River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1895-01-31
CALIFORNIA LETTER.

RIVERSIDE, CAL, Jan. IL, 1895.
EDITOR JOURNAL: About a year ago wrote
you "A geographical and typographical descrip-
ton OF the counties OF Los Angee ), San Ber-
nardino and Riverside, and promised In the
"lndcfnite future" Ia say something about
Orange and San Diego counties. Bat as | have
4 not been able To traverse them enough 10 write
| them up, Will leave that sill future and say
something about the productions and improve
| ments OF the first named three counties.
As the city OF Los Angeles is bound 10 be the
| leading city IN California. a pa tial resume of
what has been done the past year-ghe most
depressing year in the memory of the oldest
iahabltant-may BE- OF interest. The building
record foots Up LII houses. or 3ja houses per
day and from the building permits" In. IT. east
varies from Sl,OO0 To $1,000 each. This is eX-
| elusive OF pubic works. Tne new court house
cost over S20O,UU0, and The new chamber OF
commerce cus' over 81 100000 This Institution
ln.s..1 a % 10 .OOut 60 OF the richest ana most
enterprsihg men ia the city, and such men
with such minds aud such means are wora ing
wonders, not only for the city but for the coun-
~. The corporate limits of the city miles
quare which Is fast filling up. Taking the
iifectOrt and school census, the estimated
population is over 10000. gain OF 10000 since
1880. Ii the transient population OF travellers
aud tramps were counted now II would ne very
close To 100000. The oil industry is taking on
great proportions in the north part of the city
Iinlits. There were g wells in the city on the
LIST Of January While the county has not kept
pace with the city, yet ITS assessed valuation
of ST2 000.OO0 S2,UU0.00O more than IN 1885,
shows healthy growth TOT such an unfavora-
be year. While tile fruit crop has been abund-
ant the prices are not RENT neratIVe The nay
aud grain CROP were light, lut at present prices
-Sl5 To SIS per ton for haN, .lle crop was pruiL-
able. The towering industry u the county Is
The beet sugar production The Chino ranch,
located partly IN LO, Angeles county and San
BardinO county, produces a higher y + centage
II sugar than any other soil Yet tried. There
T. 795 acres rented To be planted in BE- cts The
coming season, besides Loo acres contracted
be planted by the farmers in the ighbOr-
mood. The plant has cost over SIO00,OO0, and
Is Co be enlarged To about double ITS present
apacity. The company has just finished
Sl2 90 school house, "A Tree git Ia the operatives
oy the company, Gird " O,ndrd.
a detailed account Of Pr I Lows mountain
f;iilroad near Pasadena reads more liRe
mince than nafd facts III these hard times, and
/ will not attempt il in TINS short letter.
San Bernardinp Is the oldest American set
dement, u the valley. While i aud Cotton are
Lhey MT grow like their near neight ors, Red
ands and Riverside. MlSmanaged NJ IrnOni>m
mas much to do with the LACK OF enterprise.
Brigham Young claimed that ne had "A vision
and SAW large rich valley TO the southwest,
and in the place of the mountain on the nerth
f the valley was a large rock, like an ar. Ow
lead (The valley and The rock are there, cut
[ Is more likely that SOine Indian tuld him
tbUat thrm.) He ASKED cor volunteers To go
and search out and take pOssrssun OF the val
Icy. Whine a number OF tne faithful headed
the expedition, IA large number VINO were dis
atisficd but did not reveal the same were 4sidu
Of an opportunity, where something might
turn up" The "MOuntain Meadow" affair
created such "a feeling against the MOrmons
that Brigham Young called the expedition b ok
70 SAT- Luxe. but the majority preferred TO plan
for themselves rather than Tor Brigham ana
tayed here, and this easy going, don't carr
class of people are still here aud their children
are "a little more SO" The secret OF Mormon
success was the master mind OF Brigham.
line san B'inarulno valley proper IS about
$50 miles square. Some TIME away BACK" u
asls been "A san lake, winch has been drained
ny tie santa Anna rlNer. Reulands IS situated
0n the east side of the river, and is higher
ground than on the West side. w lat San Ber-
.ldrdino lacks u enterprise hediands makes
~. Ii IS wonderful recreation. Seven years
ali the east side of the Santa Anna rlVer was
very poor sheep ranch, and now IL Is II beau
tiui city OF over 5,U0J populations aud It's sub
urOs an Eden with fruits ana flowers and
c,,stIy mansions. Water was the magician'>
wand Riverside county Is not two years Ola
yet. IL suffered much during the last year
IrOIh frost and drOutu. Hundreds o. thousands
OF acres IN the county are used for dry farm
ing gram and hay There was scarcely amy
Oi it cut tor grain, and not tue hail Oh II cut tor
nay even, ana dld not average q ton from fv+
acres. About one-thlrd OF the oranges Wee
truZe ana nearly all the nursery STOCK but
have not heard OF "a case ~ RESTITUTION Ia the
county: provided of course, the tramp pnpula-
ton Is excluded. The county made the tralnps
earn their iced" last winter by making IA hcw
ROAD over a low range OF mountains between
riverside valley ana Ferris valley. IL Is the
finest mountain road in the state; 1t is . miles
long. 90 Ieet wide, and uniform grade. There
dre cuts through the solid rock 40 feet deep
aud ii Is 50 feet. TX cost $4,000.
Last season was the hardest we AZ on the "dry
farmers" since 1869. There was no rain 10
amount to anything from Christmas till the Och
81 December almost "A year. we ndu bnttt
good rains IN Decemner and one on the 9th Inst
total rainfall SO far inches, anu as mucn as
inches further north. The MESA and early sown
gram Is quite green a.d the prospect for a
large crop Is unusually good.
lie first light frost came ON the I'd ult. and
there has been three frOStS since but none haru
enough to wilt the tomato vines. 800 above IS
the cogdtst 81 lar, ana to-day Dan. l7thl II -
$50 in the shade.
As a RUE uieu like this country and climate,
and as a rule women don't like it, But there
many exceptions with both. While the
people are very social and kind there IS very
htt visiting done, unless combined with bust
ness II might be considered ungaliant TO SAY
that this pays any uart III women beng dis
sdtiSfi-d, bat as a rule they like To Chew the
rag" IN harmless gossip, and some OF the stern
er sex are not clear IN the matter. AS there Is
no place but that perfect and different people
have different tastes, ther- are many places
where young healthy people could maze more
money Ihan here, but a. "A South Dakota man
said short time ago, Goldfish people that eX-
poets To 20 To heaven when they die should
end their days here as the change would be
less than from any other place "
Bill Nye said that BANANAS viii grow here,
but they don It like tO. Well, where bananas
ihe to grow there are many other important
productions that won't grow The season Is
lbOut Two weeks too short to ripen the banana
but il Is long enough t. mature iwU craps OF
potatues. corn, and many other crops. Alfalfa
VIII pruduce from slX 90 eight crops Of from l1a
to tons per acre, and Is worth sl4 per ton n W
but the usual price is about Is per ton. Cows
are worth from $40 To 500, butter 3Oc "A pound.
.ggs SOC a dozen, flour $500 per cwt. Houses
JoHN MCMILLAN.