The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1878-03-01
EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENTS
EAR READERS OF THE NEW NoRruwEsr.
a fer an irfnr...1 II

weeks during which Jupiter Pluviusu /
has extended his seepter beyond the
farthest limits Of the dominions con-
ceded to him in Oregon, and held high
carnival all over Californis-we again
sharpen our pencil for rambling talk
with the numerous members of the
NEW NORTHWEST family.
This is the sixth week that the rains
have descended, now in gentle showers.
and now in furious, wind-driven tor
rents, that at times have caused us to
glance anxiously toward the sky, hon
ing to be reassured by the show OF
promise" that the world was not again
to be completely submerged. Mount
Diabalo lifts high his storm-crowned
summit to the south of US, suggestive of
an Arrarat in case Of need, while creeks,
the dusty beds of which were gazed at
half-despairingly by farmer and ranch
man for weeks before the rainfall began,
are sending their muddy torrents into
the swollen Sacramento. The ground,
beautifully green to look upon, but mire
the softest, aud of depth most marvel
Gus when pressed by the adventurous
footstep, is more than saturated, and
still the skies pour down, and still the
storm king unfurls his banners from the
surrounding mountain tops.
Secure from damage to houses or
lands, the dwellers in this region enjoy
the rains that tell in their soft murmurs,
or wild vehemence, of the abundance Of
golden grain, the more than abundance
Of luscious fruits that, nOurished by the
unwonted humidity, summer will pour
into the busy marts of commerce.
Dwellers upon the lOwlands, however,
are not so fortunate, as the superabun-
dance Of water is scarcely less detri-
mental to their crops than a scarcity
would be. In places upon the Sacra-
mentO River, where the farming lands
and orchards are protected from overflow
by levees, there is much distress re-
ported. These levees, at best but breast
works Of sand and earth, have in some
places broken through, and where few
weeks since the cheerful plowman trod
the furrow, water stands from ten to fif-
teen feet in depth. In such places even
the tops of orchard trees are not visible,
Out-houses are swept away, aud dwell
ings flooded. Families aud stock have
to be boated "out Of that" the former
bereft of their food, wood, and household
necessaries, the latter minus forage.
That the city Of Sacramento has not suf-
fered a repetition Of the horrors and dis
asters of the flood of ls6l-62 is due to the
fact that it has been raised many feet
above its level at that time, and is well
? protected by levees. That the abun-
dance Of rain this season and the flood
referred to above is not unparalleled in
the history of California is proven by
the testimony of General Vallejo, who
says: December u, 1912, all that level
part of the country out to the hills at
Vacaville was Overflowed. On that day
, sailed in a schooner Of twenty tons
from the present site of Sacramento in
a southeasterly direction, passing over
what is now cultivated farming land in
that section. The MOntezuma hills and
other high lands were not submerged,
but all the other country was" From
this evidence and present superabun-
dance of moisture, it will be seen that
J the idea that Oregon has a monopoly OF
J the train power" is not grounded on
fact. It is a fact, however, that in that
, State the rains come with such GER
tainty as to preclude the possibility OF
= the gloomy forebodings of drouth and
consequent failure Of crops that were
z heard here on every hand prior to the
18th of January.
Notwithstanding the rains, evidences
Of the near approach of spring are seen
in the blossoms that thickly stud the
dripping bOughs of the almond trees
and even an occasional peach tree, more
? impatient or more sanguine than its
J companions, festoons its naked branche:
E with garlands of daintiest pink. The
} thousand songsters with melodious her.
2 aldry fill every pause in the storms, a.
II hoping to hurry the season forward
The grass cunningly covers the soft, de
7 ceitful ground with a carpet Of fabric
more rare and hues more brilliant than
= was ever wrought in Eastern looms
We remember, however, springs in Or
egon much farther advanced in the lat
ter part Of February than is this Cali
: fornia spring, and we recall stories OF
/ green peas, new potatoes, and February
Strawberries that have reached us in
+ times gone by, while yet winter held
humid sway over Oregon landscapes,
with feeling almost of disappointment.
The adobe mud, probably the most
! persistently adhesive natural substance
on the continent, early in January at
tanned a cOnsistence that precluded the
possibility Of children attending the
country schools; hence, except in the
towns, the public school-houses stand
+ with closed doors. Supposing our resi-
dence for quarter of a century in the
rainiest State Of the Union would cause
our suggestions as to the means Of pro-
lection from rain and mud to be imme-
diately adopted, we asked with smile
Of benevolent wisdom why the girls
were not provided with rubbers and
umbrellas and sent to school regardless
Of the rain, as they were in Oregon.
"Rubbersr' exclaimed a little girl Of
ten, "why, the mud is so sticky it pulls