Sacramento daily record-union., 1890-09-07
THIRTY YEARS ago.
STREET BATTLES BETWEEN RIVAL VOL
UNTEER FIREMEN.
Old-Time Baseball, When Preachers Um-
pired the Games-Curious Pro-
ceeding in a Court.

There used to be some hard battles in
early days between rival fire engine COM
panies, when spanners, fists, and all sorts
of weapons were brought into play. One
of the worst fights of this character in San
Francisco occurred on the 28th of August,
1860. Frank Whitney was then Chief En-
gineer The Howard and Volunteer COM
panies were running up Pacific street to
FIRE, and when just beyond Kearny street
the Chief called a halt. Howard was
ahead, but its hose.cart was behind Volun-
teer, and when the crew tried to go by the
latter there was trouble at once Dick Ry-
land, Jake Deker, James Kennedy, Jim
huffman, W. B. Fairman, ]. E. Chase,
George Coombs, Ike Harrington and one
Riley were the chief participants in the
row, and broken heads and broken noses
were numerous. Whitney quelled this
row, but another broke ont when the COM
panies got to Dupont and Washington
streets. By this time the Monumentals
and Knickerbockers had come up, and
their men took hand in the affair, which
now increased to the dimensions of riot.
Later on, the Knickerbockers, in going
down Sacramento street, ran their engine
upon the sidewalk at Leidesdortf street, and
stretched ropes across to intercept the How
ards, who were coming down the hill at a
lively pace. At this point the battle was
fought out, and about one-fourth of the
iremen spent the night in Jail for rioting.
Sacramento had her share of these volun-
teer firemen's rows in those days, one of
which occurred two days later than that
related above. Companies Nos. and got
into close quarters on ] street, and at it
they went. For while brlckbats few
through the air like hail. w. J. Dunning
was nearly killed by blow on the head.
The composition of the Sacramento
Baseball Club, which won the Stockton
Fair tournament in 1860, was as follows
First baseman, A. J. Allen (Captain);
pitcher, e. N. Robinson; right field, w. B.
Penney: catcher N. B. Kendall; shortstop,
John G. Keenan,; center field, J. Z. Isaac;
left field, N S. Leslie; second baseman, W.
]. Covell; third baseman, H. Brumett. The
score was simply kept, and consisted of
two columns-"H. L." and "R." The
games were umpired by Rev. J. A. Ander-
son of Stockton. He would be a bold
preacher of the gospel who would under
take to umpire a modern baseball game.
......... Long lines of "prairie schooners"
were features of the city in those days, and
the monotonous music of the mule-bells
was heard throughout the day, and even in
the night, from one end of the city to the
other. One of the longest wagon trains
that ever left the city was that of William
H. Dixon, who had a contract for deliver
ing 125 tons of barley at Fort Churchill,
New. The train was about half mile long,
and attracted much attention as it filed
slowly out of town.
,........Sometimes the newspapers handled
things much more delicately than they do
nowadays. For instance. in referring to a
slander case in San Francisco one of the
metropolitan dailies said the defendant had
spoken of the plaintiff, with an adjective
prefixed, as the offspring of species noted
for its intelligence and faithfulness, yet far
below, on general average, the human
standard"
.,.......At the annual election for officers
of the Pioneer Association the following
were Chosen President, A. @. Monson;
First Vice President, Edward McCarty
Second Vice President, John II. Carroll: i:
Recording Secretary, S. B. Robbins; Treas
urer, n. j. Holland Directors-James An
thony, w. NJ. Harron, s. R. Kneeland ].
R. Hardenburgh. n. L. Drew, NJ. K. Muir
ply and G. ]. Phelan.
1.-THE papers relate novel occur
renee in the Court of Sessions. A China
man was up for kidnapping. Judge Robin
SOD tried to secure him counsel, but every
lawyer was in some way disqualified. SO
the Judge concluded to act as counsel for the
prisoner himself. He did his best for the
Mongolian, but the District Attorney (Cor-
nelius Cole) and the Jury were too much
for him, and the prisoner was convicted.
.........The rates of interest charged on
loans in early days was something awful.
In 1850 g. B. Stephens borrowed 81 ,407
from ]. Neely johnson, agreeing to pay 10
per cent. per month interest. The note
was secured by q mortgage on a half lot on
L street. between Third and Fourth. The
money had not been paid up to September
1, 1860, and suit was brought to foreclose.
The principal and interest then amounted
to $l8.440
......... Assistant District Attorney B. G.
Whiting remarked in Judge Barr's Court
one day that he had never heard such arbi-
trary rulings as his Honor had made in a
case then on trial. The Court fined him
for contempt The newspaper reporter, in
referring to the incident said, that having
sat through the proceedings, he left the
hall of Justice with supreme contempt
for both the Court and the lawyer"
...... A singular storm visited the lower
San Joaquin valley on the 25th of August,
1860. The thermometer registered 1862 in
the shade at Visalia, when a terrific thun.
der-storm came up from the Tehachapi
mountains Rain fell in torrents, and the
thunder and lightning were fierce. 1t was
the first thunder the whites had ever heard
there.
"A duel was fought between Richard
Ried and Henry Norman at San Andreas
on the 1st of September. The weapons
were shotQns, and the distance forty
wards. After one exchange of shots hostll-
tiles ceased. The principals were In earn
est but the seconds were not, and the guns
contained only powder.
There was a regular line OF omni-
buses running between the city and
Smiths Gardens, on the bank of the Amer
ican. Where the gardens then fiourished
there is now o beautiful willow ranch.
.........T There were humorists in those
times, as well as now. One day lady
sent to the editor of local newspaper
basket of fruit with this note: Mr..
Editor ! send you some Bell pears-the
best you Everett"
........On the 1st of September, 1850, the
Sacramento Daily Democrat made its ap-
pearance. II. J. Bidleman & Co. were the
publishers, and NJ. G. Upton the editor.
.........A firemen's tournament, pigeon
shooting, baseball and gymnastic exercises
were the outside features of the State Fair
in 1860.
Sacramento had five daily papers
then-the UNION, Ne'os. Bee, Standard, Post
and Democrat.
OUR HERITAGE.
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