The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1854-04-26
Inc HsES Frees OF Cali.
,,kDERp5:p.

All new countries arc noted for
wondcrS: and. often they arc credited
for many more and greater wonders
than they really possess. California,
since the Yankees got hold Of it, has
been cracked up to be-. great country,
and full Of wonders When it was
first announced to be full Of gold, pco.
pie shrugged their shoulders, and shook
their heads, and would not believe it.
But after she poured her gold into the
Stat ; tnr y few years at the rate of
fifty millions Of dollars i year. people
began to set it down as fixed fact,
and TO look upon it as "a regular bu.
sincss transaction" The stories about
the big trees and big vegetables OF
California, when they were first told,
were generally taken TO belong to the
Munchanscn and Sinbad-thr Sailor.
school but now they are well attested
by thousands witnesses, and nobody
doubts them.
y single Irish potatoc, raised from
seed carried from the Atlantic States,
weighed seven pounds, SO that single
one, cut up into small potatoes, would
make a hcaping half peek. We have
seen one ourselves brougi; from there
weighing four pounds. And we have
seen California hccts brought to New
York, weighing fifty pounds piece.
We have seen accounts OF turnips and
onions grown there weighing thirty or
forty pounds II piece. 1t is not to be.
supposed that all vegetables grow to
such monstruus sizes, But some Of them
undoubtedly do. Why they do 50, we
must leave to The agricultural chemist
to find out. Perhaps it may be be
cause the soil is manured with gold.
Let not the reader be excited BY
these statements to greater desire
to migrate to California. We believe
emigration to that part Of the Repub.
lie needs no stimulus. 1t is already
rs great perhaps IS is beneficial 10 the
Whole country, and probably too great
for the benefit Of the individuals who
go \ few arc individually benefited,
but probably thrcc-lourths of them
would have been better of TO have
remained II The old States.
But about those big trees, four hun
drcd feet high, Il hundred and ten feet
Ill circumference, and thirty five feet
i'll dianctcr-it is y big story, but it
must be swallowed, no. the tree but the
story, for i. is true. y gang Of hands,
instead of SoId digging, have been dig
ging into one Of the trees, and after
boring and digging away for about u
month, they got it down We have
seen . piece Of the bark bronght to
New york. 1t was about q foot thick,
ola llaky, vclvcty, sponyy texture, and
u brown chcsnut color. The wood of
these trees in appearance is something
between pine and red cedar. 1t is said
TO be fine for some kinds of cabinet
work. ~ Massachusetts man who is in
California, has written to lis brother ut
Springfield some account ofthcsc trees
and particularly Of the one which has
been got down. One can hardly help
feeling y little indignant at the L'lli-
putians for staying the mighty giants,
who had blavcd storm and tempest
for three thousand years. We add
from the Springfield Hcpudlican the
account given by the letter writer:
The big trees Qor there ore one.
hundred and thirty one Of thom over
ton feet i'll darlclcr, standing on the
limits OF few acrcs) stand in Nam.
moth Tree Valley, about thirty miles
north of Sonora, in Calaveras county.
| The Mammoth tree which las been
tollcd was bored down with long augers
and look four men twenty-five days to