Condon globe. (Condon, Gilliam Co., Or.) 189?-1919, 1902-09-25
AN ASHEN WASTE
PROPERTY LOSS ALONE WILL REACH
sI,OOO,OoO OR MORE.
Forest Fire on North Fork Of Lewis River
Leaves q TraiI Of Death and Destruc-
tion-At Least Sixteen Lives Have
Been Lost Thirty Families Homeless
Plans for the FHtnre.

Portland, Sept. 22.--The yerdant
valley Of the north fork Of the Lewis
river Is an ashen waste. Within ii,
confines are devastated homes, farm,
and thousands on thousands Of acres
OF ruined timber land. The loss IN
timber alone is over 81 900, 900. Six.
teen persons lost their lives and 30
families have been rendered homeless.
It Is hard to realize that within IS
miles OF Portland such complete deyas-
tation has been brought Upon defense
less farmers, and that men, women
and children have been burned alive
or suffocated with the binding smoke.
The ground along the north fork Of
the Lewis river is OF very broken
character. Rugged, timbered hills
rise abruptly from the rich meadow
lands near the Lewis, and the timber
cruiser has found many sections OF
valuable fir timber on their rough sides.
A long rough road to Woodland, near
the Columbia, is the only outlet for
those living around Speleyah valley
praiIie and beyond. Only Is miles of
this road are now passabIe for wagons,
for the fire, in its course, has burned
the numerous log bridges, and pack an.
imals are the sole means Of conveyance
into the burned district. speleyah
prairie is the only natural treeless space
for many miles around, for the bottom
lands as well as the hills are covered
with fir, cottonwood and alder trees.
The cause OF the various fires which
have wrought such destruction are
really unknown, though many theories
are held by the inhabitants of the
affected country. There seems to be no
doubt that more than one fire sent the
sparks flying through the air to wait
ing brush piles and dead timber, where
tine breeze, soon famed the small blaze
into another hurricane of fame, which,
blown onward by the strong wind Of
it's own creation, often directly crossed
the path of the parent fire or started
in . precisely opposite direction.
Small fires were seen simultaneously
on outlying hills so distant from one
another that the theory that all the
fires sprung from one blaze seems inn
possible.
The extent of the burned district
ssfal also h nnkana-s. ...-tss, ,sl4.. ss.--z.sa
pail of smoke rises completely and the
men of the country have time for ex-
ploration. Ariel, which was practical
ly the western limit OF the fire, is Is
miles due east of Kalama, while Yale,
another rural postal station, is nine
miles further to the southeast, and
about FIVE miles from the boundary be.
tween Cowlitz and Skamania counties.
Between these two postoffices the fire
undoubtedly reached its greatest inten-
sity, and it was in the neighborhood of
Yale that l6 lives were lost. Just how
far to the north and south the fire
swept is unknown. The greater part of
the destruction was wrought on the
north side of the river. but several
houses are now reported as burned on
the south side of the north fork.
A plan is now under consideration
to buy large quantity OF grass seed
and SOW the entire burnt district with
green vegetation that will not only
secure means of livelihood for the
farmers, but also prevent the recur-
renee of such an overpowering disaster.
1t is feared that two or three years
hence, when the bark falls from the
trees killed by this fire, repetition is
possible, but more strenuous measures
will probably be taken to prevent the
careless setting of slashing and camping
6res.
Few of the farmers will try to leave
the country, for they understand that
when the district is once under cultiva-
tion the ground will be far more pro-
ductive than ever before. What the
loss to the settlers really amounts to
cannot be learned at present, for many
own outlying claims which they have
not visited. An estimate of 81 900, 900
to represent the loss in timber alone is
probably conservative. Another $780,
900 for the loss on the farms will not
widely miss the mark.
The districts to the extreme south
and north which were devastated by
the fire are seldom visited only by an
occasional timber cruiser or prospector,
who occasionally penetrate the fastneas
OF the upland hills.