Oct. 18, 1383.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



223 



I nv. ard evening, as the sun was sinking low behind Piin- 

 liminon's lofty tango and vr« were making our way to a cer- 

 tain turnip field near home, which was thelaat pUieewe 

 ■ heat, William, who wae some distance ahead. 



1 .lit. "Pun. Mr. John, run, Dick Richards and the 

 rector ire i meadow, aiid'fl he down 



in the turaits afore us." i had a good deal Furthei 



than iny rival, but my legs m , than therec- 



indaftcr going it double quick over two fields.iri a 

 jitiy i leaped the ditch on to the hank, surmounted by a 

 ekset hedge, Oh the other side of which lay tbe turnips, 

 and burst through just as tin.- rector was: coming through the 

 other at the bottom of the field. He hailed me as loud as he 



■ I "Hold on, hold on," and, observing how quick the 

 old parson was footing it up the otln-r side, keeping his dogs 



to heel, 1 knew something was up and awaited his BT- 

 ri\ al. As soon as he could get within speaking distance, lie 

 riiii lout io soy thai Tio less than three coveys had been 

 marked into the tick! and we had better beat it together. So 

 our dogs commenced their work and soon made a point. Up 

 got a cOVfty of ted; the rector bagged a brace, while 1 missed 



figeth.Br, The. old fellow was very patronizing. •■You 

 tired too high, John." said he: •'keep cool, keep cool, never 

 ■■> xeiied." Now. although the old man had christened 

 me, anil 1 had listened to his prcisy sermons ever since 1 was 

 big enough to go to church, and had. therefore, sonic degree 

 eteneefor his remarks, yet. as I had for that day at 

 hast put off the boy's jacket for the adult velveteen, I rather 

 winced at his imasked-jnr advilfl, especially when given be- 

 fore the old clerk and William. 



Having reloaded and advanced to the middle of the field, 

 the dogs pointed again, and up got three birds, right tinder 

 the -rector's nose, Tie firtd and" missed, and as luck would 

 have it the birds passed me. and 1 drew trigger, they were al- 

 most touching each ot In r. and when ! Bred down dropped the. 

 three. The rector muttered something, and on glancing over 

 my shoulder, 1 perceived William rubbingthe sideof his nose 

 with his thumb and winking at the old clerk. Singular 

 enough wi beal thi rest of that field without finding annth.»r 



! and on coming to the end of it the rector prop I n e 



should count bags. We did so, and found lie bad got nine 

 brace partridge and a hare, while I mustered eleven brace, 

 two bare.-, a rabbit, and a land raff— much to his chagrill as 

 I could plainly see. fur he considered himself a crack shot 

 and looked upon me as a mere boy. Soon after that fseemed 

 In have risen in his estimation, for at his invitation I often 

 went out with him, and almost always dined with him after- 

 ward, and a good dinner he took care to have, for he was an 

 Old bachelor, and had a famous cook and housekeeper coin 

 bined in one, well knewn to the epicures for miles around as 



• -Old Molly." 



Tired a in! hungry] arrived home, just at dusk, to find 

 that the Admiral bad ordered dinner to suit my arrival, and 

 was waiting forme. On presenting myself in the library, 

 and after inquiries as to What f had shot, bis eyes af onee 

 Settled on the velveteen, but the light being rather dim he 

 proceeded to snuff the mould candles as they stood in their 

 ancient silver candlesticks, and then rubbing his "specks," 

 male a. careful survey, and then shook his head. Tiie next, 

 day he made no allusion to the coat, hut 1 had some misgiv- 

 ings I bat he had not forgotten it and would ferret out the 

 maker, and then I should be in for it. On the evening of 

 thai j ame day we were seated together after dinner in the 

 library, and I observed that he was particularly silent for 

 a while, and then all of a sudden he hurst out — '"Look at 

 that hiil, sir. Who gave you liberty to order that coat?" 

 And then such a storm of abuse succeeded and continued 

 for such a tine- that ordinary lads would have succumbed 1o 

 so fiery an ordeal; but it was not the first nor the heaviest 

 by any means that had occurred in my youthful memory, so 

 as usual on such occasions I kept my' mouth closed, and in 

 about half an hour by the old Gothic clock on the mantel- 

 piece he had completely poured out his "weasel o' wrath," 

 as Sam Welter would have said, and dashing the bill ou the 

 table made for the door in such a fluster that lie nearly cap- 

 sized himself and a small table in his progress. 



It was some weeks before he forgot the price of that coat, 

 and relapsed into anything like bis usual humor, but the day- 

 came at last through a piece ot good luck. An old a 

 aunt and godmother besides, resident in Loudon, having 

 written to 'ask what I would like a- B presenl ou inv birth- 

 lien i rl; i oe, the hippy thought struck me that I 

 i square accounts with the old gentleman by making 

 him a present, so 1 wtote to n.y aged relative stating my 

 desire, She was evidently quite overcome by my- filial affec- 

 tion, and wrote me in the' most commendatory terms, laud- 

 ing what she termed my "singularly unselfish and praise- 

 worthy idea," and not only inclosed' in her letter a lovely 

 mother ot pearl tooth-pick' and case elaborately chased i'n 

 silver for the old Admiral, but a £5 note for myself, with 

 her -best wishes for happy returns" of my natal day, wishes 

 which certainly were heartily reciprocated by myself. Willi 

 a -fifth of the "sum 1 engaged our village milliner to make a 

 black silk velvet scud cup with a gold tassel on the top, 

 which 1 knew my venerable parent had expressed a desire Io 

 wear lor the Comfort of his bald caput iu winter. 



Having received the cap in due time, which certainly 

 looked perfection, I chose an evening alter dinner when the 

 gallant old gentleman had imbibed a more than usual quan- 

 tity ol " '-20 Fort," arid appeared in the very best of humors. 

 Approaching the subject by remarking iipon the unusual 

 severity of the weather, and the danger of elderly persons! 

 catching cold in their head by sitting indrauglits. 1 cau- 

 tiously introduced the subject of light caps for the protection 

 of that part of the pet. son.' whereupon the old gentleman de- 

 clared that the next time he went to London he would cer- 

 tainly pel one. "Do you think this one would tit you. sir':" 

 said I, handing it to him. He carefully looked it over and 

 then drew it over his head, and 1 saw tit a glance that 1 had 

 given the right measure, that of the inside of his hat, and 

 above all thai 1 had hit the right nail on the head, for he 

 rose from his old ami chair and was leaving the room. 

 '•Slop, sir," said I, "1 have got something else which ought 

 Io go willi it," and handed iiim the little pearl tOOth-piek 



■ Name ot 'fortune, what's this? Where did you get Ihe 

 money to pay for these things-'" 



■Aunt Sally sent me a birthday present, too much to pay 

 Lewis for my shooting coat, so 1 thought I would get you 

 something useful, sir." The words were hardly out' of 'my 

 mouth when 1 saw the old sailor's eyes begin to' moisten, and 

 his voice appeared to falter as he placed bis hand on my 

 shoulder and whispered more than spoke, -Good lad, God 



Nexi morning when \ got up and took up the hair brush 

 Off my toilet table, underneath it lay Lewis's bili receipted, 

 as well as another £5 note wrapped up in a half sheet of 



note paper, whereon was written. "Forgive and forget, my 



Many years have passed since that day; the old Admiral 

 has long sank to his rest, but the recollection of that event 

 still remains in memory as bright and lustrous as was When 

 first I donned it, that rich, soft fabric— "my first velveteen." 



AMONG THE BIG TREES. 



CALIFORNIA is the homeof the superlative adjective, 

 and therefore no reader of California!! letters should 

 allow himself to he surprised at descriptions and dimensions. 

 In Mariposa county, however, one loses all temptation to 

 enlarge — For one encounters such marvels that they stay the 

 ready tongue and pen. In Mariposa lies the wonderful 

 Yo Semite Valley, and it also boasts the Grove of Mammoth 



i larger and more numerous than those of the Cala- 



veras Grove. It is a county rich in superb I'orcst-ciad 

 mountains, and is willial fertile in ils meadow lands. 



Clark's, from which place T write, is one of the most beau- 

 tiful spots in the county. It is now about twenty-six years 

 since Mr. Galen Clark — traveling in these mountains on busi- 

 ness connected with the building of a ditch for irrigating 

 the lowlands — "pitched his tent" in this charming meadow, 

 set like a jewel in the very heart of these pine-clad heights. 

 Although 'his business project failed, he did not return to 

 his former life, but built himself a log cabin and settled 

 down in what remained for many years his home. An en- 

 thusiastic sportsman, he spent luauy days wandering in the 

 woods, his gun his only companion, and it was while on a 

 grouse-shooting trip he stumbled upon the upper group of 

 the famous big trees. The first one he discovered he named 

 in honor of The county. This tree is seventy-live feet in 

 circumference and two hundred and sixty feet in height. 

 It can be imagined that for the time the grouse were forgot- 

 ten. Three mouths later the lower grove, with its marvel- 

 lous Grizzly Giant, was discovered, and directed by the Indi- 

 ans. Mr. Clark followed a trail into Fresno, the adjoining 

 county-, and there beheld the Fresno Grove. 



It is not my purpose to enter into any description of those 

 forests, for the. truidc hooks hurl .statistics enough at one, 

 but, if now that this Mariposa grove has become almost a 

 thoroughfare, one is impressed and awed by the immensity 

 of the trees. Faucythe sensations with which the discoverer 

 and ardent lover of' nature stood alone in the solemn still- 

 ness of these mighty woods and contemplated the marvel- 

 ous growth, the limbs themselves of the dimensions of ordin- 

 ary forest trees, and the tops toweritur far into the clouds. 

 In his log cabin, seven miles away, Mr. Clark spent many- 

 months, alone with nature, enjoying, witha treehunter's zest, 

 the unmolested woods. At length, as the wonder of the 

 Vo Semite, twenty-six miles distant, became talked of, his 

 cabin acquired a "more public character, and became the 

 resting place of the travelers en route to the valley. It was 

 primitive, and the first meals were served on three-legged 

 stools, but the travelers of that day were content, to he primi- 

 tive. The valley was accessible only by trails over the foot- 

 hills of the Sierras. In 1874 the hotel and property known 

 as Clark's were purchased by the Washburn brothers who. 

 being energetic men. at once began improving the place mid 

 its approaches. They built a fine broad stage road over the 

 mountains to Mariposa, and a few- years later a road to 

 Madera, a station on the S. P. P. P. distant about eight 

 hours from San Francisco. The Madera route to the Yo Semite 

 has become well known, and is certainly most picturesque 

 and beautiful. 



Willi the ignominy resting upon me of being a Californian 

 ignorant of California's finest scenery. 1 joined a party who 

 left San Francisco in July, with time unlimited for enjoying 

 this region. We took the four o'clock boat to tbe Oakland 

 Mole and then took our sleeper. The route runs for fifty 

 miles or more along the bay shore and I hen turns inland. 

 The scenery is pastoral and simple and the heat was most 

 oppressive.' At eight in the evening we dined at Lathrop. 

 We knew we were iu the San Joaquin Valley by the heat 

 and tlie mosquitoes. They are bold, daring mosquitoes, and 

 some one who is reckless of his future says that in the early 

 days they were sent in bunches to the market and sold as 

 snipe. We reached Waders at midnight, where the sleeper 

 was shunted to a side track. One has the choice of remain- 

 ing in the ear all night or taking rooms at the hotel, the for- 

 mer by far the- ploasanter arrangement. At six in the morn- 

 ing a six-horse stage coach was in readiness for the mountain 

 drive. Having with wisdom and forethought secured the 

 box seats, we were spared much of the dust which caused 

 our companions inside to look like the natives of some tropic 

 isle. The beginning of the drive, is very tiresome and we 

 were clad, on reaching Coarse Gold Gulch, to know that 

 the fiat country lay behind us. The latter half of the sixty- 

 seven mile drive" lies through most superb forests of 

 fir, yellow and sugar pine, live and white oak. 

 Such' dense, shadowy forests, pungent with the sweet 

 pine odors. The sugar pines are very tall and stately. 

 One can easily distinguish them by their close-woven bark 

 and by the peculiarity ttiat their long slender cones hang al- 

 ways "at the extremity of the brunches, where they look like 

 claws grasping at the air. The sugar is very white and 

 sweet, and the wood acquires a hig-li polish. The yellow 

 pine is also most symmetrical, and the spines are larger 

 than those of the sugar pines. The pine nuts arc \erv yaltt- 

 able to the Indians, with whom they form an important ar- 

 ticle of diet. The firs have a deeper," darker foliage than the 

 pine, and spread in graceful, fan-like branches. The young 

 firs are called arbor vita;. The ground beneath the trees is 

 carpeted with pine needles. Along the border of the road 

 there are great beds of the Mariposa tulip, and at a little dis- 

 tance the bright tar weed looks like a velvety lawn beneath 

 the trees. The beauty of the forests is. however, marred by 

 the recklessness of the sheep-herders, who set tire to the 

 trees in order to have young grass the next year for their 

 flocks. There is. nevertheless, a certain pieturesqueness 

 about the charred stumps and fallen trunks, which, in the 

 twilight or in the deep and gloomy aisles of Ihe forest, as- 

 sume weird forms of birds and men and impossible animals, 

 and remind one of the enchanted forests of the fairy tales 



The station. Clark's — and, by the way, there is an effort, 

 being made to change the name to Wawona. in honor of the 

 tree ""through which" the stage passes -is reached at eight 

 o'clock, and it is a joy to find one's self in this admirably 

 kept and scrupulously clean hotel. The table and room's 

 are very excellent, and" nothing has been spared to make the 

 place comfortable and attractive. One feels rather over- 

 come ou finding- himself in a room with softly tinted walls, 

 a happy thought of the proprietor's, for this white mountain 

 light is very trying to the eyes. The station is 4,000feet 

 above ihe sea, and the air dry'and warm, so that to one who 

 has been struggling for breath amid the fogs and raw winds 



of San Francisco, the change is inexpressibly delightful. 



IV, most travelers this is simply a resting place for a night: 

 but to us. after doing the valley, il became home for s - I I 

 weeks. It is intensely interesting to watch the tourists trav- 

 eling on time. They' arrive here tired with the drive, but 

 with a noble and fixed resolution beautiful to heboid 

 rise at five the next morning, drive to the valley, spend one 

 day there, return to the station looking immenselj n lieved, 

 as' if in flic accomplishment of a holy purpose, go to the 

 trees cheerfully, and on the following morning return to San 

 Francisco. This mad expedition necessitates an absence 

 from ' -Hi. busy haunts ot man" of seven days. The trip is. 



however, often mad in live days, and the tourist imagines 

 he has seen ihe Yo Semite, whcn'it fakes at least several 

 to grasp the first idea of its colossal cliff's and domes. I his 

 trip leaves no lime for the enjoyment of life at the s*ntion. 

 There are charming walks and trails through the woods, and 

 two miles distant— an easy ride— tin- Chiuuaoiluy Falls. The 

 proprietors are now projecting n lake in the woods, to be 

 stocked with trout, and on which a boat or two will be kept 

 For the use of the guests. 



The South Fork of the Merced River runs within :i hun- 

 dred yards of the hotel, a clear, rapid, rocky stream, full of 

 dark 'shady pools and sparkling riffles, and the abode of the 

 most appreciative trout that ever rose Io a fly. The Indians 

 have spoiled the fishine- for about a mile above and below the 

 hotel, but when one passes the frequented portion of the 

 river In- is most delightfully repaid, and has no need to call 

 unon his imagination in recounting his success. Four miles 

 and a half I'rom the station bridge Alder Creek conies foam- 

 ing and plunging down to the river, and half a mile further 

 Big Creek enters from the opposite side. Below this point 

 the trout are larger and more game than above, and have 

 been caught weighing from two to three pounds. Above 

 these creeks the tLh have never run larger than a pound and 

 a quarter, and it is more common Io catch two or three to 

 the pound. The brown hackle is the most taking fly at all 

 times. At twilight a gray fly, peacock body, or a white ll.\ . 

 red body, prove very killing. During this season the best 

 tishintr is done between five and eight in the morning and 

 the same hours iu the evening. My chosen comrade 

 walked up the rivet al half-past four one morning, and 

 returned with sixty-eight, ranging from eight to twelve 

 inches iu length, anil the same evening caught forty-two in 

 about three hours' fishing. [ was less successful, and having 

 left my fly book wilh him and walked alone a long distance 

 down 'the river. I was unable to change my cast for some 

 time, when in about two hours' fishing 1 caught twenty-two. 

 W., who went in the morning four miles down the river. 

 brought back thirty pounds of trout; he fished morning and 

 evening. "With a' light Leonard rod and a supply of the 

 tlies I' have described, one is well equipped for fishing this 

 delight Iu! river. Rubber boots are. of course a necessity. 1 

 would advise also very light leaders, as the trout are clever 

 little beggars and need to be beguiled. There are several 

 beep pools not fur from the hotel and the water is warm 

 enomrh for a refreshing bath. 1 think any fisherman can 

 pici tu-e to himself the delight of a clcarriver running through 

 pine woods, a creel full of glistening trout packed between 

 the cool green ferns, and flic ease and comfort of a bath, 

 when unobserved he can linger as long as lie pleases and then 

 lie out on a smooth, warm rock io dry A very South Sea 

 islander, sitting under his bread-fruit tree, could nol be 

 happier. 



Early in the summer- one can make a fine bag of wild doves, 

 and indeed, for each month the sportsman finds some game 

 to excite his ardor and enthusiasm. The ridges all about 

 here are full of deer: grouse are plentiful, and the plumed 

 partridge or mountain quail is so abundant that it is monot- 

 onous. "" For more exciting sport there are bear. The county, 

 like all other counties in California, boasts a club-foot griz- 

 zly, whose mammoth tracks the stage drivers frequently dis- 

 cover in the road. The grizzlies are not very numerous 

 here, but there are still numbers of cinnamon bear. A 

 golden bear, which seldom weighs over one hundred and 

 twenty-five pounds, is also found in the neighboring woods. 

 and occasionally a grayish-white bear. A female with her 

 cub having passed" the bote! one morning recently, we went 

 out wilh Calvin, one of the pioneer hunters litre, and sent 

 out the dogs. Even the dogs left us to track a deer or coyote 

 over the ridge where it was impossible to follow. The com- 

 monest mode here is to bait a place on a moonlight niglii 

 and then lie in wait for the hear, a very unsportsmanlike 

 proceeding to my mind. 



The place is fairly bristling with characters. Fikc. the 

 Yo Semite guide, is "perhaps the most interesting, lie is Pike 

 because he came from that famous Missourian county. He 

 is a fine stalwart man of perhaps forty-live, a bice singularly 

 open, and, strange to say. not at all weather-beaten. He ' 

 counts his victims of the woods to an unmentionable num- 

 ber, but be is generally conceded to be one ol the moit suc- 

 cessful huntersof this region. He is a celebrated petson, and 

 tourists to the valley usually seek him out at once. He used 

 to dress in the Davy Crockett style, and was a joy to behold. 

 He has guided all the celebrated" people who have visited the 

 valley, and is proud of his fame. His voice is a husky 

 whisper, though time was, he says, when lie could "holler 

 loud enough to be heard four miles." 1 asked: "How did 

 you lose your voice. Pike?" And he gravity answered: 

 "Lying to tourists: why I can lie hard enough lo blaze out 

 a trail over any of these mountains." He was silent a mo 

 incut after this, then suddenly brought his fist down ou the 

 pommel of his saddleund surprised us by some of the choic- 

 est oaths it. has ever been my good fortune lo listen to, and 

 which, delivered iu his half whisper, had a wciid ami 

 ttful charm. He is thoroughly honest and respectful, but 

 will Dot allow any nonsense, '(be of a party to the Nevada 

 Fulls this summer, an aggressive and self-conscious person. 

 irritated Pike beyond measure by attempting lo run his horse 

 over the rocky trail, and by assuming such dictatorial man- 

 ners that he was unendurable. Pike's soul al last revolted. 

 and whipping out his knife, he turned suddenly and cut off 

 the end of the stranger's beard, which proceeding effectually 

 silenced him. A young woman with a foot large enough to 

 have left the Carson footprints, also aroused his ire by call- 

 ing bhn constantly to arrange her stirrup. At last she said. 

 "But it is too small.'' "Mo," he calmly whispered, "your 

 foot's too d d biff." 



We were pbOtOgraphenVwith Pike, as it is quite the correct 

 tiling, and his heart wanning tons, ho offered to bring his 

 i the hotel and play for us in the evening. It was in- 

 tensely interesting and intensely western that evening. We 

 sat on" the broad back porch of the hotel, overlooking the 

 Merced, every tree on the bank reflected in the- water, and 

 the mighty cliffs beyond lor ming vague and indistinc- | 

 moonlight. Pike, braced against the railing, his face full of 

 earnest purpose, his fiddle grasped with desperate fin, 



