HAVE WE ENOUGH? WILL THEY LAST? - Vol. IV, No. 2 - October, 1954

Sep 21, 2026

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A 1954 magazine article examines the dwindling availability of natural resources through the example of the whooping cranes, arguing that only a small remnant survives and that resources like ore, soil, timber, and water can be exhausted. It connects conservation to everyday economic life and to moral responsibility for downstream communities. The piece defines conservation versus hoarding, distinguishes nonrenewable and renewable resources, and reviews past settlement practices that treated nature as an enemy.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLifestyle

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time6 min

AccessFree to download

Have We Enough? Will They Last?

Can this also happen to other resources of greater practical value?

Are more laws needed to save other natural resources?

What is conservation?

What we've done with our resources

OUR DETRO1T,MICHIGAND TRO17. CHIGAALISRARY RESOURCES:the law.the rest. Drcwings by Stuart Judd,Jr. A Service of the Center for Information on America, Washington,Connecticut. Vol.IV,No.2 October,1954 # HAVE WE ENOUGH?WILL THEY LAST? This fall a small flock of whooping cranes is migratingfrom breeding grounds in northern Canada to winterquarters at the Aransas Bay Federal Wildlife Refuge onthe Gulf of Mexico. For three good reasons they're remarkable birds: They're almost six feet high—America's tallest wild-fowl—and just as handsome. They're the twenty-six sole survivors of manythousands which used annually to make the journey. They're a natural resource like coal,or uranium,orzinc,or soil,or timber—and they're almost gone. # Can this also happen to other resources of greaterpractical value? Recently Ernest T.Weir,Board Chairman of the Na-tional Steel Corporation,referring to iron deposits,warned,"If we are not careful we could completely ex-haust all the ore in this country ..."* Our heavy industry and our defensive strength dependgreatly on steel. "Up to,say,twenty-five years ago,"continued Mr.Weir,“we felt we had a lot of ore ahead.Then all atonce we awakened to the fact that steel demand wasgrowing rapidly and this ore was being worked out.” The beautiful big white birds,too,once seemed soplentiful that gunners blazed away heedlessly.Somestillmay do so,though shooting the cranes is now against # Are more laws needed to save other natural resources? The U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service and the NationalAudubon Society believe that the best way to save thecranes is to get people interested.So radio and videostations and newspapers will spread the word as thebirds fly south,asking everyone not to molest them. This idea of getting people interested can help con-serve other resources,especially if we learn that anample supply of one often depends on what happens to The way a farmer many miles away cuts his trees orplows his furrows can affect the price of hamburger inour kitchen or reduce the amount of water we've becomeaccustomed to use. Everything that goes to make up our unparalleledstandard of living—food,dwellings,gadgets,cars,cloth-ing,movies,T.V.sets,jobs—comes out of natural re-sources.Life itself depends on them. Earlier civilizations which failed to catch hold of thisfact brought about their own downfall.The Indians ofthe ancient Mayan Empire in Central America cut downmore and more trees,not realizing this would causefloods,washing away the soil which grew the crops theylived on.Now only the ruins of their temples remain. It's common sense to avoid the mistakes of bygonecivilizations which lost out because they used their re-sources unwisely. Let's consider the problems of conservation and discusswhat should be done. *In U.S.News and World Report,September 10,1954. WHAT IS CONSERVATION? Conservation and hoarding are not the same thing.The miser who nearly starves himself to death gets littlegood from his money.He's about as badly off as thespendthrift who goes recklessly through his possessions. Conservation means availing ourselves wisely of ournatural resources of soil,water,vegetation,wild life,andminerals. It means more than that.It means repairing damagealready done to worn resources to bring back theiryield. There are two types of resources. The first type—a resource which,once used up,isgone for good—is called nonrenewable.We blowthousands of tons of non-recoverable lead into the aireach year from high-test gas because we enjoy a quickpick up. The second type is the natural resource which canrenew itself.It's like the whooping cranes.Given goodconditions and half a chance,it can stage a comeback.An obvious example is timber,which we're using upalmost twice as fast as it grows. There's another thing we might think about concerningthe meaning of conservation.Does the use of naturalresources involve the problem of right and wrong?If aman living a

FAQs

Why are whooping cranes used as the central example in the article?

They are described as remarkable due to their size and rarity, yet almost gone because only a small number remain. The cranes illustrate how a natural resource can decline toward extinction despite being a living, recurring part of nature.

What does the article say about conservation compared with hoarding?

Conservation is defined as using natural resources wisely and repairing damage to worn resources to restore their yield. Hoarding is contrasted as self-defeating, where the miser or spendthrift suffers from mismanagement of possessions.

How does the article explain differences between nonrenewable and renewable resources?

Nonrenewable resources are gone for good once used up, while renewable resources can recover if given good conditions. Timber is presented as an example of a renewable resource being consumed faster than it grows.

Sep 21, 2026

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