The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1908-12-12
A CYCLONE OF FLAME
Fires In Bamboo Forests Are the
FierCeSt Known.
SWEEP ON A MILE A MINUTE,


Of a Great Battle Is the Noise Of the
Exploding Stalks That Sometimes
Shoot High Into the Air.
When the forests are aiire. when
the smoke makes dusk at noon aud
reddens the harvest moon a thousand
miles away, there Is the measure OF a
conhagration. When the prairles burn,
as they used 10 before farms had crcpt
IN upon the endless miles OF grass,
there was a fire which ran like mad
and left behind II a hlackened trail OF
death. II one could combine the speed
Of the prairie fire with the tumult ot
the blazing forest, that would be
FIRE indeed.
Such a combination Is effected whS n
the bamboo groves catch fire. The
bamboo Is but a grass, grass with
the height Of tree. swaylng stems
reaching 100. even $50. feet In air,
In Camhodia. where the bamboo
groves along the rivers cover the space
OF forests, Il Is no unusual thing for
fires TO break out and sweep all before
them for many miles II the summer
has been dry the bamboo turns scar
and infammable as any grass.
All that Is needed is spark; then
ruin runs red. II Is not necessary TO
rely upon the carelessness OF the
woodsman to start the blaze. The
bamboo can klndle itself
Let two swaylrg stalks OF dry bam-
boo be set In motion by the breeze. let
one rub across the other long enough.
and the friction VIII set the spark, and
the long dry leaves win feed the fame.
II Is known that many fires Of the
bamboo forests thus originate. Per
haps II was from observing such a
sight that primitive man learned the
Promethean secret. That theory has
been advanced.
AS soon rs a flame In the bamboos
has crept to the level Of the tossing
tips It spreads ike wildfre. The wind
carries a sheet Of fame along the grove
at tremendous speed. Some observers
say that such fires have been seen to
move forward at the rate Of more than
a mile a minute. Seen from below, 1t
looks as IL she sky had burst into an
instant fash OF fame.
From such burst Of fire there could
be no escape. Fortunately 1t passes
high overhead at the tops OF the bam-
bOos. II serves as a warning to the
traveller who may be making his way
along some one OF the water courses
BY which the forest Is intersected. The
bamboo itself Is almost an obstacle to
travel OF any sort 1t is we'll nigh I'm.
possible to force way through 1t ex-
cept by the slow and toIlsome labor Of
hewing out path.
The fire in the great trunks moves
more slowly, and II warning be taken
It may be possible to sink ones boat
and throw up wet heritage and clay
against the bank Of the stream TO pro-
vide shelter until the furnace blast
has blown by. Such fire in the BAN
boo has not only the speed Of the prai.
RE fire on fits sweep overhead, but Il
has the same volume OF fuel as IL
found In any forest fire. It combines
the two types.
Bamboo forest fires have another
quality which is all their own. They
bang and rattle with thunderous
crashes. as Of artillery fire. without
cessation.
The stalks Of these tree bamboos are
frequently more than foot in diane.
ter. Near the ground the joints are
close together: In the younger growth
the nodes may be several feet apart,
But, long or short as they may be, each
Joint Of the sun dried bamboo Is q
tightly sealed chamber filed with air.
The partitions between the cavities are
singularly tough; the outside rlnd Of
the stalks is almost pure flint.
When the blast Of the fame sweeps
onward the air in the stalks upon
which 1t is driven Is suddenly heated
to a very high temperature. The resid-
uum Of moisture which may be In the
stems is Immediately transformed into
steam and at once subjected to super
heating, thus becoming a violent explo-
siTe As the hot breath Of the fame
becomes hotter these joints burst with
loud cannon discharges.
Sometimes the force Of the explosion
near the roots is so great as to shoot
the stalk like javelln high into the
air. where 1t flashes into torchlike