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houses for  business  purposes,  both  in  the  cities  and  in county  towns,  and  mining  camps,  were  of  brick,  not high but  well  built. In San  Francisco  even  private dwellings were  many  of  them  of  brick,  but  owing  to the  rains  of  winter  and  the  fogs  of  summer  brick  resi- dences were never  popular. A few  years  later,  after having thoroughly  tested  them,  no  one  built  dwellings of brick ; '  there  are  now  wooden  dwellings  in  San Francisco which  cost  the  owners  to  build  $300,000, and not  a  single  fine  residence  of  brick  or  stone  can be found  in  the  city. It is  not  the  cold  or  dampness, for brick  buildings  can  be  made  as  warm  and  dry  as frame,  though  this  climate  does  not  require  very  warm houses. San Franciscans  do  not  care  to  have  their houses too  warm ;  nor  with  all  the  fogs  and  rains  is  it considered  a  very  damp  climate. The fear  of  earth- quakes at one  time  exercised  the  strongest  influence against brick  dwellings;  this,  while  there  was  no  ex- isting necessity for  them,  and  they  were  in  addition more costly,  and  plainer,  with  fewer  facilities  for  elab- orate ornamentation which  characterizes  modern  pri- vate houses in  this  country,  caused  a  prejudice  against them to  spring  up,  and  the  fashion  for  frame  houses w^as formed,  which  still  remains. At one  time,  how- ever, there was  quite  a  movement  in  the  direction  of brick  dwellings  of  a  plain  but  comfortable  character, some of  which  may  yet  be  seen  at  North  Beach, South Park,  and  scattered  at  intermediate  points. Montgomery Block,  by  Halleck,  Peachy,  and  Billings was the  largest  building  of  the  season.

" I  can  well  remember,"  says  William  Van  Voor- hies, in  an  address  before  the  California  Pioneers,  on the  9th  of  September,  1853,  "and  I  am  not  by  many years  one  of  the  'oldest  inhabitants,'  when  the  bay of  San  Francisco  afforded  ample  room  and  verge enough  for  the  easy  and  unobstructed  passage  of  the largest  class  mail  steamers  anywhere  between  Clark and  Rincon  points ;  when  one  could  make  one's  way from  the  summit  of  Telegraph  hill  to  the  old  Parker