I read with interest about the dilemma regarding the “attractive nuisance” posed by the restored Beaverdam Branch of the Juniata.

I grew up in Coalport beside an unspeakably polluted creek which we were absolutely forbidden to go near. At age 86, I am here to tell you that no force on Earth will keep children away from water.

The country, and even Blair County, must be full of rivers that are longer, swifter, rockier, and more dangerous than the Beaverdam Branch and yet are not fenced.

Very little children ought to be supervised. If they are not, a stretch of still water may not be the worst hazard that faces them.

Older children may be presumed to have the common sense God gave them. They should have a right to explore riverbanks and paddle in unchlorinated water. Their parents, teachers and Scout leaders should teach them to identify pawprints in the mud, understand the lives of dragonflies, and leave the crayfish in peace.

Not that any force on Earth will keep children from hunting crayfish.

Nancy Levine

Hollidaysburg