New-York tribune., 1901-12-07
THE NATIONS PARKS.
DESCRIPTIONS BY ONE WHO KNOWS
THEM WELL.

OUR NATIONAL PARKS By John Muir Illus
trated. Octave, pp- $40. Houghton. Miflin & Co.
John Muir has right to speak on the parks
belonging to the nation. He more than any
other man, has actually made fractions of the
wilderness the property of the whole people in
ducing the government to preserve invioIate for
posterity several huge areas of the prineval for
est In his latest book-made up of sketches
originally appearing at long intervals in The
Atlantic Monthly, and gaining fresh force from
being brought into compact Wholesome scarce
ly knows which TO admire most his powerful
presentation of the beauty and grandeur of the
Far West, his righteous indignation at the
wanton destruction Of forest and hideous desc
Grafton OF landscape that still going in por-
tons of the wilderness over which national pro-
lection has not been extended. He deals equally
well with each.
The title Of his book is perhaps scarcely
broad enough He treats not only of the ma
tonal parks-four in number-but of the forest
reservations, Of which there are score or more
and not alone of the superb scenic beauty in
both Of these, but of the animals and birds the
flowers and mighty trees, the fountains and
streams. His avowed purpose is that of SHOW
ing forth the all embracing usefulness of our
wild mountain forests, with view to melting
the people to come and enjoy them and get them
into their hearts, that at length their pres
ervation and right use might be made sure &"
This purpose the present work will largely serve
No matter what one may have read before he
cannot fail to be moved by Mr.. Mur's de-
scription Of mountain and canyon river, lake
and cascade, the wonders of the Yellowstone
and the Yosemite, the giant Sequoias-the larg-
of which the author found to be 80 feet in
diameter inside the bark, and unquestionably
over four thousand years of age
1t is in the descriptive portion of the pages
that the nature lover who cannot see with his
own eyes what is here so freshly and forcefully
presented viii especially delight. But the great
practical purpose OF the book will be best sub
served if il may in some manner come into the
hands of those who make the laws of the land
and especially Of some of those few far seeing
ones who realize that they have responsibilities
regarding the future which it is their duty to
exercise in the immediate present To them
should ccne with much persuasiveness as if
personally addressed the fervid appeal of John
Muir for the further protection Of the forests of
the West He admits that much has been done
that "a wonderful advance has been made in
parks and thirty forest reservations en-
bracing nearly forty million acres; that this
shows the trend of awakening public opinion:
but he argues that far more should be done TO
arrest the needless and criminal destruction
that is speeding faster and further every
day." and to safeguard still greater reserva-
tions 1t can only be accomplished by the Fed
eral Government.
1t took more than three centuries to make
some CT the trees in these Western woods-trees
that are still standing in perfect strength and
beauty, waving and singing in the mighty for
ests Of the Sierra Through all the wonderful.