374 CALIFORNIA. 
pear presenting at sunset the most beautiful shades 
of violet, purple, and green. A chain of moun- 
tains, the highest of which is about 5000 feet, runs 
through the centre of the peninsula, and is inhabited 
by animals resembling the mouflon of Sardinia, 
which the Spaniards call wild sheep. The princi- 
pal attraction which California has afforded to Eu- 
ropeans since the 16th century is the great quantity 
of pearls found in it, and which, although frequent- 
ly of an irregular form, are large and of a very beau- 
tiful water. At the present day, however, this fish-- 
ery is almost entirely abandoned. 
15. New California is a long and narrow country, 
identifying itself with the shore of the Pacific Ocean 
from the isthmus of Old California to Cape Mendo- 
cino. It is extremely picturesque, and enjoys a 
fertile well-watered soil, with a temperate climate. 
Wheat, barley, maize, beans,and other useful plants, 
thrive well, as do the vine and olive ; but the popu- 
- lation is scanty compared to the territory. A cordil- 
lera of small elevation runs along the coast, and the 
forests and prairies are filled with deer of gigantic 
size. 
