Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1911-11-01
THE FIRE LOOKOUT.
LIFE Is NOT THE EASY ONE
MANY THINK.

MANY THINK.
ExPERIENcn m ONE THE FOREST FIRE
LOOKOUT STATIONS THIS
YEAR.
[sAm 3. Conner. in Lewiston yosy~al.l
Fourth Of July and cyclone cost the
State Of Maine 10000 acres OF forest this
year, said Fire Lookout Harry d.
Stewart, Of Bangor, one day recently, %
be sat in the ofics Of Forest Commissioner
Mace It the Statehouse.
Mr.. Stewart has been in charge OF the
Spencer Mountain lookout station Of the
Maine forest fire service during the past
year, and it was he who reported the great
IRE which raced over Frenchtown town
ship, and over Lobster mountain early in
the month Of July.
This was the worst Of the many fires
which ragged in the Maine woods this sum-
mer, and Mr.. Stewart's story OF how he
worked TO got help to the flre would make
the foundation Of splendid descriptive
chapter in novel in which forest frs
was to Be described. In . novel, man
doing the work which Mr.. Stewart did
would BE- described % hero, but up in
the big woods Of Maine Il was simply do
ing his duty. He didn't regard It - any
thing heroic, nor did the woodsmen who
knew OF what be did then, they are
men Of the goods and regard all things -
commonplace.
~ drst detected the small smoke through
my glass, ".said Mr.. Stewart, telling Of the
work. II watched il until certain that It
was not the camp IRE Of nshermen or ex-
plorers. It want great while before
that fact was established. Then tried to
get word out. tried to call up the Roach
River csmps, bat the telephone had been
burned out in the same thunder shower
which started the fire with its lightning.
Roach River camps were six miles away,
and that was the nearest point from
which phone message could Be sent to
Greenvilie, from which place help must
be sent to fight the fire. II was up to me
to get the fighters on the ground. There
was but one thing to do. I had got to
hoof II six miles to Roach River.
Remember how hot it was that dayf
1t was the hottest day ever saw. Il strip
ped to my trousers and undershirt and
started. 1t was hard old tramp. I got
there, and We tried TO raise Greenville,
but that was where the holiday came in.
1t was the Fourth OF July and business
was suspended. This included the tele-
phone Office. We couldn't get : word to
them. At last it became SO apparent that
they were either closed up or the line was
out Of commission that Lily Bay was
was called upon. Over there they got .
special boat out and sent 1t down to Green
willie with the news OF the fire. The Shaws
at once gathered crew Of sixty men and
rushed them back on the same boat to
Lily Bay and across to the fire.
THE CYCLONE COMES ALONG.
"These men went to work on the fire.
By the next morning it was down where
they felt it was safe to cut the force OF
fighters down. They cut it in half.
Thirty OF the men were taken back to Lily
Bay, whore fire had started. That was
on the morning of the fifth, and it was
figured that the thirty men left be-
hind were ample to cope with the ne.
s'In the afternoon that cyclone which
swept over Maine came along. 1t lasted
only few minutes, but when it was over
that fire wis beyond the efforts OF the men
ON duty, and before tho thirty could BE-
gotten back from Lily Bay, it was beyond
all human control. The holiday and the
cyclone combined caused e2OO,000 dam
age for Maine.
ssThese were hard times- tell you that
was worried that day, the Fourth, when
got to Roach River. knew the serious
ness OF that Ere, and when found the
time which had got to be lost in getting
the newtto Greenville my fears were not
in the lest allayed. Had the telephone
been available, ~ it should have been, thu
fighters could have started from Greenyille
ct about the time whom the special boat
sent down to notify Greenvilie Of the dan
ger left Lily Bay.
A soon - got to Roach River that day
and finished telsphoning, I climbed to the
top OF their windmill tower and took .
look ct the country around to see il there
were any other hres. Icould zee the smoke
Of the Frsnchtown blaze, and know 1t vas
getting worse. A. soon - the word came
back from 0rsenville that crew was b.
ing started. l began the tramp to the
station, getting there about dusk. 1t wss
. wild-loolking sight, though not 20 weird
and lurid % one might think, for when
one OF those big forest fires got going the
smoke obscurss al flames.
III didn't sleep much that night. Most
Of the time was ct the lookout window
Watching for other Area"
THE yIaH UNDER THE RAVES.
fhst was bat one Of the many interest,"
ing experience which Mr.. Stewart had
during the summer. Some idea Of the