HERMAN H. CHAPMAN 63 



the old plan of making town officials serve as wardens, 

 changed her law so as to require these same officials to 

 appoint a fire warden for the town, which choice must 

 be approved by the state fire warden. Connecticut and 

 Massachusetts both passed similar laws, in which while the 

 town supervisors appointed the warden, the state forester 

 had to approve of the appointment. A feature of all good 

 fire laws is the office of state fire warden. Local wardens 

 need the presence of some higher authority both to edu- 

 cate and stimulate them in their duties, and to have the 

 power, at least, of removing them if they are incompetent. 

 Conservative states like Massachusetts did not wish to 

 take the power of appointment away from the town, but 

 allowed the state warden enough authority to accomplish 

 the desired result of impressing the town warden with 

 his responsibility to the state official. 



Fire Patrol. 



But the state and town fire wardens, however efficient, 

 cannot control fires without the aid of public sentiment 

 and the active support of land owners. Up to within very 

 recent years, the sole duties of such officials were to ex- 

 tinguish fires that were already started. But the proper 

 way to keep out fires is to prevent their starting. To do 

 this requires a fire patrol, which means the employment 

 of men by the week or month, and paying them wages 

 while so employed. Town fire wardens were in some 

 states required to patrol their territory, and could ap- 

 point men for this purpose, but usually nothing of the 

 kind was contemplated. The obstacle has always been 

 the cost of establishing an efficient system of patrols. Tax- 

 payers do not appreciate the necessity for it, and will not 

 vote for the appropriations. It is not until there is a 

 lively demand for such service that the funds will be forth- 

 coming to secure it. The increased effectiveness of paid 

 patrols over town fire wardens has been demonstrated 



