ly alternates
with forest and meadow, and through it the quiet Merced twists and
doubles like a glistening snake. And then we come to the Three Brothers.

Already some notion of preconception has possessed the observer. It
could not have been chance which set off the filmy Bridal Veil against
El Capitan's bulk; which designed the Gothic climax of Sentinel Rock;
which wondrously proportioned the consecutive masses of the Three
Brothers; which made El Capitan, now looked back upon against a new
background, a new and appropriate creation, a thing of brilliance and
beauty instead of bulk, mighty of mass, powerful in shape and poise, yet
mysteriously delicate and unreal. As we pass on with rapidly increasing
excitement to the supreme climax at the Valley's head, where gather
together Glacier Point, Yosemite Falls of unbelievable height and
graciousness, the Royal Arches, manifestly a carving, the gulf-like
entrances of Tenaya and the Merced Canyons, and above all, and pervading
all, the distinguished mysterious personality of Half Dome, presiding
priest of this Cathedral of Beauty, again there steals over us the
uneasy suspicion of supreme design. How could Nature have happened upon
the perfect composition, the flawless technique, the divine inspiration
of this masterpiece of more than human art? Is it not, in fact, the
master temple of the Master Architect?

[Illustration: _From a photograph by J.T. Boysen_

EL CAPITAN, SURVIVOR OF THE GLACIERS

Looking eastward up the Yosemite Valley, Half Dome is seen on the right
horizon]

To appreciate the Valley we must consider certain details. It is eight
miles long, and from half a mile to a mile wide. Once prehistoric Lake
Yosemite, its floor is as level as a ball field, and except for
occasional meadows, grandly forested. The sinuous Merced is forested to
its edges in its upper reaches, but lower down occasionally wanders
through broad, blooming opens. The rock walls are dark pearl-hued
granite, dotted with pines wherever clefts or ledges exist capable of
supporting them; even El Capitan carries its pine-tree half way up its
smooth precipice. Frequently the walls are sheer; they look so
everywhere. The valley's altitude is 4,000 feet. The walls rise from
2,000 to 6,000 feet higher; the average is a little more than 3,000 feet
above the valley floor; Sentinel Dome and Mount Watkins somewhat exceed
4,000 feet; Half Dome nearly attains 5,000 feet; Cloud's Rest soars
nearly 6,00