New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-04-21
c. 6. Armstrong Reiterates
Charge About Menace
TO Children.
SAYS ADAMSON ADMITS
500 LAW VIOLATIONS
Cost Of Repairing Damages SUM-
Gent to Make Buildings Sa1e'
II Is Contended.

An average Of one fire every
.... Z, q New York public schoo' oui''
TO- g., each school year is referred 10 %
Charles G. Armstrong. cohsu'""e
&, .rswer 10 the indignant denie'S
o.oro mad. last month that the
c,tv,s public schools are hre-'rap''
a,,. o,es" Tho fact that most u
these fires occurred at nigh" Vi
o, va. not In session, Is tho Only
-.,son according 10 tho critic, why re"
vo,,, has never had a disaster.
"-rhere hav. been many fires IN Scnoo''
r.. .,o loo, forty years. but as yet ho
ohu, has teen burned" he quotes All VI
eo.o, &C saving. and replies that the H.
tanic and slocum disasters were "'7'
unique.
7,. continuation Of the engineer AT
,,ct on the dangers OF the public Scno'''
.o IN .r1r. Prevention" for April
or,,,v magazine Of the American So
,,.tv for Fire Prevention. of when no 40
III, nrst article, containing 'ho
charge that panic or death from 1'noA'
,o.. w,s an Imminent possibility IN
~ ~. .choo,s Of the city. was also pup
I,shed IN the same magazine last i'o", -,
"a ~. publicity given the exposure W
rta Trihune aroused storm oi VIM
ment. su no
as WAS TO have been expected, Nv
,o,,s "tbe article aroused intense lhuls
nation on the part of the school oIncia.
.os,ortbIe for the conditions exposed,
"a ~ otber public officials who jumper
to the conclusion without any )ust''i"O'o
be STA that the exposure reflected III so"'e
way upon them also
The significant comment IN mace 'i''
the preceding article brought the eut'i'
sion from Fire Commissioner Adamso"
tho, more than 500 violations or IRE OF
dirsrces had been found in the pubic
schools and but few OF them were
remedied.
Soon after my previous article ap-
peared.' saws tho engineer. a hro DC
CURED IN Public School 70. at Laurei
Hill. Queens Borough, I'm which WOODEN
desk tons furnished the fuel. IL was
fierce fire, which burned up through
three floors 10 the roof and caused DAM
age estimated very conservauVely NJ
81. 600. Fortunately It occurred AZ night
Would not $4,000 have Installed non
burnable material
Mr.. Armstrong takes The Fire Depart
neDt's figures in his statement that
there were sixteen fires last year ana
eighteen tho year before in the pupllc
schools or the city. in consideration OF
the actual school days. he says. there -
an average Of one fire every sixteen
DAYS I'm 4 school structure. Inc gem
eral average OF fires in all other build
inas I'm New York city Is IA per cent
Of the number of buildings. as com
pared with 81 OF the number OF schools
On which the most helpless part OF the
population is congregated ami whose
buildings should be erected by men haV-
ing IN mind tho responsibility OF TINS
helpless population
1T IS entirely probable" he adds.
that the cost OF repairing the damage
caused by this average Of seventeen fires
n wear would pay for obvlating the con-
dit,ons which render these fires possible.
And this damage has 10 be paid FOR
sreciaI appropriations or no special ap-
preparations
In answer to the argument that the
fire drills remove possibility OF panic
he cites an exhibition held on March -.
ON the anniversary of the Triangle fire.
I'm which a fire drill I'm the factory Of
the American Tobacco Company In Will
iamshurg occasioncd much applause.
The previous day. he says fire In a
factory opposite caused such smoke in
tho tobacco plant that the women
thought their own plant was afro ana
there was a panic Many I'm their haste
10 get out fell and were trampled on
What Of the same thing with chill
dren?" MI Armstrong asks.
Photographs Of an old wooden IRE
escape attached 70 ono OF the older
buildings OF Erasmus Hall High School.
in Brooklyn. are reproduced. There are
also pictures Of poorly arranged and IN
safe heating plants in Public School %.
at Stanton and Sheriff SITS, Manhattan.
The article concludes with these Ques-
tons:
why cannot wood he eliminated from
our schools?
why cannot coal be kept in freproot
bins instead OF I'm a wooden structure.
az IN Public School rs. West 18th st.
Manhattan.
WHY cannot more than one FIRE OK
tinguisher be kept I'm each school?
why IS II necessary for public on
cials to bristle UP and shout Liar" when
these fire hazards arc pointed out 10
them?
"Vhy not admit frankly that the con-
ditions pointed out exist that they are
easily remedicd. and then SGT to work
- remedy them