ii6 



Sierra Club Bulletin 



the Association reached and extinguished all the small fires so quickly 

 that they had no chance to spread beyond control. The preventing of 

 fires from starting and the prompt suppression of little fires were the re- 

 sult of systematic work; luck played a very small part. 



There have now been constructed twenty-four miles of fire trails, and 

 this winter, which will complete the three-year construction period, it is 

 planned to build six miles additional. These thirty miles, of course, are 

 merely a beginning, for eventually every principal ridge and spur should 

 be traversed by a trail, even if the clearing is no wider than necessary 

 for a foot trail. Quick communication and bases from which to back-fire 

 are the first essentials in any brushy country. It seems probable that all 

 trails must be cleared out at least once every two years, calling for a 

 maintenance expense of about $25 per mile; the original cost of cleaning 

 out strips of from 10 to 20 feet in width has averaged in the neighbor- 

 hood of $100 per mile, and even at this cost the roots of the brush can 

 not be grubbed out. 



Because of the fact that no fires have as yet approached the trails al- 

 ready constructed no test of their usefulness has occurred, although in 

 other regions the efficiency of fire trails has been demonstrated for many 

 years. 



Several of the fires which have occurred during the past two seasons 

 have started along the right of way of the Mount Tamalpais and Muir 

 Woods Railway, doubtless from matches or burning tobacco carelessly 

 thrown from the cars. That source will always remain as a considerable 

 menace unless smoking on the trains should be prohibited. Other fires 

 have started chiefly from hunters, from the burning of rubbish, and 

 from boys playing with matches. The State fire laws are weak in many 

 ways, and in several of the towns around the mountain the fire ordinan- 

 ces are defective. Remedial legislation will be attempted. 



The main needs of the Association at present are many more fire pa- 

 trolmen, more fire trails and a paid system for fire fighters. The creation 

 of the Marin Municipal Water District will naturally help the work of 

 fire prevention immensely, for it means the establishment of a 12,000- 

 acre public park in the very heart of the Tamalpais country, implying 

 permanent public management and greatly extended lines of travel. The 

 Tamalpais Fire Association will continue in existence at least until such 

 time as the water district is in a position to take over the work. 



The plan of financial co-operation is the most unique part of the As- 

 sociation's work. There is no other similar organization in the United 

 States in which so many and so different interests are welded together 

 for the public good. All the land is privately owned and neither the 

 State nor federal governments assist in any way whatsoever. The prop- 

 erty owners subscribe 10 cents per acre each year, according to the size 

 of their holdings ; the towns contribute lump sums, more or less in pro- 

 portion to their assessed valuations; and the public which uses the 

 mountain as a playground aids financially through membership dues. 

 The property owners, without exception, have contributed generously 



