The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1870-07-20
How TO Make nm Efficient Fire De;
nab s.l.ia apartment. .l5,,'aIs ~
,,I0I7ttp aellcE q GHst9flayt Re0lsIsF' ~ ~
Da.tf' ,iWnERL1N6tI, July 49,. 1870.

~ - ~ 3.
r4..tf r siWHEEI1NGi, July IS, 1870.
p Why is It tint We ask men TO be fire
men, 10 leave ihetr business and occupa!
tions for the pittancc OF $40 per annum
and call It d paid Department. TO be pO.
5icemen we demand that men shall give
up all other business, and devote theiI
whole time ,toIit,l and be the city's ser.
vnnts, ready to answer ler call at any and
all times. Should we not adopt the same
plan with our firemen, who are equally
the servants of the cityp'i .
There Is a time in the origin Of any fire
when teacupful Of water will extingnish
it. By and by, II 1t be neglected, a river
full will not put it out. This shows the
necessity Of the department being at Tie
scene Of Contlagrattot in the brieiest pos
siblG time after an alarm Is given II the
tlremen are at the engine houses all the
time, they are all tho time ready 70 leave
with their apparatus on the first stroke o.
the alarm bell. As otlr department Il
now constituted this is impossible, " ! f'''
Let US look at this 8 Tho department Is
composed Of working Ilen-niGn who arc
compelled toulab9F daily for the support
Of tlleir families. Some Of these arc car
penters, some plasterers, some Of othei
trades, whoI are to-day working in th(
neighborhOod of their respective engtht
h0usesand Tomorrow maybe a mile sway
Wien i'm alarm Is given in the daytime
their apparatus must wait till these ol
nearly all Of them get TO the engine house
before it can be taken out, for, 1t cannot be
expected that the hostler, (the only person
now required to'be at the engine house al
all timcs,) can, handle three horses, lighl
the fire III tic engine, ring the alarm bet
and drive the hose carriage and engine tc
tho fire all at once. 7 Therefore, while tllt
fire Is burning tho engine must wait 'nnti
the tiremen come. J9I!tH lGI j > 4
But this in the daytime, at night the
thing, Is surely, different, says he wild
objects to q change Not u bit oft. Lei
us take the residence of the men forming
two of the companies:
vIGILANT, .1a go
Trap Powell, / foreman, works in, The bSal
ytatFi, lives III secdhd Ward meat the1nar
kGt house. C!aM. Oliver, engineer, works
at Swccncy's, lives on Washington street
G. s. Simpson, fireman, works at Swce
ney's, lives ut Fourth ind Madison streets
Two Of the cxtramen live OH tho pike
andmoIe Of thep1Hearert than, \ habmtle
from the engine house, Ne
ATLANTIC, ..-..
George Kingdom, foreman. works i
Reid1s brewery lives on Clay street. y
]. Hamilton, works Mt Hobbs & Taylor's
lives on John street. H. Snider, fireman
is a bricklaycr, lives on Sixth street. Ont
Of, the extralpcn lives on Eof street, anl
ali tic others equally distant from the en-
ginc house. ''@- g '''''.
do not make this statement in spiri
Of .iault.hutling, for l do, not sec how, any
thihE Better. could be done under The CIR
cumstNnces, hut uSeft for the purpose
showing how necessary II is that tho fire
men should be, at the engine houses at al
times, rcidyto GO at any moment alit
without on instant'st delay. Firemer
should be nothing else but firemcn. They
should give all their time to the city, ant
Ipdeive sufficient pay, 50 that they mNydI
so. Hoping the Council will adopt tht
plan proposed and give US indeed pGtt
department and one that shall become
Inbt6d Tor tliG rapidityoEits movement
and efliclencHs5I 4 amy9grs.
An OLD FIREMAN.