198 SUGGESTIONS FOR REDUCING THE LOSS BY EIRE ON VESSELS. 



equipped that every part of them can be reached promptly and effectively 

 by fire appliances. It is an easy matter to extinguish a fire in its incipiency, 

 but it gains headway rapidly and in a short time is beyond control of 

 the best apparatus; therefore, every second counts. Fire appliances should 

 be accessible and ready for instant use. The time lost in coupling up a 

 hose which should have been connected may cause the loss of a ship. 

 Approved fire-extinguishers should be carried in every pilot-house and in 

 every galley. When a fire is discovered it is always reported to the man 

 in the pilot-house, and if he has an extinguisher right at hand he can get 

 to the fire and use it at once. A fire starting in the galley, especially from 

 grease spilling on the stove, is always a dangerous one, but if an extin- 

 guisher can be used instantly it can probably be controlled. In addition 

 to these, on large vessels, extinguishers should also be carried in the crews' 

 quarters, and on passenger steamers they should be placed in the main 

 saloon and in passageways for use in the event of the draperies catching. 



There are many worthless extinguishers on the market, which are sold 

 only because they are cheap, and it is advisable to purchase only such 

 makes as have been tested and approved by the National Board of Fire 

 Underwriters. 



It should be borne in mind that an extinguisher is not a fire depart- 

 ment, its capacity is limited, and unless used promptly it is not effective. 

 When a fire attains a size beyond the control of an extinguisher, it becomes 

 necessary to use hose. All steam vessels should have a steam-pump and a 

 hand-pump and these should be connected to the same main, the hand-pump 

 for use in case that steam is not up or the steam-pump out of order. In no 

 case, even on the smallest boats, should there be less than two lengths of hose, 

 as the fire might start just at the place where one length was kept, and 

 render it useless. The fire-main should extend to every deck, and the 

 plugs on it should be located not more than 75 feet apart. Vessels of larger 

 size should have a main on each side. The hose should in no case be less 

 than i^ inches in diameter — on many small boats at the present time i-inch 

 hose is used, but experience has shown that this is of no practical value 

 whatever. On larger vessels regular 2 J -inch corporation hose should be 

 used. Hose should always be kept connected. The law requires this on 

 passenger steamers, but on other vessels it is the regular custom to have 

 it uncoupled, and it is frequently kept in the hold. This is bad for two 

 reasons — first, the hose probably cannot be found when wanted; and 

 secondly, the threads on the pipe will be filled with dirt or painted over, 

 causing delay in connecting the hose after it is found. 



In addition to being thoroughly equipped with extinguishers and hose, 



