The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-10-22


fornia, and by easy work can make $25 per day.
that is f5 English have painted all the signs in
this neighborhOOd, and have made great many
little in horses and mules, but have ALWAYS lost,
as do not know anyrnE; about stock. ! have
made acquaintance with Mr. Cfsaine, rom Lex
ington, Kentucky; he is good man, and gen.
store here this winter in the meantime shall be
knocking about TO raise sufficient capital, and ne
working at his trade, (carpenter) Our log house IS
situated mile above Ringgold, in Pleasant VAL
ley, IN the woods, just at the foot OF the Sierra
Nevada mountains, and the first house which the
overland emigrant comes TO on the PACING side OF
the eternal snowcovered mountains, II would
grieve you to the heart to zee the poor starved emf
grants arriving across those mountains from the
States, thousands Of them every day; their suffer-
ings through hunger are indescribable. will give
you one instance out Of thousand About
month ago, just as the mountains were passable,
three young men came 10 our house just as had
done supper they had not tasted anything but
mules flesh for fortnight; their PROVISIONS becom-
ing exhausted they had to kill and eat their mules,
and they said thousands were in the same condi-
ton, and would be all summer, very few OF the
emigrants brought sufficient provisions. of course
gave them a good feed. Now, however, stores
of provisions are sent out across the mountains
to meet the starving emgIans, and their suiterings
are alhevated. thought suffered coming round
the Horn, but that was a pleasure trip to what
the overland emigrants endure, and will en-
dure, until October, when the mountains will
and those who do arrive in this unhealthy country
are unit for work until they rest awhile. Many
who have the me ans, go right back home again by
sea. really do not know what on earth puts II
into peoples heads to leave good homes and civil
lized society, to come here TO scratch up gold dust,
exposing themselves to all sorts of danger. Great
lies have been told about this country; exag-
gerated reports have got circulated in the pa
pers, while the plain truth has been generally
| Impressed. Now, | have had some experience
nd have no interest but TO tell the truth. have
dug in some hundreds of places throughout the gold
regions, in ravines, creeks, and on the banks OF
rivers and occasionally in the sides of mountain
| and never washed pan of dirt without finding
in it some specks Of geld dust, more or less; but
the officially is to get more than will pay expenses
! in such an expensive place. Some make fortunes
| in short time, but these ''some" are few; hun
| dreds Of others barely pay their expenses. Some
| sort OF machinery must be invented to work the
| gold dust wholesale. Now, so long as gold Is
| found, this country will fiourish-which may be
| for ages, as the gold seems inexhaustibe. In the
cities and towns here, mechanics of all sorts will
| find employ ment; but those who are comfortably
fixed at home are fools if they leave it, though for
young fellows like myself, with indefinite pros
poets, (more particularly mechanics) if they are
prepared 10 encounter hardships, let them tcome,
and they willmake money, if they have health,
mules, and turned them loose on ranch TO fatten
till next spring, when will cross the Sierra Neva-
da and Rocky Mountains, calling at the Great Salt
Lake City, and stay few days among the Mormons
| there. There is no pleasure in this country. In
| our house we have mice, rats, snakes, lizards,
scorpions, centpedes, toads and frogs, and in sects
of all sorts, from musquitos 10 flying beetles and
poisonous spiders. saw a snake lying on my bed
the other day, go just took the rifle and shot him
through, blankets and all; he measured feet long,
| and was az thick as my wrist. Since that have
! got an Indian hammock made of grass; l paid ci
for it, and sleep comfortable. l am contented,
so long as | make money. | sleep with pistols
| Qoaded) under my head and rifle by my sde-some-
times they are necessary. live in tbs midst OF
Indians. One day, while lying in bed, three In
dians and sqaw came in, and, seeing me there,
one of the Indians laid hold of some bread and wds
giving il to the others. / told hun, ia Spanish, -
leave il alone, but he siil went on, so sprang nj
in bed and seized my rifle, and, taking aim al his
head, sang on" panp0s =" II they had not rdm-
posed would have shot the whole three OF them;
as il was, was as near shooting one as possible.
IL they had shown any opposition i would have
closed the mortal career OF the lot but 1 was
thankful afterwards that had not TO tire, for do
not want 10 kill any human beng-but one requires
TO be constantly guarded against these meanest OF
Indians The day before, two Indians killed two
white men with their arrows, in this valley; but
they very seldom commit any depredations now,
for the whites take revenge on them at the rate
OF ten Of their lives for white mans life. Here
am / have To cook all for myself, living in the
woods; cut weod, make fires, bake bread in the
ashes, roast my coffee, pound il with stones, buy
my beef, molasses, and every thing else. Before
the overland emigration came in this year, there
was only one woman amongst population OF 900
about Ring gold; she made me a present of a
handsome paint box, for making her drawing Of
the town JoHs w.