promptly by the co-operation of the coterie of public - spirited men who worked together for the common good during those first first few days which lengthened into weeks. This work was not accomplished without the realization of the immense amount of good to be done in and for San Francisco by co-operation. And if we have learned this lesson well-if in the future we

UN

Radke & Company, the prominent jewelers and silversmiths, formerly of Sutter street, between Montgomery and Kearny, and of Geary street, between Kearny and Grant avenue, have fitted up elegant quarters in the new Radke Building, on Van Ness and Bush, which is pictured above, and which was erected in twenty-eight days. Radke & Company are energetic, progressive native sons of California, and this energy and progressiveness has been best exemplified by the rapidity with which they have again become established in business. They are also putting up another building on Van Young blood will tell, and it is the young blood that is writing the history of New San Francisco.

Ness avenue.

The clearing of Baltimore for the week ending June 23, 1906, were $26,784,399. San Francisco has again passed Baltimore and is next to Pittsburgh in bank clearings.

The clearings of San Francisco for the week ending June 23, 1906, were greater than the combined clearings of Seattle, Los Angeles, Denver and Salt Lake City by $417,447. The clearings of San Francisco for that week, as will have been noted, show a decrease of only 1.5 per cent from the clearings for the corresponding week in 1905.

I predict that within ninety days the clearings of San Francisco will show a substantial gain over the corresponding period of 1905.

One may well ask: "How could San Francisco so quickly resume business on such a scale?" The answer is as follows:

San Francisco is the metropolis and commercial heart of California. California is a State whose natural wealth may perhaps most strikingly be indicated by the statement that it has produced since 1849, $1,425,000,000 of gold, equalling the estimated stock of gold in the world on January 1, 1849. The mineral production of the State has an annual value of $40,000,000, of which amount

C. H. Dunsmoor, president of the California Bank Commissioners, states that more than 50 per cent. of such assets consisted of cash, first-class bonds, and amounts due from banks and bankersall readily convertible into cash.

In addition to the State banks there were 95 National banks in California, with resources aggregating over $180,000,000, and individual deposits of $92,000,000. The total assets of the State and National banks of California exceed $873,000,000.

The aggregate resources of the San Francisco banks exceeded $300,000,000. On April 17 one savings bank had Government bonds to the amount of $11,000,000.

The wall of the Rocky Mountains made the California banks dependent on their own resources. The community was a creditor community, not a debtor community; that is to say, the California banks never borrowed from New York or Chicago institutions, but constantly had large sums of money in New York and Chicago to their credit. This observation is true also of the merchants of San Francisco. Their business was conducted on substantially a cash basis. Most houses were accustomed to discount their bills, and many of the old mercantile houses had large resources outside of the funds invested in their business. The principle of the Californian was to pay as he went. has resulted in the community finding itself now with little or no indebtedness to New York or other Eastern cities.

This

The City of San Francisco on the 17th of April, 1906, was practically without debt. It had authorized $17,000,000 of city bonds, had sold $5,000,000 of these

The water-front of San Francisco was saved, likewise the homes of 300,000 of our people. The city is handling the commerce of the port as if no calamity had occurred. The tonnage of the harbor of San Francisco will show an increase rather than a decrease for the year ending December 31, 1906.

The earthquake caused comparatively little loss. The great destruction was caused by the fire. Before the fire ceased burning, plans were made for hundreds of temporary structures. Within

six weeks after the fire every banking institution in San Francisco was doing business as formerly. Most of the banks immediately built temporary structures over their vaults. The large mercantile houses began doing business from private residences. An army of 20,000 laborers, carpenters and bricklayers began work. Several thousand structures have already been erected. Labor is in great demand. Carpenters are paid $4 and $5 per day; bricklayers $6, $7 and $8 per day. Common laborers for removing debris paid $2.50 per day. San Francisco is sadly in need of common labor, carpenters and bricklayers. The only classes

are

ready begun to settle their claims. The weaker companies are securing time on various pretexts. There will undoubtedly be some litigation. The people of San Francisco will collect at least $150,000,000 from the insurance companies. Of this amount $100,000,000 will probably be paid within the next six months. This money will all be required in time for the rebuilding of the city. A great deal of it will find its way to New York this fall, where it will be temporarily used in the purchase of readily convertible bonds or in short-time loans. Since May 11, 1906, $21,734,000 has been transferred through the sub-treasury from San Francisco to New York. This represents for the most part money which the San Francisco banks had transferred from their New York correspondents to San Francisco after the calamity.

A factor of great importance is the faith of the people of San Francisco in their city. This is felt by all classes. When the fire occurred, the community as a unit believed in the restoration of the city. This idea was so potent that when the banks opened, the deposits in many banks exceeded the withdrawals. The depositors in the savings banks withdrew only such money as they absolutely required for pressing wants.

Today

The main fact is that San Francisco has already resumed business. she is doing the work that destiny intended her to do; she is handling a large share of the commerce of the Pacific and is directing the industrial and commercial interests of the empire of California.

that find difficulty in securing employment at present are clerks, salesmen, professional men and in general those unaccustomed to manual labor. The clerks and salesmen will rapidly be given places as the mercantile houses fully re-establish themselves.

The citizens of San Francisco had insurance to the amount of $208,000,000. The strong insurance companies have al

new.

merging into a force that could conquer worlds; fearless, heroic, invincible, indomitable!