Smyrna times., 1904-05-25
AMID ORANGE GROVES OF CALIFORNIA

r. NJ. Cooper Joins an Excursion to the spar
adise of the Pacific Coast" and Visits the
BlgOrange Groves Near Riverside.
The General Conference was given
an excursion to Riverside on Saturday
afternoon by the Salt Lake Railroad
Company. The train in two sections
moved out of the station promptly at
one o'clock and for distance of about
sixty miles we passed through the
varied scenery of this land of variety
and surprises. Here were barren hills
and there valleys abounding with
fields green with alfalfa or barley, or
covered with the fresh mown hay;
these being the chief crops for hay
making. AS there is no rain at this
time of the year there need be no con-
Germ about curing hay, so it stands in
the cock for days after moving. There
were dairy farms with large herds of
Jersey cows and sheep ranches on the
mountain side, on one, flock of at
least five hundred sheep and lambs.
But the objective point was Riverside,
which was reached in two hours of
lively running over a smooth road in
we'll equipped coaches. A mile be-
fore entering the town the train
stopped in the midst of groves OF ripe
oranges and we were invited to help
ourselves to the golden beauties; but
charged not to mutilate the trees by
breaking off blossoms. noticed on
re-entering the cars that somehow
many of the excursionists had hands
full of white flowers peeping out from
evergreen leaves. OF course they,
good Methodists, had not disobeyed
orders. Soon we were at the depot,
where carriages, hacks, trolley cars
and automobiles stood ready to show
us the garden spot of the world
10000 acres of orange groves, from
which are shipped annually 5000 to
5000 car loads of fruit, and fragrant
flowers enough to sweeten with their
fragrance the state of Delaware.
Miles Of Drive Ways Bordered With Flowers.
For two hours we were driven
through avenues overshadowed by
pepper trees of half weeping form,
thick foliage of fine cut leaves, and
magnolias and palms, miles of the
driveways bordered with flowers of
many sorts, roses being the prevailing
attraction, breathing in the sweet per-
fume that filled the air, the ideal air
of California. The orange groves
cover the valley and some of them
climb far up the mountain sides on
terraces, forming a beautiful picture
with the rough, rocky slopes for a
background, making it veritable par
adise. am told that the practical
side of the picture is not quite so
charming. Just at this time oranges
are scarcely worth handling, notwith-
standing that many of the groves are
held at $1,000 to $1,000 per acre.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars are
invested in the business, much of it
by Eastern capitalists, that never has
paid much of an interest, and owing
to the present over supply and the
thousands of acres coming to fruitage
in the near future, will not likely pay.
But this outlook does not detract
from the charm of the picture, nor
lessen our admiration for the taste
and care of the growers in beautifying
the grounds by the cultivation OF
flowers and the perfectly clean cul-
ture. Nota weed nor spire of grass
could be seen anywhere.
Rose Bushes Big as Peach Trees.
Everything here grows on a big
scale. Rose bushes as big as three
year old peach tree; century plants
ten feet across and twelve to fifteen
feet high; cactus, such as our ladies
grow in window boxes, to the caves OF
the cottages; geraniums to the tops OF
windows, and other things in proper
tion. William Taylor, later one of
our bishops, introduced the eucalyp-
tus tree here some where in the fifties,
it is run growing everywhere as a
wind break and a roadside tree.