4 EESOURCES OF C A L I F O E JS^ I A. 



Having thus considered the mountains, let us look into the 

 valleys of the coast. The flat land west of the San Bernardino 

 Mountains, south of 34°, is rather composed of plains than of 

 valleys, though watered by the San Gabriel, Los Angeles, 

 Santa Ana, and other rivers. There are two of these plains : 

 the lower one about two hundred and fifty feet above the sea, 

 and skirting the coast ; the other one thousand or twelve hun- 

 dred feet high, nearer the mountains. On the lower plain are 

 Los Angeles, Anaheim, and San Pedro ; on the upper are San 

 Fernando, San Bernardino, Cocomongo, Jurupa, Temescal, 

 and Temecula. Northward of 34° we find long, flat, narrow, 

 fertile valleys, shut in by steep, rugged hills. We have already 

 mentioned the names of many of these valleys, as dividing cer- 

 tain ridges of the Coast Mountains from each other. South 

 of the Salinas all these valleys open upon the ocean, save the 

 Cuyama valley, the river of which runs in a caiion through 

 mountains as it approaches its mouth. The Pajaro River 

 breaks through the Gabilan Mountains, and makes a small but 

 rich valley. The average width of these coast valleys is five 

 miles at the mouth, with a length of from ten to forty miles, 

 narrowing to a point near the head in the mountains. The 

 Salinas valley, the .largest of all the coast valleys, is ninety 

 miles long, and from eight to fourteen wide. Three terraces 

 are distinctly traceable on each side of the river. The first 

 and lowest is about four miles wide, with a sort of a rich, 

 sandy loam ; the second rises with an abrupt edge, is eleven 

 feet higher, has about two miles of width on each side, and 

 has a coarser, poorer soil ; the third terrace is less regular in 

 height and width, and has a coarse, gravelly soil, scarcely fit 

 for cultivation. This terraced formation, with its variations 

 in richness of soil, is a strongly-marked feature of many valleys 

 in the state. Ordinarily, the coast valleys are separated from 

 each other by steep, rugged mountain-ridges, but there are 

 occasional exceptions. Thus, there is a low plain between 

 Russian River and Santa Rosa valley, which opens into Sono- 

 ma and Petulama valleys; and again, the Santa Clara and 



