AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES 191 



On the whole, it is true that the immense fruit 

 products of California are being easily disposed of at 

 fairly remunerative rates, and the business enjoys 

 a good outlook. There is, of course, fluctuation from 

 year to year in the values of different fruits and in 

 the market conditions which they meet at distant 

 points. Such off-years strike the fruits somewhat ir- 

 regularly and are discouraging first to one special 

 grower and then to another, because localities are 

 largely given to specializing, according to favoring 

 culture conditions or otherwise. Nevertheless the 

 fruit-growing districts of California have the busiest 

 towns, the handsomest rural improvements, the larg- 

 est assessment rolls, and are most attractive to home- 

 seekers. 



THE QUEST OF SUGAR 



The different plants held to be available for sugar 

 supply are true sugar-cane, saccharine sorghums, 

 melons, beets and grapes. In the first decade of 

 American occupation about five million dollars a 

 year were paid for imported sugar either refined or 

 raw, the latter being refined in the first sugar re- 

 finery built on the coast which began operation in 

 San Francisco in 1855. The knowledge that about 

 one-tenth of all the gold annually produced at that 

 time was being expended for sugar from foreign 

 sources naturally aroused enterprise to keep the gold 

 and produce the sugar if possible and it was thought 

 at first that this would not be difficult. When the 

 American came there was true tropical cane grow- 



