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Show SiStSS.SSKSSS NEARBY AND YONDER Off the Beaten Path to Unusual Un-usual Places and Things Ey T. T. MAXEY 33SS$ASSS3iS U'NU M-rvit-ti The Pageant of the Raisin T!1K raisin Industry of America Is mainly limited to a few counties in California, where the climatic and irrigating ir-rigating conditions ate Ideal Fresno county producing the major portion of the crop or some (10,11 M.OtiO pounds annually. As a natural conseii'.ience the cily of Fresno del eniiined lo make Ihe most of the situation, set itself up us the Capital of Ruisiiilaiid and an nually celebrates the fuel by holding the Pageant of the Raisin. Pales were scratched. histories j searched, Ihe tale of Hie raisin tin j earthed nuel around it there was woven ! a story which reaches back to the Garden of lalen. The Bible intimates that "old man Noah" T'lunted the lirst grape vine near Vt. Ararat. Tile lirst dried grapes or raisins of which accurate account wns found likewise hail to do with Armenia. The valley of the Pan Joaquin, reasoned rea-soned I lie Fresnoians, is "The Garden of Ihe Sun." Therefore, why not a pageant "From the Garden of ICden lo the Garden of the Sun?" Accordingly, Accord-ingly, an annual rnisin day --usually during the latter part of April ':is decided upon and the people of the valley set about to bring the raisin and Fresno into their own. When King Grape, preceded by the blare of hands and acontptnlled by his follower arrived in "Main Street" Fresno bad become the iiiocea of so many people who happened in to see what nil the excitement was ail about that It scarcely knew what to do with them. Obviously, they "did it again" nevt year. Now, most folks know that Fresno is the home of tl.e raisin. |