The Osceola times., 1880-11-13
THE GOLDEN AGE.
story OF the Discovery of Gold In California.

|
II was in the month OF January, lS4S
in small shanty in the rather squalid
little hamlet of Yerba Buena, on the
Bay of San Francisco, that two young
men from the States, having Just printed
on a hand.press the $50 copies OF their
weekly paper, sat down upon stools,
weary faint and discouraged, to talk over
the prospects of the country and bemoan
the fate that had east them where society
and money were so scarce. They were
Americans, hut the land of their birth
was as remote to them then as st. Peters
burg to a peasant Of the Amoor valley.
They loneed to return, hut never expect
ed to be rich enough. The Mexican war
was Just ended few months before.
The treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo gave
| California to the UIited States. The
California so ceded included the present
State of that name. Nevada, and most OF
Utah. II was an empire larger than
France and England. Divided by a
range of mountains almost as lofty as
the Alps and longer than the Carpa-
thians running from north to south, the
eastern half was terra incognta of bar
ren desert buttes and mountain SPURS,
containing throughout its whole extent
| but one feeble settlement of whites,
known as Mormons. Unknown savages
of the lowest aboriginal type dominated
| all the rest. The weston half, as it then
| appeared, was one great valley covered
with bright flowers, rank verdure,
clumps OF majestic oaks, wooded hills,
sloping from the coast range on the west
and the Sierras on the east, hills, plains
and valleys alive with herds of deer, elk,
antelope, and cattle and horses as wild
as the game; the charming panorama
enlivened and perfected by sparkling
rivers, whose waters were as clear as the
cloudless sky above them, their banks
danked with dense growth of ash
maple, alder, willow, hazel, cottonwood,
sycamore, wild grape-vines, and, toward
their confluence with the bays, waving
tule of the darkest green, resembling at
first sight the great corntields on the
lowlands of the Ohio. In all this vast
valley region there was but one white
settlement. II was known as Suffers
Fort.
Ii was located near the confluence of
the Rio de los Americanos with the
Sacramento. To the far south, beyond
the sources of the San Joaquin river, not
far from the Pacific ocean, stood the
'Cindad de los Angeles" Mexican in its
construction and population. A Catho-
lie mission at Santa Barbara and another
at San Luis Obispo saint Louis, the
Bishop); another at Monterey, on the
bay CT that name; another at Santa
Clara, in the lovely valley OF that name;
another called Mission San Jose, not far
from the latter, and another at the vii
age Of Yerba Buona, which has since
grown into the city of San Francisco.
1t was then n collection of adobes, built
around the public square we now call
"the Plaza" The waters of the bay ex.
tended as far as Montgomery street.
where the Bank Exchange now stands,
and a few whalers and small coasting
schooners lay at anchor 800 yards from
shore, about where the postofiice now
stands on Battery street. There were
also American settlements at Sonoma
and Napa, composed of farmers who EN-.
| igrated from the Western States few
wears before, and here and there arose
| along the borders of the tule the smoke
from the hut of the lonely trapper of
| beaver. These, with the ranches of the
| old Dons, their corrals and the inevita.
| be adobe dwellings, surrounded by innu-
merablc cattle and horses, made up the
sum Of what there was of civilized and
semi-civilized life in California at the
time the two young printers OF Ierba
| Buena were discussing their situation.
| Now and then Il vessel put into the bay
| of Monterey, or San Francisco, or San
Diego, to load with hides, or a whaler
for repairs, dropping a few Mexican dol
lars or doubloons, which were the cur
rency of the country. 1t was, to an ac.
tive or ambitious mind, a dull and list
less lite; but TO the majority, who loved
ease, healthy climate and beautifully.
diversified scenery.
| pleasing land of drowsy head It was
0fdreams that fit before the haltshut eye,
| And OF gay castles in the clouds that pass,
Forever lasAing through summer sky.
About the same hour that the two
Yerba Buena printers weie deploring
their fate of isolation from the busy
world. scene was enacting that was to
have a greater effect upon the material
interests of modern society than any
even since the discovery Of America. 1t
was on Jan. 10, lS4S, on the south fork
Of the American river, "a miles east of
Suffers Fort. Early in the morning OF
that day, James w. Marshall, who was
building mill for himself aad Sutter,
from which they expected to supply the
ranches and settlements with pine lum-
Der, pi ,ked up from the bedrocks of the
race of the mill q small piece of yellow
metal. Ii weighed about IL grains. Ii
was malloabie, heavier than silver, and
in all respects resembled gold. About 4
O'Clock in the evening Marshall exhibit
ed his find TO circle composing the mill
company laborers. Their names were
James W. Marshall, p. l.. WINNER,
Mrs. WINNER, James Barger, Ira Willis,
Sydney Willis, Alexander Stephens,
james Brown, Ezkiah Persoi.s, Henry
Bgler, Israel Smith, William Johnson,
Gearge Evans, Charles Bennett and
William Scott. The conference resulted
in the rejection of the idea that it was
gold. Mrs. WINNER tested it by boil
il in strong lye. Marshall aft, rward
tested it with nitrict acid. II was gold.
sure enough, and the discoverer found
Its like IN all the surrounding gulches
wherever he dug for it. The secret
could not be long kept. 1t was known
at Yerba Buena three months after the
mentioned put this slight notice of il
in their weekly paper, the Californian.
on April 10:
New GOLD MrNE.-lt is stated that a
new gold mine has been discovered on
| the American Fork of the Sacramento,
supposed to be (it was mott on the land
of William A. Leidesdorf, Esq, of this
place. A specimen OF the gold has been
exhibited. and is represented to be very
pure.
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