74 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



Altogether there were in the Province 

 over 1,000 whose duties were in whole 

 or in part fire protection. 



The fire season in British Coliimbia, 

 1914, was, as regards dry weather and 

 hazard, the worst for many years. Old 

 inhabitants say that there was not 

 another so dry summer this century, 

 nor in fact since the 80' s. The expendi- 

 ture in fire fighting was very hea\^ but 

 justified, for considering the very large 

 number of fires and the extraordinary 

 hazardous conditions, the amount of 

 merchantable timber and other property 

 destroyed is remarkably small — ^much 

 smaller than in the Pacific States where 

 the fire season was also very bad. 



Figures so far available are given 

 below. It should be remembered these 

 are as yet only approximate; the final 

 figures will probably exceed these some- 

 what. 



Total number of fires over 1,500, of 

 which over 400 cost money to fight. 

 Total cost fire fighting over $150,000. 



Total area burned over — over 350,- 

 000 acres, of which over 250,000 acres 

 was old burn or slash, over 50,000 was 

 valuable second growth, over 20,000 

 was merchantable timber, over 30,000 

 was range land. 



Over 70 millions feet board measure, 

 merchantable timber destroyed, of which 

 one-fifth estimated salvageable. 



Over 400 miles of fire trail were built 

 in fighting fires during the summer. 



An outstanding feature of the fire 

 season was the valuable cooperation 

 given to the forest officers by the people 

 at large. It is doubtful if anywhere 

 else in Canada there exists as close and 

 effective a cooperation in forest protec- 

 tion as in British Columbia. One reason 

 for that is that British Columbia is so 

 universally forested and the utilization 

 of those forests so important to her, 

 that their fate does and always will 

 vitally concern a very large part of her 

 population and her industries. The 

 railway, mining, irrigation, power, lum- 

 ber, etc., companies are all more or less 

 dependent on the forests and forest 

 products for their existence and opera- 

 tion. They show their appreciation of 

 this by the keen interest they manifest 

 in fire protection and the ready assist- 

 ance they give the forest officers. 



It was shown that the only way to 

 make logging or other slash really safe 

 is to burn it under control in not too dry 

 weather. Otherwise the slash is a con- 

 stant hazard during dry weather and 

 sooner or later it results in an expensive 

 and often destructive fire. 



The permit system again proved its 

 great value and necessity. During 

 August and the first week of September 

 in the southern part of the Province at 

 least, permits were cancelled and no 

 burning allowed in or adjacent to the 

 forests, except under the strictest safe- 

 guards. Were it not for this control by 

 the Forest Branch of burning during the 

 fire season, fire protection wovdd be 

 almost impossible. 



Quite a niimber of prosecutions were 

 made for violation of the fire law and 

 convictions secured. The policy fol- 

 lowed is to deal leniently with the un- 

 knowing offender, but to make example 

 of the wilful lawbreaker. 



IMPROVEMENTS 



In spite of the bad season the Forest 

 Branch was able to do a considerable 

 amount of permanent improvement 

 work during the summer, in extension 

 chiefly of last year's projects. The tele- 

 phone line up the Colimibia River from 

 Revelstoke was completed to Big Bend 

 or Boat encampment opposite the mouth 

 of the Canal River, the total distance 

 now being 120 miles. Another line 

 which connects up some of the Island 

 to the north of the Gulf of Georgia was 

 extended, the total length now being 

 65 miles. Still another line was built 

 20 miles up the Upper Kootenay River 

 above Canal Flats. Over 75 miles of 

 trail have been constructed in different 

 parts of the Province. A nimiber of 

 cabins, boat houses, lookout stations 

 and tool caches have been built. 



GRAZING 



British Colimibia possesses great areas 

 of summer range mostly more or less 

 wooded and nearl}^ all of it Crown lands. 



A grazing investigation is now being 

 carried on to determine the proper 

 policy and methods to be adopted to 

 encourage the fiillest possible utiliza- 

 tion of the immense amount of forage 

 now going to waste each year. 



