2S2 From the Ohio to the Pacific. 



wheat-fields from which the crops had been harvested. The straw was 

 of a very light color. Also, some pretty fair fields of corn. Pump- 

 kins and garden vegetables were abundant. Their crops are irrigated 

 by streams from the mountains. 



The young fruit trees looked remarkably thrifty, and bore large crops 

 of fine, smooth, perfect fruit. No appearance of insects, except the 

 ravages of the grasshoppers in June last, when nearly all the leaves of 

 the apple, and some of the plum and pear trees, had been eaten off*; 

 but not the peach, whose leaves were not touched, and the trees loaded 

 with fruit. The denuded apple trees had put out young leaves from 

 the ends of the branches ; but the apples could not ripen well, for want 

 of sufficient foliage. 



We spent a day at Salt Lake City. This city of twenty-five thou- 

 sand inhabitants has a rural appearance. The houses are surrounded 

 with ample garden room, and an abundance of shade and fruit trees. 

 The clear mountain streams run in rivulets along the sidewalks. 



Returning to the cars, we proceeded rapidly to Promontory, and from 

 thence, over the Central Pacific Railroad, to Sacramento City, the cap- 

 ital of California. There we spent a day, as it was our good fortune to 

 arrive during the State Fair. The Fair grounds, and the articles exhib- 

 ited, compared favorably with some of our western exhibitions ; but in 

 fruits and vegetables they far surpassed ours in variety, in size, and in 

 beauty, but not in quality, except the grapes. Their grapes are nearly 

 all foreign varieties. They succeed better than the American. One 

 bunch of the Victoria Muscat weighed eight pounds — several three 

 and four pounds ; some of the Bartlett pears, one and a half pounds ; 

 Easter Beurre, two pounds ; apples, two to two and a half pounds ; 

 peaches and plums as large as our largest ; quinces larger. All the 

 fruits were perfect in shape, well colored, and without the appear- 

 ance of mildew, scab, rot, or insects. Some fine lemons and a large 

 black fig were much admired. In garden vegetables, the onions, 

 beets, cabbages, and some other varieties, were much larger than with 

 us, especially the onions. 



On the Fair grounds we inet an Ohio farmer, who had been in Cali- 

 fornia six years, and asked him how he liked farming here. He said 



