The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1933-01-27

gold on General Suffers lands orieI accoun.
of the fact was published In rival paper, pul /
Brannan's editor was inclined TO dlscredll Ine
news as were also most Of the new coionlsts.
But TO Sam Brannan it was bugle call 10 new |
adventure He went to the scene Of the alleged |
find and in a few weeks he came gallopmg PACK
10 San Francisco, rushed through the Plaza nat
less and travel stained waving in his hand
flask of gold dust as he shouted "Gold, Gold, |
Gold from the American river" Again sam
Brannan was ''frst"-the first to bring TO san
francisco authentic news of the gold discovery. |
There was a rush to the diggings, Sans MOI
mons following his lead again. las II he had been
the Pied Piper says one chronicler. Wlthln
few DAYS only seven men out of three hundred
were left in the town By June 1000 miners
were at work near the sawmill, now called
Coloma By July 1000 were there Soldiers and
sailors deserted from the government forces and
Joined with clerks, lawyers, doctors, merchants,
Indians Mexicans Chinese all races and classes
of men-in the stampede to the gold fields
few months later the amazing news had reached
the East and Suffer soon a roaring tide OF
humanity sweeping down upon his little empire
The earliest arrivals were Of the better class
and Suffer had no trouble with them. They
patronized his stores and purchased all Of their
supplies from him. But when the gold lure drew
to California an influx of men from all corners
of the earth there came more bad men than
good who corrupted his Indians with their dead
ly frewater and influenced his hitherto faithful
employees to desert him. Squatters settled on
his lands and jeered at his efforts to dislodge
them His vineyards were trampled to the
ground: his livestock stolen, his stores looted
and the improvements which he had made APP
propriated for the use Of the maddened gold
seekers
The titles to his lands received under the
grants from the Mexican government were not
respected and Suffer appealed in vain to the
American authorities. He brought suit against
more than 1900 persons and spent more than
100000 in prosecuting his claims. From being
the greatest man in that country he found him.
self becoming the most hated because of the liti-
CATION in which he was involved. and eventually
the hatred resulted In the destruction of his
home the Hermitage, to which he had retired
before the onrush of the argonauts. After sew
eral years of litigation in which he was repeat
edly defeated Suffer. the former king" found
himself ruined man. The state of California
granted him a pension Of $3.50 a month but
after receiving 1t for IA years he voluntarily re-
Inquished that bounty.
In 1872 he sent his two daughters to Bethle-
hem Pa, to enter a Moravian school and later
transferred them to another school in Lititz
There he made his home and spent his declining
years in numerous visits to Washington and in
futile attempts TO secure justice from the fed
him to be robbed during the gold rush. He died
in Washington on June II 1880, and he died
In poverty.
As for Marshall, he received the same treat
ment from the gold seekers that had been SUIT
ter's portion. California gave him a pension of
81 200 year. then withdrew 1t because the leg
islature believed the money was spent In drink
to which he had become addicted. In August
1856. five years after Suffers DEATH lonely
embittered, poverty-stricken old died in
ramshackle hut in the dying town of Coloma. 1t
was James W. Marshall. "the man who discov-
cred gold in California"
AS for Sam Brannan. he enjoyed a period of
glory and Of prosperity for time. then the
curse of gold overlook him.
With the incoming flood tides of adventures
and settlers Suffers fort expanded into Sacra-
mento City and San Francisco became a metrop-
oils of many races-the most cosmopolitan and
the most lawless city in the world. Between the
two cities as his bases of operations Brannan
grew rich and prosperous. There was no species
of industry beyond his exploitation. He was
gambler and banker. merchant and hotel owner
importer and exporter gold digger and real es-
tate Spectator. shipowner and perhaps bit of
a smuggler. Everything was grist for Sans mill
The great commercial house of Osborn & Bran
nan. specializing in oriental merchandise be-
came one of San Francisco's biggest institutions
And Sam Brannan ruled the city like a man.
DARN. He spent money like prince, entertained
lavishly. drank deeply, played for high stakes
and became the most spectacular figure in a de-
hrious city of magic and madness
This lasted for a while. then came the turn
In his fortunes. Misfortunes began to rain down
upon him and he sought solace in drink The
usual thing happened Friends deserted him
Business men whose enterprises he had financed
out of his own pocket looked askance at him
or passed him by without recognition. His wife
divorced him and took his children from him
After that there were more cups and downs
during which he reformed quit drinking nv
force of his will power and eventually lived TO
the age OF seventy before death claimed him in
1Ss9-not in such poverty as had been the lot
of Suffer and Marshall but far from being the
mandarin who had once ruled the mad bad
city" of San Francisco in the Golden DAYS of '4e
&c by Western Newspaper Unoul