43 



COUNTRY NORTH OF THE AMERICAN RIVER. 



The district of country lying north of the American River was entered upon in 

 the early part of October. The examinations were carried through the upper por 

 tions of the county of Yolo, through the west part of Placer, through S utter, and 

 crossing the Feather River, was pursued through the counties of Colusi, Shasta, 

 portions of Trinity, the eastern part of Klamath nearly to Sisldyou. Returning to the 

 southward again, the eastern side of the River Sacramento was followed, through 

 the counties of Butte and Yuba. 



I shall confine myself first to the observations made in the more exclusively 

 agricultural portions of this part of the State, and subsequently to the mining coun< 

 ties beyond and upon the upper sections of the Sacramento River and Valley. 



What has been said of the physical geography of the mountains forming the bor 

 ders of the great valley is equally applicable to a large part of that section under 

 consideration, and wherever any material differences occur they will be noticed in 

 the course of our remarks upon this region. The lower bottoms of the Sacramento 

 Valley, over which the principal traveled road now runs, have an ascending scale of 

 about five feet per mile from the city of Sacramento to the junction of the Pitt 

 River, the distance between these points being about the same as that between Sac 

 ramento and the town of Shasta, ard nearly on the same level. The principal agri 

 cultural lands of this part of the valley lie upon these bottoms, which in the county 

 of Colusi are often of several miles in width on both sides of the river. As we 

 advance towards the coast mountains in this county, and also in the south-west part 

 of Shasta, we immediately enter upon an elevated plateau, which apparently extends 

 to the base of the mountains to the west. This plateau, or more properly speak 

 ing, middle terrace of the valley has an ascending grade towards the mountains 

 much more rapid than the lower bottoms, its altitude above the latter varies from 

 60 to 70 feet, and the ascent to its top is usually quite abrupt. As this terrace ad 

 vances towards the west, another table is heen to ascend from its surface, exceeding 

 this middle terrace in height, beyond which the heavier rolling hills, constituting 

 the base of the coast mountains commence, and which in a short distance terminate 

 in rugged and elevated ridges. 



Throughout the county of Colusi, and also for a short distance and to the south 

 part of the county of Shasta, this middle terrace contains a large area of arable 

 land, differing materially from its equivalent in the more southern portions of the 

 same valley producing there but a limited vegetation and being composed of coarse, 

 harsh gravelly soil. These peculiar characteristics of the middle section of the 

 plain are carried southward from the vicinity of Red Bluffs for a distance of ninety 

 miles, when they gradually come to partake of the sterile features above noticed, 

 and which are carried into the western part of the county of Yolo, on the same line 

 of elevation above tide level. 



On this middle plateau is situated some of the best land for farming purposes to 

 be found in this part of the State. The soil has been derived from the mountains 

 of trapean rocks which constitute the eastern ridges of the coast chain, and is com 

 posed of a soft loam mixed with little sand, and the detritus of a few of the slate 

 rocks which are found in comparatively small quantities along the base of these 

 ridges. The almost total absence of the granitic rocks, which are usually productive 

 of harsh, dry and uncongenial soils, unless modified by particular local circumstan 

 ces, and the admixture of the extensive limestones which stretch from across the 

 Pitt River and appear in the mountains to the west renders the lands of these coun 

 ties peculiarly adapted to the culture of the grain and root crops, and desirable to 

 the farming population of the country. The constituents of these lands renders 



