Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-02-15
EDUCATING FIRE HORSES
HOW THEY ARE TAUGHT IN THE
NEW YORK DEPARTMENT.


NEW YORK DEPARTMENT
Marvellous Speed Brought Ont and
Gront Things Accomplished in n
Few Seconds.
There arc many interesting things in
New York, writes Foster Coates, in the
Brooklyn Citizen, but there are few
things moro interesting than the school
from which fire horses ure graduated.
1t is situated in the upper part of New
York, and is under tho management OF
several veterans of the Fire Department,
commanded by well known veterinary
surgeon, who is practically principal Of
the school.
This New York horse school has been
in operation since 1882, and in that
length of time has graduated some four
hundred horses. There arc employed in
the fire service in Now York nearly five
hundred horscs. These supply the fifty
five engine houses of the city, the seven
teen hook and ladder companies, beside
the various water towers and wagons OF
the chiefs of bat.alions, with motive
power. 1t is hard work, too. Horses,
no matter how strong and hardy, suffer
from it, despite the care that is taken OF
them.
The horses are all picked, but they arc
seldom of any use for fire work after
five years OF service. They arc selected
by experts from among the best horses
that arc to be found Mt the Bulls Head
horse market, the chief horse market of
tho United States. The horses selected
come mainly from the West. 1t requires
some skill to pick out horses for use in
tho Fire Department. Big aud clumsy
horses arc of no use. But the horse
must be speedy and strong. The horses
selected arc usually about sixteen hands
high, weighing from 1900 to 1850 pounds,
and their ages range from four to six
years. Younger horses are not strong
enough to drag heavy fire engines, and
older ones are too old to train.
AS soon as tho horse is bought he is
sent TO school, and DIR. Shea, who is in
charge Of this institution, says that, in
his opinion, horses and boys arc very
much alike, and must be managed in
very much tho same manner. But DIR.
Shea believes in kindness MS means to
get control of his pupils and teach
them.
1t is marvellous how quickly these
yonng horses learn what is necessary for
them to know before they can be put to
work. The men who handle them know
their business thoroughly, and arc in
love with it. Under their careful hand.
ling the green horse understands his
duties in little more than month. No
whip is used in this school. The first
test is that which establishes the sound
ness of the animals wind. Then he is
put in his stall. He is led backward
and forward to whore the harness hangs
until he becomes used to the engine, and
until he also becomes accustomed to
ducking Or lowering his head to get it
into the collar.
When he accomplishcs his task we'll
he is given apples or candy or Jumps of
sugnr, and is pcttcd and made much of.
lie is next taught to rush to his place in
front of the engine ut tho clang of the
gong When he becomes expert at this
his education is complete and he is ready
for serious work, and week later can
run to fire rs well nsthe moat thorough
going veteran.
There are always dozen horses being
put through their PAGES at this school,
which is constantly becoming more and
more of necessity. These horses cost
about $500 each, and after their five
years they are disposed OF to street
peddlcrs and cartmen for any sum from
$50 to $3.50. These horses are so well
taught that they never forget their train
ing, 1t is not an uncommon thing when
fire engine dashes through the streets
OF New York to see some dilapidated
looking nag attached to some huckstcr's
wagon prick Up his cars and Join in the
race to the scene of the fire. 1t is an old
and brokcn-down fire horse, who cannot
forget the stirring days when he helped
draw an engine. 1t is the same spirit
that led brokendown hunters to Join in
the hunt at the sound of the cry of the
hounds.
There are some wonderful horses in the
New York Fire Departments, but the
champions are "Ioe" and "Charlcy,n
the splendid team That are attached to
Engine Company II, Mt Chambers street.
These were the prize winners at tho
Words Fair, at the American Institute
in 1885, and they are still the champions.
They are the two most famous
scholars ever turned out from New
lorls's school. Joe is the champion of
champions, and he cntcrtains many
visitors who come daily to admire his
intelligence. Joe is n roam. and hand
some one, too. His mate, Charley, is a
bay, and this team can drag heavy fire
engine over the ground faster than any
team in the UNITED States. and probably
in the world. At the Worlds Fair
when they wor t ne f1ls saal which thew
s oc t.a not.'; meg were tried on dash of
20 feet &c inches. They made three tests,
%&Se u. an Ehc morning, another at :
in x-usNaYaftcrnoon. and yet an
othcss4Se as o'clock in the evening.
The tlssorFT the first dash was 90 sec
onds, u 81. second u seconds and for
the LAST xseconds. The intelligence of
these ho3c is simply remarkable Chief
Shaw, oIX london, could scarcely believe
that they ,could do what was said of
them until it was done before his own
eyes. Even then it was hard to believe.
On three ordinary trials the other night
Joe and Charley got Into their harness
and had their engine on the street and
on their way to fire in m average time
of seconds. And there was no special
effort to make extraordinary speed,
either. But these are not the only speed
horses in the department. There are
scores more of them.