Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-08-12

Her northern limit is near the
latitude of Boston; her southern near
that of Savannah. Mexico has few
bays, inle.s or islands; her coast
bends TO the eastward, so much so
that Tehuantepec and Guaymas are about
as far from Australia, and from most of
the Micronesian Islands in the South Pa
cific, as is San Francisco. The poverty of
the western coast of our sister republic in
maritime advantages gives a greater value
to the California harbors, which, though
not numerous, are excellent and at least
two of them are not surpassed for capacity
and safety in all the world.
California has an area of 15S, $50 square
miles, and population of about million
people, or only about six to the square mile
whereas Illinois has So, Pennsylvania "a
New York los, Indiana 80, and Ohio 81.
The length of her coast is 735 miles, and of
the shore line 1,097 miles. There are about
500, 900 square miles of tillable soil on the
Pacific slope, after making due allowance
for all that may be considered worthless for
any cause whatever, and fully 300 600
square miles of forests Of these factors of
the coast California has by far the majority
of the choice soil while the Puget Sound sec
ton has the choice probably of commercial
timber.
IN PRECIOUS METALS,
California is unquestionably the richest
part of our national domain. In the pro-
duction of wine il is not even rivalled by
any part of the continent, and the promise
is that California vineyards Will surpass in
productive capacity all others. We boast
one of the chief cities of the Union as our
commercial capital, and the very fact of
its rapid and permanent growth is strong
IF ka w Of oil 10 ri
made for the State. We have two chief
navigable streams penetrating the two
chief valleys of the State. Both of these
debouch into an inland bay, which dis
charges through the straits of Carquinez,
and offers the only water way from the
ocean or communication with the interior
of the State. These straits are three
fourths of a mile wide, and always main
tain deep water for sea-going vessels. though
nearly twenty-five miles inland from the
Golden Gate the pass through which COM
merce flows to and from the commercial
metropolis, San Francisco. This great city
is therefore accessible from the main pro-
ducing sections of the State by inland
waterways, from the coast counties on the
north and the south by coast naviga-
ton, and from. the south, and a great deal
of the interior, by rail routes. This con-
veniencesof access gives her, as we'll as the
producers of the State, great advantages.
SACRAMENTO
Is in the heart of the State; is also a market
OF large importance by reason of its init
mate rail connection with most of the
State. and its location upon the chief nav
igable stream. 1t is admirably situated as
a commercial center and affords the pro-
ducer of the interior special advantages,
upon which the RECORD UNION has en-
lareed in distinct article in this series of
papers on California. The Sacramento
river drains the great Sacramento valley
from the north, and the San Joaquin the
great San Joaquin valley on the south, and
these two drain-ways, as we have said, con-
verge in the very waist of the State, and
find their outlet in the Bay of Suisun.
The Coast Range lies westerly, OF
course of these rivers and valleys, and the
loftier mountains. the Sierra Nevadas, on
the east. The whole valley area of the
State may thus be said to be landlocked
and when the trade winds referred to are
taken into account, and the effects of the
ocean currents upon the temperature are
considered, the intelligent visitor Will not
be at loss to account for the equability of
our climate or the variety of it within the
degrees of equability. The northern of the