John Muir Newsletter, Fall 1991

John Muir Newsletter fall, 1991 university of the pacific new series, volume 1 number 4 TO OUR READERS Our readers and subscribers haye responded enthusiastically to the first year of issues in the new series of the John Muir Newsletter. .We here at the Muir Center are grateful for your accolades and encouragement, and we hope that more of you will become active supporters of the Center. We want to encourage you to demonstrate your support in two concrete ways, First, while we thank all our subscribers, we urge those of you who read the Newsletter but who have not yet become subscribers to do so immediately. Only through the development of a critical mass of subscribers can the Newsletter_cor\ima& to publish and to expand its coverage of Muir-related information of interest. Since We all believe that this venture is a worthwhile one that ought to continue, it is our hope that a growing number of Muir enthusiasts will sign on as subscribers. The second manner in which our readership can help the Newsletter in a concrete way is by continuing to submit information, news and features for publication.7 We on the staff are hopeful that your efforts in this regared will expand. We are happy to publicize any of your Muir- related activities and writings. We welcome any information on Muir publications, on forthcoming books or articles, book reviews and bibliographies of relevant information, of outings of interest to our readers, of dedications and commemorations, of environmental news and legislation, and so forth. Both the controversial and the mundane are welcome! Eventually, the Newsletter will include individual features such as forthcoming events, publications, etc., so that topics of interest are easily located by the readers. To realize these plans, the staff needs information from readers which cart supplement our own efforts. So readers should very much consider this publication a joint effort, and keep us informed of all pertinent information. In short, let\u27s all share our information so as to spread Muir-related news as far and wide as we can. SAD NEWS: THE PASSING OF SHERRY HANNA The John Muir Center staff was shocked and saddened by news of the death, November 3, of Mrs. Sherry Hanna, 85, widow of Strentzel Hanna, John Muir\u27s eldest grandchild. Her heart suddenly gave out after a long and active life. For years after the death of her husband, Sherry had been the caretaker of the Muir-Strentzel family cemetery near her Martinez home. She was a personal friend of many Muir scholars, often opening her home to visitors interested in the Muir-Strentzel story and in her personal collection of papers and artifacts. A supporter of the John Muir Center for Regional Studies as well as the John Muir National Historic Site at Martinez, she was a spokesperson for the Muir-Hanna families and a true friend of history. 1992 CALIFORNIA HISTORY INSTITUTE TO HEADLINE THE CHANGING CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENT Plans are being finalized for the next annual California History Institute. On April23-25, 1992, the Institute will be held featuring sessions on the subject California Immigrants: People, Plants and Animals.\u27\u27 The various sessions and speakers at the conference will observe the 500th anniversary of the Columbian encounter with the Western Hemisphere to focus on the environmental consequences of that seminal event. Incoming people and new plants and animals have been responsible for a dramatic transformation of the Americas, some positive and many disastrous. The focus on this timely and important topic at the sessions, followed by a regional field trip, will give participants a major Overview of our society and environment. Details of the various sessions will be announced in the next Newsletter. Be sure to mark your calendar for this important event and plan to be in attendance. STETSON AS MUIR: SCHEDULE UPDATE In response to continued reader interest in the authentic Lee Stetson performances as John Muir, here is an updated and corrected schedule. Nov. 25- Jan. 4, 1992- Yosemite National Park Feb 6- Yosemite National Park Feb. 8-14- San Antonio, TX Feb. 20- Ojai, CA (Cate School) Feb 21- Santa Barbara, CA Feb. 28-Carmel, CA March 5-6-Nevada City, CA March 7-Renaissance, CA March 21-22- Wilderness Convention, New Jersey March 28-Cleveland, OH - April 4- Pittsburgh, PA For further information, including new dates and any schedule changes, please contact Lee Stetson, Wild Productions, Box,811, Yosemite, CA 95389. HIKING THE MUIR TRAIL WITH ONE OF OUR READERS Don Scheese hiked the entire John Muir Trail in the summer of 1991, reading Muir\u27s journals of his southern Sierra sojourns as he followed in his footsteps. Subsequently, Scheese gave an illustrated talk at the 1991 Western Literature Association meeting in Estes Park, CO, entitled Meditating with Muir ort the John Muir Trail. It is part of a longer article that he is working on in which he stresses the importance of fieldwork to ecocritcism. For further information, contact Don Scheese at Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA 95053. NEW PUBLICATION OF INTEREST North Dakota Quarterly has now published the theme issue to which we alerted our readers sometime ago. The issue is dedicated to Nature Writers/Writing, and contains eighteen different essays on nature writing. One is an article on John Muir by John Tallmadge; six are original essays on nature writing. Copies can be ordered-by writing Robert Lewis, editor, North Dakota Quarterly\ University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND 58202- .8237. JOHN MUIR NEWSLETTER. VOL. I, #4 (NEW SERIES) FALL, 1991 Published quarterly by the John Muir Center for Regional Studies, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA 95211 Editor Center Director Staff Sally M. Miller R.H. Limbaugh This Newsletter is printed on recycled paper. VICTORIANS AND MEADOWLARKS: TWO MUIR LETTERS REDISCOVERED Editor\u27s note: buried in an obscure clipping in the John Muir Family Collection at the University of Pacific are reprints of two long-forgotten letters John Muir wrote taKatherine Hittell in 1895. They are contained in an article oh songbird protection by Juliet Wilbor Tompkins, a journalist from Oakland who later was an editor for Muhsey\u27s Magazine as well as a freelance writer and novelist. Too long to be fully reprinted, the article is indicative of the songbird preservation movement in the 1890s, which in the Bay Area was led, not coincidentally, by outspoken feminists like Sarah McChesney, Mary McHenry Keith, and Katherine Hittell. The nineteenth century connection between feminists and conservation activists needs extensive study, as does the influence of Bay Area feminists on Muir. Preliminary discussion of these questions can be found in R.H. Limbaugh, Stickeen and the Moral Education of John Muir, Environmental History Review, 15 (Spring 1991), 25-45. The excerpt below was found in Muir\u27s clipping file andprobably comes from The San Francisco Examiner in the spring of 1895. The two letters were not included in the 1986 microform edition of the John Muir Papers, and are reprinted here courtesy of the Holt Atherton Library and the Muir-Hanna Trust. ; PROTECT OUR SONGBIRDS SOME ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN SOON TO SAVE THE WARBLERS If it be true that not a sparrow falls to the ground unnoted, what cumbersome records must be piling up to confront us! Watch the women that pass along the street and you will be appalled at the crimes that are committed in the name of vanity, for on nine hats out of ten balance the fragrnents of a drawn and quartered bird... .If the half- starved dogs and superfluous cats could be stuffed and used for millinery purposes, women might decorate themselves to the uttermost limits of their barbaric instincts, and not a protest Would be raised; but these poor little airships of nature, who earn their own living and contribute more than their share to the beauty and harmony of the world, must they go? ; That is not a merely rhetorical question. They are going fast, and if we want to save them, something must be done about it. Orioles are nearly extinct in California, humming birds are growing scarcer every year, and all the tribes who have been cursed with bright plumage are swiftly diminishing. As though it were not enough to lose those, the sweetest singers of all birdland are being slaughtered by thousands to serve the ignoble purpose of an entree.... A number of individual attempts have been made in California to check this wholesale slaughter. Great efforts were made a year ago to protect at least the meadow larks, who came into the markets by the thousand as soon as the quail season was over. It would be as fitting to split up celestial harps for kindling wood, but the tiny-musicians brought a dollar a dozen and nothing else mattered. Among the people who resented this was Miss Katherine Hittell, a lover of all things Californian, and she, aidedby Mr. W. C. Chapman of the Academy of Sciences and several others, brought up the question at the Sportsmen\u27s- Convention. The result was that a clause for protecting meadow larks was attached to a bill for shortening the open season for quail and sent in to the Legislature. A member from the country frowned at the clause. What\u27s the good of that? he demanded. The bird only gullups out a few notes, anyway. Strike it out. And so they did. Gullups out a few notes! Well, if the honorable member preferred the strings of an accordion to that ecstatic little round of melody, perhaps he was more to be pitied than blamed: The friends of gulluper managed to pass a city ordinance forbidding the sale of meadow larks in the San Francisco markets during the breeding season, but such things are hard to enforce and the proscribed birds are defiantly smuggled in. At a certain boarding-house the guests feast upon them once a week, as once Nero did on the; tongues of nightingales. Why, apart from sentiment, it is a plain question of mathematics, Miss Hittell said. A meadow lark, , cooked, gives one person pleasure for\u3e at most, ten minutes. A living one gives pleasure to a whole community all its life long. It\u27s a clear case of the greatest good to the greatest number..... One or two have suggested that the meadow lark was destructive of crops and fruit, but I have letters from some of the most prominent farmers and orchardists of the State, such as Mr. A.T. Hatch and Mrs. Buckingham of Vacaville, to prove that that isn\u27t true, while Dr. Cooper in his \u27Ornithology of California\u27 claims that the meadow lark is a valuable friend, who eats destructive insects. And, anyway, if so many birds are protected every year for the men\u27s pleasure, it seems to me: that just this one might be saved for the women. If The Examiner takes this up I will help in any way I can, and so will plenty of others. That this last is true Miss Hittell has had plenty of proof, in such form as the following letters from John Muir: Martinez, April, bird song month, 1895. My dear Miss Hittell: I heartily sympathize with you, as you know, in your efforts fosave our songbirds. Better far and more reasonable it would be to burn our pianos and Violins for firewood than to cook our divine midgets of songlarks for food. I am now stupidly busy writing a book and cannot do anything worth while in the Way of writing for the larks. But the work of saving them by creating public opinion in their favor will have to go on year after year, and I hope I may still do something to help. I shall call the attention of the Sierra Club to the subject at the next meeting. With best wishes, I am very truly yours, John Muir. Martinez, April 30, 1895. My dear Miss Hittell: Thanks for your information about the blessed larks. We will save them yet. Keep on pegging away at the divine work until the public sympathy is aroused. Civilized people are still very nearly savage, and much work must be done \u27ere they see the brutality of their ways. I consider the meadow lark the best, most influential, most characteristic of all California song birds- -the least earthy, the most divine and I could say no more were I to speak till Doomsday, Keep busy late and early. Next Legislature you will be more successful if you begin now. Let me know when I can help yOu. Ever cordially yours. John Muir. The article ends with an eloquent call for public support. LETTERS FROM READERS J. Parker Huber, who is researching Muir\u27s holograph notes in the back of his personal copy ofThoreau\u27s The Maine Woods, located in the Holt Atherton Library at the University of the Pacific, has submitted the following list of questions: 1. Did John Muir ever encounter moose? if so, where? 2. Muir had a connection with Abba and Moses Woolson of Boston. Any idea how he met them? 3. I am trying to decipher Muir\u27s handwriting .... He uses Al. Ex several times. . . . What do you think they stand for? Our reply: 1. We don\u27t recall any moose confrontations, but you might check his family correspondence for July-November, 1898, while he was with C. S. Sargent and W. M. Canby on the Eastern forest tour. His journal for that period is unfortunately missing, but he Wrote letters home that may refer to animals he confronted, especially in Maine and Vermont. See the John Muir Papers, Microform edition, Reel 10, letters to Helen, Wanda and Louis. 2. Muir probably knew the Woolsons through Jeanne Carr, who introduced him to many acquaintances from the Carrs\u27 New England days. 3. Al is Muir\u27s shorthand for Alaska; Ex is his shorthand for Excellent. He would frequently note passages on subjects he found interesting, and would express various comments assessing quality. In some cases his references were to subjects he was working on himself. This Would be the case for notes in Maine Woods\ While reading Thoreau he Was working on his Alaska opus which he never completed before his death, but he apparently found Thoreau\u27s remarks particularly relevant to his own Alaska experience and ideas. RECENT MUIR RESEARCH AT THE HOLT-ATHERTON LIBRARY The John Muir photograph collection provides a wealth of resource material for those doing research or publications on Muir. The over 3,300 photographs and illustrations in many ways still remains an untapped resource with most of the material never having been published. Although Muir never carried a camera, he received photos from a variety of Yosemite and Sierra visitors, most of whom he knew personally and often escorted- Included in the collection are works of famed photographers such as Edward S. Curtis, Theodore P. Lukens, and Eadweard W. Muybridge. Some examples of recent usage: The National Geographic Society recently made use Of a Muir portrait from the collection for an Italian (continued on page 7) New Hours at the Holt-Atherton Library Due to budget cutbacks, the Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections will henceforth be open for research from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. from Monday through Friday. Researchers who travel to make use of the collections may require extended hours and are requested to call Daryl Morrison, Head of Special Collections, (209) 946-2404 to make an appointment in advance. TRACING MUIR\u27S 1877 SHASTA TREK John Muir wrote of his first view of Mount Shasta, \u27 \u27All my blood turned to wine, and I have not been weary since.\u27\u27 This September, John Muir \u27 \u27returned\u27\u27 to Mount Shasta, in the person of Lee Stetson ~ the actor widely acclaimed for his portrayals of Muir. Stetson and naturalist Kurt Rademacher led eight Muir enthusiasts on a week-long trip retracing Muir\u27s September, 1877, trip up the flanks of Mount Shasta, across the McCloud and Fall Rivers to Mount Lassen, down toChico, and floating down the Sacramento River to hike among the Sutter Buttes. On the original trip, Muir accompanied Sir Joseph Hooker, Dr. and Mrs. Asa Gray and the Bidwells of Chico on a botanical excursion to Shasta. After Hooker and the Grays left the excursion, Muir accepted John and Annie Bidwell\u27s invitation to accompany them and Annie\u27s sister, Sallie Kennedy, southeast across the then largely unsettled area to.Mount Lassen. After descending to Chico, Muir stayed a week with the Bidwells on their 22,000-acre ranch, enjoying their hospitality and cementing what proved to be a lifelong friendship. The Bidwell\u27s carpenter built Muir a small boat in which he floated solo for five days down the Sacramento, exploring its jungle-like banks and climbing the irresistible Sutter Buttes. Rademacher, in designing the 1991 trip, researched Muir\u27s published writings, the Bidwell\u27s diaries and reminiscences of the trip, and subsequent letters between them. From these accounts and references to ranches and landmarks, he plotted the 1877 route both on topographic maps and In the field. Local historical societies helped track down maps of 1870s ranch owners and other records to clarify confusing references. In other cases, notes on vegetation and geology helped determine locations or elevation, though one missing lake had evolved into a meadow during the ensuing 114 years. The diaries and other records also revealed daily activities and humorous anecdotes of the 1877 trek. 7 The 1991 tour was one of The Nature Conservancy\u27s \u27\u27Wild California Excursions,\u27\u27 a series of special trips which raise money to help buy preserves and restore habitat for rare and endangered species. Along the route the small group visited six Conservancy preserves that maintain and protect the landscape and its wildlife so that it remains much as Muir and his co-travelers first saw it. Condensing the original month-long trip into one week, the group traveled by van instead of horseback, hut made many stops and nature walks. Except for one night at a hike-in cabin with catered dinner at the McCloud River Preserve, lodging and meals were at bed and breakfast inns and fine restaurants along the route. Rademacher provided lively commentary on the local history and natural history throughout the trip, with other Nature Conservancy staff along the way sharing insight on their special areas of expertise. Out on the trail, Stetson shifted spontaneously into the Muir role as the party happened upon familiar plants, animals or rock formations. In the evenings around the fire or out on a veranda, he performed adaptations of his regular shows with locally relevant additions, such as Muir\u27s frozen and broiled night atop Mount Shasta surviving a blizzard in a sputtering fiimarole. Among the highlights of the trip were hiking at timberline on Mount Shasta; finding 1877 camp sites there, at McCloud River Falls, Bear Flat, Pit River and Butte Lake; getting caught in a glorious thunder and hail storm while hiking to Cinder Cone; staying in the summer house that the Bidwells later built at Big Meadows (Rademacher\u27s great-grandfather was Bidwell\u27s carpenter who built this house, now a B&B inn on Lake Almanor); exploring the boiling mud. pots on Mount Lassen; a special evening tour of the Bidwell Mansion in Chico; canoeing along the Sacramento River; visiting the Conservancy\u27s new oak and cottonwood restoration forests along the river; and Lee Stetson performing Muir on a narrow sandbar while the group sat in three anchored jetboats to avoid the mosquitos on shore. Rademacher particularly enjoys leading tours that combine nature and history on the preserves, such as exploring Ishi\u27s homeland and the whales and wineries of Santa Cruz Island. The Muir trip, however, is the realization of a dream since he became Director of Field Trips for The Nature Conservancy of California two years ago. The combination of a naturalist with the Muir impersonation by Stetson made the trip a real success. They hope to offer a similar trip in the future. Interested parties may phone Kurt Rademacher at (415) 777-0862 Ext.223. JOHN MUIR AND THE 1872 EARTHQUAKE: WHERE WAS EAGLE ROCK? Dr. Gerald F. Wieczorek of the U.S. Geological Survey has been evaluating rockfall hazard in Yosemite Valley in cooperation with the National Park Service and has been trying to pinpoint the location of Eagle Rock, whose thunderous collapse during the 1872 earthquake Muir witnessed and described in his 1912 book The Yosemite. Muir\u27s remarks about this \u27 \u27noble earthquake should be read in full to appreciate his descriptive powers and the romantic flavor of this reminiscence written nearly 40 years after the event. This excerpt omits all but the clues bearing upon the location of Eagle Rock: At half-past two o\u27clock of a moonlit morning in March, I was awakened by a tremendous earthquake..., I feared that the sheer-fronted Sentinel Rock, towering above my cabin, would be shaken down.:.. The Eagle Rock on the south wall, about half a mile up the Valley, gave way and I saw it falling in thousands of the great boulders I had solong been studying,... After the ground began to calm I ran across the meadow to the river to see in what direction it was flowing and was glad to find that down the valley was still down. Following these clues has not been easy, as Dr. Wieczorek describes: We are uncertain exactly where Muir\u27s rock avalanche occurred because Eagle Rock is not identified on any maps of Yosemite Valley dating from that period or more recently. A stereographic photograph by Eadweard Muybridge identified Eagle Rock on top of what is currently known as Taft Point. The setting for an 1872 photography by J.J, Reilly (Stereo No. 555) captioned Earthquake Rock Fragments has been recently relocated below Taft Point. Although this apparently resolves the location of Eagle Rock and Muir\u27s rockfall avalanche, there remains a geographical dilemma. If Muir\u27s cabin was located (as best we know) near the swingin