Conservation

Sir: As for the expansion into the field of conservation, I have my doubts and questions. I am a forester, and in the course of researching the growing controversy between the wilderness-recreation interests and the timber interests, I was appalled at the almost total lack of an objective approach to the issues on the part of the Sierra Club and Wilderness Society spokesmen. Granted, these two organizations are due a debt of gratitude from the American people for fighting a difficult and (formerly) unpopular fight. But my objection is to the ridiculous, carping literature they employ. The innuendo and guilt-by-association tactics are reminiscent of Joe McCarthy, and certainly do nothing to increase their standing in the eyes of professional foresters, biologists, and ecologists.

I am concerned that the American Heritage Society’s officers and editors will be tempted to follow the same path. I hope that the professional attitude so well displayed in the magazine to date will be kept, and that objectivity and scientific procedure will win out over subjectivity and emotionalism.