5 
Ma ONOUS eA YU DU ON AB DU WLSLEI TIAN pe 
Our rivers are being silenced across this land we call [linois. Many 
more have their death warrants signed or waiting. If you are one who 
does not hear the symphony, you muse—‘‘so what? What do I care for 
symphonies? Is it not better now with corn, factories, freeways and sub- 
divisions?” Maybe, but why now is the river brown rather than clear, 
why is flooding more pronounced than last year, why the extra treatment 
cost to use water for home and factory, why no water at times where the 
river used to run at all seasons? Ask yourself these things and you may 
discover some of the man oriented economic values of the natural river. 
The ducks flight at dawn, turtles sunning at mid day, deer browsing 
at evening—more values, more losses. I wonder at this writing who will 
repay these irreplaceable values for our children to come or those of the 
present? Who will explain that his fathers were so barbaric and single- 
minded that he replaced rivers with “improved ditches’? Who will 
explain that it was for the money changers in the temple that we did 
all this? I fear that our children will not understand for they will have 
neither the jingle of coin in their pockets nor the shimmering river to 
enjoy—for our aimless destructive madness will surely result in great 
losses—both economic and natural. The wealth of this State is based on 
the wise use of our resources, not the idiotic simplistic annihilation so 
ominous this day and time. 
Inflation, taxes, food and jobs. Yes, I too care and worry over these 
life-directing ‘forces. The ruination of our rivers in the name of these 
economic goals is, however, not necessary and is uneconomic in fact. 
We are in deep trouble in this State. Most of our rivers are polluted, 
over one-third have been channelized, and many more are leveed and 
dammed. There is precious little time left for wringing our hands over 
this river resource crisis. We must plainly decapitate that menacing 
money fed destructive monster which daily feeds on our rivers if we 
ourselves are not in the end to be consumed as well. 
To read and learn from the river’s book, man must alter his material- 
istic brain, not the physical face of the river. Remove the economic cata- 
racts from your eyes, and see, perhaps for the first time, what natural 
resource values are. That we all may see so clearly and will read the 
tiver’s book as we progress downstream in life is the river’s hope. 
Office of Endangered Species: ‘‘Our work really boils down to reducing 
man’s influence on the rate of extinction.” Biggest need: Habitat 
preservation. Without adequate cover, water and food, wildlife 
simply cannot survive. 
