The Arizona sentinel., 1897-10-02
ON THE PACIFIC SLOPE.
Description of Model Home Which
 Jack Frost Never Visits.
Written for the SENTINEL:

Written for the SENTNEL:
 And here we are still at Pism
 Beach. Nature did a thousand
 times more for this place than man
 It is the fsherman's paradise anc
 here we found the turfman's idea
 drive. The sand that is washed
 and spread and beaten by the con-
 stant flashing of the waves is SC
 hard that horse scarcely leaves
 the imprint of it's hOof, and yet il
 is yielding and easy to travel over
 There was a big wharf here a
 year or so ago and vessels of large
 tonnage touched, and the people in
 this vicinity enjoyed the prevailing
 low freight and passenger rates as
 a result of competition, but the
 Southern Pacific Railway company,
 1 am told, got control of the wharf later, and all at once ocean vessels ceased to call, and then the dear people had to receive their freight by rail, and gradually the rate crawled up. The people here are constantly reminding me of the heartlessness of the Southern Pa cific Railroad company. Said an old farmer to me today: "We can't ship anything in the line of farm produce to San Francisco from here for the freight rates would consume it." At Santa Margarita the same unanimous vail went up, and at Bakersfield the alleged ex- orbitant charges of this giant monopoly is the favorite theme. c. P. Huntington is at the head of this corporation, and if 1 may be- lieve a tenth part of what hear concerning this autocrat he certain ly must be a fiend incarnate. Re- low Pismo Beach six miles is the Arroyo Grande country. Here the largest vegetables and finest apples grown in the state are said to mature. It was in this neck of land near the sea, that single cab bages which weigh 100 pounds are actually grown, and pumpkins too large for one man to lift into a wagon. I saw some fields of potatoes in this vicinity that were marvels. The soil is deep dark rich muck and it seems to be parti- cu}arIy well adapted to the veget- able kingdom. I saw a photo graphic view of a field of squashes grown last year, and the ground did appear to be so completely hid den with this vegetable that one would hardly be able to get through the filed without stepping from squash to squash. And the climate has quite as much to do with this rank growth as the soil. It is no exaggeration to say that "Decem- ber's as pleasant as May" There is almost no cold weather at all here. The rays of the sun warm mother earth and much vegetation is rank and green twelve months of each year. Indeed, the verdancy of winter far exceeds that of sum- mer, for in summer the meadows and pastures and grain fields pres ent a dead brown appearance while in winter, during the damp or rainy season, the pastures are at their best, and the dark green of grain fields and meadows present a landscape scene that is charmingly beautiful as we'll as novel to the Eastern traveller. Many kinds of fruit and vegetables are sold here by the pound. Carrots, beets, parsnips, lettuce, green onions, ochra and celery are sold in small punches at ) and 10 cents each. Oranges and lemons and in fact all citrus fruits, are retailed by the dozen. The price of oranges varies, but when the crop is being harvest ed it ranges from 50 cents to $500 per box in the orchards. Very fine oranges are sold by the retailer at 10 and 15 cents per dozen; lemons are still cheaper, while Times retail at 5 cents per dozen. The large fruit growers contract their fruit months before it natures. The contractor picks and packs it him. self The utmost care and closest attention is given to the packing of all fruits, so that they will present