Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1848-12-15
CALIFORNIA AND HER GOLD.

CALIFORNIA AND HER GUILD.
The following is letter from Col. +. H.
Mason, 1st U S dragons, aud accompanies
the report of the Secretary of War. 1t will
be found rcplete with interest:
mo. 81 IIEADQUARrER 10TH MILITARY DEPT,
Monterey. Cal f"rnia, Aug. II, 1913
Sir: have the honor to inform you that,
accompanied by Lieut. w. T. Sherman. 81 ar
tIIery. A. A A Gen'l, | started on the 18th
June last to make tour through the northern
part of California. My principal purpose,
however, was to visit the newly discovered
gold "pIacer" in the valley of ;he Sacrament
10. | had proceeded almost forty miles, when
was overtaken by an express, bringing the
intelligence of the arrival at Monterey of the
United States ship Southampton, with impor-
tant letters from Commodore Shubrick and 1t.
Col. Burton. | returned at once to Monterey,
and despatched what business was most i'm
p0rtart, and on the 18th resumed my Journey.
V reached San Francisco on the goth, and
found that all, or nearly all, its male nhabi-
tants 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 Gath, the horses of
the escort were crossed TO Sousoleto in
launch, and on the following day we resum-
ed the journey by way of Bodeka and Sono-
ma to Suffers fort, where we arrived on the
morning of the I'd of July. Along the whole
route miles were lying idle, fields of wheat
were open to cattle and horses, houses vacant,
and farms going TO waste. At Suffers there
was more life and business Launches were
discharging their cargoes at the river, and
carts were hauling goods to the fort, where
already were established several stores, a no.
tel, &c. Captain Suffer had only two me-
chanics in his employ, "a wagon maker and a
blacksmith whom he was then paying ten
dollars day. Merchants pay him c monthly
rent of 500 per room and whilst was there,
two story house in the fort was rented as a
hotel for $500 month
| At the urgent solicitation of many gentle
men, delayed there to participate in the first
| public celebration of our national anniversary
at the fort, but on the 9TH resumed the Jour-
ney, and proceeded twenty-five miles up the
! American fork 10 a point now known as the
Lower Mines, or Mormon Diggings. The
hill sides were thickly strewn with canvass
tents and bush arbors; store was erected,
and several boarding shanties in operation
| The day was intensely hot, yet about two
hundred men were at work in the full glare of
| the sun, washing for gold-some with tin
pans, some with close woven Indian baskets.
but the greater part had Il rude machine,
! known as the cradle. This is on rockers, six
or eight feet long, open al the foot, and at its
| head has a coarse CRATE or 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 it II the cradle and
empties it on the CRATE third gives violent
rocking motion to the machine; whilst a fourth
dashes on water from the stream itself.
The sieve keeps the coarse stones from en-
tering the cradle, the current of water washes
off the earthly matter, and the gravel is grad
ually carried out at the foot of the machine,
leaving the gold mixed with a heavy fine
black sand above the first elects. The sand
ana gold mixel together are then drawn of
through auger holes into pan below, are dried
in the sun, and afterwards separated by blow
ing off the sand. A party of four men thus
employed at the lower mines averaged 500 d
day. The Indians, and those who have no,
thing but pans or willow baskets, gradually
wash on. the earth and separate the gravel BY
hand, leaving nothing but the gold mixed with
sand, which is separated in the manner before
described. The gold IN the lower mines is il
fine bright scales, of which | send several spe
CImens.
AS we assembled the south branch of the A
merican fork, the country became more bro
ken and mountainous, and the saw-miII, 2;
miles above the lower washings, or so miles
from Suffers, the hills rise 10 about thou
sand feet above the level of the Sacramento
: plain. Here species OF pine occurs, which
led TO the discovery of the gold Capt Sut
fer feeling the great want of lumber, contrac
ted in September last with Mr.. Marshall II
, build a saw-mill at that place. 1t was cree
, ted in the course of the past winter and sprin;
"a dam and race constructed /; but when th