Point Lobos 201 



gold and silver ferns are not without their representatives. 

 The oak is Quercus chrysolepis, a species rather common 

 in central California, but nowhere else in the world. 

 The pine is Pinus radiata, the Monterey pine, about the 

 Bay of Monterey, nowhere else in the world. The cy- 

 press there are two of them; one is Cupressiis goven- 

 iana, a small shrub-like tree on sun-burnt slopes, found 

 here in a single colony and also in similar position at 

 Cape Mendocino ; the other, here discussed, is Cupressus, 

 macrocarpa, the Monterey cypress, occupying an area 

 two or three miles long from Cypress Point to Point Lo- 

 bos, and not exceeding two hundred yards in width, and 

 nowhere else in all the world! Even the little live- 

 forever is unique, limited to this immediate coast-line. 

 About these three plants our present argument may turn. 

 It is needless to say that a situation like this possesses 

 peculiar interest; it is an interrogation point. It calls 

 loudly for explanation. Of course, not so very long ago 

 no one had thought of offering any explanation. We 

 had a strange way of looking at things in those elder 

 days. When a boy I was shown a most curious plant, a 

 shrub found by our northern streams, formerly not rare, 

 the leatherwood. I was informed that this shrub was 

 unique, the only thing of its sort on this side of the 

 world ; that it was planted here by the Creator to meet 

 the wants of the red man who was wont to use its tough 

 pliable fibrous bark in all his simple industries. I by 

 no means dispute that older explanation: it were per- 

 haps hard to demonstrate its lack of truth. It has in 

 its support the fact indubitable that the bark was used 

 as described ; but nevertheless, I do not believe that just 



