Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1870-12-10
EVENING, DECEMBER 10, 1870.

l7III ~ ~ II7TI f.Aii4I - HIr
on the top oft, and so on until sane
barrier, one hundred feet high, Is erected
all along the beach. 81 baaJ q
THE CLIFF HOUSE, MN M
or as IL is better known abroad, the Seal
House--is built on the rocks little te
the left OF the Golden Gate,
and commands a magnificent view
Of the Pacific and the entrance to
the harbor. But its principal attraction
consists in the presence Of some hun
dreds Of mammoth sea lions who make
O small island, a stone throw from the
hotel, their favorite resort. They are
protected by law from being killed, and
eonsequentlyincrease and multiply with
out fear of molestation. All day long
they can be seen fighting, playing and
love-making on the rocks, and conduct
ing themselves generally like very happy
sea-monsters. It Is a common thing for
even hundred vehicles to be standing
in rows outside the Cliff House on a
Sunday afternoon, and for forty or fifty
more TO be driving on the beach beyond.
to,T THE MISSION DOLORES.
On the way back from the sea side re-
sort, visitors are generally taken TO see
the Mission Dolores. 1t is primitive
building made, of unburnt brick, which
strikingly resemble chuncks of mud
The roofing is the old-fashioned red tile
so common in Europe and some of the
Southern States. The church was dedi-
GATED on the 9th of October, l776, the
first burial in the ground having taken
place the month previous. 1t was that
Of a wretched Indian who had long been
suffering from wound received at the
hands of hostile savages in the noun
tains The first Indian convert was bap-
tized in December OF the same year,
having no doubt been hunted and las
soed into Christianity. The interior Of
the church is very plain, but the rudely
pictured walls impress me with solem-
nifty sometimes not felt in the richest
Cathedrals. twill only seat about three
hundred persons, and is well attended
almost hourly, the same bells that with
their dull cracked sound summoned the
unwilling natives to worship nearly a
century ago, still peol forth on the Sab
bath. The cemetery which surrounds
the church is now full to crewding with
old Californians. 1t is beautiful en-
closure, half hidden by shrubbery and
flowers, and nearly the only place within
twenty miles Of the city, where the song
of birds can be heard. aro issns
iHa SUNDAY EVENING.
ai Theaters and billiards furnish the
pleasure employment for San Francis
co.'s Sunday evenings. There are plenty
Of high-salaried clergymen, embracing
all types Of the cloth, from the sensa-
tional retailer of funny anecdotes to the
sompolent droner of orthodox truisms,
but this city does not. run much after
godly life, so that ivory balls and orches-
trail music have the upper hand. In the
lower walks Of life, Sunday evening here,
as in most large cities, is too often spent
in cultivating the acquaintance of John
Barleycorn, and the result is perceptible
in the long array of offenders who adorn
the police court on Monday mornings.
The gambling houses also do thriving
BUSINESS, and the cheyaliers who preside
over monte, keno, faro, roulette, rondo
and other banking games manage to
reap rich harvest Of coin from the
speculative pockets of their patrons.
The most stringent legislation has failed
to put down these places, and the ques-
tion of how to deal with them is becom-
ing as much of a puzzle as the social
evil" GOLD HUNTER.