The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1909-12-16
ANSWER TAF1'S PLEA
TO PRESERVE MISSIONS
Concerted Movement to Save
Relics Of Padres Becomes
National in Scope.

Los Angeles, CaI.-PreserVe the mis-
sions! That IL the keynote Of a move
ment which before the dawn Of 1910
will be heard from the Pacific to the
Atlantic in the supreme effort to pre-
serve the %crumbling ruins Of the old
Spanish missions in California. Wealth
and influence of C%alifornia's most
prominent citizens are being exerted
and their plans to make the movement
country wide In It's scope ave touched
the responsive chord. President Taft
lent his influence to the preservation
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 to pre-
sire of California people to preserve
these missions and the style Of archi-.
lecture they created"
The movement to which the execu-
tive CAV impetus has long been pop
ular, but up to the time Of the presi-
dents expression Of pleasure, it's popu-
larity wa, limited in a measure to CAL
ifornia.
Protestants have Joined hands with
the Catholics in furthering the move
toward preservation Of these relics Of
the pioneer Catholic fathers. A fund,
contributed by those interested directly
In the regions in which the missions are
situated, has been proposed and will
ingness to further the movement IN
that I'M has been forthcoming
from many sources. The Landmarks
club of Los Angeles. Is active in the
work. "A heritage Of loneliness, Of
sentiment, of all that is beautiful in
0,xr e., o, 10 tha xx,a DS,A araH 30
that organization has referred to the
missions.
The stories of the missions are like
pages from medieval history. Yet to-
day they stand almost in a state Of
decay, with the exception Of the edifice
at Santa Barbara, which, thanks to the
public spirit, has been restored to all
its beauty.
Three Of the finest of the missions
San Juan Capistrano, San Antonio and
San Batista-are In need of immediate
attention. San Fernando mission in
h San Fernando valley is deserted
and rapidly going into ruins. Some eff
fort at preservation has been made at
San Gabriel, between Los Angeles and
San Diego, and today 1t is in fairly
good shape.
The example furnished by the lure of
the old-world beauty is being used as
a strong argument in favor of preserv-
ing the missions by the Landmarks
club. Appeals are being made to the
men Of business on the coast and to the
thousands of fasteners who have es-
tablished winter homes in California.
Governor Gillett makes a stirring APP
peal:
California has no great battlefields
to honor, no statutes of great generals
to stir a martial spirit, but it has got
something better towardS arousing en-
thusiasm, in the crumbling monuments
erected by the self sacrificing fathers
In their efforts to bring men from
darkness into the light.
THE desire or the people to preserve
the missions Is something with which
/ am On full sympathy n I hope be-
fore 1 leave my Office to be able to ap-
point a commission the duty Of which
will be the study of these missions and
OF the best way In which to keep them.
to 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
or the pioneer Catholic fathers as mon
uments of national architecture. He
says:
These mission fathers built with
great courage, great devotion and great
dliigence and they created a style of
architecture which we should maintain
This can best be done by Keeping for
ourselves and those who come after
the original examples Of the beauty
they developed.
1t Is phenomenal that the fathers
should have builded so wisely and so
beautifully. II is due to their memory
anu our own interest to keep for the
country what they gave to the prov
ince." paw
Before Bishop johnson came TO Cali.
fornta he had interested himself in the
aus or the missions. So great was
ms desire to preserve them or, at least.
AID IN doing so. that he became a mem
per or the Landmarks club years ago.
II is largely the work Of the club that
q kept a few of the missions in a
Iair state OF preservation. This organi-
zation Is made up Of 10 per cent Cath
olics and 80 e cent Protestants.
President David Starr Jordan. of
stanford university, for years has been
walton work. He expressed himself
strongly m logically recently on the
subject. He said:
One OF California's most important |
assets Is found In the Spanish missions. |
each picturesque and real architectural
merit. Distinctive in California's in |
terest as the romantic Spanish names |
or cities. churches and Institutions
names associated with these missions. |
They are the oldest remnants of the |
early life In this country, and years |
OF neglect have brought most OF them
to a d~eplorable condition. Some are ut
terly obliterated, while others are now
rapidly falling into decay. So far the
only step taken to preserve these mis- |
sions has been the mere patriotic infu- |
ence OF a few Of California's people |
I'M by religious and historical socie- |
ties. Three of the finest Of these mis- |
sions-San Juan Capistrano, San An
tonic and San Batista-are in need OF
immediate attention. A rich man could
desire no greater than the
restoration or n Of these missions.
And the people Of California can rear
greater monument to themselves
than protecting these missions from
decay"