Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1865-02-04
our San Francisco Correspondence.
SAX FRANCISCO, Feb. ID, 1866.

$50 SAN fkANClsCOi ceOs "a, 1900
EDS. GoLD HILL NEws-Gentlen.sn =
For the past month business has been
down to the lowest ebb, and, in the main,
it has been rather dull in San Francisco,
and no mistake. We have bad, by turns,
dust, cold wind, frost, fog and small
patches Of sunshine, and now the wet
season has returned in all its vigor, and
"The rain it raneth every day"
and for the matter of that every night,
and all the time. Drizzle, slush, slush
and mud. Faith! I think a Londoner
ought to be delighted with San Francisco
in the Winter season, and in Summer an
Arab or Bedouin from the desert Of Sa-
hara might find il somewhat homelike and
endurable; but for white man to say
that he really likes it, the idea is prepos-
ferrous! Excuse me, my boy, don't see
how that is possible.
,, UP THE RIVER.
But all things become endurable, and
even in some degree desirable as change
or by way of contrast, and after short
trip into the interior as far as Sacramento,
returned resigned to my lot, if not abso-
lutely contented. Shall I tell you of TIE
Capital city and the journey theres Well,
here goes: The Chrysopolis starts at p.
NJ, and in due time passes San Quentin.
Lovely spot that, San Quentin But l
am told that the society there is too select
and exclusive for social enjoyment. 1
presume that is the case, as my informant,
who borrowed my overcoat on the way
up and forgot to return it, had been there.
Wish he was there now and l had my
overcoat back. Saw Benicia-fne town,
but looks trife slow. Saw Collinsville
in the evening. There was big pond OF
water and q house there. Wouldn't say
for certain which was Collinsville, the
house or the pond, but presume both were
within the city limits. There was flock
of ducks in the pond in front of the house
when we came back, but for fear of being
fined for shooting within the corporation,
l didn't shoot at 'em. At Rio Vista,
when we passed, the gas lamps were not
lighted, and therefore can give you no
idea of how that interesting place looks
at present; haven't any myself. Woke
up in the morning with severe head
ache, caused by trying to sleep under a
Quilt which was too short for me by
twenty-five inches, or thereabouts; and
on looking out of the window saw that
they had tied the town of Sacramento
to the boat, and it was now lying
quietly alongside of US. I say that they
had tied the town to the boat, because the
two appeared to be hitched together, and
1 don't think any well brought up steam
boat Captain would tie his boat to 1t. 1t
don't look like place any man would
willingly tie to. Went there and found
that the town was damp, and the streets
in fair boatable condition. don't mean
to say that the water was absolutely deep
enough on street to enable vessel OF
the Comanche pattern to navigate it; but
the mud certainly was, and saw some
remarkably fine duck privileges in differ
emit parts of the city. 1t is a common de-
fusion that the town OF Sacramento is
sometimes overlooked; but am happy
to be able to correct this very erroneous
and injurious impression. l saw stream
of water as large as my arm pouring up
in the middle of genteman's lot, and
from personal inspection, satisfied myself
that the town rests on sort of leathern
apron-hke covering of alluvlal mud, which
is really nothing more than the thick scum
which has in course of time accumulated
on the surface of deep lake. In dry
weather all is well enough. This I" float, "
or mud raft, so to speak, dries up SO that
it is quite buoyant, and will carry three
story house without difficulty, but when
it rains it water-soaks from the top and
settles SD as to let the water through from
below in vast quantities. Now what they
want is not filing up the streets with dirt,
for that does more harm than good; but
tight bottom for their boat, the sides OF
which are formed by the levees-and to
get this they only need to get lot of as
phaltum and oakum, stop up all the
cracks. and pitch the whole surface of the
ground over good and thick so as to rem
der it water-tight. Then get pumps to
pump out what water rains in, and the
thing is done. No need to put the new
capitol on hat-boat then; the thing is
complete and the whole town ahoat. 1t
is nearly so now, but not quite. What
struck me particularly in Sacramento was
the large number of houses to let cheap.
It is a good place to go to, if that is what
YOU want to find. Twas also struck with
the fact that in spite of the fearfully mud
DIV condition of the streets and the chronic
dampness of everything about there, the
children didn't appear to be born web
footed. Nature, they say, provides for
all things; why then does she go on over
looking a palpable necessity like this, and
producing children in Sacramento with feet
like unto those of denizens of solid land :
I asked this of q rough looking stranger as I
stood on the street corner, weary and
troubled in mind, and he answered me,
"Why, young man, you are little the
greenest I've seed yet! Don't you know
that nature never supposed that any did
man would be fool enough to build here,
and therefore doesn't reckon Sacrament
ans as her children at all !" The answer
was certainly not couched in compli-
mentary language, and might have been
put in milder form but, on the whole,
have respect for that old fellow, and
if ever strike him when he has any
money about him, I viii try and borrow
it of him. That is style expressing adj
miration at which I am au .fais-So my
worst friends will tell you, and they ought
to know. The report that the Sierra
Nevadas are being washed down into the
Bay Of San Francisco, l am also able to
contradict. I sighted 'em under my jack
knife stuck into tree at the levee, and,
if anything, they looked little higher
than they did three years since, but the
apparent increase in their height may,
after all, be due to an increased depression
in the range Of my optical organs, owing
to a heavier stoop in my shoulders. /