Sacramento daily record-union., 1889-09-01
thirty TEARS AGO.
WILLIAM NJ. GwIN's ADVENT IN CALI
FoRNIA POLITICS.
The Trial of the Hounds" i'm San Fran
cisco-Frank Pixley and Senator
Broderick-Local Events.

was lOuSnl Dy the giant lntellecIS OF tne
State, and so vigorously as to completely
overshadow all else. The two central gla-
diators were, of course, Gwin and Broder-
lex. And it may interest those who came
to California in later years to learn some
thing of the history attending the advent
of William M. Gwin in the politics of the
State. In order to do this we must go back
to the still more memorable year of '49.
That year witnessed the first uprising of
the inhabitants OF San Francisco to take
into their hands the administering of JUS
tice to offenders against the law. In the
summer Of that year the citizens arose and
seized party of ruffians banded together
under the name of THE Hounds" organ
lied a Peoples Court" and proceeded to
try them according TO the rules of the reg
ular criminal Courts. On the day the gang
was arrested the city was conyulsed with
excitement Merchants left their counting
rooms, tradesmen closed their shops, and
lawyers their offices. The whole town
turned out, armed and equipped, 10
bring the assassins to justice. For weeks
and months the Hounds had been the
terror of the place. Their outrages and
depredations were committed in open day-
light and in body so strong as TO paralyze
resistance. On the day preceding the arrest
they had attacked a camp of Chilenos,
whom they beat and plundered, and then
marched with drum and fife through the
town. The people, by a common impulse,
assembled in mass-meeting the next morn
ing. An armed police force was organized,
and squads patrolled the town, arresting
and dragging to the calaboose nearly every
member of the desperate gang. While a
party were beating the bush in the rear of
the town, meeting not human being in
all their search, so universal was the out
pour OF the citizens to Join in the arrest of
The Hounds" they came finally upon a
venerable-lookipg gentleman seated upon
the porch of q building otherwise appar-
emily deserted by men, women and chill
dren. His head was bare his vest open
and while he leaned back in his chair the
thumb of one hand rested in an armhoIe
OF his vest, while the fingers beat gentle
accompaniment to the old gentleman's
thoughts. The search-party-so the old
legend goes-were struck by the singular
spectacle in this lonely spot, and
not little awed by the command
ing presence of the stranger, whose features
resembled, in all but swarthiness those of
Mohawk Chief. He bade the party
cheerful good day, end made some in
quiries about the progress of the days bus
lness. The party left, wondering who the
istinguished-lookipg old man could be,
and it was an hour before they returned to
the plaza, where the people were then as
sembling to take measures for the organiZa-
ton of a Court and the trial of the
Hounds" On rejoining their comrades,
the form of tall, erect, gray-haired man,
moving about and giving counsel here and
there to the chief citizens arrested their
attention, aud on inquiry they learned the
name of the stranger-the same man they
had seen on the hill-was Gwin, that he
hailed from Mississippi and had arrived on
the steamer OF the preceding day. A great
change had come over the old gentleman
since he had left his seat on the porch
His face now betokened lively interest in
the consultations going on; his manner
was aroused, and his speech full of en-
phasis. He became at once, as it was
plal. he desired to be, the leader of the
meeting. When the assemblage was called
to order proposition was made to elect
two Associate Justices out of the crowd to
sit with the Alcade and try the prisoners
The Hon. William NJ. Gwin" was i'm
mediately proposed as one and elected
without opposition. Few of those present
knew that, while the issue of the day was
doubtful-for the Hounds had threatened
to burn the village, and everybody expected
an organized resistance-Gwin had been
watching the course of events from the
porch on the hill overlooking the town,
and formulating his plan of campaign.
When the rufsians were all under arrest,
the simple-hearted old gentleman descended
from his perch on the hillside to the meet
ngplace, and then and there commenced
the climbing process, by which Gwin soon
reached seat in the United States Senate
From O seat on the bench of Peoples
Court to place in the San Francisco dele
CATION to the Convention to frame Consti-
tuition was the first step of the porch
watcher He had not been twenty four
hours in the country before he began lay
ing the wires by which he mounted up
ward to a position second only in political
importance and standing to that of Presi-
dent. And yet, who is there that would
not have done the same thing if he had the
cunning and ability TO carry ii out?
...... Frank NJ. Pixley published politi-
cal pamphletin August, in which he violent
ly assailed David G. Broderick. He said,
among other things, that if Broderick did
not enter saloons, brothels and gambling
dens, lit was sensible political precau-
ton, il not the result of virtuous prin-
ciple." He had known other men "who
not only avoided the whirlpools of vice,
but also kept free from contact with those
who derived their subsistence from them"
He further said "If gave list of all the
blackguards that ever infested a city; that
ever stuffed a ballot-boX or raised a plug
muss on election day, would name the
political friends OF the Hon. David C.
Broderick." The UNION, after quoting
column of this sort of trade, published
speech made by the same gentleman a
short time before, in which he ably de-
Tended Broderick from the assaults made
upon him. He said: 81 protest against
the assaults made upon his character.
say that David G. Broderick is an honor
able man; | say that he is a moral man. He
drinks no wine; he is not addicted 10
women, and his friends are among the
most respectable of our citizens. He has
been a good citizen among US, and faith
ful representative in Congress-" In speech
delivered in Sacramento on the 25th of
August Mr.. Pixley gave the reasons for his
change of front regarding Broderick.
When Horace Greeley left Sacra-
mento, he went TO Stockton as the guest of
the city authorities. But when he left his
hotel servant followed him with bill for
his board. Greeley was a philosopher, and
he paid the bill without murmur. The
Mayor stterward called to settle the bill,
when the discovery was made that the
city's guest had been made to pay his way.
Mokelumne City. situated at Ben
sons ferry, on the Mokelumne river, was
quite busy place thirty years ago. All
that now remains is here and there piece
of the embankment leading TO the old ferry
over which teams had To travel Out on
the plain, mile or so from the river, still
stands, isolated and alone, the old Benson
mansion, now simply the home of bats and
rodents. Benson was prince in his day,
ard his elegant home was seldom without
guests He lost his life in a field not far
from the home of his family, at the hands
of fellow-being. There was a woman in
the case. All about that locality there is
now but q wild waste of tar weed, and owls
hoot mournfully from the psneless wind,
ows of the ruins of the old residence,
whence came nightly, in times long past,
the ringing laughter of fair DANES and the
strains of sweet music There are many
more such pictures in California, especially
in the old mining localities of early days.
THE Lecompton Convention in San
Francisco on August 24th, nominated the
following ticket: Treasurer, ?. II. Owens
Recorder, w. l.. Higgins; School Superin-
tendent, James Denmsn; District Attor-
ney, d. J. Murphy; Coroner, DR.. B a.
Sheldon; Surveyor, A. 2. Green: Public
Administrator, S A. Sheppard; Tax Col
lector, w. L. Bromley.
......A citizen, en- route from lone City to