The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-15


In Habersham county, Georgia gold was
discovered in 1881 by a man named Wilpero,
who. observing the resemblance of the sur
face and of the foliage and the streams of
the region with the gold section of North
Carolina dug for the precious metal and
found it in considerable quantities.
In Virginia gold was mined for many
years. The largest masses of the metal
were found in or near rivulets or runs of
water. On a brook at the Whitehall mine
gold of the value of $4,000 was found in the
course Of few days in space of about
twenty feet square
The gold fever in the South had almost
died out, when from the farthest quarter
or the United States, the recently acquired
California, came the news of gold finds far
more remarkable and productive than those
heretofore made. Not that gold was new to
LII SdlILoLlLa5i i or three centuries there had
been wild talk about fabulous mineral
wealth IN the region of the Sierras. In the
~ ana 3gs of this century small nuggets
OF gold had been repeatedly obtained from
the Indians. One day laborer in the en-
ploy OF the Russian-American Company in
california came to the commandant with
the story that he had seen gold in the bed
or stream and advised that a party be
sent TO examine it. The man was told to
r lno ms 81 own tE business Alth999ugh such
fornla had occasionally been heard still
they had never been verified or traced to
any reliable source and they were regarded
as we now regard the fabulous stories of
the golden sands of Gold lake or those of
Silver Pl1nches, which are said to exist in
the inaccessible deserts of Arizona.
But when, towards the summer of 1S4S
bags and bottles full of gold were displayed
the people realized the fact that California
was rich of gold; that the precious metal
was rot difficult to obtain and that gold
mining, under all conditions must be profit
gold fever broke
out anew and from the East, North and
South bands of gold hunters headed to-
wards the newly discovered Ell Dorado.
The first Californian gold was found at
Coloma near the site of the present city
OF Sacramento: its discovery was by acct
dent; its diScoVerer was James w. Mar
shall; the man on whose lands it was found,
John Augustus Suffer. The lives of these
two men are so remarkable that it may
be of interest to present a brief biographical
account.
Suffers GOLD LANDS.
John Augustus Suffer was born in Kan
dern, in the Granduchy of Baden, Germany,
on Feb Is, 1903, of Swiss parentage Hav-
ing graduated at the military college at
Berne, he entered the French service as an
officer of the Swiss Guard, and served in
1S23-24 through the Spanish campaign In
1884 he emigrated to this country and set
tied in st. Louis, remaining here for several
years. Afterward he carried on a profita-
BILE trade with tie Indians and trappers of
the West, whose accounts of California in
duced him in 1888 to cross the Rocky noun
tains. He went first to Oregon, descended
Columbia river to Fort Vancouver, and
thence sailed to the Hawaiian islands,
where he purchased a vessel and set out for
Alaska, then a Russian settlement After
disposing of his cargo to advantage there,
he sailed along the Pacific coast and on
n
Yerba Buena, now San Francisco. He OBJ
tanned considerable grant of land near the
present site of Sacramento from the Mex
lean government found" the earliest white
settlement in those pa IS and built a fort,
which he called New Helvetia. The Mexi-
can government appointed him Governor of
the northern frontier country, but as he
favored the annexation of California to the
United States the Mexicans regarded him
with suspicion. When Captain Charles
Wilkess exploring expedition reached San
Francisco Suffer gave him aid and in
formation, and extended a similar welcome
to John c. Fremont and his party. In 1874
he took into his employ James w. Marshall,
a native of New Jersey, who had just come
to California. Marshall served in the Bear
Flag war, and after his return entered the
lumber business with his former employer
at Coloma, Ell Dorado county.
On the afternoon OF Jan. Is, 1S4S while
experimenting the construction of mill
race at Coloma, he fouAS nugget OF gold,
and, collecting several 9F Of the ore,
took the specimens to / mn, saying:
Boys believe / have f. II % gold mine"
The remark produced no lr2ark ID effect upon
his hearers, and Marshall we 'ked off to his
house. Next mOr'nLg, u" came again with
several nuggets CT illG sot1 which he had
picked from the surface OF the mill race.
Led by Marshall the laborers all FASTENED
down to the mill race and soon were an
sorbed in picking from the streams ana
crevices of the rock the precious yellow
metal.
on the evening of Feb. O. 1S4S Marshall
rode into the fort, his horse foaming and
spattered with mud. Taking suffer ASIDE
he showed him about half a thlmbletul OF
yellow grains of metal Sutter applied
aquafortis and established the fact that the
metal was solid gold.
DIED A POOR MAN.
Although Suffer tried to keep the discov-
cry of gold a secret until he could get In
his harvest, it was impossible, and, as Par
ton says, Suffers harvest was never gath
cred. His oxen, hogs and sheep were stolen
by hungry men and devoured. No hands
could be procured to run the mills His
lands were squatted on and dug over, and
he wasted his remaining substance in fruit
less litigation to recover them. To carry
on the legal warfare, he was compelled to
sacrifice or mortgage the parts of his estate
not seized by the gold diggers, until, little
by little, his magnificent property melted
away, leaving him all but destitute For
one item, he paid, in ten years, for counsel
fees and legal expenses, sips, 0OO." The Leg
islature of California granted him pension
OF $3.50 q month. In 1864 his homestead was
burned, and in 1873 he removed to LltZ Ia.
He died in Washington, d. c.. June IL, 1880,
q poor man. - 800,
Marshall the discoverer of gold. did not
fare more prosperously. His property and
stock were seized his land was divided into
town lots, and he became reduced 10 eX-
treme poverty. His discovery, which in one
wear alone resulted in a product or 500, OUO,-
600 and for seventeen years brought on an
annual average of $25,600000, Melted him
neither fame nor profit.
The State of California during the times
of gold is best described in Bret Harte
works Every one was affected by the gold
fever Lots in San Francisco were said to
he worth gold coin enough to carpet them.
Speculation ran wild. All forms OF gambling
while Adventures and criminals Hooked IN.
Society became chaotic, and at length sell.
preservation required the organization OF
the celebrated vigilance committees 10
enforce order.
In Alaska gold was first discovered in the
vicinity of Sitka, at Silver bay ten miles
northeast of the town, by Frank Mahoney,
prospector: Edward Doyle, a discharged
soldier, and William Dunlays. While pros
Meeting for placers these men found, in
June iS7S. a goId-bearing quartz vein and
took samples of the ore to Sitka. one of
the men to whom they showed the samples
was Nicholas Haley, at that time private
in the United States service. through his
untiring efforts a company was formed at
Portland. Ore, for the purpose or develop
ing the vein and in 1879 steam and water
mower mill was built. The mine ana mill
were worked few months, but failing 10
make expenses the company suspended IN
the spring of 1850. Since then, very little
has been done TO work the mines OF luat
Far to the north a new gold land has now