Burlington hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1845-185?, 1851-05-08
From the Sacramento Transcript.
Coin ~. Onst-ODden Times.


One year ago there seemed 10 be only
one kind of circulating medium. II was
"dust, and nothing else. The miner
when he came to the city, hauled out his
huge buckskin purse and paid for his
"section Of gingerbread" or meal at a
restaurant, in dust" If he was addict
ed to "scmaps," he planked down the
''dust." he pulled genuine Havana,
it only cost him little "dust,' and he
was heard to say there's plenty more
where that came from. Gold dust SEEM
ed TO have lost its conventional value in
his estimation, and the free spirited miner
parted without sigh, why or a where
fore. How things have changed in one
year. One does not see The old greasy
buckskin now, filled TO the brim with the
glit'ering dust-it is coin, and little else
than coin. The miner only parts with
so much Of his dust as is necessary to de-
fray expenses, and ''sinks" the balance,
not in some banking house, or loanng it
to iriend-as was the case before conf
dence became impaired,-but he "sinks"
II literally, in some nook or corner, " here
he thinks the world will least suspect
We wot Of one chap who TINS sunk his
winters earnings, and he has never as yet
dug deep enough 10 find it. or else some
kind friend relieved him of the trouble of
taking further care of it.
Those were good old times, when the
miners paid for everything in dust-when
the red-shirted gentry were the nabobs OF
the land-when the dirty shirt and coat
less party, were worth their thousands. -
II may seem strange, yet it is not the less
true, that thousands Of persons in this
State last fall year did not own Goa.
and yet they may have had several thou
sand dollars in the pocket. The fact oi
II was, coats were a sort Of useless ap.
prndage, and but few seemed willing to
trouble themselves with packing them
about. Last September year, floating
population, of at least six thousand per.
sons were in and around Sacramento, vel
ont Of this entire number there were moi
over one dozen coated persons. As for
titles we doubt if there were dozen
respectable looking hats in this city-they
were perfect mongrel breed-of all
shapes, sizes and condisions--some crown.
less, some rimless, and so patched and
worn that the locker on could not have
told whether they had originally beer
"plush" or "wool." What a sensation
Everett Of San Francisco would have pro.
duced with his fashionable Union hats
What happy and glorious state o.
morals were universally prevalent. Their
every one regarded his neighbor as hon
est until adverse proof was adduced.--
Stores were in canvass houses, with M
protection whatever. Safes, locks, ant
all those fixtures used to guard agains
thieves, We're unknown.
Those days have passed, and with The
change has come idleness, vagrancy, ant
coin as circulating medium. Instead O
that free and don't care spirit Of spending
money, men now regard dollars as muci
as they once esteemed ounces. The,
grip dollar with more tenacity than the,
formerly did their pounds Of dust.
Instead Of the old time apparel, nolhin,
will do now but clothes Of the fancies
hue and finest fabric, and titles of IN,
latest and most fashionable style. w,
doubt indeed whether there is a NOR,
rigid adherence to fashion anywhere, thar
is now visible in the resident population
Of Sacramento.
The introduction Of coin seems to have
doubly distilled our people into fashion.
able class, and we sigh for return o.
those days when the old buckskin purse
used to be f>hed up from the hidden re.
cesses Of a pocket where its companion.
were a jacknile, nails, tobacco, &C., SC.