USA > California > San Francisco County > San Francisco > San Francisco, a history of the Pacific coast metropolis, Volume II > Part 37
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This state of affairs created uneasiness throughout the whole country, par- ticularly in railroad centers. The ferment in San Francisco was very marked and caused much uneasiness, but no overt acts were committed in the City other than the seizure and stoppage of the ferry steamers of the broad and narrow gauge lines of the Southern Pacific. A resisting engineer was killed, but the railroad officials made no resistance, and even advised the telegraph operators on the Oakland mole to abandon their stations to avoid friction. The closure of the ferries occurred on the Fourth of July, and the result was the practical interrup- tion of all traffic. Much fruit was wasted, and great losses occurred in conse- quence. There were no mails for several days, and the excitement became intense as the conditions grew worse in the East. On the 6th of July there was desperate rioting in Chicago and on the 7th the police fired upon the mobs in that city, and on the next day the soldiers were forced to take the same stand.
In Sacramento an equally desperate condition was created. H. A. Knox, who was at the head of the American Railway Union in that city, announced that
Railroad Riots of 1894
Riot and Disorder in Chicago
Trouble in Sacramento
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SAN FRANCISCO
the strike would not be raised unless the Pullman Company returned to the rate of wages paid in 1893, and demanded that unless this was done the Southern Pacific should abrogate its contract with the sleeping car organization. On the 9th of July the situation appeared so grave that the regulars at San Francisco were ordered to cooperate with the militia. In one or two cases companies of the latter had refused to respond to the call to suppress the riots at Sacramento, and federal troops were dispatched to that city. On July 11th a train containing a number of soldiers who were en route to Sacramento was wrecked and five were killed. This occurred near the capital and was caused by loosening a rail, and weakening the timbers of a trestle over which the train had to pass. The dastardly act was undoubtedly instigated by Knox, as was shown at a trial subsequently held in Yolo county in which he was accused of the crime. He and a man named Warden, although the proof against them was strong, were not convicted, the jury disagreeing. On the day following the wrecking of the train regular troops reached Sacramento, and on the 13th they fired into a crowd which would not leave the freight yards of the Southern Pacific when ordered to do so. One man was killed and another wounded in this collision. On the 15th the Pullman strik- ers declared their readiness to abandon the strike, and on the same day a train was wrecked on the western division of the Central Pacific road. On the 22d of July the strike was declared off.
It is perhaps unwise to introduce vexed economic questions into a narrative of events in San Francisco, but it may serve to emphasize the fact that men are apt to err in their judgment respecting the causes which produce business depres- sions or create the opposite condition of prosperity by calling attention to certain phenomena. If a consensus of opinion at any particular time has value, that ex- isting in 1894 may be quoted to show that the belief was very general at that time that the low prices which rendered production unprofitable was at the bot- tom of the troubles of the period. The attempt to reduce wages on the Pullman system was defended, so far as any attempt was made by the corporation to ex- plain its position, on the ground that the depression had caused such a falling off of traffic that such a step was rendered necessary. At the same time it was ac- companied by a showing that the cost of living had greatly declined, and that the proposed reduction was more than offset by the lessened price of all sorts of con- sumable goods. The price lists of the period between 1873 and 1894 fully sub- stantiate this claim, but they will not be quoted here, and the fact is merely referred to in order to emphasize the assertion that human judgment is fallible, and that men are very apt to err when they disregard the experiences of the past in their effort to find an explanation of present troubles.
There are so many factors in the progress or retrogression of communities, it is impossible to decide with certainty which operate the most potently. It is not improbable that the one least regarded, or sometimes most deprecated, may be the really important one contributing to the growth of a city in wealth. For some years prior to 1893 the city of Los Angeles had been attracting attention because of its pronounced change of attitude towards all that was practical. It had in earlier years been almost a negligible factor in the history and growth of California. Its own people had fallen into the habit of deriding the very optim- ism which subsequently made it the wonder city of California, and of the nation. But a change came over their spirit, and years after San Diego had sought to
Transmuting Climate Into Gold
Low Prices Canse of Troubles
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convert climate into cash, Los Angeles with the aid of her orange trees suc- ceeded where her more southerly rival had failed. The lure of the citrus grove soon made itself felt. It proved as powerful an appeal to the imagination of the Middle West, as Goethe's pictures of Italy, as the land where the orange blossom grows did to sentimental Germans. But the strangers from Iowa, Wisconsin and the other states that have contributed so largely to the growth of Los Angeles carried with them to their new home something else than their imagination. They took with them the spirit of enterprise, and the dolce far niente feeling vanished be- fore it as the snow does when kissed by the ardent sun. Los Angeles, from the slow- est place on the footstool was suddenly converted into the briskest. There was a real boom, but it was based on something else than mere talk. The boomers traded in prospects, but the purchasers were not deceived. They bought climate and they transmuted it into gold.
San Francisco had so long occupied the center of the stage in California that some of her people had come to imagine that any one seeking to share it with her was an intruder, and some were so shortsighted that they fancied the rivalry con- tained a menace, but the number of that sort was comparatively few. Many of the prominent business men of San Francisco seized the opportunity to extend their operations in the growing town, and the visiting San Franciscans saw many familiar signs on the prominent streets and realized that what appeared to be rivalry was merely expansion from which all who were smart enough to do so would be able to profit. But this recognition did not soften the criticism of the interior press which was decidedly disposed to indulge in injurious comparisons, and did not hesitate to say that San Francisco was suffering from the retention of pioneer habits of doing business, and that it would not move forward until it shook them off and adopted methods more in consonance with those of the close of the century. The thrusts of the critics were sharp, and while their effect was not noted at the time they undoubtedly contributed much to the awakening of the spirit which toward the close of the Nineties superseded that which the dollar limit and the general disposition to take things as they came had fastened on the City for many years.
The reawakening which followed 1895 was by no means an abandonment of the conservatism which had always marked the development of the City. If there was a boom San Franciscans refused to recognize it by that name; nor did they consent to adopt methods which were pursued in the rival city. They realized that the value of real estate was beginning to appreciate with rapidity, but they persisted in their sober fashion of recording transfers without attempting to adver- tise the advance. Nominal considerations were expressed in deeds and the tricks of the inflationist were avoided. These quiet methods, however, did not conceal the change that was occurring. There were plenty of transactions, the signifi- cance of which were appreciated abroad as well as at home, and the erstwhile critics were impelled to remark that the City was "getting a move on." Curiously enough these critics did not seem to realize that San Franciscans were not profit- ing at the expense of rivals, but profiting because there were rivals and because the rivalry was filling up not only the state but all the region along the Pacific coast upon which the development of San Francisco depends, and without which the City could never occupy the great position destiny had marked out for her. Vol. 11-17
San Francisco Subjected to Criticism
Rivalry Promotes Growth of City
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SAN FRANCISCO
Growth of Northern Coast Cities
One of the misconceptions of this sort which arose in the middle of the Nineties was that growing out of the rush to the Klondike which did so much to promote the development of Seattle and other cities of the Pacific Northwest. As in the case of Los Angeles ill natured critics remarked the obvious fact that the Sound cities were growing with great rapidity, and drew the conclusion that their growth was at the expense of San Francisco, ignoring what was patent to all observers, that the prosperity of Seattle, Portland, Tacoma and the other assumed rivals was contributing to the prosperity of the metropolis. At the time attention was wholly concentrated on the direct trade which suddenly developed. It had its spectacular features, and it is not surprising that a people once accustomed to monopolizing the fruits, as well as suffering the injuries from mining rushes, should have over- looked the contingent possibilities in considering those immediately apparent.
The Hunt for Minerals in Alaska
From the time of the acquisition of Alaska San Francisco had been the chief factor in the development of its resources. The capital for exploiting the fur seal and fisheries industries had been supplied by business men of the City, and the commerce created was largely enjoyed by its merchants. There was a great deal of confidence in the mineral possibilities of the new territory, and consider- able prospecting had been done at intervals long before the discoveries made in the Klondike region of British Columbia. As early as 1867 a man named Culver had found gold in the neighborhood of the Taku inlet, but on attempting to lead a party to the place where he had made the discovery, his mind, owing to hard- ships previously endured, gave way, and he was unable to relocate his find. In 1879 placer gold was found by Joe Juneau and Dick Harris near Silver Bow not far from Taku, and there was a rush to that place and something like $150,000 was taken out. Several years later silver prospects were found on Galivan bay and an expedition was fitted out in this City by Captain A. M. Brown, to work the mine, but the falling price of the white metal put a damper on the enterprise.
Discovery of Gold in the Klondike
The hardy prospectors were confident that plenty of gold existed in the interior, but the warlike Chilkoots interposed obstacles to their search for the metal, and it was not until 1880 that they managed to cross the mountain range which was named after that Indian tribe. In the Eighties there were several important discoveries, and after the year 1886 men were taking out $100 on the American side of the line, but the output was not on a scale important enough to arouse the attention of the world until about ten years later. In 1896 a squaw man named George Carmack while prospecting a "moose pasture" in the Klon- dike country found a creek filled with nuggets. The report of his find spread rapidily but was received with incredulity by many of the prospectors in Alaska. There were some, however, who believed the story and made their way to the newly reported diggings. They were extremely fortunate and a year later when they reached San Francisco with a half a million in gold dust and nuggets a rush at once ensued.
The Rush to the New Mines
By the middle of August, 1897, the rush was under full headway. Despite the changes in the City since the days of the Fraser river excitement, many venture- some men in the community were lured by the prospects, and parties were fitted out to brave the hazards of the new region. The newspapers sent special corre- spondents to describe the scenes, and report conditions, but the accounts they sent back of many difficulties which had to be overcome in reaching the new golconda, although accompanied by photographs which vividly supported their narrations,
THE
ALTUR
PIONEER FOUNTAIN, MASON AND MARKET STREETS, BEFORE THE FIRE
DRAUGHT-
ABOTTLE
ROW OF BUILDINGS AT ELLIS AND TAYLOR STREETS BEFORE THE FIRE Compare with the new buildings in that district
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SAN FRANCISCO
had no deterrent effect and the excitement continued to increase. The first ob- jective of these parties was usually the Klondike, but it was not long before at- tention was directed to the entire region, and adventurous men were exploring in every direction. The country hordering on the Arctic was penetrated and the conviction grew rapidly that the entire Alaskan region was well mineralized. During the continuance of the Klondike rush the scenes of the earlier days were in a measure revived in San Francisco. Men in miners' costumes could be seen on the streets, and the talk was all about the marvelous finds and the prospects of Alaska proving another California. The stories of the adventures and hardships endured by the prospectors printed in the daily press and duly illustrated formed the principal topic of conversation, and interested everybody, because San Fran- cisco had contributed a great proportion of the large number who had made their way to the remote diggings.
The effect on business was very marked. There was an enhanced demand for many of the peculiar products of California, and while the Puget Sound ports at once came into prominence because of their proximity, and enjoyed a remark- ยท able development in consequence, their good fortune was by no means at the expense of the metropolis, for the indirect traffic with Alaska continued to expand while the direct trade with the growing states of Washington and Oregon grew still more rapidly. The creation of this new commerce, while vastly beneficial to San Francisco and the whole Pacific coast, was by no means the only benefit derived from the discovery of the Klondike placers and the subsequent opening of the different gold fields in Alaska. Far more important was the result of the attention which was drawn to resources other than the precious metals. Very soon it began to be realized that the fisheries of the waters of the territory were inexhaustible sources of wealth, whose output could be made to rival those of the placer diggings and the quartz mines which were known to exist, and some of which were being opened and later developed into producers on a large scale. It took but a few years to bring the nation to a realization of the importance of Alaska. But while the people generally have some acquaintance with its value, and have made some use of its resources, bungling theorists have placed obstacles in the way of their development which is reserved for the future.
The Alaskan discoveries and the development of trade with that territory had been preceded by a revival of interest in gold mining in California. Specu- lation in mining stocks had almost ceased during the Eighties, and in 1901 the professionals practically gave up the game. In that year the Pacific Stock Exchange building and lot which had cost $644,000 when erected during the Com- stock boom was offered for sale for $400,000, but owing to some complications caused by the improper draughting of the articles of incorporation no purchaser could be found. These hindrances were finally disposed of and the property was sold in 1893 for $300,000, and a dividend of $3,200 for each seat was declared. This transaction was commented upon at the time as sounding the death knell of mining speculation in California, but there was a subsequent revival in 1905 when the discoveries in the Tonopah, Nevada, region gave a renewed impetus to the buying and selling of mining stocks, and the seats of brokers in the Pacific Board of Brokers which had sold at $500 and even as low as $200 advanced in value until they were appraised as high as $5,750.
Alaska's Varied Resources
Mild Revival of Mining Speculations
734
SAN FRANCISCO
Although there were no speculative features connected with the mining indus- try during the interval between the collapse of the Sierra Nevada boom and the Tonopah revival in 1905 the work of taking out gold proceeded, and while the output of the earlier years, when the placers were yielding their riches, was no longer approached the mines were steadily contributing to the wealth of the state. In the legislature of 1875-76 the agricultural interests of the Sacramento valley started a crusade against hydraulic mining which subsequently resulted in putting an end to that method of obtaining gold. A special commission ap- pointed at the instance of the legislature of 1877-8 made an investigation of the complaints which were chiefly directed against the practice of filling the streams with detritus, thus causing floods with accompanying destruction of lands by cov- ering them with "slickens." It was also claimed that there was an impairment of the navigability of the Sacramento and its tributaries due to hydraulicking operations. In 1881 Governor Perkins sent a special message to the legislature in which he described the ineffectual methods adopted to deal with the evil. Dams had been built which were designed to restrain the debris, but they were washed out and finally, after litigation inaugurated by antagonistic farmers the supreme . court decided in their favor, and the practice of washing down mountain sides with the powerful monitors had to be abandoned.
No gold was derived through hydraulic methods for many years, but the precious metal was known to exist in many places, and after a period of attempted evasions of the processes of the courts ingenious men set to work to devise other means of extracting it from the gravel beds. Many machines were tried and in 1898 the present dredger, which is doing such efficient work, began to be used. The machine is a large and expensive affair, some of those in use costing as much as a quarter of a million dollars. Their method of operation has entirely removed the objectionable feature of filling the streams with debris, but the soil they work over presents the appearance of a field of boulders after the gold has been washed out. The question has been raised whether this alleged destruction of more or less fertile soil is compensated for by the gold that is obtained, but as the dredgers are worked wholly on land acquired by purchase the courts have not sought to interfere with the process. It is claimed that the worked over lands may be re- fertilized, and that they can be used for fruit growing. Experiments to demon- strate that this can be done have been made near Oroville and they have been attended with a degree of success. The gold product of the state, which had fallen as low as $11,212,913 in 1889, and remained almost stationary for several years, began to increase after 1893, when it was a little over twelve millions. In 1895 the output reached $15,334,317, and an annual average of about that amount was maintained until 1901 when the product reached $16,989,044, and in the year immediately preceding the fire it was close to twenty millions.
A great deal of the capital invested in the hydraulicking operations was sup- plied by San Franciscans, and their interests sometimes came in conflict with those which should have been considered paramount. The reports of engineers and hydrographic surveyors clearly established that the so called "slickens" or debris was responsible for shoaling the upper reaches of the bay, thus diminish- ing the tidal prison. The appreciation of this fact, and the recognition of the in- jury done to the overflowed area brought about a change of attitude, and the vari- ous civic bodies of the City arrayed themselves on the side of the protesting farmer.
Hydraulic Mining Stopped by Courts
Successful Gold Dredging Operations
San Francisco and the Hydraulic Mines
735
SAN FRANCISCO
The sentiment in favor of unrestricted mining was very strong in San Francisco, and arguments were advanced to controvert the charge that "slickens" was respon- sible for the mischief to the rivers and bay, and figures were cited to prove that the gold extracted added more to the wealth of the state than was destroyed by hy- draulicking. When driven from hydraulicking the mining instinct asserted itself in other ways, and now the industry is carried on without exciting any serious antagonisms and the production of gold is steadily maintained and is even increasing.
In 1890 California produced minerals to the value of $18,039,666. Up to that date the chief and nearly the sole product of the mines was the gold derived from placers or quartz. It may be added that an overwhelming proportion was obtained from the region north of the Tehachapi, and that the exploitation and working of the mineral resources was principally with San Francisco capital or capital obtained through the instrumentality of San Franciscans. About 1894 a steady improvement in miscellaneous mining began to manifest itself, and the output at the end of each succeeding year showed an increase. In 1898 the value of all minerals mined in the state had increased to $27,289,079; two years later the yield was $32,622,945, and in 1905, the year before the great fire, it was $43,069,- 227. As the gold yield in the last named year was only $19,197,043, the addition to the product represents a great change in the industry. This transition began in the late Eighties, when numerous metals whose production theretofore was not on a sufficiently large scale to attract attention began to be noted. In 1887 the output of copper was first reported. In that year the product was given at 1,600,- 000 pounds, valued at $192,000; in 1897 the quantity produced had increased to 13,638,626 pounds and the value to $1,540,666, and at the time of the fire the product was nearly 40,000,000 pounds. Borax, asphalt, bituminous rock, salt and cement were being turned out in constantly increasing quantities, adding greatly to the revenues of the people, and contributing largely to that confidence which began to assert itself, and which was based on a recognition of the fact that the resources of the state were numerous and almost illimitable in extent.
It may be said in a general way that as a mineral producer the region south of the Tehachapi until late in the Eighties was not regarded as of much consequence. Although the existence of oil in that section was known, and tentative efforts to develop it had been made at several places in the south, it was not until near the end of the decade that production on a commercial scale was achieved. The devel- opment was due to the energy of the newcomers who were bent on exploiting every resource, and their success attracted great attention, and later stimulated the search in the country north of the range, which resulted in the finds that eventually put California at the head of the oil producing states. In 1887 the output had already reached 678,572 barrels. The production increased steadily after that year until the value of the output at the time of the fire exceeded that of the gold produced in the state. In 1906 40,311,171 barrels of oil were produced, valued at $16,782,- 943, an amount reckoned at the time to exceed that of the output of the precious metal by several thousand dollars.
It would be impossible to overestimate the stimulating effect of these various contributory causes upon the local industries, but those already described scarcely equaled in importance that produced by the growing conviction that the agricul- tural possibilities of the state were illimitable, and that the increasing prosperity of the nation would give Californians a market which would absorb all their products.
Great Expansion of General Mining Industry
Remarkable Growth of Oil Produc- tion
Expansion of Agricultural Industry
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SAN FRANCISCO
There had been for a long time what might be termed a passive optimism concern- ing the future, but this began to be exchanged after 1895 for an active and insistent belief that the state would fill up with an industrious population. It exhibited itself in such bold claims as that made in a San Francisco paper that California was destined to be inhabited by as many people as France, and these were backed up by statistics which amply supported the, optimistic conclusions of a corps of writers composed of business men, professors in the universities and the staff of the journal which printed the prophecies. These all showed a rapid expansion of production in every field of industry after 1893 and the predictions made were borne out by the event. The yield of prunes, which had grown to 52,180,000 pounds in 1893, in 1900 was 174,000,000 and in 1902 it reached 195,000,000 pounds. In 1880 it was 180,000,000 pounds. Peaches, apricots, pears, plums, nectarines, figs, dried grapes, hops, walnuts and almonds all showed great increases ; but the most impressive expansion was in those fruits to which the soil of the state is particularly adapted. The seasonal year 1893-4 witnessed shipments of 5,270 carloads of oranges or 1,407,740 boxes, and 145 of lemons, representing 48,430 boxes. In 1897-98 the shipments of oranges had increased more than three-fold, 16,120 carloads or 5,835,440 boxes being dispatched to the East, while the 145 carloads of lemons shipped in 1893-4 had expanded to 2,410 or nearly seventeen- fold. In 1906 the shipments of oranges had reached 27,260 carloads and 5,146 carloads of lemons were shipped in the same year.
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