The San Francisco call. [volume], February 24, 1907, Page 1, Image 1

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
The San Francisco Sunday Call.
Magazine Section
Part I
Arno Dosch
J| 1 1 VTNG, ;hot-breathed- night, j the
I , glare of • thousands . of swaying
\u25a0' -r>rf lights, the • hiss "and flash*of
flying: bolts, the clear ring of
beuxtners down "through f the Mark to
Marfcet street; the top floor oL-the
grcnvlnj? skeleton of a sky-scraper
trfth vivid lights 'across the level of
highest work jvith long white stream-,
cr« running down through naked
steel; close to the ground, far below,
the donkey-engine puffing desperately
while the red - girder ' slowly sways,
climbing story 'by story^to the top;
the eighty-foot crane piercing the
black night above the hoods 'of "the
arc lights; a wild tap-tapping' echoing
through; the wilderness of
waking the mght' r to a nerve-wearing
racket. by- day, deadened- by the thun
der of the /.rucks with their .pounding
loads -of .steej. j *»-,••;.. '-
/-This is '\u25a0\u25a0 what San. Francisco : is <om
ing'tb. ~ This year a hundred' million
dollars, will be spent in 'rebuilding and
the necessity of 'rapid^ work /is be
ginning to" turn thic night into Jay.
The mad. rush' for offices,* warehouses,
shops, everything,! and 4 everything at
once is forcing the speed of work. up
until it . rrcars • thelimit. of -possibility.
The bounds of the day have -been
broken and; already -the night/is be
ing levied upon: And .<yet*-th'e speed
must.be faster, and .faster, like some
mad thing in a -dream., - " s .
The difficulty- of getting men and
malerial lessens each/ week. * There
will -be no trouble there.- Concrete
work does not require that particular
ckill that the steel workers must have,
but steel workers '"are ; finding * their
way here as the ; work, increases,, and
they are the best workmen in their
trade. • The airibnhtV off /structural
steel work \u25a0 increases by double *. and
more each month. The whole lower
portion- of the city, will soon' be* a
forest of skeleton ' buildings." ' Day
.\york alone* will /not \ be sufficient/to
answer the porpofcs^pf trade, -and
trade is /willing pay, .• the-/ bill.; for
overtime. . -.-*-.. c' ". . ;
At Fourth" and^MaMcet-. streets, - be
hind a high board fence, reinforced
concrete buildingiis 1 being; pushed for
ward at night^by ' the -aid' of .low,
twinging electric -arc . ; lights, .which
make the -whole -\u25a0 square inside;- the
fence as whiteSas : Van ? Ness: avenue
%ad send a radiance rupintOA the dark
'iky. Down) the street- is- a; pile-driver
that never . ceases.v. y , . /#./ # . '_; ivi '.V.-:
In air that- deadened^ poruon of the
<ity through -"which^ the- street rears
rushed without; stbppiog'.only/ a i few.
months ago, ia' which 'there was- not
a'*t^e"tHamp^nor>a}.single;habitation'
occupied . after^ bffice*%bufs, -,the< ebb'
of JJ 4 tne I life that fumbled \u25a0 away conies
back. 7 Market streetifat' night had been
aloneiorhe trail, , '. During.'the" day. the
workmen, : the ; roar : of the trucks, , the ;
stumbling,-, strainingl^hprses and'; the !
packed v street carsi made "a busier
highWay than ! ever - before. " ': : But \vithi
the night ,it . was; dark and' lonely, 'and
the street tearst cars pounding" through left
it darker and-loriclier'still. " ' : '
* Rut: now; the /workers of; the night
have come to take '.possession.^
come' to* take their placcs'and put their
han,ds,to the wprk that: the day 'shift
has - left.-" Their inroads upon .. the
night "are -gradual, but .they have-be
gun and jthey^will continue., .-.The' span
of .life is' too limited; for : modern V^on
djtions. , ; The daj'' hasj-only. twenty
fpur hours,' but those (at ;least all
be /used in "the, task.lr San 'Francisco
demands that what -.took'- fifty yeirs
to build shall'be-rcplacedMn'less: than
a'teiith- that time,. so; the 'Sinpoth
rhandled tools must-do •double, duty,
and'the slaves.of -the tools jnust stand
watch and watch about.; -• ; ,^*.
What the Pile Driver Said
* The stationary~engineer'Said to tnc
pile-driver, "Time is worth more' than.
'money,*' 1 - to- which - the -pile-driycrVre
plicd, f Thump.". 'Theni'iU continued
to .tluimp. .through- the end of the day
\u25a0untilr the, .hissi:ig. arc lights cast: a
scrutinizing^ eye on what itnyasj doing
( below. , : An.d' it. thumped, away <later
and later jiintil that- hbur,j neither; day
"nor "night," when 'the ni^ht shift jjwent
away/ leaving' the'* weight /resting -.oh
th'e'last pile fully. driven. ' V -.' ; . - : '
-•/A- single ;brazier-burned - on .-Mission
strcel, . hardly/rh'ore.'conspicuous uHan
the>^"jungle": of .tramps' beside., ''abroad;
A^glowing/thiag/flashedfin^the dark,
and low- pouAding.-beg'an'ith'at ende'd'in
r the wringing, oji'steel ; against '^teel.' VI
could .not * ieelf what was 3 g6ing;'»ori
until a - lantern" flashed ; behind/ a / pil e
of /cleaned': bricks:: and; 111 1 saw that; it
was belated /work"; on -the" steel 'frame
~of a 'building./- ./,.". ..-.
r : Crossing street to .Market
I heard' ; they chug-chug ! of ; a- gasaJirie
engine ' issuing i f rom •a • t ent. J - At .least
a'.light : shone; through l the canyasrarid
I :Kuesse*d- that"' the/;
broken Xth'ere. / r A^iriah, ;old : i!|jutr not
broken, \u25a0 slave 'v. to// the .v machthe,: "lay
\u25a0back '"onta icot i aodiwatched^f 1 i^Y9r^
.whilCithfc^ water^pumpedTfrpmXtKe'ex
cavatidnXbelgw^g^r^led'jOUtrnitb^the
•sewer/ r .;. "It's^{a\nicei: little^ei^gine.'i'it
\u25a0pum J ps:veryJ\yell/'; : he:sajd/sHe:l«n<[d
back f : aga_inr.'puffing-v atr his j* pipe,'*; and
' nodded Vat'i the* fascinating'-* monotony
of the/engine's 'Stride;*^ -' • •' .>;" T "' \u25a0'
:; >The^^-iwork "j, oHbuildingV- a *rtini orced
I concrete/* structiife^isr. simpler'/',eyen
»thah r -.the 1 buildingTpff a Vwoc^enjhbiuse.*
- The ' wooden //molds? are? set, : -/thet lon*g,
\u25a0thin; stfips^off steel/are rplaced,!?ahd
'\u25a0\u25a0 then I it/naearis:- merely (so \ mapyXwhe'el^
lba^6^ r »hsads^ipffcc^crcte.iwhic^?;^rv
be left* to" dryland ha'rde'^oiice(tH"cy^are
jipoured-into the mold. th^v^^m
?the"rold- : Flood 'building|.tl^C^%^pg|fJ^
iari J easy . task;- '\u25a0- : 'TheV-.^ori^is;^iat|t^^^
for . the; night y ;bef6reh^an"dVanU^oJft|lQit"^
;By"thi.s'arrangemenCjustlh|lfltl^i^|K:
of building <is flsaved:^ 1 -Thp-?us^of|^^
? inforced ; . concrete •'.}ia x s "; an'ad vaH'tagfej itt^
-that^itf is 'quickjfßUt it 'seems ( tolhav&^
::thiS"7dQuyftVadvantage..4hatf»it;^^nds^
litself readily' to-night work^aigre^terj§
Vsaving yet. ;.*:''?.'.* • --, .4- r.V
-;. •Of thei hundreds ; of;;buildings:f tlja,t|i
arc all £ju=it' now preaching 'the^pojntli
above -ground'': .many; ofuthem;, will^bc.^
. "pushed . with/tliis;; picturesqiie/j uigKt*
w.ork; ' Wi th \u25a0th c s're in force dj 'co ncre tc £
VbuilHin'gs'Mt'i^'^yercly^aVp'a^sc^of^iqpmci&l
andf go fwith^the*\vhfeelbarf6\v;s/" keSp|^
itig ; the'' steel" rods* slraiKht^anjlf potfr-^i
ing >;intdl'tTief molds.' - : "jßiit Vwheu %thcs
rush^comes,- on- Uh^e^ste«l r'slceletpn^
buildings^iri ; the jnighi^vviUsbe^niadc^
' live .\y i t h _t he * fl a sH ' n g $i !jf e d* hpj. fny c^^
; hipsingi through be^ughjfc'vi
and drivenVh9me;;andlclJnchcd^until|
''the night/fings'\vith pie;clash';o'f:ste|f.*«
Prbperty-pwheWar^
VcoiitfaJctofs^yie^^itK^ea^'fbtner7?sinQ^
contracts "arc 'being lei^fdr/tKe con*-!:
:markably;short>time-that?ittseems^ini^-:
*sCitne \u25a0 ''has v its. limits,!; and i so'^has 5 the f
of^ rapiflj b^undVngs.{^To dp .^
\u25a0^ust-be*^steady i incre^se*.6f.lh'is;h'tghth
'^work.'//IjKwU^Contm¥e"until^th^
i? lower/,centeWof J the^ctty "J;wHl?giow at .
|hi gh t afridj^th e^>w6r lc 4 wil 1 s *go^ onl 1 i gh' tt e d ?.
>by fa "thousand^aVcf(ltghfs^
ifroihi tKe<_depths|6f »upt to f,
:iT^e^ypVklof^buildJng;.on?e^undcrlwijy'w
. deinah<i ? B2tHis i^spcJeHi'- ar^dtlthe^fla&hing|
Vlipnsj ''XP^^^^'P.^iirlf^i^S^wingi
,; lights I willj eh'tirelyf rembveT th fc'|night f
': cisco/Vi- Tf'.'X-/i'^'4^ J'.v • -T'-'-V^-.r^--^ i.-7- "\u25a0..\u25a0"'
BUILDING A CITY
BY NIGHT