Los Angeles herald., 1908-10-18
RICH LAND DEAL
IN KERN COUNTY
JOHN HAYS HAMMOND BUYS
1000 ACRES
COMPANY ORGANIZES TO SETTLE
VAST STRIP
Purchase AdIons Town of Delano.
Lies In Kern and Tulare Counties.
To Be CoIonized In Los
Angeles
BY JAMES WYNKooP
Real Estate Editor The Herald


John Hays Hammond has pur-
chased 1000 acres of land adjoining
Delano in Kern and Tulare counties
and a large and well financed company
has been organized to settle the vast
strip. The new organization, known
as the S. f. b. Morse Development
company, has headquarters at 531
South Spring street, Los Angeles, with
f. w. Rounthwaite in charge as gen.
eral sales manager.
The purchase of this acreage in Tu-
lare and Kern counties and the es-
adjustment in Los Angeles of the
colonization office means that this city
has acquired another large land COM
pany and added materially to its COM
mercial welfare.
The S. F. B. Morse Development
company owns most of the Mt. Whit
ney Power company and is eXpend-
ing more than $4,000 in connecting the
power line from Tulare, distance of
twenty-five miles away. In the past
six months the company has spent
100000 in lands and Improvements. It
has developed water from numerous
wells, one of which has just been
brought in with a flow of 1870 miners
inches. Other wells are being sunk.
Contracts have been let for the first
subdivision, which will comprise a sec
ton $40 acres, on the boundary line of
Tulare county. Streets have been
graded and as soon as conditions will
allow shade trees will be planted
around the whole tract.
To Plant 1000 Trees
About 1000 eucalyptus trees will be
used in this enterprise. Cement pipes,
laid underground, will connect each ten
and twenty acres Of the various sec
tions with the main pumping plant.
The ownership of this pumping plant
will be turned over to the purchasers
who will absolutely own the plant as
a perpetual right. In order to take
care of those who have already bought,
the company has installed gas engine
and centrifugal pumping plant. This
plant will be in good working condi-
ton for the fall planting.
S. F.. B. Morse, grandson of the in
ventor of the telegraph, is building
$4,000 house in the center of 3O0-acre
strip, which he is laying out as CEN
trail ranch, planting it to citrus and
deciduous fruits, including 100 acres of
oranges. This central ranch is under
the personal supervision of Superin-
tendent K. G. Raaf, a graduate of the
Soderham Agricultural and Forestry
college at Stockholm, Sweden. He has
had twenty years experience in farm
ing in California. There will also be
an expert from the San Dimas nur-
series who will combine with Raaf in
instructing and advising any purchaser
of land as to the best way to make
lands produce in the quickest and most
substantial manner
Builds at DeIano
The company is building at Delano
a large camp for men of its employ.
There is a gang of carpenters now at
Just been let for an office building. The
work here is under the supervision of
H. B. Morse.
Besides the colonization office in Los
Angeles there have been appointed
agencies throughout inc United States
for the purpose of getting in touch
with prospective buyers.
The land in the region of the Morse
development purchase has proved most
productive. Two crops of potatoes can
be raised each year and six crops of
alfalfa. From one hill OF sweet pota-
toes were harvested this year twenty
three pounds of that product. Corn
has grown five feet in six weeks. One
and a half gallons of peanuts were
harvested from one plant this year.
The soil resembles that of Tropico and
Gardena berry districts of Los An
geles county, the valley lands of San
Mateo county. 1t is similar to the
soil of the Imperial valley and is said
to be even better than that of the
orange districts of Riverside and Po-
mona and the same as the vineyard
lands of Fresno, Sonoma and Yuba
counties.
John Hays Hammond, who is the
principal stockholder in the company,
has had engineers in the field for the
past eight months testing the soil
Was Sure of Land
He was assured before going ahead
with the colonization project that there
was no hard pan, mari or alkali on the
land. Tt was found that the average
depth of the soil was twenty-five feet.
The town of Delano has already
started to take on a city appearance.
A bank, which opened a month ago,
now has deposits amounting to $40,0
A contract has been let for the erection
of a $4,000 bank building. There are
already on the ground an ice plant,
automobile garage, a lumber yard. ma
chine shop and all other necessities
which go to make up a good town.
Delano now has population of 400.
Excursions are run f.om Los Angeles
refunded to purchas of land.
The S. I. B. Morse Development COM
pany is Incorporated for $780, 900 under
the laws of California. The stock
holders are all prominent men. The
list includes John Hays Hammond
Harry Payne Whitney, Lewis s.
Thompson S. r. B. Morse and Harris
Hammond