64 SUGGESTED FORESTRY LEGISLATION 



A Bill to be Entitled An Act to Require the Railroads of the State to 

 Take Certain Precautions for the Prevention of Forest Fires. 



The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact: 



Section 1. All persons, firms or corporations operating any railroad, log- 

 ging road or tramroad through woodland within this State shall keep their 

 right of way cleared of all combustible materials within a horizontal distance 

 of one hundred (100) feet, nowhere to exceed one hundred and fifty (150) 

 feet surface measurement, from the outer rail on each side of the track, by 

 burning or other method. Combustible material, as referred to in this act, 

 shall be construed to mean only such brush, grass, leaves or other material that 

 would ordinarily become ignited from a spark from the engine. When the 

 right of way owned does not extend to the width of the cleared space or fire 

 line herein required, the right is hereby granted to said persons, firms or 

 corporations to enter upon adjoining lands not owned by them, for the pur- 

 pose of clearing off and maintaining the cleared space or fire line herein re- 

 quired. If any landowner should object to the clearing off and maintenance 

 of the fire line herein required, he shall not be entitled to collect any dam- 

 ages thereafter occurring from fires caused by sparks from the engines of 

 said persons, firms or corporations. Each railroad, logging road or tramroad 

 affected hereby shall be required to clear off each year not more than one-fifth 

 (1-5) of the total length of the fire line required by this section until all has 

 been completed, and shall continue to keep such fire line clear after it has once 

 been cleared off. The part of the mileage to be cleared off by such railroad 

 shall be designated by the Geological Board after conference with the proper 

 officer of such railroad, logging road or tramroad. Any railroad wilfully vio- 

 lating the provisions of this section shall be liable to a penalty of not less 

 than ten ($10.00) dollars nor more than twenty-five ($25.00) dollars for every 

 mile or fraction thereof of fire line not cleared according to the provisions of 

 this section: Provided, that this section shall not be construed to prohibit or 

 prevent any railroad company from piling or keeping upon the right of way, 

 crossties or other material necessary in the operation or maintenance of such 

 railroad or materials intended for shipment over such railroad; nor is it in- 

 tended to require the removal of buildings, fences or other necessary or valu- 

 able improvements from the fire line herein required: Provided further, 

 that the notice to the adjoining landowners required by section three thou- 

 sand three hundred and forty-six of The Revisal of one thousand nine 

 hundred and five shall not apply to any burning necessary to carry out 

 the provisions of this section: Provided, further, that nothing in this 

 section shall be construed to require the railroad company to clear the 

 fire line on property not owned by said company should the owner object, 

 and no failure on this account shall be charged against the railroad company 

 as a violation of this act. 



Sec. 2. When engineers, conductors or trainmen employed by any railroad 

 discover that fences or other material along the right of way or woodland 

 adjacent to the railroad are burning or in danger from fire, they shall report 

 the same promptly at the next telegraph or telephone station at which the 

 train is scheduled to stop, or at any other stops necessary in the operation of 

 the train. The reporting of such fires shall not be construed to mean that the 

 railroad companies making such report are responsible for such fires, nor 

 shall such report be used in evidence in a suit arising from such fire, but is 

 simply for the purpose of giving information as to the existence of a fire. In 

 seasons of drought the railroad companies shall give instructions to their 

 section foremen for the prevention and prompt extinguishing of fires origi- 

 nating on their right of way, and they shall cause warning placards, furnished 

 by the Geological Board, to be posted at their stations in the vicinity of 

 forest lands. Any railroad company wilfully violating the requirements of 

 this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and railroad employees wilfully 

 violating the requirements of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. 



Sec. 3. For the purpose of this act woodland is taken to include all forest 

 areas, both timber land and cut-over land, and all second growth stands on 

 areas that have at one time been cultivated. 



