Evening star., 1939-10-07
Bethesda Fire Board
Ends Volunteers
Organization
Responsibility Placed
Entirely on Paid
Station Stuff

The Bethesda, Md, Fire Board
last night with regret" dissolved
the volunteer organization which
has been in existence for more than
10 years and voted to rely entirely,
at least for the present. on the
services of the paid staff organized
three months ago.
The board resolution dissolving
the volunteers acknowledged their
services in past years and par
ticularly regretted" the necessity
for including the volunteers of the
fire companys department who have
continued loyal to the Fire Board.
The order will be effective Tues
day and thereafter all volunteers
will be denied the rights and priv
ileges collectively and Individual
ly" as members of the fire company's
department.
The boards action climaxed q
three months controversy between
the board and the dissenting fac
ton Of the volunteers, headed by
Samuel T. Robertson, over naming
Of A. j. Bargagni as fire chief last
July, when the present paid staff of
chief and nine men was appointed
The Robertson faction demanded
the ousting of Chief Bargagni and
the naming of Hiram B. Musgrove,
former volunteer chief, as his sue
cessor, and that all paid men be
elected annually by the volunteers
Several other lesser issues were in
volved
Arrested for Trespassing.
During the course of the contro-
versy, Mr.. Robertson, Robert FIRE.
meau and Mr.. Musgrove were
arrested for trespassing when they
held q volunteer meeting in the fire.
house in August, despite orders of
George w. Bryan, president of the
Fire Board. They were later ac-
quilted in Police Court at Bethesda.
The three men filed damage suits
charging false arrest against Mr..
Bryan and the Fire Board, each
asking $1,000 of both defendants.
The suits are pending.
The board resolution pointed out
that the rapid development of the
Bethesda area demanded revision of
the volunteer setup and that after
months of study it adopted the paid
staff policy. Because a militant
faction" of the volunteers division
had "persistently disregarded and
refused to recognize the action and
authority of the Fire Board" in its
effort to revise operations adequately
to NEE the increased demands, and
was apparently intent upon "con-
tinuing its campaign of obstruction
and interference the board after
months of patient effort to bring
about cooperation on the part of
the volunteers" decided to eliminate
the volunteers, the resolution stated.
Beginning October 10 and there
after until further order of the said
Fire Board" the resolution de-
clared, the Bethesda Fire Depart
ment, Inc, shall operate without the
aid or services of the volunteers and
the membership of all volunteers in
the fire companies department is
hereby terminated and accordingly
all OF their rights and privileges COL
lectively and individually as men,
bers of the said fire companies de-
partment likewise are terminated,
Service First Responsibility.
The Fire Board regrets the
necessity Of discontinuing the serv-
ices OF the volunteers and has al
ways been mindful of the services
rendered by the volunteers and has
given due credit and consideration
TO them for such services consistent
with its primary and paramount
duty to first of all meet its obliga-
tions IN the rendering of adequate
and efficient service to the public
IN the protection of property and
lives by fire, and particularly re-
grets the necessity of this action in
that 1t must include those volun-
teers Of the fire department who
have continued loyal to the board
IN its effort to provide adequate
and efficient service through the re-
vised plan of operations it has en-
deavored to put into effect"
Mr.. Bryan said he had nothing
to add to the resolution, but that
it was possible the volunteers would
later be reconstructed. The Bethesda
Fire Department was organized 10
years ago largely through the ef-
forts of the late William w. Bride,
Its first president; the late Oliver
Owen Kuhn, managing editor of
The Evening Star and its second
president, and Ford Young. It re-
mained on a volunteer status until