| Show forest fire menace looms largest in timbered areas by ernest mcgaffey in all states of the united states where chero the timbered aresa aro are ot of any akyi considerable extent the danger from forest dorest tires fires and the destruction from that cause form a menace which looms large largest et in the late summer and early r year by year our forests are being terribly depleted bythe by the ravages ot of those these fires and brushy watersheds in the mountain states are being swept away in thousands of acres especially Is this true when a perl peri ol 01 01 ot of extreme dry weather has ensued when the months ot of june july and august have been unusually hot brush bruah areas and forest growth along alone mount ain sides foothills valleys and river margins become as dry as aa tinder and tho the undergrowth in ill the forests fore ats takes on the samo same under like condition and tire fire arwa fr v si camp tire fire blown into such material otten often means instant ignition once ignited the fire rushes onward witt with a speed which tar far exceeds that of a galloping horse the damage to wooded and brush I 1 arms areas and to the gme game birds and ant mals mala living in those areas is appell ing nothing can live before such a fiery blast small game such euch as quail grouse rabbits squirrels young drw towns ile and sometimes full grown deer are arat caught and either smothered emo or burn ed to a crisp every year thousands ot small game animals vre iro i ro destroyed through the agency ot at fore and brush tires it Is a sad commentary on human carelessness and recklessness that most forest and brush fires have been man caused tires fires ru in one year the rec orda ot of the state forest service la in california showed that 02 92 per cent ot of the total number ot of tiros fires in that year were caused by the carelessness and recklessness ot of man ot of these care less lesa smokers accounted tor for 1631 tires fires negligent brush burners and campers tires fires ot of tho the remaining number varl various ous missions int salona wore were charge able to their occurring including not a few incendiary tires fires started by miscreants whose criminal actions continue to be a factor in spreading those these disasters the number of 0 tires fires in california mona eione in a single season totaled burning over an area ot of acra and emsing causing a loss of oe approximately the expense in fighting these fires expended by the national the state county and avato forestry departments in suppress ing or preventing fires brought the i total loss to the largo number ot of tires fires which have hava been traced to the carelessness ot of smokers la is largely attributable to the pernicious practice ot of throwing aside half burned cigarette stam stumps Ps either along the roadside or in the timber and brush areas many of 0 these acts ot of recklessness can be laid at the doors of campers fishermen and hunt ers era although a goodly portion owe their origin to the inexcusable habit ot at throwing aside cigarette stumps bi cigar butts from moving automobiles walla traveling along highways through the mountains foothills for ests an and d timbered areas every in the united states living in a timbered state and every citizen ot of each state having forest areas and every motorist traveling through such states has a response onal ability on tola his or her shoulders which cannot be evaded in this connection each bach one Is individually a force lin in himself or herself to aid in bringing about IL a reduction r of these ng conflagrations reduced to the plainest storms of speaking it simply means that each one hould use the most rigi d care and cution when driving through or adjacent to the forests or when going into the woods wooda or through tim bared and brush areas when camping i out where tires fires are built and when ever walks are tz taken ken through the tim ber bar one of the ways la in which those these mee can be lessened la Is by omitting smoking at and around the camp tires fires smoking while passing through the woods or through the brush Is danger ous oua in the extreme and the temptation to throw a cigarette a cigar or pipe ashes 0 often iby by ru tulous tires fires caused by ouch carelessness every motorist should carr carry y in Ws hl machine a receptacle of some mad kind to place cigar butts cigarette stumps and pipe ashes in these receptacles should be invariably used even while posing a long where no possible danger can be apprehended because ule khe habit oce acquired ot of using these receptacles will automatically cause causa the motorist to avail himself of them another fruitful source ot of forest fires la Is caused by the ignorance care or recklessness of those who are ara camal out camp fires should be ba built in a cleared space of not less taza fifteen feet square or even more where the contiguous brush la dry rand and thick tho the lire fire should be built in the center ot of this space after the space has teen been cleared down to the d dirt itself A A bole should be dug due in the center where the fire should be located and it if a stove ol of any kind la Is used the stove should bo be set inside this aperture no camp tire should ever be valona unguarded As a rule ted led to remain there are oswo or more persons in a ciany as three and camp usually as aa many it the party la Is intent upon fishing it Is easy enough to leave on one I 1 man at the while the others seek a eek the water and make turns about looking loaning atter after the tire fire and camp it if the entire porty party wishes to leave the camp uns un tended the fire should be put out with heaped over the embers or where the embers were so as to provide beyond all possibility against any sparks or stray embers being carried by tile the wind into the adjoining brush only by the mie exercise of th the 0 most rigid and constont care and caution will NIU there ever be a decrease of the yearly destree destruction tion from forest fires which la is going on in the united A great many persons persona labor under the mistaken impression that it a tire fire Is started it cau can be stamped out by quick action As a rule there theio was never a greater fr Alacy forest and brush fires got get away from contrell con troll with the rapidity of lightn tug in many cases back firing la 13 the only I 1 possible means ot of breaking the onward sweep 0 of a forest or brumb fire and when the wind high it is almost im possible to get ahead ot of thi ordinal or gInal 1 fire to start bacar firing in california many portions of brush and forest areas arp in such ns dry dr and condition condl Mon by the end ot of august that once set on lire fire it would be practically practical lr impossible to stop them A number of 0 lives have ha ve been lost in fighting forest and brush fires elres and these tragedies while abile not common are always possible where motorists are driving through country in the summer time or late fall they should use the utmost pre caution in the way vay v a of 0 tossing out oui cig arestes or pipes or cigar ashes from their machines particularly it if they are driving through narrow country roads where eliere inflatable mater material ibl Is likely to he be close to the edge ot of such highways millions ot of dollars worth ot of timber and vast amounts ot of personal prop orty erty and even houses and an lii somo some are consumed every year notwithstanding the most meet efforts on the part of the national gov gor ern ment as well as state government govern men tn te to prevent this destruction it Is incumbent upon every one using the forests themselves or motoring in close to bd forest and brush areas to adopt a the most rigid and strone ous MORS measures UTeS to prevent ent these disaster ous occur ances the automo bile club of 0 southern california las iss aes ues a most urgent appeal to all motor lata fats coming into the state sta te at all times 0 ot I 1 the year to aid national and statue state authorities in the matter ot of prevent ton ion ot of forest fires by every means in their power out ot of the forty eight states in the union a large majority annually ate are subject to this peril in some states danger la Is more remote than in others A number ot of heavily timbered states ot of t the h a atlantic coast in many any states 1 in the south and various states in the north and northwest the pacific coast states and the south western states and the out western states are especially subject to these conflagrations orations and the annul loss from them toots foots up to an appalling figure this loss therefore affects the united states ns aa a whole and the problem of the prevention of forest fires becomes a national problem to old in solving it the attention of the citi zenery t f the united states Is dl reeled sad and their aid in bringing about better conditions la 19 most earnestly solicited national Ite 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