YOUR AMERICAN TRAGEDY

[Music] this is a picture of tragedy a tragedy that  happens year after year in our Great American Forest areas fire fire that Roars up The Valleys  to the peaks with the speed of an Express train burning exploding sweeping everything in its  path leaving nothing but gray ashes and charred stumps and dead animals destroying millions of  board feet of Timber that we need to win the war wasting millions of man-hours in fighting  on the home front wiping out thousands of Acres of Timber that hold water for precious  electric power and irrigation but wait who starts most forest fires is it the criminal a  firebug the enemy agent no it isn't it's the honest patriotic American the greatest single  cause of forest fires last year he started 170 000 fires many times more than lightning or  criminals are sabotage all put together yes the same man who buys war bonds and contributes  to the Red Cross a man just like you he doesn't mean to start a fire but he's careless he  doesn't think he leaves matches burning he tosses his cigarette from a car window he walks  off and leaves his campfire smoldering he doesn't realize how quickly a fire can start how it can  roar up in just a few minutes and there it is out of control another American Tragedy another  careless happy-go-lucky patriotic American like you has made Hitler happy this season the danger  may be greater than ever before in history this season all of us you and the man next door must  make up our minds to prevent this criminal waste of our forests pull out your cigarette crush it  out on a rock break your matches and two don't throw anything from your automobile be sure  your campfire is out get out and above all remember that you were the person who might  start a forest fire you were the person who must be careful you are the person who must  remember that careless matches Aid the axis