The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-12-05

md police pno. He dragged the cab over tho
lire hose and scattered the nremen, then was ar
rested; 10 was tho cabmah.
tho arrival OF the engine. by this time they had
rot another FIRE started. hut before stonm was
mp two more cneinas came dnshing In from OPP
posito directions. Each WAS ronowed by It's
lieuIenant, very hnndson,o young fellows, ,nnd
MS immaculate rs the hrst. inc three now held
n consultation, and as u result OF II one OF tho
fircmen put OH u big brass divers helmet, with
a glass fnce. They tied II rope 10 him and no
entered tho smoky shop TO explore. In q
few minutca he came back with the In
formation that there was no fire. In. tho
shop; but co ahN! i n%a was great q little Ss0I P'"s os
smoke. Al that there was great industry.
,Ihe hose was soon attnoneH 10 lhn two nble.
tho fire. During these operations ono OF the
lioutcnnnts was swipcd across tho stomach by a
section OF wet hose, and tho two ircncn who
were manipulating it were Immediately put
under arrest and removed, from tho scene,
were onjoyinT themselves hugely. When thoy
were not shricking with lnughtcr they. we're
talking away At ono another as II they had been
spread very wide, and he did nothing hut
scrccch. Tho stately old man who had held tho
S SPeh N MSS Smiin sGe'P 9ra, r%" Of mi mind ddos startsd T TO to TX
to everybody generally:
II have lived in Paris four years" he said.
and ! have seen perhaps twenty fires. This
one is tho best. .tako 1t all in MI, Of the twenty;
mean that it is being fought With the ,fcwost
fire fighters. Don't think that they nre not good
men-it isn't that. It's tho system that's at
raHni. fo r0s = SriaoGo E og sNp mem ' nnd n min acpafii N
the regular army. The men arc recruited for 1t
by CONSUMPTION. as in tho rest Of tho army. You
notice that they are all young. Tint is natural
when they enter the service at 81 and remain
put three years. Can you make a good fireman
these young follows become good fircmen. when
they really learn something OF the business.
tn, Their i, time dimnhei is up, md they are are succeeded IGo@ Sd,t 6iy a
How can you make an efficient fire department
with such q system as thati
selves OF. what stuff they arc made by looking
down below. The crying need of the whole
l nTfn'f Is A a fresh us set to of d Efie q the issi md ia's are f ID:
finitely superior to the officers who m
them, These young. follows in charge have no
experience; they are fresh from n military school,
where they don't have fires, even in stoves.
II don't know Of any sterner commentary on
bazaar disastor. I took particular interest in
that matter and went to some trouble to learn
faSts; ] do not wish to exaggcIate, bm. ! firmly
large, American city there would have. been not
one.third the number killed. I say killed. be-
fatal crush anywhere. But there was, not the
faintest excuse for q single death by burn
death, of course, when it takes twenty minutes
for the nearest engine to get on the ground. Do
You happen to know the French record for fast
time In getting out of an engine house after the
alarm 2 1t is six minutes and some second. In
America l believe the thing is done in ten sec
fire might have stayed away for six hours with
out materially changing the result. Neverthe-
medals given around afterward numbered
thirty.six. believe. You probably know that
two, of the officers decorated wcrc out OF town
at the time of the fire. They were decorated be-
cause they commanded men who were not out
of town. but might as we'll have been. But we
know how the Government gives decorations.
There are no fire departments in tho
world like those of America, and no fireman
like a good Irish.American. They beat tho
world. And" the old man added with q smile,
II believe l know something about it, for in my
young days l ran for six years with the hottest
and %sportiest hose company in the Bowery."