National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1884-07-19
MINING CAMPS OF ,ae.
Rccollections OF One of tho Old Pio-
neors-Peopic who Made Their own
Laws and Enforced Thom-Quaint
DoinRs and SaYlnRs.


neors--Peopic who Made Their own
Laws and Enforced Thom-Quaint
Doings and Sayings.
BENJAMIN p. Avery, long editor of tho
San Francisco Bulletin also Of the Overland
Monthly, and minister to China, brilliant,
strong. and much-lovod man. whose lite
rary powers were late In ripening, and
whose life was patheticslly unfinished
and uncrownod, wrote q letter, years ago,
to tho editor of a little Nevada county
directory, giving graphic account of the
early history Of that famous network Of
camps. 1t was in oct., 1850. that no
started from Mormon island, now Sacra-
mento county, on prospecting tour to
Redding Springs, now Shasta City, and
several hundred miles distant. He "rodo
little white mule, pork, beans, hard
bread, and blankets packed behind"
Hearing of pound diggings," or those
yielding some 5000 por day, hc changed
his course to Gold Run.
At that timo Caldwoll's upper store,
now Nevada City, tapped Its canvas sides
and protected to the best of its ability q
slender stock Of dollar-a-drink whisky
and dollar.a-pound -four and biscuits.
Down on the fat were q few tents, and
the bars were being worked with dug
out cradles and wire and rawhide hoppers.
Pork was 81 n pound, and boots cost $50
or 500 pair. Mr.. Avery found good dig
gings, and returned for his companions,
but when they arrived the entire gulch
WAS occupied by long haired Missourians,
who had staked out their thirty-foot
claims, and were taking out their piles
At night many q long-tom party took
quart tin pail full of gold to their cabins"
Those were the times when IL cost $3.50
to have letter carried from Sacramento
to the campo, when Mrs. Stamps, tho
wife Of the first elected alcalde Of the
region, and her sister were tho only
ladies in the county, and when lawless-
ness was quickly suppressed, and tho
steady increase of social protective or
ganization was everywhere manifest.
Tho first alcalde Of Nevada City was
elected by voting population Of $50, but
in many camps ten or o dozon men chose
this peculiar and all.powerful officer,
giving him all tho powers granted under
the Mexican and early Spanish system.
He became tho judge Of the village, tho
petty lord of the tented town, and only
the voice Of the people could bring his
powers to an end.
Brief though tho reign of the alcaldes
was 1t left o deep impress upon society,
as o story will illustrate. Tho writer
once knew California school teacher, o
man Of mighty muscles and great energy,
who had spent his boyhood in placer
mining in Siskiyou, In cattle raising on
the eastern Oregon uplands, and in Indian
fighting and wild prospecting times along
the frontiers Of British Columbia. When
thewar broke out he rode for Missouri, cross
the lines, Joined Virginia regiment, and
came back SO crippled and battered that
tho old. free, careless life was impossible.
Alwaysa great reader and q close student,
he turned to the school room and won o
reputation over three counties as sue
cessful teacher. Under these oircum-
stances he was called to take charge of
what was, with undoubted justice, called
the worst school in northern California.
The trustees had written to him at his
cabin, perched on pine-clad height of
tho Sierra, trout streams within stou e's
throw, grouse in tho woods and deer and
bear, his gun and rod, his Marcus
Aurelius," and "Noctes Ambrosiana" on
the shelf within reach. He saddled his
horse, aud, rising ct daybreak, reached
the village, once mining camp, before
o'clock. When school was called to
order he found that efficient work de-
manded Redistribution, for the previous
teacher had tried to gain cheap favor by
places, and had come to grief by begging
| q large boy not to smoke a cigarette in
school. The playful lads ducked him in
the adjacent stream, sousing him up aud
down till he escaped, waded to the farther
bank, and sought other pastures. But
| tho now teacher was of sterner material
II shall have an examination to-day to
see whore you belong, and must turn you
back in your grades If you deserve it,"
he said.
A loud murmur of discomfort and al
most open rebellion followed. Nothing
abashed, the teacher made his first and
last speech. He took from tho table o
book and addressed an older pupil:
'Do you know what this ISL"
eyes, sir; the school law."g
"And it defines the grades, and you all
think you have passed the examinations
and that can't go behind the law"
YES SIR"
"Very well! Now you are quite mis-
taken. am the alcalde of this school,
l am sheriff and register, and judge and
jury, and absolute finality here"
And with this revolutionary and COM
prehensive statement he threw tho
school law out of the window, and pro-
| ceeded amid an awe-struck throng to
break up and consolidate class after class,
reorganizing the school on his own
system.
Eyes, an alcalde is what tho district
needed" was what the old pioneers said
when the story was told, and better
school for the rest Of the year northern
California never knew.
The flush mining camps have often
been described, with their curious Sabbath
day mingling of ministers, gamblers,
auctioneers, dog fights, and street sales,
all concentrating about the gorgeous
saloons, where monte, faro, roulette,
poker, vingt-et-un, and other games OF
chance were in full blast. There were
Indians, Mexicans, Chilians. Hawaiians,
southerners, men fresh from their claims,
still begrimed with auriferous mud; men
dressed in the latest fashions of Paris,
each ono of them all measured in that
virile, sinewy community for exactly his
worth of manhood. But tales of daily life
in the camps are not so frequent.
There is an old story of Main street, in
Nevada City. In 1851 some miners began
to sink shaft In the middle of the street,
and in the most important business center
of tho town. representations, long CON
tinued. were of no avail. Miners rights
come first" the intruders said "and there
is no law 'gainst diggin' in tho street. an
we mean to dig" The storekeeper whose
property was most in peril went into his
store and returned with loaded and
cooked revolver, which no pointed grimly
at the miners, already neck-deep in their
shaft.
"Then I'll make law, he cried. Gust
you boys 90 back and hunt up rich