EIGHTH ANNUAL REPORT 1914 



To THE HONORABLE BOARD OF STATE LAND COMMISSIONERS, 



IDAHO, AND MEMBERS OF THE CLEAR WATER TIMBER PRO- 

 TECTIVE ASSOCIATION : 



GENTLEMEN : 



I beg to submit the following report for the fire season of 

 1914: 



There was less snow fall during the winter of 1913-14 than 

 usual and this was gone some three weeks earlier than we have 

 ever known it to be before.' Though we had some light rains 

 during May and the earlier part of June they were not sufficiently 

 heavy to keep the decayed vegetation moist. There was practical- 

 ly no more rain after the light one that we had on June 20th until 

 September 7th when we had a rain of several days' duration that 

 extinguished the fires to such an extent that they caused us no 

 more trouble. 



The season opened June 1st when thirty men were employed 

 and we gradually increased this number as the fire hazard grew 

 worse until August 1st we had forty-nine men on the pay-roll. 

 During August and the first week of September we had about 

 three hundred men on the fire line. 



Only one fire was reported in June. On July~9th a general 

 lightning storm started nine fires and on July 13th five more and 

 on July 20th two more but these were easily controlled and were 

 completely extinguished with a very light loss before the first of 

 August. 



On July 28th a lightning fire was started on Washington 

 Creek in Sec. 35-39-6 E. which we trenched and had under com- 

 plete control except for the smouldering trash inside of the first 

 trench. During the high wind of August 2nd the sparks from 

 this smouldering trash blew into the moss-covered trees and start- 

 ed a crown fire that was impossible to control. This fire ran out 

 of 35-39-6 E. and across Sections 34 and 33 and into Section 5- 

 38-6 in less than two hours when the wind changed and we were 

 able to check it on the west. We continued to have high winds 

 for the next two weeks but they were generally from the west 

 and though the fire did not run much more to the west it was 

 impossible to get it under control on the north and east until 

 August 15th. During this trouble that we were having with 

 the Washington Creek fire there were a number of smaller fires 

 that were giving us considerable trouble. 



On August 20th a general lightning storm that covered the 



