THE NEW YORK FIRE BRIGADES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XI, Issue 4048, 3 November 1874, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE NEW YORK FIRE BRIGADES.

The following particulars with reference to the above, are from a private letter kindly placed at the disposal of a contemporary :— The Fire Department of the city of New York consists of forty-two steam engine companies, and six chemical engine companies, eighteen hook and ladder companies, one chief of department, and ten chiefs of battalion; each cliief of battalion has a certain number of engines and hook and ladder companies under his command. The men all have to sleep in the engine houses, and do their regular tour of duty. All hands have to turn out at a fire. The harness is kept on the horses night and day, and is only taken off while cleaning. The men are drilled daily to practice hitching up. We can hitch up the horses in the engine and hose tender to answer an alarm of fire in from twelve to twenty seconds in the day-time; and can turn out of the break-room, where the men sleep on the third lloor, come down on the engine-room floor, hitch up, and drive out in from thirty-five to forty seconds at midnight. We receive all alarms of fire in the engine-house by telegraphy, which strikes the signal on a large 16in. gong — indicating where the fire is. The back doors of the engine-house and stable doors are opened by telegraph; also the horses loosened off the halters. A gong is rung in the stables to start the horses, and another gong rung in thebunk-room, which is all done by telegraph. It is all done by tripo weight crank wires, spring bolts, and steel springs to throw the doors open, and is simple enough when a man looks at it. The horses are wonderfully trained. It astonishes visitors when we run the horses to the pole and illustrate the thing to them. This business is no place for a lazy man ; he has got to be steady and aciive to be a fireman in New York. I will now desc.r.be the Fire Brigade building. It consists of a cliree-storied brick building of 25ft frontage 62ft deep, and 45ft high, brown stone pillars round the window castings; inside the walls are handsomely painted and frescoed in delicate colors, the wood work graiued in black walnut and oak. The sellings are decorated with fancy mouldings. On the first floor is the engine-room ; second floor, front, is the sitting-room, only used oil special occasions, the carpet of which cost 300 dollars. The back room on this floor is the reading-room, where the men can read, play dominoes, billiards, or anything else they like within the limits of the rules of the department. The third floor is the bunkroom, or sleeping department ami bath rooms. The stables are situated 20ft to the rear of the house, in a two-story brick building 25 x 20. I suppose you will think from the way chat I have illustrated our quarters to you, it must be similar to a soldiers' barracks, but it is nothing of the sort. It costs 1,400,000 dollars to run the fire department of this city for one year. The salary of the captain is 1,000 dollars a year.