The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1883-11-03
A Sudden Break Up Of a
Game of Poker.
A MINING INCIDENT OF 1850.

can River, California.
The approach to this particular
locality, from the South, is over a
somewhat elevated undulating table
land, until within about mile and q
half of the river, when it begins to
descend, for the first half mile grad
ually, and then more precipitously
till the river is reached.
In August, 1850, every habitation
in the camp was constructed of
canvas, except one log hut, owned
and occupied by Colonel Potter.
The camp was located on the
south side of the river, little above
Murderer's Bar, and opposite another
. bar, known as Buckner's Bar.
At the date above named, COM
pany of miners, called the Harbor
Mole Company, had rich claim on
Buckner's Bar, yielding from 500
to $500 per day; also a river claim
lower down. This company con-
sisted of Henry Hancock, Andrew
White, Fred White, James Mac
Donald, and the narrator Henry
Hancock was direct descendant of
John Hancock, one of the signers of
the Declaration of Independence,
and graduate with the late Judge
Lee, of Honolulu. He was an ex-
cellent man, and greatly respected
by the company and the camp.
Besides being all workingmen them
selves, the company employed two
wages men, at 5000 month and
board. One of these was lands
man and the other sailor, the latter,
as matter of course, being named
Jack. a.rtgI
The river claims, that of the Har-
Dor Mole Company among the rest,
were difficult to work, because of
the water. So it was resolved to
call meeting of all interested, to
consider what had best be done to
facilitate operations. The meeting
decided to dam the river at a certain
point, and then conduct the water
over the claims in a lume. Each
company was to build section of
flume over their respective claims,
the whole to be joined together when
completed.
In pursuance of this decision, the
Harbor Mole Company set about the
execution of their part of the work,
and told off Jack and myself to pro-
cure and prepare the necessary
timber, which grew in abundance up
the mountains. Armed with axes,
a cross-cut saw, and other necessary
fixings, we clambered up the noun
tain side in search of a suitable
tree. Ua
AS previously intimated, from the
river the mountain rises very abrupt
ly for the first quarter of mile,
then forms a kind of sloping terrace
or bench, as the miners called it,
and then second steep rise about a
half mile from the camp. On this
second rise we found sugar pine
tree, which was just the thing we
wanted.
Here 1 must digress little, and
take the reader back to camp a few
minutes. Colonel Potter, before
mentioned, had canvas structure
adjoining his log hut, fitted up as a
bar-room for the sale of liquors.
This bar-room was the common re-
sort of those inclined to imbibing
and gambling. A party of British
man-of-warsmen had very rich
claim on Murderer's Bar, which they
worked spasmodically to get good
stake for spree and a game of
poker at Colonel Potter's. On the
day that Jack and 1 went up the
mountain, these jolly tars were all
at the rendezvous, having general
spree, with game of poker in full
blast. rE
Well, to return again to the noun
tain, Jack and / set vigorously to
work to fell our tree. Soon the tree
was down, and a couple of logs sawn
off, each measuring about four feet
long, and three feet in diameter.
These were intended to be split into
stanchions for supporting the fiume.
AT the base of the rise on which we
were at work, was shady spot with
cool spring of water, and as the
day was extremely hot, Jack sug-
gested the idea of rolling the logs
down to this spot, that we might
work in comfort. thought there
was danger of them going further
than we wished, and getting into
camp. But Jack said we could drive
a hard wood pin into the centre of