The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-02-18
CENTRAL CALIFORNIA.
a Trip Through Sacramento Valley, the
Land of Sunshine. Fruit and Flowers.
Especial Correspondence

Vl5iC 10 Une surrounding country, unUer |
cloudless sky, the thermometer this day
standing at forty eight degrees above zero, |
merchants dong business with open doors,
and people on the streets without wraps, |
flowers blooming in the open air, oranges
and lemons on trees in the door-yards Of
the coy residences, q revelation to one
who arrives from the frozen east and who
has dropped down in four hours from the
summit OF the Sierras where the snow is
ten feet deep and the thermometer at 10
degrees below zero.
Sacramento City is the capital of the State,
is loo lted eighty three miles norI beast from
San Francisco at the confluence of the
American and Sacramen 10 rivers The lat, er a
navigable stream, and is the railroad center
and the largest fruit shipping point in Cali
fornia- Fifty-four trains from seven differ
emit directions arrive and depart daily, the
shops of the c. P. r Il. furn .shing employ
ment to two thousand mechanics and labor
ers The city is built upon level plain,
wide streets running at right angles, let
tered from A to MOI Gh TO south and LIST to
31st from west to east
Many fine build ngs adorn the residence
portion OF the city, buJ many OF the busl-
ness structures with their wide awnings re-
main as erected during the mining era of
thirty years ago presenting novel appear
ance to us from the East The State Capitol
building is modelled after the Capitol az
Washington, and cost over two million dol
lars; is surrounded by grounds not excelsd
in beauty of landscape gardening and semi
troplc Il plants by any capital grounds in
the United Stites The city boasts of the
Crocker art gallery costing over four hun
dred thousand dollars, donated to the city
by Mrs E. B. Crocker, said gallery contain
ing large collection of choice statuary and
paintings, in which is In active operation
an art scnool This gallery, second TO none
in the United States. will amply repay the
tourist who may visit It
| There are many other fine buildings
among which are the new Catholic cathe-
dral, Masonic and Odd Fellows temples,
different churches, school buildings, and
two elegant theaters, numerous hotels and
business ructurea The city contains
about 80, 900 population, and has a large
whole sale trade, one Store having DO en-
ployes The city is well lighted by two
electric light and one gas company. The
State fairs are held here in Sep. ember each
year, the State Agricultural Society having
large exposition building and mile race
I track.
An exposition building adjoining the rail-
road depot is being erected, where a con-
tinuous exhibit of the products OF Central
1sllllOEull Will NC buON II anu lllhbtiA l1AtA-
nation relative TO same distributed The
area of Sacramento County is G2O,OO0
acres The land Is OF three characters, foot
hill, pla ms and river bottom. The foos-hIll
land is peculiarly adapted to the prOduc-
ton of fruits and grapes The plains lands
are mainly devoted to era n raising, and no
failure OF crops since the Amer can occupa-
ton of this country. In some portions of
the county fruits, berries and grapes are
extensively produced on this c.ass of land,
Nd FpC, oil af F.r4v civ
acres considerable incomes are derived
The 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 a line of
steamers on which their produce is trans
ported to San Francisco markets or TO
Sacramento City for shipment East Pre-
vlous 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 Yalueless save Ter its mineral wealth,
y hui 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 lire of
fruit and vine raising, and lastly in the
growing of oranges and lemons, consequent
~ the truit-grower here has no waste time,
but can, If he will utilize every day in the
year He may actually gather fIuit of
some kind from his orchard every month
of the year, as the winter fruits embrace
oranges, lemons. pOmegr mates, olives and
persimmons, winch ripen during the
months of November, December and Janu-
airy. The spring fruits embrace strawberries,
raspberries blackberries and cherries, and
are marketed in April, May and June. The
summer fruits are apricots, plu MS peaches,
Gpg and upCtnr4nna and marketed
from June to October. The fail fruits are
apples, pears, grapes. ounces, prunes anu
peaches, to which may be added almonds,
walnuts and peanuta Hops broom and
Egypt an 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-
cons, an autumn and spring, as it is here in
the Sacramento valley. The rainfall COM
mences about November l and ends in
May, but only at interv ais du ring 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
summer-ftlow their lands in April and
May seed the same in August and Septem-
Der before the first rains
The change from one seasoL to the other
is marked with no sudden or severe climat-
&c changes While sleet and snow, to say
nothing of billiards. at this time of the wear,
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, caul flower, cabbage,
celery, artchokes, sweet potatoes, sprouts,
spinach, peas, satisfy, string beans, new
potatoes, on ons. oranges, lemons, persim-
MONS English walnuts. almonds and rsis-
ins In an interview with the signal service
officer located here. am informed hat thi:
present winter has been an unusually colo
} one--in fact the coolest in the past thirty
four yeara
few days since snow-storm actually
swept over the valley and snow fell to tht
depth of an inch, afford ng great amuse
ment to men, women and children during
the few hours it lay upon the ground He
also informed me that Sacramento County
shows a warmer winter spring, and We lrly
average temperature and about the same
summer and autumn temperature that the
, great citrus belt in Northern Italy does, al
shown by the TO lowing table which h
| kindly furnished me:
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