g^ CANADIAN FORESTEY ASSOCIATION. 



individually of making a start to the fire without making it necessary to be 

 called out by some official. (3) It gets enough men to work promptly to 

 have the fire under control in a very short time. And last, but not least, it 

 would bring neighbours together in one common cause and by accomplish- 

 ing their purpose would prove to them that in union there is strength, and 

 that in their united strength they have accomplished a work that is as 

 worthy to live in the memories of men as many a recorded heroic deed. 



DISCUSSION ON METHODS OF FIRE FIGHTING. 



Mr. Woods, in reply to a question, said that there was not much use 

 in fighting fire in the heat of the day. At ten o'clock the men usually were 

 so tired they had to rest until evening, when they began again. 



Hon. G. F. Hill, of St. Stephens, N.B., said his experience led him to 

 believe that men should fight fire at night between 4 p.m. and 10 a.m. 

 Mr. Hill gave an instance of a fire in some timber belonging to him. At 

 6 o'clock in the evening the case seemed hopeless. But one experienced 

 man gathered some four or five young men, who knew nothing of forest 

 fires, and with shovels they succeeded in controlling that fire before day- 

 light. This fire fighter placed his man at intervals and held each responsi- 

 ble for keeping back the fire in the space alloted to him. Speaking of rail- 

 ways, Mr. Hill said they should be compelled to patrol their lines, to put 

 out fires as well as to look after the roadbed. With their section men they 

 could readily do this. A man on a railway velocipede could follow up 

 trains to put out fires caused by sparks. 



The Chairman said that in Norway during the summer the soldiers 

 were distributed through the country to assist in fire protection. The 

 country was small, and there was a telephone system through the forests, 

 not practicable yet in Ontario or Quebec. He thought it would not be a 

 bad plan to give Canada's small regular army similar duty in summer. 



Mr. Irvin C. Williams told of methods successful in Pennsylvania. 

 When a forester or ranger was put in charge of a district his first duty was 

 to make a map of the roads and trails and to see these were made passable 

 for horses. They had a pack service train and in connection with this they 

 had a pack saddle which held two kegs, each capable of holding ten or fir- 

 teen gallons of water. Each had a spiggot to which a hose and force 

 pump might be attached. If a fire was discovered men were sent forward 

 some distance to cut a straight path two feet wide across its line. They 

 were followed by men with short rakes to rake up the leaves and litter as 

 rapidly as the cutting. A back fire was started and this was controlled by 

 the pack train men with their kegs of water. One man with horse and 

 water kegs could control one hundred feet of fire line, and, under good con- 

 ditions, even more. 



As to railway lines in Pennsylvania they had found it better, instead of 

 asking for drastic legislation, to go to the railways in a friendly spirit, 

 present the facts and ask for co-operation. The result was that some of 



