Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-08-14
FOREST RANGER.
His Duties Many and Arduous-lue,s
herman, Detective, Fire Fighter

y,
Unborn love of the wild and an ability
to do many difficult things quickly &.ld
NeIl--these are some of the traits of
orc Of the most picturesque ehafaeters
that have been evolved by modern
progress the forest ranger.
Mention his occupation and the
ninety and nine will think of him at
once as Il fighter of fires He is that, |
it is true, but he is 50 very much
mere that his manifold achievements
have been entirely overlooked. Fir-
tually he is the ruler over domain
SO large that If made into one strip,
it would surely cover all the Atlantic
coast from Maine to Florida. At first
when vast wooded tracts were taken
over by the government, they were left
practically to themselves. but as their
area grew from 1S,OO0,0O0 to 15O,000.ooJ
acres it came to be realized that they
constituted property of tremendous po-
tential value; that they should not be
left unprotected, and that they should
at least produce enough income to be
self supporting.
Already the timber country pro-
duces an income of several millions
one of which is FOR grazing rights, and
il is being placed III applepie order asl
rapidly as possible. The ranger is do
ing the work and he has truly become
4 the handy man in the mountains.
II Here, for example. are a few OF the
things that rangers must be able to
do:
Assume the role of a cowboy, lasso
cattle. bust" bronchos and the like.
Make a stagger at surveying
II BE d practical lumberman and fell
trees, stack timber and so on in the
quickest and most approved fashion.
Shoot straight and true, If he values
his life or his appetite.
Know his land laws
Pull off stunts at mining once in a
while.
Build cabins at short notice with
limited materials
Make arrests for violations of the
forestry regulations.
Issue minor permits and enforce the
grazing regulations.
Patrol large sections of the country
under the most trying conditions.
without regard to his own comfort or
safety.
Make estimates of lumber tracts and
scale trees.
Investigate claims and report on APP
plications.
Take command of such temporary
forest guards and laborers as may be
enlisted for special emergencies.
Care for himself and his horse under
the most trying conditions.
Make a months provision into a
compact pack that he can take with
him when he goes for long jaunt into
the wilds
And, by no means least if last, be
able to cook and bake bread that
won't give him Indigestion.
Of course, this is only a very gen.
eral outline of the main things that
are expected of ranger. When 1t
comes to the little ones, no ordinary
jack of all trades is to be compared
with him. And above everything else
he must be brave, tactful and healthy.
He must be able to handle all sorts of
people and "get away" with many a
\ desperate situation.
Considering all that is required of
these rangers. it is little wonder that
more of them are needed, and wanted
For instance, the average area covered
by each man in Washington and Ore
gon exceeds $4,000 acres, and in many
: Instances contain timber to a value of
SO, 0OO. 600
1t can be understood, therefore.
why the American forestry association
has been making recently, an effort to
secure more of these guardians and
/ improvers of the $500, 600 worth of
lumber land. Purely on a preventive
basis, it is figured that the more trails
are cut through the woodland. the
more telephone wires are put up. the
closer the patrols, the less likely are
CONGREGATIONS that will sweep away
millions of dollars worth of property.
Therefore. the ranger will probably
l see himself increase greatly in mum
: bers in the next few years. And, as in
the past, he is likely to be recruited
from all walks of life, for the desire to
get out into the open, where the soul
can expand and the body can crafty
its love for exercise and excitement.
Cowboys, college graduates, miners
and countrymen in general, westerners
who have been used to the wilds from
childhood, form the bulk of the re-
cruits to this new service. Since the
''punchers" have become so prosiac q
class. a good many of these with a
yearning for real adventure have tax
en- to ranging. particularly in those
districts where the government let's out
| the grazing rights.
In some places, indeed, the ranger is
as much of a cowpuncher as fores-
! ter. The government allots so many
cattle to so much land, and the ground
lis carefully apportioned. Then the
ranger must see that all regulations
: lare observed, that the live stock
doesn't get mixed and that the various
> HERDS keep to the position allotted to
!. them
4 The camps of the men must adJolh
- streams, so that they Will nave no
/. trouble in getting water when the
5 emergency arises. The highest points
: are used as lookouts, and the men ride
from one lookout to another in their
I o,yn districts But 1t must be re-
: membered that man cannot go in
: another mans territory without orders
from his chief. If he notices a fire in
another district he phones TO the
| n