Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1915-10-20
OLD CALIFORNIA AND
DEEP SEA FISHING
Golden State Has Large and
Varied Industries.
4 Nice Pleasant Country, But Bad
Place For Poor man.
A Big Catch.
San Diego, Calf. Oct. s. 1915

1t has been about six weeks since I
wrote my last letter to The Herald,
from Oakland, and a few days later
Mrs. Lowrey and myself babe goodbye
to the friends and scenes we had
found so enjoyable there, and pro-
ceeded to the southern part of the
state, which varies from San Francis
co and vicinity. as greatly in its prin-
cipal features as though it was in en-
tirely different state. The character
of the country is quite different-the
climate is altogether different the
vegetation is different; the produc-
tiOnS of the soil are different; the
business atmosphere is different, and
so, everywhere we have found things
that were sufficiently new and of a
character at variance with those of
the northern section to prove very in
teresting and entertaining and which
so take up our time that letter writ
ing, which 1 had intended doing when
we were settled down here, has been
put off day by day until it could be de-
layed no longer
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in
the northern and central parts of the
state and are equally, if not even more
so, in love with things down here.
Travelling Southwark.
From San Francisco our course was
southwark through the famous San
Joaquin valley, known throughout the
world as the center of the raisin in
dustry of America Fresno county is
the very heart of the raisin-grape
country, and at Fowler we passed
within two miles of the fine ranch
formerly owned by J. P. Lovely, who
in the by-gone years was a neighbor
and chum of the writer, at Howard
City, Michigan. Mr.. Lovely now lives
in Oakland, but himself and his sons,
John and Fred, are controlling stock
holders in the Fowler Gas Company,
and also own and operate a garage in
that city.
Through the Oil Country.
! During the night we passed through
! the oil cOuntry-at Bakersfield and
vicinity-and crossed the old Mojave
desert At breakfast time we had
/ travelled Ats miles and reached the
metropolis of Southern California
Los Angeles-now a city claiming bet
ter than half a million population.
We only stayed a week there, because
we intend going back within the next
| few days, to remain a month or more.
Something About Fruit.
The trip from Los Angeles to this
city, a distance of $50 miles, we made
/ by auto, and it was a most delight
full ride through an interesting country.
Half of the way the road which is
state highway, built of concrete and
covered with asphalt, as smooth and
/ perfect as any city street, runs
through a rich agricultural section,
devoted principally to the culture of
citrus and deciduOus fruits-OrangeS
! lemons, peaches, grapes, melons and
the soft shell English walnuts. Miles
and miles of continuous groves OF
oranges and lemons are bordering the
highway, and they stretch away to the
right and left, as far as the eye can
range At the time we came the Val
encia oranges were just ripening and
the picking season had begun. The
vivid green of the trees as a back
ground for the golden orange of the
ripened fruit was pleasing sight in
the symmetrical rows of trees in the
hundreds of groves we Travelled by
The crop is very good one and
prices average quite high. The earl
Ter varieties in which the "sunkist"
navel predominant, were just rounding
into shape for next winters crop and
were about one-half to twO-thirds the
matured size. The crop of navels will
be a light one next year-nOt more
than one-haIf normal, and prices are
expected to rise accordingly. Last
winter the crop was heavy one and
the price was correspOndingly low.
Producing groves are high-priced, be-
ing held at $500 to $1,000 an acre
through this section, while those
down in the choicest localities, around
Ontario, Riverside, Redlands and San
BernardinO, cannot be bought for less
than $4,000 an acre. They find many
buyers at these prices, but | question
whether they can find the raSlsing OF
such fruits profitable on land which
costs so much. One can readily see
how a modern and pretty house III
such surroundings as the orange
country furnishes may give one life
that should be very pleasant one in
climate that is free from the rigors
of a colder section, but the man who
owns a good farm in sOuthwestern
Wisconsin, or central or southern
Michigan, can make more money upon
smaller investment, and need not
feel envious OF his California friends
in anything but freedom from the
tediousness of our long winters.
Likes Wisconsin Water.
There is certainly one thing in
which either Wisconsin or Michigan