The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-02-25
OUR CALIFORNIA LETTER.
SACRAMENTO CITY. January 81 1888
Especial Correspondence


average width of $50 miles The 6ierrI
Nevada and Coast Range of mountains ruY
parallel, northeast and southwest the Sier--
/ ras having an altitude of from 5000 tC
! ID, 900 feet; the Coast Range from 2, SOC
! to 4, 900 feet and they are divided by q
number of valleys and rivers, the principal
one being the Sacramento valley, 200
miles in length and 40 miles average
width through which runs the Bacramen-
to river, navigable stream for about 100
miles from its entrance into Suisun bay, q
small bay at the head of the bay of San.
! Francisco.
Sacramento valley proper includes tina
counties of Sacramento, Yuba, Butte, 1e-
hama, Colusa, Suffer, Yolo and Bolane,.
these being bordered by the mountain,
counties of Amador, El Dorado, Placer,
Nevada Sierra, Plumas, Shasta, Trinity,
Mendocino, Lake and Napa, affording a
great variety of soil and climate, owing TO,
the difference in elevation.
The soil of the valley counties bordering
upon the Sacramento river is principally o
dark, rich adobe and ailuvial soil, and well
adapted to the growth Of cereals Along
the foot hills varieties of soil from black
adobe to light sandy soil appearR The
lower slopes of the mountains contain diff
ferent soil, some being sands, of light color,
The submits are more rocky and volcanic
and the soils vary, come being clay hills,
sandy ridges loamy meadows and deep,
rich valleys in the very tops Of the mount
aims, being the favor te resort of large
herds of sheep and cattle during the
mer months
Stretching along the foothills and up the.
mountain sides to the altitude of 2, 500 feet
is what is known as the thermal belt" 1t lis,
in this belt where the warm air fingers when.
the sun goes down, and to which the warm
air rises when the first rays of the morning
sun are thro %n upon the valley. Tender
plants and semi-uoptcal fruits are grown
in profusion, as was fully demonstrated at
the Citrus fair held i'll Oroville, Butte Conn
ty, in December last This thermal belt il
also noted for itswonderful curative qualities.
in lung and asthmatic complaints. But very
little good Government or railroad land
near the railroads or rivers remain. Land,
is worth from So to $500 per acre according
to location and improvements. In the foot
hill region land is selling from So to 500
per acre. In the valley bordering on the
Sacramento river large ranches of from
1000 to 10000 acres have been the pre-
vailiny feature. AS population comes in.
these will be subdivided and on their r,ch
ahuvial soil thousands of small farms, the
lshed, but this can not be accomplished
until the population increases and there is,
a demand The population OF this great
State is about /, SOC, 900, but it is capable
OF supporting 10, 900, 600 people.
Ali this vast region of soil, water and.
climate, unsurpassed by any other, now in
vites populatiOn-not lazy, shiftess i'm
pecunious persons, such would soon starve
or be found begging-but men with brain
and muscle, and enough money to give
them fair start, enough to sustain them
while improving the lands, to make them.
produce that for which nature intended
them-such men, ii with families so much
the better, can ind abundant opportunities
to secure at moderate cost such o home az
will be pleasant and profitable A man
with family willing to help him. if he has
from 81 600 to 81, 600 in hand, is safe to
make beginning which, if he is iudicious,
should lead him to prosperity.
There are mineral springs in the foot-hiIl
ranges upon both sides of the Sacramento
valley that vie in their curative qualities
with the far-famed springs of Germany,
and are resorted to by invalids from every
section of the United States
Two branches of the Central Pacific rail-
road leaves S, cramento-one on the east
, side of the valley, via Marysville and Chico
and the intermediate towns, the other ON
the west side, via Woodland Willows and
Williams and intermediate towns uniting
at Tehama, the now head of navigation Cd
Sacramento river. From thence the road
, is continued to Portland, Ore, this road
having been completed within the last
sixty days, opening up country wonderfully
rich in farming timber and mineral prod
ucta
Until the past five years the raising OF
wheat and barley was the principal occu-
patton OF the farmers of the Sacramento
valley, the grain being transported to
} Europe on ships, but the completion of three
trans-continental railroads.&c. Central
Pacific, Southern Pacific and the Atchison,
Topeka & Santa Fe, with the prospect of
other roads soon coming, affording in
creased facilities and reduced rates OF
transportation, has given wonderful i'm
petus toward raising fruit, and California
will soon be considered the garden spot OF
the world The Sacramento valley has sup
piled nine tenths of the fruit sent East and
the Fruit Growers Union" an association
of farmers, in the year 1887 sold their fruit
in New York and Boston on the auction
plan, and with gratifying success 1t will
be tried in other cities this coming season.
with reduced rates of transportation, Sc
that sixty million of people in the United
States can aIOfu 10 purchase UneSe CalllOE-
MIA fruits, and the progress and develop
ment of the fruit business will be something
, wonderful
The largest grain growers in the valleyr
do their blowing with gang plows and
their harvesting with the latest improved
l machinery. Consequent y farm hands H.
I the past had employment only duc-ng
portion of the year, but since the fruit and
vine business is coming to the front, more
and continuous labor is required, and II
some of the more advanced fruit districts
, during the fruit picking season the schoo
. vacations are extended in order to allow
I the children to assist in securing the crops
Fruit canneries and driers are being es-
i tablished and thousands of tons of fruit
| are preserved in this manner. Good farm
= hands get from 500 to $50 per month by
q the year; harvesG hands, 81 30 to So &c
-, per day; mechanics, from 50 to 81 pei
= day: good house servants, from $l5 to
Q $50 per month, and are scarce Chinese
: are largely employed in house service, but
co lid be easily displaced by br ght Amer
foam or German girls who would De wiling
: to 90 into the country The Celtic girls
:. as a rule, dislike to leave the cities
, Railroads now traverse the principal val
leys. the rate of fare being tnree Genus per
=, mi q on valley and four cents per mile OF