Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-03-08
MARK TWAIN.
How He Narrowly Missed Discov.
ering a Fortune.
An Inter estiRg "Reminiscences of the Time
When He Was a Pocket-Miner In Cali
fornia-Mark's Lack of Back
bone at Critical Period.
IAlta California;

Of resemblance to that of the bee hunter.
The trail followed by one leads him to the
tree stored with sweets, and that of the
ether ends in pocket Of sweetest gold.
The man who becomes an expert bee
hunter is likely to remain bee hunter all
his days, and the same may be said Of the
pocket miner.
Mark Twain's narrow escape from be-
coming a pocket-miner has never been
told. 1t is worth recording, as it gave
him the story Of the jumping Frog" and
sent him off along the line of the literary
lode and set him TO scratching therein for
pockets of fun.
In 1865 Mark wesried of Bohemian life
in San Francisco, and went up into the
mining regions of Calaveras County to
rusticate with some old friends-Steve,
Jim and Billy ellis. Jim ellis was, and
still is, one of the most successful pocket
miners in California. Although educated
with view eventually to fight the battle
OF life as physician, and though still
finding solace in his leisure moments in
the works of Greek and Latin authors re-.
posing on a shelf in his cabin, Jim ellis
is booked for life a pocket-miner. The
business has charms for him that he can
not break away from-hs is bound to it
In chains of gold. Show him particle of
quartz gold on the side of a mountain, and
If it came to where twas found through
the process or accidents Of n ature undis-
turbed in any way by the interference of
man, he will as unerringly 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 "GilIis boys"
much more attractive than those moro
regular kinds which call for large out ay
of muscle. He and Jim ellis took to the
hills in search of golden pockets and spent
some days in working up the undsturbed
trail of an undiscovered deposit. They
were on the golden "bee line" and stuck
to it faithfully, though it was necessary to
carry each sample of dirt to a small
stream in the bed up canyon in order to
pan it out. Each step made sure by golden
grains, they at last came upon the pocket
which had thrown these grains off. 1t
was cold, dreary, drilling day when the
''home deposit' was found. The first sam
pie carried to the stream and washed out
yielded but few cents. Although the
right vein had been discovered, they had
as yet found but the tail end" of the
pocket. Returning to the vein, they dug
sample from a new place, and were
about to carry it down TO the ravine and
test it when the rain began to pour down
heavily. With chattering teeth Mark de-
clared he would remain no longer. He
said there was no sense in freezing to
death, as, in a day or two, when it was
bright and warm, they could return and
pursue their Investigations in com fort.
Yielding to Marks entreaties, backed as
they were by his blue nose, bumped
back, and generally miserable and
detected appearance, Jim emptied the
sacks of dirt upon the ground, first
having hastily written and posted up a
notice of their claim to 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, while their cabin was some
miles away, Mark and Jim struck out
for that place. The only hotel in the
little mining camp was kept by one Coon
Drayton, an old Mississippi River pilot,
and at his house the half-froze 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 swa pped scores of
yarns. I5 continued TO rain for three
days, and until the weather cleared up
Mark and Jim remained at Coon's hotel.
The story of the jumping frogn was
one Of the yarns told Mark by Coon dur
ing the three days session, and it struck
him as being SO comical that he deter
mined TO write it up. When he retur ned
TO the ellis cabin, Mark set to work
upon the frog story. Es also wrote
some sketches OF life in the mountains
and mines for some of the San Francisco
papers.
Mark did not think much of the frog
story even after it had received the finish
ing touches. He gave the preference TO
some cher 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 had writ
ten. and advised him to save it for q book
of sketches he was talking of publishing.
A literary turn having been given to the
thoughts of the inmates Of the ellis cabin,
a month passed without a return to the
business of pocket-mininS.
While the days were passed by Mark
and his friends in discussing the merits of
the jumping Frog and other literary
matters, other prospectors were not idle.
A trio of Austrian miners who were out in
search or gcod-bearing quartz happened
upon the spot where Mark and Jim had
dug into their ledge. II was but few
days after Twain and G;llis had retreated
from the place in the pouring rain. The
Austrians were not little astonished at
seeing the ground glittering with gold.
Where the dirt empted from the sacks
had been dissolved and washed away bv
the rain, lay some three ounces of bright
quar- gold. The foreigners were not long
in gathering this, but the speedy discovery
of the notice forbade their delving into the
deposit whence it came. They could only
wait and watch and pray" This hope
was that the parties who had posted ND
the notice would not return while it held
good
The sun that rose on the day after the
Twain ellis notice expired saw the Aus
|trians in possession of the ground, with
notice of their own conspicuously and de-
|hantly posted. The new owners cleaned
put the pocket, obtaining from it in few
lays, little over $500.
Had Mark Twain's backbone held out
little longer the sacks of dirt would have
been washed and the grand discovery
made. He would not have gone to Angels
camp and would rrobably never have heard
pr written the story of the Jumping
Frog" the story that gave him his first