USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Somerville > Report of the city of Somerville 1843-1859 > Part 15
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SECT. 3. On the first Monday of March, annually, the Engineers shall meet and organize themselves as
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a Board of Engineers, a majority of whom shall form a quorum.
The Chief Engineer shall preside at said meeting, and at all meetings of the Board, when present, but in his absence the senior Assistant Engineer in rank present shall preside. The Board of Engineers shall elect a Secretary.
SECT. 4. The Board of Engineers shall be held responsible to the Mayor and Aldermen for the discipline, good order, and proper conduct of the officers and men constituting the Department, and for the good condition of all houses, reservoirs, hydrants, wells, engines, hose, hose carriages, hooks and ladders, trucks, and all apparatus and furniture thereto belonging and connected with the Depart- ment. They shall have the superintendence, and, under the direction of the Joint Standing Committee on Fire Department, the control of the Engine or other houses used for the Department, of the furni- ture therein, and of the Engines and apparatus, as well as any other property properly appertaining to the Department. They shall make such rules and regulations for the better government of the De- partment, and for the extinguishment of fires, as they may from time to time deem expedient, the same being subject to the approval of the Mayor and Aldermen, and not repugnant to the laws of the Commonwealth or any Ordinance of the City.
SECT. 5. The Chief Engineer shall have the sole
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and absolute control and command over all the other Engineers, all members of the Department, and over all other persons present at fires. It shall be the duty of the Chief Engineer to direct the other Engineers, to take prompt measures to arrange the several engines and other apparatus in the most advantageous manner, and to issue such orders as in his judgment are necessary for the efficiency of the Department and the better extinguishment of fires.
SECT. 6. In case of the absence of the Chief Engineer, the Engineer next in rank present shall, during such absence, have and exercise all the power and authority of the Chief Engineer, and shall per- form the duties of his office. The officer in com- mand of the company which first arrives at a fire shall be the officer in command until an Engineer is present.
SECT. 7. It shall be the duty of the Chief En- gineer to keep, or cause to be kept, fair and exact rolls of the respective companies, specifying the name, age, occupation, and residence, and the date of the admission and discharge of each member of the Department, and keep an accurate account of all property belonging to the Department.
He shall, at the close of each month, make to the City Council a detailed report of the condition of the Fire Department ; also of all losses and accidents by fire that may happen within the City and the causes thereof, so far as the same can be
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ascertained; also the number and description of the buildings and other property destroyed or injured, the amount of insurance thereon, and the names of the owners ; the report to be published in such man- ner as the City Council may direct.
SECT. 8. It shall be the duty of the Board of Engineers to examine into the condition of the Engines and all other apparatus, as often as cir- cumstances may render it expedient ; they shall cause the same to be kept in repair, provided that such repairs, as well as all expenditures incurred relating thereto, and all incidental expenses of the Department shall be under the direction of the Joint Standing Committee on Fire Department. Said committee shall have charge of the repairs of all buildings belonging to the Department, unless other- wise ordered by the City Council.
SECT. 9. The Board of Engineers shall cause the reservoirs to be kept filled with water, and they shall give immediate notice to the Superintendent of Streets of any defect or want of repair therein.
SECT. 10. The Foreman, Assistant Foreman, and Clerks shall be nominated annually in the month of March, or whenever a vacancy exists, by the mem- bers of their respective companies, from among their own number, and a return of the same made to the Board of Engineers ; and in case of rejection by them, the name of the person so rejected shall be
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returned to the Company and the members thereof shall, within five days after such return, select an- other person for approval, and whenever any person so nominated shall be approved by the Board of Engineers, his name shall be sent to the Mayor and Aldermen for their approval and appointment; and in case of rejection, another person shall be nominated, as aforesaid, and reported to the Mayor and Aldermen within seven days thereafter, for their action thercon.
But in case the second nomination made by the company shall be rejected by the Board of Engi- neers, they may at once nominate some suitable person to the Mayor and Aldermen, who may ap- point him or any other suitable person to the place. These officers and members when appointed shall each receive a certificate thereof signed by the Mayor and Chief Engineer. The officers shall hold their places until the first Monday in March next there- after, unless sooner removed and until others are appointed in their stead.
SECT. 11. It shall be the duty of the Foremen of the several Companies to preserve order and discipline at all times in their respective Compa- nies, and require and enforce a compliance with the Ordinances and orders, the rules and regula- tions of the Department and the Orders of the Chief and Assistant Engineer.
They shall forthwith report in writing to the Board of Engineers the name of any member or
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members who shall be guilty of any neglect of duty or a disobedience of orders. They shall keep or cause to be kept by the clerk of their respective Companies, fair and exact rolls of the Companies under their charge, specifying the time of admission and discharge of each member, together with the age, residence, and occupation of the same, and a record of all the City's property intrusted to their care, in a book or books provided for that purpose, at the expense of the city, which rolls and record books shall at all times be subject to the inspection of the Board of Engineers. They shall also make or cause to be made to the Chief Engineer true and accurate returns of all members, with their ages, residences, and occupations, and the condition of the appara- tus intrusted to their care whenever called upon so to do.
SECT. 12. Each of the Companies composing the Department, respectively, may adopt such con- stitution, by-laws, and regulations for their govern- ment, subordinate to the ordinances of the City, and the orders of the Mayor and Aldermen as may be approved by the Board of Engineers.
SECT. 13. It shall be the duty of the members of the Department who are permanently employed to keep the apparatus committed to their care, and the several buildings in which the same is deposited, and all things intrusted to their care, clean and in order for immediate use; to wash and dry the hose
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of the entire Department when required so to do; and they shall clear off the snow from the side- walks and driveways connected with the houses under their charge.
SECT. 14. It shall be the duty of the officers and members of the several Companies, whenever a fire shall occur within the City limits, to repair forthwith to their respective apparatus and con- vey the same in a speedy and orderly manner to or near the place where the fire may be, and, in conformity to the direction of the Chief or Assist- ant Engineers, to exert themselves in the most orderly manner possible in managing their appa- ratus and in performing every duty required of them by the Chief or Assistant Engineers, and upon the permission of the Chief or other Engi- neer, they shall, in an orderly and quiet manner, without any outcries, return said apparatus to their respective places of deposit, provided that in the absence of all the Engineers such permission be given by their respective Foremen.
SECT. 15. No person shall be a member of the Department who is under the age of twenty-one years, and who is not at the time a resident of the City of Somerville; and no person shall be an offi- cer of the Department, or of any Company, who is not a citizen of the United States, and a legal voter of the City of Somerville.
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SECT. 16. Every officer and member of the Fire Department shall sign the following agreement, to be deposited with the Board of Engineers : I , having been appointed a member of the Somerville Fire Department, hereby agree to abide by the Ordinances of said City, the rules, regula- tions, and orders of the Mayor and Aldermen, and of the Board of Engineers. And any officer or member who shall neglect or refuse to sign the same shall not be entitled to any compensation whatsoever, and unless he shall so sign within ten days from his appointment, he shall be deemed to have declined the same.
SECT. 17. The Board of Engineers shall report from time to time to the Mayor and Aldermen the names of such officers or members of the Depart- ment, if any, as in their judgment should be re- moved or discharged, with their reasons therefor; and whenever, from any cause, there occurs in the Department a vacancy (except on the Board of Engineers), they shall recommend the name of some proper person to fill the same.
SECT. 18. Any officer or member who shall neglect or refuse to perform his duty, or who shall be guilty of any disorderly conduct or disobedi- ence to any engineer or officer, may be suspended from duty by the Board of Engineers, who shall, within seven days thereafter, report their action to the Mayor and Aldermen, stating the name of the
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person suspended, and the cause therefor, and the Mayor and Aldermen may continue such suspen- sion for any definite period, or remove him from the Department.
Any person suspended from duty shall not act as a member of the Department until reinstated by the Mayor and Aldermen. And in all cases of removal from office or from the Department the name of the person removed, with a statement of the reasons therefor, shall be entered upon the books of the Engineers.
SECT. 19. Any officer or member of the De- partment who shall remove from the City shall thereafter be deemed to have resigned his office, or withdrawn from the Department.
SECT. 20. Every person admitted into the De- partment shall be and remain a member of the Company named in his application until he shall be transferred to another Company or discharged; and no member shall be transferred from one com- pany to another, except by order of the Board of Engineers.
SECT. 21. Every member of the Department shall wear at all fires such badge as the Board of Engineers shall prescribe; and no person without such badge shall, except by permission of an Engi- neer, enter within the lines formed at any fire.
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SECT. 22. If any officer or member shall, ex- cept in case of sickness, be absent from more than one third of the fires or alarms of fires oc- curring during the quarter, such absences, if more than five in number, shall be considered good cause for his discharge from the Department; and an intentional violation of any of the provisions of this Ordinance by any officer or member shall also be good cause for his discharge. No Company shall leave the City in case of fire in the neighboring cities or towns, except by order of one of the En- gineers.
SECT. 23. Whenever it shall be determined at any fire by three or more of the Engineers, of whom the Chief Engineer if present shall be one, to be necessary to pull down or demolish any build- ing in order to prevent the spreading of fire, the same may be done by their joint order.
SECT. 24. The Board of Engineers shall ex- amine into all shops and other places where shav- ings or other combustible materials are believed by them to be deposited or collected, and at all times be vigilant in the removal of the same, when- ever, in the opinion of any three of them, the same may be dangerous to the security of the City from fires, and direct the owner, tenant, or occupant of said shops or other places to remove the same; and in case of such owner, tenant, or occupant's refusal or neglect so to do, to cause the same to be removed
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at the expense of such owner, tenant, or occupant, who shall, in addition, be liable to a penalty not exceeding twenty dollars for such neglect or refusal
SECT. 25. It shall also be the duty of said Engi- neers to take cognizance of all buildings in the City in which any steam engine shall be used, and of all building's in the City in process of erection or alteration, and to make a record of such thereof as, in their judgment, may, from any cause, be danger- ous, and report the same to the Mayor and Aldermen forthwith; and whenever, in the opinion of any three of the Board of Engineers, ary chimney, hearth, oven, stove, stove-pipe, fire-frame, or other fix- ture, or any camphene or other explosive or inflammable fluid or material, or whatever else may give just cause of alarm, should be altered, repaired, or removed, they, the said Engineers, shall forthwith notify and direct the owner, ten- ant, or occupant of the premises upon which the same is situated to alter, repair, or remove the same as the said Engineers shall direct. And in case such tenant, owner, or occupant shall re- fuse or neglect so to do, the said Engineers shall cause the same to be removed, altered, or repaired at the expense of such owner, tenant, or occu- pant, who shall also be liable to a penalty not ex- ceeding twenty dollars for such neglect or refusal.
Any person who shall obstruct the Engineers or any of them in carrying out the provisions of this section shall be liable to a penalty not ex- ceeding twenty dollars for each offence.
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SECT. 26. The compensation of the officers and members of the Fire Department shall be such as the City Council shall determine.
SECT. 27. The Chief Engineer shall, on the last day of each month, prepare the pay-roll of all per- sons constantly employed in the Department, and present the same, and all bills against the Depart- ment, to the Committee on Fire Department on or before the second day of the next month. Once in three months (viz. on the last day of March, June, September, and December respectively) the Clerk of cach Company shall make a roll, the blank of which shall be furnished by the Board of Engineers, bearing the full name, age, occupation, and resi- dence of every member of said Company, specify- ing also the number of times the Company has been called out, and the attendance of the mem- bers respectively, to which shall be appended the following certificate, viz. "We, the undersigned, do hereby certify, that, according to the best of our knowledge and belief, the foregoing persons are members of Company, and that said Company has consisted of members during the last three months; that during that time they have resided in Somerville, have performed all the duty incumbent on them as firemen, have been present at every turn-out of the Company, or are duly excused for non-attendance, and are entitled to all the privileges and pay of firemen," which certificate shall be signed by the Foreman
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and Clerk respectively, and immediately delivered to the Chief Engineer; and if the Foreman and Clerk, or either of them, shall make or cause to be made, a fraudulent return, he or they shall be ex- pelled from the Department by the Mayor and Aldermen. Immediately after the receipt of these rolls by the Chief Engineer, the Board of Engi- neers shall meet and examine the same, and the Chief Engineer shall present the same, together with the pay-roll of each Company, to the Com- mittee on Fire Department.
SECT. 28 Any person intentionally raising a false alarm of fire shall be prosecuted by the Engineers according to law.
SECT. 29. All persons not members of the De- partment are hereby enjoined and required to obey the orders and directions of any Engineer given at any fire, and to render their services if ordered so to do by any Engineer. Any person who shall violate any provision of this section shall be liable to a fine not exceeding ten dollars.
SECT. 30. No gambling shall be allowed in any building occupied by any Company in the Fire De- partment, nor shall spirituous liquors be used therein.
SECT. 31. The Board of Engineers shall, under the direction of the Joint Standing Committee on Fire Department, have the care and management of
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the rooms, apparatus, and machinery connected with the Fire Alarm Telegraph.
They may recommend to the Mayor and Aldermen a suitable person to assist in the management of the same whenever they shall deem it expedient ;. the compensation to be such as the City Council shall determine.
The Engineers shall determine to whom shall be intrusted the keys of the signal boxes connected with the Fire Alarm Telegraph, and shall prepare rules, in accordance with which alarms of fire shall be given.
SECT. 32. No person shall open any of the signal boxes connected with the Fire Alarm Telegraph ex- cept in case of fire, or interfere in any way with said boxes by breaking, cutting, injuring, or defacing the same, or tamper, or meddle with said boxes, or any part thereof; nor shall any person interfere with the pole by which the wires of the Fire Alarm Telegraph are supported, by breaking, cutting, injuring, or de- facing by the posting of placards or bills upon them, or in any other manner.
SECT. 33. Whoever violates any of the provisions of the preceding section shall forfeit and pay a fine of not less than five dollars nor more than twenty dollars, for each offence.
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No. 16.
AN ORDINANCE RELATING TO HIGHWAYS.
SECTION 1. No street or highway shall be laid out by the City that is less than forty feet wide. All petitions for laying out, widening, altering, or dis- continuing any street or way shall first be presented to the Mayor and Aldermen and be referred by them to the Joint Standing Committee on Highways.
SECT. 2. The Committee on Highways shall not proceed to act on any petition in the manner set forth in the next succeeding section until the petitioners have procured and filed with the committee a plan of the street prayed for, showing thereon the lands to be taken and the names of the owners thereof, and the width and grade of the proposed street, and an agreement referring to said plan, signed by all parties who claim no damages or will release their damage, by those who will accept specific damages, with the amount thereof, and also a statement including the names of all other parties who decline to release or state their prospective damages.
SECT. 3. It shall be the duty of the Joint Stand- ing Committee on Highways, on receiving any and all such petitions, or when any order is referred to them which has in view the laying out, widening, altering, or discontinuing any street or way, to give a written or printed notice seven days at least before
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the hearing in relation thereto, in the manner pre- scribed by law, of the intention of the City Council to act upon such laying out, widening, alteration, or discontinuance ; and they shall, in such notice, appoint a time and place for hearing all persons and corpora- tions interested therein, provided, however, that whenever any such petition or order is referred to them, as aforesaid, said Committee, after considering the matter, may report leave to withdraw, or post- ponement of the matter, or inexpedient to take further action in the premises without further pro- ceedings in regard to such petition or order.
SECT. 4. At the time and place appointed in such notice the said committee shall meet and hear all parties interested who shall claim to be heard, and if requested by any party interested, or the said Com- mittee shall deem it expedient, shall view the premises and report to the City Council whether the common convenience and necessity require that such street or way should be laid out, widened, altered, or discon- tinued; and in case they report that the same ought to be laid out, widened, altered, or discontinued, they shall cause the admeasurements and boundaries of the street or way as proposed to be laid out, wid- ened, altered, or discontinued, to be distinctly marked out on the premises, and also described in their report, and shall specify the manner in which such laying out, widening, altering, or discontinuance shall be completed, and shall also report the names of the owners of all lands included therein and in any wise
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sustaining damage by the laying out, widening, altering, or discontinuing such street or way, as pro- posed, with the amount of damage proper and reasonable to be awarded to each of said owners, and the names of all persons, if any, who may have claimed before said Committee a hearing in relation thereto.
After said report shall have been made, if the same shall be in favor of laying out, widening, alter- ing, or discontinuing the street or way in question, it shall be filed in the City Clerk's office seven days at least before the City Council shall proceed to act thereon, and the report shall first be taken up and acted upon by the Board of Aldermen.
SECT. 5. The several streets of the City shall continue to be called and known by the names by which they are now known until the same shall be altered by the City Council.
SECT. 6. The Mayor and Aldermen shall, at their discretion, have power to cause numbers of regular series to be affixed to, or inscribed on, all buildings erected or fronting on any street within the City; and shall also have power to determine the form, size, and material of such numbers, and the manner of affixing them thereon.
SECT. 7. Any owner of any building, or part of a building, who shall neglect or refuse to affix to the same the numbers designated by the Mayor and Al-
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dermen, or by some person by them duly authorized, or who shall affix or retain there, for more than three days, any number contrary to their direction, shall be liable to the penalties hereinafter prescribed.
SECT. S. The Superintendent of Streets shall, under the direction of the Joint Standing Committee on Highways, have the general care and charge of the highways, streets, lanes, squares, sidewalks, and bridges of the City, and shall attend to the making, improving, and alteration thereof, and shall cause the same to be kept in good repair, so as to be safe and convenient for travellers.
He shall see that all nuisances and obstructions therein are forthwith removed, or give notice thereof to the Mayor or Chief of Police. He shall, under direction of the Standing Committee, make all neces- sary contracts for the supply of labor or material which may be required in the discharge of his official duty; and also perform such further duties as may be required by any Ordinance of the City or order of the City Council; and he shall, under the direc- tion of the Committee on Public Property, repair the grounds of the several school-houses and public buildings when necessary.
SECT. 9. Whenever any street or bridge of the City shall, from any cause, be unsafe for travel, the said Superintendent shall forthwith put up a suit- able fence across such street or bridge, and exclude travellers from passing the same; or cause such parts
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thereof as are unsafe to be enclosed by a sufficient fence; and he shall keep one or more lighted lanterns about the place every night so long as such fence shall be kept standing.
SECT. 10. The said Superintendent, under direc- tion of the Committee on Highways, shall have charge of the City teams and stables, and make all necessary arrangements for cleaning the streets, disposing of manure, and removing house dirt.
SECT. 11. Whenever the said Superintendent shall sell any property belonging to the City, or shall do, or cause to be done, any work for any individual for which money shall become due to the City, he shall enter in books, to be kept for that purpose, all such sales, and work done, with the price thereof, and shall make out bills for the same and deliver them to the City Treasurer for collection; and the Treasurer shall forthwith demand payment of said bills. In case any bills or dues under this Ordinance shall re- main unpaid at the expiration of three months after demand of payment, as aforesaid, the Treasurer shall cause the same to be collected by a resort to the proper legal process; and this he may do at any time before the expiration of said three months, if, in his discretion, the interests of the City so require.
SECT. 12. The said Superintendent shall, on the fifteenth and last day of each month, prepare pay- rolls of the day laborers on the highways and side-
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