San Andreas independent., 1857-09-12

can be seen for many miles, and presents very
singular and striking appearance. Nearer the
lake are numerous mountain rivulets, running
down from the eastern side. Their course is
marked by verdant belts of grass, some of them
are beautiful sites for ranches, having timber,
water and grass in profusion.
The appearance of Honey Lake at its south
ern end, was not at all calculated to prepossess
us fayorably~ Our first view of it presented a
broad sheet of water glimmering in the sultrv
sunshine of a summer day, and rejecting only
the brick-kiln looking mountains to the east
view of the western shore being obstructed
by spur of the western range 1t has no
banks but the mud flats, which its waters over
lay to the depth of six or eight inches ascends
almost imperceptibly from the waters edge to
the fields of sage which FIJI the valley. The
water is strongly impregnated with alka, and
the ground whitened with an incrustation of
soda. | scarcely ever saw a prospect more
bleak and dreary. The spirit of desolation
seems to have spread his wing over the scene.
The country around the western SLOPE is, how
ever, of a very different character, and is from
two to six miles in width covered in places
with rich growth of several varieties of grass
es, we'll watered with mountain streams and
heavily timbered with pine. There are eight or
ten families settled near the shores of the lake.
Their gardens are filled with early spring vege-
tables, and their cattle are the fattest that
ever saw. We found the shady groves of pine,
and the delightful mountain water, very re-
freshing after travelling over the thirsty. sandy
plains of the south Not far from our encamp-
ment, we found one of those cool mountain
dells, thckly overshadowed with majestic pines.
and dashng over moss-covered rocks and
gnarled roots of maple and alder, is brook,
which has its source under a snow-bank on
the summit above. Its banks are fringed with
fragrant mint and its limpd icy waters I" mix
kindly with old Monongahela." The thirsty
traveller of the desert, in all his feversh i'm
aginings of paradise in which cooling drafts
predominant, never conceived picture which
equalled this spot.
We continued around the northwestern side
of the lake, and are now encamped on Susan
River, the principal feeder of Honey Lake. 1t
is named after Mrs. Susan Noble, the wife of
the gentleman who is said to have discovered
the pass a little to the north Of us, and which
bears his own name. Nobles Pass is in full
view, and through it can see far in the dis
tance, the snow-capped summit of Mount
Shasta
Honey Lake is about eighty miles in circum-
ference and was discovered by the old noun
taineer Lawson, (who is now in our camp.)-
He says he named it from the quantity of honey
dew which he observed on the wild rye around
its shores. This valley is about 1000 feet
above the level of the sea, and about 500 lower
than Carson.
The department has made a wise selection
in appointing Mr. Kirk to superintend the loca-
tion Of the National Wagon Road. He is
practical man, of sound judgment and great
energy, and seems determined to do all that
can be done at the least possible expense Of the
IL It,
mined upon, he will then proceed to open the
road Correspondence Of the Sonoma Journal.
ALWAYS FINDING FAULT-There arc certain
people who cannot live without finding fault
No matter what subject, or person, comes up in
the course of conversation, they start some riyo-
lOus objection, or make some censoriouS remark
Instead of trying to be in charity with their
neghbors, they take malicious pleasure in
speaking evil about them. They obstnately
shut their eyes to good qualities; while they
employ microscopes to discover and magnify
evil ones; and afterwards they torture language
to exaggerate what they have seen, so as to
dcprcciate. as much as possible. They do not,
however, always speak out boldly. But they
deal in inuendoes, in hints, and in omino,ls
shakes of the head. Instead of frankly assail-
ing in front, they assassinate behind the hack.
Practically, they persuade. Others that all men
are so evil, that there is not even a chance of
reform. Even in acts incontestibly good, they
pretend to find latent selishness. Theyspend
their lives in defining human nature, like the
foul Yahoos whom the satirist has depicted
To believe them, there are none virtuous but
themselves all the rest of mankind being
knaves, brutcs, or devils.
The proverbial fault-fnder little thinks that,
in censuring so maliciously and indiscriminate-
ly, he is only painting his own portrait. 1t is
secret consciousness of his demerits q gnawing
rage at the superiority of others, which is the
real cause of his want of charity, the principal
to his abuse. His own heart is the
mirror from which he describes mankind. The.
best men have been those invariably who spoke
the most kindly of their race. The great type
of all manhood, whose perfect humanity is the
admiration even of Pagans and Atheists, ever
spoke in benignant terms, having charity even
for "publicans and sinners" 1t is to his pre-
capts that we owe the great doctrine of human
brotherhood. In the ideal of the fallen Lucifer,
we have, on the contrary, the incarnation of
malice, hate, SANDER, il-will and all evil speak
ing. As the one is said to have come to bring
"peace and goodwill to men," so the other
first defiled the fair creation with strife, and
sowed +" war among the hosts of heaven We
never hear professed fault-inder, but our
thoughts recur to his type. We never listen to
the benifccnt language of one who is in chari-
ty with his race, without feeling that he is ad-
more and more to I" the perfect man"
Ledger.