none had been here more than nine. (General Table 222.)a Most of the Japanese are living most economically. Nine of the individuals and groups, for example, subscribed for no newspaper; the other 8 subscribed for from one to three-all published by Japanese in Sacramento or San Francisco and printed in their native language. This fact is indicative of the degree of their assimilation, their interests, and the character of the information they receive from printed sources.

The housing is on the whole poor and the premises neglected. Some of the houses occupied are "bunk houses," others cottages erected for white families, while still others are rough "box houses" erected for or by the Japanese tenants. Most of them are small, but inasmuch as the extra "help" hired during the busy season are usually provided with lodging elsewhere, there is not much overcrowding. Most of the dwellings are scantily furnished. In a large percentage of the cases the housework is poorly done by the men, and even where the wife is in the United States it is usually neglected in order that she may work in the field. In 9 of the 17 cases the agent reported the care of the house as "bad," in the other 8 as "fair." d

Data were also gathered with reference to the cost of food and drink. In making use of these data, however, it should be remembered that these Japanese are all gardeners and produce most of the vegetables they use. Their purchases are chiefly of tea and soft drinks, rice, canned fish and meats, and sauce-most of them at Japanese provision stores in Sacramento. The 17 farming groups reported the cost per month per person as varying from $5 to $10. The median figure was $7.50, the average $7.11 per month.

The social life of these truck farmers, their families, and employees centers in Sacramento, near by, where there are many forms of amusement conducted by Japanese. Their relations with the white population are almost entirely incidental to the transaction of business. There is a strong prejudice among the white people against the Japanese which practically precludes contact in other forms save in exceptional instances.

а

a Of 11 Italian men, 1 could not speak English, 6 could speak but not read or write it. while 4 could speak, read, and write the language. Of 3 women, 1 could speak, but none could read or write English. The Italians had been in the United States much longer than the Japanese, but on the whole had little better command of our language. It should be remembered, however, that half of these Japanese had been in Hawaii before coming to the continental United States.

Only 2 of 7 individual and groups of Italian farmers subscribed for a newspaper. One of these took a local paper printed in English, the other an Italian weekly paper published in San Francisco.

Five had 2 rooms; four, 3 rooms; three, 4 rooms; three, 5 rooms; one 6 and one 7 rooms.

The Italian farmers as a rule have larger houses, but they are usually equally neglected, and frequently the housekeeping is "bad." However, where the farm and house are owned there is a greater degree of permanency in the relation and the standard of comfort in housing is better than among the Italian and Japanese tenants. Frequently the houses of the Italians are crowded with laborers, for they are usually given board and lodging by the employer.

e Six reported that they purchased all supplies at Japanese stores, while 10 reported that they purchased at Japanese and American stores. In the latter cases, however, most of the food supply is purchased at Japanese stores; feed and implements and other things needed in truck gardening chiefly at American stores.

CHAPTER IX.

NORTH ITALIAN FARMERS OF SONOMA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA.

[For General Tables see pp. 848 to 855.]

INTRODUCTION.

Sonoma County has for many years been known for the diversity of its agricultural interests. Wine, fruit, hops, grain, and poultry and live stock are all important products, but for some time past the first-named products have been increasing in importance as compared with grain and live stock. The development of the intensive farming found in viticulture and hop growing has been closely connected with immigrant agricultural labor, and especially with the settlement of North Italians, who, in 1900, ranked second in number among the foreign-born of the county.

Though vineyards were early developed in Sonoma County, the grape-growing and wine-making industries have been intimately connected with the Swiss-Italian colony formed in 1881. At that time a number of Italian business men of San Francisco organized a cooperative group and purchased 1,500 acres of land which had previously been devoted to sheep ranching. Forty other localities were first inspected, but the soil and climate of Sonoma County seemed to correspond most closely to those of the most successful vineyards in Italy. At the time the chief object of this organization was to give employment to Italian immigrants, many of whom were unemployed in San Francisco. For 16 years the enterprise was not successful from the point of view of income, but to-day the corporation into which the original colony was reorganized owns vineyards and wineries in eight counties of California. The corporation has large offices, salesrooms, and vaults in San Francisco and New York. The combined cooperage of the several wineries is over 14,250,000 gallons.

This Italian corporation has employed thousands of Italians in its vineyards and wineries in the different parts of California. Many of the men, however, have not been content to remain wage-earners and have sought farms of their own. A large number have settled in Sonoma County, and the majority of these are located near the wineries conducted by the Italian-Swiss company. Yet, among these farmers, there are a number who first engaged in business of some kind and then purchased farms.

Some of the Italian farmers settled in Sonoma County immigrated to the United States with their families, but the majority came as young, single men. Moreover, though some came direct to California to join friends or relatives already located there, the majority have worked in different parts of the United States before moving west. The Italian farmers have usually acquired grazing land, or other

lands not fully exploited, and devoted them to intensive farming. A few are engaged chiefly in fruit growing, but the majority are vineyardists, a branch of farming in which many had had experience in their native land, and others, as laborers, in this country. Not infrequently fruit growing and viticulture are conducted on the same ranch. The grapes are converted into wine at the small wineries which some of the farmers maintain, or at the larger wineries not far distant, to which they are sold. The fruit is sold in the general market or shipped to San Francisco, which is not far away and easily reached by steam and electric cars.

An agent of the Commission secured schedules for 15 of these North Italian farmers and their families during the late autumn of 1908. Though the number of schedules is small, it is adequate to show most of the details of importance relating to their farming and to the farmers themselves as a class. The details are presented in the following sections of this report.

THE PRESENT POSITION OF THE NORTH ITALIAN FARMERS.

Of the 15 farms included in the investigation, 12 were owned by the farmers who tilled them, 2 were leased, while 1 was in part owned and in part leased. (General Table 225.) The total acreage was 1,939.5, of which 1,696.5 was owned and 243 rented by these farmers. The rent paid by one tenant was $5.50 per acre, by another $4.50 per acre, by the third, a half share of the crops produced. Thirteen of the farms were conducted as individual enterprises, two as partnerships. In one case, three partners cultivated a farm of 190 acres; in the other, two partners owned and cultivated a farm of 48 acres.

Most of the farms owned or leased by the North Italians are comparatively large. One of those investigated contained 463 acres, another 448 acres, and four others more than 125 acres each. Each of the remaining nine contained from 15.5 to 66 acres. (General Table 225.) The average acreage per farm is 129.3, but because of the comparatively large number of the smaller holdings, the median farm contained but 50 acres.

With the exception of a few of the larger holdings, practically all of the land embraced in these farms is tillable and cultivated. The farming carried on is primarily for the market, though all of the families investigated had gardens and orchards for their own use, and practically all kept cows, hogs, and poultry, which, with the wine produced, largely supplied the table. The receipts from crops and wine sold during 1908 varied from $120 on a 48-acre farm with a growing vineyard, to $11,530. The receipts from sales from two farms were in excess of $10,000, from three in excess of $5,000 but less than $10,000, from two in excess of $3,000 but less than $5,000, from two in excess of $2,000 but less than $3,000, from two in excess of $1,000 but less than $1,500, from three in excess of $500 but less than $1,000, and from the remaining one $120. (General Table 225.) The total receipts from crops and wine sold were $61,932. Yet these figures are misleading for in two or three instances grapes had been purchased from neighboring farmers and converted into wine, which was then sold. Seven of the 15 farmers produced grapes chiefly, 4 grapes and fruit, 2 fruit, 1 grapes, fruit, and vege

tables, and 1 fruit and vegetables. The receipts from wine sold by 5 farmers aggregated $27.270; from grapes sold by 7, $20,152.50; from other fruit sold by 8, $10,182; and from vegetables sold by 3, $3,535. The receipts from the sale of other things, including live stock, wood, hay, and dairy products, amounted to only $792. It is evident that these farmers are primarily vineyardists, wine makers, orchardists, and vegetable gardeners. In this they are typical of the vast majority of the Italian farmers in this county.

These farms are so large that much labor is required. In several instances laborers are employed for wages throughout the year, and in practically all cases help is hired during the busiest seasons, especially when grapes and fruit are picked. The farmers who conduct wineries also employ from 5 to 25 laborers at wine making during the vintage. The laborers regularly employed and the temporary winery hands are almost invariably Italians. They also do much of the fruit and grape picking, though Japanese are sometimes employed for this part of the farm work. The regular employees on the ranches are paid from $25 to $30 per month; other Italian hands, except those who are skilled workmen in the wineries, $1 per day. All of these receive board and lodging in addition to wages. The Japanese are paid the current rate per day or per piece, and their earnings are lower than those of the unskilled Italians.

Most of the Italian farmers have been in the United States many years. Indeed, most of those investigated had been living on the farms they now occupy for from 10 to 30 years. Of 14 male individual farmers and head partners, 5 had been in the United States from 30 to 50 years, 7 for from 15 to 27 years, 1 for 14, and only 1 for less than 5 years. Six of these 14 were 25 years of age or over, 7 from 20 to 25, and one 17 years of age at the time of coming to the United States. In Italy 8 of the 14 had been farmers, 4 farm hands, and 2 nonagricultural laborers. They had little money upon their arrival in this country, and all became wage laborers. Seven found their first employment as farm hands, 1 as a railroad laborer, and 6 in other occupations. (General Table 226.) Most of them worked for wages in such occupations as these for many years before becoming farmers on their own account. Two were employed for more than 20 years, five for 11 to 16 years, four from 5 to 10 years, and the remaining three for shorter periods before securing farms. Most of the farms were purchased to begin with, the average price per acre being $96.82. Much of the land purchased had been used for grazing or for general farming; little of it was used intensively. The acreage these farmers began with has been greatly increased, and, more important, the larger part of it has been developed into vineyards, orchards, or gardens and used intensively. The first purchases of 13 aggregated only 675.5 acres. Subsequent purchases by 7 have increased the acreage owned to 1,696.5. (General Table 225.) The 327 of the 675.5 acres first purchased which were cleared and ready for use, have been increased to 1.062.5, which leaves 634 acres not yet brought into profitable use. Practically all of this land, however, is recently purchased and was part of large farms. This, too, will be improved as were the lands earlier purchased. At present, of the 1,939.5 acres constituting the 15 farms, 769.5 are in vineyards, 179 in orchard, and 52 in vegetable gardens.

The aggregate of the prices paid for the lands first purchased was $65,400. Of this sum, $37,800 was paid in cash, leaving a mortgage indebtedness of $27,600 outstanding against 8 farms. In spite of the fact that subsequent purchases of 1,021 acres at a cost of $71,790 have been made, the mortgage indebtedness has been reduced to $20,550, this being on 6 farms. (General Table 225.) The value of the holdings has greatly appreciated, partly because of the great improvements made and partly because of the general advance of real estate values throughout the community.

The financial progress of these farmers is shown by the amount of money they brought to the United States, the amount brought to the locality in which they are now settled, and the net value of the property owned (General Table 225). The amount of money brought to the United States by 14 was $914; the money brought to the locality was $39,710; the property now owned by the same 14 men is $427,087.50. All but one have more property than when they settled there. Yet the amounts of property owned by the several farmers vary greatly. The net value of property, other than furniture, of two tenants is between $500 and $1,000; of one landowner between $1,500 and $3,000. The other 11 farmers are well off. The value of the property of one of these is $5,810; of five, between $10,000 and $25,000; of five others, over $25,000. (General Table 225.) A few of the farmers have large property interests other than those represented by the farms they occupy.

SOCIOLOGICAL DATA.

These North Italian farmers live in a very comfortable way. Their houses for the most part are large and well built. Several have really beautiful residences, supplied with all modern conveniences. The average number of rooms per house is 7.27. Nearly all have general living rooms as well as separate dining rooms. The majority of the houses are well furnished, and several families have pianos. Among these Italian farmers are some who came as laborers, expecting later to return to Italy, but the leasing and purchase of land is indicative of the fact that they have all settled permanently in the United States. Most of those who came to this country when more than 21 years of age, and who have been here five years or more, have become naturalized. Of 11 such, 8 have become citizens, another has first papers, and 2 are still aliens. Of the 2 others who came when less than 21 years of age, 1 has second papers and 1 is still an alien. They consider the political situation in the United States, as well as other conditions, to be better than in Italy. Yet these farmers are very little concerned about politics, as their main interests have always contered in making money. Members of the second generation who are living in cities, however, take more interest in political events.

These farmers are married men with families. Their relations with their native land are no longer close. Under these circumstances it is not surprising that they sent only small sums of money abroad as gifts during the year 1908, the aggregate amount sent by 15 being only $281.