1900. 



AMERICAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 



61 



necessary. The chief firewarden shall 

 give a bond to the commission in the sum 



B 



of one thousand dollars and each forest 

 ransrer shall give a bond in the sum of five 



o o 



hundred dollars, said bonds to be with two 

 sureties and to be approved by the com- 

 mission, and conditioned for the faithful 

 performance of the duties of said officers 

 respectively. The commission may ap- 

 point expert foresters, not exceeding five 

 in number, who shall be employed in the 

 work of reforesting the burned, barren or 

 denuded lands in the forest preserve, and 

 in such other work as may tend to the im- 

 provement and increased value of the state 

 forest. They shall receive for their ser- 

 vices such compensation- as may be fixed 

 by the commission. 



"Duties of superintendent of forests 

 and his assistants. The superintendent of 

 forests, under the direction of the commis- 

 sion, shall have charge of all work con- 

 nected with the care and custody of the 

 forest preserve, the prevention of forest 

 fires, and the general supervision of the 

 forest interests of the state. He shall re- 

 port annually to the commission, showing 

 the annual timber product of the Adiron- 

 dack and Catskill forests and also the ex- 

 tent of the forest fires and losses therefrom. 

 He shall make such other reports from 

 time to time as may be required by the 

 commission, or may be necessary for their 

 information. The assistant superintendent 

 of forests shall render such assistance as 

 the superintendent may require, see that 

 the rangers patrol their respective districts 

 diligently, make frequent examinations of 

 the lots of the forest preserve not in the 

 patrolled districts, and submit written re- 

 ports of the character and condition of 

 such lands. 



" Duties of the chief firewarden. The 

 chief firewarden, under the direction of 

 the commission, shall have supervision of 

 the town firewardens, visit each town as 

 often as practicable and fully acquaint 

 each firewarden with his duties, notify the 

 commission of all vacancies on the roll of 

 firewardens as soon as they occur, see that 

 the towns are divided into districts of suit- 

 able size and proper location and that dis- 

 trict firewardens are appointed as provided 



by law, have charge of the firewardens' 

 reports, and when the cause of a fire is not 

 reported ascertain its origin; under au- 

 thority of the commission, institute prose- 

 cutions for violations of the law regulating 

 forest fires, and have supervision of all 

 bills against the state rendered by the va- 

 rious towns for fighting forest fires. 



" Duties of forest rangers. The rangers 

 shall reside on the districts to be patrolled 

 by them respectively, said districts to be 

 designated by the commission. The rangers 

 must report to the nearest protector im- 

 mediately any violations of the fisheries, 

 game and forest law which they discover 

 and to the nearest firewarden or district 

 firewarden, of the starting of fires, if un- 

 able to extinguish same. Each ranger 

 must patrol his district daily, for the pre- 

 vention of fires, trespasses and violations 

 of the fish and game law. 



" Duties of land clerk. The land clerk 

 shall have charge of the assessment rolls 

 of the forest preserve and shall report any 

 discriminations against the state, in the 

 assessment of taxes; have charge of the 

 land records, and prepare statistics giving 

 information as to the acreage of the various 

 kinds of land. 



" Compensation of forest officials. The 

 assistant superintendent of forests shall re- 

 ceive fifteen hundred dollars annually, the 

 chief firewarden shall receive fifteen hun- 

 dred dollars annually, and each of the said 

 officials shall receive his actual and neces- 

 sary travelling expenses. The forest 

 rangers shall each receive five hundred 

 dollars annually, and the land clerk shall 

 receive eighteen hundred dollars annually. 



" This act shall take effect immediately." 



To Prevent Forest Fires in New York. 



Two bills to prevent the spread of forest 

 fires in the Adirondacks have been favor- 

 ably reported to the Senate by the Forest, 

 Fish and Game Committee. The first is 

 making railroad companies liable for all 

 damage done by fire due to the railroad's 

 property or employes. The other provides 

 for the employment of men to fight fires 

 in case of danger to forest preserve lands. 

 The enforcement of such laws would 

 doubtless have a very salutary effect. 



