The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1870-02-05
Ancient Modes of Extirguishing Fires.

Fire, which was anciently considered the
most mysterious and terrible of the four
elements and for that reason was the
invariablc accompaniment of the process
of sorcery. divination, and magic, modern
chemistry has shown to be no element at
all, but simply the visible effect of rapid
suggestions mystery. although its real ca
pacity Of producing terror must ever re-
main. There is hardly scene which the
mind can present to itself more heart-rend-
ing than that Of great conflagratien-a
city in flames and its ilslabitants driven
houseless and homeless into the bleak and
icy air Of winter; and this. too, by the
very agent which they had used to further
their comfort Like all t..ngs, enough Of
which is good. but of which too much is
disastrous, fire is 4 ''good servant but
bad MASTER
We moderns, who have the telegraph to
a city there is a fire. and steam fire engines
to appear at the scene of conhagration with
a celebrity which, few years ago, was I'M
known even to us. can hardly conceive the
terror which the eutbust of a fire in great
city of antiquity caused in the minds of its
inhabitants especially t'rightful must such
calamity have been in time Of war; when,
to be driven from beleagured city was to
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piacable enemies, and it is well known that
fire was one of the NEST common and de-
structive means employed in ancient war
fare.
Antiquity, being thus put at its wits
end, devised means of extinguishing fires
which must seem to us extremely ludicreus.
The first hose used was probably the gut
Of an OK, having at one extremity a bag
filled with water. which, upon being com
PRESSED, would eject the fluid in stream
but such contrivance would be but of lit
tie value when city was on fire. At best
it could send q stream but a short distance
and the bag would need to be detached from
the hose and replenishrd very frequently
The houses were not seldom quite lofty.
and. altogether. this primitive hose must
have been very nnserviceablc.
Buckets ana syringeS were used, as were
also dumps, and doubtless other machinery
of which history makes but little mention.
1t Rome there were professional tiremcn
trained to their duties from youth, and
known as ano'riu'arii. They appear to
have been Goisterous set of men, not alto
getler unlike those who, few years ago,
were led to fights and fires in New York
by the celebrated "Mose.' The Emperor
Traian, writing to Pliny the Younger, who
was Governor of Bithynia, and had asked
Instructions from headquarters in regard
to raising company of g fire laddies,"
said that they were not the most peaceable
citizens possible, and that ''they would
form themselves into factious assemblies -
ell the slightest provocation. Just think
fer moment what must have been the re-
ssEit Of the meeting of the rival companies
Of tqatyicularH! We all know what good
service was done by Nose upon the do
voted h@ad of "Syksey when the speak
ing trumpet syas the weapon of offense-
hut how ridieuiors as well as bloody must
have been the tIglss of firemen in the mar
row streets OF RoH4e, when buckets, sy-
ringes long poles With sronges attached to
them. and stones, We're the munitions Of
war party running down to the "yel-
low Tihar'' T., .rat ,vnta,. far Sv,.inrac
meet another party just returning with
buckets, which they have filled with the
precious fluid, Intending il to be used by
the mop-carriers. Instantly there occurs a
row, upon the issue of which depends the
possession of the buckets; the moppers
and the bucketcrs run from all quarters to
minglc in the aff'ray, and, by the time that
forty Or fifty ringlcaders have bitten the
dlst, the water is all spilled and the cdsus
BALI removed with a vengeance. In the
meantime the centlagration is spreading,
and it is lucky for Rome if, before long, a
whole quarter be not burned down. That this
i: not merely 4 fancy sketch. may be seen
from the accounts which have come down
to lis, showing that the rabble of Rome was
the most quarrelsome and seditious Of any
in the ancient world with, perhaps, the
single exception of the rabble of Alexan-
dria. Also may it be seen from the fact
that the firemen were pointed ont as being
especially fiery and riotous.
The houses of Rome were very high, and
almost always their upper stories were made
of wood: this. added to the fact that TIC,
streets were generally narrow, will show
how easy it must have been for contlagra-
tions to spread. The city suffered terribly
from fl re many times. AID several times was
almost entirely consumed. Ever precau-
ton was taken, s1cl as compelling persons
to build their horses Il certain distance
rrem each other, instituting bodies of pub
tic and private watchmen, and tho like, and
these means. when faithfully and diligently
nsod, were no mean preventives; but what
Wis really needed was engines more nearly
oY.,oaching to perfection, both in construc-
tioh snd hardness; and we find that the
law NJ one time required every citizen to
Keep private engine or sipho i'll his house.
With such inefficient apparatus was Rome
rua rded from fire.
In the dark ages eonflagrations were
comm, IN aad disastrous throughout Europe
and the us. OF even the old engines seems
to have esa forgotten, certainly they wen
hardly us, ID: and this fact may. among
other things. he attributed to supersti
ton. by no means uncommon, that fires
plaques, and treat calamties were vista
tions of Provide nee, aid that it was i'm
pious to attempt 20 prevent them or to OBJ
tain mastery ever them WI zen they actually
existed. The helplessness and lSnoranc'
of supersttious People are perhaps no
where more clearly seen than IN the fac
that in medieval Zines it was bci!eved tina
the most efficacious means against fire was
the ringing OF sacred bells and the exor
cism of demons, who were apparently sup
posed to be very infammab.e personages