"In l944, Stanley Young concluded his section
of "The Wolves of North America (1944: 385) with
the statement that "there still remain, even in the
United States, some areas of considerable size
in which we feel that both the red and gray
species, in their respective habitats, may be
allowed to continue their existence with
little molestation." Since that time those
remaining areas have shrunk considerably, and
so has the wolf population.

At present, wolves in the United States,
excluding Alaska, are confined to wilderness
areas where there is little conflict with livestock
interests. Therefore, there appears to be no
valid reason that these interesting animals
cannot be allowed to continue living their lives
in these areas much as they have for millions
of years. The same is true for certain primitive
areas of Alaska, Canada, Europe and Asia.
Whether or not wolves are permitted
to survive in these areas depends completely
on the attitudes of the public.

Unfortunately there still exists in certain segments
of human society an attitude that any animal
(except man) that kills another is a murderer.
To these people, the wolf is a most undesirable creature.
"They're all dirty killers," is the way
one Minnesota state representative expressed
this attitude.
Once blinded emotionally by such hate, the
antiwolf people fail to see that the wolf has no
choice about the way it lives; that it cannot thrive
on grass or twigs any more than man can. To
them the wolf pack is a cowardly assemblage of
wanton slayers, the animal's howl a bloodcurdling
condemnation of all innocent big game in the
country.

These people cannot be changed. If the wolf is
to survive, the wolf haters must be outnumbered.
They must be outshouted, outfinanced and
outvoted. Their narrow biased attitude must be
outweighed by an attitude based on understanding
of natural processes. Finally their hate must be
outdone by a love for the whole of nature, for the
unspoiled wilderness, and for the wolf as a
beautiful, interesting, and integral part of both."