USA > California > Merced County > A history of Merced County, California : with a biographical review of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 39
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The new firm entered the field vigorously, and gradually began to acquire lands upon which to graze its herds, for when Miller & Lux began their business as a firm, a vast domain of unfenced grazing land existed in the great sweep of valleys and western slopes of the Sierra Nevada range-in fact, millions of acres were unclaimed from the Government. As the population increased, and the business of Miller & Lux expanded, it became necessary to increase the acreage held for grazing purposes, and Spanish grants were bought at prices that would astonish the ranchmen of today. A square mile could then
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be purchased at a figure now quoted for a single acre, and in those days even cowboy employees took up Government land under the preemption, homestead and desert-land acts, and after acquiring a title would dispose of it to their employers for a few cents an acre. In this way, and by purchasing the rights of discouraged ranchers, the vast and tremendously valuable Miller & Lux empire was obtained. It required foresight to inspire the investors, the power of looking ahead and discerning what so many others with equal opportunities failed to discover ; but it also required courage, nerve to carry the de- tails through.
One of the most notable purchases made by this epoch-making firm was the great Santa Anita rancho of 100,000 acres near Los Banos, which was obtained from Hildreth & Hildreth with its vast herds, soon after Henry Miller's advent in the San Joaquin Valley ; and the Hildreth brand of three bars, crossed through the center, be- came the Miller & Lux brand for many years thereafter. And where- ever the brand of Miller & Lux was to be found, one might bank upon it that it represented a desirable, superior quality, for the secret of the rise of Henry Miller to the position of millionaire cattle baron was his remarkable knowledge of cattle, and an equally remarkable knowledge of men.
It is stated that Henry Miller at one time had the ambition to own the whole of California; but whether that be true or not, it is known that he was never anxious to part with lands after he had once acquired them, especially if they were suitable for grazing purposes, and he was ever ready to invest all surplus cash in the purchase of land. It is said, on the other hand, that Charles Lux at one time be- came frightened at his partner's purchasing proclivities, and sought to retire from the business. "Mr. Miller, we now have $100,000 in the bank in cash, and I think that this is an opportune time to dissolve partnership. Let us settle up." "You say that we have $100,000 in cash?" replied Mr. Miller. "Well, wait until I return from this trip." When Mr. Miller came back, Mr. Lux found that the firm had just invested in more land to the tune of $100,000, for Miller could not pass up a good chance to invest in acreage when the cash lay temptingly at hand. While Mr. Lux was a good financier and office man, there is no doubt of the fact that he was made a millionaire in spite of himself, and that he owed much of his own prosperity to his more aggressive partner. He could not let go when he wished to, and he remained a member of the firm until his death in 1887.
Henry Miller reckoned his holdings by the square mile, not by the acre, and a bit of evidence he gave in court some years ago-en- tertaining reading today. "In taking it ranch after ranch," he said,
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"in Santa Clara County it has an extent of twenty-four miles north and south, and about seven to eight miles east and west. In Merced County we have thirty-six miles north and south, and then about thirty-two miles east and west. The Malheur property is an extent of ninety miles northwest to southeast, and about sixty miles north to south. Then comes the purchase of what we call the Todhunter & Devine property. That lies in Harney County, Ore., and comprises over seven-tenths of 125 miles north and south and about seventy- five miles east and west, with a good distance in between." There is no doubt whatever, however, that the amount of the Miller & Lux holdings have been greatly overestimated. A special writer for one of the noted San Francisco dailies gave an estimate of 14,539,000 acres ; but behind these astounding figures was a journalistic purpose of exaggerating, for with ownership and leases combined, the total would not reach half of that figure. The richest holdings are in Mer- ced and Madera Counties, and amount to probably 350,000 acres. The Buttonwillow district will swell the total by 200,000 more, and Fresno County and other districts will probably increase the San Joaquin holdings to 700,000 acres, and there are nearly 20,000 acres in the region of Gilroy, and other, smaller tracts scattered over the State. The Miller & Lux acreage in the States of Nevada and Oregon will bring the grand total up to nearly 3,000,000 acres. It is a com- mon saying among stockmen that Henry Miller could travel from the Idaho line to the Mexican border and camp on his own land every night; and no other man in America ever has, or ever will again, con- trol such an immense acreage of agricultural lands. It almost stag- gers belief that this tremendous empire was owned and occupied by one man's interests, and was nearly all under his personal supervision. Henry Miller was almost continually on the move in the years of his health and activity, for he did most of his work in the days before the automobile, although he was one of the first to import a fine French car. He came to dislike the machine, however, owing to the rough roads he was generally compelled to travel, and in rather short order he discarded it again, and once more took to either his favorite buggy or his buckboard, in making his round of visits across the vast Miller & Lux ranches.
In 1860, Henry Miller was married to Miss Sarah Wilmarth Sheldon, a lady of culture and refinement. Two daughters and a son were born to them. Henry Miller, Jr., died in his fortieth year, sur- vived by a widow, an honored resident of Gilroy. The youngest daughter, Miss Sarah Alice, was killed by a runaway horse. Another daughter, Mrs. J. Leroy Nickel, resided at 2101 Laguna Street, San Francisco, and it was at her residence that Mr. Miller expired, on
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October 14, 1916. George Nickel, a grandson of the famous pi- oneer, has resided on the Ortigalito ranch, eight miles to the south- east of Los Banos. The immediate life estate was left to Mrs. Nickel and her husband, who had taken a leading hand in the management of the Miller & Lux properties, and some $225,000 for surviving rela- tives of Mr. and Mrs. Miller, and $30,000 in smaller amounts to employees, were provided for by bequests in the will.
A notable achievement of Henry Miller was his organization and control of the San Joaquin & Kings River Canal and Irrigation Com- pany, and not a few of his enterprises were productive of much benefit to others as well as to himself and near of kin. William J. Stockton, the pioneer, who first became acquainted with Mr. Miller in 1872, soon overcame his prejudices against great landholders and found that Miller was performing a great service to other folks seeking to establish themselves. The pioneer could go to his straw-stacks and get straw for the asking, and to Canal Farm and get a cow; and such courtesies were given to rich and poor alike. When the section from Los Banos to Newman was in dire straits for water, Henry Miller, at a cost of some $3,000,000, built a canal and delivered water to the people, without an extra cent of cost to them. He also made a present to the county of a road built at an expense of $45,000, and running to the San Joaquin River. He was born to rule, to lead, to point the way to others, and to get there himself; he testified in court that during the hard times in the five years following Mr. Lux's death, he made $1,700,000 a year, or $8,000,000 in five years, an amount that seems almost incredible, but which must be true. Henry Miller was of striking personal appearance, and in his prime was an exact image of General U. S. Grant. He was simple in his habits, and would tolerate no homage from anyone. Dr. J. L. McClelland said, when Mr. Miller died: "He has endowed no colleges, but he has given millions as he went along without exacting any pledge of remem- brance, or making any condition of publicity. There are thousands of humble men and widows who can testify that his giving of valuable land and goodly sums of coin has been in strict accord with the Scrip- ture admonition, 'Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth.' " And Andrew R. Schottky, the distinguished lawyer, said: "I saw a poor butcher boy coming from Germany to California; I saw him accumulating vast acreages of land on the Pacific Coast; I saw thousands of happy and prosperous homes on land developed and sold by him; I saw no instance of colonists being defrauded and impoverished by being placed on poor land at high prices. Under- thinking persons will perhaps censure him for his great wealth; but the fair-minded will think of the fact that in accumulating his wealth
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he developed land and took advantage of opportunity, but did not crush and destroy men. When all is said and done, his was a life of intense usefulness, and his contribution to the present and the future of California is large. The words of Mark Anthony at the death of Brutus are peculiarly appropriate at the death of Henry Miller : 'This was a man !' "
CAPT. HENRY GEORGE JAMES
Few men have had a more interesting, as well as serviceable ca- reer than the late Capt. Henry George James, a native of Camborne, Cornwall, England, and the son of William and Elizabeth Eva James, who had three sons, all born at Camborne, the others having been Edward and William. The elder James, a blacksmith by trade, was a member of an English exploring company which visited South America, and having accidentally broken his ankle, he was carried over the Andes Mountains lashed to a chair strapped to the back of a stalwart native. Returning to England, he immigrated to the United States, about 1832. His brother, Edward, took part in the Black Hawk War. He was a correspondent of the St. Louis Demo- crat and lost his life in war journalistic service. During the trouble with the Indians in this Black Hawk outbreak, the men of Iowa County, Wis., formed companies for drill, and so did their sons; and thus it happened that Henry G. James was dubbed "Captain," a title he always bore.
He came out to California in 1850, walking across the Isthmus of Panama in the more primitive days before the railroad was built there, and upon his arrival at Sonora, Tuolumne County, he engaged in mining. Later he went into the cattle business and in time became one of the largest cattle men in Stanislaus County, and for twenty years he furnished cattle, hogs and sheep to wholesale butchers in San Francisco. During his experience in furnishing beef for a butcher firm in Sonora, he once made a journey to the coast to purchase stock ; meeting a company of men in charge of a band of steers, Capt. James bought what he wanted and started to drive them home. Before he had traveled far he was overtaken by the real owners of the steers, who informed him that the cattle had been stolen. The Captain and his companions pursued the thieves to San Francisco, where they obtained the assistance of Capt. Harry Love, a famous detective of that time, by whom one of the thieves was arrested. The other made his escape. While on the way back with their prisoner, Captain James and party stopped to have lunch and ostensibly to give the prisoner a trial. They assumed an air of carelessness and the thief thought that it would be a good opportunity to escape ; so he crawled
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off into the chaparral; but several shots followed him and he was killed. No one knew whose shot did the business.
In 1873, at Salida, Stanislaus County, Captain James was married to Miss Nannie Jamison, the daughter of A. H. Jamison, a native of Arkansas, who served for two terms as supervisor in Stanislaus County when the county seat was at Knights Ferry. One daughter married John R. Barnett, sheriff of Madera County. Captain James was a Democrat and a sympathizer with, and an active supporter of the Confederacy of the Southern States. He served at one time as a trustee of Modesto. He belonged to the Masons and assisted with their ritual at the laying of the cornerstone of the Stanislaus County court house. He died at the home of his sister, Mrs. Root, at Salida in 1901 or 1902.
JOSHUA CASARETTO
Another of the native sons of the Golden State who has made his influence felt in agricultural circles is Joshua Casaretto, now living in retirement on his ranch on Bear Creek about three miles from Merced. He was born at Hornitos, Mariposa County, on April 19, 1859, a son of the late Giuseppe and Catherine (Daneri) Casaretto, the former born in Genoa, Italy, and the latter at Chiavari. Giuseppe Casaretto left his native country in 1852 and came by way of Panama to California to make his fortune in the mines, but after trying his luck until 1855 he decided the surest way to fortune was in something more substantial and he engaged in working at the trade of stone mason. He had married in Italy and when he sent for his wife and son in 1855, he quit mining for his trade. They settled in an adobe house near Benton's Mill; then in the late fifties he moved to Horni- tos and built a stone store building, which he later traded to Mr. Olcese, who had a store at Indian Gulch, for his building and busi- ness there, but this did not prove to be a profitable exchange for the store at Indian Gulch was soon to become extinct with the dwindling of the mines. In 1857 Mr. Casaretto moved to Merced Falls and took up his home, working at his trade and raising stock. He died of blood poisoning while at Snelling, on June 28, 1885, when fifty-eight years old. Three boys and one girl in the Casaretto family grew up and are still living: John lives at Merced Falls on the old home place; David is a butcher in Atwater; Joshua is the subject of this review; and Mrs. Julia Fee lives in Modesto. Her husband was the son of the late Peter Fee, who came to California in 1849 and con- ducted the first hotel in the mining section of Mt. Bullion, known as Norwegian Tent, because it was only a tent house. The elder Cas- aretto was a man of integrity of character and was highly esteemed.
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Joshua went to the school in Indian Valley and was brought up on the mountain ranch owned by his father and spent much of his time in the saddle, during which time he learned to speak the French, Span- ish, Italian and English languages fluently. In 1870 he was a joint owner in a sheep and wool growing business; and in 1872-1873, with John and David, his brothers, conducted a general store at Hopeton, but continuing his sheep business until 1884, when he was forced to quit during the Cleveland administration when wool dropped so low in price that no one could afford to keep sheep. He then turned his attention to cattle and horse raising on a part of the old home place, and at the same time was made manager of the Casaretto interests. He sold out his stock interests in 1919 and decided to retire when he moved to his present place of eighty-six acres. The rich Bear Creek land had such an attraction for him that he once more began farming, raising Poland China hogs and fruit; he also owns 1800 acres of foot- hill land in Mariposa County where he runs some stock, and with the help of his sons they are making a success of their ventures.
When Mr. Casaretto married on September 8, 1902, he chose for his wife Miss Marceline Leota, born on November 15, 1861, on a ranch at Mokelumne Hill, Calaveras County, the daughter of Leon Leota, born in Marseilles, France, and a man of considerable intellect and culture. He was proficient in seven different languages ; came to California in 1851 and settled in the mining section. He was the second man in Calaveras County to receive a patent from the United States Government for land. Her mother was Mary Mullin, born in Ireland of Scotch parents, and she died in Oakland in 1915. Mr. and Mrs. Casaretto have two boys, Victor Emanuel and Emanuel Victor, who are assisting their father to run the ranches owned by him. Mr. Casaretto is a Republican and the family belong to the Catholic Church.
J. MIGUEL ARBURUA
One of the most prominent citizens of the West Side of the San Joaquin Valley, now a resident near the city of Los Banos, is J. Miguel Arburua, who is living retired after many years of useful activity. He was born in the Basque Province of Etchlar, in the Pyrenees, Spain, on November 24, 1844, and received a limited edu- cation, so practically what he received was obtained from contact with the world. He came to the United States and California, via Cape Horn in 1866, taking six months to complete the journey. He had no money and his only assets were his indomitable courage and a willingness to work. His uncle, Miguel Aguirre, had settled in San Francisco in an early day, and when the nephew arrived in San
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Francisco he obtained a job for him in Butchertown at twenty dollars per month and the young man held down that job for four years, saving his money and paying back the amount advanced him for his fare to the new world. He had no knowledge of English and that made it harder for him, but he stuck to his job and in time mastered enough of the English language to enable him to transact business- and in time there was no shrewder business man and financier than J. M. Arburua.
The first venture our subject tackled was in partnership with J. Lugea. They carried on a sheep business for four years and made it a success, though suffering severe losses in 1877 on account of the drouth, when he took his sheep to Nevada. In 1886 Mr. Arburua located on the Carrizalito grant in Merced County, purchasing the property of 22,000 acres for $42,000 from the man who had previ- ously bought it for $65,000 and failed to make good and was willing to turn over the huge indebtedness to Mr. Arburua for $2000 and he to assume the mortgage. He had no money, but he bought the land, having as his only assets about 7000 head of sheep. He made money from the start and in time added by purchase from various settlers in his vicinity 6500 more acres. On this large tract of land he engaged in the cattle and sheep business until 1915, being assisted by his entire family to attain their independence. In the year men- tioned he divided his large acreage among his children and turned over the management of its affairs, bought sixty-five acres near Los Banos, known as Rouse ranch, and settled down to farming on a small scale and is now living retired on this ranch with his wife. He is known as one of the most honorable men of his day and age, public spirited, generous and at eighty is hale and hearty and enjoys life to its full. He has always been a hard worker and expected his sons to do their share, which each of them has done and all are worthy representatives of their honored parent.
The marriage of J. Miguel Arburua occurred on November 24, 1882, when he was united with Josefa Lavayn, daughter of Baptiste and Michaela Lavayn. She was born in the same province, in 1860, as her husband and came to America when fourteen, receiving her education in California. To this wonderful woman Mr. Arburua gives great credit for his success as she helped in the management of their affairs. They had the following children : Carmen, single ; Helen M., married I. B. Cornett and lives in Los Banos ; Frank J., married Helena Harms and resides on the home ranch; Louis P., married Marie M. Chotro, has two children, Lucille and Josephine, and is the proprietor of the City Market in Los Banos, besides largely inter- ested in ranching; Joseph M. is a veterinary surgeon in San Francisco and married to Eleanor Kehoe and has a son John Joseph. He was
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a first lieutenant and saw service on the Mexican border and in France with the Eighth Division. Mr. Arburua was a director of the First National Bank, now the Bank of Italy, in Los Banos. He has always been prominent in educational affairs and donated land for two school buildings and served as a trustee for many years. He believes in doing good wherever he can and has always been a liberal giver to churches and church work, regardless of denomination. His great outstanding characteristic has been his ability to get results from those he has employed and at the same time cement a friendship that lasts while either party lives. He has worked unceasingly himself and attributes his good health to that activity. With his good wife he is enjoying the fruits of their labors and their friends are legion.
HENRY FREDERICK FERDINAND SALAU
Among the pioneers of Merced County none had a more eventful career than Henry F. F. Salau, who made his home five miles south- west of Los Banos. He was a prominent rancher and stockman in California, and few had touched at as many ports of the world as had Mr. Salau while he was sailing the seas. He was born June 3, 1835, at Kiel, Germany, the son of John and Catherine (Kremhoff) Salau, also natives of that same place. The mother died in 1854 while the father lived to reach the age of sixty. He was a weaver by trade and he and his wife were members of the Lutheran Church and strict in the discipline of their children.
The oldest son in the family, Henry Salau remained at home until he was fourteen; then, feeling the touch of poverty and lack of oppor- tunity, he became a sailor aboard the brig "Betsy of London," which was the vessel used by John Paul Jones fifty years before, sailing to London, then to Quebec, Canada, but before reaching the latter port experienced his first shipwreck, in which eleven of the crew were rescued by the Humboldt of Hamburg and taken to New York. Three months later he shipped on the Humboldt for Hamburg, then on the same ship made two trips to New York. The last time he came around the Horn to California, reaching San Francisco in August, 1852. Thereafter he was engaged in the coasting trade between San Francisco and Puget Sound. In 1861 he shipped on the Challenger for Liverpool, a voyage of 103 days. His next ship was the Nicholas Biddle for New York, after which he took a trip to the West Indies on the Warwick. His next trip was around the Horn on the clipper ship, Magnet, 140 days. He continued as a sailor on various ships and had reached the rank of second officer. During the years that had passed he had become well informed on conditions in nearly every
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part of the world, and when he had spent about a year in Germany, where he worked in a moulding factory, he decided he would come to the United States and California. Like the majority of men who follow the sea, he had not accummulated any money, so he had to begin at the bottom and work his way to the top. His arrival in San Francisco was in April, 1867, on the Moses Taylor. Going to Santa Clara he farmed in that vicinity until 1869, then went to the West Side in Merced County and entered 160 acres near Volta. He did not prove up on this land but soon settled near Los Banos and engaged in the sheep business. In 1871 he located on 160 acres and improved it and made that his home for many years, adding to his property until he had 700 acres which he devoted to grain and stock.
Mr. Salau entered into every movement that had for its end the betterment of general conditions, was a strong Republican and served on the County Central Committee and as a delegate to county and state conventions. Fraternally he held membership in the Workmen. He was reared in the Lutheran faith and belonged to that church in Los Banos. He married at Kiel, Germany, Miss Marie Dorathea (Weber) Salau, born in Holstein, and they had five children: Au- gusta C., the wife of M. Becker of Berkeley; Adolph of Fruit- vale; Mary; Louis, who died in 1918; and Doretta C., of Los Banos. Mr. Salau died on April 12, 1910, aged seventy-five, and Mrs. Salau passed away on November 23, 1919.
WILLIAM FIELDING TAYLOR
A real pioneer of California and an early settler in the San Joaquin Valley, William Fielding Taylor was a lineal descendant of the Zachary Taylor family, the twelfth President of the United States. He was the son of William and Martha Taylor, who were of Eng- lish descent and early Colonists, who migrated from the New England states to Tennessee, where they cleared the land for pioneer farming. Born June 20, 1821, near Nashville, Tenn., William F. Taylor was reared in that locality, receiving but a limited education, owing to lack of schools on the frontier, attending a private school for a few months each year. When seventeen years of age, his father having died, he moved among the early pioneers to Missouri, and there en- gaged in clearing land and farming, until 1852.
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