The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1874-06-15
FROM SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
Ramblings In the Far West. Inter.
,e9ting Sights and Experiences
Choosing o Home in q Canon
Whore The FloWeis Bloom Early

Where the Flowers Bloom Earl,
and Long.
EXTRACTS trom two letters o Mr., VIM. p. stife
OF otWheeling, from. friend In Lower CAlIiol
MIA ''.I.57'I - : 80 -
Letter No. dated at San BernAdlnO, Call
IhaYe Just got back from a two week
trip into the mountains on q visit TO som
gold mines, and while wandering alonI
the mountain trails l had ample Time i
cogltate on the error Of my ways In neg,
lecting my friends In the States, and I vii
now try TO make good my long procrasti
nation In correspondence, i77FirI- 3
FROM COLUMBUS 10 sAN PRANCnoo.
To give q logical sequence to my tale l
will be necessary to 60 back to the tint
OF starting from home, which occurred II
the latter part Of June. My journey owe
the Pacific roads was in every sense /
pleasant ono, especially In regard 10 my
fellow passengers and the social and har
monious spirit reigning amongst Us. In
deed our passing acquaintance was q
pleasant that at parting we mutually ex
pressed our sorrow thereat In Original
poems, OF which l would enclose q COPY
TO brighten your sadder hours II theiI
length would have permitted.
SCENERY OF THR ROCKY MOUNTAINS.
As to the beauHes and grandeur Of the
scenery l must say for one that l was
somewhat disappointed, and II you were
70 ask for q description Of the Rocky
Mountains would be at a loss 10 give the
same, for was greatly sstonished when
our guide book told US that we had
crossed the same, and from the looks o.
tho few mountains that we saw from the
summit at Sherman, ! am sorely puzzled
to know why they are called Rocky. The
TACT Is that at the point OF crossing, the
Rocky Mountains are only an elevated
plateau, TO which you rise so gradually
that all the beauty and characteristics Of
mountain scenery are lost. One really sees
no mountains from the base Of q valley
until he reaches Salt Lake valley at OR.
den. The Central Pacific portion Of the
Journey Is more interesting and mountain.
Gus In character, yet l do not think II
equal either to the Brenner or Lemering
routes IN Europe. r--4p
ARRIVAL IN BAN FRANCHCo,
Arriving at last in San Francisco
there remained only sufficiently long To
rest myself from the faugues OF the Jour
ney and 10 get a fair idea Of the city, for
which l found that a stay of four days
suttlced, although greater number might
have been quite pleasantly spent in this
metropolis Of the Pacific coast.
THE ATTRACTIONS OF THE PLACE,
To summarize the attractions Of Frisco,
It's sights may be classed into It's markets,
Chinatown and Woodward's Garden. In
the former one Is struck, not by the great
abundance Of vegetables, but still more
by the presence at the same time Of veg.
etables and fruits which with you folks In
the States ripen at widely different peri.
DDS Of time, which are here, however, con.
stantlY= cultivated and produced during
the greater part Of the year. In other
respects their markets are, perhaps, less
interesting than the markets Of other
towns, and particularly so find the fish
market, which could hardly compare with
those Of other seaport towns.
THE CHINESE QUARTER.
Chinatown is 8 never ending source oil
curiosity and wonder to a stranger, and q
walk through its streets is recompensed
with more sights than whole day passed
elsewhere, At first 1t seemed strange tc
me that so well built q portion Of the city
should have been given up to the occu
pancy Of so low class oil beings, for in,
stead Of finding Chinatown to be com
posed Of novels, l found It to be in the very
heart Of q well built city and that house,
and hotels four stories high, and other.
wise Of no mean dimensions, had beer
given up as an abode to this desplsed and
hardworklng people.
HOW THR JoHNN1Es LIVE.
But soon found the secret of all this BY
peep into the sleeping quarters Of John.
ny, and / saw that twenty or fifty China,
men live In space hardly sufficient lol
halt a dozen white men. Everywhere
where one casts his eyes one perceiyes
some peculiar trait Of this,people: here il
the odd manner In which they carry or
In their own way the different vocationl
of life; there 8 green grocer's shop with 6
mixtum compositum Of food Of all kind
from peculiar vegetables TO meat and fish
In all the various stages ol decay, or dried
up so that 1t was difficult to SAY what Il
was; here bulletin board covered with
caballstic announcements before which @
gaping crowd Of "pig tails" were Assem-
blen; here Johnny writing in books o.
their own manufacture and with the pc
culiar instruments and manner Of hig
race; everywhere, in fact, whittier ont
would, look or turn, he could imagine
himself In China proper, only that the
buildings alone Of all around him told
that he-still was in the land Of the free
and the home Of the brave.
found the Chinaman at all points or
my route through California, but nowhere
In such numbers, comparatively, as o.
Frisco. Here, In San Bernardino, there
are very few, and ! am told that they
were at one time forced 70 leave the place
by force Of arms, on which occasion ever
blood was shed.
The other curiosity Of Frisco, Wood
wards Garden, Is a queer make up O
museum, ball room, minstrel performance
menagerie and 80 forth. For me, how
ever, the greatest attraction swas the col.
lection Of seals and sea lions, and also thl
marine aquarium.
FROM 'pRnco 10 RANTA BARBARA.
The first point 1 wished TO strike iron
San Francisco was Santa Barbara, which
l could have reached quicker and cheapel
by sea, but as ! wished to see the coun
try I went:overland, and thus enjoyed
the pleasure OF packed stage, and q two
days and nights ride. I merely inter
rupted my journey at San Jose, (pro.
nounce hoSdy) very nice town som,
80 miles from Frisco, and now mucl
liked by the merchants Of that town O
an out.oi.town residence. The next tow
Of note was San Luis 0bispo, situated in
dried up country, not far from the coast
/ ii 4 ~