[from the text] The Mariposa Grove has long been recognized as worthy of preservation, but how best to preserve it from destructive agencies, particularly fire, has been a subject of continual debate. After the fire of 1889, which threatened the grove, a brush-cutting campaign reduced much of the fire hazard, but the policy was not vigorously continued because of many sincere objections to such interference with nature During the following years sporadic attempts were made to solve the fire problem, but nothing very definite was done until the last few years when two improvements were initiated: removal of all dead legs and limbs from the grove and installation of a system of fire hydrants. The last summer witnessed a return to "let nature take its course" with the decision to allow fallen limbs to accumulate disturbed.