Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-09-21
Romantic History of CaIifor-
MIA Town Tells of Achieve
ments-Is Most South
westerly Settlement in U.S.

SAN DIEGO, Cal.-San Diego,
Cal, the most southwesterly set
Element of Importance in continental
United States, is located on a nat
ura1 amphitheater, rising from the
bay Of the same name to a height
of 800 feet on the surrounding mesa,
IA miles from the Mexican border
on the south, facing the Pacific
ocean on the west, 1875 miles south
east Of Los Angeles, and $50 miles
west of the wonderful Imperial
desert valley-and separated
from it by a barrier Of beautiful!
mountain valleys and mountains
ranging up to 5000 feet in height.
Beyond a question Of doubt, San
Diego is the loveliest, most charm
ing and most fascinating "home-
land in this country. I ought to
know for I've been registering from
San Diego for 10. these 80 years.
And man who wouldn't boost for
his home town ought to be taken
out, shot and buried at public ex-
penSe.
So, having told the truth about
my home town, and thus in a mea-
sure recognized my obligation to it,
We'll proceed with the story.
San Diego, came to be, because Of
the efforts of two Fathers. +"
Junipero Sierra, a sure-enough hero
saint, was a Franciscan monk who
came here from old Mexico with a
~ fo1l +o1
Iished the first California mission
at San Diego de Alcala, five miles up
the San Diego river from Old
Town.
Founders Died Broke
That was in 1863 and it was the
first European settlement of the Pa
cific coast Of what is now the Unit
ed States.
A century later, in 1868, Father"
Alonzo e. Horton came down from
San Francisco in a wheel steam
er, looked upon the sage brush, cac-
tus, chapparal and greasewood COW
ering what is now the business and
apartment section of the city (he
settlement being located at Old
Town, four miles away and bought
the whole tract at 26 cents the acre.
I suppose the extra cent was war
tax"
Then Father Horton surveyed his
purchase, laid it all out in little
blocks without alleys. so as to have
plenty of corner lots to sell, gave
away valuable sites to every kind Of
church which could muster any sort
Of showing, gave away more for
cnhOnlhnl1cpc r11h1ip hl1il6in
plazas, ETC., and finally crowned all
by a magnificent donation of 1,4OO
acres in the heart of the city for
a great city park in perpetuity-the
site wherein was held in 1915-l6 the
beautiful Pan-California exposition
visited by thousands from all parts
of the world.
Father Horton died a few years
ago, broke, at the age of "a. L
never knew why we called him
Father" unless it was because he
hadn't any children.
Value Higher Now
The other day one of those corner
lots bought at 26 cents the acre hall
a century ago, was leased on basis
of $4,000 the front foot, which as
anyon ecan see is a distinct advance
over the pufcnaL price.
Well, then, here you have the
town, a city of about 10000 civilians
and maybe 10000 soldiers, sailors,
marines and aviators, with their Off
GERS, active and retired; for San
Diego is the chief army, aviation,
marine and naval headquarters of
this part of the world and as you
can easily ascertain from any Of the
oI ficyip or1 nI1h1iaifU
CARNATIONS of the city, is the pride
$4,000, 900 having been spent here
in bases and buildings of various
sorts.
Who is the most interesting citi-
zen of San Diego? Well, in a COM
munity where you know most every
body, it is blamed dangerous to get
too specific. One MIGHT start an
argument.
There is John D. Spreckles and
Bill Kettner, and a thronging host
of other names each of which is en-
titled to lot Of consideration. But
out Of them all, two persons stand
out, in my opinion, as typifying the
spirit of the great semi-arid west,
the west where in the words OF Will
liam E. Smythe, "aridity is a bless
ing and irrigation a miracle" and
these two person are Colonel and
Mrs. Ed Fletcher. I don't know
which of the pair is the mos. i'm
nortant or interesting.
Their Achievement
1t is interesting certainly, to real
ize that amid the hurry and hustle of
the past % years, while they have
been building great reservoirs to
store the water which is turning
sagebrush and greasewood into or
chards, and while they have been
inspiring state and count, to build
hundreds of miles of concrete high
ways, and while they have been
driving over this great empire state
working GU plans to save the trees
along the highways anc to plant
trees wher ethere e none, they
have also found time to raise a
splendid family of ten boys and
girls!
And so I put Mrs. Fletcher in
the list on equal terms with her
dynamic husband, for I feel sure
you will agree that ny woman who
rears ten children is splend;dly con-
spicuous in an age when Pomeran-
ians and two-room flats are at a
premium.
Things aren't perfect in San Diego
and no one knows it better than the
folks who live there, although they
won't admit it.
When Father Horton laid out the
citV all he thought of apparently,