Report of tee Forest Commission. 31 



David Deyo, firewarden for the town of Hurley, Ulster 

 county, reports : 



On March Slst a farmer in this town started to burn brush, and the 

 fire got the best of him. I was sent for, and went there with sufficient 

 help and put it out. It burned over about 20 acres, doing little or no 

 damage, as there were no fences on the farm, and it was so early in 

 the season that the buds had not started. 



The next day about noon the wind started this fire again in the 

 woods. 1 called out sufficient help to fight it. On account of the wind 

 we had to back fire about 15 acres. The timber being good size and 

 the wind strong, the fire moved so fast that it did not do much 

 damage. 



April 2d I was again called out again. Some parties who were piling 

 cordwood started a fire to take dinner, and left it without putting it 

 out. The wind started it up, and we had to back fire to stop it. It 

 burned over about five acres. No damage was done, as the cordwood 

 did not burn, and it was too early in the season to harm the young 

 timber. 



On July 4th I was called out to fight a forest fire about two miles 

 away. I found the fire between two roads, and burning nearly to the 

 rjad. So we stopped the fire at the roads. No cordwood was burned, 

 and very little damage was done, for the land is so poor that no timber 

 will grow on it. About 20 or 30 acres were burned over. I could not 

 learn how the fire started. 



On August 21st I was called to go to a fire about five miles away; I 

 was absent from home that day, and so my son acted as firewarden in 

 my place. Near Morgan Hill, where the fire was burning, there was 

 plenty of help, but the men had to back fire along the roads in order to 

 stop the progress. No great damage was done. No cordwood nor 

 logs were burned, but 100 acres or more was damaged slightly. The 

 land was rough, and nothing growing on it. 



On August 23d I was called on to go to a fire in the north part of the 

 town. We worked until 3 o'clock when we had the fire out, as we sup- 

 posed. We think it started from sparks from an engine on the Ulster 

 and Delaware railroad. About 10 acres were burned over. Damage 

 little, if any. 



On August 24th, the next day, I was called out, as this fire had started 

 up again. It was a very dry time, and it was impossible to stop it with- 

 out back firing one and one-half miles to a road called the Stone road 

 where we finished. About 12 acres of land were burned over; but as 

 there was no timber growing on it, no damage was done. On August 25th 



