The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1908-12-24
Volunteer Fire Department Mem.
bers Again Urging Disbaoding
of That Department
WOULD DIVIDE $1,000 BOND
Urge That Money be Paid to the Volun-
teers in Final Settlement and
That Income to be Used to
Get Call Men in Future

A new plan for the disbanding Of
| the Kenosha Volunteer Fire Depart
ment has been brought out by members
of the department and it will be pre-
sented to the volunteers when the
annual meeting is held in January. It
is thought that this new plan will re-
suit in the volunteers voting to dis
band and that in the future the money
which has been annually divided be-
tween the members of the volunteer
companies will be turned over to the
city to be used in the employment of
a number of call men as an auxiliary
of the regular paid department.
For years the old question of the
|disbanding Of the department has been
discussed by the volunteers with the
usual result Of vote against disband-
ing. This year number of the men
who have been opposed to the plan are
favoring it and they declare that when
the money collected from the insur-
ance companies is divided equally be-
tween the volunteers and the pension
fund of the paid department the OPP
position to disbanalng will not be near
ly SO strong. One of the main reasons
for the fight against disbanding is, the
fact that the volunteer department has
a bond valued at thousand dollars
and the volunteers claim that this
should be- DIVIDED among the fifty men
making up the different companies.
The new plan includes the converting
Of this bond into money and an equal
division of the proceeds among all the
members Of the department in good
standing at the present time. It would
then provide that the money paid
by insurance companies in the future
be turned into the fire department
fund of the city and used for the
the orders of the chief Of this depart
ment. These men would be paid only
for actual time worked.
The report of the treasurer of the
volunteer department. which will be
made on next Monday will show funds
to the amount Of $1,34392 on hand
and this is to be divided between the
members of the various companies af-
ter the officers salaries have been paid.
This will result in each of the fifty
three volunteers receiving in the
neighborhood of S23. This will be the
last year that the volunteers will re-
ceive the entire fund paid in by the
insurance companies as next year I'm.
der the state law the sum must be
equally divided between the members
Iof the volunteer department and the
pension fund of the paid department..
The amount received from the paid de-
partment for the pension fund this
year and from other gifts, amounted to
$215.15. This division will greatly in
rease the amount Of the fireman S pen
sion fund Members Of the volunteer
department have taken up the matter
of disbanding with great deal of
vigor and they are planning to use
every possible influence to have the
department. disoand. Some Of the
members of the department. have al
ready been to the officials looking for
their portion o. the insurance fund,
but it has not q, syet been appropriated.
It is a noteworthy fact that the men
who seem most anxious for the division
are the men who are seldom seen in
the neighborhood of a fire.