The San Francisco call., 1896-10-04

Grapes are grapes this year. The man
who has them smiles compiacently and
says grapes are money. Queer how many
things grapes can bel Some years they
are dru s.
The picking season is at its heiyht now;
pickers are in demand, wineries are
crushing all day long. and all day the big
wagons come down the roads piled high
with full boxes or rattle back again with
empty ones.
The entle hills in all the grape valleys
bear undu.ating lines OF low green vines
looking bare of fruit until one gets close,
and then revealing treasures OF purple,
pink or white clusters, hung hidden De-
meath the branches. There isn't much
landscape hidden by grapevines; they do
not rise enough from the ground to
change the appearance OF the surround
ing-not nearly so much as crop OF
corn would. And there is nothing OF
nature in a vineyard. Who ever knew
Nature to grow anything In parallel lines?
In a section devoted to grape culture one
may stand on any slight emlnence anu
see, as far as he can see, line after line,
sloping up and then down, following and
bringing into relief every curve or hollow
in the land.
1t isn't beautiful. but it looks thrifty; it
has the air of prosperity ana spick-and
spanness about it which comes with value
and care. Running through nearly every
vineyard, cutting it in two or in four, are
rows of orchard trees, like sentinels, or
ike few grown-up people watching the
play OF many children. In some hollow,
nearly hioden by trees, and vines allowed
to CLIMB, is the house. and if the place be
large there are many outbuildings and q
winery. Nearly all these buildings are
white, contrasting well with the deep
green OF the vines and the brown of the
earth. Roads and paths intersect the
vineyard, and now, if one passes along
these roads, at the sound of footstep, up
pops head after head from among the
vines, where the stopping plckers have
been hid.
A hopyard is more picturesque, per-
haps, but less salts actory this year than
vineyard. The man with grapes has no
grudge against Providence or his neigh
Dor, for the crop is goo1 in quality, though
light in quantity. and every grape sells at
a good price. 1t is golden harvest that
is being gathered in ali over the State this
month. greater than any for many years
a boon from kindly nature to her burdened
people.
Around the little town of Livermore are
vineyards in every direction. One can
take no road that does not lead to one.
In all directions the hills are crowned
with vines to their very SUBMITS, and in
all directions come and go The great four
horse loads of grapes. Grapes everywhereI
Great luscious grapes OF every shade and
degree OF sweetness; great piles of grapes
in front of the wineries; great plies of
boxes full of grapes stacked about the
vineyards. 1t would seem that there are
grapes enough in this region to supply
the State. Ii takes a small army to
gather them in.
Some small vineyards hire two or three
families to pick and then there's fun,
They all come-father, mother and
flight of stairs, ending with the fat baby
Growing under the shade of vine Even
grandma picks in the cool of the day, feel
ing once more that she is of some use in
the world, for every bunch counts. They
are paid by the ton, from 81 25 to 50 a ton.
according to the ground. The stems are
cut with hooked knife and the punches
dropped into box, thirty-two of which