Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-08-14
THE PORTY-NINERS.
EXPERIENCES IN THE LONG VOYAGE
AROUND CAPE HORN.
A Woman Describes the Trials and Trib
ulations of the Journey-First
House in San Francisco.
From the Boston Transcript


@You didn't Join the Forty-niners in
their California outing after all, did you?"
asked the madame of charming elderly
lady upon whom we were calling.
"Why, no; seem not to have" brightly
responded our hostess, Mrs. G. 81 should
have liked right well to have gone, but |
fear Pm getting beyond such long jour-
neys"
"That sounds dull from such an exper-
fenced traveller as you. By the way you
were among the very first who went out
in 40, wern't you?"
oTo be sure l was My husband COM
manded the ship Sweden, which sailed
I rom Boston March l in 40. Prepare
tions had been made for a run to Mobile,
but at the last moment the Captains uncle,
and owner of the vessel, changed the plan
and advertised her for passage and freight
for California You may be sure there
was general dlsbanding of sailors
who had engaged for Mobile, for a trip to
California in those days didn't mean quick
travel, palace cars, good fare and jolly
trip all the way around. I'd gone down
from my home in the country and had
nothing to do but go back and await a
later sailing. Meanwhile news of the
change spread and applications for passage,
the price of which was $3.50 to $175, were
numerous. The majority of the passengers,
from many parts of New England, banded
In companies which were to mine it and
formed what would now be called the
steerage, but in those days they were
dubbed between decks A lawyer with
his wife from Glen Falls, New York; a
young doctor given his passage for serv-
ices; the master and captains family
formed the cabin list.
'The crew even was a company of would
be miners under the leadership of a man
from Brighton, Mass. This fellows tran
scendentalistic proclivities and many
initiated name made him the recipient of
the ships Jokes and won for him the SOU
briquet of Alphabet W--n.' In all
there were two hundred and sixteen souls
on board when we sailed out of Boston
harbor, with the memory of Father Tay-
lor's blessing to cheer US"
"How did you happen to get so cheering
send-off?" asked the madame.
wards the new land as he called Califor-
MA, and never wearied of questioning
about it, or of meeting those who were
going out Somehow he learned the
Sweden-in whose cabin he was a frequent
visitor-was to take "a great many souls
out and he invited everyone down to the
Bethel on Ninth street to a service the
night before sailing. For all the worthy
had
In the country of gold as any commercial
man, still he had that strong disbelief that
keeps a man from personal participation
In the life TO be encountered there. | shall
never forget the solicitude and dismay
with which he said when he found my
two-yearold son was to go, Are you wise
in taking that mere baby into that land of
gold though it be an Ell Dorado? Do you
realize what it all means p Well, to go
back little When we were invited to 90
to the Bethel in body, we didn't suppose
we were to be sort of show, but when we
got there we found the Bethel crowded no
seats for us save those Father Taylor had
reserved in the very front rows. 1t was
little embarrassing, but there we were
come to be hidden Godspeed, and we val
liantly marched to the fore. | don't be-
lieve any member of that company still
living forgets the vigorous setting forth of
perils to come, hardships to overcome and
evils to which human flesh is heir that
each and every soul must encounter in the
wild, new land. 1t seemed to me as if his
~decp-set eyes must have power,to look into
every mans soul and read its secret
thought, so strongly did he set forth mans
weakness in his own peculiar fashion,
"the intense magnetism of his pleading
and prayer would Of necessity have made
AN Impression, even had henot emphasized
cei in points by making them personal to
ths extent of calling the names of those
individuals whose peril he felt to be
greater than the average. don't remem-
Der having ever seen a greater ex-
hibition of interest and enthusiasm even
at grand opera, than when we left the
Bethel with the prayer and solicitation for
our prosperity repeating themselves in our
minds. The small clearinghouse on
Pearl street never seemed SO desirable
habitation before, for we realized now that
it meant rest, peace and security, while on
the next day would begin life nearly
destitute Of those qualities. 1t seemed al
most godsend for the less cheerful men,
bers of our company that we started with
blessing, for the day was most unpro-
pitious, being one of those typical March
DAYS when cold winds and heavy clouds
made every one seek as much shelter as
was possible on ship where 2l6 people
were trying to establish themselves for
long voyage"
"Did / understand all the passengers
were going to seek gold?D queried the
madame
Eyes; that was the predominating idea
with each company. 1t was necessary for
the men to band together, as no man
could have prospected and worked his
find' single-handed. Part of the men
were provided with mining outfit con-
sisting of suit of waterproof clothing,
pickaxes and shovels, while others had
trusted to finding an outfit upon arriving.
Every man had bed, bedding and dishes,
suitable alike for ship and camp use. OF
course during the passage the between
decks had not the freedom of the cabin at
meal time, but presented themselves with
their dishes to the storekeeper and cook,
from whom they received each man his
allowance Of food and drink. The lawyer,
his wife, the doctor, two mates and Cap
tains family enjoyed cabin fare and lived
consequently somewhat after the manner
of life at home"
'What did you have for food?'
'There was plenty Of salt beef, pork and
fish; beans, potatoes, rice and corn meal
mush-the two latter serving as substitutes
for potatoes, which lasted only sixty days
out from Boston; some canned stuffs, cram
berries put upin fresh water in small casks
sauerkraut, packed so solidly in barrel it
was necessary to cut it out to prepare for
serving; to make it edible it was boiled
and favored in the French style then pre-
valent, with two or three cloves; hard
tack, wheat bread-made by baker whose
only work was the breadmaking-and oc-
casionally plain cake and gingerbread. For
drinks we had tea, coffee and water-so
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