The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1885-04-26
MARK TWAIN AS A ooLD-p1aaER.


Jumping Frog"
tAlta California;
The position Of the pocket-mlner among the other
Inhabitants OF mining region very much resembles
tier settlements In agricultural regions The bust
ness he follows also mas seyetal points Of fesem.
by one leads hin to the tree stored wi,h sweets and
that OF the other ends IN pocket OF sweetest gold.
The man who becomes an expert bee-htintefis likely
may be said OF pocket-mihet. Marx Twahs nat
row escape from becoming pockei-miner hasnevet
been tod worth Iecorains as It gave mn ,d me
the fine OF the literary lode and set him 10 scratch
ing therein for pockets OF fun In 1895 Mark weatled
of Bohemian life In san Francisco and went up into
the mining regions OF Caavcras County to rusticae
with some old friends Steve Jim, and Billy ellis
@ s nn" s % ono II e moe
with view eventually 10 fight the battle Of life as
physician, and though still finding solace in his
authors reposng OH shelf IN his cabin, Jim Gis In
booked for life as pOcketnlnet. The business has
~ somnd o IN Chains soa SHOW sG S
of quartz gold on the side Of mountain, and IN
IT came TO where It was found through the process
accidents ~ nature nndistutbed In any wayhy the
interference Of man he will unerringly trace II
TO its source as the bee hunter will follow the bee 10
Its board of sweets
Marx Twain found the bohemian style Of mining
practcod by the "Gllis boys much more attractive
than those more regular Kinds which coll Tor large
outlay of muscle. lie and Jim Glis took to the hills
In search Of golden pockets ana spent some days IN
working M the undlsturbed trail OF an undiscovered
s'sS 10 IT sN mff y. though V was NECESSARY /"
carry each sample OF dirt TO small stream In the
bed up canyon In order TO pan II out. Each step
made sure by golden grains they at last came upon
the pocket which had thrown these grains on. II
was q cold, drcary, drizzling day when the "home
streon and M" washed out Welded bnt few cents. Al
though the right vein had been discovered they had
as yet found but the "tail-end of the pocket Re-
turning TO the vein, they dug sample from new
place. and were about TO carry II down 10 the ravlne
and test y when the rain began TO pour down
heavily win chatterlns teeth Marx declared ne
In freezing TO death, AZ in day or two, when IT was
bright and warm they could return and pursue
enireatles, backed "a they were by his blue nose.
bumped back, and generally miserable and detected
nHeg nS n os rGh
notice OF their claim To q certain number OF feet on
the vein. which notice would hold good for thirty
days. Angels Camp being at no great distance from
the spot white their cabin was some miles away,
Marx and Jim struck out for that place. The only
Drayton, an old Mississippi River pilot and at his
house the hali-drunkcn pocket.miners found shelter.
Mark Twain having formerly followed the business
Of pilot on the Mississippi River, he and Coon were
soon great friends and snapped scores of yarns. II
continued to rain for three days, and until the
weather cleared up Mark and Jim remained at Coons
The story of the jumping frogs" was one of the
yarns told Mark by Coon during the three days
session, and II struck him as being so comCal that
he determined TO write 1t up. When he returned TO
the Gillis cabin Mark set to work upon the frog
story. lie also wrote some sketches Of life In the
mountains and mines for some OF the San Francisco
papers. - -
after 1t had received the finishing touches lie gave
the preference to some other sketches and sent them
to the papers for which he was writing. steve Gillis,
however, declared that the frog story was the best
thing Mark hal written, and advised him TO save II
for book OF sketches he was talking of publishing
literary turn having been given to the thoughts OF
the inmates Of the ellis cabin, month paesed with
ont return to the business OF pOCket-nlintng.
While the days were passed by Mark and his friends
discussing the merits of the Humping Frog aud
other literary matters other prospectors were not
idle. A trio OF Austrian miners who were out in
search of collaborating quartz happened upon the
spot where Mark and Jim had dug Into their ledge.
Ii was but few days after Twain and Gills had re-
Ausrians were not little astonshed at seeing the
ground glittering with gold. Where the dirt emptied
from the sacks had been dissolved and washed away
by the rain lay some three ounces OF bright quartz
gold. The foreigners were not long In gathering
this. but the speedy discovery OF the notice Tornado
them delving into the deposit whence 1t came: They
could only wait and swatch aud pray" This hope
was that the parties who had posted up the notice
would not return while 1t held good.
The sun that rose on the day alter the inc Twain,
ously and denanily posted. The new owners cleaned
out the pocket. obtaining from 1t In few days
Had Marx Twain backbone held out little longer
the sack of dirt would have been washed and the
gone to Angels Camp, and would probably never
uave heard or written the story OF the dumping
Frog the story that gave him the his first "boost -
In the literary world, as the "Heathen Chinee y
gave Bret Harte his first lift up the ladder Had
Mark found the gold that was captured by the Aus
TRANS he would have settled down as pocket
miner. He would never have given mp the chase,
and till this day, gray as badger, he would have
been pounding quartz, with Jim ellis for his " pard,'
In cabin somewhere In the Sierra Nevada Noun
tains.
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