THE FIRE SERVICE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10115, 10 October 1910, Page 5

THE FIRE SERVICE.

To THE EdITOH. Sir,—ln your issue of the Bth, Mr B. Gardner asks a rather knotty question: Why does the Masterton public nave to support 43 fire-fight-ers, while other towns twice as large only support 21? I consider that Oamaru, Wanganui, New Plymouth and other towns, who have only 21 firemen, must be very povertystricken, while Masterton must nave any amount of money to throw about on its fire service. Then again, it' appears to me that the Masterton fire-fighters are cut up into three squads. No. 1 is a very important I set of gentlemen. They attend all performances in the Town Hall, and see that none of the ladies present smoke while the performance is on. No. 2 squad attend the fires (sometimes), and stretch a large rope across the street so that the fire can't, spread. No. 3 squad simply puts the fires out. These 43 fire-fighters are evidently kept, indirectly, by the public solely for the above purposes. Thanking you for space in your progressive journal, lam, etc., A RESIDENT OF TWO YEARS' I" STANDING.