AND ITS MESSAGE 



One day as I was resting in the 

 shade Mr. Muir overtook me on 

 the trail and began to chat in that 

 friendly way in which he delights 

 to talk with everyone he meets. 

 I said to him: "Mr. Muir, some- 

 one told me you did not approve 

 of the word 'hike,' is that so?" 

 His blue eyes flashed, and with his 

 Scotch accent he replied: "I don't 

 like either the word or the thing. 

 People ought to saunter in the 

 mountains not ' hike ! ' Do you 

 know the origin of that word 

 saunter? It's a beautiful word. 

 Away back in the middle ages 

 people used to go on pilgrimages 

 to the Holy Land, and when 

 people in the villages through 

 which they passed asked where 

 they were going they would reply, 

 'A la sainte terre,' 'To the Holy 

 Land/ And so they became 

 known as sainte-terre-ers or saun- 

 [27] 



