The Project Gutenberg EBook of Fighting the Flames, by R.M. Ballantyne

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Title: Fighting the Flames

Author: R.M. Ballantyne

Release Date: November 6, 2007 [EBook #23380]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FIGHTING THE FLAMES ***

Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England

Fighting the Flames, by R.M. Ballantyne.

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This is one of the books by Ballantyne in which he describes one of the
main institutions of British life--the Fire Brigade. Of course he wraps
a good story into this description, but you come away with a good idea
of how the Fire Brigade functioned in those days. Bear in mind that
there were no motors--the fire-engines were drawn by galloping horses.
There were no telephones, and the alarm was raised by someone running to
the fire station. More than that, there was a system for alerting any
adjacent fire stations, so that better cover could be given to the
district as a whole. The power for the pumps was from men, and to
rescue anyone the fireman had to ascend a ladder, hunt for the person,
and carry him or her back down the ladder, all done with unsophisticated
gear. Injuries to firemen, or even their death, were frequent.

We are also introduced to the floating fire engine, that could attend a
fire by the river-side, usually in one of the very vulnerable ware-
houses.

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FIGHTING THE FLAMES, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.

CHAPTER ONE.

HOW THE FIGHT BEGAN.

One's own fireside is, to all well-regulated minds, a pleasant subject
of contemplation when one is absent, and a source of deep gratification
when present.

Especially may this be said to be the case in a cold, raw night in
November, when mankind has a tendency to become chronically cross out of
doors, and nature, generally, looks lugubrious; for, just in proportion
as the exterior world grows miserably chill, the world "at home," with
its blazing gas, its drawn curtains, its crackling fires, and its
beaming smiles, becomes doubly comfortable and cosy.

Even James Auberly, p