Saint Paul weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1858-1859, 1858-11-06
NO. g.

whenever and wherever its services may be
needed, and trusting that the spirit of your mot.
tothe "Hope" which lives eternal in the human
heart, may so inspire and animate YOU. in
your battles with the raging Fire Fiend,"
that the courage and gallantry which is sy-
nonymous with the name Of Fireman may
crown your brows with wreaths of &C honor,''
sacred to the name and cause Of sufferinghu-
manity, now entrust it to your care and
keeping
TO which Foreman Wiley, of Hope NJ. /,
responded in regular fireman style, blunt and
plain, though eloquent:
R. c. wILEY's RESPONSE.
SIR Hope Engine Company No. / ac-
cepts the engine which you, on behalf of the
municipal authorities Of the city of st. Paul
have presented to u.s.
While fully appreciating the real value of
this engine, we need not remind you sir, nor
through you, the Common Council of this
city, that the efficiency of our engine, in case
OF lire, will depend In great measure if not
entirely on plentiful and convenient supply
of water
Sir, from your late communication to the
Common Council, we feel assured that you
will use your best endeavor to procure us that
for the purpose of showing that even with the
best of engines our efforts will be compare
lively powerless until reservoirs are con-
structed at convenient points throughout the
city.
Our Company being the first Engine Com
pany formed in this city, with nothing to keep
our organization together, save the little ma
chine which has been so long familiar to our
citizens, and which, sir, am proud to say
has done the city some service, and our de-
termination to hold together until we had a
better apparatus to work with. we very ap-
propriately named our Company " HOPE"
We hoped for better things, Sir-we had
hoped that from our feeble beginning, would
spring a company powerful in numbers and
respectability and we still Hope" that our
progress will be onward and upward, until
we have an organization which in all its ap-
pointments would do honor to older and larger
cities; and am happy to say, Sir, that the
scene now enacting gives ample evidence that
our hope is about being realized.
Sir, although we've had no Longfellow to
charm the world with the beauties and asso-
cations clustering around our name, we've
had poets innumerable to strike the Lyre in
alteration of the gentle and inspiring Goddess
which serenely and appropriately crowhs our
Engine as emblematic of our name. Sir, we
hope that our efforts 10 extinguish fire and save
the lives and property of our fellowcitizens
will not be entirely powerless; and we hope
that when the alarm bell rings, the victims of
the advancing flames will shout "Hope," as
they hear the Engine laundering through your
streets.
Sir-in conclusion, let me assure you that
on all occasions Hope Engine Company No. 1
is always ready and willing to perform its duty
cheerfully in strict subordination to the regu-
larly constituted authorities of the Fire De-
partment and of the city of st. Paul.
Allow me to thank you, and through you
Sir, the Common Council of this city, for the
beautiful gift which you have SO generously
presented to us.
After the applause had subsided, Gen. En-
erson then turned to Minne-ha-ha, and thus
addressed them:
Mr. Foreman and Members Of l9nne-ha.ha Fire
Company, No. 2:
BY the same authorities and for the same
purposes, place in your care this splendid
engine, called by your title the Minne-ha-
ha," name at once appropriate and signifi-
cant. Appropriate, as applying to the tor
rents of Laughing Water" which it is in
tended to discharge, and significant Of the
victories, which, with its aid, you are to
achieve over the devOuring element, in its wan
ton efforts for the destruction of our proper
ty and lives. Victories which trust, through
your manly strength and stern determination,
are to be as complete in its utter annihilation,
as if the "Fall of the Minne-ha -ha," with
ample volume, enshrouded in mist and spray,
were to be poured suddenly upon it.
With this feeling of confidence, and trust
ing that friendly and fraternal emulation may
be the only feelings ever cherished between
yourselves and your brethren of the Hope"
| now deliver the Minneha-ha into your
charge.
To which Foreman Grant appropriately and
tersely replied as follows:
HP. GRANTS RESPONSE.
Mr.. President and Fslloao Citizens:
You, perhaps at this time, will expect me,
as First Officer of this Company, to whom this
beautiful machine has been presented, to re-
spond to the very able remarks of the Honor
able President of the Council. And here let
me say, that speech making is not my busi-
ness or profession. Trusting you will over
look any error which may make, and the or
atorial style of my delivery.
Gentlemen, in accepting the charge of han
ding this magnificent Fire Engine we feel
that we are taking upon ourselves great re-
spOnsibility, and that you, citizens OF st. Paul
will expect us to do more than we shall be
able to do, for by looking around, we find that
we now have in the Fire Department, the old
established company, Pioneer Hook and Lad
der No. /, and as true set OF FIremen as
ever handled an axe Hook or Ladder, with
their worthy Foreman as leader, Capt Isaac
Ranker Next we have Hope Engine COmpa-
nv No. 1, which organized during the hard
t;no. Of the Fall of 81, whose members are
hone and sinew of ST Paul. They are under
the command of their worthy leader, Captain
Wiley. And Gentlemen, next comes Mime
ba -ha Engine Company No. 2, the company
which have the honor to command. OF this
company have nothing to say, further than
when duty calls we will be there to speak for
ourselves. Last but not least, comes Inde-
pendent Company No. l, of the Rotary Mill,
composed of citizens of Saint Paul. They
are with us to-day, gentlemen, and have no
doubt but when our enemy attacks us we
shall find them on hand to help repel 1t. But
with this full organized Department compos-
ed as tits, of the first of Saint Paul, under
the charge of our worthy Chief Engineer,
Cbas II Williams. and these two new splen-
did M machines, as have before remarked, you
III, o,-rnn. nc TO do more in case of fire than
b able to 6 do a"d Mr. nsssdeut
~ LII toIl YOU why we shall not be able to per-
s,,,n m as much as you will expect of US. The
first reason is the scarcity of water in this
city. The second is the great mistake our
City Fathers made in buying these two heavy,
cumbersome machines.
We will look along little into the future.
Hark a cry of fire is heard-now the bells
begin to ring. Firemen and citizens spring
from their beds and run along the streets ask
ing where it is. A policemen comes running
up the street, crying Constants ware house is
on fire! Ten members have already arrived
at No. 2's house, they have hauled the ma
chine along to the Merchants Hotel, but why
are they stopping there you ask. They an
swer, we cannot hold her down the hill with
lacc tboY, +uropfv mon Ton rnipufoc mono