94 



, " i ~ 



Of the arid land south of the Tehachapi not included in the above 

 calculation, there are at least 5,000,000 acres reclaiinable by irrigation. 



The possible arable acreage of California may be therefore set down at 

 38,000,000 acres. 



Much of the timbered slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and also 

 of the Coast Range when cleared, are suitable for the production of red 

 clover, timothy and many of the fruits of the temperate zone. Their 

 timber resources, however, are the source of great wealth, the annual 

 value of the lumber produced in the forests being estimated for several 

 years at $7,000,000 per annum. 



There is no portion of California which would not be greatly benefited 

 by the development of systems of irrigation. The valley of the Po, 

 embraced within the provinces of Lombardy, Piedmont and Valentia, in 

 Italy, comprises 5,120,000 acres, or 380,000 acres less than the arable 

 acreage of the Sacramento valley. The two valleys of the Po and the 

 Sacramento have many points in similarity. First, the area is about 

 equal. Second, the single central drainage runs through the entire 

 length of each, with lateral tributaries from the mountains on both sides. 

 The annual precipitation of rain on the valley of the Po is about twice 

 that received in the Sacramento valley. The river Po has thirty very 

 considerable tributaries. The Sacramento has ten considerable tributa- 

 ries. The arable area in acreage is in favor of the Sacramento valley. 

 Close resemblance may be observed between the fertility of the soils, 

 the clemency of winter climate, the tropical heat of the summer, the 

 facilities of transportation to the seaboard, etc., and the contiguity 

 to the seacoast. But with these, parallels cease. The population of 

 the valley of the Po exceeds 9,000,000 inhabitants, while the popula- 

 tion of the Sacramento is less than 200,000. Over 8,000,000 of the pop- 

 ulation of Italy are registered as engaged in unskilled occupations or 

 in the production of raw materials, and of these, over one-half are cred- 

 ited to the valley of the Po. Thus, over 4,000,000 of inhabitants find in 

 the irrigated area profitable employment for their labor, where over 

 a like area in California, depending wholly upon the annual precipita- 

 tion of rain, 200,000 people begin to feel what is called the pressure of 

 population. 



Reduced to cultivation by systems of irrigation, and Sacramento and 

 the San Joaquin valleys could be occupied by 20,000,000 of people, with- 

 out exceeding the density of the population of the valley of the Po. 



Concerning the coast counties, the most considerable valleys are those 

 of Salinas, Santa Clara, Napa and Sonoma; that is to say, Santa Clara, 

 Napa and Sonoma present the greatest density of rural population in 

 California. They are under the highest state of cultivation in conformity 

 with the most approved methods of agriculture and horticulture as justi- 

 fied by experience and developed by practice. They are devoted chiefly 

 to the production of wines and fruits, and while wine making and fruit 

 growing are not by any means confined to them, they furnish an excel- 

 lent illustration of the superior return made to labor by the diligent and 



