CALIFORNIA AND WESTERING SUN 305 



To illustrate the high values of small ranches 

 I may give a few specific instances. Only the other 

 day when I wanted to sell a small house and lot in 

 town I telephoned to my friend the ProfessoY who 

 owns a fruit ranch in the Santa Clara Valley and 

 asked if he could not trade my place for such 

 property. I expected to give something to boot 



for ten acres is enough even for me now but 

 back came his answer instantly: " Oh no, Pro- 

 fessor ! That Santa Clara land is too high-priced 



$600 per acre at least. Why, I've been offered 

 $500 per acre for my own ranch of 80 acres, sixty 

 of it in prunes, cherries, peaches, olives and Eng- 

 lish walnuts, some of which are not yet in bear- 

 ing! " Incidentally I may remark that many pro- 

 fessors and school teachers in this country, and 

 some ministers own such home places. 



A few years ago my son and I were interested 

 in producing seedless raisins in Sutter County. 

 The first year raisins were sold for five cents per 

 pound and the gross receipts from them was 

 $3,000; the second year the price was nine cents 

 and gross receipts $4,000; the third year, at six 

 cents per pound the gross receipts were $3,550. 

 About one-half of the receipts goes for labor et 

 cetera and the other half for the use of the land 



