Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-09-06
BIG MEN IN A CABIN.
How MiIlionaires Mackey ard O'Bri,
Snent Their All for a Sguare Meal.

{ How Miilionaires Mackey and O'Brien
spent Their All for Square Meal.
| In the first month Of 1850 says the Yir-
I ginia Enterprise, times were tough on the
/ COmstOck. The winter of lS59-6O was
terribly severe, as all the old settlers will
remember. Supplies could not be brought
over the mountains from California. and
before spring many Of the COmstOckers
went hungry to bed about three nights in
the week. That winter a jolly crowd
made their headquarters in a cabin that
stood on the hill above the Ophir
Office, near the California shaft. The
cabin was a sort of cave. On entering it
one went down two steps. The roof was
composed of a layer Of brush, a stratum
OF dirt. and over this a canvas cover to
hold il all in place. The cabin contained
four hunks, two on the south and two on
the north side. John Mackey had the
lower bunk on the north side and Alexan-
der Kennedy slept in the upper one.
Patrick ). COrbett-at present United
States Marshal C0rbett-end Jack
O'Brien occupied thelsouth hunks.
At that time Mackey, Kennedy and
others were running the old Union tun-
mel, and were working every day. AS
times grew rough and grub scarce the
number Of lOdgers in the cabin increased.
Jack McCatieTy was taken in on the un-
deTstanding that he was to furnish wood
for the household, and Johnny Walker IN
consideration of his doing all the cooking.
The newcomers brought their blankets
aud slept on the floor. Virginia City was
then town Of brush shanties and canvas
tents. and it was good to find shelter any
where. Lumber being $500 per 1000 feet,
palaces were not expected.
As the winter wore away provisions of
all kinds became scarce, and famine
prices ruled for time early in the spring.
For few days a square meaP' down
town cost 81. Those Of the boys in the
cabin who started i'm with little money
I had either got 10 the end of their string in
/ keeping up their part Of the expenses or
| had gambled of their coin.
Finally hunger got into the cabin and
/ not a man except Mackey had cent of
/ money. An attempt to starve the more
I shiftless into ''Tustling for grub had
proved a failure. They could do nothing,
and. lying back on their blankets, gave
up like some of those Of whom we read
! among the explorers in Arctic regions.
| The cook had an easy time Of it. By this
/ time some provisions were beginning to
| be packed in, but prices were feartully
high. Mackey had just $50 left, it was all
/ the money be had in the world. Here,
Pat" said be TO COrbett, handing him a
twenty and a ten in gold, ''go and see il
I YOU can get a sack of four"
a man had packed in from Placerville
/ that day, and Pat found him near where
| the Bank of California now stands. 1t
was all plaza then-al open country and
sage bush along the present line Of
street. The price was S26. Pat handed
! the PlacerFillian the gold, got back 81 in
| silver and, shOuldering the -four, climbed
/ the hill 10 the cabin. Mackey took the 81
and. giving it TO the cook, sent him in
! search of bacon, tea and sugar. When
| the fiapjacks began TO brown, and the sa-
y0r of the bacon pervaded the cabin, the
! spirits Of both the regular inmates and
| transient bOarders went up to the fair
| weather notch. and it seemed that there
was nothing more in the world to be de-
sired