EDITORIAL 



HE optimist who coined the phrase "See America first" was no doubt 

 inspired by the attractions of the mountain lands of California; for 

 certainly nowhere in the accessible world is the full sublimity of 

 alpine scenery so effectually combined with facilities, natural and 

 lan-made, for enjoying the outdoor life. The trout-laden streams, 

 hidden glades and mountain meadows where pasturage never fails, 

 Ihe plentiful game in feather and fur, and, finally, the immunity of the 

 jamper from summer rains, all combine to make the wilds of the Coast 

 ranges and the Sierras peculiarly attractive to the fugitive from the city 

 ind its sordid ways. 



Nor are these benefits concentered in any one vicinity. From one end 

 )f the State to the other these beguiling places beckon the business-worn 

 urbanite, with such a rivalry of charm as to bewilder and make the choice 

 Jtself the only burden. And as there are two classes of vacationists, the 

 »asy-goers who like luxurious hostelries "with every modern appointment" 

 md the robust nature lover who flees these very things, so likewise the 

 jountain resorts differ in character, furnishing every man accommodation 

 to his desire. 



Frequently these two different ideals of vacation enjoyment are exem- 

 jlified in the same locality. Witness Tahoe Tavern and Tallac, on the 

 >ne hand, and the wild mountain camps almost within sight of them, on 

 the other. Or the Tamalpais Tavern, with its cuisine and city comforts, 

 Rooking down on many a gulch and canon where the deer seek cover and 

 le camper dreams himself alone. Also transportation affords a similar 

 jhoice. Noble caravansaries there are in the State where the weary are 

 deposited on the hotel steps, as it were, by the passing train; and there 

 ire far-hidden rendezvous at the termination of miles of trail — delicious 

 rysting places with Nature herself, alone — that may be attained only by 

 le rugged resort of pack-train and saddle. And then there is the com- 

 >romise between the two, represented by the scores of charming inns of 

 le mountains, reached by stage — sometimes but a mile or two from the 

 tation, sometimes at the end of two days' muscle-racking journey. 

 Mountain-climbers will head for Shasta, or the Tallac country, or the 

 trails of Mt. Wilson. Or those who really mean it will start in for the uncer- 

 tain trails of Inyo, where Mt. Whitney lifts its head, unrivaled in all the 

 United States for altitude. In the far north, Mt. Shasta, nearly as high as 

 Whitney, and bearing aloft two thousand feet of summer snow, combines 

 the attractions of the wilderness and civilization after the manner of the 

 Swiss Alps. For here are to be enjoyed the ample comforts of a good hotel 

 in conjunction with such facilities as guides and alpenstocks for the climb 

 up the snow-fields, in an ascent which falls in the same class with that of 

 Mt. Blanc. 



After ail is said, the unique charm of California's mountains lies in the 

 pure abandon which they invite. There are opportunities for white frocks 

 and starched linen, for those who know no other way, but the great range 

 of the loafing spots of the State are kinder to the rough-and-ready wardrobe 

 of corduroys and hobnails. And with all this magnificent incentive to 

 outdoor days and nights we can readily accept the scientist's suggestion 

 that California, by virtue of her geographic controls, is destined to breed a 

 race of bigger men. 



