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Wells, A. J : California for the Settler

Southern Pacific Company, San Francisco, CA, 1915

Original publisher's green paper wrappers with staple binding. Both front and back covers have the same yellow lettering (title) and color illustration of a man holding his young daughter in front of a bucolic field with cows. 6 1/2" x 9 1/2." Sixty-three pages, complete. Several black-and-white illustrations (including one map of Southern Pacific California lines in front), complete. Pages are very clean and intact except for light age toning, a few small wrinkles, occasional small smudges or marks, and slight wear to extremities. Covers are clean and intact overall but have slight darkening, several small spots, a split measuring about 2" from tail of spine and slight wear and chipping along edges and corners. A Very Good copy. A booklet published by the Southern Pacific Company promoting settlement in California. In the first paragraph, author A. J. Wells describes California as having "one of the choice lands of the earth" yet posits why the state is not yet densely populated. Wells proceeds to explain the reasons why. His main conclusion is that California was built upon speculative farming which entailed that ranchers owned most of the land and left little opportunity for individual farms to be established. Wells argues that the circumstances have changed and that many estates are now open to settlers. Sections of text are brief but cover a variety of subjects. While California's weather and scenery is commended, the central aim of booklet is to promote settlement of California by describing its fertile land and economic prospects in agriculture and other industries. Among the subjects Wells describes are revenues from different California crops; California's rice, cotton, mineral, and lumber industries; availability of land in the Central Valley, Sacramento Valley, and Delta; ideal climate, rainfall, and irrigation; San Joaquin Valley; oil fields; San Mateo County; Santa Clara Valley; Salinas Valley; the coast south of Tehachapi; Imperial Valley; Coachella Valley; Yuma Valley; Owens Valley; Napa County; Lake County; counties in the Sierra Nevada; comparisons between California's climate compared to other places on the same latitude (Wells says that California's "Mediterranean" climate is an anomaly as other places on the same latitude on the East Coast do not have as temperate a climate); year-round gardening; small farms; orchards; fruits, berries, and vineyards; cost of land; potential for poultry-raising; dairying; cost of living; and public schools.. Book. Book Condition: Very Good. Binding: Soft cover

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