The herald., 1897-04-09
THE ADVANTAGES OF A BACK
COUNTRY

COUNTRY
| Many have remarked of Los Angeles
that 1t was always the liveliest town Of
its size they ever saw. This has been
true at all periods Of its growth, and
never more true than in the very depths
] Of the depression, and especially now.
| The reason of this is that it has to its
very dooryards the most highly produc-
tive land in the United States. Consid-
ering the number and quantity of things
that it can produce, both with and with
out irrigation. it has no equal In the
world. This fact was recognized in the
oldest times. and the waters of the Los
Angeles river, one of the steadiest OF
streams through the dryest Of years or
the dryest series of years ever known,
started settlement here. AS the city
grew and settlement spread father away
away from it, everything still gravi-
tated toward it, until now 1t is the center
of trade of the whole country south or
| Tehachepi and along the coast as far
north as the northern line of Santa
Barbara.
Future prospects as railroad center.
the development of a harbor by govern
ment funds, the continued coming of the
wealthy stranger. who cares not cent
whether this or that pays or whether it
things are very fine as advantages. The
same with climate, scenery and other
things, which we have of the best quail
ity and in heaping measure. But, in the
meantime is it not nice to sit back upon
something substantial? Is it not a
great thing to have something that holds
when all else slips-something that we
do not have to wait on congress for, and
that our dear enemies cannot delay.
even if they want to?
1t must be plain to the dullest observer
that the trade of the surrounding coun-
try, or, rather, the trade of the whole of
Southern California, is now holding this
city as steady as the pendulum of the
universe. No matter what the times.or
what the political: news, no matter
what the war prospects in Europe,
the price of wheat or stocks, SO
many thousand people enter Los
Angeles every day to buy something,
and with the money in their wallets to
do 1t with. Some people wonder where
the money is, but we have only to get up
little real estate furry, like that at
San Pedro. and we quickly see.
Every day on almost every one of the
roads leading into the city one sees more
wagons coming in from the country than
in almost any other city of it's size in the
union. Many of them look like the poor
farmer we read of, but we would be sur
prised to see how much money that same
poor farmer can raise in half minute
when we show him chance to double II.
more in proportion to his means than the
farmer in any other part of the coun-
try.
And still more settlers come in every
day in the cars. Every train brings buy
ers from the interior, and an examina-
tion of the shipping lists Of local frieghts
on the different lines every day would
astonish even an old resident of the city.
This is why we see go little effect from
the depression. We are feeling it, Of
course but more in the dropping off of
the real estate buyer at fancy prices
than in any other way. We never had
any right to expect anything else than
that, and the wonder has been that it
has been so long postponed. But as long
as people have to eat and wear clothes
there will be little falling off in the trade
that holds towns steady through thick
and thin. And as long as people know
when they are well off, and poor human
nature rebels against billiards and cy-
clones, sweltering nights and days of
sunstroke, so long will Los Angeles have
a good supporting country around it.
Developed as it is, it is but fairly started.
Wait until the great stores of under
ground water, which we have but be-
gun to tap, are brought to the surface
all around us; wait until people begin
to use water instead of wasting it, and
fill the subsoil with water in the winter
instead of allowing it to run to the sea,
and the productive power of the sur
rounding country will be several times
what it now is, and the products will 60
cash in the worlds markets.