Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-02-13
TIE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY.
MILLIONS OF ACRES OF VIRGIN
SOIL FOR SETTLERS.
Cheap and Good Lands for Thou.
sands of Farmers-Description of
the Lands, Soil. Towns, Etc.

the Lands. Soil. Towns, Etc.
EDS. RECORD UNION: When one looks
upon the map of California, his attention
is very naturally attracted to the great in
terror basin which constitutes the heart,
and by far the most important agricultural
portion of the State. The map at the same
time reveals the fact that the northern por-
ton of this interior basin, north from San
Francisco--or the Sacramento VALLEYS
much more thickly settled-is much more
frequently traversed by railroads, and more
thickly dotted over by towns and cities,
than is the southern portion, or San Joa-
quin valley. The distance from San Fran
cisco north to Redding, the extreme north
ern point of the Sacramento valley, and
from the same point south to Tehachapi, is
about the same, each being about $50
miles. The southern, or San Joaquin val
ley is a little wider on an average than
the Sacramento valley, being about 60
miles, and contains more fiat valley land.
From Stockton south the San Joaquin val
ley contains about 1926, 600 acres of land.
nearly every acre of which is capable of a
high and profitable cultivation. Through
this great empire in extent there is as yet
but very sparse population-not one
twentieth of what it is capable of support
ing, and supporting well.
There is but one railroad running
through the valley, with a short cross-road
reaching out to Huron on the west, and to
Visalia on the east. South of Stockton
there is not town in the entire valley
l. .t.t.< Il q M
but few of the towns exceed 1000 Begin
ming with Lathrop, the towns in the order
of their location on the road are Ripon,
Modesto, Turlock. Cressey. Atwater, Mer-
ced, Plainsburg MADEIRA, Fresno, Malaga
Fowler, Selma, kingsburg, Traver, Goshen,
Tulare, Upton, Alila, Delano, Poso. Iudo,
Sumner, Pampa, Caliente, Keene and
then Tehachapi Bakersfield, the Capital
of Kern county, is but few miles from the
road near Sumner. Visalia the Capital of
Tulare county, is at the terminus of the
Goshen and Visalia Railroad, seven miles
from the main line. Hanford, Lemore and
Huron are on the branch road leading
west from Goshen. While the population
of these towns is now so small the towns
are improving rapidly, and the population
greatly increasing.
THE SOIL OF THE VALLEY
HC sui vi great NtiltI MAY proper
Iy be termed "made land, that is, it has
all been washed from the ranges of noun
tains on either side. 1t is therefore deep.
and composed of layers or strata of differ
ent materials. Through the central por-
ton of the valley it is generally light
sandy loan, very rich and productive As
the foothills are approached on either side
the soil generally becomes coarse and
heavier, and is mixed considerably with
clay, reddish color prevailing. In some
places there is considerable mixture of
alkali in the soil. AS whole, the soil
may be described as superior 1t would be
hard to find in any county so large body
of good soil as lies between the Sierras and
coast ranges of mountains, and between
Lathrop and Tehachapi. The general
slope of the country from south to north is
about one foot to the mile. The slope is
considerably greater from the foothills to-
ward the center of the valley.
DEFERRED DEVELOPMENTS.
1t may be asked by strangers why this
rich valley is behind the other sections of
the State in population and development.
There are many reasons. To begin with
1t may be stated that there was but yery
little gold found in the mountains opposite
the San Joaquin valley Excepting the ex
treme northern part, and consequently
the valley did not attract so much attention
from early miners and Spectators; that
when 1t was occupied, it was with class
OF stockmen with their stock. These men
brought with them the instincts of their
classic keep everybody but themselves
and their cattle out of the country. and
they resorted to every means in their power
to accomplish this object, even to q misrep-
resentatIon OF the country in every partic-
ular and to actual warfare against those
who attempted to share the country with
them. Especially were they hostile to all
efforts at the cultivation of the soil and
those who ilrst turned the furrow in the
valley were, in ridicule, called land
grabbers as if to bring land under cult
Walton were akin to robbery. Under such
state OF affairs there was but little induce
ment for roads of any kind or any other
Improvements, and hence the building of
railroad through this valley was put off to
the last moment. The Southern Pacific
was built not for the local business il
could command at that time, but because
II was on the line of the overland route to
New Orleans. When the "no fence law,
was extended over the valley, these old
cattle kings saw the handwriting on the
wall and began to prepare for the newt
able. Their last stand is the riparian law,
and when this is superseded by the right of
and the valley is irrigated as it will be ali
v9FeS its vast extent, there will grow up in
this valley one of the richest agricultural
districts in the world. | make this asser-
ton advisedly. Nature points it out too
plainly for intelligent men to mistake its
destiny. Though the rain fall inlthe valley
is but about an average of 10 inches an
nually, the immense watershed of the
mountains and foot hills on either side is
so great that the valley has at its command
an equivalent of at least 90 inches annually
for the complete irrigation of the entire
surface
IRRIGATION.
In the northern portion of the valley the
subject of Irrigation has but recently re-
ceived much attention. In fact, it is vet
but in the discussion stage Farmers have
gone on from year to year putting in vast
wheat fields, and making but fair crops in
three years out of five, and almost failures
in the other two. They are now waking
up to a realization of the fact that they
have the means close by them and within
their own command, to insure good crops
every year, not only of the cereals but of
the more profitable crops OF diversified
agriculture, fruit and grape culture.
The San Joaquin river and its numerous
branches-the Calaveras. Stanislaus, Tuol-
umne, MERGED Cowchilla and Fresno
carry past their very doors every year all
the water necessary to bring about this de-
sirable change, aud companies are in pro-
cess of organization for the utilization of
these waters for this purpose.
As we go further south the riverst that flow
down from the Serras are the Kings, the
Kaweah, the Tule, Deer creek, White river,
Poso creek and Kearn river. 1t has been
carefully ascertained. by measurement of
the flow of these rivers, that they carry
water enough to irrigate the entire surface
of the valley to which the water can be
carried On the west side of the yallev the