Sacramento daily record-union., 1890-03-09
THIRTY YEARS AGO.
THE LIVELY DEMOCRATIC STATE CON-
yENTI0N IN 1860.
Old Freddy Coombs, the "Philanthropist"
The Caufield-NoIan Fight on
Front Street.

The Democratic State Convention me
in this city on the 10Th of February, 1860
and its session was rather turbulent one
The delegates met at three diferen. place
before suitable one could be found il
which to hold the Convention. Wher
that body had assembled at the Forres
Theater (the second place sought) Hum
phrey Griffith moved that it adjourn ''tC
Benton's church" One delegate, who haG
found a resting-place on the back of {
bench, with his feet cooked up in front
from which place he complacently sur.
veyed the scene, while squirting tobacco
juice all around him, remarked: sob
we've got everything fixed nice now
What's the use of moving AGAIN."
Some delegate moved the appointment
of sergeant-at-Arms TO guard the door
when B. F. Mauldin of Sacramento moved
TO amend by having somebody nail up the
doors. After considerable quibbling, the
Convention adjourned to the Congrega-
tional Church.
Phil. Moore of Nevada, was chosen
Chairman, William Coyle Sergeant-at-
Arms, and Messrs. B. NJ. Henry of San
Luis Obispo and W. F. Goad of Colusa,
Secretaries. AT this juncture the Conven-
ton was thrown into wild confusion by q
fight in the center of the church between
Frank Powell and Larkin Lamb, members
of the Sacramento delegation. 1t was sew
eral minutes before the row was suppressed
and the Convention was ready to proceed.
Sacramento was represented in the Con-
vention by J. R. Hardenburgh, James W.
Coffroth, O. ?. Gillis, E. E Eyre, f. Here
ford, D. II. Whipley, Charles Fairfax,
Robert Montgomery, B. f. Mauldin, P.
Murphy, John Taylor, A. D. Patterson,
Jared Irwin, A. F. Smith, Ben Stewart,
Larkin Lamb, Frank Powell, w. S. Long,
2. J. Hopper and John Heard.
There was great disorder attending the
discussion of a resolution to admit proxies,
and the feeling ran so high that Gillis and
Long of Sacramento became involved in a
difficulty and rushed at one another, but
were prevented from coming to blows One
San franciscan moved that the Convention
reject CushiDg's Manual and adopt, for the
government of the Convention, "Fistiana." !"
Among the San Francisco delegates were
those oldtime fire laddies, David ScannelI
and jim huffman, both of whom are still
liying-the former being Chief Engineer
of the Fire Department of that city, while
huffman resides in New York.
B. F. Mauldin of Sacramento caused q
sensation by the introduction of a resolu-
ton providing that, in the event of the Sc
cession of the Southern States, California
set up an independent Government of her
own. The resolution was tabled without
much debate.
The delegates chosen to the Charleston
Convention were: G. W. Patrick of Tuol-
umne, John S. Dudley of Siskiyou, VIM.
Bradley of San Joaquin, Newell Gregory of
Monterey, John Bidwell of Butte, John A.
Driebel5iss of Shasta, Austin E. Smith of
San Francisco and John Ranies of San Ber-
nardino.
The church having been rented for the
uses of the Convention against the rule of
the Trustees, the pastor, Mr.. Beckwith,
rendered his resignation.
...One of the queer characters in the
State at that time was Professor Freddy
Coombs, a mild, venersble-looking and
harmless sort of crank, who gravltated be-
tween this city and San Francisco. He
dressed in the garb of the old Continental
days. and had he lived in the time of Ben
iamin Franklin it would have been diff
cult 10 distinguish one from the other, if
AFranklin's portraits can be relied upon as
correct likenesses of him. Coombs had
wit enough TO live without labor and was
always telling how much he had done for
humanity in general and Californians
in particular. He laid great stress upon
the fact that he had been the inventor of
famous ditch-digging machine, or plow,
which had been used successfully in some
of the agricultural districts. 1t is true that
he Tor somebody else) did invent and con-
struct such machine, and it was used in
Napa valley early in the fiftles. 1t went to
pieces in 1853 on the farm of James Nc
Neil, about four miles from Napa and ad-
Joining the celebrated Oak Knoll farm Of
J. Warren Osborn, now the property of ex-
Secretary OF State Drury Melone. The
writer remember it well, and pointed out
to Professor Coombs its grass-covered re-
mains in 1856 when that gaudily -attired
parsonage, with powdered wig, was making
a tour of that region in search of it.
Coombs claimed to be an expert phrenol-
ogist, and op the 9TH of March, 1860, had
resolution introduced in the Assembly
granting him the privilege of using the
chamber for one evening for the purpose of
examining the heads of the members. The
resolution gave rise to very humorous
debate, Mr.. Conness urging its adoption on
the ground that he had been at o loss to
account for many mental eccentricities on
the part of some members, and desired to
have the Professor examine their eranial
protuberaness and explain them to the
House. The resolution was finally tabled.
......... Il was on the 5th day of March
that Henry a. Caulfield had the desperate
affray with Francis Nolan on Front street,
near r, where they met by accident. Caul-
field commenced abusing Nolan, who
warned bim to desist. Caulfeld picked up
a cobble-stone and followed Nolan to the
upper floor of the Sacramento sawmili.
Nolan was returning to the lower floor,
when he encountered his enemy thus
armed, and was struck on the head by the
latter A fight then ensued, and John Do
mingos, who was Superintendent of the
mill. ran up stairs into the room where the
men had gone during the struggle, and
found Nolsn leaning over a wash-stand
with Caulfisld above him, both grasping q
knife Domingos secured the knife and
separated the men, when it was found that
Caulfield had been stabbed. He was re-
moved to house near by, where he was
attended by DR.. Simmons. 1t was found
that he had received eight wounds in the
back between the shoulder. blades two of
which had entered the cavity of the chest.
He also had g stab in the left side of the
abdomen, near the groin. Three fingers
were nearly severed by having grasped the
knife which Nolan was using so vigorously,
but he secured it, although Nolan caught
his wrist and kept him flom using it. 1t
was thought that Caulfield would die of
his wounds, but he didn't, as Sacramentans
are well aware. This was one of the most
serious affrays of his turbulent career,
however.
bout o'clock on the morning of
March 4th an incendiary fire broke out in
tbe basement of Weston's building, on
Seventh street, between K and L (now a
norton of the Capital Hotel sitel, which
DESTROYED property to the amount of $780,
600, p. ]. Toll lost $40, 600; Searles & Brsgg,
sS 600; DR.. Morgan, 50 600; J. w. Reeves,
81 200; Robert Lynch proprietor of the
Monougahela House) s., 200, and the other
sufferers were Messrs. Blunt, Thomas hill,
DR.. Smith, H. NJ Bernard. Juan de Efaseta,
7 ". Stewart and Mr.. Stevenson. The
losses were mostly from vehicles destroyed.
Three sens of Captain Smith, stock
dealer. barely escaped with their lives. The
eldest bore his younger brother through the
smoke aud flames from the second story 10
80 on the ID of March DR.. Ormsby
and a large party arrived from Russian
Rivsr on ro5lte to the Wsshoe mines. The
county of Ormsby was subsequently named
after the doctor.
RATHER ROUGH.