74 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



Human foot prints in numerous cases have led to the 

 identification of malicious-minded incendiaries who will- 

 fully tried to destroy valuable government woodlands. A 

 worn heel, a stubtoed shoe, and foot deformity as in- 

 dicated in the tracks, special styles of rubber heels or 

 hobnails, impressions of bare feet in the dust or mud, and 

 unusual types of footwear have on one occasion or 

 another enabled the forest detectives to run down cases of 

 forest incendiarism. Similarly, unusual foot tracks of 

 horses, mules or burros ridden by fire-starters have often 

 aided in the trailing and detection of miscreants. 



HUMAN FOOT PRINTS AS EVIDENCE 



The naked eye will find nothing here but the microscope of a 

 clever tracker found faint impressions of foot prints which led 

 to the detection and conviction of a man who had set a Western 

 forest on fire. 



Where a foot mark of either a human being or a riding 

 animal is discernible in the dust or mud close to the 

 scene of a forest fire, the federal forest policemen make 

 an impression of this evidence by flowing a wet mixture 

 of cement or plaster over the track and allowing it to 

 harden. Plaster of paris sets in about 5 minutes. The 

 impression can be removed and used as court evidence 

 thereafter if the culprit is caught and brought to trial. 

 In case the track appears in dry sand or dust, a small 

 amount of the plaster is sifte.d over it and then a few 

 drops of water are sprinkled over the plaster. Where 

 the footprint is found on a dusty floor or similar loca- 

 tion, it is sprayed with a mixture of one part shellac 

 and four parts of wood alcohol. This spraying takes 15 

 minutes or longer and often more than one quart of 

 .<;hellac is used on a single track. After the material has 

 dried 30 minutes, a plaster impression of it can be made. 



The age of a track is shown by the sharpness of im- 



pression, by moisture and color, whether leaves or dirt 

 lumps have fallen into it and by the condition of broken 

 twigs. A trail made at night is often indicated by the 

 way it bumps into or makes detours around obstacles. 

 Whether a horse was ridden or led may be shown by 



THIS CONVICTED AN INCENDIARY 



The forest detectives trail many criminals and negligent sports- 

 men, tourists and campers to their homes by means of automo- 

 bile tire tracks. They have become so expert that they can tell 

 the direction the car is going, the approximate speed and the 

 type of car by examining these tracks. 



whether or not the trail passes under or around low-hang- 

 ing limbs. Speed may be indicated by the degree of 

 slide at the heel of the foot print, depth of the heel edge 

 and toe edge, length of the drag at the toe and the dis- 

 tance between the tracks. If the man is carrying a bur- 

 den, his feet are wider apart, his steps are shorter and 

 more unsteady. In case of a lame leg, injured knee, or 

 hip twist, the step is shorter. 



Where the trail leads through dry pine needles, the 

 trailers often have to get down on their hands and knees 

 in order to distinguish breakages and minute differences 

 in color which are not apparent from an erect position. 

 Tracks in dry grass also are very hard to follow. 

 Usually unless the wind is blowing, grass will hold all 

 impressions made over it until the appearance of night 

 dew, fog or rain. Through brush a trail can be followed 

 by broken or skinned twigs. When a trail is lost, circles 

 ahead in the probable direction of the passage often will 

 favor its re-location. 



The art of forest sleuthing has been developed to a 

 stage of perfection and accuracy where the government 

 representatives can now predict the travel direction of au- 



