Omaha daily bee., 1898-01-02
THE SACRAMENTO VALLEY


given them in order TO gain the least cX-
preston of their good will or fancy.
THE SACRAMENTO VALLEY.
Some of the pages in the history OF the
time were highly dramatic, others exceed
ingly pathetic; they were all interesting.
During the period the valley of Sacramento
WIS one vast mesa, reaching from the coast
range of the Pacific ocean cn the east to the
Sierra Nevada mountains in the west. and
from the beadwaters of the Sacramento on
the north to the bay of San Pueblo on the
south, No enclosure or fence restricted or
bounded eny special domain, and transporta
ton across the plain was generally accom-
plished in the Oid-time prairie schooner
Several of these outfits travelled in COMPANY
so as to aid each other in case of accident.
once during the hottest month of the
year | remember seeing what to me was
cne Of the strangest sights | had ever en-
countered Behind one of the prairie schoon-
erS was man trudgug along in the dust of
the rear or trail wagon. Noosed about his
neck was rope. the other end OF which
was faSt to the rear end of the wagon
When halt was made to feed the animals
either at noon or when camped for the night
instead of joining the travellers assembled
around their campfres, this erratic indi
yidual held aloof. stretching himself on the
heated, barren ground to sleep partakng
OF food only when it was thrown to him
by one or another of the campers In every
respect 1t was his endeavor to follow out
and initiate the actions of a dog and to he
treated as such. Day after day, this strange
procedure was persLstenty followed to the
end of long and weary journey, when, with
grutf thanks to the travellers who would have
befriended him and shared with him all the
comforts Of the camp. he disappeared. The
causes impelling this singular parsonage to
adopt such humiliating self-sacrifices were
rot known for years, but afterward I had
the good luck to come across him in mining
camp. and we became partners. The story
CLEANED from him was as follows:
Before coming to California he lived on
the shores OF Cayuga lake, New York. with
his wife end four children. His life as a
farmer had been happy enough until some
unfortunate speculation swept away all OF
hiD property. California presented a view
of golden promise so. bidding adieu to home
wife and children and securing the cheapest
possible transportation around Cape Horn
he reached the mining regions For a year
or more he was unsuccessful but at length
his luck turned. By working long hour,
and boarding every dollar earned. he finally
secured a sum that would not only release
al obligations on the old farm, but leave a
comfortable surplus which, in those timec
would fairly entitle him to be estimated as
| rich man among his fellow farmers. With
visions of home and longing to arrive there
as quickly as possible he went by stage
to Sacramento then by boat to San Fran
l
going steamer. But as fate wiled it several
days elapsed before the sailing of the
steamer This necesstated an unforeseen
and unwelcome wait in a strange city. With
nothing to occupy his time, and in truth
being what is known at the present time
as 'come-on' or hayseed,' he not only
accepted invitations to drink promiscuously
but made the acquaintance of dSreputable
characters, tin-horn gamblers and short t-card
men. The result was inevitable. The lamb
fnl1 t,Ny. h. H..
parted with its golden fleece. Then followed
the season of reproach. Crazed by the effects
of drink and remorse. but one of two courses
was left to be followed-death, or a re-
trieval of his fortune
POVERTY'S PINCH.
with a roll of blankets on his back and
a few meager belongings, he worked his
way on river packet to Sacramento. Land
| ing at SacnlmentO-penniless and friendless
| he secured free sleeping quarters at one
| of the numerous corrals of the city, where
| freghters to the iuterior kept their stock
| and stored their wagcns. Then he drove a
| bargain with a driver of a team whereby he
| was to accompany This slow-moving ot tfit
| on foot. This accounted for his strange ap.
| pearlnce with a rope around his neck. Nor.
| bid, half-crazed repentant, auguiShed ia
mind, aged in body with the visions of dis
appointed loved ones waiting for his pre-
viousy heralded return ever before him
with no plausible excuse to render, witt
| nothing upon which to build a future
ashamed TO return to places where he was
known-after days of slow journeylng and
| reimbursement the hills of the Sierrls were
| reached Rejecting asSoc!ates and living
| poorer than the meanest cur, he again begar
prospecting. Friendless, moody and holding
! alocf from every one, he was at dawn al
ways to be seen with pan, - pick and shove
! oil his shoulder, trudglng over the country
! shaking prospect holes, end generally th'
| shadows Of nigh overlook him returning t
| his camp with Hnrewarded hopes
, so passed the days, weeks and months
| in fact, almCst a year. Cne evening, whilt
out later than usual. and desiring to llgh
| his pipe, he jumped into q shallow prospeC
| hole, to shield the match from the wind
! Ia lighting 1t he glanced around. In 1ha
short moment some perullar feature of tn
/ exposed gravel attracted his attentiCn, an(
he decided to return to the spot the mex
| mcrnlag. The next day. and the next, fount
him pers!stenuy at work, in the same spot
One less likely to yield gold could not hay'
I been found, in the eStination of experienced
miners. Soon ;he tunnel or drift he wa
driving into the mountain became an objec
of curiosity. Nelghbcring miners often wen
to the scene OF mis- lsbors, but learned moth
ing from the solitary recluse Curiosity wa
followed by astonishment that no bed o
mother rock was encou'4 cred, and that al
the material excavated was evidently geld
bearing gravel, a pile of which was accumu
lated at the entrance to the drift. No effort
were being made by the owner. as 6lr as coul
be seen, TO extract whatever gold conten,
the pay dirt might contain
lone day the community was electrihe
by the delivery at the claim Of large lot {
sluice lumber, nails. etc. Cinnamon wer
set at work digging the ditch from III
water company's main line. and preparation
we're being made on large scale to was
the dump Soon the big pile of pay dil
a IL II ,I.n to- "a
method of washing while rumors foate
round the camp of the fabulous returns. The
1t became known that the claim could
purchased. and the hitherto sealed and seer,