Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1856-06-06
AliSrfllanFuus.
Cor,,pondense Of the waiehman q state Journal
Letters from California. No. 8


written you sooner, but that | have
been so busy for the last three
months, trying TO settle up my affairs,
preparatory to my return to the home
of my nativity.
| long TO get far away from the
noisy scenes Of California life to rus
b. ticale for awhile in some parts Of the
Green Mountain State. long to
snuff its pure mountain breezes, 10
roam over its verdant bills, and
through IFS luxuriant yalles. long
to wind my way far up into It's noun
tain fastnesses--as Of yore, Ito cap
;ure those spotted denizens Of It's
clear murmuring streams. | long for
its solitude, and its society," long
once more TO hear the sound Of its
church going bells" and 10 enjoy
its calm quiet sabbalhs, so different
from those spent in California. -
Speaking Of Sabbaths in California,
reminds me that probably the whole
of your readers are not aware Of the
manner in which the sabbaths are
spent in nearly all the mining towns
of this state. A short description Of
sabbath in Yreka, will give your
readers a pretty good idea Of The
same day in all the mining regions of
California.
Sunday is the only day Of recrea-
ton known 10 the miner.
He works hard Tor six days, and
on sunday comes to town TO purchase
his supplies, and upon that day, the
merchants do more retail trading,
than during all the balance of the
week. Every sabbath, in the streets
OF Yreka, are congregaled about two
or three thousand people, from every
part Of the civilized world, and some
parts OF the savage. In the course
of half an hour, YOU can hear spoken
almost all the different languages in
the world. Just imagine 10 yourself
this heterogeneous mass of human
beings collected together in our small
town-one fourth of them drunk,
and one third of the balance three
sheets in the wind the sober, play
ing oil sorts of practical jokes upon
oil who are unfortunate enough to
get drunk imagine further that you
see this mass hurrying to and fro
first TO man fight, (of which there
are number every sunday,) and
then to dog fgbt-with all sorts of
oaths, of which the different Ian
guages are so richly stored, issuing
from the mouths of the drunk as well
MS sober, some dozens of gaily
dressed Kanackers, mounted on their
spotted Cayuse horses, galloping 10
and fro,-a lew indian squaws with
children lashed to their backs, wad.
ding through the streets followed
by score or so of dogs adding their
Dellihuous voices to The general din.
and your Imagination will have mir
rowed to your mind a life picture Of
a Yreka Sabbath.
Last sabbath | was sitting in my
office quietly perusIng the last mum
bers Of the Waterman when friend
came running 10 and informed me
that duel was to come off a short
distance from town, between two
well known citizens of Yreka. |
fastened after the crowd, and soon
arrived al the place of meeting-on
n low bench of the mountain first
outside the town. When | arrived,
the principals were conversing with
their friends, and the seconds were
measuring of the ground. The
weapons selected were double bar
rel shot guns,-dis,ance fifteen pa
ces. Before everything was arrang-
ed, there were four or five hundred
people upon the ground TO witness
the combat. After some little delay
the principals took their places, and
after response to the word ready
was given ia the affirmative by boti
parties, one of the seconds gave tho
word I" fire, -one--two--thrce."
Both guns cracked at the SAINT
instant, aud ! saw one of the partle
fall TO the earth, groaning in terrible
agony, the blood streaming from hi
face. FASTENED TO get neare
view of The wounded man, vii wa
being borne 10 the nearest house b,
his friends; when some one wins
pered in my ear, that the whole al
far was hoax, got up for the pur
pose of running an Oregouian out o
town, that the blood upon the maui
face was manufactured for the occa
sion, and came from sponge in III
apparently wounded mans hand.
BY this time the other princIpa
and his second had taken 10 Tin
chdpor0k Some Of the KNOWN,
ones soon found out their place o
concealment, and informed them tina
the other party was in the last ago
MES Of death, and easily persuade
the poor Oregonian, that, unless b
left this section of country immedi
ately, there was grea, danger Of hi
being hung by the mob. The bette
10 effect his escape, he was persuade
to attire himself in female apparel
and when fully rugged he had The ap
pearance Of a very respectable oil
lady. They then mounted him o
the back of an ugly Cayuse horse
who was addicted to jumping SIT
legged, with very poor excuse of
side saddle to sit on, aud as 500
as the horse was turned loose b
gave one bound aud down came Nj
female ker-wallop.
The sight Of a female IN uoubl