Ixii APPENDIX. 



hot weather and when the forest is dry, only at the very com- 

 mencement can a fire generally be controlled by beating and 

 counterfiring must be early resorted to by the staff. In almost all 

 cases counterfiring must bs on ridges or in nalas, straight up and 

 downhill or along the top of a ridge. Counterfiring on the 

 horizontal or any thingapproaching it on the side of a hill will 

 sometimes serve to stop a fire with small flamSs from coming up 

 hill but this will be difficult. Such a counterfire will generally be 

 useless to stop a jfire coming downhill. It may be temporarily of 

 use to delay a fire in order to enable effectual measures to be taken 

 elsewhere but sooner or later burning cones and debris will fall 

 downhill. Even if a fire is ringed in and the running fire has 

 been put out, the watch of a horizontal fireline at the bottom of 

 the burnt area is very difficult and for days danger exists and at 

 any time burning material may fall and the fire break out again 

 lower down. 



Ridges undoubtedly are the best place to locate counterfires 

 though high winds may cause difficulty at times on them. 



Often when the wind is very strong the best thing is to collect 

 the supply of labour and rest the men and wait until the condi- 

 tions improve, it is useless to wear out men by attempting the 

 -impossible. In selecting a ridge for counterfiring local knowledge 

 is essential as it is useless to take a counterfire a mile or so down 

 a ridge to find that it ends in precipitous ground, down which the 

 line cannot be completed. The man or men with most local 

 knowledge must go ahead and direct the party who clear the strip 

 .from which the countcrfire is made. 



Nalas are useful for counterfiring only when broad or damp or 

 -when filled with broad leaved growth. If narrow and dry, burning 

 debris .will roll down from the burnt side and bounce across to the 

 protected forest and spread the fire. It is also difficult when 

 rflames are at all intense to prevent the fire, when counterfiring, 

 from crossing to the wrong side of a narrow nala. 



