32 SECOND BIENNIAL EEPORT [W. VA. 



"Postmasters in or near National Forests are also directed to report fire* 

 to the nearest Forest officer." 



Kespectfully, 



P. V. DEGRAW, 

 Fourth Assistant Postmaster General'. 



With the assistance that can be obtained from the Post Office Department, 

 as indicated by the above letter, it will be possible to check many fires in their 

 early stages and thus save much expense and great loss. 



Polution of Streams. 



No other question has required so much earnest thought and investigation 

 as has the polution of the streams of West Virginia, and while we ca'n say 

 with pardonable pride that much has been done in the past four years toward 

 bettering conditions and purifying our streams, yet it must be admitted that 

 much remains to be done before the desired results are accomplished. 



Looking to the purification of streams, a careful comparison made with con- 

 ditions existing in other industrial States leads to the conclusion that as much 

 or more has been done in West Virginia, in the same length of time, than in 

 any other State. 



If all of the correspondence, data, and reports of investigations made, 

 relative to the polution of streams in the last few years, were compiled and 

 published it would fill a large volume, but it is not possible in this report to 

 discuss at length the manifold and numerous cases coming under this section 

 of our Statute. To show, however, the difficulties encountered in these cases, 

 there is appended hereto the correspondence had with regard to the tannery 

 at Elkins, which is one of the many sources of polution to be found within our 

 State. - 



There is no question but that this, as well as many other industries of our 

 State should have taken some action, before this, to reduce the polution flow- 

 ing into our streams, but it will be' seen from this correspondence that while 

 it has been determined that a portion of the poisonuos matter could be elmi- 

 nated, yet no way has been devised whereby our streams may be entirely 

 cleansed from this polution. 



In dealing with the polution question the displeasure of a few of the oper- 

 ators of industrial plants has been incurred on account of insistent demands 

 that conditions be made better; likewise, criticisms have been numerous from 

 many good citizens of the State because more drastic action has not been taken, 

 and industries- that were poluting certain waters persecuted, as well as prose- 

 cuted, many of them going to the extent to say that every tannery, paper mill 

 and coal mine in the State should be enjoined and closed down, rather than 

 have our beautiful streams of water ruined; but it has been our intention 

 in all such cases to take a sensible and conservative view of these matters, and 

 while everything possible has been done to reduce this polution, yet it has been 

 deemed unwise to go to the extent of crippling or ruining 'an industry, espec- 

 ially when no permanent good could be accomplished by so doing. 



The State of Pennsylvania, the conditions of which in this respect are very 

 similar to those of our own State, has been grapling with this question for 



