1364 



Canadian Forestry Journal. October, 1917 



vent them from leaving the squaw 

 without any food. I almost had to 

 use force to get them to start out for 

 Byng Inlet. Ten miles distant we 

 found a trail which helped us out 

 and reached the mill at ten at night 

 where we got plenty to eat and wash- 

 ed our hands and faces. The first 

 time in two weeks. We were more 

 like negroes than white men. 



A few days before it looked like a 

 physical impossibility to come out 

 of our trials alive. I sent an Indian 

 back to the squaw with four times 

 as much flour as we used. I left our 

 men here to rest up three or four days 

 before proceeding. 



Starting the Drive. 



I was up bright and early next 

 morning, as I knew I was urgently 

 required to start the drives. I had 

 a camp at Shawinager and started out 

 on snow shoes that I borrowed. The 

 distance from Byng Inlet to Shaw- 

 inager through the woods was 45 

 miles, with no road or trail. At dark 

 I was able to strike an unused govern- 

 ment road which led to our camp, 

 which I reached after everyone was 

 in bed. I looked over this timber 

 and works in the forenoon, (we were 

 getting out what was called Tona- 

 wanda timber, which was got out the 

 full length of the tree; in the summer 

 I towed this across Lake Huron to 

 Detroit), and took one of the teams 

 to carry me to Rosseau, which I 

 reached after midnight. 



The winter roads had broken up 

 and I could not get anyone for love 

 or money to take me to Bracebridge, 

 Muskoka district, my objective point, 

 so I started out on foot again for a 

 35 mile tramp. I remember the mud 

 was ankle deep in places and with 

 dirty clothes and deer skin moccasins, 

 I certainly was a "Lough" looking 

 tramp. Next morning I was busy 

 hiring men for the drives for the 

 various camps, apparently none the 

 worse after about as hard an ex- 

 perience as few lumbermen, even in 

 those rigorou? days ever had. 



EAST VALUES B. C. WOOD 



1916 witnessed a remarkable in- 

 crease in consumption of B.C. lum- 



ber in eastern Canada, the quantity 

 sold in the east in 1916 being almost 

 double that of previous years — a most 

 satisfactory showing in a competitive 

 market such as this where native 

 and imported woods are readily avail- 

 able. 



Energetic educational work has 

 been carried on by the B.C. Forest 

 Branch in Eastern Canada for the 

 past 18 months, resulting in a wider 

 knowledge and appreciation of the 

 excellencies of British Columbia 

 woods and a better understanding 

 by our mills of the requirements of 

 the eastern market. This market 

 should show substantial increases 

 from year to year and be of great 

 value to our industry. With the 

 return of normal shipping conditions 

 it is hoped to establish a cargo trade 

 from British Columbia to eastern 

 Canadian ports via the Panama Canal. 

 —B. C. Official Report. 



TROOPS USED IN FOREST FIRES 



The forest fire situation became 

 very acute in August and early in 

 September, due to the fact that there 

 had not been any rain for nearly 

 seventy days in the western part of 

 Oregon and Washington. Forest fires 

 were becoming alarmingly prevalent. 

 In Columbia county, as an example, 

 experienced state fire wardens soon 

 became aware of the fact that the 

 men whom they were receiving from 

 the Portland employment offices were 

 in themselves a menace and were 

 actually setting fires. Incendiarism 

 was becoming rife. 



Upon application to Governor 

 W'ithycombe of Oregon, Colonel C. 

 E. Dentler, commander of the North- 

 west department of the United States 

 Army, was appealed to and under 

 the direction of Hugh Henry, man- 

 ager of the Oregon Forest Fire Asso- 

 ciation, small bodies of cavalry and 

 motor patrolmen were distributed 

 throughout the forest regions of 

 Oregon. The results were very grati- 

 fying. Not only was incendiarism 

 brought t.^ an abrupt close but in 

 one or more instances the soldiers 

 actually assisted in the putting out 

 of the fires. 



