Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1878-09-03
NO. 2Os.
Daily Asnnsbst yourna.
Letter from California.
SAN Francisco, August %, 1878.
LUMBERING IN CALIFORNIA.

never been ascertained, because they have never
been sll surveyed; but it is estimated that there
some twelve millions of acres, of which only
one-haf have been surveyed and recorded. Thess
lands consist principally of vast forests of redwood
pine, FIR and cedar. The redwood forests. in which
are to be found those monster trees,
which have become so celebrated, are
distributed along the coast, and on the Sierra
slopes from Del Norte county on the north to San
Luis Obispo on the south, forming belt as vide
thirty FIVE miles in some places. In the interior
of the State are found FIR. cedar and the several
varieties of pines. The sugar pine 10 the most
valuable. 1t is regarded IS being superior TO our
Eastern pine. Large quantities Of 1t are shipped
to foreign countries and to the East, together with
yellow pine, which has a smooth grain and makes
good finish. Fir grows in the high attitudes of
the Serras. II 10 odorless and IL manufactured
into packing boxes.
LAUNDERING in California, find, is carried on in
an entirely different msnner from what 1t is in
Maine. The sawmills are located in the primeval
forests, and, after the lumber is sawed, it is con-
veyed to the valleys BY means of immense W
shaped fumes. Log driving is not practiced ex-
cept in few isolated cases, when only An insg
nfcsnt number of logs are foated to the mills .
In fact, log driving could not be adopted 10 Cali
fornia, owing to the physical formation Of the
State, which interposes an insurmonutable bar
rier. What few streams there are running into
rivers are small that they are rendered useless
for log g-driving purposes. The transportation Of
lumber by means of V-shaped fumes 10 expedi-
tious. In the Chico hume, forty-fv miles in
length, it can be transported 10 three and . half
hours, at a cost of about rs cent? per thousand
feet. Nor are the trees in California feled by the
woodsman's axe. as in Maine; they are fellsd By
being sawed through The logs generally run
from 80 TO 80 inches in diameter. They are sent
to the mill on trucks and whole log is cut up at
once by gang saw. There are over 800 saw
mills in the State, vnd twothirds of them are run
by steam The total annual product Of these mills
is some 500, 100000 feet The redwood mills are
located principally along the coast at the mouth of
small streams, and where the lumber is easily
shipped on board of vessels. These mills manu-
facture some 200 000,0 900 feet of redwood lumber
yearly, or nearly one half Of the entire lumber
product Of the State.
JOHN CHINAMAN's New YEAR.
While John Chnaman's celebration of his New
Year WAS in progress . short time ago, with thou.
sands Of other ouside bsrbarisns l proceeded to
Chinatown to see the sights and customs. The
Chinese quarter, which in the very heart Of the
city, wore holiday rig. On every hand Aaunted
the strange banners Of these orientsls while their
household gods and devices were conspcuously
displayed. The streets we're so crowded that one
could scarcely elbow his way along. Indeed, it
may be said that there place in the civilized
world not even the Faubourg San Antoine. st.
Giles, or the Liberties of Dublin, where so many
human beings can be found at any time than in
Chinatown in this city. 1t was terrible tax TO
my olfsctories to snuff an air impregnated with
smoking punks and lamps, the sulphurous odors Of
explosives and the pertiferous stencil from the I'll
thy dens of courtesans, the habitations of oath-
some msladles and the underground places Of
opium smokers. All the houses of the leading
merchants were gorgeously illuminated. In nesr-
Iy every doorway and on balconies were suspend
ed hund eds of vsrlcolored lanterns and balloons
| of all sizes. Every Chinaman seemed carried
| away by the enthusiasm of the occasion, and his
| denominations were mainly confined to exploding
bombs and frecrackers by the Wholesale. Such .
| saturnalia l never heard before. 1t WAS deaten-
| ing to the ears while the eyes were fairly dazed
| by the brilliant coruscatlons of gunpowder com.
| bustlbes. Whenever there was u lull in the din,
| the barbsrous music of tom-toms, cymbals and
tsienyoks could be heard from almost every direc-
lion, and in looking into those places from whence
1t proceeded II seemed as If every musician, - he
| sweated and tugged away was doing his level best
! to make the music rs dscordant as possible.
The festival lasted several days. During its
progress the Joss houses were packed with celes-
| ulsls who went there to do homage to their Pa
gan deities. The greater portion of the time was
spent by the leading and wealthiest Cinnamon in
| making calls, while the common herd gave them
selves up to the theatres and their chop sticks. In
fact, it was a season of satisfying the gastronomic
| desires OF all, and | don't believe there was 9
heathen who failed to suifeit himself with some
one of the mysterious and unnamesble edlbles Of
| the Chinese cuisine. Every ChiIamsn wore his
best toggery. The nabobs aud their families were
dressed from head to foot in the finest silks and
OF the gaudiest hues. The men all wore richly
gilded caps. The heads of their wives and child
reu were ornamen ented with tinse and fancy work,
while their cheeks and lips were painted with the
brightest of vermillion pigment The juvenile
pig tails to me appeared like so many monkeys
being led about for public exhibition. So much
tor the Chinese New Year which is annually cele.
brated in California by The "heathsn Chnes''
| wherever they may be found.
SILK CULTURE.
have been looking at some specimens OF native
silk. For several years past silk culture has been
| successfully tried in California, but only to hm-
| tied extent. The mulberry tree lind, will grow
anywhere, whether near the coast or way up in
the Sierra mountains. The cost of picking the
leaves and taking care of the cocoons is small. A
child can perform the work Of either. The prin-
cipal efforts Of the few who are prosecuting this
industry are directed to the production OF eggs for
market in Europe. The silk worm is found to
be healthy in California. and spins fine quality
of silk. Several women are engaged As silk cul-
turists who find it not only pleasant but profit
able industry. 1t would not be surprising if the
| time should come when seiculuture will BE- prose-
ecuted in Cslifornis on sn extensive scale, and
that mills will DO established for the manufscturs
1