Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1873-08-28

The View Fire Alarm telegram.


Editor Star: notice in to-day's issue Of your
valuable paper that our Board Of Public works
Is taking the initiatory steps towards building
new fire. alarm telegraph lines, &C., and few
suggestions as to how the work should be done,
will, think, be in place. First of all, hope
that they will use poles for supports, aud
abandon the use of chimneys altogether, for
here or in the latter mode of supporting wires
lies the root Of many evils. The boxes or trans
nlitters have often been blamed for false alarms,
while IN fact the wires were lying across some
tin roof, having blown OFF the chimney brackets,
and the current was thus grounded. Again,
have frequently noticed that wires running
across roof were used by housekeepers as
clothes lines. Under such circumstances of
course the wires cannot be expected TO work.
There may be some objections to the use Of
poles, but nobody can deny that they are the
only reliable supports. If painted, they are not
so very "unsightly," as some persons are trying
to make them, besides the wires can then be
painted red some ten feet from the ground, and
marked g Fire-alarm telegraph, ;" so that every
body will know them, and then let the Legisla-
ture pass an ordinance imposing a heavy fine
upon persons interfering or injuring wires or
poles, holding, also, parents responsible for
allowing their children to fly kites in the streets,
as the latter become frequently entangled with
the wires, causing much trouble In rainy
weather by forming connection between the
several wires on pole. The old crank boxes
should also be abolished and automatic ones
purchased instead. To show what other cities
have expended in building reliable fire-alarm
telegraph lines, will just mention that the city
VI NeW 1ofk palu SooOOOO 1Or renting ner Old
WORKOUT lines" afew years ago. They put
up 1850 poles, 625 miles of wire, $500 feet sub
marine cable, and $40 additional automatic
street boxes, and the result was that her fire.
alarm system is in this respect ahead of any
other at present to be found in the United
States. The sum appropriated ny our Legisla-
ture (1 think So0,0OO) will hardly be found adj
equate If the work is to be done we'll and every
part of our rapidly spreading city to be in
GUIDED in the network of wires. Our citizens
seem TO be unanimous on this question, and de-
sire 10 see firstclass system that will do credit
to the city. Hoping that these lines will meet
the eyes of the "powers that be- 1 remain
Washington, August q, 1873.
THE appropriation by the legislature was
only $4,000, an amount inadequate, it Is feared,
TO give us such an enlarged and improved sys-
tenn with the requisite number Of alarm boxes
and alarm strikers as the growing needs of the
District cities require; but it is hoped that the
Board OF Public Works, who are entrusted with
the work, will, with their usual public spirit
and forethought, give us the best system and
enough boxes and strikers for the protection of
the property of our citizens, even IL they have
to rely upon deficiency bill to do 80. 1t is
work that should be thoroughly done, or not at
aI.-ED.J
Mr.. EDIToR-.Sir. We find it necessary to ask
You to publish this item The cold weather
will soon be here, and we will have TO get in our
coal, and the alley between Maryland avenue
and q and 4k and 9Th streets southwest is all
cut up, and we will lose half of our fuel in the
mud II 1T is not promptly attended to by the
Board OF Public Works, or we will have to carry
1t through our parlors and ruin our carpets.
Yours, M. +. F. 81 Co.