Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1908-10-02
FIERCE FOREST FIRES,
Enormous Loss Caused In Spring
and Summer of 1908.
MANY TOWNS DESTROYED.

Timber Burned Equal In Value to Good
Sized Navy Of Battlsships-Continu.
Gus Experience In Fighting Flames.
Historic Forest Fire Incidents.
The forest fires which have recently
hid waste whole countries in Minnesota
and Michigan and extended into Wis
consin, destroying many towns and
making thousands of persons homeless,
have focused the attention of both
government and state forest officers on
the enormous losses of forest wealth
which will be checked up to the year
1908.
In the whole northern half of the
United States, throughout the territory
extending from coast to coast, the re-
ported destruction by forest fires has
been terrific, and 1t is likely that the
year will 60 down as one Of tie worst
In the last quarter century, says for
est service bulletin. 1t seems that
no part Of the country has escaped the
work Of the devastating flames. The
latest disasters in Minnesota, Michigan
and Wisconsin are the worst Of the
many that have visited the lake states
this year. Other sections have also
suffered from forest fires during the
spring and summer months, and the
people Of the Pacific coast, the Rocky
mountain and the New England states
and Canada have had a thorough and
In some cases a continuous experience
In fire fighting
Officers In the United States forest
service at Washington say that 1t Is
doubtful IL this years actual losses
from forest fires in all parts Of the
United States will ever be known, but
1t is certain that they will run up SO
high In the millions that the country
will be startled when compilation
Of statistics at the end of the season
makes it possible to give even the
most conservative figures. Suffice 1t to
say, We're all the timber burned up this
year in all parts Of the country con-
verted into cash it could provide for
good sized navy of first class battle
ships.
The fires have done good in one way.
They have called the peoples atten-
ton to the seriousness of the forest
fire problem, practical foresters say.
and have started widespread move
ment in many states to check them by
adopting rational systems Of fire pro-
lection. Among thinking people there
has been awakened an intense inter-
est in throwing a better protection
around the forests. which grow more
important as a natural resource as the
timber supply dwindles.
The terrible work Of the flames
which have burned over and destroyed
hundreds of thousands of acres of tim.
ber and property to the value Of mil
lions In the lake states recalls to men,
Dry other great forest fires which have
attained historic Importance.
One of the earliest of these was the
great Miramichi fire in 1925. 1t began
Its greatest destruction about o'clock
In the afternoon of Oct of that year
at place about sixty miles above the
Town OF NEWCASTLE on the Mlraulcnl
river, in New Brunswick. Before 10
o'clock at night it was twenty miles
below Newcastle. In nine hours it
had destroyed belt of forest eighty
miles long and twenty-five miles wide.
Over more than 2,5OO.OO0 acres almost
every living thing was killed. Even
the fish were afterward found dead in
heaps on the river banks. Five hun
1red and ninety buildings were burned,
and a number of towns, including New
rastle, Chatham and DouglastOwn,
were destroyed. One hundred and six
ty persons perished and nearly thou
sand head Of stock. The loss from
the Miramichi fire Is estimated ut
100000, not including the value Of
the tiMDeE .--