59(J AMERICAN FORESTRY 



i-eserve area are liiiiulreds of lakes which form the reservoir of the Wisconsin 

 and the Chippewa Rivers. These hikes are ideal summer resort sites, many 

 of which can be i-eached only with great diflSculty. Thousands of people take 

 advantage of the more accessible places during the summer. Since the state 

 owns nearly all the land bordering on these lakes and the revenue from timber 

 sales is small, it is the policy of the board to lease cottage sites and open up 

 roads to increase accessibility. The roads are laid out in such a way as to 

 make the country more easily patrolled for fire protection and at the same 

 time serve as routes to resorts. 



This spring a patrol system was organized in which the federal govern- 

 ment co-operates with the state. The territory to be covered includes about 

 sixty townships, of which about one-half should be well patrolled during the 

 dry season on account of railroads, fishermen, hunters, and settlers. Tlie 

 other half need not be watched so closely, for there are practically no settlers 

 and very few sportsmen get into this country, as traveling is difficult and 

 no railroads pass through. These two halves are not in solid blocks but are 

 irregular interwoven areas. Each ranger is assigned a district, varying from 

 a little less than one township to about two townships, the size being governed 

 by the fire menace and ease of patrol. Where railroads and good wagon 

 roads make the area very accessible, there is usually a telephone system and 

 one ranger can keep in touch with all parts of a large district. Where the 

 opposite conditions prevail, the ranger is assigned a much smaller area to 

 patrol. A number of steel-framed watch-towers placed at vantage points aid 

 the rangers to keep so large a territory well under surveillance, and tele- 

 phones connecting the towers with ranger stations and with the assistant 

 state forester's headquarters at Trout Lake, make the system quite efficient for 

 fire protection. 



The federal government in co-operating with the state is furnishing funds 

 for rangers' salaries only. There are at present twelve rangers whose salaries 

 are paid from this fund and twelve, including one head ranger, paid from 

 the state funds. All state rangers are selected from applicants who have 

 passed a state civil service examination and are appointed for the entire year. 

 They are given police powers to prevent setting of fires, but are not authorized 

 to act as game wardens. Each ranger lias authority to hire as many men 

 as necessary for fire-fighting, and these men are paid immediately from a 

 fund for temporary assistance, made available to the assistant state forester. 

 When not on patrol duty, the ranger's work consists in building roads, fire- 

 lines and trails, cutting posts and telephone poles, getting data for correction 

 of existing maps and for the new features of a more up-to-date map. 



The rangers who receive i>ay from the federal government are hired for 

 about five months of the year during the season of greatest danger from fire. 

 They have the same powers of police and authority to hire men for fire- 

 fighting as the state-paid rangers. Provision was made for them to help in 

 fire i)rotection work when patrol is unnecessary. 



The head ranger has general supervision over both state and federal 

 rangers and acts as ins])ector, visiting each ranger about once in ten days. 

 He has. however, no additional ]>owers or authority. The very nature of his 

 work demands that he have saddle horses and these he furnishes and feeds. 



The ranger's exi)enses are paid while away from his own station, and 

 when on road work or fire fighting with a gang of men, the state furnishes 

 bed and board for all men in camp. At the present time rangers are not 

 re(niir(Ml lo keep horses for patrol work, as traveling in most districts has 

 been difficult and is about Jis fast on foot as on horseback. After this year, 



