Los Angeles daily herald., 1890-02-14
FRIDAY. FEBRUARY Ia, 1880.

street Los Angeles. Telepnoue NJ ~
FRIDAY. FEBRUARY Ii, 1890.
The industrial and Financial Sit
uatiOn Is All Right.
Let no one unwisely distrust the i'm
mediate future in this section. There is
every reason for the statements that
there is q turn in the tide, that the worst
point of depression has been reached
and that there will be improvement
soon. In fact the affairs of the section
are already moving in the right direc-
ton. The betterment is more that at
our gates: it is inside them. There is
very fair and an entirely healthy demand
for country property, and the buyers are
so we'll aware that they are getting
something unusually good that they are
content to pay fair prices for these lands.
The run is mainly on small farms suit
able to some kind of fruit culture,
and the planting is for the most part OF
oranges, walnuts ard figs. The reason
for this is that these fruits pay more by
far than any others, and there is less
fear of overproduction. They are pecu-
liar products of this section, which has no
competitor in the Union in these lines.
When one realizes how small this section
is in comparison to this great country
with its seventy millions of souls, rap
idly increasing to one hundred millions,
it must become apparent that there will
be a market for our fruits for all time to
come. These are not the only varieties
OF fruit that are peculiar to this section,
but they seem to attract the most of the
attention. Lemons and olives are quite
as much monopoly of Southern Califor-
mia as oranges and figs. The former,
like oranges, belong entirely to US, and
the latter, like figs, do better here than
elsew here in this State. They will draw
capital and enterprise to them soon.
A producer of figs near Downey says
he receives about $500 an acre for his
crop one year with another. The value
of orange orchards may be learned from
the fact that the owner of hundred
acres near Glendale has been able to
borrow $3.50 an acre on his property, on
bond and mortgage. Walnut orchards
also appear valuable to money loaners,
as is evidenced by the fact that the
owner of 145 acres near Los Nietos
yesterday secured a loan of $17 900 on
his property, or at the rate of SLY an
acre.
With this inquiry and actual trading
in these lands there comes large meas
ure of relief to the community. The
only trouble here has been with people
who were carrying too much realty on
which they owed money. Each sale
that is made relieves not merely the
seller, but enables him to pay third
person, who hands the cash to fourth,
and one sale pays off often ten mortgages.
The money lenders recognize the fact
that change has come. They say there
is much less pressure to borrow money.
In fact the days of pressure are past, and
there is only quite moderate inquiry,
which finds ready accommodation at
many hands. Rates of interest are be-
coming easier, and the undertone to the
financial situation is regarded by the
most conservative bankers as being solid
as rock.
Nor is this town dull. There is not the
rush of business there was some time
ago, but there is fair volume doing in
the regular channels of business. An
gelefios who 60 abroad all say that they
come back to find Los Angeles the live
liesJ town they have seen. One pilgrim
who returned a day or two ago after q
visit embracing San Francisco. Salt
Lake. Denver, st. Louis, Dallas and
other points, says there is more
business in proportion to popula-
ton being done here than in any
of these places. Dallas is regarded
as the best town in Texas. 1t
has about two-thirds of the population
of Los Angeles, but it is not doing one
quarter the business we are doing. The
best business property there is held at
81 500 a foot above the value of improve
ments. and sells rather freely when
offered at that price. Lands in the sur
rounding country are held at $50 to 500
per acre. The only crops they produce
are the cereal and root crops common to
all parts of the East. The'annual pro-
duction from such lands is not worth
more than from IS an acre in
poor years up to $40 an acre as
an extreme realized perhaps once in
q lifetime. AS compared with such
prices and such revenues, our lands are
dirt cheap, and 30 are our city lots. 1t
is being. realized now that lands here,
adapted to the cultivation of citrus
fruits, nuts, figs and such crops, are ex-
cellent investments at $3.50 to $500 an
acre. The buyers of such property are
wise. These prices will not last. There
is big margin of speculation in
them at these figures, as will be seen in
time. So with city lots. This place will
not stand still long. There will come ia
time-and in no very long time-another
era of rapid growth here, and then bust
ness and residence property, lots near
and those on the outskirts, will enhance
in value.
With such underlying elements of the
situation, it is no wonder that business
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