Year: 1875


CONCLUSION OF THE coRoNER's INVESTIGATION


FURTHER USE OF THE LADDER CONDEMNED


MISERABLE QUALITY OF THE WOOD USED.


At last the inquest into the of the death of tree
brave remen by the breaking of the aerial ladder has
been concluded Promptly at ten O'Clock yesterday
Coroner Croker opened the for the fourth time and
during the day examined two three witnesses who
shed light upon the real OF the disaster than
Ill the others have done. These gentlemen are experts
the of ladders and their construction and they
say unhestatingy that the wood used in making these
ladders is wholly unfit for the purpose, being
Did and lacking that degree OF toughness and elasticity
1t should possess 1t the specifications fur
uished by the Fire Commissioners to the builders SIM
oily called for spruce wood but did not say what kind
Of spruce. Accordingly, Messrs. Abbott, Downing &
Co built the ladders Of the poorest kind Of old spruce
and the public knows only too well what the result
has been Then too the Of putting the ladders
together is radically wrong and called forth
from the jury. Add to this the neglect the
part of the Commissioners have the strength of the
apparatus tested, and we have about as barefaced
piece of negligence and culpableness known


Commissioner Hatch called the first witness
yesterday, but his evidence Of little Importance
AT the conclusion of his examination Deputy Coroner
DR. McWhinnc read the following section Of the char
YER Of lS70:-


Common Council,
CHIEF bureau deputy heTe0 or CLERK therein or other oh
Ger Of the Corporation shall be- directly or Indirectly inter
article the expense price or eonsder9ti9n which paid
1870 ana section the Of 1873 still further pro-
vide that Any officer Of the city government other per-
evade Of the provisions OF this act commit fraud
SPGn SPn use so shall be deemed guilty Of Observation-Disclosures
and in addition to the penalties imposed by law shall ior


Commissioner King was next called as a witness and
deposed follows-The aerial ladder was not IN use
when became member of the Board of Fire Com
missoncrs although 1t had been adopted and a con-
for the construction of four Of them had been
tered into with Abbott, Downing Co, OF Concord,
N H. know nothing Of the accident that occurred
the 14th inst never saw but one experiment with or
trial of the ladder; the trial saw was the FIRST made
after the reception Of the adders-aer their reception
from the builder; / first heard that Mr. White was the
owner Of the patent for the ladder just previous
TO my coming into the Board do not
know whether there any one interested WITH Mr.
Whte IN the ownership OF the patents or not offered
resolution dischargng Mr. White from the depart
ment Us did not think he should hold the Office he
ulu atcr ne had become owner OF the patent Tor lad
der that was being used by the cty considered that
there was suspicion hanging over Mr.. White at the
time / offered the resolution | dsapproved of the
ladder after came in the department; do not con-
slider the ladder safe; offered resolution since the
late accident to have the use of IL discontinued; the
resolution was laid over; from what have seen Of the
ladder would never take tho responsibility Of ordering
man to 80 higher than SIXTY seventy feet IL; If
but only sixty feet high think they would be safe.


Moses Sweet, ladder builder, at No 245 East Thir-
tylrst street. was called expert II have made
ladders the Fire Department for number of Years:
ladders are usually built of spruce and oak and are
rarely over forty five feet long, most of them being
forty.two feot never built a section ladder


Here the broken pieces of the ladder that to pieces
on the l4th shown 20 Mr.. SWEET and his opinion
asked Of the wood and the Of the ladders con-
strucOn Much Of tho wood Mr.. Swott said was quite
Detective one Of the posts sides OF the seventh sec
ton being grained instead OF straight was also
q coupling pin and rung in tho second section Each
OF these pieces broken Tho witness also said the
boring Tor the binding pms in each section should
nave been DONE and no good ladder builder would evnr