John Muir 



31 



sympathy with crowds of people ; sixth, his intense love of ani- 

 mals/' Thoreau's quiet residence at Walden is to be contrasted 

 with Muir's world-wide journeyings from Scotland to Wiscon- 

 sin; his penniless journey down the Mississippi to Louisiana, 

 Florida, across Panama and northward into California in its 

 early grandeur ; his establishment of the sawmill, showing again 

 his mechanical ability, as a means of livelihood in the Yosemite ; 

 his climbs in the High Sierra and discovery of still living gla- 

 ciers; his eagerness to see the largest glaciers of Alaska and 

 his several journeys and sojourns there ; his wandering all over 

 the great western and eastern forests of the United States ; his 

 visits to special forests in Europe ; his world tour, without pre- 

 conceived plan, including the wondrous forests of Africa, Aus- 

 tralia, New Zealand and Asia. Finally, his very last great 

 journey. 



When starting out on this South American journey, from 

 which I among other friends tried to dissuade him, he often 

 quoted the phrase, "I never turn back." Although he greatly 

 desired to have a comrade on this journey, and often urged me 

 to accompany him, he finally was compelled to start out alone, 

 quoting Milton : ''I have chosen the lonely way." 



On July 26 I said good-bye to this very dear friend, leav- 

 ing him to work on his books and prepare for the long journey 

 to South America, especially to see the forests of Araucaria. I 

 know that at this time he had little intention of going on to 

 Africa. It was impulse which led him from the east coast of 

 South America to take a long northward journey in order to 

 catch a steamer for the Cape of Good Hope. 



He remained at Garrison for more than two months, writing 

 his Boyhood and Youth and his Yosemite, and I have just de- 

 cided to erect a tablet at the log cabin where this work was done 

 and to name the cabin John Muir Lodge. 



Among the personal characteristics which stand out like crys- 

 tal in the minds and hearts of his friends were his hatred of 

 shams and his scorn of the conventions of life, his boldness and 

 fearlessness of attack, well illustrated in his assault on the de- 

 spoilers of the Hetch Hetchy Valley of the Yosemite, whom he 

 loved to characterize as "thieves and robbers." It was a great 

 privilege to be associated with him in this campaign. But cer- 



