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The King Of California By Mark Arax And Rick Wartzman

1370 Words6 Pages

The King of California by Mark Arax and Rick Wartzman unfolds a story about James Griffin Boswell II, who created an empire of farming in California. Boswell had a distinguished background as a Stanford graduate, who partied with different elites. Yet, he framed himself as a tough farmer, who worked his way up to owning 200,000 acres of land. His empire was built on political activism for personal gain, lack of environmental care, and shying away from media coverage. The themes I’ll be covering are cotton and the environment, and cotton and ethnic labor. Boswell’s legacy has been brewing since 1921 with its main goal of expansion. It’s evident that Boswell lacks concern about his harmful actions on the environment. James Griffin Boswell II, …show more content…

However, this aspect is not something that bothers Boswell and diverts the topic into his “heroic fights to defy gravity and dewater the lake” (Arax and Wartzman 11). Around the 1960s, California had historic amounts of snow, which began to thaw in mid-February, causing flooding. Boswell and other farmers stressed how to redirect the flooding away from the fields. They “installed fifty gargantuan pumps along the Tule to keep the river from jumping its banks” (Arax and Wartzman 12). Unfortunately, more rain toppled Kings County. The farmers have never dealt with the magnitude of a flood and aimed to protect 30,000 acres of land in District 749 Ultimately, Boswell and his team decided to rip gash into the river bank, allowing the flood to seep into their best fields. This decision was confusing for many, but it prevented more possible flooding. However, the lake continued to grow, doubling in size and completely wiping out District 749. Boswell was determined to prevent any danger from threatening the town. An idea arose amongst the farmers to create a wall of junk cars to stop the water from flowing over the …show more content…

The question concerned Boswell’s thoughts about individuals who disagreed with his manufactured farming tactics and labeled it as “a pain in the ass” (Arax and Wartzman 18). Boswell was incredibly angry and began defending his work. He mentioned the four rotating crops he grew, which included wheat, flour mill, safflower, and barley. Boswell also listed all the products and meals cotton plants provided such as steaks, milk, lamb chops, fried chicken, gunpowder, wrinkle cream, etc. The Boswell family’s successes were incredible, but failed to respect the environment. The increase in wealth and power may overshadow any thought processes Jim Boswell had in his decisions. Kings County could have had a completely different life if President Roosevelt and President Truman were involved and the elected officials who approved of the river change were not corrupt. The Boswell family originated in Georgia. They lived in Greene County, which was named after the owner of the plantation, Whitney, who created the cotton gin. During the 1830s, the cotton business was thriving, but off the backs of

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