Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1910-08-19
WEEKLY LETTERS
By OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,
CLARENCE E. EDwoRDs, Who
WILL FURNISH Us INTER
ESTINGARTICLES OF THE
GOLDEN STATE

ASUl, CdllIOTllld, August U. - Co
terday l saw the largest poultry
center in the world, and to-day |
stood beside the largest wine tank
in the world. | am not going to
give figures here. either. The tank,
or vat, is of concrete and is so large
that one hundred couples danced in
it at one time, leaving room for the
band which furnished the music.
1t holds five hundred thousand GAL
Ions of wine.
About forty years ago a poor
Italian boy came to California, lur-
ed by the stories of easily made
fortunes. He secured position in
Il country store as clerk, and was
paid the munifcent salary of $50 a
month. 1t is his boast that he saw
ed money from the first receipt OF
salary. His poetic mind saw re-
semblances in the hills of Sonoma
County to his homeland, and in
stead of becoming home-sick he
grew to love his adopted land. All
the hills around him were bare and
eaten down to grass roots by thous-
ands of sheep. 1t was supposed
that the land was of no other value
than sheep pasture, but the Italian
boy thought differently, and he be-
Gan to invest his small sayings in
these bare hills. Then he expert
mcnted in vlticulture and planted
a few grape vines.
To-day the poor Italian boy is
more than a millionaire, president
of a bank in San Francisco and one
of the largest stockholders in the
Italian Swiss Colony which ships
wine to all parts of the world. The
sheep pastures on the hills have
been turned into vineyards, and
the colony has so many vines that
as YOU ride along in the cars you
pass through fifteen miles of vine
yard belonging to the Colony, The
Italian boys dream has come true
and in the midst of the vast vine
yard is his summer home, a replica
of one of the picturesque homes of
Pompeii. In these vineyards grow
vines brought from all the famous
wine districts of Europe, and from
the grapes is made winer resembling,
. and connoiseurs say equalling, ev-
cry European vintage.
To the world at large and for. its
development, there is something in
this county better than the eggs OF
, Petaluma or the wine of Asst. In
Santa Rosa, the county seat, lives
a man who has done so much for
the world that when his name is
, mentioned in any European scien-
tific gathering every man rises to
, his feet in homage. Some years
, ago | attended a meeting of the
! California Academy of Sciences
> called for the purpose of presenting
, a medal to the man who was con,
sidered to have done the most fol
, the human race during the pre-
vious fifty years. On the platform
with the officials and honored
, guests sat a small, retiring man, OBJ.
, securing himself as much as possible
The chairman made an eulOgistiC
speech and called upon Luther Bur-
bank to step forward and receive the
token of appreciation. The little
man came forward, so bashful and
modest that he could be seen tc
tremble.
Burbank, commonly called the
"Plant Wizard" is living in 6
modest little home, devoting his life
to the development and improve
ment of plant life. Results OF his
, work are so little short of the mar.
velous that the term wizard
seems we'll applied. shall not at
tempt to tell what Luther Burbank
has accomplished for that would
take a big book. Whenever you
90 after potatoes you are apt to get
the Burbank potato. That was his
first creation, when he was a boy in
New England. He received enough
out of this creation to assist him In
his studies, He then sought a bet
ter climate than New England and,
with his mother, came to California
where he found all conditions idea
for his work. His mother, who
= died within the present year past
90 years old, has been his sole COM
panion all these years, for he never
married.
Of recent years Burbank's fans
has gone abroad as the man who
evovled the thornless cactus, turn
ing that pest into a wonderful for
age plant for desert regions. But
while that has been spect acular
achievement it does not compare in
utility with many of his other ere
ations, now becoming widely known
in the fruit markets of the world.
His experimental garden is lib
eral education, and he who is for
tunate enough to secure admission
there has much to talk about for
the rest CT his natural life. 1t is
not an easy matter to get ACCESS to
this garden, and it is even more
J;M onlt +o ooroa in contact with