Morris tribune., 1899-07-15
PROSPECTING IN '49

summers day in 40. that the crazy
] old ship in which / had embarked fol
! the eel Dorado" of the Western
world, sailed up the bay of San Fran
cisco, and dropped her anchor before
the modern Babel.
AS I leaned over the vessels side
and gazed at the ludicrous scene pre-
sented on the wharf, / mentally resolv-
| ed, that in comparison with San Fran
cisco, the Babel of old was nowhere.
Blanketed Mexicans, scoWling under
| their sombreros, screening Cinnamon
with long queues streaming down their
yellow backs, befeathered and bedauo-
| ed Indians, half-naked Islanders from
| the Pacific, ragged, swearing, tobacco
chewing spectators. with fortunes IN
their waist-belts, red-shirted miners,
and beieweled blacklegs, helped to ill
up the picture.
How different this earthly pandemo-
mum from the quiet New England vii
lage which | had left. to amass that
wealth in the gold fields of California,
which I could hope to win in the plod-
ding life of a New England farmer,
only after years of arduous toll.
Shouldering my vaIise, which con-
tanned all my earthly possessions. L
Jumped aboard a returning lighter, and
was soon on shore threading my way
among the tumble-doWn shanties, OF
which the largest portion Of the arohl-
tectural structures of the city then
consisted, in search of a hotel.
At length I stopped in front OF a
flaming red brick structure that had no
signpost, or other indications of It's
being a hotel, except the crowd of
drunken miners. traders, and horse
Jockeys, congregated about the doors;
and entering, asked if | could be &C
commodated with board and lodging
for a day or two.
The reply was prompt, and to the
point.
"Wall, stranger, eff you've got the
dust to deposit fur yer grub and bunk
1 reckon you kin stay. HaInt much
crowded jest now, but board is mighty
low, considerin' the times, only fifteen
dollars day, and it's almost onpos-
sible to buy any kind of produce at any
price, the folks is maxim sech rush
fur the mines"
l handed him my valise and fifteen
dollars, and then, after suffering the
agony of being shaved with a razor
that was hardly sharp enough to cut
corn-bread, and for which | was oblig-
ed to pay three dollars, ventured to
the bar, and asked if they had got
any old French brandy.
mo. But they had got some excel
lent whisky-good to keep the chills
off-would try some?"
l thought l would, and managed to
swallow half glassfui. but the wry
expression of my face clearly indicated
to the grinning bartender and his red
faced satellites, that such villianous
compound, infinitely worse than the
notorious Red River water whisky, had
hitherto been a stranger to my palate
cheap enough, however, only dol
lar a drink.
Ascertaining that I could procure a
mule, and a few Indispensable mining
tools in Sacramento, l slowed myself
and vaTise in the Sacramento stage the
next morning, and, after a three days
jolting in the INCREASED vehicle over
a periIous route, l was landed amid a
collection of mud-chinked log huts,
which the driver informed me was Sac
ramento City.
'And goin' to be big place yet,
mister" he added.
It might be, thought, but certainly
the indications that Sacramento would
ever be what it is to-day, were not so
clear to my mind in 40.
Having purchased a mule, pick-ax,
and spade, Joined a party of expert
enced miners who were about start
ing on prospecting tour up the Feath-
er river. When we reached the south
branch of the Yuba we found such
promising indications of gold that The
majority of the company decided to
stop and commence operations imme-
diately. -Four of us, however, proceed
ed on our perilous journey, resolved,
as old Captain Fife expressed it, ''to
pick up gold like taters, or be skulp-
ed by the drafted Injuns."
Three days more we toiled across
the sage plains, through rocky canons
and sombre forests, when two of my
companions decided to turn back ana
rejoin the company on the Yuba We
had seen nothing of the Indians as yet, |
nor indeed expected to see any until
after another days journey; but there |
being but two of us left, | concluded !
that it would be a hazardous undertake |
ing to proceed any farther under the
and accordingly an
my determination to Captain !
Fife to make detour to the right, fol-
lowing tributary of the Feather riv- I
er until reached the mountains, and |
prospect on my own hook if he was
determined to proceed up the river
The old tar glared at me moment
as if eh thought to annihilate me with a
look. and then hurting a sailors oath o.