description of the premises or structure deemed unsafe or dangerous, requiring the same to be made safe and secure, or removed, as the same may be deemed necessary by the Commissioner of Buildings having jurisdiction, which said notice shall require the person or persons thus served to immediately certify to the said Commissioner his or their assent or refusal to secure or remove the same. (Id., sec. 153, rev. from L. 1882, ch. 410, § 509, as amend.)

The city is not responsible for the acts or omissions of the officers of the Building Department who, in the exercise of sovereign power, have the duty of examining and removing dangerous buildings. Connors vs. Mayor, 11 Hun, 439. But the head of the department may be liable for his official neglect to a person injured thereby. Connors vs. Adams, 13 Hun, 427.

§ 154. Surveys on Unsafe Buildings.-If the person or persons so served with notice shall immediately certify his or their assent to the securing or removal of said unsafe or dangerous buildings, premises or structure, he or they shall be allowed until one o'clock p. m. of the day following the service of such notice, in which to commence the securing or removal of the same; and he or they shall employ sufficient labor and assistance to secure or remove the same as expeditiously as the same can be done; but upon his or their refusal or neglect to comply with any of the requirements of said notice so served a further notice shall be served upon the person or persons heretofore named, and in the manner heretofore prescribed, notifying him or them that a survey of the premises named in the said notice will be made at the time and place therein named, which time may not be less than twenty-four hours nor more than three days from the time of the service of said notice, by three competent persons, one of whom shall be the Commissioner of Buildings having jurisdiction, or a Superintendent of Buildings or an Inspector, designated in writing by said Commissioner, another of whom shall be an architect, appointed by the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects for the Boroughs of Manhattan, The Bronx and Richmond, and by the Brooklyn Chapter of the American Institute of Architects for the Boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, depending upon the borough or boroughs in which the property is located, another of whom shall be appointed by the person or persons thus notified, and who shall be a practical builder or architect, upon whose neglect or refusal to appoint such surveyor, however, the said other two surveyors may make such survey, and in case of a disagreement of the latter, they shall appoint a third person to take part in such survey, who shall also be a practical builder or architect of at least ten years' practice, and the decision of the said surveyor shall be final; and that in case the said premises shall be reported unsafe or dangerous under such survey, the said report will be placed before a court therein named having jurisdiction to the extent of $1,000, and that a trial upon the allegations and statements

contained in said report, be the report of said surveyors more or less than is contained in the said notice of survey, will be had before said court at a time and place therein named, to determine whether said unsafe or dangerous building or premises shall be repaired and secured or taken down and removed, and a report of said survey, reduced to writing, shall constitute the issue to be placed before the court for trial. A copy of said report of survey shall be posted on the building by the persons holding the survey, immediately on their signing the same. The architect appointed by the Chapters of the American Institute of Architects as hereinbefore provided who may act on any survey called in accordance with the provisions of this Code, shall be entitled to and receive the sum of twenty-five dollars, to be paid by the Comptroller upon the voucher of the Board of Buildings. And a cause of action is hereby created for the benefit of The City of New York against the owner or owners of said building, staging or structure, and of the lot or parcel of land on which the same is situated, for the amount so paid with interest, which shall be prosecuted in the name of The City of New York by the Corporation Counsel. The amount so collected shall be paid over to the Comptroller in reimbursement of the amounts so paid by him as aforesaid. (Id., sec. 154, rev. from L. 1882, ch. 410, § 510, as amend.)

Only the defects mentioned in the preliminary notice can be tried. If others are found, a new survey must be had. Matter of Unsafe Building, 1 Abb. N. C. 464.

§ 155. Court Proceedings.- Whenever the report of any such survey had as aforesaid shall recite that the building, premises or structure thus surveyed is unsafe or dangerous, the Corporation Counsel of The City of New York shall at the time in the said notice named, place said notice and report before the Judge or Justice holding a Special Term of the court, in the said notice named, which said Judge or Justice shall immediately proceed to obtain and impanel a jury, and to the trial of said issue before said jury, whose verdict shall be exclusive and final, and shall try said issue without adjournment, except as may be necessary from day to day, giving precedence to the trial of this issue over every other business, and said Judge or Justice shall have power to impanel a jury for that purpose from any jurors in attendance upon said court, or in case sufficient jurors shall not be in attendance, then from any jurors that may be summoned for that purpose, and said Judge or Justice shall have power to summon jurors for that purpose, and any such suit or proceeding commenced before a Judge or Justice may be continued before another Judge or Justice of the same Court; a jury trial may be waived by the default of the defendant or defendants to appear at the time and place named in the said notice, or by agreement, and in such case the trial may be by Court, Judge, Justice or Ref

eree, whose report or decision in the matter shall be final; and upon the rendition of a verdict or decision of the Court, Judge, Justice or Referee, if the said verdict or decision shall find the said building, premises or structure to be unsafe or dangerous, the Judge or Justice trying said cause, or to whom the report of the Referee trying said cause shall be presented, shall immediately issue a precept out of said Court, directed to the Commissioner of Buildings having jurisdiction, reciting said verdict or decision, and commanding him forthwith to repair and secure or take down or remove, as the case may be, in accordance with said verdict or decision, said unsafe or dangerous building, buildings, part or parts thereof, staging, structure or other premises that shall have been named in the said report, and said Commissioner of Buildings shall immediately thereupon proceed to execute said precept as therein directed, and may employ such labor and assistance and furnish such materials as may be necessary for that purpose, and after having done so said Commissioner of Buildings shall make return of said precept, with an indorsement of the action thereunder and the cost and expenses thereby incurred, to the Judge or Justice then holding the said Special Term of the said Court, and thereupon said Judge or Justice shall tax and adjust the amount indorsed upon said precept, and shall adjust and allow disbursements of said proceedings, together with the preliminary expenses of searches and surveys, which shall be inserted in the judgment in said action or proceeding, and shall render judgment for such amount, and for the sale of the said premises in the said notice named, together with all the right, title and interest that the person or persons, or either of them, named in the said notice had in the lot, ground or land upon which the said building or structure was placed, at the time of the filing of a notice of lis pendens in the said proceedings, or at the time of the entry of judgment therein to satisfy the same, which shall be in the same manner and with like effect as sales under judgment in foreclosure of mortgages, and in and about all preliminary proceedings as well as the carrying into effect any order of the Court or any precept issued by any Court, said Commissioner of Buildings may make requisition upon the Comptroller of The City of New York for such amount or amounts of money as shall be necessary to meet the expenses thereof; and upon the same being approved by any Judge or Justice of the Court from which the said order or precept was issued and presented to said Comptroller, he shall pay the same, and for that purpose shall borrow and raise, upon revenue bonds, to be issued as provided in section 188 of the Greater New York Charter, the several amounts that may from time to time be required, which shall be reimbursed by the payment of the amount and interest at six per cent. out of the judgment or judgments obtained as aforesaid, if the same shall be collected.

In case said issue shall not be tried at the time specified in said notice, or to which the trial may be adjourned, the same may be brought to trial at any time thereafter by the said Commissioner of Buildings, without a new survey, upon not less than three days' notice of trial to the person or persons upon whom the original notice was served, or to his or their attorney, which notice of trial may be served in the same manner as said original notice. The notice of lis pendens provided for in this section shall consist of a copy of said notice of survey, and shall be filed in the office of a County Clerk in The City of New York, in the county where the property affected by such action, suit or proceeding is located. Provided, nevertheless, that immediately! upon the issuing of said precept, the owner or owners of said building, staging or structure, or premises, or any party interested therein, upon application to the Commissioner of Buildings, shall be allowed to perform the requirements of said precept at his or their own proper cost and expense, provided the same shall be done immediately and in accordance with the requirements of said precept, upon the payment of all costs and expenses incurred up to that time, and provided, further, that the Commissioner of Buildings having jurisdiction shall have authority to modify the requirements of said precept upon application to him therefor, in writing, by the owner or owners of said building, staging or structure, or his or their representative, when he shall be satisfied that such change shall secure equally well the safety of said building, staging or structure. (Id., sec. 155, rev. from L. 1882, ch. 410, § 511, as amend.)

§ 156. Application for Order to Remove Violations and to Vacate Buildings.— In case any notice or direction authorized to be issued by this Code is not complied with within the time designated in said notice, The City of New York, by the Corporation Counsel, may, at the request of the Commissioner of Buildings having jurisdiction, apply to the Supreme Court of New York, at a special term thereof, for an order directing said commissioner to proceed to make the alterations or remove the violation or violations, as the same may be specified in said notice or direction. Whenever any notice or direction so authorized, shall have been served as directed in this Code, and the same shall not have been complied with within the time designated therein, the Corporation Counsel may, at the request of the Commissioner of Buildings having jurisdiction, in addition to, or in lieu of the remedy last above provided, apply to the Supreme Court of New York, at a special term thereof, for an order directing the said commissioner to vacate such building or premises, or so much thereof as said commissioner may deem necessary, and prohibiting the same to be used or occupied for any purpose specified in said order until such notice shall have been complied with. The expenses and disbursements incurred in the carrying out of any said order or orders, shall become a lien

upon said building or premises named in the said notice, from the time of filing of a copy of the said notice, with a notice of the pendency of the action or proceeding as provided in this Code, taken thereunder, in the office of the clerk of the county where the property affected by such action, suit or proceeding is located; and the said Supreme Court, or a judge or justice thereof, to whom application shall be made, is hereby authorized and directed to grant any of the orders above named, and to take such proceedings as shall be necessary to make the same effectual, and any said judge or justice to whom application shall be made is hereby authorized and directed to enforce such lien in accordance with the mechanics' lien laws applicable to The City of New York; and in case any of the notices herein mentioned shall be served upon any lessee or party in possession of the building or premises therein described, it shall be the duty of the person upon whom such service i made to give immediate notice to the owner or agent of said building named in the notice, if the same shall be known to the said person personally, if such person shall be within the limits of The City of New York, and his residence known to such person, and if not within said city, then by depositing a copy of said notice in any post-office in The City of New York, properly inclosed and addressed to such owner or agent, at his then place of residence, if known, and by paying the postage thereon; and in case any lessee or party in possession shall neglect or refuse to give such notice as herein provided, he shall be personally liable to the owner owners of said buildings or premises for all damages he or they shall sustain by reason thereof. (Id., sec. 156, rev. from L. 1882, ch. 410, § 513, as amended.)

Part 32. Recovery of Bodies Under Fallen Buildings.

or

§ 157. Recovery of Bodies Under Fallen Buildings.— In case of the falling of any building or part thereof in The City of New York, where persons are known or believed to be buried under the ruins thereof, it shall be the duty of the Fire Department to cause an examnation of the premses to be made for the recovery of the bodies of the killed and injured. Whenever, in making such examination, it shall be necessary to remove from the premises any debris, it shall be the duty of the Commissioners of the Department of Docks, of the Department of Parks, of the Department of Highways, and of the Department of Street Cleaning, when called upon by the Department of Buildings to co-operate to provide a suitable and convenient dumping place for the deposit of such debris. In case there shall be, in the opinion of the Department of Buildings, actual and immediate danger of the falling of any building or part thereof so as to endanger life or property, said department shall cause the necessary work to be done to render said building or part thereof temporarily safe until the proper proceedings can