Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-10-18
Still Inviting
Fire Losses.

Still Inviting construction of build
Fire Losses. the the economic CON losses
caused by fires is indicated in a sta
tistical investigation Of building oper-
atoms for last year which has been
made by the United States geological
survey.
Notwithstanding the increased use of
brick. concrete. hollow tile and other
forms of fire-resisting construction,
the people OF this country are today
| erecting more than three and one half
| times as many new wooden buildings
as hre-resisting structures, according
, to the governments report This IL the
record In 1os of the 1877 cities Of the
United states having a population Of
| more than $4,000 Inhabitants.
AS is generally known, the proper
ton OF wooden and non -fireproof build
ings In the smaller cities Is much
larger than 1t is in cities Of consider
aoie SIZE. Experts estimate that with
this fact IN consideration, the amount
OF wooden construction in all cities,
large ana small, Is perhaps nve times
as much as non-fireproof construction,
instead OF three and one-half times
as much as is shown by the record
for the larger cities.
IN the United States last year there
buildings, less than $4,000 brick and
hoiioW tile structures, only 15s stone
oulidingSl 1.437 structures of concrete
ana AZ OF stone, brick or some other
fsuses a,n Nth r., steel skeletons. These
cities for which the government has
coIiected complete records.
ne new wooden buildings construct
go go last year cost nearly si75. 0o0, 900, or
IT. per cent OF the total building cost
me cost of brick buildings, which is
considerably more for each unit than
WOODEN buildings, amounted to nearly
sLz .,Ooo'oOO. or more than 81 per cent
OF the total building cost The cost
u me new wooden buildings is ap-
new buildings constructed Of f1re.re-
siselns material. Other new buildings
OF OF al kinds cost nearly $4,000. 900.
Inc me average cost of each wooden build
eng eng vas vas $1,loS; Of new brick buildings,
ssa9,ost' OF new stone buildings, $50
oss; or concrete buildings, $27,616, and
OF stee! skeleton buildings. S1i4.4l0.
me city or Los Angeles continues ia
Tag farthest behind in the movement
10 promote the construction of fre-re-
1a5 4. buildings The California city
led the country last year. as it has for
several years. in the construction OF
new wooden buildings, More than
io'ouo wooden buildings were erected
IN the city at an average value OF
nearly $l,400. Detroit was second in
the construction of wooden buildings
reporting more than $500 at an aver.
age cost Of more than $4,000. Seattle
was third. and others of the first ten
cities in number of new wooden build
lngs constructed, in order of rank, were
Minneapolis. Portland, Greg; Cleve-
land, Boston. San Francisco. Indianap.
oils and Oakland.
The people of New York city spent
the largest amount Of money last year
in the construction of f1reproof build
ings. The cost of new f1re-resisting
structures. additions and alterations
last year amounted to more than $780,
100000, or more than one-fourth of the
total cost of all fireproof buildings
erected in los of the leading cities
Others of the ten cities reporting the
were Washington, Philadelphia, Bos-
ton, Cleveland. Pittsburgh, Los An
geles, Detroit, San Francisco and Mil
waukee.
New York was also the leading city
In the construction of new brick and
at cost Of $52,17s,42s, or one-half
the cost of all the building operations
in that city. The average cost was
nearly $4,000. The second city in the
cost of brick and hollow-tile buildings
was Philadelphia. with nearly $500
buildings, costing nearly s25.50O. 900,
or an average cost of only $1,000. Other
cities of the first ten in cost of brick
or hollow-tile buildings in order OF
their rank were Cleveland. Boston,
Detroit, Washington, Los Angeles.
Pittsburgh, Milwaukee and Cambridge.
Philadelphia was the leading city re-
porting new concrete buildings, and
San Francisco was second. New York
led in steel skeleton buildings, report
ing ia new buildings Of this class,
than half the cost of all new steel
skeleton buildings included in the geo
logical surveys report. Los Angeles
was the second city in the cost of
steel skeleton buildings. reporting
nearly $4,40O.0O0; Birmingham third,
! Boston fourth and Indianapolis fifth.
J. The European cities are far ahead
of the United States in the amount OF
freproof construction, and as result
suffer less than one-seventh of the
amount of annual fire waste in this
country. The enormous annual prop
erty loss by fire in the United States.
which exceeds $3.50 per capita, is a
| subject of comment by foreign visitors.
The fire loss in Europe, due almost en-
| tirely to the better type of building
construction, it is said, is estimated to
be only SO cents per capita.
Because of the fact that the United
States government is the greatest pub
Usher in h Q
Revision of world, the heads
n4:r of practically all
AAAASAA6 A@"s. of the federal
departments are very much interested
in the pending bill to revise the lawe
relating to the public printing and bind
ing and distribution of government pub
locations. The public printing laws have
| the House of Representatives and the
Senate. The public printing laws have
not been revised for almost twenty
years, during which time the volume
of government printing work has more
than doubled, and new conditions have
arisen which have made necessary
| many changes in the methods of print
ing and distributing government pub
locations.
The movement to revise and amend
the printing laws began four years ago.
and the present bill, which has been
discussed in the House Of Representa-
tives one day a week for more than
| a month, and which is expected to be
| taken up by the Senate during the
short session of Congress-. is the re-
suit of long investigation OF the
government printing needs Of the pres
| emit day. Since the enactment Of the
| old printing law of 1895 a new govern
ment printing office building, which Is
| the largest and best equipped in the
world. has been erected in Washington
and all denartments of the government
have greatly increased their volume Of
The branches of the government most