Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1882-02-18
MisfelIaneous.
HOW FIRES ARE PUT OUT.
The WONDERFUL WORK OF THE NEW
YORK FIRENEN.
CONTINUED from Yesterday. }

CONTINUED fronl Yesterday
| So the company always has to wait till
| the gong is done giving the first signal.
| II it strikes for one Of the stations of the
district the engine is all ready, and goes
/ to the fire as we have seen. If it strikes
I for locality ont of that district the horses
are unhitched and the men return to their
piares. This gives a good deal of extra
work TO the firemen. but it cannot we'll be
avoided, for if they waited till the gong
stopped ringing. and then found it was
one OF their calls they would waste the 10
or - seconds required for preparation,
and every second NAV be worth dollars
and lives at the beginning OF a fire. As
/ the officers put il, every second gained
ut the outbreak of fire il worth an hours
work when it gets a good Roadway"
just bow long it takes to man the engine
and have it ready to leave the quar-
tiers after the signal is received is
matter of some doubt, and must always
vary with circumstances. When the men
are asleep in bed or up in the sittingroom
in the third story, it sometimes takes as
long Is seconds to have everything
ready to start. But that is not considered
quick work. Fourteen or ID seconds un-
der such circumstances, would, perhaps,
be fair average. Some companies pre-
tend TO do IL in six seconds others in eight
others in 10. the celebrity has increased
very much witAn "a few years so rapidly,
in fact, that II it continues in the same
ratio for few years more the engines will
be AT the fire some seconds before the
alarm j. given at all. The men of each
company know so well Just " hat signals
they are to respond to that they do not
need to look at the printed schedule hang
ing in conspicuous place on the wall to
know what their numbers are. And not
only do they know their own numbers, but
the numbers all over the CITY. Let the
gong strike 10, or 6S2, or 72i, or any
number. and they will tell yOu in an instant
that the fire is in Ninetv-third street.
or in Morrisania, or at the Battery, or wher-
ever il happens To be. The First alarm"
calls out several engines, two hook and lad
! der trucks, and the necessary tenders. Sec
Ond and third alarms bring more engines
and more hook and ladder trucks. 1t is
a popular fiction that Il general alarm"
calls together all the engines in the city,
| This l. Il mistake, rs any one .may easily
see by thinking about it for a minute.
SO many engines would only he in each
others way. and all the rest of the city
would then be unprotected. II there are
not enough engines out to control the fire
after third alarm has been given, others
are selected and ordered out at the dis
erection OF the Chief. For this purpose
every signal box is provided with II Morse
| Geographic key.
! The department is divided into 10 bat
talions, each with il, Chief and each COM
pany has its foreman. When there is a
fire the first officer to reach the spot is in
command till his superior arrives. This
system works admirably. A few minutes
after the first engine reaches the fire the
Battalion Chief arrives in his light buggy
/ He then takes command until the arrival
OF the Chief OF the Department. Phe
/ Chief OF Battalion goes to every fire i'm
/ his district and the Chief of The Depart
ment goes to every fire south of twenty
third street on the first alarm, and to
every fire, anywhere in the city, on the
second or ,hiid alarm. The shouting and
] hallouing of orders all died out when the
old Volunteer department gave up the
I ghost. All orders are now given by sig
nal, with the arms by daylight and witt,
cOlored lanterns at night. So well are
the signals understood, il is not necessary
for an officer To say II word from begin
ming to end of a fire. Every man at the
fire has his place and goes 10 it, Each
company has foreman. an engineer, an
assistant engineer and eight pipe-men
The foreman and his assistant take charge
of the apparatus, the engineer and his sec
/ end keep the engine running and the pipe
men carry the hose wherever they are sent.
The steam is raised to the necessary height
IN the boiler in the shortest eossibe
time by keeping the water constantly
warm. and generally with few pounds of
steam on. This is effected by "A small
stove i'll the basement, Immediately under
where the engine stands. A fire is kept
constantly burning in this stove, and
around the tirebed is coil of pipes.
which are connected, by gas-pipe with
the boiler. The heat from the stove keeps
the water IN the pipes in constant circula-
/ ton, 50 that steam may be raised very
quickly. The connection between this
stove and the boiler is so arranged that
when the engine goes out of the house the
pipes slip apart automatically. without re-
curing any time. Every morning the
foreman ot each company sends report
/ to the Chief of his battalion, giving the
number of men on duty, the number sick
or injured, the condition of the apparatus,
and any particulars he may have to tell
The Chief of Battalion consolidates all
these into one report and sends it to the
ChAf. The Chief consoltlates the 10 bat
TALON reports and sends the result to the
Commissioners, so that at noon every dav
the Commissioners know just how many
men they have on duty. and everything that
is going ON the department.
How the men live in the engine-houses
has To be seen to be properly appreciated.
There is always something 10 do. In a
corner of the engine-room is a telegraph
instrument connecting with headquarters.
and through this orders and messages are
constantly passing. One man is selected
every day TO take charge of the engine.
room and watch the doors This man at
tends TO the telegraph instrument and
answers messages. At eight in the morn
ing the time is sent by telegraph from
headquarters to all the engine houses. SO
that every company has tue same time