nature of a special police (a deplorable make- 

 shift in any well organized state where a po- 

 lice system is provided for by law and consti- 

 tution) could and would more efficiently carry 

 out the provisions of the law and protect the 

 forests. The results are written in millions of 

 acres of blackened waste, in the loss of human 

 life and the loss of millions of dollars in prop- 

 erty besides forest. 



4. In discussing measures for the preven- 

 tion of forest fires various important sugges- 

 tions were made. Among these the one caus- 

 ing most discussion provided a regular State 

 paid fire patrol, to be established with an ap- 

 propriation of a million dollars. The Legisla- 

 ture, however, foresaw the dangers. It was 

 claimed even by northern county people that 

 this would mean that local men would set fire 

 to get the job of helping the State police to 

 put it out; and all through it was felt that the 

 local people, town and county, would take no 

 more interest in this work and thus it would 

 lose the most essential support. In addition 

 the people of the southern counties said: "The 

 town and county up there get a large sum of 

 money in taxes, let them do something for 

 these tax moneys and not shoulder all on us." 



All sides went to extremes; but it is doubt- 

 ful even now if this work should be undertaken 

 by the State and the town and county be left 

 out. 



Throughout these discussions it became 

 clearer and clearer that the owners of large 

 tracts of land, the town and county officials 

 all should be kept as interested parts of the 

 system adopted. Unfortunately, the necessity 

 of compelling officials under severe penalty to 

 enforce the law was never popular in political 

 circles, and the most essential features of any 

 plan were thus left out. 



