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Show 219. dwelling in us and with us, like holy spirits, through all of our after-deaths and after-lives. Even if a flood was a better vehicle than an earthquake for spreading Muir's gospel of Nature, he was still writing with conflicting purposes. He knew that few San Franciscans or "Boston wise" would wander out into the middle of a Yosemite flood to hear the beating heart of Nature. So he returned to his theme in 1875, writing a more radical argument and confronting the prevailing narrow civilized view of Nature. "Flood Storm in the Sierra" appeared directly below Overland's motto, "Devoted to the Development of the Country," and argued that men who were too concerned with their own interests ought to be mindful of Nature's. That Overland published this essay suggests that the editors didn't realize how radical it was. Further, Muir observed this flood after spending at least ten months in the Bay Area working on his Studies. He had an increased awareness that he spoke to an audience which might appreciate his sentiment only as long as it didn't interfere with their material comfort. The results of the flood of 1875 may have been particularly destructive of human artifacts, but Muir argued that it was unfortunate so few people enjoyed this noble storm in its home among the mountains, so, it will doubtlessly be remembered far more for the drifted bridges and houses that chanced to lie in its way than for its own beauty- or for the thousand thousand blessings it brought to the fields and gardens of nature. |
