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CALIFORNIA. 



In the last bi-monthly report we exhibited the agricultural losses in California 

 from the drought of last winter. Our correspondent in San Luis Obispo county, 

 one of the southern counties, thus refers to these losses in his county : 



" The extreme drought of the past year has caused quite a famine in the south- 

 ern part of this State — a thing heretofore unknown in California. In f;xct, meet- 

 ings and fairs were held in San Francisco for the relief of the people of Santa 

 Barbara county, and were it not for recent mineral discoveries in this county 

 which give employment to the people, who otherwise would be suftering, our 

 condition would be no better. The causes of this destitution are failure of the 

 ci'ops and loss of stock. The number of cattle in this county October 1, 1863, 

 was estimated at 76,850 head, of which four-fifths have since died from starva- 

 tion, and unless we have early and wann rains very few Avill live over wintei'. 



"This great loss of cattle will have the effect of compelling ranclieros to sell 

 their vast ranches, or at least portions of them (for it is a very usual thing to be 

 the owner of from one to thirty leagues of land in this State, exclusively used 

 for stockj) and having changed hands, it will be reasonable to suppose that the 

 agricultural pursuits will receive an impetus. Our land is unexcelled for rich- 

 ness and productiveness, climate unequalled, and being situated immediately on 

 the coast, we have all facilities for exportation to a good market." 



This great loss of cattle, if it should result in the breaking up of these large 

 estates, would be a blessing instead of a misfortune. In referring to this depend- 

 ence on pastures for sustaining the stock, it was urged eighteen months ago by 

 this Department that all the straw of the wheat crop should be saved, with what 

 hay could be made from the wild oats, to sustain the large stock. The experi- 

 ence of western Texas and Kansas, where the eastern limit of the California dry 

 climate is found, suggested this recommendation of saving the straw. Uncer- 

 tain and long-continued droughts is incident to the dry trade-wind regions, and 

 the farmer should be prepared for them. But this cannot be done until the cul- 

 tivation of the cereals bears some proportion to the stock pastured, and this can 

 only be by a greater labor. Such labor must be found in the owner of the soil, 

 and to induce such ownership these great estates must be broken up. 



Speaking of the coming crop for 1865, our intelligent correspondent from Santa 

 Clara county says: 



" Owing to the scarcity and high price of wheat and barley, I do not think 

 two-thirds the number of acres will be sown the coming winter that were under 

 cultivation in the winter of 1862, and probably not as many acres as were sown 

 last winter, so that with a favorable season the grain crop of 1865 must in all 

 probability be small compared with former crops in good seasons. 'Most of our 

 farmers, owing to the failure of crops the past season, and the disastrous results 

 of the unprecedented drought the past summer, have but little means to farm 

 with the coming winter. Two-thirds of them cannot command capital sufficient 

 to purchase the requisite amount of seed to sow more than half the number of 

 acres usually cultivated by them. There are others (but few, however) who 

 will sow all their lands, and others, having the means, will be induced to put in 

 larger tracts of new land, should we have early rains, believing the price of grain 

 next summer will rule high." 



On the same subject, our correspondent from Stanislaus county remarks : 



" In this county and section not one-twentieth of a crop was harvested last 

 season, and this season just opened not more than one-third of the ground will 

 be seeded, because the farmers are too poor to purchase seed. One-third of the 

 cattle have perished from M'ant of feed. Sheep and hogs are the only stock 

 doing well. Of the former there are about 100,000 head in the county, produ- 

 cing an average of two and a-half pounds of wool each per annum ; their annual 



