Los Angeles herald., 1905-08-27

nous size OF such vegetation excited
the wonder Of everybody. aborlglne
and Caucasian alike.
There is little doubt but that It was
experimental agriculture of 10, the
Poor" that lies at the basis Of the
magnificent scheme of Imperial and
the other projects which are literally
calling the attention Of the whole world.
We have the scriptural testimony that
there is nothing new under the sun.
People are now speculating that, II
there were an immense lake of the
Salton out there, as a permanent
thing the climate of Los Angeles
would become much cooler. They as
cribe the colness Of the current sum-
mer to the existence of this lake, not
understanding the fact that the wealth
er was notably cool before 1t formed.
They are also ignorant of or pay no at
tention to the fact that in 1884, when
there was lake Of equal size on the
Colorado desert. it was almost excep-
tionally warm In Los Angeles.
Years ago there was a physician Of
great note in many lines on the Pacific
coast. His name was Wozencroft and
there were times when it was in every
body's mouth In California. His tenn
perament was visionary and adventur-
Gus to a superlative degree. He had
been an argonaut, and IL he had held
himself down to the practice of his
profession he would undoubtedly
have been wealthy and renowned. He
was man of superb physique, great
magnetism and fascinating manners.
I first made his acquaintance when I
came to California in 1872. He was
surgeon of the Pacific Mail steamer
Sacramento, in which 1 made the trip
from Panama to San Francisco.
Wozencraft's Hobby
Wozencraft had for years been de-
voting himself to the project of turn
ing the Colorado river into the desert
and thus changing the climate of South
assuring arid sections a normal and
sufficient rainfall and cooler temper
ature. He pursued his hobby with the
ardor with which "Scotty" pursues
speed or Rockefeller riches. He wrote
pamphlet after pamphlet, all apparent
ly characterized by force and acumen.
He hung around congressional marble
halls and labored with the nations law
givers to induce them to take up his
plan of making the Colorado useful in
redeeming large portion of the conti-
nent, but all in vain. He would run
out of money and his friends would
plant him in some such position as that
in which made his acquaintance.
When first met him he was surgeon
Of the Pacific Mail; when 1 saw him
last he was a surgeon on the China
steamers. Any company was glad to
get him, but just as soon as his purse
filled up measurably he would shake"
the steamer as he had shaken what he
might easily have made a large and
Lucrative private practice. and go to
work lobbying again on his hobby of
flooding the Colorado desert
Would such flooding have had the eff
feet of cooling any extensive area? I
do not think so. The peninsula OF
Lower California narrows at one place
to width of fifteen miles, and, with
the Gulf of California on one side and
the Pacific on the other, it is as hot as
Tophet. 1t would therefore seem that
the effect of flooding the whole of the
Colorado desert which could be reached
would be inappreciable. One thing I
do know and that is that in the three
weeks was with him on the Sacra-
mento the dear old doctor flooded me
with knowledge Of matters and things
in California that 1 could not have
acquired in six months course of
any university.
Early German Element
1t was really strange how singularly
into the early days of Los Angeles.
When I first saw the city the great
wholesale liquor and wine house was
that of Lips & Des Autels. It was in
a corner of the old Don Abel Stearns
building, the site OF which is now COW
cred by the Baker block on the north
east corner of Main and Arcadia
streets. Des Autels was a handsome
Frenchman who has not, that 1 can
recall, left any notable descendants
here. Lips, in addition to his wholesale
liquor business, was the controlling
spirit Of the Wine Growers association.
He was an exceedingly neat and at
tractive gentleman of a high Germanic
caste and thoroughly educated.
Some time in the seventies he dis
snl1ad raartnaraIni1n with Dna Autals