New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1853-03-26


On The 18Th Of September ls47, te drst scion
reid Tor sx mcmbers O; Council The nugiber OF woes
rolled WIS two hundred, which exceeded al pTcvl
cAculsti, ~ The following senileun had the honor OF
fsipc ,bc spcee.s ul candidates: Wn 4. Liedsiori.
Edward P Jones Rcbcr; Parker w. ,. Howard,
Wlll m Glover, ard Wi liam Clark. They held their
frsi meeting and entered on The duties Of ONCE on the
l6th Of TIE same month.
The Steamboat made its experimental trip on The
l5ih cf November in thar year performing success d
expedition Ground wood lsandr Tns pioneer ia
stesm nsvigstiou was dimnutive vessel ~hoSe nane
is not given II attracted much attention by rs noTey,
ard two DAYS sfterNard proceeded 20 Santa ClsE1
In April ls{7 .emtnlon;hly ma was established 20
San Diego ard ether southwark points On the l>t OF
April in the following year, the . Cal'orra star TX
press tfi by the overland route after several months
frInp,tpg This formidable enterprise, the nrst resu
lar convey sncc 10 the Sta,es was announced - 20
through a. far Independence No, in sixty days TGe
Icsisge on letter was atty cents.
Early ia lS4S fsverish excitement appears 10 have
taken hold OF the public mind in regard 70 the supposed
misersl treasures of the country But L Is worthy Of
remark that gold the metal least thought OF OF talked
Of The quicksilver mines near san Jose bad long been
known ard worked. Other deposits of quicksilver ore
were reported in al directions. Copper wss dscov
cred somewhere saltpeter and sulphur also quarry OF
limestone opened, and coal had been found near
San Francisco which, however, bad the uniortunate
quality Of being incombusuhle Silver also was SAID 10
have been discovered in various directions To this
uetsl indeed mere than % sny other, was expectation
directed and people seemed 10 have an idea that the
land was underlaid with silver ore.
The frst discovery Of gold was made near Suffers
Fort thirty miles from Sacramento, or New Helveua as
it was then called in December le47. Bu, the stories
told OF it were too good 10 be credited In March how
ever the Papers OF San Francisco announced that the
quantity OF gold taken from the mine recently found NJ
New Helveta great thar had become an article
Of traffic in that vicinity In short time the Editors
and others begsn 10 see the Jumps OF pure virgin
gold~ wifA their eyes. The yellow fever as It was
tacetiously called then broke forth with extreme vo-
lcnce snd carried OF the population rapidly ~ means
Il hs Nhf yks Al Nav
most guhriOus article, dating the prosperity OF the
om the occupation OF the country by the United
Sstcs, but sverrng that never within the last three
wears had IL presented less lie like more barren APP
rearance than the present time Stores closed
and houses left tenantess the hum OF industry slenced
and every thing a desoaie and sOmber Look, all
being dull mOuotonous and dead Lawyers merchants,
grocers carpenters cartmen and cooks rushed In
motley assemblage TO the mines The few merchants
who remained posted up on their stores the since tamil
sr placsrd Highest price paid here for California
gold' Surh was the melancholy tone Of the public
press The unhappy consequences Of this state OF
affairs, adds the editor, ARE easily toreseen'
The Star of the 81 June announced the death OF its
comrade The Californian, by the prevailing fever
and declared its existence threatened by the
epidemic which had entered the printing coffee and even
seized the devil Its orebodin proved to be true,
The California Star did not appear above the horizon
the next week Ia six weeks the former paper was re
yved, and The Star rose again soon atterward. The
editor OF The Californian however entered on his new
life with serious msgylngs threatening IN the nrst issue
again 10 retreat 10 the mines II not sustained Dy tne
citizens The two papers were then united and the
joint finally took the name of The Alta Cali
fOrRid.
The temporary suspension of trade and business was
soon followed by the most extraordinary activity. Ad-
venturers from all nations and merchandise of all kinds
began to pour into the town, the way to the mining
region Buildings that had been vacated were hled
with newly arrived godseekers hurrying to the mines
Storehouses were in demand for mercantile purposes,
and labor which had been but two dollars day
prior to the discovery OF gold was not to be had at
price Carpenters often refused fifteen and twenty dol
hrs day. Schools and churches forgotten, and
If public meetings held the object TO fix the
value of gold dust to make plans for testing IT, In
August immigrants began 10 arrive at the rate OF five
hundred month In the middle of September the har-
Dor was described crowded with shipping, the
whsryes lined with goods and merchandise, and the
streets flied with busy throng Fifty persons il
computed spent the night without the of roof
In the fret two mopths OF the go!den age the amount
OF precious dust brought into San Francisco esti-
mated at $4,000, and in the next two months at
100000.
In September s4s an era took place In the history Of
the city and OF the country This nothing less than
the arrival of the first squarergged vessel in the port
the brig Belfast, from NewYork laden with valua.
bic cargo She hauled up to Broadway wharf the only
wharf accessible such vessel and there discharged
No she known TO be landing her cargo than
goods OF oil kinds fell twenty 1--WE per cent and real
tate fifty per cent. vacant lot the corner OF
Washing ton and Mongomerysts, at that time border
ing on the water which had been offered for 5000 and
refused sold readily the very LeSt day for $4,000
The first brick building erected at the corner Of
Montgomery and Clsysts 10y Melus and Howard, in
September, ls4e. This the second brick building
in Upper California having been previously erected
at Monterey
About this time a proposition was made 10 form
temperance society and another to establish lyceum
One Of the newspapers, however, pronounced these
schemes premature and proposed to begin the work of
lettering the condition OF society by opening theater.
There nevertheless philanthropc and religious
feeling buried in the hearts of the people and seeking
opportunity for exercise. AT public meeting 10 iN
standard OF value for gold dust, project started
20 establish hospital for six miners, of whom IL
publicly declared that not less than eight had died Ia
San Francisco during the public meeting for
religious purposes held in November and IL re-
solved that something decisive ought to be done tor the
scus Of the people proposition made TO elect
Chaplain for the City" which was cOncurred in with
great unanmity, and Rev T. d. Hunt then duly
elected 10 the responsible station Of Chaplain TO tho
City OF san Francisco with yearly salary of 1880.
AT an election for Councilmen in October, l5fs, l53
votes were pOlled at election in December, the
number Of votes 347 and at an election held In
August the year following, the city was able to poll
!, $40 votes.
In October, 1913, the Town Council agreed to paw
their clerk five dollars for every meeting at which he
ofeised 1t had not been many months since the SAL
airy of the teacher OF the public school fixed 500
per annum, or little over one dollar day.
On the let OF December the same year. -four was sold
a, twenty dollars barrel beet at twenty pork at
sixty butter at ninety cents pound and cheese at
seventy cents. To show the uctusting character of
the market at that day may be added that the 18th
OF the month only two weeks later -four sold at twelve
10 fifteen dollars barrel and other articles had fallen
in proportion. The aimportsnt and indispensable ar
Gle OF brandy was eight dollars per gallon Gold dust
was $40 so per ounce.
In December lS4s, an important event trsnspred in
the topenng Of the public school under the charge Of
VIM. H. Christian. Though il was announced az a
" public schsol yet the Of tuition were sdyer.
tised al So a term
In November, l74s, when the people returned from
the mines for the winter ch with the precious metal
the effects Of the gold discovery San Francisco
most sensby felt Lots thai had been purchased in the
spring tor from one hundred 10 two thousand dollars
now ranged from one thousand to fifteen thousand.
Buildings that bad previously rented at from ten 10
twenty dollars per month, taken with avdity
a: from twenty to one hundred dollars per month.
By February, ls4e, the population had increased 20
two ihoufand The duties collected at the Custom
House for the four quarters Of 1si6 az follows
First quarter 81 ,93l second quarter, 81 53j third
quarter, s74,e27; fourth quarter, sl0O,450.