The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1900-10-06
MINNIE sOTA FOREs TRY
PRECAUTIoNs AGAINST FOREST
sFa FIRES.

PRECAUTIONS AGAINST FOREST
4 FIRES. IN
Fifth Annual Report Of tho chief
Ss5 Fire Warden OF MINNIE : ota.
The law for the prevention and sup
| preston of forest and prairie fires has
been in operation Ave years. and the
fifth annual report Of the Chief Fire
+ Warden, Gen. &C. Andrews, being for
che year 1899, has just been published.
It is a document Of LA pages, and con-
Of Minnesota forests. The law consti-s
tutes town supervisors fire wardens,
and in unorgapized townships having
inhabitants the Chief Fire Warden ap-
points fire wardens. The Chief Fire.
Warden can mass the fire warden force
of the state at any special point to sup
press fires. In ordinary years their pay
cannot exceed fifteen days at two dol
lars day. In emergencies, any able
bodied male citizen Is years Of age may
be called upon to help extinguish a
fire, for which he may be paid $150 a
year. It is the duty Of chairmen and.
of fire wardens in unorganized terri
tory to investigate and report fires to
the Chief Fire Warden. Such officers
are furnished with blanks for the pur
pose and stamped return envelope, and
may charge fee for making reports.
The number Of forest fires reported for
1899 was only 10; acres burned over,
$685.; damage, $1,541. Number Of prairie
dres, "a; acres burned over, "a. GIG; dam
age, $4,S56. The drought Of 1900, re-
agarded by many as equal to that OF
1894, when the Hinckleyl fire occurred,
had been broken just as the report Was
ready to be printed. In regard to this
period the Chief Fire Warden says
There have been many forest fires,
but from all the information ] have re-
ceived I doubt II the aggregate dam
age caused by them will exceed $780,
geo, or per cent OF the total valuation
OF the forests. There has been no loss
of life. Considering the vast extent OF
the forest region, the great activity
prevailing and the dangerous weather,
the damage is less than might have
been expected While in some cases
IRE warden could, no doubt, have been
more on the alert, it is nevertheless
fact that many fires were prevented.
controlled and extinguished by fire
wardens.< The fact that I have re-
ceived over 800 reports from various
fire wardens, relating to fires and the
precautions being taken during the
drought, is evidence Of their interest
and activity" #<3 55S5s /. y
re- The Pay OF Fire wardens.
1ovu + 10 ha 1rYt1y
of county commissioners to audit the
accounts of fire wardens when salts
fled of the justice Of the claim, but in
two or three Of the thirty counties
where fire warden service should be
active the county commissioners have
refused to audit such accounts, and
their counties. The state promptly re-
tmburses each county to the amount Of
one third of what they expend for fire
warden service, and no county can ex-,
pend more than $500 in any one year
under the fire warden law. What better
method can be devised for the payment
of fire warden claims than by coun-
ties? II payment be left to the respec-
tive town boards. a levy for the pur-s
pose will have to be voted each year
by the town meeting, and 1t might FREE
quently happen that the towns which
most needed the service would fail to
vote the money. Also it might often
happen that money would be voted and
not actually required; in which case
there would be temptation to spend it.
There might be cases where towns
could not afford to pay the necessary
expense. Suppose the state would as
sumo to pay all such expenses, how
could central officer very we'll, scru-
tinize the accounts? Would there not
be liability of much more excessive ac-
counts being presented than under the
present system? s.
/ We made the following additional ex-
tracts from the report: -.
Punishment for Carelessly. Causing
l. H. - a2a1ass< s. Fires. ~ 49,
A few persons have been convicted
and punished the past year for care
1essly causing fires. Fire wardens,
however, are reluctant to institute
criminal proceedings. and it is natural
that they should be unwilling to make
criminal complaint against man who,
perhaps, will be their neighbor or
townsrnan through life. Still, men who
accept official trusts should have cour-
age to discharge them faithfully. Com
munities often feel that a man is be-
Ing wronged if he is prosecuted; they
do not stop to think that the principal
object Of punishment is to deter others
from committing similar offenses. Very
good people are liable to be careless,
and when we punish a man who, in a
needless and careless spirit, sets a fire
I'm very dry and windy weather which
he ought to know he cannot control
and which destroys or endangers the
property of others he should be made
an example Of; not for revenge or be-
cause we wish to injure him.. but as a
warning to many others to refrain
from doing the same. G5 ~. !: m III.
Guarantees by Railroad Companies
Against Fires. @ 81 i
I, The act Of congress Of March 3, 1875,
grants railroad companies rights OF
way through the public lands Of the
United States, and the act Of congress
OF March 2, 1899, grants general right
OF way for railroads through Indian
reservations and the laws Of Mime
sofa give railroad companies power to
acquire rights OF way by purchase or
condemnation Of land. si None of these