Volcano weekly ledger., 1855-12-22

If any person will take the trouble to
glance upon a good map of California, he
will find that the Rio de los Plumas, or Feath-
er River, takes its rise among the wild, bar
rem mountains called the Sierra Nevada, and
emptes into the crooked Sacramento. II,
after n careful examination of the map, the
reader has any doubts on the subject, he can
take trip to the gold regions, following the
winding course of Feather River, and return
home perfectly satisfied that such is the case.
The bank of the latter river would be a
pleasant place to spend few weeks and a
hunter or any person disposed for rough sport,
could manage to employ his time to good adj
vantage in shooting deer, or having crack
at grizzly bear, although | would not adj
wise strangers to seek combat with the lat
ter, as they might repent it, and perhaps, il
their hands are not steady, or their aim good
or their legs extraordinarily swift, they might
not live to give an account Of their exped
ton.
have had the extreme unhappiness ol
meeting with number of these four-legged
shaggy gentry, and can't say that l ever
came off with much honor or profit. One
time | was chased up tree with dozen 9th
ers, equally as brave as myself and another
time l abandoned my mule and thought had
made a cheap bargain, when | returned day
afterwards and found some of the iron-work
of the saddle. As for the mule or leather,
never saw either of them again. But | con
soled myself with the reflection that the brute
would be troubled with Indigestion, and per
haps get cross and kill one or two of his spe
cies, before his usual placid temper returned
In the summer of ls49, was on the banks
of the Feather River, striving each day with
huge pick-axe to get few grains of yellow
dust from mother earth, and rather inclined
to quarrel with the old dame, because she
would not supply in proportion to my deserts
or exertions, when my partners after a late
supper one night, proposed that we SHOULD
prospect little, and see if we could not fine
better place to dig, where gold was more
abundant
We were seated around the fire at the time
the proposition was made, each man with &
short, black pipe in his mouth, trying to per
suade himself that he was perfectly happy
far away from friends or home, and living OF
fried pork and slapjacks' done in the grease
Of the aforesaid pork, to make them relish
while, for rare treat, We would cook an oc
casional mess of beans, and fancy that W.
were dining at first class hotel.
II am tired of this" said one of my part
ners, an irritable young gentleman, who hac
always measured off calico and ribbons for q
living, and who came to California under the
impression that gold could be picked up OF
the surface of the earth, like stones. His
name was James Counter, very good fellow
at heart, but not over fond cf using the shoy
el or rocking the cradle" I" | tell you | an
very tired of this he repeated. We wer'
all tired, so We didn't care about contradictiDe
him. Here we are, getting only four ol
five dollars day per man, when we should
certainly take out an ounce each"
The rest Of us smoked on in silence. W.
again agreed with Counter. We deserved al
ounce, but the deuce of it was, We couldn't
get it. How long, think you, we shall make
both ends meet" continued Counter, "wheT
-four is one dollar per pound, pork ditto, ship
bread seyenty-hve cents-and short weight al
that. Beans, you know, are ninety cents q
pint-and what's pint of beans can eat
pint OF stewed beans at a meal, and ther
wish for more !" and, as though he would lik,
to prove to us that he could keep his word
our friend hauled a saucepan towards him
and began eating the few that were left from
supper, without noticing the angry glances o.
his companions.
The fact of it is, each man had been watch
ing the few remaining vegetables with jeal
ous eve, and each intended to rise early in tn,
morning and finish them before his eomrade.
were stirring. 1t is no wonder, therefore
that Counter was mentally damned by each
member of the party.