The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1908-09-25
ENORMOUS LOSSES
or Forest Wealth Caused by Re-
cent Fires in Western States.

or Forest Wealth Caused by Re-
cent Fires in Western States.
Washington Sept. 1.-THE
forest fires which have just laid
waste whole counties in Minnesota,
Michigan and extended into Wiscon-
sin, destroying many towns and
making thousands of persons home
.ess. 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 vast
territory extending from coast to
coast, the reported destruction by
forest fires has been terrific and 1T
is likely that the year will go down
as one of the worst in the last quar-
Ter century. 1t seems that no part
II the country has escaped the work
Of the devastating flames. The la
Test disasters in Minnesota, Michi-
gan 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 Paci-
tic Coast, the Rocky Mountain and
the New England states, and Can
ada have had thorough. and in
some cases, a continuous experience
in fire lighting.
Officers in the United States For
est Service here say that it is doubt
lul if this years actual losses from
rest fires in all parts OF the coun-
try will ever be known, but it is
certain that they will run up so
nigh in the millions that the coun-
try will be startled when a compila
ton of statistics at the end of the
season makes 1t possible to give
even the most conservative figures.
Suffice it TO say, were all the tim
Der burned up this year in all parts
of the country converted into cash,
it could provide for a good sized
navy of first class battleships.
The fires have done good in one
way; they have focused the peoples
attention on the seriousness of the
forest fire problem, practical for
esters say, and have started a wide
spread movement in many states to
check them by adopting rational
systems of fire protection. Among
thinking people there has been
| l. inf ;,,tn
throwing a better protection around
the forests, which grow more i'm
portant as natural resource as the
timber supply dwindles.
The government has had lot of
work in the fire fighting line on the
national forests, but serious as the
fires have been, careful patrol and
the organization of force to battle
with the flames as soon as discover
ed has held the losses down to a
point where they are utterly insig-
nificant when one considers the
fearful destruction which would
have come about and there been no
protection.
Although the fire menace has
been serious in all sections. officers
of the forest service estimate that
the total cost Of the forest fires on
the national forests for the season,
exclusive of the salaries OF forest
officers, will not be more than $780,
900. This sum is small when it is
remembered that it means fire pro-
lection for approximately 168,000,-
900 acres of national forests, less
than two-tenths of mill per acre
/ Progressive state fire wardens and
forest officers, individuals and pri-
vate corporations having large tim
Der holdings have organized fire
fighting forces along much the
same line as the government in
many cases, and in this way they
have given protection to millions OF
acres of timber which might have
been destroyed had it been left un-
protected.