The midland journal., 1910-11-04
National Forest Fire Damage
IN Montana And Idaho.

a rough estimate OF the hTe loss
upon the National Forests in Mon
tana and Northern Idaho, upon
which the Forest officers of the u
s. Department of Agriculture have
been engaged since the fires were
put out, puts the total amount Of
timber killed or destroyed in this
one district at over six billion
board feet, while the area burned
over is put at over one and a quar-
ter million acres.
The heaviest losses were in two
Idaho forests, the Coeur d'Alene,
-where>over three billion board feet
of timber are reported killed or de
stroyed and over 400 thousand
acres burned owes, and the Clear
water, where one billion feet of
timber were killed or destroyed
and 800 thousand acres burned
over. On the Helena National
Forest, in, Montana. the loss in tim
her is believed to have been 500
million feet, Oh. the Cabinet Forest
400 million, and on the Lola Forest
300 million.
A large part Of the losses on the
Occur d'Alene, Clearwater and
Lol0 were dde to what became
practically one great fire. The
burn is shown on the Forest Service
maps as extending in northwest
erly and southeasterly direction
from north of Wallace, Idaho, TO a
point some thirty miles southwest
Of Missouri, Mont, or nearly 100
miles. At its widest point this
burn has width of about forty
miles, but its shape is very ir
regular
1t was really union of number
of separate fires, driven to fury Dy
the fierce hurricane of August 26
TO the west of the Idaho Montana
boundry in the region Of this fire
lies very inaccessible mountainous
country, into which, on account of
the absence of trails and of forage,
it was almost impossible for forces
of Ere fighters topenetrate. When
the hurricane arose it drove the
fires upon the parties which were
hewing q way towards them, forced
these parties to seek refuge where
ever it could be found, and swept
down upon the forests where the
fires we're up to that time generally
we'll in hand. The extensive, losses
are ascribed to the combination of
hurricane and lack of means to get
to the fires and put them out before
the storm came. On the Forests
which were best equipped fer con
trolling fires the results achieved
are regarded as demonstration ofI
the efficacy of the fre-fghting
methods employed, even under
highly adverse natural conditions.
Forester Graves believes that, as
usually happens in the case of big
fires, there will be found to be con
siderable areas of living timber
within the regions now mapped as
entirely burned over. OF necessity,
th figures given are tentative, for
it has been impossible to examine
all the burned areas thoroughly
As fast as possible, however, the
Forest officers are locating and esti
mating the bodies of timber killed
but capable of being numbered, if|
taken in time. There will be an
enormous quantity of fire killed
timber, both on the National
Forests and on private lands to be
disposed. of as soon as possible,
since if not marketed quickly it
will not be worth cutting at all.
The Department of Agriculture
will push vigorously to dispose Of
this fire killed timber. AS with all
other National Forest timber, it
will be sold on the stump, to mill
men who will lumber the land,
paying set price per thousand
board feet for the timber, and con
forming to whatever regulations are
stipulated in the interest of the
forest. Pending the disposal OF
this fire killed timber, future sales
of green timber from the National
Forests which were badly burned
last summer will probably be great
ly restricted, if not entirely sus.
pended.
Since the amount to be disposed
of is doubtless greater than can be
marketed in any event, and since
it is better for the country that the
timber should be utilized than that
it should go to waste in the woods,
the price at which it will be sold
will be lower than would be asked