Show KNOW THE FIREMEN ATTACK FIRES TO THE BEST ADVANTAGE an official of the bew department Depart mant tells of ahe advantages of an acau rate knowledge of s this study the rules of the department said a new york department official to the new york sun require all cap bains of engine and companies to inspect regularly at intervals of three months all buildings ot a bubli or semi public character within their respective districts distri its the building thus inspected include hotels theaters hospitals aslies stores and nare houses public halls and so on all buildings in tact except private dwellings and in this way the command ng officers of companies be come acquainted with the interior of every important building within their district boundaries the captain of a fire company knows where the stair ways are and the elevator shafts it there are any where the fire escapes are and the doors and and other openings skylights and so on in short he knows the inside of the building and in case of fire in it he does not approach the building as a stranger nor lose a minute hunting around inside to know what to do or where to go he know that before he gets into the building at all and according to the floor the fire is on he goes straight to it without a mo mente doubt or hesitation or loss of time it might be for instance that the officer in charge at a fire on the third floor of some building would want to get at it from some more ad vant ageous point he would from his precise and accurate knowledge of the buildings thereabouts know just how to go about it in the best possible way say this 1 re is in a building at 1 such and sich a street he sends men into no 3 telling them that ten feet back from the top of the third flight of stairs they will find a recessed place in the wall where formerly there had been a door through into no 1 and which would be the quickest and easi est spot to break through the wall at that point being thinner the corn pany commander knows the buildings in this district thoroughly and as a matter of tact the battalion comman ders and other higher officers of the force know the buildings with n the larger area of the district over which they have supervision correspondingly well the rules of the department re quire that on appointment into the service a fireman must serve three years at least below fifty ninth street in the course of which time in whatever rank he may be he must get some knowledge in a general way at least of the buildings in the most densely built up part of the city when a man Is promoted he Is more than likely to be sent to some other corn pany than the one in which he had been serving and as assistant fore man or lieutenant of a fire con pany he Is required to know the buildings within the district of the company to which he is attached A captain pro to be battalion chief may be as signed to another battalion district but it may be one in whick he had previously served in some capacity and comprising some company dis tracts ct which he had gained exact knowledge while serving in it as an officer of a company of course he sets himself to learning all the other company districts and if indeed he did not know them already he soon comes to know his battalion district thoroughly and he keeps up his knowledge of it by constant study with such training and experience supplemented by constant inspection of new buildings it becomes possible lor one man to know the whole tow thoroughly as for example fire chief croker knows it it Is said of chief croker that he knows every building downtown and it would no doubt be literally true to say of him that he knows from personal observe tion and out every structure of importance on manhattan island |