The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-08-06
TWENTYCALLMEN CLING TO JOBS HARD TO DO II How Commissioners Have Made Conditions Harder For Remnants of Old
 Department. Heavy Punishment for h. subordination Meted to Driver Chatfield, Who
 Wouldn't Accept
 Transfer.

At the meeting of the fire commis- sion held last night punishment was meted to firemen under charges Louis Chatfield was reduced to Grade A, which pays $200 per year less and will lose his days off for the next six months. Chatfield refused to ac- cept a transfer. Chatfield is one of the best firemen and drivers in the department
 Driver Frank Hafner of No. 2 Truck Co.,, who refused to wear a fire helmet when ordered to do so by Capt. Rutherford, was fined $25 and deprived of his days off for six months.
 Callman Fred Monroe of No. 2 En- zine Company, explained that he had missed IT alarms because he is em- ployed in the plant of the American Tube & Stamping Co.,, where he re- ceives no notice of a fire unless he is telephoned to. He was given an- other chance.
 Callman Charles Naed1e of No. Truck Company, was also given an- other chance He is employed in Mfg. Co.,, and has missed 12 alarms because he is obliged to depend up- on the telephone. Both men are victims of the squeeze methods adopt ed by the last board of fire commis- sioners to get rid of ca1lmen. Con- ditions were made hard for the men. The manufacturers about the city re- fused to hire firemen and the com mission refused to put bells into the houses and places of employment of callmen as they had done in former years. The time for answering minutes and then this time was fur ther reduced by disconnecting the tower bells from the fire alarm sys- tenn. Over 20 of the callmen have stubbornly hung on to their jobs in spite of the attempt of the commis- sioners to shake them off, and among them are some of the best men in the department.
 No action was taken in the cases of Lieut.. Kaiser and Hoseman Guy Trowbridge of No. 3 Truck who fail ed to catch the apparatus when it rolled out of the eng me house on the night of July 4. Trowbridge said he did not hear the bell and the lieuten- ant said that he got tangled up in the bed clothes so that he lost the few seconds needed to catch the appara- tus. The clerk was instructed to write letters to all of the men who were tardy in getting back to the en- zine houses from their meals.
 James E. Burke, former lieutenant of No. Engine Company and a momDer or the department lOI IlS past 19 years, was appointed perma- nent stoker of No. Engine Com pany.
 George Smith who has been detail ed as a permanent man at No. En- zine house was made permanent member of the department, as also was William McGrath who has been detailed as a permanent man for over a year.
 Chief Mooney was given permission to attend the Fire Chiefs convention to be held in Syracuse, N. Y., from Aug. 21 to 27. He was told to send his bill of expenses to the board.
 An application filed by William Thorme to be pensioned was laid on the table. The petition was made through Judge Edward K. Nichol- son.
 Some of the commissioners got wind of the fact that a fireman had stopped to take chew before going to work at the fire last Thursday night. They instructed the chief to find and reprimand him.