440 FIRE-CONSERVANCY. 



proximity to the preserved grass on either side. Often large pieces 

 of dry fallen wood, and even portions of standing trees take fire ; if 

 allowed to burn on, they would prove a serious menace to the 

 safety of the forest, should a strong wind spring up or a tree 

 or a large branch be burnt through and fall across the trace. 

 The burning portions should be at once completely cut out. 

 The men should be armed each with a broom, a sickle, a light axe 

 and a pitch-fork, and they should be expert at climbing trees. 

 They should leave behind them nothing that is dangerous and 

 ought to be put out. 



Fire-tracing is very dry and exhausting work and the men must 

 have a constant supply of good drinking water with them. One 

 or more men should be told off specially to bring this supply from 

 the nearest source. In some districts pools of good drinking water 

 are met with at numerous points along the traces during the cold 

 weather, when the main part of the fire-tracing work must be 

 accomplished ; there the men could wait for a drink until the 

 nearest pool was reached. In very dry localities wells must be 

 sunk at certain intervals ; but we shall have to say more about this 

 lower down. 



It remains to advise the student regarding the actual firing of 

 the traces. We will begin by describing in detail the procedure 

 to follow in the first firing of a trace on more or less level ground 

 with a specially prepared guide line on either side. The student 

 will then be able to understand without difficulty the brief remarks 

 that will follow (1) on the first burning of traces on more or less 

 level ground, wherein the fire has to be controlled on one side 

 only, (2) on the first burning of traces on steep or hilly ground, 

 and (3) on the second and subsequent burnings of traces that have 

 not been completely cleared by the first firing. 



I. FIRST BURNING OF LEVEL TRACES ON WHICH THE FIRE IS TO 



BE CONTROLLED ON BOTH SIDES. The distribution of the men and 

 the mode of firing will depend on the direction of the wind relative 

 to the trace. The wind may blow either (a) in the direction itself 

 of the ti'ace, or (b) obliquely to it, or (c) more or less at right angles 

 to it or (d) there may be no wind at all. It is evident that 

 the first case will be of rarest, the second of most frequent, 

 occurrence. 



(a) Direction of mind and trace coincident. It is evident that 

 the work should march against the wind, otherwise the fire would 

 run along with the wind in the direction of the unburnt portion of 

 the trace and would thus be very difficult, if not impossible, to con- 



