762 
Journal of Agricultural Research 
Vol. XXX, No. 8 
FIRE RECORDS 
To provide an accurate basis for 
future rating by the methods outlined 
in this report, or by any other scien¬ 
tific method, it is essential that accurate 
records be kept of all fires throughout 
the country. Since the value of such 
records varies directly with their com¬ 
pleteness and accuracy—inaccurate 
records are but little more useful than 
none at all—it will be decidedly worth 
while to take considerable pains to see 
that they are made and kept in good 
shape. All reports on individual fires 
should be checked up by a competent 
supervisory officer to see that they 
give the information that is required 
to make them useful. For the purpose 
of rating hazards and liabilities, the 
reports for each protective organiza¬ 
tion should always give at least the 
following information; other data may 
be desired from time to time for ad¬ 
ministrative studies of various sorts: 
1. Location of the fire. 
2 . Date and hour of the discovery of the fire (and 
of its start if known); of the start of work on it; 
when it was under control; when it was out. 
3. Cause, in detail. For instance, if a camper 
fire, what kind of a camper—traveler, sheep-herder, 
campfire? 
4. Cover. Forest type, age class, risk class. 
5. Area burned, classified according to types, 
age, and risk classes, if more than one. 
6 . Destructible values on the burned area before 
the fire. 
7. Losses—quantities (thousand feet by species, 
and fully stocked acres of young growth by types 
and age classes, if more than one) and values, 
according to standard figures. 
8 . Costs of suppression—itemized in such a way 
that that part of the cost chargeable to primary 
protection may be kept distinct from special fire¬ 
fighting costs. 
In addition to the detailed individual 
reports on all fires, which may be 
transferred to tabulation sheets or 
punched cards for convenience in filing 
and future study, it is also desirable 
that sets of maps be kept up to date 
showing the character and values of 
the cover on the whole area, and the 
locations of all fires covered in the 
reports. Such maps should be on a 
fairly large scale, preferably one-half 
inch or one inch to the mile. The 
fire records should be made permanent, 
and those for any one organization 
should preferably be kept all together 
in one place. 
