| Show IX CASE OF FIRE V description of Chi cagos alarm system somebody smells smoke or sees a light at night and rushing to the nearest alarm box pulls tho hook in ten or twelve seconds the number of the box pulled is transmitted to every engine house in the city five or six hundred men are instantly out of bed and dressed and about two hundred horses released from their stalls spring into position in awen at five seconds on the average four engine companies one chemical companies and a couple of marshals are tearing along the street and in a minute or two are on the spot where the alarm originated how is it done repeated prof john P barrett by means of an alarm system that its superior in the world counting ordinary fire alarm boxes public boxes and private boxes there are in chicago upward of 1500 points from w aich alarms may be given and every time a box is the electric current carries the necessary information over miles of underground wire the current is never off the wires and tha hooks of the boxes are al ways there to be pulled as occasion requires yet you would be surprised to nud how few citizens keep posted about the fire department they dont know where the nearest boa ie or where in case that fails the next is to be found fully a third of the residences in chicago could have private alarm boxes at an initial expense of about 34 and no subsequent fees whatever yet there are only private boxes in the city every citizen may have a key that will unlock any b ox in the city and the multitude dont get them few think of fires till they occur and then still fewer know just what to do there are three keys sometimes four to every alarm box nd citizens should keep posted as to where those in their neighborhood are kept at is often said that the man who pulls the box awakens the firemen looses the horses and throws kopea the doors and so forth this is true of small cities but not of a place like chicago where there is a network of telegraph and telephone wires if a couple of wires get crossed there is a possibility of false alarms under the direct system our men would bo turned out one hundred times a night hence here all alarms come directly lo 10 the central office and are thence sent to the various engine houses in general terms the system is simple pulling the alarm box winds a clockwork clock work inside to which is attached a wheel bogged jogged so as to give the number of the box the breaking and completing of the circuit makes the register print the number of the box in the office here by sliding a key with scarcely a seconds delay wo transmit the number to every engine house in the city where registers reprint the number gongs awaken the man and mechanical appliance every thing worked by the current st free the horses to slide down the polo and hook a few snaps is the work of but a moment and away go the companies every day the wires are tested to make sure that the resistance offered interfere with the passage of the current and to guard against breaks all our circuits are metallic that is have a return wire they are safer than the common circuit in which each end of the wire ie grounded we cant afford to risk having a number of boxes useless As additional security especially downtown down town the wires are interlaced so that if one box fails to bring the department the next one will by this interlacing of lines the security of the business part of the city is doubled every alro alarm box has also a full morse telegraph outfit if one of our lines break we have but to ground the ends at the engine houses between which the break occurs and we have temporarily the circuit commonly used for commercial purposes every precaution is taken to guard against atmospheric influences and every form of disturbance and accident the facility offered for giving alarms is rarely abused its a dangerous tiding to maliciously send in a false alarm for every keyless box has a bell on the inside that is pretty sure to call a crowd before the mis chief maker has a chance to escape |
