Luther Burbank— The Early 

 Years in Santa Rosa 



The Period of Bitter Struggle 



WITHIN sixty days of the time when the 

 definite decision to go to California 

 was reached, I had sold my personal 

 property and closed out my business at Lunenburg. 



The business habits that my father had incul- 

 cated had been so systematically followed that 

 there was little difficulty in closing up accounts. 

 The total amount of sales was found to be within 

 a few cents of the amount of my annual appraise- 

 ment. But, although I had been fairly successful 

 in the gardening enterprise during the three years 

 that it had been under way, so much money had 

 been spent on improvements that there remained 

 but a small balance to my credit. At the moment, 

 nothing could be realized on the farm. So in start- 

 ing for California I was entering on a new field, 

 backed by very little capital. 



Meantime the celebrated Ralston failure 



[Volume XII — Chapter II] 



