FIRE THE GREAT DESTROYER 197 



A third class is known as the ground fire. It burns beneath 

 the surface of the ground in regions where the years have ac- 

 cumulated twigs, leaves, and vegetation forming a peaty, spongy 

 mass that once afire often smolders for days and months. They 

 cause little damage and are not important. 



Apart from the actual enormous waste of wood, one o! the 

 great evils of fire is its retarding influence on the practice of 

 forestry. It is the one great factor that prevents a wider appli- 

 cation of the perpetual crop idea to our American forests. For, 

 after all, it is useless to spend money for planting and for other 

 methods of securing future crops of timber if these crops are 

 in grave danger of burning up before they may be reaped. 



So, in this country, the greatest problem in all forestry, today, 

 is to find some way of preventing and controlling forest fires. 



Fire presents a dual problem first to prevent them from 

 starting and second to put out quickly and cheaply the fires 

 that do start. The first fire prevention means the long diffi- 

 cult task of making the American people realize that fires are 

 a too-expensive luxury. 



Foresters have not yet been successful in doing this. Fires are 

 increasing, partly because more and more people are using the 

 forests each year and partly because lumbering leaves forest 

 areas in a condition to invite fire. There is a long, hard task 

 ahead before each one who visits the woods will observe reason- 

 able caution to prevent fire. 



In the actual fighting of forest fires some progress is being 

 made. The United States Forest Service particularly, has de- 

 veloped a technique and an organization that functions effec- 

 tively during normal fire years. But it can never cope with years 

 of great hazard until it is better equipped and more adequately 



