Durango semi-weekly herald., 1901-04-01
CHABLES A.
JOHNSON
alks Entertainingly Of the
Beauties Of Southern
California.

country" said Mr.. Charles A. John
son. speaking of southern California,
whence he has recently returned, af-
ter a three weeks absence upon its
sunny shores.
Possibly a person is more sensible
to it's charms from the contrast 1t
presents to the country traversed to
reach it.
Starting from this city not many
mnes have been covered before the
mountains seem to- almost impercept-
IDLY slide into sloping plain, which,
with the exception of some few un-
dulations, rolls away to the Pacific
coast.
After crossing the Mancos range
there are no more mountain systems.
Isolated clusters of peaks are dotted
about the arid plains and over the face
of the dreary desert. Canon Diabio,
an immense cash. with prcc,pitous
sides 400 or 500 feet deep, is crossed
and thence into Arizona.
What the Mexicans call the Malpi
country. a formation OF volcanic rock,
badly burned. comes next. All day
long the train crawls through this
desolate waste, which lies baking in
the sunlight At nightfall you eyes
close on the desert. In the morning
they open on different scene.
IN Colorado" Mr.. Johnson contin-
ued, we cultivate grains in patches;
we hold a tender guardianship over
each spear of grass and carefully nur-
ture into struggling existence Il win
dow plant or two. We travel over
the rugged section. through the desc
late Malpi country and across the
.dreary desert, having tIaversed thus
much between leaving the Needles
and the next morning. Then we
awake and find Eden on either side.
1t was a sight most glorious.
scene that dazzles the traveller s eyes
and strikes him dumb. Orange trees
and lemon. row OTTER row. as far as
the eye could see, bearing blossom and
fruit at the same time, The scent of
the orange blooms filed the air. Not
an occasional Whit Or so, but Il cloud
of fragrance that fairly stepped you
in perfume. The flowers seemed to
run riot. Roses, red, yellow and white
Dduhcu up III iihts
heaps, while the waxen tuberoses and
the fuchsias were regular giants.
There seemed to be hundreds of them
whose names were utterly unfamiliar.
1t was magnificent, indeed. The day
before the eye had rested upon mud
houses and Digger Indians, with cac-
It and sand by way of variety. That
morning, beautiful rose powered
homes. acres of smooth lawns, ele-
gantly kept driveways, shady avenues,
brilliantly Towering shrubs and flowers
in luxuriant profusion seemed TO form
one vast garden. You could almost
believe that magic had been per-
formed and you were transported into
fairyland. Then for eighty miles the
railroad runs along the shore, from
fifty to two hundred feet distant from
the water all the way. On one side
sea--on the other groves of orange
trees.
Los Angeles is beautiful city,
but then so is all Southern California.
Some of its parks are exhibitions of
the wonders that may be accomplish
ed in landscape gardening. We do
not know what that is in Colorado.
San Diego, however, was the city
where spent the most time, and that
certainly is a peculiar spot--like no
other on the face of the globe. 1t
has an ideal location on bay which
has perhaps the finest harbor,ee along
the coast. Perfectly land-locked and
sheltered, there is good anchorage for
a whole navy upon it's quiet waters.
Inc United States government keeps
a battleship stationed within the bay
the Iowa during my visit Point
Iona. where the Theosophists have
n temple, and a cape called Coronado
beach jut out boldly on the nothern
and southern extrcmities of the bay
thus protecting the city from storms
of rain and wind and rendering the
climate extremely equable. San Di
ego is altogether remarkable por
tion of the earth as far as tempera
ture is concerned. This is so even
that July and December are alike. 1t
is never hot in summer nor cold in
winter The climate is so soft. mild
and melting that life there seems tc
De uOWeTy tklSltutt, IKE lHul upon
the Lotos isles of the ancient world.
Coronado beach, one of the show
places OF the vicinity, is dream. Ev-
eryone acknowledges that it is one of
the most beautiful spots in existence.
The lu.uriance OF the foliage and the
numberloss varieties of plants beg
gar description. 1t would take a
botanist to enumerate the subtrop-
ical plants which grow there IL such
profusion. The Coronado Beach hotel
Is a triumph OF architecture, covering
an acre of ground. 1t is built of
sequoia or redwood, for the reason
that II is not so inliamable as other
woods. When ignited 1t burns very
slowly. Strangers usually ask why
use wood at all? AS matter of fact
with but few exceptions. the buildings
of San Diego are frame-even the res
licences. The reason is that the peo-
pie live in dread of earthquakes. Al