31 JANUARY 1914, Page 41

Fires and Fire-Fighters. By John Kenlon. (William Heinemann. 6s. net.)—Mr.

Kenlon is the Chief of the New York Fire Department, which is notoriously efficient, and there is nothing which he does not know about the fireman's gallant business. In this admirable book he combines an account of the principles and methods of scientific fire-fighting with a number of extremely thrilling anecdotes and reminis- cences of particular fires. One is worth quoting as a remarkable instance of resourcefulness. In the disastrous fire at the Windsor Hotel, in New York, "two men who were vainly hunting for a fire escape were met by a trained nurse, who said that she could conduct them through her room to the object of their search. When they had entered, however, she put her back against the door and told them that they must assist her in carrying her patient, a helpless old lady in a wheeled chair, to a place of safety. In other words, this plucky woman had invented this scheme in order to save the life of her charge, and the men, infected by her courage, did as requested, and all four gained the street without mishap."