Evening journal., 1898-07-12
ErrRopEAN FTRE EIGHrERs.


great fire in London will probably lead
to steps being taken for, rendering the
Metropolitan Fire Brigade more effi-
cient and equal to coping with large
confagrations. In connection with this
It is interesting to compare london
methods with those In use on the con
.tinent for the extlnguishing OF fires.
In Amsterdam the fremen are all
unmarried men and live at the fire sta
tions. The street alarms for calling
out the fire brigade are distributed
over the city. so that no house is more
than 300 yards from one OF them. There
are two methods OF rescuing people
from burning houses which are prac-
ticed in the Dutch town. II the in
mates are in a very dangerous posi-
tion a fine line is shot up to them with
pistol They catch the line, draw
it up and at the end find a stout rope.
This they fasten inside the room and
slide down It TO the ground. Jumping
sheets are also provided. The flremen
grasp them with both hands, raising
their arms and the sheet to the level
OF the collar bone. and throw back the
body to an angle. The fall of the per-
son thus causes the sheet to give"
without bringing the bearers to their
knees.
In Germany call boxes are very nu-
merous and the extent, as well as the
locality, of the Are is slgnalled. On
gines are dispatched according to the
size OF the fire as It is signalled-
small, medium or great. Most German
firemen, 1t is curious to note, are
telegraph clerks. A great feature OF
German fire brigade work is the pre-
vention OF unnecessary damage by
water. AS everybody knows, the
water used for extlnglsbing a FIRE does
almost as much damage to the con-
tents OF a building as the flames them
selves. The German firemen pay par
ticular attention TO THIS point and do
not food the building with water, but
use Il only where It is necessary. The
flremen's clothes can be inflated with
water II OCCASION requires H. The
blouse and trousers are made OF a
double layer OF canvas, and by means
OF tap attached to the hose for this
purpose a fireman can I'll the water
proof space between the two layers
with water Immediately. III too much
water Is poured In the surplus escapes
through a valve and pours down over
the wearer like fountain, thus doubly
protecting htm from the flames The
smoke helmet is also used by Germans
as indeed by all continental firemen II
serves as an air chamber, which Il
filled by an air pump, with which The
fireman is provided BY this means th'
lungs are supplied with aft and th'
head kept cool, while the escaping all
clears away the smoke and enables th'
fireman 10 see what he is doing Thu
the fireman is able to enter a burning
7 room and fight the fire at close quar-
ters. The Berlin fireman also carrie
+ short ladder; placing It against tn
first floor window, he mounts It, get
onto the window sill above, and q
reaches the roof He then lets down
line, draw up a hose pipe aud sets q
work. ftisa- lLiot \
or all the continental capitals Vlenns
Is probably the most perfectly equip
ped for outbreaks of fire. There ar
numerous street alarms, which ar
most ingenious and useful. Instead o
the glass window-which is equally. a
the mercy OF drunken or rowdy per
son or the real discoyerer OF fire.
which must be smashed before TN
alarm can be given, there Is a key
, Numbered keys for the call boxes ar
freely supplied to all respectable citi
zens, who are responsible for their use
On discovering a fire the man unlock
The door and gives the alarm Whei
+ this has been done the key cannot b
Withdrawn until another door has beel
unlocked. the key for which only fire
p men possess. From the numbered ke
IA the lock the name OF the person giy
ling the alarm can belfound, as a regis
ter IS kept OF all citizens to whor
keys have been supplied, with the Mum
Der OF each key The Vienna fire bri
gade turns out more quickly than, an
other European brigade. In driving {
= the scene OF fire one OF the brigNd
+ sits by the driver and blows a trlmp'f
which can be heard a great distanc
away, and is a summons for all We
4 hicles to pull aside until the engin
e has passed. A water cart follows tn
S engine, and an immediate supply o
$ water Is at hand while the fire plu
I is being found. Thus many small FIRE
which would soon extend are nippe
a in the bud. A great point is also mad
n OF the right application Of water, whdc
k Is used with great economy. 1t stand
n to sense that a pint OF water at tn
= right spot is better than a gallon 1
= ] a. ....-.,,,. ,,ro IIot,cehoId Words