The Duluth rip-saw. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1917-19??, 1919-02-08

be fought successfully, saving both
life and property. Responsibility for
the starting Of forest fires up to the
present time, in my judgment, is due
to the neglect on the part of nearly
everybody in the big timbered por-
ton of the state, the chief offender
being the settler himself, who, desir-
ing to rid his land of the burden of
timber in the easiest way possible,
sets fire In the dryest period of the
year, having very little or no regard
for where that fire may go. AS the
number of settlers in the wooded area
increases, a terrible menace is created
in dry season, when the wind comes
up and fans all the separate fires into
one great forest fire. There are, OF
course, other sources from which fires
arise and they all point to the neces-
sity of some uniform method of con-
troll of this situation which is, viz:
Permanent and Adequate Prevention.
The next question is, can these fires
be prevented? There is no doubt but
what they can be prevented in Min
nesota, because they are almost en-
tirely prevented by the governments
in France, Sweden, Norway, Denmark
and other foreign countries, where
the governme forests are in charge
of a forestry department that is ap-
preciated and given adequate finan-
cial support. Their system is to patrol
their forests by state employees or for
est rangers, whose duty it is to keep
people from setting dangerous fires
and to put out fire should one be
discovered; and if the fire is more
than they can cope with, they have
authority to compel assistance, which
is cheerfully paid by the state. A
small start toward such system
has been inaugurated in the State Of
Minnesota, but to make it really eff
cient, it demands the service Of three
| hundred men, two hundred of whom
need not be employed more than sew
en- months in the year, the others en-
ployed steadily the year around. The
cost, in addition to the labor of these
men, would be the building of one
hundred stations, connected by tele-
phone, covering the entire forest area.
The cost of such a system for our
State is itemized in the following
table, viz:
Two hundred men at $50 per
month, months a year $4,000
Eighty-five permanent men of
the necessary grades. -. 10000
Field equipment and sta
lions oU,VVV
Extra expense fighting ex-
ceptional fires ......... 10000
Total ...............-. $426, 900
Safeguard the People.
In 1910 I made the following
statement, viz: GAS the area which
Is cut over is being increased year
after year, the danger from forest
fires under the present slack, system
will be greater; the loss of life must
necessarily be greater; the loss of
property must necessarily be greater"
This statement is amply verified by
the recent disastrous forest fire which
we have just experienced. At this
time, I wish to emphasize that, ow-
ing to the rapidly increasing settle
ment of the timber section Of the
state, the danger from forest fires in
the future is greater than it has been
in the past and that, unless perma-
nent and adequate measures for pre-
vention are taken, we can expect a
greater holocaust than occurred at
Moose Lake and Cloquet. How long
will it be before the State of Mime
sofa will realize her negligence and
properly safeguard the interests of
the citizens of Minnesota?
The revenue which the State of
Minnesota has received from the tim
bered portion of the state up to July
81, 1918, amounts to $39,941,819.68,
a distribution of the revenue being
as follows:
Sales of land, right Of
way, etc. VIZ, ), 45l.72
Pine, cedar, spruce
and tamarack tim
Der 10,197,894.90
Royalty on iron ore 6,S67,983.12
Profit on sale of bonds 362,4S9.94
Total ........$39,941,S19.6S
With a revenue Of upwards of
100000 year, which the state
alone receives from the timbered
portion of it's territory, it seems to
ne a part Of business prudence on
the part of the state and its citizens
to properly safeguard this great area
from fire.
Remedy for Forest Fires.
In 1910, the matter of the pro-
lection from forest fires was urged
upon the state by this Association
and, as result, state forester was
appointed and the wooded portion Of
the state divided into forest ranger
districts in which forest rangers were
nut in charge. The total number OF
these districts was fifteen, fifteen
men being appointed as forest rang
ers with few patrolmen to take
care of this empire. The number is
insufficient and I hope that, as
result of this meeting, a resolution
will be presented and adopted. adj
vocating an adequate number of for
est rangers and patrolmen to prop
erly patrol the wooded portion of
this State; that these rangers be