Evening star., 1924-11-23

soon had a warm. comfortable glow
in the fo'Castle. Then / turned in.
1t must have been half an hour later
that I awakened to find the heat be-
coming oppressive. The cause was
not far to seek. the boat was afire.
The black boyle had again played
me a low trick and had become red
hot. Moreover, the fluc had caught
the infection and. in its turn. was
transmitting the disease 80 effectual-
ly that bulkhead and deck planking
were emitting a miniature NeSuvlus
of smoke and sparks. Without walt
ing for any instructions | attacked
the invader with buckets of water,
the sleepy crew lending an extra
ordinarily willing hand when they
realized that their belongings were
In peril.
On the painful events following the
captains appearance l will not dwell.
Suffice IT to say that I received the
smartest lacing the old man could give
me, the memory OF which remained
with me long after | had left the
merchant service.
X x y y
THIS was my first fire at sea- but
was fated to have another ex-
perience of a more serious character.
| happened 10 be quartermaster in
the old Abyssinia of the now de-
funct Guion Line. plying between
New York and Liverpool. we had
sailed from the FORMER nor, m me
month Of July, with 800 passengers
of all classes and a full cargo OF
cotton.
About ESQ miles east of Cape Race
a fire was discovered in the main
hold, which, though found in the
middle OF the night. was kept from
the passengers knowledge till the
noon of the following day. when the
united efforts of the crew had been
found insufficient to cope with the
outbreak. The captain then decided
to call upon the passengers to lend
a hand, and men and women from
the saloon, intermediate and steer
age bravely Joined the sailors in
their dangerous task. Happily the
sea was smooth and, to the lasting
credit Of all concerned, there was
no panic.
Steam was used TO fight the burn
ing cotton. and as the seamen were
overcome by smoke in the darkness
Of the hold, volunteers took their
places. with the result that after
three days OF incessant labor the
outbreak was under control. EVentu
ally the fire was extinguished and
we reached Queenstown in safety
But had there been q panic or had
the result would have been hideous
beyond words since there were
boats to accommodate only three
hundred persons.
Curiously enough, my first active
service in the New York fire depart
ment was in connection with a yes
sci on fire, and is illustrative of the
adage that all knowledge is valuable.
As is usually the case with a new
,Ia~ Of - n nrt at,t
nervous during my first nights at
the station. Although my seafaring
life had taught me to be accustomed
to turning out any moment and in
ell sorts OF weather, speedily
found that the watching and wait
ing for the alarm gong possessed a
mental strain Of its own, which, Incl
dentally, is common TO all fire.
lighters.
During the night in question I had
lain awake with tense nerves, fear
ing that the call might come and that
l might get left behind. Then ! fell
into ~ troubled sleep. to be reused
by the sound I had SO long expected.
IN my anxiety | stumbled over my
own boots and narrowly escaped
upsetting my neighbor, who did not
appreciate the attention. gained
my object, however, and my night
mare Of missing my first alarm dis
solved as VIC galloped through the
silent streets
a French ship was involved, a fire
having broken out in the forward
hold. With enthusiasm. seized
length Of hose, only to be told in
official phraseology to leave 1t alone.
Not comprehending the order. 1 at
tempted TO board the vessel. but was
stopped by the battalion chief, who
recognized in me a recruit. Perhaps
1 may here remark that 1t took me
a full month to master the regular
words OF command, which are pc
culiar to fire departments.
Eventually / found my chance, for
with my marine knowledge I knew
best how to tackle the trouble. and,
creeping along through the smoke,
made my way to the heart Of the
outbreak. There I was found later
by the chief. who. finding me on my
face, using the hose to the best of
my ability. told me to get up, and
lending me a helping hand, together
we extinguished the fire. / was later
complimented on my action, and
am happy to say that my kindly
mentor still survives and occupies
an honored position in the depart
ment