658 



Canadian forestry Journal, August, jpi6 



The Searchlight on Ontario 



A Frank Analysis of a Forest Protection System 



Maintained on an Outworn Model, With 



Suggestions for its Reformation 



By Robson Black, Secretary, The Canadian Forestry Association, Ottaiva. 



In the face of the appalHng forest 

 fire tragedy in Northern Ontario, 

 press and public are inquiring dili- 

 gently as to the causes of forest fires, 

 the methods of fire prevention, and 

 are asking very frankly if the Pro- 

 vincial Government can entirely 

 shake off responsibility for the 

 heavy harvest of death and de- 

 struction. 



The sacrifice of timber wealth, of 

 entire towns, of maturing crops, has 

 been a severe blow, particularly at a 

 time when the guarding and de- 

 veloping of national wealth are ac- 

 cepted as keys to victory in the 

 World War, but the conscience of 

 the public has been far more deeplv 

 aft'ected by the sacrifice of unre- 

 placable lives. 



The time to block forest conflagra- 

 tions is, paradoxically, before they 

 commence. Well-organized forest 

 protection systems in British Co- 

 lumbia, Nova Scotia and sections of 

 Quebec, as well as in the United 

 States and F.urope, have demon- 

 strated the comparative ease of pre- 

 venting fires from starting. After 

 the fire is well under way, the same 

 carefully organized systems can 

 usually succeed in isolating the 

 flames and greatly reducing the dam- 

 age. Success in preventing and in 

 fighting forest fires pre-supposes a 

 condition of aft'airs to which the On- 

 tario Department of Lands and 



Forest 



s IS vet a stranger. 



Nothim 



but a radical overhauling of the 

 forest service of the province can 



give the people any assurance that 

 1917 will not witne'ss a catastrophe 

 even more violent. 



In the first place, the forest serv- 

 ice of Ontario is built on a very old 

 model. While spending $300,000 a 

 year on "protection" not more than 

 a portion of that sum is represented 

 in "value received." 



The patrol of areas such as the 

 "Claybelt" makes no pretense at 

 thoroughness ; educational work in 

 fire prevention has been very slight, 

 and the flimsiest provision made 

 against such fearful onslaughts of 

 flames as have now taken their 

 ghastly toll. 



Ontario, outside the Reserves, 

 possesses ver}^ little equipment as 

 telephone lines, trails, highways, 

 lookout towers and cabins, such as 

 are absolutely essential to any eft'ec- 

 tive system of defence against fire. 



Real "Rights" of Settlers. 



One particular point of deficiency, 

 emphasized by the recent fires, is in 

 the ability to control settlers' burn- 

 ing operations. Quebec, British Co- 

 lumbia and Nova Scotia empower 

 their fire guardians to penalize a set- 

 tler who starts a clearing fire with- 

 out written permission from a quali- 

 fied ranger. In dry hot spells fires 

 of all kinds may be absolutely pro- 

 hibited in prescribed areas, and at 

 all times, even of comparative 

 safety, slash is piled properly or fire 

 lines cut around the clearing. On- 



