Show IN RELATION TO SUNDAYS FIRE MAJOR Sr AwroN chief of the fire department has suddenly become an object of interest sundays sunday fire which was as is well known deplorably plora bly mismanaged has brought him conspicuously into bass relief his incapacity in the sudden emergency is now beginning to be acknowledged by his most ferocious and unreasonable friends who admit that some property might have been saved such an admission from that quarter means that a great deal of property might have been placed be yond the reach of the flames under a more competent director however extremes of attack and hyperbolic and untenable defense of the chief of the fire department belong to one piece of cloth both classes of extremists have no reason to be proud of their respective positions we belong to the conservative class in that respect but would have been rquel more inclined to charity for the major on the ground of his inexperience had he not been guilty of so much dress parade business in having his expertness in responding to false alarms for practice formulated by himself published in that portion of the ahe press that sustains him at the expense of truth common sense and sound public policy some people swallow such quack advertisements alvertise ments as signs of efficiency but they are simply indicators of conceit when a man performs a public service it to is then time enough for the to give him recognition otherwise it is mere puffery 1 thereto there is another constituent which operated against the chief chia in his conduct at the fire he carried to it not only the evidences of inefficiency but those of arrogant pugnacity his assault upon mr jennings a relative of the gentleman whose property was on fire was an inexcusable act of brutality as well as a breach of the peace neither was it creditable to his courage bet being ng with within I 1 n a fe few w feet of a nu number aber of policemen when he be committed the offense it would perhaps be b well for the gentleman to be more discreet as he might in resorting to such unseemly methods of expressing his disapproval strike the wrong mans man s nose this incident of the fire was made the subject of a resolution of censure at a session of the council held may 20 an ain effort was made to table it which was only accomplished by mayor scott throwing in his vote on that side of the question the members present being equally divided upon it the logical inference to be drawn from the position assumed by the mayor and the others who voted to table to is that they consider the matter complained of the act of a public officer committing a personal assault on afif a private citizen while the said official was in the discharge of his duty ts is not censurable su rable this attitude has a decidedly incongruous aspect and is a curious comment upon some people peoples s views of off official iclal prerogative as compared with the rights of private citizens cit izena without pawing passing upon the propriety of introducing the resolution seeing that it was off offered erect the ahe mayor and council were given an opportunity of taking a position that would have had a tendency in the future to prevent the recurrence of assaults upon citizens by pugna pugnacious clot s officers who are absurdly and theoretically presumed to be the servants and not the pum 1 of the people the hie disposition made of the resolution if it has any weight at all must have the effect of increasing the sum of official pugnacity and depreciating the protection of private citizens basing the conclusion upon the result it would have been better to have let the matter sleep so far as the council was concerned we learn that a cent subscription has been started in one of the saloons for the purpose of paying major antons St fine we hope for that gent lemans sake if for no iao 4 other reason than that the accumulated quarters amell of sour beer and bad whiskey that this involuntary mark of respect does not have his bis unqualified endorsement it appears that some men who are conspicuous in the community not for non HOB partisanship have signed their names to the testimonial and tossed their two bitses to the receiver of f the fund if there is any dignity in thus expressing a sentiment in opposition to official good conduct and the peace of the public those who want it are welcome so far as we are concerned we must say however that some thing look rather small from our stand should another occasion arise ful foi the services of chief stanton to be bro brought ight into requisition we hope it will not hot we shall be pleased to note the tact fact that he and those who are unreasonably holding him up by the seat of the unmentionables shall le be justified to some extent by his bis solid and efficient work in saving the jeopardized property of citizens we will be much more gratified to note such an exhibition of ability than to animadvert upon his short comings |