Daily Los Angeles herald., 1880-12-05
~ vsasessee ana she New Rail.
Wy system.

No intelligent man can doubt
okat San Francisco is marked out
~ one Of the great capitals and
money centers OF the world. Her
hletory, 10 far, reads more like
chapter from the Arabian Nights
Than anything else. Yet the fact
q that, though scarcely thirty
yegrs old, this metropolis of the
Uootsrn world has experienced q
number Of very remarkable fiuctu'
otlons.
San Francisco has, of course, al
ways gone forward with = tremen-
oous momentum, or no such su-
perb emporium of trade and COM
meFoe would have been possible as
The creation of the short span of
lhnoo decades.
when the great earthquake Of
1ooo or 1s69-we don't remember
ne exact date-took place. San
Yfauclsco real estate went, at q
sound. to the demnition show
Wows.n Building and improve
ments Of all kinds were suspended.
In fact, but for that. the census OF
MO would have shown a far larger
stipulation than was recorded In
that year. for . genuine aud I'M
nAistAkAble hegira Of citizens and
eapitalists then began towards the
East. The depression lasted
through 1872 and 1873; and, in fact,
only In 1874 were notes Of recov cry
observable. The shock Of Eastern
oompstition, coincidsnt with the
oompletion Of the Central Union
Raci6c Railway, also added to the
dlsaster. Perhaps it was the dis.
appointed hopes connected with
ohe compile ton Of this vast trans
Sentimental railway system which,
even more than the earthquake,
contributed to the momentsry de.
cadence of San Francisco.
1t was our fortune to have spent
great deal Of time in the metrop.
oils Of the Golden Gate in 1872
and purely in the character of ar
observer. The number of houses
and stores to let was simply ap
palling. In July Of that year 8
single large building firm Of the
East could have erected all the
new buildings, and made all the
repairs and improvements, which
Were being carried on in San Fran.
+ cisco. This comatose state oil
things lasted until 1874. The Pal
zoe Hotel was the first real note Of
new and prosperous departure.
Aided by tho unprecedented treas
ure output Of the Bonanza
mines, San Francisco shortly de-
veloped y splendid building activ-
ity. Real estate also began to ap.
prsciAte, and advances far too rap.
I'd were made. They we're punctu-
atsd, when the period Of collapse
and reaction came, by the Kear.
ney agitation.
How does San Francisco stand
to-day?
5 On the one side tho Comstock
lode 10 going through the premon-
itory symptoms Of another bonan-
- eruption. II these Indications
are the portents OF a mere artificial
s'bonanza," then alas for San
Francisco! That city Of many vi
cissltudes, today really needs q
new and genuine treasure output
to rescue her from certain and un-
mlstAkably malign development
which would seem to be ahead.
When we speak of possible
commercial disasters to San
Francisco, we Of course desire
TO be understood as regarding them
In the light Of merely tenn porar y
drawbacks. A decade in the devel-
opment of section is hardly of
more Significance than the minu to
during which man waiting for q
railway train chsfes at the station.
II appears to US that the APP
preaching junction OF the Southern
Pacific with the Atohison, Topek
and Santa Fe road looks badly for
San Francisco. There are several
considerations 10 this regard that
seem to Us worthy of note.
Imprimis: San Francisco might
have put her capital into Arizona,
and developed the wonderful capa-
bilities OF our neighboring terri
tory. Instead of doing so, the cap
itsitsts Of that hide bound and su-
percillous city, altogether wrapped
up In the Cemstock lode, preferred
90 eneer at Ar zona, and predict
failure to all efforts to develop in
her rival to Nevada. This was
wresched policy. The fact is that
ArIsona. before her story is fully
told, Will discount Nevada and her
Comstock lode all hollow. Almost
on the surface thu mines Of Arizona
promise to bring the territory up to
any possible record Of Nevada be-
fore two years arc past. Yet Ari-
xcpa was perfectly alive with love
end sympathy for California. There
y not one Arizonan In . thousand
0h0 would mt f3fkv fimas retb..