Wilmington daily gazette., 1874-02-18
A Paid Fire Department.

Mr. baker has desired to be- made the special
champion for the Paid Fire Department In vii
mington. Now 1t is clearly shown from the re-
ports Of city where the paid system has been
adopted, that the cost of three additional compa-
ues was 100000 10 hc;yin with, and Sl3,S23 ..
yes asked for to pay salaries iol them ior eight
mouths Here We have s13,s23 y o necessary
tor two-thirdl OF year il We add ior salaries
for the remaining thlrd OF the year, W. WI get
the cost for the first year for three companies and
We find At to bs S7S,4i0,0 This Is IN city
where the paid system has been in use for ten OF
twelve year The cost there ior running three
companies, without counting rents is s,S,43o 20
VOW it is nonsense for the people OF Wilming ton
TO suppose they could get along safely without al
least, II We steam five engines, and the Hook and
Ladder Company and Hose Company, as auXi's-
ries, could not be dispensed with with salty Here
then is a cost of S30,6l1 So without cornting in
the cost of the last named aux Hilary compenies
Thus putting the cost down TO the cheapest
rates, we hnd that experience proves the ped
system to he more than double the cost OF on
volunteer system while we know our system to
b, reliable and 6afe. 1t has Just the elast city NJ
cessary TO encounter the terrible clement in lis
herce attacks upon our home aud our lives But
the paid system contains the very opposite fea
tlnlls tho community into fanoied security
and depr,scs the people OF the very J lowledge
and experience that is necessary when the enemy
attacks us Ills flank movements have ever been
successful wherever the paid system has been
adopted, Had the people of Chcal. o had control
Of as many engines as they would have had had
49, -zi-l
tracted and inefficient paid system the great Gre in
that city would have been dwarled TO have its ex-
tent 1t would not have broken out a second
lime while the exhausted hremen were taking ne
cessary rest, and millions OF dollars would have
been saved to that city. The same would have teen
the case IN Boston and Baltimore.
Those cities now see that 1t i necessary To- du-
plicate the force they had depended on 50 long -
they find that tor a year two engine might put
out all the fires while in the next ten days II
would not be possible Tor less then fifteen or
twenty 10 perform the same service; and they are
making provision 10 meet ihi, unforeseen and
costly difficulty.
Now, we cannot see how We can in " lminglon
put ont fire with less force than it woull take
10 any other place. And We cannot permit our
people 10 be deuded with the IDEAS thai have cost
the people OF other cities 50 terribly within the
past few years. Oar department is valuable. We
an attack fire now with more trained and ex-
perienced hands than either Baitim more or Boston
Break down our elastic system and We Will be
able to light the flames with only the same pro
poltionate force OF trained men that has proved
. fatally insufficient in every one of the great
4 ItiFs where the 1pyoufinf al I,a IA
one OF its terrible raids, that had doubtless been
threatened on countless occasions before under
the volunteer system, and checked before COM
rnitting halt the havoc that hctell Chicago, Ros-
ton ana Baltimore