Los Angeles herald., 1892-10-02
MATTERS AT THE GOLDEN GATE.
A Los Angeles Man Talks About
San Francisco.
The Nor thern Metropolis Duller Than
Ever Before.
Recent Changes Noted-The Electric and
Gable Cars-Anttq uated Methods
of Doing Business At
the Bay.

A business man of this city who has
been spending few days in San Fran
cisco, had the following to say to .
HERALD representative yesterday:
ssSan Francisco is said to be duller
now than it has for 20 years. talked
with many people, who ought to be well
informed, and there was not one who
took cheerful view of the situation. A
real estate agent said that the number
of vacant dwelling houses in the city
would exceed 1000. Another told me
that on one street drive of mile
showed him 65 vacant stores. 1t is GER
tain that large number of buildings Of
all kinds bear the ominous sign To Let.
The San Francisco agent has q
way Of putting bis placards, all
over building so whole blocks mutely
beg from every window for tenant.
The reasons given for this decline and
fall Of the bay city metropolis are in
Vulnerable. Some say it is the railroad
monopoly. But the unprejudiced man
cannot help thinking that if all the
business men of San Francisco had
showed as much enterprise as the South
ern Pacific people, the city would be q
second Chicago. The real reason for the
trouble appears to be the lack of enter
prise on the part of the merchants.
Nevada is no longer able to pour silver
stream into the lap of the Golden Gate
city, and the trade OF Southern Califor-
mia. Oregon and Washington goes east.
The street-car facilities of San Francisco
must command admiration. The cable
roads run everywhere, and the electric
road extends over a distance equal to-
that between Los Angeles and Santa
Monica. A double fare is charged on
this line. To a certain point five cents
ia collected, and beyond that another
fare is taken.
lone feature of San Francisco which
attracts attention is the number of
saloons. The stranger is led to believe
that every body must drink to excess to
support such host of liquor houses. In
many blocks there are five or six regular
saloons. one or two family liquor houses,
and the corner grocery always has bar.
Still 1t is said by the police authorities
that there ie not an unusual amount of
drunkenness in San Francisco. A for
mer resident of Iowa remarked to me
that at his old home, where prohibition
rules, the fact that men there had to
creep through back alleys and give pass
words to get whisky, led them to drink
twice as much as they would
If the saloons were open as
in San Francisco. This appears
to be problem of the future for the re-
formers.
The pavements of San Francisco are
matter of interest to local property
owners. In the old portion of the city
the cobblestone pavement exists. and it
is impossible to imagine more dread
ful driveway than they afford. Even
the old unpsved Los Angeles street,
with mud three feet deep, surpassed the
cobbleetonee. The granite block is bet
ter, and the bituminous ock pavement
has been more successful in San Fran
cisco than here. The streets paved with
lime rock are quite smooth and even,
and no hummocks like those on Sixth
and Main streets, in this city, are visi-'
BILE.
"The dense ignorance of the people of
Northern California concerning this Sec
tion is amusing. They all think that in
winter the southern country may be
we'll enough, but are sure that in sum-
mer the temperature is hot enough to
rival Panama, without the aid OF fire.
No argument avails. They listen
politely, but their smile s shows
plainly what they think of your
story. It is the same thing over
again. Convinced against their will,
they remain of the same opinion still.
"A visit to San Francisco shows plainly
that the methods of the old days will
not answer in these times. Los Angeles
lis prospering by the introduction OF less
antiquated ways of getting and helping
business, and the city by the bay will
sooner or later have to follow suit"