New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-10-22
AN OVERLAND JOURNEY.
XXXIII.
ClLIPORNIA-SUMMISG Up.

he entire area Of tbs State il officially estimated
- containing fraction less than One Hundred
Mlons Of acres; but, a. Tia total includes bays
- vel Is lakes, riTers, &C. the hcto. extent OF
sssobnereed land can hardly exceed Ninety MI
kDAs Of acres, or rather more than line times the
asea Of New Hampshire or Vernont-peEh.p
twise the area Of the State Of New York. IL
sssJ gsea ca 10y part, but one founded 90 con-
siderable travel and observst0n, which makes not
more than orc third Of this eItent-ssy Thirty
Millions of scres-poperiy arabic; the re'idas
beng either rusgedly mountainous, bopeIes.ly
Sessrt or absorbed in tie tMe marshes which hoe
~ Saa Joaquin and perhaps some other r7ers.
Tls arabic Thirty Mdhons Of scres-neariy the
area Of oil New. England, except MAiDe-sre
scarcely equaled in capacity Of production BY any
6ks sea On earth. They embrace the best Vine
nod Sn this continent, 10 sn extent Of many NH
Ssas Of acres-an area capable Of producing
a the Wine ard oil the R.nin. so-
suaBy consumed On the globe. All the
Vysi.s Of the temperate zone are grown here IN
e,sss fuIun.Dee and perfection, together with the
ID, Olive, &c, 10 which tie Lemon and Orange
Ny be added In the South. No other land on
ssstA produces Wheat Rye, and Barley 20 largely
With 20 little labor ~ the great msjority Of these
Thirty Million acres; portion Of them are vel
adapted also TO Indian Corn. To Stock growing
n ~ easy, sloveply, reckless way, this mild cb-
mate and fertile sol also lend Themselves readily;
yet nust believe that many more acres are re-
CURED here 70 Craze thousand head Of cattle than
n Eew.York OF Kentucky and that the capacities
sf California 70 furnish Beef and Mix 10 this poor
hshion have been taxed very nearly 70 the utmost
DOebtless, four six, or ten times the present
nunber Of cattle viii be fed here at some future day,
kvs not wholly On the spontaneous growth Of the
valleys and hillsides. Nay: hear already that, as
The Wild Oats and natural grasses are closely fed
year after year, 20 10 preclude their seeding or
prevent the seed falling 10 the earth and germnat-
ing, they gradually die out, and are suppanted By
coarse, worthless weeds. Eyidently-aDd rejoice
ever the factthe day OF ranches broad, unfenced
loGsins over which thecaale oftbe owner range at
viii, protected only by his brand from indscriminate
appropriation, 10 passing away for ever. And it is
high time. Though the range il yet many acres
per head, and the feed ample for the greater part
Of the year, yet the cows Of California give less
Min to-day than like number kept fox milk on
any other portion Of the globe The dry grass and
stubble on which they subsist keep them in fair
Assh, but furnishes scanty overpus for butter and
cheese Good butter lie worth fifty cents and over
per pound, and has generally at this season white
inslpid look, like that made in Winter at the East
Cheese commands twenty-five cents per pound,
=. bntal privsta tahlas Yet
The production, though meager, is rapidly ncreas-
ing; the little valleys opening directly on the Pa
cife, and thus kept green by its fogs and damp
winds, in spite Of the SIX months absence of rain,
yielding it most abundanty. cheese weighing
seven hundred and fifty pounds, the product OF
single dairy, is MOI here, on ih way TO the State
Fair At Sacramento; the large store in which l
aw il is full of Calfornia-made cheese, from base
pent TO attic. Yet California does not nearly sup
ply her own wants, whether Of Cheese or Butter,
and never will until her dGrymen shall deem it
profitable TO shelter their stock in Winter and sup
psy them with green fodder in later Summer and
FAN Whenever they shall generally devote one
quarter Of their lands 10 growing CHILEAN Clover,
Bowed Corn, Beets, Parsnips and Carrots, where
with to feed their cows from August to February,
they will make twice or thrice their present
product Of Butter and Cheese and prove theirs
one Of the best Dairy regions on earth. But Hao-
Ia, especially bad once, are stubborn things, and
they viii only come 10 this wisdom BY degrees.
Whether Californis would be better country
4 it had rain in Summer, have already somewhat
considered. That it would be more inviting and
se6actve in aspect, especially 10 those mucous
toned 10 such sterilty through the latter half Of
each year, cannot be doubted. With such rain, its
natural pssturage would suffice for twice its pres
snt number Of cattle, while cultivation could be
extended far up into the mountains, on lands now
deemed arabic only when irrigated Yet, on the
sther hand, these dry Summers have their advAn-
tAges. By their aid, the most bountfu harvests Of
Hay and Grain are secured in the best order, and
BY means Of the least possible labor. Weeds are
not half 90 nveterste and troublesome here a. in
rainy countries. A given amount of labor accom-
PLANES far more in any direction than at the East
The wise man may start 90 . journey Of business
or pleasure, without consulting his barometer, and
the fool without looking into his almanac. Nobody,
save in Winter or early Spring, ever casts an ap-
prehensye look at the skies it may bs cloudy or
bggy, a. it often is; but you know it cannot rain
till next November, and lay your plans accordingly.
I have passed large fields Of standing Wheat tha
have been dead-npe for at least . month; they
viii shell some when cut, but the Grain will bs
bright and plump as ever AL through the Grain
region, you see Wheat that has been threshed And
sacked, and piled up in the open field where it
grew, 10 await the farmers convenience in taking
r. 70 market: and il may lie 40 for months without