The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1875-08-26

search of diggings, might desire to cross
the river. II was built after the Chinese
style of marine architecture lE WAS
cumbrous, heavy, lop-sided, and unnan-
ageable in the most quiet waters. One
aim in its construction had been to use
as much old lumber as possible. When
Wang Chu had finished "The Ark, us
the miners termed it, he painted two
great eyes in the bows. Thereby he
deemed he had made it a rational, living,
seeing creature. When II was first set
afloat there was dedicatory burning of
crackers Joss sticks, and other powwow-
| ing, and an increased consumption by
Wang Chu and his contemporaries of gin
and opium. After this the ill-starred and
ungainly craft hoated in its crippled and
| lop-sided fashion in q little blight in the
river. Its passage over the Stanislaus at
the lowest stage Of water was accom-
plished with vast amount OF loud out
cries and Cabling on the part Of Wang
Chu and his crew, who mingled their
frantic padding, when in the heaviest
| current mid.stream. with an incessant
vociferation OF contradictory orders to
each other. The resrlt was generslly q
| Judgement of the ARK quarter of Q
mile below it's starting point on the op-
posite side, and a suspension OF all Wang
! Chu's other business untilit was towed by
hand against the current back again.
All the white men on the river were
agreed on one point, that the ARK =
would drown somebody ere its mission
was ended. On this being told Wang
Chu, as an additional precaution he
painted another eye in the stern, sacrl-
| feed pig for some Mongolian marine
deity burnt more joss-sticks; and termi-
mated the ceremonies with another out
pouring Of gin and opium.
| In the Summer time q California
mountain river is an attenuated, feeble
stream that any one may ford at every
few hundred yards; an alienation Of
rivulets, motionless pools, bowlder-cov-
| cred islands, and great granite powders,
rearing themselves high out Of the waters
! But when swollen by the long continued
rains Of Winter, OF the melting SHOWS of
the Sierras in the Spring, its quiet, peace
full character vanishes it becomes a tur7
bulent, roaring, treacherous monster; it
sets death straps in every direction,
Here whirling eddy, smooth enough on
| its surface and seemingly harmless, yet
possessed of invisible arms, more power
full than those of the devil fish, to suck
and carry men down into its lowest
depths there maelstrom, raging and
roaring over the rocks hidden beneath.
During the freshet the banks quiver and
1 tremble as the immense power whirls
and foams past, and your voice is caught
| from your lips and hurled into indistinct-
ness. From "49" upwards, every one
of these mountain gold.bearing streams
has claimed long list of victims, and
many brave fellow has been caught in
their deadly embrace never to be seen
| afterwards.
The Stanislaus was booming" one
Spring afternoon at its highest water
mark, when five Chinamen, inCumbeTed
with their blankets, bundles, rockers,
lacks, pans, and shoyels, came stringing
down the Park Hill trail. They stopped
and refreshed themselves for time at
the China store, and then, accompanied
by Wang Chu, placed themselves and
baggage in his boat to be ferried over.
A quarter of mile below their start
ing place was the Black Rock, a gigantic
bowlder, which for centuries had pitted
itself against the stream, it was not more
than l5O Yards from the shore, and the
Stanislaus at this point was not more
than double that distance in width.
Here the waters, suddenly narrowed to
this compass betwixt rocky walls, rushed
rather in a succession Of great waves or
bursts than regular current. This, in
fact, was the upper entrance of the Big
Canon, two miles in length, and by rea-
son Of the rocky walls and raging current
no mining could be successfully accom-
plished here at the most favorable season.
Directly opposite the Black Rock, on a
little knoll, was the cain ofTimid sims.
He, in company with l chance partner,
was working the bank near by,
Sims was always picking up the waits,
stragglers, and castaways drifting about
the country. His house and scanty lar
der were ever open to them. He took
them as partners and trusted them as
freely as though they had come burdened
with trunks full Of Endorsements and
testimonials of good character. Some
times they robbed him sometimes they
got drunk and made his house pande-
monium sometimes they effected the
same result without the aid Of whiskey,
by gradually developing sour, surly, fero-
cious, dispositions. The best of the lot
carried the gross result in gold dust of a
weeks washing to Columbia for the pur-
pose of turning it into coin, and after
many days waiting therefor Sims re-
ceived letter from the delinquent, stat
ing that he was overwhelmed with shame
and remorse, but he had given way TO
his besetting sin for gambling, and the
dust had all gone into the NAV of the
"tiger." He had not proved an able
workman either. His hands seemed
never before to have grasped pick and
shovel, aud after mornings gasping la
Dor, Sims would often insist that he
should remain at home during the after
noon and make himself comfortable, for
it was a sore distress to see man pant
ing and struggling with work To which
it was very clear he was unaccistUmed.
"You'll get your throat cut one of
these nights by some of these chaps
you're always picking up" was the
rough and condescending voice Of jim
Freemantle to Sims. Sims looked as if
the idea was entirely new to him, but
the next straggler coming along WAS AS
readily taken in.
Il was about eleven O'clock, Sims and
his cooperative straggler had put through
their last run of twenty-five buckets,
and were washing down" to see how
it had yielded. The sieve and apron Of
the rocker were taken off. There was a
great deal of black sand in the bottom of
the apparatus. This Sims was running
off by successive streams or water, poured
from his long-handled dipper, aided by
peculiar rapid rocking Of the machine.
Slowly, at the upper end, the black ssnd
deposit assumed the shape of point,
and near the apex, one after another,
come out little run of golden yellow
fakes