Evening star., 1925-06-10
PLEAD FOR PUBLIC
T0PENS|ON HORSES
FFemen Seek Comfortable
Place for Three Faithful
Old Animals.

Three faithful servants of huma nifty
the last regular team of Washing
tons oncepeuted battalion of sturdy
IRE horses-are stamping the cement
hoors of unfamiliar stalls today.
eagerly listening for the gong that is
never again TO strike on this earth
for them.
AS soon as cold business details
can be arranged they are to be auc-
/ toned OFF to the highest bidder. sold
on the block for few years of
torturous draS service before thsy are
finally consigned to the glue factory
bleak reward in return for their
| decade of unfaltering service 10 ma n
unless the people Of Washington save
them.
Had Last Run.
/ The sentencs has been passed. they
have had their lasi JOYOUS run 10 the
CIans OF blood stirring bells. the ex-
cited shouts OF thrilled children and
tho pull OF the bit on foa mins
mouths. Only the garrulous shouts
Of the auctioneer. the staccato bang
of the hammer and the exchange OF
paltry dollars remain to complete the
passing of faithful old Barney, Gene
and Tom.
| Only one hope remains now. That is
| for the people of Washington them
selves-the people to whom those in
! tellisent old fellows gave the best
/ wears OF their lives---to hIrriedly raise
I 4 few hundred dollars and commute
! .ha ultimate sentence Of an igno-
I mlnious death in glue factory by re-
| firing them for life 70 the District :
/ quiet farm at Blue Plains.
! The Evening Star will receive and
! acknowledge subscriptions to buy
the horses when details of how they
| may be purchased are made know n.
One subscription of s25 already ha q
been pledged to start the fund.
There they could spend the last three
J or four years of their lives still serv-
! ing huma nifty, bur IN capacity more
! fitting The service records they have
| esta blished and the waning strength
the passing years have left them.
Three comfortable stalls and rolling
acres OF luxurious browsing pasture
| land are ready for them II a few crate
ful citizens Of Washington will donate
! the money necessary for their pen
sione.
VIII Be Boarded Free.
The officials OF the Home FOR the
Feeble and Infirm at Blue Plains will
board Barney. Gene and Tom without
charge for the remainder OF their
lives. In return the only work they
take tho unfortunate inmates OF that
| institution out for occs sionaI drives
and straw rides, q service that Chief
Watson Of the Fire Deps rtment said
the team is ideally fitted for BY their
gentle natures and the petting they
have come TO look FOR.
Just how much money will he
needed TO buy the three horses is not
known now. bur Il ia believed the
| District Commissioners will he willing
10 sell them for such a purpose al q
considerably reduced price. A drny
! firm could probabl sweat several
hundred dollars worth OF value ON
| Of each before they would be ready
/ for the glue factory in three years
/ but it is not thought anywhere nes r
! this sum would be asked if the people
/ Of washington want TO give the horses
/ their nuch-deserved rest.
Chief Watson is enthusiastic over
! the idea. He pointed out thai shere
! are six other fire horses from scat,
| tered teams that are TO be sold lie
! has been trying 10 have them al semi
| TO the prison farm HI Occoquan. bu;
| because there were nine OF the now
useless old fire horses his chances
were slight. If the people OF Wash
ington will pension the last regular
team--Barney, Gene and Tonne be
! lieves the chances Of sending the re
naming six 10 Occoquan will be i'm
proved hundredfold.
! Strength Waning.
| Barnev. Gene and Tom are each "A
| years old. 10 of those years having
! been spent in active fire service and in
: t.. faA
| that very few years of dray work
, would soon break the old fellows down
! because they were never sci1ooled for
such work Although powerful 81
| build they were selected for JheiI
speed and intelligence as much As
| their strength. and their long service
| with The Fire Department has unified
them for daily toll pulling torturesome
! LOADS of merchandise through hot
| streets.
| Most OF their years with tbe de-
! partment were spent at No. 10 Engine
Company, in Twining City. Some oi
| their runs TO the heart of Washington
in response TO big fires have won foi
| them the admiration of the entire
department The night the knicker-
! booker Theater llapsed and much o
| the apparatus in the central sector
/ OF the city was sent to the scene
an alarm came in Tor a nre at four'
| teenth and L streets.
A foot of slush, ice and snow
| covered the streets. but IL was up L
! Barney, Gene and Tom to drag theil
! truck 10 that fire, all the way from
| Twinins City. at the extreme end o.
| PENNSYLVANIA avenue southeast. The.
never faltered. Over all those mile!
| OF Uttered streets they raced at toI
speed and arrived at the scene in tim'
| for the men on the truck to hell
prevent what might have been ssri
Gus fire at a time when Washington
was totally unprepared for 1t.
| Now more modern motorized ap
paratus has taken their place
Twinins City. The horses have beeI
removed to the Fire Department sta
bles at Sixth street and North Caro-
lima avenue southeast. Soon they ar
to pass forever unless the people o
Washington save them from a fat
more cruel than immediate death. /
d hundred persons would contribute
So each. il is almost certain the,
would be spared. Perhaps even les
would do. but This canpos be de
termined until the District Commits
sioners make the decision.