Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1908-08-25
Hampton, Phoebus and Old Point.
CafeIessness RspoNsbe for Many New York Fires

New York's perpendicular proper
tions and its congestion OF popuiatlOl
call for heroic measures among il!
fire fighters. No other city make;
such constant and spectacular use o
every variety of fire fighting appart
ri tus. IN the course of = gear the de-
| partment is called ont. according to q
recent report. 10 upward Of thirteen
Thousand fires Day and night c, D
tinuCusly some two hundred and four
teen fir" engine and hook and ladder
companies scattered throughout III"
city stand ready TO make lns1ami Ire
Spouse TO every call An army OF
some four thousand trained ana sea
soned iirem-n is constantly alert to
face every danger and lead the most
fOriOrn hope.
No great fire scene is complete in
New York without a play of the de-
partmcnt scarchlishts The work at
all night fires is more or less ham
pered by darkness. and the danger
is increased when narrow streets and
high buildings prevent the black
vi 'ht tioii
The searchlights-thcre are three OF
them-may be rushed to any point as
quickly as an engine. and. being COM
plete in themselves, may be operated
independently Of water or electric
mains.
The great sheet of light practically
turns night into day. discovering the
people at the windows. enabling the
| firemen to direct their hose or lighting
!up cracking walls. The play of this
brilliant shaft of light about a burn
ing building. the scenes suddenly re-
vealed in the darkness OF struggling
| men, of ham>S leaping about falling
walls, perhaps of agOnized faces at !
| The windows, only 10 be lost mo-
mant later, makes a picture never to
be forgotten.
There is a comforting sense of safe
ty in the appearance of tho great OK
tension ladders we feel in no other
apparatus. Here is always . path OF
safety from the highest windows of
our homes which under Skilful hands
may be raia'd and swung about high
IN air as if by magic. The heartlest
cheers Of tn" fire crowds are raised
at the sigh, of the rapidly unfolding
ladders. with the tremen nimhly run
ming 10 their tops as they swing. The
extension ladder and tGwcr hose have;
grown taller as cur building have ,
climbed upward until they have today
practically reached their limit. 1t is,
possible to raise a ladder to the height .
of eiehty-five feet in Il few seconds,
with several men clineing to its upper ,
rounds. The tower or crane hose .
raises a pipe SO that it may play eff +
f"ctlvcly on Ton az even twelve! s
story building. THESE machines are ,
50 cnntrivcd that single man at its q
foot car control the angle of the !
stream fifty feet above his head. In :
ddentary the record time between .
the tuning in of a alarm and the &C
tual Baping of the water through such
an apparatus is thirty-one seconds.
Onfs opinion is likely to be all
wrOni Or nearly so. as to the cause
Of thee thousands of fires. Year af-
ter yer We continue to reap the same
haTye. for our carelessnesS Much
we'll rant energy expended in pre-
ventin fires. 1t is safe to say. might
be me intelligently directed. Fer
years Y most fruitful source of dan
ger habeen the carelessness in han
| ding Riches There are on an aver
/ age fivfires day due to this cause
alone Upward Of fifteen hundred
times 1.-THE course of year SOME
! group 6ngines must be turned out.
the ira! of the streets interrupted.
l IN Snrint- in.
Cured. AS a rule these fires are
I;rif!ing + average loss being about
800 eaC
II How Inv children have been de-
lprived lights on their Christmas
ltrees fortr OF fire Throughout the
entire cithere is an average of not
more thatour such fires year. IL
lis the sd with fireworks Despite
all the tings against Are crack
ers the l,from such fires last year
was less In $l,0oO throughout the
city in sctwcnty fires. The sparks
from scrii fires are always much
dreaded. Where were but seventeen
l such fires year
The eNIhg or upsetiing of gaso-
$ line or lsHe stoves is another
? much exaa:ed danger. there being
2 but fifty -orich fires last year from
this eause.rcely one week. and
4 these avers lat 500 loss each.
Il The mTruitful sources of fire
would secube readily preventahle.
=, Mex, to ths.ch as FIRE menace
. the bonfircnsh fires and rubbish
fires are ttsa;cst danger. With
record Of ~ hve hundred fires.
The use oflles and tapers would
seem 10 bdaBgcr OF the tem"te
r past as REG New York CITY. and
81 We, loss oftc than $5oa.ooo are
o charged ss them. Carclessncss
+ with cigars cigarettes Is one ~