Agriculture has never flourished to any great extent in Lower California. Numerous colonies have been practically failures, with the exception of some recent ones near the international border, where water for irrigation has been obtained from the Colorado River. All of the peninsula has been traversed many times by prospectors in search of gold, silver and other minerals, and a number of valuable mines have been located in various places. The general climate is hot and arid, as is evidenced by the vegetation, although in the southern regions there are districts which have regular summer rains. As a consequence of the arid conditions the surface water is scarce, and is limited to isolated waterfalls or to springs from which small streams sometime flow for a short distance, and then sink into the earth.
The country is divided for administration into the northern and southern portions, with Ensenada, a small port on the west coast as the capital of the northern part, and La Paz, on the eastern coast, the capital of the southern portion. La Paz is the only city of any particular size, and is a place of about six thousand people. The streets are well laid out, and there are some excellent stores and many comfortable houses. The gardens are filled with palms and various tropical trees, so that the city has quite a decided tropical appearance, although it is surrounded by an arid district. It is the seat of the pearl fisheries, which are quite flourishing in the Gulf, and the output of pearls is quite an important item. Tia Juana (Aunt Jane) is a small town on the border not far from San Diego, and it is, perhaps, better known than any other town on the peninsula. Several skirmishes took place within its borders during the recent revolution led by Madero, and many of the participants were Americans.
Magdalena Bay, concerning which there has been considerable talk of the United States trying to secure as a coaling station, is the finest land-locked harbour on the Pacific coast, with a narrow entrance which is protected by the high headlands. The bay is about fifteen miles across, with low sandy shores, and would furnish a fine protection for scores of the largest vessels. It is also within sight of the regular sailing route of steamers bound for Panama. For that reason it would be a very advantageous possession of the United States, if it could be obtained by negotiations with the Mexican government.
