New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-05-08
CALIFORNIA.
A General View of California society aud
PrOsress-A strange Country and
Strange People.

newspapers, in punishment for your charge o'
drunkenness and general immortality among our
nonnl.tiop. You should have left wide margin
for exceptions, and then every man, drunk or so
her. gambler or what not, would have taken re-
fuge on the margin, and nobody would have been
hurt. In future you will please to dl'oeieve
what we say Of ourselves, through oar ne"sPs'
pers and letter writers, or if you cannot disoe-
lieve. say nothing about it. When our papers
charge corruption on the Courts in mass you
must not infer that all the Judges are Implicated
When they denouuce the City Fathers 4" band
Of .vindlers. you will not infer that they swindle
erertbody. When they tell you thatno nan lIlafe
in the street unless armed 10 the teeth, you must
not suppose that every citizen carries pistols In
his belt When they advise individuals to re-
dress their own grievances and urge the popu-
lace to hang maleisctor now and then, do not
imagine, pray you, that Judge Lynch Is popu-
lar gentleman in these parts. Because some OF
our Judges who have wives IN the old states may
be seen every night at the public balls, dancing
hand in hand with brazen prostitutes you Will
not conclude that they are the best men IN the
company Ifyou should lind nearly one-hat the
houses used for rog.seing and gambling, Il Will
not do 70 suspect that most OF those who occupy
the other hall, drink grog or do some other bad
The truth 10, society has been in a worse con-
ditiop here than now, and it 10 improving rapidly
Gambling is not now the principal business OF the
winter as it was one year ago. Money Is NOT so
plenty, and beside, many OF our prominent men
dare not now do as they once did, All xmas Oh
trickery are required to draw business and to as
tract green gentlemen. Women-yes, rome"
are put behind the gambling tables, with their
dice boxes and rouettes and other Implements Of
the internal trade. These women, however are
mostly French strumpets. We are indebted to
LaBelle France for several similar retnements
OF society. lt 10 most revolving 10 see women
unsexed, and set to erog serving aud gambling
But the business flags aud the gamblers 90 about
the streets with sick faces The nightly music
don't pay. The Lansquenet" is growing stale.
Society improves rapidly from the immigration
of the wives and families OF our cltlzens The
proportion Of virtuous females increases daily
You are charged with having declared that nine
tenths of the women are prostitutes, NO such
assertion was ever made by any Editor OF The
Tribune Ed. Trtb and from one OF our pulpits
some severe structures have been visited upon
your guilty bead, for the alleged SANDER. think
1t quite probable that your assertion was true, at
the time it referred to-which must have been
nearly or quite three months before our citizens
read it in THE Tribune. 1t is certainly inapplica'
bic at present. We are a changing people No
city in the world ever exhibited such rapid tran
sitions. Before description OF San francisco
could travel hence to Ne~-Vork and retarn In
The Tribune. it would be entirely insp 2licable
The probability Is, that long before this letter
comes bach in your columns, the proportion Of IL
centious females will be less than ORetenth, and
that my letter, in some important features, will
be far out Of the way.
Our papers are highly spiced with murders and
lynchines, which are souowfuly frequentshrough-
out the State. How can 1t be Otherwise : Look
at our mopgrel population! The whole world
pours its putrid excrement into the lap of C.liiOr
MIA. The penal settlements OF England and the
bells and brothes Of Paris and New Orleans have
vomited most foully upon this land. Chui, hexl-
co, and all ankeedom have added largely TO the
mass Of moral hlLh. Not that al our population
are of this class-for there 10 large proportion
taken from the better ranks of society 10 the At
lantic States. and IN foreign countries. IL cannot
be denied. however, that men who have borne
good character at home. often lose It here az least
they lose their clam 10 a good character. No
country in the world offers such powerful tempta
tions to peculetion and vice. The standard Of
morals in mercantile and business affairs ia not
very high, and the trading community are not far
above the standard. Some of our greatest scoun.
drels were correct men before they came here.
They had never been tried On the contrary,
however il 10 gratifying to krow that many per
sons who came here with broken regulations, have
redeemed themselves The fact is, you cannot
tell what California will do for man until be has
passed the ordeal. An honest man may come out
rogue, and . quondsm or suspected scoundrel is
quite likely to come out purified. Morally and
physically, It is the strangest spot on the globe.
At this moment an extraordinary fermentation
in the moral world goes on. Society 10 not organ.
lied, and law can not be brought into regular Ope-
ration in, the mining districts. Individuals are
their own judges and avengers. Even in this city,
IL is not an unheard of thing for an Alderman or
Policeman 10 cOWhide an enemy 10 the street.
h. NJ Ia in rife hat Ia
will be, cannot be foretold | have no doubt that
ere long things will settle down in regular
course, law will assume it, rightfu authority, and
in other respects the population Of California will
exhibit the general character Of Anglo Saxon
civilization.
One word in Justice to our Clergymen. They
deserve great credit for their bold and fearless
denunciation Of popular vices. In no part OF the
world can men be found more honest and indie
pendent IN this aspect. lntemperance gambling
and hcentiousness are not spared. either in their
obvious presentations, or IN THE incidental phases
OF rum.seling. tavern owning lottery dealing and
so forth. In regard TO lotteries the IL legislature
has recently prohibited them, and the lar ViH be
enforced. But gambling has beenl,censed, with
view however 70 restrain II
A bill is now passing through the legislature,
ard will in all probability become law, making
grand larceny a capital crime punishable with
death The people have anticipated it's passage,
ard taking up It's spirit, have already hung some
twelve 70 twenty borse thieves What our law
makers will yet DO, is beyond conjecture No
one would be amazed At anything they should
accomplish. Ifthe fancy took them they would re-
enact a the Connecticut Blue Laws. Most people
think that II few substantial piles Of ore were ia
prospec', the fancy e0uld take them Ny private
opinion Of them is more favorable, though it is
quite certain that they are an uncertain BODY Of
men But everybody in station 10 UNUSED by
even body out OF station. Judges, aldermen and
Legislators are all in the pilOry, and get daily
PetiDgs. AN not sure that mOst people do not
suspect moot people Of being knayes. The French
ptoverb says Of fools that the world 10 so fol OF
them thar to keep from seeing any you must smut
yourseh up alone and break your looking.glass.
In this country the proverb would be nearer the
truth n knayea were inaertad In nlaca of fonla