Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-04-11

gone davs-the good old days of '49.
4 wintered in '49 on the Tuolrlmnes
| River, and I will so fardigress as to say
it was the severest winter ever passed
in California, although my experience
extended to nearly twenty years sub
sequent residence. all of which was
passed in the mountain regions OF the
country, extending from Puget Sound
to the Tulare Lakes. In the Spring OF
that year, as soon as travelling became
practicable, my partner, Alonzo Ridley.
and myself packed a mule and started
on a prospecting tour towards the Mer.
cedcs River, and reached a small
stream, a tributary of that river, where
we located a trading post. The stream
was called Matsell S Creek, since and
now named Coultcrville.
A few miles below the mouth OF the
brook, on the main river Mercedes,
distant about ten miles,. was q beau
tiful little valley known as ''Happy
Valley" the abiding place OF Il nu-
merous tribe of Indians. A white
man had come among them about
the time of the discovery of god,
and gained the confidence OF the tribe,
and, at the time l knew him, exercised
supreme control. The tribe consisted
of about 500 men and women, or, as
they We're more commonly. called.
''bucks and squaws." They mined and
worked for him, and all the gold flowed
into his treasury. BY obtaining a con.
slant supply Of Indian goods and
trinkets. which he did by running a
large pack train to the coast, he
kept them contcnted and reaped the
benefit of their labor. How he obtained
such supremacy over not only that tribe.
but all the Indians with whom he came
in contact was, and is a mystery to
me. There was nothing imposing in
his personal appearance; on the con.
trary he was small in stature, but
active, quick in motion, and fearless.
[ have known many men who had great
sway and control over the Indians, but
never one like him. James Savage,
Major Savage or Jim Savage, as he
was more commonly called, was the
man. The amount Of gold that he
collected was immense, and when he
went below to the coast it was scat
tered with a profuse hand, as though he
knew where to find more, which he
certainly did. He was finally killed in
a personal difficulty" on Kings
River, by a white man, concerning
a disputed land claim. In 1851 all
the Indians in Southern California,
living in the mountain regions, seemed
possessed of the war spirit. Whatever
may have been the originating cause OF
this feeling, the fact exists that all that
region of country in the Mariposa and
Mercedes was in a state of war excite
ment, aud in all camps there was the
greatest vigilance and every man on
the alert, and a general warfare was
carried on for some time. 1t was liter
ally "war to the knife and the knife to
the hilt.'
1t was after a raid by q wild band,
which had attacked and committed dep
relations on a mining camp, that a
small party of whites under the direc-
ton and command of James Savage and
my partner, Alonzo Ridley, followed
up and penetrated the Yosemite valley,
which expedition resulted in their COM
ing upon the great natural wonder
the Yosemite Falls. This was in the
early part of 1851. On the return o.
the party I had the account of the dis,
covery from Ridley himself, who wa,
an enthusiastic admirer of the noun.
tain life which he had adopted, and to.
gether we passed through many adven'
turous scenes, both by ''tiood anc
field" Savage was 8 Western nlan:
and, as l have stated was afterwarc
killed. Ridley was from Maine; s
Drawer, truer heart beat; indie
pendent of thought, conscientious in
his convictions, intlexible of will, ano
although a Northern man, when the
war of the rebellion broke out he wen,
where the conviction of duty lee
him and fought in the Southern army
against home and kindred, and yielded
up his life in their cause. When those
officers on the Pacific coast resigned
and joined the Southern army, Ridley
raised a company and escorted then
across the country, being himself killed
in one of the great battles of the war.
The reader will pardon an allusion tt
myself. He went one way and I wen
another; my duty called me to tn
army Of the Union, but I honor tn
man who, regardless of the words oh
loquy and scorn, car stand to his con
v%iction, and it was Alonzo Ridley, on,
Of the discoveries Of Yosemite Falls
my old-time friend of other days, VIII
bravely fought for his convictions.
pay this tribute to his memory.