98 



Sierra Club Bulletin 



Golden State; and the birds and the bees, as well as the flowers, have 

 been having rather a hard time of it. However, it is not so much the 

 inevitable for which we grieve as it is for the thoughtless and unneces- 

 sary destruction which now threatens practical extermination of some 

 of the more cherished species of our native flowers. 



"You who know the freedom of the high Sierra and the long, wind- 

 ing trails and unfrequented by-paths of the more inaccessible mountains 

 and valleys of California do not realize this so keenly as do they whose 

 lives are more strictly confined to the populous centers of the State. 



"The highways and byways of California, which once were adorned 

 with multitudinously tinted and fragrant wild blooming things, are being 

 desolated and marred by the throngs of automobilists and outdoor enthu- 

 siasts whose appreciation of beauty is somewhat misdirected, to say the 

 least. 



"The toyon, or red-berry, sometimes called wild holly, comes in for 

 more than its share of this sort of vandalism. It is no infrequent sight 

 on Sundays and holidays to see hundreds of automobiles and hikers 

 literally loaded down with branches from these beautiful trees. In 

 their haste to gather and be gone, people frequently cut down the trees, or 

 twist and hack huge branches from their delicate trunks, thus sadly 

 marring their beauty, if not permanently injuring the growth. The 

 beautiful toyon is one of the most attractive and characteristic features 

 of this State, giving a flame of color to our otherwise flowerless road- 

 sides at this season of the year, and aside from sentimental and aesthetic 

 reasons, it should merit protection as a valuable asset to the State's 

 charm and beauty. Tourists never cease to exclaim over and admire 

 its rich and cheerful coloring, which furnishes such a marked contrast 

 to the wintry east. From reports gathered in various localities, we 

 learn that the toyon trees have been almost obliterated in places, and 

 while there seems to be at present an unlimited supply of red berries in 

 the more remote districts, the increased demand for them, and for other 

 wild shrubs, for holiday decorations, threatens in time even these vast 

 reserves. Venders of wild holly and greenery are having shipped to 

 them daily, and in immense quantities, such material from various parts 

 of the State. If this demand increases, and is not regulated, it will, 

 added to the thoughtless extermination carried on by motorists and 

 other unthinking people, practically exterminate some of California's 

 most attractive features. 



"We feel that much may be accomplished through a campaign of edu- 

 cation and publicity, but enforced measures of regulation have already 

 become necessary in some localities, and wherever necessary the matter 

 should be brought to the attention of supervisors or local magistrates. 



"The birds will miss the berries, and the bees will miss the flowers, 

 and the landscape will lack its flame of color to cheer us, and something 

 beautiful will have gone out of our lives — something we cannot regain 

 unless we cherish and protect before too late these fairest and rarest of 

 Nature's offerings." 



