APPEARANCE OF VEGETATION AROUND ANACONDA. 39 



tinned east in the National Forest toward the top of the mountains, 

 it was noticed that practically all of the red firs, both young and old, 

 were either killed or dying. Toward the top of the mountain lodge- 

 pole pines were found, but they w^ere apparently uninjured. No note- 

 worthy fire had swept over this region for approximately forty-five 

 years, and yet the red firs were dying. Since the country in sees. 1 

 and 2, T. 4 N., R. 9 W., is just about as close to the Butte smelters 

 as to the Washoe smelter, it is of course imj)ossible to say which one 

 was responsible for the damage; probably all contributed to it. 



The road that runs from Anaconda along the east side of the Deer 

 Lodge Valley, and up Dry Cottonwood Creek, was followed to sees. 6 

 and 7, T. 5 N., R. 8 W., about 14 miles from the smelter. The lodge- 

 pole pines along the creek and in sees. 6 and 7 were not injured or dis- 

 colored. In Dry Cottonwood Valley proper the red firs were in 

 excellent condition. (See Plate IX.) On the bluff bounding Dry 

 Cottonwood Creek on the south, approximately in sec. 7, T. 5 N., 

 R. 8 W., quite a number of old red firs were dead, but since there were 

 hundreds of others, as well as of young red firs, in perfect condition 

 growing around the dead trees, it is hardly possible that fumes were 

 causing injury at this point to any great extent during the summer of 

 1908. That fumes were reaching this region, however, was shown by 

 the fact that small amounts of arsenic were found on the range grass. 

 On the whole it appears, then, that this region was at the extreme 

 limit of injury to red firs under the conditions existing in the summer 

 of 1908. It is of course possible, even probable, that the considerable 

 number of old red firs that were dead had been killed a number of 

 years before by the fumes from the Butte smelters. 



SOUTH OF THE SMELTER. 



A trip was made south of the smelter over a large portion of the 

 country covered by sees. 13, 14, 15, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, T. 4 N., 

 R. 11 W. While all of these sections were not visited, they could be 

 plainly observed from commanding positions. All over the flat cov- 

 ered by the sections named, which runs from a point a little south of 

 the smelter to about a mile beyond Mill Creek (about 4 miles south 

 of smelter), the large trees had been cut off and a fire had passed 

 over the country about eighteen or twenty years before, as was shown 

 by the scars on a few older trees and the lack of scars on young 18 to 19 

 year old lodgepole pines, which evidently grew after the fire. All of 

 these young pines were dead or very badly injured, their needles were 

 all badly discolored, and about three-fourths of them were entirely 

 dead. No red firs were growing on this flat. 



An inspection tour was also made up Willow Creek approximately 

 to sec. 13, T. 3 N., R. 11 W., a point about 7h miles south of the 

 grnelter; Oleson Gulch was also visited and Fourth of July Gulch 



