New-York tribune., 1921-06-12
By Harlow Lewis,
OF Tucker & Le,pis

The average house owner is liberal
in the matter OF his expenditure for
fire insurance He realizes the ter
rible waste which occurs every year in
this country through fires. He realizes
that FIRE IN his house endangers his
own life and the lives of his family.
He realizes also that fire may utterly
destroy that portion of his savings or
his capital which is represented by the
house he has built. For these, and
other reasons, he is usually willing to
pay literally for the cost of fire in
surance policy on" his house and its
contents, knowing that while such a
policy cannot save his life, ii can at
least save his pocketboolS in the event
of an accident.
There is a second form of fire in
surance which he knows much less
about, but which is of even greater
Importance to him than the kind that
is written by fire insurance companies
This insurance is always supplied by
the right kind of an architect and
builder. II consists of the planning
and execution of structural safeguards
sgainst the beginning of fire, in the
first place, and it's spread in the second
place.
There can be no question of 'fire-
proofng" small dwelling house. Fire
prooting literally means the making
proof against fire of all parts of the
structure and the finish of the house.
The cost of such fireproofing materials
results obtained, so far, at least, as the
moderate sized dwelling goes. The
problems therefore, becomes one of
lessening the danger from fire rather
than preventing it all together.
Very little can be done in the way of
protecting house from fire from the
outside. Sparks from locomotives or
flaming embers carried. by the wind
from nearby confagrations can start
serious trouble.
Such sparks or embers can find lodg-
ment only on fiat or nearly fiat sur
faces. Wherever possible fat or slight
ly pitched roofs should therefore be
covered with slate, tin or some of the
patented asbestos materials, which are
not in themselves inhammable and
which will permit the burning ember,
for example, to burn itself out harm
iessly.
House Should Not Touch Chimney
Considerable can be done, on the
other hand, to lessen the danger from
fire originating within the house itself.
The gases carried up the chimney
from good furnace fire are very hot.
SONiSClmeS IHSy are 81 NOV eiCS
burn going up the chimney, especially
if furnace drafts are left open too long
and no one is paying much attention
to them. This being the case. it is per-
fectly obvious that the bricks which
form the chimney are apt themselves
to get very hot; hot enough, indeed, to
ignite wood which comes in contact
with them. This would seem to be so OBJ
vious a fact that no one would permit
any structural member of his house to
come in contact with his brick chimney.
Unfortunately, however, this is not the
case. Thousands of houses are stand
ing to-day in which the chimneys have
actually been used to support the floor
construction.
People who live in such houses are
just about in the same position as the
gentleman who insists on smoking his
cigar in a powder magazine. He may
smoke many cigars in the magazine
without dropping spark anywhere
that will cause an explosion. On the
other hand, he may not finish one with
out blowing himself into eternity.
The practice of framing floor joists
into the brickwork of the chimneys,