24 Forest Fires and their Prevention. 



the cost of protection is reduced to a inininiuiu. Oue man can patrol 

 much more territory if he feels responsible for all the area that comes 

 within his vision than if he has to look out for boundary lines and his 

 operations are restricted. Some form of co-oju'ration is essential for the 

 most successful fire-fighting. 



The value of co-operative associations has been pretty clearly demon- 

 strated in several of the far westeni States dui'ing the past two or three 

 years. Two separate kinds of associations for forest protection have 

 been formed; the one chiefly educational, the other engaging in the 

 actual protective work. 



Associations Chiefly Educational: — The Oregon Forest Fire Associa- 

 tion is a representative of this class. It does not itself engage actively 

 in fire work, but is a rather loose affiliation of individual patrol systems, 

 each doing its fire work independently, but using the central facilities 

 for legislative and publicity purposes and particularly to stimulate the 

 installation of further individual i)atrols. The formation of local co- 

 operative patrol associations is also encouraged. In fact, its main pur- 

 pose is for the general promotion of patrols in the State, of giving out 

 information regarding the best methods of protection, endeavoring to 

 induce the public to be more careful in the use of fire, and tiying to 

 persuade owners to maintain patrols. There is a large amount of Avork 

 of this nature to be done and it will belp the general movement, but of 

 course, the only way to prevent fires is to have patrolmen on the ground. 

 Such an association denotes a less advanced stage in co-0])erative effort — 

 for a large number of independent patrols cannot etpial systematic co- 

 operative management of the work in either economy or results — nor 

 does it have the same public standing. Moreover, without actual work 

 to do the association finds it hard to gain members or preserve its solid- 

 arity. Such an organization in North Carolina would not be of the 

 greatest value. The field is covered already, to a certain extent, by tlie 

 North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey, which is only kej»t 

 fz'om doing much more in this line by lack of funds. 



Associations Chiefly Protective: — What is wanted among timberland 

 owners in North Carolina is a close organization which can go ahead 

 and carry out ])atrol and other means of protection. This is being done 

 in the northwest by the Washington Forest Fire Association and the 

 several Idaho timber protective associations, which latter, it is gener- 

 ally conceded, afford the most efficient protection in the country. The 

 organization of these Associations includes a board of directors who 

 have power to levy and enforce the payment of assessments to defray 

 expenses in proportion to the number of acres owned by each member. 



