Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-08-25
THIRTY YEARS AGO.
ONE OF sAcRAMENTo,s NOTED HOSTEL
RIEs OF EARLY DAYS.
Exciting Times at Political Nee ting in
the Campaign of 1s59-First Ore
From the Comstock.

}. z. Dyer, proprietor of the Union Hotel,
was then renovating and remodeling that
structure. The old hotel. after many ups
and downs, during the thirty years that
have since elapsed, is still doing business at
the old stand. What memories cling around
that ancient hostelry--the scene of SO many
combinations in the early political his
tory of the STATED Up to few years ago
it was the headquarters of the chieftains of
the various political clans that were wont
to assemble here when conventions or Leg
islatures were in session, and is still sought
by many of the old-timers when business
or pleasure calls them to Sacramento. But
the galaxy of politicians and sporting men
that used to tread its tiled floors and clink
their glasses over the bar. counter have
mostly passed away. The cid counter is
still there, however, and bears the scars of
many glass bottle and pistol-butt en-
ployed to give emphasis and force
10 an argument or to indicate some
bad mans desire to do up somebody
When the crowded steamers arrived in the
early morning from the bay there were
always some passengers who had not re-
tired, owing to the prolongation of poker
game or their inability to break away from
the sweet presence of fair danes with
whom they had beguiled the hours on deck
while steaming up the placid waters of the
Sacramento river in the soft moonlight
They. could always depend on finding the
Union open, no matter what the hour
might be, and coming down a few years
later Frank Suydam or Johnny Brandt
would be sure to be behind the bar to pro-
vide cocktail for the wayfarer And
there, too the latter might confidently RELY
upon finding Martin Rowan, that polished,
courteous, genial and open-hearted bohem-
ian. Martin, it was said, never slept-that
is, so far as his friends knew. Night or
day he seemed to be always accessible,
always mysterious, but always had a kind
word Of greeting for his old friends. 1t
used TO be said that he was educated for
the altar, but the gold fever brought him
to California in 40, and he fell into the
ways of other men and drifted into
politics, and later on into journal
ism, but always preserving his own
self-respect, and the respect and love of all
who knew him. He passed away in this
city some years ago, but his memory will
always be cherished by his old friends.
To follow the history of the old Union
Hotel and its habitues down through the
following years would occupy more space
than can be devoted to the subject, prolific
as were those years of incidents of stir
ring character. 1t was always the head
quarters of men of sporting turn of mind,
and never more so, perhaps, than when
Barney Clark was behind the bar, and Paul
Morrill,, James Anthony, James w. Coff-
roth, John Shore, and the score of other
prominent men of means and leisure were
among its habitues. Almost constantly a
row of men stood in front of the bar and
drank their two-bit beverages, or shook the
dice for high stakes. The mention of the
dice recalls an episode of certain night
when Clark's bar-keeper, Tommy -, and
local business man played for high stakes.
A dice game had been running all the
evening, the ante being from five to twenty
collars. The playershad ali got broke and
one after another retired. The proprietor
however, lugged up stairs goodly bag of
gold. 1t was long past midnight, and the
second watch came on. One of the losers
of the fore-part OF the night came in and
bantered the barkeeper to shake for SIS.
The latter accepted the banter and won
Luck was decidedly and remarkably against
the merchant, and before long he had
parted with the gold with which he had re.
plenished his pockets. Then they shook
ION tick" for $50 shake. Never did luck
go so steadily against man as it did against
the merchant on that occasion. He soon
owed his adversary 500, and realizing
that he was in for it he proposed to double
the stakes. The other consented, and lol
the merchant owed him $200l Again the
dice rolled out of the box, and the debt be-
came $500. Then it went on-$S00, 81, 600,
and finally 5000. The merchant grew
pale. He was man of honor, as well as
of means, and would pay his losses, how
ever great, but the thought of throwing
away so many thousand dollars
in dice game made him tremble.
If luck would only favor him
once, his loss would be wiped out; but
suppose his adversary should see fit to stop
now and claim his s., 200 Or. suppose it
should become Sc, 400 after the next throw
He gathered up the worries, nervously
dropped them into the box, and looked in
quiringly at the placid Tommy behind the
bar. Sixty-four hundred or nothing"
smilingly remarked the bartender. Out
rolled the dice. The merchant shaded his
eyes with his hand and scanned their up
turned spots. Two Sizes" said the bar
tender, showing the other three cubes back
toward the thrower. A fortune depended
on the next throw, and out came-two
more skies the first high throw the
merchant had made. He wiped the per-
Spiration from his forehead as the bar
tender picked up the dice, but had little
fear of the latter beating him. The dice
rolled out, and pair of trays only showed
up. The spell was broken. The bar
tender got only three trays in both throws,
and-the merchants debt was wiped out
He ordered bottle of wine, and the dice
shakers and belated newspaper man
the only witness of the remarkable game
drank the health of the players.
ION the night of August II, 1859,
there was great turnout at political
meeting in Sacramento. Broderick and
McKibben had concluded their addresses.
when Judge Calvin organized an opposi-
ton meeting, and declared that, by the
Eternal God, II. P Barber, candidate for
District Attorney on the Lecompton ticket,
should have a respectable hearing. Bar
Der spoke for about an hour, and gave way
to Myers. Z. F. Hunter was then called
for to reply to Barber, and as soon as he
assembled the stand row began. Chair
man Calvin called for cheers for Buchan-
nan, which were given. Hunter turned,
and shaking his fist in the Chairman's face,
cried: Oh you, if you attempt to
raise disturbance here against me, I'll
put my fist down your putrid throat in a
hurry A grand rush was made for the
stand, and DR.. franklin, Administration
candidate for the Senate, seized Hunter by
the throat, and the whole party tumbled
over backward from the platform, Calvin
beneath, and Hunter and Franklin on top.
Hunters friends rushed to his rescue, but
half dozen pistols were pointed at
him as he rose, the uppermost
and smallest man in the heap.
His friends cried, Shoot himl" (meaning
Franklin) Hunter, with borrow ed pistol
in his hand, sprang upon the platform and
cried out, I'm going to speak here to-
night, according to the programme, or
by -, no other man does !" Then fol-
lowed an almost INDISPENSABLE uproar.
The foulest epithets were hurled at Hunter
from his enemies in the outskirts of the
crowd, and the row was kept up for a
couple of hours, Hunter meantime holding
the stand and defying his traducers. Il
was O'Clock in the morning before he
succeeded in making his speech. 1t was
one of the stormiest scenes that occurred
during that stormy political campaign, and
is well remembered by many Saorameutans
of to-day.
1.-THE Nevada Democrat mentioned the
extraordinary feat of man named David
Warwick, who rode his horse through the
Magenta fiume on the 18th of August. The
fiume, or squeduct, was 1900 feet in
length, portion of the distance being l25
feet above the ground. 1t was six feet
wide, and the sides only sixteen inches
high. The UNION remarked that "the
! l. \