The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-01-21

miners and farmers, as well rs fruit grow
ers and land ia cheap, there is no wonder
that they expect to transform the old min
ing camp into a vast orange grove AS ten
acres of well cultivated orange grove af-
tordH a splendid income, they claim that
there is room for 200 600 more people in
the citrus belt in this county These figures
seem large, but that Is only a natural tnoi-
dent of the climate. When you consider
that the county contains ], 764 square
miles, and 1880 900 acres, one half of
which is agricultural and fruit land, the
claim does not seem SO apocryphal after all
THE PILGRIMS SURPRISED
A fruit fair in the winter is a novelty in
ITSELF but still greater novelty was in
store for the tender pilgrims Having no
hall OF sufficient size, they have erected
canvas pavilion, 50xl5O feet the sides l6
feet high, the height of the center Tor ridge
pole as it would be called In the East) 80
feet This pavilion is erected on the Court
House square and beside the Court House
itself The square is well filed with heavi-
ly-laden orange trees. and a unique feature
of the show is, that within the pavilion it
self are five Of these orange trees, % feet
high, loaded with ripe fruit. They afford
ocular evidence of the citrus belt While
there is almost every product imaginable in
the pavilion, all from Butte County, or
anges and lemons are the predeminatinR
feature. Oranges to the right Of US, oranges
to the left OF us, oranges above US and or
anges around us, In fact We are surround
ed and surrender at discretion. There are
said to be 200, 600 oranges in the building,
displayed in almost every conceivable
artistic manner There are a number Of
binE of open wire network, well filed one
of which contains 4, 500 oranges.
noticeable thing IN the exhibit is a
church building, SXl0 with symmetrical
ly shaped steepie, II feet high This church
is composed of oranges and lemons, chiefly
the former, and 5000 are used in the
structure. 1t has four windows, is lighted
with gas, contains church organ, and
every evening choir OF young ladies enIer
the orange edifce and favor the audience
with church music. Another novelty Is a
harp, 4x6 feet, composed of $50 oranges
and 100 lemons An odd conoeit ia
an old-fashioned beehive composed of
oranges Two cylinders, or wheels Of
oranges, revolving in opposite direc-
items, represent the bees gong in and out
OF the hive The hive is surmounted by u
horn Of plenty, at the small end Of which a
revolving wheel of oranges represents the
bees pouring in the fruits of their labor, and
at the large end of the horn the result is dis
played by huge revolving cornucopiR
composed of all kinds of fruits and nuts.
The whole is operated by water-power, in
geniously concealed from the spectator.
Chico, one Of the county towns "a miles
from here, has an orange cottage most
tastefully constructed 1t is 20 feet front
by 1G high, and 3, 900 seeding oranges are
used in the structure, which is adorned with
mirrors and lace curtains
The exhibit of fruits throughout is fan
tastlc and unique in its presentation, and
bewildering in its immensely There are
oranges 10 inches in circumference and
other things in proportion. There are
apples in profusion. of course, pears, figs,
japanese perSimmons raislns, pomegran-
ates, shaddocks, lines, olives, almonds
English Californ a and Eastern black wal
nuts, pecans, chestnuts, grains OF all kinds
and the usual garden productions which
are novel only in size and the fact that they
are fresh from the ground, but this IS no
novelty here, however it impresSes the
strangers 70 me the greatest novelty was
holding, what might practically be termed
an open air fruit fair, in mid-winter
The teens here demonstrate that this
can be done by the stubborn fact that they
have none it, and how it can be done is
dem onstrated by two points combined
First, the rich soil, and second, by compar-
ing the average annual mean temperature
of this place with the same in the most
famous citrus regions of the old world.
Here are a few of the figures:
AVERAGE ANNUAL MEAN TEMPERATURE
Nice France; ........595 Malaga, Spain, .es
Malta, Sicily. .67.3 OrOville Cal g
WAR OF EMULATION
The rivalry which exists between differ
ent sections of the State led some news
paper joker to print the statement that the
people of Orovil had sent to Los Angeles
for five car 10 dis of oranges to exhibit at
their fair. The Oroville papers retort that
the fruit at Los Angeles will not be ripe for
a month, point to the growing trees with
ripe fruit in the pavilion, and wind up by
claiming prices of land to be only one-tourth
what they are in Southern California, while
every thing that grows there, grows here,
in still greater profusion- And thus wordy
and qui amusing O Strangely war Ia in
full blast on the Pacific Coast Statistics
of the killed and wounded will be devel-
oped by the census report of 1890. / ex-
pect other CT es will take up the cud-
gels and winter citrus fairs will be-
come as much standard Californian
production as toboggan slides are in
the i st If any of them equal this initial
exhibit of Butte county, they may have to
make the joke, relative to going away from
home for the fruit, reality, by coming here
for supplies.
1t would be hard to excel the local enthu-
siasm over the display, and the week has
been a continuous outdoor holiday. W tn
great throngs in attendance. The p lgrims
are asked ON all hands, what they think OF
it The waiter at my hotel table extract ed
my opinion, as he served me, and as Iagreed
with his views, it proved a more successful
tip" than hard cash and he could no;
thereafter do too much for me Even the
sprinking of Chinese have warmed up suf-
ticienty to chip in two bits" for admission
10 the pavilion, and when the point is
reached which makes Chinaman spend any
money, You can calculate that popular en-
thusiasm must be OF blood heat