FOREST PROTECTION. 155 



may do much to clear the land of roots and put it in shape 

 for a good hay meadow. Then, too, they often so reduce 

 the level of the land by burning out the organic matter 

 as to make it wet and of no value for agricultural crops. 

 If such fires are attacked soon after they secure a foot- 

 hold in the soil they are seldom very difficult to put out. 

 Where not deep in the ground or of very great extent 

 the burning peat may be dug out and watered, but this 

 is often impracticable on account of the heat. In this 

 latter case a ditch should be dug around the fire as close 

 to it as practicable and of sufficient depth to reach standing 

 water or the subsoil. The fire should then be carefully 

 watched to see that it does not get beyond the ditch. It 

 is seldom that sufficient water can be put on a large bog 

 fire to put it out, on account of the great amount of water 

 that dry peat will absorb and the protective covering 

 of ashes and peat usually found over a bog fire. 



NOTABLE FOREST FIRES. 



Among the worst forest fires which have occurred on 

 this continent are the following: 



Miramichi Fire of 1825. This occurred near Newcastle, 

 on the Miramichi River, in New Brunswick. In nine 

 hours it had destroyed a belt of forest eighty miles long 

 and twenty-five miles wide, and almost every living thing 

 was killed on that amount of territory ; even the fish were 

 destroyed in the smaller lakes and streams. It is esti- 

 mated that the loss from this fire, not including the value 

 of the timber burned, was $300,000. One hundred and 

 sixty persons lost their lives, and nearly 1,000 head of 

 stock were killed. 



The Peshtigo Fire occurred in October, 1871. This 

 burned an area of over 2,000 square miles in Wisconsin. 

 Between 1,100 and 1,500 persons lost their lives, and 



