Daily Los Angeles herald., 1883-05-16

lin the famous dry year Of 1867
the editor Of the HERALD made circuit
Of Los Angeles county with a view OF
showing that, even in such season OF
comparative privation, this section
abounded in various and valuable re-
sources. He proposes now, in what will
prove to be more than an average season 4
to 80 over the county. from time to TIME,
-smu to give, in this journal, the result OF
his obsorvation:l
The narrative Of oar experiences Of
the San Fernando Valley terminated
yesterday with our arrival at the ranch
Of AL Workman. This gentleman, who
has boen frontiersman, and who has
lived oil over the Pacific Coast, from
Chile and Peru to Idaho and Montana,
farms between fifty-fve hundred and six
thousand acres. He came down to Los
Angeles county, originally, with q big
team of mules and precious little money.
He now possesses positively elegant
home, surrounded by promising young
orchard, and with barns, granaries and
outbuildings Of a magnitude sufficient to
cover the site OF half dozen railway
dcpots. He has manada which en-
braces one hundred and seven horses
and mules he has fifteen COWS, aud the
provision made for the comfort Of his
animals is nearly as elaborate as can be
found in the Palo Alto stables Of Gov.
Stanford. Workman is an Englishman,
who came to this country as mere boy,
and his career has illustrated the danger
, the HERALD incurred in saying that Los
Angeles county is rich mans county.
Men OF dauntless nerve and abundant
resources, like Workman, can come here
any day and give the lie to our favorite
postulate.
We put in hours 'Norkman's place,
driving through the grain. Being only
responsible to himself, he of course had
no hesitation in dashing with his spir-
tied team right into the center of the
splendid spreads Of wheat and barley
which will swell his bank account this
year. He not only aimed toindoctrinate
us into the actual condition of the crops
III. L,,t ba lao 1autra1 IN
take stock Of them for his own informa.
ton. Until the advent of the famous
west wind, whose history has been
chronicled with great minuteness by the
Los Angeles press, Workman had every
reason to suppose that he would har-
vest the largest crop which he had ever
gathered in this section. Up until the
May rains, on the contrary, he thought
he would have no crop at all. On the
Friday afternoon when he drove us over
his ample ranch, sighting none of it,
he reached the conclusion that he would
have half Of good crop. The weather
since has made this hope fruition. At
the worst, Workman will have $4,000
sacks of wheat and barley, and the prob
abilities are that he will have over
twenty thousand sacks. That he will
make fully twice as much grain as last
year, is proposition now placed be-
yond a peradventnre, and that in this
so.called dry season.
SIX HOURS IN A DRIVING RAIN.
We left the Workman ranch at six
O'Clock Saturday morning, in mist
which promised to be rain. Our ex-
perienced friend had laid in an oil cloth
coat and enc of his old frontier blanket
overcoats, precaution which proved to
DO most admirable one; for, before we
had been twenty minutes on our travels,
drenching rain began. Our course lay
through the ranch Of Mr.. B. F. Porter
and to the north side of the valley. The
Jennifer and Porter ranches are in capt.
tai plight. Jennifer, lessee of Porter,
has three thousand acres in grain, main
ly in wheast. Before the late rains it
looked as if his crop hadgone to the "dem-
milton bow.wows. Now he has splen-
did stand with every promise of abundant
shekels. Along our route, off to the
north, there was glorious spread of
grain, belonging to the Messrs. Hub.
bard 4 Wright, which would not have
made hay even but for the late rains,
but which now promises to make those
gentlemen rich, so luxuriant and thrifty
does it appear.
Heavily as it rained, we were not pre-
vented from making copious mental
notes of the region through which we
passed. When our team finally headed
for the San Fernando station we soon
found ourself in great spread OF wheat,
thin, but splendidly headed out, which
had been sown by Romulo Pico. The
old, aud now almost dismantled Mission,
inspired us with profound regret that
the ravages Of time had been so com
plete and remorseless. Adjacent to the
old Mission is the famous old olive
orchard, which has suffered greatly from
vandalism, and which, after that OF the
San Diego mission, is the Oldest and
most famous in California.
Darling past this venerable old ruin,
we soon found found ourself in the
young and busting town OF San Fer.
nando Here we encountered host OF
genial spirits, .facile priHceps amongst
whom was Hon. A. B. Mofiitt, rising
statesman whose genius has not yet at
tanned its perihelion. Motlitt is as
amiable as he is able; and, through his
kindly efforts, tat least we supposed
they were SUCH we soon made the &c.
auaintance Of the Messrs. Hubbard,
Wright and other congenial spirits
Col. Hubbard, tall son of Anak, and q
\most uncompromising Republican, vol
unteered to drive us over the northern
portion Of the valley.
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT WHEAT.
We could not withhold our admira'
lion from Col. Hubbard's team. The
eabalistic letters "2:40' seemed TO be
emblazoned on their glossy coats.
Skiriing the railway, we dashed through