178 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



understood that a deficiency estimate will be presented to Congress 

 for reimbursement of the amount actually expended. The cost of 

 emergency fire fighting up to September 1 had reached the sum of 

 $575,000, with conditions still dangerous in several localities. It is 

 therefore probable that a deficiency appropriation of at least $750,000 

 will be required to cover the expenditures. ' 



Observation indicates that the active educational campaign which 

 has been carried on during recent years has brought the public to 

 a realization of the importance of exercising the greatest care in the 

 use of fire within both public and private forests, and that the 

 nuuiber of fires caused by human agencies is being reduced. Al- 

 though in a season like the last two a great many fires are bound 

 to occur, it is a fact that the proportionate number of fires in the 

 more thickly populated regions is gradually being reduced. 



Cooperation with the diiferent States under the special appro- 

 priation for that purpose, and with cities, counties, and the various 

 fire-protective organizations, has clearly proved that fire fighting 

 is war against a common enemy in which success is dependent upon 

 a coordination of all the combatant forces. Most encouraging prog- 

 ress has been made in cooperative work. For example, in the State 

 of California, through cooperation with the University of Cali- 

 fornia, 412 local fire-fighting companies have been organized: 532 

 fire trailers, equipped with fire extinguishers or fire-fighting tools, 

 have been installed at danger points ; and 6,500 individuals are mem- 

 bers of the rural fire-fighting companies. Similar results are being 

 accomplished in other thickly populated regions. 



An important form of protection of the National Forests is the 

 prevention of loss from destructive insects and from tree diseases. 

 Losses from these causes are great in the aggregate, although timber 

 is seldom killed in large bodies. The largest and most valuable 

 timber, which having reached maturity has less power of resistance 

 than thrifty young trees, is most likely to be affected. 



The Forest Service, in so far as the funds at its disposal will 

 permit, has been conducting control measures in the more important 

 areas of severe insect infestation, basing its activities on the technical 

 studies conducted by the Bureau of Entomology. Uncertainties in 

 regard to funds make it impossible to conduct work in every case 

 on infestations at the time when the work would be most effective. 

 The situation is often similar to that in the case of a forest fire, since 

 a relatively small amount of work done while an insect infestation 

 is small may prevent both a much heavier expenditure later, when 

 the attack has grown to larger proportions, and a serious loss of 

 valuable timber. 



The importance of insect-control work is illustrated by the results 

 of a study made in California in cooperation with the Bureau of 

 Entomology and certain private owners of timberland. This study 

 indicated that there is an annual loss of timber to the value of between 

 $200,000 and $300,000 in this State alone as the result of insect 

 infestation. It also indicated the areas which were most in need 

 of control measures, and formed the basis for the work done in the 

 spring of 1918 in cooperation with the National Park Service and 

 the Bureau of Entomology. At the close of the fiscal year it was 



