Dear Sartoris

I thank you for joining in the Fire Brigade scheme.

I have been in communication with several offices asking them to subscribe but without result.

They contend that where there is no proper provision for dealing with Fires they are justified in putting on additional premium, they all stand to this opinion. If they have this power we recover our subs to the Fire Brigade in the saving of the extra premium probably.

There are however many things which might be destroyed by fire which, altho’ insured, could not be replaced, & this is one reason for having the security of a regularly organised Brigade.

My experience is that where these had to use the estate engine the cost of the burn has been much more than I could recover from the office.

At Geddington last year I had to put on about 70 men & women passing buckets of water to the engine tank owing to the distance from water whereas the Kettering Brigade would have put the fire out with a dozen men owing to their great length of hose & their powerful steamer.