Creator
John Muir
Recipient
[Marcus] Benjamin
Transcription
Dr Benjamin
Wash D.C.
Dear Sir:
Of all the Californians I know General Bidwell in my opinion best deserves a place in Statuary Hall. From first to last of his long career he was our most conspicuous & enthusiastic leader in the making of this State. Taking part in commercial, political & military affairs, establishing schools & churches, building roads etc. In particular he was a great farmer. The greatest of this West In the early days while others riddled the Sierra gulches in a wild storm of energy & the whole atmosphere peoples & all seemed yellow with gold dust, he proved & made known the far greater wealth of the soil, plowing, sowing, planting, making innumerable experiments with all sorts of grains & fruits for everybody's benefit.
That Bidwell was not the only man to strike roots & grow high & broad in the mighty work goes without saying but he has alwasy been in sight as a patriarch of the old style,
03556
steadfast upright, towering in massive grandeur of character amid his fellow pioneers like a Sequoia amid its companion firs & pines. And so I think his name will stand in history - a benevolent master builder - the Washington of California.
Washington of California.
faithfully your
Martinez, California, April 10/05.
Dr. Benjamin,
Washington, D.C.
Dear Sir:-
Of all the Californians T know General Bidwell in my opinion, best deserves a place in Statuary Hall'. Form first to last of his long career he was our most conspicuous and enthusiastic leader in making the State; taking part in commercial, political and military affairs, building roads etc In particular he was a great farmer, the greatest of the West. In the early days while others riddled the Sierra gulches in a wild storm of energy, and the whole atmosphere people and all seemed yellow with gold-dust, he proved and made known the far greater wealth of the soil, plowing, sowing, planting, making innumerable experiments with all sorts of grains and fruits for everybody's benifit.
That Bidwell was not the only man to strike root and grow high and broad in the mighty west goes without saying; but he has always been in sight as a patriarch of the old style, steadfast, upright, towering in massive grandeur of character amid his fellow pioneers like a Sequoia amid its companion firs and pines. And so I think his name will stand in history -- a benevolent master builder -- the
[illegible]
Location
Martinez [Calif.]
Date Original
1905 Apr 9
Source
Original letter dimensions: 22 x 14 cm.
Recommended Citation
Muir, John, "Letter from John Muir to [Marcus] Benjamin, 1905 Apr 9/10." (1905). John Muir Correspondence (PDFs). 3312.
https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/muir-correspondence/3312
Resource Identifier
muir15_0366-let.tif
File Identifier
Reel 15, Image 0366
Collection Identifier
Online finding aid for the microform version of the John Muir Correspondence http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt0w1031nc
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
Holt-Atherton Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library. 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
2 pages
Keywords
Environmentalist, naturalist, travel, conservation, national parks, John Muir, Yosemite, California, history, correspondence, letters
