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Show 419. direct, unmediated i n t e r c o u r s e with the elemental forces of Nature. For Muir a National Park had never been the sum of exceptional features, but r a t h e r a place where a man might seek and find such exceptional, extravagant experiences, a place where men were immersed in the flow. Yosemite was a place of worship, and was necessary for nourishing the pastor as well as his flock. Would t h i s s t r a t e g y work, or would the public misunderstand what Muir was trying to do? Would they take Muir as their hero, rather than following his advice and seeking out the waters of Yosemite for t h e i r own baptism? Would they idolize him because they preferred the shepherd to the fields he led them to? Would they refuse to leave t h e i r Moses behind and enter the promised land? Or would they take Muir's promise of freedom? Maybe t h i s was an unanticipated consequence of Muir's public personality. After a l l , Johnson never fully understood what Muir was doing. He became preoccupied with the "adventure" for i t s own sake, and played on the dangerous side of Muir's excursions, l a t e r giving Muir's "Stickeen" the t i t l e "An Adventure with a Dog and a Glacier." Muir f e l t t h i s was a "vulgar, catchy t i t l e . " Later Johnson published excerpts from The Yosemite as "Three Adventures in Yosemite." There was a great danger in making himself into the adventurous hero, and Muir knew i t . He wasn't out for t h r i l l s, and he d i d n ' t want to lead anyone astray on the point. |