The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-01-11
EXCELLENT SHOWING
Supt. Browns Report On the
Condition of the Fire
Department.
DANGER IN OVERHEAD WIRES
Experience of the Past Year
Argues in Favor of Lower
Insurance Rates.
DANGER IN OVERHEAD WIRES

as the meeting was opened for business CLERK
Esterbrook read a letter from G. M. Fltchel,
in which the writer stated that George w
Green owed him SOL for rent for October,
November and December and for part of
September, and that the fireman would not
pay. it or any part of it,. Mr.. Fitchel de-
nounced Green as a fraud and concluded his
letter by saying it was a shamef for the de-
partment to employ men who would not pay
their debts and who were dead beats, when
there were SO many good and worthy men
out of employment VINO would lii to earn
$50 80 each month and would out of that sum
pay their rent.
sThere are charges pending against Green,
! believe inquired President Donnelly OF
the clerk.
ssYes, sir. and q new charge has been pre-
ferred-, that of selling his salary warrant"
"Cite him to appear for trial at the next
meeting, ? directed the President.
The delinquents who will be cited TO appear
for trial are:-Robert H. Trip, who failed
TO properly count an alarm on the engine
house gong, and James Hanley, stoker of
Engine No. 3, who is charged with disorderiy
conduct at a fire. The annual reports were
Msxt read by the clerk, and as d whole they
indicate that the department is in a very
good condition. Ehe references of Snperln-
fendent Brown to, fire escapes and Insurance
companies were timely, and should be care
fully read.
SUPERINTENDENT BROWNS REPORT.
Superintendent Browns third annual re-
port, which is the ~twenty-third annual re
port of the department showed that the
manual force consists of one superintendent,
one chief engineer, one assistant engineer,
two battalion chiefs, one superintendent OF
telegraph, one inspector of horses, four tele-
graph linemen, eighteen foremen OF COM
panles, fourteen engineers OF engines; TOUR
teen Stokers of engines, thirty-tWo drivers,
five tilermen, fourteen permanent hosemen,
ten permanent trucknen, fifty-five hosemen-
at-call, twenty-eight truckmen-at~call, leaV-
ing the following vacancies. One foreman oil
engine company, one driver OF nook ana
ladder truck, thirty-six h"osemen-at-call,
seven truckmen-at-cal. This force is di-
Vided into fourteen engines and hve nook
and ladder companies, making a total OF
nineteen companies in the department,
There are in service twelve steam fire
engines, four one-horse hose wagons, eight
one-horse hose tenders, two two-horse double
tank chemical engines, five hook and ladder
trucks, five official wagons, one supply
wagons and three coal supply wagons.
CONDITION OF ENGINES.
Engines Nos. 1, 2, 5, 5, q, Z, 8, 10 and ii are
In the best possible condition. Nos. 5 and IL
are in fair condition, and are single engines,
although for the present they are capable OF
performing the duty allotted to them. The
engine now used by Engine Company No.14 is
the enc formerly used as a spare. -Four new
hose wagons have been placed IN service dur
ing the past year. They are heavy, and the
two new ones to be built should be lighter.
The apparatus in general is in better order
than it has been for a number OF years.
Twenty houses are used by the depart
ment, and many need to be put into repair.
Roofs, doors, floors, windows, ETC., are need
ed in all of them. The old bell tower on
Newark avenue is in the same condition that
it was a year ago, except that sllght re
pairs have been made to prevent its falling
down.
The Superintendent further on says: w
have on land in the department 2O,5OO feet
of two and a half inch fire hose and 1,GO
feet of one-inch hose; 10, 800 feet of the "
and a half inch hose is rubber and the bal
ance, 9,700 feet, is cotton, rubber lined.
All of the one-inch hose is rubber. The con-
dition of all the hose is good. There viii be
considerable new harness needed during the
ensuing year,
Those who died during the year We're:
W. E.. j. Saunders, inspector of horses;
Eugene Sullivan, hoseman-at-call; Patrick
J.. Burns, driver; Timothy Council, hose
man-at-call; James Doyle, driver; Thomas
Walrayen, hoseman-at-call. and Joseph
Sefren, driver.
There were nine accidents to firemen. but
none were fatal. The Superintendent says
further
DANGER IN OVERHEAD WIRES.
THE stringing of overhead wires, tele-
graph, telephone, electric and trolley, in
stead of decreasing are IN the increase and
are more than ever effective in retaIding us
in our work and adding danger to the same.
IN most of our main streets wires are SO
dense that it is almost an lmpoSsibility to
raise a ladder of any size. Fortunately nc
lives nave been lost from that source, but we
cannot tell how soon we shall be called on to
record a catastrophe from that cause. l
would respectfully that a gong
be placed i'll buildings occupied by the trolley
system emergency wagon, to notify them OF
fires occurring in neighborhood of their wires
SO that their men may assist US If necessary
IN removing dangerous wires"
s.There was received on the fire alarm tele-
graph, 224 alarms by telephone and other
sources 159, making a total of alarms re-
ceived during the twelve months ending
December 81, of 1888. This is a decrease OF
80 as compared with the year 1892, and of
three in 1891. The losses amounted to $780,
4S2 and the insurance amounted to S4f9,876.
Insurance paid on losses was, S153,4l0. In
comparing 1898 with previous years, we find
that for the year 1892 the losses aggregated
$62S, $50, showing the loss of the last year to
have been less than one-third of that for
1892.
RATES oUL BE LOWER.
Shy reference to these figures" said the
Superintendent, 1--WE fail to understand the
hue and cry against our system of Depart
ment, telegraph, etc, etc, and the threatened
raising of Insurance rates. A study of these
cold facts would argue more in favor OF a
reduction than an increase of insurance
rates.
During the year four lives were lost by
fire. They were William Renecke, No. 403
Henderson street; Mrs. Payne, No. 564 New
ark avenue; ]. Steiner, No. 81 York street;
Mrs. Kern, No. S14 Newark avenue. Con
corning fire escapes the Superintendent
said:
FIRE SCAPE
ssStili another year has passed and no or
dinance has passed regulating and enforcing
the law relative to the erection of fire es-
capes ON buildings. / can but reiterate my
opinion of last year, that it will need some
terrible disaster land it will surely come
sooner or later to urge those whose duty it
is to adopt ana enforce the law regarding
the protection OF human life.o
SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT.
Telegraph Superintendent John Speicher
submitted his annual report. He said
ssThe fire alarm consists OF $40 poles, 40