Firemen became professionals. They are paid to do their job.
Yet even today ,we still have fire buffs who seem to appear at every fire in an area.
Sometimes they prevent firemen from doing their jobs. A leading New York newspaper published a story with the headline "Fire Buffs Barred from Blaze".
The story was about an order from New York's fire commissioner. He was angry.
He told reporters that his fire-fighters were having trouble getting near the fire because fire buffs who wanted to help were really getting in the way.
So he said he did not want anyone but fire-fighters to go to a fire.
Fire buffs are still around, but the word has taken on a wider meaning.
It includes all who have a deep interest in something or some activity.
And so we can thank the American buffalo that once wander the open plains for this meaning of the word buff.
