Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1872-12-28
California Letter.

NUAAAOA 1lU 4JOObOAt
CoAsT MOUNTAINS, Cal, Dec. 18th, 1872.
Friend Reed:
Having for the last six months held
communion with big trees and rocks
high hills and deep wales, | felt desirOuS
OF leaving the companion ship of inani
mate objects, ami again ".niusling with
the world" Ii is said that "Gud made
the country and man made the city,"
God did HIS work well, and the lovers
of Nature never tire OF studying its
beauties; but like seeks like, and | was
desirous OF enjoying for time the socie-
ty Of mans work. Having few days
OF leisure | accordingly sadded my horse
for trip to the city; iastead OF taking
the Coast route which is longer but
pleasant, | resolved to make my journey
shorter aud "cut across lots" My
route lay diagonaly over these noun
tains, which are not connected together
i'll continuous chain, but each one seems
! to have separate existence as a cOnse-
quence travelling over them Is utccssari-
ly slow and tedious. found myself
more than once voluntarily singing the
nursery rhyme-"Now We 90 up, up,
up; aud now we go down, down, down
cy." My horse seemed 10 perform in
credible ieats; 1T times she stood on her
ear, then, reversing her position, she
would pose herself on her lai | fam
cied myself to be General Fremont,
crossing the Rocky Mountains, and had
an American flag, should-llke him
have planted it Oh Que Of these highest
peaks.
Late in the afternoon Of the first day
| brought up at the house of n rancher
who owns 1000 acres Of land with
scarcely level place on which TO build
a house. BY noon of the next day
had left the mountains behind me, and
was In the level lands of Santa Rosa
Valley bounded on one side by the
Coast Mountains had just left, and on
the cast by the Sonora Mountains !;
just beyond which lies Napa Valley, the
garden of the State. This is great
lruit country. Fruit of all kinds grows
in abundance, and of the choicest kind.
The apples are large and very fair, aud !
have yet TO see the first nurly or wormy
one. This may be owing to The care
people take OF their orchards. They
cultivate them as the Ohio farmers do
their corn. The fruit has not that fine
flavor it has with you, but it certainly
has better appearance. AS general
thing the crops never tail to one accus-
toned to seeing an occasional shower, it
Is wonder how any thing can grow
here, during the dry season; but IL GER
tainly does, and the grain, fruit, and veg
etables surpass anything l ever saw IN
Ohio, in quantity If not IN quality Ev-
erything Is sold by weight, and | have
not seen an implement OF ''Dry Measure"
since | came 10 California. The grain
and vegetables are all sacked, aud IN this
way sent TO market. No cellars or
warm storehouses are needed to protect
the crops from the cold, aud they are
left out all winter, with only n covering
to project from the ram. Farming is u
profitable business in this country, but
The farmers depend on nature TO do the
most of the labor. They do not work
or manure their land as much as the
farmers in the States, aud as u conse-
quence the land is wearing ont. There
Is also great lack ofnlcc iarn buildings.
This gives 10 the country "poverty sort
of look" One will find in Ohio many
corn houses, which cost more than all
the buildings of some of these largest
farms.
| left my horse at Petaluma, took the
cars tor Donahue, and from thence
to the city by boat. The trip down the
bay, reminded me OF the Hudson, al-
though the scenery of the Hudson is
more grand. Here, rs there, Nature has
hemmed in the bay by the grand old
mountains, but there is an absence OF
those splendid residences, aud other
works of art, which gives to the Hudson
its air OF enchantment, We pass on our
left tho moHths OF the Napa and Sacre-
mento rivers, near which is situated Val
lego, a city of considerable magnitude
aud importance also Marc Island, OH
which Is the Navy Yard. To. our right
we leave the towns of San Raflel, and
San Quentin. Al the latter place, pub.
lie buildings arc erected where unruly
Caliiornlans eau work Tor the benefit OF
the State. These California towns have
Spanish names, and in most OF them the
''San" predominates; the pronunciation
here Is far different from the school boy
pronunciation OF the States.
Aside from the places mentioned there
is nothing to attract the attention of the
traveller down the bay, unless he is ssri.
ously minded aud finds in these grand
: old mountains and rocky islands Rt sub
jects for thought aud meditation.
When on my way back, l had the
/ pleasure Of meeting on the boat, Eag'
lands celebrated writer--Anthony Trol
!. lepe.. He, no doubt thinking was a
a native here; piled me with questions
= concerning the curiosities, climate, soil
J, SC, OF thisS lie had just landed
3 FROM Australia, and AFTER dong Califor
! nis, he and his good wife," were going