New Britain herald., 1917-05-15
COMMUNICATED
PREVENTION OF WASTE.
Chairman of Safety Board Explains How Saving Can Be Made,

Chairman of Safety Board Explains How Saving Can Be Made,
 You can't continue to eat if you continue to burn up the food, there fore if you want to continue to eat, prevent the fires that are destroying vast stores of the country's food prod ucts each day. These are the salient thoughts of a letter sent out by J. L.. Cunningham of the Glen Falls Insur- ance company to it's agents and the insurance fraternity. MT. Cunning ham emphasized the fact that our duty to serve cannot be delegated. U. s. stands for the United States, but 1t also spells US. Therefore. we must use our war stimulated energy and sense of duty in serving our coun- try. in an extra effort for the preven- ton of fires. MT. Cunningham's let ter is Q loud call to individual ser- vice for fire loss prevention. but par ticularly food wastage by fire. This call applies to every man, woman and child and each must follow the flag for themselves. Millions are lost in grain elevator fires and we face a de- ficit today of 150,O00.000 bushels of grain less than the normal require ments for the countries open to trade.
 What are you going to do about 1t? Are you going to waste today and starVe tomorrow?
 The total food stock today available in the allied world, is not sufficient to last until September 1st 1T America continues its present rate of consump- ton. We must plant everything. everywhere it will grow, and we must protect every food product we have. and fire protection Is of absolute inn portance. Take the situation in New Britain, we have no grain elevators. but we have large stock of food products, n our stores and homes, and it isYup to us to protect them. We are most fortunate in our efficient fire department but we are not sufficiently equipped in fire apparatus for 60.- 900 city. We need three more fire stattons,-one in the northeast sec- ton and one each in the south and southwestern sections, and one of these should be rushed to completion in the south end of the city. Take the case of the fire at the south end of Greenwood street recently. The fire- ment made fast time and worked ip- telligently. The loss was $525. With g. fire equipment located near this section the loss would have been $50 instead of $525. The idea seemed to prevail that a fire station must be of brick construction and cost $20,000 or more. In the opinion of the writer g fire station should not be a brick box of one or two stories but should con- form to the style of adjoining resi- dences, cost not to exceed $12,000, fully equipped. No garage is objec- tionable, and the up-to-date fire sta tion everywhere Is of bungalow style. Now take the attitude of our citizens and taxpayers. After the late success sion of fires we were considered criminally negligent if we did not at once have six new pieces of fire ap- paratus. This was the next day after the chain of fires. The second day after, the public insisted on four new motors and stations to house them. One month or so later long needed and long promised fire station was cut out at city meeting to lessen the tax rate one-quarter of mill, (econ- onny but not preparedness). A site purchased for a park was consum- mated at a cast of $15,000. It will be needed and of use sometime. but the protection Of part of our city was overlooked. 'Ts true we were given a new motor, but where the location ? At the smallest station in the city, already overcrowded and near the center of the city and, it is proposed to locate two motors at this place and fourteen men. Will such a course be safe and lead to efficiency or econ omy? What are you going to do about it? It is case of conserving your food products. and fire protec- ton will be a big factor in the solu- ton of the question.
 Respectfully.
 Chairman Fire Board.
 B. G. BABCOCK,