Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (July 27, 1952)
ZIGHT MEDFORD .(OREGOW) MAIL TRIBUHT 8nndr July 27, 198 U ElTillion Acres of Forest Lands in Southern Oregon Get State Protection Southwest Oregon District Has Job Of Fire Prevention Responsibility Includes . : Most of Two Counties Ted Maul is a heavy-set, bull headed (by his own admission) guy who is fire chief and police chief for 1,555,000 acres of for est land in southwestern Ore ' gon. Specifically, Maul's job is that of district warden of the South west Oregon district of the State Department of Forestry. He - bosses 16 year-around em ployees and in summer fire-season months there are 85 other employees on the district pay rolls lookouts, guards, fire crewmen and foremen. Cooperation Important Maul would be the first to ad mit that the success of his work and the record of the district under him and his predecessors has been excellent depends in large measure upon cooperation; cooperation between the state agency, the federal agencies charged with responsibility for the nation's - timber resources, and with members of the lumber industry, big and small. The district's police functions include the duty of enforcing all state forest conservation and fire laws. This means that logging and milling operations in the ter ritory protected by the state must be checked, and that the foresters must see that they are operated accordingly. But as Maul says, you've got to use a little common sense in enforcing laws. In a bad fire, the district deDends on the inriiistrv for manpower. And it's difficult xo arrest a man for a minor vio lation one day, and ask him for neip tne next. So the state's forpst nnlirempn and firemen work at it with the idea that the main goal is com pliance and coODeration Where necessary, of course, arrests are maae. Hug Area The area for which the district office is responsible is tremen dous, taking in most of Jackson and Josephine counties. Thprp are a few scattered parts of the two counties where the U. S. For est Service, or a cooperative fire 'Prevention aeencv. has th re. sponsibility. And there is an area stretching down the middle of the valley, including Medford and its environs, for which the . patrol, as the department is generally known, is not respon sible. To protect this huge area from ine ravages of fire, the district has a yearly budget of about jaou.uuu. it nas 14 lookouts and 14 regular guard stations nii four guards stationed in their own homes. . ; Most of the guards do not work lull year for the district, serv Ing only throueh the fi There are a fpw pynprionpoi men, however, that do spend the iuu year m the district's employ. Some Stay Year-Around Some of the other guards, usuauy older and seasoned men, live in the- guard stations the year-around, and the state fig. Ures it is EOod econnmv in fur. nish the living quarters during the winter to ly-skilled man will return to worn in the spring. The lookouts are perched on peaks throughout the ties, and between them overlook most oi the forested areas of the county. One more lookout is being planned in eastern Jack son county, and when it is com pleted the network of smoke observation stations will be rounded out, with few, if any "blind spots." y' Some of the lookouts return, year after year, during the fire season. Others are brand new each year. Maul says the more experienced of the lookouts get so that they can spot a strange smoke almost without looking for it so familiar do they be come with the view from their mountaintops. These older look outs rarely if ever report a smoke that does not turn out to be a fire. The greener hands, ivwever, noi Knowing the exact location of a mill, or a railroad Or a slash hnrnirm - other smoke source, often report It is the job of the dispatcher at district headquarters to take i. JooKout reports, plus any other fire reports, and decide .how they shall be handled. If a smoke is spotted by one lookout. -vu.wmumra dv another, a crew is dispatched immediately to the area. The lookouts' reports are made by radio, ordinarily, although each also has a telephone. The radio network is a highly effect ive and integrated one, with 18 ground stations (at Jackson and Josephine headquarters, on all lookouts and at two guard sta tions) and in addition there are about 60 mobile units, including several "handie-talkies," or "pea nut" sets, which weigh only a few pounds. The "peanuts" were designed' by a technician in state head quarters of the forestry depart ment and so effective "are they that they have been adopted fori Sits Wm BUTTE FALLS GUARD STATION The guard station at Butte Falls, shown above, is fairly typical of the 14 such stations scattered throughout the southwest Oregon district of the state department of forestry. The guard and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Bean, live here during fire season, and live In Rogue River during the winter. In addition to answering fire calls, Bean issues entry permits during forest closure periods, and is otherwise - responsible for forest fire 'protection in state-guarded. lands in the area. Some guard stations have resident crews of boys living there during the summer use by a number of other agen cies. One of Many Tools Radio has been used as one of the "tools" of the forester's iob for a number of vearsl Others, all of them important, include the lookouts, tne stand by fire-fighting crews, the guard stations, the heavy equipment, including pump trucks, person nel trucks, cars, pickups and tractors, and hand tools, ranging from , axes and shovels to more specialized tools designed solely for fire-fighting. What happens when a good sized fire gets going? That, of course, depends on a number of circumstances the location, the extent, weather con ditions, the availability of personnel. It is important to remember that within the state forest pro tective district, the district war den and his staff are charged by law with the responsibility for fighting fire. If it gets too big for state to pay the fire-fighters the Aid Praised In doing so, Maul is apt to call on L. L. (Doc) Simpson, of the Southern Oregon Conserva tion and Tree Farm association. Maul says that the assistance ren dered the forest district by SOCTFA in the oast has been in valuable in arranging for men and supplies to be brought to the scene of a big or potentially dan cerous fire. Once Maul calls for the heln it is the responsibility of the state to pay tne firefighters the going wage, and a portion of his Dudget is allocated for this pur pose. Most small fires, however. can be handled by regular dis trict employees. One of the major problems of the local office is deciding what to do about fires particularly nouse fires which occur in the valley area which it is not the re sponsibility of the district to pro tect, .frequently there is no other fire-fichtine eauimnent available, and on most occasions a forestry pumper will resnond to tne can, simply as a matter of courtesy and common humanitv But when equipment is tied up on otner tires, or when it is out oi service in the winter time, these calls for helD sometimes simply have to be turned down iviaui nopes that formation of rural fire districts, such as are. in process of formation in the central Point and Medford areas at present, will solve this prob lem for him. One of the-things that makes me easier for foresters is the growing public consciousness of tne danger of fires in the woods. mere were two recent examples of this once when three fires in the Applecate-Ruch area werp extinguished by residents and lumper workers this week al most" before state crews arrivpH another near Prospect where a nre m slash spread to 100 acres, and where most of the lumber mills in the area. alertpH thrrmirh the SOCTFA radio system at Maui s request, sent in men and equipment to quench the blaze witnm less than a dav anH half. . " The work of the Kppn flreonr. . f O ureen association with its pm. phasis on fire prevention and eaucation, has done a great deal to aid public awareness of the problem. Sometimes it happens that a fire occurs on the border be tween 'areas under state protec tion (which include O and C as wen as privately-owned land in the two counties) and areas pro tected by the U.S. Forest Service, or some other agency. In this case, according to Maul, the procedure is for both responsible agenci.es to pitch in to put out the fire, and settle arguments later. Southern Oresrnn C3 vx VOl.l O federal, state and private are generally encouraged by the in creasing effectiveness fighting organization on alj lev els., a ney oeneve the public is becoming educated to thp sity of saving this area's most important crop trees. '; nut they are eauallv pmnhatiV in stating that only with con tinued efforts on the part of forest professionals, and with continued !suDDort from thp nnK. lie, can this progress be'- main tained and extended. i Vf (I rr .;-" DISTRICT HEADQUARTERS The headquarters of the south west Oregon district of the state department of forestry is located on Table Rock Road, north of Medford and just past Four Corners. It is shown in the picture above. At left is the office, which con tains the major land station of the district's radio network, and the office of the district forester, assistant district forester, and the two inspectors assigned to this county. A similar office is main tained in Grants Pass. The lookout tower in the background has been little-used in recent years, since better-placed lookouts have been in operation on peaks throughout the district. Out of the picture at the right is the mess hall and bunkhouse, where the resident crews live. Behind the bunkhouse are garages housing much of the district's automotive eauipment. and a warehouse. where there is stored everything from hazelhoes and axes to radio tubes. 1 mmmm LADY LnnVHTTT "MVc Thlr-. Ctrwe TATM.,;Tft 5 t lookout stationed atop Soda Mountain this summer. The lookout cabin, which serves as both 'home and office" for her during fire season, is shown above. This particular lookout has one of the most SDectacular views avaUahlp nnvuViero in Tica nmmhT lear view up the Rogue, valley with Mt. Ashland and Grizzi xjuiic iu me ien, ana ivicj,ougniin to tne right. Turning cround, : One Can Ionic Hnum nn tho Cnrtnn lalrp Yha ri.m.tl. ;n ' " " vu uic xueuiiaiu 11V CI California, with Mt. Shasta rising in majestic isolation beyond. Mrs. Sims, in common with many other veterans, appears to enjoy thoroughly her lonely summer-long vigils. Her lookout is one o.' few which does not have to perch high on a tower to look ovei surrounding mountain-top trees. ; : Poor Diet Causes Many TB Cases Sydney, Australia CU.R) Al most every second girl who con tracts tuberculosis in this city does so as a result of failing to eat lunch, according to the medi cal director of the anti-tuberculosis association, Dr. H. Wilson. "There are an amazing'.num ber of pretty girls in sanatoria who are .there because they go out too much and do not spend enough time eating properly or getting sufficient sleep," Dr. Wil son said. . - Dr. Wilson agrees with the dean of the London School of Hygiene, Dr. Andrew Topping who says that many girls de velop tuberculosis through spending their lunch money on luxuries. Too many parties and dances and too much interest in dresses and such things are sapping the vitality and strength of our young womanhood," Dr. Wilson said. V "Almost half the girls who come to T-B clinics admit they haven't time' to eat breakfast, and they tell us they spend their lunch-h ours shopping or at films. They then rush home and get ready to go out again, and often do not even bother to have a de cent evening meal. "This senseless and unhealthy Parasite in Brain Of Sheep Discovered Ithaca, N.Y.j (U.R) A hitherto-unrecorded parasite in the brain and spinal cord of sheep has been discovered by veter inarian research workers at Cor nell university. Cases have been found in sec tions of New York and New Hampshire. The" parasite is a worm about one - inch long which crawls through a- sheep's spinal cord and brain and destroys tissue as it goes, said Drs. John H. Whitlock, Peter - C. Kennedy and Steven J. Roberts. Some animls are made com pletely helpless by the damage done by the parasite. : The parasite, they said, prob ably is transmitted by mosquit oes or biting flies. The likeli hood is that some other animal than the sheep is its natural host. The three scientists said the disease has never before been described in this country. A similar disease is known in Asia, but there it has been attributed to a different parasite. A series "E" Defense Bond costing $75 is worth $100 in 9 years 8 months, or $134.68 in 19 years 8 months. existence deprives them of their powers of resistance to disease and they finish up with tuberculosis." ATTENTION KIDS! ' the MERRY-GO-ROUND MIDGE-6-RACER ARE HERE! These two Amusement Rides are part of the equipment that will be operated in the proposed new shopping center. They are operating now at our temporary loca tion between Kim's and the Red Barn. Come out and have fun. The Roller Coaster will be here soon. OPEN EVERY AFTERNOON AND EVENING PARK VIEW NURSING HOME 906 West Main Street Medford, Oregon Phone 2-6938 Completely equipped Nursing Home for chronic .nd convalescents. Hot water heat throughout buil&ng. Licensed by the State of Oregon. 24-HOUR NURSING CARE . Registered Nurse in Charge f r 1 6 WAY Goes with EVERY YARD of this Fine ALDON'S COTTON BROADLOOM You Purchase at Barnard's O Nationally Advertised O World Famous 0 14 Decorator Selected Colors O A Choice of Two Fabrics O Lock Stitched O Latex Backed O Virgin Staple Cotton Yarns O Washable O Colorfast O Mothproof O Seamless O This Cotton Broadloom Is Not Made Up Out of Narrow Widths Available in 9-12-15 Foot Widths!! We Are Proud to Announce That Over 1000 Yards of This Amazing Carpet Has Been Installed Locally in the Past Four Months. It's the Sensation of the Carpet Industry! Made by the Nation's Largest Manufacturer of QUALITY COTTON CARPETING COTTON SHAG 2x3, 2x4 3x5, 4x6, 6x9, 9x12 Two Ply Cotton Yarns Latex Backed Choice of PRICES $95 8 Colors FROM Each Special Purchase for This Event ... We Have the Largest Selection of Broadloom in Southern Oregon. FLOOR COVERING SPECIALISTS Phone 2-5487 MA 317. East Main
