The San Francisco call., 1913-08-23

Twelve hundred men and women at
tended the opening of Solano City town
site last Sunday. A regulation five
its maiden trip over the Oakland, An
tioch and Eastern from Key Route
pier to the site of the new city. The
others travelled over the Southern Pa
cific, and by auto from Suisun, loo ma
chimes being used for the remainder
of the day in conveying the crowds to
various parts of the property In the
circus tent at the town site and in
the dining pavilion at the experiment
farm the 1900 were fed and regaled
with iced drinks. The days sales of
lots and farm lands brought the total
past the million dollar mark for a
80 days campaign.
The foregoing is a bare recital of
the facts attendant upon land open
ing which Charles S. Fee, general traf-
characterized as the greatest he had
ever seen, outside of a government
opening, of which the Oklahoma rush
was notable example.
LOMAx SHARES ENTHUSIASM
Mr.. Fees enthusiasm was shared by
E. l.. Lomax. assistant passenger traf-
fic manager of the Western Pacific and
d. and r. g., and S. L. Napthaly of the
Oakland Antioch and Eastern Others
as observant, but less expert In prob
lens of traffic and colonization. added
their praise of the Solano project and
the strategic location OF the city.
The electric trains first trip was a
leisurely one, owing to the carefulness
exercised on an initial run and the
fact that the roadbed is not fully bal
lasted north of the straits. In fact.
the road was not ready to begin serv-
ice, but ran the train as an accommo-
dation to A. J. Rich & Co. and the So
lano Farms company. The trolley has
been strung from Sacramento to Solano,
the ballasting will be completed early
next week and in two weeks through
service will be inaugurated and the run
made close 10 schedule time. After
that date the Solano excursions will be
resumed, and the o. A and f. will be
able to handle crowd of 1000 BY
that time several business buildings
will be in course of construction on
lots purchased Sunday and the street
improvements will be under way.
STATEMENT BY MIR. FEE
The traffic experts discussed the land
project and the town site on the home
ward trip. Mr.. Fee said:
If / were choosing a place to build
a city / think this would be the place
without the question of doubt. 1t is
a wonderful proposition, a far as |
all about 1t, but ] have seen enough to-
day to convincs me that A. j. Rich &
Co. have all that one can possibly hope
for in the way of construction Of a
modern city located in as fertile coun-
try as there is on the face of the
earth. It's climate is not excelled any
Southern Pacific on the west, operating
their main Ogden Omaha Chicago line.
on the east. operating the finest line of
steamers between San Francisco and
trio line, the Oakland, Antioch and
Ea stern, cutting the land in the mid
die. | don't see what else you can
hope for or expect, and with the best
transportation within gunshot, it looks
to me as though the place is admirably
chosen The land is certainly fertile
enough and the outlook seems to be
excellent. | think the irrigation sys-
| tenn is wonderful l think the prepara-
tions have been made exactly as you
might expect from the men whose
with this enterprise. You would not
expect anything less and you could not
expect anything more.
Not In. the ordinary land openings,
outside of a government reservation
| land opening, have / ever seen such q
! large crowd or such fine arrangements
to take care OF crowd. think II
means great deal to the state OF
California and this coast. and espe-
cially San Fra ncisco and Oakland"
MR.. NAPTHALY'S OPINION
Mr. s. L. Napthaly of the Oakland
| Antioch and Eastern said
| I'VE have a lot of money invested In
| this road and therefore we have just
as much hope as the builders of Solano
| City. / myself think the most impor-
/ tant thing Is the water system-the
reservoirs. All the other projects claim
| and tell you about the system OF canals
and all about the supply of water. Here
i you can see all the water for yourself
$50 acres, 400 100000 gallons of it.
| Mr.. e. L. Lomax said:
/ TT is very hard to add to anything
/ Mr.. Fee has said, yet there are two OF
/ three things ! would like to say about
| this First, of all the reclamation and
irrigation proposition | have seen in
/ Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho
/ Oregon Washington, Utah or Califor-
MIA this, to me, is the best. for the
reason that this proposition Is an ideal
one from the standpoint of health. You
can live in the open air here S65 days
! in the year. Next, there is the soil and
| the water. Every known crop in the
world. except any of the very hot
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