MUIR OF THE MOUNTAINS BY ALEXANDER MCADIE A scientific friend* recently sent me some measurements of the displacement of earth particles at Ottawa caused by a mountain slide in the Pamir. Seismographs in the Dominion Observatory (and elsewhere) had faithfully recorded the train of earth waves started by the trembling range ten thousand miles away. Moreover it was possible to determine the mass, momentum and energy involved in this fall of a mountain. John Muir would have been interested in these measurements made at a distance, but undoubtedly would have been far more interested in a description of the fall itself, and would have cheerfully started at a moment's notice for Afghanistan or the uttermost part of the earth if assured that another gigantic slide were imminent. Entirely regardless of comfort or personal security he would have watched the mountain fall, exulting in the rare privilege of thus viewing at close range the making and unmaking of the "eternal" hills. We would have had a description, both accurate and eloquent, for he would have written into it not only what the eye beheld, but much that other men must have failed to note, because they failed to feel. His nature was keenly sensitive to the significance of motion in inanimate things. One recalls his story of the earthquake in the Yosemite. "A noble earthquake," he cried, as he ran from his tent in the early morning to get a better view of what was happening in the Valley. This was the famous Inyo earthquake of March 26, 1872, about 2:30 a. m., with aftershocks until 6:30 a. m.; and probably the greatest seismic disturbance that has occurred in the United States for two centuries. It was quite severe in the whole Sierra zone, and of course to those who were in the Yosemite at the time was a most terrifying experience. Mr. Muir often described the scene to the writer and fellow members of the Sierra Club. It is plain that after the first two or * Dr. Otto Klotz, the Dominion Astronomer. three seconds of doubt and trepidation, Muir realized what was happening and enthusiastically welcomed such an opportunity for close observation of the swaying trees, and the piling up of the talus by the torrent of rocks from the cliffs, forming a luminous bow as they fell. His intense interest and forgetfulness of self were not assumed, but the natural expression of a spirit all eager to observe and interpret, if he could, the shaking earth and allied phenomena. He was probably the one man in the Valley who kept his head while these unnerving events were in progress. He had many stirring adventures while climbing and roaming. One in particular was in later years somewhat joculary referred to as "a personally conducted ride on an avalanche," although at the time it was anything but a jocular matter. Here again Muir showed remarkable presence of mind. And how he exulted in the mountain storms! Nothing of their majesty and might escaped his notice. He knew them well, from the towering cumulo-nimbus, whose slow upbuilding foretold the coming thunder, to the wild rush and wrestling of the blast with the forest monarchs. Sprung from a long line of Highland forebears, he scanned with critical eye the gray low-flying scud and the fast falling flakes that blotted out the landscape and bewildered men. To Muir these were never-to-be-forgotten and everto-be-enjoyed manifestations of Nature's might and her thousand ways of casting forth her strength. Or turning from scenes of elemental strife to those of elemental calm, we can picture him keeping lonely vigil on the summit of Whitney. Wandering as night falls, near the crest of the range, the solitary figure looms large against the sky-line. Out of the world, yet in it; no human hand within touching distance, no human habitation within a day's march; serene and self-poised, like one of the prophets of old he strays from men. And as the sun passes below the farther peaks, and darkness broods o'er the vast stretch of earth, he holds communion with the friendly stars, nor knows nor feels his loneliness. Of all the mountains he had visited, and he had climbed many in all parts of the world, his heart ever turned to and yearned most for the Sierra, or, as he called them, the Mountains of Light. They were his constant inspiration, and all their varying L moods he knew and loved. Loitering through the meadows or scaling the heights, Muir was here at home and at his best. Not infrequently he was called upon to act as guide, interpreter and host to those who came from afar. For all such he mixed with the independence of a mountaineer a true Highland hospitality. It was delightful to hear him tell of Emerson's visit, all too brief, or the later, longer outing of an intrepid former president, who insisted on having Muir for his escort and Muir only. Both saw to it that the trivialities of city life were left behind and forgotten. There was no room for artificialities in the friendly mountains. Rather the long day's tramp, the inspiring views, the refreshment of the mountain stream, the growing appetite, the simple meal, the quiet mind, the pine-bough bed and restful sleep beside the camp-fire, that, flickering, threw into bolder relief the sentinel Sequoia. Muir was the keenest of observers and no mean scientist; but it was his power of expression and gift of interpretation that made him known among men. He was able to convey to others a full measure of his own enthusiasm, and kindle in them an unquenchable longing for out-of-door life, and golden, glorious days and nights in Nature's own playground, the mountains. This was Muir's mission and at it he wrought diligently. His influence was not confined to one city or one State. It is indeed a question if this was not greater in distant lands than in the State and section where he dwelt and which he loved so well. When a mountain falls and jars the planet's crust, the earth waves spread in all directions with ever widening circles but ever diminishing energy. When a great man passes from the sunlit way, human interest is stirred in many lands, but there is no lessening of appreciation and sympathy with increasing distance. Thus it is with Muir. He stood as a great advocate for the preservation of the wild and the beautiful; he gave the best that was in him to the service of men; he strove earnestly to turn their thoughts from the daily routine, with its unrest and turmoil, to the peace and beauty of the hills. His eloquent sentences will remain as long as our mother tongue endures; his pleadings will not lose their force, and his influence can but spread and strengthen as the years pass. JOHN MUIR BY ROBERT B. MARSHALL I have put my brain to the test to find if it could choose words expressive of the grand old man Muir. It does not respond at all fittingly. My appreciation, feelings, respect and love for my friend Muir are all of the heart, and so intense and sacred that I cannot tell them even to my friends. Most of us have suffered the loss of those dear to us, and each one who has so suffered surely appreciates the force of my reluctance in attempting to put down in words my soul's sorrow in the loss of a friend so big, so powerful-and yet he was the plainest and simplest person I ever knew. His simplicity was his power. He knew nature as no one else did, and with his God, he worshipped it. It was so much a part of him that the little children could understand him and knew what he said, and loved him even more than the older children, such as we all became in his presence. His affection for the commonplace little pine-needle was as genuine as that for the most beautiful flower or the grandest tree, and the little flakes of snow and the little crumbs of granite were each to him real life, and each had a personality worthy of his wonderful mind's attention; and he talked and wrote of them as he did of the ouzel or the Douglas squirrel-made real persons of them, and they talked and lived with him and were a part of his life as is our own flesh and blood. I knew Mr. Muir long and intimately, and each day I learned something new and beautiful of life and of his wonderful mind. He did not enjoy answering questions, and in fact it was rarely necessary to ask one. Only allow him to be with a person for a short time and some sort of conversation would start; then by sheer force of intellect his mind would take the lead and his companion would drink in the purest of English, charmingly phrased, until soon a sermon of life was given that would remain one of the most wonderful experiences of a lifetime. I cannot write a line worthy of the man we wish to honor. One cannot describe Mount Rainier, one cannot describe the Grand Canyon, one cannot describe his beloved Yosemite: humanity is silent in their presence. So it was with John Muir to all who knew him; so has his influence affected mankind, and so will his life and work impress generations to come. This most wonderful of men, lifted above death and time by his human sympathy no less than by his genius, will forever influence the world, and it will be the better for his example and his inspiration. BORN IN SCOTLAND REARED IN THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN BY FINAL CHOICE A CALIFORNIAN WIDELY TRAVELED BERKELEY CALIFORNIA MAY 14 A. D. 1913 BENJAMIN IDE WHEELER |