The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-27
VISIT THE CAPITOL,
Half-MilliOn Club Ex-
CurSiOniStS Meet the
Governor.
HIS SUPPORT PROMISED.
Work of the Organization
Heartily Indorsed by the
Executive.
AT FOLSOM AND ORANGEvALE.
The Visitors Surprised at the Won
derful Resources of the Sac
ramento Valley.

|
40 o'clock this morning, and shortly
after they were waited upon by COM
mittee, consisting of B. U. Steinman, ]. M.
| Morrison, chairman of the Board of Su-
pervisors; City Trustee Devine, George B.
Katzenstein, T. A. W. Shock, NJ. J. Curtis,
NJ. J. Dillman, r. H. Hawley, Rev. A. G.
Herrick Russ D. Stevens and the Misses
Steinman and Rosener.
This committee accompanied the seekers
after information to Folsom, and pointed
out the beauties of the Sacramento Valley
as the train sped rapidly through fertile
orchards, vineyards, hopfelds and alfalfa
meadows, where sleek, thoroughbred cattle
| browzed kneedeep in the waving grasses.
| Upon the arrival of the party at the State
prison they inspected the power-house,
dam and canal, afterward being ushered
through the interior of the prison proper
and having such notables as Sontag and
Evans pointed out.
Returning to Folsom the entire party
was conveyed to Orangevale, where an
hour was consumed in driving through
the extensive orange groves of that section.
This trip was source of constant amaze
ment and surprise to all the visitors from
| the southern portion of the State, who have
become so used to hearing the constant
praises of that section chanted upon all
occasions that they were almost convinced
that it was the only portion of the State
suited for residence and the growth and
perfection of citrus fruits.
| The party returned to Sacramento and
were taken to Sutter Fort and from there
to the State Capitol building, where they
were presented in person to Governor
Budd in his reception-room. After receiv-
ing a cordial handshake from his Excel
lency they were accorded speech of well
come, in which the Governor said: "For
some time there has been a strong feeling
| between the northern and southern por-
| tions of this great State, spirit of pointed
rivalry much to be deplored, and l cor
daily welcome you all and heartily
indorse the movement you have originated,
and l believe it will tend to cement the
north and south in one great fraternity
that will unite to forward the interests of
California as State not as a section.
II welcome you, and am glad that you
have attempted to capture the Governors
office-a task already attempted by many,
achieved by few"
! William NJ. Bunker of San Francisco
was called upon to state the aim and pur-
pose of the Half-miIlion Club. He said it
had been organized for the purpose of in
creasing the population of the big City but
| 1t was found the interior must be depended
upon to furnish assistance and an era of
improvement must be instituted through
out the State to effect their object, conse-
| quently the first step to be taken was to
visit each section and ascertain their
resources and present them in true light
to the rest Of the world.
Such was their present object, he said,
and at every stop they were greeted with
fresh surprise. But few residents of the
State possessed the slightest idea of its
great resources, and they were all "crim-
inally negligent" in not being fully in
formed on the matter. In the southern
portion of the State there was a spirit of
progressiveness that had made California
famous, ana the same spirit should be fos-
tered by the people of the northern por-
ton.
Professor Keyes of Pasadena spoke of
the natural enthusiasm portrayed by resi-
dents of that locality in their surround
ings and claimed that the prevalent idea
was that orange trees, to be successfully
cultivated in the northern portions of the
State, had to be encased in blankets to
protect them from the winters severe
climate They had always supposed that
they possessed monopoly of the orange
growing industry of the State, but had
been disahuse0 of that idea by their jaunt
through the broad grain fields, orchards,
vineyards and orange groves since crossing
the Tehachapi Mountains.
Captain Daniels of Riverside declared
that since he had resided amid the 1900
acres of orange groves in Riverside he had
imbibed the idea that nowhere else in
California was there an orange tree save
those planted in tubs and conservatories
His drive through the 300 acres of groves
at Orangevale had disabused him of this
idea and he saw no reason why this should
not become the orange-producing region
of the world. The soil was here; the
climate and an abundance of water.
George B. Katzenstein in his speech COM
pared the sections on either side of the
Tehachapi Mountains to an occurrence of
the late war, when the hostile armies eu-
camped within hearing distance of each
other and the bands played the taunting
melodies of their respective sections. At
last, just before the evening taps, one band
started that grand old air, Home, Sweet
Home" and it was Immediately re-echoed
by the band of the enemy. Such, said the
speaker, should be the course of the resi-
dents of the entire State. They should
unite for ''Home, Sweet Home"
Mayor Steinman spoke of the enterprise
of the residents of Pasadena and hoped it
would be taken as a model to be followed
by the residents of this section. His ex-
perience had been, while on visit to the
former place, to take drive to an outlying
section to examine land investment The
gentl eman who drove him out had "two-
minute" horse and he arrived in very
brief period but few days afterward,
when he visited the same section behind