acco. My
nights were always passed at home with Jennie, and happy hours they
were, too!

One night, while my division was on duty aboard the ship, we had quite a
diversion from the ordinary routine. A big fire was seen on shore. All
boats were "called away" and our division landed at the navy yard, each
man carrying a ship's fire-bucket. A lieutenant had charge of the "fire
brigade" of about one hundred and fifty sailors. Nothing pleases a
sailor more than having something to do on land. Going to a fire was an
unusual treat. Steam fire-engines were not invented at that time. For a
New York city man that fire was a comical sight. On our arrival at the
scene, we found a regiment of soldiers drawn up in double line around
the burning buildings. Behind them were about all the prostitutes in the
city---and they were numerous in proportion to the population. The
soldiers opened ranks for us to pass inside the lines, the women
encouraging the sailors by singing out, "Go it, Excellents! Be lively,
my lads!" The troops had their muskets and, in their bright scarlet
uniforms, made a grand display. Only one old-fashioned fire-engine,
worked by hand, was to be seen. The old box was so leaky that the water
was spurting in all directions except the proper one. Our gallant
lieutenant, with his drawn sword pointed to the burning building, was
ordering us to put out the fire. The whole block was a row of small
two-story brick buildings. As one house would burn down, the next would
catch fire. The fire-buckets were of leather, with a rope thirty feet in
length attached to each one, for the purpose of hoisting water over the
ship's side and lowering it down the hatches in case of fire. On shore
the circumstances were different. The rope was a great impediment. But
something must be done to show what sailors could do at a fire.

A dam of mud was made in the street gutter, the leaks in the fire-engine
furnishing abundance of water. All hands were formed in line and each
man, dipping up a bucketful of water, would run to the burning
structure, the lieutenant with his sword would point out the particular
second-story window into which he wanted the contents of the bucket
thrown, and so it would go. That plan was a dismal failure. It would
require men about twenty feet in height for that style of fire-fighting.
The agents of the insurance company asked us to tear down a building
about six houses to the leeward of the fire. By that means the f