The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1934-03-08
Public Sees
Little OF This
Civic Work
Libby Firemen Study Dill
gently to Protect Lives
And Property.
MUCH PRIDE
In ORGANIZATION

u 01le lAlDDY Citizen at least TIL
keen interest in their work manifested
by the members of the Libby Voluntee
Fire department has always been
matter Of wonder. That citizen is thi
reporter. There Is no mystery in seeing
members of a paid fire department Civ,
the best service of which they are capa-
BILE. That's their job They get paid fol
It. They make their living by it. True
one will find in the best department.
pride in their work and in servine
their communities But in searching for
the incentive, one runs into no particu-
lar mystery.
With a volunteer department it il
much different. These men receive nc
pay except mere pittance-not enough
to pay for the clothes that are often
damaged in fighting the red demon.
Yet they will instantly roll out of bed
with the mercury way below zero and
fight fire in bitter cold with the great
est determination, aridh there will be
nearly hundred percent response to
the alma rev nhwehabl ell esSHRR
the alarm. When we consider that these
men serve year after year, and give
heavily of their time and strength, it
leaves constant wonder with US why
they do 1t.
This May Explain It.
While we wonder about all this yet
we can pick out several factors that
help to answer the question. 1t is very
evident the men have a deep pride in
hn, c~k he
ment has made in the passing years
But that isn't all, by any means. They
also have deep respect and affection
for their chief, Chief A. Nj. Hoffman.
They find satisfaction in serving
under him and they have faith in him,
faith in his ability to direct them wise
ly and well in their battle with the fire
demon and also faith in his ability to
hold them together as highly effici-
ent fighting organization. These two
factors-pride in their work and faith
in their chief---explain to large extent
the high morale manifested by these
volunteer fire fighters.
But this isn't the story we started
out to tell These three paragraphs
must be considered as a prologue. Let's
make another start-something like
this.
A New Start.
Come out and sit in with us some
night at our business meeting" said
Chief Hoffman to the reporter not long
ago. Perhaps you will learn something
when you see the boys in action there
that will interest Libby people, We
were only too glad to accept the invi-
tation and we found every minute in
tensely interesting And our eyes were
opened in new way when we saw
how these men study to fit themselves
to be better able to protect your prop
erty and my property, and not only our
properties but the lives of our loved
ones.
In response to the invitation, we
dropped in at the monthly business
meeting of the department last Thurs
day night. We didn't count but we sup
pose there were some twenty-five or
twenty-three members present with
scattering Of city officials and visitors
Chief Hoffman sat in the presiding of
ficer's chair and handed out cigars and
cigarettes as the boys wandered in.
Soon they were all grouped informally
around the room, with smokes going
and ready for business, and with Sec
resary Harold Miller sitting at the
chiefs left taking down an official rec
ord Of proceedings.
Something New for Libby People.
A little routine business was trans
acted and then the chief called on a
certain committee to report on what
they had learned in an examination of
the two school buildings. The commit
tee consisted of Bill Farris, Buzz
Baker and Carl Rawlings Now right
here begins the interesting part of this
whole account. 1t has to do with some
thing of which probably 80 per cent of
Libby people know nothing.
Chief Hoffman called on Farris to
open the report Farris stepped to a
blackboard against the wall, drew a
rude sketch of the basement Of the high
school building and then described to
the firemen how to get into the build
ing in the best way in case of fire
in the basement and how to fight it
most advantageously He pictured on
the blackboard, the Railways, the doors
and windows, where fire extinguishers
hung, whether or not they were work
ing well, and where possible fire haz-
ards existed, if any. In short, he gave
a concise picture of how to get into and
out Of the basement in case of fire and
how best to fight it. He also gave the
location of the most available fire hy-
drants on the outside of the building.
After the firemen had been given
opportunity to question Farris, he was
followed by Baker Baker made the
same sort of report respecting the first
floor, with diagram showing its vari-
Gus features, entrances and exits, fire
extinguishers and fire hose, fire es-
capes, etc, etc. Rawlings followed with
q similar report for the third floor,