Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-18
FIRE boats.
Interestingly Compared With Modern
Men-ef-War.

From Pearson's Magazine.
Perhaps an idea of just what the modern
fire boat is may not be better conveyed
than by a brief description of the expen-
sve and surprising complete craft now
building for the city OF Detroit. The vessel
is 10 feet in length, 20 feet a-beam and Is
feet in depth, and the huh has been mode
ed with the idea of breaking heavy ice.
The best quality of mild steel is the ma
terial which has been used, and the no d
of the boat is divided into four separate
water-tisht compartments, so that 1t is
practically unsuitable.
The four holds-separa tie ships, as il were
are all put to excellent uses. The fore
hold is deliberately fitted for the drying of
hose; the middle hold contains the boilers
and coal bunkers, and the after hold the
propellins engines, fire pumps and a com
plete little work shop i'll which repairs
could be quickly made to any portion of the
apparatus which might become damaged.
In the steel house up on the deck are giant
reels capable of holding 1000 additional
feet or hose. and close by are innumerabe
lockers filed with noZZieS and fittings, all
arranged with the utmost care, for If there
be any place where the Importance of me
injunction, "a place for everything, and
everything in Its place. is fully appre-
ciated, it is a fire boat.
The feature of the fire boat, in which es-
pecially extensive improvements have been
made during the past few years, is found
in that most essential portion of the equ p
ment-the pumps This is due largely to
the fact that tn. requirements of modern
fire boats are far more eXacting than for
merly A year or two ago the boat needed
but to furnish power for the streams which
it's own force of firemen directed against
the flames, but latterly what are known
as underground pipe line systems have been
installed in many cities, and through these
immense quantities OF water must be forced
at very high pressure. In this way the
benefit of the fire boats tremendous power
may be had in fighting fire at some dis
lance from the water front.
A double set of pumps of the kind now
used will weigh more than. sixteen tons,
and they are capable of hurting through
space more than 5000 gallons of water
per minute
The offensive forces of the fire boat are
being increased almost as rapidly as those
of the battle ship Indeed in some of the
new members of the fire-hghting navy now
under construction there are more than
score of hose outlets. This means that
twenty solid streams of water, each
quarter of a foot through, can be swept
against wall Of flames, simultaneously,
from different parts of the boat There are
hose outlets forward and aft and amid
ships, just as the guns are distributed on a
man-of-war, sc that the boats position
need not be dependent upon the point of
attack.
We might carry the comparison between
the naval craft and the fire-ighter still
farther, and corresponding to the capac.ous-
throated thirteen-inch guns, one located
high up on top of the pilot house, and the
other in the after part of the vessel. These
constitute the heavy artillery of the serv-
ice, and it Is upon them that dependence
is placed when it is desired to throw to a
great height a stream of water almost the
thickness of a man.
Then comes a long list of minor weapons
for battling with the flames which CORE
spond in their Importance to the torpedoes
and machine guns of the lords of the navy
Each fire boat is provided with powerful,
reversnggear which enables the vessel to
be stopped and turned about in an especial
ly short space of time. The vessel is steered
by steam. and there are even ingenious de-
vices for mechanically hosting the anchors
and carrying out the ashes.