Firemen and Their Exploits. F. M. Holmes
was hissing for its work.
How had the firemen obtained a blazing fire and hot steam so soon? When the engine was waiting in the station, a lighted gas-jet, kept near the boiler, maintained the water at a high temperature; and while the horses were being hooked on, a large fusee, called a "steam-match," had been promptly ignited, and dropped flaming down the funnel. The match fell through the water-tube boiler to the fuel in the fire-box below; the draught caused by the rush of the engine through the air helped the fire; and the water being already so hot, steam pressure soon arose.
"The new escape's close behind!" cried one of the men, as the engine hurried along.
Something, unusual then, to London streets was rapidly following the steamer. In the gloom, it looked like a dim spectral ladder projecting over the horses in front, and several men could be seen sitting on the carriage conveying it.
"She's a-comin' on pretty fast," exclaimed one of the men; "she travels as smart as an engine."
Indeed, the new escape was now so near, that it could be seen more clearly. It was securely mounted on a low car, and its large wheels hung over the end at the back, not far above the ground. Designed by Commander Wells, chief officer of the London Fire-Brigade, it was brought into use in the brigade in July, 1897.
But now it was nearing the fire, and cheers and cries rang loudly from the excited crowd gathered at the spot.
"Make way for the escape! Hurrah! Hurrah!"
No wonder the crowd were excited. On the second-floor window of a large building appeared three white, eager faces, framed by the dark sashes, and crying eagerly for help.
Cheer after cheer rent the air, as the escape drew up opposite, and was slipped from its car; then, resting on its own wheels, it was pitched near the burning building, and its ladders run up to the window. The policemen could scarce keep back the thronging crowd.
Away go the firemen up the rungs of the ladder, and amid continued cheers, and cries, and great excitement approach the sufferers in their peril.
"They've got one!" shouts an excited voice.
"Aye, and there's another!" cries a second spectator.
"They're all three saved!" vociferates a third; and loud cheers greet the firemen's triumph.
It was a smart piece of work; and with the rescued persons thrown over their shoulders in the efficient manner they are taught at drill, the firemen carefully descend the ladder one after the other, and amid shouts and plaudits arrive safely on the ground.
The flames dart out of the building more fiercely than ever, as if in anger at losing their prey; the glare and heat grow more intense; the smoke rolls off in dense volumes; the fire is raging furiously.
Engine after engine rushes fast to the spot, the loud, alarming cries of "Fire-ire! Fire-ire!" echoing shrilly along the lamp-lighted thoroughfares; fireman after fireman leaps from the arriving engines, and with their bright brass helmets flashing in the glare are quickly stationed round the huge conflagration.
The "brigade call" has been telephoned all round London, and from east and west, and north and south, engines and firemen have hurried to the spot. Steamers with sparks flying, steam hissing, and whistles shrieking; manuals with the clatter of their handles; hose-carts with their lengths of flexible pipes; and tall ladders of fire-escapes, useful, even when no life is to be saved, as high points of vantage whence firemen can direct streams of water straight into the raging fire,—all—all are here. One after another they arrive, until the word is passed that more than twenty engines and a hundred and twenty firemen are concentrated on the spot.
Hydrants also are at work. They are appliances, permanently fixed under the pathway, from which firemen can obtain a powerful pressure of water, ranging from thirty-five to seventy pounds per square inch. From the steamers and the hydrants the quantity of water poured on the huge fire is now immense, and the steam and smoke roll off in immense volumes.
Crash!
"There goes the glass!" cries a fireman; and a few moments later it is rumoured that one of the brigade has been badly cut in the hands. The skylight had broken and fallen upon him, showing that it is not only from heat and smoke that the men are likely to suffer, but also from falling parts of the burning building.
The huge fire is fought at every possible point. It is prevented from spreading to surrounding buildings by deluging them with water, and strenuous efforts are made to quench it at its source. Steadily in the growing light of day the firemen work on; but the morning had far advanced before the great conflagration was fully extinguished and the London Salvage Corps were left in possession of the ruined premises.
"Well, you've had your first big fire, Newall; how d'ye like it?"
"Oh, it's all right, mate; it's pretty hard work, but I don't mind it."
"'Tain't all over yet," said Jack cheerfully; "there's this 'ere hose to be scrubbed and cleaned, and hung up in the well to dry. I reckon it will be four or five o'clock before we can turn in."
Jack was right. The wet hose had to be suitably treated to keep it in good condition, and the engines carefully prepared for the next alarm that might arise; and when the men turned in to rest, they slept sound enough.
This story not only illustrates the work of the London Fire-Brigade, but also points to a notable fact in its history. That fact is the introduction of the horsed fire-escape. The first rescue in London by this valuable appliance took place on October 17th, 1898. There were, in fact, two disastrous fires raging at nearly the same time on that day, and the new appliance was used at one of these.
Early in the morning, a disastrous fire broke out in Manresa Road, Chelsea. The conflagration originated in the centre of a large timber-yard, and spread so rapidly that a very serious fire was soon in progress. Engines and firemen hurried up from various quarters, until sixteen steamers, three manuals, and more than a hundred men were on the spot. The fire was completely surrounded, and the enormous quantity of water poured upon the blazing wood soon took effect.
But before all the engines had left, news came that a still more serious fire had broken out in Oxford Street. The extensive premises of Messrs. E. Tautz & Co., wholesale tailors, were discovered to be in flames, and the alarm was brought to the fire-stations from various sources.
The Orchard Street fire-alarm rang into Manchester Square station, and resulted in the horsed escape being turned out; then another fire-alarm rang into Great Marlborough Street fire-station, and the horsed escape had hurried from this point also. The appliance was new, and for some time the men of the brigade had cherished a laudable ambition to be the first to use the escape in what they call a life-saving job. And it was only by an untoward chance, or simple fortune of war, that the men of the Manchester Square station, who were first on the spot, missed the coveted honour.
When they arrived on the scene, no sign of fire was visible in Oxford Street itself, and the firemen were pointed to North Row, one of the boundaries of the burning block behind. They made their way thither, searching for inmates, but were driven back by the fierce flames.
Meantime, the three persons sleeping on the premises—the foreman, Mr. Harry Smith, his wife, and their little son, aged six years—had been endeavouring to escape by the staircase, but had been driven back by the fire. Mr. Smith had been awakened by the dense smoke filling the room, and he aroused his wife at once and took the boy in his arms.
Not being able to escape by the staircase, they hurried to the front of the large block of buildings, shutting the doors after them as they went. So it happened that they appeared at the second-floor windows facing Oxford Street just as the horsed escape from Great Marlborough Street fire-station hurried up. A scene of great excitement followed. The firemen ran the ladders from the escape to the building, and brought down all three persons in safety; but Mrs. Smith unfortunately had suffered a burn on the left leg. It is probable that, but for the rapidity with which the horsed escapes arrived on the scene, the family might have suffered much more severely; for the fire was very fierce, and soon appeared in Oxford