Second, there is a symbolic figure, "The Spirit of
Enlightenment." The third and main group shows types of immigrants. The
men here are: 1. the scientist; 2. the architect; 3. the writer; 4. the
sculptor; 5. the painter; 6. the agriculturist; and 7. the miner (or
other manual worker). A woman and several children complete the group,
and at the back is a prairie schooner, from which a girl waves a flag.
The fourth group represents California welcoming the immigrants, the
state being symbolized by tokens of the wealth it has to offer settlers:
the orange tree, sheaves of grain, and fruits-the figures including
the miner, the farmer, fruit pickers, and the California bear. This last
group is the most colorful, and in many ways the most appealing, of all
those in the two panels under the west arch. It is interesting to
compare the golden warmth here and indeed throughout the California
panel-with the cold atmosphere of the New England one.
Those who are familiar with the historical characters of the West will
be able to recognize in the California panel idealized portraits of
William Keith as the painter, Bret Harte as the writer, and Junipero
Serra as the priest. In the New England panel may be found William
Taylor, famous street preacher of the early days in California, as the
preacher, and "Grizzly" Adams as the pioneer.
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