654 AMERICAN FORESTRY 



it lias been found necessary under some conditions, to appoint selected men 

 at a per diem paid only when work is actually done. Such men are usually 

 public spirited citizens who are glad to assist in the work of fire protection. 

 On the Deerlodge National Forest in Montana during the present year it has 

 been found that this plan increases materially the flexibility and efficiency 

 of the force; in fact, the employment of one guard under this plan makes it 

 possible on the average to secure the services of twenty additional men as 

 laborers. 



On many of the forests where it does not seem necessary to appoint men 

 on a per diem basis, definite arrangements have been made in advance with 

 experienced men to act as foremen of fire crews or as ordinary laborers. The 

 arrangement which usually consists of a promise of assistance when called 

 upon is as far as possible made to include foremen in mines, lumbering camps, 

 etc. Foremen of fire crews are frequently paid higher wages than the men. 



In addition to the classes of assistance already indicated, it is usually 

 possible to secure the services of large numbers of other men if needed. This, 

 however, may cause delay, and it may be necessary to take unsatisfactory 

 workmen, or be impossible to get sufficient numbers. On some of the national 

 forests special conditions obtain so that it is possible to secure comparatively 

 large bodies of good men from one place on short notice. Such, for instance, 

 are those forests which are adjacent to Indian reservations and in some few 

 cases forests which are adjacent to forts. 



In very great emergencies where property of great value is at stake and 

 there is danger of the loss of human life, it is always possible to call for as- 

 sistance from the United States Army. It is planned, however, to make this 

 call a last resort because of the great expense of getting men to the scene of 

 action, and because the centralization policy of the War Department makes it 

 impossible under ordinary circumstances to have small forces of soldiers 

 scattered through the forests. 



Provision for the regular forest force to be supplemented in case of need 

 by various reserves as discussed, does not emphasize sufficiently the occasional 

 and urgent need for transfers of men between forests. During the serious 

 fires of the summer of 1910 it was found that the need for laborers was not 

 so great as the need for experienced men to take charge of fire fighting crews 

 or to carry on patrol work. To some extent this situation was remedied by 

 the transfer of rangers. Such action may, however, be dangerous or impos- 

 sible because the regular force is comparatively small. Gradually, however, 

 as the number of men with some training increases, this problem may solve 

 itself and it may easily be possible to secure the services on one forest for 

 transfer to another, of good men outside of the regular force. 



PATROL. 



The arrangement of patrol for a forest while apparently very simple, is 

 actually difficult, and this is more apparent when one realizes the many adverse 

 conditions under which it is frequently necessary to work and the necessity 

 in spite of these conditions for getting good results. All of the forest must 

 be covered, it must be covered frequently enough to prevent disastrous fires, 

 and not more frequently than necessary, thus reducing the funds available 

 and the patrol needed in other places. 



Patrol on the national forests is of two general kinds: (1) that from 

 lookout points; and {'2) that by men who walk or ride or depend upon some 

 other means of transjmrtation. The lookouts are either stationed on more 

 or less commanding peaks and remain there constantly during dangerous 

 periods, or visit the i)eaks at sj)ecifi('d hours and in addition, after electrical 

 storms. It has been found that the highest peaks may not under some con- 



