All
throughout the day the men had to take care of the horses and
respond to fires. Regardless of whether or not there was a fire,
the firemen were required to exercise the horses once a day
for at least one hour by jogging them around the neighborhood,
“to cover a distance of about five miles” . This
was a time when the firemen and horses mingled with the local
communities; children especially enjoyed seeing the firemen
and often brought treats for the horses. The men enjoyed these
excursions into the neighborhood as well, and gladly showed
off the horses and chatted with the children. Horses were extremely
well trained and could perform a variety of impressive tricks
for eager audiences.
Even after returning from a fire,
firemen could not relax until they cared for the horses and
re-setting cleaned the equipment. The horses had to be “cooled
out”—jogged, sponged down, and then blanketed and
fed for the night. The station had to be ready to respond to
a fire at all times, and regardless of what time the men returned
from a fire, they were required to set up the equipment and
firefighting apparatus for the next day or fire.
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