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Show 483 optimistic voice. Yet Muir did d i s t i n g u i s h between uses when he got into the body of h i s argument. He s a t i r i z e d modern travel by r a i l r o a d in his a r t i c l e s about Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon; he urged in words reminiscent of his f i r st Overland a r t i c l e t h a t "Nothing can be done well at the speed of forty miles a day." He i n s i s t e d that one must take more time. "Walk away q u i e t l y in any direction and t a s t e the freedom of the mountaineer." Said Muir, Climb the mountains and get t h e i r good t i d i n g s . Nature's peace will flow i n t o you as sunshine flows into t r e e s. The winds will blow t h e i r own freshness into you, and the storms t h e i r energy, while cares will drop off luce autumn leaves. These have become the most frequently quoted of a l l Muir's words, but have r a r e l y been read for what they c e r t a i n l y were in context, a response and answer to the rush and s u p e r f i c i a l i ty of industrial tourism. It i s unfortunate that these words are most frequently read by the t o u r i s t s who stop their autos briefly at the parking l o t of a National Park Visitor Center, and then reenter t h e i r autos to drive about the Park. If one looks for i t , one can see that Muir was trying to make Americans see the Parks and Reserves as valuable for their own sake, without considering questions of use, and thus he hoped to appeal to the heart of the t o u r i s t . He was sure, of the Sierra Reserve, that "If every c i t i z e n could take one walk through t h i s reserve, there would be no more trouble about i t s care; for only in darkness does vandalism flourish." |
