transportation. They are concerned about declining economies. And those 

 issues are going to take preeminence in legislative and economic arenas 

 unless we work together. If the fish and wildlife forces don't have the 

 wisdom to join with agriculture and forestry, we are all going to lose. 

 Even combined, we're a small minority. Rural America is a small minority. 

 In the United States Congress, only 28 people represent rural districts. 

 (Rural districts being defined as districts with of cities less than 100,000 

 people.) How in the world are we going to win? How are we going to 

 preserve the resources that we are concerned with? How are we going to 

 achieve our ends? 



Now to bring all this back in a very quick summary, those of you 

 that represent natural resource agencies have to understand that we're 

 fighting an uphill battle. We're swimming upstream. The rest of the 

 world is concerned about Afghanistan, inner-city problems, transportation 

 problems, our declining economy and the positon of the United States as a 

 member of the world community. And so we've got to impress the public 

 with our knowledge. We've got to go to them and say, "Hey, wait a 

 minute, wait a minute. Those other problems are real and substantial and 

 we're not denegrating or depreciating the importance of those problems. 

 But in the process of dealing with those problems, for goodness sake, 

 don't forget basic resources that underlie our society, that provide the 

 only strength we have in this world. Those natural 



resources. . .agriculture, timber, fish and wildlife, water, grass. . .those are 

 the basic resources. Both the press and those of you in natural resource 

 agencies have got to come forward with that message. Come on. There 

 are other big problems and they are real and substantial. But in the 

 process of dealing with those problems, don't forget the natural resources. 



To those of you that are in the media, that represent the 

 transmitters, the communicators, I want to make a fervent plea. And, I 

 have no personal interest anymore because in six weeks I'll be passed out 

 of the picture. In fact, I got the distinct impression yesterday that I 

 died. But, I didn't die. I'm still here. Like Samuel Clements said, "You 

 know, reports of my death are clearly premature and I haven't died." But 

 the point is, for those of you who represent the press, the media, the 

 communications link between the natural resource advocates and the public, 

 the kind of car I drive is really irrelevant. It would be a hell of a lot 

 better if you'd report on the committees I serve on with the National 

 Academy of Science, the positions that I am taking on issues on resource 

 management. I understand that since the Nixon days investigative 

 reporting is "the thing" for journalists to do. But don't investigate what 

 kind of cars people drive and whether they drink martinis or manhattans 

 for dinner. What the hell has that got to do with anything? 



Report on the positions they are taking. Resource managers like me 

 have got some fantastic activities going on. As one more example, right 

 now, right up near Helena, I've been working hard to help establish a 

 national wildlife management area within the National Forest System. This 

 is an innovation of the first order. The U. S. Forest Service administers 

 186 million acres in this country, and as most of you know, they have 

 been prelty occupied with timber production. In the Elkhorns just 

 southeast of Helena, they have established a concept of a wildlife 



