Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-02
BIG LOSS CAUSED
BY FOREST FIRES
1908 is MEMORABLE FOR
HEAVY DAMAGE
TOO EARLY TO ESTIMATE THIS
YEARS DESTRUCTION
Painstaklne and Accurate Methods of
Recording Used by Government
Reveals Great Havoc Wrought
by Timber conflagrations

Forest fires are causing considerable
damage in many parts of the country
at present. 1t will be several months
before the total destruction Is known,
for the fire season has considerable
time to run. In figuring out this years
losses, 1t VIII be natural to make com
parisen with losses for last year,
which, according to Treadwell Cleve-
land, jr., in the year book of the de-
partment Of agriculture. will cause
1908 to be long remembered.
IA dry season, combined with what
seemed to be even more than the usual
indifference toward small fires which
might easily have been extingushed
at the start" says Mr.. Cleveland,
''caused destructive confagra tions in
practically every state, with losses
aggregating s100000,000. In comparison
with the havoc wrought elsewhere, the
damage done to national forests was
exceedingly slight Had fires ragged
within the forests as they did outside
they would have destroyed timber
worth 100000, 0,000-enough to run the
forest service for six years. More
over, 1t is practically certain that
most If not all of the damage which
was done might have been prevented
had the forests been fully manned.
Estimates Searching
Finally, the estimates of loss made
by the service on national forests are
particularly searching and take full
account of the injury done to young
growth. Commonly, estimates of loss
from forest fires are based on the
damage done to standing timber and
to property; they do not reckon the
usually far greater loss in injury or
destruction of young growing stock"
The methods by which the govern
rnent keeps down the fire losses on the
national forests include:
Constant and systematic patrol by
picked forces Of rangers and guards.
The construction of roads, trails and
telephone lines, which facilitate the
massing of large fire-fighting forces.
The construction of fire lines which,
in some instances, check the spread
of fire without human help.
The equipment of the forests with
fire-fighting tools and other supplies
necessary In fighting fires. The sup
plies of tools are kept at convenient
points at all times, in order to have
them easily accessible to forest Off
GERS in case fires break out.
Cost Made Smaller
Cooperation with railroads. timber
land owners and settlers in fire pro-
lection, in this way making it possible
TO DTDIeCI DOl0 lIb ituuS Ol TIE COIll"
panes and the forest service at q
much smaller cost to the government
than would be the case were the ma
tional forest lands alone protected by
the local officers.
Just as the practice of forestry is i'm
portant in the movement for the con-
servation OF all natural resources. so
is the protection of the forests from
fires important in the furtherance of
national forest work. In fact, forestry
in many instances means nothing
more than conservative numbering and
the prevention of forest fires.
Uncle Sam realizes that only through
the wise use and care of the forests will
1t be possible to make natural tim
berland permanently productive. The
practice of forestry does not mean
abbreviatings the use of the land, In
stead, conservative numbering and pro-
lection of the young growth from fire
will bring about a steadily increasing
use for with cultivation and care the
yield of the forest increases and the
product improves in the same way that
the value of the farm increases under
proper system of management.