Lieutenant Sampson Sladen, R.N., appointed Chief Officer of the London Fire Brigade, 1909. Lieut. Sampson Sladens appointment as chief of the London Fire Brigade came as a surprise, even to himself, as the first name recommended by the General Purposes Committee was that of Commander Cowper, R. N. Mr. Gamble, the Second Officer of the Brigade, was passed over, owing, it is said, to a memorial on his behalf, but without his knowledge, being submitted by the Brigade, which was thought a dangerous precedent. Lieut. Sampson Sladen is forty, and served seventeen years in the Navy. He joined the Brigade in 1899, and since 1903 has controlled the Northern Division. From "Illustrated London News", 1909.