1903 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



1 1 



$1,000,000 a year. With the present 

 condition of the orchards an income 

 twice as large may be expected. Dur- 

 ing the season 1897-' 98 4,000 car-loads 

 of citrus fruits were shipped from River- 

 side, while in 1899 the annual yield was 

 said to be one-third of the entire output 

 of the state. Previous to the application 

 of water this section was a poor sheep 

 pasture, worth hardly 75 cents an acre. 

 With regard to individual profits, a 

 man should average 10 per cent on his 

 investment at the end of fifteen years ; 

 but if the conditions are modified by a 

 lack of water supply, destructive frosts, 

 or low grade of trees, the profits may 

 be much reduced. It costs in the neigh- 

 borhood of $900 an acre to get a citrus 

 orchard in bearing condition, including 

 land, water, and interest on the invest- 

 ment. Under favorable conditions a 

 ten-year-old orchard should produce 

 $200 gross and $100 net per acre. When 

 all conditions are satisfactory it takes 

 five or more years of hard, patient, and 



intelligent work to place an orchard on 

 a paying basis ; so it will readily be 

 seen that it is not a poor man's business, 

 but is subject to the stern laws of the 

 survival of the fittest, as are other lines 

 of enterprise. When, however, success 

 comes, life in this region is ideal a 

 country life in a pleasant land among 

 golden fruit and cultivated neighbors, 

 with most of the conveniences of the 

 city. 



Children The school children of 



Protest. Berkeley, California, the 



seat of the State Uni- 

 versity, recently sent a letter to the 

 President protesting against the indis- 

 criminate destruction of young timber 

 by the lumber companies of California. 

 The letter was referred by the President 

 to the Department of the Interior. It 

 is in the form of a petition headed by 

 Alexis L,abourdette and signed by more 

 than 300 children, who have evidently 



CONNECTION BETWEEN TUNNEL AND FLUME OF SANTA ANA CANAL, CALIFORNIA. 



