Los Angeles herald., 1910-04-22
RESIGNATION ENDS
FIRE HOUSE FEUD
Commission Forces Negro Men,
ber of Iona Drive Station
to Quit
is BRANDED A DISTURBER
Long Row Between Man Accused
and Lieut.. Bright Is
Given Airing
is BRANDED A DISTURBER

Because he threatened TO Smash"
Lieut.. George Bright, his immediate
superior in the Los Angeles fire de-
partment, w. K. Brown, negro, was
yesterday permitted to resign his posi-
ton, the alternative offered him being
immediate dismissal. Brown resigned,
but protested throughout that he had
not been insubordinate and that he had
never used the language attributed to
him by the lieutenant. His own YER
sion of the encounter, however, differed
only slightly from Bright's and the
fire commission, with the mayor, eVl-
IDENTIFY believed the service would be
improved with him out of it.
Browns resignation came as the re-
suit of charges filed by Lieut.. Bright
and which were followed by charges
against the lieutenant signed by Brown
and three other men attached TO the
Iona drive fire station over which
Bright is in command. The fire com
mission went to the station yesterday
afternoon and the entire squabble was
threshed out without developing any
thing new or anything sensational.
HAS BEEN DIsTURBER
Evidence introduced went to show
that Brown had long been a disturbing
factor: that he and Bright were quar-
reling much of the time and that dis
cipline, under Bright. has been lax.
At the close of the meeting Mayor AL
exander took occasion to caution Lieu
tenant Bright that If matters in the
Iona drive station do not improve at
once a change will be made in the
command. The station has only a
chemical engine and all the men, in
cIuding the lieutenant, are colored.
The swish of petticoats was heard
family at Yesterdays session of the
commission, but the commissioners de-
clined to follow up the line of ques-
tioning that developed 1t. Under the
Harper administration Lieutenant
Bright and Brown, quarrellng then as
thew have been since, entered into
peace pact. shook hands and mace up up
with the Harper commission as wit
nesses to their reconciliation. rms
pact, however. was broken almost I'M
mediateIv and yesterday Lieutenant
Bright told the present commissioners
that he felt it had proved prejudicial
to discipline, having to certain ex-
tent tied his hands so far as Brown
was concerned.
COMMISSION AGREED
with this view of the matter the
commissioners seemed to agree, and
Bright was asked why he had signed
the pact.
"The women did It, ne Responded;
Mrs. Bright and Mrs. Brown. 1 signed
TO nlease my WIFE" That was an.
The commission evidenced no further
curiosity in the matter.
Lieutenant Bright's account OF the
nertIc,,Iar encounter which led to
Browns resignation credited Brown
with having said to him:
''If 1 didn't have my uniform on, ia
smash you," the remark following his
statement to Brown that he didn't
want to talk to him.
When Brown took the stand, how
ever, he declared that the lieutenant
had called him a liar and testified that
he had then replied:
'Tf I didn't have my uniform on ]
wouldn't take that"
Rright denied that he had used the
Questionable word, but Harry Brown
another member of the company. cor
roborated w. r. Browns testimony
that he had.
Brown, who resigned" has a wife
and seven children.