478 
JULY 46 
pairing for for ftoung. 
DAISY’S YEAR IN SOUTHERN CALI¬ 
FORNIA. 
ALICE P. ADAM8. 
The Climate. 
It was early In May and Mr. Erman sat reading 
His evening paper, the Los Angeles Express. He 
looked up from the telegraphic dispatches with an 
exclamation, "Warm weather has commenced 
already,”he said. "There was a case of sun- 
stroke yesterday in New York." 
" Ajb soon as this!" exclaimed Violet. " Why It 
seems sb it the last news we had from the East 
was that they were nearly frozen. And now comes 
the other extreme. For my part I don’t see how 
people endure it to live In such a climate 1” con¬ 
cluded the out-spoken young damsel. 
" Yet we were comfortable there for a good 
many years, and never thought of anything bet¬ 
ter," said her mother, smiling, 
" Comfortable /” repeated violet. “Perhaps 
you would like to go hack again and live in 
comfort /" 
" No,” said Mr. Erman, " I don’t believe one of 
us would be contented to stay east of the Rocky 
Mountains for six months.’' 
“ I remember how warm it was last Bummer,” 
interposed Daisy. “ We used to roll our hed be¬ 
tween the windows to get all the air we could 
and never thought or lying down without a palm- 
leaf fan. Once Uncle John slept in the ham¬ 
mock every night tor a whole week, for he said 
he couldn’t breathe In the house. And In the 
morning we felt as tired as when we went to 
bed." 
" You will flnd no weather like that In San 
Gabriel, my dear,” said Mrs. Erman. “ Instead of 
fans you will want blankets, just the same as 
you use now. No matter how warm It is during 
the day the evenings are cool, and you can take a 
good night’s rest under warm covers, and wake 
up bright and fresh the next morning.” 
“ People can endure more heat here than in 
the East,” said Mr. Erman. “ It does not seem so 
prostrating. 1 can work here In the sun all day, 
when with the mercury at the same hlght In Illi¬ 
nois I should feel It a great exertion to walk down 
to the Btore. And three things to which you have 
been accustomed yon will miss here—sunstrokes, 
thunder storms and mad dogs.” 
“ Why don’t they ever have sun-strokes here ?” 
asked Daisy . " It must be queer kind of weather. 
I always thought that California Bummers were 
hot, hotter, hottest.! And no thunder-storms- 
mother would like that, as they always make her 
sick. But how ao you know there are no mad 
dogs, Mr. Erman?” 
“ Well, 1 must confess I take the old settlers’ 
words for it, though I have never heard of one 
since we came here. The dogs are never muzzled 
at any season of the year, and you have probably 
observed chat they are by no means scarce, par¬ 
ticularly in the Mexican families, where l believe 
the rule Is one for each child." 
“People do have the strangest ideas about Cali¬ 
fornia, anyway I” broke In Violet. *• They talk 
about the ' heated term ’as if we nearly burnt to 
cinders from May till November, and think that the 
wet season means a continual deluge from Novem¬ 
ber tail May. I’m out of paclenoe with them I” 
“ As your stock In trade was never very large I 
don’t wonder that you are unable to meet the 
pressing demands made upon It,’ remarked Ber¬ 
tram. “ However, when Daisy returns she can en¬ 
lighten her friends as to the climatic conditions of 
California, which will doubtless relieve you to 
some extent.” 
“ You hateful boy!” cried violet. “ I’ve a great 
mind never to say anything more while you are 
around r” 
“ What a deprivation that would be to us all,” 
replied her brother, with a woe-begone look. 
"There, there, children,” interposed Mrs. Er¬ 
man, " Violet, never mind Bert’s nonsense. And 
as to our young lady’s outbreak, Daisy, it is cer¬ 
tainly true that Eastern people generally have 
strange conceptions of our climate. The dry sea¬ 
son has commenced. I presume we shall not see 
any rain till the latter part of October—possibly 
later; though twice we have had a little shower 
In July. But It does not follow that because we 
have no rain wo must be uncomforcable six 
months of the year. The beautiful green hills 
and plains turn brown, it la true ; already they 
are beginning to loose their freshness. And It la 
dusty—but we become accustomed to that, and 
hardly notice the dust as much as we did In 
Illinois, when we had a few weeks without 
rain. There is no difference about the yard and 
orchard, for the plants and trees are all irrigated, 
and grow as well as if they had the benefit of a 
shower every week. Most of our fruit comes at 
this season, and In spite of the dust and brown 
landscape many people, myself among them, pre¬ 
fer the Bummer months,” 
“ Did you remember wbat young Heller at Pas¬ 
adena said when he first camo here In the Sum¬ 
mer?” aBked Mr. Erman, laughing. " He thought 
It was the most desolate, forsaken country he had 
ever struck, and was so homesick that he would 
have left on the next train If he had not prom¬ 
ised his brother that he would test the climate 
thoroughly.” 
" Yes, and do you suppose you could hire him to 
return now? I don’t know a young man that is 
more enthusiastic about California” 
" But I don’t wonder that people coming here 
In tbe summer are often disappointed.” continued 
Mr. Erman. " The state has been described in 
such glowing colors that It must bo a shock to 
find that one can travel for miles without seeing 
a spear of grass, or particle of green vegetation, 
and the land looking so dry and barren that It 
seems Incapable of producing anything. But I 
always say to dissatisfied new-comers, “Don’t 
THE RURAL W2W-YSRKER. 
Judge hastily. Walt a year before you make up 
your mind to leave the .State.” 
“Onepeculiarity that strikes Eastern people la 
the amount of clothing worn. The climate being 
so mild one naturally concludes that only thin 
clothes will he required; but most people wear 
flannel the year round. You see we have a steady 
ocean breeze during the Summer which tempers 
the heat, and there is such a regular change be¬ 
tween the day and night that we are obliged to 
dress more warmly than if the temperature after 
sunset was higher. And when we go out for a 
drive I never start without extra wraps unless [ 
am posuiv&y certain that we shall be back early.” 
** Which means that you always carry them 
along,” added Violet. 
"And what about tbe rainy season?” asked 
Daisy. 
“ You came in March, dear child, so you know 
something of It yourself. The country puts on its 
green dress In November or December, and we 
have about the same weather that you enjoyed 
this Spring—with a trifle more rain. You will 
flnd that the grumblers rarely complain of too 
much rain. All the farmers, and especially those 
engaged in raising grain, rejoice when we have, 
what Bert calls, a regular soaker. People say that 
all weather signs rail here, but we are always 
pretty certain of one thing, and that la that we 
shall have unpleasant weather at Christmas. Jt 
has been so every year since we came except the 
first and that was a dry Winter—the hills were 
brown during the whole season.” 
“ .speaking of rain reminds me of the consequence. 
Do you know what that Is, Daisy ?’’ asked Mr. Er¬ 
man. 
" Mud !” answered Daisy with a laugh. 
" Correct. Now we have very little of that here. 
I) It Is amazing how soon the roads dry up. No 
tolling through mud up to the hubs of your wheels 
I have yet to see the time when l cannot drive to 
town In comfort the next day after a heavy rain.” 
“That must be a blessing.” said Daisy. "I 
know I have heard so much complaint about the 
mud at borne. Do you ever have any colder 
weather than since I came ?’’ 
“ Yes ; sometimes we have froBts, but they have 
never Injured us much,” said Mr. Erman. “One 
morning when I got up It was 27° above zero. We 
all thought It terribly cold, didn’t we, Violet ?” he 
asked with a moaning slde-glaDce. 
“ You complained as much as any one, papa Er¬ 
man, so you needn’t wink at me!’’ 
“ Well, well, we won’t quarrel about it. Tbe 
new growth on the trees was nipped, and my 
young lime hedge was cut nearly back to the 
ground. But we received no serious damage. A 
good many trees that stood on low ground, how¬ 
ever, were kilted. It is wonderful what a differ¬ 
ence there is in the temperature of places hut a 
short distance apart. There Is Willow Dale only 
a mile from here, but it is sheltered by the hills, 
and protected from the frost. Then three or four 
miles east of us is a settlement that Is low and 
damp; the grass grows in the streets in Summer, 
they do not Irrigate, and have bo much frost that 
they do not attempt growing orange trees, but de¬ 
vote tbelr attention to grain and stock raising.” 
“Changing the subject,”said Mrs. Erman, "peo¬ 
ple can live much cheaper here than In the East. 
Their clothes do not cost aa much for they can 
wear the same garments Summer ana Winter, it 
necessary, with but little change. They do not 
have such enormous bills to pay for fuel, and are 
not obliged to bu'.ld such substantial houses. Now 
1 prefer a plastered house ; but If one nasn’t the 
money he can live comfortably in a cottage made 
of boards set up on end, and simply papered on 
the Inside. You will find thousands of these little 
houses, made of one thickness of boardB, In Cali¬ 
fornia.” 
“ one of the things that I like best about this cli¬ 
mate," 9ald violet, “ is that for six months In the 
year we are sure to have pleasant weather. There 
Is no danger of being caught in a sudden shower- 
We can plan our picnics and entertainments 
weeks ahead, and be certain that when the ap- 
pointed time comes round It will be a delightful 
day.” 
" And during the six months of the rainy 
season we are as confident of pleasant weather as 
our friends In the East ever are,” added Mr. Er¬ 
man. , 
-- 
NOTES BY UNCLE MARK. 
I flnd, In looking over tbe Cousin’s lettere now, 
that several, which were written in the Winter 
and Spring, have been “crowded out," and con¬ 
sequently are now rather “out of season.” But It 
shall be my purpose to publish those which may 
now come to hand, providing, of course, they are 
up to the standard, and of Interest. Flowers, 
vegetables and rrults are now all nicely growing, 
and if auy of the cousins have anything interest¬ 
ing or novel to report, our columns are open to 
them. 
Will " Carnation ” please send me a specimen 
or two of the peculiar violet she mentioned in a 
recent letter to this department ? 
I am glad so many of the Cousins have applied 
for the Pyrethrum seeds, and I wlBh them success 
in cultivating them. There are a tew packages 
left which may be applied for. 
Another letter from our talented correspondent 
In Southern California Is provided for our young 
readere, this week; and we Imagine the older 
Cousins will flnd Information in it, too. We hope 
to continue these Interesting sketches at short 
Intervals. i 
The following letter la from the winner of tlie- 
prlze for drawings and Is self-explanatory, 
Deab Uncle— I received your very interesting 
present to-day, and think 1 am more than repaid 
for my work. 1 wish to express my obligation for 
the boob, and I hope the drawings may prove 
serviceable. Yours respectfully, 
C. A. BtJTTKRWORTH. 
-»- 
THE YOUNG Q.UERI8T. 
H. M. s., BalnbrlCtge, Mich., asks if a letter ad¬ 
dressed to "Uncle Mark, Rural New- Yorker of¬ 
fice,” will be properly directed? 
Ans.—C ertainly. He la always on the lookout 
for a word from the Cousins. 
F. a. 11., Caldwell, Texas, would like the name, 
of the black insect which Is injuring his grape¬ 
vines. 
Ans.—S o many Insects Infest the grape that we 
can hardly answer your question. If you will en¬ 
close some of the insects In a little box and send 
them to us we will give their name. 
a. Q. iv., Elmira, N. F., wishes to know the en¬ 
tomological name of the currant measuring-worm. 
Ans.—A braxl8 rlbearla. 
-A--*-*- 
LETTERS FROM THE COUSINS. 
Dear Uncle mark:— is It along time since I 
wrote to you last ? 1 should not wonder, for you 
Bee I was a little disappointed that my letter met 
with such a sad, although not uncommon, fate; 
but slnoe you say, “try, try again,” I will not be 
discouraged. My garden was quite a success last 
year, and I enjoyed the care of it, nut I am trying 
to do still better this season. The melons were 
very large and fine and received great praise. My 
seeds all grew well except the portulaca of which 
there was hut one plant. 
Now, with your permission, Uncle Mark, l would 
like to tell the cousins about our play-house, it 
was built last year for my brother, my sister and 
me. It is eight by ten feet and has a window on the 
south Bide and a door on the north. Last Summer 
we planted a Madeira vine beside the door, which 
ran to the top and hung down on the other side 
more than half way, and was covered with blos¬ 
soms In the Fall. We also had Sweet Williams, 
gladioli and asters under the window. Our family 
consists of a number of dolls, a kitten whose name 
is Winnie and a little black and tan dog whose 
name Is Tip. He keeps the hens away from the 
flowers, and we think a great deal of him. We 
have a little stove that Grandpa gave us, a table, 
a lounge, and some chairs. Our stove furniture 
consists of a frying-pan, and an Iron pot Just Uke 
the one that came over In the May Flower only 
very much smaller. We have a set of dishes and 
a nice cupboard to keep them in. We sometimes 
keep house In real fashion, and our little friends 
visit U8, and we get tea for them the same as 
mamma does. Now Uncle Mark, if you or any- 
of the cousins will visit us, we will welcome you 
most gladly, and will try and have a real nice 
time. Truly, your niece, Anna. 
Dear Uncle Mark Last Spring I spaded and 
planted my own garden, 1 bought 25 cents worth 
of garden seeds which I sowed with some I saved 
over from last year’s seed distribution. Altogether 
there was enough for the piece of ground Pa gave 
me, I will let you know how I get along with my 
vegetables and flowers this Bummer. We live 
near a small town where I can dispose of radishes, 
lettuce and onions, almost daUy, I keep account 
of all I Bell and will let you know what profit I 
make. 1 have sown a nice, big bed with cabbage 
seeds. 1 sell the plants for 25 cents per hundred. 
1 want to tell you and the cousins that I have a 
fine little puppy, his name Is Bonanza. I call him 
Bon for short—he Is a real beauty. 
Bylvanla, O. Walter Gatsart, 
[A bright future may be predicted for you, Wal¬ 
ter, If you continue as you have begun, in fanning 
and gardening. Your father has, I think, solved 
the problem in your case, of “ now to keep the 
boys on the farm,” by giving you a plot of land for 
a garden and encouraging you to b uy and sell and 
keep account of your transactions, u. m.j 
Dear Uncle Mark:— My little sister and 1 
wrote to you last Winter. One letter was In the 
Rural in the Winter and one this Bpring. We 
wanted very much to apply for seeds of the Py¬ 
rethrum roeeurn and would have taken great care 
of them, even It we had to build a house to protect 
them. My little sister and I made a seed drill 
with which we have planted nearly two acres of 
ground. We have never seen a garden drill and 
had none to copy from, but we formed an Idea ot 
what It ought to be like. We tried several ways 
before we were suited and it works well. It 
makes a furrow, drops and covers the seed and 
rolls the ground We run It on a Bled. It plants 
almost every kind ot garden seeds. We are 
troubled greatly wltb cut-worms this Summer. 
Your nephew. 
Deer Valley, Col. Charley Taylor. 
(I have forwarded some Pyrethrum seed. Can’t 
you send us a drawing and description of your new 
seed drill ?—u. m.J 
Dear Uncle Mark.— The seeds you sent brother 
Robert and myself came all right. We are very 
thankful for them and we will do the.best we can 
In caring for them. The Beeda you sent us one 
year ago were planted and did well except the 
Gumbo, wblcb was injured by frost, but I saved 
one pod of seeds. 
We attend school one mile distant and care for 
our plants at night, ltoble 1 b nine years old and 
I am eleven. In thanking for past favors which I 
appreciate much, (and think Uncle Mark a very 
kind man), we would like the seeds of Pyrethrum 
Roseum if it is not asking too much, we will do all 
we can for them and report you In due time, We 
wish you would come to H. and Bee the many and 
pleasant farms hero In this old town. Most of the 
people are farmers. Eobie & Jennie Cqlt. 
Harwlnton, Connecticut. 
--♦ » » 
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A trial entails but the comparatively trifling outlay 
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“Homes in Texas” 
IH THE TITLE OF 
A New Illustrated Pamphlet 
Descriptive of the country along and tributary to the 
line of the 
INTERNATIONAL & GREAT NORTHERN R. R 
and contains » good County May of the State. 
It also contains the names and addresses of Farmers 
and Planters in Texas who have 
Farms for Sale or Rent, 
and those who will want Farm Hands for this year. 
A copy of this book will be mailed tree to those 
who desire reliable Information about Texas, upon 
application by letter or postal card to 
Al.LKN HI ('COY. 
Ueu’l Freight & Puss’r Agfc. Palestine, Tex. 
-C"'— WRITE TO-— 
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*3 RICHMOND, VA.®* 
G enesee valley farms for sale.- some 
of the finest residences in the VaUey, uear R. R 
Inquire soon of JOHN SHELDON, 
Fort Colllnfl, Colorado. 
I 
