1904 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



121 



Adirondack Forest Fires, 1903. 



Total acres of forest land burned. . . . 464, 189 

 Total value of standing timber, logs, 



pnlpwood, and buildings burned .. 1846,082 

 Total number of days' labor employed 



in fighting fire 77,290 



Catskill Forest Fires, fgoj. 



Total acres of forest land burned. . . . 36,329 

 Total value of standing timber, pulp- 

 wood, etc., and buildings burned. . #37,034 

 Total number of days' labor 4,492 



The cost to the state and to the towns 

 in fighting fires will not be less than 

 $i85,ooofor 1903, so that the total money 

 loss from forest fires during that year 

 will amount to more than $1,000,000. 

 Owing to the vigilance and efficiency of 

 the forest commission, only 12 per cent 

 of the fires occurred on state lands, but 

 the loss to private owners is directly in- 

 jurious to public interests. Four hun- 

 dred and sixty-five thousand acres were 

 burned over during the year, and it is 

 apparent that unless the recurrence of 

 such a catastrophe can be prevented, all 

 efforts toward forest preservation will be 

 in vain. These fires occur only in years 

 of exceptional dfought. They are due 

 to railroads, to burning fallows, to the 

 carelessness of campers and fishermen, 

 and to incendiaries. There was a gen- 

 eral concurrence of opinion among those 

 who appeared before the committee in 

 attributing 50 per cent of these fires to 

 railroads. 



The railroads in the Adirondacks are : 

 the Mohawk and Malone (N. Y. C. & H. 

 R. R.), running through forest lands 127 

 miles from Forestport to Owls Head, and 

 within the Adirondack park 91 miles 

 from Otter Lake to Rainbow ; The Car- 

 thage and Adirondack (N. Y. C. & H. 

 R. R.), in forest lands in or near the 

 park, 29 miles ; the Racquette Lake 

 (N. Y. C. &H.R. R.), 1 8 miles, wholly 

 within the park ; the New York and 

 Ottawa, 49 miles in forest lands from 

 Dickenson Center to Tupper Lake, and 

 29 miles within the park ; the Chateaugay 

 (D. & H.), from Chazy Lake to Lake 

 Placid, 55 miles, of which 17 miles is in 

 the park. A map showing the burned 

 areas in the Adirondacks, prepared by 

 the Bureau of Forestry at Washington, 

 is made a part of this report through the 

 courtesy of that department. It was veri- 



fied before the committee by the testi- 

 mony of the official who prepared it. 

 From this map it appears that fires raged 

 substantially throughout the entire 

 length of each of these railroads, except 

 the Racquette Lake Railroad. Of the 127 

 miles of the Mohawk and Malone, there 

 was scarcely 15 miles free from exten- 

 sive conflagrations on either side of its 

 track. None of the other lines except 

 the Racquette Lake is noticeably better, 

 and one is distinctly worse. It is diffi- 

 cult after examining this map to credit 

 50 per cent of the fires to other causes 

 than railroads. 



From the testimony of the officials of 

 the State Commission on Forestry, the 

 Forest Department at Washington, and 

 experts from Yale and Cornell Univer- 

 sities, the committee is satisfied that rea- 

 sonable precautions would effectually 

 prevent railroad fires. They are sub- 

 stantially unknown in European forests, 

 notwithstanding equal exposure. Not 

 a single fire occurred along the 18 miles 

 of the Racquette Lake Railroad, where 

 petroleum is used. While fires would 

 not occur except for the use of coal, they 

 are only set from engines burning coal 

 by reason of gross carelessness and lack 

 of reasonable precaution. The lack of 

 reasonable precaution is further shown 

 by insufficient fire patrol. General slack- 

 ness is promoted by inadequate laws fix- 

 ing the liability for fire damage and im- 

 posing official restraint and supervision 

 for fire prevention. There is no reason 

 why damage to the forests by fire occa- 

 sioned by carelessness should not be col- 

 lected equally with damages suffered by 

 private owners in more settled sections. 

 In fact, the obligation to the state to 

 avoid damage in such cases is as much 

 greater as the interest of the state and 

 its people is greater in their own forests 

 than in private lands. Legislation should 

 beenactedrequiringstrict accountability 

 in all such cases. 



Expert opinion is unanimous to the 

 effect that with reasonably efficient laws 

 providing against careless or wanton fire 

 setting, a system of fire patrol will pre- 

 vent extensive conflagrations. Such a 

 patrol should be established along rail- 

 roads and in sections frequented by 

 campers and fishermen. As the need of 



