Evening star., 1911-06-10

New York or London markets. while fee'
Is 80 to 60 per cent cheaper than In region
where snow. ice and cold weather prevail
tion. It is estimated that not less thar
fifteen hogs per acre may be fattened eacl
season on alfalfa. The largest returns
are secured by cutting the alfalfa AM
stacking 1t and feeding 1t to the ANIMAL
with as little waste as possible SOM
farmers use barley soaked IN water as {
finishing diet for their hogs. The busi
ness Is especially profitable In California
because live hogs always sell at aoou
$50 per hundredweight above the Chi
cago market.
Oranges and Poultry.
Poultry raising is also a popular bust
ness out here. The hens rest in summer
when eggs are cheap. and do their heav!
work in the winter when eggs are high
The eastern hen is always busiest whel
eggs are cheapest. The order Is reversed
in the Sacramento valley.
Many years ago a lady at Oroville, al
old mining town in the foothills. near th'
Sacramento river. had an orange tree
which she carefully took in the house
every fall and set out again every spring
But when the tree was SO large that she
could not do this. she abandoned 1t witt
a sigh. expecting that it would be killed
by the January frosts. To her surprise
II survived the winter and the following
winters and bore abundant crops. This
l am told. was the first orange tree ir
northern California. Now there are thou
sands Of acres of productive orchards IN
the Sacramento valley. The oranges
ripen four to six weeks earlier than In
southern California, because here the
rights. as well as the DAYS. are warm and
the fruit does not hesitate during the
growing period.
lemon trees are to be seen in all settled
communities. There are numerous small
orchards Of lemons, olives. figs. English
walnuts, almonds and other subtropica
fruits and nuts.
Reservoir at Big Meadows.
The Great Western Power Company
will build at Big Meadows a reservoir
that will surpass in capacity the Roose-
welt dam and reservoir in Arizona. Suf-
ficient water will be stored for the irri-
cation of 100000 acres. Among the east
ern stockholders are Edwin Hawley. pres
ident of the company; A. w. Burchard OF
the General Electric Company, and A. B.
Bedford. treasurer and director of the
Sta ndard Oil Company.
Big Meadows is near Prattville, in Plu-
mas county. and not far from Marysville
on the north folk of Feather river, 13C
miles north of Sacramento and go miles
north of San Francisco. The meadows
are swampy and unfit for agricultural
purposes. and a settler attempting to drain
some land of his own dug small ditch
1t happened to be at exactly the right
place to drain the entire Big Meadow
The water gradually ran of and the
stream grew until 1t later became q
roaring torrent. The company which was
organized to build the big reservoir pro-
poses to throw a dam across the present
about three-quarters Of a mile from the
stream. which will impound the water
and convert Big Meadows into great
lake. 1t will submerge the ruins of the
village of Prattville. which was destroy
ed by fire two years ago. A new hotel,
several stores and saloons were erected.
when it was again visited by fire and
wiped out. 1t used to be a summer re-
sort. one of the finest in the state
Big Meadows Is at the foot of Lassen
Butte in the Sierra Nevada mountains
The principal object of the company in
building the reservoir Is to develop elec-
trio power. 1t is proposed to carry the
water out of the reservoir by tunnel In
the direction of Chester and make elec-
tricity not only for Sacramento. San
Francisco and other California cities. but
to carry 1t to Reno. Carson City and
other places in Nevada. The water will
have the longest drop of any system in
the world. ond the company expects to
make electricity cheaper than 1t ever
has been made. The company has bought
large areas Of land at the site Of the
reservoir and along the fork of the river.
so that it will be able to carry on the
great work without incurring damage
suits.
After the water has been used In the
turbines and lis value for horsepower
ceases it is to be used for irrigation pur.
poses in the Sacramento valley. 1t will
be stored in the great reservoir in flood
times for use during the summer. and
will be of great value for agricultural
purposes. The North Fork of the
Feather river arises in two springs which
will be inclosed In the great reservoir.
The company has been In existence some
five or six years, having been organized
about the time the Western Pacific COM
menced to construct its road through Cal
The Netherlands Route.
The Southern Pacific Railroad Com
pany maintains a line Of comfortable
boats between San Francisco and Sac
mento. and calls 1t the "Netherland.
route" There is more than the fancied
to the Low Country Of Hol-
land though the Dutch windmills are
lacking. and the long, straight makings
and the slow-moving canal boats. But
here are the same kind of dykes, farms
lying below the level of the river and
shining lines Of water in the distance
where natural channels separate lands
and form islands with all sorts Of crooked
outlines. From the deck Of the steamer
We seem to ride above a country that
has once been submerged. and may be
again, but does not wish to lie neglected
1t trusts to the levees, which are in.
trenchments thrown up against the
stream that made the land. but did not
finish it. We look down on fields of grain
and asparagus, on cattle in pasture, or
orchards whose tree tops are level with
the dykes and on villages that are hall
sheltered behind the barricades which
hide the river from their sight.
There are fishing hamlets near the
mouth of the river, and farther up are
canneries. where asparagus is put up fol
the worldwide market. one factory ex-
and the total output along the river is ex.
pected to reach 1.OOO.OOO cases. Much
goes to local markets, and the river boats
carry 1t fresh and crisp to San Francisco
daily
Black Diamond, on the Contra Costa
shore. is In the center Of the fishing in
dustry. Here are go boats. some Of
which are always to be seen spreadins
their nets or drawing them in. and the
town has many canning and packinf
houses for salmon. Shad were introduced
from the east many years ago and arr
plentiful.
Traffic on the River.
Much wheat is grown on the Montezu-
ma hills of SOlOno cOunfy m tha wesf