The Monitor-register., 1897-02-12
Communicated.
Bird's-Eye View of Alimeda County,
California, by Jerseyman.

~A~S~AA~S1 ~ " wv oOy WdA.
This county contains 1877 square miles,
and has 40 miles of water front on the |
eastern shore of San Francisco Bay. The |
population is 1875, 600, and the Contra |
Costa Mountains form the eastern bcun- |
dairy, extending tt e entire length of the |
county from north to south. From the |
foothills of the mountains westward to |
the bay lies the famous valley of Aimeda,
the most productive valley of the State, |
and adapted to all kinds of produce COM
mon to this section, but fruit, nuts and
son of the home market, Oakland, with
70, 600, and San Francisco, with 300 900
persons to feed, make it possible for the
producer to sell direct to the consumer
and not be obliged to divi ie his profits
with the railroads.
San Francisco is only eight miles away
and the ferriage is reasona BILE. All fruits
grow we'll here, but if there are any that
excel the others, they are cherries, pears
and plums. If l should tell you the siz4
of cherries and strawb berries l have seen
here in June you would say that I bad
forgotten the early training had when l
went to Quaker Church in your town
forty-fiv years ago, so I'll invite any one
to come and see for themselves.
While we have our wet season here,
we never have snow or ice to contend
with, and when that season is past, W which
is about the 1st of April, the farmer can
depend on clear weather until late fall
| again. This weatt er holds good through
out the State. What paradise for hay
making No showers, thunder or light
ming. A lightning rod agent would
starve to death here.
Another advantage this part of Cali
fornia has over the East is that one is not
| obliged to change their clothing from
| heavy to light by reason of the climate,
as medium light woolen goods will do
che year around. 1 have been here three
years and wear the same kind of clothing
with this exception. At night or during
the rainy season we wear light overcoats
| and gossamers.
Flowers blooom in the open air the
year around, and at this writing 1 could
pick fine bouquet of assorted roses in
my front yard. We NOW our lawns in
the winter as we'll as summer, but less
frequent during the winter months.
Every piece of land in this county is
! called ranch, if it is used to make a
living on. They range in size from five
acres to 10000 acres. The larger oues
are utilized for grain and stock, while the
small ranches are devoted to chickens,
fruit, vegetable and bees. The latter
| named predominate, as they are more
profitable. While l lave but little
knowledge of chick en- farming, am sat-
isfed that a chicken rarch, properly
managed, would return good interest
for the money invested. Good chickens,
dressed, sell from so to rs cents apiece.
Besides having all the fruit and vege-
tables the heart could wish for from the
county, our forty miles of water front
furnishes us with as great variety and
as good quality of fish as can be had in
the world. Some of our species are
natives of the Atlantic Ocean and the
rivers running into it. We have the
salmon, founder, mackerel, rock, cod,
porpoise, spearhead. pickerel, river and
mountain trout, and, last and best the
old-fashioned Jersey shad that are caught
in the Sacramento river. We had one
for supper last night and it carried my
taste back forty five years. when |
, thought the shad was the best fish that
swam-and l have never changed my
mind. If you Jersey people think you
have corner on the shad flavor you will
change your opinion after you have eaten
some here.
This county can boast of having the |
largest bett sugar plant in the United |
States. The climate and soil is particu-
larly adapted to raising the sugar beet. |
Some other time l may give an account |
of the beet indn stry in this State and |
particularly of the Alvarado plant.
The three principal cities in this county |
are Oakland, Alimeda and Berkeley. The |
State University is at the latter place, |
being situated just at the foothills ad- |
joining the town, on an elevation that |
overlooks Oakland, the bay and San |
Francisco. The Univer4ity is overtaxed |
for room this year, there being over 1 200 |
students 10 attendance, and over 200 were |
obliged to study in tents; but it will |
afford better accommodations in the near |
future, as the Legislature has voted |
100000 to make the necessary additions. |
Oakland is called the Athens of Amer |
ica, and believe it is true. have been |
10 the southern and central part of the |
State, and in my judgment this place, as |
a resident home, excels them ALL This is |
ca led the bed chamber of San Francisco,
and it is rightly named, for it is esti |
mated that over 30. 600 people cross the
bay every day. There are tw o ferries and |
one leaves every fifteen minutes.
The early settlers of Oakland were in
The main Eastern people. When I say
Eastern yeople. l mean the New England |
States, who brought their old Puritanical
ways with them and transplanted them
here in Oakland, and they love good
fruit, as the number of first-class public |
achools with "Old Glory flying above
the roof Of every one of them during
school hours.
The imprints of the Yankee school,
marin of pioneer days are still noticeable
in the men Of this city to-day. 1t is that
class of men who hold all the important
city offices, and it will continue SO as long
as Oakland remains city.
Oakland has more churches than auy
other city on the coast, according to pop
ulation, and it is up to date in the way
of cable and electric street car facilities.
II any JerseymaD doubts the truthful.
ness of this letter, come and investigate
for yourself. 81. H. KIRBY.
Feb. 6, 1897.