Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1889-12-19
California Letter.
CORNING, TEnoMA, COUNTY, Call,
November %, 1889.

MESSRS. EDITORS: one year has
elapsed since wrote my last letter
for the dear COURIER. Since that
time | have travelled extensively and
have learned great deal about the
"Goldcn State" that | would like to
communicate to mquirng friends in
South Carolina; but to do so would
require too much space in your pa
per and also too much of my time to
write it. However, | will ask II col
,lmn or two and take time to write
a few more stray thoughts.
Last winter we had abundance of
rain. The rivers were very high
and but for the lcvccs our beautiful
valley would have been one vast sea.
The Sacramento was some ten miles
wide where was. We had fine
time spcaring fish in the alfalfa
fields. They had gone out as the
water rose. After the water subsi-
lcd millions of geese and ducks
came in to cat what wheat had not
been ruined by the water. Ranchcrs
were forced to employ men to heard
them off, else many acres would have
been literally eaten up. Some ranch
crs. keep from one to four men, fur
nish horse, gun and ammunition and
pay $50 per mouth for hcardng off
this destructive tribe. How would
such employment suit our South Ca
rolina boys, who hunt all day for a
lew gray squirrels and rabbits i?
When spring came the rain ceased,
the game left and we were delighted
with our home on the Sacramento,
where winter, SO far as cold is con
ccrncd, is seldom known, and where
fruit and flowers are enjoyed all the
year.
In August took Il $50 mile
drive to Quarterly Conference,
crossing the Sierra Nevada Noun
tains, passing the base of old Mt.
Shusta, which is the eliminating
peak of The Sierra or Coast Range
Mountains. There we had ice, and
old Jack Frost occasionally left his
snowy trail all over the little val
lcys. 1t was Il treat to be so near
Shusta, with its snow clad peaks
| it has two rising in widest grand
eur to an altitude of over $4,000
feet, towering over us and the sur
rounding mountains, lifting their
snow covered SUBMITS to the skies
and asserting the majesty of Shusta,
the father of mountains. would
like to tell your readers of our tour
through these mountains, but as the
profit and delight of travel are like
duties and responsibilities, not trans
fcrablc, will say no more at this
time.
Our Annual Conference met i'm
September and was stationed near
the mountains and amid the foot
hills. Since came here we have had
abundance Of rain, but it fell in a
few days and then season like
sweet balmy springtimc followed.
For more than Il week we were the
recipients of Il bright and genial sun
shine, alternating with the mellow
| light of the moon, revealing to the
eye by day and by night beautiful
little valleys surrounded by tower
ing hills and lofty peaks and few
times whitcncd with the frost of
winter. Such scenes would doubt
less rckindlc the sacred inspiration
of Ncbo's poet. Such visible mani
fcstations Of Gods power in the ma
lural world 5ivcs us some c8nccp-
ton of the invisible manifestations
OF his power in the spiritual world.
McthinkS that the human heart is q
higher pinnacle than either Ncbo or
Shusta's lonely nights upon which
the sacred poet might pen his lines
OF Gods mysterious care Of a human
soul
Amid such beautiful scenes of ma
turc and amorg such Il kind people
as have been providcntially thrown
among, your writer is more than de-
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