The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-08-22


rumher on those who in the noar Of their enthuSl-
am forgot eve ytnipg couoected WITH personal
safety Ia the faithful dschergA OF an arduous daty,
and WHO. in an enur 70 asa torougn one o sne ny
were then on tire, fe exhausted in the attempt. and
must Inevitably ave 10 ished had not some kind
and faithful friends rescued him from impeadiag
death, by conveying him safely from the scene Of
danger AND laying him ups mis- couch al home. In
looking back u tbe past. fond memorysrecais to
mind the names Of some Il those wno haviag oceu-
pied promiDant pos'tons N the front racks OF the
department, AMI pfrtorme1 we'll their parts, have
betn gathsred To cir fathers, where no bell dis
tuibs their sleeping aod DO alarm breaks upon the
stiI ess OF Their graves; sous bave passed away
3y the gradual dc NY Of % ure, IN good old age;
some Rave pnmatuJey ri. che, for tue tomb, ana
some have faiieD victims NJ the post oil danger we
Can sigh over the Wondering : mai0s Of brown,
. Franklin, a st ong Hobbs, and q Cox, acd
drop tear or two over tne too early graves OF
RykeT a Hofimire and Williams We can refer TO
the sad calamity which the Death Of Peterson
whose banner dc icated to the m N ry OF departed
worth, yet HOLDS prominent ros.tioa Ia every pa
rade Of ihe DIS paftnebt; Ia period OF 1877, when
Ra5nor and Joseph fell; &" the nrcs Of ~ aud
"a, which resulted in the sudden deaths Of Gar
rison, Boon, Hedges ano Koapp; to the sad dis,
astcr when an Uacel hill and Ward were barred
beneath the ruins OF e Pearl street dte; TO 80,
'36 an6 37 when R!tcbe, Horton aud Bucklow
were Numbered among the vi Tins OF those years;
60 the excitement # 1910, when Wells and Glasgow
sacrificed their lives; to AS, when Cowory died;
TO '4s, when the deaths Of the lamented Kerr,
Farges and DuraDr cest solrmn gloom over our city,
as IN one SAD procession We followed two OF them
TO the tomb: to the times wnan Evans and Trench.
ARD swsied the number Of the victims at the shrine
OF duty; ari | might lift the veil AID point you
to the m1ngle1 remains Of those who were go re-
cenfy sacrificed az the falling of the Broadway
buiialpg; bit will not o, affssh the yet bleed
ing wounds OF the survivors, wno viii never cease
to remember tht agony OF that dreadful night, and
who should hold T. strict accountability the an.
tpors OF heir ca amitY. Toe na PES and memory of
those xho bave just fallen While In the services Of
tbs department. are perpet'at.d upon the ma BILE
monument which. STAINS As . conspicuous object
npon the heights Of eensOOd. Among the many
Interesting Incidents ctet with the early his
tory of tns depnI ment, the MIN dwells with pecu-
liar pleasure ON one which those who wera wit
ness of the scere will cease to remember
nfer TO the visit Of the venerable and beloved
Lafayette, who frequently recounted as among the
gratifying circumstances II tnat vsit his review and
examination of firemen md apparatus; and
well remtmber, as he walked with sl0 and mea-
ed steps along tn line eaniug upon the arm Of
our chief, and receiving the cheers OF those who
were arranged around e Park in anticipation of
his approach, the tear OF affection kindled in his
eye as he grasped the hanos of those who stood in
advance OF their respe tive companies, and bado
him Welcome to orr shorss Wh.n the review was
ended, ard tho gallant General ,etired from the
ranks, the cheers of the united multitude made the
welkin ring, While sire am from every engine pre-.
scented o hydraulic display worthy of the Oc-
casioD. and the man. Carry your thoughts back,
s hoy 1ss tSe s.a which shsbi
has been called upon - operate in contcndiag
with some of the most dissst rous fires recorded In
the annals Of our history! Among the temples dedi
Gated to our holy religion WHICH have been swept
away by the dcvouring element even within our
own time, you may rene mber the tall Of the Beck
nan street Church. the burning apire of Wall street,
the memorable fire of '35 tbs Fren ID, Ia franklin;
the Synagogue. in Canal the Baptist, ia Oliver
Christs Cnurh h. in an .h~Dy; the Methodist, in
John; st. Thomas, in Brcadwas; and recently the
fvoI ID hufa i'm ofxo
the favorite aud popular places Of amusement too,
the fires within our recollection hive been dsas.
trous- Most Of us can remember the destruction of
the Mount Pitt circus: the Laurens street theatres
the Bowery, upon several O. casons; the Park,
twice; Nibl0e; the almo-t new and splendid opera
house, the corner Of Churcl and Leonard streets;
and though last, not least, the favorte temple With
In whose walls Dstonisted thousands have so often
listened TO the sweet warnings Of the Northern
Nightingale. Besides these, and many others which
may have escaped my recollection, almost immune
rabte have been the dres Against which the depart
ment have had 20 contend; and how well and efe tn
ally they have performed their duty the universal
appiause Of An apiJeciating and grateful people
most abuncantly testifes. 1t is true that ins,an-
ces occurred i'll which the help of man seemed al
most powerless tor tue TO arrest the progress Of
destruction snd TO stay the fury of the devouring
element, but they have generally been owing to a
combination Of peculiar cir ;umstances over which
the fireEen had DO control, and for which they
should not tic held responsible for it is not too
much to say that taefc Is class of QUE fellow
2euG 10 which We are more largely indebted for the
pTeieivaiCn OF our Il esioes and our homes than 20
tbe valuable bond # men this day celebrate the
la inc CT the c TutT stone of building 10 be de-
voted TO the services OF tue fire departm ent OF
city. Previous 70 nc Intro ,tion of Cfoton water
In 1872, our only rsour G was To tue very made
quate supply Of the ile plugs, viii were scattered
throughout tie dousely pc ulsted portions Of the
city, and connected with the Old Aiaubattau rorks
in Chambers street., and subsequently with the
reservoir in Thirteenth street. the comparatively
small cisterns 10 font Of many of the public
builSfogs-tee old supply engine upon the part OF
the grounds now occupied by the Tombs, the float
at the foot Of Roosevelt street, and our two noble
MYERS. In these days no district bci announced the
locstoS Of the fres and DO boupda les short Of the
entire island MAJ kcd o cali to duty; but when
the aaru was soun0ed the whole department
was aroused and from one ext eme OF the city to
the otner-from the Battery to Harlem aud from
tie North TO the Eass rivec--they were required
promptly 10 respond, frequently running many
weary mite, and exhausted long before arriving az
the Cause Of alarm--for hen no i1dey but the
pointing fion the City Hall, AMI the cupolas ofthe
few remotely scattered watch houses guided their
nightly wsnderiBgs, and during tne day they were
obliged TO rely ugon the best information which
could he Observation-Disclosures very eontr idctory
aud nrcestain. Then, as was not nnfrequcntly the
case, 1t required nearly one bali of the strength of
the derGnmflt TO force a gle stream upon the
fire, and now rrcollcct one instance In which
water was conveyed through a line Of about fifty
epgilfs fiom the East river 10 the vicinity of the
BowtTy, calling into requsition the services of
nearly one thousand men and requiring an immense
amount Of labor to stay the progress Of destruc.
tior. IL was la times liks these, aud during the
intense cold Of Dec mber night that the destruc-
tive FIRE at Cisne h,r, the present site of Full
ton market, swept ~ish fury tho bulldogs in
that neiShbofvold; and many of you may re-
member that large and valuable stock OF goot
old Blcodgood's vines furaisne fuel for the flames.
The bucnfcg ofthc cotton stores on South street
vDs also in the midst OF winter requiring nearly
tniriysix bours lsbor of the remen before the en-
tire department vas dismissed. The ropewiik fire
in tic then far distant suburbs OF the city, broke
tut duiiog che meridian sun Of q summer 8 Sabbath
CAV ARD mary who started as tho alarm fell ex-
htusted ere they reached the scene rhe chemical
worss IN Roadway, then Gar beyond the limits OF
c1, thicksy populate st cets-thc Exchange build.
iDEs on sWillivm st,eot and many Others which
might Le referred to- gill call to your mlads an rs
eocston Of ideas WI ich neither the time nor the