Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-07-17
A NARROW ESCAPE.
MARK TWAIN's EXPERIENCE As A
POCKET MINER IN CALIFORNIA.
A Blue Nose and Chilled Spinal Column
Lead to the Discovery Of the
Jumping Frog What
Might Have Been.

| IAlta California;
Mark Twains narrow escape from becom-
/ ing a pocket miner has never been told It
Is worth recording, as it gave him the story
| Of the Jumping Frog" and sent him of
al ng the line Of ths literary lode and set
him 20 scratching t-erein for pockets OF fun.
In 1866 Mark wearieJ of Bohemian lie in
San Francisco and went up into the m .niny
regions Of Calaveras county TO rusticato
with some old frisnds-SDsve, Jim, and
| Billy ellis. Jim ellis was and still is. one
Of the must expert pocket miners in CaIifor-
MIA Although educated with . view event
ually to fight the battle Of life Is Q physi-
cian and though still finding solace in his
leisure moments IN the works of Greek and
Latin authors reposing on q shelf in his
cabin, Jim ellis is booked for
life as pocket miner The business
has charms for him that he can not break
away from-he is bound to it in chains of
gold. Show him a particle Of quartz gold
on the side Of q mountain, and If it came to
where it was found through the process or
accidents OF nature undisturbed in any way
by the interference of man, he will as I'M
erringly trace it to its source as the bee
hunter will follow the bee to its hoard Of
sweets.
Mark Twain found the Bohemian style Of
mining practiced by the '-Gillis boys" much
more attractive than those more regular
kinds which call for a large outlay Of
muscle He and Jim ellis took to the hills
in search Of golden pockets and spent some
days in working up the undisturbed
trail Of al undiscovered deposit They
were on the golden "bee line and
stuck to it faithfully, though it was
leeeHe1iy ~ eaiiy e0en Ssmpie Vi UNI W d
hli,aii s'IeaH ~ 'ne oeo Oh canyon I'D
oiuer :" pan ~ ou. IAcn s'ep "aoe sufe py
goiueh grams Iney at iast came upon tne
PICKET WHICH haa tnro"n Inese grams OIL
II was c"iu, oreary' orlzzlng Gay wnen
the nome deposit was iound. Inc nrst
saHpie carried 10 inc stream and "ashed
Out yielded out lew cents. Although the
right vein had Teen discovered, they had as
YET iound puI ,he taii end OF the pocket
re'urhing 10 tne VEN tDey aug q sample
rum ne" Paee' anu were ABOUT 70 carry
IL oo"h 70 tne FaVine anu Jest II when inc
ran osah 70 pour oo"h neaVhy. WIN
cnat'ering 'eetn marx declared ne would re-
main No longer ne said tnere was no sense
III ifee<"s W ueatn, as III day or two'
"heh IL was orignt ana "arn' iney could re-
turn ana pursue tneir Investigations In COM
ioI.
Yielding to Marks entreaties, backed as
they were by his blue nose, bumped back
and generally miserable and detected ap-
pearance, Jim emptied the sacks of dirt upon
the ground, first having hastily written and
posted up notice OF their claim to GER
tain number OF feet on the vein, which no
tice would hold good for thirty days Angels,
camp being at no great distance from the
m a
MARK and Jim struck out out for that place.
ne only hotei In tue htsie mining camp was
Kept oy one Coon Drayton, an Old Mississ-
lppi river pilot, and at his house the half
drunken pocket miners found shelter. Mark
Twain having formerly the business
OF Piiot on the Mississip pi river, ne and ICON !
were soon great trends and swapped scores
OF yarns IL continued 10 ram Tor three
days, and until the weather Cleared up Marx
ana jim renamed at Coons MOTEL
lie story Oh the Jumping frog was one
OF tne yarns told MARX by Coon during the
three Gays session. anu II strucK MN as De-
ing SO comicai mat he Determined to write
up men Ne returhea 70 tne oiiiis capin,
MARX SET 10 WORK upon the frog story he
aiso wrote some sketches OF NE In the noun
'aihs ana mines ror some OF the san Fran
CISCO papers. MARX did not THINK much Of
the frog story, even after It had received
the hnishins touches he gave the prefer
ehce 10 some othsr sHetches ana sent them
TO the papers Tor which he was writing.
steve 'iiiis. however, declared that the frog
STORY was tne best thins MARI rad written,
anu adVi-ed MN 10 save 1t Tor book Of
sketches lie was taxing Oh publishing. A
nterary turn having been given 70 the
thoughts OF the inmates OF the ellis cabin, .
as.Nnfn 1919 eI,...aA 49,. 80 Al =
month passed without a return 10 the busi-
ness Oh POCKET INNING
WINE tns day, were paS-ei by MARX and
ms friends In discussing the merits OF the
jumping rrog anu other literary matters.
o'her prospec'ors were not idie- "A trio Of
austrian miners VINO were OUT In search oil
goid- Fearing quartz happened upon tne spot
"neie naiA anu 'iii hau Jug INTO 'heir
iedse, Ii was ou' lew Gays AFTER IVAN
anu Willis naa Ietrea'eo from 'he pace IN
,ne pouring ram Inc Austrians were not
ii''ie astohisneo at seeihs tne GROUND giitter-
ing WIZ goo.
where the DIRT emptled from the sacks
mad been dissolved ana washed away by the
rain, lay some three ounces OF bright quartz