Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-06-17
COMING TO 1T.
A Paid Fire Department for Rock
Island.
1T is IN SIGHT AT LAST.
Ahe City Council Sees the Necessity
aadis Determined TO Put it in-.-The
Aldermen for n--.Side Talk of Last
Nights Meeting.

10 have paid fire department and las
nights session of the city council gave
assurances to the fact tpat the present
municipal year will witness its Inaugural.
tion. The council appropriated SO. O0C
last night for the fire department fund
and would have made it three times that
amount had il been able to do So but as
II is The amount is nearly twice the sun
usually voted for fire department expen-
SEES, and the aldermen had no intention
oil throwing the money away on volun-
teer system when they appropriated it
In word the council is determined to
make permanent improvements in the
hre department as wells as in other ways
that look to the city's solid advancement.
The finance committee had figured at &c.
600 for the fire department. Aid Cork
en-, of the fire committee. asked for $lS,-
$50. THE, he said. was what the com.
mittee had estimated as necessary
for the complete establishment of a
paid and reliable fire department. This
was to include an electric alarm for the
hre department and police, the building
OF hose and hook and ladder house on
Flatlron square, the equipment of two
companies OF three men each with the
addition OF chief. whose salary was to
be $50 per month. This would be a good
starter. Aid Corken thought the CITY
could trade off the property on which the
Rescue house is situated and maybe
sell some cityslots and thereby acquire
fund sufficient to reduce the commit
tees estimate OF the appropriation nee
essary, very materially. He then made a
sound and earnest appeal in the interest
of paid department. Rock Island, he
said. had reached that point 10 its adj
vancement when it was brought face to
face with the necessity of paid fire de-
partment if it would continue to mains
tain its reputation as q progressing city.
IL must have better fire protection facili-
ties; there was no getting around it, and
he was anxious TO have the expression of
every member of the council on this sub
iect. The present Rescue and Wideawake
houses were a disgrace to the city, and
yet it would not be good judgment to fix
them for the mere maintenance of a vol
unteer department. Rock Island should
have had su alarm system three years
ago. Cities all over the northwest, not
third as large as Rock Island, had pro-
| vided themselves with this advantage
years ago. and it was reflection that
the city could not stand TO continue lon i.
ger so lame ntably deficient in this res
pect. We should put in the alarm sys-
tenn at once. at any rate. and make other
advancemenrs just as far as possible.
| Aid. Schroeder was afraid the finance =
would not allow the appropriation Aid.
| Corken asked for. He could not see, as
chairman of the finance committee, how
it would be possible to give the fire de-
partment more than 5000, which was
more than had ever been set aside for that
fund before.
Aid. Larkin made a stirring speech in
behalf of the paid fire department. and in
support of Aid. Corken's position. This
was subject that ought to command the
most serious attention of the council al
this time. Other funds ought TO be cut
if necessary 10 order that fire department.
| improvements be provided. Oar fire de-
partment was way behind the age and a
subject of dicule on the part of strsng-
ers in the city. Volunteer firemen were
| no benefit to a town the size of Rock ISL
| and. The fremen we're all right. they
did the best they could and should be
| praised for their efforts, but the system
was a money losing investment to the
city. The volunteer department is al
ways without system or proper control
and what is every body's business is no,
body hush esq. Rock Island had reached
that stage when it must replace its volun.
teers with paid firemen.
| Aid Bnncher was for paid fire de.
partment, hut the city must keep within
the limits OF its finances. He was vii.
ling to go ss far as the city could posi-
bly, in the direction of paid department
ALI. Bladel thought our present volun'
teer system was better than it had beer
now that h orses had been introduced, bu
an alarm sy stem was necessary. IL shoult
be put in this year at any rate.
Now came the surprise of the evening
Aid. b F. Knox has always had tende,
feeling for the volunteers. 1t is natura
that he should have. His late father wa
volunteer department and the alderman
was Graded on the hose cart almost. Hi
Earliest and fondest associations wer,
with his father in the good old days o
the volunteer fireman. He was brough
lup in the fire department. He finally
rose to clief engineer of the volunteer
himself, and Rock Island never had
more efficient and capable chief thai
Frank Knox proved to be. 1t was not l.
be wonder ed at that Mr.. Knox shoul
feel kindly toward the volunteer-evel
to the extent of fighting for him
should regret to witness the approach o
the time when the red shirt and the ham
cart should disappear; but Mr.. Knox ha
learned By his experience and observa
tions that the day had come when Roc
Island must look to something NOR