Ramblers and the Countryside
DURING the Whitsuntide holidays an experiment is taking place in Derbyshire which will be watched by the rest of Great Britain with interest, especially by those who care for the preservation of the countryside.
Organized ramblers, according to the Manchester Guardian, are to be enrolled as a voluntary body of wardens whose self-imposed task it will be to seek to check the litter nuisance and to protect trees and wild flowers. The experiment is being carried out in Dovedale, one of Derbyshire's most beautiful spots, by the Derby- shire Committee of the Council for the Preservation of Rural England. The Ramblers' Federations in .Man- chester, Sheffield and rambling clubs elsewhere have received invitations from this body -to. do a piece of public service in order to check abuses and ensure that the County Council by-laws regarding litter, the pre- servation of wild plants, trespassing and damaging property are observed. Official arm-bands are to be issued to all duly appointed watchers, to whoin detailed instructions will be given. A similar scheme is to be put into operation by the Organized Rainblers of Oldham, who are to provide " moOrwardens " to Patrol the moorlands in their area.
The proposal will make a strong 'appeal to the readers of the Spectator, who have always , taken a prominent part in the preservation of the beauties of rural Britain. The present menace to our countryside is largely due to lack of thought, and we believe that once the problem has been brought clearly before the public they will respond. We have only to profit by the example of Kew Gardens. Here the appeals issued by the authorities to the public. haVe not been in vain ; for the most part the crowds who go to Kew do not leave litter behind them as in some of our public parks. The task of the " watchers " will not be an easy one. The chairman of the Oldham District " Moorwardens " has said their aim is not to become an amateur police force. Watchers will have to be possessed of good tempers and will seek to use the " art of persuasion" when they see delinquents scattering banana skins, empty cigarette boxes, paper bags and other litter in their trail. Tact and patriotism should triumph in the end, and we see no reason why the public should not organize even- tually in their own interests an anti-litter army in all parts of the country. The task of the watchers will not be confined, however, merely to remonstrating with those who scatter litter about, but they will also seek to protect the flora of the country. The wild-flower maniac who wants to pick everything within range will have to be watched ; the army of cyclists and motorists who at this season wage a relentless war against the bluebells will have to be countered.
Excellent work has already been performed in many quarters by propagandist and educational authorities, but much remains to be done if large areas of our country- side are not to be denuded of our native flora. The C.P.R.E. Committee has, we understand, already pre- pared lessons to guide teachers in their work amongst children. Elementary facts about the careless plucking of bluebells, the excessive picking of foxgloves and primroses, thus preventing their seeding, will have to be emphasized.
Those who have enrolled themselves in the ranks of the watchers are performing a public duty, and the community as a whole owes them a debt of gratitude. Let us hope that their numbers will rapidly grow.
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