The San Francisco call., 1910-02-06

MERGED ADVANCES
WITH BIG STRIDES
Wonderful Progress in City Due
to United Efforts of It's
Active Citizens
Municipality Is Now Center OF
Highly Developed Section
in Fertile Valley

The Merced chamber of commerce. re-
fecting the progressive spirit of new
California, has issued an announcement
telling of the growth and enterprise in
that section of the state. 1t was not
long ago that the portion of the San
| Joaquin valley tributary to Merced was
/ one huge grain field. The large ranches
| are now giving way to the small farm
| where intensive cultivation brings it's
rich harvest from every acre. The
| chamber, of which John S. Swan is
president, sums up the situation. as
! follows:
| Merced county, located in the heart
OF the great San Joaquin valley, is just
| now passing through remarka bic
| transformation. Never in the history
activity as we are now experiencing.
Dating back to the earliest recollection
| OF the Oldest living residents. this vast
| empire was noted only as large grain
| time was not so very long ago that
| the man who would suggest that any
| other industry should be engaged in
| than those mentioned was considered
an interloper or a subject for the
! lunacy commission.
RANCHES ARE CUT UP
We are pleased to state that now
all this is changed, and the stock ranch
way to the settler who believes in in
| tense farming, and the large ranches
are rapidly being sold out to people
who are buying the lands and sub
dividing them, bringing in people from
| other parts of the state and from the
! east, who are building happy homes"r
| Within the last two years many
thousands of acres have been sub
! divided. and today we see trees vines
and alfalfa growing where formerly
an occasional crop of grain was
| planted.
Nowhere in the great state of Cali
| fornia are the opportunities more al
| Turing than right here. Land values
| are exceptionally low compared with
| other localities where conditions are in
any way similar.
The dairy industry promises to be
fact, it is today reality, as many
prosperous people who are in the bust
ness attest
CONDITIONS GREATLY IMPROVED
The spirit of Improvement and de-
velopment is everywhere apparent;
| where formerly we had the "knocker"
and mossback we now find the boost
| err" This change in sentiment has been
| brought about by the organization of
wideawake chamber of commerce,
! composed of men who are willing to
give their time fully to the general
| good of the community. The improve
| ly to bringing about better conditions
In the city of Merced. where a few
years ago we had a country town with
out any of the improvements found in
a, live community. Today we have
! blocks and blocks of asphalt streets,
miles of cement sidewalks with bor-
dering shade trees.
The businessman who formerly
walked about with a look of hatred
| for himself today wears a smile which
| plainly tells of his share in the pros
| perity that is coming our way.
RAILROAD AIDED PROGRESS
The building of the Yosemite Valley
railroad from MERGED to the Yosemite
Californias wonderland-has played no
small part in this transformation.
which can readily be understood when
! you consider the advertising effect
this has had upon Merced. No resort
| in the world is being more literally
advertised than is Yosemite, and Mer-
| ced, being the starting point, is in
| separately connected with it. The thou
| sands of tourists from our own state
as well as from all parts of the world
who are f1ocking to the scenic attrac-
| tion all spend some little time in our
streets. and from nearly all of them
we hear praises of the progress that is
being made in our community.
Surely Merced has great possibilities
and it's residents are just beginning z
to fully appreciate this fact.