New Britain herald., 1919-08-26
'BIG FOREST FIRES
 OCCURRING IN PAST
MiramiChi Blaze Killed 16O
 People and 1000 Cattle
Washington, D. C., August 26.-

Washington, D. C., August 26.-
 In connection with the forest fires now raging in the northwestern states, Henry $. Graves recalls some notable confiagrations of the past.
 A bulletin from he National Geo. graphic society contains MT. Graves sketch, which follows:
 -"Thera have been a number of great fires which have attained historic inn portance. One of these occurred in New Brunswick, in the fall of 1925, on the Miramichi river during a season of great drought.
 "Withn nine hours that fire had burned over a strip of forest so miles l6nS and D miles wide, destroying every living thing in it's path. One hundred and sixty persons perished and nearly 1000 head of stock. Five hundred and ninety buildings were ! burned and a number of towns were destroyed, including Newcastle, Chat ham and DouglastoWn. It is related that even great quantities of fish in the river were killed by 'the heat of the fire.
 Another historic fire was that which occurred in Wisconsin in the fall of 1871. A single fire swept over an area of more than 2,0O0 square miles. It destroyed the town of Pesh- tigo, and between 1,200 and 1,500 per- sons perished. That same year the damage by fire elsewhere in the coun try was enormous.
 still, another fire, which is rcmem- bered by many persons, was that which destroyed the town of HinclIley, Minnesota, in the fall of 1894. As in other cases of great fires, there was a season Of exceptional drought. Many fires were constantly starting during that fall but there was no effective ef fort to extinguish them. Pores fires were so common that there was no special fear of possible danger until it was too late to meet the situation.
 "As often happens when there are many fires burning under these condi- tions and a high wind springs up. the different small fires were suddenly merged. and a great crown fire result ed which swept over the town of Hincklev and si,z other toWrs, entire- ly destroying them, killing 500 per sons, and making over 2,0O0 more en- tireIy destitute. The estimated loss in property by this fire was more than $25,000,O00.
 "The most recent great disaster from forest fires occurred in the Pa cific northwest in 1910. That year was the driest ever known in the west, particularly in Northern Idaho and Northwestern Montana.
 5 'On July 23 a severe electric storm, practically without rain, passed over the Northern Rocky Mountains, set ting a large number of fires. The < Occur d'Alene Mountains in particular suffered from these fires. In three days the, forest rangers put out nine fires set by lightning in the Occur , d,Alene, national forest. From one scaslsc or another, many. other fires eAset. Heroic measures were talk en to extinguish them.
 ss5sfAt. one time 1900 men, besides Two companies of soldiers. were fight saaag fires in the Occur d'Alene forest ssfoaae, and large crews were fighting fires in other. parts of the northwest eTn forests. .. The men fought stub hornly Working day and night build ifiasstrencheS around. the fires and aSaduaHy confning them to a small area.
 sS5ssf.A All fires seemed to be under con frol when on August 70 a terrific Hurricane sprang up, sweeping all the separate fires together and making a gigantic wall of flame many miles < long. Many of the fire fighters were directly in the path of the fire. SeV enty-nine fire fighters were killed and if it had not been for the skill and the nerve of the forest rangers in charge of the crews 9 very much larger number would have perishcd. As it was, about half of the number nilled lost their lives because of their failure to obey the orders of the for est rangers in charge of the parties"