Los Angeles daily herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1884-1890, 1886-08-10
Los ANGELES.
! 'The Attractions, Resources
and Prosperity
OF THE CITY AND COUNTY.
The Growth, Wealth and Produc-
tions of the Semi -Tropic
Paradise.

On Sunday afternoon an interesting
discussion tsok place on one Of the
street cars. On the rear platform were
three pairs Of people. One pair was OF
Los Angeles newspaper reporters. A
second was pair Of old-time Califor-
nians-miners, who had spent two-score
years in every gulch where there could
be found q ''color," from the Julian dis
trict, in San Diego county. TO the delu-
sive pockets that drew such crowds to
the Fraser river. The third pair COM
prised couple Of callow youths from
San francisco.
The miners, dressed in the garb pecu'
liar to the men Of Poker Flat in '49 OF
the spring Of 80. and with nothing to
show for their long life Of toll. exposure
and danger, opened the ball with the re-
mark that southern California was 3
greatly overrated region, with nothing
to show for her pretensions but climate.
As they had evidently but just ar
rived in the city by the train
from the north, their opinion
did not seem to matter much. They
vent on. however, with long dis.
ouisitions. interesting to themselves and
entertaining to the listeners with regard
TO the many and great attractions Of
British Columbia. Queen Charlotte
Tsland seemed to be the ideal spot. the
Mecca to which all their ardent aspira-
tions turned. There were certain places
In the northern counties Of Califofnia
where life might be passed in compare
tive contentment to the benighted null
titude who had never been on the Fra.
ser river, Queen Charlotts's Island or
other portions of the far north coast.
A. for Los Angeles, it could not be other
than desolation, where lie would
prove . great burden to those who are
forced 10 dwell here.
The young men from the great Bay
City seemed to agree in some respects
the views OF the miners. Only
the Pacific Coast metropolis and the
nearby Summer resorts, such as Dun
cans mills, the Redwood's near Santa
Cruz and other eclectic spots where the
feet Of San Franciscans walk for few
brief days in Summer can make lite
worth living.
As the productiveness Of Southern
California was called into question by
these four strangers, and a. there may be
other new corners in the same benighted
ignorance, it is proposed here to give a
little sketch of Los Angeles and the
r. Al H. of m
with view Of showing what does
grow here. The men OF the pick aud
shovel who so bitterly arraigned the
county ct the bar Of the high court OF
prosperity alleged that all there was to
keep thus country up was the great influx
of people from the East who are coming
here and investing their money. Its OF
course . matter of great upconcern to
the prosperous, hos they grow rich SO
long as they do securely and honorably,
pile up wealth. But as matter Of vim
dication to the new conner it may not be
uninteresting to show that there is rea-
son to Justify the preference Of the
eastern capitalist for Los Angeles prop
erty over that along the Walamet
river, the Fraser, on Queen Charlotte's
Island or even by the shores OF the Sacra-
mento, or in the philloxera plagued re-
gion above the bay.
LOS ANGELES WEALTH.
That Los Angeles is steadily growing
In wealth there is no doubt. Six year.
ago there were in this city three banks
with an aggregate capital of about
$1,000 GOO. To-day there are eighi
banks with an aggregate Of capital and
deposits falling not much below an aver
aro Of 81 .OOO. 600 each. The Farmers
Merchant exhibit Il Of nearly twice
that ann, the First National is much
above such average. The Los Angeles
National has about that amount of as
sets, and the County Bank has nearl,
the same.
Besides this accumulation Of capita
In the city, nearly all the outlying place
have banks. Pasadena has two Of them
Ii IL estimated that for the first sil
months Of the current year there wa
deposited In the banks Of this city on Al
average about 81 ,000, 600 amonth Of new
capital brought here for investment
The greater part of this came from the
east Lately some came from Sscramen
%, and a very respectable sum, too
There 10 big block q It about to come
here from San Francisco to seek remu
nerative investment in this part Of thu
country. consummation devoutly
wished bat wished in vain in San Fran
cisco. So far there has none come, q
far a. reported, from the banks Of the
Fraser nor yet from Queen Charlotte'i
island. Indeed, there are no proof
before the Court to show there is any
capital in those blessed regions.
The assessment roll OF the city AMI
county has doubled up 10 the Elk year
since the end Of the last decade abou
q rppidly as the population has, aiit
that has been In four fold ratio. Thi
ii little in contradistinction to the fact
as they appear in some Of the counties
which are supposed TO shine by the Dor
rowed light OF the great city It tn
Golden Gate. Many of them show
retrograde movement on the books o
the assessors, aud will not catch Los An
geles again until, like crab, she can g
backwards, too. Then they will have
long start in the down hill chase.
WHY rs THIS so,
II Is interesting to look into the cause
from which these effects grow. They al
come from the ground beneath her feet
and the sky that smiles above her. Tb
order should really be reversed
The climate is indeed the mai
factor. Illinois, Missouri, or tn
bluegrass region of Keutuck.
may boast as rich soil. No countr
can truthfully claim richer. Some {
the lands around Il 9 old beaver dams i
the Walamet valley are as rich us an
soil in the world. but the best of ther
are only the peers Of the cienegas {
Southern California.
But OF what avail is soil twenty fee
deep and as brown as chocolate II IL
soaked half the year in foods and boun
the other half in the fatal letters of &c
and snowr 1t is the skies that ben
above us that make the orange flourish
the lemon bear, the lime fruit, tn
grapes hang heavy ON the vine aud trr
purple in the glow Of the simmer sur
It is the climate that gives Augeleho
green peas and ripe tomatoes the yea
round; new potatoes at Christmas an
ripe Strawberries on New Years da,
Again, it is the sunny skies Of this glor
GUS southland that enables III
farmer to work In comfort $50 day
in the year at his outdoc
employments, aud that in his sbir
sleeves, thus making one man worth
least two anywhere else. II is the san
grand element Of prosperity that maxi
ii possible for the dairyman and Il
stock-raiser to feed his AMI mails all Il
year round on alfalfa knee-high, to dii
pense with expensive barns. and the Il
Dor, trouble and cost Of feeding b
stock by hand for six to pine months