USA > California > California of the South: Being a Complete Guide Book to Southern California > Part 23
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305
MINERAL SPRINGS.
Mineral Springs of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties.
SANTA BARBARA HOT SPRINGS .- Dr. H. M. Biggs says :*
"The hot sulphur springs of Santa Barbara are situated at the head of a deep canon, about five miles to the northeast of the town of Santa Barbara, at an elevation of fourteen hundred and fifty feet above the level of the sea. They number in all seven, and seem to be of two distinct varieties. Those nearest the head of the canon escape from crevices in the rock, and are four in number, all ap- pearing to have the same properties, the most sensible of which are free sulphur and sulphureted hydrogen; their temperature, 114º Fahr. Another spring is situated about one hundred yards off, in a westerly direction from the first mentioned-temperature, 117º Fahr. Its principal constituent is sulphate of alumina, evident from the thick incrustation of this salt on the under surface of the rock beneath which this water escapes; it also tastes strongly of sulphate of iron, and is said to contain soda and potash, and a trace of arsenic. The two remaining springs are located in a branch canon, about one hundred rods in a northerly direction from the last one mentioned, and appear to possess the same qualities, with the exception of the temperature, which is only 112° Fahr. No thorough analysis of these mineral springs has ever been made, at least in our time.
"It is said that while this country was in possession of the King of Spain, a corps of scientific men was sent out to this coast, com- missioned, among other things, to test the properties of the several mineral springs known to abound here, and that in their report they pronounced the Santa Barbara Hot Sulphur Springs to be the best and most medicinal, and superior to any other in California for the . cure of many diseases. Whether they came to this conclusion from actual analysis, or from simply witnessing their effect is not known. Certain it is that at the present day they are becoming famous for their curative effects in many cases of rheumatism, paralysis, various diseases of syphilitic origin, and skin-diseases generally ; and from
* "Mineral Springs of the United States and Canada," by George E. Walton, M. D. D. Appleton and Company, New York, 1883.
306
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
a persistent use of the waters (drinking and bathing) many indi- viduals have been cured of such affections."-March 22, 1872.
The late Hon. Oliver P. Morton, United States Senator from Indiana, spent some time at these springs in 1874. They are located at an altitude of fourteen hundred and fifty feet.
Bulletin 32 of the United States Geological Survey gives the analysis of these springs as follows :
Santa Barbara Hot Springs.
CONSTITUENT.
No. 1, main spring, No. 2 main spring, Hot Springs Canon. side cañon.
Parts in 100,000.
Parts in 100,000.
Sodium carbonate.
29.6
24-8
Sodium sulphate.
5.0
Trace.
Sodium chloride
8-7
7.6
Potassa
Trace.
Trace.
Silica
4.2
6.0
Carbonic acid .
Tiacc.
Trace.
Sulphohydric acid
Trace.
Trace.
Calcium
Trace.
Trace.
Total
47.5
38.4
SAN MARCOS HOT AND COLD SULPHUR SPRINGS .- These springs are situated in Mountain Glen, a picturesque canon seven miles northeast. There are somewhat primitive but very comfortable accommodations for guests, who can come within a short distance of the springs by the daily stage from Santa Barbara.
LAS CRUCES HOT SPRINGS are forty-two miles from Santa Barbara, near the Gaviota Pass. They have quite a local reputation for curing skin-diseases and rheumatism.
ESPADO HOT SULPHUR SPRINGS are three miles from Point Arguello.
MATILIJA HOT SPRINGS are the most noted of any Ven- tura County springs. There are several of them in Matilija Cañon, fifteen miles from San Buenaventura and six miles
307
MATILIJA HOT SPRINGS.
from Nordhoff. Arrangements for transportation can be made with the daily Ojai Valley stage that leaves San Buenaventura at 2.30 P. M.
There are comfortable accommodations and bathing fa- cilities for a limited number of invalids. .
Dr. R. E. Curran, of San Buenaventura, sends the following analysis of the Matilija springs water. The analysis of Matilija spring is copied from that made by J. W. Clarke, chief chemist of the United States Geo- logical Survey :
Report of Analysis No. 727 .- Water from Mutilija Hot Spring, received from Dr. S. Bowers.
Parts in 100,000.
Potassium chloride (KCI)
62-2
Sodium chloride (NaCI) 1,387.6
Magnesium chloride (MgCl2) . 6.8
Magnesium sulphate (MgSO.) 7.3
Calcium sulphate (CaSO.) .
16.0
Calcium carbonate (CaCO3)
96.5
Calcium silicate (CaSiO3).
62.9
Silica (SiO,).
8.8
Total
1,648.1
Trace of hydrogen sulphide (II2S) reported July 11, 1887.
The following is an analysis of water from one of the cold-water mineral springs on the Temescal Rancho, in the eastern part of Ventura County :
Carbonate of soda ·771
Carbonate of lime
.181
Carbonate of magnesia .054
Sulphate of soda ·030
Sulphate of lime .
.003
Sulphate of magnesia
.764
Sulphide of sodium ·203
Chloride of sodium 3.218
Chloride of lithium.
A trace
Hydrogen sulphide (free)
2.046
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
There are cold sulphur springs about ten miles from San Buenaventura, on the Ojai Valley road.
Bulletin 32, United States Geological Survey, reports sulphur springs on the west side of San Fernando Peak, Ventura County.
NOTE.
Besides authorities mentioned in the text of this book, the author of Part II has made liberal use of the files of the "Daily Times," "Daily Herald," "Daily Tribune," "Daily Express," and of the "Rural Califor- nian," all of Los Angeles; of the San Diego "Sun " and "Union"; of the Riverside " Daily Press"; of the San Bernardino "Times," "Index," and "Courier "; of the Pasadena "Union " and "Star"; of the Ventura "Free Press"; of the Santa Barbara "Daily Press " and " Daily Independ- ent," and of the "Journal of Commerce." He has also quoted liberally from the following works: "Santa Barbara as it is," by Mary C. F. Hall- Wood; "History of Los Angeles County," by J. Albert Wilson ; " History of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties," by Jessie D. Mason. The numer- ous trade pamphlets that have been issued about Southern California, espe- cially those published by Warner Brothers and Crosby, the excursion agents, have been of great use to him.
For the photographs, from which the illustrations have been engraved, we are indebted to Messrs. Shaffner, Stanton, Rogers, and Golsh, of Los Angeles, and Tabor, the well-known San Francisco photographer.
GENERAL NELSON A. MILES, U. S. A.
PART III.
COMPARATIVE VALUATION OF LANDS AND PRODUCTS.
BY GENERAL NELSON A. MILES, UNITED STATES ARMY.
NOTHING is more interesting than to watch the progress of our wonderful country : to study its resources, witness its development, and endeavor to anticipate what the great future has in store for it. The rapid strides that have been made in utilizing its virgin soil and its inexhaustible re- sources, is the marvel of the age ; the freedom, enterprise, and intelligence of its people have overcome every obstacle, and utilized every element of wealth with which they have been so richly endowed, and it would puzzle the philosopher and statesman to anticipate what in wealth, power, and in- fluence we shall in the near future attain, both as a people and a nation.
It is not, however, our resources in general, or what may be the future of the Pacific coast or that line of South- west Territories-including Southern California, Arizona, and New Mexico-that I purpose to consider at this time, but it is of a small section of the southwestern part of the United States, small in area, and yet the five counties in Southern California embrace a territory nearly the size of the State of New York, and with natural resources of ten
312
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
times its value. Although, to compare the resources of this section with other parts of the United States is inter- esting and somewhat instructive, that is not especially my object, but it is more particularly to call attention to what can be produced here, and the area of such production in contradistinction to that produced in foreign countries, upon which we have been contributing largely to their wealth.
Without reference to the mild climate of the five coun- ties of Southern California that makes it possible to grow almost every variety of fruit, plant, and vegetable known to the temperate and torrid zones, that gives the people freedom from the aches and pains consequent upon life in the malarial States of the South, and the cold States of the North and East ; and without reference to the advantages accruing from life in the Italy of America, whereby health and happiness is assured under ordinary circumstances, where the summers are cool and pleasant, and the winters are as gentle as spring need be; where the ocean-breezes, the year round, are like the revivifying influence of balm of Gilead to the stranger from the East ; it is not for us to consider, but the possibilities and future growth of the fruit and vineyard industries that are now attracting the attention of people in all parts of the United States, as well as the producers and officials of France, Spain, Italy, and other countries of Europe, who have monopolized these in- dustries in the past, enriching themselves with millions of dollars yearly from the people of this country. It is these millions of dollars that will in the near future be turned from the coffers of Europeans, largely to the coming pro- ducers of Southern California. Of the principal countries from which we have been importing our fruits, nuts, raisins, and wines, France, through the ravages of the phylloxera, has not been able to supply her own demand for raisins and wines, which she imports from other countries of Europe,
313
COMPARATIVE VALUATION OF LANDS.
and she has also been importing vines from America to rejuvenate her vineyards. Malaga, which is a province of Spain, contains about 2,500,000 acres, of which amount about 590,000 acres are suitable for the cultivation of raisins, and only 225,000 acres are devoted to the production of the Malaga grape of commerce. When we take into considera- tion that there is still over 3,000,000 acres left in Southern California that can be utilized for the production of raisins, and giving the same rate of production per acre as that obtained at Malaga (and figures show that the yield per acre is much larger in California), the land still open for viticultural pursuits will be able to produce 60,000,000 pounds. It is said that the largest vineyard of France has an area of fifty-four acres, and the produce from it made into wine and placed on the market is valued at $100,000 annually. In Southern California there are vineyards con- taining over a thousand acres of vines, but these are now being cut up into small tracts, and when sold will be worked to better advantage.
Very few people east of the Rocky Mountains are aware of the area of the five counties comprising Southern Cali- fornia, and it will be a matter of surprise to read that they have an area almost four thousand square miles larger than the State of Ohio, and are within three hundred square miles of being as large as the State of Pennsylvania-two of the largest agricultural States in the Union. The five counties spoken of are Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura. These counties, which are divided into numerous large ranches containing thou- sands of acres, will be divided into tracts to suit farmers and orchardists, as soon as the demand makes it necessary.
That Southern California will have an enormous popula- tion in the near future, goes without saying. With her immense resources, being the only part of the United States that has a climate almost frostless, which permits of the 14
314
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
growth of all the fruits, berries, vegetables, grapes, and nuts known, she will be called upon not only to supply the home consumption, most of which has been imported here- tofore, but finally make it an important item in the export trade of our country by supplying nations with our canned fruits, wines and raisins. That it will do so at some future day is not as wild a prediction as one would suppose, for at the present time the canned fruits of California are very much sought after in England, France, and other countries, where they obtain higher prices than the native product.
There are only certain farmers, planters, and orchard- ists east of the ninety-fifth parallel, who make a profit in their pursuits. It is either the proprietor of vast farms of hundreds and thousands of acres of corn, wheat, oats, or hay ; or the planter who numbers his acres of cotton by the hundreds, and the orchardist, should his crop not prove a failure through frost. Let the agriculturist take the past year as a sample, and, after estimating the cost of his land, the taxes, the cost of implements and fertilizers, and comparing it with the amount produced per acre, find the net profit to him, and compare it with the net result of an acre in Southern California of grapes or fruit of any kind ; the amount realized by. the California producer will be so far in excess of his profit, if any he has, that he will be fully convinced of the advantages accruing to the agri- culturist or orchardist of Southern California. Land for all practical purposes of the agriculturist and orchardist may be purchased at from twenty to one hundred dollars per acre, while land that is improved with orchard or vine- yard may be purchased at from one hundred to five hun- dred dollars per acre, realizing at once a profit to the owner. As ten to twenty acres is all that is necessary for the sup- port of a family, it does not require a large capital to start a farm, orchard, or vineyard. While it takes three to ten years before any of the most profitable fruits or grapes
COMPARATIVE VALUATION OF LANDS. 315
bring large returns, it must be borne in mind that vegeta- bles of all kinds, as well as berries, grow the year round, and the strawberry, the most perfect of all berries, can be had in the market every month of the year. On one acre of ground the settler can raise, at all seasons of the year, a greater variety of vegetables than his family will be able to consume. The expense of building is not near so high . as in other States, as the climate permits of living in houses that would be untenable in winter in other parts of the country. Expensive agricultural implements is a factor with which the fruit-producer does not have to contend, nor will the use of fertilizers be necessary for many years, which does away with large items of expense to the farmer. The cost of fertilizers to the farmers in the United States during the year 1879, according to the census statistics of 1880, amounted to $28,586,397, while the value of farming- implements and machinery on farms amounted to $406,- 520,055. These are startling figures, and land in Southern California, that does not require the use of fertilizers, should be placed at a higher valuation. In the following com- parative statements, gleaned from various public docu- ments, and compiled from various other sources, it is in- tended in a concise form to convey to the reader facts and figures not heretofore presented collectively. The prices of land given for the cultivation of the various fruits and grapes of Southern California is that obtained at present, while those of other States were taken from the census returns of 1880.
Taking the imports of the year 1884 as an average year, there were imported into the United States 57,000,000 pounds of French prunes ; 4,732,269 pounds of almonds ; 7,945,977 pounds of figs ; 53,702,220 pounds of raisins ; 18,624 car-loads of oranges and lemons ; 244 car-loads of preserved fruits ; 244 car-loads of olive-oil, and 636 car- loads of other fruit. This amounted to $16,705,574 in
316
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
fruits and nuts ; $547,017 in olive-oil ; $2,834,816 in cham- pagne and other sparkling wines ; $2,241,682 in still wines in casks and $1,199,205 in bottles. In fact, between June, 1884, and. June, 1885, there were about $20,000,000 paid for imported fruits and nuts that California can produce.
According to the census of 1880, there were a total . of 4,008,907 farms in the United States, with an average size of 134 acres, or a grand total of 536,081,835 acres, of which 284,771,042 are improved, and 251,310,793 unim- proved ; the value, including fences and buildings, amounted to $10,197,096,776, giving an average value of $19.02 per acre. The census for 1880 also shows that there were in the United States 62,368,504 acres planted in corn, with a total production of 1,754,591,676 bushels. This makes the average yield per acre 28-13 bushels, and as the average price per bushel was 42-6 cents, the average value of the crop per acre was $11.98. The average valuation of the land upon which this corn was planted was $19.02.
There were, in 1880, 16,144,593 acres in oats, yielding 407,858,999 bushels, which gives 25-26 bushels per acre, commanding an average price of 35.3 cents per bushel, which makes the value of the grain per acre $8.91.
The same year there were 35,430,333 acres in wheat that produced 459,483,137 bushels, average yield 12.96 bushels per acre, average price per bushel 104.9 cents, value of wheat per acre, $13.59.
Of rice, 174,173 acres were sowed, producing 110,131,- 373 pounds ; average yield per acre, 632 pounds ; value per acre of rice, $42.66. These are the average prices obtained for the preceding ten years, as compiled by the United States Commissioner of Agriculture.
There were 14,480,019 acres in cotton cultivation in 1879, according to the census of 1880, yielding 5,755,359 bales of cotton, the average value of one acre being $22.68. Of tobacco, the acreage was 631,061 acres, producing
317
COMPARATIVE VALUATION OF LANDS.
469,816,203 pounds. Cost of production is estimated at $6.05 a hundred pounds ; average value of one acre, $26.28. The following statements, taken from the "Report of the Commissioner of Agriculture," give information as follows :
In the year 1884, the number of acres of land cultivated for cotton was 17,439,612, the number of bales of cotton produced was 5,682,000, the value of the cotton being $253,- 993,385. The average value per acre for cotton was $14.56, the yield was thirty-three hundredths of a bale to the acre, and the average value of the land was $6.40 per acre.
The total production of corn, in 1884, was 7,875,970,538 bushels ; the total number of acres under cultivation was 330,225,082 ; the total valuation of the crop was $3,521,- 850,889 ; the average value per bushel was 44-7 cents ; the average yield per acre in bushels was 23.9. The average value of the yield per acre for each year was $10.67; and the annual average for the ten years preceding was $11.54. The average price for five years was 44.7 cents ; for the ten preceding years, 42-6 cents. The average value, which was $504,571,048 for ten years, is $704,370,178 for the five years since 1879, an increase of almost 40 per cent.
The statement for wheat, for the five years ending in 1884, shows the total production in bushels to have been 2,319,866,588; acres planted, 188,694,409; total value of the crop, $2,090,195,934; average value per bushel, 90.1 cents ; and average value of yield per acre, $11.08.
The Commissioner, in his report, remarks that "the value of an acre of wheat averaged only $8.38 for the year 1884 on an average yield of thirteen bushels, the lowest re- turn of which there is any record, and a figure lower than the accredited estimates of the cost of production. It may confidently be assured, therefore, that there is no profit in wheat production at present prices. But there is a class of farmers who made a profit on wheat in 1884. Those who secured twenty-five bushels per acre, or twenty, obtained a
318
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
small profit, provided the cost of fertilizers was not too large an element of it."
After carefully considering these statements of the most important crops in the United States, it is cheerful to be able to consider the benefits and profits of what would be a very small farm in the East-that is, a ten or twenty acre vineyard or orchard, in Southern California. But it is facts and figures that convey the true meaning to those who are unaware of the large profits that appear to be derived, with such a small outlay of capital and labor, and such is given in the following statements in regard to the cultivation and production of the various fruits, etc., of Southern California, which were obtained from statements of the producers themselves. In the production of grapes, the most impor- tant of which is the raisin-grape, the following is the acreage in the five counties comprising Southern California in the present year compared with that of last year :
COUNTIES.
Acreage, 1886.
Acreage, 1897.
Los Angeles
15,560
17,120
Santa Barbara
900
1,125
Ventura.
380
456
San Diego
774
1,000
San Bernardino
3,470
4,080
Total
21,556
24,333
Improved land for the business of cultivating raisin- grapes is valued at from $100 to $500 per acre, the third year yielding $25 per acre, the fourth year $50 per acre, the fifth year $100 per acre, and when the vines are in full bearing, from $100 to $300 per acre. The vineyards of California yield from six to eight tons per acre in full bear- ing, while in Malaga, the yield is less than two and a half tons to the acre. Statistics show that California is furnish- ing for home consumption a little more than a third of the
319
COMPARATIVE VALUATION OF LANDS.
amount of raisins imported, and it will be years before the vineyards of Southern California will be able to raise enough for the use of the people of the United States. Raisins are put up in five, ten, and twenty pound boxes, and the following is the out-put from the year 1875 up to the present time, the year 1887 being estimated at 1,000,000 full boxes, or twenty million pounds ; for the year 1875 there were 11,000 boxes ; 1876, 19,000 boxes ; 1877, 32,000 boxes ; 1878, 48,000 boxes ; 1879, 65,000 boxes ; 1880, 75,000 boxes ; 1881, 90,000 boxes ; 1882, 115,000 boxes ; 1883, 125,- 000 boxes ; 1884, 175,000 boxes ; 1885, 500,000 boxes ; 1886, 703,000 boxes ; and in 1887, 1,000,000 boxes. The foreign importation of raisins to the United States for the year 1884 amounted to 53,700,000 pounds. A raisin-vineyard costs very little more than a crop of corn for cultivating and handling, and yields a sure crop every year. Assum- ing that the vineyard is five years old, and the raisin-pro- ducer does no work, and all the labor has to be paid for, the bill of expenses and receipts will be about like this, if proper judgment be used : The total expense of cultivating an acre of grapes is $15 ; the curing and packing of an acre of grapes, making 100 boxes of raisins, is $55. Five-year- old vines will average from 100 to 150 boxes per acre. The average price for raisins for the past four years has been about $1.60 per box. Placing the price at $1.50 per box for the four grades, we have a total net profit of $95 per acre. Many vineyards do better than this, and it is given as a low estimate. Occasional vineyards have been known to produce grapes enough the second year after planting to pay ex- pense of cultivation.
Ten acres of vines for raisins, after they are in full bear- ing, will provide a competency for a family, and is land enough for any man of moderate means to cultivate. It is three years before the vineyard commences to pay for the cultivation, and from that time on, if well cultivated, will
320
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
yield on an average four tons to the acre. At fourteen years the vines are in full bearing and the yield is much larger.
The President of the California Horticultural Society gives the following figures, showing the cost of one acre of wine-grapes :
Plowing twice before planting, at $2 $4 00
Harrowing and pulverizing the same
50
Cuttings (1,000 vines, 6 feet apart). 5 00
Planting, per acre
2 00
Two plowings after planting. 3 00
Cultivation and final pulverization
50
Total cost, end of first year $15 00
Pruning, per acre.
$1 00
Plowing twice, at $1.50
3 00
Cultivating twice, at 50 cents
1 CO
Hoeing near the vine
1 00
Total cost, second year $6 00
Pruning the vines and removing the wood $2 50
Plowing twice
3 00
Cultivation twice
1 00
Hoeing near vine
1 50
Total cost, third year
$8 00
The above estimate was probably made from the plant- ing of a very large vineyard, and in estimating smaller tracts it may be doubled with safety.
The following appears to be the situation of viticulture in France in the year 1884, as stated in the statistics of the Minister of Agriculture of France : "Out of a total area of 5,967,263 acres planted in vines before the appearance of the phylloxera, 1,886,583 acres have entirely disappeared, and 1,588,155 acres are seriously attacked. At the present moment we have left but a little over 2,470,000 acres of vineyards. Fortunately, or otherwise, the departments that
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