[glatt]

Originally Posted by skysidhe

My point pierce was [the Indians] originally tried to live in 'harmony' with the land.

Originally Posted by skysidhe

I said nothing was absolute. They lived sustainably.It's not romanced fiction. Yes you are being picky:p

The ecology course I took in college over 20 years ago put that myth to rest. The main reason they were not as bad to the environment as we are is that their numbers were smaller.

Thomas Morton, Description of the Indians in New England (1637)

Of their Custom in burning the Country, and the reason thereof.

The Salvages are accustomed to set fire of the Country in all places where they come, and to burne it twice a year, viz.: at the Spring, and the fall of the leaf. The reason that moves them to doe so, is because it would other wise be so overgrown with underweeds that it would be all a coppice wood, and the people would not be able in any wise to pass through the Country out of a beaten path. . . .

The burning of the grass destroys the underwoods, and so scorcheth the elder trees that it shrinks them, and hinders their growth very much: so that he that will looke to finde large trees and good timbcr, must [look] . . . to finde them on the upland ground. . . .

And least their firing of the Country in this manner should be an occasion of damnifying us, and endangering our habitations, we ourselves have used carefully about the same times to observe the winds, and fire the grounds about our owne habitations; to prevent the Damage that might happen by any neglect thereof, if the fire should come near those houses in our absence.

For, when the fire is once kindled, it dilates and spreads itself as well against, as with the wind; burning continually night and day, untill a shower of rain falls to quench it.

And this custom of firing the Country is the meanes to make it passable; and by that meanes the trees growe here and there as in our parks: and makes the Country very beautifull and commodious.

So the Indians of New England burned up the land they were in such harmony with because it made it easier to travel and hunt. They burned off nuisance vegetation simply for convenience. All the small animals that lived in that underbrush were denied their habitat so that more light would get into the woods to support larger game and the hunting of that game. They had very small numbers and still had a HUGE impact on their environment.