The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1869-05-27
THE TRIBUNE.
A California Yarn.
from the San Francisco Golden E !,

There IS fellow over at Groundhog'
Glory who has rich claim for sale. San
Rodgers heard Of it the other day. am,
went over there to see what the chance
we're Tor making a good bargain. San
IS dlssat.shed sort OF fellow, and is al
ways trying to buy into something rich
30, as was saying, he bulged right owe
to Groundhog Glory the moment b,
heard of it.
When he got there he found that tn,
owner OF the claim and his wife had gon,
On a visit to another family in the BIZ
Bug canon. The only person about the
place was small boy, about II years old
From him Sam obtained some informa
llon which the owner himself might no
have communicated.
Sam went down with the boy and took
= look at the claim While he was cast
ing his eye about, the boy sat on bank
Whlstling, 'Oh, Gosh, my own Jemima. y
Having finished his survey, Sam went
up and sat down beside the innocent ju
Venile.
'Bub,' said he, Il have heard that
this is rich claim, and it does look pref
ty well. now to tell the honest truth,
what does your father want to sell out il
1t s SO rich as they say p
The small boy stopped whistling, cooked
his head on one side, closed one eye aud
squlnted at Sam with the other.
Stranger, have you got half a dollar
about you; if you have, perhaps /
wouldn't mind telling you.
Sam forked over the half dollar, and
the boy looked at it moment and
Whiscled 'Get out of the wilderness"
well, Teller, bein' as it 5 you, / don t
Objec' to saying that the reason dad wants
to sell this ere claim is cause it's too
rich.''
Too rich Played out, put in Sam
Now. stranger, you just hold yer
bosses till | get through and I'll explain
it to you. You see this aim like claims
where gold is in sandy gravel and mostly
n the bed rock, but the bank here is
nearly all clay, and there is heaps and
,obs of fine gold all thro' it. The clay is
he all fredest stickiest stuff that ever
ruz, and you can't begin to work it.
When dad gets to work down there he
lturally gets the darned stuff all over
IN, ana when he comes in at night he S
st coated with it about six inches deep,
Ore or less, and this clay is plum full
gold"
| don't see that that's any reason for
wanting to sell out, interrupted
We'll, old boss. you keep cool an
It get rampaglous. an III tell you
it is. When dad comes in at night
mighty tired but mam, you see is
h. an awful economical woman that
don't like to see SO much gold wasted
dad has about him every night, so
N she alters turns in and cleans him
At first she used to be satisfied with
iplng him down with hoe and pan
g him out. They made lots Of money
hat. lie used to pan out rich, | tell
l.. But pretty soon mann got unsatls-
cause it took too long to pan him out
Try night, and besides. she didn't get
t the gold. The clay was so sticky
youldn' wash good Then she got "a
ing of sluices out in front of the house
put up little hydraulic, and used
pipe him of. Dad was dreadful mad
out it. You ought to hear him growl
cuss. He said it was too wearin' for
nan to work in the drain all day and
IN be worked hisself at night He had
gime in, though. Nam said he
ouldn't board with her If he hiin't,
that fetched him, you bet
Things ran on In this way for some
ne. The old woman made two or three
ndred dollars a week reg lar But, as
old you before, she was awful savin ,
4 she found she couldn't pipe him off
an, and lost ever so much in that tail
l. You dom know how sticky the clay
around here. The only way in which
can work it clean is to chuck it into a
tie Of blin water and bile it for two
three hours. That the way the fell
that first struck the claim used to
,rk the rich crevices. Nam heard of
is, and she thought she should work
old man in some such way, she could
We the gold. OF course she didn't ex-
ct to bile him right down, you know /;
at would not have been exactly on the
Iuare, but she thought if she could let
i'm stand in middIln' hot water FOR an
our or two every night, she could run
i'm through the hydraulic then and wash
I'M off pretty clean.
well, stranger, you mighten't think
t, but dad was so pesky contrary that he
Eouldn' do it. Nam said he'd got to
10 it, cause she wasn't goin to see mon
ey thrown away by no such contrariness.
Neither one of EN- wouldn't give in, SC
they concluded they split the difference
by lettln' dad sell out and go below and
buy ranch.
That's Just how it is stranger; if you
ain married and want to buy this claim,
you can make mighty good thing out oil
it, but if you We got wife she won't let
you rest for tryin' to work you to good
advantage
Here the unsophisticated infant finish
ed and walked away, calmly whistling,
i wish | was daisy" while Sam re
tired to reflect on the matter, for he was.
and is, married