The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-06-28

land wagon trains began to come through. Hangman's Gulch was not on the direct route, but some enterpris- ing individual had found our trail fair
 Iy practicable for wagons and ten miles shorter than the regular road. After that many followed and soon we had a well cleared road. They showed plainly the hardships of a long journey, for the majority of them were thin, sick looking and discouraged Few of them stopped at the diggtngs, although most had come west in hopes of gold, but pushed on down to the pastures of the Sacramento. They were about worn out and needed to recuperate before beginning anything new. Some were out of provisions and practically starved. The Yankee store keeper sold food at terrible rates. l remember that quinine, a drug much in demand, cost dollar grain! We us91 to look up from our diggings at the procession of these sad faced, lean men walking by their emaciated cat tie and the women peering from the wagons and be very thankful that we had decided against the much to1ted overland route.
 One day, however, an outfit went through of quite a different character. We were appraised of its approach by a hunter named Bagsby. He 1oped s down the trail to the river level very much in hurry.
 Boys" he shouted, quit work! Come see what's coming down the trai1r' with which he charged back again up the hill.
 His great excitement impressed us, for Bagsby, like most of the old time Rocky mountain men, was not ordinar- fly what one would call an emotional individual Therefore we dropped our tools and surged up the hill as fast as we could go. I think we suspected Indians.
 A train of three wagons drawn by strong oxen was lurching slowly down the road. It differed little from oth- CTS of it's kind, save that the cattle were in better shape, and the men walking alongside, of the tall, compe- tent baekwoodsman type, seemed we'll and hearty. But perhaps 8 hundred yards ahead of, the leading wagon came a horse, the cnly horse in the outfit, and on it, riding sidesaddle, was a girl She was very pretty red checked girl, and she must have stop l ped within a half Slile or so of the l camp in order to get herGeH up for this impressive entrance. Her dress was l of blue calico, with & white yoke and l heavy hounces or panniers. Around 1 her neck was a black velvet ribbon. 1 On her head was a big leghorn hat 1 with red roses. She rode through the 1 town, her head high, like a princess, l and we all cheeFed her like mad. Not l once did she look at us, but I could see
 her bosom leaving with excitement be | heath her calico and her nostrils wide.
 She was remarkably pretty girl, and
 this was certainly the moment of her 1 triumph.
 About this time we had to come to some sort of a decision, for our provi- l sions were about exhausted We had 4 no desire to replenish our stock from
 that of the local storekeeper. We were
 doing pretty well in the diggings, but
 we had also fairly healthy appetites, l and I am convinced that at the prices
 that man charged we should have no
 more than kept even. Williams, the
 storekeeper, was Ievying double prof
 it's, one from us and one from the
 overland immigrants. Don GaspaI
 proposed we send out Vasquez with all
 the horses to restock at Sutter's Fort i We were a trif1e doubtful as to wheth-
 CT Vasquez would ever come back, but |
 in his man. Finally, though a little
 doubtfully, we came to the plan. Dor Gaspar sent out also to Mcclellan fol safe keeping his accumulations of golC
 dust, but we did not go quite that far In view of probable high prices we in I trusted him with eighteen ounces fol the purchase of goods.
 While he was away we came to an : other decision. It had been for som, weeks preparing. The diggings wer, becoming overcrowded. Almost ever, loot of the bar was occupied, and nor
 men were coming in every day. N , longer could the newcomer be sure O ] his color the afternoon of his arrival ; but was forced to prospect here an' :, there up and down the river until h found a patch of the pay dirt Mos : trusted simply to luck, but some ha systems on which they worked. hay seen divining rods used. The believer in chance seemed to do as well as an one else.
 But, also, our own yield was ds ? creasing. The last week we had gaiI ed only nineteen ounces all told. Thi might be merely lean bit of misfo
 tune or it might mean that we ha [ taken the best from our ten claim t Since the human mind is prone l changes, we inclined to the latter tn . ory. We were getting restless. \ t miner ever came to California who di l not believe firmly that he would ha1 done much better had he come ol l. one voyage earlier. and no miner ev' Q found diggings so rich that he had n, 2 a sneaking suspicion that he could ( @ even better 4'a little farther on:'' Q Our restlessness was further i t creased by the fact that we were no Q seeing a good deal of Sam Bagsby, u
 hunter. He and Yank had found mut