204 North American Forests and Forestry 



Anything which tends to keep constantly before the 

 people of the forest districts the necessity of the 

 greatest care in the setting and guarding of fires in 

 the woods is desirable as a means of creating such 

 a change of public opinion that negligence will 

 cease to be considered as something venial, but be 

 looked upon universally as what it really is, a 

 heinous crime deserving the abhorrence of all de- 

 cent people. As soon as such a condition of public 

 opinion has been gained there will be no further 

 difficulty in enforcing the fire-police laws of all 

 kinds, and the very success of such laws will gradu- 

 ally make them unnecessary and permit the light- 

 ening of the burden which for a time must be 

 imposed upon the taxpayers. The disappearance of 

 forest fires as the regular and ordinary occurrence 

 wherever lumbering has been carried on will mark 

 the time when lumbermen will be ready to shape 

 their business with a view to reforesting the de- 

 nuded tracts. It will not be necessary to wait until 

 fires have become as rare as they are in Germany. 

 The lumbermen will be ready to take some chances, 

 but the probability that the young timber will reach 

 maturity must at least be greater than that it will 

 be killed by fire before it becomes merchantable. 

 With the restocking of cut-over areas by silvicul- 

 tural operations will come a more conservative man- 

 ner of lumbering in the remnants of the natural 

 forest. We have had several occasions to refer to 

 the fact that lumbermen often cut the trees long 

 before they have reached the size when their taking 



