43 2 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF 



poses of protection against fire and otherwise, it is necessary to subdivide the tract 

 and make it readily accessible in all its parts. 



Such subdivision or districting may be made by a system of square blocks, or 

 else by adapting the shape of the subdivisions to the lay of the land in more or less 

 irregular figures. The former system is best adapted to level or plains country, the 

 latter to a mountain country. Nevertheless, a square system of subdivision has been 

 applied to the tract in township 23, which is the more level portion of the property, 

 while the natural system will be applied to the more rugged portion in township 26. 

 In this way the two systems and their advantages and disadvantages can be 

 demonstrated. 



The property in township 23, which will hereafter be designated as the " Waw- 

 beek District," has been divided by a square system of lines into forty-acre lots or 

 compartments, beginning from the western and southern boundary, so that the lots 

 on the eastern and northern boundary are not always of the full size. 



Not all of the division lines have been opened up, but only those running west and 

 east and one line running south and north through the middle, besides the boundary 

 lines. For the present these lines, which were located and used as bases by the sur- 

 veyors, are opened and brushed for only three or four feet in width, capable of being 

 used as trails, but some of them will be enlarged, as woodcutting progresses from 

 compartment to compartment, separating the tiers of compartments from each other 

 more clearly. The east-west lines are lettered from south to north, and the compart- 

 ments numbered from west to east, and a post set on every line and quarter mile, so 

 that the compartment can be at once located as soon as a quarter-mile post is found. 

 Thus, if the quarter post marked " H. 6 " is found by a guard or laborer or inspector, 

 he knows at once that he is eight quarter miles from the southern and six quarter 

 miles from the western boundary, and he can readily find any other point to which 

 he is sent. The advantage of this very simple and readily comprehensible system 

 of rendering the tract accessible has made itself apparent during the forest fires 

 which, unfortunately, were so frequent during the late summer. In this part of the 

 property it was easy to quickly locate a fire and send squads of men, entirely igno- 

 rant of the locality, to the fire. Eventually these lines will also serve as " fire lines," 

 bases from which defensive measures may be employed, together with such roads as 

 will be constructed. 



Road-building has been and will be delayed until market conditions are developed 

 and the proper location of a system of roads has been thoroughly studied. There 

 was, however, an opportunity offered to build three-fifths of a mile of highway under 

 contract with the town of Harriettstown, extending the highway built by the town 

 of Santa Clara from Saranac Inn. 



