Creator
John Muir
Recipient
[James] Cross
Transcription
[illegible] 1981 Yosemite Valley Dec 24th 71
Dear Cross. I have just written a line to Maxwell & of course you are in lively remember- ance as one third of the pleasant [illegible] of the Hoffman excursion. I suppose that you are now bravely housed in Merrie England, & in looking back upon the many broad fields of terrestrial grandeur & beauty, you behold our Yosemite sharply defined, peerless & companionless, would that you might see our mountains now, they are glorious with the generous snows of four days storm, every dome & spire, & every nitch & tablet, has its share of the pure jewels of winter storm. Since you were here I have rambled the upper mtns incessantly untill driven down by deep snows, I am engaged in the study of the ancient glacial system of this region, & am no longer bound to Hutchings or his mill, I will likely go on with my explorations with reference to the dead Yosemite ice rivers for several years & may write a mono- gram for the Boston Academy of Sciences. I was in the great Tuolumne canon a short time ago of wh Hetch Hetchy valley forms a part the Hetch Hetchy occupies exactly the same pos- ition upon the Tuolumne, that the Yosemite does upon the Merced, & both vallies were formed at the same period & by the same forces, & of course
Accession #
their physical characters are closely similar I should enjoy a talk with you Letters are small contrivances of but little value in scientific discussions, though they answer well enough for the conveyance of friendly greetings. I send you an outline sketch of our Hoffman Camp, wh doubtless will touch a happy memory. May the mountain beauty wh you then absorbed remain pictured in you forever, & enrich the whole fabric of your life.
[drawing overtop some writing] Blacks be here all lovely, there valley with whom ought, I would Farewell cordially yrs Muir
valley California (Via Big Oak Flat)
A trail is being made up Indian Canon & another up the face of the mountain to glacier point & a third one is in contemplation for Eagle point via the rigged & tangled canon wh Maxwell said would "puzzle the saints" & wh you called "The Valley"!! #7333 00210
Accession #
their physical characters are closely similar I should enjoy a talk with you Letters are small contrivances of but little value in scientific discussions, though they answer well enough for the conveyance of friendly greetings. I send you an outline sketch of our Hoffman Camp, wh doubtless will touch a happy memory. May the mountain beauty wh you then absorbed remain pictured in you forever, & enrich the whole fabric of your life.
[drawing overtop some writing] Blacks be here all lovely, there valley with whom ought, I would Farewell cordially yrs Muir
valley California (Via Big Oak Flat)
A trail is being made up Indian Canon & another up the face of the mountain to glacier point & a third one is in contemplation for Eagle point via the rigged & tangled canon wh Maxwell said would "puzzle the saints" & wh you called "The Valley"!! #7333 00210
Location
Yosemite Valley
Date Original
1871 Dec 4
Source
Original letter dimensions: 25.5 x 20 cm.
Recommended Citation
Muir, John, "Letter from John Muir to [James] Cross, 1871 Dec 4." (1871). John Muir Correspondence (PDFs). 1409.
https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/muir-correspondence/1409
Resource Identifier
muir02_0601-let.tif
File Identifier
Reel 02, Image 0601
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
Pages
3 pages
