault o
the Mercantile Safe Deposit Company, II
which the body of Frank ]. Ne!der |
believed to lie.
AMERICAN EXCHANGE BANt
TENANTS GO BACK.
Much OF the Pine street side OF tn
building was shored up yesterday an,
the street was declared safe. Many q
the tenants of the American Exchang
National Bank went back to their dc
serted quarters. The bank Itself, how
ever, did not reoccupy Its floors in tn
building.
A great crowd of bank messenger
n others with time for observation o
their hands were greatly Interested |
the efforts OF a a n OF laborers to TAX
the ice on the great plate glass windo'
OF the bank Offices, The window 1
coated with ice which varies from 81
eighteen inches In thickness. III