40 PRELIMINARY STUDY OF 



County, Special, and Deputy Game Wardens the duties of forest 

 fire wardens. They are authorized to take charge of fire fighting, 

 to summon assistance, to inspect railroad rights of way, and to ar- 

 rest, without warrant, offenders against the fire laws. The law has 

 failed in effectiveness because no provision was made for funds to 

 pay the expenses of fire fighting. Also no arrangement was made 

 for posting warning notices; and, therefore, the provisions of the 

 law are not generally known. It is believed that better results 

 would be obtained by not trying to burden the game wardens with 

 this aditional work, which has little relation to their regular duties, 

 and for which they may or may not be fitted. Therefore it is rec- 

 ommended that the State Forester be made State Fire Warden, and 

 that he be empowered to request the Board of Supervisors of each 

 county to appoint, with his approval, a county fire warden, or to 

 appoint one himself should the County Board fail to take action. 

 The county wardens should be subject to removal by the State For- 

 ester. The powers and duties conferred upon the game wardens 

 by the law of 1907 should be transferred, with some modifications 

 and additions, to the fire wardens thus provided for, who should 

 likewise be given the powers of sheriffs in enforcing the forest laws 

 of the State. The county wardens should be required to report each 

 fire to the State Forester on suitable forms, to post warning no- 

 tices, and to patrol in dangerous seasons if directed to do so by the 

 State Forester. If the State Forester deems it advisable, deputy 

 wardens should be appointed by the county warden, with the ap- 

 proval of the State Forester, to work under his direction, with the 

 same powers and duties. The State Forester should also have au- 

 thority to appoint special wardens, to serve voluntarily without 

 pay, or with compensation from private owners. This would en- 

 able suitable employees of parties interested in fire protection to 

 secure the powers of wardens and to cooperate in fire protection 

 without expense to the State or county. 



It should further be provided that whenever the State Forester 

 becomes convinced that a dangerously dry time exists, and that it is 

 imprudent to set fire on any land, he shall cause a notice to this ef- 

 fect to be posted in three public places in each county concerned, 

 and that any person setting a fire upon any land in that county after 

 the posting of such notices shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. This 

 provision should not apply to camp fires built in safe places and 

 extinguished before leaving, or to log piles, stumps, and brush lo- 

 cated at least a quarter of a mile from other combustible material. 



