CHAPTER II 



FIRE PROTECTION 



In the first part of this volume (Chapter V., "Man 

 and Domestic Animals ") I have already discussed the 

 advantages and drawbacks of fire protection. It is now 

 assumed that, after due consideration of the merits of 

 the case, it has been found desirable to protect a forest 

 from fire. 



The first step to be taken is to isolate or insulate the 

 forest so that no fires can enter from outside, and the 

 next to subdivide the forest, if it is of an area sufficient 

 to do so, into a number of blocks, each of which, in its 

 turn, is insulated in order to prevent fires which have 

 penetrated from the outside from spreading beyond them 

 into other blocks, or to confine fires which have originated 

 within the forest to as small an area as possible. This 

 iusulation is effected by means of fire-traces, ovfire-hnes, 

 as they are more commonly called, those on the boundary 

 of the forest being called exterior fire-lines, while those 

 which run through the forest itself are interior fire-lines. 

 Natural fire-lines may be formed by sheets of water of 

 sufficient width, such as rivers or lakes, by perpendicular 

 cliffs, dense belts of evergreen trees, etc. 1 Roads and 

 boundary lines may also act as fire-lines, but usually 

 they require an additional strip of protecting line, some- 

 times on one side only and at others on both sides. 



1 Fernandez, <</>. cit. Book III. chapter i., " Fire Conservancy," goes very fully 

 into this suliji'ct. He mentions swamps as possible natural tire-lines. But to 

 one who like myself lias seen the vast swamps of the Nile overrun by great tires, 

 it is difficult to add them to the list. 



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