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DAWN AND THE DONS 163 muslin slips but half conceal their pulsing limbs. Even the old men from whom the ethereal fires have escaped are abroad in the same garments which covered them in midsummer.”

And another, February 27, 1847, “The weather continues bright and beautiful. The air is soft, the sky clear, the trees are in bud, and the fields are medallion with flowers.” And so on, through many entries.

Colton also records the impression made upon him by the scenery of the Monterey peninsula. In an entry of March 5, 1849, after he had been at Monterey nearly two years, he writes, “The scenery around Monterey, and the locale of the town arrest the first glance of the stranger. The wild waving background of forest-feathered cliffs, the green slopes, and the glimmering walls of white dwellings, and the dash of the billows on the sparkling sands of the bay fix and charm the eye. Nor does the enchantment fade by being familiarly approached. Avenues of almost endless variety lead off through the circling steeps, and winding through long, shadowy ravines, lose themselves in the vine-clad recesses of the distant hills. It is no wonder California centered her taste, pride and wealth here.”