Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-02-09
CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
a Trip Through Sacramento Valley. the
Land of Sunshine Fruit and Flowers.
Especial Correspondence
SACRAMENro. Jan. 10, 1883.

A Trip Through Sacramento Valley, the
Land of Sunshine Fruit and Flowers.
Especial Correspondence
SACRAMENTO, Jan. IS, 1883
Here we are in Sacramento City after a
visit to the surrounding country, under
cloudless SKY, the thermometer this day
standing at forty-eight degrees above zero,
merchants doing bus ness with open doors,
and people on the streets without wraps
flowers blooming in the open air, oranges
and lemons trees in the door-yards of
the coy residences, a revelation to one
who arrives from the frozen east and who
has dropped down IN four hours from the
summit of the Sieras where the snow is
ten feet deep and the thermometer at 1 3
degrees below zero
Sacramento City is the capital of the State.
is located eighty three miles nori beast from
San Francisco at the confluence of the
American and Sacramento rivers the latter
naVigable stream, and is the railroad center
ana the largest Tru1t Sh. piping point in Cali
fornIa- flfJy-fOur trains from seven differ
ent directions arrive and depart daily, the
shops of the c. 2. Z II. furnishing employ
nenJ 20 TWO Thousand mechanics and I;.bOr-
efs Inc CITY Is built upon level plain,
vice streets running at right angles let
tered from 4 TO north to south and lst to
S1St from west to east
Many fine buildings adorn the residence
portion OF the city, but many of the bust
ness structures with their wide awnings re-
main as erected during the mining era of
Ihlrty years ago, presenting novel appear
ance to us from the East The State Capitol
building is modelled after the Capitol at
Washington, and cost over two million dol
lars; Is surrounded by grounds not exceI!ed
IN beauty of landscape gardening and semi
IoI4cu plants by any capital grounds in
{he United States The city boasts of the
Cfocker art gallery costing over four hum
dred Thousand dollars donated to the city
bY Mrs. l. Ii. Croker, said gallery contain
ing large collection of choice statuary and
in TaI, Sc
an art school This gallery, second to none
IN the United States. viii amply repay the
tourist who may visit it
Ihere are many other fine buildings,
among Which are the new Catholic cathe-
drai, Masonic and Odd Fellows temples,
UlHerent churches, school buildings and
two elegant theaters, numerous hotels and
business ructureS The city contains
about 30. 900 population and has a large
wholesale trade, one store having 225 en-
pioyes. The city is well lighted by two
electric light and one gas company. The
State fairs are held here in Septembe each
year, the State Agricultural Society having
a large exposition building and mile race
track
An exposition building adjoining the rail-
road depot is being erected where con-
unuous exhibit of the products of Central
California will be shown and printed infor-
nation relative TO same distributed The
area or sacramento County is $40, O0C
acres The land is of three characters, foot
bill, plains and river bottom. The foot-hill
land Is peculiarly adapted to the Droduc-
ton or fruits and grapes. The plains lands
are mainly devoted to grain raising, and no
failure OF crops since the American occupa-
tlon or this country. In some portions of
the county fruits, berries and grapes are
extensively produced on this class OF land
and from small farms of forty and sixty
acres considerable incomes are derived
Inc best lands are those on the i'm
mediate banks of the rivers, and are de-
voted TO the production of fruits and
vegetables. The income per acre is fab
ulOus, enabling the owners OF the river
bank orchards to own and manage line of
steamers on which their produce is trans
ported to San Francisco markets or to
sacramento City for shipment East Pre-
yIous to the last two years many of these
lands Were held in large tracts; now the
owners are subdividing them and offering
them for sale to actual settlers
For many years California was regarded
as Valueless save TOR its mineral wealth,
but American enterprise has developed
that its richness in the line of agriculture
and fruit raising is inferior to none in the
world From the cultivation of cereals the
step was taken successfully in the line OF
fruit and vine raising, and lastly in the
growing OF oranges and lemons, consequent
~ the fruit-grower here has no waste time,
but can, If he will, utilize every day in the
year He may actually gather fruit of
some kind from his orchard every month
OF the year, thee winter fruits embrace
oranges, lemons. pomegranates, olives and
perstmmons, which ripen during the
months of November. December and Janu-
airy. The spring fruits embrace straw berries,
raSpberrieS, blackberrieS and cherries, and
are marketed in April, May and June The
summer fruits are apricots, l,lums, peaches,
hgs, pears and nectarines, and are marketed
from June to October. The fall fruits are
apples, pears, grapes. ounces, prunes and
peaches, to which may be added almonds,
walnuts and peanuts. Hops, broom and
Egyptian corn, alfalfa, sweet potatoes, etc,
are all grown with profit We who have
spent our lives east of the Rocky Mountains
can have no reasonable conception of a
country that apparently has but two sea-
sons, an autumn and spring, as it is here in
the sacramento valley. The rainfall COM
msnces about November l and ends in
May, but only at intervals during that time,
so that with few exceptions there is no
cause for suspension from outdoor labor.
Flowing begins here as soon as the rains
commence-in fact, many farmers who
summec-fallow their lands in April and
May seed the same in August and Septem-
Der before the first rains.
The change from one season to the other
Is marked with no sudden or severe climat-
ic changes While s4eet and snow, to say
nothing of blizzards at this time of the year,
are the fortune of the people at the East
here IN the Sacramento valley the people
are basking under clear skies and can pluck
fruits and flowers The writer noticed in
one of the markets this morning the fol-
lowing fruits and vegetables. being in
formed they were grown in this Immediate
vicinity: Asparagus, caulifower, cabbage,
ce1ery artichokes, sweet potatoes, sprouts,
spinach, peas, satisfy, string beans, new
potatoes, onions, oranges, lemons, persim-
mons, English walnuts, almonds and rails
ms In an interview with the signal service
officer located here, 1 am informed that this
present winter has been an unusually cold
one-in fact, the coolest IN the past thirty
four years.
8 Few DAYS since a snow-storm actually
swept over the valley and snow fell to the
depth of an inch, affordng great amuse-
ment to men, women and children during
II Low ff.Ar 1In
also informed me that Sacramento County
shows q warmer winter, spring, and yearly
average temperature and about the same
summer and autumn temperature that the
great citrus belt in Northern Italy does as
shown by the following table which he
kindly furnished me:
sTEIE i