California is a land of mountain and valley. The great interior basin comprises 15,000 square miles of fertile valley and foothill land, a vast empire of unexampled fertility blessed with the climate of Fairest Italy. This basin is bounded on the east by the snow-capped Sierras, on the west by the Coast Range, both mountain chains affording hunting, fishing and camping opportunities and an easy retreat from the heat of summer. This great region represents perhaps the best opportunities for land investment

A steam plow at the Thomas ranch.

and home building to be found in ne world. Land is abundant and cheap. It is abundant because God made California a land of vast extent; it is cheap because the tide of immigration has not been turned this way. There is little land open to homestead entry except .n the mountains, but much of it is held in large tracts and these are placed upon the market as fast as there is a demand. My attention was first turned to Northern California, and especially to this region, by the representations of the Sacramento Valley Development Association of Sacramento and the California Promotion Committee of San Francisco. It was to this committee that Dr. R. M. Green made the proposition to advertise Northern California through private subscription, and to him belongs the nonor of fathering the present movement. Upon investigation I find that 1720 square miles, or 1,100,800 acres, between parallels 39 and 40, north latitude, bounded on the east by the summit of the Sierra Nevada mountains, on the west by the

Sacramento river, is laid down on the maps as Butte County.

This county is one third valley, one third foothill, and one-third mountain, and produces a large portion of those luscious citrus and deciduous fruits with which Eastern markets are supplied; the orange, lemon, olive, grape, fig, almond, walnut, dried fruit and wine, contributing largely to the markets, and are much sought for quantity and quality. The finest grains, hay, hemp and vegetables are produced; the raising of horses, cattle, sheep and hogs is an extensive industry. Wood is plentiful and cheap. In the mountains are vast forests for commercial enterprise, and exceptionally rich deposits of various minerals. Gold mining has been an important industry since 1848, and some of the famous mines of the world are located here. The mountain streams afford opportunities for developing cheap power and there are built and building in the county electrical systems that lead the world in long distance transmission.

Rainfall is unquestionably the most important factor in the prosperity of

So much richness and fertility presented to the eye of man maketh his heart glad. This county presents such a variety of industries that each can find within his means and reach that for which he is looking. One fact forcibly impressed upon me is that Butte County only awaits the investment of capital, the coming of the home builder, the further development of its vast resources, to make it the garden spot of the world. There is perhaps no other section for which nature has done so much.

THE CITY OF ROSES.

Chico, "The City of Roses," a city of four thousand inhabitants, is situated on Chico Creek, near the Sacramento River, and is surrounded by rich farming and orange lands. The sidewalks are paved with cement, the streets and county roads for a mile or two into the country are sprinkled. The city has a fine sewer system and is the best-lighted town in the Sacramento Valley. The water is furnished by the well system. Wells were

sunk, a gravel channel struck, and from this, the year around, even on the warmest days, the city gets its supply of pure, cold water.

The churches, schools, banks, stores and public buildings, are such as do credit to a progressive, enterprising community. The homes are cozy and the gardens, with their velvet lawns and ornamental trees in variety present an atmosphere of peace and coolness that invites the traveler to rest.

Chico is the leading educational center of the Sacramento Valley. The State Normal school at Chico stands among the best educational institutions of its class. The Normal roll proper is three hundred students. Connected with the Normal is a training school and kindergarten. Bonds have recently been issued for the establishment of a high school.

Chico is on the line of the California & Oregon Railroad (S. P. system), and is the chief shipping point for lumber and other products. It also supports one of the finest flour mills in the State, which

has a capacity of 200 barrels and is operated by electricity.

The drives in and about Chico cannot be surpassed. In the suburbs is the famous Rancho Chico, the property of the late John Bidwell, which comprises hundreds of acres of the most beautiful orchards. A portion of this, as well as other large holdings, are being subdivided and sold in small farms from ten acres up, from eighty to one hundred dollars per acre. Chico derives benefits from an extensive trade from the outlying mining and farming districts.

Some four or five miles distant from Chico one becomes interested in the Chico Ochre Paint Co., which comprises two hundred acres of land containing three ledges, which average from six to twenty feet. The main ledge is ochre, said to be the finest in the United States. Beside this ledge is one of talc, the material from which talcum powder is made. The third ledge is that of burnt umber. There is also found in this vicinity metalic-oxide or iron or red paint, which is used in painting roofs, bridges

and rough houses. There is a great demand for this product.

One of the places of interest in this vicinity is the Richardson Hot Springs, ten miles distant in the foothills. The waters of these are noted for the relief given in cases of rheumatism and similar afflictions.

Chico is the possessor of a creamery, with which the proper management and patronage could be made a success.

It is seven miles from Chico to Durham through a level, fertile, productive country. The flour mill at Durham is owned and controlled by the grain growers, and here their grains are readily turned into mill products. The mill is new and equipped with the latest roller system. About Durham is the finest grain producing part of the county, and is claimed as the heaviest shipping point for wheat in the State. I saw in a Durham yard an oleander tree twenty-seven feet high and a begonia leaf which measures seventeen inches across. The almonu crop in this section attracted special attention.

From Durham to Biggs, a distance of sixteen miles, one drives through extensive grain fields. Some of the largest deciduous orchards in the State are situated near the latter place. One of these comprises 1,750 acres. Four miles south of Biggs is the town of Gridley. Both are

on the main line of the California & Oregon Railway, and are important shipping points for green, canned and dried fruits, grain, sheep, hogs, and cattle.

The Feather River flows through this part of the County, affording a good opportunity for irrigation. Some of the orchards bordering on the river are watered by pumping. This soil, without irrigation, produces from three to five crops of alfalfa. Seven thousand tons last year was taken from twelve hundred acres on the Reyman & Evans ranch near Gridley.

After the alfalfa is cut it affords from three to five months pasturage. Twenty thousands tons per year would be a low estimate of the alfalfa produced.

Thousands of cattle from Modoc, Lassen and Plumas Counties are driven o these pastures every winter and fattened for the market. Cattle, hogs, sheep and wool bring high prices in the present markets, and the demand exceeds the supply.