Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1875-06-30
sEiIPEEIN APPEAL
CALIFORSIA, RAnPAnr-

The American people have some rep
utation abroad for Boosting. 1t was
tiust acquired in New England. Nearly
hundred years ago a Yankee immi.
grstion-agent told the people Of Ger
many that cabbsges grew wild on trees
in New England, while be made his
delighted hearers in England and Ire
land believe that beef cattle weighing a
ton ran loose in the woods Of his coun-
try, and potatoes grew so abundantIy
that they were used to manure the
wheat fields. These kinds Of stories
secured US the unenyiable reputa.
ton Of boosters. To some extent
it has been kept up to this day. The
live Yankee goes west and returns TO
spread the most marvellous stories Of
what he has seen and "what he knows"
But for genuine, pure, unaGulterated
Boosting, commend us to the adopted
Californian. His sdjeetives have no
positive or comparative degrees. His
optics become what "SsIn Weller" desig-
mated "double-magnifying microscopes
o hextrR power" His food generates
the power to see things large, and talk
loudly Of big things more than it dis
tends MS corpus or increases his strength.
The very atmosphere he bresthes is a
mirage exactly suited TO the msgnifying
power Of his optics. We have been led
TO these reflections by reading the ex-
travagances Of Captain G.. w. Gifts
last letter, published in the AP-
PEAL Of Sunday. When we pub
lished for our readers few plain facts
concerning. the Golden State, it was not
our purpose to stir the ire Of our gallant
friend, or disturb the equilibrium of our
contemporaries in that State. We in
tended only TO call the attention of our
readers to the great folly Of joining in
q wild rush to a county where more
than one-half the immigrants were GER
tain TO be sadly disappointed. 1t was our
duty, as it will always be our pleasure, 10
arrest such movements, when we are
morally certain that good men are like
ly to be ruined by joining them. We
have accomplished our purpose. The
rush for California from our section has
ceased. People all over the country
have stopped to take thought, and
much misery and suffering on
the Pacific coast will be avoided.
That this course has not met the indorse-
ment Of Captain Gift, and has made him
mad, is to be regretted. They nave an
excellent asylum az Stockton. He will
be cared for. II our few simple facts are
TO disturb the press Of that huge ~
State, this is really lamentsble. On the
principle that the chair Of the dog is
good for the bite" we may in our char
ity make an effort TO quiet their per-
turbed spirits. 1t may do them some
good to tell our people little more about
matters and thiBgs in that great State.
BY way Of experiment, we will state
few more facts, and beg our friends out
there TO take the dose. 1t may taste bit
ter, but it will skill or cure" certain.
First-Oi the five hundred and sixty
thousand inhabitants in California in
1870, there were at least three hundred
aud fifty thousand Of them living in
towns Of more than two thousand in
habitants each. More than one-fOuTth
of the whole population lived in San
Francisco, and nearly One-fitth
of the whole population Of the State
were Chinese. Since that time the
Chinese have Increased more than any
other nationality. Will any thoughtful
man believe that country so populated
is q good country for Tennessesns to
90 to?
Second-The basis Of CalifoTnia's
wealth is small grain and agriculture.
Captain Gift shrewdly avoids denying
this, and he will continue TO do so. His
parade Of the product Of the mines in
clLdes the territory from Alaska to
Mexico, and from Utah to the Pacific.
He calls this all California for statistical
purposes. Small grain then, being &
principal product, its profit to the pro-
Queer will tell Us whether q Tennessesn
ought to rush out there to raise it, or be
content at home. In May the highest
market price for cheat in San Francisco
was eighty-fYe cents per bushel. 1t cost
thirty cents per bushel.to take it to. Liv-
erpool, the principal market. 1t had
probably cost the producer fully that
much to deliver 1t aboard the ship in
the harbor. Flour was worth from four
dollars TO five dollars and a half per bar
rel at the came time. There is not much
margin for profit in this to the producer,
If wages in that State aTeswhst our san
guine friends quote them to be.
Third-From 1850 to 1867 theorops had
failed in California five times. Since
then we have no statistics. Our belief
is that this viii be the average OF fail
ures. The best information now is that
1875 will not bring half a crop.
Fourth-California maintains an in
sane asylum with as many inmates as
any State this side of the mountains |
containing double its population. This
large per centsge OF insanity is known
to be produced by the great numbers of
people ruined and broken up financially. |
The rush to that State during the past |
spring, so iOolishly caused by interested
immigration agencies, viii furnish its
full shsre Of inmates to that prosperous
institution.
Fifth-We have many intelligent, cor
rect, truthful citizens who have been to
california, and "all over it, as the
phrase is. They agree with one accord
that sgrlculturally il is thoroughly
spotted. With an area four times as
large as our State, it Is believed that
there is not as much arabic land in Il as
there is in the west hal! Of Tennessee.
This small area OF arabic land is owned
and occupied by large landowners, in
the main. 1t is held at high figures,
and not to be had by poor men. The
large tracts Of land we hear Of so much
are mountains and ssnd-plains that will
not grow sage brush.
Ous irate and irRscible friends out
west can take these few items and work
on them for awhile. When they get
done with them We may present few
more.
IT has been said in Memphis, by those