The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1898-12-21

JAY REYNOLDS VIEW OF THE PROMISED
LAND'-HE APPRECIATED THE EATING
STATIONS.


iilbhtAONf. ,Ai>., iJtc. II, 1910.
AS | had promised many of our friends
to write, will dedicate this letter to
them. Our trip was made without acct
dent or delay, and we arrived on time
Friday morning, in time for breakfast,
the last twelve hours of our journey being
made IN snow storm, which continued
most of the day of our arrival. The
mountains are still covered with "the
beautiful, but to-day is pleasant in the
valley and no need of an overcoat when
out doors. The natives here all insist
that this is one OF the worst storms in
years. OF course, | insist they are aH
educated and sworn to tell the same
story, SO | take it with due allowance
and be;ray no trace of doubt Of their
protestations of this being the finest
country on earth.
There is much to tickle the fancy of
people from our locality, first among
which are the mountains, which are piled
up in profusion to the exclusion of all
else except the railroads, which have
pushed their winding and climbing
through and over the several ranges,
which calls for the admiration OF mans
energy and skill. In this matter wish
to say that | was surprised to find the
wonderful improvements made in the
Santa Fee system since | first saw it in
1877. The road is rock ballasteA closely
tied and ironed with sixty-six ! I'D rail.
Coaches, equipment and power are all
first class, and the eating stations sur
pass anything | have ever enjoyed on
any line in the East: in fact, they are
simply perfection. Were | to make
dozen trips | would make them via the
Santa Fee system.
There are many sights here that strike
the uninitiated as the most beautiful
imagination could picture, and of course
the first to be considered are the orange
and lemon orchards. They are beauti-
full, and as we drive through the valley
and behold the varied hues of green,
from the deep dark green of the orange
blending with that of the lemon, pepper
and the pale green of the cypress, to the
light eucalyptus and the still lighter
green of the palms, all of which are in
terspersed with roses of all colors, we are
almost persuaded that it is the promised
land which Moses sought but never
reached nearer than to view it from the
crest of Blue Mountain, which rises sew
eral hundred feet above the valley From
its rock crowned crest one can get "a
birds-eye view of several villages apd
cities and the orange groves between, all
of which look like SO many streets and
avenues joining them together in one
common city, occupying the entire valley.
Then the canals, which furnish water
for irrgating are another enterprise the
magnitude of which had never realized.
Miles and miles of these bitches, all laid
in cement carrying streams of water
twelve to fifteen feet wide and two to
! three feet deep, are source of great sur
prise to me and are indispensable to. the
owners of groves as nothing will grow
without water, save perhaps the cactus
and palm prairie dog and coyote.
visited the city of Riverside, yester-
/ day, and found beautiful city of ten or
! twelve thousand inhabitants, the prin-
cipal streets cemented and the walks
bordered with palms, pepper trees and
roses A lively business is done in all
branches of trade, and it is)a lovely spot
in which to live during winter: but am
informed that during the summer months
! the thermometer tries to reach the noun
tain tops and records from 10 to 125 de
grees above zero in the shade mot good
summer resort | fear)
Visitors called in this evening to well
come us, and one of the ladies brought
Mrs. r. a bouquet of roses (six varieties)
that could not be equaled from any green
house in your vicinity. | will not bur
den you further this time. but when /
learn more of interest | will try again to
illustrate in my feeble way what see.
Yours truly,
JAY REYNOLDS.