New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-04-22

AUCTION BooM-UNFoUNDED GOLD DIsCov-
ERIES.
far rELsoaArH To THE TRIBUNE

SAN FRANcIsco, April 21.-The land auction
craze has broken out again here, and
excursions were run to-day TO Vacaville,
sunola, Menlo Park and San Jose. The proper
ties offered are manly small fruit tracts and vii
laee lots Vacaville is one Of the earliest 1Iuit
districts in the State and the plan is to sell from
Eve to twenty acre tracts for small fruit farms.
Bishop Potter and many NewYorkers have re-
Gently bought small tracts there
The largest wine cellar in the State is being
built near st. Helena, Napa County, by Bourne g.
Wise It is to be three-story building, 400
feet by IS. The two lower floors will have stor-
ace capacity for 600, 900 gallons while the upper
loors will be used as winery. 1t will be OF
tone and will cost s35o,o00. It is planned to
lend wine for storage, on which the owner may
cot advances Grapes will also be made into
,ine and stored for benefit Of the owner. If the
demand outruns capacity, a tunnel will be dug
into the hillside against which the cellar is built
This is the most important step taken to secure
prcper aging of California wines before they are
placed on the market.
Some Australian parasites that are warranted
70 kill fruit pests have been received, and are
bsine tried by orchardists. 1t is claimed that
these little bugs, no larger than feas, feed on
fruit pests and rapidly destroy them. Congress
will be asked to sanction the importation OF these
PARASITES in order to clear California orchards OF
various insect pests that are increasing every
year.
Denis Kearney explained to large audience
,h1 he went to Washington and what he saw
here. lie went it seems, TO secure the passage
~ an anti Chinese bill, which would prevent the
oassage of coolies from British Columbia across
he border He found Secretary Bayard in the
oower of the Chinese Minister, who, he declared,
drafted the treaty recently negotiated.
Since the great advance in the price Of coal.
wood has come into much demand for household
uses 1t is now sold at 81 per cord but could
easily be brought here and sold for S.. The Cen
trail Pacific has recently changed coal-burning en-
gines Oh the Truckee division for wood burners
The Southern Pacific Company has recently Sc
,ured coal mines just on the border between wash
ngton Territory and British Columbia which will
suppy them with fuel They have ordered plans
for three steel GOLFERS which will be larger imam
any on this coast and which Will cost haH q
million each.
Dealers estimate that thirty-five million grain
bags will be needed for this seasons California
wheat crop. California iute mill and San Quentin
prison factory can only turn out ABOUT three
million bags, SO that the remainder come from
Calcutta.
The failure of jury to convict DR.. Powell, who
shot Editor Smith at Redwood City, was defeat
Of justice for which there is no excuse; Powell
threatened to kill Smith for certain charges he
had made against him. When they met on the
street Powell insulted Smith, and when Smith mt
him with an umbrella, Powell pulled pistol and
shot down the editor. Smith was much smaller
man than Powell, and was unarmed The muir
derer is out on bail.
Reports of rich gold discoveries in Lower Cali
fornia are entirely without foundation; These
reports declare that placer grounds cover thousands
OF acres, and that the water is sufficient for hy
draulic work necessary to develop quartz mines
Surveyors who have been over the ground declare
that while gold may exist thereit is in small guam
titles known dry placerS and that 1t is lmpoSS-
BILE to use hydraulic power because of the utter
lack of water during eight months in the. year.
These sanguine reports Of large finds of gold are
beng circulated by the sare company that has
doomed" Ensenada colony, and is without the
confirmation of reputable mining experts They
cannot, therefore, be accepted.
The largest storage reservoir in the country was
formally opened this week at National City, near
San Diego. 1t covers 700 acres, and has sixty
miles of iron pipe that carry water to the sur
rounding country and city of San Diego. The
enterprise cost one million, and Its managers are
AtcblsOn railway officials.