134 Third Annual Report of the 



not come until well along in the summer ; then, dry weather pre- 

 vailed until the end of October. The worst fires occurred in Sep- 

 tember and October. 



The area burned over in the years 1903 and 1908 alone was 

 about 832,000 acres, or 25 per cent, of the total of the total area 

 of the Adirondack park. 



KINDS OF FOREST FIRES 



For a proper consideration of forest fires, it is necessary to 

 divide them into three distinct classes, namely, (1) surface fires, 

 (2) ground fires, and (3) crown fires. The damage caused by 

 fires depends largely upon the kind of fire. The timber growth 

 and debris on the land and the atmospheric conditions prevailing 

 at the time the fire originates, are important factors in influencing 

 the progress of the fire. For instance, a crown fire is practically 

 unknown in the farming regions of the State, where forest growth 

 occurs mainly in the form of comparatively small woodlots, con- 

 taining principally hardwood trees, and practically surrounded by 

 open fields. 



There are many factors which combine to influence the char- 

 acter of a forest fire when it has once been started. Most im- 

 portant of all is the condition of the ground and of the atmosphere 

 as regards moisture content. In New York State, the seasons oi 

 the year when danger from forest fires is greatest, are usually 

 during the early spring, immediately after the snow has gone off 

 the ground and before vegetation has become green, and in the 

 fall after the leaves have fallen from the trees and the vegetation 

 on the ground has become dry. A few days of sunshine then ren- 

 ders this dry and dead vegetable material highly inflammable 

 and only a spark is needed to kindle the fire. 



The amount of inflammable material on the ground is also an 

 important factor in determining the severity and extent of forest 

 fires. In this factor may be found the reason for the large amount 

 of attention which has been given by lumbermen and foresters in 

 this country, during recent years, to devising practical methods 

 for removing the slash left on the ground after lumbering. Of 

 course the amount of this inflammable material depends entirely 



