THE OVEHLAND nOuTE— OGDETT TO Sa:^ I^EaKCISCO. 215 



the rocks forming the mass of the Sierra and have not been squeezed 

 or altered. They dip gently westward and arc covered by gravels, 

 siltS; and muds washed into the Great Valley of California by streams. 

 Remnants of the lavas that were poured down the Sierra slopes 

 during Tertiary time cap some of the foothills along this part of the 

 route. West of them all is open plain. 



At Roseville the main line is joined from the north by the South- 

 ern Pacific Co/s line to Marys ville, Chico, and Tehama, At 



oms 



Roseville. 



same company 



:>ng 



Po^ uf '*^'' ^^ ^^^* *^^ ^^^^* ^^^^ ^^ Sacramento Valley. Beyond Rose- 

 ville is a nearly level country, practically all of which 



Omaha 1,675 miles. 



cultivat 



m 



orchards. The scattered oak trees in this part of the valley include 

 two species, the live oak and the valley oak. ' (See footnote on p. 203.) 

 Antelope (sec sheet 24, p. 218) is a few miles beyond Roseville. 

 Beyond Ben Ah, a siding about 12 miles from Roseville, there is a 

 tile and brick yard north of the track. 



embankment 



system 



waters of Sacramento and American rivers in check. -^Vfter cross- 

 ing American River the train skirts the north side of the city to the 

 station, which is close to Sacramento River. 



Sacramento, the capital of Cahfornia, is on the east bank of Sac- 

 ramento River 61 miles above its mouth, just below the mouth of 



American River. The city is on the low flood plain 

 Sacramento. ^f Sacramento River, about 30 feet above mean sea 



Elevation 20 feet. levcl. It is a distributing point and wholesale center 

 p a ion , . fertile Sacramento A^allev and has 



Omaha 1,693 miles 



manufactures 



As boats drawing 7 feet of water can come 



soin 



and from San Francisco Bay. Elec- 



Iways, and for power is furnished by 



on American River. 22 miles away, 



and at Colgate, in the Sierra, on Yuba River, 119 milos away. 



Tlie first settlement on the site of Sacramento was a fort built in 

 1839 by John Augustus Sutter, a Swiss miUtary officer in the service 

 of Mexico. In 1S41 Sutter was granted 11 square leagues of land by 

 the Mexican Government, but the real history of the town begins 

 with the discovery of gold in 1848. In December, 1849, the popula- 

 tion was 4,000, and a year later it had increased to 10,000. The city 

 was made the State capital in 1854. Before 1S62 destructive floods 

 were frequent, but since that date the city has been protected by 



lev 



ees. 



main streams in the Sacrament 



with sUt and, especially 



from the nlacer mines in the Sierra, have built their channels 



