Evening star., 1936-03-12

took down his guitar and commenced
singing to Rosita while she disjointed
the fowl.
When he was about to leave the
house to 60 and fetch the Warrens,
the girl said: Reload your pistol, my
lover, and hereafter, carry it always;
likewise your knife"-and she tossed
him a bowie knife in leathern scab-
bard. joaquin shrugged, buckled on
his armament and departed whistling
for the job which this newly achieved
friendship had given him.
The Warren brothers were quite i'm
pressed with RoSita and desolated be-
cause she was embarrassed and too shy
to air her broken English. However,
there was no n1istaking the sincerity
of her welcome. The life Of a sailor
was something of which Rosita nor
Joaquin knew nothing and recital Of
tales of their life at sea were pro-
foundly fascinating. Joaquin trans
lated them to RoSita in Spanish.
When the dinner was finished Johnny
insisted on washing the dishes and
drying them, while Joaquin strummed
his guitar and sang Spanish love songs.
A little brandy encouraged Johnny and
Bill to sing some rollicking sailor
chanteys, the tunes of which Joaquin
was quick to catch and accompany
them on the guitar; Rosita sang la
Paloma." 1t was gala evening.
When they had departed for their
rude camp on the river bank Joaquin
said: well, Rosita, are they not
splendid Gringos?"
They are men," she answered SIM
ply. They have travelled much and
their lives have not been gently lived,
but they are kind and simple and
brave. They are not, however, OF the
gente de razon."
What Gringo is, my Rosita? We
must not expect too much"
In the morning Joaquin went TO the
feed corral where he kept his horses
and mules-moSt extensively, let 1t be
remarked in passing. although, thanks
to his brother Jesus, who was q sort
of foreman for John Sutter, he had
been enabled to purchase fodder when
sale of 1t was denied to others. With
in the hour the meager equipment OF
the Warren brothers had been packed
on the mules and the two sailors
mounted on horses-for the first time
in their lives. At the general store
Bill Warren purchased some food for
their journey and they set out over the
plain and hills for distant Sawmill
Flat, arriving there three days later.
Sawmill Flat was a new settlement,
having sprung up almost overnight
when news of the discovery Of gold
along the stream that wandered
through the little valley got bruited
abroad Some enterprising individual
had imported small portable sawmill,
steam driven, and was cutting lumber
from the scrubby growth Of bull pines
thereabout. Some so miners had
staked claims along the stream; If,
following a few days work their re-
ward did not fit their extravagant ex-
pectations, they hardened to the mer-
est whipSer of better ground elsewhere
and moved on. Joaquin found two
such claims contiguous and urged his
friends to excavate to bedrock. In the
clay Just above bedrock they took out
5000 worth Of gold the first day. so they
staked both claims, and Joaquin,
laughing, rode on to the sawmill to
buy lumber for shanty Of his own.
He selected q building site up the
stream about a mile from the heart
80 ,r-k1o knors
was delivered Bill Warren and Johnny
knocked of work on their claim and
helped him build his cabin and rude
furniture. So he departed for Sacra-
mento and two weeks later returned
with Rosita, his mother and Jesus, who
lived with them until Joaquin could
build a little cabin for them on some
fertile land back from the stream, but
susceptible of irrigation from 1t.
Thereupon Jesus and his mother
moved in. Jesus commenced the fenc-
ing Of a tiny farm. Joaquin promised
him that in the Spring pillow, by
some means not now imaginable, dou-
ble-trees, harness and seed would be
forthcoming. The pack mules would
be broken to draft, for the farm work.
Meanwhile, he, Joaquin, would pro-
vide. Jesus was extraordinarily happy.
He loved the soil and shrank from the
competition with Gringos along the
creeks: he would raise garden truck
and sell 1t to those Gringos at a huge
profit!
His family comfortably settled, or
at least, as comfortably settled as the
primitive conditions would permit,
Joaquin rented the monte and black
jack concession in a local gambling
hall and saloon and resumed his
profitable livelihood. He worked long
hours-usually from about l o'clock
until midnight, and a goodly per-
centage of the gold that men extracted
from Sawmill Flat Creek found its way
into his money drawer. And the more
he saw of these victims of the gold
fever, the more he felt rising in him .
contempt for the fools upon whom he
fattened.
Seemingly" he told Rosita, these
Gringos are of the opinion the supply
haustible. That which they have to-
day they spend tomorrow, knowing
they can go back for more. Tomorrow
is to them always another day. Soon
the diggings will be exhausted; it will
be harder and harder to locate new
diggings, and even those new diggings
will be farther away. Then, in despair
the weakest of these fools will turn
tU banditry, to robbing the sluice boxes
Of those who still find gold, or who
have suffcient intelligence to remain
on their claims and work. And there
is no law. Soon, however, the rise Of
lawlessness will force the decent ele-
ment to provide law. but until that
time comes this Is not going to be q
pleasant land in which to dwell"
There was q strong clannish spirit
In Joaquin Maurietta, not only for his
family, but for all members Of his race,
for, since he knew his race to be pro-
scribed, in certain sense, and doomed
to be overridden and despoiled event.