Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-02-10
FIREMEN'S COLUMN.

- encouraging, as MS eXcellency mas I'll
reputation of being just and friendl
towards ali matters pertaining not onl
to the good of our great state, but TO il
citizens in all matters, and the voluntee
ifremen may rest assured Governor Ros
VIII not forget the fire boys.
The Matlock bill has been reporte,
favorable by the judiciary committee o
the senate, and with our warm friends il
the house the relief from jury duty FOL
smaller towns aud cities is sure TO be haC
AT this session, even if we get no more
Patience, with a persistent determination
and the proper appeals personally TO eacf
/ one of your senators and representative
will accomplish the rest So harry NJ
your petitions and send them to Austin
fpost haste. -
How many volunteer fire companies in
! the state have forwarded to their repre-
/ sentative or senator at Austin their petit
! lions? Hurry them up, boys, as aact
quick and promptly must be our watch
word. The alarm % has sounded and
/ let every volunteer fireman in Texas who
! loves the cause and wishes to see those
| who may be disabled in the active dis
| charge of their duties in the future taken
care Of, sign their company petitions and
mail to Austin.
Some departments in the state NAV be
able with the assistance of the city couu-
eli TO take the proper care of their dis
abled firemen, but these departments II
Texas are few and far between, for most
departments have to Go this by voluntary
subscription among their members.
c. NJ. Webb of the finance committee
of the state association is now in business
at Trinidad, Col. He is pleasantly re-
membered as being the life of the Tenn
pie meeting and was an earnest, jealous
worker for the San Angelo department,
which he represented so well. The Trim
idad fire department may now think they
own him as member, but the Paris
meeting must be headed by him and his
renowned calithumpian band, as the
Paris boys and Chief Record promise to
have the latest ''iInproved iustru-
ments ready for them Be on
hand, friend Webb, as we need you in
our business. Col, Jake and Fritz will
be there, also Mayor Levy of Temple,
who was so charmed with the sweet
strains Of music discoursed at his gate in
the gentle hours of midnight.
The state association done a wise thing
in selecting City Clerk Henry Early of
Fort Worth chairman of the committee
on topics, as he is not only an enthusi-
astic, brave fireman, proud of his call
ing, but q man of executive, business
ability, and will push the topic matter so
that instead of short reports, gotten up
hurriedly during the convention we will
have some learned essays to be read be-
fore the Paris meeting; and these essays
can be discussed by the various delegates
giving their experience on such matters
as they have come up III their own de-
partments.
The great trouble in the past with the
meetings of our state association is that
we have SO little time for work, on ac-
count of the programme for pleasure
given by the department entertaining the
convention being so long.
Now, let Us all go to Paris next May
with the aVoWed determination to make
the meeting one OF business as well as
pleasure to all. A little less of parlia-
mentary technicalities and more discus
sion on fire matters will be better, and
it viii prove useful feature in the fut-
ure. The national association adopted
this plan, and it works well. AS then
our reports of the state convention make |
useful and learned reading when printed,
which will be of service to all the de- |
partments of Texas.
OF the fires reported last week amount |
ing to $40 900 or more, the total loss is
1887 900 in the United States, of which |
1878 900 falls on the insurance compa-
MES, Four large foreign fires aggregate
s. ,050 200 loss.
The New Orleans firemen 3 annual pa
rade and the arrival of the King of the
carnival fall, by their regular appoint
m IN afoa a Il !
wants whole day to itself, and the sug-
gestion is made that its review be held
Sunday, March 8.
TROUBLE FOR FIRE-BUGs.
This year of grace starts out with q
goodly list of inoendiaIy fires, but q
loV city is presented in the rapidity with
which the fire-bug finds himself snugly
lestling in the great big hand of the
American law. During the last FIVE
Tears the losses from carelessness and
rhine have increased more than half
billion dollars. While this has a ten
ieneY to cloud the sky of the insurance
World, it is no less subject of grave mo-
nent TO the fireman. 1t nearly al
Ways happens that the vengeance |
# the incendiary is directed against the
property of the rich, and the result of
lis work usually takes the fire beyond !
he $40 900 mark, and beyond that mark
he hardest work and most dangerous
isks for the fireman come. 1t is in the
lcendiary fire that danger turks for
but the ineendiaPy He misses
he penitentiary ofteneT than he reaches
:, and he still goes on filing the insur-
nee companies with woe and the fire de-
artment with vacancies. 1t is time the
'orld woke up. The legislatures of =
Tenty-nine states are in session this
inter, and many of them have bills in |
and providing for the appointment of
re coroners, whose duty it shall be to
lvestigate judicially the cause of every I
re, in a manner similar to that by 7
HIGH violent and unusual deaths are
ow investigated. The movement {
lould interest every fireman. The pub I
C reads the details of big fire, and in 7
lgnantly says that something must be [
one-but the public forgets its indigpa-
nothing is done. BRt to the 8
reman the alarming gain of ilcendiary /
res and the surprising success of the '
cendiaries in eluding detection are +
instant menace and to him they have {
tai interest. Such law ehould pass in '
7eFy state, and with it should be '
'upled provision empowering depart 7
ents to detain every person q
nnd in the vicinity of the FIRE upon [
eir arrival who does not give satisfae- t
ry reasons for his presence, in order TO q
'oduce before the coroner all the testi- I
ony that can be obtained. Were this I
IA a Tp,1ah ariTanoa MIGHT Ia fo,tboor, ( :,