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FRONT-McHENRY 385-0403 GOOD MARCH T2-APRIL 15 ntKioti •°°*sc/ Urn "V6- r\ Z° <**vlie peRS°i*S / Meo/o CAKE HOW COME I HAkV/t TO c^cev THE BIG Must We Make Choice? If current agricultural and construction practices continue, much of America's cultural heritage-dating from prehistoric Intiiap times to the late 180Qs~may literally disappear under an f avalanche of dirt and water. This is the pessimistic assessment of many ar­ chaeologists today, who point to these practices as the major threat to historic sites which have yet to be excavated. "Biologists around the world are worried about preserving our en­ vironmental resources," says William Fitzhugh, an anthropologist and past chairman of the Department of Anthropology in the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History. "We're facing the same problem with our cultural resources. The problem is not new-it began 200 years ago when we began developing our nation's resources." The issue of preserving such historic sites recently came to public attention with the controversy over the Tellico dam in Tennessee. Despite the protests of various groups and in­ dividuals, including en­ vironmental bodies and Indian tribes, as well as considerable concern among some members of Congress and the Executive branch, the dam will be completed. About 300 archaeological sites soon will be under water. The irony is that most dams like the Tellico are serviceable for at most 100 years; beyond that, problems of silt and erosion put them out of commission. * "But by then, thousands of years of our history will be damaged beyond recovery," Fitzhugh says. In addition to the • prehistoric Indian sites in the Little Tennessee river area where the Tellico dam was built, there are thousands of sites across the United States which contain evidence of early North American cultures-not only prehisotric Indians who lived thousands of years before the Europeans arrived in the 1500s, but later Indian tribes and early Or Progress colonial settlements. A significant amount of in­ formation was gathered about prehistoric, mound- building Indian cultures by the Smithsonian's, Mound Exploration division, which investigated some 1,600 mound centers in the 1880s in the Mississippi Valley. "Despite this body of in­ formation, we really know very little about the history of the peoples who lived here before us," Fitzhugh argues. "There are even areas of the country with sites from the late 1800s about which we know very little. In 50 years, they will all be gohe if we don't take steps now." There are two major threats to these sites. The first involves land privately owned by farmers or by other individuals and not subject to any federal regulations. To' increase crop yields, farmers level large tracts of land, filling in low lying areas with soil from higher areas to grow soybeans, rice and other important crops. Since many of the early Indian cultures built mounds and left evidence of their cultures in these areas, the historical evidence is being destroyed. "Unfortunately," Fitzhugh says, "many of our ar­ chaeological resources are located in exactly the same places needed by farmers- the prime river valleys." Then, too, prehistoric artifacts are in great demand and have been fetching astronomical prices. Archaeologist Bruce Smith of the Museum of Natural History, who has studied the Temple Mound builders, a prehistoric In­ dian culture, notes that one prehistoric Indian pot recently -sold for $30,000. "With prices such as these," he. says, "landowners see their property as a source of income. There is no in­ centive for them to protect the historic sites." The second major threat to preservation of ar­ chaeological sites involves highway, dam and other construction projects, either privately or federally fun­ ded. Before protective federal laws were passed, such projects could proceed without any consideration of the historical of cultural value of the sites. However, recent federal laws require companies and the federal government to put aside about 1 percent of a project's budget for survey and salvage of artifacts. In theory, this should be a boon to archaeological preservation. In practice, it just doesn't turn out this way, according to Fitzhugh and Smith. "While it's true that a lot of money is being put aside," Smith says, "often there is a very severe time restriction during which the ar­ chaeological investigations must be completed. Recently, only 3 years were allotted to archaeologists to excavate almost 600 sites in the Wallace dam area in Georgia. This is simply not adequate time. "Archaeology is a slow, painstaking process. Even the big universities, with large archaeology depart­ ments, are not geared to doing this kind of work in such a short time frame. Compromises have to be made and sometimes the quality of the work suffers. We don't learn as much as we should or we make erroneous assumptions." Adds Fitzhugh: "The idea that you can come in and remove artifacts quickly and surgically is fallacious. The best thing you can do is leave materials sitting right where they are, for the next 500 years if necessary, so that better methods and techniques of excavation and analysis can be developed. We need a kind of 'deep freeze' for these cultural treasures." Development of cropland and resources such as natural gas and oil as'well as important construction projects need not be aban­ doned or delayed, Fitzhugh says. "One problem is that many people view ar­ chaeologists as an elite group that wants to inhibit progress. But you need not sacrifice preservation to progress. There are alter­ nate methods of agriculture that do not involve plowing down fields. In China, for instance, people plant crops around historical mounds. Highway builders here in the United States can frequently choose alternate, routes. The same is true for siting of dams. By planning ahead, many ' of these historic sites can be savf' without delaying develc ment." And the problems, he says, are not limited to the United Stales. The prehistory of Mexico and South America is closely linked with the prehistory of the United States. Major damage has been; inflicted on historic sites in Mexico as a result Of oil exploration. Fitzhugh believes that international cooperation on this subject is vitally important. "It is largely a matter that people are .unaware of alternatives," he says. "Usually, when a company or federal agency realizes the importance of a site, it is sympathetic to the problems and even willing to help take steps to preserve these valuable cultural resources. There needs to be a dialogue on this subject to make people more aware." "Except for the last few hundred years, we have almost no understanding of what happened in our country in the past," Fit­ zhugh adds. "There's a whole body of knowledge about the past that has to come from archaeological evidence, which adds an important dimension to written historical records. It seems almost immoral for our people not to have a better understanding of their cultural roots." PAGE 21 - PLAINDE ALER - FRIDAY, MARCH 21.1160 So says the VA... BEETLE BAILEY By Mort Walker FROM ALL THE dAUd AT CAMP SWAMP/ fa. . f viau sto** * goifrf Swtku OTToi <^LM> Contact nearest VA office (check your phone book) or a local veterans group. The Eyes Of March | Coalition For Political It's the eyes of March. At least, the Illinois Society for the Prevention of Blindness (ISPB) hopes so. The Illinois society, a non­ profit organization that has been fighting blindness in Illinois for 64 years, is making a special plea for eye donors during the month of March as the nation ob­ serves National Eye Bank month. Since 1947, the Illinois Eye Bank, founded and sup­ ported by the Illinois society and operated at the University of Illinois Eye and Ear infirmary in Chicago, has helped to provide, preserve, or im­ prove the sight of more than 4,000 individuals with damaged or defective corneas. Corneal tissue for these transplants can only come from human donors, ac­ cording to Edgar T. Britton, executive director of ISPB, and there are never enough donors. More than 200 citizens in the Chicago area alone, he says, are now waiting for tissue. Persons who would like to pledge their eyes to posterity can do so very easily, Britton emphasizes. All one has to do is call or write the Illinois Society for a donor card. The number is 922-8710; the address is 53 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago, 111. 60604. This card is then signed in the presence of two wit­ nesses and carried on the person. An Illinois driver, in addition to carrying the card, can also place an orange "Organ Donor" sticker on the driver's license. Anyone 18 years of age or older can pledge eyes, Britton explains. No prior eye examination is needed. Eyes are usable even if vision is poor, and removal of the eyes causes no change whatsoever in the ap­ pearance fo the deceased. Honesty Sponsors Dinner HOSPITAL RECOGNITION The American Hospital association has presented Memorial Hospital for McHenry County with an AHA certificate of recognition for its efforts to monitor costs and produc­ tivity at the hospital. J. Alexander McMahon, AHA president, explained the health care industry relies heavily on statistical assessment to monitor ef­ fective management. The Coalition for Political Honesty will hold its annual fund-raising dinner Satur­ day, March 24, at the Hin­ sdale Community house at Eighth and Madison streets from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. The dinner will be a buffet supper with an open bar. Entertainment will include a musical and satirical review of Illinois politics. The public is warmly invited. The Coalition is an all- volunteer, non-partisan organization dedicated to the principle that vigorous citizen activity insures the public interest in Illinois. Last December the Coalition organized the Teabag campaign in which 32,000 Illinois taxpayers sent teabags to Gov. Thompson in protest against selfish political pay raises. In 1976, Coalition petition passers gathered 634,158 signatures to force Illinois politicians to give up a 100- year-old practice of collecting their entire annual salary on the first day of office. C u r r e n t l y C o a l i t i o n members are collecting We're McHenry County born and raised McHenry County means a lot to us. we were born here way back in 1925. We grew up here, saw a lot of changes come about, mostly good. Met a lot of people, made a lot of friends. You know it's the people that make a place what it is. and McHenry County has just about the nicest people anywhere around We're still here, all our family and friends are too. and we're going to keep on staying because helping McHenry County and the good folks that live here is what we're all about. We're McHenry County born and raised, and mighty proud of it! We Can Help! DMftS Marengo Federal \ 1< >; i n ; i-*^< k i; il i« >i i CRYSTAL LAKE: 550 Barley Rd. A Rt. 14 815/455-4300 •MARENGO: 200 E. Grant Highway815/568-7258 McHENRY: 4400 W. Route 120 815/344-1900 WOODSTOCK: 118 Cass Street 815/338-2900 • DRIVE-UP: Rt. #47 & Calhoun St. 815/338-7440 MEMBER f EDERA.L SAVINGS AND LOAN INSURANCE CORPORATION signatures for the L e g i s l a t i v e C u t b a c k amendment, a binding constitutional amendment they say will reduce the size of the Illinois General Assembly by 59 members and save the taxpayers $7 million a year. Patrick Quinn, Coalition spokesman, urged citizens interested in learning more about the Coalition to attend the dinner. "The people of our state are way ahead of politicians when it comes to demanding reform and the Coalition tries to organize citizens to get their voices heard," said Quinn. Anyone interested in the Coalition dinner should contact Quinn at 323-4588. BALANCED BUDGET Gov. James R. Thompson proposed his fourth con­ secutive balanced budget. The 1981 Fiscal Year financial plan proposes total a p p r o p r i a t i o n s o f $14,466,582,000, an increase of 6.3 percent over the previous year, below the anticipated inflation rate of at least 10 percent. In the General funds portion, total a p p r o p r i a t i o n s o f $7,629,296,000 are proposed, growth^of 7.4 percent, still below the 10 percent in­ flation rate. The governor stressed that unexpected changes in the economy or a federal failure to extend revenue sharing could upset the delicate balance between spending and revenues. TUNE-UP SPECIAL WITH FREf Electronic Engine Diagnois! PLUS FREE Grease and Oil Change! Includes: Replace spark plugs-air filter- PCV-points & condensor., ALL CARS AND TRUCKS 6 cyl. only 8 cyl. add FRONT DISC BRAKE SPECIAL Includes: Replace front brake pads, resurface rotors, inspect calipers, bleed & refill brake system inspect rear lining & adjust s4750 THINK SPRING! ! ! AIR CONDITIONER SPECIAL Includes 4 lbs. Freon check air conditioner for leaks, check belt, evacuate & charge system. H I I I I $1995| FR t̂whiTL̂ R™! RE-PACK p ALL CARS [J j j (higher for 4 wheei drivel P .1 ' $ 1 C00 PLUS I I O# PARTS J ONLY TRANSMISSION SERVICE Includes Change f i l ter o i l gasket ONLY 24 95 907 N. FRONT ST.