The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1848-12-07

me intelligence OF the arrival al Monterey of the United
States ship Southampton, with important letters fIom
Commodore Shubrck and Lieut. Col Burton returned
at once 10 Monterey and despatched what business was
most important and the nth resumed my journey.
We reached San Francisco the 20h and found that
all, nearly all its male inhabitants had gone TO the
mines. The town, which few months before was SO
busy and thriving, was then almost deserted On the
evening OF the 24h the horses of the escort crossed
10 Sousoleo in launch and on the following day we
resumed the journey by way of Bodega and Sonoma TO
Suffers fort where arrived the morning OF the ID
OF July Along the whole route, mills were lying idle,
fields of wheat open TO cattle and horses, houses
vacant and farms going TO waste AT Suffer there was
more life and business Launches dischargng their
cagoes at the rve and carts were hauling goods to the
fort, where already established several stores
hotel. &c Captain Suffer had only two mechanics in his
employ, "a wagon maker and a black smith, whom he
was then paying ten dollars day. Merchants pay him
monthly rent of 800 per room; and whilst there.
two story house in the fort was rented hotel for
$500 month.
AT the urgent solicitation of many gentlemen, delayed
there TO participate in the first public celebration OF
national anniversary at that fort, but the 9Th resumed
the Journey, and proceeded twenty-five miles up the
american fork to point on now known as the Lower
Mines, or Mormon Diggings. The hill hlcky
srewn with canvass tents and bush arbors store
was erected and several boarding shanles in operation
The day was intensely hot yet about two hundred men
were at work in the full glare Of the washing for
god-some with tin pans, some with closely woven Indian
baskets but the greater part had rude machine, known
the cradle This is rock ers eight feet long,
at the foot and at It's head has CRATE,
sieve the bottom is rounded with small elects nailed
across -Four men are required to work this machine
one digs the ground in the bank close by the stream
another carries TO the cradle and empnes the CRATE
third gives violent rocking motion to the machine
whilst fourth dashes water from the stream itself
The sieve keeps the coarse stones from entering the
die, the current of water washes off the earthly matter,
and The gravel gradually carried out at the foot of the
machine leaving the gold mixed with heavy fine black
sand above the first elects. The sand and gold mixed
pan below, dried in the and afterwards separated
by blowing off the sand party of four men thus EN-
Indians, and those who have nothing bu, pans willow
baskets gradually wash out the earth and separate the
gravel by hand, leaving nothing but the gold mixed with
sand, which is separated in the before described
The gold in the lower mines is in fine bright scales, OF
which send several specimens.
AS we assembled the south branch of the American
fork, the country became more broken and mountain.
ous and the saw-mll % miles above the lower wash
ngs 90 miles from Suffers, the hills rise TO about
thousand feet above the level of the Sacramento plain
Here species OF pine occurs which led to the discovery
of the gold Capt Suffer feeling the great want OF lun-
Der, contracted in September last with Mr. Marshall TO
build sawmill at that place. II erected in the
course OF The past winter and spnga dam and race Goa
struced; but when the waller was let on the Wheel the
tail found to be too TO permit The water
10 escape with sufficient rapidly Mr.. Marshall, to
labor let the water directly into the race with strong
current to wash it wider and deeper He effected
his purpose, and large bed OF mud and gravel
RED to the foot of the race One day Mr.. Marshall as
he was walking down the race TO this deposte of mud
observed some ghtterng PARTICLES at its upper edge he
gathered few, examined them, and became satisfied OF
their value He then went to the fort told Capt Suffer
OF his discovery, and they agreed to keep secret until
certain gris-mlll Of Suffers finished It, however,
got out, and spread like magic Remarkable success at
tended the abors of the first explorers, and in few
weeks hundreds OF men were drawn thther. AT the
time of my VISIT but little than three months after
It's first discovery, il estimated that upwards of four
thousand people were employed. AT the mill there is
fine deposite bank of gravel which the people respect
the property of Capt Suffer, although he preends to
right 10 it, and would be perfectly satisfied with the
simple promise of pre- empnn, on account of the mill
shall living the mill, and informed me that many
persons were employed above and below hm that they
used the same machines at the lower washngs, and
that their was about the same-rangng from
to three ounces of gold per man daily This gold too, is
in scales little coarser than those Of the lower mines
From the mill Mr. Marshall guided up the mountain
the opposite north bank OF the south fork where,
in the bed of small streams or rayncs. dry great
deal of gold has been found there several
parties at work, all of whom doing very well;
great many specimens shown me, some heavy
four or five ounces in weight, and send three pieces
labelled No s. presented by Mr.. Spence You will per-
ceive that some OF the specimens accompanying this hold
mechanically pieces of quartz that the surface is rough
and evidently moulded in the crevice OF rock. This
gold cannot have been carried far by water, hut must
have renamed near where il was first deposited from the
rock that bound it. inquired OF many people if
hey had encountered the metal in its matrix, but in every
instance they said they had not but that the gold
invariably mixed with washed gravel or lodged in the
crevlces OF other rocks. All bore testimony that they
had found gold in greater OF less quantities in the
Gus small gues ravnes that occur in that noun
famous region On the It'll OF July left the mill, and
crosse 10 small stream emptying into the American
fork, three four miles below the saw-ml | struck
this stream (now known Webers creek) the wash
lngs OF Sunol Co. They had about thirty In liahs
ployed, whom they pay in merchandise. They
getting gold of character similar to that found in
the main fork and doubtless in sufficient quantities to
satisfy them send You small specimen, presented
by this company, of their gold. From this point, we
proceeded up the stream about eight miles, where
found great many people and lndans-some engaged in
the bed OF the stream and others the small side val
leys that put into it. These latter exceedingly rich,
and two ounces considered ordinary yield for
days work. small gutter not than a hundred
yards long by feet wide and or feet deep, point
ed out to me as the where two men William DAILY
and Perry McCoon--had, short time before, obtained
$l7 900 worth OF gold Capt Weber informed that
he knew that these two men had employed four white
men and about hundred Indians. and that al the end of
one weeks work, they paid off their party and had left
shown me, from which had been taken upwards of
900 worth OF gold Hundreds of similar ravnes,
all appearances, are as yet untouched. could not have
credited these reports had not seen, in the abundance
OF the precious metal evidence OF their truth. Mr. Ne
ligh agent of Commodore Stockton, had been at work
IN bags and bottles - 900 worth of gold and MIR
LYMAN gentleman OF education and worthy of every
credit sad he had been engaged with four Others with
machine on the American fork just below Suffers mill
that they worked eight days. and that his share
the rate of $50 day but hearing that others were do
ing better at Webers place, they had removed there and
were then on the point of resunin5 operations might
tell OF hun reds of similar instances but, to illustrate
how plentiful the gold was in the pockets of common la
borers will mention simple occurrence which took
place in my presence when was al Webers store. This
store nothing but arbor of bushes, under which
he had exposed for sale goods and groceries suited his
customers "A man came in, picked up box Of SeidlitZ
powders, and asked its price Capt Weber told him it