The author of this book wishes here to call attention to several very excellent books on Yosemite now in circulation, each with a distinct and definite purpose. For the reader who desires a complete, interesting, and accurate compendium of facts, there is Ansel F. Hall’s “Handbook of Yosemite National Park.” Those interested primarily in the Indian lore will enjoy Herbert Earl Wilson’s “The Lure and the Lore of Yosemite,” as well as Galen Clark’s “Indians of Yosemite.” For the Indian legends themselves, C. Hart Merriam’s “The Dawn of the World” and Bertha Smith’s “Indian Legends” are recommended. Keenest appreciation of the beauties of Yosemite are to be found in John Muir’s “Yosemite” and “My First Summer in the Sierras,” and in J. Smeaton Chase’s “Yosemite Trails.” For its abundance of rare photographs, as well as for its information, John W. Williams’ “Yosemite and the High Sierras” is exceedingly interesting. Dr. L. H. Bunnell gives the most authoritative early history of Yosemite in his book entitled “The Discovery of Yosemite.”

To all these books, and more, the author makes acknowledgment for much of the material here presented. The author wishes further to extend personal thanks to Mr. Francis Farquhar for the liberal use of his extensive Sierra library, and to the Old-Timers who have given first-hand information.

One further word in connection with the legends included. Though the germ of them sprang originally from authentic Indian lore, by their many repetitions they have become so embroidered and embellished by the white man that only a flavor of the true Indian legend remains. However, they are the current stories still told about the distinctive features of Yosemite, and they are deemed worthy of one more repetition on that account. Versions of the same legend vary so in detail that the writer has ventured, in one or two instances, to give a composite of the most prevalent accounts, maintaining always a strict adherence to the underlying theme, or motif, of the legend, while risking the embroidering of one more eyelet in this fabric of fancy.