The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-12-20

The following address was made by
II. P. Wood, secretary of the Promo
ton Committee, at the meeting of the
Honolulu Engineering Association. It
is entitled Engineering Boom"
Members of the Honolulu Engineering
Association.
Gentlemen: The Chairman of your
Association called upon me the other
! day and in his nice persuasive way in
duced me to prepare a short paper to
be read before this meeting.
/ The subject assigned was Engineer
! ing a Boom"
| The idea seems to have become quite
/ prevalent that any one who may
| have lived in Southern California
though only for a short period of time
must be more or less conversant with
! the mysterious force that has SO quick
! ly and effectually created magnifi-
cent productive territory in the midst
or semi-arid conditions.
The development of our great coun-
| try was in the beginning slow and IN
a measure uncertain, yet step by step
| the pioneers of progress pushed their
way toward the setting sun. Once
loosened from it's mornings along the
! Atlantic the movement was 1rreslst-
| ibIe and as the ball of progress in
! creased in size and momentum the
wilderness melted away; hamletS, VII
lagos, cities grew, the plains became
dotted with happy, prosperous homes.
The great wealth of our heritage at
tracted an ever increasing throng from
the less hospitable shores across the
| Atlantic. At last with a mighty effort
| the great barrier to the western
march of civilization, the rugged peaks
! of the Rocky Mountains were crossed
! by tracks of iron, monuments to the
! skill, energy and daring of American
/ Engineers. The Atlantic Slope, the
Middle West had been conquered, the
domination of the Pacific was at hand
\ Parties of hardy adventures drawn
by the lure of gold had already dared
long sea voyages and toilsome, danger
Gus journeys across plain, desert ana
mountain and were there to welcome
and guide the ever increasing throns
by whose efforts the wealth of the
mines soon became dimmed by the
4 golden fields of grain and countless
orchards of luscious fruit.
The real pioneers of Pacific Coast
Il DEVELOPMENT however were the early
Franciscan F'riars. Among the leaders
/ of this noble band of men, no name is
more prominent than that of Padre
Junipero Sierra, man OF noble mis-
! sionary spirit who journeyed from
| Mexico bringing cattle, seeds of grain,
vegetables. fruits and flowers, his train
was also burdened with tools and I'M
plements and thus was the actual
foundation laid for the pastoral, Agr1-
cultural and horticultural wealth of
| California.
! Jny Ic Of rraf
who died Aug %, 1854, were Pray
We, therefore, the Lord of the Harvest,
/ that he send laborers into his Vine
yard" How fully his prayer has been
answered is evidenced by the popula-
| ton. products and wealth of the en-
| tire Pacific Slope.
But it is of the boom days You wish
| to hear, my knowledge of which will
be best summed up in a brief his
| tory of one City and one Man.
| In the year 1867 the old side wheeled
| steamer Orizaba, that pliedi between
San Francisco and Panama, landed
| couple of passengers near the center
| of the waterfront of the present city
of San Diego. The old town of the
same name lay some four miles to the
| north One of the passengers was Mr..
| A. E. Horton, Father Horton, as he is
| now affectionat ely called, man Oh
sanguine temperament and 1ndomlt-
| able energy He had heard of the
beautiful bay and charming climate of
| San Diego from a wandering lecturer
and was so impressed with its posi-
bilities that he at once proceeded 10
close out his business in San Fran
cisco: taking the first steamer for the
South After being carried ashore
through the mud, Mr.. Horton, walked
ho n
for the purpose of interviewing the
public officials.
In reply to a query as to what he was
doing there. Mr. Horton replied that
he had come to build a city and want
ed to know the course of procedure
necessary to secure land enough 10
carry out his purpose He was lmme-
dfately referred to the County Clerk,
who Informed him that there had been
no regular election for some time, that
probably there was no legal body OF
Trustees and that the first step
would be to call an election winch
however, he did not propose doing, IN
asmuch as the County already owed !
him six $4,000 dollars, and he saw no 1
hope of reimbursement.
Mr.. Horton gave the man ten ($lO.Uo) |
dollars to liquidate old debts and ten
more to meet the expense of calling /
the necessary election which was at
once arranged for. There We're just
seventeen legal voters in this township
and through the kindly influence OF the
Roman Catholic Priest, Father Coach'
who still has charge of the Parish, the
trustees selected by Mr.. Horton were
unanimously elected, then IN due
course came the day of sale. The first
lot of land was bid in by Mr.. Horton
ar fifty cents per acre. there were no
other bidders and suppressed laugh
went the rounds at the stranger 1907
ish purchase. Lot after lot was put up
,,r+iI Mr. Horton had purchased from
nc Pueblo of San Diego some ten
hundred acres of land at an average
nrice of less than thirty cents per acre
M Horton proceeded forthwith 10
divide his property into town lots ana
began to advertise the advantages anu
attractions of San Diego as widely as
. 7,-o,,15 hermit Within six