34 FOREST FIRES I^ NORTH CAROLINA. 



from fire, has until A'ery recently received no attention from the State, 

 and only in certain noteworthy instances, particularly those of Asheville 

 and Marion, from the municipal authorities themselves. 



A bare, hard soil surface, such as is left by burning the woods, allows 

 the rainfall to collect and run directly to the streams, carrying with it 

 small particles of soil, decaying vegetable or animal matter or other 

 material, often laden with typhoid and other disease germs. If, however, 

 the woods are protected from fire, there will be a good coat of leaves on 

 the ground, held together by grass, weeds, and bushes. This makes an 

 absorbent cover to the soil which acts as a sponge, soaking up the rain 

 as it falls and at the same time keeping the soil soft and pei'meable so 

 that the rainfall will nearly all of it be soaked into the ground. In this 

 way all impurities are filtered out, and the springs are supplied regularly 

 Avith clear, pure water. 



The movement for more complete control by cities and towns of their 

 water supplies has grown very rapidly in North Carolina. At the 1915 

 session of the Legislature a number of our mountain towns secured the 

 necessary permission to purchase or enlarge their watersheds, Waynes- 

 ville, Asheville, Hendersonville, Tryon, and Old Fort being among 

 them. These municipal forests must be protected from fire as well as 

 from other dangerous and deleterious influences. Municipal authorities 

 should see that this law is enforced wherever it is applicable. In ad- 

 dition, they should assist the responsible officers in every possible way in 

 the strict enforcement of the general forest fire law. 



Watersheds on which part or all of the land is in private ownership 

 may have to be further protected by the enactment of a laAv to prohibit 

 parties burning over even their own land. Possibly, how^ever, the State 

 Board of Health has already sufficient power to control this. 



LAWS FOR THE CREATION OF STATE FORESTS. 

 NEED FOR DEMONSTRATION IN FORESTRY. 



Two-thirds of the land area of Xorth Carolina is in Avoods and only 

 one-third is cultivated. The Avoodland, however, yields a much smaller 

 revenue to its owners than does the cleared land. Why? Is it not, at 

 least in part, because we bestow so little thought and labor on the two- 

 thirds which is in forest ? No one will work in the woods unless he gets 

 immediate returns in the form of sawlogs, ties, cordwood, etc. Yet much 

 forethought and labor without direct result is expended on the cultivated 

 land. Is it not worth Avhile to knoAv how such forethought and work can 

 be made to increase the value and yields of two-thirds the total area 

 of the State? IIow has our State Government set aboul improving 



