The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1920-11-03
CALIFORNIA IS NOT UP
TO EXPECTATIONS

TO EXPECTATIONS
Continued from page one)
! "The missionaries taught the In
dams the old system of irrigation.
This was of course local, near each
mission, but kept spreading until
now, most all of the southern half of
California depends on irrigation to
raise its summer crops. Before ir-
rigation became general the land was
but desert waste, and much yet
remains to be reclaimed.
"As to southern California, / can
say a little more having been here
now for a couple of months and we
have been out somewhere every SUM-
day afternoon. Walnut groves, miles
in length and maybe just across a
dry river bed, desert just as many
miles in length. That is why was
just bit disappointed in California.
Everything is dried up unless lawn
which the owner keeps watered and
in good shape, but the fields are all
dry grass. Charlie Howard says that
in the winter time it is all nice and
green and the oranges are being
picked and you'd think summer was
at hand l am yet 20 be convinced.
but here it is October 7th and fresh
strawberries, green onions, radishes,
small beets, big beets, sugar beets
and beet pickles. We saw man in
on field last Thursday setting out
cabbage plants and in another was
fellow gathering green corn and
J farther away was an outfit threshing
, beans or maybe it was sweet pota-
toes Of course you can take your
! choice of the latter two articles. But
we saw a patch of something. FL
mer said it was patch of peas, his
father said sweet potatoes, Mrs. Wise
said beans and / said Strawberries. /
don't know what Rena Kelly thought
they were doing. Is
"Of course the beaches are an in
teresting sight, and an hour in the
ocean in a good strong surf is well
worth the effort but the beaches have
for me not so much an attraction as
the mountains. for all the bathing
J beauties who slumber on the sands
and slumber is right. believe fully
/ so "a of the people in bathing attire
) never get their feet in the ocean.
: eve are at Elmer's and he sure
has pleasant place here. Sit or
the porch on a clear day and see the
. mountains over Pasadena as plain
[ as you can the town clock from your
Office window. The lady next door
has couple Of nice palm trees and
all the lawns around here look spick
and span.
But so far all in all, don't see
as California has it over Michigan
at all. No lakes to speak of, nc
streams, no fishing, except in the
mountain country or 80 miles out al
/, sea.
"Well, Ed, must close but must
tell you we are all well and getting
along fine. Hope you, Maggie and
, all the kids and everybody else are
) fine.
Love to all,
Mart"
l The second letter is from Hub, one
: of the force in the Banner-News of
flee and the fellow who solemnly
j promised that he would write otter
D of the interesting things which he
( met up with in California. AS 9
1 correspondent for this paper, HUI
| has been a glorious failure, but SC
long as he is digging down in hi:
e own jeans for the expense money
n we should worry anG therefore We
8 have no right to kick. His letter
:. contained among other things the fol.
lowing:
e "Los Angeles, CAL, Oct. z, 20
: Dear Bro. Ed. and all:
Well, Ed, will just writ,
Z few lines and stick them in will
Mart's letter.
b "Say. this is the darndest country
One knows just what the weather il
s going to be right along. as all tn
n days are alike. Only some days ar
:, cloudy (foggy) and the sun doesn'
shine until 10, IL, IL or SO. 1t gen
! orally gets out sometime thru the da.
y though. We were out and saw al
). old oil field few weeks ago and from
one place we stopped, by q hill 81
" we could only see a small part of II
e ] counted SO wells in sight.
J. "Do they have anything I'm thu
Grand Rapids Press or other paper
). back there about the Japanese Dues
ton? The papers here are neve
L without it. Something about it ev
sT suppose by this time it is get
e ting a bit chilly back there. Well !
r is always cool here nights so on
wants a coat on to 60 out, but morn
It ings l go to work in my shirt sleeve
and rolled up at that.
II 81 got hold of I'm Peso, of Villa
g money, and will keep it for a sou
venir. 1t is not gooc for anything
L else.
They have some 'one-man' safet
d cars on the car line from here dow
% town and they are some hobby-hors
IS rocking cars alright. But the othe
T. line is only one block further tn
, other way. There Is lot ofkicl
about them.
"Your loving brother,
= Hub"
People who were acquainted wit
the Covert and Wise families an