The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1908-11-06

I'm this Summer by req a
sefs 81 ta decolntB Of the straet-
I've fires which have been raging In
an parts Of the country.
s CAMPERS and locomotives, Is the
usual 6ns5Fer. Many of the other
thfhg sfiteh start blazes IN the for
est are forgotten. It Is true that per-
hans : onk5haIG to three=to prths Of
the forest hTes do begin as result of
the carelessness OF some camper, or
from sparks flying from locomotives,
gbut there are number OF things
which set lho woods a1re.
A complete report of forest hfes on
the private forests of the country and
their canses Is not kept by anyone.
Uncle Sam. however, Is most careful
to account for the damage done by
the bfazes on this timberland under
forest administration, aggregatIng
about, 16S, 200, 900 acres and each
year the total area burned over, the
amount Of timber destroyed and its
value, the, cost OF fighting fires. and
the causes OF fires are carefully
checked up. These reports are made
at the end OF the calendar year, and
the announcement for this years
losses viii therefore not be known for
more than two months.
Last years figures, however, give
good idea of the things which cause
fires in forests. OF the 1885 fires
discovered on the National Forests
last year, all OF which were checked
by the hangers before they had burn
ed over fourteen Shundredths OF one
per cent (14-1O0 of 1 per cent? of
the National Forest area, campers
caused 346, while railroads follow
ed next with 273; lightning came
next, with 176; donkey engines used
in numbering operations, fourth. with
65; careless brush burning by home
steaders clearing land, "a; fires
caused by incendiaries and those set
by herdsrs and hunters, 80. For
more than 400 OF the fires the cause
Is not known. This is not strange
when It Is remembered that hre
may shoulder Tor days, II the air Is
too thick to permit the smoke to be
seen at a distance before 1t breaks
out when famed by wind so as to
reveal Its presence to the watchtul
forest officer.
While campers caused more fires
than LOGON olives last year, there are
many seasons when the railroads hold
undlsputed claim to first place. For
est fires started by both are mostly,
unnecessary. If campers would ex-
ercise care in starting camp fires and
be sure that they are extinguished
before they are left, and If the rail-
road companies would use the most
modern and efacient spark arresters,
1t is reasonable to think that the an
nual forest fire loss could be reduced
more than one-half. Lightning
ranks third amt ng the causes of fires,
and of course, man has no greater
responsibility in this case than to put
the fire out as soon as possible after
discovery. Careless brush burning
by homesteaders and persons clear
ing land is said to be the cause of
many of the fires which have started
this year, particularly those which
have swept over the Lake States:
The ranger force on many OF the
National Forests has been kept busy
fighting fires which, If left to run I'M
checked, would have done incalcul-
able damage. BY quickening COM
municatlon between important points
through the construction of telephone
lines, and building roads and trails,
the National Forests have been made
more accessible during the past Two
years and FIRE fighting has been great
Iy facilitated.