The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-07-04
ELDORADO: ADVENTURES IN THE PATH OF
EMPIRE.

| With something of the grateful feeling which
prompted the memorable exclamation Of Ssncho
Panza, Blessings on the man who first invented
sleepp we have laid down these pleasant volumes
Blessings on the man who invented books Of travel
| for the benefit of home idlers the Marco Polos,
the Sir John Mandevilles, and the Ibn Batutas
OF ofd time, snS s,4i, b. e. srS 3!9zSes end I'M
| tatorsl Nothing ia tae shape of travel and gos-
sip, by the way, comes amiss to Us from Cooks
voyages round the earth to Count De Maistre's
journey round his chamber. When the cark and
care of daily lifeand homey duties, and the weary
routine Of sight and sound, Cypress us. what a
comfort and refreshing is it to open the charmed
pages of the traveller. Our narrow monotonous
horizon breaks away all about us; FIVE minutes
suffice to take us quite out of the commonplace
and familiar regions of our experience; we are
In the Court of the Great Khan, we are pitching
tents under the shadows Of the ruined temples OF
Tadmor, we are sitting on a fallen block Of the
Pyramids, or a fragment Of the broken nose Of
the Sphynx, dickering with Arab Shieks, oppos.
ing Yankee shrewdness to Ishmaelitish greed and
cunning; we are shooting crocodles on the
white Nile unearthing the winged lions Of
Ezekers vision on the Tigris--watching the
night.dance of the Devil-worshippers on their
mountains, negotiating with the shrewd penny.
! .y-~iwS patriarch of Armenia for a sample from
] his holy-oil mandatory at Erivan, drinking
| coffee at Damascus, and sherbet at Constantine.
pie, lunchng in the vale of Chaumorng, taking
part in holy fete at Rome and merry Christ
mas at Berlin. We look into the happiness OF
travelling through the eyes Of others, and for the
miseries of it, we enjoy them exceedingly. Very
cool and comfortable are we while reading the
poor authors account of his mishaps hair
breadth escapes, hunger, cold, and nakedness.
We take deal of satisfaction in his moscheto
prosecutions and night-long battles with sangui-
nary heas The discomforts and grievances of his
palate under the ordeal Of foreign cooking were
real relish for US. On a hot morning in the
tropics, we see him pulling on his stocking with
scorpion in it, and dancing in involuntary joy
under the effects of the sting Let him dance; it
is all for our amusement. Let him meet with
what he will--robbers, cannibals, jungle-tigers,
and rattlesnakes, the more the better-since we
know that he will get off alive, and come to regard
them so many God-sends in the way of book.
making.
The volumes now before US are not only sea-
sonable as respects the world curiosity in re-
gard to California--the new risen empire on the
Pacifc--abounding, as they do, in valuable facts
and statistics but they have in a high degree that
charm of personal adventure and experience to
which we have referred referred 2syard Taylor is a
born tourist He has eyes to see, skill to make
tho most Of whatever opens before him under the
ever-shiftng horizon of the traveller. He takes
us along with him, and let's US into the secret of
his own hearty enjoyment. Much Of what he de-
scribes has already become familiar to us from
the notes Of thousand gold-seekers, who have
sent home such records as they could Of their ex.
periences in a strange land Yet even the well
known particulars of the overland route across
the Isthmus become novel and full of interest in
the narrative of our young tourist. The tropical
scenery by day and night on the river, the fam
dango at Gorgona, and the ride to Panama
through the dense dark forest, with death, in the
shape Of cholera-strcken emgrant, following at
their heels, are in the raciest spirit of story
the ancient city of Acapulco, and took in a com.
pany of gamblers, who Immediately set up their
business on deck. AT San Deigo, the first over
land emigrants by the route of the Gila river,
who had reached that place few days before,
came on board, lank and brown as the ribbed sea-
sand their clothes in taters their boots replaced
with moccasins, small deerskin wallets containing
all that was left of the abundant stores with
which they started-ther hair and boards matted
and unshorn, with faces from which the rigid ex-
preston Of suffering WAS scarcely relaxed The
tales Of their adventures and sufferings the au-
thor speaks Of as more marvellous than ANYTHING
he had ever heard or read since his boysh &C.
quaintance with Robinson Crusoe and Ledyard.
Some had come by the way of Santa Fe, along
the savage Gls milestone had crossed the Great
Desert, and taken the road from FL Paso to So.
nora-some had passed through Mexico, and
after beating about for months in the Pacific, had
run into San Deigo and abandoned their vessel
some had landed weary with seven months
voyage round Cape Horn-whle others had
wandered on foot from Cape San Lucas to San
Deigo, over frightful deserts and rugged noun
tains distance Of nearly fifteen hundred miles,
as they were obliged to travel.
The ella emgrants spoke with horror Of the
Great Desert west of the Coorado-a land of
drought and desolation-vast salt plains and hills
Of drifting sand the trails which they followed
sown white with bones of man and beast I'm
buried corpses of emigrants and carcasses Of
LaI aIoI ~ tha hot
air foul and loathsome. Wo to the weak and fal-
tering in such journey They were left alone
to die on the burning sands.
On the Sonora route, one Of the party fell sick,
and rode on behind his companions, unable to
keep pace with them for several days, yet always
arriving in camp few hours later. At last he
was missing. Four days after, negro alone and
on foot came into camp and told them that many
miles back m n lying by the road had begged
little water OF him, and urged him to hurry on
and bring assistance The next morning COM
pany of Mexicans came up, and brought word
that the man was dying. But his old companions
hesitated to 20 to his relief The negro there
upon retraced his steps over the desert and reach
ed the sufferer just as he expired. lie lifted him
in his arms the poor fellow strove to speak to
his benefactor, and died in the effort. His mule,
tied to cactus, was already dead Of hunger at
his side picture commemorative such scene,
and the heroic humanity of the negro, would bet
ter adorn panel Of the Capitol, than any battle
piece which was ever painted.
There is q graphic account Of me authors fret
impressions of San Francisco "A furious wind
was blowing down through gap in the bills, FILL
ing the streets with dust. On every side stood
buildings Of all kinds, began or halffnished,