Today, as much as ever before, the red-rock, pinon-covered state of New Mexico remains tierra encantada, "the land of enchantment," to Indians, Anglos, and descendants of the conquistadores. New Mexico's long history of intermingling peoples and of efforts to balance human needs with nature's resources can instruct a nation facing similar hard decisions in the late twentieth century. It is a story, believes author Marc Simmons, that contains within it a perpetual declaration of independence.