The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1886-07-08
The City Of Los Angeles.

The city of Los Angeles, the commercial
center and largest municipality of South
ern California, is curiosity; or, rather, it
is made up of numerous curiosities, such as
are not found in any portion of the United
States but the Pacific coast. The city
contains population of fully $4,000
persons, and the number is steadily
increasing. This number includes about
5000 Cinnamon. nearly all of whom
live in that portion of the city known as
Chinatown. Their habitations II can hard
ly call them houses) are in n cluster, near
the center of the corporate limits, but
north of the business center. Their
abodes, shops, stores, costumes, habits,
etc., are as unlike those of the American
people as can we'll be imagined; and the
visitor who gets inside of these quarters
and comes in contact with the curious
things to be seen and heard, finds it diff
cult to realize that he is not in China
instead of the United States. My own
observations in Chinatown will form por-
ton of future sketch.
The population of the city also includes
a liberal sprinklng of Mexicans. most of
whom lived here long before the town grew
TO be anything more than an fashioned,
uncouth, and almost unknown trading post
and ranchmen's headquarters. These, like
the other denizens of the now thriving city,
are. as a rule, quiet, orderly, well-behaved
people. In fact, have never been in any
city of equal size where there was less
drunkenness, rowdyism, or peace disturb
ing element of any kind than Los Angeles.
The location of the city is as beautiful
and picturesque as one could wish to see.
1t is in the richest portion of the Los An
geles Valley, with the Pacific Ocean on the
west and south, distant sixteen to twenty
miles. From the grand old ocean come
cool. gentle, and refreshing breezes all
through the summer months, when
they are most needed. These breezes
come as regularly as the days, usu-
ally rising about ten or eleven
o'clock in the morning and continuing till
evening. Thus is the intense heat of the
sun at midday made tolerable, and the
nights are so cool that sleeping under mt
least one blanket is luxury which every
body can enjoy. never slept 50 soundly
and restfully anywhere else. in all my
peregrinations, rs | do near the Pacific
coast with the glorious -breezes tanning
me all night long.
On the west and north are the Sierra
Madre and the San Bernardino Mountains
and their foothills. These elevations pre-
sent an almost unlimited variety of shapes
and colors. The nearest foothills are
within mile of the city limits. and some
of the higher peaks are not more than
three or four miles further away. In the
after part of the day, when the sun is dip
ping down into the ocean, the hills and
mountains appear to be much nearer
than they really are, and loom up like a
grand wall of granite, as if built on pur-
pose to shield the city from the vast world
| lying TO the east and north of It, Some of
these foothills reach around into what are
now residence portions of the town. and
the view TO be had from any one of these
elevations is picturesque and lovely beyond
description. In all my travels | have never
before, up 10 the hour of this writing, be-
held anything of the kind SO beautiful.
The business men and property owners
of Southern California are both lucky and
shrewd. They are lucky in being in n
J country whose climate is superb. pleasant,
/ salubrious, and beautiful. almost beyond
the power of exaggeration. They are