The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1856-04-17
Fro1 the Central Chri.,i.z Herald.
Life IN California.
HuDsos. O.. March 26. 1886.

I1tDe0N, u, AaEcQ 20. 1900.
Ms. EDITOR Perhaps the following ex-
tracts from letter recently received from my
brother in California, may be worthy place
in your columns. The hope of keeping soms-
body's brother from going there. and thus
preventing disappointment and suffering. in
duces me TO transcribe few sentences Thr
letter is dated San Francisco, Feb. 18th.
1856 s. W.
1T is fortunate for thousands of poor NOR
tails in California that such winters IS you are
having are unknown here otherwise there
would be no bounds to suffering and death.
AT the time of the terrible storms on the At
lantic coast i, was al sunshine and warmth
here-the hills clothed in green. gardens gay
with flowers. and the markets filed with
straw berries. plumbs. grapes, and all that
could please the eve tickle the palate. But
then, they sold at such prices that none but
the rich could buy.
1--WE have no storms or gales, but recently
a genuine earthquake. and no mistake. On
the morning of the 9Th inst, the inhabitant.
of this city were aroused BY tie shock of an
earthquake. the hardest ever felt here
Houses rocked 10 and fro like ships al ses; peo-
pie were thrown from their beds. brick build
ngs crscked-walls thrown down, and the
citizens generally frightened beyond meas
ure. Some think this is doomed city. and
that some day it will be swallowed up. Per
haps il may be
''Of the times. they are the hardest Of the
hard. They have been growing harder and
harder until they are whitfield down 10 moth.
ing. If D. was here. away from his family.
he would be as uneasy as two fishes out of
water; for l know several bricklayers that
\ Il. L.
and there is but one brick building now going
up in the whole city.
Never did see many beggars before.
Men stop you on the steeet and ask You for a
quarter OF q dime TO get something 10 eat.
Many are around with subscription papers.
soliciting aid to get home.
.'if you could see the streets of San Fran
cisco. you would think i, was hard times in
deed. You know tina, the lower half of the
city is built upon piles, tie streets being
! planked, But the planks in many places are
worn through. SO that some of the streets are
half full Of holes from ore TO ten feet square
/ II man goes down through. ten to one. if he
ever gets out alive. There is not day but.
some fall through these trap holes and are
drowned-and these streets have been going
on from bad TO worse for the last year. Yet
the city authorities do nothing to repair them.
and that the city is bankrupt. The victims
are mostly strangers. Whene yer all Isthmus
steamer arrives, one more of the passen
gers are drowned. The Sonora arrived from
her last trip in the night. and furnished sever
al fresh victims for the San Francisco man
traps.
Il send you this slip which cut from the
Evening Bulletin" which will give you a
better idea than anything l could write, of the
condition Of thousands here -
"CcME Over AND HELP U.s." Come over
and help u.s. was the call of the perishing
Macedonian to the Apostle Paul-"Come over
and help u.s. is the despairing cry of full IF
teen hundred young men of San Francisco.
who vet receive no aid.
You, Mr. King, WELD pen potent for good,
can not you suggest some remedy? The
morning rapsrs. il appealed to. will protfer
their universal panacea-the mines There
all may obtain work at three dollars per diem.
IT'S false, it's a patent, unblushing. cruel,
unmi,igated lie. Thirty five dollars a month
IS the highest paid and not one in ten is fer.
tunae enough TO obtain work on those or any
other terms. Oh bu. you can work for YOUR
self-for yourself. Gentlcmea. tits fallacy.
The pan and crevicng knife are no longer the
sole necessary capital of the miner. Fifty
dollars to reach the mines. fifty more to pros
pect. an hundred and fifty for tools and sup
port-this is the minimum Gentlemen. we
do not possess it. Fifteen hundred of US have
nothing. Many are intelligent, many educat-
ed many talented. but what avails il We
have not the means to exercise or display these
advantages We were better without them.
We have honest hands, and what we ask
what we demand is the inslienable right of
every freeman-the right TO labor. Thirty
FIVE dollar month and found, or three dol
lars day IS the average remuneration OF man
ual labor in San Francisco at present.
Give US employment at half those rates
barely sufficient to furnish food and cover our
nakedness-and we will thank you Some Of
US are starving. Some, with shame | confess it,
have resorted to crime to procure livelihood
Some subsist on the dole of charity. some
upor the remains of former credit, support
repuSnant 10 every honorable mind and daily
becoming more precarious One, L know,
has terminated his cslamities by suicide. |
myself remained for days without other food
than the sweepings of the markets, and am
now mourning liabilities which every day in
creases my inability to discharge.
But enough. NJ pen is feeble one, but
it has spoken the unyarnished truth. Men
of San Francisco. citizens Of FL Dorado, lis
ten to our complaint. We hive exhausted our
energies, and now lie PROSTATE. Devise some
plan for our relief. Give TO our petition
as the Father of Mercies may give ear 10
yours.
Editor Of the Bulletin. give US your infiu-
ence and advice-not the souless, ruthless,
stereotype cant of the morning papers. but
something warm and gushing from your own
noble heart. Come over and,help US" D.
The Editor of the Bulletin gives this cor
respondent some good advice. the substance
of which is Put plenty Of brass into your
face and crord tn p But this is jus. what
multitudes cannot do-and Of al who DO il.