138 



S. S. Mauoa, San Francisco: 12 crates (15 dogs), J. Eothschild & 

 Co.; 1 monkey, 17th Cavalry. 



S. S. Coconino, San Francisco: 2 crates chickens, American Railway 

 Express Co. 



S. S. Hyades, San Francisco: 6 crates chicks, J. C. Rued; 1 crate 

 turtles, Hong On. 



S. S. Niagara, Sydney: 2 Australian bears, Bruce Heathcote. 



Respectfully submitted, 



LEONARD N. CASE, 

 Assistant Territorial Veterinarian. 



ARMY'S AIRCRAFT TO COMBAT FIRES. 



Army airplanes and captive balloons will cover portions of the 

 national forests of California, Arizona, New Mexico, and other 

 States this summer, to aid in detecting and suppressing forest 

 fires. In compliance with an order from Secretary Baker direct- 

 ing the Air Service to cooperate with the Forest Service of the 

 United States Department of Agriculture in this work, confer- 

 ences are under way to determine where and to what extent the 

 air scouts will supplement the forest rangers. 



That there is a distinct and important place for aircraft in 

 fire protection of timberlands is regarded by the Forestry offi- 

 cials as beyond doubt, but experimental trial of methods and 

 possibilities will have to be the first step. This is now being 

 planned for the coming fire season. Army airdromes and bases 

 will be utilized for the experiments. Some of the bases near 

 enough to national forests to be tised advantageously are the 

 flying fields at San Diego, Riverside, and Arcadia -in southern 

 California. Other points in the West and in the East are under 

 consideration, including one near the White Mountains in New 

 Hampshire. 



One of the interesting possibilities to be tested is bombing fires 

 to put them out. It is believed that bombs charged with suitable 

 chemicals can be used with good results. Another plan to be 

 tested is transporting fire fighters by dirigibles from which lad- 

 ders can be lowered to the ground. 



The chief use of the aircraft this summer, however, will be for 

 fire detection. At present the Forest Service relies for this partly 

 on patrol, usually by men on horses, motorcycles, or railroad 

 speeders, and partly on watchers stationed at lookout points. 

 Aircraft have many points of obvious superiority for both classes 

 of detection work. 



Lookouts in a very broken country, cut up by deep canyons or 

 where mountain ridges obstruct the view, or in a flat country 

 that afifords no good points of vantage, are often unable to pick 

 up all fires quickly by the rising smoke, or to locate them accu- 

 rately. For precise location the system in use depends on trian- 

 gulation through reports telephoned from separate observation 



