The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1891-03-10
A REDWOOD GROVE.
Plan For a Public Park That Will Be TT
LII the Others.

HE the Others.
The newspapers have got hold OF
story that our townsman, Colonel Arm
strong, is to present the State with
tract of redwood land in Sonoma County
for a park We made inquiry of the
donor and 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 posterity and for all
time. This magnifcentgift OF 600 acres
lies in Big Bottom, near the extremity
OF the branch of the San Francisco 81
North Pacific railwsy, about one mile
from the river at Guernevillei in Sonoma
County, and accessible by rail from San
Francisco, which is seventy miles dis
tanL
1t is the last considerable tract of
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, bor-
dered by the side of the Mount jackson
range, with tree trunks from five to
fifteen feet in diameter and more than
three hundred feet high, intermingled
with various other sorts CT growth, occa-
sional frs, laurel and other woods add
ing to the beauty of the spot.
The donor says the gift will 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 will be Sc
lected about as follows: Perhaps the
chairman of the Golden Gate park trus-
tees, of San Francisco; the land
scape gardener of Central park, New
York City; the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of California, and local
trustee in this county. These gentle
men and their successors forever will
have control, unf but few restrictions
in the deed of trust One will be that
no mber shall ever be cut or trimmed,
unless it be blown down. Another con-
dition will be that the park shall not be
a place for encampment for fear of fire.
and shall only be visited in daylight
There will be drives, paths and the
llHG, dS W0ll dS many OTuduloheai
structures, and gateway and fountains
in keeping with its purpose. for which
| a 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 200. with valuable
improvements, orchards, buildings, etc,
are being put into condition for yield
| ing a considerable income, and much OF
| it is as fine land as lies in Russian river
| bottom.
4 Alton ite INCOME may M longer he re-
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 seen
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 Clover
dale Reveille.