The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1850-03-16
Correspondence of the N. o. True Delta,
CaVFFOrrSa

beautiful grores and Jlruriant grass he didn't /
find IN HnmboldfS RiUer Valley Crossing the I
Desert-THe Boiling SpringS-THe High
Rock Canon"-THe route for a Railroad to tap I
the Sacramento ValIep-THe hardest kind Of
labor to get Gold-Erciting accounts from Tim |
lty Ricer-High prices Of Provisions and Goods
-Ge0l0gicaJ Formations, DC. &c.
REDDING's DIGGINGs. UP'R SACRAMENTO,
January, 10, 1850.
l take advantage of the departure of the
twin dug-out ''Laclede," Captain Whtmon,
from her moorIngs, at the mouth of Salt Creek,
for Sacramento City. TO inform you Of my
safe arrival in this land of 8 Ophir," of some
of my hardships in getting here, my opera
tons after my arrival. and a charcoal sketch
of the elephant" as that interesting animal
is found to exist in these parts
We separated from the balance Of our par
ty on the Humbug, alias Humboldt's River,
where we didn't find those beautiful groves
of cottonwood, ard luxuriant fields of grass,
which some graphic and green" historian
had led US to believe we should, we taking
the upper or Lassen route, and they, more
wisely-as then and do now think-folIow
ing the old trail. Our road, instead of avoid
ling the desert and being much shorter as had
been represented proved to be much further,
and crossed a desert seventy-fve miles mex
tent, without water or grass, except hot wa
ter which we obtained from the boiling
springs, and which I would advise all to re-
frain from using, as | believe them to be pois-
oncus, and some dry, sickly looking grass
which grew around the springs.
The springs themselves are certainly very
interesting objects Of curiosity to the traveller.
being by far the most extensive that we met
with on the route. one of them being 200 feet
in circumference. and 40 feet deep. The wa
ter is undoubtedly in boiling state, the boys
cooking rice, fruit, beans, &c. in them, as
quickly as could be done in one of " Bucks "
best stoves.
The next remarkable feature on this route
is the High Rock Canon" which consider
as one Of the greatest curiosities in the world.
1t Is pass or chasm through the lower and
eastern ranges of the great Sierra, Of more
than hundred miles in length. varying from
thirty feet to three hundred yards in width,
Astounding In fine grass and water, and so
very level, you can scarcely tell which way
the water runs. The rocks-red granite and
trap-rising in many places on both sides, in
walls several hundred feet high. But it is
useless for me to attempt anything al descrip
ton, as | have no gift F" that way. Nature
seems to have indicated this as the route by
which the valley of the Sacramento should
be tapped by a railroad, if such Il project
| lion" has taken it into his head, believe it
will be done. The passage over the main
chain is entirely practicable, by means of sta
tonary power, and the balance of the way
passes over comparatively level ground, COW
cred densely by the most magnificent timber,
consisting OF white, yellow, sugar, and nut
pine, hemlock, spruce, CEDAR and live oak
The last hundred miles, however, is almost
impossible as a wagon road, on account of
the loose stones which cover the surface, and
the want of water and grass for stock.
We arrived at Lassens on the 10th of Sep
temher-by my notes four hundred and eighty
miles from where we left the old trail. We
now thought our troubles oveI and that we
had or y to make our way into the mines. and
shovel up as much of the Fdust" as we want
ed, and leave for home; but as uncle Ned
used ID say, BLESSED am dey what expects
muffin. for dey shant be diserDointed," for, in
stead ofrolling it out by the hattulI, we soon
found it had to be obtained and that in small
quantities, by the hardest kind of labor ex
posed II burning sun, which he's told fear
fully upon the lives and health of the emf
grants who have Just arrived in the country,
who eager to get their "pile, ;" imprGdently
exposed themselves too much.
After reaching the dgglngs. I of course
had to prospect" around for two or three
weeks to find rich place. believing from APP
pearances that the old creeks were all dug
out. | finally set myself down to try my luck
in some of the cold holes" Some DAYS two
or three ounces, but more frequently two or
three dollars, would be the reward of my la
bors So far our working had been in the
dry digglngs. We then thought we would
try the wasnings on Clear creek. where we
did obtain SIX or ten dollars to the man per
day by constant work; but l believe the av-
erage Of all the work done in these mines will
not exceed three dollars per diem since the 1st
September.
\ on will ask why so many persons are stay
ing here under such circumstances? | will
, tell you. In the first place, these digglngs,
when first discovered were undoubtedly very
rich, and the hope with all is that new dis
coveries will be made (Which is my opinion)
of equal richness; secondly, every once in a
while we hear of some lucky chap lifting a
good pile. Some time since q gentleman
from Illinois, picked up piece weighing thir
ty-four ounces OF the shape of a kidney ex-
actly. 1t is believed about here to be one ia
ken from the ''golden calf" of which we read
in the old books; thirdly. many of the miners
have built very comfortable houses, and they
don't like to leave them, and last but not the
least reason, is that since the bad weather set
in, we have received the most exciting news
from the Trinity river, which is inaccessible
from this side of the mountains. saw gen
tleman the other day, who hal been working
below the second canon on the Trinity, who
had done very well for the two weeks he had
been at work there. He and six others had
made an average of nine ounces per day
They were compelled to abandon their work
on account of high water and scarcity ofpro-
visions
The rain set in here on the first day Of No
vember, and continued for twentv-four days