Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1905-09-14
Letter From California.

STOCKTON, CAL. Sept. /, 1905.
Mr.. EDITOR:-I thought ! would write
you letter which you might want to
print in the HERALD so that the people OF
Chelsea may know something of this
wonderful country. / cannot write 70
them all. but most OF them see the HER
AID and will read what / have to say.
am going to return to Chelsea in a month
or two and this coming winter will sell
out what have with the intention of re-
/ turning here in the spring or summer to
live permanently. While here | have been
night Waterman in one OF the planning
mills, but when ! return it is my intention
/ TO buy farm.
i ! never before saw such a country as
this: They can grow anything here and
/ land values are very reasonable. Some OF
4 the finest vegetable gardens in the state
surround Stockton, and ! suppose there
/ are more than thousand acres planted to
alfalfa. Dairying is one of the principal
farm industries. Fruit grows everywhere.
/ am told there are fifteen thousand acres
/ OF vineyard in this one county. A woman
living few miles east Of here last week
/ sold the grapes on ten-acre vineyard for
$500, She did not have TO pick the
i grapes, but got ESQ an acre for them as
| they hung on the vines. Mr.. Cowell, who
/ started on a ranch south Of Stockton seven
1 years ago without any money at all, now
f has his ranch paid for and $4,000 in the
/ bank. There are hundreds OF cases just
like these. Men who came here poor a
/ few years ago are now well-to-do. OF
course, a man has to work here, as be
would anywhere else, but he can grow so
much more to the acre than be can in YER
mont, and he gets so much more for what
I he grows that ] sometimes wonder why
any body lives back there.
IhRV have no empN and ice here the
winter, and flowers grow out of doors
every day ia the year. Nearly every yard
you see has palm trees in IL. and there are
palm trees all along the streets. No mat
ter how small a place a man may have,
even in town, he generally has an orange
tree, fig tree and a grape vine. These
seem to grow anywhere. 1t very seldom
gets hot in the summer, and even should
II get hot during the day il is always cool
al night
The country is filling up very fast, and
do not believe it will be many years be-
fore one viii have TO pay twice as much
for land as be does at the present time. II
docs not seem possible that with such a
splendid climate and such an excellent
soil farms can long be sold as cheap as
they now are.
stockton is beautiful city with many
very fine public buildings. They are just
beginning to build electric railway lines
into the country. Most Of the farmers
have telephones and the whole county is
covered with rural mail routes. When the
electric lines are all finished one can live
in the country and while running his farm
can have all the advantages Of city life.
II is my intention to get place here next
summer where can not only make a good
living, but will feel certain that my prop
erty will increase rapidly in value. wish
that some of our people of Chelsea could
come out here and see this country.
1 Expecting to see you all this winter,
remain,
Yours truly,
WIRAM MORSE.