540 



Canadian Forestry Journal, May, ipi6. 



B. C. Fire Prospects 



Victoria, B.C.— Advices to the 

 Minister of Lands from the Southern 

 Interior of the Province mark the 

 beginning of the fire season, small 

 fires being reported from the Cran- 

 brook. Nelson and A'ernon forest 

 districts. In the first-named district 

 the late spring is retarding the 

 growth of vegetation so essential as 

 a check upon fires running along the 

 ground and burning the carpet of 

 pine needles, twgs. dry leaves, etc. 

 A hot and dry wind from the south 

 is drying up the vegetation in the 

 Okanagan and Similkameen dis- 

 tricts, while hot weather prevails 

 throughout the Vernon district gen- 

 erally. Farmers and settlers are re- 

 minded that permits are required for 

 all fires set from the beginning of 

 May, for which application should 

 be made to the local fire wardens. 

 Campers, sportsmen and travellers 

 are urged to exercise every care in 

 extinguishing camp fires, and the 

 co-operation of all sections of the 

 community is desired, in order that 

 damage to property may be avoided. 

 It is worthv of mention that in 1915 

 305 fires out of a total of 1,031 out- 

 breaks, were traced to campers and 

 travellers : while 267 were caused by 

 land-clearing operations. Damage 

 by fires to the timber in 1915 

 amounted to $109,000, and other 

 property, viz., logging equipment, 

 farm houses and buildings, etc., $58,- 

 000. The majority of all fires in 

 1915 were, as usual, due to human 

 agency, and were, therefore, pre- 

 ventable. Particularly this season, 

 when the Empire is engaged in a 

 vast and wealth-destroying war on 

 a scale hitherto unthought of, it is 

 the duty of every citizen to assist in 

 preserving our resources from avoid- 

 able destruction. 



the average for the past five years, 

 according to official figures just 

 compiled. This is in spite of the fact 

 that the season was an unusually 

 drv and hazardous one. 



Of the total of 6,329 fires only 346 

 did damage to the amount of $100 

 or more. The average damage done 

 by each fire was kept down to 

 $60.41. which was less than the av- 

 erage for the past five years. The 

 average cost of fighting each fire 

 was lowered almost $21 below the 

 average for the past five years. 



Fire on the national forests in 1915 

 destroyed $190,000 worth of mature 

 tinibed. The damage to young 

 growth, forage and stream flow can- 

 not be calculated but was much 

 greater. 



Among the causes of these fires, 

 lightning as usual holds first place, 

 with 2Sy2 per cent. The careless- 

 ness of campers, responsible for 

 more than 1100 forest fires, comes 

 second. In California, however, 

 fires caused by campers heads the 

 list, with a percentage of almost 25 

 per cent, of the fires in the State; 

 lightning comes second with almost 

 20 per cent. 



The railroads were responsible for 

 only 9 per cent. Sawmills and log- 

 ging operations caused less than 3 

 per cent., and the causes of 15 per 

 cent, are unknown. Nearly 11 per 

 cent, of the total w^ere of incendiary 

 origin. 



Fewer Forest Fires in U.S. 



The damage done by forest fires 

 on the national forests of the United 

 States in 1915 was much less than 



Forestry Farms 



"Saskatchewan requires more 

 Forestry Farms. Then there would 

 be at least two lectures continuous- 

 ly on the road to hold meetings, giv- 

 ing lectures on forestry, shelter- 

 belts, etc. The gospel of tree-plant- 

 ing should be brought to farmers. 

 These lectures could take the names 

 and locations of farmers who are 

 anxious and ready to plant trees, 

 send in the lists to the head office 

 in the province, and inspectors 

 should be sent out to examine each 

 farm, so as to advise farmers where 



