Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1917-07-19
Writes Of Matters
In The Golden State
Mrs. Ofutt, Daughter of w. j. Ba-
ker of Benton City, Tells of The
Country and Scenery.

Haid over one day in Ell Paso, Texas,
and visited Fort Bliss, the soldiers
concentration camp, where from
$4,000 to 10000 soldiers were in
training. Then arrived in Corona
on February IT, at 4:SO.
We found green trees, lawns.
great beds of beautiful calla lilies
blooming in the yards and many
other flowers. And a few weeks
later such a wonderful profusion of
beautiful roses as we see in Cali
fornia pictures but can never quite
realize.
Corona is about the size of Mex
leo, with three magnificent concrete
school-buildings, high and two gram
mar schools; Christian, Methodist,
Congregational, Episcopal, Scientist
and Catholic churches, nealy doz-
en- orange and lemon packing houses,
one cannery, a handsome Woman's
Improvement Club House and
splendid Red Cross organization and
various other interests. The Santa
Fe Railroad goes thru here, also
have connections all around over the
Pacific Electric. Southern Califor-
MIA is noted for it's wonderful street
railway car system.
This colony has about 5000 acres
of orange and lemon trees bearing,
many new groves set out recently, be-
sides much barley, alfalfa, and null
titudes of small farms doing inten-
sive farming. Of course nearly ev-
erything depends entirely on irriga-
ton except barley, it grows without
it. The soil is so fertile everything
grows so abundantly if it only has
water A man who has lived here
IS years showed us a hilly field
that has raised a good crop of bar
ley every year now for 10 crops.
What would Audrain county farmers
think of that for rotation of crops?
This is a rich valley with noun
tains on north and south of us. Get
out of the colony, beyond where man
has. come with his civilizing touch
and the use of irrigation. it is all
dry, sandy desert with nothing but
rocks and sage-brush.
We are near where the plot of two
of Harold Bell Wright's books us
laid. The San Bernardino Noun
tains with old Grayback, which is
covered with snow the year around
are in sight from here.
We have new Ford car and dc
enjoy the splendid roads here. There
are thousands of miles of asphalt
paved roads. On the 4th we took
three friends. and drove forty miles
to the beach. o such a glorious ride
as we did have We passed thru
Prado, Olive, Orange, and Santa
as we did have. We passed thru
Ana. Sometimes we were in the
midst of vast orange and lemor
groves, occasionally in English wal
nut orchards, and for 10 or 15 miles
we Just wound round and round thu
mountain side, up awhile theI
down, just clinging on the side,
seemed. The rugged mountains ant
lovely picturesque canyons wer'
beautiful beyond description. SAINTS
Ana River wound around below us
the ground squirrels scampere'
across the road before us. The Cal
ifornia rivers are joke. We woul'
call them creeks at home in Missouri
So many irrigation bitches lead ou
from them by the time they reac
the ocean they are very small,
Then our day at the ocean--it wa
something never to be forgotten
The long stretch of clean glistenin
sand, the great number of mel