Evening journal., 1916-03-16
THE PASSING or THE FIRE HORSE.

vXTlLMlNGTONs hre-hghtng equipment is not all
w that it should be. but t is much better than it
was and far superior to that Of American cities
Of corresponding size. Our volunteers to be con-
graduated upon the rapidy with which they have
placed horse-drawn vehicles with motor-driven ap-
paratus.
In this connection Il may be amiss to call at
tention to the fact that the third successive year
Firemans Herald has taken Of the fire ap-
paratus and hose service and in American and
Canadian fire departments. also Of the possible pur-
chases during 1916 This years enumeration includes
the cities Of 1000 population and OF these cities
the fire chiefs Of go have responded to for
information In last years enumeration the statistics
for 500 cities presented SO that this year an
increase of more than 80 per cent. in the number Of
cities reporting has been obtained.
The rapid elimination Of the horse-drawn apparatus
from the service is strikngly shown by comparison
between this years census and that Of 1914 In that
year 3l5 cities represented with 1868 fire veh-
clos pulled by Dobbin This year more than twice
that number Of departments, including the original
Si5, entered and yet the number Of horse-drawn
pieces OF apparatus in service and is less by
over 1000
The tabulation for this year shows that in these
go cities there 1895 pieces Of apparatus of all
sorts in service and The total for horse
drawn equipment is $500 while there are 3426 auto
mobiles heavy deduction must be made from the
that are nominally held i'm reserve but in reality
carried in fire department books because it is not
to find purchas at fair prices.
OF the horsedrawn pieces, steam fire engines con-
tinue to be far ahead all others, numbering 175S
which total includes a considerable number that will
in an Likelihood again work at a fire. Combina-
tion wagons and hose carriers number 2l63; aerial
and service trucks and water towers total 945 and
there are 1o03 other borsedrawn pieces Of all classes
AS has been the with the previous tabulations
made by Fircman's Herald the seryiceable combina-
on chemical and hose again leads the motor appa
plratus with a total of 1912. What appeared to be
hesitation i'm adopting the triple combination pump,
chemical engine and hose car seems to have disap-
peared as there 1856 of these registered against
2aO straight automobile pumping engines Ladder
trucks and water towers number 31S; tractorzed
pieces 57 and an other fire automobiles most Of them
chiefs cars total S53.
The fate that has befallen horsedrawn apparatus
in the fire service shown by this years census
of possible purchases. OF the automobiles, sos are
listed while Of the horse-drawn the total stands at
When II is considered that for obvious reasons the
enumeration OF possible purchases is not and cannot
he anywhere near complete far motor apparatus
Is concerned while the departments that are con-
domned TO horsed vehicles are likely to increase
their purchases, it is plain that in year or two flu
ture purchases will not mention the horse at ALL
OF the additions to be made this year. chemical and
hose cars are again to the fore with 243 Pumping
engines number 81 triple combinations. 76; hose
cars 81. chemicals Ia aerial and service trucks and
water towers, ll2; tractors 14O; other automobiles
1O5.
No one should lose sight OF the fact that Whining
ton figures both Importantly and commercially in
those census figures which show how wde-awake the
United States and Canada have become in the matter
Of fire protection from The motor vehicle viewpoint