The Sentinel. [volume] (Trenton, N.J.) 1880-1882, 1882-11-11
Forest Fires.

sin and Minnesota occur, and ara thu
results mostly of carelessness on tn,
part of explorers. or timber hunters
haymakers, and others having either
business or pleasure in the woods, who
leave their campfire burning, wher
hey have cooked meal or spent the
light. This is generally in the
months of July and August, when
.ue pine leaves and branches from
the last VIII ter's cutting are dry and
like finder, liable to burn from the
dropping of match or a stroke OF
ightning. There is no necessity fol-
his criminal negligence. Proper laws
md their enforcement q few times
will set the careless ores to thinking,
ma they will put out their camp Tres
and be careful where they drop 8
match. 1t may seem hard to detect
The offender, but it is not. Most men
;an be traced even in the p,neries,
nd il fires result from their acts they
should be punished by in prisonment
,r fines.
Zach state should enact special law
N this subject, then circulate full in
formation and cautions, so that igLo-
rance cannot be pleaded.
The practice of lumbermen cutting
pine in the winter is this: A tree il
felled, the branches are Topped off and
lie scattered over the ground; the
summer following these become very
dry and are like powder. A match
brown away, an emptied pipe-any
hing with even a spark of fire at
cached, will start the burning. Being
catered so evenly over the ground.
ire spreads and gathers force, and
ices not stop ct the end of the ole
;hoppings, but runs on into the green
crest; so where perhaps eighty acres
were cut, double that or more may be
~urned or killed.
4 remedy for this would be law
.quiilng the lumbermen TO employ
N extra man in the woods, and care
'ully pile these green pine branches
and refuse in open spaces, where they
may be burned at the right time, or
should they take fire by accident, the
ire may not spread.
The extra expense is very little, and
large proportion of forest fires can
be traced to these scattered dry pine
caves. ready to catch.
After the first season, there is but
little danger of fires in these old chop
pings, as the pine leaves drop off and
green hard woods, NAPLES, popIars,
ETC., spring up and the danger is over
in great measure.
We have not been able to trace any
forest fires to so-called Indian"
york. The Indian builds a very
mall fire and hovers over it for
warmth. He says, "White man build
reap big fire and no can come near
him."
The Indian always carefully extin-
,uisbes his camp fire before he
marches on" So forest fires can not
oe laid to the Indian.
The dry sandy soils in many of the
zine forests of the states of Michigan,
Wisconsin, and Minnesota differ in
many localities from the Eastern
states, where most of the forests were
hard-woods fewer small streams are
found ; rainfall is less; more danger
from forest fires. Witness the horri-
BILE scenes OF Peshtigo and vicinity III
eastern Wisconsin, in 1871, and later
ia eastern Michigan, occurring on
his dry sandy soil.
There are large areas of still virgin
forest, aside from the small amount
OF pine therein, or which has been
cut and removed in these three states
that can be saved. The practice has
been until within year or two, by
lumbermen, to cut the pine timber,
and then abandon the land to the
country. There would be an average
of five pine trees to an acre cut and
removed. The remainder of the tim
Der would be small pine, cedar, tama-
rae, spruce, and the varieties Of hard
woods, and unless the fire had run
through, one would hardly notice that
the land had been cut over.
Now, however, owners are paying
up taxes and carrying these cut lands
On this remaining forest, covering
some 100000 acres, as before stated
there is some white pine, perhaps IS,
600, 900, 900 feet, that will be cut in the
next ten years. After this is gone
and which at present seems to be thu
only timber of any commercial value
there will be left the same origina
forest acres, full of all kinds of hare
woods, the cedars, tamarac anC
spruces, and the young white pines
all of which will become valuable, 81
chat tho forest that ia left has realIy