New-York tribune., 1902-02-16
WORK or TIE FIRE PATROL.
THEIR DUTY TO SAVE PROPERTY FROM
DAMAGE WHEN FIRES ARE BE
ING ENTINGIISHEp.

An important aid to the Fire Department Of this
city is the fire patrol which organized by
merchants OF the city siXty-thret years ago. ann
has been for many years under the control of the
Board of Fire Underwriters. 1t after the
great fire in WaI-st. In 1888. that mer-
chants started movement for mutual protection
against fire losses Independent Of the Fire De-
pdrtment which then q volunteer organiZa-
item That movement resulted in the establish
ment of the fire patrol long before the paid Fire
Department organized
At first the fire patrol was supported directly
by merchants. and the of the service spent
much OF their time the watch for fires at night
actually patrollng streets in the business re-
gion in company with the police. The system OF
nightly patrol kept up after the organization
OF the paid Fire Department for years. but
It abandoned to permit the keeping of the
uniformed force OF the patrol In stations ready
respond fire alarms after the fire alarm tele-
graph service was brought 10 a high state of per
fection. Fire insurance companies doing business
in the city pay sem-anuusl percentage on their
premiums, by mutual agreement. to sustain the
fire patrol which annually saves losses at fires
several times greater than the cost of maInte-
New-Yorkers who look at fires frequently have
opportunities TO witness the work OF the fire patrol
When the fire engines and hook and ladder trucks
are arriving at a hre IN a business building. along
men and oilskn covers. As rule the patroImen
each carrying covefs to spread over goods and
protect them from damage by water. They trust to
their energy to save losses which would fan on
the insurance companies. Sometimes when "a fire
Is IN the upper part OF building and be
tinguished only by liberal OF water the GOV
spread goods in the lower stories prevent
damage by water amounting to many thousands OF
dollars.
There are at present six stations Of the fire
pdtrol IN the city. nVe in Manhattan aud In
The Bronx. situated a : follows: No Al NurTav-st
No. 81 Great Jones-sJ., No 30 West Thirtieth-st
No. llS East Ninetie thst.. No. 800 One hun
dred-and-t twenty-hrst-st, and No. s3S COurtIandt-
ave. With the exception Of the station in West
Ninetieth-st the stations have two wagons and
Tour Eorses each. ready to respond To fire alarms.
The number of uniformed men in the service is
damage made by members of the force in tn
station in Great Jones-st All the stations and
contents belong TO the fire patrol In every station
the horseS are trained TO run Out of their stalls
the stroke of the bell the Fire Department
horses and there is the same swift preparation
responding 10 alarms
While the saving OF proDerty is what the IRE
patrol was organized for. there is a rule that the
lives In danger, and one OF the finest gold medals
onered for life saving is that offered by the fire
underwriters to patrolinen In the service The first
man To win the gold medal by saving human Al
fire at the risk of his life was Captain = :
Groves. now the superintendent OF the fre pa troll
Other winners OF the cold medal are: Captafns i
Lake. Charles w. Fry. owen Daily a : Johnson
and ]. Y. Moore
The cost of maintaining the fire patrol LAST vsar
was about Sa0OaJ and more than ten times that
work or the patrol The men have long hours of 1tv
and moderate pay. but once in the service they sr
seldom willing TO leave IL. ard they face danger
and endure hardShiDS with unCOuDIafpine 1saI
the fremen and police back TO their quarters
members of the fire patrol remain on guard nnfiI
morning, watching against danger from smoulder-
Ing embers and against thieves