Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1890-10-02
A REDWOOD GROVE.
Plan For q Public Park Thaf VIII BE Cn-
like the Others

Plan For Public Park Thaf VIII BE Cn-
like the Others
The newspapers have got hold OF .
story that our fownsuan. Colonel Arm
strong, is to present the State with a
tract Of redwood land in Sonoma County
for park We made inquiry of the
donor ana found the rumor correct. only
that he does not intend to give it to the
State or to any particular municipality
or society, but to trustees for the use Of
the people, for posterify and for all
time This magnificent gift OF 600 acres
lies in Big Bottom, near the extremity
of the branch of the San Francisco &
North Pacific railway. about one mile
from the river at Guerneviile in Sonou1a
County, and accessible by rail from San
Francisco. which is seventy miles dis
tant
these big trees in this region or so near
the city. OF course there are other
scopes of scattered timber in the hills.
scrubby in growth and out of the way
But this is a grand forest of mon
strous trees, much on level land, Dor
dered by the side of the Mount jackson
range. with tree trunks from five to
fifteen feet in diameter and more than
with various other sorts of growth, occa-
sional frs, laurel and other woods add
ing TO the beauty of the spot
The donor, says the gift viii not be
fully appreciated for the next fifty
years Then, when no other spot like
it can be found in reach, his motive will
be understood The trustees viii be Sc
1ected about as follows: Perhaps the
chairman of the Golden Gate park trus-
tees, of Sam Francisco; tbs land
scape gardener of Central park, New
York City: the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of California, and n local
trustee in this county. These gentle
men and their SUCCESSORS forever will
have control, under but few restrictions
in the deed of trust One viii be that
no timber shall ever be cut or trimmed,
unless it be blown down. Another con-
| dition viii be that. the park shall not be
| place for encampment for fear of fire.
and shall only be visited in daylight
There will be drives. paths and the
like, as well as many ornamental
structures, and a gateway and fountains
in keeping with its purpose. for which
sufficient endowment is to be placed
in the hands of the trustees The de-
tails can not be given for publication,
nor, in fact, are they completed But
it is understood that some of the work
will be done in the time of the owner,
and that he will retain control for the
present and as long as he lives Out OF
the 600 acres about 2O0 with valuable
improvements, orchards, buildings, etc-s
are being put into condition for yield
/ ing a considerable income, and much of
/ 1t IS as fine land as lies in Russian river
bottom.
After its income may no longer be 80
quired by the family it IS provided that
it shall become part of the PARK, and
the trustees will be directed to use such
portion as may be convenient to erect
glass houses for propagating strange
| plants, flowers, trees and shrubs. TO be
used in bordering the drives and orna-
menting the ground 1t will be seeH
from the sketch that the plan is for
posterity, and it will take long while
to work it out though in the main the
natural features of a wild forest are in
tended to predominant always--Clovers
dale Reveille.