Butte record. (Bidwell, Butte County, Cal.) 1853-1858, 1855-04-14
XvIU.-D0ESTICKs GOES ON A TARGET
EXCURSION.
NEw YoRK, Jan. 10, 1855, !
7000I, Narrow street.

In this City, which, even IN ehol ra
SEASONS, is most heroically nasty, when
the filth in Broadway gets so deep as to
stop the stages, men are sent around to
hoe it into symmetrical heaps, Ike mini
ature fortifc tions. In fact, if p.eesitude
Of mui could avail to protect town
from invading foes, New York might bid
defiance, for all the ALI d powers Of all
the earth could no more reduce our (in
that case) impregnable City, than tie
lae chivalrous Lord Forth could take
Sevnstopol, by laying fat on his back,
aud cal ing for his ma to come and take
him home As the aforesaid embank-
mcnts are never removed, Of course the
first ram metamorphoscs the faerant
m IS from an embryo mountain to a d.
mlnitiyc lake, 'ep enough to float 4 fer.
ry boat, aud almost nasty enough to
maze street contractor sick No lady
attempts the peri!ous navigation of our
streets, ufl So she h been = couple of
seasons at Newport or Rockfway. and
lvarne 10 swim like a mermaid. Aud
any mn who would black his hoot- in
the morning, would be taken to The Lu-
matte Asylum b fore night. A search
for dry rrossi silg 'Lll BE- hopeless
Iilgrinagc and h. VINO would find a get
over aJIe-w 'hoat Ceiling your shoes-full
of-rud street in this metropolis, would
war his life out in frultless expiora-
ton, and be prrmaturciy planted in
Grefngood, with his object unattuined.
In ordinary times the laties sweep the
,ile walks tolerably clean with their trail
irg skirts, bat now they seem TO have
thrown up their contract Coming down
own the other day in 4 stage, our rcck-
.ess dri er tIicd the depth Of one of the
above mentioned mu'i2ipai lakes the
VIII els suck fast-the vehicle settled
int the hopeless d pth-one scream
from the ladies-one unanimous curse
from the men-o;e frantic, furious. in-
llectual struggle cf the horses, and in
another Instant We were floating, Lop'-
less WI elk Every one for himself. [
saw one Of the ladies dragged safely out
s. the hair--uen eventually reached the
land in fety, but | rcjoced to see a
malignant baby, (Which during our jour-
ney had scr' amcd aud kieked one half
the time, and the other half persisted in
calling me < Daddy" and soiling my
shirt-front with is sticky fingers, go to
the bottom amid universal chorus of
thanksgiving from the company Got
asho-c myself, with my coat spoiled, my
hat minus, by bao,s full of water, and
my whole person stripping from the re-
cent food lik hey Venus rising from
an cd lterous ocean.
rs a copsequ, age of my Involuntary
bath, | have hat the tooth ache ever
since, on which excuse got leave of alb
scnce one day, aad resolved to attend
= target shoot" Here the target CONS
panies are composed of all sorts of peo-
ple-fre companies, express companies,
policemen. gangs of men from all kinds
of mammoth shops-for wherever thirty
or forty men work in one shop, they
form themselves into military COM
pany, ard once or twice every year 90
to Ioboken and shoot for whisky and
other prizes. When they want to make
a full turnout, the places of any missing
members are filled by extemporaneous
volunteers. It was in this capacity that
I'proposed to go. IL these COMPANIES
there are alwa,s more officers than men,
..fd more epaulettes than maskets-al-
ways big band Of music, aHd 1.-TWO dar
kirs Ia carry the target. As to their
marching, no two ever step together.
aud they always put tall mar by the
side ct short one, so as to have the
average length of steps come right.
They go forth in the morning in high
spirits, and turn at night surly, dusty,
li,con.ented, dilapidated and drunk.
As The target is always carried in tri-
urpl through the stree.-, and after
ward axhil iteA ir Tie drill-room, the
/ ll-key lnrayiably carries an auger With