A good motto to blazon over the doors of a fire-brigade station would be "He gives help twice who gives help quickly." The spirit of it is certainly shown by the brave men who, as soon as the warning signal comes, spring to the engines and in a few minutes are careering at full speed to the scene of operations. Speed and smartness have for many years past been associated with our fire brigades. We read how horses are always kept ready to be led to the engines; how their harness is dropped on to them and deft fingers set the buckles right in a twinkling, so that almost before an onlooker has time to realise what is happening the sturdy animals are beating the ground with flying hoofs. And few dwellers in large cities have not heard the cry of the firemen, as it rises from an indistinct murmur into a loud shout, before which the traffic, however dense, melts away to the side of the road and leaves a clear passage for the engines, driven at high speed and yet with such skill that accidents are of rare occurrence. The noise, the gleam of the polished helmets, the efforts of the noble animals, which seem as keen as the men themselves to reach the fire, combine to paint a scene which lingers long in the memory. But efficient as the "horsed" engine is, it has its The earlier types of automobile fire engines used the boiler's steam to move them over the road. Liverpool, a very enterprising city as regards the extinction of fire, has for some time past owned a powerful steamer, which can be turned out within a minute of the call, can travel at any speed up to thirty miles an hour, and can pump 500 gallons per minute continuously. Its success has led to the purchase of other motor engines, some fitted with a chemical apparatus, which, by the action of acid on a solution of soda in closed cylinders, is enabled to fling water impregnated with carbonic acid gas on to the fire the moment it arrives within working distance of the conflagration, and gives very valuable "first aid" while the pumping apparatus is being got into order. TWO MOTOR FIRE-ENGINES Two Motor Fire-engines built by Messrs. Merryweather, London. That on the left is driven by petrol, and in addition to pumping-gear carries a wheeled fire-escape. That on the right is driven by steam. Both types are much faster than horses, being able to travel at a rate of over 20 miles an hour. As might reasonably be expected, the petrol motor has found a fine field for its energies in connection with fire extinction. Since it occupies comparatively little space, more accommodation can be allowed for the firemen and gear. Furthermore, a petrol engine can be started in a few seconds by a turn of a handle, whereas a steamer is delayed until steam has been generated. The "latest thing" in motor fire engines is one which carries a fire-escape with it, in addition to water-flinging machinery. An engine of this type is to be found in some of the London suburbs. A chemical cylinder lies The Wolseley Motor-Car Company has established a type of chemical motor fire engine which promises to be very successful. A 20 h.p. motor is placed forward under the frame to keep the centre of gravity low. When fully laden, it carries a crew of eight men, two 9-foot ladders, two portable chemical extinguishers, a 50-gallon chemical cylinder, and a reel on which is wound a hose fifty-three yards long. The wheels are a combination of the wooden "artillery" and the wire "spider," wires being strung from the outer end of the hub to the outer ends of the wooden spokes to give them increased power to resist the strain of sudden turns or collisions. An artillery wheel, not thus reinforced, is apt to buckle sideways and snap its spokes when twisted at all. England has always led the way in matters relating to fire extinction, and to her is due the credit of first harnessing mechanical motive power to the fire engine. Other The force with which a jet of water leaves the huge nozzle of a powerful engine is so great that it would seriously injure a spectator at a distance of fifty yards. The "kick-back" of the water on the nozzle is sometimes sufficient to overcome the power of one man to hold the nozzle in position with his hands, and it becomes needful to provide supports with pointed ends to stick into the ground, or hooks which can be attached to the rungs of a ladder. For an attack on the upper storeys of a house a special "water tower" is much used in America. It consists of a lattice-work iron frame, about twenty-five feet The ordinary horsed fire engine is simple in its design and parts. The vertical boiler contains a number of nearly horizontal water tubes, which offer a great surface to the furnace gases, so that it may raise steam very quickly. The actual water capacity of the boiler is small, and therefore it must be fed continuously by a special pump. The pumps, two or three in number, usually have piston rods working direct from the steam cylinders on the plungers of the pumps. Between cylinders and pumps are slots in the rods in which rotate cranks connected with one another and with a fly-wheel which helps to keep the running steady. After leaving the pumps the water enters a large air vessel, which reduces the sudden shocks of delivery by the cushioning effect of the air, and causes a steady pressure on the water in the hoses. |