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Synder Stresses Ecology

By LAURA HAMMEL

"But know in your human
marrow you/Who read, that all
you tread/Is earthquake rot
and matter mental/Trembling,
freedom is a void/Peace war
religion revolution/Will not
help."

Poet Gary Snyder gently
recited these lines from his
"most pessimistic work"
entitled "This Tokyo" at his
first poetry reading ever given
south of the Mason-Dixon line
last night in Cabell Hall
auditorium.

Mr. Snyder was introduced
to a crowd of about 200 as
"one of the most respected
poets in this generation whose
reputation extends far beyond
the usual poetry circles."

The poet expressed his
pleasure in being in this part of
the country because its climatic
conditions so closely resembled
those of Japan where he lived
for nearly ten years. Much of
Mr. Snyder's works are set in a
Japanese background, and he
often uses Japanese intonation
in reciting his poetry.

Mr. Snyder is closely
identified with the ecology
movement and is very

concerned with the energy
crisis.

"We must return to a point
where year by year we draw
from solar energy from plants.
This was the way of about 150
years ago and it is the natural
choice of God," he said.

Inspired by his early days as
a seaman on an oil tanker, he
wrote a poem in 1962 entitled
simply "Oil" in which he hints
at the oncoming energy crisis.

"the ship burns with a
furnace heart.../bearing what
all these crazed, nations
need:/steel plates and long
injections of pure oil."

Mr. Snyder
remarked, "Where I live there is
no electricity or equipment to
bring in propane fuel so in
order to bathe we use a
sauna."

His poem describing the
family bath in the sauna
prompted spontaneous
applause from the audience.