Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1885-02-19
a FIREMARs LIFE.
Some OF the Peculiar Features of a
Ffreman,s Existence

Etrcm ans Existence.
A few nights ago Tribune reporter
missed his carriage, which usually leaves
the corner Of State and Madison streets
at *. NJ, and started to walk the three
miles that separated him from his West
Side mansion. There was keen west
wind, and before he had gone very far
he began to wish he could drop in some
where and warm up. A fire engine sta
ton was not far out of his way, and so
he looked in at one where he was pretty
well acquainted. This house differed in
no material points from any other house
in the city. There was the same ap-
paratus with its shining brass work and
bright red gear. the same spotIess floor,
the tinted walls, the bright brass rods
reaching up through the ceiling to the
sleeping quarters, the group Of register
ing instruments in one corner, the big
atove glowing from the fierce fire within,
the lowered lights, ond the disconsolate-
looking man on watch. The silence was
only broken by the bubbling of the
water in the engine boiIer-a sort of lul-
laby to the 'sman on the floor The
breathing of the sleeping men above was
quite audible, and conversation in an
ordinary tone seemed strangely loud.
Suddenly there was sharp click from
one Of the instruments in the corner.
followed almost instantly BY discord-
ant and deafening jangle Of bells The
stall doors swung open, four powerful
horses galloped to their places at the ap-
paratus, the man on watch jumped from
his seat and yelled @Firep' eight dark
bodies shot down the slippery poles and
then darted in and out among the impa
tient steeds, there was the sound of snaps
being rapidly hooked, of quick footsteps
on the floor, and then the captains voice
rose above the din, crying No go!''
AS soon as the big gong stopped
striking the horses were returned to their
stalls and part Of the men went back
to their beds. Three .or four, the cap
tain among them, drew their chairs up
to the stove, filed their pipes, and sat
down for smoke.
ssThat's the second one tonight, " said
the captain, and I've been disturbed
just enough so that I shan't be able to go
to sleep again for an hour or more. Z"
ssWhere was that box2n
'.oh, way down on the south side
Thirty-third street and Cottage Grove
avenue
"What is the use Of making your com
pany hitch up on an alarm that cannot
affect YOUR
II give it up. 1t is customary TO trans
NIT the alarm from any box to every en-
CINE company in the city. We all hitch
on it whether it is go or not. Every
time box is pulled at night it turns 400
men out of bed, from sound sleep, and
puts them into instant action on the main
floor along with $50 or more horses.
Seems like a waste of vital energy,
doesn't doesn't il "
1T certainly does seem as if there IS
something wrong about a system that re-
quires such unnecessary labor from the
men. How many alarms do you receive
in year?"
Somewhere about 1,7OO, I believe,
and more than 800 Of these come in be-
tween o'clock at night and o'clock in
the morning"
'eThen, on an average, your sleep will
be broken to no purpose twice every
nightgn
.'That's about the size of it. And I'm
sure it can't be healthy. The loss of
sleep that follows being thus awakened
two or three times tells on the men.
They have headaches, no appetite, and
are generally all out Of condition until
they catch up on their rest again.
The matter was talked over for an
hour Or SO, and the next day the repor-
ter called at the department headquar-
ters.
A well-known physician said that the
sudden leaping to the feet from sound
sleep must be fearfuly wearing on the
men. It was never considered advisa-
BILE suddenly to awaken one
who was sleeping deeply, and he be-
lieved that many diseases were courted
by this unnecessary performance on the
part of the members Of the depart
ment.
There is something strange about the
way in which fireman accustoms him
self to these sudden calls. It frequently
happens among certain men that they
will leap from their beds at the tap OF
the bell, slide down the pole, do their
share of the hitching, and mount to
their places on the apparatus without
waking up. To this peculiar feature
are attributed good MANY accidents.
Drivers, rather half dazed, misunder-
stand the location as given by the cap
tain; or, understanding it correctly,
start Of in the wrong direction without
really knowing what they are doing
It is quite possible that this will ac-
count for hose-carts and engines being
driven into open draws. - Chicago Tri-
bune.
Theory and Practice.
There is q good deal of difference be.
tween theory and practice. but no man