Los Angeles herald., 1892-02-14

tanned county subsidies, state appropr1-
ations and finally federal bonds. Upon
it's completion, San Francisco at once
became grand highway of COM
merce. The trade of the occident
passed eastward and the traffic of
the Orient westward through her
Golden Gate. If she sprang into life in
1S49-50 fully equipped for battle, like
Minerva from the brain OF Jupiter,
she was drinking anew at the fountains
of life in 1869-70. Progress was the
watchword in all lines. Hardly decade
saw her population double, while her
wealth tripled, quadrupled and quin-
tupled. Great and glorious was her on
ward and upward march. Not only was
she commercial pass, but the metrop-
oils of the whole coast.
Natural divisions, however, have de-
creed for her different destiny. Three
northern transcontinental railroads con-
meet the Puget sound region with the
Atlantic sea board, and the cities of
Vancouver, Seattle and Portland divided
with San Francisco and finally took
extreme north.
Los Angeles, with two competing
transcontinental railroads, has done the
road to come in shortly from Salt Lake
will complete the commercial supremacy
of the southern metropolis.
1t will always be cheaper to haul
freight and passengers from Salt Lake
to Los Angeles than from Salt Lake to
San Francisco. The former route is
over mountains more than 1000 feet
high. The latter is an easy, down-hill
grade all the way, with hardly any hills
worth mentioning to cross, except the
Sierra Madre mountain rim OF the Rocky
mountain basin, which is broken by
the easy passes of the Tejunga, Cajon,
Morongo and San Gorgonio.
San Francisco has undoubtedly al
most attained her growth for many
years to come. She will hence
forth settle down to be the
metropolis of the northern
citrus belt, for which she is
ably and fully equipped. She may,
and undoubtedly will get competing
transcontinental railroads. And if
hydraulic mining is not resumed, she
will retain her magnificent harbor. But
grand harbors do not always make or
hold commerce, as the experience of a
certain southern city demonstrates. 1t
was dad" Briefly, of happy memory,
who said: "God gave San Diego the
harbor and San Pedro the business !"
With the completion of the Salt Lake
road, the introduction of cheap fuel and
the development of her resources, Los
Angeles will enjoy growth as great as,
if not greater than, that of San Fran
cisco in her most prosperous period.
Are these not the "signs of the times?"
And not only the commercial but also
the political supremacy of Los Angeles
will be established, her chiefest glory
being the capital city of the state of
South California.
1t will not be violation of any conf
dence to here note an idea gathered in
an interview the other day with William
H. Mills, of the Southern Pacific COM
pany. Mr.. Mills is truly one of the in
tellectual forces of the Pacific coast, and
an able advocate of the northern citrus
belt. The thought was this: Southern
California, with her ever increasing po-
litical power, is gradually getting state
institutions of her own. First came
normal school, and next an in
sane asylum. Another legislature
will undoubtedly give PEN
itentiary. A university will fol-
low, and 30 on, until Southern Cali
fornla has her separate snare OF every
state institution. By that time the
weight of her wealth and population
will, by its own gravity, break the
already slender partition between her
and Northern California, and then
Southern California will hatch out in
the full and brilliant plumage of glori-
GUS statehood. Mr.. Mills fully under
stands that healthy incubation is now
in process of development.
Indeed, the fairness of the just
minded people of Northern California
on the question OF state division is graf
flying as to quality and surprising as to
quantity. B. A. CECIL STEPHENS.