The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1897-11-16
THE cHAMBER OF

A Breezy Time as the MoptAly Meeting
Yesterday AfternooG.rhe Est. hm<s :
Of . Paid Fire Department Eodors<d-A
Lively Discussion Over the Matter
The Chamber Of Commerce which ad-
journed its regular meeting from Thurs
day OF last week. to yesterday al $50
o'clock p. m, met at that hour, President
James II. Chadbourn presided. and the
following members were in attendance:
Messrs. D.. L. Gore. u. w. jacob. Don
MacRae. J. B. Mercer. A B.. Shedding. C.
c. Covington. A j. Marshall, T. F. Bag
ley. A. J. Howell. s. H. Fishblate. An
drew Smith, B F. Keith, J. T. Riley. W..
n. Harriss, T. w. Clawson, James H.
Cowan and Colonel Walker Taylor.
In the absence of Colonel ]. l.. Can't
well, the secretary. Mr.. J. II. Cowan,
acted as secretary and read the minutes
of the last meeting.
The applications Of Messrs. Peterson &
Rulfs and the Roanoke Chemical Com
pany. for membership, were received and
they were duly elected.
The secretary read a letter prepared by
Mr.. w. E. Worth at the request of The
Tradesran, of Chattanooga, with refer
ence to Wilmington's progress.
The president commended what Mr..
Worth had written, and rewarded as an
evidence CT the prosperity of our city
that Mr.. Jones, Of the Roanoke Chemical
Company, which has just removed here.
could barely find a vacant house in the
whole city. He advertised and called on
ALI the real estate dealers and only sue
ceeded in getting a house that will be
vacated December 1st. President Chad
bourn said he wondered what was going
to be done with all the new houses going
up in our city. but he was surprised to
learn that they were all rented as fast as
they are built.
President Chadbourn laid before the
Chamber the Official Freight Shippers
Directory" just issued by the Seaboard
Air Line. and said it was the scheme
which this endorsed a few
advertisement of Wilmington and the ar
ticle o our city. end informed the
Chamber that the work had been ad-
mirably done by Mr.. A. ]. Howell upon
his request
Mr.. b. F. Keith. a member of the board
of aldermen. said he would like to get
the sentiment of the Chamber regarding
the recent action of the board of alder
men in establishing a paid fire depart
ment. He said he was on the committee
of the board of aldermen which had
recommended it. and he favored and
voted for a paid department. He said
Wilmington had grown to be too large
to depend on a volunteer department,
and that the board Of aldermen had
adopted a resolution establishing a paid
department., because the Southeastern
Tariff Association had recommended it
and gave the authorities of our city to
understand that the rate Of insurance in
not establish a frst-class paid depart
ment. By establishing a paid depart
ment, however, the association guaran-
teed a reduction of the insurance rate Is
cents or the 800 or $3.50 on the 81, 900.
He said the board had therefore estab>
Hshed a paid department in the interest
Of the tax payers. He called attention to
over a volunteer department. and said
the change would be quite advantages to
the large tax payers OF the city. and
also to the small ones, as better fire pro-
lection would perhaps enable nan to
carry their own risks.
President Chadbourn said, Mr.. Keith
had the good Of the city at heart and he
thought it would be a good idea to act
on his suggestion.
Mr.. 8. H. Fishblate said Ii would be i'm
proper for this Chamber to endorse the
a matter for the tax payers of Whining
ton. Aside from the fact that he thought
It bad policy for this body to dabble in
the matter. he was opposed to such a
paid department as had been established.
The old volunteer department of Will
mington, he said. was one Of the best in
the United States, and it had been rated
Al and rated as good as a paid depart
did not appreciate it, and had crippled it
by cutting Of the appropriation to sustain
1t: When the present Administration
started In they did so on a cry Of econo-
my, and the first thing it did was to cut
down the appropriation for the fire de-
partment. What has the result been?
day, as a onsequenc Of it? We have
been lucky in having ma great amount OF
fires. or we would have seen the result
of Gripping the department by false
QcOn0mv He CQid r. uvoo nloipood fhof
we could have a paid department at SIS, OOc
per year, but that was nonsense. We
have to equip a paid department. furnish
beds. etc.. and buy a Chemical engine.
and 1t would be found that a paid Depart
ment would cost not less than SIS, 900 or
$4,000 a year. About the selections the
board OF aldermen had made as firemen
in the paid department, he said most of
the men were the most disreputable in
the city. They were not only not fit to
be fremen. but were unfit in private en-
dition to think Of a paid department., and
he was satisfied If we would start in with
the idea that we can have a paid depart
men for $15. 900 it would be found that it
would cost at least $25. 900, and then we
would have no first-class paid depart
ment either. He said let's go back to the
old volunteer department as it existed
six or eighth months ago, give them their
appropriation and We'll have a better de-
partment than the so-called paid depart
ment. Talk about reducing the rates of
insurance.! Did you ever see the rates
reduced? No. On the contrary what it
was promised that they would be re-
duced they had been increased. He cited
several instances where the department
had ben increased by purchasing fire en-
gines and establishing waterworks on
promises that the rates would be de-
creased, but they were always increased.
Now the insurance association says give
us a paid department., and if this body
endorses the kind of a paid department as
1T has been established, We would find
that in six months, yes, three months,
when they would see its workings, tha
the rates would be increased 8 per cent.
instead of decreased. Mr.. Fishblate said
he doubted whether the rates would be
decreased if We had forty engines. The
old volunteers rendered the best service
We ever a and thy would do it again
if we give them the appropriation they
had before. If Goo blesses the city by
the return Of the Harriss board to the
administration of affairs. we will have a