Founded 1892 402 MILLS BUILDING, SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA THE PURPOSES OF THE CLUB ARE: To explore, enjoy, and render accessible the mountain regions of the Pacific Coast; to publish authentic information concerning them; to enlist the support and co-operation of the people and the Government in preserving the forests and other natural features of the Sierra Nevada. JOHN MUIR, President 1892 to 1914 OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES FOR THE YEAR 1916-17 Secretary WILLIAM F. BADÈ, Berkeley ALBERT H. ALLEN, Berkeley WALTER L. HUBER, San Francisco ROBERT M. PRICE, Reno, Nevada CLAIR S. TAPPAAN, Los Angeles HONORARY VICE-PRESIDENTS JAMES BRYCE, London, England COMMITTEES Outing Committee: WILLIAM E. COLBY (Chairman and Manager), CLAIR S. TAPPAAN (Assistant Manager), JOSEPH N. LE CONTE. Committee on Local Walks: FRED R. PARKER (Chairman), WILLIAM T. GOLDSBOROUGH, A. E. NEUENBERG, LESLIE GARDNER, DOZIER FINLEY. Committee on Le Conte and Parsons Memorial Lodges: MARION RANDALL PARSONS (Chairman), ROBERT M. PRICE, JOSEPH N. LE CONTE. Auditing Committee: WILLIAM F. BADÈ (Chairman), WALTER L. HUBER, ALBERT H. ALLEN. Librarian: NELL R. TAGGARD. Southern California Section Executive Committee: CHARLES J. Fox (Chairman), PHIL S. BERNAYS (Secretary, 318 West Third Street, Los Angeles), BENJAMIN W. FENTON (Treasurer), H. E. BAILEY, MRS. HENRY BRAUN, ERNEST DAWSON, HOMER P. EARLE, George A. WHITE. EDITORIALS A QUARTER OF The year 1917 marks a quarter of a century in the life of the Sierra Club. It is natural that we should pause at this time and look back over these twenty-five years of existence to determine whether or not the organizers of the club were justified in creating it. The club's record during these years is ample justification for their faith. It has filled a need and accomplished a purpose which places the reason for its existence beyond all possible question. Growing appreciation of the incomparable natural scenery on this coast and the necessity for its preservation and safeguarding created a demand for some public-spirited body which would unselfishly and fearlessly stand in the breach until such time as the public conscience should be awakened to its real value. The club's stand in resisting encroachments on the national parks; in favoring the creation of the early forest reservations; in reducing to reasonable numbers the cattle and sheep which at one time overran the entire Sierra, and in excluding them entirely from certain scenic areas of exceptional interest; in the recession of the Yosemite Valley to the Federal Government; in advocating the great principle that national parks should be inviolate, which was involved in the attempt to save the Hetch-Hetchy Valley; in favoring the creation of additional national parks, and its stand on other similar questions, have been in the face of powerful opposition and bitter criticism, and while it has not met with success in every instance, it has compelled the respect of its opponents, who have eventually been forced to admit that the fight was made in each instance in absolute good faith and with the honest conviction that the object sought to be accomplished was for the greatest public good. As an advocate of the gospel of "out-of-doors" and in fostering the spirit of the true mountaineer, the club has also added much to its prestige. The club's prime object is service; its activities in taking its members into the mountains each summer, and in the publication of information, have all been for the purpose of awakening an intelligent interest in the greater work it is striving to accomplish. The future gives promise of equally great opportunity for continued service. While we have been deprived of the temporal leadership of that noble mountain-lover who presided over the destinies of the club for the greater part of its twenty-five years of existence-our beloved John Muir-we still have the inspiration of his message, and his words live with us as if spoken anew each day. As we journey to the mountains year after year, his spirit is there to give us renewed courage to meet the problems and carry on the great work that has fallen to our lot. We may well accept as our standard the supreme faith he expressed in these words: "We may lose this particular fight, but truth and right must prevail at last. Anyhow we must be true to ourselves and the Lord." W. E. C. PARK NATIONAL In another portion of the BULLETIN we have given a synopsis of the Progress Report made by Hon. Stephen T. Mather, Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior, who has charge of the national parks, and also extracts from the annual report of Mr. Robert B. Marshall, Superintendent of National Parks. These reports speak for themselves and indicate that the splendid work inaugurated by Mr. Mather has been carried on with increasing results during the past year. The creation of a national park service which places the parks on a firm foundation for the first time in their history, greater efficiency in administration, increased appropriations, as well as the broadgauge way in which all the park problems are being handled, give every evidence of the wise foresight which has been displayed by this new park administration. The development of the parks is in a measure wasted energy unless a proper interest is awakened in the American public, and this can only be done through the medium of appropriate literature and press notices. Mr. Mather has fully recognized this fact, and more articles and illustrations of the parks have appeared in the newspapers and other publications during the past year than ever before. Already the increase in travel is especially noticeable, taking the Yosemite National Park as an example. The fact that the visitors during the year 1916 equaled, and even slightly exceeded, the extraordinary travel of 1915, which could be largely attributed to the Exposition in San Francisco, is most encouraging. Mr. Mather is entirely correct in attributing a large portion of the increase in travel to the fact that the parks are being opened up to motor travel, and he is doubtless justified in assuming that this travel will soon equal and finally far exceed travel from any other source. His endeavor to improve existing roads and build new roads will meet this growing demand. We note, however, with regret the attempt on the part of some of the leaders in motor travel to have the present automobile fee abolished. By advocating this they are defeating their own ends. Those of us who have had experience in the endeavor to secure appropriations from Congress for park purposes realize the impossibility of obtaining appropriations adequate to meet all the growing needs of these parks. Certain improvements demand considerable expenditures, and it is only fair that, for the present at least, the motorists who make use of these expensive highways through the parks should, by paying the comparatively small fee imposed, aid in the building and upkeep of these roads over which they travel and which exist almost exclusively for their use. We note with profound satisfaction the steps which are being taken to create an adequate force of trained park rangers. These rangers will necessarily have to possess qualifications similar in many respects to the national forest rangers, and the Government should see that the positions offer sufficient inducement to justify qualified men in making it their lifework. There is a splendid field opening here for young men who desire to devote themselves to attractive out-of-door life. The American public owes Mr. Mather, with the able assistance of Mr. Marshall, a great debt of gratitude in bringing about the purchase of some of the finest stands of sequoia in the Giant Forest, which is a part of the Sequoia National Park. The preservation of these big trees was the prime motive in the creation of this park, and it was a public misfortune that some of the finest of these forest giants should have been held in private ownership. Congress appropriated $50,000, and the National Geographic Society gave evidence of its splendid public spirit by appropriating the balance of $20,000 out of its own treasury, and thus completing the amount necessary to buy the more important of these private holdings which have recently been transferred to the Federal Government. In telling of all these accomplishments it is only fair to give credit also to Mr. Horace M. Albright, who, while he has been working in a less prominent capacity as Mr. Mather's secretary, has yet contributed a large share toward these successful results. It is highly probable that the appropriation of over $300,000 asked for Yosemite improvements for the coming year will be granted by Congress, but there is little hope of securing the enlargement of the Sequoia National Park or the creation of the Grand Cañon National Park during this short session of Congress. W. E. C. WELCOME NEWs It is with profound pleasure that we announce the reCONCERNING OUR cent marriage of our worthy Editor-in-Chief, Dr. WilEDITOR-IN-CHIEF liam F. Badè, to Elizabeth Marston, of San Diego. Both of these delightful people are so well known to most of the members of our club that they will join with us in rejoicing over this happy event. This is Dr. Badè's sabbatical year, and he and his bride will not return to Berkeley until the latter part of the summer. Dr. Badè wishes that full credit be given to the remaining members of the Editorial Board for the publication of the BULLETIN during his abW. E. C. sence. JOHN MUIR Anyone who has traveled over the completed portions of TRAIL the John Muir Trail can not fail to recognize the importance of this work in developing and making accessible the high Sierra, and also to become convinced that there could not be a more appropriate memorial to the life and work of John Muir. The club has prepared and presented to the present California legislature a bill appropriating $30,000 for the purpose of completing this trail and building and improving important lateral trails leading into it. The importance of the work which has been illustrated by the trail already built justifies asking for this amount, and if each member of the club will urge the legislators to appropriate this amount it will be done without question. We must express our great appreciation of the assistance which has been rendered by Mr. W. F. McClure, State Engineer, who has control of this fund, and also the able assistance of the officials of the Forest Service who have carried on the actual construction work. W. E. C. EASTERN In spite of all that has been written about the national parks, PARKS VS. it was rather amusingly evident at the recent National Parks WESTERN Conference in Washington that one question is not yet clear to the general public in the eastern states-wly the west should be so disproportionately favored. One speaker even urged that the parks in the future be established nearer the centers of civilization, having never heard, apparently, of Mahomet's historic dilemma. More than one speaker, indeed, showed that a clearer definition is needed between a recreational park like the Interstate Palisades Park (an open space established primarily for health and recreational purposes for a particular center of population, where scenic attractions are the secondary consideration) and a national park, whose situation is wholly determined by its unusual natural beauty. The former is of interest only to an individual city or state, the latter to the nation and world at large. In the present stage of national park development only hopeless confusion could arise out of any attempt to place parks of such local interest under national control. M. R. P. |