"Triangle Co. factory"? Was this any relation to the Triang company which produced the fondly remembered "Frog" line of plastic model kits? As one who enjoyed those kits, I'd really rather not find out they were produced by that kind of labor but I'd prefer to know the truth.
As a side note, I enjoy Timothy Zahn's work too, though mostly his original work as he comes up with some very original concepts. Mind you, even writing within other authors' universes, he manages to make very original contributions; forex., his "With One Stone" in "The Service of the Sword" was some excellent work in David Weber's "Honor Harrington" universe and tied in some backstory with some very original concepts.
Author's response
No. The Triangle Factory In New York City was a sweatshop, that 'employed' mostly women and girls. Many of those girls were either destitute or orphans, and forced to work for long hours for what was even then, far below prevailing wage. On March 25, 1911, a fire broke out. Unfortunately for the girls there, the emergency exits had been chained shut, to keep them from taking breaks. 141 women and girls and five men died, either because of the fire itself, or through suicide. Most of them stepped out of a ninth floor window, preferring to die that way rather than to burn to death.
The owners, Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, never paid for their crimes. They escaped to the roof and were rescued.
They were tried but their attorney Max Steuer, managed to destroy the credibility of one of the survivors, Kate Alterman, by bagering her to repeat herself over and over. He convinced the jury that her unwavering testemony was proof that she has practiced her beforehand.
He also managed to convince them that neither Blank or Issac, knew the doors were locked.
A civil suit in 1913, was settled in the victims favor, for the sum of $75.oo per victim, but Blank still managed to rip off the insurance company for far more than he had to pay.
Blank was arrested later for locking the doors on another building. He was fined $20.oo.
The fortunate result was three-fold. Laws were enacted, as to decent working conditions, Child labor and safety. The American society of Safety Engineers was founded October of that year.
OK, that aside, I've read many of Zhan's books and he is literally a genius at writing. On the other hand, Weber, while being brilliant as well, tends toward pedantic, ass seen specifically in his Honor series. You have to start at the beginning to get the full story.
On the other hand, I really liked 'Empire from the Ashes' (except for the last chapter) 'Ashes of Victory', 'In Fury Born', and 'Stars at War'(both).
Alorkin