Bisbee daily review., 1908-07-17
FIGHTING THE
FOREST FIRES
Of SOUTHWEST
Fires Are the Greatest Enemies
of Forest ReSeryeS-How
They Are Fought BY the
Rangers.

Fires are the greatest menace to the
protection and preservation OF the
forests OF the west
The government, throughout its for
estry bureau, is working hard TO save
/ the trees and preserve them for fu-
ture generations. to furnish fuel and
building material and conserve the
moisture. and one forest fire does
more damage than the government
and nature can remedy in two or
three decades.
e And once forest fire gains head
way. it is most difficult to control. It
! is impossible to keep the failing twigs
| and leaves and broken, dead limbs
cleared from the ground. hence it is
always like finder to the flames and
a carelessly thrown match, cigar or
1 cigarette often starts a blaze that
will destroy hundreds of acres of mag
nificent timber.
This is especially true in the south
west, where rains are few, much more
Z than in the northeast where rains wet
down the trash underfOot and protect
the trees from incipient or careless
I fires.
Thunder storms are frequent in the
timber covered mountains of the
southwest, but they are generally
noted more for their brilliant eIectri-
cal display than fF. the amount of
moisture they release and the light
ming does much damage. 1t splits
giant trees and throws them with a
growth and all these broken limbs.
and twigs and otherwise damages the
-.
when they fall, die and help to feed
/ the flames when fire starts and,
with the leaves and dry grass also to
| feed it, and wind to fan it. fire in
a forest is worse than the worst blaze
! city firemen have to highland the
I forest rangers have no water nor hose
carts nor fire engines.
/ 1t is gigantic task to control a
blazing forest fire and hundreds of
men are called into service to beat
back the flames of even the smallest
blaze. The rangers are hastily sum-
moned in various means by the men
on duty nearest the fire. Messengers
are sent out, pistols are fired and the
forest service telephones are Tequi-
sitioned.
The smoke soon acts as its own
alarm. however. and the rangers and
volunteers flock in from all directions
armed with spades. axes and shovels.
Where it is possible to secure plows
! burrows are run through the forest
some distance from the fire. in the di-
Erection the wind is carrying it. and
aEmen fell the trees along the fur
rows. cutting a path as wide as pos
sible as a barrier. The dry under
| brush is pulled back as rapidly as pos
sible and everything that can be done
! to clear an area too wide for the
! flames to cross. is done as rapidly as
possible. Then concentrating at tne
point where the fire RACES most fI-
riously, the rangers and volunteers
arm themselves with long green
twigs to beat back the fire as it
surges up to the dead line" or when
flying fagot is hurried by the wind
or the other side.
If the fighters are in sufficient
numbers and the wind is not too Sc
we're, they succeed in checking it and
then for many days and nights they
have to guard ths burned area while
Sthe dead logs and tree stumps burn
! themselves out, but if they are unsuc-
NEsoAul anu AllC Allu Ndl IlES lllS
flames across the dead line" all the
work goes for naught and it must be
done over aagin at another point.
Frequently the fighters are days and
days getting a fire under control and
every hour it consumes acre upon
acre Of precious timber and denudes
a mountainside, that may never again
be retimbered-if at all, not in an
other generation anyhow.
Sometimes - many times - the
SMOKE is so dense and the flames 50
hot, that the fire fighters are driven
| from their tasks almost when they
think they have won and are forced
to take stand after stand against the
IroaTing, crashing flames
A forest fire is most aweinspiring.
either in the daylight or after night,
! but particularly so at night. when
| the, black columns of smoke. rolling
iheayenward over the stately doomed
pine, reflects back to earth the red
glare Of the flames below.
The roar of the burning timbers-
! several times louder than the roar OF
| the flames consuming the biggest
building. In the devouring flames,