A TOWN IN A BUILDING.

Matamata Record, Volume II, Issue 98, 19 September 1918, Page 3

A TOWN IN A BUILDING.

The "Woolworth Building, in New York, which is the tallest habitable building in the world, contains no less than twenty-seven acres of floor space. Yet it only covers a plot measuring 155 feet by 200 feet. Over 20,000 tons of steel were used in its erection, as well as 17,000,000 common bricks. There are no fewer than thirty-four elevators or lifts in this single building. They are divided into "locals," which stop at every floor, and "expresses," which stop at certain storeys. These elevators have been installed with a new air-cushion safety device, which means that should anything go wrong, and the lift suddenly plunge down the well, it would be gradually be brought to a standstill, without danger to life. It is estimated that 1000 persons are killed every year in America on the elevators; hence the need for installing this device. When the building was finished, its inventor demonstrated the feasibility of his invention by cutting the ropes*-and allowing the lift to drop a depth of 700 feet. Under the dome of this wonderful building is a powerful searchlight, the rays of which can be seen fifty miles away. Immediately below this lantern is a look-out gallery accessible to the general public. A tenant may supply all his wants without leaving the building. He has at command, telegraph, telephone, and messenger services. He posts his letters in the mail chute, which extends through all the floors to the mail box at the bottom, where they are collected by the postman. He may lunch in a restaurant on one floor, take out an insurance policy on another, cash his cheques at his bank on a third, and put his valuables in the safe deposit in the basement. He may consult his physician, his broker, his lawyer, visit his tailor, shoeblack, or barber, and buy his cigars, papers, theatre tickets, flowers, and sweets—all under one roof.