The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1908-12-18
S5,Og7,S25 Loss
FROM FOREST FIRES
In West Virginia Alone, Dur
ing the Year.
$50, $40 Expended In Effort to
Suppress the Destructive
CONGREGATIONS

Inc unprecedented ueSIuCtlOH JillS
season by forest fires in West Vir-
ginia has called the attention of the
people, as never bfore, to the neces-
sity of better protection to woods and
watersheds says HUI Maxwell chairman
of the West Virginia Conservation Cor
mission. "The relationship between
denuded mountains and floods is bet
ter understood than formerly and the
problem of future timber supply has
ceased to be a question for academic
discussion.
Every one Of the So counties had
one or more fires, some being small
and spreading through few woodlots
only, others converting more than 3d.
900 acres. The areas burned aggregat
ed 100000 acres, approximately one
fifth of the wooded areas of the state.
Timber burned amounted to more than
943, 800, 900 feet,broad measure, about
per cent of the entire estimated
standing timber, large and small, in
the state, or two-thirds of the output
of all he saw-mills of West Virginia
in 1907.
money losses were heavy. The value
of timber burned was $2,903,500. The
loses in manufactured lumber, tanbark
building and other improvements amo'
ing to s490,175. This year there was
an unusually heavy damage TO under
growth and soil, and this has been
placed at one dollar an acre for every
acre burned, making a loss of S1,703,-
$50 in the state. These losses total
up to $5,097,S25. The reported ex-
penditures by the state and individuals
for fire fighting from an interesting
contrast TO the iss of more than $4,000
900. The amount which county treas
uries and companies are reported TO
have spent TO suppress fires was only
$646; individuals and companies are 10
ported to have spent about $4,000.
"Tne injury TO the soil from fire
was mucn more severe this season il
West Virginia than ever before, not
alone because the burned area was lar
ger than in any former, years but also
for the reason that excessive dryness
exposed the humus TO greater depth.
Ground fires have been unusual here
tofore in this state, but this sea-
son they We're common and widespread
Two human lives were lost in the
fires.
The mountain people fought fires
in the past, whom they fought at all,
by raking the leaves and sticks from
fire lane two or three feet wide and
back fri g. That method failed this
year. FIRES crossed the lanes by
burning the humns beneath the surfac
and then started up on the farther
side. Tire fires burned so deeply in
the humus that an annual phenomenon
was presented vine snow fall come
in ovember. The snow apparent
ly extlnguished the fires but
it went away quickly under the
influence Of a strong, dry wind, and
the fires came up and out of the
ground and were soon spreading again
| saw an interestig example OF this.
In tine morning the snow in the wood
was two inches deep, and no fire was
to be seen. Before sunset the snow
was gone and the leaves We're burn
ing.
Large tracts of lard on the high
mountains were demuded of soil down
to the rocks. Over much of the area
where the Pttsviile Conglomerate is
the surface formation, there never was
much mineral sol. Beds of moss,
lichen, leaves and decaying wood form
ed covering for the rocks which CAV
anchrage tot he roots Of the forest
trees. over extensive tracts, soils OF
that kind were absolutely destroyed"