The Madisonian. (Canton, Miss.) 1850-1855, 1850-07-04

OF SLlall CAKE Oh sugar; IL dUOuL Luo
size of teacup. This mixed with
sweet milk, makes quite pleasant
dish. Then the tortia or small thin
cake Of bread. which is more like wa
fer in shape and thickness than any
thing else, all together make up quite
palatable repast. The Califdrnians eat
but very little meat and that is usually
beef jerked. Bread and beans form
their principal food.
There are few Americans in Cal.
ifornia who have been settled here for
some space oftime. They live down
on the coast-range, and some few in
the valley Of the Sacramento, these
parts being best adapted 10 agricultural
purposes. The plains form a large
section Of country that in point of soil
aud situation is certainly second to no
part of the globe. But this disadvan-
tage of having no rain in the summer
season, nor even dew, and again not
timber Of which they can make rails to
fence in their farms, are SO great that
the few facilities when thrown into the
balance are weighed down. In many
ofthe southern portions and up the
coast range; also in the plains Of Sa-
cramento, are fine stock countries, but
that IS the most for which it is at pres
ent famous; though the day is not far
distant when these, at present wild and
romantic plains, will be checkered over
with rich farms and rural cottages
Already are there Aourishing towns
rising up on the river with wharves
groaning under the vast amount of for
eign produce, brought hitherby scores
of vessels from Chilli, Peru, China,
the Sandwich isles, Oregon, the United
States, &C., also bringing with them
thousands of emigrants. all for gold
AMI none for the farm. But times must
change soon, and then things will fall
into their proper channel. Then you
will see the laborer go to his vocation
with the horse and plough in place Of
the washbowl and rocker. But | will
leave this subject for your magma
lion to dwell on, and proceed to tell
you what VIZ are doing in the noun
famous parts Of California at present.
You have doubtless heard so much
. about the gold here and gold hunters
that you are perhaps tired reading such
news; but we boys know that many ac-
counts which were sent back to the
States were untrne, or at least of a
character to produce an excitement
there which the gold mines here would
not justify. There are numbers of
men here, the boalsfhan, the merchant
and the hard-hearted speculator, who
will AMI do exaggerate in regard to the
mines. Knowing this and desirous
that you should have the truth, we
thought we would write you few
i, facts.
J, Then we say. in the first place, that
there is an abundance of gold in this
T., country-more perhaps than was ever
r found IN any other country before
| Gold may be found here almost every
, where more or less. We get it in
f dust, scales, in sIugs and chunks and all
the rivers, in the banks and beds. Men
frequently find Jumps of considerable
, size even on the surface. And yet af'
; ter all we cannot get it very fast moi
5 half as fast as we could wish. A few
: now and then get large quantities in 6
i short time-but these are lucky case;
, much like angels visits, few and far be-
: tween.
: The miners have been making here
: this winter in the diggings near Au-
r burn about eight dollars per day
D but there has been only about one fourtI
: Of the time that they could work. The
4 other three fourths Of the time it wal
!, raining or unsuitable weather for min
? ing. So we have been doing nothing
!, more this winter than supporting our
selves, having had to pay for the mos
/, Of our provisions, such as picked pork
. Hour, coffee, sugar beans, hard breac
s &C.. 81 per pound-fresh beef so cts
/; Common brogan boots have been sci
5 ling here this winter for 80, 40 and SO
j dollars. But now the gales of winter
:, have nearly passed over, and our hopes
e are already brightning with the open
! ing of the future, and manya pleasan
!; hour do we have in calculating how we
!. will soon be digging out our ounces il
9 a day and it may be pounds.
The wet season commenced here las
y fall sooner than was expected general
y y. and 1t caught many a one out O.
r doors, but we all soon prepared u'
9 tents, Or made US log cabins. and b.
\ the way have spent tolerably com
i Portable winter. 1t has showed twice
I 50 as to lie on the ground a few hours
Three miles above US snow has been ly
!, ing on the ground all the winter, ano
{, south Of us on the South fork, but VIZ