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Show 392 WESTERN WILDS. the Sierra and Coast Range ; and his ranche occupies the richest por-tion of this strip. He is a pioneer of the pioneers, ' having come to California in 1846, two years before the discovery of gold. The same year came Governor Boggs and party, from Missouri ; Edwin M. Bry-ant, first American alcalde of San Francisco, and the unfortunate Don-ner party, whose sufferings and fate have laid the foundation for many a thrilling romance. At least five thousand Americans had crossed the plains and settled in California before the " great rush" of 1849. They all engaged in cattle- raising, the sole business of the native Mexicans; for, even as late as 1850, few people believed that these dry plains would admit of regular farming. A few of them got pos-session of old Mexican grants, the titles to which were afterwards con-firmed by treaty, and have since been sustained by the Supreme Court of the United States. Hence that oppressive land monopoly, which is' now the worst hinderance to the development of California. On General Bidwell's ranche are grown all the roots and grains of the temperate zones ; besides fifty varieties of fruit, from the little black grape of the North to the fig of the tropics. He had already made the manufacture of raisins a success, and wine can be produced almost as cheaply as cider in Ohio. I find all the wines of California very agreeable to the taste, and most of them healthful. But the old resident seldom drinks wine. At every hotel the salutation in cool weather is, " Walk right up to the bar warm you up for four bits, and heat you red hot for a dollar." This is a " survival " of the tastes of early settlers, who worked hard with pick and shovel, lived on bread, beef, pork, and beans, and did not taste milk, wine, or fresh vegetables for years together. As we walked around the grounds adjacent to the Bidwell mansion, we saw oranges, olives, and pomegranates growing luxuriantly, while the borders were a brilliant maze of white and red, diversified by the branching palm, pampas grass ten feet high, with beautiful white plumes, and the delicate tints of the giant oleander. Workmen were busy covering the young orange trees, which must be shielded from the coldest winds during the first three or four years, but on the full-grown trees the growing oranges were nearly of full size, the green rind beginning to change to a pale yellow. And yet, fifteen hundred miles straight east of this, at my old home, snow is fast covering the fields, and no green- growing plant will delight the eye for months to come. At Reading, I tarried again, making pleasant excursions among the surrounding hills and valleys, the most pleasant to Shasta City. |
