PROTKCIIOX OF FORESTS FROM FIRE 299 



a patrol during the dr}' season, of fighting fires, and of 

 building trails and telephone lines to assist in fire fight- 

 ing, is apportioned among the members of the association 

 on an acreage basis. 



Proper Equipment for Fighting Fires. — Just as in a 

 city the efficiency of a fire service depends in large part 

 on the equipment, so also in forest work it is essential 

 that fire fighters be furnished with the proper tools and 

 other equipment. The implements needed for fighting 

 fires differ under different conditions. Wherever dirt 

 can be used the men should be provided with long-han- 

 dled shovels. If water is available, buckets should be 

 provided, and, where possible, bucket pumps. Under 

 most conditions it is desirable to have mattocks and iron 

 rakes, and there should always be axes to aid in clearing 

 brush or cutting through down timber and old tops. 



These implements should be kept in a convenient 

 place for use in fighting fires. Proper organization for 

 fire protection includes an adequate equipment for the 

 fire-fighting force. No matter how numerous or skilled 

 the crew, the men are helpless without proper imple- 

 ments. In the protection of woodlots in settled regions 

 every farmer who repairs to a fire usually takes his own 

 shovel, rake, ax, or other implement. In the more re- 

 mote forests under organized protection, the implements 

 are usually provided by the ranger. A very good plan 

 is to have caches at convenient points on the trails or at 

 the lookout stations, containing fire-fighting tools. In 

 some cases in the mountain regions tools are kept in a 



