Salt Lake Tribune | 1918-08-18 | Page 2 | Government Helps Fight Forest Fires

GOVERNMENT HELPS FIGHT FOREST FIRES "WASHINGTON, Aug. 17. A loan of $1,000,000 teas been made to the forest service from the president's special defense de-fense fund to combat fires in the national na-tional forests of the northwestern and Pacific coast states. Forestry officials regard the present fire reason in the northwest as being in some ways the most serious with vvlr.eh the government ever has had to deal. Early drought, high winds, electrical storms, labor shortage and depletion of the regular protective force because of the war, have combined to intensify the fire danger. Timber needed for airplanes, gun stocks and other war equipment is in danger. Resort to the president's special defense de-fense fund was necessary because the 1918-1919 appropriation bill for the department de-partment of agriculture has not yet been passed by congress.