when compounded with the first four.

In speaking of the drilling of firemen, I shall give a short account
of the plan followed here, which has been tolerably successful.

The present number of firemen in Edinburgh is fifty, divided into four
companies; three of which consist of twelve and one of fourteen men.
The bounds of the city are divided into four districts; in each of
which there is an engine-house, containing one or more engines, one of
the companies being attached to each engine-house. In each company
there is one captain, one sergeant, four pioneers, and six or eight
firemen.

The whole are dressed in blue jackets, canvas trousers, and hardened
leather helmets, having hollow leather crests over the crown to ward
off falling materials. The form of this helmet was taken from the
war-helmet of the New Zealanders, with the addition of the hind flap
of leather to prevent burning matter, melted lead, water, or rubbish
getting into the neck of the wearer. The captains' helmets have three
small ornaments, those of the sergeants one--those of the pioneers and
firemen being plain.

The jackets of the captains have two small cloth wings on the
shoulder, similar to those worn by light infantry. Those of the
sergeants have three stripes on the left arm, and, on the left arms of
the pioneers and firemen, are their respective numbers in the company.
Each company has a particular colour--red, blue, yellow, and grey.
Each engine is painted of one or other of these colours, and the
accoutrements of the men belonging to it correspond. There is thus no
difficulty in distinguishing the engines or men from each other by
their colours and numbers. Each man also wears a broad leather
waist-belt, with a brass buckle in front. To the waist-belts of the
captains, sergeants, and pioneers is attached eighty feet of cord; the
captains having also a small mason's hammer, with a crow-head at the
end of the handle: the sergeants have a clawed hammer, such as is used
by house-carpenters, with an iron handle, and two openings at the end
for unscrewing nuts from bolts; the pioneers a small hatchet, with a
crow-head at the end of the handle; and the firemen each carry a
canvas water-bucket folded up.

The captains assemble every Tuesday night, to give in a report of such
fires as may have occurred in their respective districts, with a list
of the men who have turned out, and a corresponding list from the
sergeant of police of the respectiv