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<br />. nMl.D..37
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<br />P ROr[S~RJohn \'. K. \\"agar :'epl
<br />Ihis mouo O\"er his desk at Col.
<br />cradoS,..te for dt'cades, and has
<br />het"1l challenged Oll occasion b)"
<br />!>p("ciali~(~ asserting lhar a fort'ster
<br />("an nO[ poSses!> all the experlise re-
<br />quirt'd lu judgt' and lake aClion on
<br />forest problem~ involving special-
<br />iZl'd fidd.. such as watnshcd pro.
<br />t('ction. To ....,hich \\'ollld comcJack's
<br />familiar rt"~ponse, "He'd beltt'T
<br />know l'nou~h to understand when
<br />he nerds to-call in an l'xpt'n."
<br />His underlying philosophy is that
<br />to be '.safe in the \H>OdS" .J forestt'1'"
<br />must understand and be guided by
<br />all of the man)' iufluences that com-
<br />prise a forest environmem. In using
<br />his marking axe, for example (01'" in
<br />....Tiling a timber-harvest plan), he
<br />must f.:ollsider nOl jU5llhe sale value
<br />of the stumpage, but all uf the
<br />ecological and social impacts that
<br />would result from the removal ofthe
<br />trees.
<br />Th],> "'as PH,fessor \\'agar's over-
<br />riding objenive in educating forf's-
<br />ten, as mdV be exemplifit~d by the
<br />youngstels who ....'ere studyir.g
<br />under him I,-hen I Wd... in the I 920s.
<br />The upper classes. as I recall. in-
<br />cluded (lne sophomore, a junior, a
<br />senior, and a pan-time graduate
<br />student. The ~phomOle .....as John
<br />Roben Camp who. afler being vice-
<br />president .,f the West Virginia Pulp
<br />and P<iper Compan~', became a lOp
<br />official in a Rockefeller Found.ation
<br />international organi7:ation !o CosteI'"
<br />cranomic amI social dnelopml:nt in
<br />the Latin America~. Francis
<br />Raynumd .....as the junior: he became
<br />State fnre~ter of California. And I
<br />'>"as the ~enior, completing three
<br />\'ears of slUdl under our Professor.
<br />That "'as liler;JlI" a .\-farl Hoplim
<br />form 01 edllGltion, .....ithJao::k Wagar
<br />on the other c'nd of !he log.
<br />in a distiner sense he taughl us 10
<br />be practicing ecologists: not experts
<br />in all of the different, interacting
<br />forest innU{'ncf'~, bUlllnder5lilnding
<br />enough s.\ 'thal "l. could judjl;e the
<br />combined effects of <l:n~. anion
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<br />Jock W09C' with 0 few of his forestry s.tvdenh in ~
<br />/1//J-
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<br />ra!hel'" than just its effect on any
<br />sin!5le compon('nt such as timber.
<br />That old stag-topped lJouglas-fir
<br />was nUl a "IOU pern:m eu"" to be
<br />knO(-ked dm'"!l ~lId left; il W<iS a den
<br />Iree for 5<Juirrels, and it didn.t de.
<br />mand much sun and water .mp..ay.
<br />The patch of beTT~' bushes i!) all
<br />opening shouldll.t be cleaned OUI
<br />beGlUSC it pnwided food for blue
<br />grouse and other forl'st birds. The
<br />thicket of young aspen wasn't "a
<br />buuch of weed ITl'eS"; i( .....as winter
<br />food for hungl'")' deer, and in au.
<br />lumn its variegated. shimmering
<br />folbge was a golden cloud on ;h,.
<br />mountainside. The ruunded depr"-"s-
<br />sion on the sunnvdownhill sidt'ufan
<br />old ponderosa ~"as a silling-pbce fot
<br />a fal cOHontail. And then, SUbsldOlial
<br />patches of Ihat dense stand of
<br />c;m\on.bouom blue sprue(' would lx,
<br />I~ft unl'ut to provide shelter for dttr
<br />a!o{ainH tht' winter storm....
<br />In Ihe horH' pasture nm far from
<br />camp, ;:>I'"airie dog!> ,,'ere becoming
<br />too abuml:uu: a hOlse could easil\"
<br />break a leg in aile (.f thl' many bur-
<br />
<br />ro....'s. The)" wt>re too prolific any",.a)',
<br />as aUl'sted by the eight liny fetuses
<br />disc-lo",c'd by a spring-time pOSl-
<br />mOllem. So judif.:ious control had to
<br />be exeTlt"d wilh aid of .30 calibcl'"
<br />high....pc.ed handloads, ag..in buill
<br />under the tutdage of thl' Profe.<..s.er.
<br />firnlly, it wa_~ decided that a piece of
<br />O\"ergrazed. hut porentialJ)' fertile
<br />area of gl'"dma range should be
<br />planled to pine as a more pJYJductive
<br />(TOp than Ihe Tocal while-fac~ Cattle_
<br />In thoM;' davs, human inOuences
<br />were judged r.ither narrowly as their
<br />impacts on lhe forest. as ~lf"rmitted
<br />by Ihe forest man3gcr 3c('ording to
<br />}11l management plan. Wit!1 the de-
<br />\'('lopmt>1lI of actllal citizen partici-
<br />pation in land-managt"mc::nt deci-
<br />sion-making. how much more
<br />c'quitable though mo:-e complex is
<br />the m<inagemem proces~.
<br />An int(.~ral pan of our education
<br />wa~ OJ \q-IJ-defint:d and upright doc-
<br />trine of professional e:hK:.... and in.
<br />tegrin, taughl more by precept and
<br />as a pan of even- CflUI"e Ih.m or
<br />special emphasis-doublless oHr-
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<br />....MP'lC....N ~OQ~STS
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