davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
METHOD OF COMPUTING MUM.
Der OF STEPS.

The actual figures from which the
above deductions were made were OBJ q.
tanned as follows:
In a loft building with 10 feet high
ceilings, for instance, the floors and
ceilings are about foot 3 inches thick.
I'm the height between floors of II feet
inches the flight Of stairs would have
eighteen steps ~ inches high. Peo-
pie going downstairs must have a va
cant step in front of them to tread on
50 that every other step must be I'M
occupied, otherwise they will be lock
stepped and cannot move. A fight Of
stairs with eighteen steps would there
fore hold nine persons single file. One
extra person could possibly occupy the
landing if it is wide enough, making a
maximum capacity per flight Of ten.
If the stairs are wide enough for two
TO go down abreast the capacity would
be doubled, or twenty. If any more
than these numbers should crowd on TO
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31

NJ leries, 7O7 Fifth av., is an an
l. cient Egyptian painting just
brought to this country by Robert de
Rustafjaell Bey, f. r. G. S, the Brit
ish arch9ologist. 1t is said TO have
been painted in the XVIII dynasty or
the Middle Kingdom period in Egypt
>. 800 years ago. Examples of paint
ing on cloth which have heretofore
passed for the earliest belong TO
time some sixteen centuries later and
well within the Christian or Copuc
period Of the first century. 1t is in
wonderful state of preservation.
The subject throws light upon life
and ceremonial practice in Egypt.
Seven figures are represented, bring
ing a yotive offering of grapes and
flowers to the Goddess Hathor, TO re-
ceive from her in turn promises OF
long life and felicity. Hathor was one
Of the earliest and most important
deities of the Egyptian pantheon ana
the object Of a wide cult of worship.
In the picture she is seen standing In
a sacred bark richly canopied and sur
rounded by papyri rising out of the
water. The high papyrus plants are
again a symbol to indicate that Hathor
is the divine mother of the king she
sucked in the marshes of kheft.
In front of the goddess and beneath
her head stands Menthu-hetep Neo-
hapet-Ra. king of the NJ dynasty
who is also seen kneeling and beins
sucked by her. His cartouche and the
name OF the goddess appear above the
bows of the bark. The parallel col
umns of hieroglyphs refer to the SUBJ
iect of the painting itself and also
contain personal names. Translated
they read:
Hathor. the Lady of Heaven, In the
midst OF Thebes.
The Good God. Ncb hapet- Ra.
Alteration TO the Lord OF the Two
Lands. bowling down in the midst OF
Thebes. that she may grant liie' pros
pcrity and health. fitness for service
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
Exrert Tells of hadequacyo of Pres
emf Laws and Precautions, and
Says Division Wall Would
Mean Practical Safety.

cut off by fire the other would have It
bear the burden of caring for the total
occupancy of the building.
The experts recommended TO the Fac
/ tory Investigating Commission that
there be required two exits from each
floor at a distance from Zach other, SO
that IL one should be cut off 10y fire
the other could he used They recon-
mendCd also that the occupancy OF
each floor be limited 10 the capacity
of one OF these exits. But they advO-
Gated in order to secure safety i'm these
abnormal buildings that a division wall
be built in them practically osecting
them from cellar To roof, with 1oor-
ways in il so that in case of fire the
thousands OF occupants would have
merely TO go through it and close the
doors after them. This would be sucn
perfectly natural proceeding, which
could be accomplished so quickly, that
, there would be slight probability of a
panic. They would then be in a safe
section Of the building, where the stair
way and elevators would be in perfect
/ ly normal condition and could be used
as desired. This type Of building was
termed a bisectional building, and Of
fers safety within itself within a min
ute for all its occupants.
AS the buildings differ from each
other so greatly, the experts felt that
/ il would not be desirable TO pass
blanket laws involving details of con-
struction, but to have the laws merely
call for results, leaving the methods of
| obtaining those results to the indi-
vidual building owner. They recon-
mended, therefore, that laws be drafted
| safe for its occupancy. This safety
would be determined by the time re-
/ CURED TO empty ii, which should not
/ exceed three minutes. Emptying
| ability could be secured by reducing
/ the number of occupants to the capac-
/ ity of the existing exit facilities or by
increasing the capacity of the exit ia
cilities to meet the requirements of the
existing occupancy. old buildings
could be readily emptied by stairways
and other exit facilities in three min
utes. New buildings could be emptied
in one minute by the introduction Of
the fire wall.
Now with regard TO the capacity of
exits in existing buildings. which is
what | started to refer to. The studies
of the experts showed that in loft and
other factory buildings the height Of
ceilings varied from ten to twelve feet
and that the capacity Of a flight of
unit or single file stairs connecting
the different stories Of these buildings
varied accordingly from ten to twelve
people a floor, or approximately one |
person for every foot of height of CELL
ing.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
CAUSE OF CONGESTION ON STAIR
WAY AT SAB BROADWAY.

This is the condition which devel
onod on the stairway at 54S Broadway
on MAY ). 1911, which | referred to IN
the very first paragraph of my report
IN the Factory Investigating Commis-
sion. where more people became
TANNED in the stairway than it would
hold. and it burst, and several girls
were precipitated into the hall below
and were injured on August 2b OF
the same year, a moving picture him
flashed in the booth on the second
story Of an assembly hall at Cannons-
burg. Penn. and in the panic which en-
sued twenty-six people were killed on
the short flight of stairs to the street.
on February ,, 1913 there was a
similar occurrence at l43 East Houston
ST.. this city. and number Of people
were seriously injured, but none ia
tally.
This is the condition which devel-
oped a panic at the Christmas tree
festival at Calumet, Mich, where
eighty people lost their lives in a per
fectly straight run stairway Of one
flight 70 the street, where there was
no fire at all Extremely dangerous
conditions must always develop on
every stairway where people stand on
every step and there is sufficient
pressure from behind TO keep this con-
gestion constant. Anybody can satisfy
himself of the truth of this statement
whenever in coming out of a theatre
with a crowd he finds himself on the
stairway and notices that the crowd is
almost motionless and he has no step
I'M front OF him 10 tread on. After
waiting a little while those in front
move down. leaving vacant steps here
and there, and Immediately people be-
gin to move down, filling them. But
If at such a moment there should be q
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
Nv III. +. J. PORTER.
Member Fire Prevention Committee.

r was not until the Wolf factory
fire in Newark in the fall OF l9lo'
Il in which twenty-five lives were
last and many people were injured ana
,,e Triangle Waist Company's fire FOL-
,ou.cd in this city i'm the spring OF 1911
a., which l47 lives were lost, that l
,,,,,d that my many years of work in
making factory buildings safe for their
..cpnauts in case Of fire had had a
cumulative effect and that people real
s,,ed the need Of factory exit drills.
NV first experience in this field was
some ten years ago, when l was called
,r bv the owners Of factory which
had suffered a bad fire, and where
come OF the people. owing 20 an ac-
companying panic, were injured IN
,,eir efforts to escape from the build
ING They wanted me to devise
method by which the danger to life
due 10 fire should be reduced to a min
imum.
,f,er considerable study l evolved
what. so far as / know, was the first
factory exit drill in this country, where
the occupants of the building were
actually taken out of the building
within so short a time that they would
have been saved without accident. For
three or four years after this l intro
duced fire drills in scores of factories,
studying the conditions closely and al
wavs finding that changes had to be
made in the buildings before such re-
suit could be accomplished.
Ny observations and studies finally
convinced me that il was not ques-
ton Of how to drill people into getting
ont Of an unsafe factory in case OF fire,
hut how TO provide a factory with suf-
fcient means of safe egress TO allow all
the people in it to leave it in normal
manner in case of fire without danger
to themselves.
After the fires referred to | was in
strumental in bringing into existence
the Factory Investigating Commission
and served as its first adviser on the
fire hazard. Its determinations finally
resulted in legislation intended to be
both curative of the dangerous condi-
lions then existing and preventive of
their recurrence in the future.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
FIRE PERIL STILL OVERHANGS FACTORY WORKERS
Existing Conditions as Regards
Stairways, Sprinklers and Fire
rius-CriticiSm of Work
of Investigating Board.

cry OF fire. causing pressure from
behind the panic condition would at
once seize the crowd and would jam
the stairway and cause fatalities.
/ I have said that the commission al
lowed so per cent more people to oc-
cupy floor than the stairway would
accommodate, provided sprinkler
system would be installed in the build
ing, Notwithstanding the fact that the
sprinkler people acknowledge that in
) per cent Of the fires in sprinklered
buildings the sprinkler system fails
to operate. IL seems to me that 1t Is
subiecting the occupants OF these build
ings to quite a high risk 10 ask them
to depend for their safety upon de-
vice which they know fails once in
every twenty cases.
Ever since the Triangle fire and the
activities brought about thereby Tor
improving conditions in factories and
other buildings, the fire insurance and
sprinkler interests have been most ac-
ity department, their literature is
spread broadcast and their highly paid
advocates are always in evidence.
They had never claimed before that
time that sprinkers could be considered
as lifesavers. This mechanism was
originally developed for the purpose
of extinguishing fires in the large tex
tile mills Of New England and in ware
houses at night. where they would
operate automatically when no one was
about. They were intended for the
protection of property. They are very
effective in their action under the con-
ditions mentioned. for at night there
are no drafts caused by open windows
or moving belts and machinery aud
the heat from an incipient fire rises un-
disturbed to the sprinkler head in the
ceiling, which operates at about 100
degrees Fahrenheit.
/ In the daytime, however when peo-
pie are at work and windows are open
and drafts are frequent. when fire oc-
| ours the temperature may not rise at
/ the ceiling high enough to set off the
sprinkler heads. 1t will take n longer
time, anyway, f there are drafts, and
meanwhile the smoke and gases from
the fire, as well as the flames. drive
/ the working people from their seats and
from the room, for the human organ
/ ism cannot stand temperature of l65
/ degrees charged with these impurities.
/ The panic condition, therefore, is de-
veloped by the rush of more people to
the stairway than it can accommodate.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31

OW on view at the Enrich Gal
leries, 7O7 Fifth av., is an an
cient Egyptian painting just
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
TWENTY TO THIRTY FACTORIES
ABOVE ONE ANOTHER.

The studies which were made for the
Factory Investigating Commission
when 1 was its adviser on these mat
tiers during the first year of its exist
ence were the first studies of the ca
pacity OF stairways which had ever
been made. or at least of which any
records were available. These studies
showed that an abnormal condition
mad been allowed TO develop by piling
factory on factory. until we nave as
many as twenty and even thirty on top
OF one another each one containing
upward Of one hundred working people
and having Tor their exit facilities only
one or possibly two stairways, the ca
pdclty Of each OF which would not cX-
ceed al the ost twenty or twenty-five
people floor. If access to one of
these s.airways should happen TO he
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
THIS IS THE METHUSELAH OF ALL CANVASES

portions-the famous Hathor-cow it.
self-a full-sized figure Of the goddess
in this symbolical form, for whom a
sanctuary had been erected by the
kings of the XVIII dynasty.
Had this picture come down from
ancient Greece it is more than likely
that the name Of its creator would
have come with it. But in Egypt the
individuality Of the artist was never
allowed TO emerge.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
SAYS LAWS ARE FAR FROM ABE
QUATE.

II is the measures intended TO be
curative of existing conditions which
were finally adopted which l wish TO
discuss at the present time in order TO
point out the fact that the new laws
create conditions which are not only
no better than those existing three
years ago. when the Triangle fire oc-
CURED. but that they are actually
worse. because the commission has al
lowed the people who were affected by
the experts recommendations to so
modify and distort those recommended
tons as practically to nullify them and
TO legalize the fire hazard as it then
existed.
For instance fire drills are now com
pusory in factory buildings, and in one
of these drills, taking place in what is
now denominated a smoke-proof tower,
a girl tripped on the dress Of another
girl in front Of her and fell, and before
those pouring in above and coming
down behind her could be restrained
she was trampled on and seriously in
jured. and is now suing the company
for damages. In fire drill rehearsal
for a demonstration on March %, the
anniversary of the Triangle fire, the
crowd pouring into one Of these towers
was so far beyond the safe capacity Of
the tower that three girls were crushed.
In some cases the occupancy Of these
buildings is so enormous, particularly
in the case Of department stores ana
office buildings, the latter located in
narrow streets in the downtown sec
ton. that safety must be offered with
the buildings themselves thus preclud-
ing the necessity Of the occupants en-
deavoring TO go down the inadequate
stairways and out upon the streets.
which, already congested by the
crowds there, would be incapable Of &C
commodating the additional number
which the buildings might supply.
II is true that there have been a
number Of laws enacted which have
tended to make existing minor hazards
a little better. They all depend. how
ever. upon how active the inspectors
are who are working in this field, and
with nearly $4,000 factories in the state
and only l2J inspectors ii is evident
that the supervision cannot be very
rigid. These laws include prohibiting
smoking in factories, cleaning up cut
ungs from the floors, opening the
doors of factories outward and keep
ing them unlocked during working
hours But the essentially unsafe fea;-
ures which existed at the time of the
Triangle Waist Company's fire have not
been remedied. l refer to the made
quate exit facilities which all the
crowded ana especially the multi
stored and multi-tenanted factory
buildings possess.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31

Fragments of a suspending string are
still seen along the selvage and sus-
gest the strong probability that the
picture originally hung in a chapel
dedicated To Hathor
Shortly after the discovery OF TINS
canvas Edward Nayille, representing
the Egypt Exploration Fund I'M
earthed, in what remained of the tenn
pie at Deir-el Bahari, an equally I'M
portant find OF more impressive pro-
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31

favor and love to the Spirits Of the
favorites Of Hathor. Tcha-nefer, his
sister. lady Of the house, Mer-nubt, her
mother Sent. his son Huy, his son .
Name omittedD is own beloved son
Mahuia, beloved daughter Thet Amen
tet.
The life and hrilliancy the pigments
retain is supposed to be due partly
to the fact that when found the picture
lay folded together diasonally. Traces
of the folds are visible on the canvas.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31
SPRINKLER SYSTEM MEANS BIG
INCREASE.


INCREASE.
Then the commission further agreed
that il a sprinkler system were in
stalled in the building the occupancy
could be still further increased by %
per cent, and this Notwithstanding the
fact that the records showed that in .
per cent of the fires in sprinklered
buildings the sprinkler system failed to
operate at all.
They still further agreed that If a
stairway should be wider than would
accommodate a single file OF people
but too narrow for two to go down
abreast TO let more people in than the
single file by permitting from TO
, persons for every additional u
inches in width, as follows: For any
excess in width of less than IS inches
a proportional increase in the number
Of people shall be allowed" which i'm eff
feet would be people on every other
step where the experts had shown that
only | person would be accommodated
comfortably, or | on every step which
would preclude any motion downward.
Thus, on a 30-inch wide stairs there
would be "a people, or 2l2 on every
other step or IA on every step, and on
a 36-inch wide stairs 80 people, or on
every other step or IL on every step.
This means that in existing factories
with 10 feet high ceilings a 36-inch
stairway, which will actually accommo-
date only 20 people per fight and then
be comfortably crowded has a legal
capacity OF 80, and with a sprinkler
system 49, and in case a fire should
cut off one stairway the other would
have to take care of 30 people, or 800
OF course, with any such number OF
people as these, the actual exit capacity
would be enormously exceeded, ana the
people on the floor could not enter the
stairway and effect their escape by
these means.
But the worst is yet to come, for the
commission worded the law so. thai
where the Industrial Board shall find
that the safety of the occupants Of any
such building will not be endangered
thereby (sicD, it may allow an in
crease in the number of occupants OF
any floor in such building to a number
not greater than at the rate Of 20 per-
sons for every IS inches in width OF
such stairway provided for such floor
with a proportionate increase in the
number OF occupants for an excess in
width of less than IS inches" which
means doubling the above figures OF
increasing the number allowed upor
any floor so as to exceed the capacity
Of the stairway by 500 per cent
In other words, a floor that would
safely accommodate twenty people
would be allowed to hold 120 and z
stairway which in order to allow &
flow downward of the people using j
ought not to have more than twenty
people on it per floor or two people
abreast on every other step would
have to accommodate six people
abreast on every step. 1t would b.
= interesting 10 know how the commits
sion intended that this number of poo
pie could get on the stairway unless
they stood on one another's shoulders
and how they would move downstairs
This is the safety which the com
. mission has actually supplied TO tn
occupants of the factory buildings o
the city after being intrusted by tn
public TO study the problem OF conges
ton and effect solution.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-31

this capacity could not be reduced more
than 10 per cent by any number Oh
winders in the stairway. They ac-
cepted Is inches as the minimum
width of single file stairways in exist
ing buildings instead Of twenty-five
inches and thirty-six inches for double
file instead of forty-four inches In
new buildings they let the larger fig
ures stand. This meant that more peo-
pie would be allowed to occupy the old
buildings with narrow stairs than the
new ones with broad stairs.
Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-09-17
WEST PHILADELPHIA

Mr.. and Mrs. ]. Bertram Hervey, of 1910 Wal
nut street. who spent the summer at Ocean
City, have returned. They will give a sma"
theatre party Saturday night in honor of Mr..
and Mrs. Henry S. Montgomery. Their other
guests will include w. II. zehender and Miss
Melta Zehender.
Mr.. and Mrs S. II. Conover, who spent the
summer motoring through the Berkshires and
along the coast, have returned and opened
their apartment at the Essex.
Mr. and Mrs. Henry F. Clark, of 1920 Cedar
avenue, returned Tuesday from Atlantic City,
where they have been spending the summer.
DIR. and Mrs. Francis j. Kelly, of 497 South
42d street, have returned from the White Noun
tains, where they spent the summer
Mrs. E. L. Carnes. of Hamilton Court, is stay
ing In Barritz, Spain. and will sail for homs
the end of September She has been abroad
for the last six months.
Miss Mary McArdle, of 4210 Parkside avenue,
is the guest of Mr.. and Mrs. p f. Rothermel,
Jr., at their country home in Bryn Mawr.
Mr.. and Mrs. David o. Eaton. of Hampton
Court have returned home, having spent the
summer at Swarthmore
Miss Frances Headman has taken apartments
at Sunderland House 35th street and Powelton
avenue, for the winter
Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-09-17
ALONG THE READING

Mr.. and Mrs George Harrison Frazier and
Miss Harriet Frazier are spending the autumn
at their country place at Jenkintown. Mr.. and
Mrs. Frazier will not open their town house
before the first of November.
Mr.. Leonard sibley. son of Mrs Francis sib-
ley, of Summit avenue, Jenkntown, has re-
turned from a three weeks motor trip through
the Adirondack Mountains.
Mr.. and Mrs John Ualbro Frazier have re-
turned to marlborough" their home on Wash
Jonklntown after spending the summer at
North East Harbor, Me.
The Reverend and Mrs. George G. Bartlett
have returned to their home in Jcnkintown,
after spending q month at Pocono Manor, Pa
Mr.. and Mrs. John Walbro Frazier haver -e-
turned to Marlborough" their home on WASH
ington lane, Jenkintown, after a two weeks
camping trip in the Maine woods. Mr. and
Mrs. Frazier spent the month of August at
North East Harbor, Me.