Creator

W[illia]m E. Colby

Recipient

John Muir

Transcription

WILLIAM EDWARD COLBY
ATTORNEY AT LAW
MILLS BUILDING, SAN FRANCISCO

February 11, 08.

Mr. John Muir,
Martinez, Cal.

My Dear Mr. Muir:

As you will note from the enclosed clipping, it seems very important that you should go on to Washington at once in the Hetch Hetchy matter. I am enclosing you letter which I have written the Secretary of the Interior and have considered somewhat the advisability of publishing denials in the newspapers. It may be best, however, not to stir up any more friction than is necessary just at the present time.
I am sending you by this mail the map which I have prepared for the President. It looks as though the matter might be decided soon and we should use every effort to insure that it is decided favorably for us.

Very sincerely yours,
[illegible]
Have not yet received your material for the Bulletin [illegible] ought to get that out immediately now while it will do good.

04062

February 11, 08.

Hon. James R. Garfield,
Secretary of the Interior,
Washington, D. C.

Dear Sir:

I note in this morning's San Francisco Chronicle the following statement alleged to have been made to you by C H. Bentley, Esq., of San Francisco:- "Bentley told him that while John Muir and certain members of the Sierra Club had memorialized the "department against permitting the use of Hetch Hetchy as a "reservoir site, they did not represent the prevailing sentiment"of the club."Ofcourse, I realise that newspapers do not always correctly report facts, but if he used the language attributed to him he has stated that whioh is false. Mr. Bentley is not a member of the Sierra Club and is not in a position to know whether the statement attributed to him is true or untrue. As Secretary of the club I have positive Knowledge of the attittud of the club on this question.I know that our membership of 1,000 is almost unanimously opposed to the utilization of Hetch Hetchy as a reservoir.I know that of the nine who compose our Board of Directors allbut one are opposed to the Hetch Hetchy project.
I cannot conceive how Mr. Bentley can hope to accomplish the object he wishes to attain by misrepresentation. If

04062

Mr. Bentley has not made the statement attributed to him then of course this letter is unnecessary.
Very truly yours,

04062

Location

San Francisco

Date Original

1908 Feb 11

Source

Original letter dimensions: 27.5 x 21.5 cm.

Resource Identifier

muir17_0173-let.tif

File Identifier

Reel 17, Image 0173

Collection Identifier

Online finding aid for the microform version of the John Muir Correspondence http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt0w1031nc

Copyright Statement

Some letters written to John Muir may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Owning Institution

National Archives. Please contact this institution directly to obtain copies of the images or permission to publish or use them beyond educational purposes.

Pages

3 pages

Keywords

Environmentalist, naturalist, travel, conservation, national parks, John Muir, Yosemite, California, history, correspondence, letters

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