The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-01-08

country that recognize the necessity
Of such provision against fire but can
not afford the steam engine with or
without horses.
It is difficult TO SEC how much I'M
provement can be made upon the steam
fre-engines now in Use in the large
cities that can afford paid fire depart
ments- The system Of extinguishing
fires with water has seemingly reached
the limit OF excellence. Quick-steam-
ing engines, drawn BY swift horses.
are now at the fires before the last echo
of the alarm has died away Inc
water systems OF the cities provide In
exhaustible supplies 70 the engines, and
the little giant pumps force tVvo-inch
streams to the top floors of the highest
buildings with power enough to carry
from their feet and render unconscious
the man who receives It's full weight
The improvement Of the steam FIRE
engine has kept pace with the growth
OF cities, even with the fancy of man
running to those towering structures
that are the wonder even OF their build
ers One Of the most conspicuous OF the
contrivances designed TO meet the up
ward tendency of buildings IS the
water tower" q stove pipe sort Of ar
rangement that can be run up section
upon section until the necessary height
is reached. when the upper end which
il bent ike the elbow of a stove pipe.
Is turned into the windows of the burn
ing building and the water poured upon
the FIRE IN a stream as thick as mans
leg. One great trouble IN the use OF
this has been that on account OF the
failure to always direct it in the proper
course the damage from the tremen-
dous flow Of water has been entirely
out of proportion 20 the effect upon the
fire. Even with the steam engine and
the lesser hose, and the greater econ
ony In the distribution of the water, il
happens in the majority of cases that
the damage by water is greater than
that by fire.
The objection to the excessive use OF
water was one that chemistry was
called upon to remove Starting with
the principle that it was the atmos-
pheric oxyges that fed the fame exper-
iments came to be made At extinguish-
ing fires by excluding the oxygen from
the fame. The first attempt resulted
In a complicated Continuance called a
fire annihilator." This was an ar
rangement of iron cylinders holding
water The cylinders were heated by
pouring sulphuric acid upon a compo-
sition of chlorate of potash and
sugar. The steam generated was
forced upon a composition OF charcoal
| inter and gypsum, and the gas thereby
generated was turned upon the FIRE 1t
was a complicated Continuance, yet eff
fective. But soon there came simpler
/ invention that has held the palm for
| now nearly a quarter OF a century
! This is a cylinder holding solution Of
| bi-carbonate of soda At the top of the
| cylinder is a bottle of commercial acid
/ held in place by rod running from the
| stopper through the top of the cylinder.
| When this rod is pulled up the bottle re-
| verses and the acid is poured into the
| solution. Immediately carbonic acid
/ gas is generated IN such volume that
/ the cylinders have to be made capable
! of resisting pressure of as much as
/ 400 pounds 70 the square inch The gas
| is discharged through the hose with the
water and coming in contact with the
/ fame acts as one of the most effective
extinguishers known They are made
| of all sizes, from the little thing upon
! the merchants shelf ready at hand
/ for incipient blazes. to the great
/ double cylinder carriage that thunde<s