一个昂贵的“破裂。”

一个昂贵的“破裂。”

我们阅读日报,在“Ch开火estnut street, Philadelphia, the stock of H. P. & W. P. Smith, valued at $150,000, was destroyed ; a hose burst in an adjoining building, occupied by Coffin, Altemus & Co., cotton and woolen goods, and a loss, estimated at $60,000, resulted.” We are informed that the hose which indulged in such an expensive “ burst,” at a critical time, was an inferior article of rubber hose, for the manufacture of which a Trenton establishment is notorious. Time was when a good article of rubber hose was manufactured, and when some dependence could be placed upon it, but there are tricks in the hose trade as in all others. Unscrupulous manufacturers have so degraded their products by adulteration and poor workmanship, that all hose of that character has come to be looked upon with suspicion.Good, reliable rubber hose is an expensive article, and few corporations feel like paying a high price for it when other qualities of hose, equally strong and durable, are selling for less money. This fact opened a field for deception, of which some manufacturers have availed themselves to an extent that has been sadly demoralizing to the legitimate trade in hose.

How worse than foolish it is to buy cheap hose was demonstrated by the “ burst ” referred to above. Here the worthlessness of a single length of hose cost the insurance companies $60,000—a sum sufficient to have fully equipped Philadelphia with a new outfit of the best quality of hose—that kind that does not “ burst ” in critical emergencies. That there is such hose has been demonstrated by the experience of New York, Chicago, and even Philadelphia, which latter city has a large quantity of good hose, intermixed with a small amount of that which has a tendency to “ burst.” Such hose is not only liable to inflict great damage to property, as shown by the above paragraph, but embarrasses the Firemen. Speaking of this, the Foreman of one of our most active companies stated to us the other day, that the effectiveness of his pipemen depended very much upon the quality of hose they had to handle. Said he, “when we had the old Maltese fraud of hose the pipemen were afraid to trust it; it was liable to burst at any moment, and leave them in a bad place without a stream of water to protect themselves from the flames; but now, with a good line of “Eureka” hose behind them, the pipemen are not afraid to go anywhere;they are confident that wherever they go the stream will not fail them; then, with the spray nozzles, they can drive away the smoke, and follow the flames anywhere.” While New York has found the “ Eureka ” a trustworthy hose, Philadelphia has expressed a preference for the hose made by the New York Belting Company, while Chicago uses some of both kinds. Elsewhere a correspondent expresses a preference, based on experience, for leather hose, and, there is no doubt, leather hose, well made, will give a good account of itself for several years. But cheap hose, whether made of leather, rubber, linen, cotton or anything else, is dear at any price, as Messrs. Coffin, Altemus & Co. can testify. Good hose is as essential at a fire as a plentiful supply of water. With it the water can be led to the point where it is needed to quench the flames ; but poor hose is not only useless in itself, but so disposes the water as to make of it quite as dangerous an enemy as the fire itself.