Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1915-04-15
Communication
Huntington Park. Cal.

huntington Fark, Col., apr.
dear folks at home: As we
are doing q little going" these
days, l must tell you of another
trip of sight seeing we took
last week Emma, Mr.. Lisle
and his son and wife, myself,
Mr.. Green and family, VINO is
the editor of the Eoglewood
Times, drove over to Hunting
ton Park (my rooming place.
and after packing numerous
baskets and boxes with our
lunch, we started for the IA
nous Modjeska Ranch, with
ten in our party. The roads
were perfect, we went thro'
lovely orange groves and as
they are now in bloom with
ripe and green oranges hanging
on the trees, the perfume was
delicious.
We passed through the towns
of Orange, Anaheim, Santa
Ana-all beautiful places, TIE
latter being quite a city. SIN.
ia Ana range of mountains
were in sight a greater part of
the way. We thought it would
be fine to go the mountain
road, but almost concluded
otherwise the nearer we came
to the forest. 1t was a climb
in reality and as we wound
around the curves. some places
we're just wide enough for an
auto and as straight up in
the air as we cared to ira
vel, but the autos did them.
selves proud. We had no trou
BILE at all and felt we'll repaid
by the beautiful sights that
met our gaze.
Before telling you about the
place, will tell you somethir g
Of its history. Madam Moo
jeska, over thirty i've years
ago, decided to leave Poland
and come to America to gain
riches and a fine home, as so
many do in foreign countries,
thinking all you have to do in
America is to stoop down and
pick up the wealth.
Southern California was her
ideal spot and Santiago Canyon,
in the Santa Ana mountains
was the chosen place. Mod.
jeska named the fores t,
taking it from Shakespeare's
pay, GAS You Like it"-"The
Forest of Arden" She said
everything was there in the
forest, mentioned in Shake
speare's description of the For
est Of Arden and as she play
ed Gas You Like 1t" for years,
she surely knew all of the de-
scriptions. mo doubt some of
you Valley people have seen
her She had 1900 acres in
her ranch, including mountains
and valleys, olive trees. orange
groves and beautiful shrubs Of
all kinds. Her bungalow is of
the East indian type and was
designed by the late Stanford
White. She spent her vaca-
tions here in rehearsine, her
play Gas You Like 1t" and
resting.
By the way, met the gentle
man who played the role with
her, and found him a very in
teresting man to listen too. He
is now up there for his health
his first visit there was twen-
ty-two years ago and thinks it
is a most wonderful health re-
sort.
The author of "Quo Vadis"
wrote nearly all of his novel
here. Paderewski also visited
her here, and told her she was
living out of civilization. That
was sc veral years ago,
and he too has purchased a
similar place near Paso Robles
Around Modjeska's home is
about thirty acres of as beauti-
full park as one could wish
to see-wonderful flowers from
almost every known land. The
rarest of these, and one she
priced so highly is the "Jeru-
salem Thorn" brought from
the Holy Land years ago By a
friend. Grand live oak trees
some measuring over 100 feet
across. know this is correct
for we got into an argument
about how far the limbs reach.
ed on either side, and to settle
the dispute we had it measured
Sycamore trees in abundance,
foun a MS playing, lakes, tennis
court, and games for ali.
Not far above the home in
kho oor,,or .,ha,o %ho roo,,n