Reminiscences of the old fire laddies and volunteer fire departments of New York and Brooklyn. . military, naval, or civil. Then,with what justice, or upon whatplea, can we still further reduce hiscompensation ? This clamor forretrenchment, this demand to de-prive the fireman, who snatches hismeans of existence from the de-vouring flames as a brand from the burning, of his lawful pay comes from thevery officials who have swelled their pay-rolls with sinecure appointees. I cannotlisten with patience to the suggestions from the various officers of the city to reduce thepay of our firemen, every
Reminiscences of the old fire laddies and volunteer fire departments of New York and Brooklyn. . military, naval, or civil. Then,with what justice, or upon whatplea, can we still further reduce hiscompensation ? This clamor forretrenchment, this demand to de-prive the fireman, who snatches hismeans of existence from the de-vouring flames as a brand from the burning, of his lawful pay comes from thevery officials who have swelled their pay-rolls with sinecure appointees. I cannotlisten with patience to the suggestions from the various officers of the city to reduce thepay of our firemen, every man of whom is engaged in the daily performance of arduous,perilous, and excessive duties, under regulations that at once combine the stern disciplineof the soldier who is constantly under arms to answer the alarms of an ever-impendingassault, and the confinement of a prisoner within the narrow limits of an salaries are to be reduced, let those officials strike from the pay-rolls of the city thehundreds of useless supernumeraries which are now upon them; let them cut down the. Reduce His IVages. 389 salaries of a multitude of useless clerks with which every bureau and departmentswarms, but let them refrain from making war upon our firemen and upon the divineprecept that the laborer is worthy of his hire. Thus far I have treated this questionas one of pure policy. I have assumed that we possessed the power to employ men toact in the capacity of firemen at a remuneration less than that fixed by law. But ~not believe that we have any such right. We are a Board clothed with certain dtpowers, and must strictly exercise them and no other and different ones. Weauthorized to employ firemen, and only firemen, in our force. The grade or positionof acting firemen is unknown to the law, which simply authorizes us to employ in theservice a body of men known as firemen, and provides that the salary of firemen shallbe $1000 per annum until specie payment is resumed. We have no
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, bookidldpd63166850, bookyear1885
