The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-07-05
STATE FORESTRY.
A Few Extracts From the Report of the
State Fire Warden.

the state:
AS an example of the efficienco of the
| fire warden service may be mentioned
the fire which occurred in the town
ship of Moose Lake, discovered June
% on school section SO, township 46,
range 20, two and one-half miles in a
direct line from the village of Moose
Lake, between which and the fire is
dense woods. The fire appears to have
been set in three different places by
hunter in order to make pasture for
deer. But for the energy and activity
of the chairman of the town board in
calling out help and controlling the fire
it would have doubtless spread to and
destroyed the village of Moose Lake
lin which hunded persons were at
tending school and might have extend
ed also north to Barnum. subse-
quently visited the scene of the fire
and was gratifed to see the amount of
work which had been done to prevent
it's spread. I found that the fire
warden force had ditched and scraped
the ground along the front of the fire
about mile, that lane had been cut
three hundred yards or more, that
great many trees had been felled,
some of them two feet in diameter,
and that backfring had been extern
sively done, all to hold the fire in
check and part of the time when this
work was done the temperature was
up to 80 degrees. The fire warden
force was employed eight and one-half
days and nights controlling the fire,
Much of the time the wind blowing a
gale. There was no one living within
a mile of this fire, and if there had
not been an officer whose duty it was
to attend to it the probability is that
it would not have been controlled in
time.
The first step in forestry is the pre-
vention of forest fires. Without that
there can be no forestry. Our Mime
sofa system is not perfect and can be
improved. but it has proved more
effective than that of any other state.
The six years it has been in operation
the damage from forest fires, according
to the reports of fire wardens, has
averaged only $50, 900 year; and our
forests at conservative estimate are
worth 500, 600, 900.
On account of the value of the stand
ing pine on the Indian reservations, l,
at the beginning of the last congress.
recommended that the interior depart
ment try and have an item included
in the Indian appropriation bill to en-
able the commissioner of Indian affairs
to employ patrols during dry and dan
gerous weather to guard against and
extinguishing forest fires. The COM
missioner of Indian affairs made such
a recommendation. 1t was approved
by the secretary of the interior, and
the senate included the time of 81, 800
for the employment of twenty four
mounted men to be selected solely with
reference to fitness. Indians preferred,
and employed if possible. Very much
to my surprise the house conference
committee insisted on striking the
amendment out, which was done, but
for what reason I have never been
able to learn.
I made similar recommendation
for the employment of patrols on the
coded reservations. The item was duly
transmitted to the house committee
on appropriations by the secretary of
the interior, with the expectation that
it would be included in the sundry
civil bill A representative from this
state who is on the committee, assur-
ed me that he would give it his sup
port. 1t, however, failed of being re-
ported in that committee, but for
what reason I have not been able to
ascertain. This Office was to have
nothing to do with the employment of
the patrols. They were to have been
employed, if the money had been vot
ed, by the commissioner of Indians
affairs on the diminished reserva-
tions, and by the commissioner of the
general land Office on the "ceded" re-
servations.
While much credit is due to the gov
eminent of the United States for hav-
ing put in practice within the last
ten years the plan of certain forest
reservations mostly in mountainous
regions still it is a painful fact and
one with which the friends of forestry
ought to be acquainted. that, excepting
what has been done in regard to for
est reserves the disposal of p inc lands
has been prodigal and wasteful. OBJ
tanning pine lands under the 'sol
diers'' additional homestead law, I'M
DER the general homestead law and
under the stone and timber act are il
legitimate ways by which large bodies
of such lands are acquired at much less
than their value.
Now these unpleasant facts ought to
stimulate the friends of forestry
throughout the country to demand of
their senators and representatives in
congress, and of the president, re-
form of this pine land system of plum
der. Apparently the most practicable
reform would be to have all of the re-
naming public pine lands created in
to forest reserves, and treated on for
estry principles
The emitting of nine timber has been