The record-union., 1891-07-25
HOFFMAN TAKES CHANCES.
He Partakes of Mineral Water
and WatermelOnS.
Wiley's Lake and SurroundingS-A
Place Where Tourists May Enjoy
Themselves and No Charge Is Made
The Misery Caused by an Uncom-
mon Name.

and filled myself with water from a sui
phur spring which gushes out of the
mountain and feeds the lake. and from an
iron spring which does not gush at all,
but just simply forms itself into pool
with a red scum over the surface and
looks nasty. 1 drank deeply of both
springs, and have felt like another man
since. I shall go again soon, and the in
quest will follow in due season. Also a
post mortem examination.
My last will and testament will be
found in the escritoire, neatly folded and
inserted in the heel of sock that was
once worn by Joaquin Murietta. 1t will
be readily recognized by its strength,
which corroborates the statement that
Joaquin always went well heeled.
Wiley's Lake is not down on the maps,
nor is it given place in the tourists
guides. Neither is it advertised as health
resort, nor even as a last resort. If l
should be asked to designate its place in
the catalogue of watering-places, | should
place it at the very head of the list with
scare head, a fist indicative before and
after, and several exclamation points,
and the old saw: 'Be merry while you
live, for you will be long time dead.'
l can conceive of no place where man
may go into perfectly maudlin frenzy
of merriment SO easily as at Wiley's
Lake, nor remain dead with greater dead
ness than after having absorbed a few
gallons of the water that comes to the
surface at that place.
The above was written with conSidera-
BILE venom, and refers to the water alone.
1t shows how the water affects the
drinker; how it makes him lie outrage
ously, and causes the most sober, temper,
ate and mildeSt of men-mySelf-to act
like woman scorned, or q married man
who has lost his collar-button under the
bed and has bumped his head on the Stats.
Now, that the spell has passed, / will
hasten to record the fact that the sulphur
and iron waters of Wiley's Lake are
highly beneficial to the system. It is
only the initiative effects which produce
in the hearts of men wild hankering for
the scalp of Byron Wiley, the urbane
and courteous gentlemen who owns the
lake, the springs, and other things in that
neighborhood.
Wiley's Lake, as resort, differs from
Lake City, in Nevada County, by having
q genuine lake, with fish in it, and a boat
with two paddles which is generally tied
TO root with a shoe-string. The lake is
not so large but that one may cast his eye
over it, and is SO deep that an ordinary
fishing pole will not reach bottom in the
middle. There is no outlet the water
passing away by evaporation, percola-
ton and so on.
Lake is its situation. 1t is located in
little hollow on the side of mountain
5000 feet high, and to reach it one must
climb mile up road built at an angle
of something more than 40 degrees, with
dips, spurs and variations too numerous
to mention. At several points along this
road the traveller may sit in his buggy and
look down over an almost perpendicular
descent of l 900 feet, and speculate on the
hllarlty OF the occasion II wheel should
slip over, or the horse take notion to
back the vehicle into space. A dense
growth of rank nettles at the very bot
tom of the mountain invites the weary
pilgrim who may be so unfortunate as to
absent mindedly fall over, or who wishes
to shuttle off the mortal coil by leaping
out and going into the shadowy land
with great whiz and sad, soggy thud
among their voluptuous stems, where,
am told, the slumberous rattlesnake lies
in wait, and the low, meditative hum of
the yellowtailed hornet may be heard at
any time.
In days of old, as I am told, the Greaser
bold, when a horse he'd stol'd, got him
straight way to Wiley's Lake. and nobody
ever got up there after him, so that he
waxed fat and sassy, and his deeds were
limited only by the number of horses in
the land about, and the time required for
climbing up and down the mountains; but
Byron Wiley, the present proprietor, has
made the lake a perfect garden spot.
The beautiful grove of evergreen oaks
has been thoroughly and skillfully
pruned, and hammocks swing under
them for the convenience of any guests
who may drop in and call upon him for a
few days or weeks.
1t may be just as well to mention that
lately visitors are expected to bring their
own tshlng tackle, tents, spoopju, anti
dotes, bedding and provisions. Also
their own hay, If they intend to keep a
horse or a COW. Mr.. Wiley used to keep
all these things himself, and never refused
TO lend them, but his stock is now ex-
hausted, and he keeps his horses and
cows in private apartments, to which only
members OF his own family are given the
password. Visitors need not be afraid to
sleep in the grove, as the tarantdlas are
now mostly engaged in sitting on their
eggs, the rattlesnakes are too lazy to
climb up the hill, and tramps never come
near enough to scare the children
Free access TO the springs may be had
at any time, and the boat may be used
but Mr.. Wiley hopes that guests will not
insist upon his going out more than forty
times day TO unite the shoe-string. He
begs them to earnestly endeavor to ac-
quire enough of the habit of industry to
perform this labor themselves, especially
rs he always ties it with a bow knot. AS
he charges nothing whatever for the use
of the grove, the lake, the boat and the
springs, and allows the children to climb
his trees and rock his pet rooster to death
gratis, he should be recognized as white
man and citizen. He also requests me
10 state that he does not keep rifles, shot
guns, telescopes, petrifactions, candy,
whisky, thread, buttons, nails, tobacco
ice cream, lemonade, elephants, nut
crackers, dime novels, nor any kind of
crockery for sale or 10 rent. Neither does
he have constantly on hand supply of
arnica, toothache drops, rheumatic lini-
ment and red-hot poultices. and people
who are likely to need any of these things
are requested TO bring them along with
them when they come TO his ranch
/ do not pretend 10 be a prophet, nor to
be able see further ahead of my own
nose than any other man, but it is my
private opinion that ut some future date
Wiley's Lake will be a famous resort.
Mr.. Wiley uses the place simply as n
home for himself and family, but people
who behave themselves may have the
use of his grounds for the summer days
Ultimately he will be compelled TO charge
for this privilege, and then everybody
Will go to his springs for rejuvenation,
and then his fortune viii be made. At
present very few people go, because it
costs them nothing more than an outlay
for necessaries which they take with
them.
In this little lake are multitudes of fish.
many of them three feet in length, but
uneatable. The water is extremely sui
phurous, and the fish, when cooked, are
as bitter as gall. But this bitterness does
not make the sport any less exciting at
all, and they may be caught, sent away to
distant friends who will think they were
spoiled in transit, lied about, and in other
ways be used the same as the most ordi-
nary edible fish.
AtWiley's Lake met John Franklin
AllgooSe man who has passed throuyh