The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-11-24
KEEP MISSIONS Of
CALIFORNIA SAFE
Concerted Movement to Save
Relics of Padres Becomes
National in Scope.
TAFT Approves WORK:
LANDMARKS CLUB BACKS
PrOteStants and Catholics Take
Up Move in Interest of Works
of ,JuniperO Sierra.

Special 10 The Tribune.
Los ANGELES. Nov. 23.-Prescrve
the missions! That is tho keynote Of
at movement which before the dawn of
1910 will bo heard from tho Pacific TO
the Atlantic in the supreme effort TO
preserve the crumbIng ruins of the
old Spanish missions in California.
Wealth and influence of California s
most prominent citizens are being ex-
crted and their plans to make the move
mcnt countrywide in its scope have
touched the responsive chord. President
Taft lent his influence TO the prcserva
tion plans in his speech at Riverside,
Cal, when he said:
'California is one of the few states
OF the Union which has "A picturesque
past which the people of the state
should do all in their power 10 pre-.
serve, j fully sympathize with the de-
sire Of California people TO preserve
these missions and the style of archl.
lecture they created. -
The movement 10 which the executive
gave impetus has long been popular. but
mp 10 the time Of The president S OK
preston of pleasure, lis popularity was
Not Denominational.
Protestants have Joined hands with
Catholics in furthcring the move TO-
ward preservation of these relics of
,he pioneer Catholic fathers fund
contributed by those interested directly
n the regions in which the missions
are situated, has been proposed and
Willingness TO further the movement in
that manner has been forthcoming from
many sources. The Landmarks club of
Los Angeles. rs active in the work. GA
heritage of luvelincss, of sentiment, Of
all that is beautiful in our natures >
is the way one member of that organ
iZation has referred to the missions.
The stories of the missions are like
pages from medieval history. Yet to-
day they stand almost in state of
decay, with the exception of the edi
flee at Santa Barbara, which, thanks
TO the public spirit, has been restored
10 all its beauty.
Three of the finest Of the missions
San Juan Capistrano, San Antonio and
San Batista arc in need of immediate
attention. San Fernando mission. in the
San Fernando valley, is deserted and
rapidly going into ruins. Some effort
at preservation has been made at San
Gabriel, between Los Angeles and San
Diego, and today it is in fairly good
shape.
The example furnished by the lure of
old world beauty is being used as n
strong argument in favor of prcserv-
ing the missions by the Landmarks
club. Appeals arc being made TO the
men of business on the coast and to
the thousands of fasteners who have
established winter homes in California.
Governors Appeal.
Governor Gillett makes a stirring ap-
peal: California has no great battle
fields TO honor, no statues of great
generals TO stir a martial spirit, but
II has got something better towards
arousing enthusiasm, in the crumbling
monuments erected by the self -sacrific-
ing fathers in their efforts to bring
men from darkness into the light.
The desire of the people TO pre-
serve the missions is something with
which | am in full sympathy, and |
hope before ! leave my Office to be able
to appoint commission, the duty of
which will be the study of these mis-
sions and of the best way in which TO
keep them, 10 preserve their beauty as
an ethical stimulus TO the people of our
state -
Bishop Johnson, The executive head
of the Protestant Episcopal church in
southern California. speaks of the work
Of the pioneer Catholic fathers rs monu-
ments of national architecture. He
saws:
''Thesc Mission Fathers built with
great courage. great devotion and great
diligence, and they created n styie of
architecture which we should maintain.
This can best be done by keeping for
ourselves and those who come after
the original examples of tho beauty
they developed
''lt is phenomenal that the fathers
should have builded so wisely and so
beautifully. IT. is duo 10 their memory
aud our own interest TO keep for tho