The new North-west., 1881-10-07
FOREST FIRES.
A Memorable Year In the History Of the
Lumber Regions.
Cincinnati Commercial.

NHtcHutdtt IOWUaeTc6m.
The year Of 1881 is likely to be among the
most memorable in our history, because of
the extent and destructiveness Of the forest
fires. With their terrible work in Michigan
our readers are more or less familiar. In
respect to the loss of human life the forest
fires of the past week are without precedent /;
and the moneyed loss is less compared with
the fires of 1871, in the same region only be-
cause the fires of that year rendered much
of the timber just burned valueless for COM
merce.
But these forest fires are not confined to
Michigan. They appear to have broken out
country. The great drouth which has pre-
vailed for so many weeks has rendered
everything so dry and in6ammable that
wherever spark falls from passing loco
motive, or other cause, fire is instantly
kindled, and the flames spread with light
ming rapidity.
In Northwestern Pennsylvania and West
ern New York the fires of the past week
have been exceedingly destructive. In parts
of the oil district the loss has been great, at
one town, Rexford, twenty-one tauks and
$4,000 barrels of oil beiug burned. Several
persons have been fatally injured from the
effects of petroleum that exploded. So in
tense was the heat from the burning trees
along the track from jamestown to Sala-
manca that passengers sitting at the car
windows had their flesh scorched, and two
tramps stealing ride upon the bumpers of
the express train were overcome by the heat
and falling into the burning underbIush,
perished in the flames.
The forests for miles along the New York,
Lake Erie 4 Western, the New York, Penn
sylvania & Ohio, and the Lake Shore &
Michigan Southern railroads are being rap
idly destroyed. A train on The Philadelphia
& Erie railroad was caught in a solid sheet
of flame, and the engineer and fireman of
the train were severely burned while ell
flames, which threatened to consume the
cars and roast the passengers alive. All
along the line of the railroads in The Lehigh
valley, large patches of forests on the hill
sides have been burned over In few min
utes. The Delaware valley also has been
the scene of extensive fires.
In Northern New York the forest fires,
while not so destructive as those of one or
two former years, are doing much damage.
In Maryland the town OF Homecoming, lying
in the very heart Of the Cumberland coal
regions in Allegheny county, and having a
population Of about 5000 souls, has been
nearly destroyed by the fires in that region.
The fires have even spread to the forests of
the Dismal Swamp, in Moth Carolina, and
are said to be very extensive there. The
forests of New Jersey have also begun to
burn. Unless drenching rain comes soon
1t will not be surprising to hear of fires in
localities where forest fires were never be-
fore known. ell.
No district of this country possessing ex-
tensiye forests has been entirely free fem
forest fires, as is evinced from the blackened
trunks of dead trees seen in many places.
So extensive have been these fires in some
years that they have become historical. In
1860 and 1852, fires of unusual extent and
severity overrun what is now Wyoming Ter
ritsry, and spread so rapidly that neither
mau nor wild beast could escape. But the
fires of 1871 are perhaps the most neDora-
BILE. The most destructive of the forest 6'es
of that year ragged in Missouri, Michigan and
New York. Those in Wisconsin and Michi-
gan destroyed not only the forests, but vii
lages and towns. About GOO people were
rendered homeless. Thousands Of sqoare
miles of timber were that year destroyed.
Few people have any conception of The
money vaiue OF the timber destroyed by the
forest fires. The timber destroyed in 1871
in Michigan and Wisconsin was valued at
S215, 600, 900, and at the meeting of The Ma
tional Association of Lumbernen, held in
Chicago in 1875: Mr.. II. w. Sage, than whom
the Northeastern Lmaberman, q high au-
thority, says no man in the country is bette;
qualified to express an opinion, asserted that
when the actual cut of timber in the north
west had been ascertained, the figures null
tiplied by five would not exaggerate the loss
by forest fires. In this opinion many Others
fully competent to judge have repeatedly
concurred.
It is to be hoped that before long some GER
tain means Of preventing forest flies and The
loss of human life and property caused by
them will be discovered.