CHAPTER XXX, 
THE ORANGE. 
The orange has held a leading place among California 
fruits ever since the American occupation, and during the last 
decade has rapidly advanced in investment and in product. 
The greatest year in output was that which closed November 1, 
1898, with a total shipment of over 14,000 car-loads to various 
points bevond State lines, which was nearly four times as great 
as the product of 1890. The product of the vear ending No- 
vember 1, 1899, was about one-third less in bulk because of 
drouth, but in value it was greater. The frost injuries in 
Florida and the protective tariff on imported fruit added greatly 
to the market value of the California product. 
Southern California still maintains distinctive claim to 
credit as the citrus quarter of the State, for her seven counties 
furnished more than ninety-five per cent of the product, and her 
position is not likely to be seriously questioned. There is only 
ten per cent of the orange acreage ot the State in more northerly 
Tegions, nor is there serious reason to apprehend that the ratio 
of acreage will materially change in the future. Still, to con- 
clude, from the commercial supremacy of the southern counties 
in orange production, that all the southern country is fitted for 
the growth of this fruit, and that more northerly counties are 
not, or to decide from recent considerable increase in the north- 
ern product that all the north is thus endowed, is both incorrect 
and misleading. Certain southern situations have been proved 
to be unsuited for profitable orange production, and certain 
northern situations are also unfit. The-considerations urged in 
the first two chapters of this work show that, so far as tempera- 
tures go, citrus climate can not be attributed to different geo- 
graphical divisions of the State. Within a north and south dis- 
tance of above four hundred miles oranges are successfully 
grown on a commercial scale, in proper situations and_ soils, 
and temperature extremes ate practically identical within this 
long stretch of latitude. The fact stated in Chapter I with 
reference 1o topography, which brings earlier maturity to fruits 
at the north than at the south, has direct relation to the produc- 
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