LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 Cla&s 
 
THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 THEIR 
 
 CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 
 
 BY 
 
 WILLIAM PAUL GERHARD, C.E., 
 
 Consulting Engineer $1? Sanitary Works, 
 
 FIRST EDITION. 
 
 FIRST THOUSAND. 
 
 NEW YORK : 
 
 JOHN WILEY & SONS. 
 
 LONDON: CHAPMAN & HALL, LIMITED. 
 
 1896, 
 
Copyright, 1896, 
 
 BY 
 
 WM. PAUL GERHARD. 
 
 ROBERT DRUMMOND, ELECTROTYPER AND PRINTER, NEW YORK. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 THIS little book is not intended to be a general 
 treatise on " Theatre Planning and Construction." It 
 is simply, as its title implies, a discussion of the causes 
 and the prevention of fires and panics in theatres. A 
 few years ago the writer prepared several essays on the 
 subject, which are herewith reproduced substantially 
 as originally given. The writer has added at the end 
 of the book a list of the literature (works, pamphlets, 
 and articles in technical journals) bearing upon the sub- 
 ject, which he has found of value in studying the whole 
 question, and which he hopes will be helpful to 
 others. 
 
 May the book prove of practical utility and of in- 
 terest generally to architects, engineers, theatre man- 
 agers, and fire underwriters, and fulfil its mission of 
 securing greater safety in theatres ! 
 
 THE AUTHOR, 
 
 NEW YORK CITY, 36 UNION SQUARE, 
 July, 1896. 
 
 iii 
 
 127676 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 I. THEATRE-FIRE CATASTROPHES AND THEIR PREVEN- 
 
 TION. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Introduction I 
 
 Theatre-fire Statistics 3 
 
 List of Twelve Prominent Theatre-fire Calamities of this Cen- 
 tury 12 
 
 Causes of Theatre Fires 20 
 
 Causes of Panics 25 
 
 Dangers to Human Life 27 
 
 The Prevention of Theatre-fire Catastrophes. 29 
 
 (a) Measures to prevent outbreak of fire 29 
 
 (b) Measures to localize fires , 29 
 
 (c) Measures to insure the safety of the spectators and of the 
 
 stage people 30 
 
 (d) Measures to put out fires 30 
 
 Theatre Inspections 40 
 
 Theatre Management 44 
 
 Conclusion 45 
 
 II. THE ESSENTIAL CONDITIONS OF SAFETY IN 
 
 THEATRES. 
 
 Introduction 47 
 
 Causes of Theatre Fires 49 
 
 Statistics of Theatre Fires 51 
 
 General Considerations , 52 
 
 Location and Site 57 
 
 Plan of Building 59 
 
 Construction of Building 65 
 
 Staircases, Entrances and Exits, and Fire-escapes 69 
 
 v 
 
vi CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Aisles and Chairs 73 
 
 Fire-proof Curtain 75 
 
 Stage Ventilator 77 
 
 Fire-proof Treatment of Stage Scenery 79 
 
 Stage Construction and Stage Machinery 80 
 
 Heating 83 
 
 Lighting 85 
 
 Lightning-rods -89 
 
 Ventilation and Sanitation 90 
 
 Fire-service and Fire-extinguishing Appliances 92 
 
 Life-saving Appliances 97 
 
 Fire-alarms 98 
 
 Questions of Management 99 
 
 Periodical Inspection .... 103 
 
 III. THE WATER-SERVICE AND FIRE PROTECTION 
 OF THEATRES. 
 
 Introduction 105 
 
 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS OF SAFETY IN THEATRES. 
 
 1. As regards the Location 105 
 
 2. As regards the Plan 106 
 
 3. As regards the Construction 106 
 
 4. As regards the Interior Arrangement and Equipment 107 
 
 5. As regards the Management 109 
 
 6. As regards Inspection in 
 
 FIRE-EXTINGUISHING APPLIANCES. 
 
 1. Water supply and Water-mains 114 
 
 2. Water-meter and By-pass 116 
 
 3. Shut offs and Gate-valves 117 
 
 4. Fire-pumps 118 
 
 Details of Underwriter Fire-pump 121 
 
 Fire-pump for Theatres 124 
 
 5. Suction -reservoir 127 
 
 6. Fire Stand-pipes 128 
 
 7. Fire-valves 130 
 
 8. Fire-hose.. 132 
 
 9 Fire Nozzles and Couplings 135 
 
CONTENTS. Vll 
 
 PAGE 
 
 10. Monitor Nozzles 136 
 
 11. Hose-racks 137 
 
 12. Hose-spanners 138 
 
 13. Automatic-sprinkler System 139 
 
 14. Perforated- pipe System , 153 
 
 15. Fire- pails 155 
 
 16. Casks 159 
 
 1 7. Portable Fire-extinguishing Apparatus 159 
 
 18. Steam- jets 161 
 
 19. Sand 161 
 
 20. Fire-axes and Fire-hooks 161 
 
 21. Minor Fire-extinguishing Devices 162 
 
 22. Life-saving Appliances 162 
 
 23. Fire-alarm and Watchman's Clock 163 
 
 24. Water-supply for House Service 163 
 
 IV. LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 
 
 1. Books English 165 
 
 " German , 165 
 
 " French 168 
 
 " Italian , 168 
 
 2. Pamphlets 168 
 
 3. Articles in Journals and Magazines 171 
 
 4. Rules and Regulations 175 
 
 5. Official Reports 175 
 
THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: THEIR 
 CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 
 
 I. 
 
 THEATRE-FIRE CATASTROPHES AND THEIR 
 PREVENTION.* 
 
 THE prevention of fire and incidental panic in halls 
 of audience requires that in the planning, construction, 
 interior arrangement and equipment of such buildings 
 certain rules should be followed, and certain pre- 
 cautions observed by the architects and engineers of 
 such structures. Of the greatest importance in respect 
 
 * This paper was prepared by the author for the annual meeting of 
 the International Association of Fire Engineers, held in Montreal, 
 Canada, in August, 1894. It was introduced with the following words: 
 " Gentlemen of the International Association of Fire Engineers : Yours 
 is an organization which has for its chief object ' the intelligent pro- 
 tection of human life and the saving of property.' Your annual meet 
 ings are held largely with the view of learning of improved methods 
 of fire-fighting. Your principal business is to fight and put out fires, 
 yet I believe I do not err in stating thatyfov prevention is a subject in 
 which you are likewise interested. Indeed, the law in my own city, 
 to quote an example, declares that ' the fire department shall be charged 
 with the duty of preventing and of extinguishing fire and of protecting 
 property.' You will observe that preventing fire comes first in the 
 
2 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 to the enactment of strict building laws are all build- 
 ings where a multitude of people are congregated, by 
 day or at night, for worship, education, or amusement, 
 such as churches and synagogues, schools and colleges, 
 concert- and lecture-halls, circuses and theatres. I 
 shall restrict my remarks to theatres, although much 
 of what I will say applies equally to the other classes 
 of buildings named. The prevention of theatre-fire 
 calamities is a subject in which not only firemen but 
 the general public are, or ought to be, interested. 
 
 In the planning and construction of theatre build- 
 ings, even more than in other buildings, the combined 
 skill, knowledge, and talent of both the architect and 
 the engineer are necessary to create a model and safe 
 structure. While the architect works out the best plan 
 on the available site, determines the general arrange- 
 ment of the divisions of the building, decides the 
 mode of construction, designs the elevation, and 
 selects the decorative treatment of the interior, he is 
 assisted by the engineer or by specialists in the vari- 
 ous engineering branches in the solution of intricate 
 
 enumeration of the duties of firemen. As in medicine there are two 
 views, the one being the cure of disease, and the other one, which I 
 consider the higher aim, the prevention of disease; just so, I hold, are 
 fire departments and firemen concerned not only with the extinguish- 
 ment of fires and with the saving of life and property, but likewise, 
 and to even a higher degree, with the prevention of fires. 
 
 " About fire-fighting it would be presumptuous on my part to speak 
 to you, for that is not in my line, and I would not be qualified to speak 
 on the subject to you, many of whom have spent the best part of an 
 active life in the battle with fire and smoke. The subject which I 
 have chosen for my paper concerns the prevention of fire and calami- 
 ties incidental thereto in a class of public buildings where large crowds 
 gather nightly for amusement's sake." 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 3 
 
 problems requiring special expert knowledge, such as 
 the construction of difficult foundations, the calculation 
 and the working out of details of all iron construc- 
 tions, the design of the mechanical or power plant, 
 comprising steam-boilers, engines, dynamos, hoist- 
 ing and general stage machinery, the heating and 
 ventilation of the building, the gas-lighting and the 
 electric-lighting system, the plumbing, drainage, and 
 water-supply, the arrangement of the toilet-rooms, the 
 general sanitation, and finally the fire protection of the 
 theatre. 
 
 It is because I have had the good fortune of being 
 associated in my own branch of engineering with 
 architects of the highest standing in the construction 
 and equipment of * some recent theatre buildings, and 
 also because, by inclination, I have, for years, made 
 the question of the safety of theatres a special study, 
 that I venture to publish the following remarks about 
 theatre-fire catastrophes and their prevention, in the 
 hope that they will be helpful in preventing the re- 
 currence of disasters similar to those related herein. 
 
 Theatre-Fire Statistics. 
 
 It may be well to begin by giving briefly a few 
 statistics regarding theatre fires and their causes. 
 Here we at once encounter much difficulty in gathering 
 and presenting accurate and reliable figures and facts. 
 
 There are numerous cases in which a fire breaking 
 out in a theatre, on the stage, in the auditorium, or 
 elsewhere, is at once extinguished by the stage hands, 
 or by the firemen on duty in the building. Many 
 
4 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 cases of this kind never become known to the public 
 or to the press, and no accurate record is kept of 
 them. In other instances, again, blind fire-alarms are 
 followed by a panic and often by loss of life. When 
 a fire in a theatre breaks out during the night and 
 destroys the building the cause of the same often 
 forever afterwards remains a mystery. Distinction 
 must be made between occasional outbreaks of fire 
 which are subdued before it can spread, and such fires 
 which completely destroy the building. The data 
 given below refer only to theatres which are entirely 
 burnt down. 
 
 Those fires which break out during a performance, 
 when the building is crowded with people, are nat- 
 urally the ones of greatest interest to us. If accom- 
 panied, as they unfortunately often are, with loss of 
 life, the number of persons killed and wounded is diffi- 
 cult to ascertain with absolute accuracy, as many 
 perish in the building who are not missed by friends 
 or relatives. The tendency in these cases is usually 
 for the press to exaggerate the number of victims, 
 whereas on the other hand the theatre officials or the 
 municipality often try to keep the figures below the 
 actual number. The curious mistake is sometimes 
 made of counting both the dead and the wounded in 
 the same figure of victims, obtaining thereby largely 
 increased and incorrect figures. 
 
 We are principally indebted for theatre-fire statis- 
 tics to the works of Herr August Foelsch, a German 
 civil engineer, recently deceased; of Herr Franz Gilar- 
 done, a retired German fireman; of Capt. Shaw, of 
 the London Fire Brigade; to Dr. Choquet, physi- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 5 
 
 cian to a French life-insurance company, and to the 
 labors and reports of John C. Hexamer, Esq., a civil 
 engineer and insurance surveyor, of Philadelphia. 
 Their figures and statistics do not by any means agree, 
 and it is difficult to account for the discrepancies. 
 Taking the work of Herr Foelsch as, on the whole, 
 the most complete and reliable guide, although it is 
 not brought quite up to date, being published in 1878, 
 with a supplement issued in 1882, shortly after the 
 Vienna Ring Theatre fire, we find a list of 516 
 theatres enumerated, which up to and including the 
 year 1877 were completely destroyed by fire.* 
 
 Out of these, 460 theatres were burnt in 100 years. 
 The list contains of theatres in the principal cities the 
 following: 
 
 London 31 Boston II Venice 6 
 
 Paris 29 Glasgow n Baltimore 6 
 
 New Yorkf 26 Cincinnati.. ... 9 Cologne 5 
 
 San Francisco.. .. 21 New Orleans. .. 8 Edinburgh 4 
 
 Philadelphia.... 17 Bordeaux 7 
 
 Among the 5 16 theatres we find 
 
 37 theatres which were burnt twice. 
 
 8 " " " " three times. 
 
 4 " " " " four times. 
 
 i theatre (the Bowery Theatre in New York) which was burnt fi^r 
 times; also one theatre in Spain, which burnt down seven times. 
 
 * This figure in the supplemental edition to the work of 1882 was 
 corrected to 523. 
 
 f Since 1821 up to the present time 29 theatres have burnt down in 
 New York City. 
 
6 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Regarding the average life of theatres, the records 
 are confined to 252 theatres, and show that 
 
 5 theatres burnt down before the opening; 
 70 " " in the first 5 years after opening; 
 
 38 " " " between 6-10 " " " 
 
 45 " " " 11-20 " 
 
 27 " " " " 21-30 " 
 
 12 " " " " 31-40 " 
 
 20 " " " " 41-50 " " " 
 
 17 " " " 51-60 " 
 
 7 " " " " 61-80 " 
 
 8 " " " " 81-100 " 
 
 3 " " " after over ico years' existence. 
 
 Total 252 
 
 Out of a total of 252 theatres, 70, or more than 
 one fourth of them, are destroyed before they reach an 
 age of 5 years. Theatres, therefore, as a rule, do not 
 attain an old age, and Herr Foelsch figures the average 
 ageof these252 theatres as 22f years. For the United 
 States the average life of a theatre is said to be only 
 from II to 13 years, but it should be remarked that 
 these figures were reached some years ago, before the 
 stricter theatre laws of some of our large cities (New 
 York and Boston, and quite recently Brooklyn and 
 Philadelphia) were enacted. 
 
 Recent analytical studies of the question have 
 elicited the fact that there are two periods in the life 
 of a theatre building, when it is most endangered or 
 subject to destruction by fire, namely, one from the 
 time of its construction up to .and including the first 
 five years, and the second period, after the theatre has 
 been opened from 40 to 50 years. This- may be ex- 
 plained, first, by the fact that in a new theatre the 
 safety appliances, the arrangements for lighting, the 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. ? 
 
 scene-hoisting devices, the fire-protection appliances, 
 are rarely in perfect working order, and the theatre 
 employes have not as yet become accustomed to hand- 
 ling them, and are likewise unfamiliar with the rules of 
 management. 
 
 The second period of renewed danger is explained 
 by the fact that after the number of years quoted 
 above much of the apparatus in a theatre has become 
 worn out or useless, and is not always kept in repair 
 or replaced by new apparatus, and it may also be 
 attributed to the fact that after the lapse of many 
 years the theatre management and inspection are apt 
 to be less strict, and that often interior alterations are 
 made which unfavorably affect the safety of the build- 
 ing. 
 
 From the middle of the last century to our present 
 day nineteen theatres on the average have been de- 
 stroyed annually by fire. For those who are interested 
 in more detailed figures, I quote the statistics gathered 
 by Herr Foelsch and Dr. Choquet, the latter's figures 
 being placed in brackets. 
 In the years 1751-1760 there were 4 theatre fires in all countries. 
 
 1761-1770 
 
 8 
 
 i77 I ~ I 78o 
 
 9 (ii) 
 
 1781-1790 
 
 " ii (13) 
 
 1791-1800 
 
 13 (15) 
 
 1801-1810 
 
 17 
 
 1811-1820 
 
 16 (18) 
 
 1821-1830 
 
 30 (32) 
 
 1831-1840 
 
 25 (30) 
 
 1841-1850 
 
 43 (54) 
 
 1851-1860 
 
 " 69 (76) 
 
 1861-1870 
 
 99 (!03) 
 
 1871-1880 
 
 " 181 (169) 
 
 1881-1885 
 
 (174) 
 
8 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Taking each year from 1871 we have the following 
 numbers : 
 
 In 1871 there were 20 theatres destroyed. 
 
 " 1874 " 15 
 
 " 1875 " 14 
 
 " 1876 " 19 
 
 " 1877 " 17 " " 
 
 " 1878 " 20 " " 
 " 1879 " 25 
 " 1880 " 23 
 
 " 1881 " 28 
 
 " 1882 " 25 (37) " " 
 
 " 1883 " 22 " " 
 
 " 1884 " 9 (40) 
 
 " 1885 " 9 
 
 " 1886 " 7 (8) 
 
 " 1887 " 12 (18) 
 
 " 1888 " 15 " "(up to Nov.) 
 
 The fire loss represented by these figures reaches 
 many millions of dollars' worth of property. 
 
 The hour of the day in which the above theatre fires 
 started is of considerable interest. Out of 289 fires^ 
 
 56 theatres burnt during the day between 7 a.m. 
 
 and the afternoon, or ....... 19.4 per cent. 
 
 15 " " one hour before beginning of 
 
 performance, or ........... 5.2 " " 
 
 36 " " during performance, or ....... 12.4 " " 
 
 66 " " within two hours after close of 
 
 performance, or ............ 23.9 " " 
 
 113 " " during the night and before 7 
 
 a.m. next morning, or ...... 39.1 " " 
 
 Later on, when the records of 373 theatre fires were 
 available, Herr Foelsch found this percentage to 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. $ 
 
 remain nearly the same, viz.: 19.9, 5.6, n.6, 22.6, 
 and 40.3 per cent, respectively. It will be seen from 
 these figures that the greatest danger from fire to a 
 theatre is during the two hours following a perform- 
 ance, and not during the performance, as would 
 naturally be supposed. The reason for this is partly, 
 that during the performance greater watchfulness 
 exists as regards open lights, the sources of heat, and 
 the other usual causes of fire, and partly because many 
 fires while actually started during a performance, for 
 instance, by carelessness in the use of fireworks, or by 
 the use of firearms, do not break out at once, but 
 smoulder for a while in the inflammable scenery and 
 woodwork of the stage, and break out during the 
 hours following the performance. The risk from fire 
 immediately before the performance and while the 
 audience is admitted is found to be three times as 
 great as during other hours of the day, which is ex- 
 plained by the fact that at this time the gas flames are 
 lit which illuminate the scenery. 
 
 Theatres are, therefore, safest in the day-time; the 
 danger is increased threefold during preparations before 
 the performance, because of lighting up, etc. ; it is 
 reduced during the performance on account of the 
 careful inspection and greater watchfulness on the 
 stage, but is still two times as large as during the day ; 
 the danger reaches a maximum (7 times the day risk) 
 during the two hours after the close of the perform- 
 ance, and it remains during the night nearly 3^ times 
 as great as during the day (sparks from fireworks or 
 pistol wads may remain glowing for hours after the 
 performance). 
 
10 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 The theatre fires which break out during the per- 
 formance are often accompanied with loss of life of 
 both spectators and actors, and are therefore of par- 
 ticular though sad interest to us. The life of firemen 
 is often greatly endangered at theatre fires at all hours, 
 and the list of instances where firemen have been killed 
 while engaged in their duty in trying to save burning 
 theatres is quite large. 
 
 Herr Foelsch describes in detail 36 theatre fires 
 between 1770 and 1877 which began during the per- 
 formance, and out of this number not less than six 
 were accompanied by appalling loss of life. From 
 1877 to 1889 six other deplorable theatre calamities 
 have taken place. In the twelve years from 1876 to 
 1888 not less than 1600 people were killed in the six 
 well-known theatre disasters of Brooklyn, Nice, 
 Vienna, Paris, Exeter, and Oporto, nearly all of the 
 victims being dead within ten minutes from the time 
 when the flames and the smoke from the stage reached 
 the auditorium and the galleries. 
 
 Dr. Choquet, in his statistics, enumerates a total of 
 732 theatres destroyed by fire from 1751 to 1885, 
 with a total number of victims, i.e., both killed and 
 wounded, of 6573. This list includes fires where fire- 
 men lost their lives in the performance of their duty. 
 Since the beginning of this century 536 theatre fires 
 occurred, and from 4500 to 5000 persons were killed 
 or wounded. 
 
 Here are in detail, in periods of ten years, some of 
 the figures of victims of theatre-fire calamities given by 
 Dr. Choquet: 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 
 
 II 
 
 In the 
 
 years 1751-1760, 
 
 10 victims. 
 
 " 
 
 " 1761-1770, 
 
 4 
 
 " 
 
 " 1771-1780, 
 
 154 
 
 
 
 " 1781-1790, 
 
 21 " 
 
 tt 
 
 " 1791-1800, 
 
 IOIO " 
 
 " 
 
 " 1801-1810, 
 
 37 
 
 " 
 
 " 1811-1820, 
 
 85 " 
 
 ' 
 
 " 1821-1830, 
 
 105 " 
 
 " 
 
 " 1831-1840, 
 
 813 " 
 
 
 " 1841-1850, 
 
 2114 " 
 
 M 
 
 " 1851-1860, 
 
 241 
 
 " 
 
 " 1861-1870, 
 
 104 " 
 
 M 
 
 " 1871-1880, 
 
 1217 " 
 
 1881-1885, 628 
 
 In the year 1887, 
 
 " " 1888, 
 
 " 1887, 
 
 " 1892, 
 
 (Amsterdam, 1772, 25 d.; 
 Saragossa, 1778, 77 d., 52 w.) 
 
 (Capo d'Istria, 1794, 1000 v.) 
 
 (Richmond, Va., 1811, 72 v.) 
 (Philadelphia, 1829, 97 v.) 
 (St. Petersburg, 1836, 800 v.) 
 (Canton, 1845, 1670 v.; 
 
 Carlsruhe, 1847, 63 d., 203 w. ; 
 
 Quebec, 1846, 200 v.) 
 (Livorno, 1857, 43 d., 134 w.) 
 
 (Ahmednuggur, 1878, 40 v. ; 
 
 Brooklyn, 1876, 283 v. ; 
 
 Shanghai, 1871, I2OV.; 
 
 Sacramento, 1876, no v.) 
 (Nice, 1881, 70 v.; 
 Richmond, (State?) 1885, ioov.; 
 
 Vienna, 1881, 450 v.) 
 
 Paris, 150 " 
 Oporto, 140 " 
 Exeter, 200 " 
 Philadelphia, Central 
 wounded. 
 
 Theatre, several dead and 
 
 Before proceeding to study the causes of theatre 
 fires, I will give a brief list of twelve prominent theatre- 
 fire calamities of this century, the horrors of many of 
 which are probably fresh in the minds of some of my 
 readers. 
 
12 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 List of Twelve Prominent Theatre Fire Calamities 
 of this Century. 
 
 I. Theatre in Richmond, Va. 
 
 Date: December 26, 1811. 
 
 Time of fire: During the last act of the evening 
 performance. 
 
 Number of people in audience: About 600. 
 
 Cause of fire : Careless hoisting of a stage chandelier 
 with lighted candles, whereby a border became ignited. 
 Panic, jam at exits. 
 
 Number of victims: Seventy persons killed, many 
 injured. 
 
 No data available as to location, plan, construction, 
 and equipment. 
 
 2. Lehmann Theatre and Circus at St. Petersburg, 
 Russia. 
 
 Date: February 14, 1836. 
 
 Time of fire: During the afternoon performance, at 
 4 o'clock. 
 
 Number of people in audience unknown. 
 
 Cause of fire: Stage-lamp, hung too high, ignited 
 the stage roof. Panic, jam at exits. 
 
 Number of victims: About 800 persons killed. 
 
 Location : In an open square. 
 
 Construction : Temporary wooden structure. 
 
 Exits obstructed by the panic-stricken crowd. 
 
 j. Royal Theatre at Quebec, Canada. 
 Date: June 12, 1846. 
 Time of fire not stated. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 13 
 
 Number of people in audience unknown. 
 
 Cause of fire : The upsetting of a lamp on the stage 
 ignited a wing. 
 
 Number of persons killed: About 100. 
 
 Construction: Of combustible material. 
 
 Chief defects: Insufficient exits, narrow stairs; one 
 wooden staircase broke from over-weight of the crowd, 
 and thereby obstructed one of the exit doors. 
 
 4.. Grand Ducal Theatre, at Carlsruhe, Baden, Ger- 
 many. 
 
 Date: February 28, 1847. 
 
 Time of fire: Just before beginning of evening per- 
 formance. 
 
 Number of people in audience: About 2000. 
 
 Cause of fire: The careless lighting up of the gas 
 lights in the Grand Ducal box ignited the draperies. 
 
 Number of victims: 63 persons dead and 200 in- 
 jured. 
 
 Location : Entirely free on an open square. 
 
 Construction: Wooden interior; the four exits or- 
 dinarily effected the emptying of the house in six 
 minutes. 
 
 Chief defects: The main entrance to the theatre 
 was bricked up (!). Of the four exits mentioned only 
 ONE was open; the other three were locked and 
 barricaded. The gas was turned off in the street after 
 the fire broke out, but the oil-lamps in corridors were 
 kept burning. The occupants of the parquet and of 
 the balconies escaped. Most of the victims were 
 gallery spectators, who became suffocated by smoke. 
 Many were saved by breaking in the locked exit doors. 
 
14 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 5. Teatro degli Aquidotti, Leghorn, Italy. 
 
 Date: June 7, 1857. 
 
 Time of fire: About 8 o'clock in the evening. 
 
 Number of people in the audience: About 3000. 
 
 Cause of fire: A rocket, part of fireworks on the 
 stage, ignited the scenic decorations. 
 
 Number of victims: From 43 to 100 killed, and 134 
 to 200 injured. No details. 
 
 6. Conway ' s Theatre, Brooklyn, N. Y. 
 
 Date: Decembers, 1876. 
 
 Time of fire: During the last act of the performance 
 of " The Two Orphans." 
 
 Number of people in audience: About 1000, viz., 
 250 in parquet, 350 in balcony, 405 in the gallery. 
 
 Cause of fire : A border caught fire from the border- 
 lights, perhaps owing to a sudden draft, caused by 
 opening a window. The fire was increased by the 
 opening of a large door at the back of the stage. 
 
 Number of persons killed: 283, all from the upper 
 gallery. 
 
 Location : Building stood detached on three sides. 
 
 Construction: Ordinary, but with well-arranged 
 exits, permitting the emptying of the theatre in from 
 5 to 6 minutes. 
 
 Plan of theatre: Considered comparatively good at 
 the time. 
 
 Chief defects: No fire-proof curtain, no water avail- 
 able for fire purposes. No fire-hose at the fire-hy- 
 drants, nor any other fire-extinguishing appliances 
 available. Auxiliary exit doors for the gallery kept 
 closed. Only one staircase for the gallery. Stage 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. I <j 
 
 overcrowded with scenery. Loft over the auditorium 
 filled with much inflammable scenic material. Pro- 
 scenium of wood. During fire the gas was turned off 
 in the street. 
 
 7. Theatre Municipal, at Nice, Italy. 
 
 Date: March 23, 1881. 
 
 Time of fire: At 8.30 in the evening, immediately 
 before the beginning of the performance. 
 
 Number of people in audience not known. 
 
 Cause of fire: In lighting the border-lights, an ex- 
 plosion of gas took place, igniting at once the scenic 
 decorations. 
 
 Number of persons killed: From 150 to 2OO, nearly 
 all from the upper gallery. 
 
 Location: In an open square. 
 
 Construction: Substantial. 
 
 Plan and arrangement: Fairly good. 
 
 Chief defects: No fire-proof curtain, no oil-lamps in 
 corridors and exits. Auxiliary exit door from gallery 
 to the safety stairs could not be found on account of 
 darkness, the gas-lights having been extinguished. 
 The lower part of the gallery stairs steep, and with 
 winding steps. The exit doors obstructed by the 
 jam. 
 
 8. Ring Theatre, at Vienna, Austria. 
 
 Date: Decembers, 1881. 
 
 Time of fire: About 6.45 in the evening, just be- 
 fore the beginning of the performance. 
 
 Number of people in the audience: About 1800. 
 Cause of fire: The careless lighting of the border- 
 
1 6 THEATRE FIRES AMD PANICS: 
 
 lights by means of an alcohol torch (the usual electric 
 flash-light apparatus being out of order) ignited a 
 hanging border. 
 
 Number of persons killed : At least 450, many from 
 the upper gallery. 
 
 Location : Standing free on three sides. 
 
 Construction : Substantial, but stairways bad. 
 
 Plan and arrangement : defective. 
 
 Chief defects: Iron fire-proof curtain could only be 
 lowered from the rigging loft, and could not be lowered 
 at all at the time of the fire. Special exit doors 
 locked, keys and locks rusty. Gas-lights extinguished, 
 oil-lamps provided in corridors, but not lighted. The 
 exits insufficient, and obstructed by the jam. This 
 fire was very similar to the Brooklyn Theatre fire. 
 The fire caught in each case among the flies, from a 
 border-light. The bursting open of a large door in 
 rear of stage let in a blast of air, which drove the 
 flames and the suffocating fire smoke through the pro- 
 scenium opening into the auditorium. 
 
 p. Circus Ferroni, af Berditscheff, in Russian Poland. 
 
 Date: January 13, 1883. 
 
 Time of fire: During evening performance. 
 
 Number of people in the audience: About 600. 
 
 Cause of fire : A stableman working in the stable 
 adjoining the circus was smoking a cigarette and was 
 lying on straw which ignited ; a fellow laborer ran for 
 a pail of water and left a door open, which created a 
 strong draft and thus fed the flames. Inside of twenty 
 minutes the whole circus stood in flames. 
 
 Number of victims: Official figure 268 persons 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 1? 
 
 burnt to death; other reports state 430 dead, 80 
 mortally injured, 100 persons missing. Many children 
 crushed and suffocated in the jam of people. Both 
 stable laborers who caused the fire burnt to death; 27 
 horses and 1 1 trained dogs burnt. 
 
 Construction of building: Of double walls of wood, 
 with an interior filling of straw ( !) between the boards 
 as a protection against the cold. No safety measures 
 against fire. One safety exit, but not known to the 
 public. Owing to the extreme cold weather there was 
 scarcity of water, and a fire engine, in running to the 
 fire, was delayed by breaking through the ice. 
 
 10. Opera Comique Theatre, Paris, France. 
 
 Date: May 25, 1887. 
 
 Time of fire: About 9 P.M. 
 
 Number of people in audience, About 1600. 
 
 Cause of fire: Scenery ignited from the gas-lights. 
 
 Number of persons killed: From 70 to no, largely 
 from the upper gallery, and stage people. 
 
 Location : Standing free on three sides. 
 
 Construction: Good, although not fire-resisting. 
 
 Plan and arrangement: faulty. 
 
 Chief defects : Exits for about half the stage people 
 over a narrow wooden bridge over upper part of stage. 
 Iron curtain not lowered; fire-hydrants not used; gas 
 extinguished in the exits and corridors. 
 
 ii. Exeter Theatre, Exeter, England. 
 
 Date: September 5, 1887. 
 
 Time of fire: During evening performance. 
 
 Number of people in audience not stated. 
 
1 8 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Cause of fire : Scenery caught fire from the gas-lights. 
 
 Number of persons killed: From 166 to 200, mostly 
 from the upper gallery. 
 
 Location: In an open square. 
 
 Construction: Bad. 
 
 Plan and arrangement: Fairly good, but the upper 
 gallery had only one exit, which was badly arranged 
 and obstructed. 
 
 Chief defects: No fire curtain; insufficient fire ap- 
 pliances on stage; stage overloaded with scenery; 
 insufficient and badly arranged exits. 
 
 12. Theatre at Oporto, Portugal. 
 
 Date: March 31, 1888. 
 
 Cause of fire : A rope in the rigging loft came too 
 near the border-lights and caught fire, which quickly 
 spread. A panic broke out, and the safety exits being 
 closed a jam resulted in the corridors. Many persons 
 jumped to the street from the windows, others followed 
 on top of those lying wounded and killed in the street. 
 Sailors and marine soldiers in the upper gallery are 
 said to have used their knives to kill persons standing 
 in their way. 
 
 Number of victims: 240 persons. 
 
 Chief defects: Theatre built entirely of wood; all 
 stage gas-lights were open and unprotected lights. 
 No safety appliances of any kind. 
 
 It may be noted that in nearly all the catastrophes 
 briefly described fire broke out high up in the inflam- 
 mable scenery near the borders, and was caused by 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. t$ 
 
 gas-lights coming into contact with the combustible 
 scenery. 
 
 Besides the twelve theatre fires briefly mentioned, 
 in which alone about 3000 people lost their lives, there 
 is a large list of other fires, full of horrors, about 
 which, however, the details are meagre. 
 
 Among these I mention the fire in a theatre at 
 Canton, China, on May 25, 1845, where 1670 persons 
 are said to have perished ; the fire of the theatre at 
 Whampoa, China, in 1853, caused by fireworks, and 
 killing 30 persons; the theatre at Tientsin, China, 
 burnt in May, 1872, with 600 persons dead; the fire 
 at a theatre in Ahmednuggur, East India, on May n, 
 1878, when 40 persons were killed; the fire of the 
 Gayety Theatre, in Milwaukee, on November 15, 
 1869, caused by the upsetting of a kerosene lamp on 
 the stage, whereby 2 persons were burnt to death, and 
 about 30 injured; the fire in a theatre at Tschernigow, 
 Russia, on December 24, 1882, caused by a gas-meter 
 explosion, and resulting in a panic, wherein several 
 people were killed and 100 injured; the theatre fire 
 at Dervio, Como, Italy, on June 25, 1883, where 47 
 persons lost their lives; and the fire at the Central 
 Theatre, in Philadelphia, Pa., in 1892, causing the 
 death of several persons. 
 
 Again, there are numerous instances of large loss of 
 life during panics in public halls and places of assem- 
 bly, of which I will mention only the panic at the 
 Victoria Hall, in Sunderland, England, where, of 2000 
 children present, 183 were crushed and trampled to 
 death; and the panic in a circus at Richmond, (State?) 
 in 1885, whereby 100 persons were killed. 
 
20 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Causes of Theatre Fires. 
 
 Before discussing the precautions necessary for pre- 
 vention, let us inquire briefly into the chief causes of 
 theatre fires and calamities. This study of the causes 
 leading to fires and panics is of the utmost importance, 
 because it enables us to derive therefrom the best 
 practical lessons as to what to do, and what to avoid, 
 to prevent the occurrence of a disaster. 
 
 Dr. Choquet, in discussing the causes of theatre 
 fires, divides them into two principal groups, viz. : 
 
 1. The intentional causes, or incendiarism; and 
 
 2. The accidental causes. 
 
 Leaving incendiarism, from malice or other reason, 
 out of consideration, we can distinguish further be- 
 tween 
 
 1. Exterior causes, such as lightning, exposure, 
 dangerous trades carried on in the vicinity of a theatre, 
 bombardment of the city, or riots. 
 
 2. Interior causes, viz. : 
 
 a. On the stage ; 
 
 b. In the auditorium ; 
 
 c. In other parts of the house. 
 
 3. Mixed causes, such as fires originating in living 
 apartments, or in stores, or offices, or restaurants, 
 under the same roof with the theatre proper. 
 
 Placed in the order of their frequency, we find 
 theatre fires to have their origin 
 
 1. On the stage; 
 
 2. In the actor's dressing-rooms, in the engine and 
 boiler-room, in the cellar, and in the administrative 
 offices; 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 21 
 
 3. In stores, offices, living apartments, or restau- 
 rant kitchens in the theatre; 
 
 4. In the auditorium ; 
 
 5. In outside causes, such as exposure to neighbor- 
 ing buildings on fire. 
 
 In not a few cases the exact cause of a theatre fire 
 remains forever unknown. This is due largely to the 
 rapidity with which the flames spread among the vast 
 mass of combustible material, and to the haste and 
 confusion incident to the fire, particularly when this 
 breaks out during the night-time. The best informa- 
 tion about causes of theatre fires is derived from those 
 fires which break out during a performance, and which, 
 for obvious reasons, are the most dangerous, and often 
 lead to deplorable calamities. 
 
 The majority of fires during performances breakout 
 on the stage, and are due to open and unprotected, 
 or to deficiently protected, lights in too close prox- 
 imity to, or amidst a mass of, unprotected and highly 
 inflammable scenery, draperies, gauze, ropes, and 
 woodwork. Among numerous other causes I mention : 
 
 The careless lighting of gas-lights on the stage, by 
 alcohol-lamps on long poles, and sometimes defects in 
 the electric spark or flash-light apparatus, causing 
 escapes of gas or gas explosions ; 
 
 Carelessness in the use of lamps on the stage or in 
 the dressing-rooms, or exposure of lamps to sudden 
 drafts ; 
 
 Careless handling of candle-lights in dressing-rooms; 
 
 Alcohol-lamps used by actresses for heating hair- 
 curling irons in the dressing-rooms; 
 
22 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Sparks dropping from torches used to light the gas 
 flames on the stage, or on decorations or papers; 
 
 Temporary gas conduits needed on the stage, gen- 
 erally consisting of rubber tubing, becoming leaky, or 
 not being well jointed together, or becoming otherwise 
 damaged and defective; 
 
 The use of portable open gas-burners near movable 
 scenery ; 
 
 The use of defective gas-burners and gas-fittings; 
 
 Exposed gas-pipes damaged by the shifting or carry- 
 ing about of heavy pieces of scenery or furniture; 
 
 Main gas-pipes becoming leaky, and causing escapes 
 of gas ; 
 
 Gas explosions in the gas-meter vault, or elsewhere ; 
 
 Swinging gas brackets setting woodwork or scenery 
 or curtains on fire ; 
 
 Lights other than gas-lights are often worse; the 
 upsetting of coal-oil or kerosene lamps and the explo- 
 sion of such lamps are fruitful causes of fire. 
 
 The electric light, finally, although the safest com- 
 paratively of all lights, may cause fire by reason of 
 electric-light wires not being properly insulated, or 
 being faultily installed. 
 
 The careless use of matches; other than safety- 
 matches, throwing away of lighted matches, and rats 
 or mice gnawing phosphorous matches in hidden 
 recesses, are among the causes of fires; 
 
 The smoking of tobacco, cigars, cigarettes, as well 
 as pipes, and the careless throwing away of lighted 
 cigars or cigarettes in dressing-rooms or on the stage 
 or in the sub-basement; 
 
 The careless use of the oxy hydrogen or lime light; 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 2$ 
 
 The use of fireworks in spectacular plays calculated 
 to attract the public; the use of red fires, torches, 
 Roman candles, the firing of rockets, are dangerous 
 causes of fire, because a spark often lodges amidst 
 scenery, and the flames break out during the night fol- 
 lowing the performance; 
 
 Sometimes fireworks are prepared for the play in 
 the theatre building, which is a pernicious practice; 
 
 The representation of fire or conflagrations or actual 
 explosions in the course of the play, the firing of fire- 
 arms, such as pistols, or guns, with paper wads ; 
 
 The careless handling and use of benzine or turpen- 
 tine in workshops and costume-rooms; 
 
 The heating-apparatus, particularly stoves and fur- 
 naces when overheated during extreme cold weather; 
 
 Defective flues, and timber near woodwork; 
 
 Floor registers and heat flues; hot ashes; 
 
 The use of straw or hay on the stage ; 
 
 The careless use of soldering furnaces on tin theatre 
 roofs ; 
 
 Gauze dresses of ballet-dancers catching fire and in 
 turn setting decorations on fire; 
 
 Non-removal of rubbish and trade refuse, and accu- 
 mulation of large masses of combustible material, 
 woodwork, canvas, gauze, pasteboard, hemp ropes, 
 paper with varnish, so-called properties, etc., on the 
 stage; 
 
 The use of rooms in the theatre, in the basement or 
 in the loft over the auditorium, or even of the stage, 
 as painter's or carpenter's shop; 
 
 The spontaneous combustion of heaps of waste 
 
24 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 material, of oily rags used for cleaning lamps, or of 
 waste in engine or dynamo room ; 
 
 The action of rays of the sun concentrated by win- 
 dow glass or lenses ; 
 
 Carelessness in the necessarily quick moving or shift- 
 ing of inflammable scenery near the innumerable gas- 
 lights; 
 
 The drying up of woodwork on the stage by the 
 heat due to the numerous lights. 
 
 As indirect causes of fire I may, lastly, mention: 
 
 An undesirable site, the danger from contiguous or 
 adjacent houses and property ; 
 
 The bad arrangement of the plan ; 
 
 The use of bad materials in construction; 
 
 Defective general system of construction without 
 division into separate fire risks; 
 
 The misuse of a part of the premises, as living or 
 sleeping apartments, as kitchens for restaurants or for 
 dangerous trades, or stores; 
 
 The want of proper fire appliances and of a fire 
 watch ; 
 
 The absence of fire-alarm telegraphs, or delays in 
 sending the alarm ; 
 
 Frequent changes of watchmen, fire watch, and 
 stage hands, and the fact that even men occupying re- 
 sponsible positions grow careless after long service. 
 
 The danger of fire in a theatre is also, to some ex- 
 tent, dependent upon the character of the play, 
 whether the plain comedy or drama, or the more elab- 
 orate opera, ballet, or spectacular play ; upon the ar- 
 rangement and size of the stage, the method of lighting 
 used; incandescent electric lights being without doubt 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 2$ 
 
 the safest to use; and the age of the building, the 
 first five years being, as found by experience, among 
 the most dangerous. 
 
 Causes of Panics. 
 
 Panics may occur in any place of assembly where 
 large crowds of people are congregated, even when 
 there is no outbreak of fire, and sometimes very trifling 
 causes may create terrible panics. It is in many 
 respects much more difficult to prevent a panic in a 
 theatre than a fire; and, what is worse, panics may 
 become quite as dangerous in fireproof buildings as 
 in those of a combustible nature. 
 
 The immediate causes of a panic may be: 
 
 A sudden outbreak of fire; 
 
 A false cry of " fire," the false alarm being given 
 either by some excited or frightened, foolish person in 
 the audience, or sometimes intentionally, as for in- 
 stance by pickpockets ; 
 
 A sudden commotion on the stage or in the audi- 
 ence; 
 
 The sudden appearance of smoke on the stage, from 
 burnt fireworks or otherwise; 
 
 The unannounced darkening of the house; 
 
 A sudden extra pressure of gas at the footlights, 
 causing the flames to flare up unduly; 
 
 The sudden extinguishment of the electric light; 
 
 A fire-alarm in the neighborhood, or even only the 
 rattling noise of passing fire-engines; 
 
 The reflection of a fire in the neighborhood of the 
 theatre ; 
 
 A thunderstorm or stroke of lightning; 
 
26 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Persons fainting in the theatre; 
 
 Horses on the stage becoming frightened and shy- 
 ing, or falling into the orchestra pit ; 
 
 And miscellaneous other causes. 
 
 Features in the construction and arrangement of a 
 theatre which may indirectly lead to a panic are: 
 
 Too few exits; 
 
 Various exit passages crossing each other; 
 
 Obstructed aisles or corridors ; 
 
 Too narrow stairs, or winding stairs; 
 
 Doors opening inward, and doors opening in dark 
 corridors; 
 
 Safety exits kept under lock and key. 
 
 The best way to prevent panics is to give to the 
 theatre-goers a feeling of security by planning a very 
 ample number of wide exits, so as to enable the quick 
 and quiet emptying of the house; by arranging easy 
 stairs; by providing at least two separate stairs for each 
 of the tiers; by arranging a larger number of stairs for 
 the visitors in the gallery ; by installing the electric 
 light in the theatre, particularly on the stage; and 
 providing also auxiliary lights in the corridors, stairs, 
 and exits. Furthermore, by making it known to the 
 theatre-goers that safety appliances are provided in 
 abundance, chief among these being large stage ven- 
 tilators, a fire-proof curtain, fire-walls dividing the 
 stage and the auditorium, the fire-proof treatment of 
 scenery and of woodwork on the stage, also the putting 
 up and keeping in readiness, for instant use in an 
 emergency, of plenty of fire-extinguishing and life- 
 saving appliances, including an automatic sprinkler 
 system on the stage, which must be kept in good 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 2J 
 
 working order. Finally, by informing the public that 
 a strict fire watch is kept, that the theatre is frequently 
 inspected, and by issuing and publishing stringent 
 regulations referring to theatre management. 
 
 Dangers to Human Life. 
 
 To further understand correctly the subject of thea- 
 tre-fire catastrophes, let us consider briefly the various 
 ways in which human life is endangered in a theatre 
 fire or panic. 
 
 At the outset I will state that it is an error to sup- 
 pose that the flames are the chief cause of death in 
 theatre-fire catastrophes. The lessons of all theatre 
 calamities point to the fact that it is not the fire, but 
 the smoke, the fire gases, and the intense heat incident 
 to the fire, and on the other hand the mad rush in a 
 panic, which kill most people. Indeed, the majority 
 of people, particularly in the upper galleries, are suffo- 
 cated or trampled to death before the fire reaches 
 them. In many of the theatre conflagrations cited 
 above, the bodies of victims were found perfectly in- 
 tact, and either in a sitting position or else fallen upon 
 the floor dead, without the flames ever having reached 
 them. 
 
 The lives of people in theatres, whether spectators, 
 actors, musicians, chorus-singers, ballet-girls, or stage 
 hands, are therefore endangered 
 
 First, by smoke, fire gases, heat, asphyxia, exhaus- 
 tion; 
 
 Second, by the flames of the fire; 
 
 Third, by jams, knocking over, falling down stairs, 
 trampling, crush; 
 
28 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Fourth, by direct shock or fright; 
 
 Fifth, by accidents, such as the falling of the central 
 chandelier. 
 
 These various causes may result in: 
 
 (a) Almost instantaneous death; 
 
 (d) Mortal injuries; 
 
 (c) Injuries resulting in permanent bodily disable- 
 ment; 
 
 (a) Temporary illness and recovery. 
 
 The long list of theatres destroyed by fires breaking 
 out during a performance, and the numerous instances 
 of fires breaking out during these hours, but which are 
 put out before spreading, is proof sufficient that the 
 dangers spoken of are constantly threatening the 
 theatre-going public. 
 
 To sum up : Chief among the causes to which serious 
 calamities are due are : open lights and inflammable 
 scenery; defects in gas-lighting and gas-piping; defec- 
 tive gas-lamps; faulty construction of the building; 
 deficient exits and absence of a fire-proof curtain, or, 
 where same is provided, the fact that the curtain is not 
 used, or is out of order; absence of fire-extinguishing 
 appliances, or lack of water under fire-pressure ; auxil- 
 iary lights in corridors, exits, and stairs not; provided 
 absence of smoke ventilator over the stage; accumula- 
 tion of inflammable scenery, and bad management in 
 the theatre. 
 
 We have now gained a sufficiently clear understand- 
 ing of the causes of fires and panics in theatres to 
 enable us to turn to the second part of our subject, 
 viz. : 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 2Q 
 
 The Prevention of Theatre Fire Catastrophes. 
 
 The principal measures for the prevention of theatre- 
 fire disasters should have in view, first, the safety of 
 the people in the theatre, whether spectators, actors, 
 stage hands, or firemen on duty, and next, the safety 
 of the building. The safety of the people comes first 
 in the order of importance. The building may even 
 burn down, but the public must under all circum- 
 stances have facilities for saving themselves. All 
 efforts must be directed towards making the play- 
 goers, the players, and the theatre employes safe. 
 All manner of danger arising from a fire or from a 
 panic, caused by a real or false fire-alarm, should be 
 averted, and appliances for saving life should be kept 
 within reach. Next, the building should be made 
 structurally safe, and efficient means for fire extin- 
 guishment should be provided, thus preventing the 
 immense fire loss usually caused by a theatre con- 
 flagration. 
 
 The safety measures to be briefly considered here- 
 after may be divided into four principal groups, viz. : 
 
 (a) Measures to Prevent Outbreaks of Fire which 
 include rules of management, regular systems of in- 
 spection; considerations of plan, size, location, and 
 construction of a theatre, height of building and num- 
 ber of galleries, and structural details. 
 
 (b) Measures to Localize Fires and to prevent their 
 spreading, if in spite of precautions they do break out. 
 Under this heading would come the fire-walls, the fire- 
 doors, the fire-curtain, the floor, and roof construction, 
 
3C THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 and the division of the theatre, horizontally and ver- 
 tically, into many separate fire risks. 
 
 (c) Measures to Insure the Safety of the Spectators 
 and of the Stage People, to prevent injuries resulting 
 from a jam or crush and a panic, the suffocation by 
 smoke and death by fire. This group includes ample 
 means for safe, easy, and quick exit from the burning 
 theatre, and relates to such subjects as seats, aisles, 
 passages, doors, stairs, and exits. It also embraces 
 the questions of lighting and of ventilation, provision 
 ot stage ventilators, and special safety appliances, such 
 as thermostats, automatic fire-alarms, etc., telegraphic 
 communication with the fire-department, etc. 
 
 (d) Measures to Put Out Fires, which include all fire 
 appliances; the stage-sprinkler system, etc.; a good, 
 plentiful water service, etc. 
 
 The whole subject will be discussed more systemati- 
 cally and at greater length in the next chapter, on 
 '* The Essential Conditions of Safety in Theatres." It 
 will suffice to enumerate here only the principal meas- 
 ures of safety. 
 
 I. To begin with, the theatre building should be 
 isolated as far as practicable. Then there should be 
 in /every theatre plenty of wide, well-arranged and 
 well-distributed exits, leading the audience as quickly 
 as possible to outdoors, and thereby decentralizing the 
 crowd. There should be separate and numerous fire- 
 proof stairs at least two for each tier. For the stage 
 and its accessory departments provision should be made 
 for at least two independent exits. Fireproof stairs 
 for the workmen should lead from the rigging loft 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 31 
 
 down to the stage floor. The fire at the Opera- 
 Comique taught a good lesson in pointing out the 
 necessity of having proper means of escape for the 
 performers and workmen on the stage, which some- 
 times number as many as 300 to 400 people. Where 
 the theatre is not standing free on all sides there 
 should be wide courts on both sides and additional 
 safety exits from the auditorium to the same, includ- 
 ing suitable fire-escapes from the balcony and upper 
 galleries. Much the best plan, where the dimensions 
 of the lot permit, is to have wide fire-proof terraces, 
 foyers, or colonnades adjoining the corridors in each 
 tier, which form places of safety for the audience in 
 case they have to leave the theatre suddenly. All 
 halls, corridors, passages, stairs, exit doors, courts, and 
 exits should be free from all obstruction. All exit 
 doors should open outward. Exits should not be 
 reduced at any point, but if possible should widen 
 outward. There should be plenty of wide aisles, 
 without steps, and no chairs or camp-stools should be 
 permitted in the aisles. 
 
 It is particularly important that there should be a 
 sufficient number of stairs and plenty of exits for the 
 occupants of the galleries, who, as the fire catastrophes 
 described amply prove, are more endangered than 
 the other spectators. Those who pay twenty-five 
 cents admission fee have surely the same rights to 
 safety as the occupants of three or five dollar seats; 
 and in a place of amusement, to quote the words of 
 the Rev. Dr. Duryea, spoken at the funeral services 
 for the victims of the Brooklyn Theatre fire, " the 
 poor should be made as safe as the rich.'* 
 
32 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Stairs from different tiers should not communicate 
 together, nor should streams of people cross each 
 other on their way out. All stairs should be provided 
 with handrails on both sides ; winding stairs and single 
 steps should be avoided. 
 
 The provision of proper exits (including, in the. 
 broader sense of the word, aisles, corridors, stairs, 
 doors) is by far the most important safety measure 
 both for fire and for panic. In fact, if properly carried 
 out, it will save the lives of people even where all the 
 other precautions are neglected. The aim should be 
 to arrange the exits so that a theatre can be emptied 
 without the slightest difficulty in from two to three 
 minutes. Much will depend upon the available site 
 and upon the plan of the building. 
 
 If only plenty of exits are provided, so that, under 
 all circumstances, the whole audience, even when 
 frightened and suddenly thrown into a state of high 
 mental excitement, can leave the building inside of two 
 or three minutes, the fire-resisting qualities of the 
 building are of less consequence, as regards the safety 
 of the persons in the theatre. In fact, a theatre in- 
 ferior in point of construction, but having exits as 
 above described, would be safer than one built 
 thoroughly fire-proof, but otherwise not well arranged 
 and not provided with sufficient stairs and exits, and 
 where, therefore, in case of a false or real alarm of 
 fire, or a panic from any cause, the people would 
 necessarily be in grave peril. 
 
 2. Recognizing from the lessons taught by past 
 theatre-fire catastrophes that the stage is the chief 
 point of danger, it should be the aim to completely 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 33 
 
 isolate this part of a theatre. Fire-walls should sep- 
 arate the stage from the auditorium on the one hand, 
 and from the dressing-rooms and theatre offices on the 
 other. The fire-wall, dividing the auditorium from 
 the stage, in which is located the large proscenium 
 opening, should have as few other openings as possible, 
 and none at all above the level of the stage. All 
 openings should be kept closed by fire doors. The 
 proscenium opening should be fitted with a fire-resist- 
 ing curtain, closing as nearly as possible hermetically. 
 The chief object of the curtain is to localize a stage fire 
 and to cut off the fire, the smoke, and the view of the 
 fire during the retreat of the audience. It thus serves 
 to restore confidence, and will often help to avoid the 
 usual panic and jam. The fire-curtain should be able 
 to withstand the increased air-pressure due to the 
 heat sufficiently long to enable the audience to make 
 its escape. Whether the curtain be of corrugated iron 
 or of asbestos, it is important that the apparatus for 
 lowering the same be located on the stage, and not in 
 the rigging loft, which place very soon becomes in- 
 accessible when a stage fire breaks out. 
 
 3. Smoke and fire gases being the chief causes of 
 death of the victims of theatre-fire calamities, it is 
 essential that large smoke-ventilators or ventilating 
 skylights be fitted up over the stage, in order to re- 
 move the smoke at the highest point of the stage roof. 
 Incidentally, the stage ventilators tend to create a 
 current of air from the auditorium towards the stage, 
 and thereby prevent smoke, flames, and suffocating 
 gases from escaping into the auditorium. In this 
 connection the abolishment of the usual central chan- 
 
34 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 delier and ceiling vent in the auditorium is important. 
 All ventilating registers for the auditorium should have 
 dampers which are controlled and can be closed from 
 the stage. This measure will tend to prevent the 
 suffocation of the people in the upper gallery in case 
 of a fire. 
 
 4. The study of the causes of theatre fires having 
 shown that open gas-lights in the vicinity of stage 
 scenery and settings are the most prolific cause of fire, 
 it is obvious that the stage and the scenery can be made 
 safer by fitting the same up with incandescent electric 
 light. All open lights, and gas-lights in particular, as 
 well as all sources of heat, should be eliminated from 
 the stage. Incandescent electric light constitutes a 
 brilliant, uniform, and easily regulated light. It has 
 not only the advantage of being much safer as regards 
 danger from fire, but it is superior also because it does 
 not vitiate the air, because it creates much less heat 
 than gas, and because it does away with the dangerous 
 lighting up of gas flames, which has been the cause of 
 many a fire. In short, the electric light in theatres 
 has all the advantages of gas without any of its incon- 
 veniences and dangers. But if gas-lighting must be 
 used, the gas-piping should be most carefully done, 
 all open flames should be well protected, the gas- 
 meters set in a safe place, and the best available elec- 
 tric spark or flash-lighting system should be installed 
 for lighting up. In addition to the regular system of 
 lighting, whether by gas or by electricity, there should 
 be provided in the corridors, stairs, and exits auxiliary 
 lights, either candle-lanterns, or oil-lamps burning 
 vegetable-oil, to make the retreat of the people safer 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 35 
 
 in case the gas is turned off or in case the electric 
 light fails. The central gas chandelier in the audi- 
 torium, moreover, should be abolished. 
 
 5. To increase the safety of the stage still further, 
 it is imperative to insist upon the fireproof treatment 
 of all stage woodwork by the application of fire-proof 
 paint, and likewise upon the chemical impregnation of 
 all gauze scenery, draperies, furniture, and costumes to 
 render same uninflammable. A further step forward, in 
 the right direction, consists in the employment of light 
 sheet-iron frames or of wire-cloth netting, or in the use 
 of asbestos for scenic decorations. Improvements in 
 the stage machinery, such as the use of hydraulic 
 power for raising and lowering traps and scenery in 
 place of wooden hoisting drums and hand labor, the 
 substitution of steel-wire ropes in place of hemp cord, 
 the entire abolishment of borders and wings, are much 
 to be desired, all of which tend to make the stage 
 safer. These are not merely theoretical suggestions: 
 they have, on the contrary, proven eminently practical 
 in actual use. The improvements recommended are 
 largely due to suggestions from the Asphaleia Society 
 of Vienna, Austria, whose system of stage construction 
 and stage machinery has been successfully used at the 
 theatres of Buda-Pesth in Austria-Hungary, at the 
 People's Theatre in Vienna, at the Halle Stadt Thea- 
 tre in Germany, in the Victoria Theatre in Sidney, 
 Australia, and in our country in the new Auditorium 
 Theatre in Chicago. 
 
 The accumulation of much scenery or scenic decora- 
 tions on or near the stage should be avoided, and not 
 more scenery should be hung than is needed for two 
 
36 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 performances. Neither the auditorium loft nor the 
 cellar under the auditorium should be used for the 
 storage of scenery. Want of order on the stage is 
 sometimes due to lack of store-room, or to an insuffi- 
 cient number of stage hands. 
 
 6. In the construction of the theatre building, fire- 
 resisting materials should be preferred, and unpro- 
 tected ironwork, granite, and limestone should be 
 avoided. The building should be divided into a large 
 number of separate fire risks, both horizontally and 
 vertically. The stage should be completely isolated 
 by fire-walls carried above the roof, all dressing-rooms 
 should be made fire-proof, and the whole auditorium 
 and each of its tiers, corridors, and stairs should be 
 constructed in a fire-resisting manner. 
 
 7. All scene-docks, workshops, carpenter and paint 
 shops should be banished from the theatre building, 
 and placed in a separate fire-proof annex. The heating 
 apparatus, the dynamos of the electric-light plant, the 
 fire-pump, and the gas-meters should be located in 
 fire-proof vaults, preferably under the sidewalk, but 
 not under Jthe stage nor under the auditorium. No 
 living or sleeping apartments, and no stores should 
 be located in the theatre building, and no dangerous 
 trades should be carried on in the same. 
 
 8. In order to put out a fire in a theatre before it 
 can gain headway, there should be provided an abund- 
 ant supply of water under fire-pressure, and plenty of 
 efficient fire-extinguishing appliances, such as one or 
 more fire-pumps, fire stand-pipes, fire-valves, hydrants, 
 monitor nozzles, and fire-hose; a large number of fire 
 pails, casks of water, chemical fire-extinguishers, fire- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 3? 
 
 axes, fire-hooks on poles, wet sheets, wet sponges on 
 long poles, etc. The whole stage should, moreover, 
 be protected by an automatic sprinkler system, sup- 
 plied from a large open tank on the highest roof, and 
 having also an outside fire-department connection, to 
 which the fire-engines may be coupled. All the 
 appliances mentioned are useful chiefly during the first 
 moments of a fire, and wherever provided and kept in 
 good order and in readiness for instant use, they have 
 served to put out many a stage fire which, without 
 them, might have resulted in a serious calamity. It 
 is true, however, that, as soon as the flames have 
 spread, in the majority of theatres as constructed until 
 recently, the fire appliances would soon become 
 powerless to subdue a fire. In regard to details, I 
 refer to Chapter III, which deals in particular with 
 11 The Water Service and Fire Protection of Thea- 
 tres." 
 
 9. Much care should be bestowed upon the heating 
 apparatus for a theatre, for in not a few instances has 
 it been the cause of a fire. A number of fires as 
 sources of heat being out of the question, on account 
 of difficulties in attending to them, and also because 
 they increase the fire danger, the choice lies between 
 a warm-air furnace, a steam or a hot-water boiler. 
 Furnaces can only be used for theatres of small size, 
 and in the majority of cases heating is done by steam. 
 The usual precautions should be observed, and the 
 steam-boiler placed in a fire-proof vault, preferably 
 outside of the theatre proper. It may with advantage 
 be combined with the electric-light plant. 
 
 10. Efficient lighting-rod protection adds to the 
 
38 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 safety of a theatre building, and in European theatres 
 its installation is generally included in the equipment 
 of the building. 
 
 n. It is quite important to have on hand, in every 
 theatre, for cases of emergency, a few life-saving 
 appliances, such as rope escapes, a jumping-net, and 
 a cloth chute to aid in saving persons in case their 
 retreat from the upper floors should be too suddenly 
 cut off by fire or smoke. 
 
 12. Finally, it will be a great help in preventing 
 theatre fires if a fire watch is kept in the building day 
 and night, reinforced during the hours of the perform- 
 ance by detachments from the city fire-department. 
 Nothing will increase more the security of a theatre 
 than frequent inspections, about which I shall say 
 something hereafter. There should be a telegraph 
 connection with the nearest fire-department station, 
 and automatic fire-alarms at many points in the build- 
 ing, which should be frequently tested to make sure 
 that they are in good working order. There should 
 also be speaking-tubes, electric bells, and telegraph 
 alarms, to bring all parts of the building into com- 
 munication with each other. And, lastly, the theatre 
 employes should undergo regular fire-drills, so that in 
 case of an emergency each employe will know what 
 duty he has to perform. 
 
 Many of the safety appliances spoken of can be 
 arranged so as to work automatically. Such automatic 
 appliances are good in their way, and some of them 
 have proven in actual experience to be quite efficient. 
 They should not, however, be solely relied upon, and 
 in general it will be better not to trust to automatic 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 30 
 
 appliances altogether. The automatic fire-alarm sys- 
 tem and the automatic sprinkler system may be 
 approved ; but the automatic sliding skylights or the 
 smoke ventilators over the stage roof and the automatic 
 fire-curtain may fail to work properly just when needed. 
 I am quite aware of the fact that others argue in favor 
 of automatic appliances, claiming that one cannot rely 
 in moments of danger upon the cool-headedness of 
 men, and that in a panic every one thinks of his own 
 safety first, and that theatre employes will forget their 
 duties. 
 
 But, in my judgment, it is infinitely better to put 
 all such appliances in charge of a special, trusted, 
 " safety officer," who may be an experienced fireman, 
 whose duty in case of an outbreak of fire should be 
 to lower the fire-curtain, to open the stage ventilators, 
 to close the auditorium ventilating registers, to send 
 the alarm to the theatre engineer who runs the fire- 
 pump and to the nearest fire-engine station, to notify 
 the audience promptly that they must disperse quietly, 
 to see that the gas is not shut off and that the auxil- 
 iary lights are kept burning, to see that all doors lead- 
 ing to the stage are kept closed to prevent a draft, and 
 who should order the water turned on at the fire- 
 hydrants, the monitor nozzles, and the perforated pipe 
 system, where such is installed in place of automatic 
 sprinklers. 
 
 I have not, so far, made any distinction between 
 0/<^and new theatre buildings, for the requirements for 
 safety really apply to both alike, but, of course, are 
 much more difficult to enforce in the case of the older 
 structures. These are, everywhere, as a rule, lament- 
 
40 THEATR& FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 ably deficient and unsafe, and much good would re-suit 
 if they were frequently inspected by the fire-depart- 
 ment, and if alterations were ordered made to increase 
 the safety of audiences. The public generally is not 
 able to, and does not, discriminate between safe and 
 dangerous theatres. If the older theatres cannot be 
 made safe, particularly as regards the exits, they 
 should be closed up by the authorities. All theatre 
 regulations should be compulsory, and the building, 
 fire, and police departments should have power to 
 stringently enforce them. The law should clearly 
 define the responsibility of architects and builders 
 and of the theatre managers in the matter of theatre 
 safety. It is but reasonable to require of theatre 
 managers that every known approved measure, tend- 
 ing to increase the safety of the public, be provided 
 for. It is, likewise, justifiable to require builders to 
 construct places for public amusement in such a secure 
 manner that all dangers to life and limb are averted. 
 
 Theatre Inspections. 
 
 In the case of new theatre buildings, it does not 
 suffice to have them well planned and well constructed. 
 There should be, after the opening, regular inspec- 
 tions to make sure that the laws are not violated after 
 the new building has passed the final examination of 
 the authorities. If subsequent alterations are contem- 
 plated, they should likewise be made to conform to 
 the building laws. The theatre license should be sub- 
 ject to revocation at any time for violation of the law. 
 In the efficient periodical inspection and control of 
 theatres by the authorities lies the greatest safeguard 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 41 
 
 against fire catastrophes. Such inspections should be 
 made much oftener than once a year. In Vienna they 
 occur four times a year; in Paris inspections are made 
 every month by a committee of safety, consisting of 
 a police commissioner, an official from the city fire- 
 department, and an architect. In London monthly 
 inspections are required. These inspections should 
 be made not only in day-time, but likewise in the 
 evenings during a performance, and all details should 
 be included in the examination. Special expert sur- 
 veys and tests of the gas-pipes, electric conduits, fire- 
 alarms, and the fire appliances should be made from 
 time to time, and official reports made as to the 
 results found. It is best to make inspections without 
 any previous announcement. The results should be 
 published, without fear or favor, in the daily news- 
 papers. Nowhere are theatres inspections carried out 
 with greater strictness than in Berlin. All theatres 
 are regularly inspected and surveyed, at odd times, by 
 a committee from the fire brigade and the building 
 department. Every two weeks the district fire-marshal 
 examines the theatres, during the day and also at 
 night. Finally, officers of the fire brigade make nightly 
 inspections during the performances, and a watch of 
 trained firemen is placed in every theatre during per- 
 formances. All these precautions have a tendency to 
 awaken public confidence, and in case of a fire a panic 
 is not so apt to occur. Indeed, there are several in- 
 stances of well-built and well-managed theatres on 
 record where during a performance fire broke out 
 which ultimately destroyed the building, but where 
 
42 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 the whole audience left the theatre quietly and in good 
 order, and where no accident of any kind occurred. 
 
 For the safety of theatres it is essential that they 
 be continuously watched. In the words of Mr. 
 Gamier, the architect of the Paris Opera-House, " the 
 strict, minute, and incessant watch and inspection of 
 all parts of a theatre constitute the chief defence of 
 theatres against fires." 
 
 A century ago it was decided in France that firemen 
 were the proper persons to do this. At first they were 
 present on the stage merely during the performances; 
 subsequently it was decreed that firemen should be on 
 watch in a theatre during the day and the night. If 
 the employment of fire-watches is left to the discretion 
 of theatre managers, persons are sometimes engaged 
 for this duty who are incompetent, or, if competent, 
 they are required to perform other duties besides, and 
 being thus overworked, fail to efficiently accomplish 
 the object sought for. Fire-watchmen should be well 
 acquainted with the building, the whole theatre staff 
 should be under their control, and they should be vested 
 with authority to interfere in case of violation of the 
 theatre regulations. In the large Paris Opera-House 
 there are always twenty-five firemen on duty, and dur- 
 ing performances their number is doubled. In the 
 Vienna Opera-House there are ten men on duty. In 
 the Berlin theatres strong fire-watches, composed of 
 the most experienced men of the fire-brigade, are 
 stationed in the building during performances, and a 
 special police patrol is stationed in front of the house 
 to keep the crowd in order, and to see that the exits 
 are kept open and unobstructed. During all perform- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 43 
 
 ances a detachment of firemen should be stationed on 
 the stage and should watch not only the lighting 
 arrangements, the fireworks, the firing of fire-arms, 
 but also have charge of the fire-extinguishing and life- 
 saving appliances, and see that they are kept in order 
 and ready for use. At the close of each performance 
 an inspection of the whole theatre should be made by 
 the fire-watch, attention being paid in particular to the 
 heating and lighting apparatus, to the decorations and 
 scenery, and to the dressing-rooms. 
 
 One cannot learn the dangers incident to large fires, 
 nor the effect of good fire-extinguishing appliances, 
 better than by being daily engaged in fighting flames, 
 nor can anybody have a better appreciation of the 
 effect of suffocating smoke than a fireman. Firemen, 
 therefore, are as well qualified as builders, architects, 
 and engineers to judge of the security of a theatre 
 building and of the efficiency of the safety measures 
 adopted. The training of firemen is such as to make 
 them proper persons to examine and pass upon the 
 plans for new theatres, and to inspect both the 
 theatres in course of erection as well as those already 
 built. With their assistance the rules and regulations 
 for theatre management should be framed ; they should 
 be intrusted with the inspection of theatres, to see 
 that the rules are enforced ; finally, they should be in 
 charge of the fire appliances in theatres, and should 
 direct the fire-drill of the employes. 
 
44 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Theatre Management. 
 
 Strict rules and regulations pertaining to the man- 
 agement of theatres should be drawn up by the 
 authorities, and enforced by the fire, building, and 
 police departments, which, as regards theatres, are 
 correlated. Such rules of management relate to the 
 following, viz. : 
 
 The proper storage of decorations, scenery, furni- 
 ture, and property; 
 
 The maintenance of general order, cleanliness, and 
 discipline; 
 
 The removal of rubbish, litter, and ashes; 
 
 Keeping the scenic decorations free from dust; 
 
 Keeping all corridors and exits unobstructed, and 
 likewise holding all fire stand-pipes, hydrants, fire- 
 pails, and casks of water accessible and ready for use. 
 
 The rules also relate to the use of open fires and 
 lights, the employment of special lights and fire effects, 
 the use of fireworks, and of fire-arms, the representation 
 of actual fire scenes, the use of matches, the prohibi- 
 tion of smoking or lighting cigars in the auditorium, and 
 foyers, or in the dressing-rooms, and should only per- 
 mit the same where needed in the course of the play. 
 They should also include the daily use of the fire- 
 curtain, and the opening of all exits; the maintenance 
 of auxiliary lights, either oil-lamps or candle-lanterns, 
 in corridors, courts, and exits: the keeping up of steam 
 under proper pressure at the fire-pump during per- 
 formances, the employment of a special fire-watch and 
 a theatre night-watch, etc. They should require the 
 fire-proof treatment of all gauze costumes, and prohibit 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 45 
 
 the use of open lights in the wardrobes and dressing- 
 rooms. A penalty should be enforced for the use of 
 fire-pails for other than fire purposes. Moreover, the 
 number of persons in each tier should be limited by 
 law, and standing-room in the aisles should be pro- 
 hibited, and a heavy fine enforced for any violation of 
 these rules. The practice of a sudden, unannounced 
 darkening of the auditorium should not be permitted, 
 nor any dangerous fire exhibitions on the stage, except 
 where the stage is absolutely fire-proof. Special pre- 
 cautions should be enforced where the stage is deco- 
 rated with natural branches of fir-trees, which when 
 exposed to heat dry out quickly and become extremely 
 fire-hazardous, and also where the auditorium and the 
 stage are temporarily thrown together, as during 
 masquerade balls. The rules should prohibit work- 
 shops of any kind in the theatre proper. They should 
 finally require clearly drawn plans of the theatre, 
 showing the exits, to be hung up at conspicuous 
 points, and also to be legibly printed on all theatre 
 programmes; and, last, they should compel the plain 
 marking of all exits in large letters painted over the 
 doors. 
 
 Conclusion. 
 
 Only a few more words in conclusion. Experience 
 teaches that after each theatre fire, accompanied by 
 loss of life, the greatest excitement prevails for a 
 time, and the daily papers, the magazines, and the 
 technical press are full of articles, discussing defects 
 of theatres and suggesting remedies ; the public refrains 
 temporarily from going to these places of amusement; 
 
46 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 the authorities show the greatest zeal in making official 
 inspections; and theatre managers actively undertake 
 interior improvements. Very soon, however, the 
 excitement subsides, after a little while the lessons of 
 the calamity are forgotten, the theatre management 
 resumes old habits, the most common precautions are 
 neglected, the public becomes again indifferent to the 
 dangers constantly threatening them in unsafe theatres, 
 and everything goes along as before. This, I need 
 hardly say, is all wrong. 
 
 There is an old adage which says, " In time of 
 peace prepare for war." Applied to our subject, it 
 means that the movement for theatre reforms should 
 constantly be kept stirred up, that, without unneces- 
 sarily alarming the public, interest in the subject of 
 theatre-fire prevention should be ever maintained, and 
 that, quietly but persistently, radical measures should 
 be adopted to stamp out the grave dangers to which 
 human life is exposed in the theatres of many of our 
 cities. 
 
 I should feel amply rewarded for the labor involved 
 in gathering the facts contained herein if it should 
 result in the improvement of some theatres, and lead 
 to the enactment of stricter laws regarding theatre 
 construction and theatre management in many of our 
 smaller cities and towns, where, even at this day, no 
 official control over theatres is exerted by building or 
 fire departments. Strict theatre laws and frequent 
 inspections by fire-departments constitute the most 
 important factors in lessening, for the future, the 
 number of theatre-fire catastrophes. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 47 
 
 II. 
 
 THE ESSENTIAL CONDITIONS OF SAFETY IN 
 THEATRES.* 
 
 THE subject of the causes and prevention of fires in 
 theatres has, for many years, occupied my special 
 attention. Having been engaged in the course of my 
 professional practice with the installation of water, 
 gas, and fire service plants in some of the modern 
 theatres, I have had special opportunities of becoming 
 familiar with the essential requirements of safety in 
 these buildings. 
 
 In the following an attempt has been made to give 
 a brief rfeumt of these requirements, as derived from 
 personal experience, observation, and study. As 
 regards my views on the fire protection of theatres, 
 the reader is referred to the detailed description given 
 in Chapter III, which deals with "The Water-Service 
 and the Fire-Protection of Theatres." The gas-light- 
 ing system, the plumbing, ventilation, and sanitation 
 of theatres are likewise special subjects worthy of care- 
 ful consideration. 
 
 The safety of a theatre may be said to depend on 
 six principal factors, viz.: (i) The site; (2) the plan; 
 (3) the construction; (4) the interior equipment and 
 
 * This essay on Modern Theatre Planning, Construction, Equip- 
 ment, and Management was originally prepared for the American 
 Architect, and appeared in the June and July, 1894, issues. 
 
48 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 arrangement ; (5) the management, and (6) the period- 
 ical inspection. 
 
 The site of a theatre building is of importance as 
 regards its relation to adjoining buildings, and as 
 regards the approaches, entrances, and exits. The 
 development of the plan depends largely upon the 
 available site. 
 
 The planning ot a theatre consists of the arrange- 
 ment of the floor-plans of the building, and of the 
 various parts of the same, with their principal horizon- 
 tal and vertical subdivisions and means of communica- 
 tion, such as stairways, entrances, and exits. 
 
 The construction of the building is to be considered 
 in reference to the employment of fire-resisting 
 materials in general, and also, in detail, in regard to 
 the construction of the stage and its accessories; the 
 auditorium and tiers; the dressing-rooms ; workshops; 
 the roofs; the aisles, staircases, passages, corridors, 
 doors, entrances, and exits. 
 
 The interior arrangement and equipment include 
 many important details, such as the fire-proof curtain, 
 the stage scenery and stage machinery, the fly- 
 galleries, rigging-loft and painter's-bridge; the stage- 
 roof ventilator; the heating, ventilation, lighting, 
 plumbing, drainage and sanitation, water-supply and 
 fire-extinguishing appliances; lightning-rods; fire- 
 escapes, doors, auditorium-chairs, and the life-saving 
 appliances. 
 
 The management includes numerous matters of detail 
 and rules and regulations pertaining to the safety of 
 the building on the one hand, and of the audience, 
 the actors, and the stage employe's on the other. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 49 
 
 The periodical inspection, finally, forms a necessary 
 and important safeguard, and includes frequent sur- 
 veys of the building and of its gas, water, steam, fire, 
 and electric appliances, all of which should be tested 
 at regular intervals, to insure their being in proper 
 working order when needed. 
 
 Causes of Theatre Fires. 
 
 A study of the chief causes of theatre fires is im- 
 portant and necessary to a proper understanding of 
 the subject. The knowledge of the principal causes to 
 which theatre catastrophes have been attributed will 
 do much to enable us to avoid, or to remove, defects 
 which, if present or allowed to remain, may at any 
 time precipitate a calamity. I must, however, con- 
 tent myself with giving the following brief summary: 
 
 (a) Bad location ; exposure to fire from neighboring 
 
 buildings. 
 
 Bad planning; faulty interior arrangement. 
 Inferior or improper construction; structural 
 
 defects, defective flues, timber near flues. 
 
 (b) Wrong use of the premises; dangerous trades 
 
 carried on in stores or shops in the theatre 
 building. 
 
 Defective lighting apparatus; oil-lamps, gas and 
 electric light; matches, torches, spirit-lamps; 
 leaky gas-pipes, gas explosions. 
 
 Defective heating apparatus. 
 
 Accumulation of highly inflammable stage ma- 
 terial. 
 
 Use of fireworks, colored lights, explosives, 
 
$O THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 and of open fires on the stage; use of fire- 
 arms; carelessness in the fireworks laboratory; 
 dancing on the stage with lighted torches or 
 flambeaux. 
 
 Accidents to scene-hoisting machinery, also 
 hasty shifting of light and highly inflammable 
 scenery in too close vicinity of powerful un- 
 protected gas-flames. 
 
 Carelessness in lighting border-lights. 
 
 Non-removal of rubbish and oily waste, and 
 ignition of same, either by spontaneous com- 
 bustion or by the careless throwing away of 
 lighted matches. 
 
 Smoking in the theatre, in the actor's dressing- 
 rooms, and on the stage. Careless throwing 
 away of lighted cigars or cigarettes. 
 
 Careless handling and upsetting of candles or 
 oil-lamps on the stage. 
 
 Storage and undue accumulation of large quan- 
 tities of scenic decorations or inflammable 
 material of any kind near the stage. 
 
 Careless handling of actors' wardrobes in dress- 
 ing-rooms. 
 
 Use of stage or of loft over auditorium for a 
 carpenters' or painters' shop. 
 
 Even where the indirect causes enumerated under 
 (a) are avoided by having a theatre suitably located, 
 well planned, and properly constructed, the more 
 direct causes of fire mentioned under (ft) should be 
 carefully guarded against by good management, strict 
 rules and regulations, by having a well-drilled staff of 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 51 
 
 stage employe's, and by instituting periodical inspec- 
 tions of all the details forming together the equipment 
 and interior arrangement.* 
 
 Statistics of Theatre Fires. 
 
 Statistics of theatre fires show that out of a list of 
 two hundred and eighty-nine fires known up to the 
 year 1878, 
 
 19 per cent started in daytime. 
 
 5 " '* one hour before beginning of performance. 
 
 12 " " during the performance. 
 
 24 " " within two hours after the performance was over. 
 
 39 " " during the night following the performance. 
 
 In 1 88 1, when these statistics included three hun- 
 dred and seventy-three theatre fires, the percentage 
 remained almost the same, viz. : 
 
 19.9 per cent of the fires started in day-time. 
 
 5.6 " " " " one hour before the beginning of the 
 
 performance. 
 
 II. 6 " " " " during the performance. 
 
 22.6 " " " " within two hours after the perform- 
 
 ance was over. 
 
 40.3 " " " " during the night following the per- 
 
 formance. 
 
 These figures would tend to show a large preponder- 
 ance of fires immediately following a performance, and 
 prove conclusively that the safety of theatres depends 
 largely upon a careful and minute inspection of the 
 building after each performance. The danger of fire, 
 notwithstanding the above figures, is really greatest 
 during a performance, but the number of casualties at 
 
 * See also Chapter I. 
 
$2 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 these hours is not so large as might be expected, 
 because of the stricter and more careful watching, 
 upon which a judicious theatre management should 
 wisely insist. 
 
 The number of theatres annually destroyed by fire 
 is very large. According to the carefully-collected 
 statistics of Herr Foelsch, two hundred and nine 
 theatres were burned in the eleven years from 1871 to 
 1 88 1, making an average of nineteen such buildings 
 per year. 
 
 From 1882 to 1888 theatre fires have occurred as 
 follows : 
 
 In 1882, 25 fires. In 1885, 8 fires. In 1887, 18 fires. 
 " 1883, 22 " " 1886, 8 " " 1888, 15 " 
 " 1884, 10 " 
 
 Many of these fires signify not only loss of property, 
 but loss of life as well. The large theatre-fire calam- 
 ities of Brooklyn, Nice, Vienna, Paris, Exeter (Eng- 
 land), and Oporto (Portugal) alone were the cause of 
 the loss of about one thousand six hundred human 
 lives. 
 
 The large number of fires annually occurring in 
 theatres, and the incidental great danger to the people 
 in such buildings, is easily explained by the many 
 possible causes of fire cited above.* 
 
 General Considerations. 
 
 If we consider the building only as such, the subject 
 naturally divides itself into the prevention and the 
 extinction of fire. But, looking at it from a different 
 
 * See also Chapter I. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 53 
 
 point of view, and taking into consideration that dur- 
 ing certain hours of the day or evening the building is 
 occupied by a vast crowd in the auditorium, and by 
 actors, actresses, supers, chorus, ballet-girls, and stage 
 employe's, often numbering several hundred people 
 on the stage, the safety of the building becomes of 
 secondary importance in case a fire should break out 
 shortly before or during a performance. It then, from 
 a humane point of view, clearly becomes chiefly a 
 question of the safety of the spectators, the performers, 
 and the stage-hands. 
 
 It follows, as a matter of course, that both the 
 audience and the people on the stage are much less in 
 danger in a well-planned, well-constructed, and prop- 
 erly equipped theatre than in a defective, antiquated, 
 highly combustible structure, in which means for pro- 
 tection of life, means for quick egress, and appliances 
 for quickly putting out a fire at its start are not pro- 
 vided, and where both life and property are exposed 
 to undue risks. 
 
 Then again, in all buildings devoted to amusement, 
 recreation, instruction, or worship, in which a large 
 number of people congregate, it is very often not 
 so much a question of danger from fire as it is of 
 danger from a panic. Even where there is no real 
 danger a panic often ensues. The lives of the 
 theatre-goers, of the actors and stage employes, are 
 imperilled, not only by the possibility of being burned 
 to death, but they are, perhaps to a much greater 
 degree, exposed to the direct effects of shock or 
 fright, or to bodily injuries resulting from a rush, by 
 falling or being trampled upon, or being crushed ; and, 
 
54 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 finally, there is the danger of becoming asphyxiated 
 by the thick smoke and the fire gases, or being over- 
 come by the heat of a conflagration. A theatre build- 
 ing may be endangered by fire from without as well 
 as from within, and in both cases, if the fire breaks 
 out during a performance, the chief danger to the 
 public arises from a sudden panic. 
 
 It obviously follows, first, that theatres must be so 
 planned, constructed, equipped, and managed as not 
 only to prevent fires, but also to prevent a panic; 
 second, that there should be provided, in every theatre 
 building, not only means for fire extinguishment, 
 but also for protection, in case of an outbreak of fire, 
 against the flames, the smoke, and the deadly gases 
 of combustion, the smoke constituting the greatest 
 danger, as more people are suffocated than burned to 
 death in a theatre fire; and third, and most important, 
 that to guard against a threatening panic, crush, or 
 stampede, there should be ample means for personal 
 safety and rapid egress. 
 
 The safety of the spectators and of the stage people 
 is always of primary importance, and the safety of the 
 building as regards its fire-resisting structural features 
 is only second in order, except in so far as it naturally 
 adds to the protection of the persons in the theatre. 
 In other words, so far as the safety of human life is con- 
 cerned, a combustible theatre may sometimes be less 
 objectionable, if ample means of protection and safety- 
 appliances are provided, and if the arrangement of 
 stairs and exits is such as to permit the quick empty- 
 ing of the theatre in from two" to three minutes, than 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 5$ 
 
 a so-called fire-proof theatre with insufficient safety 
 appliances and lacking suitable means of egress. 
 
 The prevention of fire in theatres is accomplished 
 by proper location, planning, construction, interior 
 arrangement and equipment, by proper management, 
 and by periodical inspections. But we should not 
 forget that only the fulfilling of all the requirements 
 combined provides perfect safety. For instance, a 
 free site alone does not preclude theatre disasters. 
 The Paris Opera Comique stood on an open square, the 
 Exeter Theatre had three fronts on streets, the Opera 
 House at Nice and the Vienna Ring Theatre practi- 
 cally stood detached: but they lacked sufficient and 
 proper exits; the stairs were not lighted, and in some 
 cases the doors opened inward. Then, again, fire-proof 
 building construction alone will not prevent the oc- 
 currence of theatre panics, where stairs are too nar- 
 row, passages ill-lighted or quite dark, or in case 
 the smoke from a stage fire is drawn through a 
 wire curtain into the auditorium by the suction of 
 the ventilator over the auditorium gasalier. Again, 
 it is not sufficient to build afire-proof proscenium-wall 
 to completely separate the stage from the auditorium, 
 but the large opening in the proscenium-wall must be 
 provided with an efficient fire-curtain and the other 
 openings with self-closing fire-doors, to keep out the 
 flames and smoke, at least long enough for the audi- 
 ence to make their escape. Finally, the most elaborate 
 system and complicated mechanism of stand-pipes, 
 sprinklers, iron curtain, stage-ventilator, etc., fail to 
 protect a theatre audience if the exits are inadequate 
 and if the building cannot be completely emptied in 
 
56 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 a very few minutes. What is needed, therefore, is 
 the combination of all known elements of safety. 
 
 The prevention of panic in a theatre requires, first, 
 the avoidance of all usual causes of fire, and, second, 
 the elimination of defects in construction and plan, 
 such as narrow and dark passages, winding staircases, 
 crowded seats, insufficient number of aisles and exits, 
 doors opening inward, and a badly hemmed-in site. 
 The audience must know that it will be able to leave 
 the building quickly and safely in case of a false alarm, 
 or a panic caused by a fire-alarm in the neighborhood, 
 or by the sudden accidental extinguishment of the 
 lights in the theatre, or by the falling of a part of the 
 scenery or decoration, or from any other disturbance 
 of the performance. 
 
 The means of protection in case of fire include the 
 use of the fire-proof curtain to cut off the audience 
 from the sight of the fire and from the smoke and 
 fire gases, the use of the stage-roof ventilator to 
 remove quickly the smoke incident to a stage fire, and 
 means for fighting the fire, such as a sufficient fire and 
 water service, ample fire appliances, fire-alarm, etc. 
 
 The means of safety in the event of a panic are: 
 for the audience, plenty of plainly marked exits, wide 
 aisles without steps or obstructions, well-lighted and 
 wide corridors and staircases, plenty of wide stairs with 
 strong hand-rails on both sides, suitable fire-escapes, 
 wide doors opening outward and preventing a jam ; 
 and for the theatre employes and the actors, isolated 
 dressing-rooms, fire-proof stairs, a sufficient number of 
 separate and direct exits from the stage to outdoors, 
 
TtfEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. $? 
 
 and safe means of retreat from the fly-galleries and the 
 rigging-loft. 
 
 From whatever point of view we consider the sub- 
 ject whether we are concerned with the safety of the 
 building and its usually valuable and expensive con- 
 tents, or with the safety of the theatre audience and 
 the stage people; whether we wish to prevent a panic 
 or a conflagration the principal requirements of a 
 modern theatre building, and the principal safeguards, 
 as given below, must, for absolute security, be insisted 
 upon. 
 
 Location and Site. 
 
 The ideal site for a theatre is on a wide public 
 square, the building having approaches and standing 
 free and isolated on all four sides. For absolute 
 safety this is really the only available site. It affords 
 the best opportunity, not only for architectural effect, 
 but also for judiciously providing and arranging 
 numerous exits from all parts of the house. Such a 
 site is, however, rarely attainable in our large cities, 
 where the price of land is enormously high. If the 
 requirement of a free site were insisted upon, it would 
 cause the building to cost too much, and would thereby 
 render more difficult theatrical enterprises which in 
 this country are not subsidized by the Government, 
 but are private commercial enterprises. 
 
 The opposite extreme, namely, a theatre building 
 entirely surrounded or hemmed in by other buildings, 
 is of course inadmissible, owing to the constant ex- 
 posure of such a theatre to danger from outside, and 
 
5$ THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 on account of the increased difficulty in saving life in 
 case of a fire or a panic within. Theatres having 
 entrances or exits necessarily carried through other 
 buildings are bad and dangerous. Windows or open- 
 ings in the outside walls of a theatre looking towards 
 other buildings in close contiguity to the same are 
 also a constant menace and danger. 
 
 If a theatre building is located in a street block, it 
 should have at least one front on the street, and 
 there should be provided in the plan wide open 
 courts at both sides. If the building is a corner 
 building, located at the intersection of two thorough- 
 fares, there should be one such court. The width of 
 these courts should be in proportion to the number of 
 people which the theatre is expected to accommodate. 
 The New York Building Law requires the courts to 
 be not less than 7 feet wide each for 1000 persons, 8 
 feet for 1000 to 1800 persons, and 10 feet for a theatre 
 of a capacity above 1800 people. The court should 
 begin on the line of the proscenium-wall, and should 
 extend in front to the wall dividing the lobby from 
 the auditorium. Separate corridors should continue 
 from there through the front superstructure to the 
 street. These corridors, according to the New York 
 law, should not be reduced more than 3 feet in width, 
 whereas it would seem much safer to continue them 
 as near as possible the full width to the street. The 
 outer opening should have iron folding gates or doors 
 opening outward, and kept open during and at the 
 end of each performance. 
 
 Better than a building on a corner lot is a theatre 
 standing free on three sides, owing to the reduced 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 59 
 
 danger from the adjacent buildings or surrounding 
 stores and shops. 
 
 Plan of Building. 
 
 The theatre plan should be simple, compact, and 
 clear, and as much as possible symmetrical as far as 
 entrances and stairs are concerned. 
 
 To the mind of the theatre-going public the plan 
 resolves itself into only two principal divisions that 
 before and that behind the curtain. This, in practice, 
 hardly covers the requirements. 
 
 All theatres should be planned with a number of 
 internal divisions, each of which is to be made in itself 
 as fire-resisting as possible, to prevent the spread of 
 fire from one part to another. There should be in 
 every theatre, whatever its size may be, at least four 
 principal and distinct internal divisions, each entirely 
 separate and isolated from the rest, as follows: 
 
 (1) The auditorium; 
 
 (2) The stage; 
 
 (3) The dressing-rooms, workshops, offices, and 
 wardrobes; 
 
 (4) The stairs, foyers, lobbies, corridors, passages, 
 cloak-rooms, refreshment-rooms, the entrances and 
 exits. 
 
 The auditorium comprises the various parts where 
 the spectators are seated, namely, the parquet, or 
 orchestra, and dress-circle, the balcony, gallery, the 
 tier of boxes, and, above all these, the auditorium loft 
 and roof. Each subdivision or tier in the auditorium 
 should have separate entrances and exits. The num- 
 ber of tiers in all theatres, except very large opera- 
 
60 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 houses, should be restricted, because the danger is 
 increased as the building increases in height. As a 
 rule, there should be only two tiers the balcony and 
 the gallery. The fewer steps necessary to reach the 
 street from the different parts of the auditorium, the 
 safer will the audiences be. In nearly all large thea- 
 tre catastrophes the largest number of those killed 
 were persons who occupied the upper galleries. For 
 the seme reason it should be prohibited to place the 
 main auditorium on the second floor for the sake of 
 utilizing the street floor for stores. The New York 
 Building Law requires that the main front entrance to 
 the theatre be not more than four steps above the 
 sidewalk. It is desirable that there should be wide 
 corridors running around each gallery or tier, of capac- 
 ity to hold the total number of persons on each divis- 
 ion. There should be no obstructions of any kind in 
 these corridors. 
 
 The stage may be subdivided into the under-stage, 
 the stage proper, the wings, the fly-galleries, the 
 rigging-loft or gridiron, and the stage roof. 
 
 The stage is the special domain of the actors and 
 singers, of the scenic artist, of the theatre machinist, 
 and of the gas or electrical engineer. It is also the 
 chief point of danger in a theatre, because of the large 
 amount of constantly changed and shifted combusti- 
 ble scene material, and because of the numerous and 
 powerful* illuminants and their incidental heat and 
 liability to set decorations or hoisting-machinery on 
 fire. 
 
 The general term * ' stage ' ' includes several divisions, 
 of which the stage floor proper is the largest and con- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 6l 
 
 stitutes the scene of the play. The stage floor has 
 on each end immovable sides or wings, whereas its 
 middle portion is so framed as to be changeable or 
 removable. As a rule, the stage floor is built with 
 a slope towards the foot-lights, although the more 
 recent theatres have level stage floors. The floor is 
 constructed of narrow, well-matched, tongued-and- 
 grooved boards of well-dried pine, and it is planed 
 absolutely smooth. The space directly under the 
 stage is taken up by the traps operating the movable 
 parts of the stage floor, and by the machinery belong- 
 ing thereto. 
 
 The fly-galleries are located on both sides of the 
 stage at such a height above the wings as to enable 
 the proper manipulation of all borders, drops, etc. 
 As a rule, smaller theatres have only one fly-gallery, 
 but sometimes two or more are arranged, one above 
 the other. In some theatres the fly-galleries are con- 
 nected at the back of the stage by a painters' bridge 
 thrown horizontally across the stage, and either made 
 stationary or else arranged so that it can be raised or 
 lowered. 
 
 Above the fly-galleries the rigging-loft or gridiron 
 is built across the whole stage, and is covered with 
 narrow slats, laid some inches apart. Here are located 
 the blocks and drums, the ropes and pulleys to which 
 the drops, borders, and curtains are attached. Above 
 the rigging-loft is the stage roof, with the stage 
 ventilators or sliding skylights. 
 
 The dressing-rooms for actors and actresses are 
 generally arranged in tiers on one or on both sides of 
 the stage. Of dressing-rooms there is a more or less 
 
62 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 large number, according to the size, purpose, and 
 special use of the theatre ; and besides the single rooms 
 for the " star " and the prominent actors, there should 
 be larger dressing-rooms for the " supers," for the 
 male and female chorus, and for the members of the 
 corps de ballet. Dressing-rooms under the stage, or 
 in the basement, generally without light and air and 
 unsanitary, are an abomination, and should be pro- 
 hibited. This division of a theatre generally also 
 contains the theatre-manager's office. In larger 
 theatres there should be, in addition to those men- 
 tioned, a room for the stage-manager, a room for the 
 music conductor, a room for the orchestra, rooms for 
 rehearsal of the chorus and ballet, offices for the scenic 
 artist, rooms for the painter, the costumer, the prop- 
 erty-master, the master or stage carpenter, the stage 
 machinist, the gas engineer and the electrician, the 
 chief engineer in charge of the boiler and pump plant, 
 and other members of the theatre staff, besides a large 
 room for wardrobes and costumes. 
 
 Scenery-making, scene-painting, and carpentering 
 on a large scale should not be permitted in the theatre 
 proper. There should be provided, in a separate 
 annex or fire-proof building, such paint-rooms, carpen- 
 ter-shops, scene-docks, store-rooms, for timber, furni- 
 ture, etc., and other workshops as the business of the 
 theatre may require. The stage, the under-stage, or 
 the fly-galleries should never be used as a carpenter or 
 paint shop, nor should such work be performed, as is 
 often the case in the older theatres, in the loft over 
 the auditorium. Neither should this loft be appro- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 63 
 
 priated for the storage of inflammable material. The 
 rear of the stage should not be used as a scene-dock. 
 
 The combination of a hotel and a theatre, or of a 
 theatre and office-building, which is still quite common, 
 cannot be approved from the point of view of safety, 
 as each part endangers the other. No living or sleep- 
 ing apartments should be contemplated in the plan of 
 a theatre; no workshop, manufacturing establishment, 
 or storehouses should be combined with it; and on 
 the street floor stores should only be provided if 
 separately fireproofed, if completely isolated from the 
 theatre by thick brick walls, and if the stores are kept 
 accessible from the street only. 
 
 The furnace or heating apparatus and the steam- 
 boiler room should never be placed under any part of 
 the stage, the auditorium, or the stairways. It is 
 advisable, where a separate building for the boiler 
 cannot be obtained, to place it in a vault under the 
 sidewalk. 
 
 The fourth division comprises the foyers, the thea- 
 tre lobby, the toilet-rooms, lavatories, and retiring- 
 rooms for the public, the principal stairs for the 
 various tiers, the corridors, passages, and the entrances 
 and exits. The corridors, foyers, and lobbies should 
 be roomy, and amply large to furnish standing-room 
 for all persons in each division. The lobbies should 
 be separated from the auditorium by fire-proof walls. 
 Better still is the plan of having large open safety 
 terraces or open colonnades on both sides of the 
 auditorium, with stairs leading to the street, thereby 
 preventing all possibility of a jam or crush. 
 
 There should be provided, for every section of the 
 
4 TtiEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 house, suitable and well-arranged toilet-rooms for men 
 and for women. If cloak-rooms or wardrobes for the 
 public are included in the plan, they should be located 
 near the entrances, but their arrangement must be such 
 that persons who wait at the cloak-rooms do not inter- 
 fere with the retiring audience passing through the 
 corridors to the exits. 
 
 All corridors, passages, stairs, and aisles must be 
 planned to be free from all obstructions, such as 
 wardrobes, refreshment-rooms, or radiators, and so as 
 to permit the quick emptying of the house. The 
 crossing or meeting of two streams of people on their 
 way out, either in the lobbies, or in the passages, or 
 on the stairs, must be prevented. 
 
 The stage and the auditorium form two large spaces 
 which cannot well be subdivided. All other parts of 
 the theatre should be subdivided into as many distinct 
 and separate fire risks as possible. 
 
 The four principal divisions of a theatre should be 
 separated and completely isolated from each other by 
 fire-proof walls and doors. Each division should be 
 enclosed in fire-proof walls and made as incombustible 
 as possible. Likewise should all horizontal subdivi- 
 sions, the ceilings, roofs, and stairs, be made fireproof, 
 in order to localize and confine a fire, so that it can 
 burn itself out. There should be as few openings of 
 communication in the various fire-proof divisions as 
 possible, and where these openings are necessary, 
 there should be means provided for closing them, in 
 case of fire, by fire-doors opening outward. It is most 
 important that the stage be completely separated from 
 the auditorium by a fire-proof proscenium-wall, carried 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 65 
 
 from the cellar to a height of three feet above the 
 roof, the full width of the building. This wall should 
 have only a few openings, namely, the large pro- 
 scenium-opening, closed by a safety or fire curtain, of 
 iron or asbestos, and not more than two other open- 
 ings, at or below the stage level, closed by automatic 
 or self-closing fire-doors without locks or bolts. There 
 should be no communication between the stage build- 
 ing and the auditorium at any point above the level 
 of the stage. 
 
 Construction of Building. 
 
 A theatre building, to be structurally safe, requires 
 to be constructed wholly of fire-resisting materials. 
 The natural tendency being to use the largest part of 
 the available funds for the exterior and interior decora- 
 tion of the theatre, it is advisable that the method of 
 construction and the building materials used should 
 be regulated by strict building laws. 
 
 Woodwork is to be avoided in the construction. 
 Its use must be confined to the trim of the doors and 
 windows, the usual doors, and the auditorium floor 
 and platforms. The floors of corridors, foyers, and 
 lobbies should be tiled. Wooden wainscoting should 
 be avoided, and marble or tiling for stairs, lobbies and 
 foyers and toilet-rooms, and stucco-work for the 
 decoration of the auditorium and the boxes should 
 take its place. Exposed ironwork should not be used 
 anywhere, it being unsafe, except when cased with 
 fire-proof material. Brick and terra-cotta should be 
 used in preference to stone. The well-known prin- 
 ciples of sound, fire-resisting construction should be 
 
66 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 applied to all parts of the theatre building. All main 
 division walls should be strong and solidly built, well 
 bonded together, and constructed of brick. These, as 
 well as all staircase walls, should be run at least three 
 feet above the roof to form fire-walls, All vertical 
 and horizontal divisions should be fire-proof, and this 
 refers not only to the main divisions of the plan, but 
 likewise to all partitions. The external and internal 
 walls must be well bonded together. 
 
 Wherever openings are provided in fire-walls for 
 communication, they should be closed with fire-resist- 
 ing doors. The doors should have stone saddles, and 
 should be constructed either of boiler-iron, or, better, 
 of double layers of planks of oak, lined on both sides 
 and at the ends with tin. 
 
 The stage proper is the place where an immense 
 amount of easily combustible material is necessarily 
 crowded together. It should be the special aim to 
 make this part of the building, where a fire once 
 started is much more dangerous and much more diffi- 
 cult to fight than in other parts of the house, as fire- 
 resisting as possible. 
 
 The floor of the stage proper must necessarily be 
 constructed of wood, on account of the numerous 
 traps; but the fixed portion of the stage floor in the 
 wings or sides of the stage, the entire fly-galleries, 
 and the gridiron, or rigging-loft, except the wooden 
 floor covering the same, should be built of iron or steel 
 beams and made fire-proof, and the pin rails of the 
 fly-galleries should be of iron or steel. The roof of 
 the stage should be constructed of iron, and covered 
 with slate, tile, or other fire-proof material. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 67 
 
 In the fitting up of the under-stage woodwork 
 should be avoided. This is the special department 
 of the stage carpenter, who usually clings to old- 
 fashioned traditions and the use of antiquated appa- 
 ratus. Much of the equipment of the whole stage, 
 the stage machinery, the traps, the fly-rails, the hoist- 
 ing apparatus, etc., could be made safer and more dur- 
 able by substituting iron and steel for wood, by using 
 hydraulic lifting machinery with steel wires in place of 
 the old-fashioned hoists, sheaves, and ropes still so 
 much in use. Suggestions tending to improve the con- 
 struction of the stage were made by the "Asphaleia" 
 Society of Vienna soon after the destruction by fire of 
 the Ring Theatre in Vienna, where several hundred per- 
 sons perished by fire and smoke. A number of Euro- 
 pean theatres, such as those at Halle in Germany, and 
 at Buda-Pesth in Austria-Hungary, and the Royal 
 Prussian " Schauspielhaus " in Berlin, have been 
 fitted up in this manner with most satisfactory results. 
 Up to the time of writing, there is in this country 
 but one solitary instance of this advanced method of 
 stage construction, namely, in the Auditorium Thea- 
 tre, in Chicago. It is noteworthy that in the " As- 
 phaleia " stage-setting much of the scenery and scene- 
 setting is painted on thin sheet iron, held in light iron 
 frames. 
 
 Wherever woodwork is necessarily employed in 
 the construction of the stage and its accessories, it may 
 be made fire-resisting by impregnation, or at least by 
 the application of fire-proof paint. Even the ordinary 
 whitewashing of woodwork helps to protect the same. 
 
 The proscenium-wall, forming the main division 
 
68 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 between stage and auditorium, must be a fire-wall, 
 built of brick, and the stage-opening should be arched 
 over. The moulded frame or other finish, and all 
 decorative features around the proscenium-opening, 
 should consist of incombustible material. 
 
 The auditorium should likewise be fire-proof in all 
 its parts. The main floor and the tiers should be con- 
 structed of fire-proof iron beams, and brick or tile 
 arches. Iron columns for the support of iron girders 
 should be encased with fire-proof materials. The 
 fronts of galleries and balconies should be formed of 
 fire-proof material. The ceilings of the auditorium, 
 the balcony, and the galleries should be fire-proof. The 
 auditorium roof should be constructed of iron, and the 
 roof covered with slate or tile. All boxes in the 
 auditorium, and the partitions between boxes, should 
 consist of fire-proof material. Plaster should be used 
 in preference to wood or papier-mach^ for the decora- 
 tive treatment of the boxes. 
 
 The upper floors in the auditorium may be laid with 
 wooden boards; but there should be no hollow spaces 
 underneath, and the floors should be laid on sleepers 
 deeply bedded in concrete. The ceiling of the cellar 
 should be fireproofed with I-beams and brick arches, 
 or other fire-proof construction, except, as stated 
 above, directly under the middle portion of the stage. 
 
 The actors' dressing-rooms and all other rooms 
 necessary on the stage end of the building should be 
 fire-proof in all parts. Particular attention should be 
 paid to the dressing-rooms and storage-rooms for ward- 
 robes. The walls and the corridors separating the 
 actors' dressing-rooms from the stage, and all dressing- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 69 
 
 room partitions, must be fire-proof. All doors should 
 be of iron or other fire-resisting construction. All 
 shelving and cupboards in all dressing-rooms, property- 
 rooms, wardrobes, and storage-rooms should be con- 
 structed of metal or slate, or other approved fire-proof 
 material. 
 
 Finally, all halls, passages, and foyers should have 
 fire-proof ceilings and floors, and all staircases through- 
 out the theatre should be constructed in a fire-proof 
 manner. 
 
 All partitions must be built of fire-proof blocks. 
 There should be no canvas covering of walls, and 
 wooden wainscoting should be used sparingly and only 
 when applied directly to solid fire-proof filling. 
 
 All windows in a theatre should be arranged to 
 open, and none of the windows in outside walls should 
 have fixed sashes or iron grilles. 
 
 Staircases, Entrances and Exits, and Fire-escapes. 
 
 The planning and construction of the staircases and 
 exits of a theatre are of the greatest importance, 
 because they form the principal means of safety for an 
 excited or terror-stricken audience when a fire breaks 
 out, or when there is a sudden panic from any cause. 
 For this reason all stairs and exits must be so arranged 
 as to disperse an audience as quickly as possible. The 
 emptying of a well-planned theatre should not require 
 more than two or three minutes. 
 
 All stairs in a theatre should be fire-proof, and 
 encased in fire-walls. Open stair-well construction 
 should be avoided as dangerous. The stairs should 
 be from four to six feet wide, according to the maxi- 
 
70 THEATRE. FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 mum number of people for which they are intended. 
 The minimum width for fifty persons is four feet, and 
 six inches should be added in width for every addi- 
 tional fifty people. 
 
 All stairs should have easy and even treads. The 
 risers should not exceed seven and one half inches, 
 and the width of treads should be not less than ten 
 and one half inches. Winding stairs should be pro- 
 hibited, except in case the winders have treads not 
 less than seven and one half inches wide at the nar- 
 rowest part. Single or double steps should never be 
 permitted, as they form dangerous stumbling-blocks. 
 Long flights of stairs must be broken by several land- 
 ings, at least four feet wide. The Boston Building 
 Law calls for stair flights to have not less than three, 
 nor more than fifteen, steps. 
 
 There should be, on each side of all stairs and land- 
 ings, well-fastened hand-rails turned into the wall at 
 the ends of stairs. Very wide stairs are preferably 
 divided by a strong metal baluster or intermediate 
 central rail. All staircase halls should be made as 
 smoke-proof as possible. The stairs for the balcony 
 and gallery should not communicate with the cellar, so 
 that smoke from a cellar fire may not rise up through 
 the staircase. 
 
 There should be at least two entirely separate 
 stairs for each part of the audience, one for each side 
 of the building. Inasmuch as the occupants of the 
 gallery have the longest way to the street, and also 
 because the experience of theatre catastrophes teaches 
 that this part of the audience is the one most endan- 
 gered in case of a panic, there should really be more 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. Jl 
 
 stairs and exits for the highest tier, although in the 
 theatres erected in the past this precaution has seldom, 
 if ever, been observed. The stairs serving different 
 tiers should not communicate with each other, and 
 the meeting of two streams of people on the same 
 stairs should always be avoided. Each portion of the 
 audience, the parquet, the balcony, and the gallery, 
 should leave by separate stairs and exits. Each tier 
 should also have separate wide corridors running all 
 around, and leading to a foyer and to the staircases. 
 
 It is usual to calculate two exits for 300 persons, 
 and three for 500 persons, not including the outside 
 fire-escapes. The more exits there are, the less 
 liability of fierce struggles and jams during a panic, 
 and the less danger there is of old or weak persons 
 becoming hurt. 
 
 The planning ^f the means of egress, the exits, and 
 fire-escapes in such a way as to effect a quiet and 
 quick emptying of a theatre requires the most careful 
 study. All aisles, corridors, passages, and stairs 
 should be of even or increasing width, must not be tor- 
 tuous, and should have no obstructions of any kind, 
 such as pay-boxes, cloak-rooms, refreshment-counters, 
 etc. All passages leading to exits must be at least 
 four feet wide. 
 
 The best arrangement and judicious location of the 
 exits depends to a great extent upon the site of the 
 theatre. If the same permits placing plenty of wide 
 and easily reached exits on all sides of the building, 
 the safety of the audience is assured. The more the 
 audience can be subdivided, the quicker can a theatre 
 be emptied. 
 
72 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 The minimum width of exits for 500 or less persons, 
 according to both the Boston and New York theatre 
 laws, is five feet, and twenty inches shall be added in 
 width for each additional 100 persons. The exits 
 must likewise be free from projections or obstructions 
 of any kind. 
 
 Many lives have been lost in theatre catastrophes 
 owing to faulty arrangement of the doors. It is im- 
 perative that all exit doors be made to open outward, 
 to prevent a jam in case of a panic. The doors in 
 corridors must, moreover, be so hung as not to become 
 an obstruction in the passageway. Sliding doors 
 should never be used. Emergency exits or doors, 
 which are frequently advocated, are not desirable. 
 They have often been found locked when needed, and, 
 moreover, the people are not familiar with their loca- 
 tion. AIL stairs and exit doors should be opened for 
 the use of the public at each daily and nightly per- 
 formance. Exit doors should have proper bolts at 
 shoulder height. 
 
 All exits should be as conspicuous as possible and 
 should be plainly marked in large legible letters, and 
 all doors not leading to exits should be lettered " no 
 exit." 
 
 In addition to the separate stairs mentioned above, 
 each tier should have exits to at least two well-con- 
 structed outside iron fire-escapes, to be used in case 
 the retreat by the inside stairs is cut off by smoke. 
 All such fire-escapes, to be of any use, must be so 
 constructed with regular steps that they can be used 
 by women and children. These outside fire-escapes 
 should be covered with metal hoods or awnings to 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 73 
 
 prevent, as much as possible, their becoming slippery 
 and difficult to use when covered with snow and ice 
 in winter weather. The New York Law requires the 
 fire-escape balconies to be four feet wide, and the stairs 
 to have not more than eight-and-one-half-inch risers 
 and at least nine-inch treads. They must be built 
 sufficiently strong to carry the weight of a large crowd. 
 
 The same care and attention is required in the con- 
 struction of the stairs for that part of the building con- 
 taining the stage, the offices, and the dressing-rooms. 
 The stairs and exits for the actors and stage hands 
 should be entirely separate from those for the specta- 
 tors, and there should be at least two such stairs and 
 exits, preferably one at each end of the stage. There 
 should also be fire-proof stairs leading from the fly- 
 galleries and the rigging-loft, one on each side of the 
 stage, these places being, in case of a stage fire, among 
 the most dangerous, owing to the rapid rising of the 
 smoke and the flames. It will be remembered that at 
 the burning of the Paris Opera Comique the majority 
 of the audience escaped, while many chorus-singers 
 and ballet-girls were burned to death, because the 
 stage exits and stairs were lamentably insufficient. 
 
 Finally, there should be well-fastened iron ladders 
 provided on the outside courts and leading to all roofs 
 of the building, for the use of the firemen. 
 
 Aisles and Chairs. 
 
 The width and number of aisles in the parquet, 
 balcony, and gallery depend upon the size of the 
 theatre and the number of seats provided. Many 
 
74 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 narrow aisles breaking the continuity of the seats are 
 better than a few wide aisles. Aisles should be straight 
 and leading directly to the exits, or else the direction 
 of the nearest exit should be indicated on the wall by 
 a conspicuous arrow. The aisles should widen with 
 the number of rows of seats which they serve. The 
 minimum width of aisles is three feet, to which should 
 be added one and one-half inches for every five feet 
 length of aisle. 
 
 In the orchestra, or parquet, there should be no 
 steps in the aisles, but the aisles should be inclined 
 under a gradient of not more than one in ten. Gra- 
 dients should likewise be used for differences in level 
 between the aisles and the open courts. 
 
 Aisles should never be obstructed by camp-stools or 
 movable chairs, which become a source of danger when 
 overturned during a panic, nor should standing in the 
 aisles be permitted. 
 
 The width and depth of the chairs or seats should 
 not reach below a certain minimum, both for comfort's 
 and safety's sake, and there should be not more than 
 thirteen seats between two aisles, so that no seat in 
 the audience has more than six seats between it and 
 the aisle. 
 
 The framework of the chairs should be constructed 
 of fire-proof materials, the chairs should be firmly and 
 well bolted, or otherwise fastened to the floor, and 
 the seats should preferably be automatic, i.e., self- 
 raising. In any case they must be hinged so as to be 
 easily raised and placed out of the way to facilitate 
 the emptying of the rows of seats. 
 
 Movable chairs should be allowed only in the boxes, 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. ?$ 
 
 and for each of these the number of seats should be 
 limited. 
 
 Fire-proof Curtain. 
 
 The stage opening in the proscenium-wall should be 
 closed by means of a fire-proof curtain, entirely separat- 
 ing the stage from the auditorium. The object of the 
 curtain is to prevent a fire on the stage or in the flies 
 from leaping over into the auditorium, and to interpose 
 a barrier to the smoke and fire gases generated in a 
 conflagration. It is, therefore, one of the chief means 
 of safety for the audience, and in theatres where it is 
 installed, kept in good working order, and let down 
 at the first moment of danger it helps to enable the 
 audience to escape unhurt from the burning building. 
 
 Numerous suggestions have been made regarding 
 the material and construction of fire-proof curtains. 
 The three principal forms adopted in practice are a 
 curtain of wire gauze, a curtain built of corrugated 
 iron, and asbestos woven curtains. In European 
 theatres the first two kinds have been tried, whereas 
 the asbestos fire-proof curtain is chiefly used in Ameri- 
 can theatres. 
 
 Curtains made of wire gauze with fine mesh have 
 not proved successful in actual use, because while they 
 keep the flames from spreading across the stage open- 
 ing into the auditorium, they allow the smoke to pass, 
 and also because they increase the panic and confusion 
 by giving the frightened audience a view of the fire on 
 the stage. 
 
 Corrugated-iron curtains are better in this respect. 
 They should be accurately guided at both ends and 
 
? THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 should travel easily in proper vertical metal grooves 
 placed on both sides of the proscenium-opening, and 
 well fastened to the brick wall, otherwise they are 
 liable to stick fast at the moment when wanted. Such 
 iron sliding-curtains have not, in practice, proved 
 themselves always reliable. It is important that the 
 apparatus for raising or lowering the fire-curtain 
 should be on the stage, and not in the rigging-loft, as 
 was the case in the Vienna Ring Theatre, because this 
 point may be beyond reach soon after the outbreak of 
 a fire on the stage. Unless built very strong, iron 
 curtains are liable to buckle and warp, and do not 
 resist a strong pressure due to the expansion of the air 
 by the heat in case of fire. They should fit tightly, 
 to prevent the escape of smoke, and should be strong 
 enough to sustain a pressure for at least ten minutes, 
 to give the audience time to escape. If they are not 
 protected from above by automatic sprinkling appa- 
 ratus, or a series of perforated pipes connected with 
 the supply-pipes or roof-tanks, so as to allow a sheet 
 of water to run down along the curtain, they may 
 become red-hot during a fierce fire and thus endanger 
 the spectators. 
 
 On the whole, thick woven asbestos fire-proof cur- 
 tains are lighter and more easily handled than iron 
 curtains, and prove well adapted to check the spread 
 of flames and to keep back the smoke, at least suffi- 
 ciently long to permit the complete emptying of the 
 theatre. The asbestos curtain should travel in grooves 
 and should fit the proscenium-opening as closely as 
 possible. 
 
 Whatever kind of fire-proof curtain is chosen, it 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 77 
 
 should not merely be used in case of an emergency, 
 but nightly, and it should be raised a few minutes 
 before the beginning of, and lowered immediately 
 after, the performance. 
 
 It is a good plan, as a further protection of the 
 proscenium-opening, to provide it with a 2^-inch per- 
 forated copper pipe, fed from the sprinkler tank by 
 means of shut-off valves operated from the prompter's 
 side of the stage, the descending stream of water 
 forming, when set in operation, an efficient water- 
 curtain. 
 
 Stage Ventilator. 
 
 Every theatre stage should be provided in its roof 
 with one or more large metal flues or ventilators, or 
 with ventilating sliding skylights, operated by means 
 of ropes and counterweights controlled at the level of 
 the stage, or arranged to work automatically by the 
 burning of a hemp cord in case of a stage fire. The 
 object of this ventilator is to provide an outlet and 
 ready means of escape for the thick smoke and the fire- 
 gases. Such a ventilator would also act as a means of 
 increasing the draught and spread of the fire, and on 
 this account it has been objected to by many who were 
 evidently more concerned with the saving of the 
 building from destruction than with the saving of life. 
 But, human life being of greater value than property, 
 the objection raised is evidently of little importance, 
 considering the fact that the ventilator acts as a 
 powerful means of removing the smoke. As frequent 
 theatre catastrophes have sufficiently demonstrated, 
 the smoke is a more deadly agent than fire, and con- 
 
?8 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 stitutes the chief danger to the audience. Incredible 
 as it may sound, it is nevertheless true, that, on the 
 average, only five minutes elapse between the appear- 
 ance of fire in front of the proscenium-opening and 
 the total extinction of human life by smoke and 
 fire gases. This worst of all foes, smoke, must be 
 kept from the audience by all known means. 
 
 The two appliances, a fire-proof curtain and a stage 
 ventilator, act combined as the most important means 
 of protection to the audience in case of a theatre fire. 
 Where these are installed it is, on the other hand, 
 absolutely necessary to provide safe means of retreat 
 for the stage-hands employed in the rigging-loft and 
 in the fly-galleries. 
 
 In Boston the Building Law requires that the com- 
 bined area of the stage ventilators be equal to one-tenth 
 the area of the stage floor, and each ventilator is to have 
 a counterbalanced valve, so as to open automatically, 
 the valve being kept closed ordinarily by a cord of 
 combustible material, run down to the prompter's 
 desk. 
 
 The New York Building Law requires metal sliding 
 skylights in the stage roof, of a combined area equal 
 to at least one-eighth the area of the stage. These 
 skylights are to be fitted with sliding sashes, glazed 
 with double-thick glass, not exceeding one-eighth inch 
 thick. Each pane is to measure at least 300 square 
 inches. The skylights are to be so constructed as to 
 open instantly on the burning or cutting of a hempen 
 cord, ordinarily arranged to keep the skylight closed. 
 A very ingenious apparatus for stage ventilation was 
 fitted up some years ago in a Chicago theatre. The 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 79 
 
 proscenium-wall was made fire-proof, and all openings 
 in it were stopped by fire-resisting doors provided with 
 springs to keep them closed. Over the stage an exit 
 for smoke is provided, consisting of a boiler-iron flue, 
 8 feet in diameter and 30 feet high. In this flue is a 
 valve made of a wooden frame covered with canvas, 
 which is kept closed by a balance weight. A wire- 
 cable connection is carried down from the valve to each 
 side of the stage, and there are other cables carried to 
 points in the auditorium under control of the ushers. 
 By pulling any of these cables the valve is opened, 
 while a very simple and ingenious contrivance closes 
 simultaneously the ventilating outlet over the audience 
 chandelier, thus reversing the usual movement of air 
 from the stage to the auditorium ventilator. Should 
 the cable not be worked in time, the valve being of 
 canvas is readily destroyed by fire, and the smoke 
 outlet in the stage roof is thereby opened. The 
 same contrivance may at ordinary times be used for 
 the ventilation of the stage, and during performances 
 it should be opened when it is desired to remove the 
 powder smoke incident to fireworks or the firing of 
 guns. 
 
 Fire-proof Treatment of Stage Scenery. 
 
 The usual stage scenery and scenic paraphernalia 
 constitute a conglomeration of highly dried-up wood- 
 work, a perfect labyrinth of ropes, and a vast quantity 
 of gauze borders and hanging drapery. This mass of 
 highly combustible and easily inflammable material 
 forms a constant danger and menace to the stage, 
 
8O THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 particularly when brought in close vicinity to gas- 
 lights. 
 
 It should be the aim to make the various parts of 
 the stage scenery, such as the wings, the borders, the 
 drop-scenes, and the set-pieces, as fire-resisting as 
 possible. The substitution of light iron framework in 
 place of wood for attaching the painted canvas is 
 desirable. Where wooden frames are used they should 
 be coated with fire-proof paint. 
 
 All scenery, draperies, and furniture should be 
 rendered non-inflammable by chemical treatment. 
 The treatment, to remain effective, should be renewed 
 periodically. This is easily accomplished where a 
 theatre is used by the same company during the entire 
 season, but is difficult to insist upon where different 
 travelling companies occupy the theatre in succession. 
 The fire-proof treatment of scenery is required in the 
 New York theatre law, but practically the law is a dead 
 letter. 
 
 The woodwork constituting the floor of the stage 
 proper and the traps in the under-stage should be 
 rendered uninflammable by chemical treatment. 
 
 All scenery for large theatres should be stored in a 
 separate fire-proof scene-dock, forming an annex to the 
 theatre building. 
 
 Stage Construction and Stage Machinery. 
 
 I have already stated that the stage construction 
 and machinery of the majority of theatres is antiquated, 
 and that the system followed from time immemorial 
 is susceptible of much improvement. In fact, what 
 is wanted is a radical improvement and innovation, 
 
TltEiR CAUSES AND PREVENTION- i 
 
 tending to render this part of the building much more 
 secure, and at the same time more convenient in man- 
 agement. 
 
 In a paper in the Journal of the Society of Arts, on 
 " Scenic Illusions and Stage Appliances," Mr. Percy 
 Fitzgerald, F.S.A., relates that " for the new Paris 
 Opera-House, built by Garnier, a novel plan of stage 
 construction was offered and seriously entertained. 
 This was to divide the whole stage into small plat- 
 forms, each supported on pistons moving up and down 
 in hydraulic presses. A lever, put in motion by the 
 stage-manager, would thus elevate or depress any sec- 
 tion of the stage to the height or depth required." 
 He continues by saying: " This was ingenious, and it 
 was elaborated with care and nearly adopted, but the 
 objections were insuperable. The space below the 
 stage was lost, being rilled with pumps and apparatus; 
 there were nearly a hundred pistons, but the real 
 danger was the almost certainty of some part of the 
 machinery getting out of order." He adds that " the 
 system was actually adopted at the new Vaudeville, 
 but never came into use." 
 
 The system rejected for the Paris Opera-House 
 has since then been introduced into a number of 
 smaller theatres, with absolute success. Its great 
 advantage consists in reducing the risk of fire, by sub- 
 stituting simple iron construction, iron supports, and 
 iron machinery for the innumerable wooden traps under 
 the stage, and by replacing the inflammable canvas 
 and gauze scenery stretched on wooden frames by 
 scenic decorations painted on sheet iron, held in light 
 iron frames. Woodwork is used only for the stage 
 
&2 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 platforms, but not for their support. This is the new 
 system of the " Asphaleia " Society of Vienna. It 
 has been used on the stages of the new theatres at 
 Buda-Pesth and at Halle, and also partially in a Berlin 
 theatre. Independent of this system, several other 
 theatres have adopted iron in place of wood for con- 
 struction, and steel wires in place of hemp ropes for 
 hoisting apparatus; for instance, the new theatre in 
 Rouen, France; the new Hofburg Theatre in Vienna, 
 and the Royal Theatre in Edinburgh. 
 
 The Buda-Pesth Theatre is considered to be one of 
 the most scientifically and perfectly equipped theatres 
 in existence. Its whole stage floor is divided into 
 many traps of different size and shape, some circular 
 and some oblong, which are operated by pistons 
 worked by hydraulic power. By touching a lever any 
 section can be raised, lowered, or inclined, and thus 
 the stage may be transformed into terraces or gradual 
 inclines, instead of the usual method, consisting in 
 building up such scenery on the stage. The rigging- 
 loft is constructed entirely in iron. The scenery of 
 the " Asphaleia " system is equally novel. There are 
 no flat drop-scenes and no side-scenes or coulisses, and 
 borders are done away with. The whole stage forms 
 a clean open space. In this is hung from above a large 
 continuous curtain, or" horizon," as it is called, open 
 toward the front and forming three sides. This is 
 painted so as to represent different sky effects, and 
 the horizon may be moved, and by the use of proper 
 light the scene is readily changed. The movements 
 of the horizon are also controlled under the stage by 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 83 
 
 means of hydraulic machinery. The scenes are repre- 
 sented by detached pieces. 
 
 Apart from the novelty of the scenic effect, this 
 new system is highly commendable, because it elimi- 
 nates the chief elements of danger from fire in thea- 
 tres, and also because it replaces hand labor in the 
 shifting of scenery and rearrangement of the stage by 
 a scientifically constructed mechanical power-system. 
 
 Heating. 
 
 The heating of a theatre should always be done by 
 a centralized system, in order to avoid the necessity 
 of having many fires to look after, and of having a 
 number of smoke-flues, each of which constitutes 
 a danger. Heating by warm-air furnaces is only 
 adapted for very small theatres, and even in these it 
 is objectionable on account of danger from fire, and 
 because it rapidly desiccates woodwork and scenery, 
 and renders the same still more easily inflammable. 
 The choice of the system for larger buildings lies 
 between warming by steam and by hot water. Which- 
 ever system may be preferred, it is essential that the 
 heating of the auditorium be accomplished largely by 
 the indirect method, which consists in the introduction 
 of a constant supply of fresh air suitably warmed at 
 heating stacks, placed at the basement or cellar ceiling. 
 The indirect-heating system may be supplemented by 
 a few direct steam-radiators placed in wall niches near 
 the exits, where there is frequently an unpleasant 
 draught from the rush of cold air from outdoors. 
 
 The stage is generally heated by direct-heating coils 
 or radiators, and care should be taken to keep the 
 
84 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 stage building at such a temperature, even when there 
 are no performances, as to prevent the freezing of the 
 water in the fire stand-pipes, and in the automatic- 
 sprinkler system. 
 
 The dressing-rooms, toilet-rooms, offices, stairs, 
 corridors, foyers, and lobbies are also heated by 
 means of direct radiators. 
 
 The steam-boiler must never be placed directly 
 under the auditorium or the stage. It is desirable to 
 place it in a separate and detached building, or, at 
 least, to remove it to a vault under the sidewalk. The 
 boiler should be of the sectional safety type. Special 
 care is, of course, required in the construction of the 
 boiler-flue. The boiler-rocrm should be enclosed by 
 brick walls, the ceiling should be fireproofed, and all 
 doorways leading to the boiler-room should be of iron, 
 or, better, double tin lined wooden doors. If the 
 boiler-room is equipped with automatic sprinklers, 
 care should be taken to have the fusible solder-joint 
 arranged so as to stand a higher temperature without 
 opening. All steam-pipes must be kept from direct 
 contact with any woodwork, and they should be encased 
 with double thimbles where they pass through floors, 
 to avoid the danger of wood becoming charred and 
 ignited. 
 
 Floor registers are objectionable, and are not per- 
 mitted by the New York theatre law. Heating-coils 
 or radiators should not be placed in any aisles, passages, 
 or corridors where they would constitute an obstruc- 
 tion, but should be placed in recesses or niches. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AMD PREVENTION. 85 
 
 Lighting. 
 
 The lighting arrangements of theatres, and par- 
 ticularly of the stage and the stage scenery, require 
 the most thoughtful consideration and the greatest 
 care in execution and arrangement, as they form one 
 of the chief causes of theatre fires. The days when 
 theatres were illuminated by candles or oil-lamps are 
 happily past. Gas-light, which is infinitely safer than 
 either method, has long ago taken their place, and is 
 now as rapidly being replaced by the still safer, and 
 therefore much to be preferred, incandescent electric 
 light. 
 
 In the auditorium gas-lights have proved objection- 
 able on account of the immense heat and vitiated 
 atmosphere which they create. On the stage, all 
 open flames used in the lighting up of the wings and 
 borders, as well as the footlights, were a constant 
 menace to the highly inflammable scenery and to the 
 light costumes of the dancers. It is therefore safe to 
 assert that, at least for the two principal parts of a 
 theatre building, electric-lighting has many advantages 
 over gas-light. The introduction of the incandescent 
 glow-lamp for the lighting of the stage and scenery 
 increases the safety of a theatre-building perhaps more 
 than any other safety appliance. Of course it is 
 necessary that the wiring should be done in the best 
 manner, according to the rules of the fire under- 
 writers. 
 
 But the electric current is not always available, and 
 the installation of a special electric plant may, in some 
 cases, particularly for smaller theatre enterprises, 
 
S6 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 prove too great an expense. Therefore, where the 
 theatre depends on the use of gas, the gas-piping 
 should be arranged with extreme care, and the man- 
 agement of all gas-lights should be under the control 
 of a specially trained employe. All gas-pipes should 
 be of wrought iron, and no lead or other pipes should 
 be permitted. The piping must be put together in a 
 proper and workmanlike manner, and must be abso- 
 lutely gas-tight under a severe pressure test. The 
 joints of flexible india-rubber gas-pipe for the border 
 and bunch lights and for stage chandeliers must be 
 carefully watched, and the rubber tubing should be 
 strong steam hose of best quality rubber, and pro- 
 tected from injury by being surrounded with spiral 
 wire. 
 
 The gas-meters should be placed in well-ventilated 
 brick vaults, closed with fire-proof doors. There should 
 be at least two distinct supply mains, one for the 
 stage and the main lights in the auditorium, and 
 another for the staircases, corridors, lobbies, the 
 entrances and exits, and the rear portion of the audi- 
 torium. This second line may also be used for supply- 
 ing the dressing-rooms and offices in the stage building, 
 although a third separate gas-main for these would be 
 still better. Each main should be controlled by a 
 shut-off valve, located in the sidewalk and accessible 
 from outdoors, to turn off the supply of gas if not 
 required. The stage gas-main should lead to a large 
 gas-table, or distributor, located on the prompter's 
 side of the stage, and at this table there should be a 
 series of shut-offs, each with by-pass to control, 
 separately and independently, the lights in the audi- 
 
ttiEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 8? 
 
 torium, the central chandelier, the footlights, the 
 wing-lights, the border-lights, the ground-lights, the 
 stage chandelier, and the bunch-lights. The lights in 
 the stairs, passages, lobbies, should be controlled only 
 by a shut-off located in the lobby. 
 
 All gas and electric lights surrounded with glass 
 should have fastened underneath a fine-mesh wire 
 netting. All open gas-flames must be protected by 
 wire cages or guards, which should be strongly 
 fastened to the gas-brackets. The wire cages should 
 be of sufficiently large diameter (at least ten inches) 
 so that the wire may never become heated to more 
 than 250 F. All side-lights should have stiff brackets. 
 Swinging or jointed brackets should not be permitted. 
 All fixtures should have strong pin stops. It is of 
 advantage to have all gas-brackets in foyers, halls, and 
 stairs so arranged as to have detachable keys, so that 
 the lights cannot under any circumstances be tampered 
 with. All these lights should be protected against 
 draught by glass globes, but on the stage and in the 
 dressing-rooms all open flames should have wire cages. 
 
 All open flames should also be kept safely away 
 from woodwork. The footlights should have a wire 
 network, and should be protected with a strong wire 
 guard, two feet distant from the footlights, to prevent 
 actors from coming too near to the lights. The trough 
 for the footlights should be formed of fire-proof 
 material. All border-lights should be suspended by 
 wire ropes. The lights in the wings should not come 
 lower than five feet above the stage level. 
 
 The central chandelier in the auditorium, the foot- 
 lights, and the border-lights, as well as all other rows 
 
88 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 of gas-lights, should be lighted with electric flash- 
 lighting, which is a safer method than the lighting up 
 by means of spirit-lamps on poles, or by other open 
 lights. Sun-burners in the auditorium ceiling are 
 preferable to chandeliers, and are usually arranged so 
 as to assist in the ventilation of the main body of the 
 theatre. The central lustre is hurtful to the eyes and 
 in the way of the sight-line of the upper gallery, and 
 its entire abolishment is much to be desired. All 
 ducts used for carrying heated air from gas-lights 
 should be made double, and constructed of metal with 
 intervening spaces. The ceiling ventilators in the 
 auditorium should have valves arranged in such a way 
 that they may be shut off to prevent smoke in case of 
 a fire being rapidly drawn up towards and through 
 them, before the audience has departed. 
 
 Provision should be made for plenty of gas-light in 
 all actors' dressing-rooms, otherwise the actors may 
 feel tempted to use candles in " making up." 
 
 Where lime or calcium light is used on the stage 
 for special illuminations it should be most carefully 
 handled and manipulated. 
 
 Every theatre should, in addition to the gas or 
 electric light, have for the sake of safety an auxiliary 
 system of lighting the passages, corridors, and all stair- 
 ways and exits by means of oil-lamps or candle lan- 
 terns, so that in case the gas is turned off, as happened 
 in the Vienna Ring Theatre and the Brooklyn Theatre 
 fires, or in case the electric-light fails, the exits and 
 stairways are not left in total darkness. These oil or 
 candle lanterns should be placed out of the way, in 
 niches in the walls, closed by glass doors, so they 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 89 
 
 cannot be extinguished by a draught of air or by 
 smoke. It is advisable to provide the lamp niches 
 with fresh-air supply and a vent-flue carried outdoors. 
 The oil burned in these lamps, as well as in those used 
 on the stage in the presentation of plays, should be 
 vegetable or colza oil, or sperm or whale oil, and not 
 the mineral oil or kerosene. All oil should be stored 
 in fire-proof vaults, and the trimming and filling of the 
 lamps should only be permitted in daytime. The oil 
 lamps at exits should be provided with red and white 
 glass, so as to be plainly distinguished. The auxil- 
 iary lights should be kept lighted from the time the 
 theatre is open until the theatre and stage are emptied. 
 The New York law requires all parts of the building 
 devoted to the public, all outlets leading to the street, 
 including the open courts and corridors, to be lighted 
 during each performance, and to be left lighted until 
 the whole audience has departed. It also specifies 
 the use of at least two or more oil-lamps on each 
 side of the auditorium in each tier, the same to be 
 placed on fixed brackets about seven feet high, to be 
 filled with whale or lard oil, or else candles. 
 
 Lightning-rods. 
 
 I have not been able to find on record a single case 
 of the burning or destruction of a theatre from being 
 set on fire by lightning,* but there are instances of 
 
 * Soon after writing the above, I received information from Mr. 
 Ernest E. A. Woodrow, of the burning of the Royal County Theatre 
 at Reading, England, on the last Saturday in August, 1894, in the 
 morning, which fire was said to be caused by lightning. I quote 
 from a copy of the Reading Observer of Sept. I, 1894, the fol- 
 
90 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 theatre buildings having been struck. On March 20, 
 1784, lightning struck the theatre at Mantua, in Italy, 
 during a performance, at which about 400 spectators 
 were present. Of these, two were killed and ten 
 severely injured. On the 26th of July, 1759, the 
 theatre at Feltre, in Italy, was struck by lightning, 
 and Arago relates that many in the audience were 
 killed or injured, and that the lights were extinguished 
 by the electrical shock. In both cases the building 
 did not take fire. There is always, in the event of a 
 theatre being struck by lightning during a perform- 
 ance, the danger of a serious panic. It, therefore, 
 seems proper and wise to provide theatre buildings 
 with the protection which a well-constructed system 
 of lightning-rods affords. The Frankfort-on-Main 
 Opera-House is protected by thirteen lightning-rods, 
 subjected to inspection annually. 
 
 Ventilation and Sanitation. 
 
 The efficient ventilation of the auditorium, of the 
 stage, of the actors' and supers' dressing-rooms, and 
 of the toilet-rooms; a thorough system of cleanliness 
 and removal of dirt and rubbish; and, finally, a safe 
 and well-arranged system of drainage and plumbing 
 are important requirements, constituting together the 
 question of " Theatre Hygiene," but they have very 
 little direct bearing on the subject of fire-prevention 
 
 lowing: "There is little doubt but that the origin of the fire was 
 due to the building being struck by lightning. . . . The lightning 
 struck the top of the theatre near the ventilator over the gallery, and 
 almost immediately the building was in flames." The theatre was 
 completely wrecked by the fire. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 1 
 
 and fire-protection in theatres, and will, therefore, not 
 be discussed here in detail. 
 
 The Boston Building Law wisely prescribes that 
 every theatre should have a system of ventilation so 
 contrived as to provide fifty cubic feet of fresh air per 
 minute, or three thousand cubic feet per hour, for each 
 occupant, and for each light other than electric light. 
 
 The old-fashioned central chandelier, or lustre, 
 which constituted a chief feature in the older theatres, 
 and which when gas-light came into use was utilized 
 to assist in the ventilation of the auditorium, is happily 
 going out of fashion. In more than one instance it 
 carried death and destruction, by creating during afire 
 a strong current of air from the stage into the audi- 
 torium, thus leading the smoke and fire gases to the 
 upper galleries and suffocating the people. Serious 
 accidents have also occurred through the falling of the 
 chandelier during a performance. 
 
 I do not wish to be understood as being opposed to 
 ceiling ventilation in the auditorium. This is neces- 
 sary, even in the case of theatres lighted with elec- 
 tricity. But a judicious arrangement of the ventilators 
 and registers is required. The ventilator over the 
 stage, when fully opened, should be larger than the 
 combined area of the ventilators in the auditorium 
 ceiling. This, together with the fact that the stage 
 ventilator is nearly always higher than the one for the 
 audience, would assure a movement of air away from 
 the auditorium towards the stage. To make quite 
 sure of this, it is a good plan to have the vent registers 
 in the ceiling of the auditorium controlled from the 
 stage, so that in case a fire breaks out on the stage, 
 
92 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 the person whose duty it is to lower the fire-proof cur- 
 tain, and to open the stage-roof ventilators, will also 
 simultaneously close the vent register in the auditorium 
 ceiling. The smoke and fire gases will thereby be 
 effectively prevented from passing over into the 
 auditorium. In any case, the ventilation of the stage 
 and the auditorium should be arranged entirely sep- 
 arate. 
 
 Fire-service and Fire-extinguishing Appliances. 
 
 A theatre should have an abundant and never-failing 
 supply of water for fire-extinguishing purposes, and 
 there should be plenty of fire-extinguishing appliances 
 always kept in readiness and free from encumbrances. 
 
 First, as regards the main in front of the theatre: 
 this should be, if possible, an eight or ten inch main, 
 and where the city water system has different pressure 
 zones, the main should be connected with the high- 
 pressure service. 
 
 There should be, for outside protection, several 
 large post hydrants distributed around the sides of the 
 theatres. 
 
 The size of the service main supplying the theatre 
 should be at least six inches, if attainable, and four 
 inches should be the minimum size. It is still better 
 to run two mains into the building from opposite streets 
 and to cross-connect the same in the building so as 
 to be sure of an ample supply at all times. 
 
 Where water-meters are required on these services, 
 there should be a sealed by-pass gate-valve, to be 
 opened only in case of fire, as it is unnecessary to 
 meter the water used for extinguishing the flames. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 93 
 
 There are some cities in which the pressure in the 
 city mains is at all times ample for fire purposes, and 
 where the stream from fire-nozzles attached to stand 
 pipes, fed from direct pressure, would reach above the 
 highest part of a theatre building. In other cities, 
 where the Holly system of water- works is arranged, 
 the ordinary pressure of about 35 to 40 Ibs. in the 
 street mains is increased in case of a fire, as soon as 
 the fire-alarm has reached the pumping-station, to 100 
 Ibs. pressure. 
 
 In the majority of cases, however, the pressure in 
 the street mains, suitable for domestic purposes, is 
 insufficient for fire protection, and it becomes neces- 
 sary to supply the fire-valves and the sprinklers in the 
 theatre either from fire-pumps, or from elevated open 
 tanks, or, finally, from closed tanks with compressed 
 air. Even the pressure obtained from elevated tanks 
 is not sufficient to produce effective fire-streams, 
 except in the lower parts of the theatre. 
 
 It is usual in theatres to operate the sprinkler 
 system from roof tanks, and the fire-valves under 
 pressure from a large fire-pump, and to omit any con- 
 nection between the fire stand-pipes and the roof 
 tanks. 
 
 Every theatre should, therefore, be fitted up with 
 one or several powerful fire-pumps, either of the rotary 
 type or of the direct-acting plunger type. The 
 best type of direct-acting pump, the " Underwriter " 
 standard fire-pump, should be selected. For small 
 theatres the pump should have a capacity of 500 
 gallons per minute, equivalent to two fire-streams; 
 medium-sized theatres require a four-stream pump, 
 
94 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 which is able to throw 1000 gallons per minute, while 
 large theatres should have either the six-stream pump 
 or two fire-pumps of smaller size. These pumps should 
 ordinarily draw their supply from a large suction or re- 
 serve tank located in the basement of the theatre, and 
 supplied from the street mains, but they should be so 
 connected as to be able to draw directly from the street 
 main in case of fire. The fire-pump should also be 
 used to feed the open roof tanks for the sprinkler sys- 
 tem. This pump should be kept in working order, and 
 tested at least once a week. During performances, 
 steam under high pressure (at least 50 Ibs. per sq. 
 in.) should always be kept on the pump to have it 
 ready for instant service. 
 
 There should be. numerous fire-stand-pipes dis- 
 tributed throughout the theatre, at least one on each 
 side of the proscenium-opening on the stage, at least 
 one on each side in the auditorium, one in the corridor 
 near the stage dressing-rooms, one in the property- 
 room, one in the carpenter's shop, and others as may 
 be required. Each stand-pipe should have outlets in 
 each tier of the auditorium, and likewise in the under- 
 stage, on the stage, in the fly-galleries, and in the 
 rigging-loft. Each outlet should be provided with a 
 standard fire-valve, and with 50 feet of fire-hose with 
 hose-coupling and fire-nozzle always attached to the 
 valve. 
 
 The hose should be of a suitable and approved qual- 
 ity, either rubber-lined cotton or unlined linen hose, 
 and both kinds should be able to stand a pressure of 
 several hundred pounds per square inch without leak- 
 ing or bursting, and should be tested before accept- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 95 
 
 ance. Some of the unlined hose sold in the market 
 leaks like a sieve, and even much of the rubber-lined 
 hose as used for inside fire protection is of poor quality 
 and utterly unfit for use. I saw the story related, 
 though I cannot now recall where, that a dealer in 
 fire-hose once asked a purchaser whether he wanted 
 the hose for actual use, or merely " to hang up " 
 to satisfy the Underwriters' inspectors. Whether 
 the story be true or not, it points out a moral and 
 lesson which those who fit up theatres should bear in 
 mind when purchasing fire-hose. 
 
 The hose is ordinarily kept on hose-reels, but it is 
 better to fold it up in swinging hose-racks, or to hang 
 it up on saddles, hooks, or pegs in such a way that if 
 taken out for service it does not twist or kink. There 
 should be at each fire-valve suitable hose spanners. 
 All stand-pipes should be kept clear from obstruction, 
 and the access to them should not be blocked. The 
 fire-pump should be fitted with an automatic regulator, 
 so that immediately when a fire-valve is opened the 
 pump is started in action. An efficient substitute for 
 fire-hose and play-pipes consists in the use of so-called 
 " Monitor " nozzles, attached directly to the stand- 
 pipes, which can be turned vertically as well as hori- 
 zontally in all directions, and are so balanced as to 
 remain in position while the stream plays. These 
 special fire-nozzles are applicable in particular to the 
 protection of the theatre stage. 
 
 A separate and distinct system of automatic sprink- 
 lers, with fusible plugs, supplied from a fire-tank on 
 the roof, and not connected in any manner with the 
 stand-pipes, should be provided. The sprinklers 
 
96 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 should be installed above-and around the proscenium- 
 opening, on the ceiling or roof of the stage, under the 
 rigging-loft, under the fly-galleries, and under the 
 stage, at such intervals as will protect every square 
 foot of stage. Sprinklers should also be installed in 
 the carpenter and paint shops, in the store-room and 
 property-room, and in the boiler-room. It is desirable 
 to provide sprinklers in all dressing-rooms, and where 
 the loft over the auditorium is used for any purpose 
 this should also be so protected. 
 
 The sprinkler system should be provided with one 
 or several outside fire-department connections to which 
 the fire-engines may be hitched, and with automatic 
 inside and outside fire-alarm. The fire-tank should 
 have a low-water alarm that will ring a bell in the 
 pump-room. 
 
 Sometimes the stage is protected by a perforated- 
 pipe system in place of the automatic-sprinkler system, 
 and the valves controlling the flow of water to the 
 rows of pipes are operated from the same place on the 
 stage where the fire-curtain, the stage ventilator, and 
 the auditorium vent registers are operated. 
 
 In addition to the fire-valves and the sprinklers, 
 each theatre should have a number of portable chem- 
 ical or compressed-air hand fire-extinguishers, and a 
 large number of fire-pails or buckets. The fire-pails 
 should be hung on hooks or set on shelves, and placed 
 on the stage, in the fly-galleries, in the rigging-loft, 
 under the stage, and on all the tiers of the auditor- 
 ium, on both sides of the theatre. Fire-pails should 
 be painted a bright red and marked " FOR FIRE." 
 They should be constantly refilled, and must not be 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 97 
 
 used for other purposes. Sometimes so-called " in- 
 surance " or " chemical " fire-pails are used, which 
 contain a non-freezing, fire-extinguishing solution, in 
 liquid or in powder form, and which are protected 
 by tin-foil against evaporation. 
 
 On the stage there should also be large casks of 
 water, of from forty to fifty gallons capacity, to refill 
 the pails and to form a supply for hand force-pumps. 
 Moreover, there should be provided wet sponges or 
 swabs on long poles, wet blankets, asbestos sheets, 
 asbestos gloves, boxes of sand to extinguish burning 
 oil, various lengths of fire-hook poles, etc. 
 
 Finally, there should be on each floor of the audi- 
 torium, on each tier of the stage, and in the corridors 
 dividing the stage proper and the dressing-rooms, fire- 
 axes with pick heads, axe-brackets, and knives for the 
 use of the firemen and the theatre employes. 
 
 Steam-jets or nozzles for extinguishing fires may be 
 fitted up in inaccessible corners and in the rigging- 
 loft, but neither on the stage nor in the auditorium 
 should steam be used as an extinguisher, as it would 
 tend to increase the fright and confusion during a fire 
 or panic.* 
 
 Life-saving Appliances. 
 
 When a fire breaks out in a crowded theatre the 
 first thought should be the safety of the audience and 
 of the people in the stage-house, and the saving of 
 property or of the building should be a second con- 
 sideration. The fire-proof curtain and the stage 
 
 * See Chapter III. for further details. 
 
98 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 ventilator may be classed among the life-saving appli- 
 ances. We may also consider as arrangements tending 
 to save life, the provision of plenty of wide aisles, 
 and of numerous fire-proof stairs and exits. The 
 auxiliary lighting of the latter may also be considered 
 a necessary feature for the saving of the audience. 
 
 Special life-saving appliances, such as scaling- 
 ladders, extension-ladders, a large jumping-net, a 
 chute or flume-escape, rope or pulley escapes, smoke- 
 respirators, are generally carried by the fire-brigade. 
 Some of these for instance, the jumping-net may 
 with advantage be kept in readiness at each theatre, 
 to assist in saving life. 
 
 Fire-alarms. 
 
 Every theatre must be fitted up with a complete 
 fire-alarm system. This should include telephonic 
 and telegraphic connection with the nearest fire-engine 
 station, and also with the headquarters of the fire- 
 department, so that in case of an outbreak of fire 
 the firemen may be immediately notified. In large 
 theatres it is desirable to have other means to indicate 
 quickly the presence of flames. Thermostats, or 
 heat-indicators, may be suitably placed and distributed 
 throughout the house, which indicate in the manager's 
 office the presence of undue heat or fire at any point. 
 The automatic-sprinkler system should always be fitted 
 up with a fire-alarm, which rings a gong on the stage 
 or in the office, and another gong on the outside of 
 the building, as soon as any sprinkler has been put in 
 operation. There should be a fire-alarm telegraph, 
 connecting the manager's office with the pump or 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 99 
 
 boiler-room, so that the engineer can be immediately 
 notified, in case of fire, to look after the boilers and 
 the fire-pump. In some recent European theatres all 
 the doors leading to the stage and the fire-doors in 
 the proscenium-wall are fitted with a system of alarms, 
 indicating in the office when any of the doors are not 
 closed. Such alarms must, of course, be switched off 
 during the rehearsals and performances, but at all 
 other hours they indicate whether the stage is com- 
 pletely shut off from the rest of the building. 
 
 Questions of Management. 
 
 There are many points in the management of a 
 theatre which tend, directly or indirectly, to increase 
 the safety of such buildings from the danger of fire, 
 and which likewise affect the safety of the theatre- 
 going public. To some of these I shall make brief 
 reference. 
 
 Strict discipline and order should prevail on the 
 stage. The theatre staff should be called together 
 regularly for fire-drills, and for instruction in the use 
 of the fire-extinguishing and life-saving appliances. 
 Each employe" should be entrusted to perform a par- 
 ticular duty in case of a fire. 
 
 There should be at all times a theatre watchman, 
 and at night, in particular, a special night-watchman. 
 His duty should consist in making frequent trips, at 
 regular intervals, to all parts of the building, and it is 
 advisable to have his faithfulness controlled and his 
 inspections recorded by an electric watchman's clock. 
 
 No open lights or open fires should be allowed in 
 any room near the stage or on the latter. The rooms 
 
, 
 or \JF 
 
 IOO THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 for the storage of theatrical costumes should, at night, 
 be entered only with safety lanterns. The use of 
 candles or oil-lamps in the dressing-rooms, the use of 
 wax or parlor matches, and likewise the smoking of 
 cigars, cigarettes, or pipes should be prohibited. 
 Smoking on the stage, if required in the scenes of a 
 performance, should be restricted as much as possible. 
 Candelabras with candles and oil-lamps, if used in the 
 play, should be handled with extreme care. 
 
 The practice of a sudden and unannounced darken- 
 ing of the auditorium, during changes in stage-setting 
 with raised curtain, is dangerous, and may precipitate 
 a panic. 
 
 Special care should be observed and strict regula- 
 tions issued regarding the use of firearms, the burn- 
 ing of fireworks, the use of colored and calcium lights, 
 so frequently introduced in spectacular plays, the 
 dancing with lighted torches, or even the representa- 
 tion of actual fire scenes on the stage. The wads for 
 rifle or pistol shots should be of calf's hair or asbestos 
 wool, and not of paper. 
 
 Trained firemen should be in attendance on the stage 
 during every performance. The firemen should be in 
 charge of the appliances for the extinction of fires, and 
 should satisfy themselves by personal inspection 
 shortly before each performance that they are in good 
 working order and ready for instant use. The fire 
 stand-pipes and valves should not be obstructed. 
 There should be a penalty enforced for using fire-pails 
 for other purposes. During performances the fire, 
 pump should be constantly kept under the steam 
 pressure required to operate the same. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. IOI 
 
 The safety appliances should be in charge of a 
 special trusted inspector. He should, if practicable, 
 have on the stage an office or watch-tower, from which, 
 like the operator in a central-switch railroad tower, he 
 can operate the fire-proof curtain, the stage-roof ven- 
 tilators, the registers of the ventilators in the audi- 
 torium ceiling, the perforated-pipe system forming a 
 water-curtain at the proscenium-opening, and the fire- 
 alarm apparatus. He should also have telephone 
 communication with the theatre-manager's office, with 
 the engine or pump room, and with the nearest fire- 
 department station. 
 
 The fire-proof treatment and impregnation of light 
 dresses and gauze costumes should be insisted upon, 
 particularly for the ballet-dancers, and the treatment 
 should be renewed after each washing. 
 
 Besides the automatic alarms on the stage, in the 
 manager's-room, and in the engine-room, a theatre 
 should be connected by telephone and by fire tele- 
 graph with the nearest fire-station and with the head- 
 quarters of the fire-department. 
 
 The constant use of all safety appliances should be 
 insisted upon. At every performance the fire-curtain 
 should be lowered to insure its proper working in 
 times of need. 
 
 Likewise should all theatre exits be thrown open and 
 used nightly, so as to have the public become familiar 
 with them. The oil-lamps in corridors and staircases 
 should be lighted every night, and not extinguished 
 until the entire audience has left the theatre. All 
 exit doors should be plainly marked in large and dis- 
 tinctly legible letters. It is a good plan to mark all 
 
102 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 other doors, which do not lead to exits, either by the 
 words " no exit," or else to designate them so that 
 they may be easily recognized, as for instance, 
 ' ' toilet, " "buffet, f f " cloak-room, " "office, " 
 " ladies' retiring-room," etc. 
 
 The exits and staircases should be plainly shown on 
 clearly printed plans of the theatre, hung up in con- 
 spicuous places in the foyers or corridors. The theatre 
 plans and the exits should be printed on every theatre 
 programme, and in a way so as to be clearly legible. 
 
 The number of persons admitted to a theatre should 
 be strictly limited by law according to its seating 
 capacity, and it is better still to license each division 
 of the auditorium for a fixed number of persons. 
 
 No standing-room should be permitted, nor should 
 camp-stools be used in the aisles. The open courts 
 at the sides of the theatre should not be used for tem- 
 porary storage of theatre trunks or stage scenery, but 
 they, as well as all passages, should be kept clear from 
 all encumbrances. 
 
 The utmost cleanliness should be maintained 
 throughout a theatre, not only in the auditorium, but 
 also on the stage, in the dressing-rooms, the toilet- 
 rooms, and the places under the stage. The daily 
 removal of all dirt, dry dust, sweepings, shavings, 
 rubbish, oily rags, and other waste materials of all 
 kinds must be performed with regularity. Pending 
 removal, oily rags or cotton waste should be kept 
 stored in metal boxes, closed by iron lids, and raised 
 up from the floor on legs. 
 
 The theatre-director and stage-manager should at 
 all times remember that the safety of the audience 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 1 03 
 
 is the chief consideration. To accomplish this the 
 strictest rules and regulations should be enforced, in 
 order, first, to prevent the outbreak of a fire; second, 
 to localize and confine a fire when it does break out ; 
 third, to protect the audience against fire and panic; 
 fourth, to secure safe egress in case of fire or panic to 
 the audience and to the theatre employes and actors ; 
 and fifth, to extinguish a fire in its incipiency, before it 
 has a chance to spread and carry destruction. 
 
 The law should require every theatre-manager to 
 have in the office of the theatre a complaint-book, 
 which should be accessible to the public and to the 
 press. In this book every person observing some real 
 defect should call attention to the same, so that the 
 complaint may be brought to the notice of the authori- 
 ties for investigation and remedy. 
 
 No interior alterations affecting either the plan or 
 the arrangement and construction should be made in 
 any existing theatre without the approval of the build- 
 ing or fire departments. 
 
 Periodical Inspection. 
 
 A few words, in conclusion, about theatre inspec- 
 tions. Eternal vigilance forms the only assurance of 
 continued safety in a theatre. There should be, to 
 begin with, examinations and visits to all parts of the 
 building after each evening and matinee performance. 
 Then there should be general and frequent examina- 
 tions, either by the architect who designed the struc- 
 ture, and who is more than any one else familiar with 
 all its features, or by a specially appointed committee 
 of experts. Such a committee would be suitably 
 
104 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 composed of the following members, viz., the manager, 
 an architect, a builder, an underwriter or a member 
 of the fire-department, an hydraulic engineer, and an 
 expert electrical engineer. 
 
 A periodical inspection in detail of all gas and water 
 fittings, frequent tests of the gas-pipes, of the fire- 
 pump, of the automatic-sprinkler system, and of all 
 other fire appliances; of the electric-lighting sys- 
 tem, of the fire-telegraph and fire-alarm systems, and 
 of the various other electric equipments; of the fire- 
 proof curtain, the stage-roof ventilators, and the light- 
 ning-rod protection, these are all necessary to prevent 
 a failure in the working of any of the safeguards in 
 an emergency. 
 
 There should be, moreover, occasional official in- 
 spections by the authorities, the fire or the building 
 department, preferably without a previous announce- 
 ment. Repeated inspections of new theatre buildings 
 are necessary to prevent any transgressions of the 
 theatre fire law by the theatre-manager, or the engineer 
 in charge of the theatre, after the same has passed 
 inspection and received the approval of the authorities. 
 It also sometimes happens that after the theatre 
 license has once been obtained internal changes in 
 arrangement or equipment are made which would be 
 contrary to the rules, and which would have a ten- 
 dency to reduce the safety of the building. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 105 
 
 III. 
 
 THE WATER-SERVICE AND FIRE PROTECTION 
 OF THEATRES.* 
 
 EVERY effort is nowadays made to make theatre 
 buildings as fire-resisting and safe as possible. Having 
 been recently engaged in the preparation of plans and 
 specifications, and in superintending the installation 
 of the water and gas service plant and the fire-extin- 
 guishing appliances of several modern theatres, I have 
 prepared a paper, giving a detailed description of the 
 general features and fundamental requirements of the 
 water and fire-protection service in theatres, in the 
 hope that it may prove of use to architects, engineers, 
 underwriters, and theatre-managers, and of general 
 interest to all persons frequenting such places of amuse- 
 ment. By way of introduction it may be well to sum- 
 marize briefly the chief elements which together con- 
 stitute a safe and fire-resisting building. 
 
 General Requirements of Safety in Theatres. 
 
 The chief conditions of safety for theatre buildings 
 are the following: 
 
 I. As Regards the Location. The theatre to be, if 
 possible, either isolated on all sides, or standing free 
 
 * This paper was originally prepared for the annual meeting of the 
 New England Water-works Association, held in Boston, June, 1894. 
 
IO6 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 on three sides. If located in a block, the building to 
 have the full front on the public street, with a wide 
 open court on either side. If placed on a corner lot, 
 a wide court to be arranged at one side. 
 
 II. As Regards the Plan. The chief divisions of the 
 theatre to be entirely separate and distinct from each 
 other. The stage to be separated from the auditorium, 
 the dressing-rooms from the stage, the auditorium 
 from the lobby, entrances, and staircases, by strong 
 fire-walls. 
 
 The vertical subdivisions of the auditorium, the 
 orchestra, dress-circle, balcony, and the galleries to be 
 separated from each other by fire-proof floors and 
 ceilings. Each division to have at least two separate 
 and ample means of egress. 
 
 The stage to have at least two separate exits to the 
 street. 
 
 The scene-docks, the carpenter's and painter's 
 shops, and other workshops to be located in a separate 
 fire-proof annex. 
 
 No living apartments to be planned in a theatre. 
 No stores to be provided, except they are entirely 
 isolated, fireproofed, and not in communication with 
 the theatre. 
 
 III. As Regards the Construction. The whole build- 
 ing to be constructed in a fire-resisting manner. All 
 divisions to be enclosed by fire-walls carried above the 
 roof. All staircases, corridors, floors, and ceilings and 
 partitions to be built fire-proof. All roofs to be fire- 
 proof. 
 
 The sides of the stage, the fly-galleries, the rigging- 
 loft, and the stage roof to be built in a fire-proof 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. IO/ 
 
 manner. As little combustible material as possible to 
 be used on the stage proper, and steel-wire ropes to be 
 substituted for hemp ropes wherever practicable. 
 
 All dressing-rooms to be built fire-proof. 
 
 The boxes and fronts of balconies and galleries, the 
 frame of the proscenium-opening, and the auditorium 
 ceiling to be built of fire-proof material. 
 
 The main auditorium floor to be located on the 
 street level, not in an upper story. All open stair 
 wells to be avoided as dangerous, and all stairs to be 
 enclosed in fire-walls. 
 
 IV. As Regards the Interior Arrangement and 
 Equipment. The opening in the proscenium-wall be- 
 tween the stage and the auditorium to be provided with 
 a fire-proof iron or asbestos curtain. The apparatus 
 for raising or lowering the fire-curtain to be on the 
 stage, and not in the rigging-loft. Other openings in 
 the proscenium-wall to be only at or below the stage 
 level, to be as few in number as possible, and to be 
 closed with automatic fire-proof iron or double tinned 
 wooden doors. 
 
 The roof over stage to be provided with a large 
 automatic stage ventilator or with sliding skylights, 
 held closed by hemp rope run down to the stage 
 level. 
 
 The central lustre in the auditorium ceiling and its 
 ventilator to be abolished. 
 
 None of the windows in the building to be provided 
 with iron grilles or gratings. 
 
 All seats to be securely fastened to the floor, and 
 not more than thirteen seats to be placed between 
 aisles. No camp-stools to be placed in the aisles. 
 
IO8 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 All aisles, passages, corridors, and stairs to be kept 
 free at all times from all obstructions. The aisles to 
 have gradients, and not steps. 
 
 Separate stairs and exits to the street to be pro- 
 vided in sufficient number and width for each part of 
 the audience, permitting the complete emptying of 
 the theatre in from two to three minutes. 
 
 All stairs to have even and uniform treads and 
 risers, and to be provided on both sides with strong 
 handrails. No single steps or winding stairs to be per- 
 mitted. 
 
 All doors to open outward and in such a manner as 
 not to obstruct the passages. 
 
 Fire-escape balconies and outside iron stairs leading 
 to the open courts or the street to be provided with 
 at least two exits from each tier, and at least one such 
 fire-escape to be located on each side of the audi- 
 torium. Iron fire-ladders for use of the firemen to be 
 provided on the outside walls. 
 
 The theatre to be heated from one central heating 
 apparatus. The steam-boilers to be placed outside of 
 the building proper. The boiler smoke-flue to be lined 
 with tile-pipe. 
 
 The lighting of the stage, and that of the passages, 
 stairs, exits, lobbies, and rear portion of the auditor- 
 ium, to be from separate gas-mains. Each of these 
 two gas-mains to be controlled by shut-offs on the side- 
 walk. 
 
 The gas-meters to be located in well-ventilated fire- 
 proof and isolated vaults. 
 
 All open gas-flames to be surrounded with large 
 wire cages, and all bracket lights to be stiff. All foot- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PRE^ENTlOJ^. 1 69 
 
 lights, border-lights, and bunch-lights to have special 
 means of protection. 
 
 The lighting of foot and border lights to be done 
 by means of electric flash-lighting, and not with alcohol 
 torches. 
 
 Auxiliary oil-lamps or candles, protected against 
 draft, to be provided in corridors, stairs, and exits. 
 
 All woodwork of stage, all decorative scenery, and 
 all gauze costumes to be impregnated and rendered 
 fire-proof. 
 
 The building to be protected against lightning by a 
 well-equipped system of lightning-rods. 
 
 Finally, provision to be made for plenty of efficient 
 fire-extinguishing appliances, always kept in readiness, 
 and to include outside fire-hydrants, a fire-pump, lines 
 of stand-pipes, with fire-valves in each tier of audi- 
 torium and of stage, and with fire-hose attached; an 
 automatic-sprinkler system, with tank-supply and fire- 
 department outside connection, casks of water, fire- 
 pails, portable chemical extinguisher apparatus, pick- 
 axes, fire-hooks, and other appliances, as described 
 further on in detail. 
 
 V. As Regards the Management. The fire-curtain 
 to be used at each performance. 
 
 All doors, exits, and stairs to be kept open and 
 used at each performance. 
 
 Doors not leading to exits to be marked with the 
 name of the room to which they lead, or simply by 
 the words " no exit." 
 
 All exits to be plainly marked in large legible letters. 
 
 After the performance lights in the auditorium not 
 to be lowered until the audience has left. 
 
IIO THEATRE FlRES AND PANICS: < 
 
 The auxiliary oil-lamps or candles in stairs, corridors, 
 and exits to be lighted before each performance, and 
 not to be extinguished until the entire audience has 
 dispersed. 
 
 The oil-lamps to be filled, cleaned, and trimmed by 
 daylight only. 
 
 Safety lanterns in place of open lights to be used in 
 entering large wardrobes. 
 
 Smoking in the theatre and in the dressing-rooms 
 to be prohibited. 
 
 Strict rules to be enforced regarding careful use of 
 fireworks and firearms on the stage. Paper wads for 
 pistols and guns to be prohibited. 
 
 Open fires and open lights, candelabras with candles, 
 and oil-lamps on the stage to be used carefully. 
 The use of matches to be restricted fo the kind known 
 as " safety " matches. 
 
 The complete darkening of ihe auditorium during 
 scene-shifting with raised curtain to be previously 
 announced to the audience to prevent a false alarm 
 or panic. 
 
 Renewal of chemical impregnation of all gauze 
 dresses after each washing. 
 
 The fire-appliances to be kept in readiness, the fire- 
 valves to be kept unencumbered, the fire-pails to be 
 always kept filled with water, and access to the fire- 
 valves not to be blocked. 
 
 The automatic fire-alarm to be kept in order. 
 
 The theatre to be in telegraphic and telephonic 
 communication with the nearest fire - department 
 station. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. iil 
 
 A fire-watch to be provided during performances, 
 and also a permanent night-watch. 
 
 All oily rags and cotton waste to be stored in metal 
 vessels with tight cover. 
 
 Frequent removal of all accumulation of oily waste, 
 rubbish, paper and litter, dirt and dust. 
 
 Storage of large quantities of scenery on or behind 
 the stage not to be tolerated. 
 
 Plans of the building to be hung up in conspicuous 
 places in the theatre, and to be printed on all pro- 
 grammes, with the position of stairs and exits legibly 
 marked. 
 
 Life-saving appliances to be kept on hand. 
 
 A fire-drill to be organized among the theatre em- 
 ployes and stage-hands. 
 
 No greater number of tickets of admission to be 
 issued than that for which each division of the theatre 
 is licensed. 
 
 No standing-room to be permitted in any aisles. 
 
 VI. As regards Inspection. A nightly inspection 
 of the building, including a visit to every part of the 
 theatre after each performance, to be insisted upon. 
 
 The faithfulness of the night-watchman to be con- 
 trolled by an electric watchman's clock. 
 
 The theatre to be frequently reinspected by its 
 architect, by experts, by underwriters, or by the fire- 
 department, the inspections to take place preferably 
 at unexpected hours. 
 
 Periodical tests of all gas-piping, of all fire-appa- 
 ratus, of the fire-alarm, telegraph connections, of the 
 automatic stage-roof ventilator, and of the lightning- 
 rods to be carried out. 
 
112 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 Important as the observance of all these require- 
 ment is in the case of the newer and better constructed 
 theatres, it is quite obvious that in the older theatres, 
 which have been erected without any regard to fire- 
 resisting qualities, they are, with the exception of those 
 relating to fire-proof construction, still more indis- 
 pensable to secure the safety of the audience and of the 
 actors. As regards, in particular, the fire-service, 
 which I am about to describe, it is self-evident that if 
 it is needed in a theatre constructed in a fire-proof 
 manner, it is absolutely indispensable as a protection 
 for such structures as are flimsy in construction, 
 highly combustible, and in many cases exceedingly 
 hazardous. 
 
 Fire-extinguishing Appliances. 
 
 I will now take up the subject proper of my paper, 
 and I propose to discuss in detail the fire-appli- 
 ances needed for the extinguishment of fires in 
 theatres. A theatre building may be planned and 
 constructed in a fire-resisting manner and with all due 
 precautions to prevent the rapid spreading of the 
 flames, yet in spite of all conceivable measures of 
 safety a fire may break out. Therefore, ample fire- 
 appliances must be on hand and kept in constant 
 readiness to fight the fire and to put out the flames. 
 All fire-extinguishing apparatus should be of the very 
 best of its kind, and it should always be properly cared 
 for and kept in working order and ready for instant 
 use. 
 
 A complete fire protection of a theatre must include: 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 11$ 
 
 1. Outside fire-hydrants; 
 
 2. Inside stand-pipes, with fire-valves, fire-hose, 
 and fire-nozzles, supplied from direct street pressure 
 or from 
 
 3 . Tanks ; or from 
 
 4. Fire-pumps; 
 
 5. An automatic-sprinkler system, with elevated 
 water-tank and outside or fire-department connection ; 
 
 6. A system of perforated pipes on the stage over 
 the proscenium-opening; 
 
 7. Fire-pails and casks of water; 
 
 8. Chemical or portable fire-extinguishers; 
 
 9. A series of wet sponges on long poles; 
 
 10. Wet woollen blankets, asbestos sheets, and 
 asbestos gloves ; 
 
 11. Steam-nozzles or jets; 
 
 12. Fire-axes, fire-hooks, and knives. 
 Acknowledgment must in this place be made to 
 
 the valuable services rendered to the cause of fire 
 protection and fire extinction of all classes of risks by 
 the researches and labors of the engineers of the 
 Mutual Factory Assurance Companies of Boston, to 
 many of Mr. C. J. H. Woodbury's papers on mill 
 protection and on automatic sprinklers in particular, 
 and to Mr. John R. Freeman's able specifications for 
 fire-pumps, and fire-hose, and his elaborate and pains- 
 taking experiments on fire-streams and fire-nozzles. 
 Taken together, these contain the most important 
 facts upon the subject ever published, and the valu- 
 able conclusions reached by them may with advantage 
 be applied to the equipment of fire-service plants in 
 theatres. 
 
H4 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 i. WATER-SUPPLY AND WATER-MAINS. 
 
 For the outside protection of theatres it is necessary 
 that there should be a large water-main in the street 
 or streets where the building is located. The size of 
 the main should be at least 8 inches in diameter, 
 while a 10 or 12 inch main would be still better. To 
 this main should be connected the various outside 
 hydrants for fire-department use, located in front of 
 the theatre, in sufficient number and at suitable dis- 
 tances apart. 
 
 The outside fire-hydrants should preferably be frost- 
 proof post hydrants, with four independent gate-valve 
 connections, so as to give an opportunity, where the 
 pressure is ample s to bring into play a number of hose 
 streams. The hydrants should be examined frequently 
 during freezing weather, and their working parts must 
 be oiled occasionally with heavy mineral oil. 
 
 A very abundant supply of water for a theatre 
 building is necessary for fire protection. 
 
 The size of the water-supply main run into the 
 theatre is dependent upon the available pressure, and 
 largely upon the number of fire-valves in the building 
 where these are supplied under direct pressure, or else 
 upon the size and capacity of the fire-pump installed. 
 The New York Building Law, for instance, requires 
 " the fire-pump to be of sufficient capacity to supply 
 all lines of hose when operated simultaneously;" but 
 in practice this requirement is never insisted upon, as 
 it would lead, in even medium-sized theatres, to 
 pumps, water-mains, and steam-boilers of unreasonable 
 size. A " four-stream " fire-pump, delivering at the 
 
THEIR CAUSES AMD PREVENTION'. 11$ 
 
 rate of 1000 gallons per minute, and able to supply 
 from four to five fire-streams rated at from 200-250 
 gallons per minute each, would require a 12-inch suc- 
 tion-pipe. It would be next to impossible to secure 
 from the city water-department a connection of this 
 large size with the main. As a rule, a 4-inch sup- 
 ply main is all that is conceded, although a 6-inch 
 supply or two 4-inch supplies from different street 
 mains, and cross-connected within the building, are 
 undoubtedly much to be desired. It is, therefore, 
 evident that a reserve supply, stored in a large suc- 
 tion-tank, should never be omitted, and the smaller 
 the service-pipe obtained, the larger should be the 
 capacity of the suction reservoir. 
 
 The water available for fire protection must be ready 
 under such a pressure as to permit the water to be 
 forced in sufficient volume to all parts of the building. 
 As a rule, in our large cities, the direct or street 
 pressure is insufficient for fire-service. It therefore 
 becomes necessary to supply the inside fire-streams 
 either from sufficiently elevated open fire-tanks, or 
 from closed tanks, operated under compressed air. 
 But such open tanks, even if placed above the highest 
 part of the stage roof, would fail to give a suitable 
 fire-pressure (45 or 50 Ibs.), except on the lower floors 
 of the theatre. Closed tanks, operated by compressed 
 air, require air-compressors and engines, and this 
 means further complications in the mechanical plant 
 of the building; therefore fire-pumps are usually sub- 
 stituted, and with an ample and sufficient steam-boiler 
 capacity, and steam kept at proper high presssure, give 
 in practice the best results as regards fire-pressure. 
 
Il6 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 The four or six inch water-main is usually made of 
 heavy cast-iron water-pipe, outside of the building, 
 whereas in the building asphalted or galvanized 
 wrought-iron pipe with screw-joints is used. It is 
 necessary to place a shut-off valve on this branch out- 
 side of the building, so that in case of breakage of the 
 inside water-main the water would not uselessly run 
 to waste and flood the cellar, and also so as not to 
 reduce the supply to the outside hydrants. Particular 
 care should also be taken to run the inside main where 
 it would be at all times protected against injury. 
 
 2. WATER-METER AND BY- PASS. 
 
 Theatres in this country are private enterprises, 
 always erected, managed, and owned by individuals, 
 firms, or corporations, and hence the water taken into 
 the building is subject to the usual water-tax. In 
 most cases the water-department insists on supplying 
 the water by meter measurement. The water from 
 the four or six inch main should therefore pass 
 through a meter of corresponding size, and shut-off 
 gate-valves must be placed on each side of the water- 
 meter in order to be able to disconnect and exchange 
 the same in case of repair. It is, however, in my judg- 
 ment, not only unnecessary, but objectionable, to re- 
 quire that in case of an emergency the fire-pump should 
 draw its supply through a meter. In several theatres, 
 the fire protection of which was under my charge, I 
 therefore endeavored to obtain from the city water- 
 department a full-size by-pass, controlled by a gate- 
 valve. My intention was that this by-pass valve should 
 ordinarily be kept strapped and sealed with a seal of 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 117 
 
 the water-department to prevent the unlawful use of 
 the valve, and that it should be cut and the valve 
 opened only in case of fire, so as to admit a direct 
 supply to the fire-pump. I learn that such by-passes 
 are granted for this purpose in France and Germany, 
 but I was unable to convince the New York City 
 Water Department of the desirability of such a device, 
 and the by-pass arrangement proposed did not receive 
 the approval of the authorities, although no good 
 reason was given for the refusal. 
 
 3. SHUT-OFFS AND GATE-VALVES. 
 
 All supply-mains and the distributing service-pipes 
 in a theatre should be controlled by valves made of 
 gun-metal, in the best manner, and only the best 
 quality of valves should be purchased. Globe-valves 
 should not be used, gate- valves being much preferable, 
 because they have a full waterway. At the pumps 
 angle-valves may be used on the suction-pipes. 
 
 The fire lines starting at the fire-pump and connect- 
 ing with the stand-pipes should preferably not have 
 any shut-off valves, or else if valves are used they 
 must be kept open and strapped; otherwise it may 
 happen in a case of emergency that on turning open 
 a fire-valve no water will be had, the gate- valve on 
 the line having been accidentally closed in the cellar. 
 All valves should be provided with wheel handles, and 
 these should be marked with arrows indicating the 
 direction in which they open. It is also recommended 
 to provide all water-valves with telltales showing 
 automatically at all times and at a glance whether the 
 valves are open or closed. Such telltale indicators 
 
Il8 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 may be obtained from many of the firms making the 
 manufacture of gate-valves a specialty, and among the 
 best are those of the Chapman, Ludlow, Kennedy, 
 and Walworth Manufacturing Companies. 
 
 4. FIRE-PUMPS. 
 
 The fire-pumps installed in theatres are either rotary 
 steam-pumps of the fire-engine type, or else direct- 
 acting steam fire-pumps. Excellent rotary steam 
 fire-pumps are made by manufacturers of steam fire- 
 engines, but in theatres the direct-acting pump is used 
 to a much greater extent. While the ordinary so-called 
 fire-pumps will answer the purpose, it is advisable to 
 use in theatres the best procurable kind of pump. Of 
 these the " Underwriter pattern " steam fire-pump is 
 without doubt the most advanced and most serviceable 
 type of direct-acting pump. I will give a brief state- 
 ment of its chief features, based upon the admirable 
 and elaborate specifications prepared by Mr. John R. 
 Freeman, Hydraulic Engineer to the Associated Fac- 
 tory Mutual Insurance Companies, to which I refer for 
 further details. 
 
 The " Underwriter" fire-pump is a pump of the 
 " Duplex " type, built in a very heavy and substan- 
 tial manner, and fitted with certain improvements. 
 This pump differs from the ordinary direct-acting fire- 
 pumps in the following points, viz. : 
 
 i . The steam-ports and the water-passages are made 
 more direct, and from 25 to 50 per cent larger; the 
 suction-pipe and the air-chambers are increased in size 
 correspondingly, so as to make the pump more power- 
 ful and able to deliver a larger volume of water with- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. IIQ 
 
 out water-hammer, and so as to permit the pump to 
 be run at high speed. 
 
 2. The principal working parts of the pump are 
 made rust-proof, so as to permit the pump to start 
 instantly after long periods of disuse. Thus the 
 piston-rods and valve-rods are made of Tobin bronze 
 instead of steel, and the water-plungers and stuffing- 
 boxes are made of brass instead of cast iron. 
 
 3. The shells, castings, and the bolting are war- 
 ranted especially strong, to withstand heavy press- 
 ures, and the whole pump is accordingly built heavier. 
 
 4. The pump is provided with numerous special 
 attachments, such as a large vacuum chamber, a 
 water-pressure gauge, a steam-pressure gauge, a water 
 safety or relief valve, a set of brass priming-pipes and 
 special valves, a number of hose-valves on delivery 
 end of pump, a stroke gauge, a sight-feed lubricator, 
 and a capacity plate, all of which fittings are not in- 
 cluded in the ordinary style of fire-pumps. 
 
 Fire-pumps are usually required to start at a mo- 
 ment's notice and to run at double the piston speed 
 of boiler-feed or house pumps, and the above require- 
 ments are found in practice necessary to enable the 
 pumps to run without jar or water-hammer. 
 
 Underwriter fire-pumps are now manufactured by 
 all the principal manufacturers of direct-acting pumps, 
 and nearly all of them have adopted a 12 -inch stroke 
 as preferable, although a few still adhere to a lo-inch 
 stroke. 
 
 There are five sizes of Underwriter pumps made, 
 and the chief dimensions of these are given in the 
 following table : 
 
120 
 
 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 -jiy jo 
 
 jaqureqD-umn 
 J A"} 
 
 jo 3zi 
 
 l^yi it f|i 
 
 
 adid 
 jo ' 
 
 ad id 
 
 -UIB3JS JO J3J3UJBIQ 
 
 -SIQ jo J3J3U1BICI 
 
 adid-uop 
 
 ong jo 
 
 -JBH joj paads 
 
 UOJSIJ JO 
 
 33JOJ1S JO 
 
 'ja 
 
 JO 
 
 .2 .2 
 
 091 M tg M 
 
 of i M o^ 
 
 Jl'sid'jj Szi 'uiai jad - A3J S/C -is 'ui 
 
 2 
 
 en ro 
 
 8' o 
 
 jg c 
 
 
 
 dranj uo 
 
 JO -0 
 
 c 
 .2 
 
 y 
 
 1- 
 
 yj 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 121 
 
 Details of Underwriter Fire-pump. In all except 
 the largest size of fire-pumps the ratio of steam- 
 cylinder area to water-plunger area is as 3 to I, but 
 where the available steam-pressure is low the ratio 
 should be as 4 to I. 
 
 In the above table 250 gallons is taken as the stand- 
 ard allowance for a good i-J-inch smooth-nozzle fire- 
 stream, and this, for afire-pump supplying a sprinkler 
 system, is equivalent to from 15 to 20 automatic 
 sprinklers. 
 
 All fire-pumps should be built of sufficient strength 
 to stand a steam-pressure of 80 Ibs. with steam-valves 
 wide open, and giving, with all water-valves closed, a 
 water-pressure of 240 to 320 Ibs. per square inch. The 
 pump must be well and strongly bolted in all its parts, 
 and it must be so designed and the strength of the 
 principal dimensions so calculated that a full head of 
 steam may be safely turned on to a cold pump without 
 cracking or breaking same by unequal expansion. 
 
 The piston and valve rods should be of solid Tobin 
 bronze, and the water-plungers must be of solid brass 
 or bronze. All valve-seats to be of U. S. gun-metal 
 composition in order to avoid the sticking of valves. 
 The suction-valves should have a combined area equal 
 to 56 per cent of the plunger area, for pumps running 
 at full speed and with 12-inch stroke. For a lO-inch 
 stroke this proportion should be 50 per cent and for 
 a 1 5 -inch stroke 64 per cent. 
 
 The force or discharge valves should have two thirds 
 of the total port area. 
 
 The steam-port should have not less than 2\ per 
 cent the area of its piston, and the exhaust-port not 
 
122 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 less than 4 per cent. Cushion-valves should be pro- 
 vided to regulate the amount of steam-cushion, and 
 a stroke-gauge to indicate the length of the stroke. 
 
 When the pump draws from an open reservoir only, 
 not over 20 feet away, through a large suction-pipe, 
 the suction or vacuum chamber may be omitted. The 
 air-chamber on the discharge end is quite necessary Li 
 the case of fire-pumps, so as to avoid the constant 
 vibration of the fire-hose, which causes the hose to 
 wear out quickly. It is usually built of cast iron, and 
 should be tested undergo Ibs. hydraulic pressure. It 
 is well to paint this air-chamber inside and outside to 
 reduce its porosity. An air-chamber of hammered 
 copper is preferable on many accounts, although more 
 expensive, and should be tested under 300 Ibs. press- 
 ure. 
 
 Each fire-pump must have a capacity plate, usually 
 attached to the air-chamber, and made of enamelled 
 iron, with large black or blue letters on white ground. 
 
 There should be on discharge end of pump, close to 
 the air-chamber, a water-pressure gauge, with one- 
 fourth-inch lever handle-cock, and attached to the 
 steam-chest inside of the throttle-valve a similar steam- 
 pressure gauge. 
 
 All fire-pumps should be fitted up with a safety relief 
 valve of Ashton or Crosby's make and pattern, which 
 is attached to delivery end of pump, preferably ex- 
 tending horizontally in board of air-chamber. The 
 hand-wheel for regulating the pressure should be 
 within easy reach, and should be conspicuously 
 marked with arrow indicating direction of opening. 
 The safety-valve is ordinarily set at a working pressure 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 123 
 
 of loolbs. per square inch, and its size should be such 
 that if pump runs at 125 Ibs. pressure and two-thirds 
 speed, the valve discharges all the water freely. This 
 discharge should be by a vertical downward pipe one 
 foot long, into a funnel with 6, 8, or lo-inch waste- 
 pipe, according to size of pump. The discharge-pipe 
 is open at the funnel in order to indicate to the 
 engineer running the pump the water wasting through 
 the relief-valve. 
 
 Each fire-pump must have all necessary f-inch bore 
 brass drip or drain cocks, all provided with lever 
 handle. Of these nine are required, as follows: One 
 at each end of the two water-cylinders, one at each 
 end of the two steam-cylinders, and one above the 
 upper deck-valve. 
 
 Four f-inch brass lever handle air-cocks are to be 
 attached to the pump, one at top of each of the four 
 plunger-chambers for use in priming the pump. 
 These air-cocks should preferably be fitted with check- 
 valve which permits outflow and prevents influx of air 
 when the plunger is sucking. 
 
 Each fire-pump should be fitted with a set of i-inch 
 brass priming-pipes, including one 2-inch main valve 
 and four suitable check-valves leading one into" each 
 of the four plunger-chambers. The priming-pipes 
 must lie close to the pump so as to be out of the way 
 of the hose. 
 
 It is preferable to feed these priming-valves from a 
 100 to 200 gallon feed-tank, so that if the city water 
 is shut off the pump is not disabled. 
 
 Where an efficient set of priming-pipes is provided, 
 
124 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 a foot-valv.e on the suction-pipe of the pump is not 
 needed. 
 
 A number of straightway brass fire-valves with hose 
 screw at end suitable for standard 2j-inch fire-hose 
 coupling, are provided at delivery end of each fire- 
 pump. 
 
 All fire-pumps should be tested before acceptance, 
 by a number of tests, for delivery, capacity, strength, 
 etc. 
 
 A fire-pump, set up in good order, properly packed, 
 must run smoothly, noiselessly, without jarring, slam- 
 ming, jumping, hammering, at its full rate of speed 
 (70 revolutions per minute) with full length of stroke, 
 and maintain a water-pressure of 100 Ibs. with from 
 45 to 50 Ibs. steam-pressure. The water during the 
 tests should be discharged through lines of 2j-inch 
 cotton, rubber-lined fire-hose, each line about 150 feet 
 long, and through i-J-inch standard Underwriter 
 smooth fire-nozzles, the hose being connected to the 
 valves at the pump. 
 
 A two-stream pump should be tested with two lines 
 of hose, a four-stream pump with four lines, and so 
 forth. The quietness of the hose is an indication of 
 the perfection of the pump, and bad pulsations in- 
 dicate a non-uniformity of delivery. 
 
 The test for strength is made by shutting nearly, 
 but not quite, all water outlets, so that the pump 
 moves very slowly, and screwing the safety-valve down 
 hard. If steam is admitted sufficient to give 240 Ibs. 
 water-pressure, all pump joints should remain tight. 
 
 Fire-pump for Theatres. As regard the size of 
 fire-pump required for a theatre, the minimum size for 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 12$ 
 
 use in small theatres would be a two-stream pump, 
 having a capacity of 500 gallons per minute; for me- 
 dium-sized theatres I would recommend the use of the 
 four-stream pump, supplying 1000 gallons per minute, 
 and for large theatres either the six-stream pump 
 (capacity 1500 gallons), or, better, two four-stream 
 pumps (combined capacity 2000 gallons). 
 
 Although a large theatre may be provided with 
 from 25 to 50 fire-valves, the requirement that the 
 pump should supply all the streams simultaneously, 
 as it reads for instance in the New York Building Law, 
 seems to me altogether unnecessary, and in practice it 
 is never insisted on. As is well known, most of the 
 theatre fires have their origin on or about the stage, 
 and all that can be reasonably required is that the half 
 a dozen or so fire-valves operated at these points should 
 be supplied with a full and effective stream. If the 
 fire has already gained so much headway that it cannot 
 be checked or controlled by the hose-streams on the 
 stage, persons would rarely be found who would risk 
 their lives by staying in the burning building to handle 
 additional streams. At such times the building had 
 better be turned over to the city fire-brigade and 
 their fire-engines. The chief object of the inside fire- 
 valves is to fight local fires, either on the stage, in the 
 flies, in the dressing-rooms, in the boiler-room, or in 
 some part of the auditorium, before they have gained 
 any considerable headway. 
 
 The fire-pump of a theatre must under all circum- 
 stances be kept ready for instant operation during all 
 performances. Sufficient steam-pressure must be 
 maintained in the boilers for this purpose. The fire- 
 
126 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 pump must be in good order at all times, and should 
 be used at least once a week. 
 
 The fire-pump in theatres is, as a rule, used to 
 supply the fire-tank of the sprinkler system, and a 2\ 
 or 3 inch pump-riser, which has a shut-off valve at 
 the pump, is carried up to this tank. Since the tank 
 of the sprinkler system does not require refilling so 
 often, it is well to make it a practice to use the fire- 
 pump occasionally for filling the house-tank by cross- 
 connecting its discharge end with the pump main for 
 the house-pump. 
 
 The discharge outlet of the pump is fitted up with 
 a manifold, to which all the 2^-inch fire stand-pipes in 
 the theatre are separately connected, without any gate- 
 valves at the manifold. 
 
 An excellent arrangement, which for instance in 
 New York City is made a requirement of the fire and 
 building departments, is that the fire-pump is fitted 
 with an automatic pressure-regulator, so that in case a 
 fire-valve is opened anywhere the fire-pump is started 
 instantly and automatically. I have used for this 
 purpose with success the Fisher pressure-regulator or 
 pump-governor. 
 
 The fire-pump should be placed either in the engine- 
 room or in the boiler-room, where in the event of a 
 fire in the theatre it would be least liable to be affected 
 by the flames. It should be set on proper brick 
 foundations, finished on top with an axed bluestone 
 cap, set perfectly level. The smaller sizes of pumps 
 should be bolted down at the water end only, leaving 
 the steam end free for expansion ; but in the case of the 
 larger sizes of fire-pumps all bolting and anchoring to 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. I2/ 
 
 the foundations is usually omitted, for the large weight 
 of the pumps is sufficient to keep them securely in 
 place. 
 
 The steam-boiler should be of sufficient capacity to 
 furnish ample steam under high pressure to the fire- 
 pump. The boiler should be fed from injectors and 
 from a good-sized boiler feed-pump, to avoid the risk of 
 a boiler explosion in case the water in the boiler should 
 get low when the fire-pump is going at full speed. 
 
 5. SUCTION-RESERVOIR. 
 
 Ordinarily, the fire-pump, as well as the boiler and 
 house-tank pumps, should draw their supply from an 
 open suction-reservoir, and not directly from the sup- 
 ply-mains. This suction-tank, if suitably large, would 
 act in case of a fire as a storage-reservoir for the fire- 
 pump. It is therefore advisable to make this tank as 
 large as the space at disposal and the available means 
 permit. A 2OOO-gallon tank should be considered the 
 minimum size, but where it can be obtained, I should 
 advise using at least a io ; ooo-gallon tank. This would 
 give to a four-stream fire-pump a reserve supply last- 
 ing at least 10 minutes, with the pump going at full 
 speed. 
 
 The suction-reservoir is usually made of boiler-iron 
 sheets, well and tightly riveted together, and strongly 
 stayed and braced. It is supplied from the theatre 
 water-main by a number of ball-cocks of large size. 
 To guard against overflow in case the ball-cocks get 
 out of order it is provided with a large overflow pipe, 
 carried over a trapped and sewer-connected sink. The 
 
128 THEATRE FIRES AND PANIC": 
 
 suction-tank is connected with the fire-pump by a suc- 
 tion-pipe of diameter corresponding to the size of the 
 pump, and it is also connected with the other steam- 
 pumps constituting together the pumping-plant. 
 
 The suction end of the fire-pump is also connected 
 with the direct, supply fom the street main. It is 
 advisable to cross-connect all pumps in this manner, 
 so that in case the reservoir is emptied, for cleaning 
 or other purposes, the pumps are enabled to draw 
 water directly from the street. The suction-pipe of 
 the fire-pump varies from 8 to 12 inches, according to 
 size; and where it connects with the street main, which 
 as stated above is rarely larger than 4 inches, a suitable 
 reducing fitting should be used, and the use of bush- 
 ings should not be permitted. 
 
 A still better fire protection would be obtained by 
 providing two independent supplies to the fire-pump, 
 from mains on different streets, so that in case the fire- 
 engines have arrived arid being connected to the fire- 
 hydrants outside of the theatre exhaust the capacity 
 of the main in front of the theatre, the inside fire-pump 
 would still be kept supplied with water by the second 
 independent main. 
 
 6. FIRE STAND-PIPES. 
 
 At suitable points in the four subdivisions of a 
 theatre, fire stand-pipes, with fire-valves and hose 
 attached, should be placed. The largest number of 
 fire-valves is required on or about the various levels 
 of the stage where a fire is most likely to break out. 
 There should also be fire stand-pipes in the auditorium, 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 1 2$ 
 
 in the corridors and lobbies, and near the dressing- 
 rooms, and they should be so distributed that the 
 remotest corner can be reached by the fire-hose at 
 each of the outlets. 
 
 The number of stand-pipes required and their posi- 
 tion depend, therefore, upon the size and area of the 
 theatre and upon the length of the fire-hose attached 
 to the fire-valves. The New York City Building Law 
 requires that one stand-pipe be provided on each side 
 of the stage, with outlets on every floor and gallery, 
 from the under-stage to the rigging-loft; one stand- 
 pipe on each side of the auditorium, with outlets in 
 each tier from the cellar to the gallery: one in the 
 property-room, and one in the carpenter's shop. Thus, 
 in the new Harrigan Theatre there are four lines, 
 and in the new Fifth Avenue Theatre five lines, of 
 stand-pipes. Larger theatres would require a still 
 greater number. 
 
 The stand-pipes vary in size from 2 to 3 inches, but 
 it is advisable to make 2-J inches the minimum size. 
 All standpipes should stand entirely free from the 
 walls. Each line should be connected directly with 
 the fire-pump in the engine or boiler-room, and, as 
 already stated, there should be no shut-off valve at the 
 pump. The usual material for stand-pipes is galvan- 
 ized wrought iron. In view of the fact that the pipes 
 have to stand an internal fire-pressure of about IOO 
 Ibs. per square inch and sometimes strong shocks and 
 jars from water-hammer, it is advisable to use double 
 or extra heavy wrought-iron pipes. Tinned and 
 annealed brass pipes would, undoubtedly, be prefer- 
 able for fire stand-pipes on account of their greater 
 
I3O THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 interior smoothness, but the cost of brass pipe gen- 
 erally percludes their use. 
 
 The vertical stand-pipes should run as straight as 
 possible, avoiding offsets which mean increased fric- 
 tion. Likewise should the horizontal lines connecting 
 the standpipes with the fire-pump be run as direct and 
 with as few changes in direction as possible. Where 
 changes are necessary, it is far better to use 45 elbows, 
 and right-angle elbows should be entirely avoided. 
 The New York Building Law stipulates that the fire 
 stand-pipes must be connected only with the fire- 
 pump, and not with the fire-tank which supplies the 
 sprinkler-system. 
 
 In many theatres of Europe provision is made for 
 large storage-tanks placed over the highest part of the 
 stage, and filled partly with water and partly with 
 compressed air of at least 75 Ibs. per square inch pres- 
 sure, and in this case the fire-valves and stand-pipes 
 are supplied from these special fire-tanks, which also 
 may supply a system of perforated pipes placed over 
 the stage, which in case of an emergency serve to 
 deluge the stage and stage scenery with water. 
 
 7. FIRE-VALVES. 
 
 At each outlet of the fire lines, and also at the fire- 
 pump, there should be provided a fire-valve. Straight- 
 way gate-valves of best gun-metal, such as made by 
 the Chapman Valve Manufacturing Co., the Ludlow 
 Valve Co., and others, are the best, and they are pref- 
 erable to angle globe-valves, although the latter have 
 the advantage of permitting the hose to hang down 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. \$\ 
 
 straight, and thereby avoid the possible " kinking " 
 of the hose at the valve outlet. Fire-valves should 
 be of the best obtainable make, as those of poor 
 quality and bad workmanship are liable to become 
 stuck in the seats. 
 
 The size of the fire-valve varies from \\ to 2j 
 inches, and in cities where this matter is regulated by 
 building laws the standard fire-department size, viz., 
 2f inches, is called for. 
 
 The number of fire-valves varies according to the 
 number of stand-pipes, the number of tiers or galleries 
 in the audience, and the number of fly-galleries over the 
 stage. Thus, at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New 
 York City, 25 fire-valves have been provided, located as 
 follows, viz. : two in parquet, two in balcony, two in 
 gallery, one on each side in each case, making in all six 
 for the auditorium ; two under the stage where the traps 
 are, two on the stage level, one on each side of the 
 proscenium opening, four in the two fly-galleries on 
 each side of stage, and two in the rigging-loft, making 
 ten in all for the protection of the stage; and one in 
 basement smoking-room, one in engine-room, one in 
 cellar near supers' dressing-rooms, five in the corridors 
 adjoining the actors' dressing-rooms, on the various 
 tiers, and one in the costumer's room on the top floor. 
 
 Large-sized theatres and opera-houses would require 
 a still greater number. 
 
 All fire stand-pipes must be kept free from all en- 
 cumbrances and readily accessible, and nothing should 
 be hung on the fire-valves or the hose-racks. Where 
 these lines are not bronzed with silver, gold, or 
 aluminum bronze, it is desirable to paint the fire 
 
132 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 stand-pipes a bright-red color to make them con- 
 spicuous. A good plan consists in attaching indicat- 
 ing pressure-gauges at some or all outlets of the fire 
 stand-pipes, which show if the available pressure is 
 sufficient for fire purposes. 
 
 8. FIRE-HOSE. 
 
 Only the best kind of hose is suitable for use in a 
 theatre, and no expense should be spared in this 
 direction. It is true that often the cheapest kind of 
 fire-hose, with rough inside and only made " to sell," 
 is provided, merely to comply with the requirements 
 of the law or of the underwriters. But a poor quality 
 of hose, hung up for inspection or exhibition purposes 
 only, will invariably prove worthless, and leak like a 
 sieve or burst when needed in an emergency. 
 
 The fire-hose may be leather hose, or solid rubber 
 hose, or linen or cotton hose lined with rubber, or, 
 finally, unlined linen hose. 
 
 Leather hose is very expensive, besides being stiff 
 and unwieldy, and for these reasons it is not much 
 used, and the same may be said of solid rubber hose. 
 The choice for theatres lies between unlined linen and 
 rubber-lined cotton hose. 
 
 The New York Building Law does not state the 
 kind of hose required, but in the actual inspection of 
 new theatres the department requires all theatre fire- 
 hose to be rubber-lined three-ply fire-department 
 cotton hose, 2\ inches inside diameter, able to stand 
 300 Ibs. pressure per square inch, and it rejects unlined 
 linen hose, even of the best brand. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 133 
 
 Personally, I do not concur in this view. Good 
 woven linen hose can be obtained which is practically- 
 water-tight except for a slight sweating under pressure 
 at the beginning, and which is able to stand a bursting 
 strain of from 300 to 400 Ibs. I should favor, for 
 indoor use in theatres, the use of unlined linen hose, 
 which is not so heavy and difficult to handle as rubber- 
 lined hose. Carefully woven hose may be obtained 
 in brands which have as much smoothness of the inside 
 as is ordinarily required. While rubber-lined hose 
 may be tighter, and therefore will prevent unnecessary 
 damage by leakage of water when new, it is my judg- 
 ment that when hung up in a theatre, and perhaps 
 not used for a long period, the rubber lining will 
 crack or disintegrate, and in such condition the hose 
 will be less useful than a good brand of carefully 
 woven unlined linen hose, which if kept dry will last 
 for many years. 
 
 In this view I believe I am in accord with all ex- 
 perts who have made a special study of the question 
 of suitable material for fire-hose, the universal verdict 
 being that " however suitable rubber-lined linen, 
 rubber, and leather hose may be for public fire-depart- 
 ments, both experience of use and tests show that they 
 are not so well adapted for inside use." The chief 
 argument in favor of rubber-lined hose, namely, that 
 it is not cut or injured when lying over sharp stones, 
 and that it is not worn by horses' hoofs or wagon 
 wheels, does not hold good in the case of fire-hose as 
 applied to the inside fire-valves in theatres. 
 
 Moreover, while I am fully cognizant of the great 
 loss by friction occurring in fire-hose smaller than 2^ 
 
134 TH&ATR& FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 inches in diameter (the loss by friction in a 2 f -inch 
 hose is stated by Mr. Freeman to be only one third of 
 what it is in a 2-inch hose), I am inclined to favor for 
 inside use in theatres, as well as in other public build- 
 ings and institutions, the use of 2-inch, or better even 
 of i J-inch, hose, together with a smaller size of fire- 
 nozzle. Such an outfit would be lighter, more com- 
 pact, and more convenient for quick use. All inside 
 fire-hose in theatres is primarily and chiefly intended 
 for use in an emergency by the theatre employe's, who 
 are seldom, if ever, trained firemen. It is intended for 
 putting out quickly a small fire during its first stages. 
 When a fire in a theatre has once reached a stage 
 where it calls for the action of the city fire-depart- 
 ment, the heat and smoke of a fierce fire would be so 
 great as to drive the men back, and render the inside 
 fire-valves nearly or quite useless. The standard 
 2j-inch rubber-lined or even the unlined cotton hose 
 are much too heavy to be handled with success by 
 ordinary employes. Few men, indeed, realize that 
 it requires the full strength of two firemen to hold a 
 standard fire-nozzle under a water-pressure of only 
 fifty pounds, and that an inexperienced man cannot 
 hold a fire-nozzle if the pressure exceeds 25 or 30 Ibs. 
 At each fire-valve there should be provided at least 
 fifty feet of fire-hose, and the same must be kept always 
 attached to the hose end of the fire-valve. It is im- 
 portant that every corner may be reached by a line of 
 fire-hose, and the location and number of fire stand- 
 pipes and fire-valves should be determined with this 
 object in view. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. I3f> 
 
 9. FIRE-NOZZLES AND COUPLINGS. 
 
 The fire-hose should be provided with well-fastened 
 couplings. If the hose is 2 j- inches in diameter, the 
 couplings should be of standard fire-department size, 
 shape and thread, and the couplings must not be 
 obstructed by washers projecting on the inside. 
 
 Each length of hose must be provided with a well- 
 finished strong brass nozzle. There are numerous 
 shapes and patterns of nozzles, or ' play-pipes." 
 Whatever pattern may be chosen, the inside of the 
 nozzle must be absolutely smooth, and as true as a 
 gun-barrel. Smooth, plain nozzles are the best, and 
 there is no advantage in using ring nozzles. Mr. 
 Freeman's experiments on fire-jets and fire-nozzles 
 established the fact that the discharge stream from a 
 ring nozzle is 2 5 per cent less than that from a smooth, 
 plain nozzle. 
 
 Short nozzles, about I or \\ feet long, are not so 
 easily handled as long nozzles, and their shape is not 
 such as to throw the most efficient jet. It is always 
 better to provide swivel handles at the base of the 
 play-pipe, these being useful not only in holding the 
 nozzle, but also in carrying the hose up a ladder or in 
 shifting hose. The best form of nozzle for 2^-inch 
 hose is probably that designed by Mr. Freeman, and 
 which may be obtained from all dealers in firemen's 
 supplies, under the name of the " Underwriter," or 
 " Factory Mutual," pattern of play- pipe. The prin- 
 cipal dimensions of such play-pipes are: Length over 
 all, 30 inches; diameter at base of play-pipe, 2j inches; 
 diameter at base of standard nozzle, if inches; diam- 
 eter of opening of nozzle, \\ inches. 
 
136 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 It is best to make the play-pipes and nozzles of 
 polished brass or gun-metal, and it is a good plan to 
 have the body of the play-pipe wound outside with 
 cord to secure a better grip and to prevent coldness 
 to the touch. Rubber and cotton fabric play-pipes 
 are not as durable, for both the rubber and the cotton 
 are liable to rot. 
 
 When a ij-inch hose is used for inside protection 
 the fire-nozzle opening need not be larger than J inch. 
 
 Beware of cheap nozzles, made of light or thin brass, 
 rough on the inside, and which easily become dented, 
 battered, or bruised. 
 
 10. MONITOR NOZZLES. 
 
 A very excellent device for fire protection, and one 
 which seems to be particularly adapted for the fire 
 protection of the stage, the fly-galleries, and the rig- 
 ging-loft, is the so-called " Monitor Nozzle," invented 
 by Andrew J. Morse of Boston. It consists substan- 
 tially of a play-pipe attached to a revolving chamber, 
 and provided with means for lowering or raising the 
 play-pipe, thus permitting the hose-pipe to be inclined 
 or elevated at any angle desired, and to be turned 
 into any direction horizontally. Such device would 
 enable the attendant to cover any desired point with 
 the fire-stream. 
 
 This nozzle is similar in construction and operation 
 to the large and very powerful nozzles now in use on 
 the recently built fire-boats of the New York Fire 
 Department.* 
 
 * Since writing the above I learned from Messrs. Morse & Son that 
 the powerful " Monitor nozzle," throwing a solid 5^- inch stream, with 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 137 
 
 One feature of great importance is that if the 
 Monitor nozzle is once pointed in any particular direc- 
 tion, it is so balanced that it will remain in this posi- 
 tion without any attention whatever. This would 
 enable a single man to get an effective stream on a 
 fire, and while he leaves it under operation, to go to 
 another nozzle and thus start a second or several more 
 streams, or else to give the fire-alarm, or to attend to 
 other duties in connection with the saving of life or 
 property during a theatre fire. Moreover, the neces- 
 sary delay incident to the getting out of the fire-hose 
 is avoided, and thus valuable time at the beginning of 
 a fire is saved. This, as experience teaches, often 
 means the saving of the building, from total destruc- 
 tion. Finally, although these Monitor nozzles are 
 expensive, they render the use of fire-hose, which at 
 best lasts not many years, unnecessary, or at least they 
 re'duce the amount of fire-hose needed in a theatre. 
 
 ii. HOSE-RACKS. 
 
 The fire-hose attached to each fire-valve must be 
 hung up or supported in such a manner that it can be 
 readily run out without any twists or kinks, and quickly 
 stretched out on the floor ready for use. There are 
 several devices in the market which accomplish this. 
 
 In the swinging hose-reels the hose is reeled around, 
 while in the Guibert swinging hose-rack the hose is 
 
 which the fireboat "New Yorker" has recently been fitted up, has 
 been manufactured by them, and is of the same construction as the 
 2^-inch " Monitor nozzle" recommended by me for fire protection of 
 theatre stages. 
 
13$ THEATRE FIR&S AND PANICS: 
 
 folded in layers. Either device may be attached to a 
 wall-plate, or else by means of pipe clamps directly 
 to the stand-pipe, where this stands free and a few 
 inches out from the wall. In the racks rubber-lined 
 hose is more difficult to put than unlined hose, and 
 there is danger of the hose cracking in the folds, but 
 for unfolding quickly a length of hose, the rack is 
 undoubtedly superior to the reel. Sometimes the 
 hose is simply hung up on brass hooks or pegs, but 
 this is a crude device* and involves the loss of much 
 valuable time in stretching out the hose. 
 
 A better device is the saddle rack, designed by the 
 Boston Woven Hose and Rubber Co., which takes up 
 less space than other racks and permits the hose to 
 come off easily and without catching. 
 
 Other special devices are Schenck's swinging hose- 
 reel and the Peerless stationary and swinging reels. 
 They are used extensively on the Pacific coast, but 
 the Schenck hose-reel may be obtained in Philadel- 
 phia, Boston, or New York from Eastern agents. 
 
 The swinging hose-racks, so largely employed for 
 unlined linen hose, are made of iron and usually 
 japanned a bright red; but where desired, in conspic- 
 uous locations, they may be made of solid brass, 
 either polished or nickel-plated. If intended for 
 rubber-lined cotton hose, the racks must be made 
 extra strong and extra deep. 
 
 12. HOSE-SPANNERS. 
 
 At each fire- valve there should be provided at least 
 one hose-spanner. Of these there are several good 
 patterns in the market, and among the best are the 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 
 
 Allen and the Taber patent spanners which will turn 
 a coupling to the right or left without removing the 
 spanner from the coupling. 
 
 13. AUTOMATIC-SPRINKLER SYSTEM. 
 
 We have in the foregoing considered one essential 
 form of fire apparatus for the protection of theatres, 
 namely, the fire-pump, with its direct street supply 
 and suction connection from a reserve reservoir, with 
 its connections to numerous fire stand-pipes scattered 
 over the theatre, and each provided with a number of 
 fire-valves with fire-couplings, fire-hose, play-pipes, 
 hose-racks, and spanners, or with Monitor fire-nozzles. 
 The theatre employes should be -entirely familiar with 
 this apparatus, and must be thoroughly drilled in its 
 use. 
 
 We must next consider a second essential system of 
 fire protection of the stage, consisting in the equip- 
 ment of an automatic-sprinkler system. 
 
 The automatic sprinklers which are now so univer- 
 sally fitted up in mill buildings, factories of all kinds, 
 and in warehouses have also been introduced some 
 years ago in the theatres of the United States, and 
 there are instances on record where the timely opening 
 of such sprinklers at the outbreak of a theatre fire 
 saved the building from destruction. 
 
 On January 6, 1891, fire broke out at the Opera- 
 House at Woonsocket, R. I., the cause being a front 
 border light igniting a gauze drop, from where the 
 flames jumped to the drop-curtain. The stage was 
 protected with Grinnell's automatic sprinklers, under 
 
140 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS.- 
 
 a pressure of 100 ll?s. from the city water-supply. 
 Under the gridiron and just above the drop-curtain 
 six sprinkler-heads opened, also three more under the 
 roof, and five more under the stage ventilator. The 
 fire was quenched completely by fourteen sprinklers. 
 
 At the fire at the Union Square Theatre on Feb. 
 28, 1888, the Gray sprinklers saved the building. 
 
 At the New Theatre Royal at Bolton, England, a 
 gas explosion was the cause of a fire which was put 
 out by automatic sprinklers. 
 
 In November, 1882, a fire was extinguished in the 
 Providence Theatre Comique during a play, by auto- 
 matic sprinklers, with so little injury, even to the 
 scenery, that the performance was not stopped. 
 
 I do not know of any European theatre fitted up 
 with automatic sprinklers, except the Theatre Royal 
 at Bolton, just mentioned. The perforated-pipe sys- 
 tem and a water-curtain, of which I shall speak further 
 on, take there the place of the automatic sprinklers. 
 
 A sprinkler system is usually installed in only a por- 
 tion of the theatre, viz., in that portion of the building 
 lying back of the proscenium-wall, where the largest 
 amount of highly combustible material is found, and 
 designated as follows: Under the stage roof, under the 
 gridiron or rigging-loft, under all fly-galleries, and 
 under the stage; to which is often added the scene- 
 docks, the property-room, the carpenter and painter's 
 shop, all actors' dressing-rooms, the rooms for the 
 supers and the ballets, and portions of the basement. 
 
 The loft over the auditorium is seldom piped for 
 sprinklers when the space is not used, nor do the 
 rules of the Board of Fire Underwriters require this. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 14! 
 
 But where this loft is used for storage, particularly of 
 combustible material, it is better to install sprinklers. 
 
 As is well known, there are three principal sprinkler- 
 pipe systems, namely, (i) the ordinary wet-pipe sys- 
 tem; (2) the non-freezing wet-pipe system; and (3) 
 the dry-pipe system. 
 
 The ordinary wet-pipe system is the one in most 
 general use. It is open only to two objections, first, 
 that in buildings not constantly or sufficiently heated 
 it is liable to freeze, and thus become inoperative just 
 at a moment when wanted, or to do damage by water 
 by the bursting of the frozen pipes; second, that in 
 the event of a sprinkler head becoming defective or 
 damaged and opening it is liable to cause damage to 
 the building or its contents by flooding same with 
 water. It may be stated that the best sprinkler heads 
 in the market are now so perfected as to almost pre- 
 clude such an accidental bursting of a head. 
 
 The second or non-freezing wet-pipe system has an 
 open water-tank and a small air-tight iron tank feed- 
 ing the pipes, which are filled with a non-freezing and 
 non-corrosive liquid. It is used where the building in 
 which the sprinkler system is installed cannot be 
 heated. The two tanks are connected by a siphon, 
 so that when a sprinkler opens the system is fed from 
 the water-tank. This system is open to the objection 
 of possible leakage, and, moreover, a possible corro- 
 sion of the sprinkler heads. 
 
 The third or dry-pipe system is extensively advo- 
 cated for buildings in which water-pipes would be 
 liable to freezing. There are several modifications of 
 this system, the pipes in one system being filled with 
 
142 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 compressed air instead of water. In all of these there 
 is great difficulty in making the system absolutely air- 
 tight. Air-pumps are generally provided to keep the 
 air-pressure up, and the system must be frequently 
 watched. An improved dry-pipe system has, in 
 addition to the sprinkler pipes and heads, an inde- 
 pendent air-pipe, with fusible solder-plugs, and when 
 one of these is operated by the heat of a fire an 
 automatic valve is opened admitting the water from the 
 tank to the pipes. 
 
 In theatres the temperature can be at all times kept 
 up to a sufficient degree of heat to insure the non- 
 freezing of the water in the pipe system, and therefore 
 it is the rule to install the ordinary wet-pipe system. 
 
 It is the purpose of an automatic-sprinkler system 
 to extinguish a fire in its incipiency, through the 
 agency of the fire itself. A fire if started opens up 
 only a limited number of sprinkler heads; hence there 
 is no useless waste of water, no unnecessary damage, 
 and the water discharged is concentrated in the spot 
 just where wanted. 
 
 A wet-pipe sprinkler system comprises a wooden 
 Cooper's tank, placed on the highest part of the stage 
 roof, and of a capacity corresponding to the number of 
 sprinkler-heads. The installation for a theatre re- 
 quires generally from 100 to 300 sprinkler-heads, 
 suitably distributed; several i, 2, and 3 inch risers; a 
 separate shut-off valve for each floor or tier; a 2\ to 3 
 inch riser from the pump to the tank; a watchman's 
 automatic fire-alarm with large gongs one on the 
 stage, the other on the outside of the building; a low- 
 water alarm with indicator in the pump or engine- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 143 
 
 room ; one or more 3-inch pipes running from the main 
 riser to the outside of the building, to form a fire- 
 department connection (for auxiliary supply), which is 
 provided with check-valve. 
 
 It is essential that all sprinkler systems should have 
 two independent approved sources of supply, of which 
 one should be always turned on. Speaking generally, 
 the supply to the sprinkler system may be either from 
 a roof tank or from reservoir pressure, or from direct 
 pressure from public street mains, or from special 
 sprinkler fire-pumps, or from fire-department steam- 
 engines by means of the outside fire-department con- 
 nections. 
 
 The following resulting combinations for a double 
 supply are usual, viz. : 
 
 1. Primary supply: The street main. 
 Secondary " An elevated fire-tank on the 
 
 roof. 
 
 2. Primary supply: The street main. 
 Secondary " An automatic steam fire-pump 
 
 with steam always kept on. 
 
 3. Primary supply: An automatic fire-pump. 
 Secondary " A roof tank. 
 
 4. Primary supply : Roof tank. 
 Secondary " Rotary pump. 
 
 5. Primary supply : A roof tank. 
 
 Secondary " A fire-department connection. 
 
 In many of our large cities the street-main supply 
 is out of the question, because the available pressure 
 is insufficient. While it is perfectly feasible to use a 
 rotary or direct-acting fire-pump to supply the system, 
 
144 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 this would, in theatres where one fire-pump is already 
 provided to supply the stand-pipe fire-valves, require 
 a second pump of large capacity, for, as already stated, 
 the fire-pump described heretofore is only to be used 
 for the fire-valves and hose-streams, and to keep the 
 fire-tank on the roof filled. It is therefore usual to 
 choose for theatres the fifth combination, viz., to sup- 
 ply the sprinkler system primarily from a large roof 
 tank, always kept full of water, and as an auxiliary sup- 
 ply to provide one or several outside fire-department 
 connections, which enable the fire-department in case 
 of a theatre fire to connect a steam fire-engine and to 
 keep the sprinkler system on the stage supplied in case 
 the roof tank has discharged its whole contents. 
 
 As regards the sprinkler-heads, any of the approved 
 types, such as the Grinnell, Neracher, Walworth, 
 Harkness, Hill, Kane, Buell, and others, may be 
 used, if satisfactory to and approved by the building 
 or fire department and the Board of Underwriters. 
 
 Sprinkler-heads must be made of non-corrodible 
 metal, and the fusible solder must be of such a com- 
 position that it will be released at 155 to 160 Fahren- 
 heit. The solder-joint of all sprinkler-heads must be 
 so located that when it is acted upon by the fire and 
 about to be released no water or its immediate chilling 
 effect can reach the solder and prevent it from open- 
 ing. 
 
 It is essential that the fusible solder-joint should be 
 absolutely reliable, sensitive, and that it acts quickly 
 and promptly. 
 
 All sprinklers must open full way, and each sprinkler 
 outlet must deliver about one cubic foot of water per 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 145 
 
 minute under the available pressure. Sprinkler-heads 
 must be able to sustain a pressure of 300 Ibs. per 
 square inch without leaking, and they must be capable 
 of operating under five pounds of water-pressure. 
 
 All sprinkler-heads are provided with distributors 
 or deflectors, which divide the stream of water, as it 
 strikes them, into a heavy shower, which thoroughly 
 drenches the fire. These deflectors are stationary in 
 some sprinklers, in others they are revolving or oscil- 
 lating. The sprinkler-heads are placed either above 
 or below the distributing pipes, the former position 
 being slightly preferable because it secures perfect 
 drainage and prevents the lodgment of rust, dirt, or 
 sediment in the sprinklers. 
 
 The ordinary fusible solder-joint, which opens at 
 155 to 1 60 Fahrenheit, is not adapted for boiler 
 rooms or drying-rooms, owing to the sometimes exces- 
 sive heat in these rooms, and if automatic-sprinkler 
 protection is desired in such places, a different alloy 
 or solder having a higher degree of fusibility should 
 be used. 
 
 The number of sprinklers necessary for an equip- 
 ment depends upon the areas to be protected. 
 
 Sprinkler-heads must be set at no greater distance 
 than 10 feet apart, and 5 feet away from walls or par- 
 titions, so that they protect an area of 10 feet in 
 diameter. The rules of the New York Board of Fire 
 Underwriters call for all portions of a building to be 
 equipped by sprinklers, unless especially exempted 
 because of being entirely fire-proof and containing only 
 non-combustible materials, as for instance the loft over 
 the auditorium ; but in the stage portion of a theatre 
 
146 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 it is important that the space between ceiling or rigging- 
 loft and stage roof be also protected. The largest 
 number of sprinklers in a theatre is required to protect 
 the rigging-loft and under it to protect the stage. 
 
 As a rule the piping of the sprinkler system consists 
 of plain standard wrought-iron pipes, and if the pipes 
 are constantly kept full of water there is probably not 
 much danger of their rusting. In the dry-pipe system, 
 however, it is essential that the supply-pipes should 
 be rustproofed or galvanized, and where economy is 
 no object, it is better to use such pipes also in the 
 wet-pipe system. 
 
 As regards sizes for the sprinkler risers, distributing 
 pipes, and branch-pipes to the individual sprinklers, 
 the following rules should be strictly adhered to: 
 
 (a) The mains from the tank (or from the outside 
 connections) must be of a capacity to supply at least 
 50 per cent of all sprinklers fed in the largest space 
 enclosed by fire-walls, but where such a space would 
 require less than 20 sprinklers the main should be 
 capable of supplying 75 per cent of them. 
 
 (ft) All branch-pipes supplying more than five and 
 less than ten sprinklers shall be calculated to be of a 
 capacity to supply 75 per cent of the sprinklers. 
 
 (c) Where over 30 sprinklers are supplied by one 
 branch, it must have a capacity of supplying 50 per 
 cent. 
 
 (d) No pipe smaller than | inch shall be used, and 
 only one sprinkler is to be fed from a f-inch pipe, 
 provided the feed-pipe is not longer than 30 feet. 
 
 (e) The piping ma*y be calculated from the following 
 table, which gives the greatest number of sprinkler- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. \tf 
 
 heads to be fed from pipes of different diameter, those 
 in column I being given by Mr. C. J. H. Woodbury. 
 those in column II being the requirement of the New 
 York Board of Fire Underwriters, those in column III 
 being the Philadelphia Board of Underwriters' require- 
 ments for mercantile buildings and textile mills, and 
 those in column IV for special risks, including theatres. 
 
 TABLE II. 
 
 Size of Pipe Number of Sprinkler-heads. 
 
 in Inches. 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 I. 
 
 II. 
 
 III. 
 
 IV. 
 
 
 
 
 (theatres) 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 10 
 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 8 
 
 18 
 
 16 
 
 18 
 
 15 
 
 28 
 
 25 
 
 28 
 
 24 
 
 46-48 
 
 36 
 
 46 
 
 35 
 
 70-78 
 
 48 
 
 70 
 
 48 
 
 95-H5 
 
 64 
 
 IOO 
 
 63 
 
 
 82 
 
 
 
 
 IOO 
 
 250 
 
 IOO 
 
 
 144 
 
 ft J V 
 
 over 250 
 
 l> 
 
 4 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 6 
 
 All main branches and connections must be so 
 arranged with drip-pipes and drip-valves that they 
 can be completely emptied. 
 
 Each main and riser, and each distributing pipe on 
 each floor, is to be provided with gate-valve, placed in 
 the case of the mains near the tank. All valves to 
 be full waterway gate-valves, with telltale indicators, 
 and all valves must be strapped open by leather 
 riveted or sealed straps. 
 
 All exposed sprinkler-heads must have guards 
 
148 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 placed around them to protect them from damage, and 
 this in theatres must be particularly observed in the 
 case of sprinklers placed under the rigging-loft and the 
 fly-galleries, with which sprinklers some of the hoisting 
 machinery for the curtain or the borders and drops 
 may come in contact. Nothing should be permitted 
 to be hung from sprinkler-pipes, nor should the 
 sprinkler-heads be painted, bronzed, or covered with 
 whitewash. 
 
 The roof tank supplying the sprinkler system should 
 be placed on the highest part of the stage roof, and 
 must be elevated so that its bottom will be at least 12 
 feet above the level of the highest sprinkler. This 
 location of the fire-tank on the roof is open to the 
 objection that in case of fire the tank will fall with the 
 collapse of the roof or the bearing walls and may thus 
 become a source of danger to the firemen. Where it 
 can be done it is preferable to build a separate tank 
 tower. 
 
 The roof tank must be of large capacity, so as to be 
 able to supply the sprinklers opened during a fire for 
 a certain length of time. 
 
 Some require the capacity to be such as to fully 
 operate for one hour at least 75 per cent of all sprink- 
 lers located in the largest room enclosed by fire-walls. 
 For instance, if there are 50 sprinklers over the stage of 
 a theatre, the capacity of the tank would figure out as 
 follows: 50 X } X i cubic foot = 37.5 cubic feet per 
 minute or 37.5 X 60 = 2250 cubic feet per hour = 
 16,875 gallons tank capacity. 
 
 The New York Fire Underwriters' rules require 
 the tank to be of a capacity to feed for fifteen minutes 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 149 
 
 50 per cent of all sprinklers supplied located in the 
 largest compartment enclosed by fire-walls. This, 
 for fifty sprinklers over stage, as above, would re- 
 quire 50 X i X 1=25 cubic feet per minute = 375 
 cubic feet per J- hour, or a tank capacity of about 2812 
 gallons. 
 
 In the following is given an empirical table of the 
 capacity and dimensions of round wooden tanks, for 
 a given total number of sprinklers in a building. 
 
 TABLE III. 
 
 Number of 
 Sprinklers. 
 
 Capacity of Tank 
 in Gallons. 
 
 Length of Tank Diameter of 
 Staves. Tank. 
 
 100 
 
 2,500 
 
 7 feet 8 feet 
 
 150 
 
 3.500 
 
 9 
 
 9 ' 
 
 200 
 
 5,000 
 
 10 
 
 ' IO " 
 
 300 
 
 6,000 
 
 10 
 
 I 
 
 500 
 
 7,500 
 
 10 
 
 12 " 
 
 800 
 
 10,000 
 
 12 
 
 14 " 
 
 1,000 
 
 15,000 
 
 12 
 
 16 " 
 
 1,200 
 
 20,000 
 
 15 ' 16 " 
 
 The rules of the Philadelphia Board of Fire Under- 
 writers require the capacity of the elevated tank to be 
 as follows: 
 
 For 100 sprinklers or under, not less than 3000 
 gallons. 
 
 For 100 to 200 sprinklers or under, not less than 
 5000 gallons. 
 
 For 200 to 300 sprinklers, or under, not less than 
 7000 gallons. 
 
 For over 300 sprinklers, special sizes. 
 
 The Insurers' Automatic Fire Extinguisher Co. of 
 New York gives the following table of relative proper. 
 
ISO THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 tions of size of pipe, capacity of tank, and number of 
 sprinklers : 
 
 TABLE IV. 
 
 Size of Pipe. Number of Sprinklers. Size of Tank, 
 
 finch i 212 gallons 
 
 1 " 3 424 " 
 i* " 5 530 
 i* " 9 959 " 
 
 2 14 1,696 " 
 
 4 " 24 2,550 " 
 
 3 " 36 3,816 " 
 3* " 49 5,194 " 
 
 64 6,784 
 
 100 10,000 
 
 144 10,000 
 
 196 10,000 
 
 256 10,000 
 
 At the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York a roof 
 tank of 6000 gallons capacity was installed for a total 
 equipment of 227 sprinklers, distributed as follows: 
 under the stage roof 44, under the gridiron or rigging- 
 loft 50, under the first and second fly-galleries 12 and 
 9 respectively, under the stage 40, and for the dressing- 
 rooms 72. 
 
 In the new Harrigan Theatre in New York the 
 capacity of the roof tank was 4000 gallons and the 
 total number of sprinklers installed was 105. 
 
 The roof tank should be painted and either frost- 
 proofed or else provided with steam connection to 
 prevent freezing of the water. It should have a 
 2-inch overflow and a ij-inch emptying pipe carried 
 to the roof. The pump riser, the tank main or 
 sprinkler riser, and the tank-emptying pipe must all be 
 securely protected with felting or other non-conduct- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. l$l 
 
 ing material against freezing. The tank should also 
 be provided with cover to keep the dust out and to 
 retard evaporation of the water by exposure to the 
 sun. The tank should also be fitted up with a sub- 
 stantially built outside ladder, permanently fastened 
 to the tank, to facilitate inspections and cleaning. 
 The cleaning of the tank should be attended to at 
 least once a year. The tank falling main or sprinkler 
 riser should enter at least 4 inches above the tank 
 bottom to avoid drawing the sediment which settles 
 at the tank bottom into the pipes. In winter time 
 the steam circulation to the tank should be turned on. 
 
 The tank falling main must be provided with a 
 check-valve and shut-off gate-valve. On the line of 
 the falling main is placed the electric attachment 
 operating the automatic fire-alarm. It consists of a 
 special fitting connected by wiring with the automatic 
 alarm-bells, and so arranged that when water starts to 
 flow from the tank through this fitting to any sprinkler 
 the fire-alarm gong rings automatically. This alarm 
 can be readily tested at any time by opening up any 
 drip-pipe on the sprinkler distribution system. 
 
 The tank is filled, as already described, from the 
 theatre fire-pump, which is not to be otherwise con- 
 nected with the sprinkler system, nor are the sprink- 
 ler risers to be used for attaching fire-valves. Neither 
 must any water be drawn from the sprinkler tank for 
 any other purpose. 
 
 The tank should be fitted up with a low-water alarm, 
 and with a float indicator which always shows in the 
 engine-room the height of water in the tank. 
 
 The watchman's alarm and the low- water alarm 
 
152 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 should be tested often, and the outside alarm-gong 
 must be suitably protected against the weather. 
 
 The fire-department connection to the sprinkler 
 system, located in a conspicuous place on the outside 
 of the building, must be of regulation fire-department 
 size, and plainly marked. The pipe leading from it 
 should be provided in the building with approved 
 check-valve. The fire-department connection should 
 be not less than 3 inches in diameter, with coupling 
 and cap, and there should be one such pipe for every 
 50 sprinklers in the building, which may open at any 
 one fire. 
 
 In case a fire-pump should be preferred to an out- 
 side connection, it should have a capacity of at least 
 two fire-streams or 500 gallons per minute, and it 
 should be arranged to operate automatically and to 
 start instantly upon the opening of a sprinkler-head. 
 If the pump draws from a suction-reservoir, its capacity 
 should be sufficient to keep the pump supplied during 
 at least one hour's full working capacity, which would 
 make it equal to 500 X 60 = 30,000 gallons. The 
 pump should be tested once a week, and should be 
 located so as to be easy of access and free from the 
 danger of fire. 
 
 In any case, wherever a wet-sprinkler system is 
 installed, strict precautions should be taken against 
 the pipes freezing, as in the event of a pipe bursting 
 serious damage to the scenic decorations would result. 
 As far as practicable, every sprinkler system should be 
 tested periodically. This test should include some of 
 the sprinkler-heads to make sure that they have not 
 become inoperative from corrosion or sediment. The 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. I S3 
 
 automatic alarm of the sprinkler system should also be 
 regularly tested, and the batteries, the wiring, etc,, 
 inspected. 
 
 14. PERFORATED-PIPE SYSTEM. 
 
 In some instances the stage of a theatre is fitted up 
 with an open-sprinkler system, or else with a perfo- 
 rated-pipe system, in place of the automatic sprinklers. 
 In both cases the pipe system is empty except when in 
 action, the water, whether supplied from direct city 
 pressure or from one or several elevated reservoirs, 
 being held back by a valve, which is either operated by 
 hand or else fastened by a hemp cord, which is supposed 
 to burn at the outbreak of a fire, thereby releasing the 
 valve. The perforated-pipe system is arranged near 
 and above the rigging-loft, and consists of a number 
 of sections or rows of pipes, each controlled by a sep- 
 arate valve or shut-off and fed from a large cross main. 
 The valves are all operated from one point on the 
 stage, and the attendant may put in operation all the 
 lines simultaneously, or else only. one or several lines 
 separately, whereby the stage and stage-scenery is 
 deluged at the place where the fire burns. 
 
 The open-sprinkler system is similar to, but perhaps 
 more effective in action than, the perforated-pipe sys- 
 tem. In some cases large sizes of revolving sprinkling 
 nozzles are fitted up, and prove efficient fire-extin- 
 guishers, if one could but rely on the water being 
 turned on promptly. 
 
 The stages in many French and German theatres 
 are protected by perforated-pipe systems, whereas the 
 English theatres have neither automatic sprinklers nor 
 
1$4 THEATRE FIRES AND 
 
 perforated pipes, because there being until quite 
 recently no practical experience with the good results 
 obtained by the former as in this country, these are 
 considered unreliable, and also because the latter are 
 looked upon as dangerous to property, although such 
 an experienced fireman as Capt. Shaw of the London 
 Fire Brigade concedes that " such arrangements 
 would make the safety of an audience in case of fire 
 absolutely and completely certain." 
 
 One of the Munich Royal Theatres was the first 
 German theatre to be fitted up on a large scale with 
 perforated sprinkling pipes, and in this theatre, as well 
 as in the large new opera-house at Frankfort-on-the- 
 Main, what threatened to become serious conflagra- 
 tions have been put out by this apparatus. On Feb. 
 loth, 1 88 1, in the third act of the opera " The 
 Jewess," in the Frankfort-on-the-Main new opera- 
 house, a gauze border caught fire from the border- 
 lights. The iron curtain was at once lowered and one 
 of the valves operating the open pipe-sprinkler system 
 was opened, extinguishing the fire in a few minutes, 
 so that after an intermission of only ten minutes the 
 play could proceed. 
 
 The new Boston fire law requires " the proscenium- 
 opening of every theatre to be provided with a 2^-inch 
 perforated iron pipe or equivalent arrangement of 
 automatic or open sprinklers, so constructed as to form 
 when in operation a complete water-curtain for the en- 
 tire proscenium opening. There shall be for the rest of 
 the stage a complete system of fire apparatus and 
 perforated iron pipes, automatic or open sprinklers." 
 
 It seems unfortunate that this law should specify the 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 1 55 
 
 perforated pipe to be of iron. It is well known that 
 plain wrought-iron pipe will soon rust if kept dry and 
 exposed to the atmosphere, and the perforations in 
 the pipe would soon stop up with rust, dust, or sedi- 
 ment, and become inoperative. 
 
 The only available material for perforated-pipe sys- 
 tems is brass or, better, copper pipe, and the systems 
 installed in German theatres always consist of this 
 material. 
 
 I do not know of any New York theatre fitted up 
 with perforated pipes, whereas all the new theatres 
 and many of the older ones have an automatic-sprinkler 
 system. Where requirements of economy do not 
 prevent it, I should favor the instalment, in addition 
 to the automatic-sprinkler system, of a perforated pipe 
 at the stage side of the proscenium-opening. This, 
 when in action, would form an efficient water-curtain, 
 and thus would be an additional protection of the fire- 
 proof iron or asbestos curtain, and thereby of the 
 theatre audience in case of a stage fire. 
 
 15. FIRE-PAILS. 
 
 In addition to the automatic steam fire-pump and 
 the automatic-sprinkler system every theatre should 
 be provided with a large number of fire-pails or fire- 
 buckets. It is a well-known fact that more fires are 
 put out annually by hand-buckets than by any other 
 fire-extinguishing appliance. One bucket of water 
 used at the proper moment, during the first minute of 
 a fire just started, is of more value than the largest 
 fire-pump half an hour later. 
 
 Fire-pails, therefore, constitute in theatres as in 
 
I $6 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 other buildings the most useful and most effective of 
 all interior non-automatic fire apparatus to subdue a 
 local fire before the latter has gained any headway. 
 Even in the hands of the most inexperienced em- 
 ploye's, such fire-pails are a great protection and 
 security. 
 
 A theatre requires a very ample supply of fire- 
 buckets, judiciously distributed. The largest number 
 should be placed on the stage, handy and ready for 
 any emergency, but there should also be rows of pails 
 in the fly-galleries, in the rigging-loft, in the corridors 
 adjoining the actors' dressing-rooms, under the stage, 
 in the engine-room, and likewise in the various divi- 
 sions of the auditorium. 
 
 Fire-pails should not be kept on the floor, where they 
 are liable to be overturned, but should be either hung 
 on hooks or placed on shelves. They should be marked 
 
 II Fire-pails " or " for fire only," and should be dis- 
 tinguished by being painted a bright-red color, to avoid 
 their being used for other purposes and perhaps found 
 missing or empty in case they are needed. 
 
 Fire-pails must always be kept full of water, which 
 evaporates rapidly. The practice of putting covers on 
 fire-pails to prevent evaporation is of doubtful ex- 
 pediency, as it renders the daily inspection of the fire- 
 pails more difficult. There should be a penalty 
 enforced for the use of the fire-pails for other purposes. 
 
 Fire-pails are made of many different materials. 
 Besides the common wooden pail or bucket, there are 
 galvanized-iron pails, paper pails and rubber pails, 
 canvas, leather, indurated fibre, and even glass pails. 
 
 All fire-pails, of whatever material, should be durable 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. I $7 
 
 and strong, light, yet of good size, holding about 
 eight to ten quarts of water. Wooden pails deteri- 
 orate rapidly, and if accidentally allowed to become 
 dry, they warp and fall rapidly to pieces. Galvanized 
 iron pails are better than wooden pails, but are subject 
 to corrosion. Leather buckets, copper riveted and 
 enamel painted on the inside, are very good but expen- 
 sive. Canvas buckets are liable to leak, and are not 
 used much. Neither the rubber nor the paper pails 
 are very durable. In practical use the indurated-fibre 
 pail has been found superior to all those named so far. 
 It is usually made with a round bottom and set on 
 special shelves with suitable holes. This form of pail 
 has the advantage that the pail cannot be taken away 
 and used for other purposes. The objection made 
 against the round-bottomed pail that it cannot be set 
 on the floor and used to supply hand force-pumps, is 
 of no importance when the larger casks of water are 
 provided. It is claimed for the indurated-fibre pail 
 that it will hold a non-freezing solution (in the case of 
 unheated rooms) which would corrode metal pails. 
 
 Three new forms of fire or " insurance" pails require 
 special attention. The Harkness insurance pail is 
 made of heavy, galvanized iron, of ten quarts capacity, 
 and it is filled with a non-freezing fire-extinguishing 
 liquid. To prevent its evaporation a glass cover is 
 put over the liquid, and to protect the glass from 
 breakage a perforated iron top is placed over the 
 same, with a handle which is to be used to break the 
 glass. The claim is made for this pail, that its con- 
 tents do not freeze, corrode, evaporate, or deteriorate. 
 
 The Worcester chemical compartment fire-pail 
 
I5& THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 (Lincoln's patent) is made of heavy galvanized iron, 
 painted inside and outside. The chemicals are held in 
 a dry powder form in a compartment in the cover, 
 which is hermetically sealed at the top and bottom 
 with heavy tin-foil. By breaking the tin-foil in the 
 cover the chemical is precipitated into the water, 
 forming a strong and fresh fire-extinguishing solution. 
 
 The chemicals of this fire-pail are therefore held 
 in a dry state until required, and cannot deteriorate, 
 which is claimed as the chief advantage of this type 
 of pail. 
 
 Another chemical fire-pail, made in Worcester, 
 Mass., under the Macomber patent, is a glass pail 
 encased in a tin jacket. Glass was used, as it was 
 feared that the chemical liquid might attack a galva- 
 nized-iron pail. This pail contains two gallons of a 
 chemical non-freezing fire-extinguishing liquid, and is 
 hermetically sealed by a soft tin-foil cover to prevent 
 evaporation. 
 
 As to the number of fire-pails required for a thea- 
 tre, it is usual in other buildings to estimate five pails 
 for 5000 square feet or less of area, and to add one 
 pail for each additional 1000 square feet; but for 
 theatres this allowance, at least for the stage, is hardly 
 sufficient. The New York Theatre Law requires four 
 casks of water on the stage and at least two pails to 
 each cask, making eight pails. There would, however, 
 be no harm in doubling this allowance. The equip- 
 ment of the Fifth Avenue Theatre comprised forty- 
 eight galvanized-iron fire-pails and eighteen insurance 
 pails. 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. I $9 
 
 16. CASKS. 
 
 Casks or large barrels, containing about 40 or 50 
 gallons of water, should be kept in readiness on the 
 stage, and it would be well to have some of these also 
 in the under-stage, in the fly-galleries, and in the 
 rigging-loft. There should be at least four casks on 
 the stage, one in each fly-gallery on each side of the 
 stage, and two in the rigging-loft. These casks should 
 be kept filled with water at all times, and they are 
 useful in case the fire-buckets are employed to extin- 
 guish a fire, and likewise as a source of supply for 
 hand force-pumps. 
 
 For filling the casks by small hose, and also for 
 refilling the fire-pails, fire stand-pipes are sometimes 
 provided with hose bibbs located under each fire-valve 
 and provided with detachable lever handles. 
 
 17. PORTABLE FIRE-EXTINGUISHING APPARATUS. 
 
 In addition to the hand fire-buckets it is desirable 
 to have on the stage and in the auditorium a number 
 of portable fire-extinguishers. Sometimes common 
 hand force-pumps are used, but much better than these 
 are the fire-extinguishers working under pressure. Of 
 these there are a great many types, which may be 
 subdivided into chemical and pneumatic extinguishers, 
 the former being loaded with chemicals generating 
 carbonic-acid gas, while the latter are charged with 
 compressed air. 
 
 The well-known Babcock and the Champion fire- 
 extinguishers, both manufactured by the same firm, 
 
l6o THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 are examples of chemical fire-extinguishers, and throw 
 a commingled stream of water and carbonic-acid gas. 
 They are strongly made of heavy copper, in various 
 sizes and capacities, ranging from a small portable 
 hand apparatus to large chemical village engines. 
 
 The copper cylinder of the apparatus holds a solution 
 of bicarbonate of sodium in water and also a sealed 
 bottle of sulphuric acid. By turning a hand-wheel at 
 the top of the extinguisher the bottle is broken, and 
 immediately the two fluids mix, generating carbonic- 
 acid gas. 
 
 The Harkness and the Miller fire-extinguishers are 
 examples of the pneumatic extinguishers. In these 
 the copper vessels hold a non-freezing fire-extinguish- 
 ing liquid compound, and are charged with compressed 
 air under a high pressure. By opening a lever cock 
 the apparatus is put in operation, and no gas is gen- 
 erated until the liquid strikes the fire. 
 
 The advantage of the pneumatic extinguishers con- 
 sist in their using no acids, which often do much 
 damage when the apparatus is in operation. They are 
 also safer and perhaps more easily handled than the 
 chemical extinguishers. 
 
 All such apparatus should be located conveniently 
 and within easy reach. The Fifth Avenue Theatre 
 was fitted up with fifteen portable extinguishers 
 located as follows : One on each side of the stage, four 
 in the fly-galleries, two in the rigging-loft, two in the 
 orchestra, two in the balcony, two in the gallery, and 
 one in the space under the stage. 
 
 It is, of course, necessary that the chemical extin- 
 guishers be refilled as soon as possible after use, and 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. l6l 
 
 it is also well to have the apparatus tested or inspected 
 at intervals, as some of the working parts may have 
 become rusted up. 
 
 Of hand-grenades as portable fire-extinguishers I 
 will not speak, as they are inferior to both fire-pails 
 and chemical or pneumatic extinguishers. 
 
 1 8. STEAM- JETS. 
 
 Although steam has not in practice been used to any 
 great extent for fire-extinguishing purposes, it may 
 prove in many cases very useful, particularly in con- 
 cealed spaces or cramped corners not easily reached, 
 as for instance up in the rigging- loft. It is feasible to 
 provide in such places a few steam-nozzles, supplied 
 from steam-pipes controlled by valves at the stage. 
 The use of steam for extinguishing purposes on the 
 stage, or in corridors or stairs, is a very doubtful 
 measure, as the escaping steam would have a tendency 
 to increase the confusion and panic during a fire. 
 
 19. SAND. 
 
 It is to be recommended to keep on the stage boxes 
 of sand to be used for the extinguishment of oil fires, 
 in case an oil-lamp, used in the representation of the 
 play, should explode or catch fire on the stage. 
 
 20. FIRE-AXES AND FIRE-HOOKS. 
 
 Every theatre should be supplied with a liberal out- 
 fit of fire-axes with pick heads, polished axe-brackets, 
 or fire-hooks on poles of various lengths to pull down 
 burning scenery, and knives or hatchets in the fly- 
 
1 62 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 galleries and rigging-loft to cut down the ropes of 
 hanging scenery. 
 
 The fire-hooks are, of course, to be placed only on 
 the stage, and it is usual to provide one six-foot, one 
 ten-foot, one fifteen-foot, and one twenty-foot fire- 
 hook pole. The axes should be placed on polished 
 boards at every point where a portable extinguisher is 
 placed. In the Fifth Avenue Theatre there are to be 
 found fifteen sets of these, distributed wherever fire 
 danger is specially apprehended. The New York 
 Building Law calls for " at least four axes to be placed 
 on each tier on the stage and in the auditorium." 
 
 21. MINOR FIRE-EXTINGUISHING DEVICES. 
 
 It is, finally, necessary to keep in readiness on the 
 stage during each performance some damp or sl'^htly 
 wet blankets to save actresses or ballet-girls whose 
 dresses may have caught fire from the footlights or any 
 other cause. Likewise should there be wet swabs or 
 sponges attached to long poles to put out sparks from 
 fireworks lodging in the scenery, particularly in the 
 hanging borders. Asbestos sheets and asbestos gloves 
 may also be provided for fire protection. 
 
 22. LIFE-SAVING APPLIANCES. 
 
 In all theatres which are not strictly fire-proof 
 there should be provided and kept in readiness in the 
 theatre-manager's office, or somewhere else near the 
 main entrance, a large jumping-net, to save people 
 whose retreat has been cut off by fire or smoke. 
 Rope and pulley fire-escapes at some of the upper 
 windows, a few scaling-ladders, and a long extension- 
 
THEIR CAUSES AND PREVENTION. 163 
 
 ladder would also prove valuable apparatus to have on 
 hand in case of a theatre-fire catastrophe. 
 
 23. FIRE-ALARM AND WATCHMAN'S CLOCK. 
 
 In order to control the efficiency of the night-watch- 
 man it is advisable to fit up in each theatre a watch- 
 man's clock with electro-magnetic circuit. 
 
 Every theatre should also have a system of fire- 
 alarm connected with the nearest engine-house of the 
 city fire-department. The alarm system may consist 
 either in a series of thermostats or heat detectors, set 
 to operate at a certain degree of temperature, when 
 an electric circuit is completed which rings the alarm- 
 gong; or else in a series of small pipes, closed up with 
 fusible solder, which open at a temperature of about 
 140 to 150 F., which pipes are filled with compressed 
 air. The melting of the fusible plug causes the com- 
 pressed air to escape, whereby a diaphragm is operated, 
 giving the alarm. 
 
 24. WATER-SUPPLY FOR HOUSE SERVICE. 
 
 The foregoing description of the fire equipment of 
 a theatre makes no mention of the water-service 
 needed for the plumbing appliances in a theatre. 
 Whatever is needed in this line should, in my judg- 
 ment, be entirely separate from the fire-service. 
 
 The plumbing in some of our modern theatres is 
 quite elaborate, consisting of^a number of toilet- 
 rooms for the use of the public ; toilet-rooms for the 
 theatre-manager, the stage employes, for the actors, 
 actresses, and supers; lavatories in all the actors' 
 
164 THEATRE FIRES AND PANICS: 
 
 dressing-rooms; house-tanks and house-pumps; hot- 
 water tanks ; etc. 
 
 It is, of course, necessary that all plumbing be 
 arranged in a sanitary manner, and the general rules 
 and principles of plumbing and house drainage, which 
 the author has elaborately discussed elsewhere,* should 
 be applied to theatres the same as to other classes of 
 buildings. 
 
 * See the author's numerous works on Plumbing, House Drainage, 
 Sewage Disposal, etc. 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES.* 
 
 I. BOOKS. 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 BIRKMIRE, WM. H. " The Planning and Construction of 
 American Theatres." New York, 1896. 
 
 BUCKLE, JAMES GEO. " Theatre Construction and Main- 
 tenance." London, 1888. 
 
 GERHARD, WM. PAUL. "Theatre Fires and Panics: their 
 Causes and Prevention." New York, 1896. 
 
 SACHS, EDWIN O., AND WOODROW, ERNEST A. E. 
 " Modern Opera-houses and Theatres." 3 vols. Vol. I. 
 Published May, 1896. London. 
 
 SAUNDERS, GEO. " Treatise on Theatres/' 1790. 
 
 SHAW, CAPT. EYRE M. " Fire in Theatres." Second 
 edition. London, 1889. 
 
 GERMAN. 
 
 "Handbuch d. Architektur." Theil III, Bd. 6; Theil 
 
 IV, Bd. 6. (Not yet published.) 
 "Baukunde des Architekten." Bd. I. 2 ; Bd. II. 
 BUSING, PROF. F. W. " Die Sicherheit in Theatern." 
 
 Bd. 6. Heft 2 des Handbuchs d. Hygiene. Jena, 1894. 
 
 *The list given does not pretend to be complete, and the compiler 
 will esteem it a favor if interested readers will call his attention to 
 any omissions or inaccuracies. 
 
 165 
 
1 66 LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 
 
 CAVOS, A. " Ueber die Einrichtung von Theater-Gebau- 
 den." Leipsic, 1849. 
 
 "Der Wieder-Aufbau d. Stadt-Theaters zu Riga." 
 
 Riga, 1888. 
 
 DOEHRING, W. " Handbuch des Feuer-L6sch-und-Ret- 
 tungswesens." Berlin, 1881. Mit Atlas. 
 
 " Das Feuer-Loeschwesen Berlins." Berlin, 1881. 
 FISCHER, HERM. " Fortschritte der Architektur." Heft 5. 
 " Heizung, Liiftung u. Beleuchtung der Theater." Darm- 
 stadt, 1894. 
 
 FLECK, PROF. D. H. " Ueber Flammensicherheit u. Dar- 
 
 stellung flammensicherer Gegenstande." Dresden, 1882. 
 
 FOLSCH, AUG. " Theater-Brande und die zur Verhiitung 
 
 derselben erforderlichen Schutzmassregeln." Hamburg, 
 
 1878. 
 
 " Erganzungsheft dazu." Hamburg, 1882. 
 " Erinnerungen aus d. Leben eines Technikers. 
 
 Theater Brande." Hamburg, 1889. 
 
 GILARDONE, FRANZ. " Handbuch des Theater-L6sch-und 
 Rettungswesens." 3 vols. Strassburg and Hagenau 
 1882, 1884. 
 
 "Zum Brand der Komischen Oper in Paris." Hag- 
 enau, 1887. 
 
 " Der Theater-Brand zu Exeter." Hagenau, 1888. 
 HASENAUER, CARL FREIHERR VON. " Hofburg-Theater, 
 das k. k., in Wien." 1889. 
 
 " Hoftheater, das neue, zu Dresden." 
 HONIG, FRITZ. " Loeschen und Retten." Koln, 1894. 
 HUDE, H. v. d., UND J. HENNICKE. " Das Lessing- 
 
 Theater in Berlin." 1889. 
 KLASEN, LUDWIG. " Grundriss-Vorbilder von Gebauden 
 
 aller Art." Abth. VIII. Leipsic, 1884. 
 LANDHAUS. " Ueber Akustik und Katakustik der Theater. " 
 LANGHAUS, C. F. "Das Stadt-Theater in Leipzig." 
 " Das Victoria Theater in Berlin." 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. l6/ 
 
 LINDNER, DR. GUSTAV. "Das Feuer." Briinn, 1881. 
 LUCAE, R. "Das Opernhaus zu Frankfurt a. M." 
 
 Herausgegeben von Giesenberg und Becker. 1883. 
 MARCH, OTTO. " Das Stadt. Spiel- und Festhaus zu 
 Worms." Berlin, 1890. 
 " Das Stadtische Spiel- und Festhaus zu Worms." 
 
 Vortrag, 1890. 
 
 NULL, VAN DER, UND SiccARDSBURG. " Das k. k. Hof- 
 Opernhaus in Wien." 
 
 " Das neue Opernhaus in Wien." 1879. 
 RUNGE, G. " Das neue Opernhaus. (Academy of Music)," 
 
 Philadelphia, 1882. 
 SCHINKEL, KARL FRIEDR. " Dekorationen in den 
 
 Konigl. Hof-Theatern zu Berlin." 1874. 
 SEMPER, G. " Das Konigl. Hoftheater in Dresden." 
 Brunswick, 1849. 
 
 " Das (alte) Konigl. Hof-Theater in Dresden." 
 STAUDE, GUSTAV." Das Stadt-Theater zu Halle." 1886. 
 
 Halle a. S. 
 STRACK, J. H. " Das alt-griechische Theater-Gebaude." 
 
 Potsdam, 1843. 
 STURMHOFEL, A. " Szene der Alten und Biihne der Neu- 
 
 zeit." Berlin, 1889. 
 STURMHOEFEL, A. "Akustik des Baumeisters." Berlin^ 
 
 1894. 
 
 TIETZ, E. " Das Kroll'sche Etablissement in Berlin." 
 TITZ. " Das Wallner-Theater und das Viktoria-Theater in 
 
 Berlin." 
 
 VENERAND, W. "Asbest und Feuerschutz." Wien, 1886. 
 WIESELER, F. J. A. " Theater-Gebaude bei den Griechen 
 und Romern." Gottingen, 1851. 
 
1 68 LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 
 
 FRENCH. 
 
 CHENEVIER, P. " L'Incendie de 1'Opera-Comique de Paris, 
 
 et le Theatre de Surete." Paris, 1888. 
 CONTANT, C. " Parallele des Principaux Theatres Mo- 
 
 dernes de 1'Europe et des Machines Theatrales." Paris, 
 
 1820. 
 DALY ET DAVIOUD. " Les Theatres de la Place du 
 
 Chatelet." Paris, 1874. 
 GARNIER, CHAS. " Le Nouvel Opera de Paris." Paris, 
 
 1875-81. 
 
 GARNIER. " Le Theatre." Paris, 1871. 
 GOSSET, A. " Traite de la Construction des Theatres." 
 
 Paris, Baudry & Co., 1886. 
 MOYNET, GEORGES. " Trues et Decors. La Machinerie 
 
 Theatrale." Paris. (About 1892.) 
 
 MOYNET, M. J. " L'Envers du Theatre." Paris, 1888. 
 PETIT, MAXIME. " Les Grands Incendies." Paris, 1882. 
 NUITTER. " Le Nouvel Opera." Paris, Librairie Hachette, 
 
 1875- 
 
 SAUVAGEOT, L., " Considerations sur la Construction des 
 Theatres." Paris, 1877. 
 
 ITALIAN. 
 
 DONGHI, DANIELE. " Sulla Sicurezza dei Teatri in Caso 
 d'Incendio." Torino, 1888. 
 
 II. PAMPHLETS. 
 
 GERHARD, WM. PAUL. " Theatre Fire Catastrophes and 
 their Prevention." New York, 1894. 
 
 "The Essential Conditions of Safety in Theatres." 
 
 New York, 1894. 
 "The Water-service and Fire Protection of Theatres." 
 
 New York, 1894. 
 
 HEXAMER, JOHN C. " On the Prevention of Fires in 
 Theatres." Journal of Franklin Institute, August, 1882. 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 169 
 
 HEXAMER, JOHN C. " The Construction and Interior 
 Arrangement of Buildings designed to be used as Thea- 
 tres." July, 1892. 
 
 " Causes of Fire." Journal of Franklin Institute 
 
 April, July, and August, 1893. 
 
 HEXAMER, JOHN C., AND OTHERS. "Report of Special 
 Committee of the Franklin Institute on the Prevention 
 of Fires in Theatres." June, 1883. 
 
 " Report of the Committee on Theatres and Public Halls of 
 the Citizens' Association of Chicago." I., January, 1882. 
 IL, October, 1883. III., 1887. 
 
 SACHS, EDWIN O. "Urban Fire Protection." London, 
 1895. 
 
 " Notes on Fire Brigades and Appliances of Conti- 
 nental Cities." London, 1894. 
 SHAW, EYRE M. "Fire in Theatres." First edition. 
 
 London, 1876. 
 
 YOUNG, A. H. " Theatre Panics and their Cure." Lon- 
 don : Batsford, 1896. 
 
 BECKER u. GIESENBERG. "Das Opernhaus zu Frankfurt 
 am Main." Frankf. a-M. 
 
 BOOG, C., UND V. JONSTORFF, HANS FRH. V. JUPTNER. 
 
 " Zur Sicherheit des Lebens in den Theatern, mit beson- 
 derer Berticksichtigung der Theater-Brande." Wien, 
 1889. 
 
 FICHTNER, J. " Die Feuer-Sicherheit im Theater." Strie- 
 gau, 1882. 
 
 " Theater-Brande und deren Verhiitung." Briinn, 1881. 
 FOCKT, C. TH. "Der Brand des Ring-Theaters in Wien." 
 Wien, 1 88 1. 
 
 " Der Ring-Theater-Prozess in Wien." Wien, 1882. 
 FOELSCH, AUG. "Ueber Theater-Brande, u. ueber die fii 
 das neue Opernhaus in Wien getroffenen Sicherheits- 
 Massregeln." Wien, 1870. 
 
1 70 LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 
 
 GILARDONE, FRANZ. " Die neuesten Erfahrungen auf d. 
 
 Gebiet der Theater Sicherheits-Frage." Hagenau, 1888. 
 
 " Die Theater-Brande des Jahres. 1888." 
 JUNG, LUDWIG. " Fur Feuerwehren." Viele Hefte. 
 
 " Die Feuersicherheit in oeffentlichen Gebauden." 
 
 Miinchen, 1879. 
 JUNK, D. V. " Das Theater-System der Gegenwart u. 
 
 Zukunft." Wien, 1884. 
 PATERA, AD. " Ueber Flammen-Schutzmittel." Wien, 
 
 1871. 
 PROKOP, AUG. " Die Sicherheit der Person im Theater, 
 
 nebst einem Beitrag zur Theater-Bau-Frage." Briinn, 
 
 1882. 
 RICHTER, HEINR. " Die Feuer-Sicherheit der Theater." 
 
 Wiirzburg, 1886. 
 SCHOLLE, FRIEDR. " Ueber Theater-Brande, deren Ur- 
 
 sachen und Verhiitung." Dresden, 1882. 
 
 " Ueber Impragnations-Verfahren als Schutzmassregel 
 
 gegen Feuersgefahr." Dresden. 
 
 STUDE. "Ein Mahnwort an Jedermann ueber Feuer- 
 Sicherheit u. Feuerschutz im Theater. Briinn, 1882. 
 ZIEMBINSKI, STANISLAW. " Neue selbsthatige Feuer-Sig- 
 
 nal-Apparate, und ein Vorschlag z. Verhiiten der Theater- 
 Brande." Krakau, 1882. 
 " Dienstliche Anweisung fur das Grossherz. Hoftheater zu 
 
 Weimar." Weimar. 
 " Vorschlage des Nieder-Oesterreichischen Gewerbe-Vereins 
 
 betreffend die Sicherung von Theatern gegen Feuers- 
 
 Gefahr." Wien, 1882. 
 " Veroffentl. der Deutschen Edison Gesellschaft. I. Das 
 
 Edison-Gliihlicht, u. seine Bedeutung fur das Rettungs- 
 
 wesen." Berlin, 1883, 
 " Veroffentl. der Deutschen Edison Gesellschaft. II. 
 
 Elektrische Beleuchtung von Theatern." Berlin, 1884. 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. l?l 
 
 " Vierteljahrsschrift der Wiener Freiw. Rettungsgesell- 
 schaft." 
 
 January, March, 1883. Vol. II., i, 2, 3 enth. Denk- 
 
 schrift ueber Paniken in Theatern. 
 
 " Projekt einer Theater- Reform der Gesellschaft zur Her- 
 stellung zeitgemasser Theater * Asphaleia.' " Leipzig, 
 1882. 
 
 BROUARDEL, DR. " La Mort dans les Theatres," Revue 
 
 Sanitaire de la Provence. No. 132-133, June, 1889. 
 CHENEVIER, P." La Question du Feu dans les Theatres." 
 " Extinction des Incendies des Theatres." 
 " La Securite des Spectateurs dans les Theatres." 
 " Reflexions sur 1'Incendie de I'Opera-Comique." 
 " L'Opera-Comique (apres 1'Incendie)." 
 " La Defense des Theatres Actuels Contre 1'Incendie." 
 CHOQUET, DOCTEUR. " Les Incendies dans les Theatres." 
 
 Paris, 1886. 
 
 FIGUIER. " L'Incendie dans les Theatres." 1881. 
 LE"GOYT, M. " Statistique des Incendies dans les The- 
 atres." 1882. 
 PICCOLI, D. V. " La Question du Feu dans les Theatres." 
 
 May, 1883. 
 
 TRIPIER, DR. A. " Assainissement des Theatres ; Venti- 
 lation, Eclairage, Chauffage." Paris, 1864. 
 
 " Sur la Ventilation et 1'Eclairage des Salles de Specta- 
 cle." Paris, 1858. 
 VIVIEN." Surete dans les Theatres." 
 
 III. ARTICLES IN JOURNALS AND MAGAZINES. 
 
 1. "The Construction and Arrangement of Theatres." 
 Report of a Committee appointed by the Austrian Society 
 of Engineers and Architects. Am. Architect, 1882. 
 
 2. " The Prevention of Fires in Theatres." Report of 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 
 
 the Special Committee of the Franklin Institute, 1883. 
 American Architect, June 9, 1883. 
 
 3. " Prevention of Fires." Report of the Committee of 
 the Society of Arts, London, 1883. American Architect, 
 June 16 and 23, 1883. 
 
 4. " Theatre Fires. " Four papers by " R. G.," in Fire 
 and- Water, 1877. 
 
 5. " Theatre Fires and Remedies." Two Papers by " J. 
 A. F.," in American Architect, October 22 and November 
 12, 1887. 
 
 6. "Theatre Construction." By E. A. E. Woodrow, 
 Architect, Four parts, Inland Architect, August, September, 
 and October, 1890. 
 
 7. " Prevention and Extinction of Fires in Theatres." 
 By E. A. E. Woodrow. Journal Society of Arts, London, 
 April 1 8, 1884. 
 
 8. " Fire, its Prevention and Extinction in Theatres." 
 By Arthur W. C. Shean, 1884. Journal Society of Arts, 
 London, April 18, 1884. 
 
 9. " Prevention and Extinction of Fires in Theatres." By 
 E. A. E. Woodrow, 1892. Journal Society of Arts, July 
 8, 1892. Reprinted in Building, August 20, 1892. 
 
 10. "Theatrical Architecture." I-VL By E. A. E. 
 Woodrow. American Architect, October 10 to December 
 19, 1891. 
 
 11. " Theatre Building Regulations." I-VIL By E. A. 
 E. Woodrow. American Architect, April 16 to August, 
 1892. 
 
 12. "American Dramatic Theatres." Five articles by 
 John A. Fox, Architect, in American Architect, July to Sep- 
 tember, 1879. 
 
 13. "Scenic Illusions and Scenic Appliances." Paper 
 by Percy Fitzgerald. Journal Society of Arts, March 18, 
 1887. 
 
 14. " Theatres." By E. A. E. Woodrow. American 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 173 
 
 Architect, begun April 14, 1884, to October, 1895. Twenty- 
 two numbers. 
 
 15. " Theatres." By E. A. Woodrow. Forty-seven ar- 
 ticles, Building News, London, July 15, 1892, to December 
 28, 1894. 
 
 16. " The Stage." London Paper, July to October, 1886, 
 articles on " Hygiene of the Stage." 
 
 17. "The Sanitation of Theatres." By Ernest Turner. 
 Reprinted in Building, October 24, 1891. 
 
 18. " Hygiene of the Theatre." By W. E. Roth. Amer- 
 ican Architect, October 22, 1887. 
 
 '19. " The Planning and Construction of American Thea- 
 tres." By W. H. Birkmire. Twelve articles, October 13, 
 1894, to March 7, 1896, Building. 
 
 20. " The Essential Conditions of Safety in Theatres." 
 By Wm. Paul Gerhard. American Architect, June 23, July 
 7, July 14, and July 21, 1894. 
 
 21. " Some Suggestions as to Theatre Architecture." By 
 Edwin O. Sachs. The Builder, December 15, 1894. 
 
 22. " The Protection of Theatres from Fire." By E. A. 
 E. Wood-row. Building News, September 27, 1895. 
 
 23. " The Safety of Theatre Audiences." By Edwin O. 
 Sachs. Building News, September 27, 1895. 
 
 24. "Modern Theatre Stages." By E.O.Sachs. En- 
 gineering, London, I-VIII, January 17 and 31, February 
 14 and 28, March 13, April 10 and 24, and May 8. (Not 
 yet concluded.) 
 
 25. " Concert Halls and Assembly Rooms." By E. A. E. 
 Woodrow. I, Building News, October n, 1895. (Not yet 
 concluded.) 
 
 26. " Theatre Fire Catastrophes and their Prevention." 
 Scientific American Supplement, October 27 and November 3, 
 1894, also Fire and Water, 1894. 
 
 27. " Water-supply and Fire Prevention of Theatres." 
 Fire and Water, 1894. 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 
 
 28. " Some Recent Developments in Theatre Planning." 
 Building News, March 25, 1892. 
 
 29. "An Anniversary the Ring Theatre Fire." Ameri- 
 can Architect, December 23, 1882. 
 
 30. " Paramount Requirements of a Large Opera-house." 
 By Dankmar Adler. Inland Architect and Building News, 
 October 1887. 
 
 31. " Essential Features of a Large Opera-house." By 
 J. C. Cady. Inland Architect and Building News, October, 
 1887. 
 
 32. " Behind the Scenes of an Opera-house. By Gustav 
 Kobbe. 
 
 33. " Fire Protection." By Edwin O. Sachs. Journal 
 Society of Arts, December 7, 1894. 
 
 34. " Theatres and Fire-proof Construction." By Walter 
 Embden. Journal Society of Arts, January 27, 1888. 
 
 35. " Electrical Stage Effects." By Theodore Waters. 
 Electric Power, May, 1896. 
 
 36. "Theatre Building for American Cities." By Dank- 
 mar Adler, Architect. Two articles, Vol. VII, Nos. 5 and 
 6, August and September, 1894. Engineering Magazine, 
 1894. 
 
 37. " New Theatres at Berlin and their Safety against Fire 
 and Panic." By Edwin O. Sachs. American Architect, 
 May 19, 1894. 
 
 38. "Bad Air in Theatres." By C. S. Montgomery. 
 Engineering Magazine, Vol. VIII, No. 2, May, 1892. 
 
 39. "Theatre Ventilation." By John P. Seddon. Build- 
 ing News, February 15, 1884. 
 
 40. " Fifth Avenue Theatre." Scientific American, Archi- 
 tects' and Builders' Edition, March to July, 1893. 
 
 41. " Fifth Avenue Theatre." Engineering Record, July 
 and August, 1891. 
 
 42. " Theatre Machinery." Frank Leslie's Monthly Mag- 
 azine, February, 1895. 
 
LITERATURE ON THEATRES. 1 75 
 
 43. " Literature on Theatres." Compiled by W. Paul 
 Gerhard, C.E. American Architect, June 27, 1896. 
 
 IV. RULES AND REGULATIONS. 
 
 Polizei-Verordnung, betreffend die bauliche Anlage u. 
 innere Einrichtung von Theatern, Circusgeb. u. offentl. 
 Versammlungs-Raumen. Berlin, 1889. 
 
 Nachtrag dazu. Berlin, 1891. 
 
 Bestimmungen ueber die Bau-Art der von der Staats-Bau- 
 Verwaltung auszuf. Gebaude unter besonderer Beriick- 
 sichtigung der Verkehrs-Sicherheit. Berlin, 1892. 
 
 London County Council. Metropolitan Building Acts. 
 Regulations made by Council, February 9, 1892, with re- 
 spect to theatres. 
 
 Letter relating to Precautions against Fire, by the Lord 
 Chamberlain, to theatre-managers, February 15, 1864. 
 
 V. OFFICIAL REPORTS. 
 
 Report from the Select Committee on " Theatrical Licen- 
 ses and Regulations," together with the Proceedings of the 
 Committee, Minutes of Evidence, Appendix and Index. 
 London, 1866 (Blue Book). 
 
 Report from the Committee of the House of Commons 
 on " Theatres." London, 1887 (Blue Book). 
 
 Report from the Select Committee on " Theatres and 
 Places of Entertainment," together with the Proceedings of 
 the Committee, Minutes of Evidence, Appendix and Index. 
 (House of Commons Blue Book, June 2, 1892.) 
 
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