The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-07-21

IA
{ ,eee3t,A wash. July n. - Ths
ssisss canpsf = n ~ woods
nla.
j ~ : result ~ PsdAc northvsaf
battlfak Day aad night - H.
anaas Il scores Of 1oFsst 1fss nek
- - last heavy stands Of timber
= AnseieA. Los Of life. valuable
nbes. logging eapps and ssv-
Inns and even Villages arc . daily
occarrence.
ne damage runs into Thousands
= dollars every hour. No perma-
Int relisf II II sight. for this g
~ drysst summsr recorded TOR 10
3uArr.
\ The careless camper is worye
han his summer resort friend, the
{ucl that rocks the boat He devas-
$stes whole areas
4 A carsl4ssly tosss1 match Aftsr
lighting . pipe, . campfire lett
burning, are enough. The heavy
garnet Of inflammable needles I'M
derfoot carries the fame into the
brush. In NO time, forest is q
Alasing inferno, imperiling life and
property.
4 From northern British Columbia
10 the California Oregon line. q
heavy pail Of smoke continually
obscures the sky. Every hour. re-
ports come in telling Of new forest
Ares, spreading destruction In .
manner second only to the holo-
caust Of 1910.
Rains Only Relief.
Every Sunday, churches IN the
dried, endangered areas pray for
Pain. Weather forecasters vainly
beek signs Of downpour to break
The most disastrous dry spell Of
the decade. Untn rain comes, nc
permanent relief can be expected.
The menace, literally, Is continu-
bus. A IRE breaks out at one point
Only after q long hard fight, with
The men failing exhausted. 1t Is ex'
Ainguished. And then, before they
can rest, the blackened. blistered
wornout fire fighters are rushed Il
battle still another blaze that II
gaining headway. Fifty to 100 IRE.
kre burning within each state OF
province at the same time. Each
one must be fought and conquered
or all other work has been in vain
Not even the strain Of warfare
EQUALS the tremendous physica
strain Of FIRE fighting. Wet sack
must he welded to beat back flame,
hs they creep forward through thu
brush. Wide trenches must be hur
riedly dug to control the spread
Back-firing must be resorted to t
check further advance of. the men
ace. And all Of this work must b.
rarried on at top. speed for hour
pit a time, often without food o
drink, while the heat OF the flame
3s nearly overpowcring.
There is continual danger Of be
foming surrounded by flames-il
fact, casualties Of this kind are re
ported almost daily.
Fighters Show HerOism.
Heroism is everywhere apparent
Rescue of Ranger Hoover, nea
Tillamook. Ore.v ID q sample.
Exhausted after q hard fight wit
forest fires. Hoover returned to hi
ISOLATED station to rest, He awok
10 find his wife, baby and himsel
completely surrounded by flames
hopelessly trapped.
Vyls r1irhk - athnr
Rescuers mobilized. Hauling thre
tank cars filled with water, wit
bumps manned by volunteers, a
engine pushed into the ragin
Flames. Men wrapped in wet blal
kets worked the pumps and spraye
p pathway through the flame
eventually reaching the Hoovers.
Tho fight was worse on the wa
hack. Trestles all along the raj
= way were ablaxe. The jar OF Il
rescue train caused blazing trees
Tall across the tracks. These had
"a be removed by the burned, blister,
rescuers, whose train was consta n
" endangered by blazing trees a
most falling on II.
Other sections make reports il;
rs thrilling; Of races for life in
the fire-lit night: blazes .lickil
paint of automobiles, destroyil
tires and scorching occupants
the cars flee along forest roa,
blocked with fallen trees.
Army aviators in years past ha'
patrolled the forest from the skie
giving wonderfully effective aid
quick reporting and locating
1res. This year. when the fire me
acc Is greatest, fire fighters mu
grope blindly. Shortage OF fun,
eliminated the aerial assistance
the last appropriation passed
congress.