Creator
John Muir
Recipient
[Jeanne C.] Carr
Preview
Transcription
[2]in April, and struck out at once into the country I followed the Diabolo foothills along the San Jose valley to Gilroy - thence over the Diabolo Mountains to Valley of San Joaquin by the Pacheco pass, thence down the valley opposite the mouth of the Merced river, thence across the San Joaquin, & up into the Sierra Nevadas to the mammoth trees of Mariposa, & the glorious Yo-Semite - thence down the Merced to this place. The goodness of the weather as I journey- ed towards Pacheco was beyond all praise & description & fragrant, & mellow, & bright, the sky was perfectly delicious, sweet enough for the breath of angels, every draught of it gave a separate & distinct piece of pleasure I do not believe that Adam & Eve ever tasted better in their balmiest nook. The last of the coast range foot hills were in near view all the way to Gilroy; their union with the valley is by curves and slopes of inimitable beauty, & they were robed with the greatest grass & richest light I ever beheld, & colored & shaded with myriads of flowers of every hue, chiefly of purple & golden yellow, & hundreds of crystal rills joined song with the larks, filling all the valley with music like a sea, making it Eden from end to end - The scenery too & all the Nature in the pass is fairly enchanting - strange & beautiful mountain ferns, low in the dark canyons, & high upon the rocky sunlit peaks, banks of blooming shrubs, & sprinklings, & gatherings of garment flowers, precious & pure as ever enjoyed the sweets of a mountain home [and deleted] Oh what streams are there beaming, glancing, each with music of its own
Location
Near Snelling, Merced Co. Calif.
Date Original
1868 Jul 26
Source
Original letter dimensions: 21.0 x 40.0 cm
Resource Identifier
muir01_1228-let.tif
File Identifier
Reel 01, Image 1228
Copyright Status
Copyrighted
Copyright Statement
The unpublished works of John Muir are copyrighted by the Muir-Hanna Trust. To purchase copies of images and/or obtain permission to publish or exhibit them, see http://www.pacific.edu/Library/Find/Holt-Atherton-Special-Collections/Fees-and-Forms-.html
Owning Institution
University of the Pacific Library Holt-Atherton Special Collections. Please contact this institution directly to obtain copies of the images or permission to publish or use them beyond educational purposes.
Copyright Holder
Muir-Hanna Trust
Copyright Date
1984
Page Number
Page 2
Keywords
John Muir, correspondence, letters, author, writing, naturalist, California, correspondent, mail, message, post, exchange of letters, missive, notes, epistle
