The San Francisco call., 1897-11-07

Thev smoke OF it as Mad canyon
whom +hev told me OF it, and, being
stupid. l asked the worthy citizens OF Los
Gatos TO direct me TO this weird place, the
very air OF which teemed with groans and
sighs.
And I wondered Why people stared.
Then I betbought myself ana ventured
into a stationery store, where pleasant
faced qirl kept watch behind the maga-
zins-loaded counter
Can YOU tell me in which direction
shouId 20 10 find the canyon where all
those queer people liver" l asked, dipIo-
maucauy.
"Anvr' she calculated, glancing out OF
+r,e window over toward the dark green
al brown hills.
"A Any?" l repeated, wondering if she
- onged there, and she laughed lightly
at my wonder and went on to explain.
You see" she said. 1.-THE hills about
Los Gatos a.e filled with strange people.
This is one OF the oldest towns in the
State, You know, ard II early days it was
pretty lively town. The Los Gatos
Hotel down by the depot. was a danger
GUS place 10 enter 1t was the scene of
more murders than you could count.
Why, a traveller who stopped there was
certain 10 be robbed and lucky if he
wasn't murdered. Later" she went on,
when more peaceable citizens appeared,
the early settlers betook themselves into
the canyons and 10 the tops of the hills
around about here. Then there are lots
of people who have located in this place
for their health, and the climate keeps
them half alive, and they could not be
anything but queer, you know"
And. as listened still the wonder grew,
D. al one small head could carry all she knew.
Now" she said, there's the canyon
where Dr. Rumford liveu. That's about
the IiveliesL There are two men in the
whole place who are sensible, and one OF
them only has one eye. That's the near
est anyhow"
/ went IN search OF guide.
DIR. Rumford's place2 ?" he questi oned
when l found him. That's not far, but
no one lives there now. It's shut up
tigat. Rumtord, you know, was a vege-
tartan, 4 religious enthusiast, and-and
be had q half-witted son. When the old
gentleman came here and bought the
place he was almost dead, but he named
the place Eden and began to write
poetry and raise vegetables. Meanwhile
the son spent his time wandering about
the town. This boy was about -. lie
had wonderful aptness for quoting Scrip
ture and a wonderful adherence for wear
ing snoes He used 10 come into town
with his sh oes under his arm, always un-
der his arm, and wander about. And the
boys. as boys will do, used TO get an ash
barrel or box and set him up on it and
keep him quoting Scripture in the middle
OF the street at all times of the day o.
night. He knew one-half a speech, and
he used TO repeat that over and over to
the wild delight of the boys and the hor-
TOR OF the citizens, who began to hold
meetings and try to evolve plan to get
him to stay outside the town limits.
Then every night, as regularly ss night
came, he took his shoes and a sack and
crept into town again. He went from
house TO house and took from the garbage
in the yards whatever suited his fancy
and picked u old clothing and tin cans
and such and carried them home with
him. Finally the father built a little hut
for him in The back yard at some distance
from the house. He said he couldn't
stand him about, and so, while the boy
sorted over the collections he had made IN
the town, the old man wrote tracts in the
house about the Brotherhood of man and
the fatherhood of God"
We had started by this time and were
passing along the white, baked roads and
beneath the MONDAY sun, which even IN
November is not as mild as it might be-
The doctor is in San Francisco now"