The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-08-06
San Francisco Threatens the Heth
|Hetchy Valleym Yosemite NationalPa Park

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too shadowy to be noticed in so grand
a place.
Inc correspondence between the
Hetch Hetchy walls in their trends,
sculpture, physical structure and gem
eral arrangement of the main rock
masses. and those Of the Yosemite val
ley has excited the wondering admira-
ton of every observer. We have seen
that the Ell Captain and Cathedral
rocks occupy the same relative posi-
tion in both valleys, SO also do their
Yosemite Points and North Domes.
Again, that part Of the Yosemite north
wall Immediately to the east Of the
Yosemite falls has two horizontal
benches timbered with gold cup oak, at
about 500 n 1900 feet above the
floor. Two benches similarly situated
and timbered occur on the same rela-
tive portion of the Hetch Hetchy north
wall, to the east of Wapama fall, and
on no other. ,@g@ SOLE
The floor OF the valley is about three
and a half miles long and from q; fourth
to half a mile wide. The lower por-
ton is mostly a dry f1owery meadow
about a mile long, with the trees re-
stricted to the sides and partially sep
larated from the upper forested portion
by a low bar of glacier polished gran
lite across which the river breaks in
rapids. 4.>
Trees Found in the Park.
The principal trees are the yellow
and sugar pines, Sabine pine, incense
cedar, Douglas spruce, silver FIR, the
California and gold cup oaks, poplar,
INITIALS Towering dogwood, alder, ma
pie, laurel tumion, etc. The most album
dant n influential. are the great yell
low pines, the tallest over 200 feet in
height, and the oaks assembled in mag
inificent groves with massive rugged
trunks, four to six or seven feet in
diameter and broad, shady, wide spread
ing heads. The shrubs forming con-
spicnous fiowery clunrps and tangles are
m~anzanita, azalea, spirea, brier rose,
ceanothus, .~calycanthus, philadelphia,
wild cherry, ETC.; with abundance Of
showily and fragrant ~herbaceous plants
growing about them or out in the open
in beds by themselves-lilies, Mariposa
tulips, brodieas, orchids, iris, ,spraguea,
draperia, cellomia, collinsia, castilleia,
nemophila, larkspur, ~columbine, gold
enrods, sunfiowers and minis of many
species, and huneysuckle, etc. Many
fine ferns dwell here also, especially
the beautiful and interesting rock
ferns, pallea and ~cheilanthes Of several
species, fringing and rosetting dry
rock piles and lodges; w~oodwardia and
asplenium on damp spots with rofds
six or seven feet high; the delicate
ma1denhair in messy hooks by the
falls n the sturdy. broad shouldered
pteris beneath the oaks and pines.
1t appears, therefore, that detch
Hetchy valley, far from being a plain,
common, rock-bound meadow, as many
who nave not seen it seem to
is a grand landscape garden, one Of
natures rarest and most precious
mountain mansions. AS in Yosemite,
the sublime rocks Of its walls seem to
the nature lover to- glow with life
whether leaning a in repose or
standing erect in thoughtful attitudes
giving welcome to storms n Gains
alike. And how softly these noun
tain rocks are adorned, and how fine
and reassuring the company they keep
brows in the sky, their feet set
in groves n gay emerald meadows. a
thousand flowers leaning confidingly
against tehir admantine bosses, while
birds, bees, butterflies help the river
and waterfalls to shake the air into
music-things frail and fleeting and
types of permanence meeting here and
blending, as If into this glorious noun
tain temple nature had gathered her
choicest treasures, whether great or
small to draw her lovers into con1ding
communion with her.
Plans of the Despoilers.
Sad to say, this most useful and
sublime feature of the Yosemite Ma
tional park is in danger of being
damned and made into a reservoir to
help supply San Francisco with water,
flooding it from wall to wall and bury
ing its gardens and groves 200 feet
deep. This destructive scheme has
long been planned and prayed for, and
is still being prayed for by city
supervisors, not because water as
pure and abundant cannot be got from
outside of the park, for 1T can,
but only because of the comparative
shortness an d~cheapness of the dam
required.
Garden and park making goes on
with civilization over all the world,
for everybody needs beauty as well as
bread, places to play in and pray in
nature may heel and cheer and
give strength to body and soul alike.
This natural beauty hunger is made
manifest in the window sill gardens Of
the poor, as well as in the. radiant rose
and lily gardens of the rich, the thou
sands of spacious city parks and bot
gardens, and in our magnificent
national parks-the Yellowstone. Yo-
semitic, Sequoia, etc.-nature's sublime
Wonderlands, the administration and
joy Of the world. Nevertheless, from
the very beginning, however well
guarded, they have all been subject 10
by gain-seekers trying to de-
spoil them, mischief-makers and rob-
bers of every degree, selfishly trying to
make everything dollarable, oftentimes
disguised in profitable philanthropy,
their ~plundering utilization OF
resources" Thus the Lords
Eden garden, the first of all the forest
reservations, including only one tree,
was spoiled. And so to sonne extent
have all Y reservation and parks.