28 
ime; and many farmers are sowing all their land in wheat, with exception of small plats 
hat they require in other grains, for their own use. 
So far the winter has been most favorable for planting, and I believe that at the present 
time as many acres are already in wheat as produced the entire crop of 1867. I judge that 
there will be fully 150,000 acres of new land put in wheat before the season passes; and, 
unless very adverse weather prevails, the crop of wheat in California, in 1868, will be fully 
30,000,000 bushels, which will make her the first wheat-producing State of the Union. 
This will, doubtless, seem strange to the people of the Atlantic States, who have looked 
upon California as most valuable fer her mineral wealth; but I predict that in less than a 
decade she will, in agricultural wealth, be the richest State, for her products are more 
varied and valuable than can be found in any similar area of land in the Union. 
The great want of California, at present, is population, for there is room, and profitable 
employment, for 100,000 additional workers, within the coming year. 
Give the necessary population, and California will astonish the world with the variety, 
quantity, and value of her agricultural products. 
As you will see by reference to the statistics, in the first portion of this letter, we are mak- 
ing great progress in the production of hops, silk, butter, cheese, wool, wine, and brandy, 
while the cultivation of semi-tropical fruits, olives, and nuts, is attracting considerable 
attention. . 
From extensive personal observation derived the past year, I am inclined to agree with 
the opinion of the surveyor general, that scarcely a single product he has named in the list 
is reported in sufficient quantity. The number of vines, and the amount of wine made, I 
feel certain are largely understated. As an illustration, Sonoma county is put down as hay- 
ing only 2,830,195 vines, and made 199,030 gallons wine. I happened to be in Sonoma 
valley last October, when the township assessor had just completed his assessment of vine- 
yards, aud heard him state that he only assessed vineyards as having 600 vines per acre, 
and did not count the cuttings of 1866 at all. I visited most of the vineyards in the valley, 
and found that there were from 660 to 1,400 vines planted to the acre, or, on an ayerage, 
fully 900 vines—just one-half larger quantity than had been assessed. I had occasion, a 
short time since. to make inquiry regarding the wine crop of Sonoma valley, for 1866, of 
Arpad Haraszthy, formerly of that place, but now of San Francisco. Mr. Haraszthy made 
a memoranda of the vintages of the principal wine-growers in the township, which footed up 
360,000 gallons, for 1866, and calculated there must have been considerable more made in 
small lots, which he could not remember. Sonoma township makes from two-thirds to 
three-fourths of the wine produced in the county, which would make the latter about 500,000 
gallons, instead of 199,030 gallons, reported. 
Of the other crops of 1867, the following quantities have been received in San Francisco 
up to date, (December 26,) viz: 
Barley, 379,123 sacks, 100 pounds each ; oats, 182,356 sacks, 100 poundseach ; and 350,781 
sacks potatoes, the sacks averaging 140 pounds each. 
With exception of potatoes, all the above are consumed in this city, or exported, the other 
portions of the State producing their own supplies, besides shipping largely to other points, 
by land, in Nevada and adjoining Territories. 
The above is but a slight sketch of the productions of California, of which her people feel 
justly proud. The total population of the State, in 1866, was estimated at 470,597. Of these, 
fully 130,000 were in this city, 12,000 in Sacramento, 5,000 in Marysville, 6,000 in Stockton, 
3,000 each in San José, Santa Clara, Nevada City, Grass Valley, and Placerville; making a 
total of 168,000 people in nine towns. ‘The other interior towns, villages, mining camps, 
the inland and coast navigation, and railroads in course of construction, will absorb fully 
100,000 more; leaving an agricultural population (counting men, women, and children) 
of about 200,000, who have produced the amount of articles derived from the soil as before 
stated. If any similar number of farming population in any other State of the Union have 
or can make as good a showing as the result of their industry, the people of California would 
like to know it, when they will try again. 
From the San Francisco Commercial Herald and Market Review we extract 
some valuable and interesting statistics of the crops of California for the past 
year as compared with the preceding year. ‘The total receipts and exports of 
wheat, flour, oats, and barley of San Francisco for the year ending December 
31, 1867, foot up as follows: 
Receipts. Exports. 
aylidat’; .\.< sie) lL eae Bere 9 2 sacks..-... . 6, 603, 676 4, 659, 285 
0 RS a sy RRA oe PARE aay Yet enh barrels...... 470, 388 519, 309 
2S ae ore bots ice ici ete meeiet ace sacks...... 261, 363 ‘10, 782 
PI TMMIE ola 2 Lola ve win 'n Ulan eoteen eye Wie sacks...... 725, 783 68, 232 
