Creator
John Muir
Recipient
[James] Murdock
Transcription
Martinez, Cal. March 22, 1902
Dear Mr Murdock:
Your kind letter & the set of photographs came safely for which I heartily thank you. I am heartily with you in all you say of Scotchmen. Wherever grit & skill & invincible granite determination & principle are required the world cannot do without them. I'm sorry you did not see the Grand Canon of the Colorado River of the West. What you saw is the gorge of the Arkansas River in the state of Colorado which would make only an insignificant almost unnoticeable side wrinkle in the wall of the great Arizona Canon. There is no more comparison between the two than between the [illegible]rosachs & the Himalayas or your Castle Rock or the Bass & Mt Blane. The Grand Canon is about 220 miles long 5000 to over 6000 feet deep & from 5 to 15 miles wide. A branch railroad runs from the main line of the Santa Fe to the very rim of it. The sculpture of the canon & the colors of it are even
02968
more marvellously impressive than its vast size, altogether unrivaled on the face of the globe. So you must just come back & make this trip & the one to Alaska, thus enriching your life & lengthening it. I went to see the Canon two months ago when it had on its winter garb, & the glory of it was unspeakable. I have since been trying to write about it, but it makes all my best words seem silly. It was the Half Dome of Yosemite that Anderson the brave Scotchman climbed by drilling into the rock & inserting eye bolts to rest his feet on. The North Dome is easily accessible from the north side, one has no difficulty in riding a mule to the top of it. Be sure you come again to this side the sea. Your first trip was only a good reconnaissance - I'll be delighted to see you. Sincerely Yours John Muir
02968
Location
Martinez, Calif.
Date Original
1902 Mar 22
Source
Original letter dimensions: 27 x 20.5 cm.
Recommended Citation
Muir, John, "Letter from John Muir to [James] Murdock, 1902 Mar 22." (1902). John Muir Correspondence (PDFs). 4630.
https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/muir-correspondence/4630
Resource Identifier
muir12_0291-let.tif
File Identifier
Reel 12, Image 0291
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The unpublished works of John Muir are copyrighted by the Muir-Hanna Trust.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
