California

the most southerly of the Pacific states. Area, 158,360 square miles, equivalent to that of New England, New York, and Pennsylvania. It is exceeded in size by Texas only. The extreme length from northwest to southeast is about 800 miles, equal to the distance from Boston to Chicago or to Charleston. The greatest width is about 270 miles. Within this vast territory there is the greatest diversity of scenery, rainfall, temperature, soil, and productions. It is difficult to characterize a state in which a single county has mountain summits above the snow line at one end and orange groves at the other. It is difficult to name a fruit, flower, vegetable, or field crop found elsewhere in the United States that does not find a suitable locality somewhere in California.

MOUNTAINS. The Coast Range, from 2,000 to 8,000 feet in height, follows the coast from Oregon southward about two-thirds the length of the state. The Sierra Nevada range marks approximately the eastern boundary of the state. Although geologists say that it has been worn down until it has lost a mile of its height, it is still the steepest and loftiest range of mountains in the United States. Mt. Whitney, 14,520 feet high, is our highest peak outside of Alaska. The lowest pass in this range is 9,000 feet above the sea level. The famous Yosemite Valley is in this range. In places the western slope falls 10,000 feet in ten miles. A belt varying in width, but averaging perhaps thirty miles, is entirely above the snow line. There are perhaps 100 small glaciers. A knot between these ranges near the Oregon boundary, and another near the southern end of the Coast Range, divide the interior of California into two great basins. The larger of these, drained by the Sacramento River and its branches, has but one outlet, the Golden Gate, through which its waters make their way to the Pacific Ocean.

CLIMATE. Shielded by mountains on the north and east, California has but two seasons, a wet and a dry. Hurricanes and cyclones are unknown. Beginning with May, rain is practically unknown for six months. Sacks of wheat are left in the field, and fruit is spread to dry without the slightest danger from rain. The annual rainfall near the Oregon line is about 8 inches. At San Francisco, it is about 24, at Los Angeles, 15 inches. At Yuma, in the extreme desert southeast, it seldom amounts to 3 inches. In this part of the state lies the Death Valley, feet below the level of the sea. It derives is name form the scarcity of life.

Forest TREES. The forest of California, consisting chiefly of the redwood of the coast range, the big tree of the Sierras, the sugar pine, the Douglas spruce, the incense tree, and the silver fir, are second only to those of Oregon in value. In the southern part of the state millions of pepper trees from Peru and eucalyptus from Australia have been set out for fuel and for ornament. The northern pine yields enormous crops of seeds used by the Indians to feed their horses.

AGRICULTURE. Agriculture and fruit raising were introduced into California by Spanish missionaries. Vast cattle ranges and sheep ranches formerly existed in southern California. Mrs. Jackson’s Ramona gives an excellent picture of sheep farming. Within the last fifteen years these great ranches have been broken up into small farms. The enormous wheat farms of twenty years ago have also been divided into small holdings. There are still a few large farms; one in particular comprises 1,000,000 acres. Three factors the introduction of fruit raising, the difficulty of obtaining farm help, and the construction of irrigating ditches, have combined to favor the small farm,. A farm of ten or twenty acres is about all that anyone can handle properly or need to have. Over 5,000 miles of canals and ditches have been constructed to conduct the waters of the mountains to the valley below where it is needed. Land that was formerly worthless has been converted into fertile valleys. Alfalfa yields easily three croups a year. In irrigated valleys crop failures are unknown. Were it not for insect pests California could raise all the fruit the world needs. Of plum. Prune, peach, apricot, apple, pear, and cherry trees, there are about 28,000,000, with an average annual yield valued at fifty cents each. Southern California, of which Los Angeles is the metropolis, is none of the most famous orange, lemon, and olive regions in the world. In 1900, 18,000 carloads of these fruits were shipped to eastern markets. It is estimated that there are 48,000,000 fruit trees of all kinds in California and 240,000,000 grape vines. Grapes are produced in nearly every county. The annual yield may be placed at 5,500,000 gallons of wine, and 200,000,000 pounds of raisins. The quantity of fresh grapes shipped in baskets is almost beyond computation. In 1905 California packers put up 4,475,751 Cases of canned fruits and vegetables.

Named in order of importance, the principal crops are wheat, hay and forage, orchard fruits, barley, tropical fruits, grapes and small fruits, potatoes, and other vegetable, corn, oats, and rye, sugar beets, beans, and hops. The total value of these products is $132,000,000 a year, over one half being raise on irrigated land.

MINING. Attention was called to California first by the discovery of gold in 1848. Up to that time the United States had produced less than $12,000,000 worth of gold, the annual yield of California alone was over $30,000,000 for a long series of years, and it is still about $85,000,000. Named in order of importance, the minerals produced are gold, copper, petroleum, quicksilver, silver, borax, mineral water, soda, asphalt, salt, and lime. California is deficient in hardwood and in coal.

MANUFACTURES. The discovery of petroleum in abundance has stimulated manufacture. The leading manufactures are sugar, paced meats, lumber , flour, canned fruits and vegetables, machinery, wines and liquors, cars, leather, brooks, and paper. Mountain torrents are now being utilized to generated electricity. It is transmitted long distances, as to San Francisco and Los Angeles, to drive machinery.

EDUCATION. California has taken advanced ground in establishing a systems of education. Common schools, normal schools, and a state university have a reputation second to none in the Union. The state university situated at Berkeley opposite San Francisco is one of America’s great state universities. Its Income from various sources is about $600,000 per annum, Wealthy citizens, particularly Mrs. Phoebe Hearst, have contributed large sums for the construction of buildings and to endow chairs. Leland Stanford, junior, University, founded by Senator and Mrs. Stanford in memory of their son, is also an institution of world-wide reputation. It stands in the front rank as to scholar-ship and equipment.

Sacramento, the capital of California, has a population of about 50,000; san Francisco, the metropolis, and Los Angeles, second city in size, are reserved for special articles. The population of California in 1900 was 1,485,053.

See Sequoia; Yosemite; Gold; Grapes; Canning; Prunes; Celery; Death Valley; Lick Observatory; Le-Land Stanford