20 i-H EVA UD \U.B.ON (SB URL poke en 
Paul Sears of Yale University made a statement that we have failed to 
practice. “The highest function of science is to give us all understanding 
of consequences.” The dust storms, floods, droughts, shortages, and grain 
surpluses are largely the result of man’s ignorance or unwillingness to work 
with Nature’s laws. 
Some of the nations that have gone down in decline have done so 
because they failed to recognize conservation principles and blindly at- 
tacked Nature as if she were an enemy to be conquered. Nature has a way 
of striking back, of having the last word. Perhaps many islands of wilder- 
ness here and there would not only provide essential habitat for a few 
diminishing species of wildlife, but would also help to temper the wind 
that brings us spring sunshine or winter squall, gentle rain or desert 
dust bowl. 
Alfred Etter, the ecologist, says: “Calling wildlife a crop like turnips 
puts a cheap value on a God-given and irrepiaceable asset.’ Wild geese in 
flight, White-throated Sparrows whistling, or the Mockingbird singing in 
a lilac bush mean much more in the wild than they would in the frying 
pan. We cannot measure every step of progress in dollars and cents. The 
price of our wilderness resources cannot be set in the market place. Walt 
Whitman believed that even a mouse — let alone a wild. goose — is 
“miracle enough to stagger a million infidels.” 
Who sets the policy of deciding what kind of America we will have 
tomorrow? Too often it is the minority interested in the fast dollar. I 
believe the majority in America want to preserve a bit of wildnerness 
and all the wildlife that they can. Many lovers of the out of doors need a 
Moses to lead the way toward preservation. It is the duty of professed 
conservationists to put forth a program; otherwise we will not, in the 
words of that world thinker, Albert Schweitzer, succeed in demonstrating 
that “‘conservation should be one temple in the ascent of man toward God.” 
Real “progress” in America means developing the kind of world in which 
our children can take pride. I believe the following expresses the creed of 
the progressive conservationist: 
MY NATURE CREED 
believe in the out-of-doors as my garden; the wild flowers of the field, 
the trees of the wood, the mosses and flowerless plants of the byways 
are for me to enjoy; 
believe in the music of the birds, and the strength that comes from the 
hills in the silence of the night; 
believe the beauty of the world is in the eyes and the ears of the be- 
holder — the dainty fern and the clear, full song of the wood thrush 
are one, since each is a form of beauty; 
I believe that God is ever near man, as I can hear Him in the call of 
the chickadee, and see His handiwork in the colors of the mountainside; 
I believe that to be happy and free, we must respect all life, that those 
things which are our heritage may be enjoyed by all our children; 
Lastly, I believe — since this is my creed — that it is my duty to teach 
especially the children, that they may learn, as they follow the long, 
brown path, to find the peace and contentment that others of Great Faith 
have found. (Author Unknown) 
If you, as a conservationist, wish to lend your support to much- 
needed real progress toward making the kind of America that is worth 
saving, join your conservation group and give them your active assistance. 
9405 Richfield Road, East St. Louis, Illinois 
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