The energy that would be carried by a wave produced by the superposition of two small amplitude mechanical waves of the same type would generally differ from the sum of the energies of the component waves in the superposition. Thus energy conservation appears to be violated. In this paper we address the question of the compatibility of the principles of superposition and energy conservation for small amplitude mechanical waves. We show that in the course of producing a pair of waves that interfere constructively, a second pair of waves that interfere destructively is naturally and unavoidably produced. Moreover, we show that the combination of constructive and destructive intereference is just that necessary for energy conservation. Thus we conclude that the principles of superposition and energy conservation are fully compatible.