My First Summer 



of the state is honeycombed with caves. 

 This curious specimen of subterranean scen- 

 ery is located on a belt of marble that is 

 said to extend from the north end of the 

 Range to the extreme south. Many other 

 caves occur on the belt, but none like this, 

 as far as I have learned, combining as it does 

 sunny outdoor brightness and vegetation with 

 the crystalline beauty of the under-world. 

 It is claimed by a Frenchman, who has 

 fenced and locked it, placed a boat on the 

 lakelet and seats on the mossy bank under 

 the maple trees, and charges a dollar admis- 

 sion fee. Being on one of the ways to the 

 Yosemite Valley, a good many tourists visit 

 it during the travel months of summer, re- 

 garding it as an interesting addition to their 

 Yosemite wonders. 



Poison oak or poison ivy ( Rhus diversiloba}, 

 both as a bush and a scrambler up trees and 

 rocks, is common throughout the foothill re- 

 gion up to a height of at least three thousand 

 feet above the sea. It is somewhat trouble- 

 [ 34 ] 



