FOREST GUIDES DEPARTMENT 



251 



study which has been made of the causes of 

 forest fires. They may be summarized as 

 follows : 



i. Few, if any, forest fires are the result of spon- 

 taneous combustion. 



2. Lightning does not cause on Eastern forests more 

 than a small percentage of forest fires. 



3. Someone's carelessness or neglect causes most of 

 the forest fires which occur each year. No matter what 

 the immediate or apparent cause happens to be the real 

 original cause can in almost all cases be traced back to 

 the carelessness or neglect of some person or group of 

 persons. Carelessly constructed or neglected camp fires, 

 have started many forest fires. The careless throwing 

 away of a burning match, cigarette, or tobacco among dry 

 leaves has been the cause of some of our worst fires. 

 Sparks from engines start many forest fires, but the real 

 cause is the fact that they were not properly equipped 

 with a satisfactory spark arrester, or a satisfactory 

 cleared safety strip was not kept on both sides of the 

 road bed. We all believe in clearing up unsightly and 

 unsanitary places, but too often brush burners choose 

 a windy day or forget to take proper precautions so that 

 the fires which they start cannot get away from them. In 

 many instances those in charge of a fire go away for a 

 while, only to return and find that the fire has escaped 

 and is traveling rapidly over an adjoining woodlot or 

 ascending a steep and heavily timbered mountain slope. 



4. Be sure the camp fire is out before leaving it. Take 

 no chances, for you can easily tramp it out, smother it 

 with ground, or soak it with water. 



5. Be very careful in cleaning up a camp site. Burn 

 the undesirable material when there is the least danger 

 of the fire getting beyond control. 



6. Be as careful with fire in the forest as in your 

 home, for it is an evil doer if it gets beyond control. A 

 good Forest Guide takes no chances with fire in or near 

 the woods, for its actions are treacherous and its destruc- 

 tive power great, if it gets beyond control. 



WHAT FOREST FIRES DO 



The first thing that Forest Guides should 

 know about forest fires is the fact that they do 

 absolutely no good. They bring no benefits to 

 mankind, for loss and damage are the results of 

 their work. It would require many pages to 

 discuss fully the loss caused by forest fires. The 

 following outline will show some of the principal 

 lines of damage which they do: 



1. Forest fires destroy the beauty and value of a 

 region. 



2. They destroy the animal and plant life of the 

 forests. 



3. They destroy the seeds and seedlings which would 

 develop into stately stands of timber. 



4. They kill enormous quantities of growing timber. 



5. They consume a large amount of felled timber 

 and other forest products stored in forests. 



6. They consume the leaf litter and humus on the 

 forest floor. 



7. They impoverish the soil to such an extent that 

 its capacity to produce timber is almost negligible. Brief- 

 ly, they prevent the production of enormous quantities 

 of needed forest products. 



8. They have already made a desert of millions of 

 acres of land. 



9. They open the way for the destructive work of 

 insects, fungi, erosion, floods and drought. 



10. They sometimes kill live stock, and frequently 

 destroy buildings, crops and fences. 



11. They occasionally destroy houses. 



12. They cause the loss of human lives. 



There appears to be no end to the damage 

 which forest fires do. We cannot let them go 

 on. It is our duty to step in right now and 

 fight them to a finish. 



THE WILLOW PATCH 



BY BERNARD FLANAGAN 



There is nothing so disgusting, causing more command- 

 ment busting 

 Than a bushy bunch of willows on your line ; 

 You can hardly battle through them and no cussing 

 seems to do them 

 Though your sweat rolls out much bitterer than brine. 

 They are all-fired tough and wiry and they make your 

 temper fiery, 

 But the compass heads you through their very heart; 

 Oh, how healthily you swear, when you find you're tan- 

 gled there 

 And you know you're badly beaten from the start. 



When you've lumbered through the snow for a dozen 

 miles or so 

 And you've got a strip of forties yet to do, 

 Then with estimator's luck you've a willow patch to buck 



And the compass says you've got to plug it through. 

 It is then you have to struggle, for each willow seems to 

 snuggle 

 In the bosom of a dozen nearby trees ; 

 Oh, it does no good to swear, for the willows do 

 not care, 

 But it somehow seems to set your mind at ease. 



Then you try to go ahead but you find it stops you dead 



For the willows make a wicker that will hold ; 

 You are seized with dire despair and you pull your 

 matted hair 



And a volume more of curses you unfold. 

 It is nearing supper time and you're verging on a crime 



As you smart beneath the ninety-seventh scratch, 

 Oh, it's wasting time to swear and you wind yourself 

 right there 



When you stand and cuss that doggone willow patch. 



