Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1913-11-14

they being opened up rapidly as funds
will permit of trails being built, yet there is so
much area, many other duties required
Of the forest officers and the funds mentioned
are so limited and Inadequate, that progress of
such work, while keeping pace with the avail
able resources, is necessarily slow.
Before charging upon conditions under which
large fires begin, it might be well to mention
briefly few of the forest fire terms with which
the layman frequently meets and may not I'M
derstand
Forest fires are classified generally as crown
or top fres-those where the fire travels through
the tops of the trees with surprising rapidity and
working disastrous results; and ground or sur
face fires, where the fire travels along the
ground, consuming soil humus, brush
and litter seedlings and often small trees, and,
consequently, doing little damage to ma
ture timber Luckily. in most cases forest fires
are ground fires and it is these that are the
most quickly controlled Yet a single top fire
can cause vastly more damage than a great
number of ground fires. However, 1t is general
ly under unusual conditions that top
fires occur-such high winds, very bushy or
steep country and severe drought, when such
conditions can in an incredibly short time change
a creeping ground fire into sweeping crown
fire. leaving path of ruin and often death in its
wake In brief, drought and wind are the two
dominant conditions favorable to severe fires.
The wind is always the most dreaded factor
during the fire season, its freakishness and I'M
certainty upsettiDg the best of plans. So fierce
the wind at the time of the destructive fires
of 1910 that whole hillsides of timber were up
rooted and men forced out of their saddles.
The fire leaped across rivers half mile wide
at single bound, travelling nearly mile min
ute at times and devouring everything in its
path Often wide canyons spanned as by
a great jump, the fire continuing the oppo-
site side and leaving the canyon timber green
and unframed. Numerous instances of the alb
solute freakishnass of the fire could be cited.
and all tend to show its very uncertainty
In fighting fire there is constructed around
the burning area what is called fire line or
trench This consists of clearing away all debris
and brush, generally for three or four feet,
though wider when conditions allow or warrant
feet or wfoer as necessary. An ordinary ground
fire. unnamed ny strong wind, will die out on
reaching the strip OF mineral SOIL often effect
ually as If the line a stream of water.
When the fire Is moving slowly and men can
stand the heet and smoke 1T is always desirable
to build the trench close to the fire so as to
prevent its gaining momentum as 1t progresses
but where the fire is travelling quite rapidly,
often the fire line has to be placed some dis
lance away from the fire. and where ADEQUATE
patrol or supervision is assured the burned ma
terial on the inside of the line is fired in order
to meet the advancing fire and DESTROY the in
hammable material in its path. Backiring as
this is called. is generally used only in an
emergency and by experienced hands Often, OF
course, where the fire is severe strips of timber