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Manual of Instructions

FOR

County Forest Wardens and District Forest
Wardens

AND

Information ia Regard to the Prevention and
Suppression of Forest Fires.

J. E. BARTON
STATE FORESTER
ee

THE STATE JOURNAL COMPANY
Printers to the Commonwealth
Frankfort, Kentucky.

1915

j» es «5 oar ©
UCT 30 1915

INTRODUCTION.

In the handling of any situation successfully it is
obvious that the first thing which is necessary is a sys-
tematic investigation of the subject as it presents itself
at the immediate moment when the work is undertaken.
In the fight against tuberculosis, for instance, the first
step is to have a definite knowledge of how much tuber-
culosis there is in the city or community involved; to
have a definite knowledge, in so far as obtainable, of its
causes and effects and conditions which promote or re-
tard the disease. The same proposition is true with re-
gard to the regeneration of a business in the hands of
an efficiency expert. His first care is to gather and obtain
facts with regard te the business as it then exists, and
to observe all the details of the organization and opera-
tion; then to systematize and correlate his results with
a view of determining the cause and effect of the con-
ditions as he finds them so that he may change, modify
and remedy where it appears necessary. Exactly the
same thing obtains as regards forest fires. If a system
of protection from forest fires in the State is to be built
up successfully, the first thing desired is to know the
number of the fires within the State and a large amount
of additional features which naturally present themselves
in investigations of this character, such as extent of acre-
age burned over, the attitude of the community with re-
gard to forest fires, the best means of suppressing them,
etc. Protection of the forests forms one of the essential
factors on which the practice of scientific forestry in
any State rests, and no forest policy within Kentucky is
conceivable without adequate protection against forest
fires, since it would be the height of folly to reforest one
thousand acres of land to walnut and at the end of five
years have the area burned over so that the result of

4

five years’ growth is absolutely destroyed. When the
matter of forest protection within Kentucky was dis-
cussed at first, it was patent that such a thing as danger
and loss from forest fires was entirely unheard of by a
great number of individuals. Indeed, it was said when
the State Forester first took up the work and spoke of
the necessities in this direction, that this was a phase
of the work with which he would have no trouble, since
Kentucky had very few forest fires. The records and
data so far obtained do not show this, and they are val-
uable in calling to the attention of the public, and more
especially those directly interested in the forest fire sit-
uation within the State, the necessity for adequate pro-
tection from forest fires, since such protection cannot be
looked upon in any other light than as property insur-
ance.
PROPERTY INSURANCE.

There are a large number of interests in the State
which are vitally concerned with regard to this matter
of forest protection. The lumber interests, which depend
upon the forests for their supply of material, are most
keenly interested, since the forests constitute their stock
-in trade. Other interests which are to a large extent
concerned are the railroads, which draw from the for-
ests for large supplies of ties, poles, posts, bridge tim-
bers, and other material; the telephone and telegraph
companies, which depend upon the forests for their sup-
ply of poles; the tanning industry, which depends upon
the forests for its supply of tan bark; and the mining
industry, which uses between three and four feet of tim-
ber board measure for every ton of coal mined. There
are also many other industries more or less dependent
upon the resources of the forests of the State.

SYSTEMATIC EFFORT NEEDED.

The first systematic attempt to deal with the forest
fire situation in Kentucky was made in the fall of 1913

5

when about one dozen county forest wardens were ap-
pointed in certain counties in the eastern part of the
State. This county forest warden system has increased
during the year of 1914 very materially, and with the
growth of the system and the increase in the number of
men in the field the necessity has been felt of putting
in definite printed form all the instructions which have
been issued heretofore covering the method of proce-
dure, reports and other details of the work in hand in
order that this information may be readily available for
the men now in the service and for any new men who
-may be added to the list of those already appointed. It
is also expected that this book will be of general interest
and for that reason matter has been included in its pages
which is not, strictly speaking, intended for the instruc-
tion of the men in the field.

ow

45

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ed

THE WEEKS LAW.

By act of Congress, approved March 1, 1911 (36 Stat.,
961), a bill was passed which had as its primary purpose
this object: “To secure the maintenance of a perpetual
growth of forest on the watersheds of navigable streams
where such growth will materially aid in preventing
floods, in improving low waters, in preventing erosion of
steep slopes and the silting up of the river channels, and
thereby improve the conditions for navigation.”

“While the improvement of the flow of navigable
streams is the fundamental purpose, other benefits inci-
dental in character but nevertheless important will be
kept in view. Among these are: (1) Protection against
disastrous erosion of the soil on mountain slopes and
against the destruction of the soil and forest cover by
forest fires; (2) Preservation of water powers, since, like
navigation, they depend for their value upon the regu-
larity of stream flow; (3) Preservation of the purity and
continuity of flow of the mountain streams, with a view
to their use for the water supply of towns and cities;
(4) Continuance of a timber supply to meet the needs of
the industries of the country; (5) Preservation of the
beauty and attractiveness of the uplands for the recrea-
tion and pleasure of the people.”

Work under this law has divided itself into two
heads: (1) The acquisition of lands upon the watersheds
of navigable streams in various states for the purposes
detailed in the law; (2) The co-operation of the federal
government through the Forest Service of the U. 8S. De-
partment of Agriculture with the various states in the
protection of the forests at the headwaters of the navi-
gable streams from destructive agencies, the chief of
which, of course, is fire. An appropriation of money was
made available for such protection. This co-operation in-

8

volved the execution of an agreement between the Secre-
tary of Agriculture of the United States and the proper
State authorities whereby the secretary agreed to spend
a certain sum of money for forest fire protection on cer-
tain fixed watersheds provided the State entering into
the agreement would agree to spend a like sum; in other
words, the federal government and the State would share
equally in the expense of the protection. Already some
twenty states have entered into such agreement and
Kentucky was one of the latest states to do so. Under
the terms of the agreement Kentucky was _ allotted
$4,000 oy the United States Secretary of Agriculture for
the purpise of forest protection and a like sum was al-
lotted for the year 1914. With this federal co-operation
in mind a plan of protection against forest fires was pre-
pared for the State and put into effect.

STATE FIRE PLAN.

The fire plan adopted by the State Board of Forestry
was as follows:

(1) The State Board of Forestry, through its chair-
man, shall enter into the usual co-operative agreement
with the Forest Service of the United States Department
of Agriculture whereby it can secure co-operation with
the federal government in the matter of fire protection,
and take advantage of the $4,000 allotted by the United
States Secretary of Agriculture for that purpose.

(2) In pursuance of this agreement the State shall
be divided into ten fire patrol districts for administrative
purposes in accordance with a map which is made a part
of the fire plan.

(3) Two patrolmen at large shall be appointed for
the present to serve throughout the year, whose duty it
shall be to organize the fire patrol systems in the various
counties and see that the system is carried out in full.

9

The salary of such patrolmen shall be $900 per annum,
payable monthly, and they shall be allowed traveling and
field expenses not to exceed $600 per year.

(4) During the danger season for forest fires, ap-
proximately three months, patrolmen will be appointed
in such counties as the danger warrants.

(5) The close co-operation of the Fish and Game
Commission will be secured wherever practicable.

(6) The active co-operation of timber land owners,
railroads, etc., will be encouraged and secured wherever
practicable.

STATE FIRE PROTECTIVE SYSTEM.

The fire protective system of the State may be divided
into the work which is accomplished by the various offi-
cers in charge of this work.

THE STATE FORESTER.

The State Forester under the direction of the State
Board of Forestry and as a Collaborator in the United
States Department of Agriculture has general charge of
the fire protective work in the State. The district fire
wardens are appointed to take charge of a district in the
State which is composed of a number of counties, usually
not over ten in number in any district. Of course, the
smaller the district the more intensive the inspection
and supervision of the district fire wardens can be. At
the present time there are four district fire wardens in
the State, three in the eastern part of the State and one
in the western part of the State. It may be expected that
the number of these wardens will be increased as the
scope of the work is enlarged and as the funds available
for the work are increased.

COUNTY FOREST WARDENS.
The county forest wardens are officers of the State
empowered “to enforce all the forest laws enacted, to
protect the State forest reserves, to see that all ruleg

10

and regulations are enforced, to report violations of the
law to the State Forester, to assist in convicting offend-
ers and to make an annual report to him of the forest
conditions in their immediate neighborhood.’ Whenever
it becomes necessary because of sickness or other ur-
gent reason for a county patrolman to be off duty, he
shall employ and pay a qualified substitute to serve in
his place. In the event of absence aggregating more than
two (2) days a month, the name, address, and period of
service of each substitute employed, and the reasons for
such employment should be reported at the end of each
month. The names of both regular and substitute man
should then be placed on the payroll for the respective
time each has served that they may be paid accordingly.
In connection with the patrol of the county, the forest
wardens should make every effort to get in touch with the
rural mail carriers and secure their co-operation in con-
nection with the discovery and notification of a forest
fire. An order has been issued by the postoffice department
covering this character of service on the part of rural mail
carriers, which is given in full. If rural mail carriers re-
fuse to perform this sort of service, the forest wardens
should call it to the attention of the State Forester.

ORDER NO. 6315.

The following instructions are promulgated for the
guidance of the postal employees concerned:

“In accordance with the request of the Secretary of
Agriculture, this department has arranged a plan of co-
operation with State and National forest officers whereby
rural and star route carriers shall report forest fires dis-
covered by them along their routes to persons designated
by the State and National authorities to receive such in-
telligence.

“Co-operation with the State officers will be given in
the following states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont,
Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New

11

Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Tennessee,
Kentucky, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Idaho, Wash-
ington, Oregon, and California.

“The national forest officers will be co-operated with in
the following states: Florida, Arkansas, South Dakota,
Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Montana,
Idahe, Washington, Oregon, and California.

“The State and National authorities will inform post-
masters as to whom the discovery of fires should be re-
ported, and each rural carrier should be directed to co-
operate to the fullest extent with such authorities in the
manner agreed upon, namely: that the carrier shall report
a fire to the nearest State fire warden or officer on his
route, or if no such warden or National officer lives on
the route, to arrange through some responsible citizen to
have him notified, by telephone, if possible. Star route
carriers are included in the plan of co-operation and
should be requested to report the discovery of fires in the
same manner as will be done by the rural carriers.

“Postmasters in or near national forests are also di-
rected to report fires to the nearest forest officer.”

DUTIES OF COUNTY FOREST WARDENS.

The duties of the forest wardens divide themselves
roughly into two classes: (1) the prevention of forest
fires, and (2) the suppression of forest fires which may
occur. Undoubtedly, the most import feature of the work
is to prevent the occurrence of forest fires if this is at all
possible, consequently the county forest fire warden will
find that his duties involve a great many phases of activity.
In the first place he should be as thoroughly familiar
with the county to which he is assigned as it is possible
to be. To accomplish this he should take every occasion
to make trips over the county and extend his acquaintance
among the people of the county so that he may secure their
co-operation and assistance in the work which he has

12

undertaken. He should familiarize himself thoroughly
with all the routes of travel through ,ut the county and the
easiest method of reaching each section from his head-
quarters, wherever it may be. He should familiarize him-
seif, not only with the main routes of travel, but with
the trails and short cuts through the mountains from one
vicinity to another. In addition he should provide himself
with some means of transportation. This would usually
be a horse, since in the mountain section of the country
the only sure means of travel during most of the season
is by horseback. It is impossible for a county warden to
cover the amount of ground with the frequency which he
should without a horse at his disposal. He should ac-
quaint himself with all the means of communication in
his county—telephones, telegraph and rural carriers—in
order that he may be able to take advantage of the
quickest means of communication for obtaining information
with regard to forest fires which may occur and directing
operations when forest fires are under way. When one
county warden is assigned to each county it is in a large
measure impracticable that he should cover the county
with the frequency which is desirable. To offset this he
will find it possible in a great many instances to estab-
lish such relations with individuals in various sections
of the county that they will undertake for him to notify
him of forest fires which may occur and to engage in the
suppression of such fires when they do occur until the
arrival of the forest warden or to take charge of a fire en-
tirely providing the warden is so occupied in other quarters
that he is not able personally to get to the fire. Cordial
relations with a considerable number of individuals in the
county who will undertake this character of work will
add very decidedly to the efficiency of the county forest
warden, and in some instances will relieve him of consid-
erable burden of work in some directions by affording him
opportunity to undertake additional work in others. Since

13

the main object of the fire protective work is fire preven-
tion, every opportunity should be taken by the county
forest wardens to bring to the attention of the people the
character of work in which he is engaged, the danger of
forest fires to property and life, the value of the resources
destroyed and the effect upon the community which the
destruction of the forests as a resource will cause. In this
connection a campaign of publicity will suggest itself, and
the method of obtaining the desirable publicity will vary
with the individual, but there are certain channels through
which all publicity may be most easily disseminated.
Under these come the newspapers, the schools, county
meetings of various sorts and the posting of notices with
regard to forest fires, which are furnished by the office of
the State Forester for that purpose. These notices may be
repeatedly torn down or destroyed by careless individuals,
but they should be replaced by the county forest warden
whenever this is done.

When a forest fire actually does occur in spite of all
efforts to prevent such fire, the forest officer should im-
mediately repair to the scene of the fire and undertake
its suppression. The smaller the fire is and the earlier
the work of extinguishing it is undertaken the less the
amount of work involved and the easier the proposition of
handling it. In this connection it will suggest itself to
the county warden that, if he can get a large number of
individuals interested in extinguishing small fires as they
may occur, he will have accomplished a great deal in the
direction of forest protection for his county. When fires
of large size do occur, as is frequently the case, it is the
duty of the county warden to undertake their suppression.
In a large fire he will find as a usual thing that he is not
able to accomplish very much alone. In this connection
additional help must be obtained and so far as practicable
should be obtained from the citizens of the neighborhood
who have an interest in suppressing the fire. Indiscriminate

14

hiring of labor for suppressing of forest fires is apt to
encourage setting of additional fires rather than being a
means to the suppression of the forest fire nuisance, there-
fore, in the future the State Forester will not authorize
any hiring of this class of labor. Fires which occur on
the land of individuals because of clearing land, burning
tobacco beds or from whatever cause should be extinguished
by such individuals without pay. Fires set by logging
railroads or sawmills should be extinguished by the in-
dividual or company responsible without pay from the
State.

DANGER SEASON FROM FOREST FIRES.

There are two seasons of the year when forest fires
may ordinarily be expected. One of them occurs in the
fall, approximately from the first of October to the middle
of December. The other season occurs in the spring, con-
tinuing approximately from March 1 to May 1. Both these
seasons may be materially lengthened or shortened by
climatic conditions. There is nothing definite about these
seasons and the county forest wardens will be retained
only so long as the actual danger from forest fires exists.

FATROL ROUTES.

It will suggest itself to the county forest wardens in
connection with the patroling of the district that definite
patrols should be established, and it is necessary that this
be done before a definite letter of appointment can be
issued. This serves two purposes: the systematizing of
the work of the forest wardens, and it gives the State
Forester and the district forest wardens an opportunity tc
have some check on the work the county wardens are
doing. In fixing the patrol routes of the county there are
a great many things which must be taken into considera-
tion and the greatest of these is the fire hazard; that is,
the relative danger from forest fires which may reasonably

15

be expected in the various sections of the county and the
frequency with which fires occur in different parts of the
county. It may be that there are certain portions of the
county in which there is a large open agricultural region.
If this is true, it natrually follows that this section of the
county is not one in which there is any great danger from
forest fires, if there is any, and consequently in laying oui
the patrol, these routes will not be planned to cover this
agricultural territory except in unusual cases where it is
necessary to cover this territory to reach other regions,
Also, in connection with the patrol routes after they are
once laid out the greatest attention should be given to
those routes which go through sections of the county
where forest fires have been found within the experience
of the wardens most frequently to occur. Other routes may
be travelled, but, if the experience of the warden shows
that on any patrol route fires infrequently occur, this route
should be patrolled only at infrequent intervals—just often
enough to keep in touch with the people who live along the
route and the conditions which there exist. It should be
the aim of the county warden in connection with these
patrol routes to study his county and so to inform him-
self that he may have definite knowledge of where in the
county the fire hazard is the greatest.

FOREST FIRES.

All forest fires may be classed under three heads:
(1) surface; (2) ground fires; (3) crown fires. Surface
fires burn along the surface of the ground; ground fires
burn into the ground itself, consuming decayed logs, the
humus and duff and even the ground. The crown fires
designate a fire which reaches up into the top of trees
and consumes everything in the nature of forest growth in
its path. This latter class of fires falls usually, in the be-
ginning, into one of the other classes. The causes of
fires are decidedly varied, as has been indicated by the

16

season just passed. In connection with each forest fire
it should be the duty of each county warden to ascertain,
if possible, the cause of the fire and indicate this in con-
nection with his report, since it is only by study of causes
of forest fires that any method of contro? in the future may
be devised. Sometimes it is possible to indicate: the
probable cause of fire without being able to state definitely
the actual cause. In cases-of this character where the
cause of fire is reasonably certain without being absolutely
determined, it is better to set down the probable cause of
the fire: (e. g. “probably hunters’) than to give the cause
of the fire “unknown,” since it is only by a careful study
cf the causes that adequate methods of suppression of
forest fires can be devised. Among the causes of forest
fires in accordance with the classification in use at the
present time by the office of the State Forester are: (1)
Lightning; (2) railroads; (3) sawmills; (4) brush burning;
(5) campers; (6) incendiary; (7) miscellaneous; (8) un-
known. (1) Fires which start from lightning are of fre-
quent occurrence and are always definitely to be deter-
mined; (2) fires which start from railroads may start
from one of several agencies—locomotives, passenger or
freight engines, either from the sparks or from the ashes
dumped from the ash box. The fires attributed to rail-
‘roads may start from logging engines and also steam
shovels or plows. (3) Sawmills. Under this cause may
be grouped fires which start from any character of saw .
mill either permanent, temporary or portable, or from
logging donkeys in the woods. (4) Burning brush. Under
this head may be classed fires which escape from clearing
land or clearing right of ways or from fire set to aid in
clearing any other character of operation. (5) Under the
heading of campers may be classed not only campers but
hunters of various kind, such as coon hunters, bee hunters,
berry pickers, smokers, children, etc., who make fires in
the woods and leave them to burn unattended. Under the

17

heading of incendiary will fall all causes for fire where it
is expected that individuals set fire to the woods ma-
liciously and left them to burn. (8) Miscellaneous. Under
this heading may be grouped any cause which ordinarily
might not be expected to cause a forest fire, such as a
spark from the chimney of a house, a burning building
which sets fire to adjacent woods and the sun reflecting
on a glass bottle so that the glass bottle acts as a burning
glass and other causes of this character. It will be ob-
served that most of the fires are preventable with the
exception of those caused by lightning and incendiaries,
and the efforts of the county wardens should be to reduce
the causes of preventable forest fires down to the minimum.

In connection with the actual fighting of forest fires,
all wardefis should bear this in mind, that there is no such
thing as its being impossible to control and suppress a
forest fire; common opinion to the contrary notwithstand-
ing. A forest fire in its.early stageis easily extinguished
while in its later stage it may take some time—often sev-
eral days—to control the fire, but eventually this can be
done, and the work of this office in the matter of protec-
tion against forest fires is based on this fact. Even the
worst forest fires which are impossible of control during
an extremely high wind become capable of suppression
when the wind abates.

The usual method of fighting forest fires and, un-
doubtedly, the best method of attack is what is called by
the rangers on the Western National Forests “running a
fire to a point or a peak.” This is accomplished by going
a certain ways ahead of the fire to some point of natural
vantage (such as an open place in the woods, trail, road
or bridge) and heading the fire off at this point by reduc-
ing the face of the fire until eventually the advancing
front is reduced to a point. The actual method of reduc-
ing the front of a fire to a point may be varied by the
circumstances and the existing natural features of the

18

country. It may be necessary to trench ahead of the
fire, to take a right of way clear of leaves, or to back
fire along a road, trail or ridge. It is possible only to sug-
gest these features of fighting forest fires since they vary
considerably in each section or region where a fire occurs,
but the ingenuity of the individual will suggest taking ad-
vantage of natural barriers and fighting from them as
a basis.

There are some features of forest fires which need
emphasis, and they are as follows: A surface fire or any
forest fire burns rapidly up hill but burns slowly down hill.
A forest fire also burns slowly against the wind. Most of
the fires with which you will have to deal are ground
fires—that is, they burn in the leaves on the ground. Since
this is so, a very small break will stop a fire long enough
to give a man a chance to fight it. A trail, a small stream,
a road or any such feature will form a point of vantage
to work from. Another thing, fire burns a great deal less
fiercely at night and in the early hours of the morning,
and a great deal of advantage may be gained by trenching
or other operations against a fire during these hours, pro-
vided it is at all feasible. Also in dealing with forest fires,
the early morning and late evening hours are usually more
favorable to a man who is working than the hours in the
middle of the day, since he is not handicapped by the heat.

FIRE FIGHTING TOOLS.

Just what are the best tools for fighting forest fires
in Kentucky so that the character of tools used may be
standarized has not been definitely determined. Various
county wardens have desired to use a variety of tools, in-
cluding rakes, shovels, hoes, and pitchforks. The especial
tool of these enumerated, which suits the conditions, will
be largely determined by the locality in which the fire
occurs and the character of the fire to some extent. In
the case of a surface fire (and a large number of the fires

19

which occur are of this class) undoubtedly, rakes and
pitchforks and possibly hoes are the best tools to use. These
are easily obtained, sometimes locally, but more often by
purchase at the local stores. When a supply of this ma-
terial is purchased locally, the bill covering it should be
submitted to the office of the State Forester, where voucher
for the purchase will be made out and returned for signa-
ture to the individual or company from whom the purchase
was made. Each county warden on his patrol routes should
carry with him some character of fire fighting tool in
order that he may be prepared, when he discovers a small
fire at any time to extinguish it, provided it is possible for
one man to handle it. If he does this, it will often be
found that he can control a fire himself at the moment of
finding it, which, were he obliged to go any distance to
get some character of tool, would be too large for handling
by any single individual.

LOOKOUT TOWERS.

It has been the general experience in connection
with forest fires that the prime necessity in connection
with the suppression of them is to get to the fire at the
earliest opportunity. In order that this may be done it is
necessary that the fire be discovered as soon as it is set
from whatever cause. With the extent of territory which
must be covered in Kentucky and the comparatively limited
amount of funds available, the number of patrolmen which
can be placed in any individual county or region is rela-
tively small. Under these conditions the problem is to
make the services of the men available extend over the
largest amount of territory possible. It naturally suggests
itself in this connection that high points from which a
large extent of territory can be viewed are good places
from which fires may be discovered. In several instances
individual patrolmen have selected available points which
command a good view of the surrounding country and

20

which are readily accessible and have used these as points
from which to detect forest fires as early after they are set
as possible. This has served in a measure. However, if the
high point is used just as it is without any improvements
on it, it has several disadvantages. In the first place (and
this is particularly true in the hardwood regions of Ken-
tucky), the view is usually interfered with by trees and
undergrowth. In the second place, when a fire is dis-
covered, if there is no way of communication from the
lookout pointto individuals who will fightthe fire, the
chances are that a good deal of time is lost in getting to
the fire and beginning operations for the suppression of it.
In view of this fact since the utility of lookout points in
certain regions and under certain conditions seems to be
fairly well determined, it is well at this time to call at-
tention to the manner in which lookout points may be
made most available for the detection of forest fires and
for beginning operations of suppression at the earliest
practicable moment. In order that the view from the look-
out points may be unobstructed, a lookout tower will read-
ily suggest itself as the natural means of overcoming this
difficulty. Towers of this character have been used very
widely in the United States both on the National Forests
and also in the individual states. Massachusetts, Minne-
sota, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Maryland, and others
have erected numbers of these towers and have put them
into operation.

The general character of the towers is a supporting
substructure usually 4-cornered, tapering from the base to
the top, where a platform is erected for observation pur-
poses. This platform may be covered or not as the cir-
cumstances warrant. The elevation of these towers above
the surrounding trees and undergrowth usually affords an
uninterrupted view of the surrounding region and this is
oftentimes greatly enhanced by cutting down a few trees
which interfere to a more or less extent. The material of

21

which these lookout towers are made may be of wood taken
from the surrounding forest or it may be steel. Steel
towers in the general experience of those who have tried
them seem to be the most satisfactory and are cheaper in
localities easily accessible to railroad shipping points.
Wooden towers are less expensive in localities at consider-
able distance from a railroad shipping point or back from
any good roads. In selecting a lookout point the facilities
of transportation of material should be ‘borne in mind.
Oftentimes it is possible by the selection of a well placed
tree to build an extremely cheap and at the same time
serviceable station by cutting away the limbs of the tree
and by cutting off the top at the point desired and erecting
a platform in the top of the tree and placing the neces-
sary ladder to reach the platform. This has been done
in one instance within my knowledge in Kastern Kentucky.
The cost of construction of these towers varies with the
kind of material used and the facilities of getting ma-
terial to these points. I think it is safe to say that for a
four cornered wooden tower made out of material on the
ground the cost will run up to $100, varying considerably
with the conditions; and that steel towers will run up
from $100 to $300, varying with the height of the tower and
conditions. Data which is on file in this office shows a
steel tower 18 feet square at the base by 10 feet square at
the top, made of 4x4 angle iron, will cost approximately
$225 f. o. b. shipping point. The building at the top of the
tower will cost approximately $75. This does not take into
consideration the cost of erection and construction or
transportation. A 30 foot tower of 34%x3% angle iron and
5-16 cross rods will cost approximately $175 f. o. b. shipping
point. A 30 foot tower in this State will usually serve all
purposes. To make the lookout tower effective there
should be some means. of communication from the tower to
the patrolmen, who will be in position to go immediately
to the fire and suppress it. What this means of communica-

22

tion between the tower and the station of the men is will
depend on circumstances. The best system of communica-
tion, of course, is the telephone. In a great many instances
a heliograph arrangement may be used with success, as
has been done on several of the National Forests in the
West. Also, some pre-arranged system of signals by flags
may be carried out, as has also been done successfully. The
equipment of these lookout towers in order that they may
be made most effective is to provide a map of the country
and secure the location of fires by a system of observation
taken through alidades with relation to the permanent map
located in the lookout station. The map should of course
be oriented to conform with the country in which it is to
be used. From a station of this character the limit of
range will vary greatly, depending on the natural configura-
tion of the country in which the station is situated. This
may be stated roughly as from 10 to 20 miles and may vary
so far as the individual station is concerned, depending on
the outlook in any direction. It is safe to say, I think,
that the average will be approximately 15 miles. With
these facts in mind it appears that a few well selected
stations properly provided with means of communication
would do the work of a large number of patrolmen, and
that while the extra cost of installation is somewhat large
this would more than offset the decrease in the wages of
the patrolmen made necessary by the use of the stations.
These facts are recommended particularly to the atten-
tion of the forest fires associations in Kentucky for their
consideration, since they are through their resources best
able to secure the construction of such lookout stations as
are here recommended. The office of the State Forester is
in position to supply definite information with regard to
these stations and to answer all questions with regard to
their utility and feasibility.

A lookout station in operation this Summer near
Jenkins on the lands of the Consolidation Coal Company
has demonstrated its efficiency very satisfactorily.

23

REF'ORTS.

There are varicus reports which it is required that
the county fire wardens submit, covering the work which
has been done by them. These will in part be submitted
to the district fire warden and in part to the State Forester.
It is expected that these reports will be made out carefully
and in detail and that they will form a complete record of
the work done by the county warden in any season. These
reports should be submitted on the forms furnished by the
office of the State Forester. A loose leaf cover is furnished
each man under appointment in which the forms neces-
sary for reports should be kept for the sake of convenience.
A limited number of blanks of each form will be sent to
the county forest warden at the time of his appointment.
As additional blanks are needed they will be supplied by
the State Forester on request.

Form 1. This is a payroll which is submitted by the
State Forester to the Auditor for payment covering the
services of all men in the field.

Form 2. Daily Report Blank. On this blank should
be made out each day a record of the work done. Hach
day should be accounted for on the report submitted, and
when no work is done on any particular day this fact
should be so stated on the report blank and the reason
for not doing the work or why no work was necessary
should be stated on the blank also. At the end of the
month all these blanks should be sent to the State For-
ester for his inspection and in a 30-day month each day
should be accounted for as also in a 31-day month. Since
spaces are provided for the record of two days on each
blank form, there will usually be sent in by each man
either 15 or 16 Forms 2. In February, of course, only
14 blank forms will be filled out and submitted.

Form 3. On this form should be submitted the time
of all temporary laborers who are hired by a county
forest warden to extinguish fire. It is not intended that

24

the time of a county warden himself will be submitted
on this form. The form may, however, be used for sub-
mitting a statement of the amount of labor performed by
any temporary laborer. At the top of the form should be
stated the name of the man to whom money is due and
his address, the month during which he was employed and
the year. The days on which he was employed and the
rate of pay and the amount due him, together with any
remarks, should be included in the body of the form. The
numbers under ‘date’ column indicate the days of the
month. If on the 15th of the month a certain individual
works 5 hours at the rate of 25e per hour, the entry
should read as follows:

Date Time Rate Amount
15 5 hours 25e $1.25

The officer in charge of the work should sign his
name at the bottom of the-form.

Form 4. This form is intended to cover special work
in connection with the inspection of railroad engines and
will not ke generally furnished but will be provided only
to such men as are assigned especially to this character
of work.

Form 5. Fire Report. These reports should be num-
bered by each warden serially during any calendar year.
All of the blanks discovered should be filled out. Your
attention is especially directed to the blank space pro-
vided for outlining the cause of the fire as has hereto-
fore been stated. The cause of any forest fire should be
especially investigated and, if it is possible to determine
the cause of the fire, this should be so done. If. the exact
cause cannot be determined and the probable cause is
determined within a reasonable certainty in the mind
of the county forest warden, the probable cause should
be given with the statement to the effect that it is prob-
ably the cause, as for instance, “probably hunters.” It is
not expected that the warden will guess at the cause of

25

the fire.. It is better to write down “unknown” than to
make a guess of this sort, but on the other hand there are
instances where the forest warden is reasonably certain
of the cause of the fire without being actually satisfied
that this is true. All the blanks on the fire report should
be filled out, especially those on the back of the form.
This office is especially interested in the number of acres
burned over and all the other information asked for on
the back of the form. This information should be deter-
mined as accurately as it is possible for the individual to
do it. Probably the greatest trouble will be had with the
amount of and value of timber destroyed and only ex-
perience will give the county forest warden the knowl-
edge accurately to estimate this damage, but he should
conscientiously endeavor to ascertain the cost of this dam-
age. If he is not able to estimate in feet board measure
a stumpage value for the reason that the timber in his
region is usually sold by the acre or by the tree, it is
permissible for him to estimate the damage in this fash-
ion and it can then be reduced to other units by the State
Forester. The damage to young growth is one of the
hardest propositions which the county forest wardens
have to deal with. There seems to be no definite under-
standing of the value of the young growth. For the pur-
pose of computing the damage from fire, this office has
tried to provide a rule’ which will help out the county
forest warden in the absence of more definite informa-
tion. Young growth may be considered for the present
as increasing in value at the rate of 25c per acre per
year; that is, if the average age of young growth on an
area, which has been burned over, is three years, the
yalue of the young growth will be three times twenty-five
cents, or 75c per acre, but to this should be added $5.00
which may be taken as the cost of replanting forest
growth on an acre of ground. This method of figuring the
value of young growth may be applied to timber up to

26

ten inches in diameter. If the young growth is very de-
cidedly of two ages, say three years and twelve years,
the two different ages should be used in computing the
value of the young growth and no average of such a wide
difference in years attempted. There is no blank space
provided on the fire report for the signature of the forest
officer Who makes the report, but each report should be
signed by the county forest warden making it at the
bottom of the back of the form.

Form 6. It is expected that post card, Form No. 6,
will be submitted at the end of each week by each
county forest warden to the district fire warden whose
address will be furnished in the beginning of each fire
season. There is one detail of the information asked for
to which I desire to call your attention, the 2nd cap-
tion. Under this caption, it is intended that the county
forest warden will give the number designation of the
route patrolled by him as outlined in his letter of author-
ization; for instance, his letter of authorization has a
Route No. 5 which covers a certain territory and, if he
has patrolled that route during the week, it is expected
that he will put it after the 2nd caption “No. 5.” If he
has also patrolled No. 7 and No. 8, these should also be
added. There has been confusion in this respect. Certain
county wardens have indicated the total number of routes
patrolled, as for instance 3 where they have patrolled
No. 4, No. 7 and No. 3, and 4 where they have patrolled
No. 1, No. 4, No. 7 and No. 3 instead of giving the number
of the routes as called for. Under the caption of ‘‘Notices
posted,” if it is possible to do so, place where these
notices have been posted should be given. At the end
of each month during the fire season, the post cards
should be mailed by the district fire warden to the office
of the State Forester.

27

DISTRICT FIRE WARDEN’S EXPENSE ACCOUNTS.

The district fire wardens are allowed their traveling
expenses. Through a recent ruling of the Auditor and in
compliance with the law passed by the session of the
legislature of 1914, it is necessary at the present time
that each expense for traveling amounting to $1 should
be covered by sub-voucher. This sub-voucher should be
filled out and submitted with the account. Account should
be completely itemized for each detail of expense in-
curred. Through recent ruling of the Auditor, expenses
incurred for chair car during day travel, for tips, or ex-
orbitant charges for lodging will not be allowed.

PROSECUTIONS FOR VICLATICNS OF THE FOREST
LAW.

In connection with fires which have occurred and
especially in connection with the arrests which have
been made and the attempts which have been put for-
ward to secure indictments before the grand jury for
fires which have been set out, the necessary information
often has been lacking to secure convictions and indict-
ments and also in some instances the witnesses upon
which the State depended to establish its cases were not
reliable when it came down to the point of trial. They
changed their testimony from what they had previously
given to the county warden. In this connection certain
points must be made clear which should be borne in mind
in connection with the working up of cases of fire tres-
pass. In the first place when a forest officer finds that
a fire has been set either willfully and left to burn or
has been set and allowed to burn through the neglect
and carelessness of an individual or corporation, he
should in all cases endeavor to secure as much first hand
information on the ground as he possibly can. This in-
formation he should jot down in his note book at the
time investigation is made, since it would be permissible

28

to use such evidence when trial comes up to refresh his
memory. This information should be as complete as feas-
ible and should include the day, month, year, time of day,
etc. Another important feature of the investigation is the
direction of the wind at the time of the fire, since this
is in a good many cases the determining factor as to
the way in which the fire spread. This is especially true
in regard to railroads and the fires which occur on rights
of way. It should also include the accurate location of
the fire and the size of the territory burned over should
be estimated as closely as possible. In a good many
instances the best way to obtain this is by pacing around
it. The amount of damage done should also be ascer-
tained in as much detail and with as great care as the
circumstances warrant. In addition the witnesses to it
should be questioned, and, if possible, a statement signed
by them should be obtained at the time, setting forth
the facts with regard to the fire, which may be used in
connection with investigation pefore the grand jury or
trial in any court. This-would also serve as a check
against changing of testimony by individuals at the time
of trial or before the grand jury. It is always advisable,
when possible, to have the county warden’s report and
investigation witnessed by some disinterested individual
so that his testimony is not unsupported. It must be
borne in mind that information secured at the time and
on the ground is of a great deal more value than any in-
formation subsequently gathered.

CORRESPONDENCE.

Upon request of the county forest wardens, a limited
supply of paper, envelopes and stamps will be furnished
him to use in his official correspondence. He should re-
quest a supply of this ahead of time in order that he
may have a supply on hand. At the present time it does

29

not seem feasible to furnish directly from the office of
the State Forester other material than that herewith
specified.

MAPS.

In connection with the matter of the protection of
the forests of the State from fire it is essential that
there be adequate maps covering the details of the forest
fire plan of the State between the State Forester and
all the county forest wardens. The State Forester’s
office is having prepared maps of the State on which will
be placed information of a character which the county
forest wardens will find helpful in connection with the
work. They will also be expected to furnish to the office
of the State Forester from time to time additional details
of the conditions which exist in their county, which will
be of use in the State Forester’s office and to the Dis-
trict Fire Wardens in determining the points of greatest
fire hazard, the patrol routes requiring the greatest at-
tention, the patrol routes in general and all other factors
which enter into the proper pursuance of the work. As
rapidly as possible, large maps of the individual counties
provided with county forest wardens will be compiled and
put in the hands of the county forest wardens, since it is
felt that without maps of this character a great deal
of information accumulated by the individual county for-
est warden will be lost upon the resignation or the dis-
continuance of the services of any individual warden. It
is also felt that maps of this sort will be of the greatest
assistance to the county forest wardens in their work.

COUNTY FOREST PROTECTIVE ASSOCIATIONS.

Since the amount of funds available at the present
time for forest fire protective purposes in the State is
limited and it is not ordinarily possible to place more
-than one county warden in each county, it is evident that
the character of patrol will not be as intensive as de-

30

sirable unless various agencies within the county can
be enlisted to help in this work. Individuals, companies
and corporations, who are timberland owners or lessees,
might naturally be expected to be interested in the pro-
tection of their own timber as a resource. Working on
this supposition it has been the endeavor of the office of
the State Forester to organize the various interests in
the county into fire protective associations in order that
they might as an organization co-operate with the State
in the matter of fire protection. This work has progressed
in several counties and in order to standardize it a uni-
form set of articles of association and constitution and
by-laws have been made out by the State Forester, and
it is urged that each County Protective Association organ-
ized adopt these uniform articles of association with only
such modifications as may appear locally necessary. One
of the essential features of the assocations so organized
is that they shall become financially interested of them-
selves and for themselves in protecting the acreage of
timber represented by the members of the association.
When county associations are thus organized, it is pos-
sible then to arrange for co-operation with the State
whereby the expenses of fighting and suppressing forest
fires in the county are borne on approximately a half
and half basis by the State and the County Forest Pro-
tective Association. In this way it is possible to secure
a great deal more intensive patrol since the funds avail-
able are larger. Also, since the individuals, companies
and corporations are themselves members of the asso-
ciation, they serve as a medium of publicity through
which the danger from forest fires is brought to the at-
tention of the public and the fact that forest fires are
in a large measure preventable is impressed on the citi-
zens of the county. Co-operation between the office of the
State Forester and the county association is arranged
for in a written agreement. It is not essential that one

31

Pe ee
county be used as a unit for the co-operative forest fire
association. Several adjacent counties which have like
interests may be advantageously included in one associa-
tion. This is especially true where large holdings of
individual corporations are embraced in several counties.
The idea with regard to these co-operative associations
is that they shall be made as flexible as possible consist-
ent with uniformity of organization and which meet
local conditions to the extent that it is feasible.

BOY SCOUTS.

In several states, and notably Michigan, the boy
scouts have been utilized as a means of protection and
prevention of forest fires. In Michigan, by special legis-
lative arrangements, the boy scouts have become a part
of the organization for the purpose of dealing with the
forest fire danger. The school boys of Kentucky, particu-
larly as organized in the boy scout movement, can accom-
plish a wonderful work in protecting and conserving the
forests of the State as a resource and increasing the
timber supply of the Commonwealth. In two counties,
namely: Harlan and Bell, the boy scouts have already
done a large amount of work in the direction of fighting
forest fires and reporting forest fires which may occur.
The State Forester is desirous of extending this co-opera-
tion between the boy scouts and the office of the State
Forester as far as possible and will gladly explain in de-
tail the co-operation desired upon request.

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