Victor Davis Hansen, back at the ranch, on Uncommon Knowledge Now.

Welcome to Uncommon Knowledge, I'm Peter Robinson. Victor Davis Hansen, a classical scholar at the Hoover Institution, a journalist on Fox News and on his website, the Blade of Persia's,

and we come now to today's program, a farmer, here in the San Joaquin Valley of California.

Dr. Hansen has published more than two dozen books, including A War Like No Other, his definitive account of the Peloponnesian Wars and his most recent volume, The Dying Citizen.

Victor, I ordinarily welcome guests to the studio, but you permitted us to join you here in your house, so thank you for welcoming me.

Thank you for coming to San Joaquin Valley.

A pleasure. So, let's talk about this place.

Your family came to California from Missouri, about the turn of the last century, over a century ago, around 1900, is that correct?

No, they came, my great-great-grandmother Luciana Davis came here in 1871, really from where?

In Missouri, they were in a southern area of the state, and they were northerners, and after the war, they saw an ad for land, and they took the newly built transcontinental railroad to San Francisco, and they hired a buckboard, and they just came out here, and there was no town or anything.

Artesian pawn, which is still here, and they homesteaded it.

When you say they came here, they came here to this place in 1871?

Yes, and they bought the railroad, it was given sections, we're only about two miles from the railroad, and they bought it for $4 an acre from the railroad.

And they were given 30 years to improve it, or the railroad could take it back.

And then we had the famous Muscle Slough, and the octopus by Frank Norris, the whole railroad scandals of taking land back when they should know, but that was only eight miles from here.

Really? The Muscle Slough tragedy, yeah.

Okay, so keep going from Missouri, how long have they been there?

Oh, that's been, I'm fifth generation.

You're fifth generation in this house, yeah.

Fifth generation in this house? Yes.

So who's the oldest generation? Can you remember your grandfather?

Yes, so I grew, my mother was Pauline Davis Hanson, three sisters, and she was here, and then her father was Reese Davis, and he was my grandfather.

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