Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1851-05-06
FORKS or YUMA, Oct. 18th, 1850.

FORKS or fuBA, Oct. 18th, 1850.
DEAR -; As Mr.. Hackney Of Uniontown
win leave tomorrow with his prize for homo,
concluded to send you few lines. l am well and
have neglected writing for some time past on &C.
count Of the state Of my business. ! have beea on
this river two months and have not made . dollar
My partner and I bought clearing Of 80 fee.
square for $3.50, from which we made the amour.
of money invested. We afterwards bought claim
which we feel confident is rich. If II turns out
as we expect, l shall return this winter. We
bought out Snowman and Rohrcr, and gave them
$500 each. They have gone South. Thomas
Moore and Glen Davis, Of the Va. Company, are
with me, and are we'll Stenebraker and Henry
Moore called on MS few days since John W.
walpert is keeping boarding house in San Fran
cisco.
have passed over mountains 3 miles high, and
snow 25 feet deep, and have undergone all sorts
of hardships, Of which have not time now to give
you an account.
will write more in my next--I send piece Of
gold worth about $3.50. CIVIC
YuBA RIVER, CAL. Feb. 2Sth, 1881.
REAN "a ioHg tiiuc hao ph5sc0 w sinNe ! q
last wrote to you, my excuse is, that my mining
operations not being very successful Of late. have
required all my time and attention. We have
lately lost several hundred dollars. Ny partner
and left the Volcano diggings last July and
started for the Northern mines. We went up the
valley of the Sacramento, about 100 miles, TO Bid.
wells bar, on Feather River---from that We jour.
neyed up the river to the mountains, crossing sono
tremendous mountains on the way, whose LOFTY
tops are covered with perpetual snow. Weston.
ped at Nelsonc diggings, about 10 miles above
Bidwelps Here we found nothing to induce US
to remain. We then turned our course South, to-
wards the Forks of the Yuba, about 30 miles dis
first of August, and have been here ever since
During all this time, from July to October, wo
slept under sthe broad blue vault Of Heayen,o our
bed, the earth; aour canopy, the Skies About
the LIST of Oct. We built n cabin, which am now
living in. These may seem like hardships, to you,
but they are not so to The climate here, in
the mountains in the summer, is mild and delight
full, the ground is dry, and just cool enc ugh a.
night to sleep pleasantly upon.
wrote to you short time ago, by Mr.. Hack
ney, Of Pa, who tod me he would pass by Mar
tinsburg and deliver the letter then told you,
who of the Va. Company had seen on Feather
River have lately seen Charles Thomas, Of Nd.
He and Mcllhany arc packing provisions to the
mines. He told me the Cunninghams were herd
ing stock in the valley. Lewis and Bender are
on the river ! must now tell you what we are
doing We bought out two shares from the IIar.
per's-rerry Co., who owned several shares in the
river, at good locking place for gold and where
we have been at work, draining, damming &c,
but the water came in so fast that we could nc.
get to the rock, to examine it. (The gold lies gen
two or three feet in it, fsoft) Last week we go.
down and took out about $3.50 worth of the metal
which just about paid expenses. hope next
week, we will get down again. We expect this
place to be proftable--I have another claim about
mile below this place We prospected il, by
damming and battling, and took cut near $500 from
a space Of about feet square.
Making your fortunes in this country, is like
drawing prize in lottery, few draw the high
prizes, many regret they ever came here. For my
own part, have no reason to complain, would
like to return, and win do so, as soon as convent
emit
Yours, SC,