The Leavenworth weekly times. [volume] (Leavenworth, Kan.) 1870-1880, 1875-08-26
LESSON. ron KANSAS.
California I'D Kansas Compared


California is no doubt great State,
wealthy ard powerful. Money is plenty,
railroads and other public enterprises are
moving steadily or, and The standard Of
values is stable and sue. And yet the
view is disappointing 10 the average immi-
grant. Many people leave the vast grassy
plains OF Kansas, and come to California TO
engage in the stock business, and ara aston
ished to find that three-fourths Of the State
are covered with mountains, scantily sup
piled with grass that not a drop Of rain
falls, in ANY ..season, from June TO De-
cember; that the soil here, Is upon the ay-
erage, vastly inferior to that OF Kansas !;
that the only point Of superiority is the
mild Winter, which is really more than
counterbalanced by the scanty supply oil
heritage and unfaIling annual drouth.
And vet the aggregate of annua! prOduc-
ton Is enormous; the value of last years
crop on wool, wheat, beet and wine, was full
" millions of dollars. IL Is worth while 10
know what secret has wrung such 4 harvest
IRON such an unpromISIng soil.
The secret lies in organized industry.
We have wonderful strawberries upon our
tables, such As | never saw in Kansas, but
they are raised upon soil which is daily
irrigated with the most laborious care. The
same thing Is true OF all the marvels OF the
agriculture Of this coast The butter is all
.'gilt-edged." / have not yet seen in our
markets single roll OF butter that was not
firm, sweet and delicious. But it Is all
made in great factories, by The most perfect
processes, and We pay 81 cents pound for
it. The producer makes a large profit, and
the consumer would hardly be willing to
eat the slush which is for sale at ten cents a
pound in Kansas markets. Everything |
see mere shows the came peculiar excellence,
produced in the same way. Organized in
dustry does ii all. And here capital seems
always ready to embark in enterprises OF
this sort. a company has just been organ
lied and chartered Tor the purpose oil turn
ing the entire Sacramento river into an irri-
eating canal more than a hundred miles
in length. 1t is estimated that this will
cost several millions OF dollars, and that
it will be profitable to the company that
makes it, and TO the farmers whose lands
are fortified By it.
But ii the irrigation enables California
farmers to grow rich, how much more will
given sum- spent in irrigation benefit
Kansas? N ansas drouth" is a mere baga-
telle, compared to that OF California. From
the 18th Of June to the early part Of Sep
cumbersome ten weeks-was the extent OF
the dry period in '74-the worst year since
lSG0. One month Of irrigation would
have saved the corn crops. Here in
California, at least twice that amount is al
ways necessary, and barley is the universal
substitute Here on the coast, the long,
dry summer brings no excessive heat.
the arabic land'is, the summer heat is far
worse than in Kansas.
To sum the thing up: Kansas has the
best soil, the most arabic land and the hest
summer climate abundant grass and coal.
California has the best winter climate,
and good supply OF timber, but DO coal.
Kansas is the best agricultural State.
The wealth OF California has come from
a wise use OF capital and labor. The pow
erty OF Kansas has been developed by in
sane speculation, and general disregard OF
the conditions needful TO success.
Kansas has better facilities for irrigation
than California. She has far more rain on
the average. Even in the spring of "a,
enough rain was wasted in the freshets 10
make good crops everywhere. Ii the sur
plus waters We're accumulated in artificial
reservoirs, and used when needed, the aver
age crops would certainly lie trebled. II Is
not difficult to raise IS bushels OF corn. or
10 Of wheat, upon an acre OF land thor
oughly titled, and sufficiently waterei when
summer rains fall. Here most oil the irri-
cation seems 10 be performed by Windmill
pumps, or by expensive flames which bring
water from Mountain streams. But these
streams are scanty IN amount; there is lar
more water in rivers in Kansas than in
those OF California. 1t is educated indus
try which has made OF Californian agricul-
ture the giant that it is.
The kaw, the Arkansas. the Missouri,
and the Neosho, average vastly larger
volume of water than the San Joaquin and
those rivers over your valleys, As lead our
rivers into our field. 1t is as easy to build
dykes and fill reservoirs III the Kansas val
Ieys, as in Calveres or MERGED.
wish that come man having means
enough would try the experiment OF regU-
larry and c"piously watering one acre of
Kansas Land, by mean of pf-allel bitches,
such as are used here. The cultivator
would gather such crop Of Strawberries,
corn or vegetables, as Is seldom seen east OF
the mountains. Once started, and proved
10 I've practicable and success, the method
would steadily extend, till Kansas would
stand upon 4 higher level than California
occupies to-day. To attain this position
will cost time and money, patience and I'M
limited work, but this result is within
reach.
The Summer drouth Of California, which
extends from the first OF June till the mid
die of December, is not wholly evil in its
results. 1t makes insect life very feeble in
Its development. The chinch-bug, grass
hopper, curculio, horer, aphis, and al! the
ten Thousand insect plaques OF the East,
are hardly known here. Mosquitoes and
flies are also scarce. The great juicy plums
and apricots, the vegetables and trees, show
no trace of these enemies. There is little
weather-talk; for seven or eight months.
one dry, hay October dav succeeds another
The mountains are bathed in a dry, blue
mist; here in our seaside valley, girdled by
the east hills
There falls no; hail, nar rain, nor any snow,
Nor ever wind blows fonily but il lies
Dcep-meadowed, happy, fair, with orchard lawns,
And bOwTy billOws, crowned with Summer sea"
Who will take the trouble to inform you
that ''It's fine day" when two hundred
and forty fine days succeed each other, each
one dream of Avalon? One almost longs
for a 'thunder-head," or hurricane, or any
kind of 4 squall or racket, to break this
calm. We are not yet quite good
world, the flesh and the "other fellah," de-
mand the atmospheric disturbance that
comes. In this delicious air, all ought to
grow young, good and happy. II. B. n.
SAN JOSH, July s, 1875.
AJudge Against Prohibition.
Judge Cole, fthe Supreme Court OF Iowa,