The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-07-15
"JACkY' DISMISSED
Fire Commissioners Find
Fireman Jones Guilty
of Inefficiency.
COMMISSIONER CONES PROTEST
Warns the Board That Their Action
is IllegaI-Appeal to
the Courts.

The most important feature Of last
nights session Of the Fire Board was
the dismissing of Fireman John e. Jones,
who was found guilty Of general inefi-
cheney at the previous meeting of the
Board held last Wednesday. Jackie as
he is more Familiarity known, was given
until last night in which to send in his
resignation; but upon advise Of his lawyer
he refusedto resign, preferring to be dis
missed, and taking his case to the courts
upon the grounds hat the charge on
which he was dismissed were never
proven against him.
He was brought before the Board upon
the charges of being ten minutes late
from lunch and absent while on floor
watch. The full Board found him guilty
on those charges, and President Brennan
told him last Wednesday night that as
ne had been warned of his fate when he
was before the Board on previous coca
sions he knew what to expect, u as he
had been in the department nearly twenty
years they would suspend sentence until
last night.
Jones was then given to understand
that he would have to send in his resig-
nation or be dismissed. /
When COMMISSIONS Cone was called
to vote upon the resolution dismissing the
veteran fireman he refused TO do SO. Re-
garding his action in voting to retain
him in the department. the Commissioner
said
4 cannot vote to dismiss Jones upon
SUCH charges, because general tnefflcieney
takes in too broad q field. and / do not
think 1t applies in his case. This extreme
penalty is too severe. It Is true that Jones.
who has been in the Fire Department for
the past eighteen or nineteen years,
through its fercest fires and darkest days,
has been before the Board seven or eight
times for infraction of discipline and ad-
judged guilty; but 1t is also true that with
but one or two rare exceptions the charges
have been of a trivial nature, and the
department or the community have never
suffered by any of his actions. On the
other hand, the community has had a
faithful servant in the person OF John E.
Jones. He is a noble, conscientious, brave
and able fireman, and I defy anyone to
Jones being afraid TO any dam
ger at a fire.
Il know that he has at times been more
or less refractory, and / recall distinctly
when he was arraigned once before. Pre-
sfdent Mills warned him that If ever again
he was before the Board he would be dis
missed. Now I respectfully submit tina
while Fireman Jones has been derelict,
Ol4ROi 4i9FC alSO bCt4i Il LA
him that he would either have 70 resign
or be dismissed. Jones case did not war
rant such action as that on the part Of
the Commissioners Of this Board, and in
taking such a position as that again in
this latter case, that COMMISSIONER has
transgressed the laws Of discretion.
AS regards Jones, he probably is not
a moral freman as regards strict obedl-
ence to the rules Of the department. He
has d violent tongue. but half what he
says is in good nature, and the other half
the fire houses look upon his talk with
humor more than In anger,
4 don't think we can dismiss him upon
the charge Of inefficiency by the testi-
from all sides that wherever life or prop
erty was ever IN danger at q fire Jackie
broke IN Commissioners Mills.
You have no official evidence that
know it," retorted Commissioners Cone.
Commissioner Mills responded to the
! speech made in behalf of Jones by accus-
ing COMMISSIONS Cone of having been
in favor of dismissing the fireman at
| the executive session.
should de bs d Tna5 ! said rep ais p Mri goga
81 always thought that IN executive ses-
| sion was sacred, but I find out tonight
that it is not"
President Jones interrupted by saying
that he was grieved to vote as he did,
for he did not know that Jackie" as he
e esass EN- to was vote sae for q h maT dismissal i s faa
the good of the department. / don't
care if he was my own brother before
me. I would not let my duty interfere
with my feelings"
Every one smiled at the slip of the
| President.
81 want you to bear in mind that the
courts will not sustain you said Com
missioner Cone. "in the dismissal of
Jones upon those grounds. They will
show you that YOU have transgressed the
law yourselves
Counsellor Wills then tried to say some
thing for his client. but both President
Brennan and Commissioner Mills cut him
off short and he was compelled to leave
without getting q word In edgeways-