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0<x  v-v- 


:-jATIO 


D 


H    H 


IN 


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BY 


JOHN  CARR. 


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HiSTORICHL   AND    PERSONAL    SKETCHES. 


Eureka,  California: 
TIMES  PUBLISHING  COMPANY,   BOOK  AND  JOB   PRINTERS. 

1891. 


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THE  NEW  YOi.K 

HR5S77 

^'  .AND 

TiLUi^i^  i-  j.;,.dations 

R  1919 


Copyrighted,  1891, 
By  JOHN  CARR. 


RESPECTFULLY    DEDICATED 

TO   THE 

PIONEERS, 
I^ATITE  SONS  AND  DAUGHTEHS 

OF  CALIFORNIA. 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  I. 

From  Peoria  to  Fort  Leavenworth. 

At  Peoria,  111.,  making  preparations  for  the  trip. — The  good-bye. — My 
companions. — Arrival  at  St.  Louis. — On  the  river  steamer. — At  Fort 
Leavenworth  fitting  out  for  the  plains. — The  whisky  and  the  "  veni- 
son."— Buying  a  team  ;  breaking  mules. 


CHAPTER IL 

To  Fort  Laramie. 

Starting  across  the  plains. — A  blacksmith's  shop  on  wheels. — In  the 
home  of  the  buffalo. — At  Fort  Kearney.^A  tempting  offer  by  Gen. 
Sterling  Price. — Along  the  Platte. — Chimney  Rock. — At  Fort 
Laramie. — In  the  Black  Hills  country. 


CHAPTER  III. 

To  Salt  Lake  City. 

Fort  Bridger. — Col.  Bridger,  the  typical  Indian  fighter. — In  the  Salt 
Lake  valley;  a  difficult  descent. — In  Brigham  Young's  city. — An 
interview  with  Brigham. — Proselyting. — A  stratagem. — Mormon 
achievement. 


12  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

To  Hangtown,  California. 

Leaving  Salt  Lake  Cit)-. — Through  the  Mormon  settlement. —  Celebrat- 
ing the  Fourth. — Humboldt  River. — Beginning  of  hardest  trials. — 
Sand  and  alkali. — Foraging. — Mosquitoes. — Road  flanked  with  dead 
animals. — The  Fifty-mile  desert.— Sick  companion. — Fagged  team. 
— Hunting  water. — The  relief  wagon. — Carson  river. — Plenty  of 
grass  and  water. — Crossing  the  Sierra  Nevadas. — Through  Emi- 
grant Canyon — Reflections. — Arrival  at  Hangtown,  Cal. 


CHAPTER    V.       . 

Description  of  Hangtown. 

"  Shake  "  houses. — Gambling. — Sports,  male  and  female. — A  Babel  of 
languages. — The  currency. — Judge  Lynch's  court. — "Bloody  Dick." — 
Threatened  hostilities  between  "squatters  "  and  the  civil  authorities. 


CHAPTER   VL 

Mining  Experiences. 

First  experience  in  mining. — The  frightened  Chinaman. — Foreigners' 
mining  license. — A  foreigner  from  Pike. — Helping  the  "under-dog" 
in  a  fight. — Fighting  Sheriffs. — Hunting  for  new  diggings. — The  ants 
and  the  "  graybacks." — Georgetown. — Missouri  gulch. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Departure  for  Sacramento. 

Return  to  Hangtown. — Departure  for  Sacramento. — The  miners'  hard 
life. — Sleeping  on  a  feather  bed. — Sights  and  experiences  in  Sacra- 
mento.— Thieves,  "  Sydney  Ducks"  and  gamblers. — Stolen  potatoes. 
— On  trial  for  larceny. 


CONTENTS.  1 3 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Drifting  About. 

Cholera. — Departure  for  Calaveras. — Life  in  a  cabin. — A  remedy  worse 
than  the  disease. — Excitement  over  the  Gold  Bluif  mines. — Off 
for  'Frisco. — Frightened  by  a  woman. — San  Francisco  in  '50. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Off  for  Trinidad  and  Gold  Bluff. 

Sailing  on  the  "  Minerva  "  for  Trinidad  Bay.— Rough  weather.— A  row 
with  the  negro  cook. — The  bill  of  fare. — Arrival  at  Trinidad. — Off 
for  Salmon  River. 


CHAPTER  X. 

Wanderings  Between  Trinidad  and  Weaverville. 

Crossing  the  Big  Lagoon. — A  mule's  tumble  down  the  mountain. — A 
herd  of  elk. — Ferrying  the  Klamath. — Disgusted  with  SalmonRiver. 
— Departure  for  Trinity  River  and  Weaverville.— Snowed  under. — 
Finding  a  trading  post  and  supplies. — Prospecting  on  Oregon  Gulch. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

First  Experience  at  Weaverville. 

Separated  from  companions. — Generosity  of  the  early  miners. — Arrival 
at  Weaverville. — Starting  a  blacksmith's  shop.— A  public  whipping. — 
A  quarrel  between  two  miners. — Trial  before  a  judicial  officer. — The 
plea. — Thomas  McGinnis  Brown  and  the  ox  team. 


14  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

High  Prices  Lynching,  and  Other  Incidents. 

Ten  dollars  a  day  for  cutting  wood. — The  blacksmith's  shop. — A  list 
of  prices. — Arrival  of  women. — Lynchmg. — Extorting  confessions. 
— Trinity  county  organized. — A  batch  of  candidates  for  office. — 
Rivalry  for  the  county  seat. — Humboldt  county  organized. — C.  S. 
Ricks  and  the  belligerent  Capt.  Tracy. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Officers  Elected. 

A   sensational  lynchmg   affair  and   the  rescue. — The  accused  innocent. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
Changing  the  Course  of  Trinity  River. 

The  "Arkansaw  dam." — Meeting  an  old  friend. — A  first  cousin  of  the 
Earl  of  Stanmore  the  keeper  of  a  trading-post. — A  fire. — Lost  his 
last  pair  of  pantaloons. — A  peculiar  costume. — Dear  lumber. — 
Gardening. — A  fighting  parson. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Mail  Matters. 

A  dollar  for  a  letter. — First  postoffice  at  Weaverville. — Carrying  mail 
in  a  hat.^ — The  express  business. — Rival  bakers. — A  Fourth  of  July 
celebration. — Roast  beef  and  plum-pudding. 


CONTENTS.  15 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  Political  Contest. 

A  miner  knifed  and  a  graveyard  begun. — Providing  for  the  winter. — 
A  visit  to  Sacramenio. — A  political  contest. — An  enthusiast's  report 
concerning  Humboldt. — Weaverville  laid  out  regularly. — Squaring 
an  account. — Bringing  water  from  Weaver  Creek. — Accessions  of 
settlers  from  Humboldt. — A  town  jackass. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

Getting  Homesick  and  Visiting  the  Old  Home. 

A  visit  to  the  old  Eastern  home. — Growth  of  San  Francisco. — The  pas- 
sage to  Panama. — A  typical  Mexican  town. — Crossing  the  Isthmus 
on  mules. — High  prices. — The  railway  to  Aspinwall. — On  board  the 
"  Illinois." — In  dinner  costume. — Sight-seeing  in  Havana. — Fili- 
busters.— Death  of  young  Crittenden. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Experiences  in  Cuba  and  the  East. 

Passing  for  a  British  subject. — A  Bishop's  palace. — Spanish  soldiers. — 
Nude  statuary. — Music  and  moonlight. — Arrival  at  New  York. — 
Sailing  down  the  St.  Lawrence. — A  glad  reunion. — Changes  in  the 
people. — Off  again  for  California.— Marriage. — Arrival  at  Aspinwall. 
Boating  on  the  Chagres  River. — Nude  natives. — On  mule  back. — 
An  anxious  mother. — "All  legs  up." — In  Panama. 


1(3  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Return  to  San  Francisco  and  Weaverville. 

The  passage  to  San  Francisco. — Distinguished  fellow-passengers. — By 
river  steamer  to  Colusa;  thence  by  stage  to  Shasta. — On  mule-back 
to  Weaverville. — The  mountain  hotel. — Rapid  growth  of  Weaver- 
ville.— The  killing  of  Anderson  by  the  Indians. — Vengeance;  pursuit 
of  the  Indians. — The  annihilation  of  the  tribe. 


CHAPTER    XX. 

Prominent  Humboldters. — A  Bloody  Tragedy. 

A  natural  bridge  and  a  large  cave. — The  Hay  Fork  Valley. — Prominent 
Humboldters  who  lived  there. — A  bloody  tragedy;  the  killing  of 
Horton  and  Eliza  Hardenburg  by  a  Sheriffs  posse. — Fate  of  the  par- 
ticipants.— A  letter  from  an  old  pioneer,  General  Denver. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

The  Last  Victim  of  Judge  Lynch. 

A  murder. — Mike  Grant's  trial  before  Judge  Lynch,  and  subsequent  ex- 
ecution.— Lack  of  faith  in  the  machinery  of  the  law. — Judge  Lynch's 
last  victim  in  Trinity  county. — Civilizing  effect  of  women  and 
children. — The  first  children  in  Weaverville. — An  unsuccessful 
Water  Company. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Housekeeping  Experiences. 

General    Denver. — Housekeeping  in   Weaverville. — The    noble    pioneer 
women. 


CONTENTS.  17, 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Almost  a  Famine. 

The  first  ball  in  Weaverville;  ten  dollars  per  ticket.— Houses  crushed 
by  snow;  Senator  John  P.  Jones  buried  under  one  of  them; 
his  clever  trick. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 
Politics,  Murder  and  Fire. 

The  Presidential  election  of '52. — J.  P.  Albee  and  family. — The  house  of 
Carr,  Cummings  S-' George. — Fire. — Noble  generosity. — Rebuilding. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

Politics  and  War. 

Comstock  and  Martin. — The  old  pine  stump. — A  street  battle. — Pierce, 
Church  &-=  Company. — The  Home  Guards. — Encampment  at  Red 
Bluff;  hungry  soldiers. — A  Masonic  lodge  organized;  its  officers. — 
The  Odd  Fellows. — First  school  in  Weaverville. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

A  Trip  to  Humboldt. 

Indian  war  rumors. — Judge  Peters  and  the  Jokers. — Volunteers  in  pursuit 
of  Indians. — Uniontown. — Return  to  Weaverville  with  General 
Denver. 


18  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXVII, 

A  Desperado  Killed, — Water  Troubles. 

A  gambler  and  desperado  killed. — Gamblers  and  desperados  contributed 
to  California  by  the  disbanded  American  army  of  the  Mexican  war. — 
Joseph  McGee  shoots  McElroy. — A  full  jail. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

A  Miniature  Ireland. 

Conspiracy    to   hang   Doctor    William    Ware. — First   water-melons. 
Serving  on  a  Grand  Jury. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

A  Chinese  War. 

Another  conflagration. — A  battle  between   two  bands   of  Chinamen. — 
Furnishing  the  implements  of  war. — Many  killed. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

A  Severe  Winter.— Making  Homes. 

Plenty  of  provisions. — A  prosperous  year. — Advancement  in  civiliza- 
tion.— Hovey's  green  peas  and  silver  forks. — Slicing  a  man's  coat-tail. 
— Additions  to  Weaverville  society.  —  The  benign  influence  of 
women  and  children. 


CONTENTS.  19 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

The  Building  of  Highways. 

Taking  up  agricultural  lands. — Building  highways. — William  S.  Lowden 
and  his  public-spirited  enterprises. — The  Weaverville  and  Shasta 
wagon-road,  stages  and  buggies. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 
An  Exodus  of  Miners. — Torrents  and  Floods. 

Improvements  in  the  methods  of  mining  in  California. — Characteristics 
of  the  early  miners. — The  winter  of  i86i-2.—"Jefif  Davis  "  and 
the  flood. — Immense  losses. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

A  Sham  Marriage  and  Duel. 

A  newspaper  established  at  Douglas  City. — Gowey  and  Hough  and  their 
packer,  Dusky. — Entrapping  Dusky  into  a  sham  marriage. — The 
sham  duel  that  followed. — How  a  Jew  got  his  finger  bitten. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

An  Attack  on  a  Deserted  Indian  Rancherie. 

Hostile  Indians.— Calling  out  the  troops. — John  P.  Jones  goes  to  war  in 


20  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 

Disadvantages  of  the  Mail  Service. 

How  the  mail  was  carried  from  Hoopa  to  Weaverville  in  1863. — A  peri- 
lous Business. — Killing  of  Walter  Van  Armon,  the  carrier,  by 
Indians. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Pioneer  Politics. 

The  Know-nothing  party  in  California. — Its  whole  State  ticket  elected. 
— The  Democratic  convention  at  Weaverville  in  '54  captured  by 
the  Know-nothings. — An  Irishman  killed. — The  lodge-room  of  the 
Know-nothings  collapses. — Ludicrous  incidents. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Formation  of  the  Republican  Partv. 

The  city  of  Sacramento  the  first  in  California  to  go  Republican. — The 
rule  of  the  Southern  element  in  the  State. — Organizing  a  Fremont 
and  Dayton  club  in  Weaverville. — A  Republican  speaker  "  egged." 
— Doctor  O.  J.  Gates  "fighting  mad." — The  "  border  ruffians." — 
Frank  M.  Pixley's  speech. — Threats  of  intimidation. — Marching  to 
the  polls. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

First  Republican  State  Ticket. — Effort  to  Divide  the  State. 

The  candidates  for  Governor. — Pistol  politics. — John  B.  Weller's  speech. 
— The  two  wings  of  the  Democratic  party. — Duels. — Slaves  in 
California. — "  Virginia  poorhouse." — Broderick  and  Gwin. 


CONTENTS.  21 

CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

The  Democracy  of  the  State  Divided. — Killing  of  Broderick. 

The  Democracy  divided  on  the  Kansas  question. — Fights,  murders, 
ballot-box  stuffing. — Stanford  and  Latham  the  nominees  for  Gover- 
nor.— Broderick  killed  by  Terry. 


CHAPTER  XL. 

The  Political  Campaign  of  1859. 

A  triangular  fight. — California's  representatives  in  Congress  voting  with 
the  South. — Latham  elected  to  succeed  Broderick. — Mourning 
Broderick's  death. — John  G.  Downey,  Governor. 


CHAPTER  XLL 

The  Presidential  Campaign  of  i860.— The  State  Carried  for 

Lincoln. 

The  bitter  feeling  towards  "  Black  Republicans." — Andy  Lyons. — Abra- 
ham Lincoln  and  Stephen  A.  Douglas. — The  Charleston  convention. 
— The  various  candidates  for  the  Presidency. 


CHAPTER  XLIL 

The  Nashville  Convention. 

The  seeds  of  secession. — The  political  parties  in  California. — Rancorous 
denunciation. — The  attack  upon  Charles  Sumner. — Amusing  scenes 
and  incidents. — Awaiting  the  returns. 


22  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XLIII. 

The  Firing  Upon  Sumpter.— A  Blaze  of  Patriotism. 

Efforts  to  end  the  rule  of  the  Bourbons.— The  seceding  States.— The 
Confederate  Government. — The  inauguration  of  Lincoln. — Indigna- 
tion meetings. — The  movement  to  form  a  Pacific  Republic. — The 
call  for  volunteers.— The  Knights  of  the  Gold  Circle.— Its  objects.— 
The  Douglas  City  Rifles  held  in  readiness. 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 
The  Political  Campaign  of  i86i. 

The  three  parties. — The  State  convention. — The  candidates. — Union  or 
secession. — The  State  carried  by  the  Republicans.— Governor  Stan- 
ford.— The  Legislature  adjourns  to  San  Francisco  on  account  of  the 
flood.—"  Old  Secesh  "  and  the  "  abolishiners." 


CHAPTER  XLV. 
The  Union  of  the  Douglas  Democrats  and  the  Republicans. 

The  rejoicings  of  loyal  men. — "  Union  for  the  sake  of  union." — The 
political  history  of  John  P.  Jones. — The  defeat  of  George  C.  Gorham. 
— John  Conness  elected  U.  S.  Senator. — William  M.  Gwin,  "  the 
Duke  of  Sonora." 


CONTENTS.  23 

CHAPTER  XLVI. 

A  Family's  Move  to  Humboldt. 

Packing  babies  in  boxes  by  pack-train. — Eureka  as  it  was  in  1866  com- 
pared with  Eureka  in  1890. 


CHAPTER  XLVII. 
BIOGRAPHY. 


PREFACE. 


Now,  after  a  residence  of  over  forty  years  on  the 
Pacific  Coast,  the  whole  of  that  time  being  spent 
in  California  with  the  exception  of  four  years  spent 
in  Tombstone,  Arizona  Territory,  and  knowing  that 
many  of  the  doings  and  works  of  the  early  pioneers 
were  fast  sinking  into  oblivion,  to  be  in  a  few  years 
entirely  forgotten,  it  is  my  purpose,  in  writing  and 
publishing  "  Pioneer  Days,"  to  rescue  and  preserve 
some  of  the  doings  of  the  common  people  that 
founded  and  built  up  this  great  State  of  California. 
Other  writers  dwell  on  great  events  and  great  men. 
Most  of  the  books  that  have  been  written  on  Cali- 
fornia, and  that  have  come  under  my  observation, 
pay  but  very  little  attention  to  the  trials  aiid  suifer- 
ings  of  the  early  Californians,  their  customs  and 
mode  of  living,  their  shortcomings  and  their  virtues. 
It  is  my  intention,  in  this  work,  so  far  as  lies  in  my 
power,  to  hand  down  to  the  sons  and  daughters  of 
the  pioneers  some  of  the  doings  of  their  ancestors 
while  civilizing  and  subduing  this  their  native 
State. 

The  most  of  my  time  was  spent  in  the  mines  and 


PREFACE.  25 

amongst  tlie  miners.  My  opx^ortunities  were  good 
for  learning  their  manners  and  customs  and  their 
mode  of  living.  This  is  a  portion  of  the  State's 
history  which  all  Californians  wish  to  see  preserved, 
for  at  the  present  time,  when  tAvo  or  three  old  pio- 
neers get  together  and  talk  of  their  early  experi- 
ences, yon  frequently  see  a  crowd  around  listening 
to  those  tales  of  early  days,  and  becoming  much 
interested  in  hearing  of  the  adventures  of  Cali- 
fornia's first  American  settlers.  How  much  more 
will  children  yet  unborn  love  to  read  and  see  in 
books  the  aames  of  their  forefathers  that  Avrote 
their  names  on  the  first  pages  of  California's 
history. 

To  the  early  ]3ioneers  I  would  say  that  tlie 
3'oungest  of  us  has  but  a  short  time  to  stay ;  the 
great  debt  of  nature  Avill  soon  have  to  be  paid,  and 
our  last  remains  will  find  a  resting-place  in  the 
land  we  love  so  well.  Therefore,  j)ioneers,  let  us  do 
all  we  can  to  leave  to  our  successors  a  history  of 
our  day  and  the  men  of  our  time.  It  will  be  sought 
after  when  the  places  that  know  us  will  know  us  no 
more.  To  our  native  sons  and  daughters  I  would 
say :  We  have  left  you  a  goodly  heritage;  guard  it 
well.  Your  fathers  founded  and  built  a  mighty 
State,  which  we  hand  down  to  you,  founded  on 
freedom,  justice,  and  equality.  See  that  it  receives 
no  detriment  at  vonr  liands,  but  hand  it  down  to 
your  children  as  von  received  it  from  the  hands  of 
3  our  pioneer  fathers. 


26  PREFACE. 

If  I  have  succeeded  and  i)reserved  in  history 
some  of  the  doings  of  the  men  of  the  early  days  in 
Northern  California,  then  I  have  accomx^lished  my 
mission.  I  hope  that  more  gifted  pens  than  mine 
will,  in  other  localities  of  the  State,  take  up  the 
work  and  give  to  the  State  and  the  world  a  true 
history  of  California  and  its  founders. 


INTRODUCTION 


When  I  first  began  the  writing  and  publication 
of  "Pioneer  Days  "  in  the  Humboldt  WeeJclt/  Mail, 
I  had  not  the  remotest  idea  of  ever  publishing  it  in 
book  form;  but,  during  its  publication  by  install- 
ments in  the  journal  mentioned,  I  receiyed  letters 
from  different  portions  of  the  State  and  from  many 
old  friends,  requesting  me  to  have  it  published  in 
book  form,  and  upon  my  consulting  my  friends  in 
Eureka  I  was  advised  by  them  to  do  so.  As  the 
"  Pioneer  Days "  contained  many  facts  that  had 
never  before  been  given  to  the  public,  I  have  tried 
in  writing  those  articles  to  give  a  truthful  history 
of  events  as  they  happened  to  come  under  my  ob- 
servation in  crossing  the  plains  in  1850,  and  upon 
my  first  arrival  in  California. 

As  to  the  manner  of  Avorking  the  mines  of  that 
early  day,  it  is  frequently  amusing  to  me  to  read 
some  late  writers'  stories  about  the  early  days  of 
California.  Their  wood-cuts  of  the  "  rockers  "  and 
"  long-toms  "  and  of  tlie  miners  themselves,  are  such 
that  I  sometimes  think  that,  if  it  were  alloted  to 
the  spirit  of  man  to  come  back  to  this  world,  some 


28  INTRODUCTION. 

outraged  miner  who  sleeps  liis  last  sleep  on  the 
mountain  sides  or  the  flats  of  California,  would 
rise  from  his  grave  and  haunt  the  would-be  artist 
who  drew  such  caricatures  of  the  early  California 
miners.  The  most  of  the  miners  that  I  see  in  the 
wood-cuts  appear  to  be  old,  haggard-looking  men, 
with  bent  backs,  slouched  hats  and  wrinkled  faces, 
more  like  the  picture  of  the  tramp  of  1890  than  the 
honest  miner  of  1850.  As  a  rule  the  first  emigrants 
to  California  were  young  men — tlie  very  flower, 
physically  speaking,  of  the  United  States;  and  the 
pictures  in  the  modern  wood-cuts  no  more  repre- 
sent them  than  tliey  do  Chinamen.  It  has  been  my 
aim  in  this  work  to  give  a  correct  history  of  the 
times  and  doings  of  the  men  and  women  of  the 
State  who  were  the  pioneers  of  our  civilization,  and 
who  planted  American  manners,  customs  and  laws 
in  this  great  State  of  California. 

But  few  of  us  old  Californians  ever  intended  at 
first  to  make  California  our  place  of  residence.  Tlie 
nnbounded  resources  of  tlie  State  were  but  little 
known  to  the  early  emigrants.  Gold  was  Avhat 
they  wanted,  and,  as  soon  as  they  had  accumulated 
enough  of  that  to  give  them  a  "  start "  in  their  old 
homes,  they  intended  to  return  east  of  the  Kocky 
Mountains.  California  Avas  looked  upon  as  a  good 
place  in  which  to  dig  gold,  but  not  to  make  a  home. 
Her  climate  was  not  yet  appreciated.  As  to  the 
fertility  of  her  soil,  few  gave  it  a  thought. 

Before  the  discovery  of  gold  California's  expor- 


INTRODUCTION.  29 

tations  consisted  only  of  liides  and  tallow,  and  of 
but  few  of  those.  Her  great  and  fertile  valleys 
Avere  unsettled.  There  were  but  few  inhabitants  in 
the  whole  State.  The  few  inhabitants  there  were, 
each  claimed  sufficient  land  to  make  a  respectable 
principality  in  Europe. 

The  great  valleys  of  the  Sacramento  and  San 
Joaquin  were  unsettled  except  by  a  very  few  cattle 
kings.  The  whole  country  was  in  a  state  of  primi- 
tive nature.  Ide\s  Kanch,  Gen.  BidwelFs  on  Chico 
Creek,  Thom's  Kanch  near  Tehama,  and  Major 
Kedding's,  near  the  head  of  the  Sacramento  Yalley, 
with  a  few  others,  were  the  only  settled  places  be- 
tween Sacramento  City  and  the  head  of  Sacra- 
mento Yallev,  a  distance  of  over  two  hundred  miles. 
The  early  miners  had  a  very  poor  opinion  of  the 
agricultural  resources  of  the  Sacramento  Yalley. 
They  had  not  been  in  the  country  sufficiently  long 
to  know  anything  of  it  from  their  own  experience. 
Sacramento  Yalley — that  is,  the  upper  valley  above 
Sacramento  City — was  generally  looked  upon  with 
dread.  In  the  winter  it  was  usually  overfloAved, 
and  left  stagnant  water-i)()nds,  lagoons  and  sloughs, 
which,  in  the  summer,  became  very  unhealthy. 
Fever  in  the  summer  was  general;  fever  and  ague, 
and  what  was  called  the  "  valley  fever,"  Avere  j)reva- 
lent  all  over  the  valley. 

From  1850  to  1853  the  most  of  the  goods  for  the 
northern  mines  Avent  through  the  Aalley  on  x^ack- 
trains,  and,  if  a  train  made  the  trij)  Avithout  liaA'ing 


30  INTRODUCTION. 

fully  one-lialf  of  the  packers  down  with  the 
"  valley  fever,"  they  considered  themselves  in 
luck. 

The  most  of  the  Sacramento  Valley  was  covered 
with  Mexican  grants,  some  of  them  bona  Jicle^  but 
the  most  of  them  fraudulent.  These  grants  deterred 
many  settlers  from  taking  up  lands.  Law  at  that 
time  was  an  expensive  luxury  for  the  poor  emi- 
grant to  indulge  in,  and  justice  in  the  courts  was 
often  blind.  Nevertheless,  many  emigrants  crossed 
the  plains  from  1850  to  1855  from  Missouri  and 
Arkansas,  bringing  their  families  with  them  and  all 
their  worldly  goods.  This  class  of  emigrants  gener- 
ally "  squatted  "  in  the  Sacramento  Valley,  and  built 
for  themselves  little  "  shake  "  houses  out  of  the  oak 
timber  on  their  claims.  There  was  an  abundance 
of  grass  and  wild  oats  on  the  plains  for  their  stock. 
The  weather  in  the  w  inter  season  was  so  mild  that 
the  settler  needed  nothing  but  a  shelter  from  the 
rain  for  himself  and  family.  As  a  general  thing 
these  settlers  had  not  been  accustomed  to  many  of 
the  luxuries  of  life  in  the  country  fi'om  which  they 
came,  and  they  needed  but  little  in  their  new  abode. 

I  frequently  made  trips  from  Weaverville  to  the 
Sacramento  Valley,  to  buy  old  wagon-tires  out  of 
which  to  make  picks.  Generalh",  when  the  settler 
found  a  claim  that  suited  liis  fancy,  he  continued  to 
live  in  his  covered  wagon  until  he  had  built  his 
house,  and  then  moved  his  household  goods  into  his 
house  and  left  his  wagon  standing.  In  a  few  months 


INTRODUCTION.  31 

the  wauon  would  dvA'  out  so  that  tlie  tires  fell  off. 
The  tires  were  worth  more  to  him  than  the  rest  of 
the  wagon.  To  get  tires  set  was  a  costly  matter,  the 
charge  being  from  twelve  to  twenty  dollars  per  set. 
The  tires  Avhicli  I  bought  I  cut  into  short  i)ieces, 
and  had  them  packed  on  mules  to  Weaverville, 
where  they  were  soon  made  into  miners'  picks  and 
sold  to  the  miners. 

Yery  few  of  these  settlers  ever  thought  of  culti- 
rating  the  soil  to  any  great  extent.  They  had  come 
from  a  climate  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  where 
nature  furnished  them  rain  all  through  the  growing 
season  for  crops.  There  being  no  rain  in  California 
during  the  summer  season,  it  seemed  to  these 
settlers  to  be  a  waste  of  time  and  seed  to  put  seed 
in  the  ground  in  the  Sacramento  Yalley.  The  early 
emigrants  had  no  knowledge  of  irrigation  or  any 
artificial  manner  of  supj^lying  the  land  with  moist- 
ure to  take  the  place  of  summer  rains.  They  had 
heard  or  read  of  a  few  valleys  on  the  coast,  such  as 
the  Petaluma  Yalley,  the  Sonoma  Yalley  and  the 
Santa  Clara  Yalley,  where  the  fogs  from  the  ocean 
supplied  sufficient  moisture  to  perfect  crops.  These 
valleys  and  some  farther  south  were  settled  by  the 
Spanish  missions,  long  before  the  country  came 
under  American  rule.  They  were  supposed  by  he 
great  majority  of  the  Americans  to  be  the  only 
places  in  the  State  capable  of  successful  cultivation. 
Could  these  settlers  have  looked  ahead  to  the  year 
of  1890  and  seen  California  as  she   is  to-day,  they 


o2  INTRODUCTION. 

would  have  seen  the  land  of  which  they  would  not 
at  that  time  have  accepted  a  thousand  acres  as  a 
present,  now  covered  with  vineyards  and  orchards 
producing  the  finest  and  best  fruit  in  the  world. 
Who  would  have  thouglit,  forty  years  ago,  tliat 
California  would  now  be  supplying  the  great  Atlan- 
tic cities  with  fruit  and  vegetables  carried  from  the 
Pacific  to  the  Atlantic  in  six  days,  and  supplying 
Eurox^e  with  millions  of  bushels  of  wheat  yearly, 
much  of  these  the  products  of  the  Sacramento  and 
San  Joaquin  Valleys,  that  the  early  miner  thouglit 
fit  only  for  the  Mexican  herder  and  his  longhorned 
steers  to  live  in  '] 

I  well  remember  to  have  frequently  been  in  con- 
versation with  "  the  boys,"  and  to  have  heard  them 
talk  of  the  prosj^ects  of  California  in  the  future. 
One  would  hear  the  remark  :  "I  would  not  give  one 
township  in  Illinois  for  this  whole  d — n  State." 
Another  person  would  remark  :  "  I  would  like  to 
bring  my  family  out  for  a  few  years,  but  I  think 
too  well  of  them  to  bring  them  to  such  a  country  as 
this  is — no  schools,  no  churches,  no  society.  It 
would  be  a  h — 1  of  a  place  to  bring  a  woman  to." 
Many  would  say  :  "  When  the  gold  is  all  dug  out. 
Uncle  Sam  had  better  give  California  back  to  the 
Greasers."  Such  was  the  opinion  of  many  miners 
of  California. 


^?^IONEER  DmS  in  CiLIFORNIS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

From  Peoria  to  Fort  Leavenworth. 

At  Peoria,  111.,  making  preparations  for  the  trip. — The  good-bye. — My 
companions. — Arrival  at  St.  Louis. — On  the  river  steamer. — At  Fort 
Leavenworth  fitting  out  for  the  plains. — The  whisky  and  the  "  veni- 
son."— Buying  a  team  ;  breaking  mules. 

It  was  in  the  winter  of  '49  and  '50  that  the  writer 
found  himself  in  the  city  of  Peoria,  Illinois,  work- 
ing at  his  trade,  ironing  off  California  wagons,  or 
wagons  intended  to  cross  the  plains  the  following 
summer.  At  that  time  the  whole  West  was  in  a 
blaze — everybody  had  the  California  fever,  and 
every  man  that  could  raise  sufficient  money  to  buy 
an  outfit  was  making  prei)aration  for  a  trip  across 
the  plains.  On  the  21st  day  of  March,  1850, 1  bade 
good-bv  to  inv  friends  of  the  good  citv  of  Peoria 
and  embarked  on  a  steamer  for  St.  Louis  witli  three 
others,  who  were  to  be  companions  or  messmates, 
namely:     D.  C.  Young,  J.   G.   Boyden    and  T>.  C. 


34  PIONEER   DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

Gunii.  D  C.  Young  was  a  mercliant  of  Oliillicotlie, 
Illinois,  who  was  taking  the  trip  for  his  lioalth. 
He  was  a  consumptive,  and  his  physicians  told  him 
there  was  no  chance  for  his  life  if  a  trip  across  the 
plains  w^ould  not  help  iiim.  Before  he  had  spent 
thirty  days  on  the  plains  he  commenced  mending, 
and  before  we  got  to  Sacramento  he  was,  to  all  ap- 
pearances, a  well  man.  J.  G.  Boyden  was  a  musi- 
cian. Wlien  we  got  to  California  he  was  paid  $16 
per  day  for  j)laying  in  gambling-houses.  In  the 
summer  of  1854  he  lost  his  life  on  tlie  steamer  Gem 
when  she  blew  up  on  the  Sacramento  river.  D.  0. 
Gunn  was  an  aged  man.  He  claimed  to  be  a  direct 
descendant  of  the  celebrated  Jonathan  Carver,  the 
great  traveler  of  the  Eighteenth  Century. 

Well,  in  due  time  we  arrived  in  St.  Louis  and  took 
a  steamer  for  Fort  Leavenworth,  with  our  California 
wagons  on  board.  The  steamer  was  crowded  with 
argonauts,  like  ourselves,  seeking  the  golden  fleece 
— bound  for  the  land  of  gold.  In  due  time  we  ar- 
rived at  Eort  Leavenworth,  where  we  were  anxious 
to  fit  out,  as  the  Government  had  advertised  a  lot 
of  condemned  Santa  Ee  mules  for  sale  there  and 
they  were  considered  good  animals  to  cross  the 
plains.  We  went  into  camp  on  a  large  timber  flat 
just  above  the  fort  on  the  banks  of  the  Missouri. 
The  next  day  the  other  members  of  the  party 
crossed  the  river  to  the  town  of  Weston,  in  Mis- 
souri, to  prospect  for  supplies  for  a  trip.  They  left 
me  in  camp  to  take  care  of  things,  as   I   was  the 


FROM  PEORIA  TO  FORT  LEAVENWORTH.  35 

"kitr'  of  tlie  caiiip.  It  suited  iiie  very  well,  as  I 
bad  bought  in  St.  Louis  a  "pepper-box,"  or  Allen's 
revolver,  with  which  I  wanted  to  practice,  as  the 
Comanches  were  liable  to  make  a  raid  on  us  while 
passing-  through  their  hunting-grounds.  I  made 
bullets  and  used  up  considerable  powder,  but  never 
became  an  expert  with  my  pepper-box  gun. 

One  day,  while  in  camp  alone,  I  had  my  first  ex- 
perience with  Uncle  Sam's  boys.  Two  of  them 
came  into  camp  and  wanted  to  know  if  I  had  any 
Avhiskv.  I  told  them  that  Colonel  Ogden  had  for- 
bidden  us  to  let  the  soldiers  have  liquor,  and  I 
could  not  do  so.  They  coaxed  a  long  time,  and 
finally  wanted  to  know  if  I  didn't  want  a  good  fat 
deer.  I  thought  some  venison  would  go  very  well 
about  that  time.  "Would  I  give  them  a  pint  of 
whisky  if  they  would  get  me  a  fine  young  buckV 
I  thought  that  would  be  breaking  our  bargain  with 
Colonel  Ogden,  but  then,  we  did  not  agree  not  to 
trade  whisky  for  a  young  buck,  so  I  finally  agreed. 
They  started  for  the  deer,  and  fifteen  minutes  later 
I  heard  a  shot.  In  another  fifteen  minutes  they 
were  back  in  camp  with  a  carcass  minus  the  head, 
feet  and  skin.     Throwing  it  down,  they  said  : 

"There  is  your  deer;  now  give  us  the  whisky." 

I  examined  the  carcass,  and  told  them  it  was  not 
a  deer,  but  a  hog.  They  looked  at  me  with  all  the 
appearance  of  the  essence  of  virtue  itself,  and  said  : 

"You  must  be  a  d — n  fool;  don't  you  know  a  deer 


36  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

from  a  hog  ?     You  ain't  i^ot  enoiioii  sense  to  go  to 
California!" 

Bat  they  got  the  whisky^,  and  I  got  the  "deer," 
without  hearing  from  Colonel  Ogden.  The  sale  of 
tlie  Government  mules  and  wagons  came  off.  We 
purchased  three  of  the  Spanish  mules,  but  they 
didn't  exactly  suit  Mr.  Young — he  was  afraid  their 
feet  were  too  small;  there  was  no  underpinning; 
in  case  the  mules  got  into  a  mudhole  tlieir  feet 
were  so  small  they  would  go  out  of  sight  altogether  ; 
and  he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  we  must  haye 
one  animal  with  big  feet,  so  as  to  keep  the  balance 
of  the  team  above  the  mud.  So  he  bought  in 
Weston  a  big  horse  with  big  feet,  and  felt  satisfied 
that  we  would  go  through  all  right.  Our  team  was 
composed  of  three  small  Spanish  mules  and  one  big 
black  horse,  about  fourteen  hundred  pounds  in 
weight — as  heavy  as  the  balance  of  the  team.  We 
had  a  good  deal  of  fun  with  "Dave,''  as  we  called 
him,  about  his  matched  wheelers.  However,  it  made 
a  good  team,  and  they  landed  us  in  Sacramento  all 
right.  We  had  a  jolly  time  in  breaking  the  mules. 
They  were  pack  animals,  and  decidedly  objected  to 
being  put  in  harness.  There  was  some  tall  "  buck- 
ing" about  that  time,  but  with  the  help  of  our 
fourteen-hundred-pound  horse,  and  lots  of  patience 
on  the  part  of  our  teamster,  we  got  them  into  s(mie 
sort  of  order  in  about  a  week's  time.  Our  supplies 
were  all  in,  and  time  hung  heavy  on  our  hands, 
for  we  were  waiting  for  the  grass  to  get  up  before 


FROM  PEORIA  TO  FORT  LEAVENWORTH.  8( 

starting  on  our  long  and  weary  trip  across  the 
plains.  The  grass  was  late  that  spring,  and,  with 
a  few  sacks  of  corn  for  feed,  we  started  on  about 
the  20th  of  April,  for  the  land  of  promise. 


38  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  II. 

To  Fort  Laramie. 

Starting  across  the  plains. — A  blacksmith's  shop  on  wheels. — In  the 
home  of  the  buffalo. — At  Fort  Kearney. — A  tempting  ofifer  by  Gen. 
Sterling  Price. — Along  the  Platte.— Chimney  Rock. — At  Fort 
Laramie. — In  the  Black  HiUs  country. 

In  my  last  chapter  I  had  got  started  on  the 
plains ;  but  I  will  explain  here  that  I  hired  my 
passage  in  the  outfit,  paying  one  hundred  dollars 
for  the  trip,  the  regular  price  being  two  hundred 
dollars.  In  consideration  of  my  agreeing  to  do  D. 
0.  Young's  ])ortion  of  the  work  and  ni}^  own,  he 
agreed  to  take  me  for  half-price,  and  allow  me  fifty 
pounds  of  baggage.  J  sold  all  my  good  clothes  be- 
fore leaving  Peoria,  and  bought  me  two  pairs  of 
stout  shoes,  fonr  hickory  shirts,  two  pairs  of  stout 
pants  and  one  h  tt,  which  constituted  my  outfit. 
The  balance  of  the  fifty  pounds  allowed  I  made  up 
with  liorse  nails,  shoeing  hammer,  pinchers  and 
rasp — that  is,  a  kit  of  shoeing  tools.  Before  leav- 
ing camp  I  got  a  piece  of  white  cotton  cloth.  AVith 
a  bottle  of  ink  I  painted  and  put  on  our  wagon 
these    words :     "  Horseshoeing  done  here !  "     Be- 


TO    FORT    LARAMIE.  39 

fore  leaving  the  States  we  purchased  several  guide- 
books. Aiuoug  the  lot  was  what  was  called  "the 
Mormon  Guide-book,"  which  was  found  the  best  of 
the  lot.  After  striking  the  Council  Bluff  road,  we 
found  it  correct  in  every  particular — distance  from 
water  to  water,  and  the  same  regarding  wood  and 
grass.  Our  route  lay  through  a  line  rolling  prairie 
country — what  is  now  part  of  the  State  of  Kansas. 
The  first  stream  we  crossed  was  called  the  Little 
Blue,  and  some  distance  further  west  we  struck  the 
Big  Blue.  Before  starting  we  decided  that  we 
would  travel  alone  and  on  our  own  account,  camp 
where  we  pleased,  and  start  when  we  pleased.  One 
great  trouble  with  the  early  emigrants  was  that, 
before  starting,  they  formed  themselves  into  com- 
panies and  elected  a  captain,  and  bound  themselves 
to  obey  his  orders.  But  very  soon  they  became 
dissatisfied,  and  the  company  broke  into  fragments. 

We  were  now  in  the  home  of  the  buffalo — every 
day  we  were  in  sight  of  vast  herds  of  them,  oc- 
casionlly  shooting  one  for  fresh  meat;  generally  a 
yearling  calf.  The  meat  of  the  buffalo  is  of  coarser 
grain  than  beef,  but  very  tender  and  juicy.  Timber 
we  found  vevy  scarce ;  but  in  its  place  w^ere  "  buffalo- 
chips,"  as  they  were  called  on  the  plains.  Por 
nearl}-  three  hundred  miles  they  were  the  onl}'  fuel 
we  had.  Some  of  our  tender-feet  brethren  might 
turn  up  their  noses  at  a  good  buffalo  steak  broiled 
on  "buffalo-chip"  coals,  or  a  loaf  of  bread  baked  in 


40  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

buffalo  aslies,  but  it  made  a  feast  fit  for  a  prince — 
anyway  good  enough  for  us. 

The  first  sign  of  settlement  we  met  was  Fort 
Kearney,  then  occupied  by  Uncle  Sam,  with  a 
small  garrison.  At  the  fort  I  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  the  afterwards  celebrated  Major-General 
Sterling  Price,  of  the  Southern  army.  He  had 
started  across  the  plains  with  a  large  train.  When 
near  Fort  Kearney  one  of  his  wagons  broke  down 
— a  box  in  the  hub  was  broken.  There  was  no 
blacksmith  at  the  fort  at  that  time,  and  he  had 
none  in  his  company.  One  of  his  men  rode  up  to 
our  wagon  to  inquire  if  there  was  a  blacksmith  in 
the  crowd.  I  was  pointed  out  to  him  as  a  son  of 
Vulcan.  He  wanted  me  to  go  to  the  fort  and  re- 
pair his  wagon,  but  I  did  not  wish  to  go,  as  it  was 
early  in  the  day  and  our  train  would  be  far  ahead 
before  I  could  get  the  job  done.  But  as  the  Colonel 
insisted  on  getting  the  job  done,  as  he  could  not 
travel,  and  he  had  a  large  train  losing  time. 
Finally  he  offered  me  fifty  dollars  to  do  the  job  for 
him,  and  a  horse  to  ride  to  overtake  our  wagon.  I 
did  the  job  in  about  two  hours.  He  was  as  good 
as  his  word,  and  offered  me  the  fifty  dollars.  But 
my  skin  was  not  thick  enough  for  that.  I  took 
ten  dollars  and  called  the  account  "square."  He 
then  wanted  me  to  leave  the  party  I  was  with,  and 
offered  me  one  hundred  dollars  per  month  to  do  his 
work,  I  to  have  a  horse  to  ride  until  we  reached 
California.     On  consultation  with  mv  friends  I  re- 


TO    FORT    LARAMIE.  41 

fused   the    offer,  and  that    was  the    last  I   saw    of 
General  Price. 

Our  road  lay  up  the  South  Fork  of  the  Platte 
river  for  many  days,  until  we  came  to  the" crossing 
which  we  had  to  ford.  The  Platte,  or  at  least  the 
South  Pork  of  it,  is  one  wide  moving  river  of  sand, 
running  rapidly.  If  one's  team  stopped  one  minute 
it  was  buried  in  sand.  Then  our  big-footed  horse 
did  good  service.  Our  little  Spanish  mules  humped 
up  tlieir  backs,  sometliiug  like  a  cat  going  to  war, 
and  were  afraid  to  move.  We  had  to  jump  out  of 
the  wagons  and  persuade  them,  with  good  stout 
whips  and  clubs,  to  go.  In  traveling  up  the  south 
side  of  the  Platte  river  we  found  one  of  the  best 
natural  roads,  for  the  distance  of  four  hundred 
miles,  that  is  to  be  found,  I  believe,  on  the  face  of 
the  earth.  The  scenery  is  most  magnificent.  Mount- 
ains to  the  west  are  piled  up  against  each  other 
as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach.  It  is  surprising  the 
distance  that  can  be  seen  on  these  plains.  Three 
of  us  went  from  the  emigrant  road  to  examine  the 
celebrated  "  Chimney  Rock."  The  distance  did 
not  seem  more  than  two  or  three  miles.  We 
started  early  in  the  morning,  expecting  to  visit  the 
rock  and  get  back  to  the  wagon  at  noon.  We  got 
to  the  rock  about  one  o'clock,  and  it  was  dark  when 
we  got  into  camp,  tired  and  hungry.  But  it  was 
well  worth  the  labor  and  tramp.  "  Chimney 
Rock,"  at  a  distance,  looks  like  some  huge  steeple 
I)laced  atop  of  some  mighty  ruins  that  for  thous- 


42  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 

aiids  of  years  bad  witlistood  the  storms  and  tem- 
pests of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  pillar  itself  is 
composed  of  soft  rock  easily  cut  with  a  knife.  As 
far  up  the  shaft  as  could  be  reached  were  names  of 
hundreds  of  adventurers.  This  is  the  region  of 
thunder  and  lightning  and  hail  storms.  Frequently, 
in  the  afternoon,  storms  would  arise  out  of  what 
appeared  to  be  a  clear  sky.  When  a  small  black 
cloud  appeared  in  the  south  or  west,  it  was  time  to 
look  out,  for  the  chances  were  that  within  an  hour 
we  would  have  the  whole  artillery  of  heaven 
turned  loose  upon  us,  with  hail-stones  in  abund- 
ance. At  such  times  we  camped,  unhitched  our 
mules  and  tied  them  to  the  wheels  of  the  wagon, 
while  we  drove  picket  pins  over  the  wheels,  and 
lashed  the  wagons  down,  1o  keep  them  from  blow- 
ing over.  About  the  24th  of  May  we  arrived  at 
Eort  Laramie,  where  were  stationed  two  or  three 
companies  of  soldiers.  All  emigrants  were  re- 
quested to  register  their  names  at  the  fort,  that 
the  Government  might  be  informed  as  to  the  num- 
ber of  persons  crossing  the  plains  that  summer. 
The  names  were  numbered,  and  I  think  mv  num- 
ber  was  53,232 — that  number  of  peox>le  having  al- 
ready crossed  before  we  got  there;  so  you  can  have 
an  idea  of  the  number  of  people  on  the  plains  in 
the  summer  of  '50.  Erom  the  time  we  left  Fort 
Laramie  we  were  never  out  of  sight  of  trains, 
before  and  behind  us,  until  we  reached  Sacramento 
City. 


TO    FORT    LARAMIE.  4o 

On  leaving  Fort  Liiraniie  we  soon  entered  the 
Black  Hills  country,  where  we  found  rough  roads. 
We  bade  good-bye  to  "buifalo-chips"  and  adopted 
greasewood  in  their  place.  In  due  time  we  arrived 
at  the  South  Pass,  or  w  hat  is  called  the  backbone 
of  the  American  continent.  A  person  looking 
round  him  here  WM)uld  hardly  think  that  he  was 
standing  on  the  backbone  of  a  continent.  The 
summit  was  marked  with  a  stake.  On  one  hand 
the  rain  that  fell  would  run  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean, 
and  on  the  other  into  the  Pacific.  It  appeared  like  a 
great  level  plateau — mountains  to  the  north,  moun- 
tains to  the  south,  mountains  to  the  west !  Those 
to  the  west  were  the  mountains  of  most  interest  to 
us,  as  we  had  to  take  our  wav  over  them — from 
the  summit  to  old  Port  Bridger,  a  trading  post 
situated  west  of  Green  Kiver,  in  w^hat  is  called  the 
Wind  River  Mountains. 


44  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  III. 

To  Salt  Lake  City. 

Fort  Bridger. — Col.  Bridger,  the  typical  Indianfighter. — In  the  Salt 
Lake  valley;  a  difficult  descent. — In  Brigham  Young's  city. — An 
interview  with  Brigham. — Proselyting: — A  stratagem. — Mormon 
achievement. 

After  many  days  of  toil  and  travel  we  reached 
Fort  Bridger,  situated  in  the  Wind  Kiver  Mount- 
ains. It  was  a  stockade  fort,  and  in  the  inclosure 
were  store-houses,  filled  with  the  goods  then  m  de- 
mand by  the  Indians  of  the  plains,  and  dwelling- 
houses,  stables  and  everything  composing  a  small 
town  or  settlement,  with  a  slight  sprinkle  of  half- 
breeds  and  a  few  squaws.  But  the  most  interesting 
to  me  was  the  old  man  himself.  Colonel  Bridger, 
the  owner  of  the  i)ost.  In  him  you  saw  the  old 
Indian  fighter,  trai)x>ei*?  f^^'tl  pioneer  of  the  early 
days  of  the  plains;  a  true  type  of  the  race  of  men 
that  is  about  passed  away.  The  old  man  was  then 
about  fifty  years  of  age,  tall,  broad-shouldered,  and 
powerfully  built,  with  long  black  bair,  wearing  a 
soldier's  overcoat,  with  buckskin  pants  and  mocca- 
sins. The  old  man  was  quite  communicative,  talk- 
ing freely  on  different  subjects.     Taking  him  as  he 


TO    SALT    LAKE    CITY.  45 

stood,  he  looked  to  me  to  be  a  perfect  specimen  of 
the  AmericMii  liunter. 

Prom  Fort  Bridger  our  objective  point  was  Salt 
Lake  City.  We  found  tlie  road  very  mountainous 
and  rough,  and  it  was  with  much  pleasure  that  we 
finally  found  ourselves  at  the  top  of  the  mountain 
ridge  overlooking  the  great  Salt  Lake  Valley.  The 
road  from  the  summit  down  to  the  valley  was  very 
steep.  Locks  on  the  wheels  were  of  very  little  ac- 
count, and  we  cut  a  small  bushy  tree  and  tied  it  to 
the  liind  axle  of  the  wagon,  which  acted  as  a 
capital  brake,  and  we  got  down  all  right. 

We  were  now  safe  in  Brigham's  dominions,  and 
had  to  put  on  our  good  behavior.  We  found  the 
city  to  be  one  of  magnificent  distances.  The  town 
lots  were  very  large — two  or  three  acres  in  extent ; 
broad  streets,  with  ditches  of  water  running 
through  them,  and  rows  of  trees  set  out  on  each 
side,  wliicli  gave  the  city  a  very  neat  and  home-like 
appearance.  There  was  but  little  mercantile  or 
other  business  done  in  the  city  at  that  time,  though 
Kincade  &  Co.  had  quite  a  stock  of  goods  on?  hand. 
The  houses  were  principally  one-story,  and  built  of 
adobe.  Brigham's  house  was  the  largest  in  the 
citT,  two  stories  in  higlit,  and  it  was  not  much  of 
a  house  at  thai.  The  temple  was  a  large,  round 
house,  capable  of  seating  a  large  number  of  people. 
Here  the  elders  and  bishops  every  Sunday  preached 
to  the  faithful,  and  abused  Uncle  Sam  and  his  Gov- 
ernment.    We  drove  through  the  city  and  camped 


'^ 


46  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

about  a  mile  out  of  towu  on  the  eniigrant  road, 
intending  to  veniain  about  one  week  to  rest  and 
recruit  our  team  for  the  remainder  of  the  trip. 

Being  the  "kid"  of  the  camp,  I  was  sent  on^a 
foraging  expedition  for  fresh  "grub,"  such  as 
butter,  milk,  eggs,  cheese  and  fresh  vegetables.  I 
had  no  trouble  in  buying  such  things  at  reasonable 
prices.  We  lived  on  tlie  fat  of  the  land  wliile  we 
sojourned  with  the  followers  of  Joseph.  When 
laying  in  our  stores  before  we  started  from  Eort 
Leavenwortli,  we  bought  only  sufficient  flour  to 
last  until  we  should  arrive  at  Salt  Lake,  expecting 
to  replenish  our  stock  there  for  the  remainder  of 
the  trip.  When  we  got  to  Salt  Lake,  however,  we 
found  that  we  could  not  buy  anything  in  the  shape 
of  bread-stuff  on  account  of  an  order  Brigham 
Young  had  made  that  no  bread-stuff  should  be  sold 
until  the  new  crop  came  in.  This  left  us  in  a  bad 
fix,  for  we  would  have  to  lie  over  six  or  seven 
weeks,  much  against  our  will,  and  the  faithful 
would  not,  or  dare  not,  disobey  the  orders  of  their 
prophet,  priest  and  king. 

On  one  of  my  foraging  expeditions  I  met  Brig- 
ham  himself.  I  had  become  acquainted  with  an 
old  Yermont  lady  who  made  excellent  butter,  and 
who  was  a  splendid  talker  on  her  side  of  the  ques- 
tion. She  tried  hard  to  convert  me,  and  told  me  I 
would  make  a  splendid  Mormon.  During  one  of 
mv  visits  to  her  house  I  met  a  gentleman  of  about 


TO    SALT    LAKE    CITY.  47 

fortv  years  of  aij^e,  very  ])leasinc;  in  bis  address. 
About  tbe  first  question  lie  put  to  me  was  : 

"Young  man,  are  you  as  anxious  for  tbe  salvation 
of  your  soul  as  you  are  to  go  to  California  and  get 
gold  ?" 

My  answer  was  tbat  tbe  salvation  of  my  soul  did 
not  botber  me  niucb  about  tbat  time.  He  wanted 
to  know  my  name,  wbere  I  was  from,  wbat  relisrion 
I  professed,  my  occupation,  and  if  I  bad  any  prej- 
udice against  tbe  Mormons.  All  of  tbe  questions 
were  properly  answered.  As  regards  prejudice 
against  tbe  Mormons  I  bad  none,  as  I  bad  never 
seen  a  Mormon  to  my  knowledge  until  I  arrived 
at  Salt  Lake.  He  tben  proposed  to  me  to  stay  at 
Salt  Lake  and  be  would  give  me  employment  until 
fall  at  five  dollars  per  day,  and  if  we  liked  eacli 
otber,  be  would  tben  start  me  in  business ;  and  as 
furtber  inducement,  if  T  would  join  the  Oburcb  I 
would  no  doubt  rise  to  eminence  as  a  servant  of  tbe 
Lord  and  a  pillar  of  tbe  Cburcb.  All  of  wbicb  I 
respectfully  declined.  Tbe  next  da}'  I  called  on 
my  Vermont  lady  friend.  Sbe  wanted  to  know 
bow  I  liked  tbe  Governor. 

"  Governor  wbo  ?"  I  asked. 

"Wby,  Governor  Young — tbe  gentleman  you 
were  talking  to  yesterday  !" 

"Great  Scott!     Was  tbat  Governor  Young'?" 

"Yes,  indeed  it  was,  and  be  bas  taken  a  liking  to 
you.     You  bad  better  stay  bere  and  take  bis  offer." 

I  bave  often   tbougbt  wbat   a  fine  old  Mormon 


4(S  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

elder  I  would  have  made,  or  maybe  a  hishop,  with 
half  a  dozen  wives,  and  no  end  of  young  Mormons. 
But  Brighain  and  the  saints  lost  an  elder  or  a 
bishop,  and  California  gained  a  blacksmith. 

The  bqys  in  camp  were  by  this  time  getting  very 
uneasy  and  wanted  to  be  moving.  They  had 
searched  all  over  the  settlement  to  buy  one  liun- 
dred  pounds  of  bread-stuff,  but  could  iiot  get  an 
ounce. 

One  evening  Dave  came-  into  camp  cursing 
Brigham  and  the  Mormons  generally,  wishing 
them  all  in  hades.  Next  morning  he  gave  me  one 
hundred  dollars,  ajid  told  me  to  give  it  for  one 
hundred  pounds  of  flour  or  corn  meal  if  I  could 
get  it.  I  first  tried  my  Yermont  lady  friend,  but 
it  was  in  vain — she  was  too  good  a  Mormon  to  dis- 
obey orders.  The  next  place  I  tried  was  a  farm 
house,  where  an  old  gentleman  was  sitting  on  the 
fence  in  front  of  tli,e  house. 

"Good  morning,  neighbor.  Have  you  any  flour 
or  corn  meal  to  sell?" 

"Nay,  lad,  I  ha'  not.'' 

I  knew  at  once  he  w^^s  an  Englishman,  and  I 
decided  to  use  a  little  strategy,  so  I  said : 

"Sir,  by  your  language  I  would  take  you  to  be  a 
countrynjan  of  mine." 

"  Be  thee  English,  lad'?     Where  be  thee  from?'' 

"  I  am  from  Yorkshire,  sir." 

"What  toon,  lad?" 

"The  town  of  Hadden,  sir.'' 


TO    SALT    LAKE    CITY.  49 

"Be  thoe  fro'  the   toon  of  Hacldeu  ^     What   be 
thy  name  Lid  V 
"IvSaiah  GilLird." 
"  AYhat  thy  father's  name  ?" 
"ErankGillard,  sir." 

"And  be  thy  mother's  name  Hannah  Fox?" 
And  the  old  Briton  surveyed  me  from  head  to 
foot,  and  finally  said,  "I  believe  thee,  lad.  I  knew 
they  father  and  mother  well."  And  he  surveyed 
me  again.  "  So  thee  be  the  son  of  Frank  Gillard 
and  Hannah  Fox?  Come  to  the  house,  lad,  and 
the  gude  wife  will  mak'  thee  welcome." 

We  went  into  the  house,  and  the  old  gentleman 
introduced  me  to  his  wife  as  the  son  of  their  old 
friends  Frank  Gillard  and  Hannah  Fox  of  Had- 
den.  The  old  lady  wiped  her  specks  with  her 
apron,  phiced  them  on  her  nose,  and  coming  close 
up  to  me  and  looking  straight  into  my  eyes  for 
some  time,  slie  exclaimed: 

"  Truly,  thee  be  tlie  son  of  Hannah  Fox,  for  tlvee 
have  thv  mother's  eves  and  hair.  A  bonny  lass 
she  was  when  she  stood  up  in  Hadden  church  to 
be  married  to  thy  father.'' 

And  with  that  the  old  lady  gave  me  a  good 
heart v  kiss  for  my  mother's  sake.  The  old 
Briton  would  not  think  of  my  leaving  until  I 
had  dinner  with  them,  and  had  given  him  a  his- 
tory of  my  father  and  all  the  family.  The  old  lady 
had  a  good  cry  when   I  told  her    of  my  mother's 


50  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

death  some  years  previous.     Before   I  left  the  old 
man  said : 

"Betty,  cannot  we  help  tlie  son  of  our  old  friend 
with  some  corn  nieaP" 

"Yes,  Davey,  we  can  ^i'  him  the  last  in  the 
house,  wi'  God's  blessing  on  the  lad,"  The  old 
man  said,  "I  cannot  sell  thee  any  meal,  but  if  thee 
and  thy  comrades  will  hoe  that  patch  of  potatoes 
for  me  I  will  give  thee  one  hundred  pounds  of 
meal,"  pointing  to  a  small  patch  of  potatoes  in 
front  of  the  house.  I  said  we  would  do  the  hoeing 
to-morrow. 

I  will  explain  how  I  became  a  Yorkshire  man, 
though  never  having  seen  either  England  or  York- 
shire, much  less  the  town  of  Hadden.  When  serv- 
ing my  apprenticeship  in  Canada,  I  had  a  fellow- 
apx^rentice  by  the  name  of  Isaiah  Gillard.  We  were 
very  warm  friends,  for  boys,  and  I  frequently  went 
to  his  father's  and  spent  Sunday  with  his  people ; 
and  hearing  them  talk  of  things  and  x3eoi)le  in 
Yorkshire,  I  became  quite  familiar  with  names  and 
places.  I  gave  this  Mormon  family  a  Iiistory  o 
their  friends,  the  Gillards,  using  a  little  deception 
which  did  them  no  harm  and  us  a  great  deal  of 
good.  I  went  to  camp  and  reported  progress.  We 
were  a  happy  set  that  night  and  started  next  morn- 
ing for  the  old  man's  potato  patch  and  made  short 
work  of  it.  I  told  the  boys  to  call  me  Isaiah  instead 
of  Jack  when  addressing  me  in  the  presence  of  my 
English  friends.     We   got  our  corn    meal,  with   a 


TO    SALT    LAKE    CITY.  51 

good  dinner  thrown  in,  and  went  our  way  rejoicing. 
So  much  for  a  little  strategy.  I  must  say  a  good 
word  for  the  Mormons,  but  will  leave  it  for  the 
next  chapter. 


52  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

To  Hangtown,  California. 

Leaving  Salt  Lake  City. — Through  the  Mormon  settlement. —  Celebrat- 
ing the  Fourth. — Humboldt  river. — Beginning  of  hardest  trials. — 
Sand  and  alkali. — Foraging. — Mosquitoes. — Road  flanked  with  dead 
animals. — The  Fifty-mile  desert. — Sick  companion. — Fagged  team. 
— Huntmg  water. — The  relief  wagon. — Carson  river. — Plenty  of 
grass  and  water. — Crossing  the  Sierra  Nevadas. — Through  Emi- 
grant Canyon — -Reflections, — Arrival  at  Hangtown,  Cal. 

It  was  in  1850  th;it  I  was  in  Morinondoni.  In 
1847  the  Mormons  were  driven  from  the  border 
States,  and  much  of  their  property  destroyed. 
With  the  little  they  had  left,  they  started  with 
their  wives  and  little  ones  on  a  journey  of  over 
one  thousand  miles,  across  what  was  at  that  time 
known  as  the  Great  American  Desert.  Encounter- 
ing hardship  and  privation,  climbing  mountains, 
dragging  their  wagons  over  mountains  with  ropes, 
when  their  worn-out  teams  got  too  weak  from  want 
of  feed  and  otlier  causes  to  be  of  much  benefit  to 
them,  surrounded  with  hostile  Indians  on  every 
side,  they  still  pressed  on  to  their  land  of  promise. 
It  was  less  tlian  three  years  from  their  first  arrival 
in  tlie  valley  when  I  was  there.     It  would  almost 


TO    HANGTOWN,    CALIFORNIA.  53 

seem  loo  incredible  for  belief  that  so  much  could 
be  done  in  the  short  space  of  three  years.  Here 
was  the  city  laid  out  and  partly  built,  water  ditches 
dug  from  tlie  mountain  stream,  houses  and  barns 
built,  farms  laid  out  and  fenced,  mills  built  and 
running,  school-houses  built  and  occupied,  churches 
erected  and  dedicated.  There  were  no  drones  in 
the  hive  there.  When  we  take  into  consideration 
that  these  people  were  poor  in  this  world's  goods, 
poor  in  everything  but  faith,  with  no  capital  but 
willing  hands  and  stout  arms,  no  matter  how  much 
we  may  denounce  their  religious  practices,  we  must 
give  them  credit  for  perseverance  and  industry. 

Leaving  Salt  Lake  City,  our  road  led  up  the 
valley  through  the  Mormon  settlement ;  on  every 
hand  thrift  and  industry  were  apparent.  On  the 
4th  day  of  July,  we  arrived  at  the  crossing  of  Bear 
River,  a  stream  emptying  into  the  Great  Salt 
Lake.  At  the  crossing  we  were  stopped  by  a  lot  of 
the  emigrant  boys,  who  had  concluded  to  celebrate 
the  "Glorious  Pourth."  We  concluded  to  lie  over 
and  have  a  time.  Before  niiirht  there  were  at  least 
seventy-five  or  eighty  wagons  stopped  the  same  as 
we  were.  We  had  a  general  good  time — an  oration, 
and  a  stag  dance  at  night.  Boyden,  our  fiddler, 
came  into  use,  and  furnished  the  music  for  the  oc- 
casion. Next  morning  we  started  again,  and  in 
time  reached  the  Humboldt  Biver;  then  our  trials 
began. 

Our  trip  so  far  was  to  me  but  a  pleasure  excur- 


54  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

sioii.  Wo  found  the  Humboldt  Eiiver  very  high — 
swollen  by  the  melting  snows  of  the  mountains, 
with  the  roads  in  poor  condition,  and  scarcely  any 
feed,  as  the  teams  ahead  of  us  had  devoured  every 
green  thing  in  sight.  Back  from  the  bottoms  of 
the  river  nothing  but  sand  and  alkali  deserts  were 
to  be  seen  ;  but  plenty  of  grass  just  across  the  river, 
if  we  could  but  reach  it.  Frequently,  after  a  hard 
day's  travel,  we  would  have  to  tie  our  animals  up 
and  cut  bunches  of  willows  for  them  to  gnaw  on 
during  the  night.  They  commenced  getting  poor 
and  weak,  and  I  knew  something  must  be  done  or 
we  would  be  left  without  a  team.  On  the  other 
side  of  the  river  was  x^lenty  of  feed,  and  I  made  up 
my  mind  that  I  was  going  to  get  some  of  it.  When 
we  camped  about  the  middle  of  the  afternoon,  I 
told  the  boys  I  would  have  some  of  that  grass.  They 
said:  "How  are  you  going  to  get  it?"  "I  will 
show  you."  T  got  a  large  butclier  knife  and  a 
picket-rope,  and  divesting  myself  of  my  clothes 
and  tying  a  rope  around  my  body,  with  the  knife 
in  my  teeth,  I  bolted  into  the  river  and  struck  out  for 
grass  on  the  other  side.  I  reached  the  other  shore 
and  went  into  the  grass  with  my  knife,  but  there 
was  one  enemy  I  had  not  calculated  on,  and  that 
was  the  mosquitoes;  they  had  a  good  chance  to  get 
at  me.  I  would  make  one  stroke  at  the  grass  and 
two  at  my  tormentors.  When  I  got  back  over  the 
river  I  looked  like  a  bad  case  of  the  measles.  They 
were  the  largest  and  hungriest  lot  of  mosquitoes 


TO    HANGTOWN,    CALIFORNIA.  55 

that  ever  attaclved  a  Iminan  being.  Well,  I  got  two 
good   bundles  of  grass  cut  and  tied   up,  and  now 
came  the    tug   of  war,  to    get    them    across.     The 
river  was  quite  rapid.     I   looked    out  for    a   good 
landing  on   the   other  side,  and    went  far  up   the 
stream  to  be  sure  I  couUl   make  it.     Throwing  tlie 
bundles  into  the  stream,  and  taking  a  bight  of  the 
rope  round  my   body,  I   struck  out   for   camp.     I 
made   my    calculation   all    right,  and    landed    my 
cargo  of  hay,  a  good  night's  feed  for  our  team,  but 
was  myself  minus  about  one   quart  of   blood.     In 
this  way  we  procured  feed  and  kej)t  our  team  alive. 
For  three  or  four  weeks  we  were  never  out  of  sight 
of  dead   animals,  and  the    stench    was    horrible. 
After  many  days  of  toil  and  hardship   we  arrived 
at  the  sink  of  the  Humboldt.     The  sink  appeared 
quite  a  lake  at  that  time,  as  the  melting  snow  in 
the    mountains   kept   the   Humboldt    River    full. 
Erom  the  sink  of  Humboldt  to  Carson  River  was 
called  fifty  miles.     This  fifty  miles   was  a  desert 
without  one  drop  of  water  in  it,  the  largest  portion 
being  drifting  sand;  a  hard  journey  for  worn-out 
teams  and  men  to   make,  but  it  had  to  be    made. 
Resting  for  one  da} ,  we  started  about  4  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  first  filling  our  canteens  with  water 
to   drink    on   the    way.     Eor   the    first   twelve    or 
fourteen  miles  the    road  was  good,  traversing  what 
seemed  to  be  a  bed  of  scoriae.     H^ot  a  living  thing 
in   sight,  everywhere  a  dreary  waste,  we  traveled 
all  that  night.     Next  morning  found   us  traveling 


56  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

tlivougli  sand  sncli  that  the  wheels  of  the  wagon 
sank  in  eight  or  ten  inches,  which   made  onr  pro- 
gress very  slow.     As  the    sun  rose   higher    in  the 
heavens  the  heat  became  verj^  oppressive,  and  onr 
team  required  considerable  urging  to  be  kept  mov- 
ing.    We  worried   along  all  that  day,  nothing  but 
sand   all  around  us,  and,  to  make  matters  worse, 
two  of  our  men  were  taken  down  with  the  mount- 
ain fever  and  had  to  be  hauled  in  the  wagon.  This 
left  but  Dave  Young  and  myself  to  work  the  team 
through.     About  sundown  we  could  urge  the  team 
no  further.     Here  we   were,  with   our  team   given 
out,  two  sick  comrades,  and  not  knowing  how  far 
we  were  from  water.     I  proposed  to  Young  that,  if 
he  would  stay  by  the  team  and  our  sick  comrades, 
I  would  take  our  four  canteens  and  go  to  the  river 
for  water.     He  consented,  and  I  started  for  Oarson 
River  a  little    after  dark.     When  I   had    traveled 
about  two  hours,  I  preceived  a  fire  burning  on  the 
side  of  the  road.     It  was  a  welcome  sight  to  me- 
When    I   came  to  it   I   found   three   men  sitting 
around  the  fire,  and  two  wagons  with  their  tongues 
pointing  to  the  road.     I  came  up  to  the  fire  and 
spoke  to  them,  and  they  wanted  to  know  if  I  would 
not  take  a  cup  of  coffee.     They  had  a  large   camp 
kettle  on  the  fire  filled  with   coffee  and  gave  me  a 
tin  cup  full  and  all  I  wanted.     I  wished  to  pay,  but 
they  would  not  take  a  cent.     They  good-naturedly 
told  me  if  I  lived  in  California  I  some  day  would 
have  to  ]3ay  for  it.     They  were   sent   out   by   the 


TO    HANGTOWN,    CALIFORNIA. 


Government  as  a  relief  train  to  meet  the  emigra- 
tion and  help  them  as  well  as  they  could.  The}' 
did  good  work.  I  found  from  them  that  it  was 
only  two  miles  to  Oarson  River.  After  resting  a 
short  time  and  taking  another  cup  of  coffee,  I 
shouldered  my  canteens  and  started  for  Carson 
river,  a  new  man.  I  got  there  in  a  short  time.  Fill- 
ing my  canteens,  I  started  hack,  and  reached  my 
friends  of  the  relief  train,  and  found  they  had  gone 
to  bed,  but  left  the  coffee  on  the  fire,  to  which  I 
helped  mj^self  liberally.  I  reached  our  wagon  just 
as  the  day  was  breaking,  with  my  four  canteens 
full  of  water,  bringing  life  and  courage  to  our  sick 
men.  Dave  struck  up  a  fire  and  we  soon  had 
breakfast.  We  gave  three  of  the  canteens  of  water 
to  the  team,  and  some  of  thecornmeal,  which,  after 
their  night's  rest,  gave  them  new  life.  We  started 
as  soon  as  possible  tso  as  to  reach  Oarson  River  be- 
fore the  heat  of  the  day,  and  got  there  all  right. 
There  our  troubles  ended.  We  found  plenty  of 
grass  and  water  from  there  to  California.  For  the 
last  twenty  miles  of  the  desert  a  man  could  walk 
on  dead  animals  all  the  way,  and  as  for  other  prop- 
erty you  could  find  anything  you  wanted,  from  a 
pair  of  socks  to  a  four-horse  wagon.  The  sides  of 
the  road  were  just  littered  with  all  sorts  of  things 
thrown  away  and  abandoned. 

We  laid  over  for  a  few  days  to  recruit  and  rest. 
The  balance  of  the  trip  through  Carson  Valley  with 
its  fine  mountain  brooks   and  meadows,  looked  to 


58  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

me  like  a  paradise,  after  traveling  throu£jh  so  much 
desert.  There  we  found  several  trading  posts — 
people  who  had  come  from  Sacramento  to  buy 
poor  stock  and  trade  with  the  emigrants.  We  had 
but  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains  to  cross  and  our 
trip  would  be  at  an  end.  Our  team  picked  up  well 
while  in  the  Carson  Valley,  and  our  sick  men  got 
all  right.  We  started  through  what  was  then 
called  Emigrant  Canyon,  for  the  summit  of  the 
Sierras.  This  canyon  wa.s  piled  full  of  rocks, 
thrown  together  bv  nature  without  anv  resrard  for 
the  comfort  or  the  convenience  of  those  poor 
mortals  who  had  to  travel  over  them.  Frequently 
we  had  to  lift  our  wagon,  first  the  forward  wheels, 
then  the  hind  wheels,  over  them.  We  arrived  at 
the  summit  in  due  time,  where  we  could  look  down 
on  our  land  of  Canaan — our  promised  land.  Now, 
after  a  lapse  of  nearly  thirty-eight  years,  when  my 
mind  wanders  back  to  the  time  when  I  first  stood 
on  the  summit  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains 
and  looked  over  the  great  plains  of  California,  soon 
to  be  reached,  the  thought  comes,  how  many  of 
that  grand  army,  one  hundred  thousand  strong,  of 
the  youthful  manhood  of  the  land,  who,  like  my- 
self, stood  on  the  summit  of  the  lofty  Sierras  and 
took  their  first  view  of  the  then  to-be  great  State  of 
California,  how  manv  of  them  are  now  in  the  land 
of  the  living'?  Alas,  but  few  of  us  are  living ! 
Many  fell  early  in  the  fight.  How  many  of  them 
accomplished  their  desires?     I  am  afraid  but  ver}- 


TO    HANGTOWN,    CALIFORNIA.  59 

few.  Many  of  tbeiu  have  filled  unknown  graves, 
far  from  home  and  kindred,  with  no  kind  friends 
to  drop  a  tear  or  j^lant  a  sprig  over  their  unmarked 
graves  in  tlie  mountains  and  gulches  of  California. 
But  their  deeds  live  after  them.  They  planted  on 
the  shores  of  the  broad  Pacific  a  mighty  empire, 
whose  foundation  is  laid  in  liberty,  truth,  civiliza- 
tion and  justice,  and  which  will  remain  a  monument 
to  their  memories  forever. 

Erom  the  summit  of  the  Sierras  to  Hangtown  was 
soon  made  without  any  trouble,  the  only  thing  of 
note  being  "grizzlies,"'  which  were  quite  plentiful  on 
the  western  slope  of  the  mountains.  We  arrived 
at  Hangtown,  now  Placerville,  on  the  9th  day  of 
August,  1850,  all  right,  not  a  bit  the  worse  for  wear, 
and  ready  for  anything  which  might  turn  up. 


60  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER   V. 
Description  of  Hangtown. 

"  Shake  "  houses. ^ — Gambling. — Sports,  male  and  female. — A  Babel  of 
languages. — The  currency. — Judge  Lynch's  court. — "Bloody  Dick." — 
Threatened  hostilities  between  "squatters  "  and  the  civil  authorities. 

Here  we  were  in  California.  At  last  our  loni^ 
and  tedious  journey  was  over.  As  a  whole  I  en- 
joyed it.  Sometimes  we  fared  well,  at  other  times 
not  very  well ;  but,  all  in  all,  our  trip  was  a  good 
one. 

We  found  Hangtown,  or  what  is  now  called 
Placerville,  to  be  two  rows  of  houses  with  a  street 
between  them.  The  houses  were  built  principally 
of  shakes,  with  posts  driven  into  the  ground  on 
which  to  nail  the  shakes.  There  were  about  fifty 
or  sixty  of  these  houses  in  the  place  when  we  ar- 
rived there,  the  largest  four  of  which  were  run  as 
gambling-houses,  and  were  in  full  operation  at  that 
time.  All  sorts  of  games  were  in  full  blast,  such 
as  monte,  faro,  lansquenet  and  Erench  monte, 
sometimes  called  three-card  monte.  Each 
gambling-house  had  from  four  to  eight  tables, 
which    werQ   loaded    with  gold    and    silver,  great 


DESCRIPTION    OF    HANGTOWN-  61 

stacks  of  which  were  there  to  tempt  the  unwary 
miner  to  try  his  luck,  whicli  he  often  did  to  his 
sorrow.  The  tables  were  presided  over  by  '^sports," 
as  they  then  were  called,  who  were  considered  the 
aristocracy  of  the  country.  They  generally  wore 
white  shirts  and  dressed  in  what  the  bovs  called 
"store  clothes.''  If  a  man  came  into  camp  with  a 
boiled  shirt  on,  he  was  set  down  as  a  sport,  and 
generally  correctly  so.  Erequently  they  would 
have  a  female  ''sport''  at  the  table.  She  was  gen- 
erally well  jiainted  and  dressed  in  the  richest 
attire,  and,  as  a  rule,  was  a  daughter  of  la  belle 
France.  The  tables  they  presided  over  were  gen- 
erally well  patronized,  and  many  a  well-lilled 
purse  of  gold  dust  of  some  soft-pated  miner  was 
drawn  in  by  these  gilded  damsels  of  France  and 
Germany. 

Hangtown  at  that  time  was  a  perfect  Babel ;  men 
from  all  the  principal  nations  of  the  world  seemed 
to  have  gathered  there.  You  could  hear  the  lan- 
guage of  nearly  every  civilized  nation  spoken  in 
the  streets  of  that  little  burg,  and  the  coin  of  every 
realm  passed  current;  but  the  most  of  the  money 
was  Mexican.  Mexican  gold  onzas,  worth 
sixteen  dollars,  and  Mexican  silver  dollars 
were  the  most  used,  but  the  principal  circulat- 
ing medium  was  gold  dust.  Everybody  had 
gold  dust,  and  nearly  everything  bought  and 
sold  was  paid  for  in  gold  dust,  at  the  rate  of  six- 
teen dollars  per  ounce.     Hangtown,  when  I  arrived 


62  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

on  the  9tli  of  August,  was  but  a  small  place ;  but 
before  T  left,  two  niontlis  later,  it  bad  grown 
twenty  times  as  large,  buudreds  of  emigrants  ar- 
riving daily,  taking  up  lots  and  building  bouses, 
and  starting  different  lines  of  business.  All  was 
bustle  and  excitement.  No  land  monopolist  al- 
lowed, or  town  lot  speculators.  Henry  George's 
land  tbeorv  wasfullvin  force.  No  man  was  allowed 
more  lots  than  bis  business  required,  and  if  be 
dared  claim  any  more  be  generall}^  got  tbe  worst 
of  it.  Henry  George's  tbeory  was  fully  in  practice 
in  California  before  Henry  George  ever  thougbt  of 
it,  and  maybe  it  was  from  tbe  early  Californians 
tliat  Henry  George  caugbt  bis  inspiration  on 
land  matters. 

Tlie  early  fatbers  of  California  bad  a  very  simple 
and  easy  metbod  of  governing  tbe  country  and  ad- 
ministering tbe  laws,  and  a  very  effective  uietbod 
it  was  at  tbe  same  time.  I  will  give  you  an  in- 
stance of  my  first  experience,  and  wbat  I  saw  be- 
fore tbe  bar  of  Judge  Ly neb's  court.  This  was 
my  first  attendance  at  His  Honor's  court,  but  by 
no  means  tbe  last.  I  was  standing  looking  on  at 
tbe  games  tbat  were  being  dealt  at  the  El  Dorado 
saloon.  In  tbe  game  I  was  looking  at  there  were 
three  or  four  miners  betting.  It  w  as  the  game  of 
monte.  One  of  tbe  miners  accused  tbe  dealer  of 
drawing  waxed  cards  on  him;  or,  in  other  words, 
cbeating  bim  out  of  bis  dust.  Tbe  gambler  told 
him  if  be  said  so  again  be  would  cut  tlie  beart  out 


DESCRIPTION    OF    HANGTOAVN.  63 

of  liiiii.  The  miner  repeated  the  words,  when  the 
gambler  raised  out  of  his  seat,  drew  a  Lirge  bowie 
knife  out  of  his  belt  and  plunged  it  twice  into  the 
man's  heart  ;  at  the  last  plunge  he  turned  the 
knife  around  in  the  man's  body-  Pullini>-  the  knife 
out  of  the  body  and  wiping  tlie  blood  off'  with  his 
liandkerchief,  he  coollv  remarked:  "You  will 
never  tell  me  I  lied  again."  The  gambler  was 
known  as  "Bloody  Dick,"  or  "New  Orleans  Dick." 
He  was  a  New  Orleans  Irishman,  and  a  bard  case. 
Rumor  said  that  this  was  the  third  man  he  had 
killed.  I  was  within  three  or  four  feet  of  the  man 
when  he  fell  oflf  his  seat  and  expired.  Word  went 
immediately  throughout  the  town  that  "  Bloody 
Dick  ''  had  killed  a  man.  In  the  meantime  two 
men  had  seized  him  and  taken  his  arms  away,  and 
in  less  than  one  minute  be  was  surrounded  by  forty 
or  fifty  excited  men,  well  armed,  with  a  full  determi- 
nation that  he  would  not  liave  a  chance  to  kill  any 
more.  It  had  been  the  custom  among  the  gamblers, 
when  one  of  the  fraternity  got  into  a  scrape,  to  see 
him  out.  Ten  or  twelve  drew  their  revolvers,  but, 
seeing  the  angry  crowd,  they  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  they  would  let  Dick  take  his  chances. 
In  less  than  ten  minutes  there  was  a  crowd  of  at 
least  five  hundred  men  gathered  in  and  around  the 
saloon  where  the  cutting  took  i)lace.  A  motion 
was  made  by  some  of  the  crowd  that  he  be  hanged 
right  away,  but  the  crowd  voted  him  a  fair  trial  and 
a  chance  for  his  life.     Tiie  crowd  elected  a  middle- 


64  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

ti^ed  man  to  act  as  judge  and  another  as  marshal. 
The  marshal  summoned  twelve  men  to  serve  as 
jurors,  who  were  immediately  sworn.  The  judge 
sat  on  a  big  pine  log  in  the  street.  The  witnesses 
were  called  and  sworn.  They  were  the  men  who 
were  playing  at  the  game  when  the  man  was  killed. 
Other  witnesses  also  testified  to  the  facts  in  the 
case.  The  case  was  then  given  to  tlic  jury,  who 
returned  a  verdict  of  "guilty  of  murder  in  the  first 
degree."  The  question  was  then  put  to  the  crowd: 
"What  shall  be  done  with  the  prisoner?"  Some 
one  moved  that  he  be  hanged.  The  motion  was 
seconded,  and  the  man  who  acted  as  judge  put  the 
motion  to  the  crowd,  and  a  unanimous  shout  went 
up  from  at  least  one  thousand  men,  "Hang  him!" 
The  prisoner  in  the  meantime  was  present,  using 
the  most  blasphemous  language  to  the  men  en- 
gaged in  his  trial  that  ever  polluted  the  ears  of  a 
civilized  man.  The  prisoner  was  then  j)laced  in  a 
wagon  drawn  by  two  mules,  and  escorted  by  at 
least  one  thousand  men  to  the  fatal  tree,  a  little 
back  of  the  town,  where  five  of  his  sort  had  already 
paid  the  penalty  of  their  crimes  by  hanging  from 
one  of  its  limbs.  It  was  a  large  oak  tree.  The 
wagon  was  driven  under  it,  the  rope  tied  around 
his  neck  and  thrown  over  the  limb,  and  hauled 
tight  and  made  fast.  He  was  in  tlie  meantime 
cursing  the  crowd,  his  God,  and  everything  else, 
and  spat  in  the  faces  of  the  men  that  were  adjust- 
ing the   rope.     When  everything  was  ready,  the 


DESCRIPTION   OF    HANGTOWN.  65 

mules  were  started  forward,  leaving  the  body 
swinging  between  the  earth  and  the  limb  to  which 
he  was  hanging.  Some  of  the  guard  stayed  at  the 
tree  for  nearly  an  liour,  so  as  to  be  sure  he  was 
dead.  The  body  was  cut  down,  and  buried  a  short 
distance  from  the  tree  on  which  he   was  executed. 

That  was  a  trial  where  justice  was  meted  out 
with  dispatch.  No  lawyers  were  present,  no  testi- 
mony objected  to  as  incompetent,  irrelevant  and 
immaterial.  When  witnesses  were  sworn  to  tell 
the  truth,  the  whole  truth  and  nothing  but  the 
truth,  they  seldom  if  ever  perjured  themselves.  It 
was  not  over  one  hour  from  the  time  the  murder 
was  committed  at  the  saloon  before  the  doer  of  it 
was  tried  and  execuied.  N^o  appeal  was  taken  fr(mi 
Judge  Lynch's  Court  to  the  Supreme  Court.  His 
decision  was  final. 

A  few  days  after  the  hanging  of  "Bloody  Dick," 
the  old  historic  oak  was  cut  down  by  some  indi- 
vidual who  tliought  that  six  men  were  sufiicient  to 
die  on  one  tree.  .In  an  hour  after  tlie  hanging 
everything  was  as  quiet  as  usual.  It  caused  ex^ 
citement  only  for  the  time  during  the  trial  and  ex- 
ecution. So  much  for  my  first  experience  at  Judge 
Lynch's  Court. 

In  a  few  days  after  the  hanging  of  "Blood}' 
Dick,''  Hangtown  came  near  having  a  far  more 
serious  tragedy  enacted  in  her  streets.  Some  time 
previous  there  had  been  trouble  in  Sacramento  be- 
tween what  were  called   the  "squatters,"  and  the 


6'6  PIONEER   DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

civil  autliorities.  The  "squatters"  settled  on  lands 
that  they  supposed  to  be  Government  lands,  but 
the  speculators  claimed  the  land  from  titles  ob- 
tained from  General  Sutter.  The  speculators 
obtained  writs  of  ejectment  from  the  courts,  and 
the  Sheriff  of  Sacramento  county,  trying  to  enforce 
them,  brought  on  a  conflict,  in  which  the  Sheriff 
was  killed  with  six  of  his  deputies  and  several  of 
the  "squatters."  Some  of  the  wounded  squatters 
were  brought  to  Hangtown,  as  they  were  con- 
sidered safer  up  there  than  in  Sacramento.  The 
miners  generally  sympathized  with  them.  One 
Sunday,  in  the  forenoon,  word  came  to  Hangtown 
that  the  Sheriff  and  a  posse  of  thirty  men  were  on 
their  way  from  Sacramento  to  arrest  and  take  to 
Sacramento  the  wounded  "squatters"  for  trial  for 
murder  and  riot.  It  being.  Sunday,  the  miners 
were  all  in  town,  together  with  the  newly-arrived 
emigrants  ;  there  were  at  least  two  thousand  men 
on  hand.  A  public  meeting  was  called,  which 
was  addressed  by  some  of  the  leading  "squatters." 
Resolutions  were  passed  that  no  "squatter"  should 
be  taken  from  Hangtown  by  the  Sheriff  and  his 
posse.  Between  12  and  1  o'clock  the  Sheriff  and 
his  men  made  their  apj)earance,  coming  over  the 
brow  of  the  hill  looking  down  on  Hangtown,  each 
man  armed  with  a  rifle  and  revolvers.  In  the 
streets  of  Hangtown  and  on  the  outskirts  were  five 
or  six  hundred  men  armed  in  like  manner,  as  fully 
determined    that    the    officers    should    make    no 


DESCRIPTION   OF   HANGTOWN.  67 

arrests  of  any  of  the  "squatters"  who  had  sought 
their  protection.  Tlie  Sheriff  and  his  posse  were 
met  just  before  entering  the  town  by  a  connnittee, 
who  informed  them  of  the  state  of  affairs  and  of 
the  resolution  passed  a  couple  of  hours  previous. 
The  Sheriff  being  a  man  of  cool  head,  and  having 
his  j)redecessor's  fate  before  him,  wisely  concluded 
not  to  attempt  to  make  any  arrests,  but  was 
allowed  to  come  quietly  into  town,  take  all  the 
refreshments  themselves  and  horses  wanted,  which 
they  did,  and,  on  leaving,  was  informed  never 
again  to  visit  Hangtown  on  such  an  errand,  which 
advice  I  firmly  believe  he  took  and  adhered  to. 
During  nearly  thirty-eight  years  of  life  on  the 
Pacific  Coast  I  never  have  seen  a  day  that  bade 
fairer  for  a  day  of  blood  than  that  Sunday  morning 
in  the  summer  of  1850.  But,  thanks  to  an  over- 
ruling Providence  and  the  cool  heads  and  good 
judgment  of  the  Sheriff  and  the  leaders  on  the 
other  side,  the  calamity  was  avoided,  and  the 
history  of  the  State  had  not  to  record  one  more 
bloody  affair. 


PTOIirEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  VL 

Mining  Experiences. 

First  experience  in  mining.— The  frightened  Chinaman.— Foreigners^ 
mining  license. — A  foreigner  from  Pike.— Helping  the  "under  dog" 
in  a  fight. — Fighting  Sheriffs. — Hunting  for  new  diggings. — The  ants 
and  the  "  graybacks."— Georgetown. — Missouri  gulch. 

Every  emigrant  had  to  try  his  hand  at  mining* 
and  expected  to  be  one  of  the  lucky  ones  ;  and  I 
was  no  exception  to  the  rule.  I  was  offered  ten 
dollars  per  day  to  work  at  my  trade,  but  T  wouldn't 
look  at  that  amount — it  was  too  small.  So  myself 
and  another  man,  Godfrey  HofFmaster,  formed  a 
partnership  and  went  to  mining.  We  put  our 
capital  together  and  purchased  a  mining  outfit, 
which  consisted  of  one  rocker,  one  dipper,  two 
buckets  to  carry  the  dirt  in,  two  shovels,  one  pick 
and  one  pan.  Our  kitchen  was  composed  of  one 
fry  pan,  one  coffee  pot,  two  tin  cups  and  two  tin 
plates.  The  whole  outfit  cost  us  fifty-one  dollars 
and  fifty  cents,  and  "  broke"  both  of  us.  But  what 
did  we  care  for  that?  Getting  a  week's  provisions 
on  credit,  we  started  down  Hangtown  Creek 
looking  for  a  claim. 


MINING     EXPERIENCES.  69 

About  a  mile  below  town  we  found  two  fellows 
washing.     During  conversation  tliey  pointed  to  a 
claim  or  vacant  piece  of  ground  a  short  distance 
from  them,  which  they  thought  would  pay.     They 
were   right  good  fellows.     They  instructed  us  in 
the  way  of  setting  our  rockers,  so   as  to  save  the 
fine    gold,    and    other   mysteries    of    getting    the 
precious  metal  extracted  from  the  gravel.     Hang- 
town    Creek   was   considered   to    be     among    the 
richest  of  the  diggings  then  discovered,  but  it  had 
been  vacated  by  the  miners  for  the  river  diggings 
and  the  lower  bars  of  the  American  River,  which 
left  a  good  show  for  the   newly-arrived  emigrants. 
We   staked  out  our  claim — it  was  then   law  that 
no  miner  should  hold  more  than  thirty  feet  square — 
and   commenced    business.     Our    first   work  was 
stripping   off  the   top   dirt  about  four  feet  deep, 
when  we  came  to  gravel  or  pay  dirt.     This  gravel 
was  about  one  foot  or  fifteen  inches  from  the  bed- 
rock, and   we  had   to   carry  it    in  buckets  to  the 
cradle,  which  was  set  on  the  edge  of  a  water-hole  in 
the    main    creek,    about    twenty    yards   from    our 
claim.     The  bed  of  the  creek  was  dry,  except  that 
a  few  water-holes  were  yet  standing  in  low  places. 
The  first    day   we    washed    up    about   twenty- five 
dollars  out  of  one  hundred  buckets  of  gravel.     We 
worked  here  for   a    couple    of    weeks,   averaging 
about  fifteen  dollars  per  day,  until  the  water  gave 
out,  and  we  were  forced  to  hunt  other  diggings. 

We  moved  to  what  was  known  as  Webber  Creek, 


70  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

where  I  got  my  first  look  at  a  Chinaman.  The 
fellow  was  c(miing  clown  the  creek  with  a  big  broad 
hat  on,  dressed  in  what  seemed  to  me  to  be 
women's  clothes,  with  a  bamboo  pole  on  his 
shoulders  with  two  great  bundles  at  each  end.  I 
told  my  partner  I  was  going  to  see  that  Chinaman, 
and  getting  out  of  the  claim  I  halted  "John,"  to 
give  him  a  thorough  examination.  He  commenced 
begging,  saying  he  had  no  money. 

"Me  velly  poo'  Chinaman — no  muchee  dust.'' 

At  the  same  time  he  pulled  out  a  bag  of  dust, 
which  he  offered  to  give  me  if  I  would  let  him  go. 
I  told  him  that  I  did  not  want  to  rob  him,  but  to 
look  at  him.  After  a  while  he  began  to  comj)re- 
liend  what  I  wanted,  and  pulled  down  his  queue, 
showed  me  his  bundle,  and  gave  me  some  China 
tea,  and  I  gave  him  his  dinner,  after  which  we 
parted  "velly  good  fiends."  While  I  worked  there 
"John"  would  make  us  a  call  whenever  he  passed 
that  wav. 

At  that  time  all  foreigners  had  to  pay  a  license 
of  twenty  dollars  'peA'  month  for  working  in  the 
mines.  One  day  the  Sheriff  hove  in  sight.  I  was 
not  a  fuU-fiedged  American  citizen  at  tliat  time. 
He  came  up  to  us  and  asked  if  there  were  any 
foreigners  in  that  crowd.  I  told  him,  "Yes,  I  am 
a  foreigner.''  He  said  he  wanted  twenty  dollars 
for  mv  miners'  license.  I  told  him  he  would  have 
a  great  time  in  getting  it.     He  told  me  if  I  did  not 


MINING    EXPERIENCES.  71 

pay    it    "damn    quick"    he    would    take    ine    to 
Hana^towM. 

"  Where  are  you  from '?"  he  asked. 

"  Prom  Pike  county,  Missouri,"  said  I. 

"You're  a  damn  fool — that's  in  the  United 
States." 

I  looked  at  him  with  all  the  appearance  of 
innocence  I  could  command  and  asked  him  if  it 
ivas  in  the  United  States.  He  turned  from  me  in 
disgust.     Then  I  said  to  him: 

"Your  name  is  Bill  Kogers,  is  it  nof?" 

"Yes." 

"  Don't  you  remember  one  night  in  the  winter  of 
'49,  when  two  fellows  had  you  cornered  in  the 
Planters'  House  in  Peoria,  and  a  fellow  helped  you 
outr' 

"Yes;  I  remember  very  well." 

"Yes;  well,  I  was  that  fellow." 

"  The  d — 1  you  were  !" 

About  that  time  he  got  hold  of  my  hands  and 
gave  them  a  warm  embrace.  I  had  to  sit  down 
and  tell  him  all  the  news  from  Peoria  and  the  East 
in  general.  When  I  was  leaving  he  asked  how  I 
was  off  for  money.  He  put  his  hand  in  his 
pocket  and  drew  out  four  or  five  Mexican  ounces 
and  wanted  me  to  take  them,  but  I  told  him  I  was 
in  no  need  of  money  at  that  time,  but  if  I  got 
"broke"  I  would  call  on  him.  I  never  was  called 
on  to  pay  mining  license  after  that  while  I  was  in 
El  Dorado  county. 


72  •  PIONEEK   DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

I  will  explain  how  I  came  to  help  old  Bill  out. 
One  night,  after  work  was  over  in  the  shop,  I  was 
knocking  about  the  city,  when  I  went  into  the  bar- 
room of  the  Planters'  House  to  take  a  drink  with 
the  man  that  was  with  me.  There  were  three 
fellows  quarreling  in  one  corner  of  the  room — two 
of  them  after  the  third.  1  alwa}  s  had  a  weakness 
for  helping  the  "under-dog."  I  looked  on  for  a 
minute  or  so,  and  saw  they  were  likely  to  get  the 
best  of  the  fellow,  and  without  thinking  what  the 
consequences  might  be,  made  for  the  corner, 
"whaled  away"  at  one  fellow,  and  laid  him  out. 
About  that  time  I  thought  my  room  would  be 
better  than  my  company,  and  so  made  a  retreat  in 
good  order  for  the  shop.  The  fellow  whom  they 
had  in  the  corner  was  Bill  Rogers,  who,  the  next 
year,  became  Sheriff  of  El  Dorado  county,  Cali- 
fornia. Rogers  told  me  that  until  that  day  on 
Webber  Creek  he  never  knew  who  it  was  that 
helped  him  out  of  that  scrape. 

This  sketch  would  not  be  complete  without 
saying  a  few  words  more  about  Rogers.  Along 
in  what  were  called  the  "flush  times"  (eai'ly  in 
the  forties),  the  Southwest,  and  the  Mississijipi 
River  in  particular,  was  infested  with  a  lot  of 
gamblers  and  desperadoes  who  terrorized  the 
country.  They  were  aboard  of  every  steamer, 
plying  their  calling,  and  would  often  gather  in  the 
towns  along  the  river  and  run  them  to  suit  them- 
selves.    The  people  of  Natchez  formed  themselves 


MINING    EXPERIENCES.  73 

into  a  vigilance  committee  to  drive  them  out  and 
protect  themselves.  The  day  was  set  and  they 
stood  fight.  Several  on  both  sides  were  killed,  and 
the  rest  of  the  gamblers  were  driven  into  the 
Mississippi  River.  Bill  Rogers  was  one  of  them. 
He  swam  the  Mississippi  River  at  Natchez  and  got 
away.  He  rambled  around  the  Mississijipi  River 
and  the  South  generally,  until  gold  was  discovered 
in  California,  when  he  caine  to  this  country,  where 
hundreds  of  the  same  sort  of  men  came.  From 
tliis  class  were  made  many  of  the  early  sheriffs  of 
California.  They  and  what  were  known  as  Texas 
Rangers  furnished  nine-tenths  of  the  sheriff's  of 
California  of  early  days,  and  most  of  them  made 
good  ofiicers.  It  was  generally  supposed  that  the 
main  qualification  for  a  sherijBf  was  to  be  a  fighting 
man.  There  was  plenty  of  material  to  choose 
from.  Rogers  served  his  time  out  as  Sherifif  of  El 
Dorado,  and  a  year  or  two  afterwards,  when  the}^ 
had  an  Indian  war  in  that  portion  of  the  State,  he 
was  appointed  to  command  the  troops  raised  for 
the  purpose  of  j)utting  down  the  Indians.  After- 
wards several  bills  were  introduced  in  the  Legis- 
lature to  indemnify  him  for  his  services,  but 
whether  he  got  any  of  them  through  or  not  I  have 
forgotten.  I  saw  a  notice  of  his  death  several 
years  afterwards,  the  old  man  dying  in  poverty. 
Few  men  of  his  day  saw  niore  startling  events  or 
had  more  narrow  escapes  than  old  Rogers.  Peace 
to  his  ashes. 


74  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Bat  let  us  return  to  the  diggings. 

Webber  didn't  pay  us  very  well,  and  we  picked 
up  our  "traps"  and  started  to  hunt  better  diggings. 
We   made   Georgetown    our  objective    point,    and 
started  with  our  mining  tools  and  camp  furniture 
on  our  backs,  we  having  not  yet  risen  to  the  dignity 
of  having  a  mule  or  a  jack  upon  which  to  pack  our 
worldly  goods.     Ooloma  lay  on  our  road.   We  took 
in  the  sights  in  that  burg,  and  tlien  proceeded  across 
the  American  River  and  up  a  pretty  tall  mountain 
— with   the  load  we  had  to  pack  it  seemed  to  me  a 
very  tall  one  before  we  reached  the  top.     Travel- 
ing along  on    the  mountain  we  came   to    a   level 
place,  where  we  saw  two   men  sitting  under  a  big- 
oak  tree.     They  had  no  shirts  on,  and  seemed  to  be 
busily  engaged.     We   wanted  a   rest,  and  went  to 
them.     In  those  days  men  needed  no  introduction 
— all  was  free  and  easy.     We  did  not   stand  on 
ceremony,  but  went  to  see  what  they  were   doing, 
and  found    them    engaged    in  a  very  interesting 
game.     Their  shirts  were  spread  out   near  a  large 
ant-hill,  and  each  man  had  several  Mexican  dollars 
in   front   of   him    and   was   betting   on   the   ants. 
Their  shirts  were  pretty  well  covered  with  vermin, 
and  each  ant  running  over  the  shirts  would  seize 
a  "grayback''  and  make  for  the  ant-hill   with  it. 
The  betting  was  as  to  which  ant  would  get  to  the 
ant-hill  first  with  his   "gray back."     They   wanted 
us  to  join  the  game,  but  we  respectfully  declined, 
not  being  expert  in  the  racing  qualities  of  Cali- 


MINING     EXPERIENCES.  75 

lornia  ants.  But  the  experience  we  gained  proved 
very  useful  to  us  in  after  days.  The  ant-liill  was 
often  resorted  to  when  "gray backs"  became  too 
plentiful  in  camp. 

We  reached  Georgetown,  and  were  directed  to  a 
place  where  we  would  find  good  diggings — Oregon 
gulch,  or  Missouri  gulch — by  the  storekeeper. 
Storekeepers  generally  were  supposed  to  know 
where  the  good  diggings  were,  and,  if  they  didn't 
know,  they  would  try  to  make  you  believe  they  did. 
We  went  to  Missouri  gulch  and  pitched  our  camp. 
We  got  a  good  prospect  and  built  a  brush  tent 
and  commenced  operations,  but  were  not  very  suc- 
cessful. A  beavy  rain  coming  on  our  brush  tent 
would  not  turn  the  water  very  well,  which  made 
tilings  very  uncomfortable.  The  winter  was  now 
close  at  band — or  rather,  we  thought  so.  We  made 
up  our  minds  to  go  back  to  Hangtown,  build  a 
cabin  and  winter  there.  We  started  back  with  the 
same  load  of  "traps"  on  our  backs,  none  the  better 
oJEf  financially. 


76  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Departure  for  Sacramento. 

Return  to  Hangtown. — Departure  for  Sacramento. — The  miners'  hard 
hfe. — Sleeping  on  a  feather  bed. — Sights  and  experiences  in  Sacra- 
mento.— Thieves,  "Sydney  Ducks,"  and  gamblers. — Stolen  potatoes. 
— On  trial  for  larceny. 

Arriving  at  Hangtown  I  found  Dave  Young 
there  looking  for  nie.  He  had  been  at  Sacramento 
and  sold  the  wagon  for  three  hundred  dollars ;  that 
was  two  hundred  more  than  it  cost  in  Peoria.  It 
was  a  spring  wagon,  and  was  afterwards  used  as  a 
stage  between  Sacramento  and  Marysville.  He 
sold  our  big-footed  horse  with  one  of  the  mules  for 
a  good  figure,  and  kept  two  of  the  mules  for  family 
use.  He  wanted  me  to  go  with  him  to  the  southern 
mines  to  winter,  and  I  agreed  to  do  so.  I  sold  my 
interest  in  the  mining  outfit  to  my  partner,  and 
bade  good-bye  to  Hangtown, and  I  have  not  seen  it 
since. 

I  had  "fooled  around"  for  nearly  two  months, 
worked  hard  and  made  nothing  at  mining.  It  was 
not  tlie  fault  of  the  mines — the  fault  lay  with  my- 
self. I  did  not  know  how  to  take  advantage  of 
things.      Everything  was  new  to  me,  and    I  ex- 


DEPARTURE  FOR  SACRAMENTO. 


pected  too  iniicb.  My  case  was  that  of  thousands 
of  others.  Mining  in  those  days  was  yet  in  its 
infancy,  and  the  lot  of  a  miner  was  a  hard  one. 
With  no  settled  abode,  he  packed  his  traps  on  his 
back  from  one  gulch  to  another,  some  times  a  long 
distance,  taking  days  to  make  the  trip.  Then  his 
mode  of  living  was  hard.  The  country  afforded 
few  of  the  necessaries  of  life  and  none  of  the  lux- 
uries. The  "everlasting  slap-jack''  and  rancid 
bacon,  with  black  coffee,  and  sugar  imported  from 
China  in  mats,  with  a  few  beans  thrown  in,  was 
generally  the  miner's  bill  of  fare,  and  that,  too, 
cooked  by  themselves  in  no  very  stylish  manner. 
Sunday  was  generally  occupied  in  washing  shirts, 
socks,  etc.,  and  cooking  for  the  remainder  of  the 
week.  Some  of  the  boys  would  go  to  town  or  the 
trading  post  and  lay  in  whatever  stores  were  want- 
ing for  camp.  There  were  no  vegetables  of  any 
description  to  be  had  in  the  mines.  This  was  be- 
fore the  era  of  canned  goods.  The  only  fruit  we 
could  get  was  dried  apples  and  peaches,  and  these 
were  generally  composed  of  fruit  and  worms  in 
equal  proportions. 

I  started  for  Sacramento  City,  with  my  blankets 
on  my  back.  At  Greenwood  Valley  the  polls  were 
open,  it  being  election  day.  I  cast  my  first  vote 
there,  no  registry  laws  being  in  force  at  that  time, 
and  everybody  voted.  I  picked  up  a  Whig  ticket 
and  voted  it.  One  of  the  judges  arose  from  his 
seat  and  took  me  bv  the  hand  and  asked  where  I 


PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


was  from.  He  said  he  was  afraid  his  ticket  would 
be  alone  in  the  box,  as  I  was  the  second  Whig  who 
had  voted  that  day.  After  voting  I  shouldered 
niv  bed  and  started.  A  teamster  overtook  me  on 
the  road,  and  I  gave  him  five  dollars  to  let  me  ride 
in  his  wagon  to  the  Fourteen-Mile  House,  where 
I  wanted  to  stay  over  night,  as  the  Fourteen -Mile 
House  was  kept  by  an  old  man  and  his  wife  from 
Peoria,  with  whom  I  was  some  acquainted  when  in 
that  city.  We  arrived  in  due  time,  and  I  gave  the 
old  folks  a  short  history  of  their  friends  in  Peoria. 
They  were  glad  to  see  me,  and,  when  night  came 
on,  they  would  not  think  of  letting  me  sleep  in  my 
blankets,  but  gave  me  the  spare  room,  with  a 
feather  bed  in  it.  I  thought  I  had  struck  a  "  soft 
thing,"  but  it  was  too  soft  altogether  for  me.  I  lay 
and  rolled  all  over  the  feathers,  but  not  a  bit  of 
sleep  could  I  get  until  about  daylight,  when  I 
turned  out,  unrolled  my  blankets  and  lay  down  on 
the  floor,  and  in  a  jiffy  I  was  fast  asleej),  and  did 
not  wake  until  the  landlord  came,  about  9  o'clock, 
to  see  what  was  the  matter  with  me.  I  told  the  old 
lady  that  when  I  called  again,  I  hoped  she  would 
not  put  me  in  her  feather  bed. 

On  my  way  from  the  Fourteen -Mile  House  I 
overtook  a  fellow  who,  like  myself,  was  on  his  way 
to  Sacramento.  We  traveled  together  until  we  got 
to  the  city,  where  we  found  a  lodging-house. 
When  shown  to  our  room,  to  leave  our  blankets, 
we  found  it  was  "some"  of  a  room.     There  were 


DEPARTURE    FOR    SACRAMENTO.  79 

about  seventy-five  or  eighty  bunks  in  it,  built  in 
the  shape  of  berths  in  the  hold  of  an  emigrant 
ship,  three  tiers  deep,  with  a  straw  mattress  on 
each  bunk;  the  guest  had  to  furnish  the  balance  of 
the  outfit  or  go  without.  Eor  this  we  had  to  pay 
one  doHar  per  night,  with  "gray backs''  thrown  in. 
After  leaving  our  blankets  on  our  bunks,  we 
thought  we  would  take  in  the  city  and  see  the 
sights,  and  soon  were  on  J  street,  then  the  principal 
business  street  of  Sacramento  City.  In  front  of 
one  of  the  gambling-houses  was  a  young  fellow 
dealing  three-card  monte.  We  halted  for  a  few 
minutes  to  see  the  game.  The  fellow  who  was 
dealing  gave  the  cards  a  shufile,  and  invited  us  to 
make  a  bet.  My  traveling  companion  marked  one 
of  the  cards,  and  whisi)ered  to  me  that  he  had  the 
"deadwood  "  on  it.  I  advised  him  not  to  do  it,  but 
he  would  try  his  luck,  consequently  he  pulled  his 
dust.  The  gambler  weighed  it  and  found  three 
ounces  in  it,  and  placing  three  Mexican  onzas  on 
top  of  the  bag  of  dust,  told  the  "sucker"  to  turn 
up  the  card.  The  latter  turned  up  his  marked 
card,  but  instead  of  the  queen  he  had  marked  there 
was  a  jack  in  her  place.  The  fellow  made  a  grab 
for  the  coin  and  dust,  and  getting  them,  he  broke 
like  a  quarter-horse  up  J  street,  the  gambler  after 
him.  The  gambler  grabbed  his  pistol  and  fired 
one  shot  without  effect,  but  he  dared  not  shoot  any 
more  at  him  for  fear  of  shooting  somebody  else.  I 
stayed  by  the  table  until  he  got  back.  In  his  hurry 


80  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

to  ^et  a  shot  at  "greeny"  he  liadleft  his  bag  of  onzas 
on  the  table  with  the  cards.  When  he  came  back 
he  said  to  me:  "  —  you,  you  are  his  partner;  I  will 
blow  the  top  of  your  head  off;  that  it  was  a  put-uj) 
job."  I  said,  "  If  it  was  a  put-up  job,  look  to  your 
purse.  If  it  was  a  j)ut-up  job  I  would  have  taken 
your  purse  while  you  were  gone  and  have  run 
away,  which  you  see  I  did  not  do,  but  guarded  it 
faithfully,  and  you  would  blow  the  top  of  my  head 
off  for  that,  would  you^'  The  fellow  thought  a 
moment  and  said,  ''  You  are  right.''  He  then  told 
me  that  if  I  would  find  the  fellow  he  would  give 
me  the  six  onzas.  I  told  him  I  was  not  in  the 
detective  business  at  that  time,  and  left. 

Sacramento  at  that  time  was  not  a  very  large 
I)lace,  the  principal  business  being  done  on  tw^o 
streets,  J  and  K,  out  to  Eighth  street.  The  gamb- 
ling-houses were  the  best  buildings  in  the  city,  and 
were  crowded  day  and  night.  The  most  of  them 
employed  bands  of  music  and  other  devices,  where- 
by they  might  attract  attention.  Thousands  of 
dollars  changed  hands  every  day  and  night  at  these 
gilded  palaces.  The  mercantile  houses  were  gener- 
ally one-story  frame  or  iron  houses,  imported  from 
the  East.  The  amount  of  business  done  in  Sacra- 
mento at  that  time  was  immense,  the  streets  from 
early  morning  until  night  being  full  of  great 
wagons  and  pack  trains  loading  goods  for  themines. 
Everything  was  bustle  and  excitement.  All  sorts 
of  labor  was  high  and  in  demand,  more  especially 


DEPARTURE  FOR  SACRAMENTO.  81 

builders.  Any  man  that  could  saw  a  board  off 
would  get  ten  or  twelve  dollars  a  day.  The  old  horse- 
market  on  Sixth  and  K  streets  at  that  time  was  a 
place  of  much  attraction,  everything  in  the  shape 
of  wagons,  horses,  mules  and  oxen  being  sold.  The 
newly-arrived  emigrant  generally  went  there  to  dis- 
pose of  his  outfit.  It  was  a  perfect  Babel,  and  the 
resort  of  thieves  and  pickpockets  generally.  If  a 
man  bought  an  animal  at  their  sales  he  was  in 
luck  if  he  got  him  one  block  from  where  he  pur- 
chased him  before  a  gang  of  scoundrels  would 
prove  it  away  from  him.  They  were  organized  in 
gangs,  and  one  of  them  would  seize  the  halter  by 
which  you  were  leading  your  animal,  commence 
cursing  you  for  a  thief,  stating  you  had  stolen  that 
animal  from  him,  and  he  would  have  it  or  blow  the 
top  of  your  head  off.  You  were  generally  taken 
before  an  alcalde,  as  the  magistrates  were  then  called, 
and  you  were  in  luck  if  your  animal  was  not 
proven  away  from  you  by  the  gang.  Sometimes 
they  caught  a  Tartar.  Dave  Young  and  myself 
one  day  were  leading  two  of  the  mules  through  the 
horse-market  when  one  of  the  gang  stepped  up  to 
Dave  and  asked  him  where  he  got  those  mules  ? 
Dave  told  him  it  was  none  of  his  business  where  he 
got  them.  The  fellow  claimed  them  as  his,  and 
said  they  were  stolen  from  him  about  a  week  ago, 
and  he  was  going  to  have  them.  Seizing  the  halter, 
Dave  in  a  moment  covered  him  with  his  revolver, 
and  told  him  to  let  go  that  rope  immediately,  or 


82  PIONEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFOENIA. 

there  would  be  one  less  thief  in  Sacramento.  The 
fellow  let  go  very  quickly.  A  constable  brought 
us  before  the  alcalde,  and  Dave  showed  his  bill  of 
sale  from  Major  Ogden  of  the  mules  purchased  at 
Port  Leavenworth  that  spring.  They  were  two  of 
the  mules  we  brought  across  the  j)lains. 

Dave  Young,  myself  and  two  others  agreed  to  go 
to  the  middle  mines  to  winter.  We  bought  a  tent 
and  pitched  it  about  where  L  street  is  now,  in 
order  to  have  time  to  fit  out  and  lay  in  our  sup- 
plies for  the  winter.  The  rainy  season  or  winter 
was  generallv  dreaded  bv  the  miners.  The  winter 
of  '49  was  a  very  severe  one,  and  many  miners  suf- 
fered in  consequence  of  not  having  made  proper 
arrangements,  such  as  building  cabins  and  laying 
in  supplies  before  tlie  rain  commenced.  We  re- 
mained in  the  city  some  two  weeks.  During  that 
time  two  of  us  generally  stayed  in  camp,  and  the 
other  two  attended  to  business  and  took  in  the 
sights.  It  was  necessary  to  guard  the  camp,  as  the 
city  was  full  of  thieves.  Australia  had  sent  us 
hundreds  of  her  light-fingered  gentry,  and  San 
Erancisco  had  driven  them  out  to  prey  upon  the 
balance  of  the  State.  They  were  called  "  Sidney 
Ducks."  With  them  and  some  of  our  own  dead 
beats  you  had  to  keej)  a  sharp  lookout.  At  night 
the  gambling-houses  were  crowded,  with  bands  of 
music  playing,  tables  loaded  with  gold  and  silver, 
bars  fitted  up  in  most  elegant  style  with  liquor  of 
the  choicest  brands  and  everything  that  ingenuity 


DEPARTURE  FOR  SACRAMENTO.  83 

could  invent  to  make  the  gilded  parlors  attractive. 
Xo  money  was  spared;  each  one  tried  to  outdo  the 
other  in  the  splendor  of  his  establishment.  Erom 
dark  until  the  early  hours  of  the  morning  these 
houses  were  crowded.  Men  who  afterwards  be- 
came the  rulers  of  the  State,  both  executive  and 
judicial,  were  either  dealers  or  patrons  of  their 
tables.  Men  seemed  to  live  only  for  the  present — 
all  was  excitement.  Many  a  miner  with  a  purse 
well-filled  with  his  hard  earnings  in  the  mines,  was 
sunk  in  those  gilded  hells,  and  not  only  the  miners, 
but  merchants,  mechanics,  and  all  classes  of  man- 
kind, seemed  to  be  carried  away  with  the  mania 
for  gambling. 

Many  an  amusing  incident  took  place  in  and 
around  the  city  in  those  earl}"  days.  We  had  a 
young  fellow  in  our  tent  by  the  name  of  A.  H. 
Wills,  or  Doc  Wills,  as  we  were  in  the  habit  of 
calling  him.  Doc  was  as  honest  and  good-natured 
a  fellow  as  ever  lived,  but  not  very  sharj).  One 
night,  after  paying  our  respects  to  the  gambling- 
houses,  we  were  attracted  to  an  auction-house,  on 
J  street,  and  we  went  in  to  see  what  was  going  on. 
The  auctioneer  was  busy  in  selling  goods.  We 
leaned  against  an  open  barrel  of  potatoes  standing 
in  the  room,  and  I  picked  up  a  big  "spud"  and 
slipped  it  into  Doc's  big  Missouri-coat  pocket.  I 
thought  he  would  notice  it,  but  he  did  not.  I  then 
stepped  on  the  other  side  of  him  and  put  in  two 
more   potatoes,  got   back  to  the   first  pocket  and 


84  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

put  in  another,  expecting  he  would  discover  them 
and  jjive  me  the  usual  cursing.  Presently  we 
started  for  camp  and  went  to  bed,  Next  morning 
it  was  Doc's  turn  to  get  up  and  cook  breakfast.  I 
woke  him  and  told  him  to  get  up  and  cook  the 
potatoes  he  had. 

"  Potatoes,''  he  exclaiuied,  "  where  would  I  get 
potatoes  ?  " 

"  O,  the  potatoes  you  stole  from  Starr's  auction - 
rooms  last  night." 

''I  didn't  steal  any  potatoes,"  said  he. 

"Yes  you  did,"  said  I,  j)alling  the  coat  from 
under  his  head  and  taking  the  potatoes  out  of  his 
pockets,  "  do  you  see  these  f 

"  Yes  !  This  is  one  of  your  d — d  tricks,"  said  he, 
and  then  he  gave  me  one  of  the  warmest  "  blessings" 
T  ever  received.  He  would  not  cook  the  potatoes, 
but  while  we  were  snarling  over  it,  Dave  Young 
had  the  potatoes  cooking,  and  we  made  a  jolly  good 
breakfast.  They  were  the  first  i)otatoes  we  had 
had  since  leaving  Salt  Lake.  They  say  stolen  fruit 
tastes  the  sweetest,  but  I  can  vouch  for  the  stolen 
potatoes  tasting  good. 

Several  years  after  I  |3aid  dearly  for  those  four 
potatoes.  I  was  on  my  way  from  Weaverville  to 
San  Francisco.  When  on  board  of  the  steamer  be- 
tween Colusa  and  the  city  I  met  a  friend  of  mine 
by  the  name  of  John  Smith.  He  was  a  large  ditch 
owner  in  Shasta  county.  He  introduced  me  to 
friends  of  his — W.  E.  Ealston  and  J.  B.  Starr.     I 


DEPARTURE    FOR    SACRAMENTO.  85 

asked  Mr.  Starr  if  lie  was  the  f^entleman  that  was 
in  the  auction  business  on  J  street  in  1850.  He 
said  he  was  the  same  individual.  I  then  told  him 
of  my  joke  on  Doc  Wills,  and  Mr.  Starr  thought  I 
was  indebted  to  him  for  four  potatoes  and  tlie 
interest  thereon  up  to  date.  Ralston,  looking  at 
Starr  and  giving  him  a  wink,  said  : 

"Mr.  Starr,  you  have  no  right  to  settle  with  him 
in  that  way — that  would  be  compounding  a  felony. 
He  must  have  a  trial." 

They  then  organized  a  court  in  the  saloon  of  the 
steamer,  appointed  the  captain  marshal  and  Ral- 
ston judge,  and  proceeded  with  the  trial.  They 
examined  the  witness  who  heard  me  make  the  con- 
fession. When  it  came  to  my  turn  I  i^leaded  au- 
thority— want  of  potatoes — a  joke,  and  ever}^  other 
plea  I  could  think  of.  But  it  was  in  vain,  they 
were  bound  to  iind  me  guilty.  When  asked  what 
I  had  to  say  why  the  sentence  of  the  court  should 
not  be  passed  on  me,  I  told  the  Judge  to  crack  his 
whip  and  go  ahead — I  had  my  share  of  those  po- 
tatoes and  he  could  not  get  them  away  from  me. 
The  sentence  of  the  court  was  that  should  be 
fined  one  dozen  bottles  of  the  best  wine  on  board, 
and  if  not  paid  I  was  to  be  confined  to  my  room 
and  receive  nothing  to  eat  but  potatoes  during  the 
remainder  of  the  trip.  I  paid  the  fine,  and  all 
hands  made  a  night  of  it.  So  ended  my  potato 
scrape. 


86  PIONEEE    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

Drifting  About. 

Cholera. — Departure  for  Calaveras. — Life  in  a  cabin. — A  remedy  worse 
than  the  disease. — Excitement  over  the  Gold  Bluff  mines. — Off 
for  'Frisco. — Frightened  by  a  woman. — San  Francisco  in  '50. 

We  were  anxious  to  get  away  from  Sacramento, 
as  the  cholera  had  visited  the  city,  and  people  were 
dying  at  the  rate  of  from  ten  to  twenty  a  day.  We 
purchased  a  light  wagon,  and  left  for  what  was 
called  "the  middle  diggings,"  our  objective  point 
being  Jackson,  then  in  Calaveras  county.  Goods 
"  cost  money  "  in  those  days.  I  paid  thirty  dollars 
for  a  pair  of  cowhide  boots  to  mine  in — rubber 
boots  were  not  yet  introduced  in  Calif (u-nia.  All 
other  clothing  was  proportionately  dear.  We 
packed  our  wagon  and  started  for  Jackson,  and  on 
the  third  day  arrived  at  the  little  town  of  Amador, 
where  there  were  said  to  be  good  diggings.  When 
the  rains  set  in  we  prospected  for  a  day  or  two, 
and,  finding  nothing  that  suited  us,  we  struck  out 
for  Sutter  creek,  about  four  miles  south  of  Amador. 
Sutter  creek  we  found  a  beautiful  clear  stream,  and 
but  very  little  mining  being  done  on  it.  The  cele- 
brated Volcano  diggings  were  on  the  head  of  the 


DRIFTING     ABOUT.  87 

creek,  and  a  mining  camp  called  Grass  Valley. 
We  prospected  Sutter  creek  and  found  sufficient 
prospects  to  induce  us  to  give  the  place  a  trial.  Our 
first  operation  was  to  build  a  cabin  for  the  winter, 
which  we  began  to  do  immediately,  as  it  was 
threatening  rain,  and  there  was  no  time  to  lose. 
Our  cabin  was  built  of  logs  and  had  a  shake  roof — 
one  log  high  on  the  upper  side  and  two  logs  high  on 
the  lower  side.  When  leveled  off  inside  it  was 
high  enough.  This  was  the  first  house  I  ever  saw 
built  without  the  use  of  nails  or  of  anything  in  the 
shape  of  iron.  The  chimney  was  built  of  mud  and 
sticks,  the  holes  chinked  with  wood  and  plastered 
with  mud,  and,  when  it  was  completed,  we  were 
very  proud  of  our  work  and  had  a  comfortable  and 
stylish  residence.  Our  bed-room  set  was  composed 
of  sticks,  or  posts,  driven  into  the  floor,  and  shakes 
nailed  on  them.  Our  mattresses  were  pine  leaves 
spread  on  top  of  the  shakes,  and  our  blankets  on 
top  of  them;  our  dining  table  was  made  similarly 
to  our  bedstead  ;  our  chairs  were  made  out  of  slabs, 
with  three  legs  in  them,  and  were  commonly  called 
three-legged  stools.  I  believe  this  inventory  com- 
prises all  our  household  furniture.  We  completed 
our  structure  on  Saturday,  and,  before  moving,  we 
thought  we  would  clean  up.  The  next  day  being 
Sunday,  was  devoted  to  a  general  boiling  of  our 
clothes  to  get  clear  of  our  "graybacks,"  so  as  not 
to  take  them  into  our  cabin.  I  had  read,  or  was 
told,  that  boiling  your   underclothing  in    tobacco 


PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


water  was  certain  death  to  all  sorts  of  vermin,  and 
"graybaoks"  in  particular.  We  had  plenty  of 
tobacco  in  camp,  and  I  thought  I  would  try  the 
experiment  on  mine.  After  breakfast  I  started 
into  the  laundry  business  by  making  a  fire  close 
to  a  small  brook  that  ran  near  our  cabin, 
getting  the  camp-kettle  on  the  fire  and  put- 
ting my  shirt  into  it  with  the  requisite  amount 
of  water  and  a  good-sized  plug  of  tobacco.  Soon  I 
had  my  "gray backs"  in  a  warm  place.  I  looked 
on  it  with  a  good  deal  of  satisfaction,  thinking,  "  I 
am  getting  even  with  you  fellows  now  for  the 
amount  of  scratching  you  made  me  do  during  your 
sojourn  with  me  as  my  closest  companions."  I 
cooked  them  for  an  hour,  thinking  by  that  time 
they  would  not  annoy  me  any  more,  and  then 
washed  the  clothes  out  in  the  brook,  and  spread 
them  out  to  dry.  As  soon  as  my  shirts  were  sufii- 
ciently  dry,  I  took  a  bath  in  the  brook,  and  put  on 
the  clean  ones.  In  less  than  fifteen  minutes  I  com- 
menced getting  sick — cramps  all  over,  sick  at  the 
stomach,  and  vomiting.  I  thought  my  time  had 
come ;  that  I  had  the  cholera  sure.  I  was  lying 
beside  the  fire  in  all  the  agony  of  what  I  thought 
was  a  first-class  case  of  the  cholera.  Coming 
recently  from  Sacramento,  where  this  dread  disease 
was  doing  its  work  so  eft'ectually,  the  first  thing 
to  come  to  my  mind  was  that  I  liad  caught  it  while 
in  the  city.  Dave  Young  being  in  the  cabin  and 
hearing  me,  came  to  see  what  was  the  matter.  See- 


DRIFTING    ABOUT.  89 

ing  lue  lying  down  he  said  to  me,  "What  ailsyouT' 
I  told  him  as  well  as  I  could  tliat  I  had  the  cliolera 
and  was  going  to  die  sure,  requesting  him  to  see  me 
decently  buried  and  send  what  money  I  had  to  my 
mother,  and  give  her  an  account  of  ni}^  death.  He 
asked  what  I  liad  been  doing,  at  the  same  time 
looking  into  the  camp-kettle  he  saw  the  tobacco  in 
it,  w inch  had  swelled  in  boiling  until  the  kettle  was 
lialf  full  of  tobacco  leaves.  He  said,  "Have  you 
been  boiling  that  shirt  that  you  have  on  in  that 
kettlel"  I  told  him  I  had.  "Cholera  be  d— d  ! 
Take  that  shirt  off  as  soon  as  you  can  get  it  off." 
But  I  was  in  no  condition  to  take  the  shirt  off — I 
was  too  far  gone  for  that ;  but  he  soon  had  it  off,  and 
in  a  few  minutes  after  I  felt  better,  and  by  night  I 
was  all  right,  but  ver}^  weak.  I  firmly  believe  that 
it  would  have  killed  me  inside  of  one  hour  if  I  had 
not  taken  the  shirt  off.  The  tobacco  that  remained 
in  the  cloth  acted  on  the  heart,  stomach  and  bowels 
in  a  fearful  manner,  and  came  very  near  making  an 
angel  of  me.  I  got  rid  of  the  "graybacks,"  but 
the  remedy  was  worse  than  the  disease  ;  I  never 
tried  it  again. 

We  worked  on  the  creek  some  time  before  the 
rains  commenced.  The  fall  of  '50  was  a  very  dry 
season,  and  but  little  was  done — everybody  waiting 
for  rain,  of  which  very  little  came  until  late  in  the 
spring  of  '51. 

Along  in  the  summer  of  '50  the  Gold  Bluff 
mines  were  discovered,  and   the  newspapers  were 


90  PIONEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

full  of  the  wonderful   richness  of  those  beach   dig- 
gings,   where    shiploads    of    black   sand    could  be 
gathered  up  on  the   beach,  of  which  at  least  half 
was  said  to  be  gold.     Those  beach  diggings   were 
said  to  be  situated  between   Trinidad  Bay  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Klamath  River.    Vessels  were  adver- 
tised to  sail  for  tliis  new  El  Dorado  every  day,  and, 
according  to  the  newpaper  accounts,  nothing  like  it 
was  ever  known  since  the  days  of  King  Solomon's 
Ophir.     Besides  the  Gold  Bluffs,  there  were  on  the 
north  the   Trinitv    Biver,  the  Salmon  Biver,  and 
the  Klamath  Biver,  all  represented  to  be  overflow- 
ing with  the  precious  njetal.     There   were  two  old 
gentlemen  from  Arkansas  who  wintered  in  the  next 
cabin  to  us,  who  told  us  that  on  all  the  bars  of  the 
Salmon  and  Klamath  sixteen  dollars  per  day  was 
considered  but  small  pay,  and  that  the  Trinity  Biver 
was  very  rich,  but  very  unhealthy,  owing  to  the  im- 
mense run  of  salmon  up  that  stream  of  which  so 
many  died  the  water  became  bad  and  unhealthy. 
We  thought  we  would  give  the  Trinity  a  wide  berth. 
While  on  Sutter  Greek  I  had  my  first  view  of' a 
California  Digger   Indian.     He  appeared  on   the 
claim  one  day  dressed  in    a  full   suit  of  Adamite 
clothes,   with  the  excei)tion   of  a  fine  beaver  hat, 
shining  as  bright,  to  all  appearances,  as  the  day  it 
came  out  of  its  first  case.   That  Digger  felt  big,  you 
mav  be  sure.     The  claim  which  we   worked  that 
winter  and  abandoned,  if  we  had  had  the  sense  to 
work  it  properly,  was   worth  tens  of  thousands  of 


DRIFTING     ABOUT.  91 

dollars.  There  were  acres  of  ground  that  would 
pay  ten  cents  to  the  bucket.  We  packed  the  gravel 
in  buckets  some  twenty-five  or  thirty  yards  to  the 
water,  and  averaged  ten  dollars  per  day,  but  had 
not  sense  enough  to  bring  the  water  to  the  dirt. 
By  going  up  the  creek  a  mile  or  so  we  could  have 
dug  a  ditch  that  would  have  covered  ten  years' 
diggings.  But  we  never  thought  of  that.  The 
winter  so  far  was  dry,  and  we  became  dissatisfied, 
and,  catching  the  northern  fever,  wanted  to  try  our 
luck  in  the  northern  mines,  or  Gold  Bluffs;  so  one 
fine  day  we  loaded  our  wagon  with  what  plunder 
we  had  and  started  for  Sacramento,  leaving  our 
cabin  and  improvements  all  behind.  Halting  at 
the  town  of  Amador,  Dave  Young  told  me  to  get 
the  bottle  out  of  the  back  end  of  the  wagon,  go  into 
the  store  and  get  it  full  of  whisky.  I  started,  got 
the  bottle  and  went  to  the  store,  and  bolted  in  as 
brave  as  a  sheep.  Behind  the  counter  stood  a 
woman.  I  looked  at  her  a  moment,  and  was  so 
completely  taken  by  surprise  that  I  could  not  say 
a  word,  but  turned  around  and  bolted  from  the 
store  as  if  she  had  been  a  grizzly.  Dave  seeing 
me  come  out  of  the  store  in  a  hurry,  wanted  to 
know  if  I  got  the  whisky.  I  told  him  no.  He 
wanted  to  know  why,  and  I  told  him  there  was  a 
woman  in  there,  and,  if  he  wanted  the  whisky,  he 
would  have  to  get  it  himself.  Dave  was  an  old 
"bach."  He  said,  "I  hope  you  will  always  be  as 
afraid  of  the  women  as  vou  are  now."     I  had  not 


92  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

seen  a  woman  for  six  inoiitlis,  and  not  expecting  to 
see  one  in  there,  I  was  taken  completely  by  sur- 
prise. In  due  time  we  arrived  in  Sacramento,  sold 
our  wagon  and  surplus  "traps,"  sliij)ped  ourselves 
and  males  on  board  a  steamer  for  San  Francisco, 
intending  to  go  up  the  coast  to  the  northern  mines, 
as  it  was  not  considered  safe  to  go  by  land  so  early 
in  the  season.  Arriving  in  San  Francisco,  we  found 
everything  was  on  the  drive,  the  city  over-crowded 
with  peoj^le,  and  hundreds  arriving  daily  from  all 
quarters  of  the  globe.  San  Francisco  in  1850  was 
but  a  small  place,  yet  a  large  city  for  only  two 
years'  growth.  Where  the  principal  wholesale 
business  is  now  done  vessels  and  steamers  sailed 
in  1850. 


OFF    FOR    TRINIDAD    AND     GOLD    BLUFF.  93 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Off  FOR  Trinidad  and  Gold  Bluff. 

Sailing  on  the  "  Minerva  "  for  Trinidad  Bay. — Rough  weather. — A  row 
with  the  negro  cook. — The  bill  of  fare. — Arrival  at  Trinidad. — Off 
for  Salmon  River. 

San  Erancisco  in  '50,  like  Sacramento,  was  com- 
posed principally  of  one-story  buildings,  many  of 
them  shipped  around  Oape  Horn,  some  of  wood 
and  others  of  corrugated  iron.  Rents  were  fabu- 
lously liigTi.  A  good  store  room  would  rent  for 
from  three  to  six  hundred  dollars  j)er  month,  and 
some  even  higher.  Very  little  lumber  or  building 
material  was  to  be  had  in  the  country.  Merchan- 
dise, such  as  was  in  demand  in  the  mines,  was  sold 
at  enormous  profit,  while  thousands  of  dollars' 
worth  of  goods  which  were  shipped  from  different 
points  of  the  world  to  San  Francisco  on  specula- 
tion, but  were  not  in  demand,  were  sacrificed  for 
almost  nothing,  and  storage  was  so  higli  it  would 
not  pay  to  store  them.  I  might  say  millions  of 
property  went  to  destruction  in  that  way  in  the 
early  davs  of  San  Francisco. 

San    Francisco   in   1850   presented  a   miniature 


94  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

view  of  the  world.  There  you  could  see  men  from 
all  parts  of  the  world  in  their  national  costumes,  and 
ships  of  different  nations  of  the  earth  in  port.  The 
plaza  and  surroundings  were  the  most  conspicuous 
part  of  the  city.  It  was  surrounded  with  cfambling- 
houses  which  out-shone  those  of  Sacramento  in  the 
splendor  of  their  equipments  and  attractions  to 
draw  patronage  to  their  tables. 

The  postoffice  was  somewhat  of  an  institution  at 
that  time.  We  had  but  two  mails  a  month  from 
the  Atlantic  States,  and  on  the  arrival  of  each 
steamer  it  would  take  six  or  seven  hours  of  stand- 
ing in  line  before  you  could  get  to  the  office  win- 
dow. Many  men  made  good  wages  by  taking 
their  places  in  the  line,  and  then  selling  out  their 
chances  for  from  five  to  ten  dollars.  When  they 
got  close  to  the  office  window  they  would  sell  to 
men  who  had  not  tinie  to  spare  from  their  business, 
and  then  take  their  places  at  the  back  of  the  line, 
and  work  up  to  the  window,  and  sell  again. 

In  the  early  part  of  January,  '51,  the  Gold  Bluff 
excitement  had  somewhat  subsided,  yet  along  the 
docks  there  were  several  vessels  advertised  to  sail 
for  the  northern  mines.  They  generally  had  a 
sign  painted  and  hung  in  the  rigging:  "This  vessel 
will  sail  for  Trinidad,  Gold  Bluff,  Klamath,  Sal- 
mon Biver  and  Trinity  mines  to-morrow  afternoon," 
and  to-morrow  afternoon  would  generally  be  ten  or 
fifteen  days  ahead.  We  purchased  two  more  mules 
in  San  Francisco,   making   four    in   all,   and  j^ur- 


OFF    FOR    TRINIDAD    AND     GOLD    BLUFF.  95 

cluised  sufficient  mining  stores  and  tools  to  load 
them,  ciilcuLiting  about  two  linndred  and  tifty 
pounds  to  the  mule.  We  chose  the  old  bark 
Minerva  as  likely  to  be  the  first  that  would  sail, 
paying  fifty  dollars  for  each  passenger  and  forty 
dollars  for  each  mule  to  Trinidad  Bay.  Aft(n-  eight 
or  ten  days  we  got  started,  or  at  least  the  old  ship 
did,  with  about  forty  passengers  and  twenty  mules. 
The  passengers  like  ourselves  were  bound  for  the 
northern  diggings.  We  cut  close  from  the  docks 
about  11  o'clock  in  the  forenoon  and  headed  for 
the  Golden  Gate.  Doc  was  a  westerner  and  had 
never  been  to  sea,  and  everything  about  the  ship 
was  new  to  him.  Just  before  dinner  he  came  to 
me  with  a  smile  on  his  face  and  said:  "Jack,  we 
are  going  to  have  a  splendid  time  of  it;  dinner  will 
be  ready  pretty  soon,  and  we  are  going  to  have 
fresh  beef  and  potatoes  for  dinner,  and  they  won't 
be  stolen  either."  About  the  time  dinner  was 
ready  the  old  ship  was  getting  down  near  tlie 
"heads,''  and  was  rolling  a  little.  The  dinner  was 
set  on  deck,  each  mess  furnishing  their  own  dishes 
to  hold  it  in.  I  took  notice  of  Doc ;  he  was  be- 
ginning to  get  a  little  white  about  "the  gills,"  and 
I  thought  then,  "My  lad,  you  will  not  enjoy  your 
potatoes  and  fresh  beef  much  today.''  He  got  half 
through  with  his  dinner,  with  a  big  potato  in  his 
hand,  when  he  jumped  up  and  broke  for  the  side 
of  the  ship,  damning  the  potatoes,  the  ship,  the 
ocean,  and  things  in  general.     He  crawled  into  his 


96  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

blankets  and  staid  there  until  we  ^ot  to  Trindad. 
Por  three  or  four  days  we  had  pleasant  weather, 
and  things  went  on  pretty  smoothly.  We  were 
congratulating  each  other  on  having  a  good  passage, 
but  we  were  badly  deceived  in  that.  About  the 
fourth  night  out  there  came  up  a  regular  south- 
easter, accompanied  by  rain,  which  made  the  old 
ship  some  times  quiver  froui  stem  to  stern.  The 
mules  were  on  deck  during  the  storm  ;  part  of,  the 
time  they  were  on  Iheir  feet,  but  most  of  the  time 
it  would  be  liard  to  tell  how  the}"  were.  How 
any  of  them  came  out  alive  I  never  could 
imagine,  and  yet  when  we  got  to  port  none  of  them 
were  seriously  hurt.  Nearly  all  the  jiassengers 
were  sick  during  the  storm.  It  was  a  hard  looking 
sight  in  the  hold  of  the  old  Minerva  during  that 
storm.  The  most  of  the  passengers  were  western 
men  and  never  had  any  experience  at  sea,  I  being 
the  only  one  in  our  crowd  who  was  able  to  be 
about.  To  make  the  matter  worse,  the  old  ship's 
decks  leaked  during  the  rain,  and  our  berths  were 
right  under  where  the  mules  stood,  and  we  had  the 
benefit  of  the  manure  that  leaked  through.  One 
morning  some  of  the  boys  thought  they  could  eat  a 
little  breakfast  if  I  would  get  it  for  them.  The 
gold  pan  that  we  used  for  our  hash  dish  was  half 
full  of  water  and  manure  that  had  leaked  through 
the  previous  night,  but  I  managed  to  get  it  on 
deck  and  empty  it  overboard,  and  carried  it  to  the 
galley, to  get  our  scouse.     In  there  was  a  big  negro 


OFF  FOR  TRINIDAD  AND  GOLD  BLUFF-  97 

cook.  I  i)oiiited  out  the  filth  on  the  side  of  the 
dish,  and  requested  him  to  wash  it.  Instead  of 
doing  so  he  doused  the  scouse  into  it,  remarking 
that  it  was  clean  enough  for  me.  That  raised  my 
Irish  fighting  qualities.  Without  thinking  a 
moment,  I  hurled  the  scouse,  dish  and  all,  into  the 
negro's  face,  then  grabbed  a  billet  of  his  wood  in 
one  hand,  my  pistol  in  the  other,  and  awaited  de- 
velopments. As  soon  as  the  negro  got  the  scouse 
out  of  his  eyes,  he  grabbed  his  butcher-knife. 
There  we  stood.  He  did  not  like  the  looks  of  my 
Colt's  revolver  and  club  any  better  than  I  liked  his 
big  butcher-knife.  About  that  time  the  mate, 
hearing  the  fuss  on  deck,  poked  his  head  out  of 
the  cabin  door,  and  seeing  the  war-like  attitude  of 
the  cook  and  myself,  jumped  between  us  in  a 
moment.  I  do  not  know  how  the  darkey  felt  about 
his  interference,  but  I  was  very  glad  of  it.  The 
mate  inquired  what  the  row  was  about,  and  I 
pointed  to  the  scouse  dish,  and  told  him  about  the 
negro  throwing  the  scouse  into  the  filthy  dish,  and 
what  he  said  to  me  when  I  requested  him  to  wash 
it  out.  The  mate  turned  to  the  darkey  and  asked 
him  if  that  was  true.  The  darkey  did  not  answer 
him.  The  evidence  was  all  in  my  favor.  The 
mate  then  said  he  would  attend  to  him  when  he 
got  time,  making  him  wash  out  our  pan  and  give 
me  our  scouse  in  a  decent  manner.  Our  food  was 
not  quite  so  fine  on  the  old  Minerva  as  you  can  get 
on  the  Humboldt  or  Corona  of  the  present  day.    It 


98  PIONEER    DAYS    IX    CALIFORNIA. 

was  composed  of  bard  bread  and  "salt  horse,"  witli 
coffee,  sweetened  with  black  straj)  molasses.  T 
had  a  talk  with  the  mate  about  my  row  with  the 
cook,  and  he  promised  me  he  would  let  the  matter 
drop  where  it  was.  The  mate  was  a  Virginian, 
and  would  stand  no  foolishness  from  a  darkey. 
Daring  the  storm  we  got  well  out  to  sea,  and  it 
took  us  some  time  to  get  back.  From  studying 
geography  when  a  boy  at  school,  I  learned  that 
Cape  Mendocino  was  the  westernmost  point  of  land 
in  the  United  States.  I  was  very  anxious  to  see  it 
and  be  west  of  it.  I  requested  the  mate  when  it 
came  in  sight  to  point  it  out  to  me,  and  I  looked 
on  it  with  a  great  deal  of  x^ride,  for,  when  I  got 
home,  what  wonders  I  would  have  to  tell  "the 
boys.''  I  had  crossed  the  Rocky  and  Sierra  Nevada 
Mountains  and  had  sailed  west  of  Cape  Mendocino 
on  the  Pacific  Ocean.  My  happiness  would  have 
been  complete  if  I  could  have  stood  on  the  cape — 
at  least  I  thought  so.  In  after  years  I  did  stand 
on  the  cape,  and  did  not  think  much  about  if. 
Such  is  the  romance  of  youth. 

Well,  after  tossing  about  on  the  old  bark  Mi- 
nerva for  twelve  or  fourteen  days,  we  at  last  dropped 
anchor  under  the  lea  of  Trinidad  Head,  or  at  Trini- 
dad Bay,  as  it  was  then  called.  For  a  day  or  two 
before  getting  into  port  it  was  fine  weather,  and 
the  boys  were  getting  so  as  to  come  on  deck  one 
after  another.  At  Trinidad  there  were  two  other 
vessels  at  anchor.     Trinidad  was  then  composed  of 


OFF  FOR  TRINIDAD  AND  GOLD  BLUFF.  99 

one  large  blue  tent  witli  walls  to  it.  The  owner 
had  a  stock  of  goods  which  he  was  selling  at  pretty 
round  figures.  Our  goods  and  stores  were  landed 
on  the  beach  by  the  vessel's  boats.  The  uiules 
were  brought  in  front  of  the  gangway,  and  shoved 
overboard,  to  swim  ashore.  It  was  amusing  to  see 
them,  after  taking  their  dive  and  getting  to  the 
surface,  look  around  and  break  for  land,  which 
they  lost  no  time  in  doing.  We  pitched  our  tents, 
expecting  to  remain  for  a  few  days,  to  give  our 
seasick  men  and  mules  a  chance  to  get  on  their 
land-legs  again,  and  to  recuperate.  The  mules  had 
a  hard  time  of  it  while  on  the  vessel,  with  very 
little  feed  or  water.  Then  we  had  our  pack  saddles 
to  rig  out  and  our  packs  to  make  up.  It  took  four 
or  five  days  to  get  started.  Gold  Bluflfs  was  but  a 
short  distance,  but  the  reports  from  there  were 
rather  discouraging,  so  we  concluded  to  try  our  luck 
on  the  Salmon  River  or  the  Klamath.  Reports 
from  the  Salmon  River  mines  were  good,  but  pro- 
visions were  very  scarce  and  high,  and  packing  was 
high.  You  could  not  get  a  pound  packed  for  less 
than  one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  per  j)ound. 
Mules  were  scarce — in  fact,  there  were  very  few  in 
the  country  except  those  brought  by  the  miners, 
like  ourselves,  for  their  own  use.  We  had  four  mules 
for  which  we  were  offered  three  hundred  dollars 
each,  but  would  not  think  of  selling  at  any  price. 
After  getting  things  in  proper  condition  for  a  start, 
we  packed  our  mules  with  about  two  hundred  and 


R85577 


100  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

fifty  pounds  each,  and  ourselves  with  all  we  could 
well  carry.  Our  first  day  out  of  Trinidad  was 
along  the  beach  and  sometimes  on  the  blufi's.  My 
load  consisted  of  fifty  pounds  of  flour,  a  rocker 
screen  and  my  blankets.  I  had  one  consolation — 
we  were  to  eat  out  of  my  sack  of  flour,  so  it  would 
be  lighter  after  every  meal.  Before  leaving  Trini- 
dad we  were  cautioned  about  crossing  the  beach  in 
front  of  the  big  lagoon,  as  there  were  between  four 
and  five  miles  of  sand  that  was  knee  deep,  and  very 
hard  traveling  for  both  man  and  beast.  We  came 
to  the  conclusion  that  we  would  go  the  first  day  to 
where  we  would  commence  crossing  it,  and  there 
camp  until  morning,  and  then  take  an  early  start 
on  the  sand. 


WANDERING    BETWEEN    TRINIDAD    AND    WEAVERVILLE.       101 


CHAPTER  X. 

Wanderings  Between  Trinidad  and  Weaverville. 

Crossing  the  Big  Lagoon. — A  mule's  tumble  down  the  mountain. — A 
herd  of  elk. — Ferrying  the  Klamath. — Disgusted  with  SalmonRiver. 
— Departure  for  Trinity  River  and  Weaverville. — Snowed  under. — 
Finding  a  trading  post  and  supplies. — Prospecting  on  Oregon  Gulch. 

Next  morning  we  started  on  the  beach,  or  across 
the  lagoon,  and  a  hard  time  we  had  of  it.  To  make 
matters  worse,  one  of  the  mules  we  bought  in  San 
Francisco  gave  out ;  it  was  weak  across  the  loins, 
and  the  heavy  load  and  deep  sand  were  too  much 
for  it,  so  we  had  to  divide  its  load  between  the 
other  mules  and  ourselves.  We  got  across  towards 
evening,  as  tired  and  worn  out  a  set  of  men  and 
mules  as  you  could  find  in  the  State.  Camping 
for  the  night,  I  was  congratulating  myself  on  what 
a  good  night's  sleep  and  soft  bed  we  would  have  in 
the  loose  sand.  When  I  first  lay  down  it  was  ex- 
cellent, and  all  went  well,  until  a  fellow  turned 
over,  and  then  it  was  like  lying  on  a  bed  of  boulders. 
I  could  not  endure  my  sand  bed,  and  had  to 
take  a  pick  and  shovel  and  excavate  a  place  large 
enough  in  the  side  of  the  mountain  to  lay  on.  Next 
morning  we  packed  up  and  started  up  the  moun- 


102  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

tain,  putting  the  kitchen  and  blankets  on  tbe  dis- 
abled mule,  as  they  were  light,  and  we  thought  he 
might  worry  through  with  them. 

We  got  on  very  well  for  a  day  or  two,  but  in 
traveling  through  the  redwoods  we  came  to  a  place 
on  the  trail  that  was  very  sidling — steep  banks 
above  and  below  the  trail.  Xow,  if  there  is  any 
place  a  mule  will  stop  to  i)ick  grass  and  act  badly 
it  is  one  like  this,  where  the  others  cannot  go  by 
him.  One  of  them  stopped  in  the  worst  place  he 
could  find,  and  one  of  the  boys  picked  up  a  rock 
and  heaved  it  at  him ;  but  instead  of  hitting  the  one 
that  was  obstructing  the  trail,  he  hit  one  of  the 
others.  The  one  that  was  hit  started  up,  and,  run- 
ning between  the  bank  and  the  broken-backed 
mule,  sent  the  latter  over  the  side  of  the  mountain, 
kitchen,  bedding  and  all.  He  did  some  lofty  rolling 
and  tumbling  down  that  mountain.  Sometimes 
his  legs  would  be  up,  and  sometimes  the  part  of  the 
pack  that  was  on  him  would  have  the  upper  side. 
Such  a  scattering  of  plunder  I  never  saw  before. 
We  all  sat  down  on  the  bank,  and  there  were  some 
"tall  curse  words"  used.  Dave  Young  commenced 
cursing  the  old  mule,  the  old  Grreaser  that  sold  him 
to  us,  California,  and  everything  else  he  could 
think  of.  The  thing  looked  so  ridiculous  to  me 
that  I  commenced  laughing,  and  that  made  Dave 
still  madder.  He  commenced  on  me,  giving  me 
what  wrath  he  had  left  in  him,  saying  to  me  : 
"You  d — n  fool,  you  would  make  fun  of  the  thing 


WANDERINGS    BETWEEN    TRINIDAD    AND    WEAVERVILLE.       103 

if  evervtliing  went  to  hell.  Doe  and  I  started 
down  the  mountain,  to  look  after  the  wreck,  and 
l^ick  up  what  we  could  find  of  the  debris.  We 
found  a  coffee  pot  in  one  place,  blankets  in  another, 
fry-pan  in  anotlier,  and  so  on  until  we  ^ot  to  a 
little  flat,  where  we  found  tlu^  old  mule  up  and  eat- 
ing grass  as  if  nothing  had  happened,  and  with  the 
pack-saddle  under  his  belly  with  part  of  the  things 
still  tied  to  it.  Well,  it  was  a  surprise  to  Doc  and 
me  to  find  the  old  mule  alive  after  his  grand  and 
lofty  tumbling  down  the  side  of  the  mountain.  We 
gathered  the  ''plunder''  up,  and  packed  the  old 
fellow  for  a  new  start.  Upon  surveying  the 
damages,  we  found  the  fry-j)an  had  its  handle 
knocked  out  of  shape?,  the  coffee  pot  was  minus  a 
spout  and  handle,  and  our  tinware  was  somewhat 
deuiolished  ;  but,  taking  the  damage  in  full,  it  was 
but  little.  The  question  was,  how  to  get  the  mule 
up  to  the  trail ;  the  mountain  was  too  steep  for  that, 
and  the  old  fellow  was  weak  in  the  hind  parts.  We 
tied  a  rojDe  to  his  tail  and  one  about  his  neck,  to 
lead  him  by.  When  his  hind  j)arts  took  a  sheer 
we  would  steady  him  by  the  rope  on  his  tail,  and, 
by  taking  tacks  on  the  hill  side,  after  a  good  deal 
of  work,  we  got  him  on  the  trail  again  all  right. 
After  that  one  of  us  had  to  lead  him.  The  trail  ran 
through  a  good  deal  of  redwood  forests.  I  ii:ot  mv 
first  view  of  the  immense  size  of  the  redwood  trees 
on  that  trip. 

One  day,  on  coming  out  on  a  prairie,  we  beheld  a 


104  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

great  sight.  The  prairie  seemed  a  large  one ;  scat- 
tered all  over  it  were  big  oak  trees,  giving  it  the 
appearance  of  an  old  orchard  in  the  Eastern  States, 
and,  grazing  quietly,  were  hundreds  of  elk,  that 
seemed  to  take  no  more  notice  oi  us  than  so  many 
tame  cattle  grazing  in  their  pasture  at  home.  We 
did  not  disturb  them.  We  finallymade  the  Klam- 
ath River  at  the  mouth  of  the  Trinity.  I  believe 
the  place  is  now  called  Weitchj)eck.  Here  we  had 
to  ferry.  The  Klamath  Indians  were  the  ferry- 
men, and,  with  their  canoes,  the}^  put  us  across 
with  our  goods;  the  mules  swam  across  the  stream. 
The  Indians  would  not  take  gold  for  their  pay, 
silver  was  their  currency.  One  dollar  in  silver 
was  worth  more  to  them  than  ten  dollars  in  gold ; 
in  fact,  gold  was  of  no  account  with  them.  As 
luck  would  have  it,  we  did  not  have  to  use  either  ; 
we  traded  off  the  old  mule  to  them  for  ferrying  us 
across,  and  got  some  money  to  boot.  We  got  across 
the  Klamath  all  right,  and  started  for  Red  Cap  Bar, 
intending  to  prospect  it  for  a  day  or  two  ;  but,  when 
we  got  there,  two  miners  were  just  packing  up  to 
go  to  Orleans  Bar,  who  had  been  at  work  for  a 
week  and  made  nothing,  so  we  did  not  stop  there, 
but  went  to  Orleans  Bar,  intending  to  go  to  the 
South  Eork  of  the  Salmon.  In  due  time  we  arrived 
at  Orleans  Bar,  but  the  river  was  high,  and  we 
could  not  prospect  the  lower  bars,  where  it  was 
said  was  the  best  pay.  We  again  crossed  the 
Klamath  River  in  canoes  and  swam  our  animals; 


WANDERINGS    BETWEEN    TRINIDAD    AND    WEAVERVILLE.       105 

this  time  white  men  kept  the  canoes  or  ferry  boats, 
and  would  take  gold  money  for  our  ferriai^e.  We 
had  then  a  high  mountain  to  cross  between  the 
Klamath  and  the  South  Fork  of  Salmon.  If  I  re- 
member rightly,  it  was  twenty  miles  over  the 
mountain.  The  day  was  very  warm,  and  with  the 
load  we  had  to  pack,  it  seemed  to  me  we  would 
never  reach  the  summit.  Finally,  just  at  dark,  we 
reached  the  Salmon  Kiver  bottom  and  pitched  our 
tent.  We  thought  we  were  then  in  the  land  of 
promise.  We  were  "well  fixed,''  with  plenty  of 
*'grub"  and  tools  with  which  to  commence  opera- 
tions. Flour  was  then  worth  one  dollar  and  fifty 
cents  per  pound,  and  everything  else  was  in  pro- 
portion. Next  morning  we  commenced  prospect- 
ing. The  South  Salmon  we  found  rather  a  poor 
stream,  and  we  could  find  nothing  to  encourage  us. 
The  creek  had  a  good  deal  of  water  in  it,  and  very 
little  pay  on  the  high  bars.  Men  who  had  wintered 
there  told  us  there  was  good  pay  when  the  stream 
got  low.  We  prospected  for  four  or  five  days,  and 
got  perfectly  disgusted  with  the  Salmon  River 
mines,  and  wished  ourselves  back  in  the  middle 
mines  again.  Up  to  this  time  the  season,  or 
weather,  had  been  all  that  could  be  wished  for — 
very  little  storm,  and  beautiful,  sunny  days.  One 
night  we  held  a  council  in  our  tent,  to  take  in  the 
situation  and  consider  what  was  best  to  be  done. 
We  had  heard  of  the  Weaver  Flats  and  the  good  re- 
ports from  the  Trinity  River  diggings.     We  dis- 


106  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

cussed  the  question  wlietlier  wc  would  go  to  the 
North  Fork  of  Salmon,  or  to  the  Weaver  diggings. 
Einally,  we  came  to  tlie  conclusion  to  take  the 
back  track  and  go  to  the  Trinity  River  and  Weaver- 
ville.  Xext  day  we  sold  all  the  surplus  provisions 
we  liad,  getting  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  a  pound 
for  our  tlour,  and  other  things  in  projiortion,  and 
struck  out  for  the  Trinity  River. 

It  was  well  we  did.  About  one  day  from  Salmon 
it  commenced  raining,  and  it  rained  and  snowed 
until  we  got  to  the  top  of  the  dividing  ridge  be- 
tween the  Trinity  and  Salmon.  On  the  Trinity 
side  of  the  mountain  the  trail  followed  a  spur  for 
several  miles,  the  divide  between  the  East  Fork 
of  the  North  Fork  and  the  North  Fork.  It  cleared 
up  as  we  were  coming  down  the  spur  of  the  mount- 
ain, and,  coming  to  a  little  flat  where  there  was 
good  grass  and  a  good  place  to  camp,  about  one 
hour  before  sunset,  we  camped.  When  dark  came 
on  we  tied,  up  our  mules  and  turned  into  our  tent, 
very  tired.  We  ate  the  last  we  had  for  supper, 
with  the  exception  of  a  few  scraps  which  we  had 
left  in  the  bottom  of  the  "grub  box,"  expecting  to 
get  down  to  the  North  Fork  early  next  morning, 
where  there  was  a  trading-post.  We  slept  soundly 
that  night.  When  we  turned  in  it  was  a  beauti- 
ful starlight  night,  and  to  all  api^earances  the 
storm  was  completely  over.  We  were  feeling  good 
at  having  the  most  of  our  journey  over,  but,  when 
we  awoke  next  morning,  things  did  not  lookquile 


WANDERINGS    BETWEEN    TRINIDAD    AND   WEAVERVILLE.      107 

SO  pleasant  for  us.  The  tent  was  completely  buried 
in  snow,  and  was  weighed  down  to  witliin  a  few 
inches  of  our  heads  bv  the  load  of  snow  on  it.  I 
said  to  the  boys  :  "  We  are  in  a  d — 1  of  a  fix  now," 
and  thev  were  soon  out  of  their  blankets.  The 
snow  was  fully  four  feet  deep,  and  still  coming 
down  witli  a  vengeance.  Every  flake  was  as  big  as 
a  silver  dollar.  The  mules  were  nearly  covered  up 
with  snow,  standing  with  their  backs  humped  up, 
and  shivering  as  if  thev  had  the  affue.  We  built  a 
fire,  got  sonjc  coffee,  and,  eating  what  little  we  had 
left,  packed  our  shivering  mules  and  made  a  start. 
It  was  hard  work  to  get  them  to  move  at  all.  For 
some  time  one  of  us  had  to  go  ahead  and  throw 
himself  on  his  back  on  the  trail  in  order  for  the 
mules  to  get  through.  As  luck  would  have  it  the 
trail  was  blazed,  and  we  were  able  to  keep  it.  Eor 
three  or  four  hours  we  labored  in  this  manner,  but 
as  we  got  down  the  mountain  the  snow  became 
lighter,  and  at  nearly  night  we  got  out  of  it  al- 
together. It  was  nearly  dark  when  we  reached  the 
junction  of  the  East  Fork  with  the  North  Fork,  and 
our  mules  were  about  given  out  and  ourselves  not 
much  better.  I  told  the  boys  that  if  they  would 
camp  there  I  would  go  and  hunt  the  trading-post. 
From  the  directions  we  had  it  could  not  be  far  off. 
I  started  down  the  North  Fork,  and  just  as  it  was 
getting  dark  ahead  of  me  I  saw  a  light  across  the 
stream.  Following  the  trail,  I  came  to  a  log  on 
which  I  crossed,  and  soon  came  to  the  light.     It 


108  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

was  in  a  large  tent  stretched  on  four  logs.  As  I 
entered  the  tent  or  store  there  were  four  men  in  it 
playing  cards,  with  a  few  goods  in  one  corner  and 
a  keg  of  whisky  set  on  a  log  beside  the  goods. 
They  sang  out  to  me  :  "  Stranger,  where  are  you 
from'?"  I  said,  "Salmon  River.''  One  remarked, 
"I  thought  so."  I  said,  "Have  you  any  whisky  ?" 
pointing  to  the  keg.  He  told  me  to  lielp  myself. 
There  was  a  pint  cup  standing  under  the  faucet, 
and  I  filled  it  half  full  of  whisky  and  drank  it.  In 
less  than  two  minutes  I  felt  like  a  new  man.  At 
other  times  that  amount  of  liquor  would  have 
made  me  drunk.  Our  temperance  friends  may 
preach  what  they  j)lease,  but  there  are  times 
when  a  drink  of  liquor  helps  to  give  a  worn-out 
man  life  and  vitality.  I  know  it  was  so  in  my 
case.  I  purchased  a  few  pounds  of  flour  and  bacon 
and  other  things  for  supper  and  breakfast  and 
started  back  for  camp,  making  me  a  California 
lantern  before  starting.  I  had  a  good  light  where- 
by I  might  follow  the  trail. 

I  will  tell  you  what  a  California  lantern  is  and 
how  it  is  made.  I  took  a  bottle  and  put  a  little 
water  in  it,  placed  the  bottom  on  the  fire  and  kept 
turning  it  around  slowly  ;  when  the  water  heated 
the  bottom  burst  out ;  I  then  lighted  a  candle  and 
dropped  it  down  in  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  and  then 
had  a  very  good  lantern. 

I  reached  camp  all  right.  The  boys  had  started 
a  fire   and   pitched  the   tent.     The  first  question 


WA>JDERINGS   BETWEEN   TRINIDAD   AND    WEAVERVILLE.       109 

Dave  Young  asked  me  was:  "Did  you  bring  any 
whisky  ^  ''  I  told  him,  "  Yes."  "  Where  is  it  V'  I 
tokl  him,  "In  my  stomach."  There  were  a  few 
curse  words  used  about  that  time.  After  tantaliz- 
ing him  for  a  short  time  I  drew  out  a  bottle  of 
whisky  and  shook  it  at  him.  They  went  for  it 
with  a  will.  Supper  was  soon  cooked  and  eaten,  and 
we  were  all  happy.  Our  tent  was  pitched  on  a  sid- 
ling place,  and  it  came  on  to  rain  in  the  night.  Tlie 
boys  had  not  thought  of  digging  a  ditch  around  the 
tent  when  they  put  it  up,  and  the  water  coming 
down  from  the  mountain  ran  through  the  tent. 
When  we  turned  over  in  the  blankets  we  could 
hear  the  water  slosh  under  us,  but  we  slept  the 
sleep  of  the  righteous,  and  the  water  did  not  bother 
us  much. 

Xext  morning  we  packed  our  "  traps ''  and  went 
down  to  the  North  Eork.  The  day  was  clear  and 
the  sun  was  out  in  his  full  glory.  We  soon  had 
everything  dry  and  as  good  as  new.  We  had  a 
narrow  escape  ;  had  we  been  one  day  later  in  start- 
ing from  Salmon  the  State  would  have  lost  four 
good  citizens.  The  Pence  brothers,  as  I  afterwards 
found  out,  were  camped  about  three  miles  above  us 
on  the  mountain,  with  a  train  of  forty  mules  when 
the  snow  came  on.  Every  one  of  them  perislifed, 
chilled  to  death,  and  one  of  the  brothers  caught 
such  a  cold  that  in  less  than  a  month  he  died  also. 
Provisions  on  Salmon  gave  out,  flour  could  not  be 
purchased  at  any  price,  and  men  told  me  that  they 


^ 


110  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

lived  on  venison  for  at  least  one  month.  The  salt 
gave  out  also,  and  one  ounce  of  gold  for  a  ponnd  of 
salt  was  offered.  Such  were  the  straits  miners  were 
reduced  to  in  the  spring  of  '51  on  the  Salmon 
River.  Thanks  to  our  good  fortune  we  were  now  in  a 
country  where  there  were  plenty  of  provisions.  The 
storm  had  set  the  streams  up  very  high,  and  no 
mining  could  be  done  on  the  rivers.  After  resting 
for  a  few  days  we  started  for  Weaver,  distance 
about  twenty  miles  up  the  valley  of  the  Trinity. 
We  camped  on  Oregon  Gulch,  where  we  did  some 
prospecting.  There  had  been  a  little  work  done  on 
the  gulch  the  previous  summer.  We  found  very 
good  prospects — the  best  we  had  yet  found  since 
leaving  the  middle  mines,  and  we  concluded  to  go 
to  Weaver  and  lay  in  some  provisions  and  return 
to  Oregon  Gulch,  if  nothing  better  turned  up. 


FIRST    EXPERIENCE    AT   WEAVERVILLE-  111 


CHAPTER  XI. 

First  Experience  at  Weaverville. 

Separated  from  companions.— Generosity  of  the  early  miners. — Arrival 
at  Weaverville. — Starting  a  blacksmith's  shop. — A  public  whipping. — 
A  quarrel  between  two  miners. — Trial  before  a  judicial  officer. — The 
plea. — Thomas  McGinnis  Brown  and  the  ox  team. 

We  packed  up  for  Weaver.  We  had  a  small 
mountain  to  cross  before  getting  there,  and  I  started 
on  ahead,  got  over  the  mountain,  struck  West 
Weaver  Creek  and  followed  it  down,  instead  of 
crossing  it  and  going  over  another  spur,  which 
would  have  brought  me  to  the  town.  I  sat  down 
and  waited  for  the  boys  to  come,  but  they  did  not 
arrive.  It  was  getting  nearly  dark  and  had  com- 
menced raining  and  snowing.  Here  I  was  in  a 
X^retty  fix,  and  the  prosx^ect  that  I  should  have  to 
make  a  night  of  it  without  food  or  shelter  was 
hardly  pleasant.  I  crossed  the  creeks  at  the  forks, 
and  turned  up  stream.  After  traveling  up  stream 
for  about  half  a  mile,  it  commenced  to  get  pretty 
dark.  I  was  on  the  lookout  for  a  i)lace  where  I 
could  make  a  fire  and  camp  for  the  night,  when  I 
preceived  a  light  ahead  of  me.  I  started  for  the 
spot  with  a  much  lighter  heart  than  I  had  five 


112  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

minutes  before,  and  soon  reached  it  to  find  that  it 
was  a  large  round  tent.  I  went  in,  and  found  the 
tent  was  a  large  saloon  and  gambling-house.  There 
were  a  couple  of  monte  tables  running,  a  bar  in  one 
side,  and  a  large  tin  stove  in  the  center,  to  keep  it 
warm.  I  thought  this  would  be  an  improvement 
on  lying  out  of  doors.  I  sat  down  by  the  stove, 
hungry  as  a  wolf.  I  did  not  have  a  cent  in  my 
pocket.  Dave  carried  the  purse,  our  mone}^  being 
in  gold  dust.  I  wanted  a  drink,  but  was  ashamed 
to  ask  for  it  without  money  to  pay.  A  man  came 
and  sat  down  beside  me.  He  said  :  "  You  are  a 
stranger  in  camp  '^ "  I  told  him  I  was.  He  asked 
where  I  was  from,  and  I  told  him  from  Salmon 
River.  "  You  are  broke,"  he  said.  I  said  I  did  not 
have  a  cent.  "  I  thought  so  from  your  looks,"  he 
replied.  "  Let  us  take  a  drink."  That  suited  me 
just  at  that  time,  and  we  had  a  drink  apiece.  He 
paid  a  dollar  for  the  two  drinks — fifty  cents  each. 
I  then  told  him  my  situation,  my  getting  astray 
from  my  partners,  and  that  I  expected  to  find  them 
in  the  morning.  He  took  me  to  his  cabin,  gave  me 
a  good  supper,  and  shared  his  bed  with  me  that 
night.  Let  me  here  remark  that  the  early  miners  of 
California  were  seldom  known  to  turn  their  backs 
on  a  fellow-man  in  distress ;  they  would  divide  the 
last  dollar,  and  give  you  the  last  slapjack  they  liad 
in  their  tent  or  cabin,  if  tliey  thought  you  stood  in 
need  of  it.  Many  a  poor  fellow  who  got  sick  or 
disabled  in  the  mines  have  they  sent  home  by  their 


FIRST    EXPERIENCE    AT    WEAVERVILLE.  113 

liberality.  A  if  vent  iiuinv  of  tliem  were  Avild  and 
reckless  young  fellows,  but  selfisliness,  as  a  general 
rule,  found  no  abiding  place  with  tliem. 

Xext  morning  the  storm  had  abated,  and  I  got 
my  first  yiew  by  daA lialit  of  the  town  of  Weayer- 
yille,  where  I  spent  the  best  part  of  my  life.  Tlie 
toAyn  Ayas  composed  of  the  aforesaid  round  tent  and 
four  log  cabins.  One  of  the  cabins  was  used  as  a 
store  and  a  sort  of  a  hotel,  kej)t  by  Stanmore  &; 
Horton,  and  another  was  a  store  kept  by  Mathew 
Stuart  and  son  Bob.  The  other  two  Avere  miners' 
cabins.  This  Ayas  tlie  Weayeryille  of  February,  '51, 
as  1  first  saAy  it.  I  found  my  j)artners  all  right.  We 
all  liked  the  looks  of  the  place,  and  made  up  our 
minds  that  Ave  had  wandered  ovev  California  suffi- 
ciently for  the  present.  DaA  e  Young  made  up  his 
mind  to  go  back  to  Illinois.  He  had  accomplished 
AA'hat  he  came  for,  haying  regained  his  health. 
When  Aye  left  Peoria,  one  year  before,  he  had  to  be 
assisted  on  board  the  steamer  ;  now,  after  one  year 
of  crossing  the  plains  and  roughing  it  in  California, 
he  Ayas  returning  a  Avell  man.  It  seemed  to  me 
like  parting  Ayith  the  only  friend  I  had  in  the  Ayorld 
Avhen  Daye  left.  He  had  been  to  me  a  good 
counselor,  and  more  like  an  elder  brother  than 
any  man  I  ever  knew. 

After  looking  around  Weayeryille  and  infoi-ming 
niA'self  as  Ay  ell  as  I  could  of  its  resources  and  mines, 
I  came  to  the  conclusion  I  Ayould  start  a  black- 
smith shop.  The  nearest  one  to  WeaA  eryille  at  that 


114  PIO>fEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

time  was  Shasta,  some  forty  miles  distant.  The 
(litiicnlty  Avas  to  get  tools  ;  they  could  not  be  had 
nearer  than  Sacramento  City,  about  two  hundred 
miles  distant.  One  of  my  camp  partners,  by  the 
name  of  J.  B.  Damon,  agreed  to  go  in  partnership 
witli  me,  take  the  mules  and  go  after  the  tools  and 
take  Dave  Young  down  with  him  to  Sacramento. 
We  bade  good-bye  to  Dave  with  many  regrets. 

Three  or  four  days  before  we  arrived  at  Weaver- 
ville  there  was  a  public  whipping.  About  the  only 
punishments  for  crime  in  those  days  were  whipping 
or  hanging.  In  this  case  the  former  was  the  pen- 
alty. A  fellow  by  the  name  of  Bates  stole  a  mule 
from  Dick  Dangey,  the  butclier.  He  tried  to  get 
away  with  it,  but  was  caught  and  brought  back.  A 
jury  of  miners  was  summoned;  the  evidence  was 
very  plain  against  the  accused,  and  the  jury  found 
liim  ffuiltv,  and  sentenced  him  to  receive  forty 
lashes,  and  to  leave  camp  forever.  Old  man  Ander- 
son was  aj)pointed  to  apply  the  lash,  or  rope.  Tlie 
old  man  had  been  warden  of  the  Missouri  State 
Prison  at  Jetferson  City,  and  well  understood  his 
business.  Bates  was  stripped  and  tied  to  a  big 
pine  log,  when  the  old  man  got  about  eight  feet  of 
rope,  three-fourths  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  and, 
after  giving  him  some  very  fatlierly  advice,  pro- 
ceeded to  execute  the  sentence  of  the  court.  When 
he  got  through  Bates  had  a  very  sore  back,  but  the 
hiAV  was  vindicated  and  the  honest  miners  satistied. 
Bates  left.     In  a   couple  of  years  afterwards   we 


FIRST    EXPERIENCE    AT   WEAVERVILLE-  115 

licard  of  his  beinc'  hunted  in  Sliasta  connty.  He 
was  a  bad  one.  AVord  came  to  town  a  few  days 
after  that  two  miners  on  West  Weaver  had  got 
into  a  quarrel,  and  tliat  one  of  them  had  struck  the 
other  in  the  head  with  a  pick.  He  was  arrested 
and  brought  to  toAvn,  likewise  the  wounded  man. 
This  time  the  case  was  to  be  tried  before  the 
alcalde,  or  magistrate,  whom  tlie  boys  had  elected 
to  try  all  minor  cases.  This  case  proved  to  be  not 
so  bad  as  was  first  reported.  The  gentleman  whom 
the  boys  had  elected  alcalde  was  an  old  man  by 
the  name  of  Sevier  from  Tennessee.  He  was  very 
fond  of  whisky  and  poker.  He  weighed  about 
three  hundred  pounds,  and  he  and  work  did  not 
agree  ;  consequently  they  never  came  in  contact. 
Tlie  trial  was  set  for  9  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The 
Constable  had  his  prisoner  on  hand  in  due  time, 
but  the  court  was  not  yet  out  of  his  morning  slum- 
bers. He  had  been  engaged  nearly  all  night  in  a 
poker  game,  and  got  pretty  full  before  retiring,  and 
Avas  somewhat  drowsy  in  the  morning.  The  con- 
stable rapped  on  the  old  man's  cabin  door  for  some 
time  before  he  could  wake  him,  but  at  last  he  got 
the  court  up.  He  came  to  the  door  and  wanted  to 
know,  "  What  the  h — 1  is  the  matter  %  "  The  con- 
stable told  him  it  was  the  time  set  for  trial.  "  Trial 
be  — ,"  replied  the  court,  "I  try  no  one  until  I  get 
my  breakfast ! "  The  Judge's  room-mal  e,  by  the 
name  of  Johnson,  was  another  chij)  off  the  same 
block  as  the  court.    The  court  and  Johnson  pitched 


116  ^PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

in  to  getting  breakfast,  wliile  the  constable^ 
the  prisoner,  the  jnvv  and  okt  Cunningham, 
the  hiwyer,  remained  ontside.  In  due  time 
the  court  got  his  breakfast  and  came  out 
of  his  cabin  witli  his  sliirt  sleeves  rolled  up,  his 
hands  covered  with  flour  and  dough,  no  hat  on,  liis 
hair  standing  on  end  and  full  of  flour.  He  had  to 
scratch  his  head  Avliile  mixing  his  morning  biscuits, 
or  "pone,"  as  he  called  it,  and  got  liis  head  pretty 
well  covered  Avitli  flour.  He  remarked,  as  he  came 
out  of  his  den,  "  Bring  on  your  prisoner,  and  1  will 
give  him  h  -  1 !  ''  The  jury  was  impaneled.  Tliey 
sat  on  a  log,  and  old  Cunningham  opened  tlie  case. 
The  plaintifi^  was  a  Dutchman,  and  the  defendant 
was  a  son  of  the  Emerald  Isle.  Cunningham  was 
for  the  defendant.  He  told  his  client  not  to  open 
his  mouth,  and  while  the  trial  lasted  he  obeved 
the  order  to  the  letter.  Cunningham's  i)lea  before 
the  jury  was  that  the  defendant  Avas  a  native  Ameri- 
can, and  had  been  badly  abused  by  a  Dutchman, 
and  tliat  an  American  had  a  perfect  right  to  hit  a 
Dutchman  over  the  head  with  a  pick  or  anything 
else  when  abused  bv  him.  The  iurv  found  the  de- 
fendant  not  guilty,  and  he  Avas  acquitted.  As  soon 
as  the  defendant  found  he  was  discharged,  he  said 
to  Cunningham:  "  Jazes,  you  done  that  nicely,  me 
boy  ;  and  sure  you  made  a  great  natiAc  American 
out  of  me  entirely.  Me,  that  Avas  born  and  bred  in 
the  county  of  Tipperary;  sure  and  me  OAvn  mother 
Avould  not  liaA'e  knoAvn  the  difl"erence  the  way  you 


FIRST    EXPERIENCE    AT    WEAVERVILLE-  117 

laid  it  down  to  them  inrymen.  May  the  Holy 
Virgin  bless  tlieni ;  for  its  honest  lads  they  are ;  let 
ns  all  drink."  The  jndge,  the  jnry,  the  witnesses, 
and  all  hands  stej^ped  to  the  bar.  So  ended  my 
first  experience  as  a  juror.  Unless  I  am  mistaken, 
my  old  friend  McConnaha  of  Areata  was  on  that 
jury. 

About  this  time  I  got  acquainted  w itli  the  princi- 
pal architect  and  builder  of  Weayeryille,  who  bore 
the  name  of  Brown — Tliomas  McGinnis  Brown. 
He  was  a  big,  good-natured  Missourian,  and  still 
holds  liis  OAyn  in  tliat  line.  ''Mac"  had  a  contract 
to  build  a  liouse  for  a  man  and  wife  by  the  name  of 
AValton.  The  liouse  was  to  be  eighteen  feet  square, 
and  without  any  floor  in  it  ;  but  it  was  to  be 
coyered  and  a  hole  cut  in  one  end  for  a  chimney.  It 
was  to  be  chinked  and  daubed.  Mac  had  tohaye  a 
team  to  haul  the  logs  together.  An  old  fellow  by 
the  name  of  Jim  Howe  owned  the  only  team  in 
the  county,  and  Mac  went  to  get  them.  Jim's 
j)rice  per  day  for  the  team  and  cart  was  three 
ounces,  or  forty-eight  dollars.  Mac  thought  that 
was  pretty  steep,  but  finally  concluded  to  j)ay  it, 
proyided  the  OAvner  Ayould  let  him  do  the  driying. 
]VIac  hitched  up  the  cattle,  and  Jim  brought  out  his 
goad  stick  and  handed  it  to  Mac,  who  looked  at  it 
a  while  and  said :  "  What  do  you  want  me  to 
do  with  that  dog-on  pegging  awl  of  yours'?" 
Jim  said  it  was  to  driye  with.  Mac  replied, 
"  Those    are    Missouri     cattle,    and    don't    know 


^1^  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

anything  about  3  our  liusli,  and  your  haws,  or  your 
pegging  awLs.  I  Avill  talk  Missouri  to  them,  the 
language  they  understand,  and  they  will  be  all 
right.  Mac  brought  out  what  was  then  known  as 
a  Pike  county  revolver  ;  that  is,  a  wliip-lash  about 
fourteen  feet  long,  and  a  stick  about  ten  feet  long, 
and  commenced  talking  Missouri  to  the  oxen.  The 
boys  went  to  see  the  fun.  Mac  hitched  them  to  one 
of  the  biggest  logs.  Drawing  his  revolver,  and  let- 
ting them  hear  the  music  of  it,  he  sung  out  in  very 
forcible  language,  "Get,  you  dog-on  Buck  and 
Berry,"  and  they  got  Mac  "  hustled  in "  all  the 
logs  and  timber  he  wanted  for  his  building  before 
night,  much  to  Jim's  chagrin,  as  he  expected  two 
days'  work  for  his  team. 

Some  miners  were  building  a  cabin  in  Garden 
Gulch,  and  wanted  some  shakes  hauled  to  cover  it 
with.  Jim  wanted  Mac  to  take  the  oxen  and  cart 
and  haul  them.  Mac  came  over  to  where  I  Avas 
and  said,  "  Dog-on  it,  Vulcan,  what  do  they  mean 
by  shakes^  "  (Yulcan  was  the  name  I  was  knoAvn 
by  for  the  first  year  in  Weaverville).  I  said,  "Mac, 
they  mean  claxiboards."  Mac  said,  "Dog-on  it, 
why  don't  those  Yankees  call  things  by  their  right 
names'?"  Mac  got  liis  clapboards  hauled.  After 
that,  when  Jim  Howe  Avanted  any  hauling  done  for 
himself,  he  got  Mac  to  do  the  driving  Avith  his  Pike 
county  revolver,  but  Avhen  he  hauled  for  somebody 
else  he  got  his  yank  and  goad  stick. 

Mac  got   his  house  built  all   right,  but  I   have 


FIRST    EXPERIENCE    AT    WEAVERVILLE.  119 

never  been  able  to  tell  of  what  style  of  arcliitectnre 
it  was,  A\iietlier  Grecian,  Doric,  Ionic  or  Composite. 
For  furtlier  information  about  tliis  question  I 
would  refer  my  readers  to  Mac  at  the  Humb(ddt 
County  Hotel,  which  is  now  kept  by  him. 

In  the  nunith  of  March  of  1851  one  of  those 
cases  occurred  which  bring  disgrace  to  our  civili- 
zation and  dishonor  to  our  manhood.  In  the  early 
days  of  California  nearly  every  miner  owned  a 
mule  or  some  otlier  sort  of  animal  to  pack  his  tools, 
blankets  and  provisions  on  when  moving  from  one 
gulch  or  diggings  to  another.  Those  animals  caused 
the  miners  a  great  deal  of  trouble  to  hunt  them  up 
when  wanted  for  use,  and  generally  when  new  dig- 
gings were  found  and  sufficient  animals  were  in  the 
neighborhood,  some  enterprising  individual  would 
start  a  herd  ;  that  is,  he  would  gather  up  all  the 
animals  in  the  neighborhood  and  herd  them  during 
the  day.  Feed  was  abundant.  At  night  he  would 
have  a  corral  that  was  considered  Indian-proof  to 
keep  the  herd  in.  The  charge  was  four  dollars  per 
month  for  each  animal.  The  Indians  on  the 
Trinity  and  its  tributaries  were  very  fond  of  "mule- 
beef,"  and*  never  failed  to  obtain  a  supply  of  it, 
when  they  had  au  opportunity  to  do  so,  from  the 
honest  miner,  and  the  miner  never  failed  to  fill 
Mr.  Indian's  skin  with  lead  when  he  was  caught 
helping  himself  to  any  of  the  miners'  property, 
esj)ecially  to  the  mules. 

Uncle  Joe  Strudivant  and  his  partner,  John  W. 


120  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Carter,  and  Jerry  Wliitiiiore,  were  then  running  a 
pack-train  between  Shasta  and  Trinity  Kiver. 
They  had  a  hirge  pack-train  to  look  after.  They 
built  a  corral  and  herded  the  stock  on  a  flat,  where 
Strudivant's  ranch  is  now^  located.  One  night  the 
animals  were  all  properly  corralled,  but  the  next 
morning  they  had  all  disappeared — forty  or  forty- 
live  head,  all  told.  Foiw  men  immediately  started 
on  their  track,  and  followed  tliem  for  several  days. 
At  last  they  overtook  them  at  the  liead  of  the 
Sacramento  Yalley — three  white  men  and  tlie  stolen 
mules  in  their  possession.  Before  the  tliieves  were 
aware,  the  pursuers  opened  tire  on  them  and  killed 
all  three  of  them.  The  pursuing  party  was  led  by 
a  fellow  called  "  Texas,"  a  man  that  held  human 
life  very  lightly.  After  killing  the  thieves  tliey 
scalped  tliem,  and  brought  the  scalps  and  the 
animals  back  with  them.  "-Texas"  showed  me  one 
of  the  scalps  be  had  in  his  belt  when  in  Weaver- 
ville  on  his  Avay  back  to  the  ranch  on  Trinity. 
Tliey  not  only  took  tlie  tliieves'  scalps,  but  skinned 
their  whiskers  oft'  and  brought  them  back,  and 
nailed  both  scalps  and  wliiskers  on  tlie  gateposts  of 
the  corral  as  a  warning  to  others.  That  herd  w  as 
not  troubled  by  white  thieves  any  more  that  season. 
In  those  days  horse-stealing  was  the  crime  of 
crimes.  If  two  men  got  into  trouble  and  one  killed 
the  other  in  a  fight,  there  was  very  little  said  about 
it ;  but  if  a  man  was  caught  stealing  a  horse  or  a 
mule,  his  days  were  short,  or  else  he  got  wliii)i)ed 


FIRST    EXPERIENCE    AT    WEAVERVILLE.  121 

and  banislied  from  the  diggings,  sometimes  branded. 
Native  sons  and  dangliters,  sncli  was  tlie  way  in 
wliicli  your  pioneer  fathers  administered  justice  to 
thieves  in  the  early  days  of  California. 

The  Indians  in  the  counties  of  Trinity  and 
Sluista,  in  '50,  '51  and  '52,  were  very  troublesome, 
makmg  raids  on  the  miners'  tents  and  cabins,  and 
stealing  their  mules,  provisions  and  bhmkets.  The 
miners  would  go  to  their  claims  from  their  tents  or 
camps  with  their  rifles  loaded  and  their  revolvers 
in  their  belts,  ready  for  an  attack  at  any  time  by 
the  Indians. 

A  short  time  since,  in  conversation  with  William 
Carson  of  Eureka,  he  told  me  that  he,  with  Dan 
Morrison,  Jerry  Whitmore  and  Oliver  Gilmore,  in 
1850,  were  mining  on  a  bar  on  the  Trinity  River, 
about  one  mile  above  where  the  Arkansaw  dam 
was  built  in  1851.  They  left  their  tent  all  right  in 
the  morning  when  they  went  to  their  claims  to 
work.  At  noon  they  returned  to  their  tent  for 
dinner  and  found  that  everything  in  their  tent  had 
been  stolen  by  the  Indians  ;  provisions,  clothing, 
blankets,  and  everything  that  they  could  carry 
away.  Their  tent  was  in  sight  of  where  they  were 
working,  and  they  were  on  the  lookout  for  the 
Indians  all  the  time  they  Avere  at  work.  The 
Indians  got  in  at  the  rear  of  the  tent  and  carried 
away  the  articles  mentioned  without  being  dis- 
covered. 

Messrs.    Carson,   Whitmore,  Gilmore  and  Mor- 


122  PIOJiEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

rison  started  in  pursuit  of  the  Indians,  resolved  to 
get  their  pro]>erty  back,  and  to  teach  them  a  lesson 
for  the  future.  They  got  on  to  the  trail  of  the 
Indians,  and  followed  them  to  the  East  Eork  of 
Canyon  Creek,  a  distance  of  some  twenty-five 
miles,  where  they  found  a  large  rancher ia  of 
Indians  on  one  of  the  flats  of  that  stream. 
When  they  came  in  sight  of  the  Indians  their  plan 
of  attack  was  to  crawl  up  within  a  short  distance 
of  the  rancJicria,  where  they  could  make  every  shot 
tell,  and  then  open  fire.  But  they  were  dis- 
appointed in  their  calculations.  The  Indian  dogs 
gave  the  alarm,  and  the  first  thing  the  Indian 
warriors  knew  there  was  a  shower  of  arrows  around 
them  which  made  that  a  rather  unhealthy  place  at 
which  to  tarry.  They  made  good  their  retreat,  but 
Jerry  AVhitmore  got  an  arrow  or  two  in  the  back 
part  of  his  pants.  The  boys  did  not  get  back  their 
blankets  and  "  grub."  In  this  way  small  bands  of 
Indians  would  harrass  and  plunder  the  miners  and 
settlers,  never  committing  depredations  near  their 
home,  but  always  going  fifteen  or  twenty  miles 
from  their  homes  to  do  their  mischief,  or  hiding  on 
the  trails  traveled  by  the  whites,  and  then  from 
their  liiding-place  filling  the  white  passer-by  full 
of  arrows. 


HIGH    PRICES,    LYNCHING,    AND    OTHER   INCIDENTS.  123 


CHAPTER  XII. 

High  Prices,  Lynching,  and  Other  Incidents. 

Ten  dollars  a  day  for  cutting  wood. — The  blacksmith's  shop. — A  list 
of  prices. — Arrival  of  women. — Lynchmg. — Extorting  confessions. 
— Trinity  comity  organized. — A  batch  of  candidates  for  office. — 
Rivalry  for  the  county  seat. — Humboldt  county  organized. — C.  S. 
Ricks  and  the  belligerent  Capt.  Tracy. 

I  now  commenced  to  prepare  for  business.  Get- 
ting some  wood  hauled,  I  put  up  a  coal-j^it.  I  got 
tlie  Avood  chopped  by  paying  a  fellow  ten  dollars 
per  day  for  his  w  ork.  Doc  and  I  in  the  meantime 
found  a  claim  on  the  Ten-Cent  Gulch,  which  j)aid 
us  sixteen  dollars  ])er  day  Avith  a  rocker.  When 
the  wood  was  chopped  I  j^ftid  Jim  Howe  three 
ounces  for  a  day's  Avork  hauling  it  together  Avith 
his  Missouri  cattle,  and  then  put  my  coal-pit  up, 
using  pine  leaves  instead  of  straAA^  for  the  inside 
covering,  and  in  time  I  got  it  burned.  On  close 
calculation  I  found  it  cost  me  tAvo  dollars  per 
bushel.  I  not  being  an  expert  at  coal  burning,  part 
of  the  coal  burned  up  in  the  pit.  My  partner, 
Damon,  got  back  after  a  three  Aveeks'  journey  to 
Sacramento  City  for  tools,  bringing  a  belloAvs,  auAdl 
and  A  ice,  some  steel,  borax  and  iron  for  picks.     I 


124  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

commenced  by  erecting  a  log  forge,  and,  thinking 
I  should  need  no  covering,  my  shop  was  as  large  as 
■"  all  out-of-dctors ;"  but  I  soon  found  an  out-door 
shop  would  not  do,  as  the  sun  shone  so  bright  on 
the  fire  tliat  I  could  not  tell  when  I  had  a  heat  on, 
and  I  burnt  up  some  of  my  steel  in  consequence.  I 
had  to  build  a  shoj^  or  quit  the  business,  so  I  con- 
cluded to  build.  We  got  pine  poles  and  set  them 
in  the  ground,  Avitli  liglitcr  ones  for  rafters ;  shakes 
were  Avorth  six  dollars  per  hundred.  The  busi- 
ness was  yet  but  a  venture,  and  Ave  did  not  know 
whether  it  would  pay  or  not,  so  we  came  to  the 
conclusion  of  not  putting  much  into  it.  Dick 
Dungey  kept  a  butcher-shop  in  town,  and  the 
thouiiiit  struck  me  tliat  I  would  cover  mv  house 
with  rawhides.  I  saw  Dunge},  and  he  gave  me 
all  the  hides  I  wanted,  and  was  glad  to  get  rid 
of  them.  So  I  shingled  ihy  shop  with  rawhides, 
and  used  them  for  sidin"  also.  Thev  did  verv  well 
until  they  began  to  dry  and  slirink ;  then  there 
were  several  large  cracks  in  the  roof  and  sides.  I 
made  one  mistake  in  putting  them  on  the  roof, 
that  was  in  putting  the  hairy  side  out.  The  butchers 
were  not  very  particular  about  skinning  in  those 
days,  and  generally  left  some  of  the  meat  on  the  hide, 
which  after  a  while  got  "  alive,"  and  occasionally 
one  of  the  big  worms  would  let  go,  and  sometimes 
take  me  on  the  head  or  on  the  back  of  the  neck. 
When  I  had  a  heat  on,  lliough  the  worm  did  not 
feel  pleasant,  I  had  to  stand  it  ratlier  than  lose  my 


HIGH    PRICES,    LYNCHING,    AND    OTHER    INCIDENTS.  125 

lieat.  Miners  cjiine  in  very  fast,  and  business  be- 
came good.  Our  investment  turned  out  a  profit- 
able-'one.  As  many  of  our  readers,  wbo  came  in 
later  years,  know  but  little  of  the  prices  in  those 
days,  for  their  information  I  will  give  you  a  list  of 
some  of  them.  In  my  line  :  Eor  shoeing  a  horse, 
twelve  dollars ;  sharpening  picks,  one  dollar ;  steel- 
ing picks,  four  dollars ;  punching  rocker  irons,  two 
dollars  ;  tom-iron,  from  three  to  five  dollars  ;  heavy 
iron,  when  forged,  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  i^er 
pound ;  new  picks,  seven  to  eight  dollars  each  ; 
long  handle  shovels,  sixteen  dollars  each  ;  tom  or 
rocker  iron,  one  dollar  per  pound,  and  other  things 
in  x>i"oportion.  Packing  was  very  high,  1  having 
to  pay  twenty-five  cents  per  pound  from  Shasta  to 
Weaverville,  a  distance  of  forty  miles ;  board  six- 
teen dollars  per  week;  (nearly  every  one  "bached" 
it);  single  meals,  one  dollar  each. 

In  the  summer  of  '51  women  began  to  make  their 
appearance  in  camp.  Joseph  Ewing  and  Avife 
were  the  first  arrivals  in  the  place,  with  tlie  excep- 
tion of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  A¥alton,  who  only  staid  a  short 
time.  To  Mrs.  Ewing,  now  of  Eureka,  belongs  the 
honor  of  l)eing  the  first  pioneer  lady  of  Trinity 
county.  She  and  her  husband  started  the  United 
States  Hotel.  The  next  family  was  Kichard  John- 
son and  wife,  now  of  Bear  River,  in  this  county ; 
they  started  a  boarding-house  on  what  was  after- 
wards called  Sidney  Mill,  about  half  a  mile  from 
town.      John  Lenwood  and   wife  came  about  the 


126  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

same  time  as  Ricliard  Jolmson's  family,  but  they 
got  dissatisfied  with  the  countvy  and  went  back  to 
Aiistralia,  when  gokl  was  discovered  in  that  cokmy. 
We  occassionally  had  a  lynching  affair,  jnst  to 
keep  the  boys'  hands  in.  They  strung  up  a  fellow 
by  the  name  of  Coulter,  who  was  accused  of  steal- 
ing some  gold  dust ;  but  there  was  no  j)roof  against 
him.  They  put  a  rope  around  his  neck  and  hauled 
him  up  to  the  limb  of  a  tree,  to  make  him  confess, 
and  then  let  him  doAvn,  asking  him  to  confess  to 
the  robbery  and  make  his  x^eace  with  his  Maker ; 
but  they  could  get  no  confession  out  of  him.  The 
boys  had  a  queer  way  of  doing  things  in  those  days 
on  Sidney  Gulch.  If  a  man  was  accused  of  any 
crime,  tliey  summoned  a  miners'  meeting  and  gave 
him  a  trial.  In  some  cases,  where  there  was  not 
sufiicient  evidence  to  convict,  they  would  hanj*^  him 
up  and  then  let  him  down  for  confession,  as  in 
the  case  of  Coulter.  He  was  strung  up  three  times, 
and  then  warned  to  leave  the  diggings  under  penalty 
of  death.  The  next  day  Coulter  came  to  town  and 
showed  his  neck.  It  was  in  a  horrible  condition, 
the  skin  being  raw  where  the  rope  had  chafed  and 
cut  it,  and  he  Avas  a  sight  to  look  at.  The  men  or 
residents  of  Weaver  talked  the  matter  over,  and 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  such  doings  must  be 
stopped.  Coulter  was  told  not  to  leave  until  he 
saw  fit,  and  that  he  would  be  protected,  but  he  left 
in  a  few  days  from  fear.  In  a  short  time  after  the 
Coulter  trouble,   a  man   by  the  name  of  Charley 


HIGH    PRICES,    LYNCHIRG,    AND    OTHER    INCIDENTS.  127 

Williams,  now  a  prominent  lawyer  of  Weaverville, 
and  wlio  has  since  been  county  judge  of  Trinity, 
lost  some  dust,  said  to  liaye  been  stolen  out  of  his 
tent.  He  was  mining  at  that  time,  and  his  purse 
was  left  in  his  tent.  Suspicion  fell  on  a  man  by 
the  name  of  Allen,  who  was  arrested  and  kept  in 
custody.  A¥ord  was  sent  down  to  Weayeryille  that 
Charley  Williams  was  robbed,  and  they  liad  caught 
the  thief  and  were  going  to  try  him  that  eyening  at 
tlie  mouth  of  Sidney  Gulch.  Some  of  the  miners 
who  disax^proyed  of  the  way  Coulter  had  been  dealt 
with,  came  down  to  town  and  talked  the  matter 
oyer  with  the  boys  in  town,  and  finally  about 
twenty-fiye  of  us  went  to  the  trial.  They  had  the 
prisoner  under  guard.  They  then  elected  a  fellow 
by  the  name  of  A.  K.  Young  as  judge,  and  a  jury  of 
twelye  men  was  impaneled  and  sworn  to  try  the 
case.  I  was  one  of  the  twelye  jurors.  The  eyidence 
Ayas  giyen  in.  Kone  of  the  witnesses  knew  of  his 
stealing  the  money;  only  he  had  behayed  in  a  yery 
susj)icious  manner,  and  his  looks  ought  to  conyict 
him.  Some  of  the  jury  commenced  questioning  the 
witnesses,  and  it  finally  turned  out  tliat  they  had 
not  one  particle  of  proof  against  him.  The  jury  ac- 
quitted him  unanimously.  This  A.  K.  Young,  who 
acted  as  judge,  said  he  was  guilty  anyway,  and 
would  haye  to  leaye  camp.  The  foreman  of  the 
jury  sj)oke  in  rej)ly  to  Young,  stating  that  Allen 
had  a  fair  and  impartial  trial  by  a  jury  of  his  coun- 
trymen and  was  honorably  acquitted,  and   it  was 


128  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

not  just  to  make  liiiii  leave.  The  balance  of  the 
jury  sided  in  with  the  foreman  while  the  rest  of  the 
miners  present  were  of  the  same  opinion.  We  took 
Allen  to  town  Avitli  us  for  his  better  protection. 
This  fellow,  A.  K.  Young,  turned  out  to  be  a  scoun- 
drel of  the  first  water,  and  deserved  hanging  more 
than  the  man  he  was  trying.  Allen  stayed  about 
town  for  a  ie^v  weeks  and  left.  Ten  years  later  I 
called  on  him  at  his  ranch  in  the  Sacramento 
Valley.  He  was  then  a  well-to-do  farmer,  and  a 
man  who  was  well  rCvSpected  by  his  neighbors. 

Up  to  tlie  summer  of  '51  no  person  paid  any  at- 
tention to  politics  or  civil  law.  The  miners  made 
their  OAvn  laws,  both  civil  and  criminal.  The  Legis- 
lature of  '50  and  '51  passed  an  act  creating  Trinity 
county.  Shasta  county  was  then  the  most  north- 
erly county  of  the  State,  and  very  little  attention 
was  paid  to  the  State  hiAvs  there.  Under  the  act 
creating  Trinity  county,  the  whole  of  the  territory 
embracing  Trinity,  Humboldt,  old  Klamath  and 
Del  Xorte,  was  embraced  within  the  limits  of 
Trinity.  Nobody  seemed  to  care  about  or  pay  any 
attention  to  the  acts  of  the  Legislature  until  about 
June,  I  think  it  was,  when  a  crowd  of  men  were 
seen  coming,  riding  into  Weaverville.  They  did 
not  look  like  miners,  and  looked  too  honest  to  be 
gamblers.  The  query  was,  who  Avere  they  1  We 
were  not  long  in  suspense,  for  they  announced 
themselves  as  candidates  for  the  various  offices  of 
the  newly   made  county    of   Trinity.     They   were 


HIGH    PRICES,    LYNCHING,    AND    OTHER    INCIDENTS.  120 

residents  of  Humboldt  Bay.  Blancliard  for  County 
Judge,  C  S.  Kicks  for  County  Clerk,  John  A. 
Whaley  for  County  Assessor,  Tom  Bell  for  County 
Treasurer,  Dixon  for  Sheriff,  John  A.  Lyle  and 
John  H.  Harper  for  Senators,  McMillen  for  the 
Legislature.  The  ticket  was  nearly  completed.  C. 
S.  Bicks'  principal  fight  was  for  the  county  seat ; 
he  was  anxious  to  get  the  vote  for  Eureka,  and 
Whaley  for  Areata,  or  Uniontown,  as  it  was  then 
called.  Poor  Bucksport  had  its  friends,  but  did 
not  cut  much  of  a  figure  in  the  contest.  Our  em- 
bryo politicians  of  AYeaYerville  did  not  like  the  di- 
Tision  of  the  spoils.  They  tliought  Humboldt  was 
taking  the  lion's  share  and  not  giving  AVeaver  a  fair 
show.  We  held  a  meeting,  and  nominated  a  full 
ticket,  or  nearly  so,  and  called  it  the  "  Weaver 
ticket,"  with  Weaverville  for  county  seat,  Johnson 
Price  for  County  Judge,  John  C.  Burch  for  County 
Clerk,  Hutchinson  for  Sheriff,  McGee  for  Assessor, 
old  man  Cunningham  for  District  Attorney,  for 
Senator,  J.  W.  Denver,  and  for  the  Legislature 
Weaverville  endorsed  McMillan  and  nominated  P. 
S.  McKenzie.  The  county  was  entitled  to  two  As- 
semblymen. The  fight  Avent  on  until  election  day. 
Everybody  voted,  and  no  questions  were  asked  as 
to  citizenship,  no  registry  law  being  in  force.  Tiie 
result  was  that  Weaverville  was  chosen  county  seat, 
and  the  whole  of  her  ticket  elected.  There  was  a 
contest  over  the  countv  seat,  the  Weaverites  accus- 
ing  the  Humboldters  of  crooked  work  in  bringing 


130  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

in  precincts  that  were  never  heard  of  since,  which 
gave  Eureka  the  majority.  The  consequence  was 
that  the  County  Judge,  Johnson  Price,  recognized 
Weaverville  as  the  county  seat,  and  the  District 
Judge  held  court  at  Eureka.  But  we  in  Weaver- 
ville had  the  advantage  of  Eureka.  Weaverville 
had  all  the  officers,  and  Humboldters  had  to 
come  to  Weaverville  when  they  had  any  business 
with  them.  Tlie  next  Legislature  divided  the 
county,  and  ended  the  matter  of  county  seat,  so  far 
as  Weaverville  was  concerned. 

Then  commenced  the  contest  for  county  seat  of 
Humboldt  county,  which  lasted  for  several  years. 
Some  amusing  incidents  occurred  during  the  cam- 
paign. One  day  the  Humboldt  delegation  was 
holding  a  public  meeting  in  the  "  round  tent,"  and 
Ricks  was  si^eaking.  There  was  in  the  crowd  a 
fellow  by  the  name  of  Captain  Tracy,  who  was 
"  some  "  on  the  fight.  He  was  a  Mississipj)ian,  and 
had  been  in  the  Mexican  war.  C.  S.  Kicks  was 
going  on,  extolling  Eureka  and  Humboldt  Bay  in 
general,  Avlien  Tracy  "chij)i)ed  in"  and  called 
Kicks  a  jackass.  Kicks  coolly  remarked  that  "jack- 
asses when  the}'  kick,  generally  kicked  pretty 
hard."  That  raised  the  Captain's  Southern  blood, 
and,  drawing  a  large  bowie-knife,  he  started  for 
Kicks,  stating  that  he  would  cut  the  heart  out  of 
him.  Kicks  was  standing  on  a  table  while  speak- 
ing, and  Tracy  advanced  to  the  table  with  blood  in 
his  eye.     Tracy's   friends   tried   to   stop   him,  but 


HIGH   PRICES,    LYNCHING,    AND    OTHER    INCIDENTS.  loi 

Ricks  coolly  remarked,  "  Let  him  come ;  do  not 
stand  in  his  way  ;  I  am  prepared  for  him."  When 
Tracy  saw  Ricks  taking  it  so  cool  it  did  not  require 
so  many  men  to  hold  him,  and,  after  a  little  more 
bluster,  the  Oaj)tain  cooled  oif.  Ricks  went  on 
with  his  speech,  and  was  not  interrupted  again. 
The  boys  called  Whaley  the  "walking  arsenal  of 
Humboldt."  When  he  first  made  his  appearance 
he  had  on  a  belt,  with  a  knife  and  a  couple  of 
pistols  in  it,  a  pair  of  leggings,  with  a  bowie-knife 
in  each  legging,  and  was  fully  armed  and 
equii)ped. 

Captain  Tracy  left  WeaYeryille  shortly  after  the 
election,  and  the  next  time  I  saw  him  Avas  on  the 
Isthmus  of  Panama,  in  the  fall  of  '52.  He  had 
joined  the  Elores  expedition,  filibustering  in  one  of 
the  Central  American  States.  The  jiarty  got 
"  cleaned  out,"  and  he  and  some  more  of  his  j)arty 
were  taken  to  Panama  by  a  British  man-of-war, 
and  there  landed.  Senator  Grwin  and  Congress- 
man McCorkle  were  on  their  way  from  Washing- 
ton to  California,  and  they  procured  them  a  pas- 
sage on  the  old  steamer  "  California  "  to  San  Pran- 
cisco.  That  was  the  last  I  saw  of  him.  He  died 
shortly  after.  He  was  a  type  of  a  good  many  men 
that  came  to  California  after  the  disbanding  of  the 
army  at  the  close  of  the  Mexican  war.  They  could 
be  truly  called  "  soldiers  of  fortune."  Of  such  ma- 
terial were  the  filibustering'  expeditions  composed 
at  that  time. 


132  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

Officers  Elected. 
A    sensational  lynching   affair  and    the  rescue. — The  accused  innocent. 

To  come  back  to  Trinity  county  :  Weayeryille 
did  pretty  well  by  Humboldt's  politicians.  There 
were  elected  from  Humboldt :  Dixon  for  Sheriff, 
Tom  Bell  for  County  Treasurer,  E.  H.  Howard, 
Public  Administrator,  and  McMillen  for  the  Legis- 
lature. We  in  Weayeryille  thought  Aye  were 
generous  with  the  Humboldters,  considering  that 
they  started  in  to  "hog  it"  all.  Trinity  had  the 
yotes,  but  Humboldt  had  the  politicians,  so  we  "got 
away  "  with  them.  Our  officers  started  in  to  get 
the  county  goyernment  organized.  It  was  uj)-hill 
work,  without  any  grease  to  oil  the  ncAV  macliinery 
with,  but  Judge  Price  was  a  man  of  considerable 
ability  and  of  oyer  ayerage  honesty,  and,  in  due 
time,  things  began  to  assume  their  proj^er  shape. 

Men  were  getting  tired  of  lynch  law,  yet  there 
Ayere  seyeral  cases  tried  before  Judge  Lynch  after 
organizing  the  county.  The  county  had  no  public 
buildings  of  any  description,  eyen  no  place  in  Ayhich 
to  keep  criminals,  Ayhere  they  would  be  secure  until 


^  OFFICERS    ELECTED.  133 

the  day  of  trial.  Judge  Price  did  not  serve  out  liis 
time,  but  resigned  and  went  to  Sacramento  to  prac- 
tice liis  profession,  that  of  physician.  Governor 
JohnBigler  appointed  him  Secretary  of  State  during 
one  of  Bigler's  terms  as  Governor.  Johnson  Price 
was  an  honest  and  lionorable  man,  and,  as  County 
Judge  of  Trinity  county  and  Secretary  of  State,  he 
acted  with  honor  to  himself  and  profit  to  the  State. 
He  died  a  few  years  after  his  term  expired.  Dixon, 
the  Sheriff,  served  his  term  out,  and  came  down  to 
Humboldt,  where  he  was  shot,  whether  by  accident 
or  suicide  no  person  ever  knew.  He  went  out 
hunting  near  Bucksport,  and  was  found  dead.  His 
remains  now  lie  buried,  I  have  been  informed,  on  a 
little  knoll  this  side  of  Pine's  dairy-house,  near  the 
Bucksport  road.  Tom  Bell,  tlie  Treasurer,  served 
out  his  time,  and  went  to  l^ew  York  Citj .  McGee, 
the  Assessor,  collected  all  the  money  he  could,  and 
"  raised  Ked "  generally,  and  had  three  or  four 
judgments  found  against  him.  He  left  the  county 
for  the  county's  good,  and  was  afterward  killed  in 
a  row  at  Virginia  City.  Jolm  0.  Burch  served  out 
his  term,  and  was  afterward  elected  to  Congress. 
Old  man  Cunningham  went  generally  "to  the 
dogs,"  and  died  of  too  much  alcohol.  J.  M.  Peters 
was  elected  Justice  of  the  Peace  ;  he  afterwards  be- 
came District  Judge  of  the  district,  and  quite  a 
noted  character  in  his  dav. 

Shortlv  after  election  we  had  a  lynchino  affair  in 
Weaverville.      In  was  in  this  wise  :     There  was  a 


134  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

suspicions  character  by  the  name  of  Seynionr  abont 
town  who  came  from  Australia,  and  went  by  the 
name  of  "Sydney  Duck."  He  had  a  coat  which, 
when  worn  on  one  side,  woukl  be  red  with  blue 
facings,  and  by  turning  it  would  be  a  blue  coat 
Avith  red  facings.  The  boys  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  an  honest  man  would  not  Avear  such  a  coat.  A 
miner  by  the  name  of  George  Hardgraves,  an 
Englislmian  from  Illinois,  worked  on  Garden 
Gulch,  and  Se\nnour  being  an  Englishman  they 
were  sometimes  together.  One  evening  Hard- 
graves  came  to  town  and  got  on  a  drunk.  He  had 
his  dust  in  a  yeast  powder  can — some  eight  or  nine 
hundred  dollars.  He  usually  carried  it  in  his 
breast,  between  his  shirts.  Sepnour,  as  usual,  was 
with  him,  and  they  "spreed"  it  until  11  or  12  o'clock. 
Xext  morning  Hardgraves'  dust  "  came  up  miss- 
ing." He  came  to  town  from  his  cabin  and  re- 
j)orted  his  loss.  Susx^icion  at  once  fell  upon  Sey- 
mour as  being  the  thief.  He  was  arrested  by  Sheriff 
Dixon.  A  miners'  meeting  was  called,  and  Sheriff 
Dixon  requested  to  bring  his  prisoner  before  it, 
which  he  refused  to  do.  He  had  Seymour  confined  in 
a  little  cabin  in  the  upper  part  of  the  town.  The 
committee  reported  to  the  meeting  that  the  Sheriff 
would  not  give  the  prisoner  up,  whereupon  a  num- 
ber of  men  were  selected  to  go  and  bring  him  be- 
fore the  meeting  at  all  hazards.  Tlie  second  dele- 
gation went  to  the  Sheriff  and  demanded  the 
prisoner.     There  was  no  one  but  the  Sheriff  guard- 


OFFICERS     ELECTED.  135 

ing  liim,  and  the  committee   informed  the  Sheriff 
that  they  had  come  to  take  the  prisoner,  Sepnour, 
and   Avere  going  to  have  him  whether  the  Sheriff 
liked  it  or  not.     The  Sheriff  replied,  "  Well,  boys, 
I  cannot  figiit  you  all,  and  I  Avould  sooner  see  yon 
hang  one  dozen  "  Sidney  Ducks  "  than  have  to  hurt 
one  of  you  ;  if  you  will  have  him,  take  him."     The 
committee  brought  him  before  the  meeting,  and  the 
regular  course  was  taken,  that  of  apj)ointing  a  judge 
and  jury  to  try  the  case.     The  case  was  conducted 
in  a  very  proper  manner.     Several  witnesses  were 
sworn,  Hardgraves  being  the   j)rincipal  one,  who 
testified  to  being  Avith  the  prisoner  the  night  before, 
and  losin^f  his  nnmev.     Several  others  testified  to 
seeing   them   together   the  night  the   money   Avas 
stolen.     With  the   testimony  against  him,  and  his 
former  suspicious  character,  besides  his  tAvo-sided 
coat,  things  looked  rather  blue  for  poor  Sepnour. 
When  asked  Avhat  he  had  to  say  in  his  defence,  he 
l)leaded  innocence ;  that  he  knew  nothing  of  Hard- 
graves'  money ;  that  he  had  it  betAveen  his  shirts 
when  he  left  him  the  night  of   the  robbery.     The 
jury  retired,  and,  after  about  half  an  hour's  deliber- 
ation, brought  in   a  verdict  of  "  guilty."     This,  to 
all  appearances,  settled  the  fate  of  Seymour.     He 
was  to  be  hanged  that  night  at  sundoAvn,  on  an  oak 
tree,  just  across  the  gulch  beloAV  the  toAvn.     When 
the  time  for  execution  drcAV  near  there  were  some 
doubts  in  the  minds  of  some  of  the  jury,  if,  after 
all,  Seymour  might  not  be  innocent  of  the  crime  for 


136  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

wliicli  lie  was  about  to  suffer.  In  talking  the  mat- 
ter over,  the  leaders,  or  the  principal  men  engaged 
in  the  affair,  came  to  the  conclusion  to  try  and 
force  a  confession  out  of  liiin  of  the  theft.  The 
time  appointed  for  the  execution  arrived.  He  was 
led  to  the  tree,  and  there  told  to  make  his  j)eace 
Avith  his  Maker,  for  in  fifteen  minutes  he  Avould  be 
in  His  presence.  Seymour  knelt  down  and  offered 
up  his  devotions  in  one  of  the  most  touching  ap- 
X3eals  to  God  for  pardon  for  his  own  sins  and  those 
of  us  who  stood  round  him ;  praying  God  to  forgive 
us  for  the  great  crime  we  were  about  to  commit 
against  him ;  calling  on  his  Maker  to  witness  liis 
innocence  of  the  crime  for  which  he  was  about  to 
suffer.  I  firmly  believe  that  x^rayer  touched  the 
hearts  of  many  who  stood  around  him  that  night. 
When  his  time  was  uj)  the  rope  was  placed  around 
his  neck,  and  he  was  asked  if  he  had  anything  more 
to  say.  He  said  he  was  innocent,  and  hoped  God 
would  forgive  them.  He  was  then  hauled  from 
the  ground  and  hanged  for  some  time,  when  he  was 
let  down  and  asked  again  to  confess  to  his  stealing 
the  money.  His  answer  was,  "I  am  innocent." 
This  thev  did  three  times,  with  tlie  same  answer 
eacli  time.  After  the  third  hanging  a  consultation 
was  held  out  of  his  hearing,  and  it  was  decided  not 
to  hang  him,  but  give  him  a  chance  to  escape,  and 
the  j)lace  would  then  be  clear  of  him.  On  return- 
ing to  the  tree  he  was  informed  that  the  execution 
would  be   postponed  until  the  following  day  at  9 


OFFICERS     ELECTED.  137 

oVlock.  When  he  was  let  down  each  time  he  was 
praying  for  more  time  to  make  his  peace  with  his 
Maker,  and  they  informed  him  they  wonld  give 
liim  until  that  time  to  do  so.  He  was  then  i)ljiced 
in  my  charge,  with  priyate  instructions  to  me  to  let 
liim  escaj)e  that  night.  I  liyed  in  a  small  cabin. 
The  crowd  brought  him  to  the  cabin  and  put  him 
inside,  giying  me  feigned  orders  if  he  attempted  to 
escape  to  shoot  him  down.  The  crowd  then  dis- 
X^ersed.  He  ^yas  no  sooner  alone  than  he  again 
commenced  his  in-ayers.  I  stood  outside  of  the 
door  listening  to  him.  In  about  an  hour  1  opened 
the  cabin  door — he  was  still  on  his  knees  ;  I  said  to 
him,  "  Seymour,  I  do  not  like  to  see  you  die  like  a 
dog;  you  may  be  innocent."  "I  am  innocent,"  he 
replied,  "as  innocent  as  yourself  of  the  crime  that 
I  am  about  to  die  for."  I  said,  "I  haye  a  good 
notion  to  let  you  escape.  I  haye  many  friends 
among  the  miners,  and  I  do  not  think  they  would 
dare  to  injure  me  for  doing  so."  He  looked  w^  to 
me  with  such  a  look  of  sup^dication  and  pleading 
in  his  countenance  that  even  if  it  was  not  a  preyi- 
ously  understood  arrangement,  I  belieye  1  sliould 
haye  let  him  go  and  taken  my  chances  with  the 
crowd.  I  said  to  him,  "Sepnour,  I  will  let  you  go. 
If  you  haye  been  a  bad  man,  reform ;  you  haye  had 
a  narrow  escape  ;  get  out  of  the  county  as  fast  as 
you  can."  I  then  asked  him  if  he  had  any  money 
and  he  said,  "  Xo,  not  a  cent."  I  gaye  him  ten 
dollars,  and  oj)ened  his  prison  door,  telling  him  to 


138  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

put  as  long  a  distance  as  possible  between  him  and 
Weaver  before  morning.  He  was  not  long  in  mak- 
ing his  prejyarations.  Giving  liim  some  bread  and 
cold  meat,  he  left,  showering  blessings  on  me,  his 
preserver.  That  was  the  last  I  saw  of  j)oor  Sey- 
mour. 

I  have  often  read  of  men  being  condemned 
to  death,  and,  at  the  last  moment,  being  reprieved, 
or  their  sentence  commuted.  This  Avas  the  first 
case  within  my  experience.  The  mind  can  hardly 
contemplate  the  change  that  the  few  words  spoken 
will  give  to  the  feelings  of  the  condemned  criminal. 
When  I  first  hinted  to  Seymour  that  I  Avould  let 
him  go,  hope  sprang  to  his  breast ;  his  whole  being 
seemed  to  change ;  a  new  life  seemed  to  spring  up 
in  him,  and  in  less  time  than  it  takes  me  to  write 
this,  from  a  grovelling,  heart-broken,  dejected  x^iece 
of  clay,  he  became  a  new  man,  endowed  with  new 
life.  We  heard  from  him  the  next  day.  About  9 
o'clock  two  miners  on  their  way  from  Shasta  to 
Weaverville  saw  a  man  on  the  trail  just  ahead  of 
them.  They  saw  him  first  ;  when  he  saw  them  he 
dodged  into  the  bush.  They  did  not  like  the  looks 
of  things,  so  they  drew  their  guns  and  went  after 
him,  and  found  him  hiding  behind  a  bunch  of 
brush,  apparently  in  great  terror.  They  asked  what 
was  the  matter.  He  begged  them  not  to  kill  him 
or  take  him  back  to  Weaverville,  and  told  them 
that  he  had  just  escaped  with  his  life,  and  advised 
them  not  to  go  Weaverville,  as  it  was  the  wick- 


OFFICERS     ELECTED.  189 

edest  pLice  in  California.  They  told  liini  they  were 
miners,  and  if  they  attended  to  their  own  bnsiness 
they  thonght  there  would  be  no  trouble.  They 
came  on  until  they  got  pretty  near  town,  when  they 
met  old  Sam  Ourrav.  Every  pioneer  will  remember 
old  Sam  Curray.  He  was  always  drunk  and  on  the 
fiffht.  He  made  his  home  with  McKenzie  & 
Winston,  who  were  running  a  butcher-shop  and 
store  at  that  time,  and  Sam  did  chores  for  the  firm. 
The  old  fellow  Avas  on  his  way  to  the  slaughter- 
house to  help  kill  a  beef.  He  was  about  half  drunk, 
as  usual,  and  had  with  him  a  basket,  in  which  Ayere 
two  reyolyers  and  three  or  four  butcher-kniyes, 
used  in  killing  beef.  Meeting  those  two  miners 
just  below  town,  his  first  salutation  was,  "  Who  the 
h — 1  are  you  T'  They  said  they  were  miners,  on 
their  way    to   Weayeryille.     His   next   salutation 

was :    "  Can  you   fight,  you,  can  you  fight  f 

Throwing  down  the  basket  with  the  pistols  and 
kniyes,  he  said  :  "  Take  your  choice  of  weapons  ; 
fight  you  must.     If  you  are  not  fighting  men  you 

haye  no  business  in  Weayeryille, you."     The 

miners  then  thought  that  the  fellow  they  met  on 
the  mountain  was  about  right,  and  gaye  Weayer- 
yille a  wide  berth.  They  met  a  miner  at  Oregon 
Gulch  mountain,  and  in  conversation  with  him 
learned  the  true  situation  of  aifairs  and  who  old 
Sam  Curray  was.  They  finally  came  back  to 
Weayeryille,  and  did  not  find  it  half  so  desperate  a 
place  as  old  Sam  represented  it  to  be. 


140  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

To  come  back  to  the  stolen  money  or  dust :  Dr. 
Winston  had  business  out  back  of  his  store  one  day, 
a  short  time  after  Sejanour  left,  and  he  found  the 
yeast-powder  can  out  among  the  chaparral,  with 
the  gold  dust  in  it  all  right,  just  where  Hard- 
graves  had  dropped  it  the  night  he  was  drunk.  He 
afterward  remembered  being  out  there  while  drunk, 
but  was  too  drunk  to  discover  his  loss  Avlien  he 
dropi^ed  the  can.  Hardgraves  got  his  money  back, 
and  poor  Seymour  was  exonerated  from  the  tlieft ; 
but  it  was  too  late.  Seymour  was  made  to  suffer 
for  a  crime  of  Avhich  he  was  innocent,  and  banished 
from  the  place.  Circumstances  were  against  him, 
yet  he  was  inaocent.  After  that  case  men  were 
more  cautious.  Lynching  was  not  resorted  to 
excej)t  when  the  proof  was  plain  and  the  crime 
very  great.  It  taught  me  the  lesson  to  nei^er  again 
have  an}i;hing  to  do  with  Judge  Lynch  or  his  court. 
Had  Seymour  been  hanged  it  would  have  haunted 
me  to  the  last  day  of  my  life;  but,  thank  God,  we 
were  all  spared  that  crime. 


CHANGING    THE    COURSE    OF    TRINITY   RIVER.  141 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Changing  the  Course  of  Trinity  River. 

The  "Arkansaw  dam." — Meeting  an  old  friend. — A  first  cousin  ot  the 
Earl  of  Stanmore  the  keeper  of  a  trading-post. — A  fire. — Lost  his 
last  pair  of  pantaloons. — A  peculiar  costume. — Dear  lumber. — 
Gardening. — A  fighting  parson. 

In  the  smiinier  of  '50  a  company  was  formed  on 
Trinity  Riyer  to  turn  the  bed  of  the  stream  into  an 
okl  channel  by  buikling  a  dam  at  the  head  of  the 
okl  stream.  Tliey  expected  to  throw  all  the  water 
of  the  Trinity  Riyer  into  its  old  course,  and  lay 
bare,  or  nearly  dry,  the  whole  bed  for  three- 
quarters  of  a  mile,  which  was  said  to  be  yery  rich 
in  the  precious  metal.  The  company'  was  com- 
j)osed  of  men  principally  from  Arkansas,  and  they 
called  the  works  the  "  Arkansaw  dam."  Uncle 
Joe  Strudiyant,  John  Carter,  Jonathan  Logan  and 
Jerry  Whitmore,  afterwards  of  tliis  county,  were 
the  principal  stockholders  in  the  enterj)rise.  They 
let  the  contract  for  building  the  dam  to  a  crowd  of 
New  Bruns wickers,  the  most  of  whom  haye  since 
become  leading  men  of  Humboldt  county.  There 
were  Sandy  Buchanan,  William  Carson,  George 
McEarlan,    Oliyer   Cilmore,  Dan  Morrison,    and 


142  PIONEER   DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

others  tluit  I  do  not  reniember,  who  helped  to 
build  that  dam.  It  was  celebrated  all  over  the 
county  as  a  big  undertaking  for  the  time.  Xews 
used  to  come  up  to  Weaverville  of  the  big  pros- 
pects they  had.  I  have  heard  it  re]3orted  that  they 
got  as  high  as  one  ounce  of  gold  dust  to  a  pan  of 
dirt  scraped  from  the  bottom  of  the  river,  and  never 
less  than  one  dollar  to  the  shovelful.  Every  tiling 
seemed  lovely  ;  the  "Bluenoses"  were  getting  on 
with  their  dam  in  good  shape,  and  in  a  week  or 
two  Avould  turn  the  water  into  the  old  bed.  I 
heard  of  an  interest  that  was  for  sale  at  one 
thousand  dollars,  and  thought,  "Xow  is  your  time, 
old  boy,  to  make  a  'home  stake.'"  Paying  ten 
dollars  for  a  mule  to  ride,  and  taking  one  thousand 
dollars  in  dust,  I  started  for  the  "  Arkansaw  dam," 
expecting  to  buy  myself  rich.  When  I  arrived  at 
the  dam,  about  ten  miles  from  Weaverville,  every- 
thing was  going  with  a  rush.  The  "Bluenoses" 
were  astonishing  those  Arkansas  chaps  by  the 
way  they  were  tilling  the  logs  into  the  dam.  I 
examined  the  works  closely,  and  likewise  the  old 
bed.  The  thought  struck  me  that  the  old  bed 
was  not  large  or  deej)  enough  to  carry  all  the 
water  then  in  Trinity  Kiver,  and  I  began  to 
weaken  on  my  "home  stake." 

In  looking  around  the  banks  of  the  river  I  saw 
two  fellows  at  work  with  a  rocker.  I  went  to 
where  they  were  Avorking,  and  in  conversation  I 
found  one   of  their  names  was  Cummins.     I  told 


CHANGING    THE    COURSE    OF    TRINITY    RIVER.  143 

liiin  I  liiid  a  school-mate  of  that  name  Avhen  a  boy. 
He  asked  me  where  1  I  said  in  Kingston,  Canada. 
AYhat  was  the  name  of  yonr  teacher^  I  tokl  him, 
and  he  said  he  was  that  school-mate.  We  were 
very  glad  to  see  each  other.  The  last  I  had  seen  of 
him  before  meeting  him  on  the  Trinity  River  he 
was  captain  of  a  steamer  rnnning  between  Kingston 
and  Ottawa,  and  was  qnite  a  dude  in  his  dress  and 
appearance.  I  looked  at  him  for  a  moment,  and 
said :  "  Surely,  this  is  not  Oapt.  John  G.  Cummins 
of  tlie  Prince  Albert"  (that  was  the  name  of  the 
steamer  lie  commanded.)  He  said  he  was  the 
fellow.  I  said  :  "  Captain,  you  do  not  look  much 
like  the  captain  of  the  Prince  Albert  now."  He 
said :  "  Nevertheless,  1  am  the  fellow." 

I  will  here  remark  that  in  those  early  days  you 
Avere  likely  to  come  upon  a  captain,  or  a  doctor,  or 
a  lawyer,  or  a  merchant,  or  a  professor,  or  other 
titled  individual,  delving  witli  his  pick  and  shovel 
and  bucket.  They  all  had  to  try  their  luck  in  the 
mines,  but,  as  a  general  thing,  they  soon  tired  of 
it,  and  returned  to  more  congenial  employment, 
and  mining  was  left  to  the  hard-fisted  sons  of  toil. 

Cummins  and  I  repaired  to  the  shade  of  a  tree, 
and  for  a  time  lived  over  our  boyhood  days  again. 
I  told  him  that  I  came  down  expressly  to  buy  into 
the  dam.  I  wanted  to  know  his  opinion  of  the 
investment.  He  advised  me  to  have  notliing  to  do 
with  it,  for  the  same  reason  that  I  myself  thought 
of.     I  made  up  my  mind  to  take  his  advice,  as  it 


144  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

coincided  with  my  opinion.  He  would  not  think 
of  my  going  home  that  night,  but  I  must  stay  with 
liim.  He  was  not  doing  much  at  mining,  and  I 
advised  him  to  come  with  me  to  Weave rville,  as  1 
thought  he  could  do  better  there. 

At  the  Arkansaw  dam  at  that  time  there  was  a 
trading-post ;  that  is,  a  large  walled  tent  which  was 
kept  for  that  j)urpose,  where  you  could  find  such 
goods  as  the  miners  required.  It  was  kej)t  by  an 
Englishman  by  the  name  of  James  Stanmore,  who 
claimed  to  be  very  high-toned — to  be  no  less  a  per- 
son than  the  first  cousin  of  the  Earl  of  Stanmore  in 
England.  He  was  a  jolly  old  fellow ;  weighed  over 
two  hundred  and  fifty  pounds.  He  became  a  favor- 
ite with  the  boys,  and  when  the  day's  work  Avas  over, 
his  store  was  generally  well  patronized — three  or 
four  tables  running  every  night  ;  the  boys  playing 
cards  for  whisky,  cigars,  sardines  and  crackers,  etc., 
and  having  a  good  time  generally.  The  11  o'clock 
oi'dinance  was  not  in  force  at  the  Arkansaw  dam  at 
that  time.  The  night  I  was  there,  they  were  run- 
ning in  full  blast.  There  was  working  at  the  dam  a 
comical  old  fellow  called  Smiley,  upon  whom  the 
boys  were  always  playing  some  trick.  They  fre- 
quently used  to  euchre  him  when  he  held  both 
bowers  and  the  ace.  It  was  fun  for  the  boAS  to 
hear  old  Smiley  SAvear  in  such  cases.  About  12 
o'clock  old  Smiley  got  up  and  Avent  out,  and,  on 
coming  in  and  picking  up  his  hand,  he  remarked, 
"  Tom    MotherAvell's     tent    is    afire."      Cummins 


CHANGING    THE    COURSE    OF    TRINITY    RIVER.  145 

jiiuiped  lip  from  the  table  and  ran  to  the  door,  and 
the  rest  of  us  did  tlie  same.  The  tent  was  in  flames, 
and  Tom  lying  asleej)  in  it.  It  was  but  tlie  Avork 
of  a  minute  to  j)i^ll  ^lie  burning  tent  down  from 
over  him.  Tom  got  partly  awake,  and  said  :  "  What 
the  d — 1  are  you  fellows  doing  1 ''  Tom  Avas  jn-etty 
well  "set-up"  before  retiring,  and  he  lighted  the 
candle  and  forgot  to  blow  it  out  before  he  fell 
asleep.  The  candle  set  the  tent  on  fire,  and  came 
very  near  cremating  him.  It  burnt  up  what  few 
clothes  and  j)i'Ovisions  they  had.  Cummins  had 
but  one  j^air  of  pants,  and  those  were  wet,  so  he 
took  them  off,  after  his  day's  work,  and  hung  them 
to  dry,  putting  on  a  pair  of  red-flannel  drawers,  to 
sit  in  during  the  evening  while  his  pants  dried. 
The  evenings  Avere  generally  warm,  and  a  man  was 
comfortable  with  ygvy  feAV  clothes  on.  The  fire 
closed  out  the  fun  for  the  night.  The  next  morn- 
ing, Avhen  Ave  came  to  oa  erhaul  the  ruins  of  the 
fire,  Cummins  found  his  pants,  but  the  legs  were 
burnt  off  up  to  tlie  thighs,  and  Stanmore  had  no 
pants  or  overalls  in  the  store.  He  Avas  in  a  pretty 
fix,  for  he  Avanted  to  go  to  AVeaA  erille  Avith  me  and 
had  no  x^ants  to  wear,  and  none  Avere  to  be  had 
nearer  than  WeaverA'ille,  ten  miles  aAvay.  Finally, 
Ave  persuaded  him  to  put  Avhat  was  left  of  his  pants 
OA  er  his  drawers,  and  go  so.  He  did  so,  Avitli  the 
understanding  that  I  Avas  to  ride  ahead,  and,  if  we 
met  ail}  body  on  the  trail,  I  w  as  to  Avhistle,  and  he 
Avould  liide  in  the  brush  until  tliey  Avould  get  by. 


146  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

He  Avas  when  at  lionie  very  particuhir  as  to  his 
clothes,  and  always  looked  the  very  pink  of  neat- 
ness. Wlien  we  got  rigged  up  and  ready  for  a 
start,  his  costume  consisted  of  an  old  Ayhite  hat, 
with  part  of  tlie  crown  out,  a  gray  shirt,  corduroy 
pants,  minus  the  legs,  a  pair  of  red  drawers  and  a 
pair  of  mining  boots,  with  the  legs  of  the  red  draw- 
ers stuffed  in  them.  He  was  comical  to  look  at. 
We  got  started,  and,  as  luck  would  have  it,  a\  e  did 
not  meet  anything  on  the  road  except  one  pack 
train,  until  we  got  near  Weaveryille.  There  were 
some  willow  flats  just  before  Ave  got  to  toAvn,  and 
the  agreement  Avas  that  he  should  2:0  into  a  bunch 
of  AvilloAV's  and  I  Avould  ride  into  toAAii  and  get  him 
a  pair  of  pants  and  a  hat,  and  bring  them  to  him. 
I  rode  into  toA\n,  got  the  pants  and  hat,  and 
brought  them  to  liim,  AAiiich  made  him  quite  pre- 
sentable. He  took  up  his  quarters  Avith  me.  The 
first  night  he  Avanted  to  spread  liis  blankets  on  the 
floor,  but  I  Avould  not  stand  that ;  I  had  a  bunk 
large  enough  for  both  of  us,  and  insisted  on  his 
using  part  of  it.  He  demurred  for  a  long  time,  but 
finally  turned  in  Avith  me.  In  four  or  flAe  days 
after  he  came  to  me  and  said,  "  HaA^e  a  ou  discoA  - 
ered  any  "graybacks"  in  your  bed  since  I  liaAC 
been  sleeping  Avith  you  V  I  said,  "  HaA^e  you  had 
an  increase  in  yours  since  you  came  %  "  He  looked 
at  me  and  said,  "  Well,  if  you  had  them  before  I 
came  it  is  all  riglit ;  I  suppose  a  mixture  Avill  do 
no  harm  ;  but  that  is  the  reason  I  did  not  Avant  to 


CHANGING    THE    COURSE    OF    TRINITY    RIVER.  147 

sleep  in  your  bed."  •'  Tliat  is  all  riglit,  my  boy ; 
after  you  turned  in  the  same  tliouglit  struck  me  re- 
garding yourself;  if  I  had  thought  of  mine  I  would 
not  have  insisted  on  your  sharing  my  bunk  with 
me,  but,  as  we  Avere  both  in  the  same  fix,  of  course 
no  harm  is  done." 

There  was  a  man  by  the  name  of  Becket  running 
a  saw-mill  near  town — that  is,  a  handsaw-mill ;  he 
had  a  whipsaw.  The  lumber  for  sluice-boxes  and 
long-toms  was  cut  by  hand,  and  was  worth  at  the 
saw-pit  twenty-five  cents  per  foot,  or  two  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  per  thousand  ;  a  pretty  good  price 
for  lumber,  Humboldters  would  say.  I  got 
Cummins  a  job  with  Becket  sawing  at  ten  dollars 
per  day.  After  a  while  he  bought  a  half  of  the 
concern,  which  consisted  of  one  whipsaw,  two  files 
and  a  fixture  to  file  the  saw  with,  which  he  j)aid 
Becket  one  hundred  dollars  for.  They  averaged 
their  twenty-five  dollars  per  day  eacli,  for  some 
time.  Subsequently  a  man  by  the  name  of  Lathrop 
started  a  small  mill  at  the  mouth  of  Weaver  Creek, 
six  miles  below  toAvn,  and  made  a  road  n^  to  town 
at  his  own  expense,  and  sold  lumber  at  twelve  and 
a  half  cents  per  foot,  which  put  a  stop  to  wliip- 
sawing.  This  man  Lathrop  was  a  go-ahead  fellow. 
Before  starting  the  mill  there  was  quite  a  flat  just 
above  the  mouth  of  Weaver  Creek,  covered  with 
willows  and  other  brush,  and  he  started  in  clearing 
it  up  for  a  farm.  The  people  used  to  make  fun  of 
him.     The  idea  of  raising  anything  in  those  mount- 


I4S  PIONEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

ains  seemed   prei)osterons;  but  the   MIoav  kei)t  on 

with  his  Avork,  and  got  a  few  acres  cleaved  and  a 

ditcli  dug  to  irrigate  it,  and  phmted  his  seed.     The 

garden  proved  to  be  splendid  property ;  everything 

grew  to  j)erfection,  and   the  price  he  charged  was 

huge.     For  a  small  bunch  of  radishes,  twenty-five 

cents  ;  onions,  twenty-five  cents  ;  melons,  from  one 

to  two  dollars  each  ;  potatoes,  fifty  cents  per  pound, 

and  other  things  in  proi)ortion,  and  then  could  not 

begin  to  furnish  half  that  was  required.  He  told  me 

that   frequently  one  mule  load   Avould   bring  him 

from  seventy-five  to  one  hundred  dollars.   He  built 

a  fish-trap  at  the  mouth   of  the    creek,  and  caught 

anv    amount   of  salmon,  which  were  a   luxury  in 

those  days,  and   these  he   sold    at  fifty   cents   i)er 

pound.     In  a  couple  of  years  the  old  fellow  sold  his 

place  for  fifteen  thousand  dollars,  and  Avent  to  San 

Jose,  and,  I  heard,  paid  forty  thousand  dollars  for 

a   ranch   there.      The  old    man  was   a    sort   of  a 

preacher.     He  would  work  all  the  week  and  preach 

to  the  boys  on  Sunday.     He  was  more  successful  in 

making  money  and  raising  vegetables  than  he  was 

in  saving  souls,  the  boys  used  to  say.     Others,  seeing 

the  success  of  Lathrop,  took  up  every  piece  of  land 

that  woukl  raise  anything  in  the  county,  and  were 

generally  successful.     Vegetables  always  brought  a 

good    price.      The    fish    operation     was     soon     a 

failure,  for  when  the  mines  came  to  be  ox^ened,  the 

debris  running  into  Trinity  stopped  the  salmon  from 

running  up  stream.    Erom  a  clear  mountain  stream 


CHANGING    THE    COURSE    OF    TRINITY    RIVER.  149 

it  became  a  red,  muddy  river  to  its  moutL,  wliicli 
was  death  to  the  salmon. 

Speaking  of  preaching,  we  had  very  little  of  it. 
For  the  tirst  two  years  there  was  a  Methodist 
minister  stationed  at  Shasta,  forty  miles  from 
Weayeryille,  and  once  in  a  while  he  would  paj^  the 
sinners  at  Weayeryille  a  yisit.  Sometimes  he 
would  come  on  foot,  and  sometimes  he  would  make 
the  raise  of  a  mule  to  ride  on.  Tliey  had  their 
services  generally  in  the  street,  with  not  much  of 
an  audience.  Some  fellow  at  the  end  of  the  service 
would  j)ass  the  hat  around  and  make  a  collection 
for  him  to  ]3ay  his  expenses.  To  the  Meth- 
odists belong  the  lionor  of  being  the  i)ioneers  of  the 
church  in  Northern  California.  Many  of  them  were 
good,  earnest  Christians,  and  some  of  them  had  to 
stand  on  their  muscle.  I  remember  in  '51  there 
was  a  minister  by  the  name  of  Hill  stationed  at 
Shasta.  When  he  announced  his  first  meeting 
there,  he  was  to  sx^eak  from  the  balcony  of  a  hotel. 
There  were  some  gamblers  who  said  no  IMethodist 
minister  should  preach  in  that  town  while  they 
were  there.  Mr.  Hill  heard  the  threat,  but  paid  no 
attention  to  it.  When  the  time  arrived  Mr.  Hill 
commenced  his  services  by  singing  a  hymn.  There 
was  a  crowd  gathered  to  see  the  fun.  One  of  the 
gamblers  went  upstairs  where  Mr.  Hill  was  singing, 
and  told  him  to  desist  or  he  would  throw  him  over 
the  banister.  Mr.  Hill  tried  to  reason  with  him ; 
but  he  came  there  to  clean  out  the  preacher,  and  he 


150  ^  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

was  bound  to  do  it.  He  attempted  to  lay  hold  of 
the  preacher,  not  thinking  there  was  any  fight  in  a 
Christian,  when  Mr.  Hill  gave  him  a  blow  between 
the  eyes  and  laid  him  out,  and  in  an  instant,  before 
he  knew  what  hurt  him,  the  preacher  had  him  over 
the  banisters  and  coolly  remarked,  "If  there  are 
any  more  of  you,  come  on  before  I  commence  my 
sermon.  I  do  not  like  to  be  interrupted  in  my  dis- 
course." The  boys  gave  the  j)reacher  a  big  cheer. 
He  met  no  more  interruption,  and  became  quite  a 
favorite  with  the  miners. 


MAIL    MATTERS-  151 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Mail  Matters. 

Mail  matters. — A  dollar  for  a  letter. — First  postoffice  at  Weaverville. 
— Carrying  mail  m  a  hat. — The  express  business. — Rival  bakers. — 
A  Fourth  of  July  celebration. — Roast  beef  and  plum  pudding. 

I  will  give  my  readers  a  slight  description  of  how 
mail  matters  were  oj)erated  in  early  days.  When 
new  mines  were  discovered,  or  a  camp  located, 
some  enterprising  genius  would  go  around  and  take 
the  names  of  all  the  miners  in  camp  and  start  an 
express,  each  man  generall}^  taking  a  paper.  The 
paper  taken,  if  lie  was  a  Western  man,  would  be  the 
Missouri  Bepuhlican  or  Louisville  Journal  \  if  an 
Eastern  man,  the  New  York  Herald',  if  a  Whig, the 
Xew  York  Tribune,  which  they  paid  fifty  cents  for. 
Each  letter  you  paid  one  dollar  for,  and  happy  was 
he  who  got  a  letter.  Men  did  not  begrudge  the 
dollar.  Seldom  would  you  go  into  a  miner's  tent 
or  cabin  without  finding  one  or  more  of  the  papers 
I  have  mentioned.  The  emigrant,  not  knowing 
where  his  residence  was  going  to  be,  instructed  his 
friends  to  direct  his  letters  to  San  Francisco  or 
Sacramento;  hence,  the  local  expressman  sometimes 


152  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

made  a  good  thing  in  liis  business.  Mail  matter 
all  came  by  way  of  tlie  Isthmus,  and  much  of  it 
never  reached  California.  I  was  in  the  country 
one  year  before  I  received  a  letter  from  home.  I 
wrote  regularly  once  a  month,  but  could  get  no 
answer.  Finally,  I  hit  upon  a  plan  that  made  things 
better.  I  wrote  and  directed  my  parents  to  put  the 
letter  "Y"  for  a  middle  name  when  addressing  me. 
They  did  so,  and  after  that  my  letters  came  gener- 
ally correct. 

In  the  fall  of  '51  Uncle  Sam  gave  us  a  postoffice 
at  Weaverville.  I  well  remember  the  first  United 
States  mail  that  arrived.  The  carrier  Avas  a  fellow 
by  the  name  of  Weed.  There  was  one  letter  in  the 
mail,  and  the  mail -bag  was  his  hat.  Tliat  letter  was 
directed  to  Dr.  Winston,  the  newly-appointed  j^ost- 
master  of  Weaverville.  There  was  some  rejoicing 
when  we  found  that  we  could  have  our  mail  di- 
rected to  AVeaverville,  instead  of  Sacramento  City. 

Yet  the  express  business  grew  and  multiplied. 
Prom  carrying  letters  and  papers,  they  commenced 
doing  a  banking  business,  and  buying  gold-dust. 
At  one  time  in  Weaverville  there  were  three  of 
those  express  companies  established;  and  to  those 
early  express  riders  the  peoj)le  of  California  owe  a 
debt  of  gratitude.  Through  flood  and  storm  they 
rode,  often  swimming  their  animals  over  mountain 
torrents  and  wading  through  snow  for  miles.  The 
express  riders  were  always  on  time,  safely  guarding 
the    express   and   treasure  placed   in  their  charge. 


MAIL    MATTERS.  153 

These  men  carried  nine-tentlis  of  the  gold-dust 
mined  in  the  State  to  Sacramento  and  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  I  do  not  remember  one  of  them  j)roving 
untrue  to  his  trust.  IMany  times  they  were  at- 
tacked by  liighwaymen  and  robbers,  but  they  gen- 
erally came  out  best ;  or,  if  Avorsted,  they  were  first 
on  the  trail  of  the  thieves.  They  generally  were 
a  jovial  set  of  felloAVS.  There  was  one  fellow  who 
rode  out  of  Weaverville  bv  the  name  of  BarstoAv.  I 
believe  he  is  noAV  one  of  the  princij)al  men  in 
Wells,  Eargo  &  Oo\s  office  at  San  Erancisco.  In 
one  of  his  rides  up  through  the  Sacramento  Valley, 
Barstow  came  to  a  liouse  completely  surrounded 
with  Avater — the  riAcr  had  OAcrrun  its  banks  and 
Avas  sj)reading  oAcr  the  valley.  He  saAV  a  woman 
Avith  a  long  pole  prodding  around  the  yard.  She 
had  on  a  pair  of  rubber  boots.  He  stoj^ped  and 
asked  Avhat  the  matter  Avas,  or  if  one  of  the  children 
was  droAvned.     She  said : 

"Xo;  but  the  children  is  "dogoned"  dry,  and  I'm 
tryin'  to  find  the  Avell  to  get  'em  a  drink  of  good 
Avater." 

BarstoAV  did  not  say  Avhether  she  found  the  Avell 
or  not,  but  he  felt  certain  that  thej  did  not  die  for 
want  of  Avater. 

Occasionally  one  of  these  fearless  riders  would 
j)ay  the  penalty  of  his  rashness.  Charles  Shaffer 
Avas  one  of  them.  He  alwaAS  made  his  boast  that 
no  riA  er  Avould  stop  him,  and  no  snow  in  the  mount- 
ains Avas  too  deep  for  him  to  cross.     But  the  poor 


154  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

t'elloAV  got  caught  at  last.  For  several  days  it  had 
been  raining  and  snowing  in  the  Trinity  mountains, 
the  rivers  were  all  high,  and  every  gulch  and 
canyon  was  full  of  water.  Charley  made  the  trip 
up  in  safety,  until  he  reached  Brown's  Creek,  three 
miles  from  Weaverville,  the  last  he  had  to  cross. 
Coming  to  it  he  undertook,  it  is  supposed,  to  swim 
his  mule  across,  but  the  bank  had  washed  away  on 
the  other  side  of  the  stream,  and  his  mule  could  not 
make  a  landing,  consequently  both  mule  and  rider 
went  down  with  the  torrent,  and  Charley  was  lost. 
The  people  of  Weaverville,  supi)osing  that  he  would 
not  make  the  attempt  to  come  through  in  such  a 
storm,  paid  no  attention  to  it  until  the  next  day, 
when  one  of  the  other  riders  came  in  and  inquired 
for  Charley,  having  been  told  that  he  left  Shasta 
two  days  previously.  A  band  of  men  started  on 
the  trail.  On  Brown's  Creek  they  found  the  mule  ; 
he  had  got  out  of  the  stream  Avith  the  saddle  on, 
and  the  treasure  and  the  express  matter  all  right. 
But  the  body  of  Charley  they  could  not  find,  nor 
has  it  been  found  to   this  dav.     A  reward  was  of- 

ft/ 

fered  for  the  recovery  of  tlie  body,  but  without 
avail.  Manv  of  tliose  brave  men  lost  their  lives  in 
the  faithful  discharge  of  tlieir  duty,  and  they  de- 
serve a  monument  to  their  memory. 

When  a  town  or  camj)  was  started  and  new  dig- 
gings discovered,  the  trading-post  soon  made  its 
appearance  ;  then  the  saloon,  the  bakery  and  the 
butcher-market.     We  had  three  bakeries  in  WeaA^- 


MAIL    MATTERS.  155 

erville  before  we  bad  inucb  of  a  toAvn.  Tbere  was 
more  rivalry  in  tbat  line  of  business  tlian  any  otber. 
One  of  tbe  bakeries  was  kept  by  a  man  named 
Horton,  tbe  second  one  by  Dutcb  Cbarlie,  and  tbe 
otber  by  a  man  wbose  name  I  baye  forgotten.  Tbey 
used  to  accuse  Horton  of  selling  ligbt-weigbt  bread. 
It  came  to  Horton's  ears ;  be  didn't  like  tbe  accu- 
sation. He  baked  some  fine  large  loayes  and  got 
one  loaf  eacb  from  tbe  otber  bakeries.  Placing  bis 
wares  on  a  dry-goods  box  in  tbe  street  in  front  of 
his  bouse,  be  labeled  tbe  loayes  from  eacb  bakery  : 
"  Tbis  is  Dutcli  Cbarley's  bread,"  and  "  tbis  is  from 
tbe  otber  bakery."  His  own  big  loaf  was  labeled, 
"Tbis  is  Horton's  bread,"  witb  a  bottle  of  brandy 
and  a  glass  beside  it,  labeled,  "  Tbis  is  Horton's 
brandy — belp  yourself."  Dutcb  Cbarley  soon  beard 
of  tbe  layout.  Tbere  was  one  mad  Dutcbman.  Start- 
ing for  tbe  scene  witb  a  double-barrelled  sbot  gun, 
he  placed  himself  in  front  of  Horton's  door  with 
the  shot  gun  at  bis  shoulder,  singing  out:  "  Come 
fon  de  house  out !  Come  fon  de  bouse  out,  you 
dam  hound  dog  scamp  you !  I  shoot  you  too  hell 
pitty  dam  quick  anyhow  !  You  scheat  mit  de  bredt 
de  pbeobles,  gotdamyou  !" 

Einally,  he  made  a  raid  on  the  dry-goods  box, 
breaking  the  brandy  bottle  and  stamping  the  bread 
into  the  earth,  and  retreated  to  his  OAvn  cabin  in 
good  order. 

On  the  Eourth  of  July,  '51,  the  miners  had  a 
grand  old  time  in  Weayeryille,  gathering  from  all 


156'  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  surrounding  diggings,  and  Horton  gave  a  big- 
dinner,  cliarging  two  dollars  for  each  plate.  After 
dinner  there  was  speech-niaking,  singing,  and  a 
general  good  time.  Black  Dan  with  his  fiddle  was 
brought  out,  and  the  boys  danced  in  the  street  dur- 
ing the  afternoon  and  along  into  the  night.  Tliey 
Avanted  Mrs.  Horton  to  join  in  the  dance,  but  she 
declined.  Einally,  some  felloAV  offered  her  five  dol- 
lars for  one  of  her  old  hats,  if  she  would  not  come 
herself.  She  let  him  have  it,  and  in  every  set  the 
hat  was  placed  in  the  center  and  the  set  prome- 
naded around  it  with  as  much  dignity  as  though 
Mrs.  Horton  was  under  it.  At  the  end  of  every  set 
the  order  was  given  :  "  All  promenade  to  the  bar," 
where  the  gents  had  to  treat  the  make-believe 
ladies.  Everything  passed  off  in  good  sliape,  Avith- 
out  a  roAV  or  casualty. 

The  boys  in  our  tent  Avanted  me  to  get  them  up 
a  ffood  dinner  for  the  Fourth  of  JuIa'.  I  asked 
Avhat  they  wanted.  Tliej^  in  fun  told  me,  "  roast 
beef  and  plum-pudding."  I  told  them  they  should 
haA  e  it. 

"Yes,"  said  one  of  them,  "it  Avill  be  a  h — 1  of  a 
plum-pudding  youll  make." 

I  had  no  notion  of  doing  it  Avhen  I  prcmiised 
them,  but  tliey  kept  teasing  me  about  it,  until  I 
made  uj)  my  mind  to  do  it  or  "  bust."  So,  on  tlie 
morning  of  tlie  Fourth,  I  commenced  operating  on 
my  pudding  and  roast  beef.  I  Avent  to  the  store 
and  got   raisins,  currants,  cinnamon,  etc.,   four  or 


MAIL    MATTERS-  157 

iive  jionncls  of  tallow,  and  a  roast  of  beef.  One  of 
the  boys  helped  pick  the  raisins  and  mince  the  suet. 
Einall} ,  I  got  all  iny  ingredients  ready,  and  got  it 
made  uj),  when  one  of  the  fellows  looked  into  the 
dish  and  suggested  that  I  make  more  of  it,  at  the 
same  time  emptying  part  of  the  contents  of  the 
tlour-sack  into  the  disli  on  top  of  my  pudding. 
Then  I  had  to  get  more  raisins,  more  currants, 
more  suet.  I  added  nearly  a  box  of  yeast  powder 
to  it  to  giye  it  a  start.  I  got  a  lift} -pound  flour- 
sack  to  cook  it  in.  AVhen  the  dough  was  put  in,  it 
half  filled  the  sack.  I  tied  it  u^p  and  put  it  into 
the  camp-kettle  that  was  boiling  on  the  fire,  with 
some  doubts  as  to  its  eating  qualities  when  cooked. 
My  roast  beef  I  managed  in  this  way:  I  droye 
down  two  stakes  on  each  side  of  the  fire,  bored 
holes  in  tlieni  and  run  a  piece  of  round  iron  through 
the  beef  and  tlirougli  the  holes.  The  iron  would 
turn  in  the  holes  and  the  meat  Avas  roasted  before 
the  fire.  In  this  way  the  roast  of  beef  was  cooked, 
and  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  it  was  good, 
and  well  done. 

To  come  back  to  the  plum  pudding :  As  soon  as 
the  yeast  powder  began  to  do  its  duty,  my  j)udding 
began  to  swell,  burst  the  tying  strings,  and  filled 
the  flour-sack  full  to  its  mouth,  and  some  of  it  ran 
oyer  into  the  camp-kettle.  Einall} ,  after  four  or 
fiye  hours  cooking,  we  got  the  huge  fellow  out  of 
the  kettle,  but  we  had  no  dish  big  enough  to  hold 
it,  so  one  of  the  boys  got  the  coyer  of  a   dry-goods 


158  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

box,  and  we  laid  it  out  on  tliat.  The  tug  of  war  was 
to  get  it  out  of  tlie  sack.  Finally,  we  had  to  skin 
the  sack  off  of  it  as  you  would  peel  a  banana.  It 
was  a  beauty  when  skinned.  I  had  some  misgiv- 
ings as  to  its  being  cooked  through  before  it  was 
cut;  but  it  was  all  right,  except  a  little  in  the 
center.  We  had  a  glorious  dinner — roast  beef, 
plum  pudding  with  brandy  sauce,  etc.  We  invited 
everybody  we  saw  to  dinner,  and  had  plum-pudding 
and  roast  beef  for  the  rest  of  the  week.  I  believe 
that  was  the  first  plum-pudding  ever  made  in  the 
county,  and  I  know  it  was  the  largest  one  that  ever 
graced  the  festive  board  in  good  old  Trinity.  The 
boys  did  not  "josh"  me  any  more  about  roast  beef 
and  plum-pudding. 


A    POLITICAL    CONTEST.  159 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  Political  Contest. 

A  miner  knifed  and  a  graveyard  begun. — Providing  for  the  winter. — 
A  visit  to  Sacramento. — A  political  contest.— An  enthusiast's  report 
concerning  Humboldt. — Weaverville  laid  out  regularly. — Squaring 
an  account. — Bringing  water  from  Weaver  Creek. — Accessions  of 
settlers  from  Humboldt. — A  town  jackass. 

Tilings  went  on  tolerably  smooth  after  the  Fourth 
excejit  that  ^VG  had  a  row  now  and  then  to  j)'^ss 
away  time.  Two  miners  were  pla}  ing  poker  in  a 
cabin  and  got  into  a  row  over  the  game,  when  one 
of  them  cut  the  other  in  the  bowels  with  a  knife, 
and  then  went  and  informed  some  other  men  of  what 
he  had  done,  and  immediately  left.  The  fellow  who 
was  cut  died  before  morning,  but  the  fellow  who 
did  the  cutting  got  away,  and  was  never  heard  of 
afterwards.  AVe  buried  the  victim  on  a  point  just 
back  of  the  town.  I  believe  he  was  the  first  occu- 
pant of  the  graveyard.  Afterwards  there  were 
several  more  buried  alongside  of  him,  but  the  place 
where  they  were  buried  proved  to  be  good  diggings 
and  the  miners  worked  uj)  to  the  coffins,  and  the 
dead  were  transferred  by  order  of  the  County  Judge 


T(JU  PrOXEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

over  to  tlie  neAv  (cemetery  on  the  south  side  of  the 
town. 

Fall  came  on,  and  everybody  laid  in  for  the 
winter  a  large  stock  of  flour,  bacon,  and  such  other 
things  as  were  needed,  but  the  w  inter  proved  a  very 
open  one — that  is,  the  forepart  of  it.  My  stock  of 
iron  and  steel  ran  Ioav,  and  1  made  up  ray  mind  to 
go  below  and  la}^  in  a  new  supply  for  the  spring. 
Previous  to  this  I  bought  my  iron  in  the  Sacra- 
mento Valley — old  tires  that  I  made  picks  out  of  ; 
they  becoming  scarce  I  went  to  Sacramento  City 
for  a  stock.  After  purchasing  the  stock  and  getting 
the  packs  ready  for  a  start,  I  Avas  introduced  to  two 
men  who  afterwards  became  well  known  in  Hum- 
boldt county.  They  were  Hi  Hogoboom  and  Si 
Birdsel.  They  had  just  arrived  from  the  East,  and 
were  looking  for  employment  in  Sacramento.  I 
got  them  a  passage  to  Weaverville  with  the  train 
that  packed  up  my  stock,  and  made  up  my  mind  to 
see  the  sights  at  the  capital  for  a  few  days,  and  en- 
joy cIa  ilization  for  a  short  time. 

The  Legislature  was  in  session  at  the  time,  and 
I  called  on  our  representatives,  McKenzie  and  Mc- 
Mullan.  The  seat  in  the  Senate  from  our  district 
was  contested,  the  contestants  being  John  A.  Lyle, 
the  Whig  candidate,  and  John  H.  Harper  and  J.  W. 
Denver,  both  Democrats.  The  Senate  could  not 
agree  as  to  which  of  the  contestants  was  entitled  to 
the  seat,  so  they  sent  it  back  to  the  people  of  the 
district  to  decide.     Both  McKenzie  and  McMullan 


A    POLITICAL    CONTEST.  IGl 

were  AVliigs,  and  tbc}  invited  me  to  a  Whig  cancns 
tliey  held  one  evening,  and  wanted  my  views  as  to 
the  strongest  Whig  in  the  district  to  run  against  J. 
W.  Denver.  John  H.  Harper  had  withdrawn  from 
the  contest  and  left  the  Democratic  tield  clear  for 
J.  W.  Denver.  When  my  advice  was  asked,  I 
recommended  Robert  Gr.  Stuart  as  the  most  avail- 
able Whig  we  had  in  the  county,  and  McKenzie 
sided  with  me.  H.  G.  Stuart  was  a  young  man,  but 
a  short  time  from  Ohio,  a  graduate  of  one  of  the 
Ohio  collei>es.  His  father,  Matthew  Stuart,  was  a 
merchant  in  Weaverville,  and  was  conducting  large 
money  operations  for  that  day.  Bob,  as  the  boys 
used  to  call  him,  Avas  a  general  favorite  Avith  the 
boys,  and  likely  to  make  a  good  run.  Then  came 
the  rub.  The  election  was  but  fifteen  days  off, 
and  the  caucus  did  not  know  whether  Stuart  would 
consent  to  make  the  run  or  not.  They  proi^osed 
that  I  should  start  for  home  next  day  and  induce 
Stuart  to  accei^t  the  nomination  for  the  Senate 
against  J.  W.Denver.  I  demurred  to  the  arrange- 
ment, as  I  had  not  had  my  time  that  I  j)romised 
myself  at  the  city,  but  I  finally  consented,  and 
started  for  Weaverville.  There  came  on  a  terrible 
snowstorm  before  I  reached  Weaverville.  I  was 
delayed  two  or  three  days  on  account  of  high  water, 
but  arrived  safe.  After  consulting  Stuart  and  call- 
ing a  meeting  of  the  principal  AYhigs,  we  induced 
Stuart  to  make  the  run,  which  he  did.  I  was  sent 
to  Big  Flat  on  election  day,  the  home  of  General 


162  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Denver,  to  help  Stuart,  and  see  tliat  all  went  on  the 
square.  AVhen  the  x^olls  Avere  opened,  everything 
was  for  Denver.  Tliere  were  ten  or  twelve  Erench- 
nien  on  the  bar  who  had  passes  signed  by  Patrick 
Dillon,  the  French  consul  in  San  Erancisco,  and 
they  voted  them  on  the  Frencli  j)asses.  That  was 
sufficient — in  went  the  vote  for  the  General.  At 
Weaverville-  it  was  diiferent,  Stuart  receiving 
seventy  majority,  which,  if  it  had  been  a  fair  ballot, 
would  have  elected  him;  but,  when  Denver's  friends 
found  out  that  Stuart  Avas  elected,  some  of  them 
sent  to  Indian  Creek  and  brought  in  sufficient  re- 
turns to  elect  Denver.  There  were  at  the  time  but 
three  or  four  men  on  Indian  Creek,  but  Wm.  M. 
Lowe  carried  in  the  returns  which  gave  Denver,  I 
think,  thirty-six  majority,  and  elected  him.  Stuart 
did  not  care  enough  about  the  position  to  contest 
the  election,  so  the  Greneral  took  his  seat  as  Senator, 
and  made  a  good  one.  Denver  afterwards  became 
Secretary  of  State,  and  Avas  elected  to  Congress.  He 
was  a  man  of  good  ability  and  sterling  honesty  of 
character.  Whether  engaged  in  dealing  out  goods 
on  Big  Flat  to  the  miners,  or  legislating  in  the 
halls  of  Congress,  he  Avas  the  same  honest  Demo- 
crat. FcAV  names  in  public  life  in  the  early  days  of 
California  history  stand  higher  than  that  of  General 
DenA  er.  R.  G.  Stuart  afterAvards  studied  laAV  Avith 
Judge  Pitzer,  and  practiced  in  WeaA  erA^lle.  The 
last  I  heard  from  him  he  Avas  Collector  of  Customs 
at  Olympia,  Washington. 


A    POLITICAL    CONTEST.  163 

Old  Mattliew  Stiiiirt  got  the  Humboldt  fever,  and 
came  down  to  this  comity  to  pros])ect.  It  was  told 
of  him  that  he  and  his  party  were  prospecting 
about  Eel  River  for  a  town-site,  and,  finding  a  lo- 
cation that  suited  them,  commenced  to  lay  otf  the 
town,  and  had  it  partly  surveyed.  One  day,  while 
waiting  for  dinner,  one  of  the  party  looked  up  into 
a  tree  and  saw  a  lot  of  driftwood  in  its  branches. 
Turning  to  Colonel  Stuart,  he  asked :  "  Colonel, 
what  is  that  uj)  in  that  tree  1"  The  Colonel  jumped 
up,  and,  on  examination,  pronounced  it  driftAvood, 
remarking,  "Our  town  is  gone  toh — 1,  sure  !  "  The 
old  gentleman  was  not  very  particular  in  his  lan- 
guage, and  used  a  great  many  "cuss  words."  He 
and  his  party  came  back  after  prospecting  Hum- 
boldt county,  and  gave  a  gloAving  account  of  Hum- 
boldt as  to  its  resources,  soil,  lumber,  etc.  I  in- 
quired of  him  as  to  its  climate  and  health.  As  to 
climate  it  "was  the  d — t  best  on  the  face  of  the 
earth ;  and  as  far  as  health  was  concerned  a  man 
would  live  until  his  hair  dragged  the  ground  if  he 
did  not  dry  up  and  blow  away."  Such  was  the  ac- 
count the  old  Colonel  gave  of  Humboldt  county 
when  he  got  back  to  Weaverville.  He  wanted  to 
get  up  a  company  right  away  and  come  down  and 
settle,  and  tried  very  hard  to  get  me  to  join  him, 
but  I  could  not  see  it  in  as  favorable  a  light  as  he 
represented  it.  The  old  gentleman  had  to  return 
to  Ohio  before  he  got  his  company  organized,  and 
his  colony  fell  through. 


t()-i  PIONEEE    DAYS  IN   CALIFORmA. 

About  this  tiuie  we  found  the  diggings  about 
AYeaverville  were  going  to  prove  good  and  perma- 
nent, and  people  commenced  buikling.  Tliere  was 
no  system,  everybody  building  where  he  j)leased ; 
no  title  or  ownership  lo  the  land,  and  no  system  of 
streets.  A  few  of  us  got  together  and  laid  out  the 
main  street  and  devoted  it  to  the  public  use  ;  then 
staking  oif  our  lots  each  man  took  his  sixty  feet 
front  and  one  hundred  and  sixty  feet  back,  and  got 
his  claim  recorded  with  the  County  Clerk.  J.  C. 
Burch  was  County  Clerk  at  the  time,  and  he 
charged  sixteen  dollars  for  recording  my  claim.  It 
was  the  first  piece  of  land  j)ut  on  record  north  of 
Shasta.  Others  followed,  and  soon  the  toAvn  was 
all  taken  up  and  recorded.  There  was  no  strife,  or 
lot  grabbing;  Avhat  a  man  did  not  want  to  use  was 
left  for  his  neighbor.  Bally  Long  and  McConnaha, 
now  of  Areata,  built  a  new  saloon  and  ball-alley. 
Bally  Long  was  a  genius  in  liis  way,  and  a  good 
sort  of  fellow,  but  would  bear  watching.  When 
Bally  started  to  build  his  alley,  I  made  him  one 
hundred  sj)ikes  to  spike  it  with,  there  being  no  large 
nails  or  sx>ikes  kej)t  in  town  at  the  time.  At  the 
opening  of  the  alley,  the  bo}  s  thought  they  would 
give  Bally  and  Mac  a  benefit,  or  a  "send-oif ;"  so 
they  started  in  to  paint  the  town  red,  which  the}^ 
did  in  good  style,  I  with  the  rest.  A  few  days 
afterwards  I  went  to  Bally  and  wanted  to  know 
what  my  bill  was.  He  looked  at  his  book  and  said, 
"It  is  just  one  hundred  and  ten  dollars,  but  give 


A    POLITICAL    CONTEST.  "  165 

me  one  hundred  and  we  will  call  it  square."  "All 
right,"  1  said,  "  I  believe  1  have  a  bill  against  you." 
"Yes,"  he  replied,  "bring  it  in  and  we  will  settle." 
I  started  for  the  shop  and  made  out  his  bill,  charg- 
ing him  oiie  dollar  each  for  the  sj)ikes  and  some 
other  little  things  which  brought  the  bill  up  to  one 
hundred  and  ten  dollars.  Presenting  the  bill  to 
Bally  he  looked  at  it,  remarking  "  That  is  tlie  d — dest 
best  price  for  spikes  I  ever  paid."  "  Yes,  Bally,  I 
admit  il  is  a  good  price  for  spikes,  but  one  hundred 
and  ten  dollars  for  two  rounds  for  twenty  or  twenty- 
five  men  is  the  d — dest  best  price  I  ever  paid  ;  but  I 
will  not  allow  you  to  be  any  more  liberal  than  I,  I 
will  throw  off  the  ten  dollars  and  call  the  thing 
square."  "  All  right,"  replied  Bally,  "  I  never  dis- 
pute a  gentleman's  bill,  what  will  you  take*?  Say 
notliing  about  it  and  we  will  call  it  square." 

In  the  summer  of  '51,  when  the  gulches  began  to 
dry  up,  and  water  to  work  with  became  scarce,  men 
began  to  consider  hoAV  water  could  be  brought  into 
the  diggings  from  the  two  branches  of  Weaver 
Creek.  Jim  Howe  surveyed  a  ditch  from  East 
Weaver  into  liis  claim,  and  set  men  to  work  on  it, 
claiming  eight  "tom-heads"  of  water.  The  claim 
was  made  by  posting  notices  at  the  head  of  the 
creek,  and  that,  by  the  law  of  the  miners,  was  per- 
fectly legal.  As  soon  as  Howe  commenced  work 
on  his  ditch  another  company  organized  and  laid 
claim  to  all  the  waters  of  the  creek  but  the  eight 
"tom-heads"  that  Jim  Howe  had  claimed,  and  com- 


166  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

menced  operations  above  Howe's  ditcli.  I  was  a 
member  of  the  company,  and  was  to  pay  my  share  in 
cash,  while  the  others  worked  their  interest.  The 
ditch  was  called  the  Shimmons  ditcli,  as  a  man  by 
the  name  of  Billy  Shimmons  was  the  organizer  of  the 
company.  In  dne  time  the  water  was  brought 
into  the  diggings.  My  interest  in  it  cost  me  one 
hundred  dollars,  and,  as  I  Avanted  to  give  my  friend 
Cummings  a  start,  I  sold  it  to  him  for  one  hundred 
dollars,  the  same  as  it  cost  me.  In  four  jears  from 
that  time  the  same  interest  was  worth  four  thous- 
and dollars,  and  sold  for  it.  Such  is  luck  !  At  the 
time  the  ditch  was  brought  in  it  was  not  considered 
to  be  of  any  value,  but  it  became  the  most  valuable 
property  in  Trinity  county,  and  is  to  this  day. 

Along  in  the  fall  of  '51  Ave  began  to  get  some 
accessions  to  our  population  from  Humboldt.  J. 
T.  Young  and  his  brother  Erank  first  made  their 
appearance,  Wm.  H.  Lowe,  afterwards  Sheriff  of 
the  county,  and  H.  J.  Seaman,  a  brother  of  Mrs.  J. 
A.  Watson,  avIio  was  afterAvards  County  Clerk  of 
the  county.  Fordice  Bates  Avas  of  the  Humboldt 
delegation.  Bates  yet  remains  in  old  Trinity.  The 
Hon.  George  Williams  about  this  time  made  his 
appearance  in  toAvn.  He  bought  out  a  bakery  and 
ran  that  business  for  scA^eral  years.  Wm.  T.  Olm- 
stead,  one  of  our  present  councilmen  of  Eureka, 
made  his  apperance  in  toAvn  as  an  honest  miner.  Si 
Morrison,  of  Bear  Biver,  was  running  a  carpenter- 
shop,  making  rockers  and  toms  for  the  miners.    He 


A    POLITICAL    CONTEST.  167 

only  chars'ed  tliein  twenty  dollars  each  for  the 
rockers,  and  from  fifty  to  sixty  each  for  the  long- 
toms;  bnt  then  you  know  Inniber  Avas  worth  twenty- 
tiye  cents  per  foot,  and  torn  and  rocker  iron  one 
dollar  per  pound.  Well,  dust  Ayas  plentiful  and 
only  worth  sixteen  dollars  i)er  ounce.  It  was  the 
only  circulating  medium.  Sometimes  the  fifty- 
dollar  slug  would  make  its  appearance,  but  it  Ayas 
not  generally  liked.  I  haye  weighed  hundreds  of 
dollars  of  gold-dust  Ayith  horse-nails.  Some  of  our 
late  arriyals  may  think  it  a  "  story,"  but  it  is  a  fact, 
ncA^ertheless.  I  had  a  pair  of  scales  with  but  a  one- 
ounce  weight.  When  a  miner  Ayould  come  to  the 
slioj)  on  Sunday  to  pay  his  Ayeek's  bill — all  bills 
AA'ere  then  settled  on  Sunday — if  his  bill  Ayas  OA^er 
sixteen  dollars,  I  would  Ayeigh  an  ounce  of  horse- 
nails,  and  then  another  ounce,  until  I  got  the 
amount  correct  Ayith  the  bill,  making  change  Ayith 
the  cup-Ayeights.  Then,  liaAdng  the  horse-nails  in 
one  side  of  the  scale  and  the  dust  in  the  other,  I 
could  weigh  any  amount  of  dust  that  the  scale 
Ayould  hold;  in  that  way  I  got  onyery  Ayell  Ayith  the 
little  scales. 

I  will  giA^e  you  the  history  of  one  noted  character 
in  the  shape  of  a  "toAAm  jack"  that  Aye  had  at  WeaA^er- 
yille  in  the  summer  of  1851.  This  Jack  Ayas  a  noted 
character  in  his  way,  and  belonged  to  a  jolly  old 
Irishman  by  the  name  of  Hugh  Peoj)les.  At  first 
Ayhen  the  boys  Ayanted  to  use  him  they  Ayould  ask 
old  Hugh  for  the  loan  of  him,  to  moA  e  camp  from 


168  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

one  giilcli  to  the  otlier,  and  were  never  refused. 
Finally  he  became  x^ublic  x>roj>erty.  The  l)0}'s  when 
they  wanted  Jack  generally  took  him  without  say- 
ing "by  yonr  leare."  The  boys  generally  lived  in 
tents,  this  being  before  the  era  of  log-cabins,  and 
cooked  their  slap-jacks  and  bacon  in  front  of  the 
tents;  their  table  was  mother  earth.  Jack  generally 
came  in  for  part  of  the  "grub;"  the  boys,  when 
they  got  done  wit]i  using  Jack,  would  generally 
pay  him  for  his  services  with  a  handful  of  sugar, 
or  some  cold  slap-jacks,  which  his  jackship  seemed 
to  relish  very  well.  Jack  got  to  have  a  very  sweet 
tooth,  and  would  not  always  wait  for  an  invitation, 
but  would  go  foraging  for  sugar  and  flour  on  his 
o^v  n  hook  among  the  tents.  One  night  I  lay  in  my 
tent  thinking  of  the  old  folks  at  home,  when  I 
heard  something  moving  outside.  I  lay  still  for  a 
minute  or  two,  when  I  perceived  Jack's  nose  under 
the  tent,  prospecting  for  forage.  Having  nothing 
else  handy,  I  siezed  my  revolver  and  hit  Jack  over 
the  nose  with  it,  and  Jack  beat  a  hasty  retreat, 
minus  the  sugar-sack.  He  retreated  in  good  order 
for  a  short  distance,  when,  turning  and  faidng  the 
tent,  he  commenced  serenading  us  with  all  the 
infernal  noise  that  ever  came  out  of  the  throat  of  a 
Jack.  For  the  space  of  five  minutes  he  kej^t  up  the 
music.  I  suppose  he  thought  if  he  could  not  have 
our  sugar-sack  we  could  at  least  take  some  of  his 
music.  About  this  time  some  strangers  or  Philis- 
tines came  into  the  diggings,  who  knew  not  the 


A    POLITICAL    CONTEST.  169 

virtues  of  Jack.  One  iiiglii  Jack  made  a  raid  on 
tlicir  tent,  and  they,  not  being  aware  of  Jack's 
nocturnal  liabits,  supposed  it  was  a  bear  come  to 
pay  them  a  visit.  Tliey  put  in  Jack's  hide  a  couple 
of  bullets  wliicli  made  honest  Jack  sick.  He  wan- 
dered oif  a  sliort  distance  into  a  gulch,  and  there 
gave  i\])  the  ghost,  and  his  mortal  si)irit  passed  into 
the  happy  hunting-ground  of  good  jackasses.  Some 
of  his  friends  found  Jack's  remains,  and  the  word 
went  round  that  poor  old  Jack  was  dead.  The  boys 
tliought  it  would  be  the  x^roper  thing  to  give  Jack's 
remains  a  decent  burial,  and  assembled  on  the  next 
Sunday  for  that  purpose.  We  had  in  camp  a  genius 
by  the  name  of  Tom  Moore,  Avho  was  "some  "  of  an 
orator  and  poet.  Tom  was  selected  to  deliver  a  few 
remarks  over  the  grave  of  our  departed  friend,  and 
wrote  a  short  poem  appropriate  to  the  sad  occasion. 
Tom  Avas  on  hand  with  his  oration,  and  for  the 
space  of  half  an  hour  x^oured  forth  some  of  the  best 
and  most  touching  remarks  that  1  ever  had  the 
good  fortune  to  listen  to.  The  i)oem  was  a  master- 
j)iece,  something  after  the  style  of  ihe  burial  of  Sir 
John  Moore.  Tenderly  the  boys  laid  Jack's  re- 
mains in  the  grave  which  they  had  dug  for  him, 
and  tenderly  they  covered  him  up,  placing  a  stake 
at  the  head  of  his  grave  with  the  following  epitaph: 
"  Here  lies  the  body  of  Sir  William  Jackass,  who 
lost  his  life  while  making  a  raid  on  the  camp  of  the 
Philistines,  who  knew  him  not.  Peace  to  his 
ashes."     After  the  funeral  the  boys  all  marched  to 


170  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Bally  Lang's,  and  there  partook  of  some  of  Bally's 
liquid  refresliments,  and  after  x>assing  approj)riate 
resolutions  adjourned  sioie  die.  So  ended  the 
funeral  of  j)oor  Jack. 


GETTING    HOMESICK   AND    VISITING   THE   OLD   HOME.  171 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

Grtting  Homesick  and  Visiting  the  Old  Home. 

A  visit  to  the  old  Eastern  home. — Growth  of  San  Francisco. — The  pas- 
sage to  Panama. — A  typical  Mexican  town. — Crossing  the  Isthmus 
on  mules. — High  prices. — The  railway  to  Aspinwall. — On  board  the 
"  Illinois." — In  dinner  costume. — Sight  seeing  in  Havana. — Fili- 
busters.—Death  of  young  Crittenden. 

After  returning  from  Sacramento,  and  the  elec- 
tion was  over,  I  began  to  get  homesick.  I  had 
received  but  one  letter  from  home  in  nearly  two 
years,  and  I  made  up  my  mind  to  go  back  on  a 
visit,  as  soon  as  I  got  my  shoj)  built.  I  let  a  con- 
tract to  build  a  shop  20x30  feet,  with  the  posts  in 
the  ground  and  covered  with  shakes  four  feet  long. 
It  was  to  be  sided  up  with  shakes.  The  price  agreed 
on  was  three  hundred  dollars  when  completed, 
without  windows,  doors  or  floor.  When  the  shop 
was  finished,  I  sold  one-half  interest  in  it  for  six 
hundred  dollars,  and  rented  the  other  half  for  one 
hundred  dollars  per  month  for  six  months,  or  until 
I  got  back  from  my  visit  East.  On  the  7th  day  of 
April,  1852,  I  and  six  others  started  for  home,  as 
merry  and  happy  a  set  of  men  as  ever  left  those  dig- 
gins.    We  were  all  well,  young  and  hearty;  had  done 


172  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

moderately  well,  and  none  of  us  over  twenty-six 
years  of  age.  Each  man  had  his  gold-dust  in  sacks 
on  the  mule  he  was  riding.  My  chum,  Doc.  Wills, 
was  one  of  the  i)arty,  and  a  young  fellow  by  the 
name  of  George  OXTloughlin;  the  other  names  I 
have  forgotten.  George  O'Gloughlin  was  going  to 
Ireland.  His  father  was  Queen's  Counselor  of  one 
of  the  counties  in  Ireland,  and  had  written  for  him 
to  come  home,  as  he  had  a  Government  position  for 
him  as  soon  as  he  arrived.  We  reached  Shasta  all 
right  the  next  morning,  but  we  could  not  get  seats 
in  the  regular  stage  for  Colusa,  as  it  was  already 
full,  so  we  hired  a  fellow  who  had  a  sort  of  stage 
wliicli  he  ran  sometimes  in  opposition  to  the  regu- 
lar line,  paying  him  twenty-five  dollars  each  to 
take  us  to  Colusa,  where  the  river  boats  landed. 
At  that  time  Colusa  was  the  head  of  navigation  on 
the  Sacramento  River.  In  a  few  vears,  after  the 
river  was  cleared  of  some  snags,  the  boats  com- 
menced running  up  to  Ked  Bluif,  aud  then  tlie 
town  of  Red  Bluff  was  built.  Some  parties  tried  to 
have  the  head  of  navigation  at  Major  Reading's 
place,  about  forty  miles  further  up  the  Sacramento, 
and  one  or  two  boats  got  up  to  that  point,  but  the 
scheme  proved  a  failure,  and  Red  Bluff  remains 
the  head  of  navigation. 

Trom  Shasta  to  Colusa  in  the  month  of  April, 
'52,  through  the  upper  Sacramento  Yalley,  it  would 
take  a  more  gifted  pen  than  mine  to  describe  the 
beauties  of  the  country.     Eor  about  one  hundred 


GETTING    HOMESICK    AND    VISITING    THE    OLD    HOME.         173 

find  fifty  miles  the  Sacrjiiucnto  Vallev  presented  to 
the  eye  one  vast  phiin  of  beauty.  At  that  season  of 
the  year  eyerytliin"-  Avas  at  its  best.  The  yalley  was 
studded  oyer  with  great  oaks,  which  at  a  distance 
looked  like  a  yast  old  orchard.  The  earth  was  coy- 
ered  Ayitli  grass  and  flowers,  and,  as  we  went  lower 
down  the  yalley,  wild  oats  inade  their  appearance, 
and  Spanish  cattle  were  here  and  there  scattered 
oyer  the  plains ;  no  fences  to  mar  the  beauty  of  the 
plains.  It  was  indeed  a  grand  sight.  1  made  up 
my  mind  fliat  this  should  be  my  future  home. 

Arriying  at  Sail  Francisco,  we  found  the  city 
much  improyed  since  we  left  it  some  fifteen  months 
j)reyious.  Things  were  beginning  to  look  more  j)er- 
manent;  good  buildings  were  being  erected  all  oyer 
the  city,  and  men  were  beginning  to  think  of  mak- 
ing tlieir  homes  in  California. 

We  had  no  ditticiilty  in  getting  a  passage  to 
Panama,  as  there  were  but  few  going  back  at  that 
early  day.  There  were  two  steamers  in  port  adyer- 
tised  for  Panama,  the  "Northerner"  and  the  old 
"  Independence."  We  took  passage  on  the  "  North- 
erner"— that  is,  steerage  passage.  She  was  an  old 
steamer  that  was  built  to  run  between  New  York 
and  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  as  a  passenger  boat. 
Her  main  saloon  was  below  Avhile  in  that  trade,  but 
when  sent  round  the  Horn  she  was  remodeled  and 
her  saloon  placed  on  the  hurricane  deck,  and  what 
was  formerly  her  saloon  Avas  the  place  for  the  steer- 
age passengers.     There  were  left  two  state-rooms  in 


174 


PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


the  steerage,  which  our  crowd  hired  by  paying 
twenty-five  dollars  more  for  them  than  in  the  com- 
mon herd.  Steerage  passage  was  one  hundred  dol- 
lars to  Panama,  and  we  paid  twenty-five  dollars 
extra  for  our  state-rooms.  Our  reason  for  hiring 
the  state-rooms  was  that  we  had  all  our  gold-dust 
Avith  us,  and,  by  j)lacing  it  in  the  state-room,  and 
one  of  us  on  guard  all  the  time,  it  would  be  pretty 
safe.  Before  leaving  San  Erancisco  we  purchased 
such  eatables  and  wines  as  we  thought  we  would 
require  for  our  trip,  in  case  we  did  not  like  the 
ship's  grub,  and  to  have  a  change  when  we  saw  fit. 
It  worked  to  a  charm,  and  we  had  a  pleasant  trip 
down  the  coast,  putting  in  at  Acapulco,  in  Mexico, 
and  remaining  there  for  one  day. 

We  went  ashore  to  see  the  sights,  and  I  got  my 
first  idea  of  how  the  Mexicans  lived.  Acapulco 
was  a  small  Mexican  town  with  a  fine  harbor, 
comx^letely  land-locked.  The  town  was  then  built 
of  adobes,  one-story  high,  and  the  roofs  covered 
with  tiles.  The  population  seemed  to  be  scattering, 
and  very  little  business  of  any  sort  going  on.  Cock- 
fighting  must  have  been  the  principal  industry  of 
the  place.  In  front  of  nearly  every  house  you 
could  see  a  game-cock  tethered  out  and  ready  for 
the  fray.  There  was  a  fort  and  a  garrison  on  the 
other  side  of  the  bay,  and  there  being  some  sort  of 
a  revolution  going  on  at  the  tmie,  they  were 
expecting  a  fight  every  day.  They  would  not 
allow  any  person  to  approach  near  their  military 


GETTING    HOMESICK    AND   VISITING    THE    OLD    HOME.         175 

works,  so  we  liad  to  keej)  our  distance.  As  soon  as 
the  ship  anchored  in  the  bay,  the  vessel  was  sur- 
rounded A\  ith  the  boats  and  due-outs  of  the  mer- 
cantile  population  of  Acaj)ulco,  offering  for  sale  all 
sorts  of  tropical  fruits  and  j)roductions  of  the  coun- 
tr}'.  They  generall}^  drove  a  brisk  trade.  Another 
swarm  of  Mexican  boys,  from  eight  to  fourteen 
years  of  age,  would  come  around  the  vessel  and 
dive  for  money.  The  passengers  would  frequentl}^ 
throw  into  the  water  a  small  piece  of  silver  from 
the  deck  of  the  steamer,  and,  as  soon  as  the  coin 
struck  the  water,  the  youngsters  would  go  after  it, 
half  a  dozen  at  a  time,  and  generally  one  of  them 
got  it  before  it  reached  the  bottom.  The  bay  was 
full  of  sharks,  but  the  boys  paid  no  attention  to 
them,  nor  did  the  sharks  seem  to  pay  any  attention 
to  the  boys.  I  asked  the  Captain  about  it,  and  he 
told  me,  "  The  d — d  Mexicans  are  so  full  of  garlic 
and  red  pepper  that  the  shark's  stomach  could  not 
digest  one  of  them."  I  had  to  be  content  with  the 
explanation. 

We  left  Acaj)ulco  and  steamed  awa}-  for  Panama, 
where  we  arrived  on  the  eighteenth  day  from  San 
Erancisco.  We  were  landed  in  small  boats,  as  there 
were  no  wharves  or  piers.  The  steamer  lay  off  the 
city  about  half  a  mile,  and  was  loaded  and  unloaded 
by  Avhale-boats  and  lighters.  AVhen  we  reached  the 
shore,  about  10  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  a  lot  of 
runners  met  us  at  the  boats  for  the  purpose  of  engag- 
ing mules  to  take  us  across  the  Isthmus,  or  to  a 


176  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

toAvn  called  Gorgoua  on  tlie  Chagres  River,  where 
we  had  to  take  boats  down  the  river  to  tlie  end  of 
the  railroad.  The  Americans  were  then  building 
tlie  railroad  across  the  Isthmus.  We  engaged  the 
mules  for  our  party,  and  struck  out  for  Gorgona 
on  the  same  old  trail  that  tlie  Spaniards  had  made 
three  hundred  and  fifty  years  before.  It  was  a 
rough  old  trail.  Part  of  it  on  the  mountain  lay 
over  a  rocky  bed  where  the  mules'  feet  had  worn 
holes  in  the  rock  ten  or  twelve  inches  deep,  and 
each  time  the  mules  would  step  in  the  same  old 
ludes;  in  other  places  the  whole  trail  would  be 
worn  two  or  three  feet  deep  in  the  solid  rock,  and 
not  over  twelve  or  fifteen  inches  Avide.  There 
would  be  nothing  of  your  mule  in  sight  but  his 
body  and  ears.  When  coming  to  such  x^laces  the 
rider  had  to  look  sharj)  and  get  his  legs  out  of  the 
way  by  hauling  his  feet  out  of  the  stirrups  and 
running  them  forward  towards  the  mule's  ears.  If 
a  man  had  long  legs  they  generally  reached  past 
the  mule's  ears,  and  the  first  thing  that  emerged 
from  the  cut  was  the  fellow's  feet,  then  followed  the 
ears  and  mule,  and  the  balance  of  the  man. 

The  first  night  out  we  stopped  at  the  Half-way 
House,  on  the  mountain.  The  house  was  a  blue 
tent,  well  stocked  with  liquors,  and  the  bunks  were 
canvas  cots,  for  which  they  charged  us  one  dollar 
each.  It  was  a  rough  looking  place.  We  folloAved  our 
usual  custom  and  left  one  of  our  number  on  guard 
while  the  others  slej)t.     Nothing  occurred  during 


GETTING    HOMESICK    AND    VISITING    THE    OLD    HOME.         177 

the  niglit  out  of  the  way,  and  next  morning,  after 
eating  breakfast,  our  muleteer  had  the  mules  up 
and  saddled,  and  we  started  down  the  mountain  on 
the  Atlantic  side  of  the  "backhone."  We  arrived 
at  Gorgona  and  staid  all  night,  with  much  the  same 
accommodations  as  the  night  previous.  Our  mules 
cost  us  sixteen  dollars  each. 

Our  voyage  was  now  by  water.  Tlie  river  was 
high  and  easy  to  navigate,  so  we  hired  a  boat  and 
two  men  to  take  us  down.  The  men  were  Negroes, 
two  big  fellows,  who  each  wore  short  swords,  or 
knives  about  sixteen  inches  long.  The  boys  kejit 
their  hands  on  their  revolvers,  as  they  did  not  like 
the  looks  of  our  boatmen;  but  they  were  all  right,  and 
landed  us  at  the  railroad  station  about  2  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon.  ATe  had  to  walk  a  short  distance  to 
where  the  cars  were  stationed,  and  in  that  short  dis- 
tance I  saw  more  horrible  looking  things  in  the 
shape  of  crawling  insects,  than  I  thought  could  ever 
get  into  so  small  a  sj)ace  of  ground.  We  were  pass- 
ing tlirough  where  the  graders  were  at  work. 
There  were  snakes,  lizards  of  huge  size,  tarantulas, 
scorpions,  and  horrible  looking  things  too  numer- 
ous to  mention.  Some  of  the  graders  were  white 
men  and  some  of  them  Negroes.  How  a  white  man 
could  x^ossibly  live  in  such  a  place  I  could  not  com- 
prehend. It  is  said  a  man  died  for  every  sleej)er 
laid  in  building  the  railroad  across  the  Isthmus  of 
Panama,  and  I  full}^  believe  it.  The  ground  on  the 
Atlantic  side  from  Gorgona  down  to  Aspinwall  is 


178  PIONEER    DAYS    IX    CALIFORNIA. 

low  and  iiuirshy,  and,  with  the  extreme  heat  on  the 
Isthmus,  it  seems  like  a  miraele  that  a  man  would 
survive  even  one  week  of  the  elimate.  We  were 
soon  sitting  comfortably  in  the  ears  and  on  our  Avay 
to  Aspinwall. 

There  were  but  few  houses  in  Aspinwall,  and 
those  of  American  build,  shipped  out  from  the 
States,  and  put  together  on  the  ground.  Aspinwall 
was  not  a  very  inviting  place  in  which  to  sto}).  The 
steamsliix>  Illinois  Avas  in  the  oiling  Availing  for  the 
California  passengers,  and  Ave  lost  no  time  in  get- 
ting on  board.  The  steamer  Avas  a  tine,  large  ship 
and  fast,  Avith  good  acconunodations.  George 
O'Gloughlin  and  myself  took  cabin  passage,  paying 
forty  dollars  each ;  the  rest  of  the  boys  Avent 
in  the  steerage  at  thirty  dollars  eacli.  Putting 
our  dust  in  the  steamer's  safe  Ave  Avere  all 
right  so  far  as  that  Avas  concerned.  The  first  day 
out,  Avhen  the  dinner-gong  sounded,  George  and  I 
Avere  in  a  bad  fix,  for  Ave  had  no  coats  to  aa  ear  to 
dinner,  neither  of  us  having  oAvned  a  coat  Avliile  Ave 
AA^ere  in  California,  and  it  Avas  against  the  rules  of 
good  bi'ceding  and  those  of  the  ship  to  go  to  dinner 
in  our  flannel  shirts.  Finalh ,  as  Ave  Avere  discuss- 
ing  the  situation  at  the  cabin-door,  the  i)urser 
heard  our  discussion,  and  said  to  us,  "Gentlemen,  I 
can  helx)  you  out  of  our  dilemma;  avc  liaA'e  many 
such  passengers  every  trip,  and  I  keep  a  stock  of 
cheap  coats  in  my  office  especially  for  California 
gentlemen  like  yourselves.     If  you  Avill  step  to  my 


GETTING    HOMESICK    AND    VISITING    THE    OLD    HOME.  l/'.t 

office  T  will  fit  you  out  all  riglit."  We  thanked 
liiin  and  went  to  his  office,  where  he  sold  us  a  linen 
coat  apiece  for  one  dollar  and  a  quarter  each,  which 
gave  us  admittance  to  our  "grub"  without  any 
further  ceremony. 

We  had  a  pleasant  voyage  to  the  Island  of  Cuba, 
where  we  ran  into  the  harbor  of  Havana  and  stayed 
two  days  coaling-.  While  in  that  beautiful  citv  we 
made  good  use  of  our  time,  seeing  the  sights  and 
takino-  in  all  there  was  to  be  seen.  A  few  months 
previous  to  the  time  I  was  there — that  was  in  the 
sj)ring  of  '52 — the  "manifest  destiny  "  doctrine  was 
all  the  craze  in  the  United  States.  Eilibustering 
was  at  fever-heat,  and  the  slave-i)ower  of  the  United 
States  wanted  Cuba  to  extend  that  institution  to 
the  ever-faithful  island.  Filibustering  was  en- 
couraged in  high  places.  Young  Crittenden,  a 
nephew  of  John  J.  Crittenden  of  Kentucky,  led  one 
of  those  filibustering  expeditions,  with  about  three 
hundred  men,  to  the  Island  of  Cuba,  and,  after 
fighting  several  battles,  nearly  the  whole  band,  or 
what  Avas  left  of  them,  were  taken  prisoners, 
brought  to  Havana,  tried  by  court-martial,  and  con- 
demned to  be  shot.  They  were  executed  just  out- 
side of  the  city  walls — all  that  were  taken  except 
two,  who  claimed  British  protection,  and  were 
saved  by  the  manliness  and  pluck  of  the  British 
Consul.  Young  Crittenden  met  the  same  fate  as 
the  rest.  At  that  time  Americans  were  looked  on 
with  a  good  deal  of  sus^^icion  by  the  authorities  of 
Cuba,  and  got  very  few  favors  from  them. 


18U  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XVIIL 
Experiences  ix  Cuba  and  the  East. 

Passing  for  a  British  subject. — A  Bishop's  palace. — Spanish  soldiers. — 
Nude  statuary. — -Music  and  moonhght. — Arrival  at  New  York. — 
Sailing  down  the  St.  Lawrence. — A  glad  reunion.— Changes  in  the 
people. — Off  again  for  California. — Marriage. — Arrival  at  Aspinwall. 
Boating  on  the  Chagres  River. — Nude  natives. — On  mule  back. — 
An  anxious  mother. — "All  legs  up."' — In  Panama. 

We  wanted  to  stay  ashore  while  there,  but  the 
authorities  woukl  not  let  us.  George  O'Gloughlin 
said  to  me,  "I  can  manage  it;  we  will  go  ashore 
and  have  a  good  time  in  spite  of  them,  and  see  the 
city.  I  am  a  British  subject,  and  will  get  a  j)ass 
from  the  Britisli  Consul."  We  went  ashore, 
and,  seeing  the  English  flag  over  an  office,  went  in 
as  bold  as  any  two  Britons.  Behind  a  desk  sat  a 
gentleman  with  a  regular  English  mutton-choj> 
whiskers  wlio  looked  up  at  us,  bidding  us  good- 
morning.  He  Avanted  to  know  our  business,  and 
George  told  him  we  were  British  subjects  who 
w  anted  to  see  the  city,  and  wanted  a  pass.  He  said, 
"  Who  are  3  ou,  young  man  ^  "  George  said,  "  I  am 
George  O'Gloughlin,  son  of  the  Queen's  Counselor 
of  the  county  Monaghan,  Ireland,  and  my  friend  is 


EXPERIENCES    IN    CUBA    AND    THE    EAST.  181 

also  a  British  subject."  We  told  him  we  had  four 
otlier  friends  who  wished  to  see  Havana  while  there, 
and  if  lie  would  pass  them  he  would  confer  a  favor 
on  them  and  us.  He  said,  "  Young  men,  if  I  do  so 
jou  will  behave  well  while  in  the  city  1 "  George 
spoke  up  and  said,"  On  the  honor  of  an  Irish  gentle- 
man, sir,  Ave  will  cause  no  trouble."  We  got  our 
ticket  of  good  behavior. 

There  Avas  in  the  office  a  young  man  Avho  was 
formerly  in  tlie  emj)loy  of  the  Consul.  He  Avas 
running  a  hack  in  Havana,  and  Ave  employed  him 
to  shoAV  us  the  city.  1  Avas  anxious  to  see  the  j)lace 
Avhere  the  Americans  Avere  executed,  so  he  drove 
ns  to  the  gronnd  on  the  south  side  of  the  city,  and 
showed  us  Avhere  and  how  the  poor  fellows  met 
their  death.  They  were  placed  with  their  backs 
against  the  Avails  of  the  city,  each  man  being  blind- 
folded, and  then  shot  to  death  by  the  Spanish  sol- 
diers. Young  Crittenden  and  others  requested  not 
to  be  blind-folded,  but  their  request  was  not  granted. 
On  examining  the  Avail  Avhere  they  stood,  there 
Avere  seA'eral  blood-stains  to  be  seen.  It  was  told 
us  that  they  met  their  death  like  heroes.  They  no 
doubt  thought  the}'  Avere  doing  right  in  trying  to 
free  Cuba  from  the  Sjianish  yoke,  but  the  poor  fel- 
loAvs  paid  the  penalty  with  their  liA^es,  and  Cuba 
Avas  not  freed.  At  that  time  Havana  Avas  full  of 
Spanish  soldiers;  on  every  corner  you  Avould  meet 
them.  Our  guide  took  us  to  nearly  every  place 
of  interest  in  the  city,  including  the  Bishop's  palace 


182  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

and  otlier  points  of  note.  Tlie  Bisliop's  x^alace  wai?? 
by  far  the  finest  building  that  I  ever  liad  seen  up 
to  that  time.  It  was  built  of  marble,  the  style  of 
architecture  was  grand  and  im}K)sing,  and  the 
grounds  surrounding  the  palace  were  in  keeping 
witli  the  building.  In  tlie  inclosure  were  birds  of 
the  most  beautiful  plumage,  two  young  alligators 
sj)orting  in  a  i)ond  in  the  center  of  the  grounds, 
with  fountains  of  water  throwing  their  spray  and 
forming  miniature  rainbows.  It  was  indeed  a  para- 
dise to  look  upon,  and  repaid  us  well  for  our  visit. 
It  would  not  have  done  for  Anthony  Comstock  to 
have  visited  that  beautiful  phice,  or  to  liave  taken  a 
look  at  the  statuary  that  ornamented  the  grounds. 
At  night  there  were  military  bands  that  played 
every  evening  on  the  grand  plaza  in  front  of  the 
Go vernor-Generars  j)alace.  The  night  we  sj)ent  there 
was  a  beautiful  moonlight  one,  such  a  night  as  is 
seldom  seen  outside  of  the  tropics.  The  beauty  of 
niglit  and  the  music  of  the  bands,  the  gaily-dressed 
ladies  and  gentlemen  on  the  promenade,  all  went  to 
make  up  a  grand  and  beautiful  picture.  The  whole 
people  of  Havana  ^seemed  to  be  out  enjoying  the 
scene. 

The  next  day  we  started  for  New  York,  passing 
the  celebrated  Moro  Castle  with  its  frowning  bat- 
teries, ready  at  any  moment  to  pour  death  and  de- 
struction on  the  enemies  of  Sj)ain.  In  a  few  days 
we  arrived  at  ]S^ew  York,  after  a  pleasant  trip  of 
thirty  days.     The  most  of  us  sold  our  dust  in  New 


EXPEKIEXOES    IN   CUBA    AND    THE    EAST.  183 

York.  Some  of  the  passengers  went  to  PliilMclel- 
pliia  to  the  mint  Avith  tlieirs,  and  got  it  coined  on 
tlieir  OA\n  account.  In  New  York  the  boys  all  dis- 
carded their  California  rig,  and  fitted  out  in  the 
latest  style  of  "  store  clothes."  Our  party  there 
broke  up,  some  going  east,  some  west  and  some  to 
Europe.     I  hare  not  seen  one  of  them  since. 

From  ]^ew  York  it  was  but  a  short  distance  to 
my  home.  Once  more  I  was  on  board  of  a  steamer 
running  down  the  St.  LaAvrence  River,  through  the 
Thousand  Islands  and  amidst  the  scenes  of  my  boy- 
hood. Grand  and  beautiful  St.  Lawrence  !  None 
can  compare  with  you.  I  had  crossed  every  river 
on  tlie  American  continent  that  lay  in  my  route, 
from  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Sacramento,  but  none 
can  equal  you.  AYell  are  you  called  "  the  Mother 
of  Waters  ; "  for  beauty  of  scenery  and  pure  and 
sj)arkling  waters  you  excel  them  all. 

Mv  vovaee  was  soon  ended.  At  the  foot  of 
the  Tliousand  Islands  lay  Brockville,  the  home 
of  my  aged  parents,  whom  I  longed  to  see.  I  was 
soon  folded  in  the  arms  of  my  aged  mother  and 
loving  sisters,  who  looked  on  me  as  one  risen  from 
the  dead.  They  knew  not  of  my  coming.  I  took 
them  by  surj)rise.  I  yet  can  see  my  loving  mother 
taking  off  her  "  s^iecks "  and  cleaning  them,  in 
order  to  get  a  better  look  at  her  long-lost  son;  the 
wanderer  of  the  family,  and  her  baby.  My  aged 
father's  cup  was  full.  That  indeed  was  a  haj)py  re- 
union.    When  I  left  home  four  years  previous,  I 


184  PIONEER   DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

was  but  a  boy  twenty  years  of  age,  and  weighed 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds;  after  an 
absence  of  four  years, I  returned  a  full-grown  man, 
weighing  one  hundred  and  eighty  pounds,  with 
considerable  knowledge  of  the  world  and  mankind 
in  general.  My  fond  mother  would  examine  me 
all  round,  remarking,  "How  big  he  has  grown; 
California  must  be  a  good  country,  my  son  ? " 
"Yes,  mother,  California  is  a  big  country ;  every- 
thing in  it  is  big;  her  mountains,  her  trees,  her 
valleys,  and  why  not  her  adopted  sons '?  We  have 
lots  of  room  to  grow  as  large  as  we  please  out  there, 
mother."  I  had  ten  thousand  questions  to  answer, 
and  for  a  time  I  was  the  lion  of  the  hour,  being  the 
first  one  back  from  the  land  of  gold  who  had  gone 
from  that  section  of  the  country.  I  had  some  gold- 
dust  and  a  fifty-dollar  slug,  Avhich  I  had  to  exhibit 
very  often,  to  satisfy  the  curiosity  of  my  friends.  I 
was  not  long  in  parting  with  what  little  dust  I 
brought  home,  and  it  did  not  bring  me  much  profit. 
1  enjoyed  my  visit  for  a  short  time.  I  had  been 
gone  from  home  for  four  years,  and  many  of  my 
old  associates  were  gone,  and  scattered  all  over  the 
United  States.  The  youngsters,  or  next  crop,  had 
grown  uj)  and  were  like  strangers  to  me.  Out  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty  or  thirty  apprentices  who 
served  their  apprenticeshij)  during  the  time  I  was 
one,  but  four  were  left  in  the  town  when  I  got 
back.  Such  is  the  way  in  which  Uncle  Sam  ab- 
sorbs the  bone,  sinew  and  youth  of  British  America. 


EXPERIENCES    IN    CUBA    AND    THE    EAST.  185 

I  soon  tired  of  tlie  ways  of  the  country  and  the 
people,  and  longed  for  my  free  California  life.  I 
found  myself  almost  like  a  stranger  in  my  old 
home.  The  old  town  seemed  to  have  lost  its  attrac- 
tions for  me.  Outside  of  my  family  everybody 
seemed  to  me  to  have  changed;  but,  I  suppose,  the 
greatest  change  was  in  myself. 

After  making  my  visit  out,  I  once  more  turned 
my  face  toward  the  West,  intending  to  make  my 
permanent  home  on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific.  I 
took  a  trip  to  Wisconsin,  where  my  brother  resided, 
who,  with  his  family,  was  to  accompany  me  back  to 
California.  There  was  a  gentleman  residing  on 
Oregon  Gulch  by  the  name  of  Levi  RejTiolds,  who 
wanted  me  to  bring  out  his  wife  and  son  with  me 
whcQ  I  came  back,  so  I  Avent  to  Madison,  AViscon- 
sin,  and  got  her  and  the  boy  and  started  for  Isew 
York.  After  arriving  in  ^^ew  York  I  visited  friends 
residing  in  New  Jersey;  made  quite  a  number  of 
visits,  and  got  caught  by  one  of  New  Jersey's  fair 
daughters,  who  agreed  to  share  with  me  the  perils 
of  life  in  California.  AYe  were  married,  and  for 
thirty-six  years  she  has  shared  the  ups  and  downs 
of  California  life,  with  me  like  a  true  woman.  Mv 
brother  and  his  wife  had  now  come  on  to  New  York, 
and  on  the  5th  of  September  we  started  for  Aspin- 
wall  on  the  steamship  "  United  States."  Our  voy- 
age was  a  pleasant  one,  and  quite  a  number  of 
ladies  were  on  board.  Several  returning  Califor- 
nians  with  their  families  were  wending  their  way 


186  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

back  to  the  Golden  State,  iiiteiiding  to  make  their 
home  there. 

We  arrived  at  Aspiiiwall  on  the  eighth  day  from 
xS^ew  York,  and  as  Boon  as  hinded  took  the  cars  as 
far  as  the  road  was  finished.  The  fun  commenced 
when  we  took  the  small  boats  np  the  Chagres 
Eiver.  The  boats  would  carry  from  fifteen  to 
twenty  passengers,  and  were  propelled  by  natives 
with  long  poles.  There  were  in  the  boat  that  we 
were  in  several  ladies.  I  had  informed  my  folks  as 
to  what  they  were  to  expect  from  the  crew  who 
manned  our  boat.  We  finally  got  started  with  our 
dusky  crew,  who  were  all  dressed  up  nicely.  After 
a  short  time  on  our  voyage,  the  darkies  began  to 
warm  to  th^ir  work,  and  off  came  tlie  red  bandana 
hankerchiefs  they  had  around  their  heads;  a  while 
longer  and  off  came  their  shoes;  they  stood  at  that 
awhile,  and  then  off  came  their  shirts.  Some  of 
the  ladies  began  to  feel  a  little  delicate,  and  were 
whispering  inquiries  to  each  other  as  to  what 
would  be  the  next  move,  and  if  they  would  take  off' 
their  cotton  pants,  the  only  vestige  of  clothing  they 
had  on.  We  had  on  board  a  gentleman  with  his 
wife  from  Massachusetts,  and  he  wanted  to  know  of 
me  if  they  were  going  any  further  with  their  nude 
scenery.  I  told  him  I  did  not  knoAv;  but  it  was 
altogether  likely  that  they  would,  as  it  was  their 
custom.  He  said,  "  I  will  not  stand  it  to  have  mA' 
wife  insulted  in  that  way."  They  went  on  for 
awhile,  when  one   of   them  started  to  take  off  liis 


EXPERIENCES    IN    CUBA    AND    THE    EAST.  187 

pants,  and  that  raised  tlie  Yankee's  ire.  His  wife 
begged  of  liim  to  raise  no  disturbance,  but  he  drew 
his  "pepper-box,"  and  gave  them  to  understand  that 
he  woukl  not  stand  any  such  foolishness.  The 
natives  were  beginning  to  look  quite  hostile.  There 
were  four  or  five  of  them,  each  armed  with  a  short 
sword,  while  our  crowd  was  but  jjoorly  armed,  and 
there  were  five  or  six  women  with  us.  I  was  the 
only  one  that  had  an  effective  weapon,  a  Colt's  re- 
volver. One  of  the  boatmen  understood  a  little 
English,  and  I  talked  with  him.  The  women  talked 
with  our  Yankee  friend,  and  we  got  a  peace  patched 
up.  The  darkies  kepi  on  their  breeches,  and  our 
Boston  friend  was  satisfied.  That  evening  we  ar- 
rived at  Gorgona,  where  we  stayed  all  night. 
Gorgona  was  a  little  town  or  collection  of  huts,  a 
sort  of  embarcadero,  where  we  changed  our  boat 
conveyance  for  that  of  mule-back  over  the  mount- 
ain, or  "  back-bone,"  of  the  American  Continent,  to 
the  old  city  of  Panama.  There  were  any  number 
of  mule  merchants  offering  the  services  of  their 
animals  to  the  weary  traveler,  all  extolling  the 
beauties  and  excellence  of  their  respective  donkeys. 
As  for  side-saddles  they  were  unknown  at  tJiat  time, 
or  at  least  were  not  in  general  use  on  that  route. 
It  was  amusing  to  see  the  crowd  of  argonauts  get- 
ting started.  Many  of  the  ladies  at  first  refused  to 
ride  cavalier  fashion,  but  they  had  to  come  to  it. 
Some  had  young  children,  and  they  frequently  hired 
natives  or  Negroes  to  pack  them  over  on  their  backs. 


188  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

One  lady  with  a  small  child  hired  a  fellow  to  pack 
it  over  on  his  back;  the  fellow  started  on  ahead 
with  the  baby,  and  that  set  the  mother  almost  wild. 
She  had  not  seen  it  all  day,  and  imagined  she 
never  would  see  it  again;  but,  on  arriving  at  the 
stopping-place,  she  found  it  all  right,  sitting  on  the 
darkey's  lap,  with  a  strip  of  pork  in  its  mouth,  suck- 
ing away  at  it,  apx^arently  as  happy  as  "  Young  Ame- 
rica "  generally  gets.  There  was  one  happy  mother 
when  she  found  her  darling  all  right.  The  crowd 
strung  along  the  trail  for  five  or  six  miles.  Women 
declared  they  could  never  stand  it  to  gel  there;  some 
wishing  they  were  back  home  again,  and  California 
might  go  to  the  dogs  for  all  they  cared;  others  en- 
joying the  fun  and  having  a  good  time  of  it.  I, 
having  had  some  experience  of  the  route,  managed 
to  get  started  ahead  of  the  crowd,  and,  when  we 
would  come  to  one  of  those  narrow  cuts  or  wear- 
outs  in  the  trail,  I  would  sing  out,  "All  legs  up!" 
then  you  would  see  some  tall  rustling  with  the 
ladies  of  our  crowd  to  get  their  feet  out  of  the  stir- 
rups and  shoot  them  ahead  in  order  to  clear  the 
sides  of  the  trail  and  not  jam  their  feet.  About  the 
middle  of  the  afternoon  it  came  on  to  rain,  and  we 
got  soaking  wet,  but  the  rain  was  w  arm  and  it  did 
but  little  harm.  We  arrived  at  our  stoj)ping-place 
early  in  the  evening,  and  got  our  j)ick  of  berths  or 
cots.  The  last  of  the  crowd  did  not  get  in  until 
two  or  three  hours  later.  Kext  morning  I  had  my 
party  about  the  first  on  the  road,  my  object  being 


EXPERIENCES    IN    CUBA    AND    THE    EAST.  189 

to  get  into  Panama  before  the  crowd,  in  order  to 
get  good  rooms,  which  I  accomplished.  We  arrived 
in  Panama  about  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  put 
up  at  the  AVestern  Hotel,  kept  by  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Booth.  There  were  two  hotels  ke^^t  by 
Americans — the  Western  and  the  American.  We 
had  to  lay  over  at  Panama  eight  days.  The  Cali- 
fornia steamer  having  not  yet  arrived,  it  gave  us  a 
good  chance  to  see  the  place  and  take  in  the  sights 
of  that  equatorial  city. 


190  PIOI<JEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Return  to  San  Francisco  and  Weaver vtlle. 

The  passage  to  San  f>ancisco. — Distinguished  fellow-passengers. — By 
river  steamer  to  Colusa;  thence  by  stage  to  Shasta. — On  mule-back 
to  Weaverville. — The  mountain  hotel. — Rapid  growth  of  Weaver- 
ville. — The  killing  of  Anderson  by  the  Indians. — Vengeance;  pursuit 
of  the  Indians. — The  annihilation  of  the  tribe. 

Panama  looked  old  and  dilapidated,  and  was 
built  similar  to  all  other  Spanish- American  cities 
that  I  had  seen.  The  seawall  when  built  must 
have  cost  a  great  amount  of  labor  and  money. 
Some  of  the  old  guns  w  ere  yet  mounted  on  the  wall — 
huge  monsters  not  less  than  fifteen  or  sixteen  feet 
long,  and  about  two  feet  in  diameter  at  the  breech. 
The  bores  were  small;  they  did  not  seem  over  three 
inches  in  diameter.  There  was  said  to  be  a  large 
amount  of  silver  in  them.  AVe  visited  some  of  the 
principal  churches;  they,  like  everything  else,  were 
once  magnificent  structures,  but  much  of  their  glory 
had  dep'uted.  We  also  visited  the  old  cemetery; 
it  was  truly  a  golgotha,  or  place  of  skulls.  Lying 
about  promiscuously  were  skulls,  legs,  arms  and  all 
parts  of  the  human  form,  with  huge  lizards  and 
other  reijtiles  crawling  over  them.      We    did   not 


RETL-RN    TO    SAN    FRANCISCO    AND    WEAVERVILLE-  IDI 

tiirrv  long  there ;  one  visit  to  the  place  was  sntfi- 
cient.  The  weather  was  very  warm,  and  tlie  stench 
from  the  place  was  rather  unpleasant.  When  we 
shuffle  otf  this  mortal  coil  we  do  not  want  to  be 
buried  at  Panama.  In  a  few  days  after  we  got  there 
the  old  steamsliip  "California"  arrived  from  San 
Francisco  with  lier  passengers,  and  she  had  to  wait 
for  some  passengers  who  were  coming  to  Aspin- 
^vall  ,\  week  later  than  when  we  came;  among 
tliem  was  Senator  Gwin,  afterwards  called  the 
"Duke of  Sonora,"  and  the  Hon.  Josej^h  McCorkle, 
Congressmen  from  California.  We  took  passage  on 
the  "California,"  and  steamed  for  San  Francisco;  the 
old  Duke  was  quite  social  until  he  found  I  was  a 
AYhig,  then  he  cut  me  entirely.  Not  so  with  Mc- 
Corkle; he  was  a  jolly  good  fellow.  I  found  him  a 
splendid  hand  to  make  morning  cocktails,  and  he 
kept  a  good  supply  on  hand.  During  the  voyage 
we  stopped  at  Acapulco  and  San  Diego,  and  on  the 
sixteenth  dav  from  Panama  we  arrived  in  San  Fran- 
cisco  in  good  condition. 

1  was  anxious  to  get  home,  and  left  Sacramento 
the  evening  before  the  big  tire  at  that  city,  taking- 
passage  to  Colusa  on  the  steamer,  and  then  by  stage 
to  Shasta. 

I  liad  been  describing  the  beaul  j-  of  the  Sacra- 
mento Yalley  to  my  wife  during  the  trip  out;  its 
beautiful  floAvers,  etc.;  but  when  we  got  into  the 
valley  everything  was  dried  up,  the  roads  knee-deep 
in  dust,  and  not  a  drink  of  good  water  to  be    had 


1*,)2  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

during  our  trip  from  Colusa  to  Shasta.  The 
hidies  commenced  to  poke  fun  at  me,  wanting  me 
to  show  them  some  of  those  beautiful  flowers  that  I 
described  to  them;  another  one  would  sj)eak  out 
and  say,  "  Please,  John,  won't  you  pick  me  a  bou- 
quet at  the  next  station;"  In  that  way  they  amused 
themselves  at  my  expense.  We  rode  in  the  stage 
all  night,  and  next  morning  arrived  at  Shasta  about 
11  o'clock,  tired,  and  well  worn  out.  After  a  good 
night's  rest  we  started  for  Weaverville  on  mule- 
back,  a  distance  of  about  forty-live  miles.  There 
was  but  one  lady's  saddle  in  Shasta  at  that  time, 
and  there  were  three  ladies  in  tlie  crowd;  the  con- 
sequence Avas  that  two  of  them  had  to  ride  cavalier 
style;  but  they  had  got  somewhat  used  to  that  style 
of  riding  in  crossing  the  Isthmus. 

Our  first  day  out  we  stopped  at  McLouglin's,  or 
the  jMountain  House,  which  was  built  while  I  was 
liome.  Old  "  Mc  "  had  got  his  wife  out,  and  was  keep- 
ing a  hotel  near  the  summit  of  the  Trinity  mount- 
tain.  Old  McLouglin  and  Mrs. "  Mc  "  were  the  best 
of  landlords.  They  gave  us  a  hearty  welcome.  The 
old  man,  after  various  ups  and  downs,  commenced 
to  drink  too  much  liquor,  and,  things  not  going  to 
suit  him,  he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  he  had 
seen  suflicient  of  this  wicked  a\  orld,  and  one  day 
hanged  himself  out  in  his  woodshed.  Eor  atleastten 
vears  old  "  Mc  "  and  Mrs. "  Mc  "  and  their  Mountain 
House  were  as  well  known  as  any  stopping-place  in 
Northern  California;  to  get  there  was  a  sure  guar- 


RETURN    TO    SAN    FRANCISCO    AND    WEAVERVILLE.  193 

antee  of  kind  welcome,  a  good  supper,  bed  and 
breakfast.  My  friend  Barstow  can  vouch  for  the 
truth  of  this,  as  he  has  often  partaken  of  tlieir 
refreshments,  both  solid  and  liquid,  during  his 
express  rides  between  Shasta  and  Weaverville. 

Crossing  the  Trinity  mountain,  we  arrived  in 
Weaverville  that  evening  all  right,  but  the  Weaver- 
ville that  I  found  Avas  not  the  one  that  I  had  left 
six  months  x^ieviously.  From  seven  or  eight  houses 
that  were  in  the  place  when  I  left  for  home  in  the 
spring,  it  had  grown  to  a  full-sized  mining  town, 
with  numerous  stores,  gambling-houses,  hotels, 
livery  stables,  and  everything  composing  a  Cali- 
fornia mining  town  of  the  first  magnitude.  On  my 
way  from  San  Erancisco  iip  I  heard  of  the  grow  th  of 
the  i^lace,  but  could  not  realize  it  until  I  got  there. 
When  I  left  in  April  there  was  no  value  to  town 
lots.  If  a  man  wanted  to  sell  out  he  got  the  value 
of  his  imx)rovements.  But  all  this  was  changed. 
Lots  now  became  valuable,  and  a  twenty-foot  front 
was  w^orth  from  six  to  eight  hundred  dollars. 
Several  two-story  buildings  were  erected;  the 
United  States  Hotel,  kej)t  by  Josej)h  Ewing  and 
his  wife,  Mrs.  Henrietta  Ewing,  now  of  Eureka; 
the  American  Hotel,  kept  by  a  man  named  Gra- 
ham. The  Independence  Hotel  was  not  yet  finished. 
Two  saw-mills  were  kept  running  day  and  night. 
Such  was  the  rush,  if  a  man  wanted  a  bill  of  lum- 
ber, he  had  to  send  his  bill  in  a  month  ahead.    The 


194  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

early  settlers  went  at  things  Avitli  a  will  peculiar  to 
Californiaiis  of  that  day. 

I  will  have  to  go  back  some  four  or  five  months 
earlier,  and  relate  some  things  that  took  place  dur- 
ring  my  absence  from  Weaverville,  that  may  be  in- 
teresting to  my  readers.  It  was  about  the  last  of 
April  or  the  first  of  May,  '52.  The  firm  of  Ander- 
son, McKenzie  &  AVinston  were  doing  the  prin- 
cipal butchering  business  of  the  county.  They 
bought  large  bands  of  cattle,  and  kept  them  on  what 
was  called  Stuart's  Fork,  about  sixteen  miles  from 
Weaverrille,  where  the  range  was  good.  Old  man 
Anderson  was  in  the  habit  of  driving  six  or  eight 
head  at  a  time,  as  they  wanted  to  use  them,  to 
Weave rville;  so,  one  morning  he,  with  his  dog, 
started  for  the  range  after  his  herd.  The  Indians 
were  getting  somewhat  troublesome,  and  his  friends, 
among  the  number  W.  T.  Olmstead,  now  of  Eureka, 
advised  him  not  to  go  alone,  but  take  more  help 
with  him.  The  old  man  said  that  he  was  not  afraid; 
that  he  and  his  dog  could  whip  all  the  Digger 
Indians  in  the  country.  He  started  for  Stuart's 
Eork,  and  got  there  all  right;  took  his  cattle  from 
the  herders  and  started  back.  When  about  five  or 
six  miles  from  the  range  he  was  attacked  and  killed 
by  the  Indians,  his  dog  meeting  the  same  fate.  Not 
making  his  appearance,  some  uneasiness  was  felt 
as  to  his  safety,  and  next  morning,  when  his  mule 
came  into  town,  it  was  felt  that  he  was  dead,  and  a 
company  of  men  started  out  to  hunt  for  him.    They 


RETURN    TO    SAN    FRANCISCO    AND  WEAVERVILLE-  195 

searched  carefully,  but  returned  without  find  in  i>' 
him.  Another  crowd  started  out  next  day,  and 
found  the  body  about  half  a  mile  from  the  trail, 
down  the  side  of  the  mountain,  xnerced  with  seyeral 
arrows,  and  lying  behind  a  log.  The  spot  where 
the  body  was  found  had  the  aj^pearance  that  a 
fierce  struggle  had  been  enacted.  The  old  man 
was  as  braye  and  fearless  a  man  as  eyer  crossed  the 
Sierras,  and  no  doubt  sold  his  life  as  dearly  as  pos- 
sible. The  company  which  found  the  body  sent  it 
back  to  Weayeryille  for  interment,  and  took  the 
Indian  and  cattle-trail  and  started  in  pursuit.  As 
soon  as  the  body  reached  Weayeryille,  the  cry  went 
forth  for  yengeance.  Eyery  man  in  the  j^lace  who 
could  get  away  to  ayenge  the  old  man  did  so.  He 
was  a  general  fayorite  with  the  people.  The  crowd 
organized  under  the  command  of  Dixon,  Sheriff  of 
the  county.  Merchants  and  others  furnished  sup- 
plies; eyerything  was  free  for  the  yolunteers  on 
that  expedition.  In  the  meantime  the  party  which 
had  found  the  Indians'  trail  followed  it.  They  took 
a  circuit  from  where  they  committed  the  murder 
around  Weayeryille,  near  the  foot  of  old  Bally, 
eight  or  nine  miles  from  the  town,  and  crossed  the 
Trinity  Riyer  near  the  mouth  of  Canyon  Creek, 
where  the  re-enforcements  under  Sheriff  Dixon 
oyertook  them  with  proyisions.  The  comx^any  now 
numbered  about  seyenty  men.  They  crossed  the 
Trinity  on  the  Indian  trail,  which  led  np  the 
mountain  on  the  diyide  between  the  Trinity  Riyer 


196  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

and  the  Hiiy  Eork  Yalley.     That  beautiful  a  alley 
had  not  yet  been  discovered   by  the  whites.     The 
progress  of  the   volunteers  was  naturally  slow,  and 
besides  they  Avanted  to  give  the  Indians  a  show  to 
get  to  their  home,  so  as  to  make  a  clean  sweep  of 
them.     They  trailed  them  to  what  is  since   known 
as  the  summit  of   the  Hay  Fork  Mountain ;  then 
they  turned  northeast,  and  followed  the  summit  of 
the  mountain  for  some  eighteen   or  twentv  miles: 
then,  turning   down    tlie   mountain  into   the  Hay 
Fork  Valley,  they  crossed  the  Hay  Eork — a  tribu- 
tary of  the  Trinity — with  the  avengers  of  old  man 
Anderson   close  on   their  track.     Ko   bloodhound 
ever  followed  his  human  prey  with   keener   scent 
than  those  boys.     They  trailed  tlicm  into  tlie  Hay 
Eork  Valley,  the  signs  getting  fresh.     They  found 
where  the  Indians  had  killed  one  of  the  cattle  but 
a  short  time  before,  and  scouts  were  sent   out  and 
the  utmost  caution  Avas   used.     They  Avere  discov- 
ered in  Avhat  is  noAV  known  as  Bridge  Ciulch,  about 
one  mile  east  of  the  Hay  Fork,  encamped  on  a  flat 
aboA^e   the   natural   bridge.     The    Aolunteers   kept 
themselACS  under  cover  until    after  dark,   in   the 
meantime  the  scouts  examining  the  approaches  to 
the    Indians'  camp.      The    Indians   Avere   making- 
merry  over  their  caj)ture,  and  gorging   themselves 
with  the  stolen  meat.     In  the  middle  of  the  night 
the  volunteers  diA  ided  into  four  parties,  and  stole  to 
their  respectiA^e  stations.     There  were  many  of  the 
late   soldiers   of  the   Mexican    Avar,    and   Avestern 


RETURN    TO    SAN    FRANCISCO    AND    WEAVERVILLE.  197 

h-oiiticrsmeii  from  Texas  and  Missouri  amongst 
them,  who  thorouglily  understood  their  business  as 
Indian  hunters.  AT  hen  each  j)arty  got  their  sta- 
tions, they  were  to  lie  on  their  arms  until  daylight, 
when,  at  a  given  signal,  they  were  to  attack  the 
camp  simultaneously.  The  attack  was  well  j)lanned 
and  well  executed.  When  the  volunteers  reached 
the  stations  assigned  to  them,  everything  in  the 
Indian  camp  was  quiet  and  peaceful;  all  nature 
seemed  at  rest.  When  dayliglit  began  to  make  its 
apj)earance  in  the  east,  history  was  about  to  repeat 
itself.  A  second  Glencoe  was  about  to  be  enacted 
— this  time  in  the  highlands  of  California  instead 
of  tlie  highlands  of  Scotland.  A  tribe  of  people 
was  about  to  be  blotted  from  the  face  of  the  earth 
for  revenge.  As  soon  as  it  was  sufficiently  light  to 
see  that  none  could  escape,  the  signal  was  given. 
The  parties  adAanced  on  the  camp  where  the  foe 
Avere  yet  sleeping,  and  then  commenced  an  indis- 
criminate slaughter  of  men,  women  and  children. 
Rifles  and  revolvers  did  the  bloodv  Avork,  Avith  the 
he]p  of  the  bowie-knife.  After  the  carnage  Avas 
OA'er,  one  hundred  and  fifty-three  dead  bodies  lay 
on  the  battle-field.  Xone  escaped  but  three  infants. 
One  of  these  was  crawling  on  its  dead  mother's 
breast  to  find  its  morning  meal,  when  one  of  the 
volunteers  raised  his  rifle  to  dash  its  brains  out;  but 
another,  more  merciful,  intercej)ted  the  bloAV  and 
saved  the  child.  He  rolled  it  in  his  blankets,  and 
carried   it  to   WeaverA'ille,   and   gave    it  to   Mrs. 


198  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA  . 

Harj)er,  tlie  wife  of  J  H.  Harper;  one  of  the  others, 
saved  in  a  similar  manner,  was  brought  to  town  and 
given  to  the  wife  of  Captain  Dyer,  and  afterwards 
brought  to  Hnmbohlt  county.  Captain  Dyer 
was  the  brother  of  David  Dyer,  now  j)ostmaster  at 
Bayside,  in  HumboUlt  county.  Only  one  of  the 
attacking  party  was  liurt,  and  lie  but  slightly 
wounded  with  an  arrow.  Old  man  Anderson  was 
terribly  avenged.  The  Trinity  Indians  were  com- 
pletely annihilated,  and  there  was  no  more  trouble 
with  Indians  for  several  years.  The  volunteers  got 
part  of  the  cattle  back,  and  W.  T.  Olmstead  was 
owner  of  part  of  the  stolen  cattle,  and  furnished  a 
man  by  the  name  of  Meredith  for  the  fight.  Twelve 
years  after,  I  hunted  cattle  over  the  battle-ground. 
Part  of  the  bones  still  lay  bleaching  on  the  plains; 
skulls  and  arm  and  leg  bones  were  scattered  over 
the  ground  in  all  directions. 


PROMINENT    HUMBOLDTERS — A    BLOODY    TRAGEDY.  199 


CHAPTER    XX. 

Prominent  Humboldters. — A  Bloody  Tragedy. 

A  natural  bridge  and  a  large  cave. — The  Hay  Fork  Valley. — Prominent 
Humboldters  who  lived  there. — A  bloody  tragedy;  the  killing  of 
Horton  and  Eliza  Hardenburg  b)'  a  Sheriffs  posse. — Fate  of  the  par- 
ticipants.— A  letter  from  an  old  pioneer,  General  Denver. 

In  my  last  I  mentioned  a  natural  bridge  tliat 
was  discoTered  on  the  Indian  raid.  It  is  indeed  a 
curiosity,  as  it  sj)ans  a  gulcli  of  about  one  hundred 
feet  wide.  It  is  about  one  mile  from  Hay  Eork. 
The  top  of  the  bridge  is  perhaps  two  hundred  feet 
over,  and  joins  the  two  mountains  as  completely  as 
if  done  by  an  engineer  on  tlie  most  scientific  prin- 
ciples. From  the  top  of  the  bridge  to  the  beginning 
of  the  arch  is  about  fifty  feet :  then  commences  a 
perfect  arch  in  circular  form  down  to  the  water — a 
little  over  half  a  circle — the  distance  between  the 
walls  being  about  fifty  feet;  rising  up  and  down  the 
stream  about  sixty  or  seventy  feet,  and  about  fifty 
feet  between  the  walls  at  the  bottom.  Tlie  forma- 
tion of  the  rock  is  of  a  blue  limestone,  apparently 
intersected  with  streaks  of  quartz.  The  rock  is  very 
hard,  and  almost  impossible  to  drill.  Sca  eral  large 
boulders  seem  to  have  fallen  from  the  arch  above, 


200  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

and  lie  on  tlie  bottom.  In  the  summer  the  stream 
is  nearly  dry,  but  under  the  arch  are  three  or  four 
wells,  or  holes,  where  the  water  stands  all  summer, 
and  such  water  is  hard  to  be  found  elsewhere — ice- 
cold,  sweet  and  sparkling.  The  bridge  is  used  in 
summer  by  the  inhabitants  of  Hay  Fork  Valley  as 
their  picnic  grounds,  and  many  a  happy  day  is  sj)ent 
there  by  those  good  people  Avhen  the  water  dries 
ujj.  Under  the  bridge  is  a  most  delightful  place  to 
spend  three  or  four  hours  during  the  heat  of  the 
day.  No  matter  how  warm  it  is  outside,  when  you 
get  under  its  shade  it  is  cool  and  refreshing.  And 
there  let  the  mind  contemplate  the  a  ast  works  of 
nature,  and  the  countless  ages  it  has  taken  that 
small  stream  to  make  its  way  through  the  mountain 
and  form  such  a  vast  arch  through  solid  rock.  Man 
in  his  littleness  gets  lost  in  contemplating  the  great 
works  of  the  Creator.  About  fifty  feet  below  the 
bridge  on  the  side  of  the  mountain  is  a  large  cave, 
the  mouth  of  which  is  small  and  diificult  to  enter. 
I  tried  once  to  make  an  entrance  and  explore  it, 
but  I  had  too  much  avoirdupois  for  that.  Others 
who  have  exj)lored  it  inform  me  they  found  a  room 
about  ten  feet  square  and  seven  feet  high,  but  up  to 
the  time  of  my  leaving  the  valley  it  never  had  been 
thoroughly  exj)lored.  Other  caves  may  lie  beyond 
it  for  aught  we  know. 

The  Indian  raid  led  to  the  discovery  of  the  Hay 
Eork  Yalley,  which  has  since  become  the  granery 
of  the  county,  and  likewise  furnished  the  hay  for 


PROMINENT    HUMBOLDTERS— A    BLOODY    TRAGEDY.  201 

tlie  people  of  Weaverville.  It  lieacls  near  the  Yolla 
Bolla  Mountain,  running  in  a  southwest  course  for 
about  twenty  miles,  and  emptying  its  waters  into 
the  South  Eork  of  Trinity  at  Hyampom.  In  this 
valley  are  some  of  the  best  farms  or  ranches  in 
Trinity  county.  Its  mountains  are  covered  with 
pine  and  sjjruce  timber,  and  the  surface  is  covered 
Avith  a  ricli  growtli  of  mountain  bunch-grass,  the 
most  nutritious  of  grasses.  There  have  been  worked 
some  very  good  placer  diggings  on  its  tributaries 
and  down  in  what  is  called  the  canyon.  There  are 
some  ricli  quartz  ledges  in  the  valley,  which  are 
being  worked  with  success  and  profit.  Quite  a 
number  of  Humboldt  citizens  were  at  one  time 
farmers  and  ranchmen  of  HayEork;  amongst  them 
now  residents  of  Humboldt  county  are  Hon.  George 
Williams,  E.  D.  Kellogg,  W.  B.  Dobbyn  (one  of 
our  recent  supervisors),  John  Carr,  Abraham 
Rogers,  Ben.  Blockburger,  Thomas  Middleton, 
Alonzo  Sweet,  Mrs.  Joseph  Ewing,  Jolm  Dodge, 
our  present  vegetable  mercliant,  Henry  Peenaty, 
and  J.  Francis  of  Hydesville. 

After  the  fight  on  Hay  Eork  the  boys  returned  to 
Weaverville,  and  things  went  on  comparatively 
smooth  until  the  Fourth  of  July,  '52,  when  one  of  the 
bloodiest  tragedies  that  ever  took  place  in  Nortliern 
California  was  enacted  in  tliat  town — the  killing'  of 
Horton  and  Eliza  Hardenburg,  a  woman  who  was 
living  with  hiui.  They  kept  ;i  hotel,  store  and 
bakery,   the  first  in   the  placje.     Horton    v^as  not 


202  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

l)rompt  in  paying  his  bills  below,  where  he  bonght 
his  goods,  and  some  of  his  creditors  sued  him  and 
attached  liis  house  and  contents.  Dixon  was  Sheriff 
of  Trinity  county  at  tlie  time,  and  he  placed  a  keeper 
in  charge  and  closed  the  place  uj).  It  was  coming 
on  close  to  the  Fourth  of  July,  and  Horton  wanted 
to  oj)en  his  house  for  that  day,  telling  the  Sheriff 
he  could  make  sufficient  money  on  the  Fourth  to 
pay  the  bill  if  allowed  to  do  so.  The  Sheriff  would 
not  allow  him  to  do  it,  and  Horton  made  up  his 
mind  lie  would  open  the  house  any  waj .  They 
were  still  in  the  house  with  the  keeper,  and  on  the 
morning  of  the  Fourth,  Horton  and  Eliza  Harden- 
burg  opened  the  place  and  commenced  business. 
The  keeper  remonstrated  with  them,  but  to  no 
avail,  and  he  then  rej^orted  to  the  Sheriff  what 
Horton  was  doing.  In  the  meantime  Horton  and 
the  woman  had  armed  themselves,  with  a  full  deter- 
mination of  resisting  the  officers.  The  Sheriff 
summoned  a  jwsse  of  five  men,  and  went  to  the  store 
of  Horton.  They  found  Horton  behind  the  counter 
with  a  revolver  cocked  in  his  hand,  pointed  at  the 
Sheriff',  saying  he  would  kill  the  first  man  of  the 
'posse  who  entered  his  house.  The  woman  stepped 
to  the  door  of  her  room,  which  brought  her  in  the 
store,  she  likewise  having  in  her  hand  a  pointed 
revolver,  threatening  vengeance  on  the  Sheriff  and 
his  men  if  tbey  dared  enter  the  premises.  Both 
parties  stood  at  bay  for  a  few  moments  and  then  one 
shot  was  fired.     I  never  could  find  out  which  party 


PROMINENT    HUMBOLDTERS — A    BLOODY    TRAGEDY.  203 

turned  loose  first;  tlic  Sheriff's  party  claimed  that 
the  woman  shot  first,  and  then  they  turned  loose 
with  a  Aenceance.  Horton's  body  was  shot  full  of 
bullets,  and  he  fell  dead  over  the  counter.  Eliza 
Hardenburg  received  two  loads  of  buckslu^t  in  the 
breast  and  she  fell  forward  on  her  face  and  expired. 
Men  who  were  j^resent  in  a  few  minutes  after  the 
tragedy  say  that  the  sight  was  a  horrible  one  to 
look  on.  Horton's  body  lay  bleeding  from  a  num- 
ber of  wounds,  alread}^  cold  in  death;  the  woman's 
long,  black  hair  all  loose  and  saturated  with  her  OAvn 
blood,  her  breast  torn  open  with  two  charges  of 
buckshot  fired  at  close  range,  and  her  features  dis- 
torted Avith  rage.  None  of  the  Sheriff's  party  got  a 
scratch  in  the  fight.  When  later  in  the  day  the 
miners  began  to  come  into  town  to  spend  their 
Eourth,  the  tragedy  put  an  end  to  all  jollification. 
They  would  gather  into  small  parties  and  discuss 
the  doings  of  the  morning  with  frowning  brows, 
and  it  looked  at  one  time  as  if  there  Avould  be  more 
trouble,  but  it  appeared  as  if  no  jierson  was  willing 
to  take  the  lead.  The  Sheriff  had  given  the  order 
to  fire,  and  he  had  the  color  of  law  on  his  side.  A 
coroner's  jury  was  summoned,  who  rendered  a  ver- 
dict of  justifiable  homicide.  The  corpses  were 
buried  side  by  side  on  a  point  of  land  not  three 
hundred  feet  from  Avhere  they  fell.  Thus  ended 
one  of  the  most  bloody  and  uncalled  for  homicides 
that  ever  took  j)lace  in  a  civilized  community.  I 
kept  track  of  the  participants  for  ten  years.    Every 


204  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

one  of  them  met  an  untimely  deatli.  Dixon,  the 
Sheriff,  either  committed  suicide  or  shot  himself 
accidentally,  and  lies  buried  near  Pine's  dairy 
house,  on  the  Bucksport  road;  Ned  Meredith,  the 
last  one  of  the  fiye  deputies,  was  killed  while  fight- 
ing as  a  rebel  during  the  war  in  Missouri.  What  a 
contrast  between  July  4th,  '51,  and  July  4tli,  '52. 
The  Fourth  in  '51  was  spent  in  jollification  and 
pleasure;  eyerybody  seemed  to  be  happy,  and  he 
that  lav  dead  in  '52  was  one  of  the  merry-makers. 
I  well  remember  at  the  dinner- table,  when  the  wine 
flowed  freely,  it  Avas  yoted  that  each  man  had  to 
giye  a  toast,  sing  a  song,  make  a  speech,  or  furnish 
a  bottle  of  wine.  When  poor  Horton's  time  came 
he  arose  and  sung  the  "Star  Spangled  Banner"  with 
more  feeling  and  patriotism  than  I  eA^er  have  since 
listened  to.  Twice  had  he  to  repeat  it.  Little  did 
the  crowd  that  sat  round  the  festiye  board  that  day 
think  or  imagine  that  on  the  next  anniyersary  one 
of  their  number  would  lie  bleeding  in  death  under 
the  same  roof  where  they  sat  enjoying  themselyes, 
cut  down  in  the  prime  of  his  manhood,  unnecessarily. 
Such  is  life.  The  Fourth  of  July,  1852,  closed  with 
sorrow  oyer  the  little  town  of  A¥eayeryille.  Ear 
different  from  its  predecessor  one  year  previous; 
then  it  was  all  fun  and  good-nature.  Eyery  person 
seemed  to  be  hapx^y,  and  bent  on  enjoyment;  but, 
alas  !  all  was  changed.  Death  in  its  most  hideous 
form  in  our  midst;  two  of  our  citizens,  a  man  and 
woman,  killed — unneccessarily,  it  was  thought  by 


PROMINENT    HUMBOLDTERS — A    BLOODY    TRAGEDY.  205 

many.  Deep  and  l)ilter  feelings  were  expressed  by 
a  large  portion  of  tlie  connnunity,  but  that  love  for 
biAv  and  order  wliieli  ever  prevails  in  the  bosom  of 
Americans,  outweighed  the  feeling  of  revenge,  and 
the  foul  deed  passed  otf  in  quietness.  In  two  or 
tliree  years  their  graves  were  sluiced  away  by  some 
miners,  and  their  coffins,  with  a  few  others,  were 
removed,  by  order  of  the  County  Judge,  to  the  new 
cemeterv  west  of  the  town,  where  thev  now  lie  for- 
gotten.  All  the  principal  actors  in  the  tragedy 
have  long  since  passed  to  a  higher  tribunal  than 
that  of  the  miners  of  Weaverville.  Eor  vears  after 
the  tragedy  the  old  settlers  would  often  talk  over 
the  bloodv  deed,  and  look  back  Avith  horror  on  the 
act.  Manv  of  the  old  settlers  of  Weaverville,  if  thev 
read  this  chapter,  will  well  remember  the  Fourth 
of  July,  1852,  as  being  the  bloodiest  day  in  the 
annals  of  tlie  count  v. 


The  following  letter  is  from  an  old-timer.  General 
J.  W.  Denver,  whom  all  pioneers,  and  particularly 
"Trinitarians,"  will  bear  in  kindlv  rememberance. 
The  letter  was  written  to  The  Humlwldt  Mail^ 
in  which  these  chapters  were  published  in 
serial  form,  and  gives  General  Denver's  version 
of  tlie  election  of  a  Senator  in  Trinitv  countv 
in  '51,  in  which   lie  took  a  prominent  ^lart,  and  to 


206  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

which  the  author  makes  reference  in  Ohax3ter  XYI. 
It  reads  as  follows: 

Editor  Mail:  For  sometime  past  I  have  been  receiving  your  very 
interesting  paper,  The  Humboldt  Mail.  It  is  very  interesting  to  me 
as  coming  from  a  part  of  the  country  to  which  I  have  always  been  greatly 
attached,  particularly  because  of  the  many  warm  personal  friends  I  had 
there,  whose  kindness  and  friendship  I  have  never  forgotten.  I  have 
been  especially  interested  in  reading  the  articles  entitled  "  Pioneer  Days." 
In  the  last  number  received,  of  date  February  i8,  1888,  I  find  one  espe- 
cially relating  to  myself,  which  is  in  the  main  correct,  except  in  so  far  as 
the  writer  relates  that  there  was  a  doubt  about  my  election  to  the  Senate 
in  March,  '52,  a  thing  I  never  heard  of  before.  Had  I  supposed  at  the 
time  there  was  any  doubt  whatever  about  my  election,  I  certainly  would 
not  have  taken  the  seat.  At  the  general  election  I  had  undoubtedly  re- 
ceived a  plurality  of  the  votes  cast,  but  a  fraudulent  return,  purporting  to 
be  from  Johnson's  Bar  on  the  Klamath,  was  made  just  large  enough  to 
give  Harper  two  votes  more  than  I  appeared  to  have.  When  the  votes 
were  first  announced  by  the  Clerk  of  Klamath  county,  I  was  really  glad 
that  I  was  beaten,  for  I  had  no  desire  to  engage  in  political  life;  but  when 
I  became  satisfied  of  the  fraud  committed,  I  believed  it  was  my  duty  as 
a  good  citizen  to  expose  it,  which  I  did.  In  the  course  of  the  contest  before 
the  Senate,  Harper  succeeded  in  raising  a  doubt  in  the  minds  of  some  of 
the  Senators  as  to  my  eligibility,  alleging  that  I  had  not  been  long  enough 
in  the  county  or  in  the  district.  Lyle  united  with  Harper  to  dispose  of  my 
case  first,  so  as  to  get  me  out  of  the  way,  and  then  they  proposed  to  set- 
tle the  question  as  between  themselves.  On  ascertaining  this  state  of 
affairs,  I  advised  my  friends  to  settle  the  matter  beyond  all  dispute  by 
declaring  the  seat  vacant,  and  that  I  would  return  and  make  the  race 
over  again.     This  was  done,  and  1  was  re-elected. 

The  friends  of  Harper  and  Lyle,  as  I  was  informed  at  the  time,  united 
and  brought  out  Mr.  Stuart  as  their  candidate.  I  knew  Mr.  Stuart  very 
well,  and  had  and  still  have  a  very  high  regard  for  him.  He  was  an  ex- 
cellent young  man,  and  so  far  as  I  have  heard  he  has  borne  himself  well 
through  life. 

The  writer  of  "  Pioneer  Days  "  does  not  give  his  name,  but  I  think  I 
recognize  him.  If  I  am  not  mistaken,  he  is  the  same  man  who  with  my- 
self made  a  very  foolhardy  trip  from  Uniontown  (now  Areata)  to  Weaver- 
ville  during  the  time  of  an  Indian  outbreak  in  the  fall  of  '53.     He  was 


PROMINENT    HUMBOLDTERS — A    BLOODY    TRAGEDY.  207 

a  good,  clever,  honest  and  upright  blacksmith,  but  a  strong  and  decided 
political  pai'tisan.  Personally,  we  were  always  good  friends;  but  politi- 
cally, of  course,  I  always  expected  him  to  be  found  on  the  other  side.  He 
is  the  one  I  heard  had  gone  to  Big  Flat  on  the  day  of  that  special  elec- 
tion, with  the  result  that  is  related  in  "  Pioneer  Days."  If  he  is  the  same 
man,  please  give  him  my  compliments,  and  say  to  him  that  I  feel  greatly 
complimented  for  the  opinion  he  entertains  of  me,  and  that  I  yet  hope 
some  day  to  be  able  to  talk  over  pioneer  times  with  him.  It  would 
afford  me  very  great  pleasure  to  revisit  the  scenes  of  my  early  manhood  m 
Trinity  and  Humboldt,  for  I  had  so  many  warm  friends  there,  from  whom 
I  am  always  pleased  to  hear. 

Inform  any  old  friends  of  mine  you  may  meet  with  that  I  have  not  for- 
gotten them,  and  that  everything  coming  from  that  part  of  the  country  is 
of  interest  to  me.  With  best  wishes  for  the  success  of  the  people  of 
Humboldt  and  Trinity  counties,  I  am.     Yours  Respectfully, 

J.  W.  Denver. 

Washington,  D.  C,  March  i,  1888. 


208  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER   XXI. 

The  Last  Victi^i  of  Judge  Lynch. 

A  murder.— Mike  Grant's  trial  before  Judge  Lynch,  and  subsequent  ex- 
ecution.—Lack  of  faith  in  the  machinery  of  the  law.— Judge  Lynch's 
last  victim  in  Trinity  county. — Civilizing  effect  of  women  and 
children.— The  first  children  in  Weaverville.— An  unsuccessful 
Water  Company. 

In  the  fall  of  '52  a  Spanish  i^ack  train  was  cross- 
ing Brown's  Mountain  Avith  a  load  of  goods  for 
WeaTerville,  and  when  near  the  summit,  on  the 
AVeaverville  side  of  the  mountain,  one  of  the  packers 
discovered  the  dead  body  of  a  man  sitting  against  a 
big  pine  tree,  and  on  examining  it  he  found  a  bullet- 
hole  though  the  body.  Coming  to  WeaverYille  he 
reported  the  facts,  and  a  conipan}'  of  men  started 
out  after  the  body,  and  found  it  as  described  by  the 
Spaniard.  They  recognized  it  as  that  of  a  man 
named  Holt,  who  had  left  town  the  day  before.  He 
had  considerable  money  on  his  person  when  leav- 
ing Weaverville,  but  on  examination  it  was  found 
that  the  bodv  had  been  robbed  of  what  valuables  he 
may  have  possessed  at  the  time  of  the  murder.  There 
was  considerable  excitement  over  the  murder,  and 
suspicion  pointed  to  a  man  named  Mike  Grant,  who 


THE    LAST    VICTIM    OF    JUDGE    LYNCH.  209 

was  considered  a  suspicions  character.  He  worked 
sometimes  in  what  was  called  "OUT  Chap  Ilestanrant." 
(A  man  came  to  Weave rville  by  the  name  of  Chap- 
man, and  started  a  restaurant.  He  was  a  middle-aged 
man — at  that  time  a  man  over  thirty  years  of  age 
was  called  an  old  man — so  the  boys  dubbed  his  res- 
taurant, "Old  Chap  Kestaurant,"  and  it  kept  that 
name).  Gi-ant  sometimes  worked  for  "Old  Chap.*" 
He  was  very  f(md  of  limiting  and  practicing  at  a 
mark  with  his  rifle.  Suspicion  fell  on  him,  for  he 
was  seen  leaving  town  with  Holt,  or  shortly  after. 
He,  of  course,  pleaded  innocent,  and  could  explain 
where  he  was  on  that  day.  He  admitted  being  on 
the  trail  with  Holt,  but  had  parted  from  him  at  the 
foot  of  Brown's  Mountain,  and  had  been  hunting  all 
day  on  the  mountain.  He  w  as  arrested  by  order  of 
Judge  Lynch,  and  taken  to  the  place  Avhere  he  said 
he  parted  with  Holt  on  the  day  the  murder  was 
committed.  When  they  arrived  at  the  place,  he  re- 
fused to  show  them  his  tracks,  or  make  any  expla- 
nation that  was  satisfactory  to  them.  T.  M.  Brown, 
our  present  Sherifi",  was  herding  mules  on  Brown's 
Mountain  near  the  j)lace  where  the  murder  was 
committed,  and  T.  M.  Brown  saw  nor  heard  nothing 
of  him. 

Things  began  to  look  rather  dark  for  Mike  Grant, 
and  he  Avas  taken  back  to  town  and  closely  confined. 
At  a  meeting  of  the  miners  and  others,  it  was  re- 
solved to  give  him  a  trial  before  Judge  Lynch's 
court  for  murder.  The  killing  of  a  man  in  an  affray 


-10  PIONEEK    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

in  those  days  was  not  looked  upon  as  a  very  serious 
affair;  the  killing  of  a  man  for  the  purpose  of 
robbery  was  something  the  early  Californians 
would  not  tolerate  or  forgive,  but  would  hunt  the 
perpetrator  to  the  uttermost,  and,  when  found  guilty, 
no  mercy  was  sliOAvn  him.  In  the  case  of  Grant,  a 
jury  of  twelve  was  summoned.  Captain  J.  G.  Mes- 
sic,  afterward  Slieriff  of  Trinity  county,  and  known 
to  many  of  the  old  settlers  of  Humboldt  county,  was 
chosen  Marshal  for  the  occasion.  The  jury  was 
summoned  by  the  Marshal  with  fairness.  The 
Judge  appointed  to  try  the  case  I  have  forgotten. 
Counsel  was  allowed  the  jjrisoner,  and  everything 
was  conducted  in  an  orderly  manner.  The  whole 
evidence  was  circumstantial,  but  everything  pointed 
to  his  guilt.  The  bullet  taken  out  of  the  body  fitted 
the  rifle  wiiich  Grant  had  with  him  that  day;  Grant 
was  seen  with  Holt  shortlv  before  the  body  was 
found  by  the  Spaniard;  Holt's  clothes  were  burnt 
by  the  x>OAvder,  etc.  It  was  supposed  that  they  both 
traveled  up  Brown's  Mountain  together,  and,  when 
near  the  top,  sat  down  to  rest,  as  the  day  was  warm, 
and  that  Grant  drew  his  gun  and  shot  him  for  the 
purpose  of  robbing  him,  and  did  so,  as  no  money  or 
valuables  were  found  on  the  body. 

Grant  had  his  trial,  and  thejur}'  found  him  guilty 
of  murder.  He  was  sentenced  to  be  hanged,  and  if 
I  remember  correctly  he  was  given  two  days  be- 
tween the  sentence  and  his  execution.  When  the 
time  came  there  was  s.ome  talk  of  a  rescue,  but  the 


THE    LAST    VICTIM    OF    JUDGE    LYNCH.  211 

Marshal  had  a  ^wsse  of  some  thirty  men  picked  and 
Avell  armed,  who  guarded  the  prisoner  to  the  fatal 
tree.  I  believe  our  present  Sheriff  was  one  of  them. 
He  was  strung  up  to  the  same  tree  that  Seymour 
was  partly  hung  on,  but  did  not  get  oflt'  as  well  as 
Seymour  did.  Sheriff  Dixon,  the  lawful  Sheriff  of 
the  county,  was  in  AVeaverville  at  the  time,  but  such 
was  the  force  of  public  opinion  that  he  was  power- 
less to  act.  Peoj)le  placed  very  little  reliance  in  the 
civil  law.  The  countv  government  Avas  vet  in  its 
infancy,  ^o  jails  to  safely  keep  prisoners  in,  no 
court-house  to  trv  them  in,  and  the  civil  law  itself 
held  in  contempt  by  many.  Such  was  the  state  of 
affairs  when  Grant  was  hanged.  I  believe  he  was 
the  last  victim  of  Judge  Lvnch  in  Trinitv  countv. 
There  were  other  executions,  but  they  were  done  by 
the  laws  of  the  land.  There  were  some  doubts  in 
the  minds  of  a  few  Avhether  Grant  was  guilty  of  the 
crime  for  which  he  x^aid  the  penalty  with  his  life. 
The  better  class  of  society  were  beginning  to  wish 
for  a  different  state  of  society.  Lynch  law,  in  their 
opinion,  ought  to  be  done  away  with.  It  had  ac- 
complished its  mission,  as  far  as  Trinity  county 
was  concerned,  and  men  as  a  general  thing  Avanted 
no  more  of  it. 

The  great  civilizing  influence  of  women  and 
children  was  beginning  to  be  felt.  When  I  left  for 
home  in  the  spring  of  '52  there  Avas  but  one  family 
of  children  in  or  about  Weaverville;  that  was  old 
Mr.  Lindsay  and  his  Avife,  for  many  years  residents 


212  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

of  Areata.  There  wen^  three  ehildren  of  them: 
William,  Joshua  and  Sarah  Jane,  now  tlie  wife  of 
Miller  Preston  of  Areata,  and  Avidow  of  John  Pres- 
ton of  the  same  place.  They  were  the  only  ehildren 
we  had  in  the  burg  at  that  time.  I  believe  they 
moved  to  Uniontown,  now  Areata,  in  '52. 

In  the  summer  of  '52  a  company  was  formed  to 
bring  water,  on  a  large  scale,  into  Weaver  basin. 
The  principal  incorporators  were  Humboldt  men, 
and,  as  far  as  I  can  remember,  their  names  were  W. 
C.  Young,  Garland,  John  E.  Wyman,  Henry  Wy- 
man,  Ben  AVyman  and  Xixon.  They  located 
Stuart's  Fork,  intending  to  bring  it  a  distance  of 
forty  miles.  It  was  a  big  undertaking.  The  capi- 
tal stock,  if  I  remember  correctly,  was  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five  thousand  dollars.  The  survey 
was  made,  and  the  stock  put  on  the  market.  Young 
seemed  to  be  the  princij)al  manager,  and  Garland 
next.  Men  were  set  at  work,  and  large  contracts 
let  for  provisions  and  tools.  My  partner,  James 
Hyde,  furnished  them  with  three  hundred  j)icks, 
or  had  the  contract  for  that  number.  Everything 
was  to  be  on  a  grand  scale.  A  large  number  of 
men  were  set  at  work  at  one  hundred  dollars  per 
month  and  found.  Many  of  the  business  men  of 
Weaverville  took  stock  ni  the  enterprise,  and  others 
let  the  concern  have  money  and  goods  to  large 
amounts. 

Things  went  on   well  for  a  while,  until  at  last 
money  became  scarce  with  the  managers,  and  Young 


THE    I:aST    victim    OF    JUDGE    LYNCH-  218 

Avcni  below  to  raise  a  large  amount,  but  failed  to  do 
j^o.  Tlie  Avinter  came  on  very  severe;  the  price  of 
provisions  went  uj)  enormously.  The  snow  on  the 
mountain  where  the  men  were  at  work  was  from 
live  to  ten  feet  deep,  and  the  men  had  to  quit  work 
and  come  to  town.  All  operations  ceased,  and  the 
work  came  to  a  standstill  until  the  next  sx)ring-.  In 
tlie  meantime  Young  and  Garland  were  below  trying 
to  "ct  funds.  Thev  would  send  word  to  Weaverville 
that  everything  was  going  on  well  Avith  them,  nnd 
that  in  a  short  time  they  would  be  back  with  plenty 
of  money,  pay  their  debts  and  resume  Avork  on  the 
ditcli.  The  spring  came,  and  the  summer,  but  no 
funds.  In  the  meantime  everybodv  that  had  anv- 
thing  to  do  Avith  it  became  disgusted.  The  Wy- 
mans  left  for  Uniontown,  losing  cAerything  they 
put  into  the  enterprise,  besides  their  time.  Young 
and  Garland  bA'  common  consent  were  voted 
'^  bilks."  The  thing  fell  through,  and  the  ditch  was 
ncAcr  completed.  Had  they  obtained  sufficient 
funds  to  have  completed  the  ditch, it  Avould  haAC  been 
splendid  property.  Judge  Wyman  years  afterAvards 
informed  me  that  if  Young  and  Garland  had  acted 
honestlv  and  fairh'  tlie  Avork  could  haAc  been 
finished,  and  it  Avould  have  made  them  all  AvealtliA^ 
They  were  both  Avild  speculators.  In  '57  another 
company  Avas  organized,  and  the  route  re-surAcyed, 
and  an  effort  made  to  raise  funds  to  bring  in  the 
Avater  and  finish  the  ditch,  but  it  proved  a  failure. 
Those  AA^io  got   bit  in  the  Young  ditch  Avere  not 


214  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

willing  to  take  hold  again;  consequently,  after  three 
thousand  dollars  had  been  expended  by  eight  of  us, 
who  were  elected  directors,  the  scheme  failed,  and 
the  directors  had  to  go  down  in  their  own  pockets 
to  foot  the  bills.  That  ended  the  big  ditch.  No 
more  large  mining  operations  were  undertaken  for 
some  time.  Two  had  proven  failures — the  Arkan- 
saw  dam  and  the  canal  or  ditch  of  Young.  Both 
would  have  proven  successes  had  they  been  in  the 
hands  of  competent  men,  and  managed  by  those  who 
understood  their  business. 


HOUSEKEEPING    EXPERIENCES.  215 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Housekeeping  Experiences. 

(leneral    Denver. — Housekeeping   in   Weaverville. — The    noble    pioneer 
women. 

I  see  a,  letter  from  General  J.  W.  Denver  in  reply 
to  some  of  my  assertions  in  "Pioneer  Days."  I  am 
glad  I  made  them,  as  it  has  been  the  means  of 
l^ringing  him  out  of  his  shell.  I  would  sooner  take 
a  little  seolding-  than  not  to  hear  from  him  at  all,  as 
for  twenty  years  he  has  kept  himself  hidden  from 
many  of  his  old  friends  in  Northern  California.  Old 
friend,  you  are  not  forgotten,  I  can  assure  you. 
There  are  man}'  of  us  old  gray-headed  pioneers 
yet  left  who  look  back  with  pleasure  to  being 
acquainted  with  you,  and  of  having  your  friendship 
and  esteem.  Four  or  five  old  gray-beards  were 
standing  on  the  corner  of  one  of  our  streets  dis- 
cussing old  times  the  morning  after  your  letter  was 
published,  when  one  of  them  laughingly  remarked, 
"I  wonder  if  the  General  remembers  his  trip  in 
'53  from  Eureka  to  Uniontown  in  a  small  boat, 
with  several  ladies  on  boardr'  He  would  not 
explain  himself,   so  we  were  in  the  dark  about  that 


216  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

trip.  The  General  in  liis  letter  says  he  knows  noth- 
ing of  the  Indian  Creek  returns,  it  being  the  first 
time  he  ever  heard  of  it.  I  believe  he  speaks  cor- 
rectly. If  there  was  anything  wrong  about  them, 
I  am  sure  he  knew  nothing  of  it,  nor  did  I  ever 
hear  that  lie  had  anything  to  do  with  the  transac- 
tion whatever.  So  far  as  niv  inemorv  serves  me, 
he  was  not  in  the  countv  the  dav  of  election;  but 
I  think  the  (xeneral  was  misinformed  concerning 
the  bringing  out  of  R.  CI.  Stuart  as  a  candidate  for 
the  Senate.  IN^either  John  A.  Lyle  or  John  H. 
Harper  had  anything  to  do  with  it.  As  I  remarked 
before,  his  name  was  suggested  by  myself  at  a 
jneeting  of  a  few  Whigs,  held  in  a  room  in  the  Mis- 
souri Hotel,  on  J  Street,  Sacramento  City.  There 
Avere  present  at  the  time  ¥.  S.  McKenzie  and  Mr. 
McMillan,  the  two  Kepresentatives  to  the  Legisla- 
ture from  Trinitv,  both  Wliias.  Neither  John  A. 
Lyle  or  John  H.  Harper  were  present  at  that  meet- 
ing. Old  friend,  you  Avere  about  right  in  your 
surmises.  You  and  I  did  take  a  very  foolhardy  trip 
in  the  Indian  outbreak  in  the  fall  of  '53  from  Union- 
town  to  Weaverville.  I  had  more  curiosity  then 
than  now.  In  a  short  time  I  will  give  my  recollec- 
tions of  that  trip  in  ^'Pioneer  Days,"  so  far  as  I 
can  remember  the  circumstances. 

Well,  to  come  back  to  Weaverville,  after  my 
digression:  When  we  arrived  in  town  we  brought 
the  largest  delegation  of  ladies  that  had  yet  arrived 
at  one  time  to  become  permanent  settlers.     They 


HOUSEKEEPING      EXPERIENCES  217 

were  Mrs.  Levi  Keynolds,  ]\Irs.  Thomas  Carr  and 
Mrs.  Joliii  Oair.  The  streets  were  full  of  j)eople, 
all  men,  anxious  to  get  a  look  at  the  new  arrivals. 
Mrs.  Reynolds  was  to  go  to  Oregon  Gulch,  six 
miles  from  AVeaverville,  and  the  two  Mi's.  Carr 
were  to  become  residents  of  Weaverville  for  manv 
vears.  The  ladies  Avho  rode  cavalier  stvle  were 
somewhat  backward  about  riding  into  town  in  that 
stvle,  but  tliev  were  in  for  it.  The  accommodations 
at  the  hotels  were  limited,  tlie  United  States  Hotel 
had  but  one  private  room  and  the  American  Hotel 
but  one  room.  Tlie  sleeping  apartments  of  the 
hotels  were  generally  large  rooms,  or  corrals  as  they 
were  sometimes  called,  where  there  were  rows  of 
cots  placed  for  beds,  and  sometimes  there  would  be 
from  twenty  to  fifty  men  occupying  the  same  room. 
As  for  private  rooms,  they  Avere  a  luxury  tliat  Avas 
seldom  aspired  to  by  the  common  individual. 

We  got  housed  pretty  well.  Before  I  started 
home  in  the  spring  1  gave  orders  to  my  friend  Cap- 
tain Cuinmings  to  have  a  house  built  for  me  dur- 
ing the  summer,  and  showed  him  where  to  build  it; 
but  he  neglected  it  until  some  fellow  jumped  the 
ground,  and  left  me  minus  a  lot  and  minus  a  house. 
^Vt  that  time  boarding  at  a  hotel  was  very  expen- 
sive— sixteen  dollars  a  week — and  as  we  had  six  in 
the  family  it  was  drawing  quite  heavily  on  my 
funds,  so  we  thought  we  had  better  get  to  house- 
keeping as  soon  as  possible.  No  such  things  {?s 
dwelling-houses   were  to  rent;  there  were  none  in 


218  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

ilie  place;  but  Oomstock  &  Martin  had  a  sort  of 
lionse  where  they  sometimes  stored  their  barley, 
and  they  told  me  we  could  use  that  until  I  could 
build  a  house.  I,  like  a  good  husband,  took  my 
wife  to  view  the  premises.  We  found  it  a  house 
about  twelve  by  sixteen  feet,  Avith  neither  doors, 
windows  or  floor;  nothing  but  posts  x^ut  into  the 
ground  and  shakes  nailed  on  to  them,  ^ot  a  very 
imposing  liouse,  some  of  our  native  daughters  will 
say,  to  bring  a  bride  to.  We  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  we  would  move  in  and  go  to  liouskeej)ing. 
Our  furniture  was  on  a  par  w^ith  the  house;  our 
dining-table  was  made  by  driving  stakes  down  in 
the  floor  and  nailing  poles  on  them  to  receive  the 
top,  which  was  composed  of  shakes  nailed  from  pole 
to  pole.  I  do  not  mean  the  North  or  South  Pole,  I 
mean  the  poles  we  used  for  that  table.  Our  bed- 
room sets  were  similar  to  our  table,  and  made  of  the 
same  material;  and  our  dining-room  chairs  were 
nail-kegs  or  dry-goods  boxes;  our  china  and  crock- 
ery-ware was  made  in  a  tinsmith  slioj);  our  cooking- 
stove  a  mud  firej)lace.  We  took  four  or  five  shakes 
ofl"  the  side  of  our  castle  and  nailed  some  white 
domestic  cotton  over  it  for  a  window,  and  we  hung 
a  blanket  over  our  door. 

Such  was  our  first  beginning  at  housekeej)ing  in 
California,  and  it  was  tlie  experience  of  thousands 
of  others.  There  is  a  great  deal  said  and  written 
about  the  early  pioneer  fathers  of  California — and 
they  deserve  all  that  is  said  about  them — but  verv 


HOUSEKEEPING    EXPERIENCES.  219 

little  is  said  about  the  pioneer  mothers  of  California; 
they  deserve  to  share  somewhat  of  the  glory  of 
being  pioneers  of  this  great  State.  Many  of  the 
women  of  the  early  days  were  women  who  had 
been  brought  up  in  luxury,  refinement  and  com- 
fort, in  their  homes  back  in  the  older  States.  They 
voluntarily  left  their  homes  Avith  the  men  of  their 
choice,  leaving  fathers  and  mothers,  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  everything  held  dear  to  the  feminine 
heart,  braving  the  dangers  of  the  plains  and  the 
ocean,  and  the  discomforts  of  California  life.  Such 
were  the  early  mothers  of  California.  Native  sons 
and  daughters,  to  those  brave  and  fearless  early 
pioneer  women  do  you  owe  everything  you  now 
possess  that-  is  worthy  to  be  called  civilization. 
Your  churches,  your  school-houses  where  you  re- 
ceived your  moral  training,  your  observance  of 
God's  holy  day,  the  Sunday-school,  and  everj^thing 
that  goes  to  elevate  our  race,  were  gifts  of  your 
pioneer  mothers,  who  brought  them  from  their  early 
homes,  and  sj)read  and  established  them  here  in 
this  our  God-favored  land.  Therefore,  when  the 
anniA  ersary  of  your  State's  natal-day  rolls  round 
from  A  ear  to  a  ear,  and  a  ou,  native  sons  and  dauo'h- 
ters,  meet  together  in  joy,  thanksgiA'ing  and  merry- 
making, forget  not  your  pioneer  mothers;  but  look 
back  with  pride  and  say,  "  I,  too,  am  the  child  of  a 
pioneer  mother  as  Avell  as  of  a  pioneer  father."  And 
when  time  shall  have  accomplished  its  Avork,  and 
they  be  laid  in  the  silent  graA  e,  cherish  their  mem- 


220  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA  . 

ory.  They  in  tlicir  day  accomplished  a  good  work, 
and  yon  are  receivino-  the  benefits  of  their  toil. 
Would  that  some  gifted  pen  could  do  them  justice. 
Well,  after  getting  to  housekeej)ing,  the  next 
thing  was  to  get  a  house  built,  with  some  of  the 
comforts  of  life  attached  to  it.  I  started  in  to  build, 
intending  to  build  a  two-story  house,  with  a  dwell- 
ing upstairs  and  a  shop  below.  My  lot  was  in  the 
center  of  the  town,  and  in  a  good  locality  for  busi- 
ness. All  sorts  of  building  material  was  very  high; 
lumber  was  wortli  ten  cents  per  foot,  and  scarce  at 
that;  the  winter  was  fast  coming  on;  shakes  were 
worth  fifty  dollars  per  thousand  and  nails  fifty  cents 
per  pound;  flour,  after  the  big  fire  in  Sacramento, 
look  a  rise  and  went  up  to  sixty  cents  per  pound; 
the  principal  flour  in  the  State  was  stored  in  Sacra- 
mento City,  that  being  the  principal  point  for 
furnishing  the  miners  with  their  supplies.  A  very 
large  amount  was  destroyed  by  tlie  fire,  and  the 
speculators  of  San  Francisco  made  a  "  corner,"  and 
ran  prices  up  to  fabulous  figures.  There  was  no 
flour  then  produced  in  the  State,  our  supplies  com- 
ing around  Cape  Horn  and  from  Chile.  Xew  stock 
could  not  be  had  for  four  or  five  months,  so  they 
had  a  good  time  of  it,  and  made  much  money  out  of 
their  sj)eculation.  I  hurried  up  the  building  as  fast 
as  possible,  as  it  was  getting  late  in  the  season  and 
frequently  raining.  In  the  meantime  I  made  a  con- 
tract with  John  E.  Chellis,  afterwards  Lieutenant- 
Governor  of  the  State,  to  burn  me  eight   hundred 


HOUSEKEEPING    EXPERIENCES.  221 

barrels  of  charcoal  at  one  dollar  per  barrel.  He 
commenced  chopping  the  wood  for  the  coal,  but, 
the  rain  coming  on,  he  had  to  quit  work;  that  left 
me  minus  the  coal,  and  I  got  none  burnt  by  Gover- 
nor Chellis  before  the  winter  set  in.  We  got  moved 
into  our  house,  and  it  was  well  we  did,  for  when 
the  storm  set  in  it  came  on  with  a  vengeance.  For 
forty-two  days  in  succession  it  either  rained  or 
snowed.  At  one  time  the  snow  in  the  streets  of 
Weaverville  was  four  or  five  feet  deep. 


222  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 


CHAPTER  XXIIL 

Almost  a  Famine. 

The  first  ball  in  Weaverville;  ten  dollars  per  ticket.— Houses  crushed 
by  snow;  Senator  John  P.  Jones  buried  under  one  of  them; 
his  clever  trick. 

Here  we  were  in  a  fix;  snowed  in  the  Weaverville 
basin  with  no  xn'o visions  to  amount  to  anything  on 
hand,  and  all  communication  cut  off  with  the  out- 
side world.  The  snow  on  the  Trinity  Mountain 
was  said  to  be  twenty  feet  deep.  The  last  sack  of 
flour  for  sale  in  Weaverville  I  purchased  from 
Oody  &  Harrington,  paying  them  sixty-two  dollars 
and  fifty  cents  for  a  fifty-pound  sack.  I  could  not 
have  got  it  at  all  except  on  account  of  having  two 
women  in  the  family.  McKenzie  &  Winston,  the 
butchers,  had  a  few  very  lean  beef  cattle  on  hand 
and  these  they  retailed  out  at  sixty  cents  per  pound, 
and,  being  friends  of  mine,  they  let  me  have  a 
whole  quarter  of  beef.  It  was  the  blackest  beef 
that  ever  came  under  my  observation.  Jim  Howe 
had  raised  some  small  potatoes  the  summer  previ- 
ous. He  tried  to  raise  them  without  irrigation,  so 
they  were  very  small.     I  purchased  fifty-pounds  of 


ALMOST     A     FAMINE.  223 

til  em  for  twenty-five  dollars.  As  luck  would  have 
it,  Comstock  &  Martin,  the  livery-stable  keepers, 
had  laid  in  their  winter  supply  of  barley,  conse- 
quently there  was  plenty  of  barley  in  town,  and 
that  beat  nothing  by  a  long  way.  I  bought  three 
sacks  of  that  commodity  from  them,  paying  them 
forty  cents  a  pound  for  it,  and  I  bought  three  coffee- 
mills  to  grind  it  in.  My  family  was  large — five  men 
and  two  women.  We  set  to  work  on  the  coffee- 
mills,  grinding  fiour  out  of  tlie  barley.  We  punched 
lioles  in  the  bottom  of  a  gold-pan  for  a  sieve.  We 
had  barley  bread,  barley  mush,  and  barley  pan- 
cakes, night,  noon  and  morning,  for  about  six 
weeks.  No  butter,  no  sugar,  a  little  molasses,  no 
coffee;  hoAvever,  we  made  "coffee"  out  of  burnt 
barley;  very  little  tea,  no  beans,  and  very  little  of 
anything  else  in  the  shape  of  provisions.  I^early 
ever}^  X^^i'^^^i  lived  on  barley  straight.  The  first 
salutation  when  two  fellows  met  would  be,  "  Hello, 
Tom,"  or  "  Jack,"  "  how  is  the  barley  holding  outi" 
"  I  have  some,  how  is  vours'?"  "O,  bullv!"  One 
of  the  hotels  held  out  during  the  time.  They 
charged  two  dollars  for  each  meal.  A  man  stood 
at  the  dining-room  door,  and  you  had  to  pay  your 
two  dollars  before  entering  that  dining-room,  and 
then  you  had  to  take  chances  on  what  you  got  to 
eat.  The  7ncnu  was  not  very  choice,  but  you  had 
to  come  down  with  your  cash  before  vou  entered. 
Grub  was  grub  that  winter  in  Weaverville,  yet 
ever}^  person  seemed  happy  and  joA  ial.     Wood,  too, 


224  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

became  scarce,  the  depth  of  the  snow  keeping  peo- 
ple from  getting  around  to  get  it.  The  only  thing 
with  which  we  were  well  stocked  Avere  whisky  and 
cards.  During  the  winter  reports  came  into  town 
that  tliere  was  a  pack-train  loaded  with  flour  and 
provisions  at  Lewiston,  eight  or  ten  miles  distant 
from  Weaverville,  on  the  Trinity  River.  A  crowd 
turned  out  and  broke  the  trail  with  shovels  to  gel 
into  town,  but  after  all  their  work,  when  tliey  got 
the  trail  open  over  the  mountain,  they  found  the 
train  was  loaded  with  toin-iron  and  wliisky;  a  few 
sacks  of  beans  were  all  the  eatables  that  were  found 
on  the  train.  The  boys  got  the  beans  to  town,  and 
they  were  retailed  at  one  dollar  j)er  pound,  and  no 
man  could  get  over  ten  pounds  for  love  or  money. 
The  previous  winter  was  so  open  that  no  person 
made  any  preparation  for  a  hard  one,  and  it  came 
and  caught  us  naj)ping;  yet  everybody  seemed  to  be 
hapj)y.  No  mining  was  done  while  the  snow  lay  so 
deep  on  the  ground,  but  when  the  spring  opened 
and  the  snow  commenced  to  go  off,  there  was 
plenty  of  water  everywhere,  and  the  miners  reaped 
a  rich  harvest. 

I  well  remember  the  first  ball  given  in  Weaver- 
ville.  It  was  on  the  night  of  December  24, 1852,  and 
was  given  at  the  Independent  Hotel.  Tickets  were 
ten  dollars  each.  There  was  a  sufficient  number  of 
ladies  in  town  to  make  up  two  sets.  It  was  con- 
sidered a  grand  affair — something  new  for  that  burg. 
Everybody  enjoyed  himself  hugely,  and  more  boiled 


ALMOST    A    FAMINE.  225 

sliirts  were  worn  that  night  than  ever  before  on 
one  occasion  at  Weaveryille.  One  felloAv  would 
buy  a  "  rig;"  he  woukl  dance  a  while  in  it  and  then 
lend  it  to  some  other  fellow  for  a  while,  who  would 
use  it  for  an  hour  or  so  and  then  pass  it  around, 
and  in  that  way  tlie  "  store  clothes  "  were  kept  well 
occupied.  Boots  were  used  in  the  same  way.  Tlie 
ball  passed  oif  in  fine  style,  and  everybody  Avas  well 
j)leased.  The  only  trouble  Avas  that  the  boys  did 
not  get  dancing  enough.  On  New  Year's  night, 
nothing  would  do  but  that  we  must  have  a  ball  at 
m V  house.  We  got  "  Black  Dave  "  for  a  musician, 
and  a  fellow  by  the  name  of  John  Oody  to  call  the 
sets.  The  room  was  not  large;  they  could  dance 
two  sets  with  a  little  crowding.  When  the  time 
for  refreslmients  came  on,  all  we  could  oiler  to  our 
guests  was  barley  bread  and  barlev  coifee.  I  be- 
lieve  Mrs.  Oarr  had  a  couple  of  apple  ^ies  made  out 
of  dried  apples  to  offer  to  the  ladies.  Such  was  the 
first  private  dance  held  in  Weaverville.  There 
were  j)resent  at  that  private  party  four  ladies,  now 
residents  of  Eureka,  namely:  Mrs.  Henrietta 
Ewing,  Mrs.  Thomas  Oarr,  Mrs.  A.  Monroe  (then 
Miss  Albee)  and  Mrs.  John  Carr. 

Some  of  ilie  gentlemen  who  asseml^led  that  New 
Year's  night,  '53,  to  enjoy  themselves  under  "Black 
DaA^e's  fiddling,  have  since  become  leading  men  of 
the  nation.  Amongst  them  were  John  P.  Jones, 
Senator  from  the  State  of  Nevada,  then  a  young, 
ru.ddy-faced  boy;  J.  0.  Burch,  afterwards  a  member 


226  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

of  Congress;  E.  S.  McKenzie,  one  of  tlie  State  Prison 
Directors  of  California,  and  afterwards  an  olRcer  of 
the  rebel  army,  killed  wliile  figliting  Siegel  in  Mis- 
souri in  '62;  Ed.  Rowe,  Dei)iity  State  Treasurer 
when  J.  Keely  Johnson  wasCTOvernor  of  California; 
Will  Lowe,  afterwards  Sheriff  of  the  county  and 
another  rebel  officer  during  our  late  unpleasantness. 
These  were  a  few  of  the  boys  who  partook  of  our 
hospitality  and  barley  cakes  at  the  first  private  j)iirty 
given  in  Trinity  county. 

The  houses  of  that  day  were  built  in  a  hurry  and 
not  very  strongly  put  together,  and,  when  the  heavy 
snow  came  on,  the  roofs  had  to  be  shoveled  or 
scrajied  oif.  Frequently,  if  not  cleaned  otf,  the 
weight  of  snow  would  break  them  down.  Kearly 
everybody  would  be  at  work  cleaning  the  snoAV  as 
soon  as  tlie  rafters  showed  any  signs  of  weakening, 
Avhich  they  would  do  by  bending  in  the  center.  A 
merchant  by  the  name  of  Earewell  had  a  stock  of 
goods  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street  from  my 
place  of  business.  He  went  below  before  the  storm 
commenced  for  his  winter  stock  of  goods  and  left 
John  P.  Jones  in  charge  as  clerk  and  bookkeej)er. 
John  P.  never  liked  manual  labor  very  well,  and  he 
failed  to  keep  tlie  snow  off  the  roof  of  the  store. 
There  was  getting  to  be  a  big  load  on  it,  and  the 
rafters  showed  all  signs  of  "  caving,"  and  the  neigh- 
bors advised  him  to  use  a  little  elbow-grease  and 
clean  the  building;  but  he  declined,  saying  he  did 
not  hire  to  Earewell  to  shovel  snow,  and  he  would 


ALMOST    A    FAMINE.  227 


be  d — d  if  he  would  do  it.  Saturday  iiio'lit  Jolin  P. 
and  some  of  his  chums  sat  up  j)vetty  late  playing 
cards  in  tlie  store,  and  the  snow  was  coming  down 
with  a  vengeance,  l^ext  morning  being  Sunday 
John  P.  was  late  about  getting  up.  About  9  I  was 
standing  in  my  door,  when  I  heard  a  cracking  across 
the  street,  and,  on  looking  over  where  the  noise 
came  from,  I  saw  tliat  the  Farewell  store  had  at  last 
succumbed  to  the  snow,  and  John  P.  was  under  the 
ruins.  In  a  few  momemts  there  was  a  crowd 
gathered.  Some  thought  Jones  was  surely  crushed 
to  death,  and  tlie}'  kept  constantl}'  calling  him,  but 
got  no  response.  Shovels  Avere  brought  and  used 
freely,  in  shoveling  the  snow  off  the  ruins  and  clear- 
ing off  the  debris  to  get  at  Jones'  bod}';  yet  no  signs 
of  Jones  until  the  boys  had  the  debris  cleared  up  to 
where  the  counter  stood,  and  had  cleared  away  the 
snow  and  shakes  around  it;  there  under  the  counter 
lay  the  embryo  U.  S.  Senator,  rolled  up  in  his 
blankets,  and  taking  it  as  easy  as  a  clam  at  high 
tide.  The  boys  commenced  cursing  him  for  not 
answering  when  called,  and  thus  i)utting  them  out 
of  suspense  as  to  whether  he  was  hurt  or  not.  Jones 
rej)lied,  "I  am  too  smart  for  that;  look  at  all  that 
snow  vou  luive  shoveled  oif  tliose  iioods,  and  the 
stuff  you  have  cleared  up  forme;  if  I  had  answered 
you  and  let  you  know  that  I  was  not  hurt,  you 
would  not  have  dug  me  outof  the  snow,  and  then  I 
would  have  had  all  the  work  to  do  myself."  Jones 
got  some  "tall  cursing."     Farewell  was  minus  his 


228  PIONEER   DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

storehouse,  beside  the  loss  of  and  damage  to  his 
goods.  If  I  remember  rightly,  when  Earewell  came 
back  he  was  so  disgusted  tliat  he  sold  out  what 
goods  he  had  left,  and  bade  good-bye  to  Weaver- 
ville  forever.  Not  so  Avith  John  P.;  he  remained 
in  town  and  went  to  clerking  for  Dick  Clifford. 

In  the  course  of  time  the  snow  began  to  disap- 
j)ear,  the  trains  began  to  come  into  town  over  the 
mountains,  provisions  got  plentiful,  the  miners  had 
plenty  of  water,  and  everything  was  again  flourish- 
ing. The  winter  of  '52  and  '53  was  a  hard  one,  and 
had  it  not  been  for  Oomstock  &  Martin's  barley,  I 
do  not  know  what  would  have  become  of  the  peo- 
ple. Many  would  have  suffered  and  starved.  There 
were  not  less  than  eight  hundred  souls  in  Weaver- 
ville  basin  when  the  storm  set  in.  Oomstock  & 
Martin  were  selling  barley  at  forty  cents  per  pound 
before  the  scarcity,  and  be  it  said  to  their  credit, 
they  never  raised  one  cent  on  the  price,  nor  did 
they  ever  refuse  a  man  credit  for  barley  because  he 
had  no  money.  They  could  have  had  a  very  high 
price  for  it  if  they  had  demanded  it.  There  was 
very  little  suffering,  and  everybody  felt  well  and 
happy.  All  knew  that  the  state  of  affairs  could  not 
last  long,  and  the  j)rospect  ahead  was  good. 


POLITICS,    MURDER    AND    FIRE.  229 


CHAPTe'r  XXIV. 


Politics,  Murder  and  Fire. 


The  Presidential  election  of '52. — J.  P.  Albee  and  family. — The  house  of 
Carr,  Cummings  6^  George. — Fire.— Noble  generosity. — Rebuilding. 

In  November,  '52,  the  Presidential  election  took 
j)lace,  Scott  and  Graham  being  the  Whig  candi- 
dates— the  last  nominations  *the  Whigs  ever  made. 
Pierce  and  King  were  the  Democratic  nominees. 
The  Whigs  of  AVeaverville  bought  a  large  flag,  and 
inscribed  thereon,  "Scott  and  Graham,"  in  large 
letters,  and  raised  a  fine  pole.  The  Democrats 
bought  a  large  flag,  with  a  large  golden  star  in  the 
center  of  the  field.  There  was  a  big  pine  tree  at 
the  upper  end  of  the  town.  The  Democrats  trim- 
med their  tree  of  its  limbs,  rove  halyards  in  the  top, 
and  threw  their  banner  to  the  breeze.  Church  & 
Mix  were  keejiing  store  then  in  a  log-house  in 
WeaYerville,  and  the  Democratic  tree  or  flag-j^ole 
was  in  front  of  their  store.  Church  was  a  Whig 
and  Mix  was  a  Democrat.  They  had  a  sign  out 
which  read:  "Church  &  Mix,  Provisions  and 
Liquors."  The  word  "  provisions "  was  under 
Church's  name  and  "  liquors  "  under  Mix's.    When 


230  PIONEER   DAYS   IX   CALIFORNIA- 

tliey  were  trimming  tlie  tree  a  limb  fell  on  the  sign 
cutting  it  squarely  in  two,  leaving  the  name  of 
Ohurcli  standing,  witli  "  x^rovisions  "  under  it,  and 
taking  oif  Mix  and  "liquors."  The  Whigs  used  to 
poke  fun  at  Mix,  saying  the  Democratic  portion  of 
the  firm  liad  fallen.  "  Church  and  provisions " 
politics  ran  high  in  Weaverville.  The  election 
came  on,  and  everybody  voted.  There  were  no 
registry  laws  then  in  California,  and  the  Democrats 
"  got  away  Avith "  the  Whigs  in  Weaverville  as  well 
as  the  balance  of  the  United  States.  Everything 
passed  ofi*  quietly — not  one  fight  on  election  day. 
The  largest  vote  ever  polled  in  Weaverville  was 
polled  at  that  election — if  I  remember  correctly, 
nearly  nine  hundred  votes.  The  San  Erancisco 
papers,  in  commenting  on  the  election,  remarked  on 
the  good  morals  of  the  American  electors,  saying 
that  the  election  passed  off  at  Weaverville,  Trinity 
county,  without  one  single  fight,  although  Weaver- 
ville was  the  wickedest  place  in  California.  We 
Weaverites  did  not  believe  the  insinuation  against 
our  morals  and  good  standing,  and  considered  it  a 
slander  on  our  peaceful  burg. 

I  would  not  be  doing  justice  if  I  did  not  lionor- 
ablv  mention  tlie  name  of  one  of  AVeaverville's 
pioneer  mothers  who  is  now  a  resident  of  Eureka 
— Mrs.  Albee,  wife  of  J.  P.  Albee,  who  was  cruelly 
murdered  by  the  Indians  in  November,  '62,  on  Red- 
wood Creek,  in  this  county.  In  the  early  pari  of 
the  summer  of  '52,  J.  P.  Albee  and  an  old  gentle- 


POLITICS,    MURDER   AND    FIRE.  231 

man  by  the  name  of  Hovey  brought  some  milch 
cows  to  Weaverville  to  furnish  the  town  with  milk. 
They  started  a  restaurant  in  connection  with  their 
milk  business,  which  was  afterwards  turned  into 
the  St.  Charles  Hotel,  one  of  the  leading  hotels  of 
WeaYerville.  Albee's  family  came  to  Weaverville 
about  October,  '52.  His  was  the  largest  family  of 
children  that  had  yet  made  their  appearance  in 
town.  His  oldest  child,  now  Mrs.  Monroe  of  this 
city,  was  then  a  girl  of  twelve  or  thirteen  years  of 
age.  She  was  considered  quite  a  young  lady  for 
those  days.  They  stayed  in  town  during  the  hard 
winter,  and  in  the  summer  of  '53  removed  to  Hum- 
boldt countv,  another  old  resident  of  Humboldt  ac- 
companying  them  over  the  mountains — Peter 
Houck  of  Eel  River  Yalley.  They  settled  on 
Salmon  Creek,  and  in  ]May,  '56,  removed  to  Red- 
wood. In  '62,  during  the  Indian  war,  Mr.  Albee 
moved  his  family  to  Areata  for  protection  against 
the  savages  who  were  then  on  the  war-path.  But 
he  continued  to  go  back  and  forth  to  his  ranch, 
notwithstanding  the  remonstrances  of  his  family 
and  friends.  J.  P.  Albee  was  a  man  who  was  kind 
and  just  in  his  dealings,  always  taking  the  part  of 
the  weak  against  the  strong,  and  was  the  friend  of 
the  Indians  when  the  white  men  abused  them.  He 
put  confidence  in  them  and  unwisely  trusted  them 
too  far,  and  they  cruelly  repaid  him  by  taking  his 
life.  His  remains  were  discovered  near  his  house 
on  his  ranch,  and  buried  by  the  soldiers  who  were 


232  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

then  in  tlie  field.  By  his  death  Mrs.  Albee  was  left 
with  five  small  children  to  j^rovide  for,  with  very 
little  means,  the  Indians  having  destroyed  his  prop- 
erty and  run  off  much  of  his  stock.  Here  commenced 
a  heroic  struggle  for  the  brave  mother  to  support, 
maintain  and  educate  her  family,  which  she  nobly 
accomplished.  The  old  lady  has  now  eight  children, 
twenty-six  grand-children  and  six  great-grand- 
children, all  living,  making  forty  of  her  direct  de- 
scendants now  living  in  California,  the  most  of 
them  in  Humboldt  county.  Our  tardy  Govern- 
ment some  years  since  passed  an  indemnity  bill 
reimbursing  those  persons  who  were  losers  by  the 
Indian  wars  and  dej)redations  in  Northern  Cali- 
fornia, and  I  believe  she  was  voted  sixteen  thous- 
and dollars  for  her  losses,  but  she  has  not  yet 
received  one  cent.  I  suppose  red-tapeism  will  keep 
the  old  lady  out  of  it  while  slie  lives,  and  it  may 
come  when  it  is  too  late  to  do  her  any  good. 

But  let  us  get  back  to  Weaverville.  We  were 
beginning  to  get  everything  in  running  order — 
after  the  hard  winter  everything  was  flourishing. 
I  found  that  the  blacksmith  shop  under  the  dwell- 
ing-house would  not  answer  very  well,  as  the  fine 
dust  from  the  shop  would  go  all  over,  and  made  our 
rooms  upstairs  very  uncomfortable  to  live  in.  I 
made  up  my  mind  to  turn  the  lower  part  into  a 
store,  and  build  a  shoj)  on  a  vacant  lot  next  the 
store.  Myself,  with  two  others,  went  into  the 
mercantile  business  under  the  firm  name  of  Carr, 


POLITICE,    MURDER    AND    FIRE.  23o 

Cuininings  &  George.  John  George  had  a  pack- 
train  of  twenty-four  iniile.s  wliicL  lie  put  into  the 
concern.  A  few  days  after  tlie  j^artnership  was 
formed,  I  had  an  offer  for  my  house  and  lot  of  three 
thousand  fiye  hundred  dollars  by  Madam  Bachelor, 
to  fit  it  up  for  a  gambling-house.  I  refused  it;  got  a 
train-load  of  goods  in,  and  opened  out  business  with 
good  prospects,  and  in  less  than  one  week,  while  at 
dinner  one  day,  an  alarm  of  fire  was  giyen.  Weayer- 
yille  was  about  to  receiye  its  first  baptism  of  the 
fiery  element.  On  running  downstairs  I  found  the 
American  Hotel  all  in  flames.  It  was  the  next 
building  to  mine,  and  caught  on  the  side  next  to  our 
store  and  dwelling-house.  To  try  to  put  it  out  was 
all  in  yain.  The  only  thing  to  be  done  was  to  saye 
what  few  goods  we  could  before  the  fire  droye  us 
out.  I  had,  before  leaying  San  Erancisco  in  the 
fall  j)reyious,  bought  some  furniture  and  a  stoye — 
I  belieye  the  first  in  Weayeryille.  It  was  all  up- 
stairs, together  with  my  wife's  gold  watch  and 
clothing.  We  sayed  yery  little  of  it.  We  got  some 
of  the  goods  out  of  the  store  before  the  fire  droye  us 
out.  The  fire  swept  up  the  main  street  on  the  east 
side,  clearing  eyerything  before  it.  The  houses 
were  built  of  pine  shakes  and  lined  Ayitli  cotton. 
When  the  immense  blaze  would  strike  the  next 
house  in  its  course  up  the  street  it  would  seem  to 
melt  out  of  existence  in  a  moment.  It  ran  up  Main 
street  to  Court  street,  and  up  Court  street  as  far  as 
there  was  anything  to  burn.     Crossing  Court  street 


234  PIOXEER    DAYS    IX    CALIFORNIA- 

it  burned  up  and  down  tlie  street,  until  stox^ping  at 
the  United  States  Hotel,  kept  by  Jose])li  EAving  and 
wife,  where  by  superhuman  exertions  of  the  people 
it  was  checked.  Very  fcAv  goods  were  saved.  The 
time  from  the  first  alarm  until  tlie  tire  was  arrested 
was  but  twenty-eight  minutes.  It  being  noon  wlien 
the  fire  commenced,  there  were  very  few  persons  in 
town — the  miners  were  all  at  work,  the  most  of 
them  sDme  distance  from  the  town;  but  they  got 
there  as  soon  as  possible  and  did  good  work.  There 
was  no  water  or  anything  to  work  with.  P. 
M.  Eder  hid  the  day  before  arrived  in  town 
with  a  large  stock  of  goods — ninety  mule  loads. 
They  were  put  in  the  American  Hotel  for  storage 
until  he  could  find  or  build  a  store.  That  was  the 
building  where  the  fire  started.  He  never  saved 
one  dollar's  worth  of  tlie  goods.  Nearly  every 
merchant  of  the  town  lost  heavily.  To  me  it  was 
the  first  set  back,  and  I  lost  it  all  in  a  few  mo- 
ment's time.  Six  thousand  dollars  would  not  cover 
my  personal  loss.  When  the  first  fire  started  Mrs. 
Graham,  the  landladv  of  the  American  Hotel,  was 
sick.  Her  husband  went  to  her  room  and  carried 
her  out  the  back  door  and  left  her  but  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  building.  As  the  fire  progressed  the 
heat  became  so  great  where  she  lay  that  it  was  set- 

'V, 

ting  her  clothing  on  fire.  Mrs.  Carr,  seeing  the 
danger  she  was  in,  at  great  risk  to  herself  ran  in 
and  carried  the  sick  woman  in  her  arms  to  a  safe 
place.     Before  she  could  reach  a  place  of  safet}"  our 


POLITICS^    MURDER    AND    FIRE.  235 

own  house  was  in  flaines.  She  saved  nothing  of 
her  own  clothing,  watch  and  av  hat  je^v  elry  she  had 
— all  went,  and  all  that  Avas  left  to  her  was  the 
clothing  on  lier  back.  The  fire  left  us  naked.  Be- 
fore the  fire  was  yet  out  one  of  my  partners — 
Cmnniings — started  for  tlie  mill,  two  miles  below 
town,  and  ordered  a  bill  of  lumber  to  rebuild.  He 
was  first  on  liand  and  got  liis  lumber.  Tlie  same 
evening  a  load  arrived  on  the  ground,  and  we  had 
to  put  the  fire  out  on  the  burnt  sills  in  order  to  lay 
the  new  ones. 

In  the  meantime  an  express  messenger  was  dis- 
patched to  Shasta  with  the  new^s  of  the  fire.  Sliasta 
was  then  a  business  place.  It  was  the  head  of 
wagon  navigation.  There  were  several  large  whole- 
sale houses  that  furnished  the  principal  goods  for 
all  the  northern  mines.  From  one  of  these  houses 
we  purchased  our  goods — the  firm  of  Todd  &  Jones. 
They  were  doing  a  large  business  in  Shasta.  As 
soon  as  they  heard  of  the  fire  they  immediately 
sent  one  of  their  clerks — Grant  I.  Taggart — oygy  to 
Weaverville  to  see  if  we  wanted  any  helj)  to  re- 
build, and  if  so  to  draw  on  them  for  the  amount 
needed.  Grant  I.  Taggart  has  since  been  elected 
Clerk  of  the  Suj)reme  Court,  and  is  now  in  the  real 
estate  business  in  Oakland. 

The  next  day  after  the  fire,  when  Taggart  arrived 
in  Weaverville,  we  had  the  floor  laid  for  our  store, 
and  in  six  days  after  the  fire  the  store  w^as  com- 
plete— counter,  shelves  and  everything   ready   for 


236  PIONEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFOENIA. 

business  The  next  day  after  the  fire  I  was  at  work 
sharpening  picks,  and  doing  business  in  that  line  as 
if  nothing  had  happened.  In  a  few  days  our  train 
arrived  Avith  a  load  of  goods.  Todd  &  Jones  hired 
anotlier  train,  loaded  it  with  goods,  and  sent  it  on. 
We  knew  nothing  of  it  until  it  arrived  in  AYeaver- 
ville,  consigned  to  Carr,  Cunimings  &  George,  with 
the  freight  all  paid.  Freight  in  those  days  was  no 
small  item  in  the  cost  of  the  goods.  Ten  cents  per 
pound  was  the  going  rate  tliat  spring  from  Shasta 
to  Weaverville.  Inside  of  ten  days  we  were  in  full 
blast,  as  if  nothing  had  happened. 


POLITICS   AND    WAR.  237 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

Politics  and  War. 

Comstock  and  Martin. — The  old  pine  stump. — A  street  battle. — Pierce, 
Church  dr^  Company. — The  Home  Guards. — Encampment  at  Red 
Bhiff;  hungry  soldiers. — A  Masonic  lodge  organized;  its  officers. — 
The  Odd  Fellows. — First  school  in  Weaverville. 

After  the  fire  we  were  again  left  houseless.  Coin- 
stock  &  Martin  again  came  to  our  rescue,  their  place 
of  business  having  escaped  the  fire.  They  had  a 
story-and-a-half  house,  the  lower  floor  of  which  was 
used  as  an  oflice  and  storeroom  for  grain,  and  the 
upper  part  was  partly  used  as  an  office  for  the  big 
ditch  company,  occupied  by  Messrs.  Young,  Gar- 
land &  Wjinan.  They  kindly  offered  us  the  front 
room  upstairs  until  we  could  get  a  house  built  to 
live  in,  which  we  occupied. 

A  history  of  the  early  days  of  Weaverville  would 
not  be  complete  without  sometliing  said  about  the 
firm  of  Comstock  &  Martin.  Israel  Comstock  and 
John  Martin  were  amongst  the  first  settlers  of 
Weaverville.  I  believe  they  were  there  in  '50;  at 
least,  I  found  them  mining  there  when  I  arrived  in 
Eebruary,  '51.  Israel  Comstock  was  a  genuine 
specimen   of  the   tall  Yankee  Democrat.     Kearly 


238  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

seven  feet  in  liiglit,  and  as  good-natured  as  he  Avas 
big.  The  only  way  you  couhl  get  him  angry  was  to 
ask  him  how  tall  he  was,  or  to  say  anything  about 
his  hight  to  him.  He  was  a  dyed-in-the-wool 
Democrat,  and  close  to  their  corral  gate  was  a  big 
pine  stumi),  which  the  boys  used  to  call  "the 
Democratic  stump."  For  six  months  before  the 
election  the  stump  would  be  occupied  by  Israel  and 
the  candidates  discussing  their  chances  for  a  nomi- 
nation. The  Whigs  used  to  say  if  that  old  pine 
stump  could  talk  and  tell  all  the  rascality  and  jobs 
put  up  around  it,  there  would  be  some  very  hard 
yarns  given  to  the  political  history  of  Trinity 
county.  Oomstock  remained  a  genuine  Democrat. 
There  was  an  establishment  in  the  upper  end  of 
town  called  the  Spanish  corral.  It  was  not  strictly 
a  very  moral  place;  a  sort  of  a  dance-house  where, 
when  each  set  was  over,  they  all  promenaded  to  the 
bar  for  refreshments.  The  inmates,  or  female  por- 
tion, were  generally  Ohilanos,  Kanackas  and  Mexi- 
cans. Some  of  the  women  got  dissatisfied  and 
wanted  to  leave  the  town,  but  the  proprietors  did 
not  want  them  to  leave.  The  women  made  a  pri- 
vate arrangement  with  Tom  Dawson  and  John 
Maloy,  two  packers,  to  take  them  to  Shasta,  and 
they  tried  to  get  them  away  without  the  keeper's 
knowledge,  but  he  discovered  the  plot.  The 
women  and  packers  started  off,  but,  when  they  got 
about  the  middle  of  the  main  street,  there  com- 
menced a  perfect  fusilade,  or  miniature  battle,  be- 


POLITICS   AND    WAR.  239 

tween  the  parties.  There  must  have  been  fifty  or 
sixty  shots  fired  in  the  street,  with  a  perfect  Babel 
of  voices,  and  no  choice  language  used.  On  that 
occasion  we  were  sleeping  upstairs,  and,  when 
they  had  fought  doAvn  the  street  to  near  the  livery- 
stable  building  where  we  were  sleeping,  the  bullets 
commenced  cracking  against  the  house  pretty 
lively.  My  wife  was  somewhat  alarmed,  as  the 
liouse  was  made  of  shakes  and  not  bullet-proof  by 
any  means.  We  lay  down  on  the  floor  until  the 
fight  got  past  the  liouse,  and  then  the  danger  was 
over.  1  expected  to  see  at  least  a  half-dozen  funer- 
als next  day,  but,  to  my  surprise,  there  were  no  j)er- 
sons  hurt  on  either  side.  It  was  a  beautiful  moon- 
light night,  and  Iioav  so  much  shooting  could  be 
done  without  somebody  getting  hurt  was  surprising 
to  me. 

Until  the  firing  on  Eort  Sumter,  the  firm  of 
Comstock  &  Martin  united  in  business  with  them 
John  E.  Church  and  Jesse  Pierce,  and  foriued  one 
of  the  largest  business  houses  in  Northern  California, 
under  the  name  of  Pierce,  Church  &  Co.,  doing  a 
large  forwarding  and  mercantile  business.  Pierce 
went  to  San  Francisco,  Comstock  to  Red  Bluff,  aud 
Church  &  Martin  remained  in  Weaverville  to  at- 
tend to  the  business  there.  Old  Israel  was  at  Red 
Bluff  attending  to  the  forwarding,  as  that  place  was 
the  head  of  water  navigation,  and  all  goods  going 
north  had  to  be  re-shipped  either  on  wagons  or  by 
pack  mules  to  their  destination. 


240  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

I  well  reineuiber,  in  the  summer  of  '63,  during 
the  civil  war,  there  were  two  companies  of  home 
guards  organized  in  Trinity  county,  the  Douglass 
City  Rifles  and  Halleck  Rifles.  I  belonged  to  the 
Douglass  City  Rifles — both  companies  belonged  to 
the  5th  Brigade.  We  were  ordered  to  Red  Bluif 
for  encampment  and  drill,  a  distance  of  about 
ninety  miles,  for  ten  days'  service.  The  camp  was 
located  on  a  creek  about  two  and  one  half  miles 
below  Red  Bluff,  where  we  played  soldier.  The 
last  day  of  the  encampment  we  were  ordered  to 
strike  tents  and  march  for  Red  Bluff,  and,  Avhen 
the  brigade  arrived  at  the  town,  we  were  marched 
and  counter-marched  and  drilled  for  the  space  of 
three  or  four  hours,  for  the  gratification  of  the 
people  of  that  town  and  General  John  Bid  well,  the 
commanding  ofiicer,  in  particular.  When  the 
parade  was  dismissed  there  were  no  prej)arations 
made  to  feed  or  shelter  the  troops.  The  boys  felt 
pretty  hungry  and  mad  about  that  time,  and  made 
application  to  General  Bidwell,  but  he  told  them  he 
could  do  nothing  for  them.  Old  Israel  Comstock 
was  at  the  Bluff  at  the  time,  and  such  treatment  of 
the  Trinity  county  boys  raised  his  Yankee  ire,  and 
he  went  after  General  Bidwell  in  good  style.  He 
told  the  boys  of  Trinity  to  go  to  the  hotel  and  get 
what  they  wanted,  and  he  would  foot  the  bills. 
Such  was  Israel  Comstock,  one  of  God's  noblemen, 
and  a  true  specimen  of  the  early  pioneers  of   Cali- 


i 


•       POLITICS    AND    WAR.  241 

fornia.     He  died  a  few  years  since    at  Red   Bluff. 
Peace  to  liis  aslies. 

Jolin  Martin,  Oomstock's  partner,  is  still  in  the 
land  of  the  living,  one  of  the  best-known  men  in 
Northern  California.  He  is  the  last  of  the  firm  that 
commenced  business  in  Weaverville  thirty-six  }^ars 
since,  and  is  running  the  old  livery  stable  yet.  John 
Martin  was  like  his  old  partner  Comstock,  a  State 
of  Main  man,  a  Whig  in  politics  in  early  days;  but 
afterwards  became  a  leading  Republican,  and  a 
live  one  too.  When  Comstock  went  to  Red  Bluff 
to  live,  John  Martin  took  advantage  of  his  absence, 
and  turned  the  old  Democratic  headquarters  into 
Rej)ublicnn  headquarters,  and,  I  believe,  it  remains 
so  to  this  day.  Many  a  Republican  job  was  put  nj) 
in  and  around  that  old  Democratic  stump.  Jolm 
was  a  good,  jovial  fellow,  and  for  thirty  years  there 
was  not  a  marriage,  ball,  dinner,  christening,  or 
social  party  given  in  or  about  Weaverville  but  that 
if  John  Martin  was  not  at  the  head  of  it,  it  was  con- 
sidered that  there  was  something  wrong.  Remain- 
ing an  old  bachelor  all  this  time,  yet  he  got  caught 
at  last.  A  few  months  since  I  saw  the  account  of 
his  marriage  in  the  San  Erancisco  papers.  His 
bride  must  indeed  be  a  paragon  of  j)erfection  to 
catch  the  old  boy  at  last.  John,  all  your  old  Trinity 
friends  now  residing  in  Humboldt  county  wish  you 
much  joy  and  happiness,  hoping  the  old  nest  of 
Martins  will  be  well  stocked  with  3^oung  Martins, 
and  the  old  birds  be  spared  to  them  until  they  are 


242  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

full-feathered    and  ready   to  fly.     John,  old  boy, 
success  to  you  and  your  bride. 

To  come  back  to  '52.  In  the  summer  of  that 
3  ear  the  first  Masonic  lodge  Avas  started  in  Weaver- 
yille,  known  as  Trinity  Lodge,  Ko.  27,  with  a  man 
by  the  name  of  Chamberlin  as  Master,  Dr.  Winston 
as  Senior  AVarden  and  0.  L.  N.  Vaughn  as  Junior 
Warden.  The  lodge-room  was  in  a  building  at  the 
lower  end  of  the  town,  owned  by  a  man  by  the 
name  of  James  Cameron,  in  the  upper  story  of 
which  I  received  my  first  lesson  in  the  mystic  tie 
in  the  fall  of  '52,  I  being  the  second  Mason  raised 
to  the  third  degree  in  the  old  lodge,  which  has 
since  turned  out  many  a  bright  Mason.  Cameron 
sold  the  building  to  Madam  Bush,  and  she  started 
the  Polka  Saloon,  and  the  Masons  moved  into  the 
upper  story  of  the  court-house,  and  remained  there 
until  the  county  built  a  court-house. 

J.  E.  Chellis  had  the  contract  for  building  the 
court-house,  and  tlie  Masons  got  permission  from 
the  County  Court  to  build  a  third  story  on  the  build- 
ing and  make  a  lodge-room  of  it,  paying  J.  F. 
Chellis  twenty-seven  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  for 
adding  the  third  story,  or  lodge-room,  to  the  build- 
ing. When  completed  it  made  a  safe  and  com- 
fortable lodge.  The  Odd  Fellows  did  not  organize, 
I  believe,  until  along  in  the  summer  of  '53,  when 
they  started  North  Star  Lodge,  which  became  a 
flourishing  one. 

The  first  school  was   started  in  '53  as  a  private 


POLITICS    AND    WAR.  243 

enterprise,  tjinght  by  a  lady  by  the  name  of  Mrs. 
Edwards,  now  Mrs.  Belclier  of  San  Francisco.  Slie 
had  but  six  or  seven  pupils,  three  out  of  one  family — 
the  Upton's — two  boys  and  one  girl.  Mr.  Uj)ton 
was  a  lawyer  of  Weaverville,  at  one  time  a  mem]3er 
of  the  Legislature  of  California,  afterwards  Chief 
Justice  of  Oregon,  and  the  last  time  I  heard  of  him 
he  Avas  Third  Auditor  of  the  Treasury  at  Washington. 
I  believe  there  were  some  two  or  three  pupils  from 
the  family  of  Mr.  Conway,  who  was  then  work- 
ing at  mining  on  West  WeaA  er.  Such  Avas  the 
beginning  of  civilization  in  WeaA  erville. 


24-1  PIONEEK    DAYS    IN    CALIFORKIA. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

A  Trip  to  Humboldt. 

A  trip  to  Humboldt. — Indian  war  rumors. — Judge  Peters  and  the  jokers. 
— Volunteers  in  pursuit  of  Indians. — Uniontown. — Return  to 
Weaverville  with  General  Denver. 

Daring  the  summer  of  '58,  hearing  of  the  bean- 
ties  and  richness  of  Humboldt  county,  I  made  up 
my  mind  to  visit  that  section.  Buying  a  mule,  I 
started  from  Weayerville,  to  take  a  more  extended 
view  of  the  resources  of  this  county.  On  my  arriv- 
ing at  Big  Flat,  on  the  lower  Trinity,  there  Avere 
rumors  of  the  Indians  having  broken  out,  and  being 
on  the  war  path.  I  found  waiting  for  company 
Judge  Peters  and  two  others,  and  we  were  joined 
there  by  General  Denver,  all  bound  for  TJ  niontoAyn, 
now  Areata.  We  laid  by  for  a  couple  of  days  be- 
fore starting,  and,  in  the  meantime,  word  came  to 
Big  Flat  that  Johnson,  the  packer,  was  killed  by 
the  Indians  while  encamped  on  a  prairie  in  the  red- 
Avoods.  The  five  of  us  held  a  consultation  whether 
to  venture  over  the  trail  or  not.  We  came  to  the 
conclusion  to  take  the  chances  and  go  through,  and 
did  so. 


A    TRIP    TO    HUMBOLDT.  245 

Before  starting  the  boys  liad  some  fun  witli 
Judge  Peters.  Every  morning,  while  staying  there, 
the  Judge  would  dress  himself  for  the  road,  with  a 
couple  of  pistols  in  his  belt,  and  leggings  on;  lie  also 
had  on  one  spur.  There  were  one  saloon  and  a 
store  on  Big  Elat  at  that  time.  The  saloon  was 
kept  by  old  Daddy  McGann,  and  the  store  b}^  Stuart 
&  A¥iiliams~R.  G.  Stuart  and  R.  M.  Williams. 
When  Peters  would  make  his  appearance  in  the 
store.  Bob  Stuart  would  tell  him  he  had  the  s^^ur  on 
the  wrong  foot,  as  the  brush  on  the  trail  all  grew  on 
that  side,  and  the  Judge  Avould  change  it  to  the 
other  foot;  after  a  while  he  would  visit  old  Daddy 
McGaiin,  and  then  the  boys  would  reason  with  him 
and  tell  him  that  the  brush  all  grew  on  the  other 
side  of  the  trail,  and  otf  Avould  come  the  spur;  the 
Judge  complaining  all  the  time  that  people  could 
not  tell  him  the  truth.  The  Judge  was  somewhat 
of  a  militarv  man,  and  he  would  insist  on  the  five 
of  us  forming  ourselves  into  a  compan}^  for  drill, 
and,  in  case  the  Indians  attacked  us,  we  could  fight 
them  systematically;  and  then  he  Avould  drill  us, 
he  having  had  some  experience  in  Virginia  as  a 
military  officer.  The  Judge  was  a  high-toned 
Virginian,  and  claimed  to  belong  to  the  first 
families  of  Yirginia.  Well,  after  a  time  we  got 
started, the  Judge  complaining  that  we  were  the  most 
careless  d — d  set  that  he  ever  traveled  with.  All  went 
well  the  first  day  out,  or  until  we  had  crossed  the 
South  Fork  and  were  getting  into  the  Indian  conn- 


246  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

try;  then  the  Judge  began  scolding  ns  for  our  care- 
lessness, comx^laining  of  our  loud  talk,  and  said  if 
there  was  a  hostile  Indian  within  ten  miles  of  us  he 
could  hear  us  and  would  surely  attack  us,  and  that 
we  must  not  speak  at  all;  but,  if  attacked,  not  to 
lire  until  he  would  give  the  signal.  General  Denver, 
although  a  brother  Democrat,  was  not  on  good 
terms  with  the  Judge,  and  the  General  got  a  big 
disgust  on  with  the  Judge.  The  rest  of  us 
were  amused  at  his  foolishness.  Einallv,  as  we 
were  drawing  close  to  where  Johnson  Avas  killed, 
the  Judge  drew  his  pistol  from  his  belt  and  ordered 
the  rest  of  us  to  do  the  same.  This  got  the  General's 
ire  up,  and,  calling  to  me,  he  said,  "  That  damn 
fool  will  kill  some  of  us;  we  are  in  more  danger 
from  him  than  we  are  from  the  Indians;  make  him 
put  up  that  revolver."  The  Judge  had  shot  one  man 
some  time  before,  in  mistake  for  an  Indian,  on  the 
same  trail.  I  rode  up  to  the  Judge  and  requested 
him  to  j)ut  up  his  gun  until  he  should  have  more 
need  of  it.  He  became  indignant,  and  wanted  to 
know  if  I  knew  who  he  was.  I  told  him,  "I  sup- 
pose you  are  Judge  Peters."  He  said,  "  Sir,  I  am  a 
Virginia  gentleman."  "  Then,  sir,"  I  replied,  "  put 
up  your  gun,  and  act  like  a  gentleman."  He  would 
not  do  it  until  finally  the  other  four  of  us  told  him 
distinctly,  if  he  did  not  do  so,  he  would  have  to 
travel  alone,  for  we  were  going  to  take  no  chances 
of  being  shot  by  him. 

The  Judge  put  his  pistol  up  under  protest,  and 


A    TRIP    TO    HUMBOLDT.  247 

Ave  i:>roceeded  on  our  journey,  coming  in  due  time 
to  Avliere  Johnson,  the  packer,  was  killed  and 
buried.  Our  trail  led  through  redwoods  and  prairie 
country.  In  the  afternoon  we  came  to  where  the 
boys  were  camped  who  were  hunting  the  Indians. 
They  were  under  the  command  of  "  Kease  "  Wiley, 
now  of  Eureka,  then  of  Uniontown.  They  were  a 
welcome  sight  to  us,  as  we  were  completely  in  the 
dark  as  far  as  knowing  anything  about  the  hostiles 
or  the  men  in  pursuit  of  them  until  we  struck  this 
camp.  Some  distance  from  Angels  Ranch  we  found 
about  thirty  men  who  liad  yolunteered  to  go  after 
the  hostiles  in  about  an  hour's  time  after  the  news 
came  of  the  death  of  Johnson.  Johnson  was  killed, 
and  his  partner  was  shot  and  wounded  badly,  but 
he  got  oyer  it.  The  report  was  that  it  was  their 
own  fault,  for,  when  they  camped  for  the  night, 
some  Indians  and  squaws  came  into  camp,  and  the 
two  white  men  seized  a  squaw  each,  and  made  them 
stay  with  them  all  night.  In  the  middle  of  the 
night  the  Indians  made  an  attack  on  them,  killing 
Johnson  and  badh^  wounding  his  partner,  the  squaws 
helj)ing  the  Indians.  We  made  Angels  Ilanch 
that  night.  It  was  kej)t  by  a  man  by  the  name  of 
Bill  Eyans.  There  were  a  number  of  trayelers  like 
ourselyes  stopj)ing  at  Angels  Ranch  and  waiting  for 
more  company. 

We  started  next  morning,  quite  a  band  of  us,  for 
Uniontown,  and  arriyed  all  right  about  the  middle 
of  the  afternoon,  and  found  the  place  a  good  deal 


248  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

excited  over  the  Indian  troubles.  We  found  Union- 
town  quite  a  town  for  those  days;  everything  had  a 
sort  of  permanent  look  about  it.  We  put  up  at  the 
American  Hotel,  then  kept  by  "Kease"  Wiley,  a  good 
place  to  stop  at,  with  lots  of  fresh  vegetables  and 
fresh  milk  and  butter,  something  we  were  not  ac- 
customed to  getting  in  the  mines.  The  hotel  was 
on  the  northeast  corner  of  the  plaza.  Nearly  op- 
posite on  the  other  side  of  the  street,  was  Murdock's 
store,  and  oj)posite  that  was  Boles  &  Ooddington's 
store.  Boles  &  Coddington  did  quite  a  large  busi- 
ness. They  had  a  branch  store  on  Big  Bar,  on  the 
Trinity  River,  where  they  sold  a  large  amount  of 
gold-dust.  Near  the  southwest  corner  of  the  plaza 
W.  C.  Martin  and  H.  J.  Dart  kept  store.  Old  man 
Jacoby  kept  a  restaurant  on  the  south  side  of  the 
plaza,  and  a  bar  and  billiard  room,  which  was  con- 
sidered the  "  tony  "  place  of  the  town.  Old  Mr.  Nixon 
had  a  dwelling-house  on  the  northwest  corner  of  the 
plaza,  which  was  the  best  private  dwelling  I  had 
yet  seen  in  the  State.  General  Denver  made  a 
political  sj)eech  for  the  Democratic  side  of  the 
house  Avhile  we  were  at  Uniontown.  In  about 
eight  or  ten  days  the  volunteers  returned  from  the 
war,  with  not  a  scalp  to  adorn  their  shields.  It 
was  a  bloodless  war,  so  far  as  they  were  concerned. 
Here  the  General  and  myself  were  in  a  pretty  fix, 
wanting  to  get  home,  and  no  one  but  us  two  willing 
to  take  the  chances.  AVe  had  about  eighty  miles  of 
Indian   country  to  travel  througli,  and   not  even 


A    TRIP    TO    HUMBOLDT.  249 

Judge  Peters  to  acconix3any  ns  or  give  us  the  bene- 
fit of  his  experience.     We  left  Uniontown  in  the 
afternoon,  and  staid  at  Bates'  all   night.     We  had 
exi3ected  that  there  might  be  more  comj)any  at  that 
point  wanting  to  go  through;  but  we  were  disap- 
pointed, as  no  person  wanted  to  take  the  chances  of 
the  trij).    Next  morning  Denver  and  myself  started 
on  our  foolhardy  trip,  with  our  eyes  and  ears  open, 
ready  for  a  fight  at  any  moment,  and  expecting  it; 
but,  as  good  fortune  favored  us,  we  made  the  South 
Fork  the  first  night,  after  a  hard  day's  ride,  and 
stopped  all  night  with  Pole  Hill,  who  kept  a  sort  of 
a  hotel  or  stoj)ping-place  for  travelers  at  the  cross- 
ing of  tlie  South  Eork.     We  considered  the  worst 
part  of  the  journey  over,  as  there  had  been  no  dep- 
redations done  above  the  South  Pork  as  yet.     Next 
morning  we  were  again  on  the  road,  and  made  Big 
Flat  that  night,  if  I  remember  correctly,  well  tired 
out  and  very  glad  to  be  in  a  land  of  safety.     It  was, 
as  Denver  remarked,  a  A-ery  foolhardy  trip  for  two 
of  us  to  make;  but  we   made  it  all   right.     I    had 
more  courage  then  than  I  have  noAV.     The   next 
day's   ride   was   an    easy   one,  from   Big   Flat    to 
Weaverville,  where   we  arrived  all  right.     I  took 
the  trip  to   see  the   country,  and  considered  I  was 
well   repaid   for  my   trouble.      My   first   sight   of 
Areata  was  a  j)leasing  one.     I  thought  it  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  j)laces  for  a  town  I  had  seen  in  the 
State,  lying  in  and  surrounded  by  a   beautiful  and 
X3roductive  country,  with  a  forest  of  majestic  red- 


250  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

woods  for  a  background,  and  Humboldt  Bay  lying 
in  front  of  it.  All  vegetation  round  the  town  looked 
green  and  fresh — so  diiferent  from  what  I  had  been 
accustomed  to.  To  me  it  seemed  like  an  earthly 
paradise.  We  did  not  visit  Eureka  or  any  other 
portion  of  the  county.  I  made  up  my  mind  then 
that  at  some  future  day  Humboldt  county  should 
be  my  permanent  home. 


A    DESPERADO    KILLED — WATER    TROUBLES.  251 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

A  Desperado  Killed. — Water  Troubles. 

A  gambler  and  desperado  killed. — Gamblers  and  desperados  contributed 
to  California  by  the  disbanded  American  army  of  the  Mexican  war. — 
Joseph  McGee  shoots  McElroy. — A  full  jail. 

During  my  absence  from  Weaverville  there  took 
place  one  of  those  unfortunate  circumstances 
whereby  a  man  lost  his  life.  There  was  a  "  sjiort  " 
in  town — I  have  forgotten  his  name.  He  had  com- 
mitted some  offense,  and  there  was  a  warrant  out 
for  his  arrest.  The  warrant  was  given  to  Harry  J. 
Seaman,  who  was  Deputy  Sheriff  under  William  M. 
Lowe.  Harry  undertook  to  serve  the  warrant,  but 
the  fellow  would  not  be  arrested.  He  drew  his 
pistol,  and  told  the  deputy  that  neither  he  nor  any 
other  man  could  arrest  him.  The  deputy  then 
drew  his  pistol,  and  the  two  men  stood  facing  each 
other  for  some  little  time.  William  M.  Lowe,  the 
Sheriff,  was  close  by,  in  Ike  Dixon's  barber  shop, 
getting  shaved.  Hearing  the  noise  and  loud  talk, 
he  jumped  out  of  the  chair,  and,  on  going  to  the 
door,  took  in  the  situation  at  a  glance.  He  ran  to 
his  dejiuty,  and,  taking  the  j)istol  out  of  his  hand. 


252  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 

lie  told  the  fellow  to  throw  up  his  hands  and  sur- 
render, or  he  Avould  kill  him.  The  fellow  refused 
to  surrender,  and  Lowe  blazed  away,  the  bullet 
striking  him  in  the  breast  and  going  clear  through 
him  and  lodging  in  the  door-frame  of  our  store. 
The  Avhole  fracas  took  place  under  onr  awning  and 
immediately  in  front  of  our  store.  The  bullet  re- 
mained in  the  door-frame  until  the  next  winter, 
when  the  building  burned  down.  The  fellow  ex- 
pired in  a  few  minutes  after  being  hit.  The  coro- 
ner's jur}^  returned  a  verdict  of  "justifiable 
homicide — killed  while  resisting  an  oificer  in  the 
discharge  of  his  duty."  He  was  buried,  and  that 
was  the  last  said  about  him.  He  lived  the  life  of  a 
gambler  and  desperado,  and  died  by  the  hand  of 
violence,  like  hundreds  of  others  in  the  early  days 
of  California. 

Every  few  days  one  wouhl  hear  or  read  of  some 
such  tragedy,  when  the  American  army  that  con 
quered  Mexico  was  disbanded.  Gold  was  shortly 
afterwards  discovered,  and  many  of  the  gamblers 
and  desjieradoes  that  accompanied  the  army  to 
Mexico  turned  their  attention  to  California,  and 
frequently  tried  to  run  the  country  in  their  own 
way;  but  they  generally  got  snubbed.  Sometimes 
their  brawls  and  cutting  and  shooting  scrapes  would 
be  amongst  themselves,  and  then  there  was  very 
little  attention  paid  to  them.  I  remember  very 
distinctly  about  a  shooting  scrape  that  took  place 
between  McGee  and  another  sport  by  the  name  of 


A    DESPERADO    KILLED — WATER    TROUBLES-  253 

McElroy.  McGee  was  knoAvn  as  the  worst  man 
in  Weaverville,  and  generally  known  as  Hell-roaring 
McGee.  His  proper  name  was  Josej)li  McGee, 
and  he  came  from  the  State  of  Tennessee.  He  was 
elected  the  first  Assessor  of  Trinity  county,  which 
then  embraced  Humboldt  within  its  borders. 
McGee,  while  assessing,  collected  all  the  money 
he  could,  and  made  but  very  small  returns  to  the 
County  Treasury.  The  Grand  Jury  got  after  him 
and  found  several  indictments  against  him,  and  he 
left  the  county  for  the  county's  good.  The  fracas 
between  the  two  men  grew  out  of  a  dispute  over  a 
game  of  cards  one  night,  when  both  men  drew  their 
pistols  and  fired.  There  was  a  scattering  out  of 
that  house  for  a  few  numients.  McGee  got  in  liis 
work  first,  and  shot  McElroy,  and  with  his  usual 
luck  came  out  of  the  fracas  unhurt.  McElroy  was 
taken  to  his  room,  supposed  to  be  mortally  wounded, 
and  there  hovered  between  life  and  death  for  some 
days. 

At  times  he  was  out  of  his  head.  His  room  was 
in  the  American  Hotel,  upstairs,  the  stairs  being 
on  the  outside  of  the  building.  One  day,  while  in 
one  of  his  delirious  fits,  he  sprang  out  of  bed,  and, 
seizing  a  large  boAvie-knife,  made  for  the  door  and 
out  on  the  platform  at  the  head  of  the  stairs.  There 
he  stood,  with  no  clothing  on  but  his  undershirt 
and  drawers,  cursing  and  swearing  in  a  fearful 
manner  that  he  would  cut  the  heart  out  of  every 
son  of  man  in  Weaverville.     The  carpenters  were 


254  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

at  work  on  my  building,  next  to  the  American.  As 
soon  as  tliey  saw  the  plight  he  was  in — crazy,  with 
a  bowie-knife  in  his  hand — they  made  tracks  for 
some  more  sheltered  nook.  Some  men  came 
through  the  building  and  took  his  knife  from  him 
and  got  him  back  into  his  room  before  any  damage 
was  done.  He  finally  got  well,  and  I  learned  after- 
wards that  he  became  quite  a  good  man. 

In  the  summer  of  1853  the  water  troubles 
commenced  on  West  Weaver.  I  gave  a  short 
sketch  of  the  first  ditches  that  were  brought  into 
AVeaverville  in  the  sunmier  of  '51.  About  the 
same  time  there  was  a  ditch  taken  out  of  West 
Weaver,  aud  brought  into  Sidney  Hill  and  other 
diggings  in  that  vicinity.  Dr.  William  Ware  got 
control  of  the  West  Weaver  ditch  and  enlarged 
it  so  that,  for  the  most  part  of  the  dry  season, 
he  turned  all  the  water  of  West  Weaver  into 
it,  and  left  the  miners  below  the  dam  with  no 
water  to  work  their  claims.  The  old  law  of  riparian 
rights — that  is,  that  the  water  of  a  stream  cannot 
be  turned  out  of  its  natural  channel  when  required 
there — was  the  law  the  miners  claimed  under,  and 
they  contended  for  their  rights  under  that  law. 
They  remonstrated  with  Dr.  Ware,  but  to  no  pur- 
pose. The  Doctor  wouUl  not  listen  to  them. 
Finally,  after  having  several  miners'  meetings  over 
the  matter,  and  sending  committees  to  try  and  com- 
j)romise  with  him,  they  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
patience  had  ceased  to  be  a  virtue,  and  that  they 


A    DESPERADO    KILLED — WATER    TROUBLES.  255 

would  try  to  get  their  rights  in  some  more  effective 
manner.  It  was  resolved  at  one  of  their  meetings  to 
cut  the  dam  out  by  force,  and  tight  if  necessary. 
Accordingly  the  meeting  resolved  itself  into  a  com- 
mittee of  the  whole,  and  started  for  Dr.  Ware's 
dam,  armed  and  equipped  with  rifles,  x^istols,  axes, 
picks  and  shovels,  bent  on  having  Avater  to  work 
their  claims.  There  were  about  one  hundred  and 
twenty  of  them.  When  they  got  to  the  dam  they 
found  three  or  foirr  men  working  on  the  dam.  Dr. 
Ware's  men  could  offer  no  resistance  to  such  a 
croAvd,  who  commenced  on  the  dam  and  made  short 
work  of  it.  In  a  few  minutes  there  was  plenty  of 
water  running  down  the  bed  of  the  stream.  They 
then  posted  a  notice  tliat  if  the  dam  was  again  j^ut 
in  they  would  cut  it  out  again,  and  returned  to 
their  claims  and  their  work.  Dr.  Ware  started  for 
Weaverville,  three  or  four  miles  distance,  and 
entered  complaint  against  nine  of  the  principal 
leaders  of  the  West  Weaver  miners,  and  had 
them  arrested  for  maliciously  destroying  proj)erty. 
They  were  arrested  and  brought  to  Weaverville  by 
Sheriff  Lowe,  and  confined  in  the  county  jail. 
Several  of  the  business  men  of  the  town  offered  to 
bail  them  out,  but  thev  refused  all  bail.  In  the 
meantime  the  balance  of  the  miners  who  were  en- 
gaged in  cutting  out  the  dam  came  to  Weaverville 
in  a  body — over  one  hundred  of  them — telling  the 
Sheriff  that  they  were  as  guilty  as  those  who  were 
in  prison,  and  Avanted  him  to  serve  them  all  alike. 


256  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

The  Sheriff  remonstrated,  but  to  no  iivail.  He 
eitlier  had  to  let  the  others  out  or  put  them  in.  The 
Slieriff  rej)lied: 

"  If  3  on  are  so  damned  anxions  to  go  to  jail,  in 
yon  go! " 

Kow  the  jail  was  a  very  small  building,  made  of 
hewn  logs,  not  over  eighteen  or  twenty  feet  sqnare, 
and  Lowe  had  to  i)ut  about  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  men  into  it.  He  got  them  all  in,  but 
they  were  packed  as  close  as  sardines  in  a  box.  The 
jail  was  poorly  ventilated.  After  the  door  was 
closed  for  a  few  minutes  and  the  air  cnt  oif,  it  be- 
came almost  intolerable.  In  the  meantime  the 
miners  from  other  parts  came  into  town  to  the  nnm- 
ber  of  several  hundred  and  went  to  Sheriff"  Lowe, 
demanding  the  immediate  release  of  the  whole  of 
the  prisoners,  or  that  they  be  confined  in  some 
more  fit  place.  If  he  did  not  grant  their  request, 
they  told  him  they  would  i)ull  the  jail  down  in 
short  order.  Sheriff  Lowe  said  the  most  of  them 
were  in  jail  at  their  own  request,  but  he  woukl  do 
the  best  he  could  for  them.  On  consultation  with 
the  County  Judge,  they  decided  to  take  the  boys 
ont  and  confine  them  in  tlie  court-room,  which  was 
large  and  well  ventilated.  The  culprits  were  quite 
comfortable  in  their  new  prison,  and  all  went  well 
nntil  supper  time  came.  The  boys  began  to  get 
hungry,  and  demanded  the  Sheriff  to  get  them  their 
supper.  This  set  Sheriff  Lowe  to  thinking.  He 
went  to   the   restanrants  to  order  supper  for   his 


A    DESPERADO    KILLED— WATER    TROUBLES.  257 

prisoners,  but  tlie  restaurants  of  that  time  in 
Weaverville  were  not  very  extensive,  and  not  well 
sui)plied  witli  conveniences  for  so  large  a  crowd  of 
county  boarders.  Besides,  meals  at  that  lime  were 
one  dollar  each,  in  cash,  and  the  county  had  no 
cash  to  pay,  and  the  county  scrij)  was  worth  fifty 
cents  on  the  dollar.  The  restaurant  men  were  not 
anxious  to  accommodate  the  Sheriff  in  the  "  grub  " 
line  for  fiftv  cents  on  the  dollar.  Finallv  the 
Sheritf  got  mad  and  went  to  the  court-house.  Eling- 
ing  the  doors  open,  he  exclaimed : 

"  Get  out  of  here,  every  mother's  son  of  you,  and 
get  your  own  supj)ers,  or  go  without,  and  be  damned 
to  you!" 

The  boys  left  hurrahing  for  Sheriff  Lowe. 


258'  PIONEEK    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA- 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

A  Mi  NATURE  Ireland, 

Conspiracy    to    han.L^    Doctor    Williani,    Ware. — First    Water-melons.— 
Serving  on  a  grand  jury. 

After  tlie  miners  were  released  from  custody 
there  were  some  tall  threats  against  Dr.  Ware,  as 
he  was  the  means  of  sending  so  many  persons  to 
jail.  I  was  one  day  at  work  in  my  shoi?,  when  a 
friend  named  Seely  came  in.  We  talked  for  awhile 
about  the  water  troubles,  and  the  miners  being 
imprisoned,  when  he  remarked: 

"  Do  you  know  that  Dr.  Ware  is  a  Mason'? " 

"  Ko,  I  was  not  aware  of  it,"  said  I. 

He  assured  me  that  he  was.  In  a  short  time 
after  Seely  left  the  shop  a  friend  of  mine  came  in — 
a  miner  from  West  Weaver — and  one  of  the  men 
who  had  been  in  jail.     I  said  to  him: 

"  Billy,  do  you  know  that  Dr.  AYare  is  a  Mason'? " 
He  seemed  to  be  thunderstruck  with  the  in- 
formation. 

"  Do  you  know  him  to  be  such'? "  he  asked. 

I  told  him  my  informant.     His  reply  was: 

"  O  God;  can  that  be  so'?"  He  again  asked,  "Is 
it  sor' 


A   MINIATURE    IRELAND.  259 

I  told  liim  I  tlionght  it  was  the  truth.  He  stood 
for  some  ininutes  in  conteiiii^hition,  and  then  asked 
to  see  me  j)riYately.  We  then  went  to  a  private 
phice,  Avhen  he  informed  me  that  he  and  eight 
others  had  entered  into  a  conspiracy  to  hang  Dr. 
Ware  on  a  certain  night,  and  that  I  must  stop  it  or 
prerent  it.  They  had,  he  informed  me,  bound 
tliemselves  under  the  most  solemn  oath  to  take  his 
life  and  be  avenged  on* him  for  indignities  that  he 
had  caused  them.  Being  cast  into  jail  like  common 
felons  was  more  than  they  could  stand.  Smarting 
under  their  wrongs  they  entered  into  that  dreadful 
conspiracy  which,  had  it  been  carried  into  effect,  v 
each  would  have  regretted  to  the  last  da^s  of  his 
life.  I  consulted  witli  Dr.  Harris,  a  friend  that 
could  be  relied  on.  We  came  to  the  conclusion  to 
go  that  night  and  warn  Dr.  Ware  of  his  danger. 
In  the  afternoon  it  came  on  to  rain.  That  night 
we  (Dr.  Harris  aud  myself)  agreed  to  meet  at  9 
o'clock  and  go  to  the  Doctor's  cabin  and  warn  him 
of  the  impending  danger.  It  was  a  fearfully  wet 
night.  We  dared  not  take  a  lantern  with  us,  and 
the  trail  led  up  through  the  mines,  and  was  very 
difficult  to  follow,  and  dangerous  at  that.  We 
finally,  after  many  mishaj)s,  got  to  his  cabin.  The 
old  gentleman  and  two  others  were  quietly  sitting 
by  the  fire  when  we  entered.  The  Doctor  was  sur- 
prised to  see  us  at  such  an  hour  and  on  such  a  night. 
I  had  had  some  little  difficulty  with  the  Doctor, 
and  we  had  not  spoken  to  each  other  for  the  past 


260  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

A'ear.  AVe  informed  the  Doctor  that  we  had  a  little 
business  with  him,  and  wished  to  converse 
with  him  a  fcAV  minutes  in  private.  The 
Doctor  consented,  and  we  went  out  of  the  cabin  and 
under  tlie  woodshed.  We  found  him  what  he  was 
rej)resented  to  be.  We  then  informed  him  of  the 
conspiracy  to  take  his  life,  or  do  him  some  great 
bodily  injury.  The  Doctor  was  very  much  alarmed, 
and  did  not  know  what  course  to  pursue.  We  ad- 
vised him  not  to  sleep  in  his  cabin  until  he  had 
notice  from  us  that  it  was  safe  to  do  so,  but  to  sleep 
with  some  of  his  neighbor  miners  until  the  thing 
^  was  settled,  and  not  to  j)nsh  the  suits  against  the 
miners  that  were  then  pending  before  the  courts.  The 
Doctor  agreed  to  follow  our  advice  in  every 
particular,  and  did  so. 

In  the  meantime  my  West  Weaver  friend  went 
home,  and,  as  he  infornied  me  afterwards,  he  called 
on  the  other  cons^^irators  and  told  them  that  he 
would  have  nothing  more  to  do  with  the  matter, 
and  advised  the  others  to  drop  the  thing,  and  not 
commit  a  crime  that  they  would  forever  rej)ent. 
Einally  one  after  another  came  to  his  views,  and 
agreed  not  to  molest  the  Doctor  in  any  private 
manner  whatever.  They  kept  their  words.  In  the 
meantime  the  Doctor  kept  out  of  his  cabin  at  night 
for  some  time,  and  withdrew  the  suits  against  the 
miners  for  malicious  mischief.  In  a  short  time 
afterwards  the  matter  was  settled  by  compromise, 
and  things  again  Avore  a  peaceful  aspect  in  Weaver- 


A    MINIATURE    IRELAND-  2B1 

ville.  After  our  mission  to  Dr.  Ware's  was  com- 
pleted, and  the  Doctor  was  warned  of  his  danger, 
Harris  and  myself  returned  to  town.  And  a  good 
time  we  had  getting  there.  How  Ave  ever  escaped 
falling  into  some  of  the  mining  holes  or  ditches  that 
beset  our  trail,  was  a  mystery  to  both  of  us ;  but, 
aside  from  a  few  tumbles  over  piles  of  tailings  and 
a  few  bruises,  we  got  back  all  right. 

Looking  back  over  a  lapse  of  thirty-six  years,  and 
thinking  over  the  tragedy  that  was  likely  to  have 
occurred,  I  cannot  but  feel  thankful  that  Provi- 
dence interfered  and  made  me  instrumental  through 
the  agency  of  that  noble  order  which  has  been  the 
pride  of  the  good  and  great  men  of  all  nations  and 
all  ages  of  the  world,  in  saving  the  life  of  a  fellow- 
mortal.  Through  its  agencv  I  was  informed  of  a 
great  crime  that  was  about  being  committed; 
through  its  agency  I  was  able  to  counteract  and 
stoj)  the  committal  of  that  great  crime,  which 
would  have  brought  shame  and  disgrace  upon  every 
good  citizen  of  the  county,  besides  taking  the  life 
of  a  good  man  and  a  worthy  citizen.  The  men  who 
entered  into  the  conspiracy  I  never  knew  except 
the  one  referred  to,  and  he  was  a  good  man.  He 
stood  well  in  the  community,  but  was  young  and 
high-spirited.  It  galled  them  terribly  to  think  that 
they  should  be  committed  to  jjrison  for  contending 
for  what  they  thought  to  be  their  rights  as  Ameri- 
cans, hence  their  banding  together  to  do  that  rash 
act,  which,  thank   Heaven,  they    were   prevented 


262  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

from  carrying  out.  I  would  not  have  written  this, 
but  the  principal  actors  have  long  since  left  the 
county  or  died,  and  Dr.  William  Ware,  a  short 
time  since,  paid  the  great  debt  of  nature,  leaving 
behind  him  the  name  of  a  good  man,  and  one  of 
Trinity's  early  and  enterprising  citizens.  The  con- 
spiracy was  never  known  except  to  Dr.  Harris  and 
myself  and  those  engaged  in  it. 

Some  time  in  '52,  two  enterj)rising  citizens,  A. 
J.  Eelter  and  Dan  Sullivan,  took  up  and  located 
some  large  flats  near  the  mouth  of  Oregon  Gulch 
for  the  purpose  of  gardening  and  raising  fruit.  It 
proved  a  paying  venture.  The  land  was  good,  and 
everything  they  put  in  tlie  ground  did  remarkably 
well.  I  remember  the  first  watermelons  they 
brought  to  town  for  sale.  If  my  meuKuy  serves 
me  right,  they  sent  over  two  j^t^ck  mules  loaded 
with  them.  Their  place  was  about  seven  miles 
from  town.  Melons  were  things  we  old  inhabitants 
never  expected  to  regale  ourselves  with;  but,  in  the 
course  of  time,  they  came  with  other  luxuries  the 
oldest  inhabitant  never  dreamed  of.  AVell,  we  had 
to  have  some  of  the  melons.  Asking  the  price, 
and  being  informed  they  were  so  much  per  pound, 
I  picked  out  one  and  weighed  it.  It  came  to  the 
modest  sum  of  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents,  and 
cheap  at  that.  They  went  off  like  hot  cakes,  and 
could  not  begin  to  supply  the  demand.  In  a  short 
time  these  gentlemen  had  a  fine  strawberry  patch 
in  full  operation,  and    sucli   strawberries   as   they 


A    MINIATURE    IRELAND.  263 

raised  were  hard  to  beat.  In  due  course  of  time 
Mrs.  Eelter — Jack  Eelter's  wife,  a  very  estimable 
lady — made  her  appearance  from  the  State  of  Ohio. 
Eelter  bought  out  Sullivan,  and  he  returned  to 
Boston  where  he  belonged.  At  this  time  they  were 
running  a  pack-train  to  Shasta,  keeping  store,  run- 
ning the  garden  and  hotel,  and  doing  quite  a  busi- 
ness. Every  summer,  for  several  years,  they  had  a 
grand  ball  or  strawberry  party,  when  the  beauty 
and  chivalry  of  Trinity  county  would  assemble 
there  to  eat  strawberries,  and  at  night  to  trip  the 
light  fantastic  toe.  Many  a  pleasant  party  assem- 
bled on  Oregon  Gulch  at  the  home  of  Jack  Eelter 
in  the  early  days  of  California.  Jack  and  his  good 
wife  are  now  residents  of  San  Bernardino  City. 

A  few  words  concerning  Oregon  Gulch.  Gold 
was  found  in  it  in  the  summer  of  '50  by  some 
Oregonians,  but  there  was  very  little  work  done 
there  that  season.  When  I  passed  uj)  it  in  Eebru- 
ar}',  '51,  there  were  no  j)ersons  working  on  it.  We 
prosj)ected  on  the  gulch,  and  found  very  good  pros- 
pects, aiul  intended  to  come  back,  if  we  found  no 
better  in  Weaverville.  That  summer,  or  the  sum- 
mer of  '51,  there  was  quite  a  rush  to  the  northern 
mines,  and  Oregon  Gulch  got  its  share.  Quite  a 
number  of  the  sons  of  the  Emerald  Isle  located  on  the 
gulch,  and  it  became  a  miniature  Ireland.  There 
were  two  parties  of  them  (they  were  always  at  war), 
the  Daceys  and  tlie  Eoy  crowd.  Nearly  every 
Grand  Jurv  that  met  had  more  or   less  cases   from 


264  PIONEEK    DAYS   IN    CALIFOKNIA. 

Oregon  Grulch.  If  the  Dacey  crowd  had  no  griev- 
ance to  redress,  then  the  Eoy  crowd  had.  In  their 
way  they  made  work  for  the  Grand  Juries  every 
session. 

I  remember  in  the  spring  of  '55  being  drawn  on 
the  Grand  Jury.  Judge  R.  T.  Miller  was  County 
Judge  at  that  time,  and  he  appointed  Major  Cox 
foreman  of  the  jury.  The  usual  batch  of  com- 
plaints came  up  from  Oregon  Gulch.  This  time  it 
was  the  Daceys  who  were  the  aggressors,  and  Tom 
Poy  laid  his  complaint  before  the  Grand  Jury. 
When  the  business  came  up  in  its  usual  form,  Tom 
apj)eared  before  the  Grand  Jury,  to  give  his  version 
of  the  affair.  He  was  sworn  to  tell  what  he  knew 
about  it. 

"  May  it  plase  your  honors,"  was  Tom's  reply, 
"just look  at  me  face!  That's  ividence  anufffor 
you  gintlemin — that  ought  to  be  ividence  to  con- 
vict the  murdering  villians  of  murder,  and  so  it 
ought." 

Tom's  face  presented  rather  a  dilapidated  ap- 
pearance. His  beauty  was  certainly  spoiled  for  a 
while.  It  was  the  worst  looking  face  that  I  had 
seen  in  many  a  day.  But  Tom  couldn't  give  a  ver}^ 
intelligent  account  of  the  aifair.  He  was  well  "  set 
up,"  at  the  time  the  fight  occurred,  with  Oregon- 
Gulch  "  tanglefoot."  After  Tom  got  through  with 
his  evidence  and  had  left  the  jury-room,  some  one 
of  the  Grand  Jury  made  a  motion  that  it  be  left  to 
Archy  Mitchell  and  myself.     As  the  plaintiff  or 


A    MINIATURE    IRELAND-  265 

eomplaining  witness  was  an  Irisliman,  and  the  de- 
fendants were  Iiislinien,  and  we  two — Arcliy  and 
myself — were  Irishmen,  it  was  nothing  bnt  right  and 
j)roj)er  that  we  Irishmen  shoukl  settle  the  matter 
in  onr  own  way.  We  objected  to  the  arrangement, 
but  it  was  "  no  go."  We  finally  recommended  that, 
as  it  was  a  drmiken  row,  and  no  one  knew  who  was 
to  blame,  it  would  be  better  to  drop  the  matter, 
as  no  person  was  seriousl}'  hurt.  Tom  was  very 
much  disappointed,  gave  the  Grand  Jury  a  piece  of 
his  mind,  and  the  matter  ended  at  that. 


266  PIONEER    DAYS    IN   CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXIX.. 

A  Chinese  War. 

Another  conflagration.— A  battle  between   two   bands  of  Chinamen. — 
Furnishing  the  implements  of  war. — Many  killed. 

Again  in  tlic  winter  of  '53  the  fire  fiend  gave  us 
a  loud  call.  This  time  it  broke  out  at  the  St. 
Charles  Hotel,  kept  b}^  old  man  Hovey,  and  burned 
up  a  large  portion  of  the  town.  Weaverville  has 
sutfered  more  from  fires,  I  believe,  than  any  mining 
town  in  the  State.  Eive  times  it  had  been  laid  in 
in  ashes,  and  each  time  by  the  push  and  energy  of 
her  citizens  the  town  was  again  rebuilt.  Einally 
her  citizens  commenced  building  fire-j)roof  brick  in 
several  parts  of  the  town,  which  put  a  stop  to  the 
frequent  fires  to  which  we  had  been  subject. 

In  the  summer  of  '54  the  burg  was  thrown  out 
of  its  usually  quiet  and  peaceful  ways  by  two  bands 
of  hostile  Chinamen,  the  Hongkongs  and  Cantons. 
It  appeared  that,  for  several  months  j^revious,  there 
had  been  trouble  between  the  factions.  One  or  the 
other  of  the  parties  would  occasionally  get  some  of 
their  men  hurt  by  the  opposite  faction,  and  then 
there  would  be  war  on  a  miniature  scale.     ^Finally 


A    CHINESE    WAR.  ^67 

they  killed  one  of  the  Cantons'  leading  men,  and 
patience  ceased  to  be  a  virtne  with  them.  They 
challenged  the  Hongkongs  for  a  regnlar  pitched 
battle,  to  come  off  abont  a  month  ahead.  The 
Hongkongs  accepted  the  challenge  tlins  thrown  at 
them,  and  commenced  preparing  for  action.  The 
first  I  knew  of  the  impending  war  came  from  one 
of  the  China  bosses,  who  came  into  the  shop  with  a 
pattern  similar  to  the  iron  of  a  pike-pole,  and 
wanted  to  know  how  mnch  I  would  charge  to  make 
one  hundred  like  the  pattern,  oiit  of  steel.  I  told 
him  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  each.  He  told  me  to 
go  ahead.  About  an  hour  later  the  boss  of  the 
Hongkongs  came  into  the  shop  and  asked : 

"  How  muche  one  hundledl  " 

I  told  him  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents.  He  told 
me  if  I  would  quit  making  them  for  the  Cantons 
he  would  give  me  two  hundred  for  his  company.  I 
said : 

"  All  right,  John." 

In  a  short  time  afterwards  the  boss  of  the  Can- 
tons made  his  apj)earance,  and  told  me,  if  I  would 
quit  the  Hongkongs'  work,  he  would  give  me  two 
dollars  and  a  half,  and  I  could  make  him  three 
hundred  more.     I  said: 

"  All  right,  John." 

They  were  a  little  different  from  the  first  lot,  but 
just  as  easily  made.  This  was  crowding  things  in 
my  line  pretty  heavily,  besides  my  regular  work, 
which   Avas  driving   me  considerable.      For   three 


268  PIONEEK    DAYS    IN    CALIFOKNTA. 

weeks  I  ran  the  slioj)  day  and  night,  making  China 
instruments  of  war.  Some  of  the  queerest  things  I 
made  for  them  that  I  hare  ever  seen  or  read  of^ 
great  sjyears  with  three  prongs,  heavy  enough  for 
old  Goliah  to  have  wielded  in  his  day;  others  were 
made  something  like  brush  scythes.  And  they 
would  take  them  awa}'  from  the  shop  before  they 
were  cold,  and  pay  up  for  them.  They  had  nearly 
ever}^  blacksmith  shop  in  the  county  engaged  in 
like  manner.  In*  the  meantime  other  Oliinamen 
were  in  the  woods  cutting  poles  fourteen  or  fifteen 
feet  long,  bringing  them  to  town,  and  dressing  them 
up  for  handles  for  the  instruments  we  were  makingc 
Things  were  going  on  finely.  After  they  got  one 
or  two  hundred  armed  men  on  each  side  they  would 
frequently  drill  in  the  streets.  One  party  had  the 
upper  end  of  town,  on  Court  street,  and  the  other 
party  had  the  lower  end.  So  there  was  very  little 
danger  of  them  coming  together  in  town,  and  the 
whites  gave  them  to  understand  that  if  they  got  to 
fighting  in  the  streets  and  injured  a  white  man, 
the  whites  would  kill  every  mother's  son  of  them  on 
both  sides.  Einally  both  armies  got  armed  and 
drilled,  and  the  day  was  set  for  the  fight. 

In  the  meantime  William  M.  Lowe,  the  Sheriff 
of  the  county,  came  to  me  and  forbade  my  making 
any  more  war  instruments  for  the  belligerents,  or 
delivering  any  that  I  had  on  hand,  knowing  that 
they  were  going  to  disturb  the  peace  with  them. 
I   tried   to  reason   with  him,  but   it  was  "  no  go." 


A    CHINESE    WAR.  269 

Einally   I  inquired  of  liim  what  the  penalty  was. 

"  A  fine  of  five  hundred  doUars!" 

"  Is  that  ain  "  I  said,  "  and  when  will  you  enforce 
it]" 

"  When  the  Grand  Jury  meets,"  said  he,  "  I  will 
have  you  indicted  sure." 

"  All  right,  Mr.  Lowe,"  I  replied,  "  I  can  afford 
to  pay  five  hundred  dollars,  and  then  come  out 
winner  in  the  game."  I  went  on  making  war  in- 
struments. That  was  the  last  I  heard  of  it.  I  was 
not  indicted. 

The  day  before  the  fight  the  Cantons  made  a 
grand  demonstration  through  Main  street.  They 
turned  out  about  two  liundred  and  fifty  or  three 
hundred  strong,  with  all  tlie  grand  panoply  of  war. 
Their  arms  consisted  of  the  spikes,  dart-shaped  im- 
X^lements  and  spears,  all  fastened  on  to  ]3oles  four- 
teen or  sixteen  feet  long.  At  the  head  of  the  pole 
where  the  steel  entered  was  tied  red-silk  ribbons. 
AYith  their  swallow-tailed  dragon  banner  floating 
to  the  breeze,  they  made  a  warlike  appearance, 
the  marcliing  and  counter-marching  up  and  doAvn 
the  streets  striking  terror  into  the  breasts  of  their 
enemies. 

The  day  appointed  for  the  battle  arrived,  and  the 
town  was  full  of  hostile  Chinamen — a  complete 
gathering  of  the  clans.  The  military  spirit  ran 
high  amongst  the  followers  of  Confucius.  Miners 
from  all  j)arts  of  the  county  came  to  see  the  fun. 
Two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  was  the  time  set  for 


270  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  grand  affair  to  come  off.  The  place  chosen  was 
some  large  flats  east  of  the  town  and  near  East 
Weaver.  At  the  appointed  time  the  hostile  armies 
were  facing  each  other  in  battle  array — the  Hong- 
kongs  being  divided  into  two  grand  divisions  per- 
haps one  hundred  yards  apart,  while  the  Cantons, 
or  small  party,  were  in  a  compact  body,  waiting  for 
the  onslaught. 

The  battle-ground  was  full  of  people.  Sheriff 
Lowe  Avas  on  the  ground  trying  to  summon  a  posse, 
or  an  army  of  his  own,  to  stop  the  fight.  He  would 
go  uj)  to  a  man,  take  his  name,  and  summon  liim  to 
his  aid.     The  reply  would  be: 

"Go  to  li — 1,  Lowe — we  came  here  to  see  the 
tight,  and  we  are  going  to  see  it." 

The  understanding  between  the  whites  and 
Chinamen  was  that  there  should  be  no  firearms 
used  in  the  fight — that  the  fighting  was  to  be  done 
with  their  own  implements  of  war.  Einally,  when 
the  Sheriff  found  he  could  not  stop  the  fight,  he  left 
the  ground  in  perfect  disgust,  cursing  the  boys  for 
being  such  d — d  poor  American  citizens,  and 
swearing  he  would  have  every  mother's  son  of  them 
indicted  by  the  Grand  Jury  at  its  next  session. 
Tlie  boys  came  to  see  the  fight,  and  they  were  going 
to  see  it.     The  Grand  Jury  had  no  terrors  for  them. 

It  was  long  after  2  o'clock,  and  no  fight  yet.  The 
hostile  armies  stood  facing  each  other,  hallooing 
all  sorts  of  slang  at  each  other  in  tlieir  own  lan- 
guage.    Pinally  it  began  to  be   rumored  that  there 


A    CHINESE    WAR.  271 

Avas  not  going  to  be  a  fight — that  they  were  fooling 
the  boys  who  had  come  so  far  to  see  it.  That 
was  more  than  the  honest  miners  could  stand,  and 
they  were  not  going  to  stand  it  either.  Einally, 
after  waiting  until  patience  was  exhausted,  they 
started  to  drive  the  two  armies  together  and  make 
them  fight,  whether  they  wanted  to  or  not.  The 
ground  where  the  battle  was  to  take  place  was  full 
of  washed  gravel — rocks  of  all  sizes  were  abundant. 
Eorty  or  fifty  of  the  boys  got  behind  each  army  and 
commenced  rocking  and  driving  them  together.  In 
the  meantime  another  party  of  whites  got  between 
the  two  divisions  of  the  Hongkongs  and  would  not 
let  one  division  take  any  part  in  the  fight.  This  left 
the  big  party  really  the  smallest.  When  the  Cantons 
saw  the  turn  things  had  taken  in  their  favor,  they 
charged  across  the  gulch,  or  flats,  up  the  bank  and 
into  the  ranks  of  the  Hongkongs.  The  Hongkongs 
stood  to  their  work  like  men.  As  soon  as  they 
crossed  pikes  with  each  other,  then  commenced  the 
popping  of  j)istols.  I  was  standing  with  a  number 
of  others  on  a  large  log,  on  the  brow  of  the  gulch, 
a  short  distance  from  the  scene  of  the  fight.  When 
the  pistols  commenced  popping  I  turned  round  to 
jump  off  the  log  so  as  to  get  behind  it.  A  Swede 
was  standing  on  the  same  log  with  a  six-shooter  in 
his  hand,  shooting  into  the  combatants  indiscrimi- 
nately, just  for  the  fun  of  it.  Before  I  left  the  log 
he  fell  over  with  a  bullet  through  his  brain.  He 
never  knew  what  hurt  him.     As   soon   as  he  fell. 


272  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

there  was  a  scampering — behind  the  log  was  con- 
sidered a  much  safer  phice  than  on  top  of  it.  The 
fellow  died  immediately.  He  no  doubt  was  shot 
by  a  white  man  close  by.  In  after  years  I  was  told 
the  fellow's  name  who  fired  the  fatal  shot.  But  the 
general  verdict  was  that  it  served  him  right. 

The  charge  across  the  gulch  was  made  in  fine 
style.  The  Hongkongs  Avithstood  the  onslaught 
until  they  saw  their  supports  cut  off  by  the  whites. 
They  then  broke  and  ran.  Of  course  there  were 
several  of  them  wounded  and  lying  on  the  field. 
As  the  enemy  passed  them  by  each  warrior  of  the 
Cantons  would  stop  and  plunge  his  pike  or  dart 
into  liis  unfortunate  foeman  who  liad  fallen.  No 
mercy  there.  Some  of  the  dead  had  at  least  twenty 
wounds  in  them.  There  were  several  killed  on 
each  side,  but  the  Hongkongs  were  the  heaviest 
losers.  The  whites  acted  unfairly  in  the  matter — 
they  took  the  side  of  a  small  crowd,  and  j)revented 
one-half  of  the  Hongkongs  taking  part  in  the  fight, 
which  discouraged  the  rest  of  them.  The  Cantons 
had  pistols  concealed,  and,  when  in  close  quarters, 
commenced  using  them  with  deadly  effect.  The 
Hongkongs  made  a  masterly  retreat,  showing  some 
tall  running.  When  the  pistols  came  into  play  the 
whites  commenced  to  move  for  trees  and  logs  that 
had  "  behinds  "  to  them,  but  there  was  no  person 
hurt  but  the  Swede,  who  was  killed  close  to  where 
I  was  standing. 

After  the  fight  tlie  victorious   Cantons  marched 


A    CHINESE    WAR.  273 

into  town  with  all  the  pride  and  glory  of  Napo- 
leon's old  guard  Avhen  making  their  last  charge  at 
Waterloo.  At  their  headquarters  on  Court  street 
they  had  one  grand  jubilee,  and  all  were  invited  to 
partake  of  their  hospitality \  Brandy  and  liquors 
of  all  kinds  flowed  free — the  town  was  painted  red, 
and  it  was  a  grand  day  for  the  free-whisky  "bum." 
The  Avounded  were  taken  to  headquarters  and 
properly  cared  for,  the  dead  to  be  buried  on  the 
morrow  with  all  the  pomp  that  a  victorious  army 
could  bestoAV  on  their  fallen  heroes. 

The  army  of  the  Hongkongs  Avas  broken  and  dis- 
persed. They  returned  to  their  headquarters  after 
dark,  Avith  their  banners  trailing  in  the  dust,  leaA- 
ing  many  of  their  fallen  braA  es  on  the  field  of 
battle,  cold  in  death.  Quite  a  number  of  the  Hong- 
kongs were  buried  about  a  mile  and  a  half  beloAv 
the  toAvn. 

Thus  ended  the  China  Avar  for  a  time  in  Trinity 
county. 


274  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

A  Severe  Winter.— Making  Homes. 

Plenty  of  provisions. — A  prosperous  year. — Advancement  in  civili?a- 
tion. — Hovey's  green  peas  and  silver  forks. — Slicing  a  man's  coat-taiL 
— Additions  to  Weaverville  society.  —  The  benign  influence  of 
women  and  children. 

After  the  Chinese  fight  and  the  boys  had  had 
their  fun  and  returned  to  their  claims,  tilings  about 
town  settled  down  to  e very-day  quiet.  The  winter 
had  come,  and  a  a  ery  hard  one  it  was.  Snow  lay 
between  three  and  four  feet  deep  all  over  Weaver- 
ville basin,  and  there  was  very  little  Avork  done  in 
the  mines.  Unlike  the  winter  of  1852-3,  we  had 
plenty  of  provisions  in  the  valley  to  last  during  the 
snow  blockade.  The  peoj)le  had  not  yet  forgotten 
their  experience  of  1852-3,  when  barley  and  coffee 
mills  were  in  demand.  Every  miner  and  company- 
laid  in  a  good  stock  of  flour,  beans,  sugar  and  bacon, 
so  as  not  again  to  be  j)laced  on  barley  rations.  The 
only  commodity  of  which  there  was  a  scarcity  was 
firewood.  The  town  had  now  become  quite  large, 
and  wood  had  to  be  hauled  a  considerable  distance; 
and  hauling  through  three  or  four  feet  of  snow  was 


A    SEVERE    WINTER— MAKING    HOMES-  275 

ii  difficult  task.  Wood  went  up  to  twenty  dollars 
per  cord. 

As  soon  as  the  spring  came  and  the  snow  began 
to  melt,  the  miners  were  in  their  glory.  The  sum- 
mer of  1855  was  a  pros^^erous  one  for  old  Trinity. 
IS^otliing  startling  took  place  during  the  jear.  The 
county  was  dropping  its  fast,  de^  il-may-care  man- 
ner of  early  days,  and  assuming  a  more  civilized 
state.  Many  of  the  miners  had  changed  their  opin- 
ions of  California,  and  began  to  think  it  a  pretty 
good  place  in  wliich  to  make  a  home,  and  many  of 
them  went  back  East  for  their  wives  and  families  or 
sweethearts,  Avith  the  intention  of  making  tlieir 
homes  here.  Thus  tlie  State  was  gaining  a  perma- 
nent population.  The  manner  of  living  was  fast 
changing.  In  early  days  the  everlasting  "slap- 
jack "  and  rancid  bacon,  or  saleratus  biscuit  and 
coffee  sweetened  with  Chinese  sugar,  formed  the 
daily  food  of  the  miner.  His  dining  outtit  con- 
isisted  of  a  tin  plate,  a  sheath-knife,  a  fork  whittled 
out  of  a  stick,  and  the  everlasting  tin  cup  for  his 
coffee. 

Things  at  this  time  had  taken  a  decided  turn  for 
the  better.  ]Men  had  learned  that  California  could 
produce  something  besides  hides  and  tallow  and 
gold.  The  fcAV  experiments  made  at  raising  vege- 
tables proved  a  decided  success.  I  well  remember 
the  first  green  peas  that  came  to  market;  they  were 
raised  on  Oregon  Gulch,  and  were  Avorth  fifty  cents 
per  j)ound.     Old  man  Hovey  was  then  keeping  the 


276  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

St.  Charles  Hotel.  The  old  iiitin  was  a  Massachusetts 
Yankee,  and  x>i'ided  himself  on  keepmg  the  best 
house  in  town,  and  on  having  everything  the 
market  afforded.  Hovey  bought  all  the  green  peas 
that  Eelter  had  to  sell  that  day,  and  then  put  up 
posters  announcing  that  on  Sunday  the  St.  Charles 
Hotel  would  have  green  peas  for  dinner,  with  silver 
forks  to  eat  them  with.  Previous  to  this  the  best 
hotels  in  Weaverville  had  but  two-pronged  forks, 
and  iron  at  that.  The  old  man  Hovey  was  a  little 
cranky,  or  at  least  Avas  so  considered  by  many  of 
the  boys.  They  often  played  some  trick  upon  him. 
The  miners  generally  came  to  town  on  Sunday  to 
get  what  they  called  a  "square"  dinner.  A  large 
crowd  came  from  West  Weaver  Creek  on  that 
Sunday  to  partake  of  Hovey's  green  peas  with  silver 
forks.  Now,  the  West  Weaver  miners  at  that  time 
were  made  up  of  the  hardest  class  of  "  scalawags " 
in  the  State.  As  a  joke  on  Hovey  they  formed  a 
plan  to  steal  his  green  peas,  and  they  accomplished 
it. 

The  old  landlord  had  his  peas  all  shelled  in  the 
kitchen  on  Saturday  niglit  and  made  ready  for  the 
pot  for  Sunday's  dinner.  A  considerable  number 
of  the  West  Weaver  jokers  were  in  town  Saturday 
night,  and  next  morning  Hovey's  green  peas  had 
taken  wings  and  disappeared.  It  Avas  a  disappoint- 
ment to  HoA  ey,  but  the  old  man  in  Yankeeland 
had  been  a  deacon  of  the  Baptist  Church,  and  now 
he  did  not  swear;  but  he  must  haA  e  thought  bad 


A    SEVERE    WINTER — MAKING    HOMES.  277 

words.  Well,  the  boys  tliought  they  Avonld  give 
old  man  Hovey  and  the  St.  Charles  Hotel  a  "bene- 
fit "  anj^vay,  notwithstanding  the  j)eas  were  stolen. 
Bnt,  alas  !  the  silver  forks  followed  the  green  peas. 
Every  fellow  had  j)ocketed  one  of  Hovey's  silver 
forks,  and  got  away  with  it.  This  was  the  last 
stroke  for  Hovey;  he  got  disgusted  with  California 
and  left  the  State.  He  sold  ont  to  David  Hinds,  a 
crusty  old  fellow  from  Kew  Jersey,  who  could  hold 
his  own  with  the  boys. 

He  improved  the  St.  Charles  Hotel  so  far  as  to 
get  a  dozen  arm-chairs  for  the  bar-room.  One  day 
a  miner  came  in  and  placed  himself  in  one  of  these 
chairs,  pulled  out  his  knife,  and  commenced  whit- 
tling one  of  the  arms.  Dave  espied  what  he  was 
doing.  He  hauled  uj)  a  chair  alongside  of  the  fel- 
low, pulled  out  his  knife,  and  commenced  making 
ribbons  of  the  fellow's  coat-tail.  There  were  several 
men  in  the  bar-room  at  the  time,  and,  preceiving 
what  was  going  on,  they  began  to  laugh.  The  fel- 
low cutting  the  chair  turned  his  head  to  see  what 
the  men  were  laughing  at,  and  then,  perceiving 
Dave  cutting  his  coat-tail,  jumped  up  and  asked: 
"  What  the  d — 1  are  you  cutting  my  coat  for  ^ " 
Dave  coolly  remarked:  "  What  the  d — 1  are  you 
cutting  my  chair  fori  Have  I  not  as  good  a  right 
to  cut  your  coat  as  you  have  to  cut  my  chair  *? "  The 
fellow  studied  a  moment,  and  replied:  "You  have." 
He  then  said:  "  Gentlemen,  it  is  my  treat."  Dave 
made  a  further  addition  to  the  St.  Charles  by  bring- 


t 
278  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

ing  his  family.  One  member  of  tlie  family,  a  clangli- 
ter  of  sixteen  or  seventeen,  was  quite  an  addition 
not  only  to  tlie  St.  Charles  Hotel,  but  also  to 
Weayeryille  society. 

We  were  getting  on  famously.  The  toAvn  could 
now  boast  of  three  marriageable  young  ladies,  viz.: 
IMiss  Hinds,  ^Miss  Connor,  and  Miss  Morgan,  a 
step-daughter  of  Diek  Clifford.  Miss  Hinds  died 
unmarried.  Miss  Connor  married  Charles  Sloan, 
was  for  a  long  time  a  resident  of  Hydesville  in  this 
county,  and  now  lives  in  the  hills  not  far  from 
Blocksburg.  Miss  Morgan  married  Henry  Hacker, 
one  of  Weaverville's  early  merchants.  She  died 
several  years  since,  leaving  quite  a  family  of  chil- 
dren, now  men  and  women  grown.  The  school 
children  had  become  quite  numerous,  and  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  the  State  had  become  well  established. 
Kobert  Desty,  now  of  San  Prancisco,  tlie  compiler 
of  our  Criminal  Code,  was  one  of  the  first  teachers 
in  the  public  schools  of  Weaverville. 

How  great  and  beneficent  is  the  influence  of 
women  and  cliildren  upon  men!  Without  the  in- 
fluence of  virtuous  women,  men  would  soon  relapse 
into  barbarism,  and  become  as  wild  as  the  savages 
that  roam  over  the  plains.  We  have  seen  this  illus- 
trated in  the  early  days  of  California.  When  virtu- 
ous women  were  very  few  in  the  State, men  who  had 
been  taught  better  things  at  their  mothers'  knees, 
became  reckless  and  indulged  in  all  manner  of  vice 
and  wickedness.     Many  of  the  men  who   avoided 


A    SEVERE    WINTER — MAKING    HOMES.  279 

the  gambling-table  and  tlie  wine-cnx?,  allowed 
tliemselves  to  become  nnsliaven  and  unkempt  until 
their  own  mothers  would  not  have  known  them. 
But,  as  soon  as  true  women  began  to  arrive 
in  the  mines  and  settlements  of  California,  what  a 
change!  Men  forsook  the  gambling-table  and  the 
wine-cuj);  the  razor  and  the  bathtub  came  into 
frequent  use;  white  shirts,  and  what  the  boys  called 
"  store  clothes,"  were  more  in  demand;  and  an 
evening  spent  in  the  company  of  ladies  was  much 
prized.  Yet,  with  all  their  seeming  roughness,  in 
the  presence  of  women  and  children,  nine-tenths  of 
them  were  perfect  gentlemen.  Many  of  them 
were  men  of  education  and  refinement.  For  three 
or  four  years  the  great  majority  of  the  women  of 
California,  if  you  could  call  them  women,  were  of 
the  basest  kind.  They  were  imj)ortations  of  the 
very  worst  elements  of  French,  Spanish,  Mexican, 
Chileans,  Australian  and  American  women,  whose 
society-  was  more  demoralizing  than  that  of  the 
fallen  angels  or  the  imps  of  "Dante's  Inferno."  But, 
when  the  true  Avomen  from  every  land  made  their 
aj)pearance,  bringing  with  them  children,  the 
school,  the  church  and  their  own  refined  and  virtu- 
ous society,  then  soon  society  became  changed  for 
the  better.  Civil  law  took  the  place  of  lynch  law, 
and  the  free  use  of  the  knife  and  j)istol  became  less 
frequent. 

But,  to  come  back  to  my  subject:  David  Hinds 
kei)t  the  St.  Charles  Hotel  until  it  burned  down; 


280  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

and  lie  did  not  rebuild  the  hotel  a^ain.  He  was 
elected  Foreign  Miners'  License  Collector,  beating 
Henry  Jones,  a  brother  of  John  P.  Jones,  before 
the  Republican  Convention  of  '63.  After  serving 
out  his  term  he  moved  to  Santa  Cruz,  Avhere  he  be- 
came one  of  Santa  Cruz's  leading  citizens,  and  Avas 
twice  elected  Mayor  of  that  city.  One  of  his  sous, 
Eirm  Hinds,  Avas  Auditor,  I  belicA  e,  of  Oakland, 
for  a  number  of  years.  The  old  man  died  at  Santa 
Cruz  but  a  short  time  since. 


THE    BUILDING    OF    HIGHWAYS.  281 


CHAPTER  XXXL 

The  Building  of  Highways, 

Taking  up  agricultural  lands. — Building  highways. — William  S.  Lowdeft 
and  his  public-spirited  enterprises. — The  Weaverville  and  Shasta 
wagon  road,  stages  and  buggies. 

The  year  of  1856  tlie  peoples'  attention  was  prin- 
cipally taken  up  with  politics.  As  I  have  given  a 
short  sketch  of  the  Presidential  election  in  "  Pioneer 
Politics,"  I  Avill  omit  it  here. 

Trinity  county  has  some  very  good  agricultural 
lands  situated  on  her  streams  and  in  her  valleys. 
The  early  settlers,  when  they  found  that  the  soil 
re]3aid  the  husbandman  bountifully  for  his  labor, 
took  up  nearly  every  acre  tit  for  agricultural  pur- 
j)Oses,  and  more  especially  where  water  could  be 
had  for  irrigation.  All  along  the  valley  of  the 
Trinity  there  were  very  valuable  ranches  located,  and 
in  Hay  Fork  Valley,  and  in  the  valley  of  Stewart's 
Fork.  Those  ranches  haA^e  supplied  the  residents 
of  Trinity  county  with  flour,  vegetables,  hay,  and 
the  productions  of  the  dairy  since  1854,  and  likewise 
with  fruit  of  the  very  best  quality.  I  do  not  think 
that  the  fruit  of  Trinity  county  can  be  equalled  in 


282  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  State,  and  there  are  thousands  of  acres  of  fruit- 
producing  land  within  her  borders.  When  the 
mines  are  worked  out  her  fruit  will  make  the 
county  as  prosperous  as  it  was  in  the  flush  days  of 
her  mines. 

Up  to  1857  there  was  no  communication  with  the 
outside  world  but  by  pack-train.  All  the  products 
of  the  ranches  had  to  be  packed  to  Weaverville  on 
mules  at  a  large  expense,  inasmuch  as  no  wagon- 
roads  of  any  considerable  length  led  from  the  town. 
One  of  those  early  pi(meers  by  the  name  of  William 
S.  Lowden  is  the  man  to  whom  Trinity  county  and 
Kortliern  California  is  more  indebted  than  to  any 

I. 

other  for  his  x^ublic  s]3irit  and  enterprise.  To  him 
belongs  the  credit  of  agitating  and  carrying  out  the 
system  of  the  j^ublic  roads  in  Northern  California. 
Tlie  Lowden  boys,  as  the}^  were  called,  were  among 
the  early  packers  of  Korthern  California.  They  ran 
a  large  pack-train  from  Shasta  and  Red  Bluifs  to 
all  parts  of  the  northern  mines.  They  located  one  of 
the  best  ranches  on  Trinity  River,  I  believe  as  early 
as  1851,  and  called  it  the  Grass  Valley  Ranch.  The 
place  afterward  became  better  known  as  the 
"  Lowden  Ranch."  It  was  situated  about  nine 
miles  from  Weaverville,  and  became  one  of  the 
best  paying  properties  in  the  county.  There  were 
three  brothers  of  them,  William,  Matt  and  Frank, 
all  of  them  men  of  sterling  worth.  After  a  time 
their  father,  mother  and  sister  came  from  Illinois 
to  make  their  home  in  California,  and  at  the  Low- 


THE    BUILDING    OF    HIOmVAYS.  283 


den  Kanch.  Miss  Lowden  mtirried  tlie  Hon.  James 
W.  Tinnin,  then  a  merchant  doing  bnsiness  at 
Weaverville,  and  lately  Snrveyor  of  the  Port  of 
San  Erancisco,  during  President  Cleveland's  ad- 
ministration. William  bought  Matt's  and  Frank's 
interests  in  the  ranch,  and  they  went  oif  to  the 
northern  mines. 

William  S.  Lowden  built  one  of  the  first  bridges 
on  Trinity  Eiver  at  his  place.  The  i^rodncts  of 
the  place,  except  what  was  used  on  the  ranch,  had 
to  be  packed  on  mules  to  Weaverville  to  find  a 
market.  Lowden's  Ranch  became  one  of  the  popu- 
lar places  between  Weaverville  and  Shasta.  He 
had  for  several  years  been  talking  about  the  build- 
ing of  a  wagon-road  from  Weaverville  to  Shasta. 
Many  of  us  ridiculed  the  idea  of  building  a  wagon- 
road  over  Trinity  and  Brown's  Mountain,  that  could 
be  of  any  use  for  the  transportation  of  heavy  goods. 
In  1857  he  formed  what  was  called  the  Weaverville 
and  Shasta  Wagon-road  Company.  I  believe  the 
stock  was  forty  or  fifty  thousand  dollars.  The 
most  of  the  stock  Avas  taken,  and  Lowden  began 
work  on  the  road  in  a  systematic  manner.  The 
grade  was  nowhere  to  be  over  five  degrees.  Many 
were  afraid  to  take  sliares  in  the  enterprise  for  fear 
of  heavy  assessments,  but  contributed  what  they 
thought  proper.  It  was  like  many  other  new  enter- 
prises; there  were  many  doubting  Thomases,  and 
often  one  would  hear  the  remark  that  it  would  take 
two  or  three  hundred  thousand  dollars  to  build  a 


284  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA- 

WMgoii-road  over  the  mountains  to  Sliasta.  Lowden 
paid  no  attention  to  an}i;liing  but  liis  road.  In  due 
time  the  road  was  finished,  and  a  good  one  it  was. 
Lowden  became  the  lion  of  the  hour.  In  a  short 
time  after  the  completion  of  the  road,  we  had  our 
daily  four-horse  coaches  running  between  Weayer- 
ville  and  Shasta.  This  was  something  that  old 
settlers  never  imagined  would  come  to  pass  in  their 
day.  What  a  change  in  seven  years!  The  first 
time  I  went  from  Weaverville  to  Shasta  I  paid 
sixteen  dollars  to  ride  a  pack-mule  on  an  aparejot 
with  rojies  for  stirruj>s,  and  it  required  two  days  to 
make  the  trip.  Freight  wagons  soon  came  rolling 
into  town  laden  with  goods.  Here  was  a  gTeat  con- 
venience for  the  merchant.  His  merchandise  now 
came  in  original  or  unbroken  j)ackages.  By  the 
old  system  of  j)acking  no  j^ackage  of  over  three 
hundred  pounds  could  be  laden  on  mules,  and  sel- 
dom a  package  of  over  one  hundred  and  fifty 
pounds  was  taken  by  the  packers. 

^Furniture  for  dwelling-houses  now  became  quite 
common,  and  people  now  began  to  provide  their 
homes  with  not  only  the  comforts  of  life  but  many 
of  the  luxuries. 

As  soon  as  the  Lowden  road  became  a  success 
the  outlying  towns  began  building  roads  to  AYeaver- 
ville,  and  in  a  short  time  there  was  a  number  of 
small  stages  running  into  Weaverville.  It  became 
quite  a  common  thing  to  hear  the  sound  of  the  stage 
drivers'  voices  singing  out:  "  All  aboard  for  Oregon 


THE    BUILDING    OF    HIGHWAYS.  285 

Gnlch,  Junction  City,  Mc  Gil  very 's  Ranch,  lied  Hill 
and  ^ortli  Eork."  Then  again  it  would  be:  "  All 
aboard  for  Douglas  City,  Trinity  Eiver  and  Stein- 
er's  Elat.""  Then  it  would  be:  "All  aboard  for 
Douglas  City,  Redding  Creek,  Brown's  Creek  and 
Hay  Eork  Valley."  Our  enterprising  liverynien, 
Messrs.  Comstock  &  Martin,  never  were  behind  in 
public  spirit.  They  furnished  tlieir  stable  with 
buggies,  carriage  horses  and  harnesses.  Thus  with 
the  advent  of  tlie  wagon-road  came  all  the  luxuries 
of  civilized  living.  The  Lowden  road  Avas  a  toll 
road,  and  the  tolls,  when  the  road  was  first  opened, 
were  quite  high.  Lowden  got  control  of  the  most 
of  the  stock,  and  made  some  money  out  of  it;  but 
whether  the  stockholders  made  anything  out  of  the 
road  or  not,  it  was  a  grand  improvement  for 
Northern  California. 

Bates  and  Van  Meter  as  early  as  1852  took  up  a 
ranch  near  Minersville.  They,  like  the  other  ranch- 
men, had  to  pack  their  products  to  Weaverville  on 
mules,  and,  like  other  ranchmen,  felt  the  need  of 
roads.  At  the  election  of  1858,  Eordvce  Bates  was 
elected  to  the  Legislature  from  Trinity,  and  he, 
with  the  assistance  of  the  members  from  Humboldt, 
Mendocino,  and  two  others  of  the  northern  counties, 
got  an  act  through  the  Legislature,  and  it  became  a 
law,  appropriating  the  State's  portion  of  the  poll- 
taxes  collected  in  the  five  northern  counties  for  two 
years,  for  the  purpose  of  laying  out  and  building 
roads  in  those  counties.     The  Board  of  Supervisors 


28(j  PIONEER   DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

in  each  county  liad  the  appointment  of  commis- 
sioners to  lay  out  the  money  to  the  best  advantage. 
The  Hon.  George  Williams,  now  of  Ferndale,  was 
at  that  time  one  of  the  Supervisors  of  Trinity 
count} ,  and  owned  a  ranch  in  Hay  Eork  Valley. 
He  was  anxious  for  the  road  to  be  (completed  from 
Hav  Eork  to  A¥eavervillc.  I  had  at  the  same  time  a 
ranch  also  in  Hay  Eork  Valley,  and  needed  tlie  road. 
Tlie  Board  of  Supervisors  appointed  Fordyce  Bates 
and  myself  as  commissioners  to  lay  out  the  money 
so  appropriated.  The  money,  about  twenty-eight 
hundred  dollars,  was  divided  equally  between  Bates 
and  myself,  each  having  about  the  same  distance  of 
road  to  build.  There  were  some  sixteen  miles  of 
mountain  to  grade  over.  I  started  a  subscription 
list  and  got  nearly  a  thousand  dollars  subscribed 
towards  paying  for  tlie  road.  I  had  it  properly 
graded  b}^  Henry  Hart,  the  County  Surveyor,  and 
then  commenced  work,  and  in  about  three  months' 
time  I  finished  the  road,  leaving  seven  hundred 
dollars  in  debt  for  the  road. 

The  question  then  was,  where  was  tlie  money 
coming  from  to  pay  this  seven  hundred  dollars  1 
Somebody  proposed  a  grand  ball  to  be  given  at 
Douglas  City,  and  the  i^roceeds  to  be  apjilied  to 
the  payment  of  the  debt.  The  plan  was  adopted, 
and  proved  to  be  a  complete  success.  I  sold  the 
ball  tickets  at  seven  dollars  and  fifty  cents  each, 
and  after  paying  expenses  I  had  a  few  dollars  less 
than  seven  hundred  dollars  with  which  to  jiay  the 
debt. 


THE    BUILDING    OF    HIGHWAYS.  287 

Bates  got  his  end  of  the  road  built.  Tliis  gave  a 
road  til  rough  the  center  of  the  county  of  about 
sixty  miles  north  and  south.  The  other  counties 
received  but  very  little  value  for  their  portion  of 
the  appropriation.  In  Humboldt  county  I  have 
heard  there  were  but  six  hundred  dollars  in  the 
fund,  and  that  was  spent  by  sending  out  commis- 
sioners to  view  the  road  and  report.  Trinity  was 
the  most  populous  of  the  five  counties  named  in 
the  bill,  hence  her  portion  of  the  appropriation  was 
the  largest.  In  early  days  we  had  no  county  funds 
to  draw  on  for  roads  or  trails.  Generally  when  a 
trail  or  road  was  needed  men  went  down  in  their 
own  pockets,  or  raised  subscriptions,  to  build  the 
same.  The  early  settlers  had  very  crude  ideas  of 
road-building  in  the  mountains.  The  major 
portion  of  the  pioneers  was  from  the  AYestern 
States,  where  they  had  no  mountains  to  contend 
with.  They  usually  selected  some  creek-bottom  or 
gulch  running  in  the  direction  in  Avhich  they 
wanted  to  go,  cut  out  the  dead  wood,  and  there 
made  trails  or  roads.  When  they  got  the  trail  or 
road  to  the  head  of  the  creek  they  generally  ran 
into  a  mountain  so  steep  that  a  squirrel  would 
have  to  "  double  teams"  to  carry  a  hickory-nut  up 
it  ;  then  the  next  winter  would  fill  the  creek  or 
gulch  up  with  dead  timber,  and  wash  the  trails  out 
of  sight.  Thousands  of  dollars  s^ient  by  early 
settlers  in  this  manner  were  just  as  good  as  thrown 
away. 


288  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

An  Exodus  of  Miners. — Torrents  and  Floods. 

Improvements  in  the  methods  of  mining  in  California. — Characteristics 
of  the  early  miners. — The  winter  of  1861-2. — "Jeff  Davis"  and 
the  flood. — Immense  losses. 

In  the  year  of  1858  Xortliern  California  got  its 
first  back-set.  In  1857  the  mines  on  Erazer  Kiver 
were  discovered,  and  reports  of  very  rich  and  ex- 
tensive diggings  were  circuhited  all  over  California. 
The  shallow  diggings  and  gulches  in  this  State 
were  getting  pretty  well  worked  over;  likewise  the 
river  bars.  Men  had  to  work  their  claims  more 
systematically.  The  day  had  gone  by  Avhen  a  man 
could  go  into  almost  any  gulcli  or  bar,  and  set  his 
rocker,  and  make  from  five  to  twenty  dollars  per 
day.  It  began  to  require  more  capital,  and  a  dif- 
ferent manner  of  working.  Several  high  benches 
or  bars  on  the  river  were  found  to  be  rich,  but 
there  was  no  Avater  with  which  to  work  them.  On 
nearly  every  rifile  on  the  Trinity  River,  for  sixty  or 
eighty  miles  up  and  down  the  river,  there  were 
large  bucket- wheels  built  to  raise  the  water.     They 


AN  EXODUS  OF  MINERS — TORRENTS  AND  FLOODS.     289 

were  generally  built  on  riffles,  as  tlie  swift  current 
kept  the  wheels  in  good  motion  all  the  time.  These 
wheels  were  from  twenty  to  forty  feet  in  diameter, 
and  would  raise  quite  a  sluice-head  of  water,  which 
was  conveyed  to  the  claim  in  sluice-boxes  or  ditches. 
The  rocker  and  "long-torn"  of  the  early  miner  were 
now  discarded.  The  ground-sluice  and  flume  took 
their  place.  It  took  considerable  capital  to  work 
such  claims.  Generally  from  two  to  ten  thousand 
dollars  were  spent  before  one  dollar  was  realized, 
and  few  of  the  miners  j)ossessed  that  amount. 

Many  of  the  early  miners  saved  but  little.  Too 
many  of  them  liked  the  monte-table  and  the  bar  too 
well  for  their  own  good,  and  spent  their  dust  as  fast 
as  they  took  it  out.  With  the  news  of  the  discov- 
ery of  rich  diggings  on  Erazer  River  there  com- 
menced a  "  stampede "  for  the  new  diggings. 
Every  fellow  that  could  sell  his  claim  and  tools, 
and  many  that  could  not  sell,  but  had  sufficient 
money  to  take  them  there,  left  expecting  to  find  a 
new  California.  It  has  always  been  one  of  the 
drawbacks  of  the  California  miner  that  he  was 
always  looking  for  something  better.  I  have  fre- 
quently known  miners  that  were  making  twelve  or 
sixteen  dollars  j)er  day  to  pick  up  their  tools  and 
blankets  and  start  for  some  new  gulch  or  flat  that 
had  been  recently  discovered  and  was  said  to  be 
rich,  but  most  of  them  did  not  better  themselves. 
The  Erazer  River  excitement  took  from  the  coun- 
ties of  Shasta,  Trinity  and  Klamath  not  less   than 


290  PIONITEE    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

one  thousand  miners  who  never  returned.  Shortly 
thereafter  the  John  Day  River  and  the  noi'thern 
mines  were  discovered.  Another  rush  then  began 
for  these  localities.  Such  was  the  miner's  life.  He 
was  alwa}  s  on  the  go,  and  was  never  contented. 
He  lived  on  excitement,  and  wandered  from  one 
excitement  to  another.  Yet  to  this  class  of  men 
the  Pacific  States  owe  a  deep  debt  of  gratitude. 
To  them  the  country  owes  its  first  explorations,  ^o 
section  of  the  country  was  too  distant  for  them 
to  penetrate.  In  their  prospecting  tours,  no  mount-  ^ 
ains  were  too  high  for  them  to  cross;  no  Indians  so  I 
hostile  that  tliey  would  not  venture  amongst  them. 
If  they  found  diggings,  there  they  would  stay  until 
some  other  of  their  kind  penetrated  into  some  yet 
farther  wilderness  in  search  of  the  precious  metals. 
They  seldom  bettered  their  condition,  but  opened 
the  way  for  American  civilization,  and  laid  the 
foundations  of  future  States.  Many  of  those  brave 
pioneers  found  their  graves  beside  their  lone  cab- 
ins in  the  northern  mountains.  Man}^  of  them  be- 
came inmates  of  the  county  hospitals,  and  went  to  a 
pauper's  grave  without  even  a  slab  to  mark  their 
last  resting-place.  Such  has  been  the  fate  of  many 
of  the  early  pioneers  of  the  Pacific  Coast.  They 
sowed  the  seed  for  others  to  harvest,  but  seldom 
reaped  any  benefit  themselves,  and  grew  old  and 
decrepit,  poor  in  purse,  and  without  a  home  or  a 
place  to  lay  their  gray  heads  in  peace,  and  without 
a  wife  or  a  child  to  droj)  a  tear  or  plant  a  flower  on 


AN    EXODUS    OF    MINERS— TORRENTS   AND    FLOODS.  291 

tlieir  lonely  graves.  They  deserve  well  of  the  nation. 
Eroni  Arizona's  sun-bnrned  mountains  and  plains 
to  Alaska's  frozen  streams  and  snowy  mountains, 
in  every  mining-camp  over  this  vast  domain,  you 
will  find  an  old  and  gray  Californian  still  in  pur- 
suit of  better  diggings,  with  his  roll  of  blankets  on 
his  back  and  sheath-knife  by  his  side,  his  ever 
faithful  rifle  on  his  shoulder,  and  still  on  the  tramp 
and  hunting  his  "  home-stake." 

Well,  to  come  back  to  Northern  California.  The 
winter  of  1861-2  was  a  hard  one.  Erom  November 
until  the  latter  part  of  March  there  was  a  succes- 
sion of  storms  and  floods.  I  remember  my  being 
in  Weaverville,  I  think  it  was  in  the  month  of  De- 
cember, 1861.  I  had  been  summoned  as  a  witness 
at  that  term.  Getting  through  with  the  court  busi- 
ness, I  met  J.  A.  Strudivant.  He  invited  me  to  go 
home  with  him  to  his  place  on  Trinity  Kiver,  say- 
ing that  I  would  have  so  much  less  to  travel  the 
next  day.  I  accepted  his  offer,  and  at  about  2 
o'clock  p.  M.  we  started.  It  had  been  raining  all 
the  day  previous.  The  ground  was  covered  with 
snow  one  foot  deep,  and  on  the  mountains  nauch 
deeper.  We  arrived  at  the  ranch  just  before  dark, 
and  I  wanted  to  cross  his  bridge  and  stay  at  John 
Carter's  that  night,  but  "  Uncle  "  Strudivant  would 
not  listen  to  any  such  thing.  Stay  with  him  I 
must.  He  told  me  that  tlie  bridge  was  named  Jeff 
Davis,  and  that  old  Trinity  could  not  carry  enough 
water  to  wash  "Jeff"   out,  and   that,  besides,  he 


292  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

wanted  to  sliow  me  tliat  night  tlie  error  of  my  ways 
in  being  a  black  Republican.  AVell,  against  my 
better  judgment,  I  consented  to  stay  with  him. 
Uncle  Joe  was  from  Arkansas,  and  a  dyed-in-the- 
wool  secessionist.  He  had  a  private  cottage  a  short 
distance  from  the  ranch  and  toll-house.  It  was 
close  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  the  divide  between 
Weaverville  and  the  Trinity  River.  After  supper 
Uncle  Joe  and  I  repaired  to  the  cottage.  After 
building  a  fire  and  making  things  comfortable, 
Uncle  Joe  commenced  his  proselyting.  He  and  I 
advocated  our  respective  sides  of  the  political  issues 
until  11  o'clock,  when  we  "  turned  in."  It  rained 
all  afternoon  and  night.  The  weather  had  turned 
warm,  and  the  rain  came  down  in  torrents.  Several 
times  I  went  to  the  door  during  our  political  dis- 
cussion, and  every  time  it  seemed  to  be  raining 
harder,  and  I  wished  myself  on  the  otherside  of 
Trinity  Kiver.  I  frequently  said,  "  Uncle  Joe,  I  am 
afraid  the  bridge  will  go."  His  reply  was,  "  Jeff  will 
stand  it."  Once  he  said,  "  Kow,  John,  we  Avill  take 
the  bridge  as  an  omen.  If  the  bridge  stands  the  flood 
and  comes  out  all  right,  we  will  take  it  for  granted 
that  Jeff  Davis  and  the  Southern  Confederacy  will 
come  out  all  right.  If  it  goes  down  the  Trinity 
River,  then  we  look  on  the  Southern  Confederacy 
as  going  to  h — 1  a  fluking."  "  All  right.  Uncle  Joe,' 
I  rei)lied,  "  I  will  sympathize  with  you  in  the  loss 
of  your  bridge,  but  be  rejoiced  if  it  should  prove  a 
true  omen  and  "  Jeff  "  should  take  a  voyage  down 


AN    EXODUS    OF    MINERS — TORRENTS    AND    FLOODS.  293 

the  river  a  fluking."  We  slej^t  until  about  4 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  when  Jeriy  Whitmore,  one 
of  Uncle  Joe's  partners,  came  to  where  we  Avere,  and 
knocked  on  the  door  to  wake  ns  up.  Uncle  Joe 
called  out,  "  AVhat  is  wanted!"  Jerry  replied,  "The 
bridge  is  gone — not  a  stick  left,  and  the  water  will 
soon  be  up  to  the  house."  Uncle  Joe  thought  a 
moment,  and  then,  looking  at  me,  said,  "  John,  Jetf 
Davis  and  the  Southern  Confederacy  have  gone  to 
h — 1  sure,  and  I  know  it."  I  felt  sorry  for  the  loss 
of  my  friend's  bridge,  but  if  it  was  going  to  be  a 
forecast  of  the  Southern  Confederacy's  fate,  then  I 
could  rejoice. 

The  water  in  the  river  had  been  rising  all  night, 
and  men  were  stationed  on  the  bridge  with  poles  to 
keep  logs  from  striking  the  i)iers.  At  about  4 
o'clock  in  the  morning  a  large  sj^ruce  tree  came 
down  the  river  with  roots,  branches  and  all.  The 
men  seeing  it  come,  and  knowing  the  bridge  was 
doomed,  escaped  from  the  bridge  before  the  roots  of 
the  tree  struck  it.  It  was  well  thev  did,  for  one  of 
the  men  who  were  on  the  bridge  told  me  next 
morning  that  as  soon  as  the  tree  struck  the  bridge 
it  went  through  it  as  if  nothing  had  been  in  its  way, 
cutting  it  completely  in  two,  and  the  whole  struc- 
ture fell  into  the  river  and  was  soon  out  of  sight. 
As  soon  as  daylight  came  Uncle  Joe  and  I  went  to 
the  ruins,  ^ot  a  plank  of  the  bridge  was  left.  The 
rain  was  yet  j)Ouring  down.  The  snow  was  nearly 
all  gone.     Everything  around  the  place  looked  des- 


294  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

olate.  On  the  flat  where  the  house  was  built  they 
had  the  finest  bearing  orchard  in  Northern  Cali- 
fornia. If  the  river  rose  but  a  little  more,  the  trees 
Avould  be  swept  away,  and  the  house  with  them. 
All  the  forenoon  the  river  continued  to  rise,  and  at 
last  it  be^an  to  spread  over  the  orchard  and  wash 
the  black  loam  away.  Einally,  as  the  current  be- 
came stronger  amongst  the  trees,  one  after  another 
began  to  fall,  some  floating  off  with  the  water,  and 
others  hanging  by  the  roots.  Trinity  that  morning 
was  playing  havoc  with  the  settlers  on  its  banks. 
It  was  dreadful  to  look  upon.  Standing  on  high 
ground,  one  could  see  j)roperty  of  all  kinds  on  its 
way  to  the  ocean.  T]ie  river  itself  seemed  like 
some  mighty  uncontrollable  monster  of  destruction 
broken  away  from  its  bonds,  rushing  uncontrollably 
on,  and  everywhere  carrying  ruin  and  destruction 
in  its  course.  When  rising,  the  river  seemed  high- 
est in  the  middle.  When  falling,  it  became  lowest 
in  the  middle,  and  all  the  drift  worked  toward  the 
center  of  the  stream.  When  the  river  was  at  or 
near  its  highest,  one  could  see  floating  down  parts 
of  mills,  sluice-boxes,  miners'  cabins,  water-wheels, 
hen-coops,  parts  of  bridges,  bales  of  hay,  household 
furniture,  sawed  lumber,  old  logs,  huge  spruce  and 
pine  trees  that  had  withstood  former  storms  for  hun- 
dreds of  years — all  rushing  down  that  mad  stream 
on  their  way  to  the  boundless  ocean.  Erom  the  head 
settlement  to  the  mouth  of  tlie  Trinity  River,  for  a 
distance  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  everything 


AN    EXODUS    OF    MINERS— TORRENTS   AND    FLOODS-  295 

was  swept  to  destruction.  Kot  a  bridge  was  left,  or 
a  minino-wheel  or  a  sliice-box.  Parts  of  ranches 
and  miners'  cabins  met  the  same  fate.  The  hibor 
of  hundreds  of  men,  and  their  savings  of  jears,  in- 
vested in  bridges,  mines  and  ranches,  were  all 
swej)t  away.  In  forty-eight  liours  the  valley  of  the 
Trinity  was  left  desolate.  The  county  never  recov- 
ered from  that  disastrous  flood.  Many  of  tlie 
mining-wheels  and  bridges  were  never  rebuilt. 

I  had  to  lie  over  for  four  days;  I  then  swam  my 
horse  across  Trinitv  Kiver  about  a  mile  above  the 
ranch,  while  I  was  taken  across  in  a  canoe  by  Cush 
Given.  The  trail  thence  to  Hay  Eork  was  almost 
completely  washed  away  wherever  Avashing  was 
possible.  A  few  years  previous  Michael  Kush  and 
others  started  a  wagon-road  nj)  what  was  called 
Stanmore's  Gulch.  They  made  it  about  four  miles 
up  the  gulch,  and,  running  into  a  big  mountain,  left 
oft"  there.  On  my  way  to  Hay  Fork  my  way  lay 
through  the  Stanmore  Gulch.  When  1  arrived  at 
the  gulch,  expecting  to  find  a  passable  road,  there 
was  not  a  vestige  of  the  road  in  sight.  The  gulch 
was  so  filled  with  logs  and  drift-wood  that  it  was 
almost  impassable.  When  I  arrived  home  I  found 
that  I  had  not  escaj)ed  a  portion  of  the  general 
calamity.  Part  of  my  fence  and  about  four  acres 
of  my  best  bottom-land  were  gone.  A  number  of 
my  cattle  had  succumbed  to  the  storm.  Taking  it 
in  all,  the  winter  of  1861-2  was  the  most  disastrous 
that  Northern  California  has  ever  experienced 
since  its  settlement  by  the  Americans. 


29G  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
A  Sham  Marriage  and  Duel. 

A  newspaper  established  at  Douglas  City. — Govvey  and  Hough  and  their 
packer,  Dusky. — Entrapping  Dusky  into  a  sham  marriage. — The 
sham  duel  that  followed. — How  a  Jew  got  his  finger  bitten. 

I  think  it  was  along  in  the  winter  1859  when 
Douglas  City  was  quite  pretentious.  ISonie  of  its 
citizens  were  in  hopes  that  their  burg  would  out- 
rival Weayerville,  and,  to  help  build  up  the  j)lace, 
two  enterprising  citizens  started  a  newspaper  called 
the  Douglas  City  Oasette^  and  edited  and  owned 
by  two  respectable  members  of  the  large  and  in- 
fluential Jones  family.  The  Gazette  became  a  great 
favorite  while  it  lasted. 

If  there  is  any  one  thing  which  the  live  Yankee 
must  have  for  his  comfort  and  happiness  it  is  his 
newspaper.  Deprive  him  of  that,  and  you  deprive 
him  of  a  large  amount  of  his  comfort  in  this  world. 
Well,  this  embryo  city  had  its  newspaper.  A  news- 
I)aper  without  an  editor  is,  like  a  church  without  a 
preacher,  of  but  very  little  account.  The  Douglas 
City  Gazette  had  an  editor,  and  a  lively  one  he  was. 
Douglas    City  had    its  stores    and  other   business 


A    SHAM    MARRIAGE  AND    DUEL.  297 

lionses.  At  that  time  the  largest  firm  in  the  city 
was  Gowey  &  Hough.  They  sold  merchandise  for 
several  miles  np  and  down  the  river,  and  did  a  large 
business.  They  kept  a  small  pack-train  running 
for  tlie  delivery  of  goods  to  their  customers,  in  place 
of  the  delivery  wagon  of  the  present  day.  In  their 
store  the  miners  would  generally  congregate  in  the 
evenings,  "swap  lies"  and  "put  up  jobs"  on  some- 
one, and  the  proprietors  of  the  store  were  the  worst 
of  the  lot.  The  firm  kept  a  packer  named  Dusky 
to  run  their  deliverv  train.  In  some  thinsrs  Duskv 
was  not  as  sharj)  as  he  might  have  been.  He  was 
somewhat  given  to  "blowing,"  and  was  a  little  soft 
on  the  ladies.  About  this  time  there  was  living  in 
the  city  a  grass-widow,  a  big,  healthy  Dutch  woman. 
Dasky  became  smitten  with  her,  and  was  strongly 
inclined  toward  matrimony.  Hough  learned  of  this 
from  the  widow,  and  fixed  up  a  scheme  for  Dusk} . 
She  agreed  with  Hough  to  have  a  mock  marriage  and 
a  general  good  time  at  Dusky's  expense.  Dusky,  in 
due  time,  ^Droposed  to  the  grass-widow,  and,  of 
course,  was  accepted.  The  Avedding  was  set.  Dusky 
invited  his  friends  to  the  wedding  feast,  and  the}^ 
were  many.  The  happy  day  arrived,  and  all  things 
were  ready,  except  that  there  was  no  one  to  j)er- 
form  the  ceremony.  Hough  had  promised  Dusky 
that  he  would  secure  some  one  for  that  purpose,  but 
forgot  to  do  so.  Some  one  spoke  up  and  said  that 
John  Estus,  being  a  married  man,  had  a  right  to 
perform  the  marriage  rite  in  the  absence  of  a  min- 


298  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

ister  and  justice  of  the  peace.     John  said  this  was 
true,  and  he  then  married  the  couple  in  due  form. 

After  the  ceremony,  Dusky  and  his  "bride"  re- 
ceived the  congratulations  of  the  guests.  Hough 
and  Estus  acted  as  master  of  ceremonies.  If  the 
State  had  been  searched  from  San  Diego  to  Del 
Norte,  no  two  men  could  have  been  found  more 
worthy  or  better  able  to  do  honor  to  the  occasion. 
Wine  flowed  freely,  and  the  health  of  the  bride  was 
often  toasted  in  flowing  glasses.  Everything  passed 
oif  finely;  but  all  things  must  come  to  an  end.  Mid- 
night was  near,  and  the  marriage  guests  were  tak- 
ing their  departure,  most  of  them  feeling  the  effects 
of  the  wedding  feast.  Among  the  honored  guests 
was  tlie  editor  of  the  Douglas  City  Gazette. 

After  the  house  was  clear  of  the  guests,  the  bride- 
groom was  congratulating  himself  and  the  bride  on 
the  good  time  they  had  had.  The  wedding  was 
held  at  the  house  of  the  bride.  After  a  time  the 
bride  coolly  remarked,  "  Mr.  Dusky,  I  want  to  go 
to  bed,  and  it  is  time  you  were  going  home." 
"HomeV  rex^lied  Dusky,  in  amazement;  "this  is 
my  home.     Were  we  not  married  to-night  1 " 

"No,  we  were  not  married,"  she  replied.  "The 
boys  and  myself  were  having  a  good  time  at  your 
exj)ense;  and  don't  you  think  we  had  itl  The 
whole  affair  was  only  a  big  joke  on  you."  Dusky 
had  to  travel  back  to  his  lonely  bed  at  the  store. 

The  next  day  Dusky  was  decidedly  on  the  war- 
path, threatening  to  kill  Estus,  Hough  and  a  dozen 


A  SHAM  MARRIAGE  AND  DUEL.  299 

others.  He  had  calmed  down  somewhat  when  the 
Douglas  City  Gazette  made  its  appearance  on  publi- 
cation day,  with  a  full  and  complete  account  of  the 
marriage  and  of  Avhat  a  glorious  time  Avas  had  at 
the  wedding.  This  was  the  last  straw  that  broke 
poor  Dusky's  back,  and  blood  he  would  have.  His 
friends  advised  him  not  to  kill  the  editor  like  a  dog, 
but  to  give  him  a  chance  for  his  life  ;  like  a  true 
Southern  gentleman  to  challenge  the  editor  to  mor- 
tal combat.  Dusky  was  from  Missouri,  and  the 
j)roposal  seemed  to  strike  his  fancy.  He  sent  the 
editor  a  challenge,  and  it  was  duly  accepted.  Hough 
was  Dusky's  second,  and  I  believe  Estus  was  the 
editor's.  The  day  Avas  set  for  the  duel.  They  were 
to  fight  with  rifles  at  ten  paces'  distance.  The  fatal 
day  arrived.  Both  parties  were  punctual  to  the 
minute.  Dr.  White  was  on  the  ground,  ready  to 
render  medical  aid  to  both  of  the  combatants  if 
necessary.  It  was  winter,  and  the  ground  was 
covered  with  snow.  The  combatants  took  their 
stations  ten  paces  apart,  with  their  backs  to  each 
other.  At  the  signal,  "  One,  two,  three  ! "  they  were 
to  turn  and  fire.  When  the  signal  was  given,  both 
turned  and  fired.  Dr.  White  stood  near  the  editor. 
The  latter  staggered  and  fell  into  the  arms  of  his 
second.  Dr.  White  ran  up  to  him  and  threw  a  lot 
of  red  ink  all  over  his  shirt-bosom,  to  give  the  ap- 
pearance of  blood-stain.  Hough  said  to  Dusky, 
"You  had  better  be  getting  away  as  fast  as  3  on  can; 
you  have  killed  him,  and  they  will  hang  you  sure." 


800  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Dusky  made  for  the  stable,  and,  saddling  Hough's 
saddle-horse,  fled  down  tlie  river  as  fast  as  the  horse 
could  carry  him.  In  the  meantime  the  editor  was 
carried  a  short  distance  to  his  sanctum.  His  print- 
ing office  was  in  a  big  log-cabin,  in  one  end  of 
which  was  his  sanctum.  He  was  carried  and  laid 
on  the  bed,  apparently  in  a  dying  condition.  It 
was  now  night,  and  watchers  were  needed.  Many 
of  the  boys  did  not  know  that  the  duel  was  a  sham 
one,  and  that  the  editor  was  "playing  'possum  "  all 
the  time.  There  was  a  little  Polish  Jew  by  the 
name  of  Dowbroski  who  kept  a  watchmaker's  shoj) 
at  Douglas  City  at  that  time.  He  Avas  one  of  the 
best  and  good-natured  fellows  that  ever  lived.  He 
and  another  man  volunteered  to  watch  by  the 
bedside  of  the  wounded  man  and  give  the  medicine 
as  directed.  Dr.  AVliite  prescribed  a  teaspoonf ul  of 
brandy  (under  its  Latin  name)  to  be  given  every 
ten  minutes.  About  10  o'clock  the  editor  began  to 
get  sleep}',  and  wanted  to  get  rid  of  his  watchers. 
He  got  the  lockjaw  ;  it  was  a  bad  case.  He 
moaned  piteously.  Dowbroski  went  to  give 
him  his  medicine,  and  found  he  could  not 
open  his  mouth,  and  remarked:  "Poor  fellow, 
he  is  almost  gone;"  and  then  took  a  spoon-handle 
and  tried  to  pry  the  editor's  teeth  apart,  so  as  to  get 
his  fingers  between  the  editor's  teeth  to  keej)  his 
mouth  open  while  taking  his  medicine.  As  soon  as 
Dowbroski  got  his  fingers  in  the  editor  closed  his 
teeth  upon  them.     Dowbroski  yelled,  "Mein  Gott! 


301  A    SHAM    MARRIAGE    AXD    DUEL. 

Mein  Grott !  Come  here  quick  !  He  bites  mein 
fingers  off."  Tliey  got  Dowbroski's  fingers  out  of 
the  editor's  mouth,  and  "Dob  "  went  off  to  have  his 
finders  dressed.  The  other  watchers  and  the  editor 
took  a  drink  of  brandy  all  round. 

Kext  morning  our  editor  appeared  in  his  sanctum 
as  good  as  new. 

What  became  of  Dusky"?  Hough,  fearing  that  he 
would  lose  his  saddle-horse,  after  some  days  suc- 
ceeded in  finding  where  Dusky  was,  and  sent  him 
Avord  that  the  editor  was  all  right  and  not  much 
hurt,  and  for  him  to  come  back  and  nothing  would 
be  said  about  it.  AVhen  Dusky  came  back  and 
learned  that  the  duel  was  a  hoax,  like  the  wedding, 
he  got  completely  disgusted  and  left  the  place. 

He  afterwards  turned  as  an  Indian  fighter. 
In  one  of  the  battles  he  got  shot  full  of  arrows. 
Somebody  asked  him  why  he  did  not  get  behind  a 
tree.  Dusky  replied,  "  The  trees  had  no  behind  to 
them;"  meaning  that  the  Indians  were  all  around 
him. 


302  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 
Attack  on  a  Deserted  Indian  Rancheria. 

Hostile  Indians. — Calling  out  the  troops. — John  P.  Jones  goes  to  war  in 
a  carriage. 

In  tlie  summer  of  1863  the  counties  of  Hum- 
boldt, Klamath,  Del  Norte  and  lower  Trinity,  were 
overrun  with  hostile  Indians.  Eive  or  six  com- 
j)anies  of  volunteers  were  called  out  by  Governor 
Stanford  to  supj)ress  them.  Trinity  county  sent  to 
the  field  Oomx^any  C,  commanded  by  Captain  Abra- 
ham Miller,  who  joined  the  other  trooj)s  in  the  field 
under  the  command  of  Colonel  S.  G.  Whipple,  op- 
erating princij)ally  in  Humboldt  and  Klamath 
counties,  and  on  the  lower  Trinity.  Word  fre- 
quently came  to  Hay  Fork  and  Douglas  City  that 
roving  bands  of  liostile  Indians  had  been  seen  near 
the  back  settlements.  The  settlers  were  kept  in 
constant  alarm.  Just  previous  to  this  time  tAvo 
men  had  been  killed,  the  mail-carrier  and  a  soldier 
by  the  name  of  Terry.  A  soldier  by  the  name  of 
Orin  Washington,  belonging  to  the  same  company, 
was  badly  wounded,  but  managed  to  escape  and 
reached  the  settlements.     Uj)j)er   Trinity  had   not 


ATTACK    ON    A    DESERTED    INDIAN    RANCHERIA.  303 

been  mncli  troubled  by  tlie  Indians  since  the 
murder  of  John  Anderson  in  1852.  In  that  year 
they  were  defeated,  and  their  strongest  tribe  was 
annihihited  at  Bridge  Gulch  in  Hay  Fork  Valley 
by  the  avengers  of  Anderson.  It  was  only  roving 
bands  from  distant  parts  of  the  country  that 
troubled  the  settlers.  In  1863  the  war  sjiirit  was 
abroad  in  the  land.  Nearly  ever}^  town  had  its 
military  company  organized  and  ready  for  the  field. 
Douglas  City  was  not  behind  in  her  military  spirit. 
The  Douglas  City  B/ifles  were  ready  for  duty  when- 
ever called  upon.  They  were  commanded  by  Cap- 
tain John  Hough. 

One  day  word  came  to  Douglas  City  that  one  of 
those  roving  bands  of  hostiles  had  been  seen  near 
Clemmins'  ranch,  about  four  miles  east  of  Douglas 
City.  It  was  rej^orted  that  they  were  to  attack  the 
ranch  that  night.  It  was  reported  through  the 
town  that  Clemmins'  ranch  was  about  to  be  burned 
by  the  Indians.  The  "  long  roll "  of  the  company 
was  beaten,  and  soon  the  gallant  sons  of  Mars  were 
gathered  at  their  armory,  ready  for  the  fray.  Word 
in  the  meantime  was  sent  to  Weaverville,  the 
county  seat,  for  John  P.  Jones,  the  Sheriff  of  the 
county.  He  had  the  only  authority  to  order  out 
the  troops.  The  boys  lay  on  their  arms,  waiting  for 
orders.  About  sunset  the  Sheriff  made  his  appear- 
ance in  a  two-seated  carriage  drawn  by  a  pair  of 
white  horses,  accompanied  by  Egbert  Allen,  then 
District   Attorney   for   the  county,  and  David  E. 


o04  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 

Gordon,  editor  of  the  Trinity  Journal.  The  com- 
pany lost  no  time  in  getting  ready  to  march  to  the 
front.  They  were  soon  under  way.  At  dark  we 
crossed  Smith's  bridge  over  the  Trinity  River  and 
the  Portuguese  claims.  There  was  a  large  amount 
of  mining  done  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  and  at 
night  it  was  difficult  to  get  through  the  j^iles  of 
"tailings"  and  ground  ditches  that  obstructed  our 
road.  Yet  we  continued  on  our  way  like  old  veter- 
ans, and  overcame  all  obstacles,  until  we  reached 
Redding's  Creek,  where  the  road  was  good. 

In  the  meantime  our  Sheriff  in  command  was 
riding  as  best  he  could  in  his  buggy.  The  buggy 
had  side-lamps,  which  the  Sheriff  lighted  that  he 
might  better  see  the  road.  Here  we  were,  on  a 
secret  expedition,  expecting  to  take  the  Indians  by 
surprise.  The  whole  thing  looked  so  ridiculous 
that  many  of  the  boys  had  their  little  jokes  over 
that  night's  march. 

About  11  o'clock  we  reached  the  ranch  where 
we  expected  to  find  the  foe.  Upon  our  arrival  in 
sight  of  the  buildings,  all  was  dark  and  still.  The 
occupants  of  the  ranch  had  all  retired,  seemingly  in 
perfect  security.  The  company  halted,  and  an  officer 
was  dispatched  to  the  house  to  investigate  and 
wake  up  Mr.  Olemmins,  the  owner  of  the  ranch. 
Cleinmins  at  last,  after  much  knocking,  made  his 
appearance,  and  inquired  what  the  matter  was,  and 
why  he  was  disturbed  in  his  j)eaceful  slumbers.  On 
being  informed  of  our  errand,  he  replied  that  he 


ATTACK    ON    A    DESERTED    INDIAN    RANCHERIA.  305 

liad  seen  no  hostile  Indians  in  or  about  tlie  place. 
The  company  was  ordered  into  the  corral  for  the 
night.  Guards  were  placed  in  true  military  style. 
I  happened  to  be  Sergeant  of  the  guards  that  night. 
In  the  meantime  the  Sheriif  had  his  white  team 
unhitched,  and  prepared  to  spend  the  night  in  the 
midst  of  his  soldiers.  Nevada's  future  Senator 
never  did  things  by  halves.  In  the  buggy  was  a 
demijohn  full  of  Henry  Hocker's  best  whisky.  Be- 
fore retiring  the  Sheriif  called  the  boys  round  him 
to  j)artake  of  the  contents  of  the  demijohn,  to  which 
call  they  sjieedily  responded.  Most  of  the  bo}  s 
were  very  thirsty  after  their  long  march.  After  a 
time  the  camp  got  quiet,  and  most  of  the  soldiers 
were  in  the  land  of  dreams.  I  heard  a  voice  crying, 
"Sergeant  of  the  guard!  Sergeant  of  the  guard!"  I 
being;  that  officer  went  immediatelv  to  see  what  the 
trouble  was.  I  found  Sheriff  Jones,  Editor  Gordon, 
and  District  Attorney  Allen  lying  alongside  of 
each  other,  stretched  at  full  length  in  the  middle  of 
the  corral.  I  asked  them  what  they  wanted. 
Sheriff  Jones  replied,  "  Sergeant,  take  a  drink  tirst, 
and  then  we  will  give  our  orders."  My  reply  was, 
"  Gentlemen, .  good  soldiers  never  drink  when  on 
duty.  Gentlemen,  what  are  your  wants  '^ "  Sheriff 
Jones  replied,  "Sergeant,  we  want  you  to  furnish 
us  a  pillow  each.  This  corral  has  no  soft  side  to  it." 
"  All  right,  gentlemen,"  I  replied.  "  I  suppose  you 
are  not  particular  about  what  the  pilloAVS  are  made 
of  1 "     "  No,"  they  replied.     I  then  searched  as  Avell 


306  PIONEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

as  I  could  in  tlie  dark  until  I  fouud  three  whole 
"buffalo-chips."  They  were  well  dried.  Taking 
them  in  my  arms,  I  went  to  my  three  heroes. 
Telling  each  of  them  to  raise  his  head,  I  j^laced  one 
of  the  "  chips"  under  it,  remarking,  "  It  is  the  best 
I  can  do  for  you,  gentlemen."  One  of  them  re- 
plied, "It  beats  h — 1  out  of  nothing."  The  order 
was  for  the  guard  to  wake  the  command  at  day- 
dawn.  About  half  a  mile  from  the  corral  there  was 
an  old  Indian  rancheria  that  sometimes  was  used 
by  Indians  as  a  stopping- ]3lace.  The  rejjort  in 
some  way  originated  that  a  number  of  Indians  were 
in  the  rancheria^  and  we  were  to  attack  them  at  day- 
break. As  soon  as  light  appeared  in  the  east,  I 
awoke  our  sleeping  braves.  The  order  was  given 
to  "  fall  in  "  and  load  with  ball  cartridge,  and  away 
we  went  for  the  old  rancheria.  This  was  situated 
on  a  large  flat  gulch  east  of  Clemmins'  house.  It 
was  composed  of  ten  or  twelve  bark  lodges,  conical 
in  shape.  When  we  came  in  sight  of  it  the  com- 
pany divided  into  three  divisions.  One  division  was 
to  cross  the  flat  below  the  rancheria  and  get  into 
position  on  the  other  side.  Another  division  went 
to  intercept  the  Indians  if  they  ran  up  the  gulch. 
The  remaining  division  was  to  attack  from  the 
front.  Tliis  was  the  plan  of  battle  made  by  our 
officers. 

As  soon  as  each  division  arrived  at  its  station,  the 
signal  was  given  to  begin  the  fight.  The  company 
was  armed   with   Mississipj)i  "  yagers "  and  sword 


ATTACK    ON    A    DESERTED    INDIAN    RANCHERIA.  307 

bayonets.  The  order  Avas  to  fire  one  volley,  and 
then  to  fix  bayonets  and  charge.  This  order  was 
promptly  obeyed.  A  deadly  fire  was  poured  into 
the  old  bark  lodges,  and  then  the  boys  charged. 
The  three  divisions  met  in  the  middle  of  tlie  old 
rancheria,  with  not  a  living  or  dead  Indian  in  sight, 
nor  had  there  been  an  Indian  there  for  three 
months  previous. 

Well,  we  were  a  disappointed  lot  of  fellows.  I 
have  often  thought  since  that  time  that  the  Doug- 
las City  Kifles  were  under  the  special  care  of  a 
kind,  directing  Providence.  If  it  were  not  so,  half 
of  us  would  have  got  badly  hurt,  for,  owing  to  the 
location  of  the  ground  and  the  position  of  the  firing 
parties,  we  were  apparently  firing  into  each  other. 
But  none  of  us  got  hurt. 

After  this  capture  of  the  old  rancJieria,  we  were 
marched  back  to  Olemmins'  corral,  where  we  found 
that  Sheriff  Jones,  Editor  Gordon  and  Attorney  Al- 
len had  retreated  in  good  order  to  Weaverville  before 
hostilities  commenced,  taking  with  them  all  the 
commissary  stores,  if  any  were  left  from  the  previ- 
ous night.  The  order  was  given,  "Break  ranks, 
and  go  as  you  please  to  headquarters  at  Douglas 
City."  I  believe  I  was  the  last  to  arrive  there, 
making  my  appearance  about  11  or  12  o'clock  that 
day,  on  a  load  of  hay  belonging  to  Mr.  Clemmins. 

Such  Avas  the  battle  of  Clemmins'  Hanch.  Eor 
years  afterwards,  if   you  wanted  to  get  one   of  the 


308  PIONEER   DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

Douglas  City  Kifles  angry,  all  you  had  to  do  was  to 
say  "  Clemmins'  Ranch  "  to  him. 

In  Sej)tember,  1864,  there  occurred  an  unfortu- 
nate Indian  raid  into  Hay  Eork  Valley,  throAying 
a  gloom  oyer  the  yallc}',  and  causing  the  death  of 
John  Hessig,  a  young  man  not  oyer  sixteen  years 
of  age,  the  son  of  Mrs.  John  Francis,  now  of  Hydes- 
yille.  John  Erancis  and  young  Hessig,  with  two 
other  men,  Avere  engaged  in  digging  a  water-ditch, 
to  bring  water  on  their  mining-claims  situated  in 
Hay  Eork  Valley.  They  coming  upon  a  large 
boulder  that  had  to  be  blasted,  John  Hessig  went 
to  the  camp  for  powder  and  a  fuse.  When  near  the 
camp,  he  was  shot  by  the  Indians,  who  lay  in  am- 
bush behind  a  log-cabin.  John  Francis  was  about 
one  hundred  and  twenty-fiye  yards  from  Hessig 
when  he  receiyed  the  fatal  shot.  The  Indians  see- 
ing Francis,  also  took  a  shot  at  him.  Their  bullets 
struck  the  ground  about  six  inches  from  where 
Francis  was  standing.  John  Hessig  was  a  young 
man  of  promise.  He  came  to  Weayerville  with  his 
parents  when  a  child,  and  was  among  the  first  chil- 
dren of  that  town.  He  got  his  education  at  Weayer- 
yille,  and  being  well  thought  of  by  a  large  circle  of 
acquaintances,  his  death  at  the  hands  of  the  merci- 
less savages  threw  a  gloom  oa  er  the  whole  county. 
A  small  company  of  men  started  after  the  Indi- 
ans, and  trailed  them  for  Hxe  or  six  miles,  when 
they  came  to  Ayhere  the  Indians  had  had  a  fight  over 
the  plunder,  and  there  they  found  a  dead  Indian. 


ATTACK    ON    A    DESERTED    INDIAN    RANCHERIA.  309 

They  tlien    turned  back,    and   the  death    of   John 
Hessig  went  unavenged. 

The  next  raid  made  by  the  savages  into  the  valley 
was  on  October  13,  1868,  when  Thomas  Burke  was 
killed  by  them,  leaving  a  Avidow  and  tliree  children. 
Mrs.  Burke  is  a  sister  of  John  Erancis,  of  Hvdes- 
ville,  and  was  formerly  of  Illinois.  Her  escape 
Avith  her  two  children  seems  almost  miraculous. 
Their  place  was  situated  on  the  wagon-road  to 
Weaverville,  about  one  and  a  half  miles  above  the 
Oarr  Ranch.  Burke  was  working  in  the  field 
across  the  gulch  from  the  house.  The  dogs  all  that 
morning  had  been  making  a  fuss,  but  Burke  could 
discover  nothing  wrong.  He  went  to  his  work. 
Mrs.  Burke  was  dressing  her  two  youngest  children. 
The  oldest  was  then  in  Weaverville  at  school.  Tlie 
Indians  made  their  appearance  in  the  door  and 
ordered  her  off.  She  immediately  took  the  two 
children  and  ran  out,  hallooing  to  her  husband  for 
help.  She  ran  for  the  bridge  that  was  across  the 
creek  on  the  road,  and  there  she  met  Mr.  Burke  on 
the  bridge.  The  Indians  followed  her  down  to  the 
bridge.  Burke,  upon  meeting  her  on  the  bridge, 
reached  for  one  of  the  children,  when  he  was  shot 
and  fell  dead  over  the  end  of  the  bridge.  She  then 
fled  Avitli  her  two  children  doAvn  the  road  towards 
Carr's  Banch,  the  dogs  keeping  betAveen  her  and 
the  Indians.  The  Indians,  it  appears,  did  not  Avish 
to  kill  her.  They  told  her  to  go  on.  She  made 
her  Ava}'  for  nearly   tAvo  miles  to  the    crossing   of 


310  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Carr's  Creek,  where  she  sank  down  exhausted. 
There  two  teamsters,  who  were  on  their  way  to 
Weaver\  ille  with  loads  of  grain,  found  her.  They 
immediately  unhitched  their  teams  and  took  her  to 
the  town  of  Hay  Eork. 

A  party  started  for  the  scene  of  the  murder. 
They  found  the  body  of  Burke  in  the  creek  where 
he  fell,  and  his  house  robbed  and  burned.  A  com- 
pany was  organized,  and  started  on  the  Indians' 
trail;  Steve  Eleming  as  Oaj)tain,  J.  S.  Hoit,  N.  B. 
Earlin,  William  H.  Rush,  John  Large,  Orin  Treat, 
Josiah  Drinkwater,  Levi  Good,  John  C.  Post,  M. 
B.  Myers,  James  S.  Wilburn  and  John  Kelly  are 
the  names  of  the  men  Avho  composed  the  company. 

Oaj)tain  Fleming  followed  the  Indian  trail  to  Big 
Laribee  Creek,  where  a  fight  occurred  with  the 
Indians.  The  Indians  retreated,  and  the  volunteers 
followed  their  trail  by  the  blood.  On  the  south 
slope  of  Chalk  Mountain,  and  near  the  X3lace  where 
the  house  of  J.  W.  Maxwell  now  stands,  Josiah 
Drinkwater  received  a  shot  from  a  wounded  Indian 
lying  behind  a  log,  on  the  26th  of  November. 
Drinkwater  was  mortally  wounded.  The  company 
carried  him  to  the  house  of  Silas  Hoglan  on  the 
Yan  Duzen,  where  he  died  on  the  28th  of  No- 
vember, 1868. 

This  was  the  last  raid  made,  and  the  last  of  the 
Indian  troubles  in  Humboldt  and  Trinity  counties. 

The   author   is   indebted   to  John   Francis   and 


ATTACK    ON    A    DESERTED    INDIAN    RANCHEUI    A  311 

I 

Henry  Feeiiaty,  both  of  Hydesville,  for  tlie  names 
of  the  men  who  comi^osed  Captain  Eleming's  com- 
pany and  the  date  of  the  occurrence. 


312  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

Disadvantages  of  the  Mail  Service. 

How  the  mail  was  carried  from  Hoopa  to  Weaverville  in  1863. — A  peri- 
lous business. — Killing  of  Walter  Van  Arman,  the  carrier,  by 
Indians. 

Any  man  can  carry  tlie  mails  over  tlie  mountain 
trails  now-a-days  (if  he  is  lucky  enough  to  get  a 
contract),  but  it  was  not  every  man  who  wanted  a 
contract  twenty-live  years  ago.  But  the  mail  bags 
had  to  go  and  come,  and  some  one  had  to  "  face  the 
music."  Many  a  life  was  lost  in  this  service  in  the 
early  days  of  California,  the  particulars  of  which 
have  never  been  told. 

In  1863  there  was  a  mail  route  from  Eort  Gaston, 
Hoopa  Yalley,  to  Weaverville.  The  Indians  were 
on  the  warj)ath;  they  had  devastated  the  valley  of 
the  Trinity  ioy  miles,  had  killed  a  good  many  whites 
and  Chinamen,  and  had  determined  to  clear  the 
country  of  all  intruders.  Between  Hoopa  and 
Weaverville  they  were  especially  bold  and  trouble- 
some, and  the  mail-carrier  had  no  picnic,  as  the 
reader  may  easily  imagine. 

Walter  Van  Arman  was  the  mail-carrier  at  that 


DISADVANTAGES    OF    THE    MAIL    SERVICE.  313 

time.  On  the  12tli  of  September,  at  6  o'clock  in 
the  evening,  lie  was  to  leave  Eort  Gaston,  but, 
owing  to  disturbances  up  the  river,  it  was  tliought 
best  to  send  an  escort  with  him.  Accordingly  two 
soldiers  of  Company  0,  Eirst  Battalion  Mount- 
aineers, were  detailed.  One  of  them  tells  the  party's 
experience  as  follows: 

We  left  Eort  Oaston  at  6  o'clock  that  evening — 
September  12th — and  crossed  the  South  Eork  of  the 
Trinity  about  11  o'clock.  We  passed  Indian  camps, 
but  the  Indians  Avere  all  asleep,  and  we  didn't  dis- 
turb them.  We  reached  Burnt  Ranch  at  daylight. 
Crossing  the  main  river  at  Cedar  Elat,  we  went  up 
the  north  side  as  far  as  Sandy  Bar.  As  we  came  in 
sight  of  the  rocks  at  that  point  I  told  Yan  Arman 
the  Indians  were  in  there,  sure.  I  knew  it  just  as 
well  then  as  I  did  afterwards;  I  saw  them.  But 
Yan  said  tliey  Avere  Chinamen,  and  we  rode  on. 

Just  as  we  got  onto  the  bar,  we  got  a  volley  from 
the  rocks,  and  Terry  fell  from  his  mule.  He  called 
to  me  not  to  leave  him,  and  Yan  and  I  jumped  off 
from  our  mules  and  ran  to  him.  Another  volley 
and  we  both  got  it — Yan  Arman  in  the  pit  of  the 
stomach  and  I  in  the  right  side.  Yan  had  held  to 
his  bridle  rein,  so  he  mounted  and  rode  up  the  trail, 
bidding  me  good-bye  as  he  threw  the  mail  sacks  to 
the  ground.  Terry  was  dead.  There  was  nothing  for 
me  but  to  "  hoof  it,"  as  my  mule  had  fled  with 
Terry's.  The  Indians  kept  up  their  fire  as  I  hob- 
bled away,  another   shot  taking  effect  in  my  right 


314  PIONEER    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

thigh.  After  going  a  hundred  yards  or  more  I  sat 
down  and  tied  up  my  wounds  the  best  I  coukl,  for 
I  was  bleeding  a  good  deal.  About  four  hundred 
yards  further  up  the  trail  I  found  Van  Arman's 
mule,  but  not  Van  Arman.  Supposing  he  had  gone 
on,  I  climbed  onto  the  mule  and  x^nshed  on  to  Tay- 
lor's Elat.  Here  I  found  only  some  Chinamen  the 
Indians  had  killed  in  the  morning,  and  I  didn't 
stoj).  I  crossed  the  river  here,  headed  for  Little 
Prairie,  thus  eluding  two  Indians  who  had  followed 
me,  and  who  were  soon  after  killed  by  McWhorter 
at  Oregon  Grulch.  The  store  and  some  houses  at 
Little  Prairie  had  been  burned  the  day  before,  and 
I  had  to  ride  on  to  Cox's  Bar  before  I  could  attend 
to  my  Abounds,  which  ke])t  me  off  duty  for  a  year. 
The  people  at  Cox's  Bar  and  all  along  the  river 
were  in  arms,  and  a  company  was  organized  at 
Weaverville,  headed  by  Bichard  Clifford. 

The  next  day  a  party  of  men  going  down  the 
trail,  found  a  scrap  of  paper  sticking  in  a  stump 
near  where  I  found  Van's  mule.  On  it  was  written: 


i        WALTER  VAN  ARMAN,        j 
I  Shot  by  the  Indians,  i 

j  Sept.  i6,  1863.  i 

It  seems  he  had  gone  up  the  hill,  fully  conscious 
of  his  mortal  wound,  and  had  laid  down  and  died 
within  sight  of  the  trail,  though  his  body  was  not 
found  until   some  time  afterward.     James  Denny 


DISADVANTAGES   OF    THE    MAIL    SERVICE.  315 

found  and  buried  the  body  at  Big  Flat.  Terry's 
body  was  found  pinned  to  tlie  ground  with  knives 
taken  from  the  Chinamen  killed  at  Taylor's  Flat. 
After  these  Chinamen  had  been  killed,  the  Indians 
Avent  to  Drake's  house  and  got  breakfast.  The 
Indian,  Big  Jim,  told  me  afterwards  at  Hoopa,  that 
they  set  the  table  for  all  hands — there  were  twenty- 
one  of  them — and  they  rang  the  bell  for  breakfast. 
xVfter  that  they  fired  the  buildings,  Drake's  house 
being  the  only  one  that  didn't  burn.  It  stands  there 
yet,  a  relic  of  early  days. 


16  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Pioneer  Politics. 

The  Know-nothing  party  in  California. — Its  whole  State  ticket  elected. 
— The  Democratic  convention  at  Weaverville  in  '54  captured  by 
the  Know-nothings. — An  Irishman  killed. — The  lodge-room  of  the 
Know-nothings  collapses. — Ludicrous  incidents. 

After  the  election  of  Pierce  and  King,  in  1852, 
as  President  and  Vice-President,  politics  in  Cali- 
fornia were  very  quiet.  The  overwlielming  defeat 
of  tlie  Whig  candidates — Scott  and  Graham — 
proved  to  be  the  death-knell  of  the  Whig  party, 
which  had  out-lived  its  usefulness.  But  tliere 
arose  on  its  ruins  tlie  short-lived  American  or 
Know-nothing  party,  which  in  1854  SAvei^t  the 
State  from  Del  Norte  to  San  Diego,  electing  J.  N. 
Johnston  Governor,  with  the  whole  State  ticket 
and  a  large  majority  of  both  houses  of  the 
Legislature. 

Trinity  county  had  always  been  Democratic  up 
to  this  time.  A  nomination  on  that  ticket  was 
equivalent  to  an  election,  and  of  course  there  was  a 
good  deal  of  wire-pulling,  trading  and  swaj)ping  in 
their  contentions  to  obtain  the  nominations.  I  re- 
member   when    the    Democratic  Convention   was 


PIONEER    POLITICS.  817 

called  to  meet  in  AYeaverville  in  1854,  at  llie  time 
the  Know-nothing  party  was  organized  in  Trinity 
connty.  The  organization  was  secret,  no  outsider 
knowing  anything  of  its  working,  or  any  of  its 
members.  The  question  arose  among  the  simon- 
pure  Democracy  hoAV  to  keep  the  Know-nothings 
out  of  the  party.  Fears  were  entertained  that  the 
Know-nothings  would  capture  the  conyention  and 
haye  things  their  own  way,  which  fears  were  cor- 
rect. Out  of  between  fort}'  or  fifty  members  of  the 
conyention  fully  two-thirds  were  Know-nothings. 
There  were  two  candidates  for  the  Legislature  in 
the  field.  W.  W.  Upton,  who  had  acted  with  the 
Democratic  party  up  to  that  time  and  still  professed 
to  be  acting  with  it,  and  A.  J.  Felter,  a  resident  of 
Oregon  Gulch,  and  a  simon-pure  Democrat — were 
the  two  aspirants  for  Legislatiye  honors  before  the 
conyention.  I  had  been  informed  by  sood 
autliority  that  AV.  W.  Upton  was  the  Ivnow-noth- 
ing  candidate,  and  had  receiyed  their  nomination 
from  ditferent  lodges  in  the  county.  Tlie  morning 
the  conyention  was  to  meet  I  informed  Felter  of 
what  1  had  been  told,  and  that  I  belieyed  a  majority 
of  the  conyention  were  Know-nothings.  He  could 
hardly  realize  it,  as  he  knew  all  the  members  per- 
sonally and  knew  them  to  be  aood  and  sound  Demo- 
crats.  I  told  him  he  would  see  for  himself  before 
night.  Well,  the  couA'cntion  organized  and  Felter's 
officers  got  left  Avhen  the  nominations  Ayere  made. 
Upton  and  Felter  were  placed  in  nomination,  the 


318  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

result  of  the  ballot  being  that  Felter  got  about  one- 
third  of  the  votes  and  Upton  got  the  other  two- 
thirds.  There  was  one  mad  Democrat  about  that 
time,  and  his  name  was  Andrew  Jackson  Pelter. 
His  friends  withdrew  from  the  convention  and  held 
one  of  their  owu,  and  nominated  him  for  the  Legis- 
lature. Eelter  was  badly  beaten  at  the  polls, 
Oregon  Gulch  being  the  only  precinct  in  the  county 
going  Democratic.  The  Democrats  were  cleaned 
out  throughout  the  State  as  well  as  in  Trinity 
county. 

About  this  time  prejudice  ran  high  against  the 
foreign-born  citizen,  and  especially  did  the  Irish 
element  come  in  for  a  good  share  of  abuse.  I  re- 
member a  tragedy  that  took  place  one  Sunday  night 
about  this  time.  A  large  number  of  people  were 
in  town,  and  a  row  was  kicked  up  in  a  saloon  kept 
by  a  frenchman  named  Amanda.  It  appeared 
that  a  free  fight  was  going  on,  and  in  the  melee  an 
Irishman  (I  have  forgotten  his  name)  had  a  bowie- 
knife  run  into  him  twice,  and  he  died  almost  im- 
mediately. Next  morning  there  was  an  inquest  held 
on  the  remains  by  'Squire  Connor,  who  summoned 
a  coroner's  jury  and  examined  some  forty  or  fifty 
witnesses,  but  none  of  them  knew  anything  of  the 
killing.  The  jury  remained  in  session  for  two  days, 
and  at  the  end  of  that  time  they  were  no  wiser  than 
when  they  commenced.  No  person  seemed  to  know 
who  did  the  killing,  yet  there  were  seventy  or 
eighty  persons  in   the  saloon  at  the  time,  and  the 


PIONEER    POLITICS.  319 

saloon  was  a  small  building.  During  a  residence 
of  nearly  forty  years  in  California  and  Arizona, 
there  never  caine  under  my  notice  a  jjarallel  case 
to  this  murder  committed  at  Weaveryille  in  the 
summer  of  1855.  The  secret  was  well  preserA'ed. 
The  victim  was  buried  after  the  inquest,  and  in  a 
few  days  the  affair  was  quite  forgotten.  A  few  years 
after  the  occurrence,  when  politics  had  taken  a  dif- 
ferent turn,  it  was  several  times  hinted  to  me  that 
the  murderer  could  be  identified,  but  not  sutficient 
evidence  could  be  had  even  then.  Some  of  the 
l^arties  Avho  testified  before  the  coroner's  jmy  and 
swore  they  knew  nothing  of  the  affair,  hinted  that 
thev  knew  more  than  thev  testified  to  when  before 
the  coroner's  jury.  Such  evidence  would  be  of 
little  account,  however,  and  the  case  was  dropped. 
During  the  years  of  1854-5-6  the  foreign-born  citi- 
zen w  as  a  good  deal  below  par,  more  especialh'  the 
Irish  Catholic,  or  Pope's  Irish,  as  they  were  then 
called. 

In  the  summer  of  1855  there  occurred  an  acci- 
dent which  came  near  creating  serious  conse- 
quences. At  that  time  there  were  very  few  two- 
story  buildings  in  Weaver ville,  or  second-story 
apartments  to  let.  There  was  a  firm  by  the  name 
of  Harris  &  Mitchell,  carpenters  and  builders, 
doing  business  in  the  tow  n.  Frank  Harris  was  a 
New  Hampshire  Yankee,  and  Archie  Mitchell  was 
a  good-natured  Irishman.  Harris  was  a  member  of 
the  Know-nothing  j)arty,  and  he  agreed  to  build  an 


320  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

npi^er  story  on  their  slio})  for  a  lodge-room.  The 
hoys  agreed  to  pay  big  rent,  and  Archie  submitted. 
In  the  course  of  time  the  lodge-room  was  finished 
and  the  boys  moved  into  tlieir  quarters  all  right. 
The  floor  of  the  lodge-room  Avas  well  covered  with 
sawdust  in  order  to  deaden  the  sound.  They  met 
there  several  evenings,  and  all  went  smoothly  until 
one  Saturday  night.  Saturday  night  and  Sundays 
nearly  all  of  the  miners  Avould  come  to  town  to 
hear  the  news,  get  their  papers  and  mail  matters, 
and  such  other  things  as  they  might  need  during 
the  coming  week.  My  dwelling-house  was  but  a 
short  distance  from  Harris  &  MitchelVs  shop,  where 
the  boys  were  having  their  meeting.  On  the  afore- 
said Saturday  night — a  beautiful  moonlight  even- 
ing— about  half-past  8  o'clock,  iny  wife  and  myself 
were  sitting  on  the  porch  enjoying  the  cool  of  the 
evening,  when  suddenly  we  were  startled  by  a 
great  noise  which  appeared  to  come  from  the  Know- 
nothing  lodge.  Looking  in  that  direction  I  saAv 
that  the  lodge-room  had  caved  in  and  was  envel- 
oped in  a  cloud  of  sawdust.  I  started  immediately 
for  the  wreck — it  took  but  a  short  time  to  get  there. 
Just  as  I  got  to  the  end  of  the  building  the  first 
man  came  out — it  Avas  Jesse  S.  Pitzer,  making  for 
his  home,  minus  a  hat,  with  his  hair  all  full  of  saw- 
dust.    I  Said  to  him : 

"  Jesse,  are  you  hurt"? "  He  made  no  answer,  but 
broke  for  his  house,  which  was  but  a  short  distance. 

The  next  fellow  I  saw  was  Judge  Turner. 


■^ 


PIONEER    POLITICS.  321 

"  Is  that  yon,  Judge  Turner — are  you  liurt^  " 

''  Ko,  it  is  not  me.  Eor  heaven's  sake  give  me  a 
hat  and  never  say  you  saAV  me  here." 

He  took  my  hat  and  then  broke  like  a  quarter 
horse  for  the  lower  end  of  the  town,  through  piles 
of  gravel  and  tailings.  By  this  time  I  made  my 
way  into  the  ruins.  The  building  had  spread  apart 
and  let  down  the  second  floor,  sawdust,  KnoAv- 
nothings  and  all.  Such  a  scrambling  to  get  out 
and  get  away  from  everybody,  I  never  saw  before. 
By  this  time  the  crowd  began  to  gather,  clearing 
up  the  ruins  and  taking  account  of  the  killed  and 
wounded.  We  found  three  men  hurt — two  of  them 
not  seriously,  but  one,  George  Sherburne,  had  his 
arm  broken  and  was  made  a  cripple  for  life. 

After  helping  at  the  ruins  I  went  down  town — 
the  defunct  lodge  Avas  situated  on  Court  street,  while 
"down-town"  was  along  on  Main  street.  I  visited 
some  of  the  saloons  to  hear  the  news  and  see  what 
was  up.  There  was  some  tall  swearing,  and  some 
heavy  threats,  if  they  could  find  the  d — d  Irishman 
that  weakened  the  building  and  let  the  floor  down. 
Many  of  the  boys  thought  Archie  Mitchell  had  a 
hand  in  the  business,  but  Erank  Harris,  his  part- 
ner, belonging  to  the  Know-nothings,  and  Mitchell 
having  many  friends  and  known  to  be  a  good  hon- 
est man,  the  accusation  was  dropped  and  the  boys 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  it  Avas  the  fault  of  the 
building. 

Jesse  S.  Pitzer  got  the  nomination  for  District 


X 


322  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Judge  and  my  friend  Turner  was  left  out  in  the  cold, 
and  I  was  niinns  a  hat.  Pitzer,  up  to  this  time, 
had  been  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Democratic 
l^arty,  but  when  it  was  found  that  he  had  deserted 
the  Democratic  party  they  commenced  to  look  for 
a  candidate  to  defeat  Pitzer.  Their  choice  fell  upon 
James  Hanna  of  Humboldt  county.  Although  a 
life-long  Whig,  Mr.  Hanna  was  known  to  be  op- 
posed to  the  Know-nothing  movement.  He  receiA'ed 
tlie  nomination  of  the  Democratic  party  and  can- 
vassed tlie  district,  but  was  beaten  by  Pitzer  the 
same  as  all  other  candidates  on  the  Democratic 
ticket.  Judge  Pitzer  served  but  a  short  time,  when 
he  resigned. 

I  did  not  meet  Judge  Turner  for  several  jears 
after  the  fall  of  the  Know-nothing  lodge-room.  I 
had  moved  to  Eureka  in  1806.  Standing  in  ni}' 
shoj)  door  one  day  talking  to  my  partner,  he  re- 
marked: 

"  Here  comes  Judge  Turner  !  I  will  introduce 
you  to  him." 

"  I  had  the  honor  of  the  Judge's  acquaintance 
many  years  ago,"  said  I  as  we  shook  hands. 

"  I  do  not  remember  you,"  he  said,  after  looking 
me  over;  "at  what  place  were  we  acquainted*?" 

"  Sir,  you  owe  me  a  new  hat  that  I  lent  you 
many  years  ago,  and  this  is  the  first  time  I  have 
seen  you  since." 

"  I  do  not  understand — please  explain,"  said  the 
Judge. 


PIONEER    POLITICS.  323 

".Judge,  yon  were  in  Weaverville  in  the  ^ear 
1855." 

"  Yes  sir,  I  was." 

"  Do  yon  remember  the  night  the  KnoAV-nothing 
lodge  coUapsed^ — do  yon  remember  meeting  a  fel- 
low as  yon  were  getting  out  of  the  rnins  the  back 
way,  minus  a  hat,  and  your  coat  and  hair  all  filled 
with  sawdust,  and  yon  begged  the  fellow's  hat  from 
himV' 

"  T  belieye  I  do." 

"  And  yon  neyer  returned  that  hat." 

The  Judge  looked  at  me  for  a  moment  and  said: 

"  Look  here,  my  friend,  if  you  neyer  say  any- 
thing about  that  hat  I  will  furnish  you  all  the  hats 
you  want  for  the  next  ten  years." 

During  Know-nothing  times  many  amusing 
things  and  incidents  took  place.  There  was  a  fel- 
low by  the  name  of  Xed  Xugent  mining  on  Sidney 
Hill.  Ked  was  a  Yankee  Irishman,  born  in  Maine, 
but  as  Irish  as  Paddy's  brogue  ;  small  of  stature  but 
large  of  combatiyeness.  When  he  came  to  town 
Ked  generally  got  drunk,  and  either  got  licked  him- 
self or  licked  some  one  else — generally  the  former. 
IS^ed  became  a  Know-nothing,  and  as  zealous  in  the 
cause  as  any  son  of  the  Puritans.  I  was  passing 
by  Sam  Krider's  saloon  one  eyening,  and  hearing  a 
row  I  stepped  in  to  see  see  what  the  fuss  was  about. 
There  was  Ised  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  floor 
and  a  lot  of  fellows  standing  around  him.  Ned  was 
cursing  the  Know-nothings  good  and  strong  for  not 


324  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

coming  to  his  assistance  when  he  gave  the  sign  of 
distress.  He  had  got  whipped,  and  none  of  his 
Know-nothing  brothers  would  take  it  up  for  him. 
There  was  an  Irishman  in  the  crowd  who  was  about 
three  sheets  in  the  wind,  and  when  he  heard  Ked 
cursing  his  brothers,  Mike  staggered  out  in  front  of 
him  and  said : 

"Ned,  be  gub,  that's  a  lie  of  yours.  As  soon  as  I 
saw  the  sign  of  distress  didn't  I  rush  to  your  assist- 
ance like  a  man,  and  so  I  did  ! "  The  thing  looked 
so  ridiculous  that  it  set  the  boys  all  in  a  good 
humor.  Somebody  j>roj)osed  the  drinks,  and  there 
the  matter  ended. 


FORMATION    OF    THE    REPUBLICAN    PARTY.  325 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Formation  of  the  Republican  Party. 

The  City  of  Sacramento  the  first  in  California  to  go  Republican. — The 
rule  of  the  Southern  element  in  the  State. — Organizing  a  Fremont 
and  Dayton  club  in  Weaverville. — A  Republican  speaker  "  egged." 
— Doctor  O.  J.  Gates  "fighting  mad." — The  "  border  ruffians." — 
Frank  M.  Pixley's  speech. — Threats  of  intimidation. — Marching  to 
the  polls. 

The  Kansas  and  IS^ebraska  act  knocked  the  life 
out  of  the  Know-nothing  party  in  California.  As 
soon  as  the  passage  of  that  act  was  known,  men  be- 
gan to  take  sides  on  the  slavery  question — Northern 
men  with  the  ISTorth,  Southern  men  with  the  South. 
I  well  remember,  just  after  that  memorable  fight 
for  the  organization  of  the  House  of  Rej)resentatives 
in  1855,  which  resulted  in  the  election  of  X.  P. 
Banks  as  Speaker,  that  0.  P.  Rice,  John  Cole  and 
myself  were  on  our  way  from  Weaverville  to  Shasta 
on  business.  We  stopped  at  a  wayside  tavern  for  a 
drink — nearly  everyone  drank  more  or  less  at  that 
time — and  on  entering  the  bar-room  some  of  the 
party  asked: 

"  What's  the  newsV 

"  Bad !  very  bad  news  froiii  Washington,"  said 


V 


326  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  landlord.  "  Tbatd — d  black  Republican,  Banks, 
is  elected  Speaker  of  tlie  House,  and  the  country  is 
going  to  b — 1  a  fluking!  " 

We  looked  at  eacb  other,  and  filling  and  touching 
our  glasses  in  the  old  familiar  way,  Kice  said: 

"  Here's  to  the  black  Republican,  N.  P.  Banks, 
and  the  men  that  elected  him!" 

The  landlord  gave  us  an  angry  look,  and  said  he 
didn't  think  there  were  any  black  Republicans  in 
California.  The  re^ily  was,  that  when  the  proj)er 
time  came  he  would  find  plenty  of  them. 

About  this  time  the  City  of  Sacramento  held 
her  municipal  election,  and,  with  the  assistance  of 
sore  Democrats,  the  Republicans  elected  tlieir 
ticket.  If  my  memory  serves  me  right,  to  the  City 
of  Sacramento  belongs  the  honor  of  being  the  first 
city  of  the  State  to  give  the  first  Rejjublican  victory. 
My  business  called  me  to  Auburn,  in  Placer  county, 
and  all  the  talk  a  person  could  hear  was,  "  N.  P. 
Banks!"  and  "the  black  Republican ! "  or  "the  d — d 
black  abolitionist!  " 

After  my  return  from  Auburn  I  stopped  for  a 
short  time  at  Sacramento,  putting  up  at  the  West- 
ern House.  One  of  my  children  became  sick,  and 
not  caring  to  travel  with  a  sick  child,  I  concluded 
to  lay  over  at  Sacramento  for  a  few  days.  I  called 
in  Dr.  Harkness,  then  a  practicing  physician  in  the 
city,  to  attend  to  the  child.  In  conversation  with 
the  doctor  I  found  him  like  m 3  self,  an  ardent  Re- 
publican, and  we  were  mutually  glad  to  know  each 


FORMATION    OF    THE    R'^ZPUBLICAN    PARTY.  327 

other.  He  requested  me  to  go  ATith  him  and  he 
woukl  make  iue  acquainted  with  some  of  the  Re- 
publicans of  Sacramento.  I  went  with  him  to  the 
office  of  Cornelius  Cole  —then  a  j^oung  lawyer  of 
the  city,  and  afterwards  a  United  States  Senator — 
Avhere  I  was  introduced  to  many  of  the  Republi- 
cans of  Sacramento.  It  was  there  agreed  that  when 
I  went  home  I  would  do  all  I  could  to  organize  the 
Republicans  in  Trinity  county.  After  seyeral  meet- 
ings  and  lots  of  good  Republican  advice  and  coun- 
sel, 1  accepted  the  mission,  ^o  young  ordained 
missionary  to  the  heathen  eyer  accej)ted  his  calling 
with  more  zeal  to  convert  the  lieathen,  than  I  did 
mine  to  spread  the  doctrine  of  free  soil  and  free 
men.  I  had  taken  my  political  lessons  from  Seward, 
Greele}'  and  Wendell  Phillips,  and  men  of  their 
stripe — lessons  that  I  never  had  reason  to  go  back 
on  to  this  day.  Well,  after  a  short  stay  at  Sacra- 
mento my  child  got  better  and  we  started  for  home 
in  Trinity.  After  arriving  home  I  declared  myself 
a  black  Republican,  and  commenced  proselyting. 
Then  commenced  my  political  troubles.  Several 
of  my  warmest  friends  were  men  of  Southern  birth, 
and  very  much  oi)posed  to  anything  that  interfered 
with  the  sacred  institution  of  slavery.  One  of  them 
— J.  C.  Burch,  afterwards  a  member  of  Congress — 
told  me  he  hoped  there  would  be  one  county  in  the 
State  that  would  not  disgrace  herself  by  casting  a 
Republican  vote,  and  he  hoped  Trinity  would  be 
that  county.     I  told  him  that,  if  I  lived  until  elec- 


328  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

tion  diiy,  Eremont  and  Dayton  would  get  one  vote 
at  least,  and  that  vote  would  be  mine.  They  then 
commenced  different  tactics,  and  tried  boycotting. 
Some  of  them  went  to  men  who  were  patronizing 
me,  and  informed  them,  if  they  did  not  take  their 
work  from  me,  they  would  not  patronize  tliem — 
one  iirm  in  particular,  Ooinstock  &  Martin,  that 
was  running  a  livery  stable.  John  Martin  told  me 
his  answer  to  them  was:  "You  can  go  to  h — 1 
with  your  patronage.  I  will  patronize  whom  I 
please,  and  if  you  don't  like  it  you  need  not  patron- 
ize this  'shebang!'"  John  then  informed  me  that 
black  Kepublicanism  came  too  near  home  to  him, 
as  his  father  and  brothers  were  all  Republicans  at 
home  in  Maine.  Up  to  this  time  the  Southern 
element  had  ruled  in  California. 

Xo  man  could  get  a  nomination  on  either  ticket 
unless  he  was  known  to  be  "sound  on  tlie  goose;" 
or,  in  other  words,  if  he  was  known  to  have  any 
free-soil  sentiments  he  was  spotted  at  the  ballot- 
box,  and  likewise  socially. 

I  remember  one  old  gentleman  by  the  name  of 
Lathrop,  that  started  a  garden  at  the  moutli  of 
Weaver  Creek.  The  old  man  was  an  abolitionist, 
and  was  the  talk  of  the  whole  camp  for  his  assur- 
ance in  expressing  himself  as  such.  When  speak- 
ing of  the  Republicans  the  rough  element  would 
generally  call  them  thieving,  black  Republican  s.  o. 
b.'s;  but  the  more  refined  would  often  say: 


FORMATION  OF  THE  REPUBLICAN  PARTY         829 

"John,  I  like  you  as  ii  iniiu,  but  d — ii  your 
politics!" 

Such  were  the  trials  and  scoffs  borne  by  the  early 
Republicans  of  California.  We  had  to  take  more 
scoffs  and  ieers  tlian  the  Salvation  Army  of  the 
present  day. 

But  to  come  back  to  proselyting.  I  was  like  the 
most  of  missionaries;  I  made  but  little  lieadAvay  at 
first.  Sometimes  a  fellow  Avould  come  into  the  shox^ 
and  call  me  aside  to  ask,  in  a  low  tone  of  voice,  how 
tlie  Republican  j)arty  Avas  getting  on.  My  answer 
would  be: 

"  Eirst-rate — don't  you  want  to  join  a  Fremont 
and  Dayton  club] " 

"  AVell,  I  don't  know  as  I  want  to  just  now — I 
may  after  awhile.  That  is  my  way  of  thinking, 
you  bet! " 

I  had  bought  me  some  blank  club  headings  from 
Sacramento,  and  when  I  got  a  fellow  like  the  above, 
I  would  draw  my  club-roll  on  him,  and  in  most 
cases  he  would  sign  it.  When,  by  hard  work  and  a 
good  deal  of  talk,  I  procured  fifteen  names  to  my 
club-roll,  I  thought  it  about  time  to  organize,  and 
notified  each  member  to  meet  at  my  shop  on  a  cer- 
tain night  after  9  o'clock  for  the  j)urpose  of  organ- 
izing and  electing  the  club  officers. 

The  boys  responded,  every  one  being  present. 
The  shop  doors  were  locked,  and  the  club  proceeded 
to  elect  its  officers  and  get  to  work,  each  member 
agreeing  to  do  all  he  could  honorably  for  the  elec- 


330  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

tion  of  John  C.  Eremont  and  W.  L.  Dayton  as  Pres- 
ident and  Vice-President  of  the  United  States.  The 
Avriter  of  this  article  was  elected  tirst  president  of 
the  club.  In  the  meantime  onr  Republican  friends 
at  Sacramento  had  requested  me  to  forward  to  them 
the  names  of  men  that  were  likely  to  become  Re- 
publicans, that  they  might  furnish  them  Republi- 
can literature.  To  this  work  the  club  devoted  itself 
vigorously,  besides  extending  the  membershix?  of 
the  club. 

About  this  time  the  organization  at  Sacramento 
sent  a  young  man  by  the  name  of  AVheelock  to  our 
section  of  the  country  to  helj)  organize.  He  brought 
letters  of  introduction  to  me,  directing  me  to  give 
him  all  the  assistance  in  my  poAver  to  forward  the 
work. 

I  called  the  club  together,  and  we  discussed  the 
matter  as  to  whether  it  was  best  to  hold  a  public 
meeting  or  not.  The  club  voted  to  hold  the  meet- 
ing, and  we  procured  Clifford's  hall  for  the  i)urj)ose. 
The  meeting  was  organized  about  8  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  and  quite  a  crowd  had  assembled.  I  was 
informed  that  there  was  likely  to  be  trouble,  and 
my  friends  advised  me  not  to  go  there.  I  called 
the  meeting  to  order,  and  was  elected  to  preside.  I 
introduced  the  speaker,  stating  the  object  of  the 
meeting.  When  Mr.  Wheelock  commenced  speak- 
ing, some  of  the  crowd  began  yelling  and  stamping, 
with  cries  of  "  put  the  d — d  black  Republican  out!" 
"  Tar  and  feather  him!"  and  such  like  talk.     About 


FORMATION    OF   THE    REPUBLICAN    PARTY.  331 

this  time  some  one  in  the  crowd  commenced  throw- 
ing eggs  at  the  speaker.  Wheelock  kept  his  temper, 
and  rej)lied,  "  I  like  eggs,  but  I  prefer  them  in  a 
little  diiferent  style."  Dr.  O.  J.  Gates,  now  of 
Eureka,  stood  it  as  long  as  he  could,  and  then  com- 
menced on  the  disturbers  of  the  j)eace.  He  told 
them  they  were  cowardly  ruffians,  and  he  could 
whip  any  four  of  them  any  way  they  had  a  mind 
to  fight  him.  He  talked  to  them  of  their  high- 
toned  chivalry  and  boasted  courage  in  attacking 
one  single  man,  and  he  a  stranger  in  their  midst. 
The  doctor  talked  fight,  and  he  meant  it,  too.  I 
have  known  him  for  thirty-six  years,  and  that  was 
the  only  time  I  remember  to  have  seen  him  fighting 
mad. 

As  soon  as  the  trouble  quieted  down  a  little,  I 
told  the  disturbers  of  the  meeting  that  those  eggs 
would  soon  hatch,  and  that  each  one  would  bring- 
forth  a  Republican  chicken.  The  words  were  pro- 
phetic. Wheelock  finished  his  speech  without 
further  interruption  that  night.  The  Trinity 
Journal  (edited  and  published  by  David  E.  Gordon 
and  E.  J.  Curtis)  was  not  backward  in  publishing 
this  outrage  as  a  disgrace  to  Weaverville  and  a  blot 
on  the  name  of  free  speech  in  America. 

Such  were  some  of  the  tactics  that  the  opponents 
of  the  Rej)ublican  party  used  to  suj)press  it  in  its 
infancy  in  California.  Weaverville  was  not  the 
only  town  or  city  where  eggs  were  used  to  break  up 
Republican  meetings.     At  the  capital  of  the  State, 


832  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

if  my  memory  serves  ine  riglit,  .Judge  Tracy — one 
of  the  first  men  of  tlie  State — was  served  in  like 
manner.  Even  the  immortal  and  eloquent  Baker, 
who,  a  few  years  later,  laid  down  his  life  at  Ball's 
Bluff  that  the  Republic  might  live,  could  not  ad- 
dress a  meetins;  of  his  fellow-citizens  and  Ameri- 
cans  without  being  insulted  and  his  meeting  dis- 
turbed. The  same  element  was  using  the  same 
tactics  that  they  used  two  years  previous  in  Kansas, 
and  with  no  better  results.  They  did  not  frighten 
or  bulldoze  the  people  of  Kansas,  nor  yet  the  people 
of  California. 

After  the  meeting  we  began  occasionally  to  re- 
ceive letters  from  some  of  the  outside  precincts,  en- 
couraging us  in  Weaverville  to  go  on  with  the  good 
work,  and  not  allow  a  few  eggs  in  the  hands  of 
the  "border  ruffians,"  as  they  were  then  called,  to 
deter  us.  We  received  letters  from  such  men  as 
John  F.  Chillis,  of  Minersville — afterwards  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor on  the  ticket  with  Governor 
Stanford,  and  my  life-long  friend,  Ered  Leech  of 
Junction  City  and  now  of  Bohnerville,  in  this 
county.  ]\Iajor  Price  of  Canyon  City,  although  a 
Southern  man  by  birth  and  education,  was  one  of 
the  pioneer  Kepublicans  of  Trinity  county,  and  did 
good  service  in  the  early  days  of  the  Rej>ublican 
party. 

Things  went  on  fairly  well  for  a  time,  but  nearly 
every  day  a  Bej)ublican  would  hear  insulting  re- 
marks and  jeers  thrown  at  liim  continually.  About 


FORMATION    OF    THE    KEPUBLICAN    PARTY.  080 

this  time  the  State  Central  Committee   Avas  getting 
down  to  its  work  in  good  shape,  sending  out  speak- 
ers to  stump  the  State — some  of  tlie  ablest  speakers 
of  the  State  taking  the   stump    for  Fremont  and 
Da^'ton.      Amongst  the    number   was   Erank    M. 
Pixley  of  San  Francisco,  now  editor  of  the  Argo- 
naut.    At  that  time  Pixley  was  in  the  full  vigor  of 
manhood,  and  one  of  the  best  stump  speakers  I  ever 
had  the  pleasure  of  listening  to.     Pixley  was  billed 
for  the    IS^orthern  part    of  the  State,  and  took    in 
Trinity  county  as  part  of  his  territory.     Word  was 
sent   to  the  Republicans   of  Weaverville   that  the 
Hon.  Frank   M.  Pixie v  would  address  the  citizens 
of  Weaverville  on  a  certain  day,  and  we  advertised 
the  meeting  throughout  the  county  as  well  as  pos- 
sible, for  at  that  time  the  facilities  for  advertising 
were  not  so  good   as  they  are  at  present.     Pixley 
arrived    in  due  time,  but  his  rej)utation  got  there 
ahead  of  him,  which  was  to  the  effect  that  he  would 
not  stand  any  nonsense,  and  that  roughs  interfering 
with  him   generally  got  the    worst  of  it.     He  was 
j)rox)erly  received  by  the  Fremont  and  Dayton  club, 
Avhich    then    had    increased    to     twentv-tive     or 
thirty   members.     Charley    Thomas'    theater   was 
procured   to  hold   the  meeting  in.     It  would  seat 
six  or  seven  hundred  people,  and  was  well  filled  on 
the  occasion.     In  due  time  the  meeting  was  organ- 
ized and  the  sj^eaker  introduced,  but   the  applause 
was  very  faint.    Pixley  then  commenced  his  speech 
of  nearlv    two    hours'  duration — one  of  the  most 


334  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

logical  and  convincing  arguments  in  favor  of  free 
soil  and  free  men  that  it  was  ever  my  good  fortune 
to  listen  to.  Only  twice  was  he  interrupted  during 
the  whole  time  he  was  speaking — his  sallies  of  wit 
and  good  humor  soon  put  a  stop  to  the  interrup- 
tions. One  of  the  interruptions  ap]3eared  to  come 
from  some  fellow  in  the  middle  of  the  house,  who, 
from  his  manner  of  speech,  appeared  to  be  an  Irish- 
man. Pixley  stopped  a  moment  and  straightened 
himself  up;  then,  sticking  his  thumbs  into  the  arm- 
lets of  his  vest  and  pointing  his  finger  in  the 
direction  of  the  disturber,  said : 

"  That  fellow  that  interrupted  me  appears  to  be 
an  Irishman!  Now,  sir,  if  it  were  not  for  that 
ship-load  of  potatoes  my  father  helj)ed  to  send  over 
to  old  Ireland  in  1846,  during  the  famine,  you 
would  not  be  here  to-night  disturbing  an  American 
addressing  his  countrymen!  You  would  have 
starved  to  death,  as  you  deserved!" 

No  more  interruptions  from  that  part  of  the 
house.  The  evening  was  quite  warm  and  the  win- 
dows were  raised  in  order  to  give  the  audience  fresh 
air.  Some  fellow  outside  came  up  to  one  of  the 
windows,  and,  without  showing  himself,  commenced 
braying  like  a  jackass.  Pixley  heard  him  through, 
and  then  said,  in  his  sarcastic  way: 

"  Balaam's  ass  has  spoken.  No,  it  was  not 
Balaam's  ass  that  sjioke;  we  will  not  insult  Ba- 
laam's ass  by  comparing  that  ass  at  the  window  to 
him.     Balaam's  ass  was  a  brave  one;  he  spoke  out 


FORMATION    OF    THE    REPUBLICAN    PARTY.  335 

what  lie  meant,  and  was  not  afraid  to  show  himself, 
but  that  ass  at  the  window  is  too  big  a  coward  to 
show  himself." 

That  was  the  last  interruption  that  night.  Pix- 
ley's  speech  set  men  to  thinking,  and  did  a  good 
deal  of  good.  We  had  no  other  speakers  during 
the  campaign,  but  the  club  worked  hard.  The 
other  parties — the  American  and  Democratic — 
seemed  to  have  forgotten  their  animosities.  In 
order  to  humiliate  the  black  Eepublicans  they 
seemed  to  pull  together.  Two  years  previous  the 
American  and  KnoAv-nothing  party  had  swept  the 
State,  electing  their  Goyernor— J.  Neely  Johnson — 
and  all  the  State  officers,  with  both  branches  of  the 
Legislature,  which  made  the  supporters  of  Eillmore 
and  Donelson  quite  jubilant  and  sure  of  carrying 
the  State  for  the  American  ticket  that  fall.  They 
coiinted  without  their  host,  as  we  Republicans 
frequently  told  them.  We  said  to  them,  "  A  great 
majority  of  the  men  of  Southern  procliyities  who 
acted  and  yoted  with  your  party  two  years  ago,  will 
yote  for  Buchanan  and  Breckenridge,  and  leave  you 
Northern  Know-nothings  to  vote  for  Eillmore  and 
Donnelson,  and  then  laugh  at  your  gullibility."  It 
turned  out  about  as  was  i)i'edicted.  Buchanan 
carried  the  State,  and  Eillmore  came  out  only  sec- 
ond best.  Many  of  the  men  who  voted  for  Eill- 
more  declared  themselves  Republicans  after  elec- 
tion. But  I  am  getting  ahead  of  my  time — let  us 
come  back  to  the  election. 


336  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Word  was  brought  to  the  Republican  club  that 
no  black  Kepublicans  would  be  alloAved  to  cast  a 
vote  for  Ereniont  and  Dayton  in  Weaverville  on 
the  day  of  the  election;  if  they  did,  or  attempted  to 
vote,  a  few  of  them  would  get  badly  hurt.  I  called 
the  club  together,  and  we  discussed  the  reports 
that  were  in  circulation.  The  club  voted  unani- 
mously tliat  it  was  "  vote,  and  liglit  if  necessary," 

recommending  that  each  member  arm  himself,  and 
be  on  hand  at  2  p.  m.,  and  march  to  the  polls  in  a 
body.  The  polls  were  held  in  the  old  court-house, 
at  the  liead  of  Court  street.  The  club  then  num- 
bered between  fifteen  and  twentv  members,  and 
was  composed  of  men  who  knew  their  rights,  and 
had  the  courage  to  maintain  them. 

Election  day  arrived  and  the  polls  were  duly 
opened,  but  no  Kej)ublican  was  appointed  on  the 
election  board — not  even  a  clerk  up  to  12  o'clock  ; 
no  Republican  at  the  polls,  and  the  chivalry  began 
to  think  their  threats  were  having  the  desired 
effect.  Several  men  came  to  me  and  wanted  to 
know  if  the  Republicans  were  scared  off,  or  if  they 
were  going  to  allow  the  border  ruffians  to  succeed 
with  their  threats.  After  1  o'clock  the  Rex3ublicans 
began  to  gather  at  the  place  designated.  At  2 
o'clock  every  member  was  on  the  ground,  well 
armed,  and  with  a  full  determination  not  to  inter- 
fere with  any  man's  rights  or  allow  any  man  to 
interfere  with  ours.  The  club  fell  in  line  and 
marched  to  the  polls.     On  arriving  at  the  polling 


FORMATION   OF    THE    REPUBLICAN   PARTY.  337 

place  we  found  fully  t^YO  linndred  men  gathered 
around.  There  were  about  a  dozen  men  standing 
apparently  in  front  of  the  window  where  the  judges 
received  the  tickets.  Those  at  the  head  of  the  club 
marched  up  as  near  to  the  window  as  possible, 
waiting  for  their  turn  to  cast  their  votes.  Mr.  Tur- 
ner was  judge  of  the  election.  He  politely  requested 
the  ijersons  who  were  obstructing  the  passage  to 
the  window  to  step  back  and  allow  the  voters  to 
come  uj)  and  vote.  Three  or  four  of  them  stex)j)ed 
aside.     Being  president  of  the  club,  I  said: 

"  Gentlemen,  we  came  here  to  vote,  and  we  are 
going  to  vote — peaceably  if  we  can,  or  fight  if  we 
must!  But  we  want  you  all  distinctly  to  under- 
stand that  we  are  going  to  vote ! " 

They  all  stej)j)ed  out  of  the  way,  except  one  fel- 
low by  the  name  of  Lyman  Pruit.  He  said  he  was 
there  to  challenge  the  votes,  as  he  had  a  right  to  do. 
I  replied  that  we  would  not  dispute  his  right.  I 
then  stepped  to  the  window  and  offered  my  vote. 
My  friend  Pruit  said: 

"  I  challenge  that  vote!  " 

This  was  before  the  law  was  passed  compelling 
voters  to  fold  their  ballots  before  going  to  the  polls. 
Before  handing  my  ballot  to  the  judge  I  unfolded 
it  and  told  my  friend  Pruit  to  read  it  if  he  could 
read. 

"  If  you  can't  read  it  I  will  do  it  for  you,"  said  I. 
"  You  see  the  names  of  John  0.  Eremont  and  W, 
L.  Dayton  on  it  don't  you^     I  believe  you  are  one 


338  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

of  tlie  men  wlio  made  the  boast  that  no  bLack  Re- 
publican should  vote  here  this  day;  but  black  Re- 
publicans vote  this  day  for  Fremont  and  Dayton!" 

Mr.  Turner,  the  Judge,  asked  Fruit  on  what 
grounds  the  vote  was  challenged.     Pruit  replied: 

"On  the  ground  that  it  is  unconstitutional  for  a 
black  Republican  to  vote  in  California!" 

"Is  that  all  the  grounds  you  have  for  your  chal- 
lenge, Mr.  Pruit?"  asked  Mr.  Turner. 

"  Yes,  and  that  is  plenty." 

"  Then,"  Mr.  Turner  replied,  "  if  that  is  all,  1 
guess  black  Republicans  have  the  right  to  vote  in 
California,"  and  in  went  the  ticket — the  first  Re- 
publican vote  cast  in  Weaverville. 

By  a  previous  arrangement  made  before  going  to 
the  polls,  when  one  of  our  number  voted  he  stepped 
to  one  side  of  the  ranks  until  another  voted,  and  he 
stepped  on  the  other  side,  and  so  on  until  all  had 
voted;  then  the  club  quietly  marched  down  town 
and  were  not  further  molested.  Many  told  me  if  it 
had  not  been  for  the  manner  the  club  chose  of  vot- 
ing, and  the  bold  front  that  was  put  on,  there  would 
have  been  serious  trouble  at  the  polls;  but  the 
border-ruffian  crowd  saw  very  plainly  that  they 
would  have  to  take  some  lead  as  well  as  give  it, 
and  they  concluded  to  let  the"  nigger- worshij)pers  " 
vote  in  peace.     And  it  was  well  they  did. 

After  the  polls  were  closed  a  friend  named  Chap- 
man called  and  congratulated  the  club  on  its  man- 
ner of   conducting   its   business,  and  informed  me 


FORMATION    OF    THE    REPUBLICAN    PARTY.  339 

that  he  was  at  the  head  of  forty  or  fifty  good  and 
true  Americans,  and  said,  if  the  Republicans  had 
been  molested  in  their  rights  as  American  citizens, 
they  would  have  taken  a  hand  in  the  aifray,  closing 
with  the  remark:  "We  won't  stand  any  border- 
ruffians  in  California."  But,  thanks  to  a  kind 
Providence,  the  election  passed  off  quietly — and  I 
do  not  remember  even  one  fist-fight  taking  place 
that  day. 

Well,  the  result  of  the  election  was,  as  all  read- 
ers knoAV,  that  Buchanan  carried  the  State,  with 
Eillmore  second,  and  our  candidate — Fremont — last 
in  the  race.  California  polled  something  over 
twenty-two  thousand  votes,  and  Trinity  county 
about  one  hundred  and  seventy  votes.  Seventy- 
four  Republican  votes  were  j)olled  in  Weaverville. 
So  much  for  a  beginning.  Many  more  votes  would 
have  been  polled,  but  men  were  afraid  to  vote  their 
sentiments,  threats  of  all  kinds  being  made  against 
those  who  would  dare  vote  the  black  Republican 
ticket. 

When  we  look  back,  after  a  lapse  of  nearly  thirty- 
four  years,  and  take  into  consideration  that  band  of 
twenty-two  thousand  fearless  and  freedom-loving 
American  citizens  Avho  voted  for  Eremont  and 
Dayton  in  1856,  amidst  jeers  and  threats  and  boy- 
cotts and  rotten  eggs,  and  in  danger  of  mobs  which 
often  occurred,  without  any  hope  of  future  reward, 
we  can  see  that  duty  and  a  keen  sense  of  justice 
induced  them  to  follow  the  new  light;  that  no  re- 


340  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

wards  or  promises  of  fat  offices,  either  civil  or  mili- 
tary, were  needed  to  prompt  such  men  to  duty. 
Kobly  did  they  perform  it.  They  planted  well,  and 
the  crop  has  been  harvested  sooner  than  many  of 
us  expected.  I  often  wonder  how  many  of  the  old 
pioneer  Republicans  of  California  are  now  in  the 
land  of  the  living,  and  how  many  of  them  are  now 
residents  of  this  State.  Many  of  them  laid  down 
their  lives  on  the  battle-fields  of  the  Re])ublic,  that 
their  country  might  live.  Among  them  was  the 
gallant  and  eloquent  Baker,  who,  while  leading  his 
Calif ornians  against  their  country's  foes,  was  cruelly 
sacrificed  at  Ball's  Bluff  in  1861,  with  many  other 
brave  boys  from  our  Golden  State. 


FIRST    REPUBLICAN    STATE    TICKET-  341 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

First  Republican  State  Ticket. — Effort  to  Divide  the  State. 

The  candidates  for  Governor. — Pistol  politics. — John  B.  Weller's  speech. 
—The  two  wings  of  the  Democratic  party. — Duels. — Slaves  in 
California. — "  Virginia  poorhouse." — Broderick  and  Gwin. 

After  the  Presidential  election  in  1856,  things  in 
the  political  line  went  on  smoothly  for  a  time,  the 
Republican  party  gaining  strength  slowly  but 
surely.  The  next  contest  was  to  be  for  Governor 
and  State  officers,  in  1857.  The  Republicans  of  the 
State  had  but  little  hope  of  winning  anything;  but 
they  put  on  a  bold  front,  called  a  convention  and 
nominated  Edward  Stanley  for  Governor,  with  a 
full  State  ticket.  Mr.  Stanley  was  a  Southern  man 
by  birth,  a  ^"orth  Carolinian,  and  had,  I  believe, 
been  Governor  of  his  native  State  and  a  mem- 
ber  of  Congress.  He  was  a  lawyer,  and  stood  at 
the  head  of  his  profession;  a  man  of  pure  and  spot- 
less life,  and  an  ardent  and  enthusiastic  Republi- 
can. The  Democrats  nominated  John  B.  Weller, 
one  of  the  leading  Democrats  in  the  State,  and  a 
native  of  Ohio.  Bowie  was  the  American  party's 
nominee  for  Governor,  but  he  cut  a   small  figure, 


342  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

although  polling  more  votes  than  Edward  Stanley, 
the  Republican  nominee.  The  Democratic  fight 
was  to  down  the  black  Kej)ublicans,  or  "  nigger- 
worshippers  "  as  they  were  frequently  called,  and 
often  they  were  termed  the  "  sectional  party." 

Here  A\ere  two  men  leading  their  respective 
parties — John  B.  AVeller  at  the  head  of  the  pro- 
slavery  Democratic  part} ,  born  and  reared  in  free- 
soil  Ohio,  and  Edward  Stanley,  born  and  reared  in 
pro-slavery  ^orth  Carolina,  leading  the  Kepublican 
free-soil  party  in  California.  This  was  an  anomaly 
that  I  do  not  believe  had  a  parallel  in  any  other 
State  in  the  Union. 

In  1857  I  had  removed  to  Sonoma  county,  and 
was  residing  in  the  city  of  Petaluma.  John  B. 
Weller  was  stumping  the  State,  and  delivered  one 
of  his  pro-slavery  sj)eeches  in  that  city.  Sonoma 
county  at  that  time  was  the  banner  Democratic 
county  of  the  State,  most  of  its  early  settlers  having 
come  from  the  border  Southern  States  and  being  in- 
tensely j)ro-slavery  in  their  politics.  The  name  of 
"  black  Rej)ublicans  "  stunk  in  their  nostrils  worse 
than  that  of  a  horse-thief.  Petaluma  at  that  time 
was  the  principal  city  or  town  of  tlie  county.  There 
was  quite  a  number  of  Republicans  in  the  place, 
and  a  small  organization  was  kept  up.  A  number 
of  tlie  business  men  were  Rei)ublicans,  but  would 
not  join  the  organization  for  fear  of  their  business 
being  injured. 

But  let  us  come  back  to  John  B.  Weller's  speech. 


FIRST    REPUBLICAN    STATE    TICKET.  348 

From  the  time  lie  mounted  the  rostrum  for  nearly 
two  hours  he  poured  into  the  Kepublican  ranks 
such  a  tirade  of  abuse  as  I  think  has  never  been  ex- 
celled in  the  State.  To  the  American  party  he  had 
very  little  to  say,  but  advised  every  man  that  was 
formerly  a  member  of  tliat  party,  if  they  were  true 
Americans,  to  come  over  to  the  Democratic  party 
and  save  their  countrv:  which  advice  I  believe 
nearly  every  one  of  Southern  birth  acted  on,  leav- 
ing the  Northern  men  who  were  not  Rex)ublicans 
to  vote  alone  for  Bowie — the  same  old  trick  they 
j)layed  on  them  two  years  previous  in  the  Presi- 
dential election.  Weller  made  at  the  close  of  his 
speech  a  powerful  appeal  for  all  Democrats  to  stick 
to  their  ticket  and  not  to  scratch  a  single  name.  He 
remarked  that  "no  good  Democrat  ever  scratched 
his  ticket,"  and  some  one  in  the  crowd  asked  him  if 
he  was  going  to  vote  for  himself. 

"Yes  sir,  I  am;  I  always  vote  for  the  best  man, 
and  when  I  vote  the  whole  of  the  Democratic 
ticket  I  know  I  am  voting  for  the  best  men." 

If  I  remember  correctly,  neither  the  Republican 
nor  the  American  party  sent  any  man  into  Sonoma 
county — it  was  hopelessly  Democratic.  They  sent 
their  vSj)eakers  into  counties  where  they  thought 
they  could  do  some  good.  During  the  war  Sonoma 
county  Av  ould,  at  every  election,  roll  up  her  usual 
Democratic  majority — from  ten  to  sixteen  hundred. 

Well,  in  due  time  the  election  came  oif,  the 
Democrats,  us  usual,  making  a  clean  sweep,  elec- 


344  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFOENIA. 

ting  John  B.  Weller  Governor,  and  Joseph 
Walkiq),  of  Placer  county,  Lieutenant-Governor, 
and  both  the  Congressmen.  Both  branches  of  the 
Legislature  were  largely  Democratic.  If  my 
memory  is  not  at  fault,  San  Erancisco  elected  a 
few  Republican  members,  and  some  of  the  mining 
counties  elected  a  few  Americans  or  Know-noth- 
ings. Such  was  the  state  of  politics  in  California 
in  1857. 

On  the  assembling  of  the  Legislature  tlie  chivalry 
wing  of  the  Democratic  party  had  control  of  both 
branches,  with  the  Governor  and  Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor. The  two  Congressmen  elected  were  Scott 
and  McKibbin.  Scott  was  a  "chiv."  of  the  first 
water,  while  Joe  McKibbin  was  rather  on  the  free- 
soil  order— a  friend  of  D.  C.  Broderick.  At  this 
time,  and  for  several  years  previous,  there  were  in 
the  Democratic  party  two  factions  that  hated  each 
other  with  as  deadly  a  hatred  as  ever  existed  be- 
tween Guelph  and  Ghibelline,  and  ready  to  spring 
at  each  other's  throats  on  the  slightest  provocation. 
I  have  made  reference  to  the  chivalry  wing  of  the 
Democrats — led  and  controlled  by  such  men  as 
Gwin,  Weller,  Terry,  Latham,  Burch,  Scott  and 
men  of  their  political  opinions— who  set  up  the 
divine  institution  of  slavery  as  the  summit  of  all 
earthly  blessings,  and  when  in  power  their  votes 
and  influence  were  used  to  propagate  and  help  it. 
California  was  only  secondary  in  their  minds  and 
affections.    The  other  faction  were  known  as  Brode- 


FIRST    REPUBLICAN    STATE    TICKET.  345 

rick  Democrats,  men  avIio  did  not  fall  down  and 
worship  Baal.  They  were  generally  men  from  the 
free  States,  and  led  and  controlled  by  such  men  as 
D.  C.  Broderick,  Joseph  McKibbin,  John  Bigler, 
John  CurrA'  and  Democrats  of  that  stripe.  There 
was  a  tierce  war  carried  on  between  these  factions, 
from  the  formation  of  the  Constitutional  Convention 
which  gave  California  her  free  Constitution,  down  to 
tlie  day  that  the  fatal  dueling  pistol  in  the  hands  of 
Judge  Terry  took  the  life  of  that  Democratic  cham- 
pion of  the  people's  rights,  David  C.  Broderick.  For 
ten  years  this  fierce  war  of  Democratic  factions  was 
waged  within  its  organization,  each  party  trying  for 
supremacy.  The  lamented  Broderick  was  not  the 
only  one  that  fell  by  their  factional  fights.  State 
Senator  William  I.  Furguson  fell  by  the  duelist 
bullet  of  George  Pen  Johnson,  in  the  3  ear  of  1858. 
Furguson  was  one  of  the  rising  young  men  of  the 
State,  and,  as  in  the  case  of  his  friend  Broderick,  a 
quarrel  was  sought  with  him.  While  in  San  Fran- 
cisco he  was  challenged  by  Johnson,  a  well-known 
duelist.  F^urguson  had  to  be  got  out  of  the  way — 
he  knew  too  much  about  their  bargains  and  sales; 
it  would  never  do  to  let  his  evidence  come  before 
the  people  of  California  at  the  j)olls.  It  was  said  at 
the  time  that  Furguson  was  personally  knowing  to 
some  very  dirty  jobs  between  the  factions.  Yet, 
with  all  their  family  quarrelings  and  deadly  hatred, 
just  before  election  they  would  patch  up  a  truce  and 
generally  come  forth  a  united  Democracy  at  the 


346  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

polls  on  election  day.  I  once  said  to  a  prominent 
Democrat,  a  friend  of  mine  who  was  running  for 
Congress: 

"  Colonel,  liow  is  it  that  you  Democrats  are  al- 
ways fighting  and  quarreling  and  ready  to  cut  each 
other's  throats  before  election,  and  vet  when  you 
come  to  the  polls  you  all  vote  the  straight  Demo- 
cratic ticket?"     He  replied,  laughing: 

"  Wh}^,  John,  we  are  like  cats — the  more  Ave  fight 
and  quarrel,  the  more   we  propagate   our  species." 

Prom  1849  to  1861  the  State  of  California  was  as 
much  under  the  control  of  the  Southern  wing  of  the 
Democratic  party  as  South  Carolina,  and  voted  in 
Congress  for  Southern  interests  to  all  intents  and 
purposes;  as  intensely  Southern  as  Mississix^pi  or 
any  other  of  the  fire-eating  States.  From  the  adop- 
tion of  the  State  constitution  in  1849  to  1861,  the 
Southern  Aving  of  that  party  did  ever}  thing  in  their 
XJower  to  divide  the  State,  their  purpose  being  to 
make  a  slave  State  out  of  the  Southern  portion  of  it. 
One  of  the  members  from  San  Joaquin  county,  if  I 
remember  correctly,  introduced  a  resolution  in  the 
Assembly  at  the  session  if  1852,  inviting  and  allow- 
ing fifty  families  from  the  Southern  States,  with 
their  negro  slaves,  to  settle  in  the  Southern  coun- 
ties. It  is  said  that  some  families  actually  came,  but 
they  found  they  could  not  hold  their  slaves,  so  gave 
uj)  the  job  and  sent  some  of  them  back,  while  others 
became  free.  Such  was  the  fight  that  Southern 
Democrats  made  to  establish  the  "divine  institu- 


FIRST    REPUBLICAN    STATE    TICKET.  347 

tion "  in  California.  Eor  twelve  years  that  fight 
was  kej)t  up  —until  the  first  rebel  gun  was  fired  at 
Fort  Sumter,  which  was  the  death-knell  to  their 
pretentions.  Looking  back  over  that  twelve  years 
between  1849  and  1861,  it  is  surprising  how  the 
Southern  Aving  of  the  Democratic  party  managed 
to  perpetuate  its  power.  Being  not  over  one-third 
of  the  voters  of  the  State,  its  politicians  managed 
to  rule  the  State  and  fill  nine-tenths  of  the  ofiices, 
from  XTnited  States  Senators  down  to  constables. 
I  have  often  asked  some  of  them  why  it  was  so. 
Their  reply  generally  was: 

"  We  of  the  South  are  better  politicians  than  you 
Northern  men,  and  we  were  born  to  rule  anyway. 
You  Northern  men  are  good  workers  and  business 
men,  and  Ave  are  perfectly  Avilling  you  should  do  it." 

Eor  a  long  time  the  custom-house  and  mint  at 
San  Erancisco  Avere  knoAvn  as  the  Virginia  j)oor- 
houses,  from  the  number  of  scions  of  the  first  fami- 
lies of  Virginia  that  Avere  stoAved  away  there  on  fat 
salaries. 

In  the  Legislature  of  1857  occurred  that  memor- 
able election  Avhich  sent  Broderick  to  the  United 
States  Senate,  with  William  M.  Gwin  as  his 
colleague.  Eor  years  Broderick  had  been  planning 
to  reach  that  high  x^osition,  while  the  chiAalry 
Aving,  Avith  equal  persistence,  was  plotting  to  keep 
him  from  the  coveted  prize.  When  the  Legislature 
met  in  January,  1857,  it  Avas  found  in  caucus  that 
Broderick  was  master  of  the  situation,  and  that  not 


348  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

only  could  he  be  elected  himself,  but  he  could  dic- 
tate the  election  of  the  other  Senator  as  well.  Gwin 
and  Latham  both  aspired  to  that  honor.  It  was 
then  that  Grwin  came  out  in  a  public  card,  acknowl- 
edging his  obligation  to  the  stone-cutter's  son  for 
his  election,  and  resigning  all  his  j)olitical  patron- 
age to  Broderick  and  his  friends.  Humiliating  in- 
deed it  must  have  been  to  this  proud  son  of  chivalry 
to  make  those  humble  confessions  to  the  man,  above 
all  others,  his  faction  hated  and  despised.  But  he 
never  intended  to  keep  the  promise  he  made  to 
Broderick,  in  order  to  secure  his  election.  When 
Gwin  arrived  at  Washington  he  had  the  President 
— Buchanan — and  the  whole  Democratic  party  of 
the  South  at  his  back.  Broderick  and  his  friends 
were  completely  ignored,  and  Grwin  and  the 
chivalry  were  again  in  the  ascendant  in  California. 


THE    DEMOCRACY    OF    THE    STATE     DIVIDED.  349 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

The  Democracy  of  THE  State  Divided. — Killing  of  Broderick. 

The  Democracy  divided  on  the  Kansas  question. — Fights,  murders, 
ballot-box  stuffing. — Stanford  and  Latham  the  nominees  for 
Governor. — Broderick  killed  by  Terry. 

Again  in  1859  the  State  election  came  on,  and 
we  had  a  somewhat  different  opponent  to  battle 
with.  The  Kansas  troubles  were  agitating  the 
country.  Civil  war  had  commenced  in  that  terri- 
tory on  a  small  scale.  The  Kansas-Nebraska  Act 
had  left  the  slavery  question  to  the  decision  of  the 
people  of  the  territory  directly  interested.  Free- 
State  men  from  the  North  had  emigrated  to  Kansas 
under  the  ausj)ices  of  the  anti-slaver}^  societies  in 
quite  large  numbers,  while  the  Southern  States  had 
sent  their  j)ro-slavery  men  to  plant  the  "  divine  in- 
stitution "  in  that  free  land.  The  anti-slavery  party, 
it  is  said,  had  armed  its  disciples  with  Sharp's  rifles, 
free-soil  tracts  and  bibles;  while  the  pro-slavery  em- 
igrants (known  as  border  ruffians)  were  armed 
with  the  revolver  and  deadly  bowie-knife.  On  the 
prairies  of  Kansas  those  hostile  factions  met,  each 
side  representing  the  fiery  element  of   its  section. 


350  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 

They  could  not  long  dwell  together  in  peace — it 
needed  but  a  spark  to  ignite  the  whole  mass.  The 
spark  was  not  long  in  coming. 

For  a  number  of  years  the  newspapers  of  the 
land  were  filled  with  accounts  of  fights,  murders, 
ballot-box  stuifings,  and  various  other  crimes  that 
would  disgrace  the  annals  of  the  Apache  or  Co- 
manche Indians.  Both  parties  in  Kansas  called 
conventions  in  order  to  frame  constitutions  for  the 
embryo  State.  The  j)i'o-slavery  party  held  tlieir 
convention  at  Lecompton,  framed  a  constitution, 
and  submitted  it  to  the  people.  Bands  of  armed 
men  crossed  over  from  Missouri,  took  possession  of 
the  polls,  and  would  allow  no  one  to  vote  unless  he 
voted  for  the  Lecompton  constitution,  Aviiich  recog- 
nized the  "  divine  institution  "  of  slavery.  When  the 
free-state  men  saw  that  they  had  the  whole  State 
of  Missouri  to  fight  against  and  to  vote  against,  they 
refused  to  recognize  the  election  or  have  anything 
to  do  with  it,  and  it  of  course  received  a  large  ma- 
jority of  all  the  votes  cast.  In  due  time  the  bantam 
hatched  at  Lecompton,  was,  with  a  great  flourish  of 
trumpets,  sent  on  to  Washington,  styled  the  Le- 
compton constitution,  and  purporting  to  be  the 
work  of  the  people  of  Kansas  at  the  polls;  when,  in 
fact,  not  one-third  of  the  people  of  Kansas  voted  on 
the  day  of  election.  The  whole  machinery  of  the 
election  was  in  the  hands  of  the  pro-slavery  party, 
and  as  long  as  pen,  ink  and  paper  held  out,  they 
were  not  wanting  for  votes  to  give  the  Lecompton 


THE    DEMOCRACY    OF    THE    STATE    DIVIDED.  351 

constitution  all  the  majority  it  needed.  On  its  ar- 
rival at  Washington  it  became  the  adopted  child  of 
President  Buchanan  and  the  Democratic  party. 
Eealty  to  it  became  the  shibboleth  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party,  and  woe  to  the  Democrat  who  had 
the  manliness  and  courage  to  oppose  that  fraud — 
the  most  damnable  that  ever  was  sought  to  be  im- 
posed on  a  free  people  b}^  a  corrupt  administration. 
When  the  bill  to  admit  Kansas  under  the  Lecomp- 
ton  constitution  was  introduced  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States,  then  commenced  the  battle  of 
the  giants.  The  Senate  at  that  time  contained 
some  of  the  greatest  minds  of  the  age.  Such  men 
as  ScAvard  of  x^ew  York,  Sumner  of  Massachusetts, 
Douglas  of  Illinois,  Hamlin  of  Maine,  Broderick  of 
California,  and  many  others  of  national  reputation, 
led  that  historic  fight  for  freedom.  Xor  were  there 
lacking  talent  and  statesmanship  to  advocate  the 
admission  of  Kansas  under  the  Lecomj)ton  consti- 
tution, for  such  men  as  Jefferson  Davis,  Hammond, 
Judah  P.  Benjamin,  Toombs,  Slidell,  William  M. 
Gwin  of  California,  Mason  of  Virginia,  and  the 
whole  South  stood  as  its  sponsors.  Pierce  were  the 
debates  that  took  place  in  the  Senate.  So  powerful 
was  the  party  lash  of  the  Democratic  party  that  but 
three  of  the  Democratic  Senators  then  in  the  Sen- 
ate had  sufficient  indej)endence  to  disobey  its  man- 
dates and  vote  for  the  extension  of  freedom.  These 
men  were  immediately  read  out  of  the  i)arty,  and 
ostracized  both  socially  and  politically  by  the  Pres- 


352  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

ident  and  the  Democratic  party  at  Wasliington. 
Their  names  Avill  stand  in  the  history  of  tlieir 
country  as  men  that  loved  freedom  more  than 
party,  and  the  good  of  their  country  above  the 
smiles  and  plaudits  of  the  slave  power.  Such  were 
Stej)hen  A.  Douglas  of  Illinois,  T>.  C.  Broderick  of 
California,  and  Stuart  of  Michigan. 

The  Lecompton  constitution  was  defeated.  The 
people  of  Kansas  then  called  another  convention, 
framed  a  free  constitution  and  submitted  it  to  the  bona 
^(/6  people  of  Kansas  for  ratification  in  the  summer  of 
1858,  and  it  Avas  ratified  by  tlie  lawful  voters  of 
Kansas  by  over  five  to  one — yet  the  State  was  not 
admitted  to  the  Union  until  January  29th,  1861. 
The  slave  j)0wer  kept  her  out  as  long  as  possible. 
But  to  come  back  to  events  in  California. 

I  had  to  dwell  somewhat  on  events  taking  place 
in  other  sections  of  the  land,  that  my  readers 
miglit  have  a  better  understanding  of  what  took 
place  in  California.  Our  State  election  for  Gover- 
nor, State  officers  and  members  of  Congress  occur- 
red in  1859,  and  the  parties  in  the  field  contending 
for  tlie  mastery  were  tlie  Republican  party,  that 
portion  of  tlie  Democratic  party  sometimes  called 
the  Lecompton  Democrats,  and  the  anti-Lecompton 
or  Broderick  Democrats — men  opposed  to  the  ad- 
ministration because  of  the  attitude  Buchanan  had 
taken  on  the  Kansas  question,  and  opposed  to  the 
President  of  the  United  States  sending  United 
States  troops  to  Kansas  for  the  suppression  of  free 


THE    DEMOCRACY    OF    THE    STATE    DIVIDED.  353 

speech  and  free  votes.  The  American  or  KnoAv- 
nothing  party  had  gone  out  of  existence — the 
nation  had  more  on  its  hands  than  to  wrangle  over 
a  few  tlionsand  foreign-born  citizens  and  the  Pope 
of  Rome.  In  1859,  then,  we  had  three  xiarties  in 
the  tiehl.  The  Kepuhlican  x^arty  held  its  convention 
at  Sacramento  Citv,  and  nominated  Leland  Stan- 
ford — then  a  merchant  of  Sacramento — for  Gover- 
nor, James  E.  Kennedy  for  Lieutenant-Governor, 
and  Joseph  McKibbin  and  E.  D.  Baker  for  Con- 
gress, with  a  full  State  ticket. 

The  Lecompton  or  pro-slavery  wing  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party  nominated  Milton  S.  Latliam  for  Gov- 
ernor, and  J.  G.  Downey  of  Los  Angeles  for  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor. Latham  I  believe  was  a  native 
of  Ohio,  but  when  a  young  man  went  to  Alabama 
as  a  school  teacher,  and  there  learned  to  out  Herod 
Herod  in  his  devotion  to  the  slave  j)ower.  J.  G. 
Downey  was,  I  believe,  an  Irishman  by  birth.  J. 
0.  Burch  and  O.  L.  Scott  were  nominated  for  Con- 
gress, Burch  being  a  Missourian  and  Scott,  I  believe, 
a  Virginian. 

The  anti-Lecompton  Democrats  nominated  Judge 
John  Curry  for  Governor.  Mr.  Curry  was  said  to  be 
a  Bepublican,  had  been  a  warm  supporter  of  David 
C.  Broderick,  and  a  man  of  clean  hands,  politically 
speaking.  John  Conness  was  nominated  for  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor. Eor  Congressmen  Joseph  Mc- 
Kibbin— one  of  the  Bei^ublican  nominees — re- 
ceived the   nomination,  and  S.  A.  Booker,  of  San 


3r)4  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Joaquin  county   for  second  Congressman,  Avith  a 
full  State  ticket. 

Senator  Erode  rick  came  from  Washington  to 
organize  liis  anti-Lecompton  party,  and  jmake  a 
tight  for  his  political  life.  In  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States  he  was  ostracized  by  the  President 
and  the  Democratic  party.  He  had  expected  to  re- 
ward his  friends  with  office,  but  Buchanan  had 
treated  his  recommendations  with  contempt  and 
himself  with  freezing  coldness.  Gwin,  his  col- 
league— the  man  who  had  but  a  short  time  previ- 
ous made  such  liumiliating  concessions  to  him  in 
order  to  be  elected — was  now  tlie  dispenser  of  tlie 
public  patronage  in  California.  After  his  humili- 
ating bargain  with  Broderick,  Grwin  returned  to 
Washington,  and  President  Buchanan  treated  him 
as  a  martyr  to  the  cause.  They  both  returned  to 
California  to  take  part  in  the  State  election.  Both 
Broderick  and  Gwin  stumped  the  State,  each  one 
accusing  the  other  of  political  trickery  and  jobbery. 
Gwin's  sj^eeches  throughout  the  canvass  were 
coupled  with  sneers,  insults  and  personal  abuse  of 
Broderick.  The  pro-slavery  or  Democi-atic  Legis- 
lature tliat  was  elected  in  1858  was  largely  Lecomp- 
ton  and  friendly  to  Gwin.  A  previous  Legislature 
had  passed  resolutions  instructing  Senator  Brode- 
rick to  vote  Avith  the  Administration  on  the  Le- 
compton  issue.  Senator  Broderick  was  too  much  of 
an  honest  man  and  a  lover  of  his  country  to  do  so. 
The  Legislature  in  the  spring  of  1859  passed  reso- 


THE    DEMOCRACY    OF    THE    STATE    DIVIDED-  35o 

lutions  condemning  liini  for  the  language  used  by 
liim  in  the  Senate  regarding  the  President's  atti- 
tude on  the  Lecoinpton  constitution.  The  whole 
tribe  of  Leconipton  politicians  j)oured  out  their 
vials  of  wrath  on  the  head  of  Broderick  as  the 
author  of  all  their  woes.  Broderick  spoke  in  Weaver- 
ville  during  the  campaign,  and  in  his  remarks 
said,  when  he  started  out  to  canvass  the  State,  his 
intentions  had  been  to  discuss  the  political  ques- 
tions of  the  day  in  a  gentlemanly  manner,  but  his 
oj)ponents  would  not  allow  him  to  do  so.  He  re- 
marked that  if  Senator  Gwin  had  any  personal 
grievances  to  settle  with  him  thev  should  be  settled 
in  some  other  way  than  on  the  stump. 

"If  I  have  insulted  Senator  Gwin,"  said  he, 
"  sufficiently  to  induce  him  to  go  about  the  State 
and  make  a  blackguard  of  himself,  he  should  seek 
the  remedy  that  is  oj)en  to  all  gentlemen  who  feel 
oifended." 

He  liad  to  be  got  out  of  their  way.  There  were 
plenty  of  duelists  in  their  ranks  who  stood  read}'  to 
do  the  bidding  of  their  party  on  the  slightest  provo- 
cation, or  without  any  provocation  at  all.  Senator 
Broderick,  like  Senator  Eurguson,  was  a  doomed 
man,  and  sooner  or  later  they  were  bound  to  kill 
him.  The  whole  host  of  the  Southern  politicians 
were  on  his  track,  and  did  everything  they  could 
to  j)rovoke  a  fight,  taunting  him  with  cowardice, 
pusillanimity,  and  belittling  him  in  every  way  that 
was  in  their  power.     They   finally   accomplished 


356  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

their  end.  Broderick  fell  by  the  bullet  of  David  S. 
Terry,  the  man  wliose  life  he  had  been  instrumen- 
tal in  saving  when  the  vigilantes,  in  1856,  at  San 
Erancisco,  had  him  a  prisoner  at  Eort  Gunny  Bags 
for  the  stabbing  of  Hopkins,  the  vigilance  com- 
mittee policeman.  How  did  David  S.  Terry  re- 
ward Bi'oderick  for  his  services  and  friendship  on 
that  memorable  occasion^  Broderick  was  like 
unto  the  man,  who,  finding  a  serpent  frozen  and 
lifeless,  warmed  it  to  life  in  his  bosom,  and  then 
for  his  recompense,  it  stung  him  to  death. 

David  0.  Broderick,  the  j>ec>j)le's  friend,  lies 
sleeping  in  Lone  Mountain  cemetery,  beloved  and 
respected,  his  memory  enshrined  in  the  hearts  of 
his  countrymen  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 
A  nation  mourned  his  loss — lie  died  a  martyr  to 
his  convictions.  How  was  it  with  his  slayer, David 
S.  Terry ']  Despised  and  shunned  by  a  large  y)oy- 
tion  of  his  countrymen— a  man  of  blood.  His  life 
in  this  State  was  one  of  turmoil  and  contention;  at 
war  with  himself  and  everjijhing  that  stood  in  his 
way.  In  the  evening  of  his  life  he  met  a  violent 
death  at  the  hands  of  David  Xagle,  a  United  States 
officer  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties.  He  died  as  he 
had  lived,  and  went  to  his  grave  unhonored  and  un- 
wept. Those  who  knew  him  best  say  he  had  many 
good  qualities  to  ofl'set  his  bad  ones.  Let  the  good 
ones  live,  the  bad  ones  be  buried  in  the  grave  of 
oblivion. 


THE     POLITICAL     CAMPAIGN    OF    1859-  357 


CHAPTER  XL. 

The  Political  Campaign  of  1859. 

A  triangular  fight. — California's  representatives  in  Congress  voting  with 
the  South. — Latham  elected  to  succeed  Broderick. — Mourning 
Broderick's  death. — John  G.  Downey,  Governor. 

During  tlie  canvass  of  1859  the  three  j)arties  put 
forth  their  utmost  strength.  The  Republicans  had 
able  speakers  in  the  field.  E.  D.  Baker,  then  nomi- 
nee for  Congress,  was  said  to  be  the  brightest  orator 
that  ever  stumped  the  State;  and  that  was  saying  a 
good  deal,  for  whatever  else  California  needed,  she 
was  not  short  of  good  speakers  and  politicians. 
Eor  ten  years  California  was  the  dumping-ground 
of  disappointed  politicians  east  of  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains. They  came  to  California  to  recuperate  their 
fortunes  and  enlighten  the  poor  benighted  Cali- 
fornia miners.  Josejih  McKibbin,  the  other  nomi- 
nee on  the  Rei)ublican  ticket,  was  a  fair  speaker 
and  a  member  of  Congress.  Leland  Stanford,  the 
nominee  for  Governor,  was  a  fair,  average  speaker, 
and  stumped  the  lower  counties  for  the  ticket.  The 
other  State  ofiicers  had  their  fields  of  labor  parceled 
out  to  them. 

Milton  S.  Latham,  the  Lecompton  nominee   for 


358  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Governor,  was  then  considered  the  ablest  Demo- 
cratic speaker  of  the  State.  John  G.  Downey,  the 
nominee  for  Lieutenant-Governor,  Avas  from  Los 
Ans^eles,  and  did  liis  work  in  the  southern  portion 
of  the  State.  John  0.  Burch,  tlie  Lecompton 
nominee  for  Congress,  was  a  good  speaker,  and  a 
lawyer  by  profession.  He  resided  at  Weaverville 
and  practiced  his  jirofession,  having  tried  his  luck 
in  the  mines  with  but  little  success.  Like  the 
balance  of  the  Southern  politicians,  he  was  a  strong 
pro-slavery  man.  Being  born  in  Missouri,  where 
he  lived  until  he  came  to  California  in  1850,  he  had 
naturally  inherited  his  pro-slavery  opinions — a  man 
of  good  impulses,  warm-hearted,  and  generous  to  a 
fault.  Such  a  man  was  John  C.  Burch,  a  strong 
Democrat,  a  man  who  believed  that  the  Demo- 
cratic party  could  do  no  wrong.  I  remember,  in 
discussing  j^olitics  one  day,  I  said  to  him : 

"  Burch,  if  the  Democratic  party  would  go  in  for 
dissolving  the  Union,  and  call  it  a  Democratic 
measure,  you  would  go  for  it  if  you  were  elected." 
He  replied,  "  I  would  not."  He  was  elected,  and 
when  the  nation's  life,  in  1861,  seemed  to  hang  by 
a  slender  thread — when  State  after  State  was  with- 
drawing her  Senators  and  Bej)resentatives  from 
both  houses  of  Congress  and  passing  secession  ordi- 
nances, Representative  Burch,  knowing  full  well 
that  California  could  never  be  carried  into  the 
Southern  confederacy,  did  all  he  could  while  at 
Washington  to  form   a  Pacific  Bepublic.     His  at- 


THE     POLITICAL     CAMPAIGN     OF     1859.  359 

teinpt  came  to  ntiught — California  was  true  to  her- 
self and  loyal  to  the  nation  that  gave  her  birlli. 
Scott,  liis  colleague,  was  also  a  man  of  Southern 
birth — I  believe  a  A^irginian — and  of  fair  abilities. 
He  belonged  to  the  Lecompton  or  chivalry  wing  of 
the  party,  and  while  in  Congress  voted  with  the 
secessionists  and  for  Southern  measures  just  as 
much  as  if  he  represented  South  Carolina  or  Miss- 
issippi in  Congress,  instead  of  the  free  and  loyal 
State  of  California.  John  Conness,  the  anti-Le- 
compton  candidate  for  Lieutenant-Governor,  was  an 
Irishman  b}^  birth,  and  was  from  El  Dorado  county. 
He  was  a  fair  speaker,  and  canvassed  the  central 
and  southern  portions  of  the  State.  Samuel  A. 
Booker  of  San  Joaquin,  the  second  Congressman, 
canvassed  the  southern  counties.  I  know  but  little 
of  him,  as  I  never  heard  him  address  an  audience, 
but  he  stood  well  in  public  esteem. 

The  three  parties  warmed  well  to  their  work. 
Before  the  canvass  had  advanced  far  the  Bepubli- 
cans  were  pouring  hot  shot  into  the  Lecompton 
ranks,  and  into  James  Buchanan  in  particular,  for 
his  doings  in  the  Kansas  troubles,  and  for  his  un- 
just manner  of  treating  the  bona  fide  settlers  of  that 
territory  by  sending  United  States  troojJS  to  dra- 
goon them  into  submission.  The  Bepublicans  in 
the  campaign  were  treated  with  a  little  more 
courtesy  than  had  ever  been  shown  them  before  in 
the  State.  Thej  had  carried  ten  States  in  the  last 
Presidential  election,  and  were  increasing  in  Call- 


360  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

fornia.  Their  candidates  and  speakers  were  men  of 
good  standing,  and  well  known  in  the  State.  The 
border-ruffian  element  *  was  learning  the  lesson 
that  Amerians,  when  aroused,  could  giye  as  well  as 
take  hard  knocks.  In  some  precincts  the  Republi- 
can speakers  were  interrupted  and  insulted  by  the 
border  ruffians  as  usual,  but  not  to  as  great  an  ex- 
tent as  in  previous  elections.  Their  attention  was 
more  taken  up  with  the  fight  between  the  two 
wings  of  their  own  party.  I  verily  believe  that  the 
pro-slavery  wing,  or  the  Gwin  faction,  would  have 
much  preferred  Leland  Stanford  for  Governor  to 
John  Curry.  Anything  to  down  David  C.  Brod- 
erick  and  his  friends,  was  tlieir  motto,  and  there 
was  little  love  lost.  The  anti-Lecomptonites  were 
as  anxious  to  beat  Gwin  and  his  faction  as  the  Le- 
comtonites  were  to  beat  the  former.  It  was  very 
amusing  for  Republicans  to  hear  their  old  enemies 
abusing  each  other  and  calling  each  other  pet  names. 
Broderick's  discourses  on  the  stump  were  princi- 
pally relating  to  Gwin's  humiliation  and  trickery, 
his  broken  promises  and  his  treachery  to  Cali- 
fornia, the  State  that  had  honored  him  with  a  seat 
in  the  United  States  Senate.  He  scored  Gwin  on  the 
Homestead  bill,  as  being  opposed  to  it,  and  accused 
him  of  being  the  paid  agent  of  the  Pacific  Mail 
Steamshij)  Company,  that  Avas  then  monoj)olizing  tlie 
carrying  trade  and  mail  between  New  York  and 
San  Erancisco.  Gwin  would  be  introducing  railroad 
bills  in  the  Senate,  but  they  were  generally  pigeon- 


THE    POLITICAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    1859.  361 

holed  until  he  got  ready  to  come  back  to  his  con- 
stituents in  California.  Then  he  would  stick  them 
in  his  coat-tail  pockets  to  exhibit  to  his  constituents, 
and  try  to  make  them  believe  that  he  was  working 
for  a  railroad  across  the  plains.  A  good  many 
newspapers  were  uncharitable  enough  to  say  that 
the  honorable  Senator  was  all  the  time  in  the  pay 
of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Company  to  kill  all 
such  railroad  bills,  and  they  made  a  great  many 
people  in  California  believe  it  was  the  truth.  On 
the  other  hand  Senator  Gwin  stigmatized  Senator 
Broderick  for  not  obeying  the  resolutions  of  the 
Legislature  of  California  on  the  Lecompton  con- 
stitution question,  and  Avith  being  a  renegade  from 
the  Democratic  party — that  he  had  been  read  out 
of  the  party. 

It  ap]3eared  from  the  discussion  during  the  can- 
vass that  Milton  S.  Latham  was  somewhat  mixed 
up  in  the  previous  Senatorial  contest.  It  was  as- 
serted at  the  time  that  he  was  willing  to  relinquish 
to  Broderick  all  the  apj)ointments,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  three  or  four  that  he  had  promised  to  some 
of  his  j)articular  friends  at  San  Erancisco,  for 
Broderick's  assistance  in  electing  Latham  to  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States.  It  was  said  that 
Senator  Furguson  was  the  negotiator  between 
Broderick  and  Latham,  and  that  Furguson  had  the 
correspondence  in  the  transaction.  It  was  certainly 
believed  at  the  time  that  this  was  the  j)rincipal 
reason  for  the  duel  between  Ceorge  Pen  Johnson 


o62  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 

and  Ferguson — that  those  letters  might  be  had 
possession  of  by  Latham  and  his  friends,  and  which 
went  to  prove  it.  It  was  said  that,  after  Eerguson 
was  killed  in  the  duel  with  Johnson,  his  private 
desk  was  broken  oj)en  and  those  letters  aj^pertain- 
ing  to  the  Senatorial  bargain  and  sale  were  stolen 
therefrom.  Latham  denied  the  accusation  on  the 
stump.  Eerguson  was  in  his  grave,  and  the  papers 
relating  to  it  were  stolen  from  the  desk  of  the  dead 
Senator.  And  so  stands  the  matter  up  to  the 
present  day. 

Sucli  was  the  standing  of  political  parties  at  the 
State  election  of  1859.  The  election  occurred  on 
the  7th  day  of  September,  and  the  cliivalry  wing  of 
the  Democratic  party  came  out  triumphant  as 
usual,  electing  their  Avhole  State  ticket,  Avith  the 
two  Congressmen — Burch  and  Scott.  A  few  days 
after  the  election.  Judge  David  S.  Terry,  one  of  the 
Supreme  Judges  of  the  State,  resigned  his  seat  on 
the  bench,  and  challenged  Senator  Broderick  for 
some  words  spoken  at  a  breakfast-table,  if  I  re- 
member correctlv.  Broderick  had  made  the  remark 
that  if  Judge  Terry  had  made  such  and  such  re- 
marks about  him,  he  Avould  now  have  to  alter  his 
opinion  of  Judge  Terry.  He  had  believed  him  to 
be  the  only  honest  man  on  the  Supreme  Bench,  but 
he  had  now  to  alter  his  opinion.  These  words,  or 
words  to  the  same  effect,  were  spoken  three  or 
four  months  before  the  challenge  was  sent  to 
Broderick  by  Terry.     Senator  Broderick  accepted 


THE     POLITICAL     CAMPAIGN    OP    1S59.  363 

Terry's  cliallenge,  and  fell  mortally  wounded,  sur- 
viAdng  but  two  or  three  days  after  the  duel.  His 
last  and  dying  words  were: 

"  They  have  killed  me  because  I  opposed  the  ex- 
tension of  slavery  and  a  corrupt  adminis  ration!" 

Thus  died  Senator  Broderick — one  of  earth's 
noblemen.  California  never  realized  the  worth 
of  the  man  until  he  lay  dead  in  his  cothn.  Then 
a  burst  of  indignation  went  forth  from  tlie  press  and 
people,  from  San  Diego  to  Del  ^orte,  against  his 
slayers.  Three-fourths  of  the  people  of  the  State 
mourned  him  as  a  martyr  to  the  people's  cause. 
The  eloquent  Baker  jn-onounced  his  funeral  ora- 
tion, filled  with  eulogy.  Eew  in  that  vast  assembly 
but  looked  on  tlie  dead  Senator's  cause  as  their 
own.  His  funeral  was  the  largest  and  most  impos- 
ing that  had  been  seen  uj)  to  that  time  in  San 
Francisco.  Not  only  in  California  did  the  X3eople 
do  honor  to  his  memory;  but  in  the  city  of  New 
York,  when  the  news  reached  there  of  his  untimely 
death,  the  funeral  solemnities  were  repeated,  and 
an  immense  throng  of  peojjle  attended.  The  hearse 
was  drawn  by  eight  gray  horses,  and  the  oration  was 
pronounced  by  John  W.  Dwindle.  Seldom  had 
Kew  York  City  witnessed  the  like.  The  i)eople 
of  California  erected  an  imposing  monument  to  his 
memory.  But  David  C.  Broderick  needed  no  other 
monument  than  that  he  had  erected  in  the  hearts 
of  his  countrymen  and  in  the  history  of  California. 

By  the  death  of  Senator  Broderick,  his  seat   in 


364  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  United  States  Senate  became  vacant,  and  the 
question  was  in  every  loyal  man's  mind,  who  will 
be  apx^ointed  to  fill  it  '^  The  question  was  often 
asked:  Will  they  aj)point  one  of  the  clique  that  was 
instrumental  in  his  death  1  Many  thought-  they 
would;  others  thought  they  dare  not  face  public 
oj)inion  by  so  doing.  H.  P.  Haun  of  Marysville 
was  appointed  to  the  vacancy.  Judge  Haun  was  a 
pro-slavery  Democrat,  but  a  man  above  reproach. 
He  was  appointed  until  the  meeting  of  the  Legis- 
lature, whose  duty  it  was  to  fill  the  vacancy.  If  I 
remember  correctly,  Milton  S.  Latham,  the  Gover- 
nor-elect, was  chosen  by  the  Legislature.  Latham 
had  made  a  x^romise  that  if  he  was  elected  Gover- 
nor he  would  serve  out  his  term,  and  not  aspire  to 
the  Senate;  but  the  love  of  the  Senatorial  toga  was 
too  great  in  him  to  keep  his  promise  to  the  people. 
The  Legislature  elected  him,  and  he  resigned 
the  Governorship  for  the  more  glittering  prize,  and 
John  G.  Downey  became   Governor  of   California. 


THE    PRESIDENTIAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    1860-  365 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

The  Presidential  Campaign  of  i860. — The  State  Carried  for 

Lincoln. 

The  bitter  feeling  towards  "  Black  Republicans." — Andy  Lyons. — Abra- 
ham Lincoln  and  Stephen  A.  Douglas. — The  Charleston  convention. 
— The  various  candidates  for  the  Presidency. 

After  the  State  election  that  took  place  in  Sep- 
tember, 1859,  and  the  death  of  Senator  Broderick, 
the  pro-slavery  wing  of  the  Democratic  party 
seemed  to  be  firmly  seated  in  power.  Broderick — 
the  man  of  all  others  whom  they  feared  and  hated 
in  California — was  dead.  The  State  Government 
was  largely  Democratic,  also  both  branches  of  the 
Legislature.  Senators  Gwin  and  Haun,  and  Bep- 
resentatives  Bnrch  and  Scott  were  pro-slavery 
Democrats,  and  as  subservient  to  the  slave  power 
as  if  they  represented  Mississippi  in  Congress,  in- 
stead of  California.  It  looked  as  if  our  fair  State  of 
California  was  to  be  for  a  long  time  to  come 
chained  to  the  black  car  of  slavery,  instead  of  array- 
ing herself  where  she  belonged — where  God  and 
nature  intended  her  to  be — beside  her  free  sister 
States  of  the  ]!!^orth  and  AYest.     But  it  was  not  for 


366  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

mortals  to  penetrate  the  future.  There  are  old 
sayings  that  it  is  always  darkest  just  before  day,  and 
every  dark  cloud  has  its  silver  lining.  Little  we  Re- 
publicans thought,  in  1859,  that  the  Democrats  had 
gained  their  last  victory  for  nearly  a  decade.  Yet 
so  it  was.  Politically,  the  horizon  looked  dark  for 
them  in  California.  The  next  year— that  is,  in  1860 
— the  Presidential  campaign  was  to  be  fought. 

The  Republicans  had  as  yet  scarcely  carried  a 
county  in  the  State,  though  San  Erancisco  and 
Sacramento  counties  had  been  making  large  Re- 
publican gains,  and  the  balance  of  the  State  was 
gaining  slowly.  But  the  Republicans  were  plucky, 
and  were  not  discouraged  by  repeated  defeats. 
Many  men  at  that  time  were  genuine  Republicans 
at  heart,  but  did  not  have  the  moral  courage  to 
avow  themselves  as  such.  Por  six  years  the  chivalry 
party  had  tried  to  cast  such  odium  and  ridicule  on 
the  name  "Republican,"  that  many  weak-kneed 
Republicans  were  kept  from  avowing  themselves  as 
such.  They  could  not  stand  the  ridicule,  or  the 
idea  of  being  called  a  black  Republican;  and  many 
others  who  had  been  Democrats  all  their  lives, 
but  were  anti-slavery  men,  clung  to  the  Democratic 
name,  with  the  hope  that  something  might  turn  up 
that  would  relieve  them  from  the  necessity  of 
changing  their  party  and  their  party  affiliations. 

The  Democratic  party  was  the  most  thoroughly 
organized  institution  that  ever  existed  in  America. 
It  punished  its  delinquents  without  mercy,  and  re- 


THE    PRESIDENTIAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    I860.  367 

warded  its  friends  with  no  unsparing  hand.     To  its 
thorough  organization  it  owes  its  many  victories. 

Woe  to  tlie  Democrat  who  kicked  in  the  traces 
or  scratched  a  ticket  on  election  dav,  even  for  a 
constable!  So  thorough  was  its  organization  that  a 
Democrat  was  disgraced  if  he  had  the  manliness  to 
scratch  a  ticket  and  vote  for  a  friend  on  the  oppo- 
site ticket.  An  instance  came  under  niv  observa- 
tion  in  1852,  when  J.  W.  Denver  and  R.  G.  Stuart 
were  running  for  the  State  Senate — Denver  on  the 
Democratic  and  Stuart  on  the  Whig  ticket.  Bob 
Stuart  Avas  a  general  favorite  with  the  boys  in 
Weaverville.  There  was  an  old  man  named  Andy 
Lyons  mining  in  one  of  the  gulches  at  that  time. 
He  was  a  dved-in-the-wool  Democrat,  but  friendlv 
to  Stuart  and  very  friendly  to  me.  When  election 
came  on  I  got  Uncle  Andy,  by  a  good  deal  of  per- 
suasion, to  vote  for  Stuart.  After  casting  his  vote, 
he  turned  to  me  and  said: 

"  This  is  the  first  Whig  vote  I  ever  cast,  and  it 
will  be  the  last  one  while  I  live! " 

Eor  ten  years  after  that  election  Uncle  Andy, 
Avhen  he  got  "tight,"  would  come  around  and  give 
me  a  tongue-lashing  for  making  him  disgrace  him- 
self by  voting  the  Whig  ticket.  A  naturalized 
citizen  who  voted  anything  but  a  Democratic  ticket 
was  considered  an  outlaw  entirely. 

Erom  the  gubernatorial  election  in  the  fall  of 
1859  until  the  Presidential  election  1860,  each 
party  was  laying   its  plans  for   the  great  struggle. 


868  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Early  in  June  the  Republicans  called  a  convention 
to  elect  delegates  to  the  National  Convention  thai 
was  to  nominate  candidates  for  President  and  Vice- 
President  of  the  United  States.  The  convention 
met  at  Sacramento  City  and  chose  delegates  to  at- 
tend the  Chicago  Convention.  The  delegates  were 
unpledged  as  to  candidates,  but  it  was  generally 
understood  that  William  H.  Seward  of  New  York 
was  the  first  choice  of  the  convention  for  President. 
A  year  or  two  previous  Abraham  Lincoln  had 
made  that  memorable  canvass  of  the  State  of  Illi- 
nois against  Stephen  A.  Douglas  for  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States.  The  State  of  Illinois  had  been 
Democratic  nearly  ever  since  its  admission  in 
the  year  1818,  and  Stephen  A.  Douglas  had  been 
its  senior  Senator  for  a  number  of  years  and  its 
political  idol.  Douglas  was  the  principal  mover 
and  advocate  of  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  compro- 
mise, which  act  reopened  the  slavery  question,  and 
gave  the  agitators  on  both  sides  a  good  chance  to 
get  in  their  work  on  that  much-vexed  question  of 
slavery.  The  anti-slavery  men  of  Illinois  pitted 
Abraham  Lincoln  against  Stej)hen  A.  Douglas  to 
canvass  the  State  on  the  slavery  question.  Then 
commenced  a  war  of  giants,  Douglas  and  Lincoln, 
for  the  Senatorship.  Their  speeches  were  nearly 
all  published. 

Abraham  Lincoln  by  that  canvass  became  the 
property  of  the  whole  nation — his  reputation  be- 
came too  great  for  the  State  of  Illinois  to  monopo- 


THE    PRESIDENTIAL    CAMPAIGN   OF    I860.  369 

lize  him.  Although  he  was  beaten  for  the  Senate, 
yet  on  taking  the  Avhole  vote  cast  by  the  partizans 
of  both  Lincoln  and  Douglas,  it  was  found  that  the 
popular  vote  was  over  five  thousand  greater  for 
Lincoln's  friends  than  for  Douglas';  yet  Douglas 
had  a  small  majority  on  joint  ballot,  which  elected 
him  to  the  Senate.  • 

A  great  many  Kepublicans  began  to  look  on  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  as  the  coming  man  for  the  Republican 
standard-bearer  in  1860.  When  the  convention 
met  at  Chicago,  Lincoln  and  Seward  of  Kew  York 
Avere  the  two  principal  candidates  before  the  con- 
vention. AVilliam  A.  Seward  of  New  York  had 
been  all  his  life  a  free-soil  Whig,  and  was  then  a 
Senator  from  Kew  York.  He  was  a  man  of  a  high 
order  of  talent,  and  was  classed  as  a  statesman  with 
Clay,  Webster,  Calhoun,  Douglas  and  other  great 
men  of  the  nation.  But,  like  other  great  men,  he 
had  been  a  long  time  in  public  life,  and  had  made 
many  enemies,  both  in  his  own  party  and  among 
his  opponents  in  the  Democratic  party.  Mr. 
Seward  received  a  very  respectable  vote  in  the 
convention,  but  Abraham  Lincoln  received  the 
nomination,  with  Hannibal  Hamlin  of  Maine  as 
Vice-President.  Hamlin  was  at  that  time  senior 
Senator  from  Maine. 

Tlie  prosjiect  for  a  Ilej)ublican  victory  in  Novem- 
ber looked  bright  indeed.  Premont,  four  years 
previous,  had  carried  ten  States  for  the  Rej)ublican 
ticket,  when  the   Rej)ublican  party  was  less   than 


370  PIONEEH    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

two  years  in  existence,  and  had  very  little  organi- 
zation as  a  i>^i'ty.  It  was  now,  in  1860,  well 
organized  and  ready  for  tlie  tight.  Ontside  of  one 
or  two  of  the  Southern  border  States,  the  Rexmbli- 
can  party  had  no  existence  in  any  of  the  Southern 
States — its  whole  strength  lay  in  the  free  States. 
An  abolitionist  or  ii  liepublican  was  not  allowed  to 
live  in  a  slave  State  up  to  that  time;  they  were 
generall}'  tarred  and  feathered  and  mobbed,  and 
driven  out  of  the  State— treated  worse  than  pirates. 
Woe  to  the  man  or  woman  who  had  the  temerity 
to  go  into  a  slave  State  and  say  one  word  against  the 
"  divine  institution  "  of  slavery!  They  made  short 
Avork  of  him  or  her.  Such  were  the  feelings  of  the 
Southern  States  towards  the  anti-slavery  men  of  the 
North  when  Abraham  Lincoln  received  the  Ke- 
publican  nomination  at  Chicago. 

The  Democrats  held  their  convention  at  Charles- 
ton, South  Carolina,  and  there  was  a  full  delegation 
from  every  State  in  the  Union.  Erom  the  first  day 
of  the  convention  it  was  j)lain  to  be  seen  that 
there  was  going  to  be  warm  work  before  the  con- 
vention ended.  The  Southern  delegates  would  not 
be  content  with  anything  less  than  a  complete 
recognition  of  slavery  as  a  national  institution,  and 
would  suifer  no  platform  to  be  ado^^ted  without  it 
pledged  the  Democratic  party,  body  and  soul,  to 
further  tlie  institution  of  slavery.  In  vain  the 
Northern  delegates  pleaded  with  their  Southern 
brethren  that  they  could  never  go  before  the  North- 


THE    PRESIDENTIAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    I860.  371 

era  people,  with  siicli  a  platform  as  tlie  Southern 
delegates  wished  and  insisted  on  adopting,  with 
any  possible  chance  of  success.  Finally  the  South- 
ern delegates  had  it  pretty  much  their  own  way  as 
to  the  xdatform.  When  the  nomination  Avas  made, 
then  came  the  fun.  They  adopted  the  two-thirds 
rule,  and  the  fight  commenced  in  earnest.  Stephen 
A.  Douglas  of  Illinois  was  the  candidate  of  the 
Northern  Democracy,  or  a  large  j)ortion  of  them, 
while  Jefferson  Davis  of  Mississij)j)i,  and  John  0. 
Breckenridge  of  Kentucky,  were  the  two  principal 
candidates  of  the  Southern  delegation.  They  voted 
for  several  days  without  result — it  was  said  as  many 
as  sixty-four  votes  were  taken,  and  that  Benjamin 
E.  Butler  of  Massachusetts  voted  in  the  conven- 
tion sixtv-four  times  for  Jefferson  Davis  for  Presi- 
dent.  Finally  the  conve-ntion  adjourned  for,  I  be- 
lieve, four  weeks,  to  meet  again  and  see  if  they 
could  do  better.  At  their  second  meeting  there  was 
no  more  harmony  than  at  the  first.  The  Southern 
Democrats  would  have  nothing  short  of  a  complete 
surrender  of  the  North  to  the  slave  iJower.  Eor 
forty  years  the  slave  power  had  ruled  the  nation — 
the  North,  for  the  sake  of  peace  submitting  until 
patience  had  ceased  to  be  a  virtue.  By  the  Fugitive 
Slave  Law  they  made  every  man  in  the  North  a 
slave  catcher,  and  compelled  the  use  of  the  North- 
ern prisons  to  confine  men  and  women  in  for  no 
other  crime  than  that  of  wishing  to  be  free.  Several 
of  the  Northern  States   passed  what   were   called 


372  PIONEKR    DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

personal  liberty  bills,  to  offset  the  Eugitive  Slave 
Act.  When  the  Charleston  Convention  met  after 
their  adjournment,  it  was  very  plain  to  be  seen  that 
the  convention  would  never  agree  on  either  a  plat- 
form or  a  candidate.  The  Northern  delegates  dare 
not  submit  to  the  demands  of  the  South — thev  well 
knew  that  any  further  concession  to  the  slave  pow  er 
would  bring  annihilation  and  defeat  to  their  party 
in  the  N^orthern  States.  They  had  already  lost  ten 
States,  with  several  others  readj^  to  folloAV.  Many 
of  the  Southern  delegates  wanted,  and  insisted  on 
the  right  to  take  their  slaA^es  into  the  free  States, 
and  keej)  them  there  as  slaves  as  long  as  they 
pleased.  The  Charleston  Convention,  after  many 
vain  attempts  at  reconciliation,  finally  s]Ait  in 
twain,  the  Southern  delegates  Avithdrawing  from 
the  convention,  and  leaving  the  friends  of  Stephen 
A.  Douglas  and  "  Squatter  Sovereignty "  in  pos- 
session. The  convention  then  proceeded  to  the 
business  of  making  a  platform  and  nominating  the 
candidates.  Stephen  A.  Douglas  of  Illinois  was 
nominated  for  President,  with  Herschell  V.  John- 
son of  Georgia  for  Vice-President.  Stex^hen  A. 
Douglas  was  then  Senator  from  tlie  great  State  of 
Illinois — tlie  man  who  had  contested  the  Senator- 
ship  with  Abraham  Lincoln  two  years  previous — 
and  was  classed  among  the  great  statesmen  of  the 
nation — a  peer  of  any  man  in  the  United  States 
Senate.  Johnson,  outside  of  his  State,  was  but  little 
known.     The  seceders  or  Southern  delegates  met  in 


THE     PRESIDENTIAL     CAMPAIGN     OF     1860-  378 

convention,  framed  and  adopted  a  platform  with 
slavery  as  its  chief  corner-stone,  and  nominated  for 
President  John  0.  Breckenridge  of  Kentucky,  then 
Vice-President  under  Buchanan.  Joe  Lane,  Sena- 
tor from  Oregon,  was  nominated  Vice-President — 
the  man  who,  during  the  canvass,  was  accused  of 
spelling  God  with  a  little  g.  Lane  was  a  man  of 
very  small  calibre,  and  totally  unfit  for  either  the 
United  States  Senate  or  Vice-President  of  the 
nation. 


374  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XLII. 

The  Nashville  Convention. 

The  seeds  of  secession. — The  poHtical  parties  in  Cahfornia.— Rancorous 
denunciation. — The  attack  upon  Charles  Sumner. — Amusing  scenes 
and  incidents. — Awaiting  the  returns. 

There  were,  at  the  time  of  which  I  am  writing, 
quite  a  body  of  men,  both  North  and  South,  that 
deprecated  and  denounced  the  agitation  of  slavery 
both  in  Congress  and  out  of  it.  Those  in  the 
Southern  States  had  formerly  been  Whigs,  and 
were  attached  to  tlie  Union.  Of  course  there  were 
many  such  in  the  Northern  States.  They  called  a 
convention  of  all  conservative  citizens,  irrespective 
of  their  former  party  affiliations,  to  meet  at  Nash- 
ville, Tennessee,  if  I  remember  correctly,  and  there 
to  nominate  candidates  and  make  a  platform  that 
would  be  acceptable  to  all  x^arts  of  the  nation.  The 
convention  met  in  due  time,  and  nominated  John 
Bell  of  Tennessee  for  President,  and  Edward 
Everett  of  Massachusetts  for  Yice-President. 

John  Bell  had  been  Senator  from  Tennessee — 
elected  as  a  Whig  in  Whig  days,  and  was  looked 
upon  as  a  great  and  good  man  by  all  parties.     The 


THE  NASHVILLE  CONVENTION.  375 

Union  would  have  been  safe  in  hisliands.  Edward 
Everett  was  also  a  Whig,  and  was  as  highly  re- 
spected as  any  man  in  the  United  States  for  his 
learning,  statesmanship  and  legal  ability. 

Such  Avere  the  men  that  the  conservatives  of  Loth 
sections  of  the  nation  put  forth  for  the  suffrages  of 
the  American  people.  In  point  of  real  ability  and 
statesmanship  and  love  of  country,  a  better  choice 
could  not  have  been  made  tlian  Bell  and  Everett. 
There  were  noAV  in  the  field  four  sets  of  candidates 
for  President — Lincoln  and  Hamlin,  Republicans; 
Douglas  and  Johnson,  popular  sovereignty;  Breck- 
enridge  and  Lane,  pro-slavery  or  secessionist;  Bell 
and  Everett,  Union  or  American  party — the  last, 
but  not  the  least,  so  far  as  statesmanship  and  love  of 
country  was  concerned.  The  Republican  party  was 
taunted  with  being  a  sectional  x>arty,  as  it  had  no 
following  except  in  the  N^orth  and  a  very  few  of  the 
slave  border  States.  The  Douglas  Democrats  were 
in  the  same  boat,  so  far  as  getting  much  of  a  vote  in 
the  slave-holding  States  was  concerned.  Brecken- 
ridge  and  Lane  were  tlie  Southern  candidates,  and 
the  South  stood  by  them. 

Erom  the  davs  of  nullification,  as  advocated  h\  J. 
C  Calhoun  and  nipped  in  the  bud  by  that  old 
patriot,  Andrew  Jackson,  there  had  been  a  class  of 
Southern  politicians  that  worked  witli  a  zeal  worthy 
of  a  better  cause,  to  stir  up  a  sectional  strife  and 
fire  the  Southern  heart  against  the  Xortli — and  too 
well   they   succeeded.     Eor  OA'er   thirtv   vears  tlic 


376  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

seeds  of  secession  and  rebellion  were  being  sown, 
and  in  1861  they  harvested  a  full  crop.  During  tlie 
canvass  in  llie  Southern  States  llieir  speakers  and 
politicians  advocated  that,  if  Lincoln  was  elected, 
it  was  a  just  and  good  cause  for  secession,  and  ad- 
vised the  people  of  the  States  to  make  themselves 
readv  for  that  event.  Too  well  did  thev  succeed  in 
their  treasonable  designs.  In  the  free  States  the 
principal  fight  was  between  Lincoln  and  Douglas 
— one  the  champion  of  free  States  and  free  men,  the 
other  the  champion  of  "  squatter  sovereignty." 
The  Bell  and  Everett  party  did  not  cut  much  of  a 
figure,  either  North  or  South,  although  composed  of 
some  of  the  most  conservative  and  best  men  in  the 
nation.  If  I  remember  correctly,  they  did  not 
elect  one  elector.  Such  was  the  standing  of  parties 
in  the  Presidential  campaign  of  1860.  But  to  come 
back  to  parties  in  California.  When  the  news  of 
the  nomination  of  Abraham  Lincoln  at  Chicago 
Avas  received,  a  good  many  Kej)ublicans  were  dis- 
appointed—tliey  were  looking  for  W.  H.  Seward 
of  Kew  York  to  be  their  standard-bearer.  But 
they  had  made  up  their  minds  that,  no  matter  wlio 
received  tlie  Chicago  nomination,  if  he  was  a  man 
capable  and  of  good  repute,  they  would  give  him  a 
hearty  support,  and  this  they  did.  A  Bej)ublican 
convention  was  duly  called  and  electors  appointed 
for  the  State,  and  some  of  the  ablest  men  canvassed 
the  State  for  the  ticket.  There  was  a  more  thorough 
canvass  made  by  the  Republicans  than  ever  before 


THE    NASHVILLE    CONVENTION.  377 

in  tbe  State.  Tlie  other  parties — that  is,  both  wings 
of  the  Democratic  party — had  their  tickets  in  the 
tiekl,  each  chiiniing  they  were  the  Simon-pure 
article,  and  each  accusing  the  others  of  being  bolters 
and  renegades  from  the  regular  organization. 
The  .Douglas  wing  had  lost  its  head,  D.  C.  Broderick, 
by  the  bullet  of  D.  S.  Terry.  Others  arose  in  his 
j)lace,  but  there  were  none  to  wear  his  mantle.  They 
battled  manfully  for  their  principles,  however,  and 
made  a  glorious  fight,  coming  out  second  best. 
The  Lecompton  wing  had  the  old  set  at  their  back : 
the  two  United  States  Senators,  two  Congressmen — 
Burch  and  Scott — all  the  federal  office-holders,  be- 
sides the  Governor  and  State  officers,  which  were  a 
small  army  within  themselves.  The  Bell  and 
Everett  party  cut  but  little  figure.  Twice  before 
the  chivalry  had  deceived  the  N^orthern  men  who 
belonged  to  the  American  party,  but  they  could 
play  that  game  no  longer.  Senators  Gwin  and 
Latham  stumped  the  State,  and  every  man  that 
could  talk  on  the  stump,  was  taken  from  the  Vir- 
ginia poor-house  (as  the  San  Prancisco  custom-house 
was  then  called)  and  pressed  into  service.  Their 
whole  fight  was  made  against  the  Bepublicans,  as 
being  negro  worshippers,  secessionists,  abolitionists, 
negro  stealers,  and  guilty  of  every  crime  known  to 
our  hiAvs,  human  or  divine,  and  their  candidate, 
Abraham  Lincoln,  was  a  monkey,  a  baboon  and  an 
illiterate  flat-boatman.  If  Lincoln  was  elected, 
they  argued,  it  would  be  sufficient  cause  for  the 


378  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

South  to  secede.  This  was  the  tone  of  the  oratory 
that  was  dealt  out  to  us  in  1860  by  the  Brecken- 
ridge  wing  of  the  innnaculate  Bourbons.  In  this 
campaign  they  contined  themsehes  j)i'incipally  to 
tongue  abuse;  the  egg-and-niob  tactics  had  proyen 
a  complete  failure,  and  they  did  not  resort  to  them. 
The  Douglas  wing  made  their  tight  principally  on 
the  right  of  the  inhabitants  of  a  territory,  when 
they  come  to  yote  on  their  Constitution,  to  yote 
slayery  up  or  down  as  they  saw  j)roper.  The  lie- 
publicans  made  their  cany  ass  on  no  further  exten- 
sion of  slayery,  the  corruption  of  the  Democratic 
party,  the  suppression  of  free  speech,  and  tlie 
tyranny  of  slaye  power.  It  had  been  but  a  short 
time  preyious  that  Charles  Sumner  had  been 
stricken  down  in  his  seat,  for  some  words  spoken  in. 
debate  with  the  Senator  from  South  Carolina 
on  the  floor  of  the  Senate,  by  Preston  Brooks,  a 
Congressman  from  South  Carolina,  and  a  nephew 
of  the  Senator  from  that  State.  Sumner  was  quietly 
sitting  in  his  seat  writing,  unaware  of  any  danger, 
when  he  was  approached  from  behind  and  stricken 
down,  witlioiit  a  moment's  notice,  with  a  cane  in 
the  hands  of  Brooks,  then  a  young  man  in  the 
prime  of  life.  Senator  Sumner  had  to  be  carried 
from  the  Senate  chamber,  and  it  was  seyeral  months 
before  he  recoyered  sutliciently  to  take  his  seat  in 
the  Senate,  and  it  was  said  that  he  neyer  fully  re- 
covered from  the  assault.  When  the  news  of  this 
assault  was  spread  throughout  the  country,  uniyer- 


THE    NASHVILLE    CONVENTION.  379 

sal  condeimiation  of  the  cowardly  act  was  in  every 
man's  mouth,  and  it  did  more  to  consolidate  the 
Korth  than  anything  that  had  yet  taken  place. 
Anson  P.  Biirlingame,  one  of  the  Massachusetts 
Congressmen,  challenged  Brooks.  At  first  Brooks 
accepted  the  challenge,  and  they  were  to  fight  in 
Canada,  but  Brooks  backed  out,  giving  his  excuse 
that  if  he  traveled  to  Canada  through  the  free 
States,  he  was  in  danger  of  being  mobbed.  But 
Burliucfame  and  his  friends  sent  Brooks  word  that 
they  would  guarantee  him  a  safe  passage  through 
the  free  States  and  back  from  Canada,  but  Brooks 
failed  to  respond,  and  the  duel  did  not  come  off. 
Well,  to  come  back  to  the  election  in  California. 

Each  party  put  forth  its  full  strength  in  the  can- 
vass. The  Bepublicans  and  the  Douglas  Demo- 
crats had  the  full  power  and  the  patronage  of  Bu- 
chanan's administration  to  work  against.  It  looked 
as  though  the  chivalry  wing  would  come  out  ahead, 
as  usual,  in  California;  but  this  time  they  were 
doomed  to  disappointment. 

The  election  took  place  in  November,  and  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  carried  the  State  by  a  small  plurality, 
with  Stephen  A.  Douglas  second,  and  Brecken- 
ridge  third  in  the  fight.  If  I  remember  correctly, 
Lincoln  led  Douglas  between  two  and  three  hun- 
dred votes,  and  Douglas  led  Breckenridge  a  few 
votes  less  than  three  hundred.  Bell  and  Everett 
got  some  votes,  but  they  were  scattering.  Eor 
several   days — the   vote  was   so  close — it  was   im- 


S80  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

possible  to  tell  wliicli  party  had  carried  the  State. 
At  one  time  Lincoln  would  be  a  few  votes  in  the 
lead;  then  the  next  county  heard  from  would  give 
Douglas  the  lead;  then  Breckenridge  stock  would 
be  looking  up. 

It  was  amusinc;  to  witness  some  of  the  scenes  and 
incidents  that  took  ]>lace  while  the  people  were  in 
doubt  as  to  the  result  in  tlie  State.  Our  post- 
master— James  O'Connor — was  an  old  man  and  a 
very  large  one,  a  genuine  son  of  tlie  Emerald  Isle, 
and  "  Breckenridge  "  to  the  backbone.  The  County 
Treasurer — Krutchnett — was  a  Dutchman  and  a 
Douglas  Democrat,  and  worked  hard  among  his 
friends  for  Douglas.  I  was  standing  in  the  door  of 
the  postoffice  talking  Avith  O'Connor,  when  Krutch- 
nett hove  in  sight.  News  had  just  arrived  in 
Weaverville  that  Douglas  had  carried  the  State. 
Krutchnett  had  been  "  beering  up  "  j^retty  freely, 
and  coming  across  the  street  to  where  O'Connor  and 
I  were  standing,  commenced  swinging  his  hat  close 
to  the  old  man's  face,  and  shouting: 

"  Hurrah  for  Meester  Touglas!  IMeester  Touglas 
ees  de  fellow!  Meester  Touglas  carries  de  Stadt  of 
California!  Meester  Touglas  shall  pee  de  bresident!" 

The  old  man  gave  him  one  look,  and  then  made 
his  sj)eech,  as  he  grabbed  the  little  fellow: 

"  Get  out  of  here,  you  d — d  beer-drinking  Dutcli 
half-breed!  Get  out  of  here,  or  I'll  break  ivery 
bone  in  your  Dutch  carcass!  " 

Suiting    the    action    to   tlie    words,    old   Jimmy 


THE    NASHVILLE    CONVENTION.  381 

heaved  the  little  Dutcliinan  halfway  across  the 
street. 

"  Lay  there,  yon  little  sx^alpeen  of  a  Dutclnnan, 
until  you  larn  to  be  a  gintleman!" 

Krutclmett  picked  himself  up,  aud  swearing 
vengeance  against  the  Irish,  and  the  old  man  in 
particular,  started  for  his  gim;  but  he  didn't  get 
back  before  I  left.     The  old  man  remarked: 

"  John,  I  don't  mind  you  llepublicans,  but  them 
spalpeens  of  half-breeds — shure  they're  enuif  to  set 
a  Dimocrat  craz}  !" 

In  a  few  days  reliable  news  came  that  Lincoln 
had  carried  the  State  by  a  small  plurality.  Then 
the  old  Republicans  had  somewhat  of  a  jubilee — we 
got  out  the  anvils  and  made  them  ring  for  a  time. 
California  was  j^artly  redeemed.  We  had  one  more 
battle  to  tight  before  the  victory  was  complete.  In 
a  short  time  the  news  came  from  the  East  that  Lin- 
coln Avas  elected,  and  the  reign  of  the  slave  j)Ower 
was  forever  ended. 


382  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XLIir. 

The  Firing  Upon  Fort  Sumter. — A  Blaze  of  Patriotism. 

Efforts  to  end  the  rule  of  the  Bourbons.— The  seceding  States. — The 
Confederate  Government. — The  inauguration  of  Lincohi. — Indigna- 
tion meetings. — The  movement  to  form  a  Pacific  Republic. — The 
call  for  volunteers. — The  Knights  of  the  Golden  Circle. — Its  objects. 
— The  Douglas  City  Rifles  held  in  readiness. 

After  the  election  of  Lincoln,  the  Kepublicans 
of  California  began  to  make  preparations  to  free  the 
State  from  the  rule  of  tlie  Bourbons.  It  became  a 
national  necessity  to  do  so,  for,  as  soon  as  the 
South  was  defeated  at  the  ballot-box,  she  began  to 
make  preparations  to  appeal  to  the  cartridge-box. 
South  Carolina  led  off  by  passing  an  ordinance  of 
secession,  and  withdrawing  her  Senators  and  Rep- 
resentatives from  Congress.  Others  of  the  South- 
ern States  followed,  and  James  Buchanan — the 
President  of  the  United  States  at  that  time  —could 
find  no  law  to  prevent  the  dismemberment  of  this 
glorious  Union,  which  he  had  sworn  to  defend  and 
protect.  But  it  was  said  that  he  did  all  he  could 
covertly  to  forward  the  treasonable  designs  of  the 
leaders  of  the  secession  movement. 

In    December,    1860,    when    State    after    State 


THE    FIRING    UPON    FORT    SUMTER.  383 

« 

was  witlidvawing'  from  the  Union,  and  men 
whom  the  Government  had  educated— both  in 
the  army  and  nav}' — to  fight  its  battles  and  de- 
fend it  from  its  enemies,  both  foreign  and 
domestic,  were  resigning  their  commissions  and 
joining  the  enemies  of  the  country  which  they 
had  sworn  to  protect  and  defend,  with  an  (dd  im- 
becile (if  no  worse)  in  the  Presidential  chair,  sur- 
rounded by  traitors  as  his  chief  advisors,  the 
country  at  the  beginniug  of  1861  was  in  a  dei)lora- 
ble  condition — dark  indeed  was  the  country's  x^ros- 
l^ect.  At  that  time  every  loyal  American  prayed 
for  the  4tli  of  March  to  come  and  Abraham  Lincoln 
in  the  Presidential  chair.  Rumors  were  circulated 
that  Lincoln  would  never  be  allowed  to  take  his 
seat;  that  he  would  be  assassinated  on  his  trip  from 
his  home  to  AVasliington. 

In  tlie  meantime  the  States  that  had  seceded 
were  arming  and  drilling  troops  at  a  rapid  rate,  and 
getting  ready  for  an  appeal  to  arms.  The  Govern- 
ment had  but  few  soldiers,  and  they  w^ere  spread 
over  tlie  whole  country.  Seventy  of  tliem  were 
stationed  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  in  charge 
of  the  United  States  forts  and  x^roperty  tliere.  The 
Star  of  the  West,  an  unarmed  steamer  in  tlie  Gov- 
ernment emx)loy,  while  entering  the  harbor  with 
provisions  for  the  garrison  of  Port  Sumter,  was 
fired  on  by  the  rebel  batteries,  and  turned  back 
without  accomx)lishing  its  mission. 

In  the  month   of   February,  1861,  tlie   delegates 


384  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

from  the  rebel  States  met  at  Montgomery,  Ala- 
bama, and  formed  a  government,  calling  it  the  Con- 
federate States  of  America,  witJi  Jefferson  Davis, 
of  Mississippi  as  President.  With  a  flourish  of 
trumpets  the  new-born  nation  was  ushered  into  the 
world.  The  Confederacy  then  adopted  the  army 
of  South  Carolina  that  was  encamped  before  the 
walls  of  Eort  Sumter,  with  its  bombastic  com- 
mander. General  P.  G.  T.  Beauregard — a  fiery 
Prench  Creole  from  Louisiana. 

The  4th  of  March  at  last  arrived,  and  with  it 
came  the  nation's  saviour,  Abraliam  Lincoln.  As 
already  stated,  there  were  rumors  of  plans  to  as- 
sassinate the  President-elect,  and  his  friends  thought 
it  best  for  him  to  go  to  Washington  in  disguise. 
So,  on  the  Ith  day  of  March,  1861,  Lincoln  Avas  in- 
augurated— the  first  President  Avhom  it  had  become 
necessary  on  inauguration  to  surround  with  the 
army  of  the  United  States,  in  order  to  j)rotect  his 
person  from  the  bullet  or  the  dagger  of  the  assassin. 
That  grand  old  patriot  and  soldier,  General  Scott, 
had  command  at  Washington  that  day,  and 
well  did  he  perform  his  duty.  The  inauguration 
l)assed  off  quietly.  The  loyal  men  and  women 
of  the  nation  could  rejoice  and  congratulate 
each  other  on  the  happy  event — they  liad  now 
a  patriot  and  statesman  at  the  liead  of  the  nation, 
surrounded  by  a  loyal  cabinet.  Men  began  to  breath 
more  easily,  but  nearly  every  department  of  the 
Government  had  its  spies  and  traitors  that  had  to 


THE    FIRING    UPON    FORT    SUMTER.  385 

be  weeded  out  and  dismissed  from  the  public  serv- 
ice. In  the  meantime,  the  so-called  Sonthern 
Confederacy  was  arming  and  preparing  for  the 
conflict  that  soon  was  to  drench  the  land  in  blood. 
In  the  month  of  April  there  were  abont  seven 
thousand  rebel  soldiers,  under  General  Beauregard, 
besieging  Eort  Sumter,  in  Charleston  harbor.  The 
garrison  of  Tort  Sumter  numbered  but  seventy  sol- 
diers, under  the  command  of  Major  Anderson,  a 
Kentuckian  who  remained  true  to  his  Government. 
On  the  11th  day  of  April  General  Beauregard  sum- 
moned Eort  Sumter  to  surrender,  but  Major  Ander- 
son refused  his  modest  request.  General  Beaure- 
gard then  made  a  grandiloquent  address  to  his 
rebels,  something  similar  to  the  one  which  the 
great  Napoleon  made  to  his  soldiers  before  the 
Battle  of  the  Pyramids.  He  did  not  say  that  forty 
centuries  looked  down  on  them,  but  that  the  whole 
world  was  looking  on  them  with  surj)rise  and  ad- 
miration, and  said  the  man  who  doubted  the  result 
must  be  far  behind  the  times  and  bereft  of  reason. 
Poor,  vainglorious  Beauregard!  It  would  have 
been  better  for  him  and  the  Southern  people  if  he 
and  they  had  taken  Avarning  from  an  old  prophecy 
that  is  said  to  have  been  uttered  many  j^ears  before 
Beauregard  issued  his  grandiloquent  address,  and 
ran  thus: 

Let.  the  Southern  Palmetto 

Beware  of  the  day, 
When  the  Northern  Pine 

Comes  in  battle  array  ! 


386  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA- 

The  first  sliot  fired  on  Eort  Siiinter,  April  12, 
1861,  gave  birth  to  a  new  nation — not  such  a  nation 
as  the  j)lotters  at  Montgomery  had  in  contempla- 
tion, a  nation  founded  on  ]inman  slavery;  but  a 
nation  of  free  men!  That  shot  Avasthe  death-knell 
of  slavery,  and  caused  the  proclamation  of  freedom 
throughout  the  land  and  to  all  the  inhabitants 
thereof.  It  is  a  truism,  that  "  man  proposes,  but 
God  disposes." 

After  a  bombardment  of  thirty  or  forty  hours, 
Eort  Sumter  fell,  brave  Anderson  marching  out 
his  seventy  men  to  the  tune  of  "  Yankee  Doodle," 
and  saluting  their  colors.  AVhen  the  news  spread 
that  a  United  States  fort  had  been  captured  by  the 
rebels  in  arms,  indignation  meetings  were  held  in 
nearly  every  town  and  city  througliout  the  loyal 
States,  recommending  and  demanding  the  Presi- 
dent to  i)ut  down  rebellion  and  secession,  and  not 
to  count  the  cost,  and  that  the  Union  must  be  jjre- 
served.  The  country  was  one  blaze  of  patriotism 
from  Maine  to  California,  and  the  sound  of  martial 
music  was  heard  throughout  the  land. 

To  come  back  to  California.  After  the  election 
of  the  President,  the  State  was  yet  in  the  hands 
and  keeping  of  the  pro-slavery  Democracy.  With 
the  South  seceding  and  arming,  and  our  State 
CTOvernment  under  control  of  Southern  sympathiz- 
ers, the  loyal  men  of  California  had  to  keep  a  sharp 
lookout  lest  the  sympathizers  should  carry  Califor- 
nia into  the  Southern  Confederacy. 


THE    FIRING    ON    FORT    SUMTER.  887 

There  was  a  small  party  in  Wasliington,  headed 
by  our  Democratic  Senators  and  Eepresentatives, 
favorable  to  the  establishment  of  a  Pacific  Eepub- 
lic.  If  I  remember  correctly,  John  0.  Bnrch — one 
of  the  members  of  Congress  from  California — pro- 
posed it,  and  prei^arations  were  being  made  in  this 
State  to  carry  it  into  effect.  The  leader  of  that 
movement  little  understood  the  sentiment  of  a  large 
majorit}'  of  the  people  of  California.  As  soon  as 
the  news  arrived  in  California  of  the  fall  of 
Eort  Sumter,  one  burst  of  indignation  went  forth 
from  the  loyal  people  of  the  State,  from  Del  Korte 
to  San  Diego,  sx^eaking  in  no  uncertain  tones,  that 
the  Union  must  and  should  be  preserved.  Through- 
out the  length  and  breadth  of  the  State  the  loyal 
people  showed  their  colors — on  flumes,  miners' 
cabins,  stores,  dwellings  and  barns,  and  in  men's 
and  women's  hats.  And  at  every  public  place  in 
the  State  was  the  starrv  banner  thrown  to  the 
breeze,  and  woe  to  him  who  dared  insult  it.  After 
President  Lincoln  issued  liis  first  proclamation  for 
seventy-five  thousand  men  to  put  down  f  he  rebel- 
lion, many  feared  that  John  G.  Downey,  then 
Governor  of  the  State,  Avould  fail  to  respond  and 
furnish  California's  quota  of  troops,  which  I  believe 
was  some  four  regiments.  But  Governor  Downey 
issued  a  call  for  volunteers,  and  in  a  short  time  had 
more  men  than  were  needed.  Many. of  the  boys 
paid  their  own  passage  back  to  the  States  in  order 
to  take   a   hand   in   the    affray.     Everywhere   the 


388  PIONEER   DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

loyal  sentiment  was  in  the  ascendant — on  board 
steamers,  on  the  stages,  in  the  hotels,  and  the  whole 
spirit  of  the  country  was  changed  as  if  by  magic. 
Business  men  who  had  never  taken  any  part  in 
politics  outside  of  voting,  were  now  leading  the 
masses,  giving  of  their  time  and  money,  and  their 
lives,  if  necessary,  for  the  preservation  of  their 
countrv.  As  the  Union  sentiment  arose,  the  rebel 
sentiment  (that  six  months  previous  appeared  to 
be  in  the  ascendant  in  the  State)  became  quite  do- 
cile, and  seemed  to  have  taken  a  back-seat.  Manv 
men  thought  it  was  but  a  lull  in  the  storm. 

There  was  organized  in  Oalifoinia,  about  this 
time,  a  branch  of  the  secret  rebel  organization 
known  as  the  Knights  of  the  Golden  Circle,  Avhich 
was  said  to  have  been  tirst  organized  in  Soutliern 
Indiana,  and  extended  through  the  southern  part 
of  Indiana,  Illinois  and  Ohio.  It  was  organized  by 
Southern  sympathizers  in  the  border  States,  and 
had  for  its  aims  and  objects  the  prevention  of  en- 
listment of  soldiers  for  the  Union  armies,  ihe  deser- 
tion of  Union  soldiers,  giving  aid  and  assistance  to 
Southern  rebels  in  every  form  that  they  possibly 
could.  This  treasonable  orgaAization  had  its 
branches  in  California,  and,  it  was  said,  numbered 
thousands  in  its  ranks.  Many  Union  men  thought 
— and  it  gave  them  a  good  deal  of  uneasiness — that 
in  their  secret  meetings  they  Avere  getting  ready 
for  trouble  in  the  State,  which  in  after  years  I 
learned  was  the  truth. 


THE    FIRING    UPON    FORT     SUMTER.  389 

While  living  in  Tombstone  I  became  acquainted 
with  a  gentleman  named  Waterman,  who  was  a 
Californian  and  a  man  of  considerable  influence  in 
the  central  portion  of  the  State  at  the  time.  He  in- 
formed me  that  there  was  a  certain  Democratic  State 
Senator  then  (in  1861)  in  the  Senate  who  had  al- 
ways worked  and  voted  with  tlie  Breckenridge 
wing  of  the  Democratic  party,  but  had  not  yet 
committed  himself  to  secession.  He  was  a  man  of 
considerable  influence,  and  the  Knights  of  the 
Golden  Circle  were  very  anxious  to  get  him  to  join 
their  ranks,  and  a  proposition  was  made  to  him  that 
he  should  have  a  liigh  command  in  their  armv  if 
he  would  lend  his  aid  to  tlieir  cause,  and  told  him 
how  far  their  treason  had  gone.  They  informed 
him  that  on  a  certain  day  ten  tliousand  Knights  of 
the  Golden  Circle  were  to  assemble  in  and  around 
San  Francisco,  and  beseige  the  United  States  forts 
and  arsenals.  Albert  Sidney  Johnson  Avas  in  com- 
in  and  at  the  time.  It  was  told  him  that  General 
Johnson  was  to  deliver  Fort  Alcatraz  up  to  them, 
and  they  were  to  declare  the  State  out  of  the  Union,' 
and  join  tlie  Southern  Confederacy.  The  Senator 
put  them  oft'  for  some  time,  but  went  immediately 
to  one  of  the  officers  whom  he  knew  he  could  trust, 
and  laid  their  treason  before  him.  Immediatelv 
there  was  sent  to  Washington  their  whole  plan  by 
a  trusty  messenger.  When  the  dispatches  arrived 
at  Washington  the  President  called  a  council  and 
sent  for  General  Sumner,  who  was  at  the  head  of 


390  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

liis  division  in  the  field,  and  dispatched  him  to  Cal- 
ifornia to  replace  General  Johnston.  The  whole 
thing  Avas  done  secretly — no  person  knew,  outside 
of  the  council  of  war,  that  General  Sumner  had 
been  sent  to  California.  On  the  steamer  he  was 
known  to  no  person  but  the  captain.  Arriving  in 
the  harbor  of  San  Erancisco,  tlie  steamer  was  stop- 
ped in  front  of  Fort  Alcatraz,  a  small  boat  put  off 
from  the  steamer  and  landed  the  General  at  the 
fort,  with  orders  from  the  President  and  Secretary 
of  War  to  General  Johnston,  to  turn  over  his  com- 
mand to  General  Sumner. 

At  that  time  I  belonged  to  the  State  troops— the 
Douglas  City  Rifles,  a  company  organized  at 
Douglas  City,  Trinity  county.  The  same  express 
that  brought  the  news  of  the  arrival  in  California 
of  General  Sumner,  also  brougiit  to  the  Douglas 
City  Rifles  orders  to  hold  themselves  in  readiness 
to  march  at  one  hour's  notice,  with  forty  rounds  of 
ball  cartridges  to  the  man,  and,  if  we  had  any 
spare  arms,  not  to  leave  them  in  the  armories,  and 
to  take  our  arms  home  with  us.  Tlie  first  order 
there  was  no  occasion  for,  as  there  was  i)lenty  of 
Union  boys  ready  and  willing  to  use  them.  The 
second  part  of  the  order  was  strictly  enforced. 
Every  regiment  and  company  throughout  the  State 
received  the  same  orders.  General  Johnston,  on 
being  relieved  of  his  command,  started  overland  by 
the  southern  route,  and,  arriving  in  the  Confeder- 
acy, was  given  command  of  the  rebel  armies  of  the 


THE    FIRING    UPON    FORT    SUMTER-  391 

Southwest,  and  was  killed  in  the  second  day's  fight 
at  the  battle  of  Shiloh,  or  Pittsburg  Landing. 

Thus  was  our  State  saved  from  bloodshed  and 
the  horrors  of  civil  war  by  the  prompt  and  decisive 
action  of  the  President  and  his  advisors.  General 
Sumner  remained  in  command  until  the  danger 
was  passed  and  a  loyal  man  was  put  in  command. 
The  Democratic  Senator  a  short  time  after  was  ap- 
pointed to  a  foreign  mission  by  President  Lincoln. 
It  was  said  that  the  third  day  after  General 
Johnston  was  relieved  was  the  day  aj)pointed  for 
the  plotters  to  carry  out  their  treason. 


o92  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

The  Political  Campaign  of  i86i. 

The  three  parties.- — The  State  Convention.- — The  candidates. — Union  or 
secession. — The  State  carried  by  the  Republicans. — Governor  Stan- 
ford.— The  Legislature  adjourns  to  San  Francisco  on  account  of  the 
flood.—"  Old  Secesh  "  and  the  "  Abolishiners." 

I  stated  in  my  last  letter  that  the  State  Govern- 
ment was  in  the  hands  of  the  rebel  wing  of  the 
Democratic  party.  It  was  the  wish  of  every  true 
American,  whether  native-born  or  naturalized,  to 
see  California  in  the  hands  of  men  of  undisputed 
loyalty.  As  the  time  drew  near  for  that  election  in 
September,  1861,  the  Republicans  did  all  in  their 
power  to  concentrate  the  loyal  element  into  one 
party,  and  have  but  one  convention;  but  the  Douglas 
or  loyal  wing  of  the  Democratic  party  came  so  near 
carrying  the  State  at  the  Presidential  election  one 
year  previous,  that  their  leaders  imagined  their 
chances  were  equally  as  good  as  the  chances  of  the 
Republicans  to  win  tlie  State.  So  there  were  again 
three  parties  in  the  field. 

The  Republicans  called  a  convention  to  nominate 
a  State  ticket  and  two  Congressmen.  The  State 
was    not  yet  divided  into  Congressional  districts. 


THE    POTITICAL   CAMPAIGN    OF    1S61.  398 

The  Rejiublican  Convention  met  at  Sacramento 
in  June,  1861,  assembling  at  Rev.  Mr.  Benton's 
church  on  N^inth  street.  I  believe  every  county  in 
the  State  was  represented,  and  the  Republicans 
were  full}'  determined  to  have  the  State  Govern- 
ment in  the  hands  of  loyal  men.  Leland  Stanford, 
a  merchant  of  Sacramento,  had  been  their  standard- 
bearer  for  two  years  before,  and  had  made  a  good 
canvass  and  a  good  run,  although  defeated.  He  was 
a  man  of  excellent  reputation,  and  the  convention 
nominated  him  on  the  first  ballot.  Eor  Lieutenant- 
Governor,  John  E.  Chillis  of  Trinity  county,  re- 
ceived  the  nomination.  For  Congress,  A.  A.  Sar- 
gent of  Nevada  county,  and  T.  G.  Phelps  of  San 
Mateo  county,  were  nominated,  and  the  Avhole 
State  ticket  was  composed  of  good  and  true  men. 
The  convention  had  done  its  duty  faithfully  and 
well;  it  now  remained  for  the  people  at  the  polls  to 
ratify  the  work  of  the  convention. 

The  Douglas  Democrats  called  a  convention,  and 
put  a  full  State  and  Congressional  ticket  in  the 
field,  headed  by  John  Conness  of  El  Dorado 
county,  for  Governor.  John  Conness  was  an  Irish- 
man by  birth,  and  raised  in  the  State  of  New  York 
from  early  boyhood.  He  was  a  merchant,  doing 
business  at  Georgetown,  El  Dorado  county.  He 
had  been  a  warm  supporter  of  the  late  lamented 
Broderick,  and,  in  fact,  migiit  be  considered  the 
leader  of  that  party  in  the  State.  He  Avas  sound  to 
the  core  on  the  Union  question,  and  so  were  nine- 


394  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

tenths  of  his  followers.     The  balance  of  the  ticket 
was  made  up  of  good  and  loyal  men. 

The  secession  or  Breckenridge  wing  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party  held  its  convention,  and  nominated  for 
Governor  John  R.  McConnell,  of  Nevada  county, 
with  a  fall  State  ticket  and  the  two  Congressmen. 
If  I  remember  correctly,  every  man  nominated  on 
that  ticket  was  said  to  be  a  secessionist. 

The  issue  of  Union  or  secession  was  plainlj-^  be- 
fore the  voters  of  California — the  lines  were  drawn, 
and  the  fight  Avas  now  at  the  ballot-box,  and  we  did 
not  know  how  soon  it  Avould  be  appealed  to  the 
cartridge-box.  As  soon  as  tlie  three  tickets  were 
completed  and  before  the  peoj^le  for  their  support, 
each  party  put  its  best  speakers  in  the  field.  The 
Republicans  now  had  the  advantage  over  their  op- 
ponents— the  patronage  of  the  Federal  officers  was 
with  them,  while  the  McConnell  or  secessionist 
wing  had  the  State  officers  to  their  aid,  and  most  of 
the  postoffices  throughout  the  State.  President 
Lincoln  had  as  yet  removed  but  few  of  the  post- 
masters, as  he  had  more  important  business  on 
hand  about  this  time,  and  the  Republicans  had  no 
Senators  or  members  of  Congress  at  Washington  to 
look  after  such  matters.  Lincoln  was  decidedlv 
opposed  to  removing,  and  made  it  one  of  the  j)rin- 
cipal  points  of  his  administration  not  to  remove  any 
loyal  man  from  office  on  account  of  his  former 
political  affiliations. 

The  Douglas  Democrats  had  to  make  their  fight 


THE    POLITICAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    1861.  395 

without  the  «assistance  of  any  "  public  pap,"  either 
State  or  National.  They  canvassed  the  State  well, 
and  deserved  better  success  for  their  pluck  and 
energy.  Their  speakers  from  the  stump  denounced 
secession  and  treason,  while  they  gave  the  Repub- 
licans a  dressing  down  for  their  interference  with 
slavery  in  the  Territories,  and  for  electing  what  they 
called  a  "  sectional  President."  The  canvass  waxed 
warm  before  its  close;  yet  it  was  conducted  on  very 
fair  tactics — all  the  former  slang  and  vilification 
that  was  hurled  at  the  Republican  party  had  now 
ceased.  The  fact  of  the  case  was  that  men  would 
not  stand  any  more  such  foolishness,  and  the  State 
stood,  as  it  were,  on  a  volcano  which  the  slightest 
spark  might  ignite.  Public  speakers  were  very 
cautions  in  their  utterances  from  the  stump.  The 
secession  wing  did  not  make  much  of  a  canvass  in 
the  northern  portion  of  tlie  State,  outside  of  Sonoma 
and  Mendocino,  but  in  the  central  and  southern 
portions  of  the  State  they  got  in  their  work.  The 
other  two  parties  made  a  thorough  canvass  of  the 
whole  State.  San  Prancisco  and  Sacramento  were 
Republican — the  old  Sacramento  Union,  then  under 
the  editorial  management  of  Anthony  &  Co.,  was 
the  leading  Union  paper  in  the  State,  and  wielded 
a  powerful  influence  with  the  people — you  could 
not  go  into  a  miner's  cabin  or  scarcely  a  farmhouse 
in  the  State  but  what  you  found  the  Union.  As 
soon  as  the  first  shot  was  fired  at  Port  Sumter,  old 
man   Anthony  ran  up   the  stars  and    stripes,  and 


f396  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

kept  them  flying  at  the  mast-head,  and  his  paper 
did  noble  work  for  the  Union  during  the  war. 

The  election  came  oif  in  September.  The  Repub- 
licans carried  the  State,  electing  Leland  Stanford 
Governor,  John  F.  Chillis,  Lieutenant-Governor, 
with  both  Sargent  and  Phelps  to  Congress,  and  a 
full  State  ticket.  Neither  of  the  three  parties  had 
anything  like  a  majority  in  either  house  of  the 
Legislature,  but  the  Republicans  had  more  mem- 
bers than  either  of  the  others,  and  one  thing  the 
loyal  people  had  to  congratulate  themselves  on  was 
the  fact  that  a  majority  of  the  members-elect  of 
both  Houses  were  sound  on  the  Union,  No  matter 
how  much  the  Kepublicans  and  Douglas  Democrats 
diiiered  on  minor  questions,  they  were  together 
when  the  Union  and  their  country  was  at  stake. 
Leland  Stanford  and  the  Republican  ticket  was 
elected  by  rather  a  larger  plurality  than  had  been 
given  Lincoln  one  year  previous.  John  Conness, 
the  Douglas  Democrat,  was  second  best,  and  John 
R.  Mc Council,  secessionist  and  rebel,  in  the  rear. 
It  was  a  day  of  rejoicing  to  the  loyal  men  of  the 
State.  All  before  was  uncertainty  and  doubt;  but 
election  showed  clearly  where  the  people  of  Cali- 
fornia stood.  They  proclaimed  in  no  uncertain 
tones  at  the  ballot-box,  that  the  Union  must  and 
should  be  preserved. 

The  Legislature  that  was  elected  in  1861  met  at 
Sacramento,  but  had  to  adjourn  to  San  Francisco 
on  account  of  high  water. 


THE    POLITICAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    1861.  397 

The  winter  of  1861-2  was  the  most  severe 
winter  that  California  had  experienced  since  its 
settlement  by  Americans.  Everywhere  it  rained 
or  snowed;  flood  after  flood  folloAved  each  other  in 
qnick  succession;  the  Sacramento  Kiver  was  one 
vast  sheet  of  water  fr(mi  mountain  to  mountain. 
During  one  of  its  highest  stages  I  was  a  passenger 
on  the  old  steamer  "  Gem,"  from  Sacramento  to 
Red  Bhitf.  The  only  way  the  i)il<>t  could  tell 
where  the  channel  of  the  river  was,  was  by  the 
Cottonwood  trees  on  each  side  of  the  river.  The 
boat  had  to  stop  several  times  and  take  men  out  of 
the  tops  of  trees  and  off  the  roofs  of  houses.  In  our 
trij)  up  the  river  we  met  j)rox)erty  of  ever}^  descrip- 
tion floating  down — dead  horses  and  cattle,  sheep, 
hogs,  houses,  haystacks,  household  furniture,  and 
everything  imaginable  was  on  its  way  for  the 
ocean.  Arriving  at  Ked  Bluff,  there  Avas  water 
everywhere  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  and  Avhat 
few  bridges  there  had  been  in  the  country  were  all 
swex^t  away.  I  managed  to  get  to  Cottonwood,  and 
had  to  lav  over  for  a  week  before  anv  of  the  streams 
between  there  and  Hav  Fork  Yallev  were  fordable. 

During  that  trip  I  was  the  cause  of  making  my 
old  and  esteemed  friend,  Ben  Blockburg — now  of 
Blocksburg — take  a  cold  and  unpleasant  ride  one 
night.     It  happened  in  this  way: 

There  was  an  old  fellow  living  between  Kelly's 
and  Grave's,  on  Dry  Creek  and  the  Cole  Fork  of 
Cottonwood — I  have    forgotten   his  name,  but   he 


898  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

was  known  in  that  region  as  "  Old  Secesli."  Tlie 
old  fellow  frequently  kept  lodgers,  as  nearly  every 
person  had  to  do  that  lived  on  any  of  the  public 
roads  or  trails  of  the  day.  On  my  trip  to  Sacra- 
mento, about  a  month  previous,  I  stopped  over 
night  at  the  Cole  Eork  of  Cottonwood — a  man 
named  Cole  kept  the  house.  There  I  met  "  Old 
Secesh"  for  the  first  time.  He  was  an  old  Mis- 
sourian,  would  weigh  two  hundred  and  seventy-five 
or  three  hundred  pounds,  and  chock-full  of  seces- 
sionism.  Cole  informed  me  about  the  old  fellow, 
and  then  introduced  me  to  him.  The  Avar  was  then 
the  theme  of  all  conversation,  and  it  was  soon  in- 
troduced. "  Old  Secesh "  and  myself  went  at  it 
pretty  strong.  I  got  the  old  fellow  fighting  mad 
several  times,  and  finall}'  he  said: 

''  You  must  be  one  of  them  dog-goned  abolish- 
iners  that  was  always  running  off  our  niggers  in 
Missouri!  Dog-gon  yer  skin!  I  kin  whip  ycr  in  a 
minnit!" 

Then  I  would  let  up  on  the  old  fellow  until  I 
would  get  him  in  a  good  humor,  but  in  a  little 
while  would  have  him  on  his  muscle  again.  So  we 
put  in  the  evening,  much  to  the  amusement  of  the 
crowd,  and  when  it  was  bed-time  I  asked  the  old 
fellow,  with  the  remainder  of  the  crowd,  up  to  take 
a  drink.     Keaching  him  my  hand,  I  said: 

"  Let  Abe  and  Jeff  fight  it  out  there — it  will  not 
do  you  and  me  any  good  to  fight  over  it  here." 

"  Old  Secesh  "  looked  fight,  and  then  said: 


THE    POLITICAL    CAMPAIGN    OF    18()1.  399 

"  I'll  be  dog-goned  if  I'll  drink  with  a  Lincoln 
abolishener,  if  it  saved  my  dog-goned  life." 

I  told  him  in  about  a  month  from  that  time  I 
would  be  back  that  way,  and,  with  his  permission, 
I  would  stop  at  his  house  over  night,  and  we  would 
have  the  argument  out.  The  old  fellow  did  not  say 
yes  or  no.  I  was  delayed  below  longer  than  I  had 
expected,  and  did  not  get  back  for  six  weeks.  In 
the  meantime,  my  friend  "  Block  "  was  on  his  way 
from  Red  Blutf  to  Hay  Eork,  where  he  was  then  in 
the  mercantile  business.  ''Block"  was  then  a 
bachelor,  and  some  thirty  years  younger  than  he  is 
now.  "  Old  Secesh "  had  a  young  lady  for  a 
daughter,  and  "Block"  wanted  to  make  the  family's 
acquaintance,  more  especially  that  of  the  young- 
lady.  "  Block  "  left  Cole's,  on  the  Cottonwood,  and 
timed  himself  so  as  to  reach  "  Old  Secesh's  "  about 
sundown  or  dark.  When  he  got  there  he  found  a 
boy  chojjping  wood  at  the  door.  (I  will  here  re- 
mark, and  I  hope  my  friend  "  Block  "  will  not  be 
offended  at  it,  that  at  that  time  we  looked  somewhat 
alike — about  the  same  hight  and  weight  and  com- 
plexion, so  that  a  description  of  one  of  us  would 
answer  for  both).  Well,  "  Block  "  rode  up  to  the 
boy  and  said: 

"Good  evening!  Is  your  father  at  honied  "  The 
boy  eyed  him  from  head  to  foot,  and  after  a  minute 
said: 

"  No,  he  ain't." 

"  Block  "  said  he  wanted  to  stay  all  night — could 


400  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

he  do  so'?  The" boy  took  another  look  at  him  and 
said : 

"  I  know  you." 

"  Well,"  "  Block"  said,  "  who  am  IV 

"  You  live  at  Hay  Eork  Yalley;  your  name's 
John  Oarr,  'nd  you  told  pap  you  was  a  abolishener, 
'nd  you  can't  stay  hyer,  dog-gon  yer." 

"  Block  "  told  the  boy  his  name,  and  added  that 
he  was  not  an  abolishener,  but  a  good  Democrat; 
and  wanted  to  see  his  mother.     The  boy  called: 

"Marmlcome  hyar!"  The  old  lady  made  her 
appearance  at  the  door,  smoking  a  corn-cob  pipe. 
"Mam,  this  is  that  abolishener,  Oarr,  from  Hay 
Fork,  and  wants  to  stay  all  night." 

"  Stranger,"  said  the  old  lady,  "  this  is  a  mighty 
unhealthy  place  for  an  abolishener  to  stay  at.  I 
reckon  you  better  move  on."  She  would  listen  to 
no  explanations,  and  there  was  nothing  left  for 
"  Block "  but  to  ride  on  in  the  dark  and  cold  to 
Kelly  and  Graves',  four  miles  further  on,  with  no 
prospect  of  making  the  acquaintance  of  the  young 
lady  from  Pike.  "  Block  "  twits  me  very  often  up 
to  this  day  about  being  the  cause  of  his  not  getting 
a  night's  lodging,  and  losing  the  chance  of  making 
the   acquaintance   of  the  "  gal  from  Pike." 


UNION   OF    DOUGLAS   DEMOCRATS   AND    REPUBLICANS.        401 


CHAPTER  XLV. 
The  Union  of  the  Douglas  Democrats  and  the  Republicans. 

The  rejoicings  of  loyal  men. — ''  Union  for  the  sake  of  union." — The 
political  history  of  John  P.  Jones. — The  defeat  of  George  C.  Gorham. 
— John  Conness  elected  U.  S.  Senator. — William  M.  Gwin,  "the 
Duke  of  SonoBa." 

In  September,  1861,  Leland  Stanford  and  the 
whole  Rej)ubl]*can  State  ticket,  with  the  two  Con- 
gressmen, A.  A.  Sargent  and  Timothy  Guy  Phelps, 
was  elected.  The  vote  of  the  State  Avas  nearly 
equally  diyided,  the  Ilej)ublicans  haying  a  few 
hundred  plurality  oyer  Conness,  the  Douglas  Demo- 
crat, and  Conness  a  few  hundred  plurality  oyer 
John  R.  McConnell,  the  "  secesh "  candidate. 
Neither  of  the  three  parties  had  a  majority  in  the 
Legislature,  but  Kex^ublicans  and  Douglas  Demo- 
crats, by  uniting  their  forces,  had  a  fair  working 
majority.  The  Legislature  met  at  Sacramento  and 
adjourned  to  San  Prancisco,  on  account  of  Sacra- 
mento being  oyerflowed.  The  loyal  men  of  the 
State  now  felt  as  if  their  country  was  safe — Abra- 
ham Lincoln  in  the  Presidential  chair,  and  Leland 
Stanford,  an  able  and  loyal  man,  Goyernor  of  the 


402  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

State.  What  a  change  one  year  had  made  !  One 
year  previous,  all  was  doubt  and  fear.  Ko  man 
could  tell  what  the  next  turn  in  the  political  wheel 
might  briiig  fortli;  but  now  all  Union  men,  whether 
Republicans  or  Democrats,  could  see  their  country 
and  State  Avas  in  the  hands  and  keeping  of  patriots 
and  statesmen.  The  Union  men  in  the  Legislature 
wisely  came  to  the  conclusion,  with  all  other  Union 
men  of  the  State,  that  there  were  but  two  parties  in 
the  State — one  for  the  Union,  with  an  undivided 
country,  and  the  stars  and  stripes  for  its  flag,  and 
freedom  for  its  motto;  the  other  party  advocated 
treason,  disunion,  slavery  and  secession.  Thus 
stood  the  parties  Avhen  that  memorable  Legislature 
of  1862  met  at  San  Erancisco. 

It  now  became  necessarv  to  unite  all  Union  men 
in  the  State  in  one  great  National  party.  "  Union 
for  the  sake  of  Union,"  Avas  the  motto.  Before  the 
Legislature  adjourned  the  Rej^ublicans  and  Union 
Democrats  met  in  caucus,  each  party  agreeing  to 
drop  the  names  they  had  so  long  done  battle  under, 
and  be  known  as  the  Union  party  of  California. 
The  loyal  people  of  the  State  heartily  endorsed  the 
doings  of  their  rej)resentatives,  and  for  several  years 
there  were  but  the  two  parties — Union  and  seces- 
sion. It  was  after  the  war  that  the  Kej)ublican 
party  resumed  its  original  name,  and  our  Demo- 
cratic brethren  got  over  thinking  it  a  disgrace  to 
be  called  a  black  Republican. 

It  was  in  the  election  of  1861  that  J.  P.  Jones, 


UNION    OF    DOUGLAS    DEMOCRATS    AND    REPUBLICANS.        403 

now  Senator  from  Nevjida,  came  to  the  surface. 
Jones  had  been  knocking  about  Weaverville  since 
1851  or  1852  —  somewhat  like  Andy  Johnson, 
swinging  around  the  circle — and  had  been  twice 
elected  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  Weaver  town- 
ship by  the  Democrats  ;  had  been  a  clerk  and 
a  deputy  sheriif,  and  private  secretary  to  I.  G. 
Messic,  a  caj)tain  of  the  troops  sent  to  put  down 
the  Indians  in  the  Indian  war  of  1858.  This  was 
waged  by  the  settlers  of  Trinity  and  Humboldt 
counties,  against  tlie  hostile  Indians  then  laying 
waste  witli  fire  and  murder  the  outside  settlements 
of  both  counties.  Jones  received  the  nomination  on 
the  Democratic  ticket  in  1861  for  Sheriif  of  Trinity. 
The  Democrats  were  united  on  the  county  ticket. 
John  A.  Watson,  so  well  known  in  Humboldt 
county,  and  for  many  years  County  Clerk  of  this 
county,  was  the  Republican  nominee  against 
Jones.  Jones  was  elected  by  a  small  majority,  and 
served  out  his  term.  The  sheriff's,  previous  to 
1862,  was  the  leading  office  in  the  mining  counties. 
He  had  the  collecting  of  the  foreign  mining  license. 
The  law  was  very  deficient,  and  it  was  an  easy 
matter  to  swindle  the  State — it  seemed  to  have 
been  enacted  for  that  purj)ose.  Whether  any  of 
our  sheriffs  ever  took  advantage  of  it  I  am  unable 
to  say,  but  it  was  an  office  much  sought  after. 
Cliinamen's  testimony  was  not  taken  for  much,  and 
they  were  the  only  ones  who  had  to  pay  the  license. 
The  Legislature  of  1862  divided  the  office,  and  made 


404  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  collector  of  foreign  miners'  license  a  separate 
office.  Then  the  collector's  office  was  the  one 
sought  after.  Men  frequently  swapped  their  votes 
for  President  of  the  United  States  for  that  of  the 
Sheriff's  office  for  their  friends. 

The  next  election  occurred  in  1863.  As  before 
stated,  the  Legislature  of  1862,  or  the  Union  mem- 
bers thereof,  before  adjournment,  held  several 
Union  meetings,  dropping  their  old  names  and 
adopting  that  of  the  Union  party  of  California. 
Under  the  name  of  the  Union  party  the  conven- 
tions of  1863  Avere  called.  John  P.  Jones  up  to 
that  time  had  been  a  Democrat,  but  a  Union 
Democrat,  and  was  nominated  for  State  Senator  for 
the  counties  of  Trinity  and  Shasta.  He  was  little 
known  outside  of  Trinity  county,  and  the  people 
of  Trinity  knew  little  of  his  ability.  He  stum]3ed 
both  counties,  and  proved  himself  to  be  among  the 
best  orators  of  the  State.  He  was  elected  to  the 
Senate  by  a  large  majority  in  both  counties,  and 
served  with  distinction  in  that  body.  In  1867  he 
received  the  nomination  for  Lieutenant-Governor 
on  the  Republican  ticket,  with  Greorge  0.  Gorham 
for  Governor,  and  they  both  met  a  disastrous  de- 
feat, H.  H.  Haight  carrying  the  State.  Jones  being 
soon  after  appointed  superintendent  of  one  of  the 
large  mines  in  Kevada,  went  to  that  State  to  re- 
side, and  in  a  few  years  was  elected  United  States 
Senator,  which  position  he  still  holds. 

A  few  words  about  the  defeat  of  George  0.  Gorham 


UNION    OF    DOUGLAS    DEMOCRATS    AND    REPUBLICANS.         405 

for  Governor.  During  the  war,  and  for  some  time 
after,  a  nomination  on  the  Union  ticket  was  equiv- 
alent to  an  election — the  State  was  overwhelm- 
ingly Union.  Then  the  spoilsmen  and  political 
sharks  began  their  manipulation.  Eor  some  time 
previous  to  the  State  Convention  of  1867,  tliere 
were  two  factions  in  the  party,  commonly  known 
as  "the  long-hairs "  and  "the  short-hairs."  The 
"  long-hairs  "  were  mostly  composed  of  the  old-line 
Re]3ublicans,  and  their  favorite  candidate  for  Gov- 
ernor was  John  Bidwell  of  Butte  county.  He  was 
then  a  member  of  Congress,  and  considered  a  good 
man.  The  "  short-hairs  "  were  generally  Douglas 
Democrats,  or  the  free-and-easy  portion  of  them, 
with  the  same  class  of  Rejmblicans,  and  their 
strength  lay  in  San  Francisco  and  Sacramento. 
Their  champion  was  George  C.  Gorham.  Gorham 
had  been  private  secretary  to  Governor  Low,  and 
was  considered  one  of  the  best  politicians  and  wire- 
pullers in  the  State.  He  and  J.  P.  Jones  made  a 
full  team  when  pulling  together  for  the  same  end, 
which  they  were  now  doing.  John  Bidwell  was  a 
different  man  from  Gorham.  He  was  above  wire- 
pulling and  political  trickery,  and  a  firm  believer 
in  the  American  principle  that  the  office  ought  to 
seek  the  man,  instead  of  the  man  seeking  the  office. 
George  C.  Gorham  was  a  j)olitician  in  every  sense 
of  the  word,  and  believed  that  everything  was  fair  in 
politics.  I  fully  believe  that  three-fourths  of  the 
Union  party  of  the  State  were  Bidwell  men,  and 


406  PIONEER    DAYS    IN  CALIFORNIA. 

the  delegates  went  to  the  coiiAention  as  such,  but 
some  of  them  were  captured  by  Gorham — a  suffici- 
ent number  to  give  Gorham  and  Jones  the  nomina- 
tions for  Governor  and  Lieutenant-Governor.  This 
was  the  first  split  that  had  taken  place  in  the 
Union  party  since  its  organization.  The  dissat- 
isfied called  a  convention  at  San  Francisco,  and 
nominated  Caleb  T.  Eay  for  Governor.  He  did 
not  make  much  of  a  run,  but  ,got  a  few  thousand 
votes  -enough  to  elect  the  Democratic  GoAcrnor. 
H.  H.  Haight,  the  Democratic  nominee,  had  been 
one  of  the  early  Ilepublicans  of  the  State,  and,  if  I 
remember  correctly,  the  first  Secretary  of  the  Re- 
publican State  Central  Committee,  and  was  an 
active  member  of  tlie  party  up  to  the  time  that 
President  Lincoln  issued  his  emancipation  j)i"ocla- 
mation.  It  was  said  tliat  Mr.  Haight \s  mother-in- 
law  owned  several  slaves  in  Missouri  at  the  time 
the  President  issued  the  proclamation,  and  Haight 
did  not  endorse  it,  but  turned  Democrat.  Gover- 
nor Haight  proved  himself  to  be  an  honest  man  and 
a  man  of  a  good  deal  of  ability,  and  made  a  good 
Governor  for  California.  G.  C.  Gorham  was,  after 
his  defeat,  elected  Secretary  of  the  United  States 
Senate  at  Washington.  John  P.  Jones  went  to 
Nevada,  and  was  elected  to  the  United  States  Sen- 
ate. Keither  of  them  figured  in  California  politics 
after  their  defeat  in  1867 — they  got  a  big  political 
"  disgust  on,  "  and  left  the  State. 

But,  to  come  back  to  1862.     The  Legislature  that 


UNION    OF    DOUGLAS    DEMOCRATS    AND    REPUBLICANS.         407 

Avas  elected  that  year  had  a  vacancy  to  fill  in  the 
United  States  Senate,  Gwin's  term  having  expired 
or  would  expire  before  another  Legislature  would 
assemble.  There  were  several  aspirants  for  the 
office,  but  John  Conness  of  El  Dorado  county 
seemed  to  have  the  inside  track.  He  had  made  a 
gallant  tight  for  his  party  and  the  Union  in  1861, 
when  Leland  Stanford  was  elected  Governor,  and 
had  used  his  influence  in  bringing  all  Union  men 
together  and  uniting  them  under  one  political  ban- 
ner, and  the  loyal  peojile  of  the  State  had  every 
confidence  in  his  patriotism  and  his  honesty.  He 
was  nominated  in  caucus,  and  elected  to  succeed 
William  M.  Gwin.  G^vin,  after  his  term  exx^ired, 
went  South,  but  the  rebels  had  no  use  for  him,  and 
he  shortly  after  migrated  to  Mexico,  to  help  Maxi- 
milian establish  an  empire  in  our  sister  Kexniblic. 
It  was  said  that  Maximilian  created  him  ''Duke 
of  Sonora,"  but  he  did  not  wear  his  honors  long. 
His  master,  the  Emperor,  was  shot  by  the  Mexicans, 
and  Gwin  left  the  country  in  disgust  and  came  back 
to  California  minus  the  dukedom.  The  old  gentle- 
man died  a  few  years  ago.  Few  men  in  the  State 
had  the  j)olitical  experience  of  Mr.  Gwin.  Coming 
here  before  California  was  a  State,  he  took  a  promi- 
nent part  in  the  convention  that  formed  the  State 
Constitution,  and  was  one  of  the  leading  members  of 
the  convention.  He  had  been  in  Congress  from 
the  State  of  Mississippi,  and,  like  a  large  number 
of  Southern  politicians,  he  came  to  California  for 


408  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

the  purpose  of  receiving  office.  The  United  States 
Senate  was  his  ambition,  and  he  succeeded  in  ob- 
taining the  prize,  he  and  Jolm  C.  Ereniont  being 
elected  California's  first  Senators,  in  the  fall  of  1849, 
the  first  session  of  the  Legislature  being  held  at 
San  Jose.  Eor  over  ten  years  he  was  the  most  con- 
spicuous figure  in  California  politics,  and  generally 
at  the  top  of  the  ladder.  The  part  he  took  in  the 
killing  of  Senator  Broderick,  in  the  Terry  and 
Broderick  duel,  killed  him  politically  in  California. 


A    family's    move    to    HUMBOLDT.  409 


CHAPTER  XLVI. 

A  Family's  Move  to  Humboldt, 

Packing  babies  in  boxes  by  pack-train. — Eureka  as  it  was  in  1866  com- 
pared with  Eureka  in  1890. 

In  the  year  1866  I  made  up  my  mind  to 
change  my  place  of  residence.  Eor  years  I  haci 
been  thinking  of  making  Humboklt  county  my 
j)ennanent  home.  In  the  fall  of  that  year  I  partly 
sold  out  ni}^  property,  and  got  ready  for  atrip  across 
the  mountains  to  Humboldt.  It  was  no  small 
undertaking  at  that  time,  as  everything  had  to  be 
packed  on  mules,  and  we  had  six  children,  only 
two  of  whom  were  old  enough  to  be  able  to  ride. 
The  other  four  had  to  be  carried  in  arms,  or 
packed  in  boxes  on  mules.  I  employed  Henry 
Allen  of  Hyampom,  who  owned  a  pack-train,  to 
take  my  family  and  goods  from  Hay  Pork  Valley 
to  H}  desville,  in  Humboldt  county.  After  making 
all  necessary  arrangements,  such  as  making  boxes 
in  which  to  carry  the  babies,  and  putting  up  packs 
and  lunches  for  use  on  the  road,  we  got  started. 
We  intended  to  reach  Allen's  ranch  at  Hyampom 
the  first  day  out,  and  there  remain  over  night,  but 


410  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

we  were  late  in  getting  started,  and  did  not  reach 
that  point  until  long  after  dark. 

^N^ext  day  we  got  an  earlier  start,  and  crossed  the 
South  Fork  Mountain  and  down  to  Pilot  Creek, 
and  camped  on  the  mountain  between  Pilot  Creek 
and  Mad  River.  The  Indian  war  had  just  closed, 
and  the  troops  were  disbanded,  and  there  were  said 
to  be  some  hostile  bands  of  Indians  at  large  in  the 
mountains.  Just  before  dark  we  heard  several 
shots  tired  down  on  Mad  River  that  somewhat 
alarmed  us,  not  knowing  but  they  were  fired  by 
Indians.  I  afterwards  learned  that  these  shots 
were  fired  by  a  j)arty  of  hunters.  The  next  day  we 
made  the  head  of  Yager  Creek,  the  first  settlement 
we  reached  in  Humboldt  county.  Kext  day  we 
reached  Hydesville  all  right.  The  children  stood 
the  trip  in  their  boxes  very  well.  My  destination 
was  Eureka. 

After  resting  at  Hydesville  for  one  day  we  started 
for  Eureka,  hiring  a  man  with  an  old  spring  wagon 
to  take  us  there.  It  was  evening  when  y^e  arrived 
at  that  place. 

The  afternoon  before  we  got  to  Eureka,  this  side 
of  Table  Bluif,  one  of  those  cold  fogs  came  up  that 
go  right  through  one  and  chill  him  through,  no 
matter  how  much  clothing  he  may  have  on.  Com- 
ing from  Hay  Pork  Valley,  where  we  had  clear 
skies  and  warm,  beautiful  weather,  we  were  as 
homesick  a  crowd  as  ever  made  their  appearance 
in  Eureka. 


EUREKA    AS    IT    WAS    IN    1866.  411 

Eureka  as  I  found  it  in  the  year  1866,  twenty- 
four  years  ago,  was  but  a  small  place,  situated  on 
the  south  side  of  Humboldt  Bay,  and  principally 
built  on  the  water  front.  First  street  was  the  prin- 
cipal street  of  the  town.  Eureka  for  several  }  ears 
after  did  not  arrive  at  the  dignity  of  a  city. 

The  town  was  governed  by  a  Board  of  Town 
Trustees,  five  in  number.  The  j) residing  officer  was 
called  the  President  »of  the  Board,  and  was 
selected  out  of  the  Board  at  their  first  meet^ 
ing  after  their  election.  The  Clerk  of  the  Board 
was  also  one  of  the  Board,  elected  by  the  Board 
at  the  same  time  as  the  President.  The  fol- 
lowing named  gentlemen  composed  the  town  gover- 
ment  in  1866:  R.  W.  Brett,  President  of  the  Board, 
and  James  M.  Cox,  John  Keleher,  James  M. 
Short  and  Allan  McKav  as  Town  Trustees.  Allan 
McKav  was  Town  Clerk.  The  Citv  Marshal  was 
David  Fairfield;  Assessor,  N.  Bullock;  Treasurer, 
T.  H.  Eoss;  City  Attorney,  James  Hanna.  Only 
one  of  that  Board  is  now  living — James  M.  Short. 
The  other  members  of  the  Board  of  1866  have  paid 
the  debt  of  nature.  The  town's  taxable  j^ropert}^ 
amounted  to  about  five  hundred  thousand  dollars. 
There  were  about  two  miles  of  graded  streets  in  the 
city  limits.  The  j)rincipal  mercantile  houses  were 
on  Eirst  street,  viz:  Janssen  &>  Co.,  P.  H.  Byan, 
Thomas  Walsh,  L.  C.  Smith  &  Co.,  Rohner  & 
EUery,  W.  J.  Sweasey  and  Heney  Bros.  M.  H. 
Baldwin  was  in  the  harness  and  saddlery  business. 


412  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Jolin  Pollard  kept  a  slioe-sliox);  AYeck  &  Short  a 
drug-store.  Waller  also  kej)t  a  drug-store.  The 
postoffice  Avas  also  on  Eirst  street,  with  Charles 
Heney  as  postmaster.  0.  E.  Bigelow  ran  a  black- 
smitli's  shop.  There  were  two  hotels,  both  on 
Eirst  street — the  old  Liek  House,  recently  pulled 
down,  then  kej)t  by  Tom  Kelly,  and  the  Kuss 
House,  kept  by  E.  Bulkeley. 

Eureka  supported  at  that  time  two  doctors — Dr. 
Barber  and  Dr.  Clark  ;  and  six  lawyers — James 
Hanna,  J.  J.  DeHaven,  Judge  Havens,  Walter  S. 
Brock,  Charles  Westmoreland  and  A.  C.  Lawrence. 
S.  M.  Buck  came  back  from  Washoe  in  1869.  Dr. 
O.  J.  Gates,  dentist,  used  to  pay  Eureka  a  flying 
visit  occasionally. 

Eureka  had  at  that  time  four  saw-mills  running. 
John  Vance's,  where  it  now  stands  ;  D.  B.  Jones 
&  Co's  small  mill  and  a  large  one  on  the  Island, 
and  Dolbeer  &  Carson's  mill.  Dolbeer  &  Carson's 
old  mill  was  burned  in  1880,  and  a  larger  and 
much  improved  mill  was  built  in  its  place. 

Second  street  was  but  little  built  upon.  On 
the  corner  of  E  and  Second  streets  the  previ- 
ous summer  the  Masons  and  Odd  Eellows  had 
built  a  two-story  building,  the  largest  building 
then  in  town.  Both  these  orders  occupied  the 
ui)per  story  for  lodge-rooms.  Ben  Eeigenbaum  oc- 
cupied the  lower  story  with  a  general  merchandise 
store.  There  were  two  small  buildings  between 
the  corner  of  E  and  G  streets.     That   corner  Avas 


EUREKA    AS    IT    WAS    IN    1866.  413 

occupied  hy  an  old  building  wliich  was  used  as  a 
boarding-bouse  for  Jobn  Yance's  mill  hands.  It 
was  pulled  down  by  Mr.  Vance  when  he  built  the 
Vance  House.  From  the  corner  of  Second  and  G, 
on  both  sides  of  the  street,  were  principally  dwell- 
ing-houses as  far  as  the  old  court-house.  The 
Humboldt  Times  occupied  the  southwest  corner  of 
E  and  Second  streets.  It  was  owned  and  edited  by 
J.  E.  W} man.  On  the  corner  of  E  and  Second 
streets  0.  W.  Long  and  A.  H.  Gilbert  were  keej)- 
ing  a  livery-stable.  John  T.  Young  had  a  sa- 
loon on  the  opi3osite  corner.  H.  M.  Williams  was 
running  a  liver} -stable  on  the  corner  of  Second  and 
D  streets.  What  was  known  as  the  Duff  boarding- 
house  was  on  the  corner  of  Second  and  0  streets, 
and  was  recently  pulled  down  to  make  room  for 
the  Grand  Hotel. 

Second  street  was  then  the  main  entrance  to  the 
town.  Third  and  Fourth  street  below  E  were  not 
yet  open,  but  the  ground  they  pass  over  was  a 
quagmire.  E  street  between  Third  and  nearly  to 
Fifth  was  in  the  same  condition.  The  Rev.  W.  L. 
Jones  and  Major  Long  were  the  first  to  build  south 
of  Sixth  street  on  E.  They  had  to  build  a  plank 
path-way  over  the  marsh,  to  get  to  their  homes. 
AH  below  Fourth  on  D  and  C  was  partly  brush 
and  timber  down  to  Second  street.  Third  street 
was  not  yet  graded.  Huge  stumps  and  logs  filled 
the  streets  as  far  as  Ninth  street,  and  there  scatter- 
ing trees  and  logs  were  seen  until  you  reached  the 


414  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

woods.  In  the  upper  part  of  the  town,  all  south  of 
Tourth  street  was  forest.  Clark's  Addition  was  not 
yet  laid  out,  and  that  part  of  the  town  was  a  forest, 
the  Avoods  coining  down  to  Sixth  street  on  J). 

Eureka  had  one  steamer  making  two  trips  j)er 
month  to  San  Francisco,  and  several  sailing  vessels 
engaged  in  the  lumber  trade,  and  sometimes  carry- 
ing freight  and  passengers  between  Eureka  and  San 
Erancisco.  R.  W.  Brett's  saloon,  or  "Brett's 
Court,"  as  it  was  generally  called,  was  tlie  general 
headquarters  for  all  the  wags  in  town.  Every  niglit 
one  could  there  hear  all  the  scandals  of  the  town 
retailed,  the  news  of  the  day  discussed,  the  cases  in 
court  tried,  and  all  manner  of  jobs  concocted.  It 
was  headquarters  for  all  the  sea  captains,  and  a 
jolly  set  they  were,  spinning  their  yarns,  and  having 
a  good  time  generally.  There  were  four  other 
saloons  in  the  town  at  that  time. 

George  Yance  was  running  a  blacksmith  shop 
on  F  street  below  First. 

Eureka  had  one  lodge  of  Masons,  with  C.  W. 
Long  as  W.  M.,  and  J.  S.  Murray  Sen.  Secretary, 
and  one  lodge  of  Odd  Fellows. 

Eureka  had  in  1866  about  one  hundred  and 
twenty  school  children.  Three  schools  were  taught. 
The  Grammar  School  was  taught  by  Solomon  Cooper 
in  the  old  land-office  building,  upstairs,  on  the 
corner  of  Fourth  and  G  streets.  The  Intermediate 
School  was  taught  by  Miss  Maggie  Murray,  on  the 
corner  of  G  and  Third   streets,  in  the  old  building 


EUREKA    AS    IT    WAS    IN    ISfifi.  415 

still  standing  there,  as  a  memorial  of  pioneer  days. 
The  Primary  School  was  taught  by  Mrs.  Parker,  on 
tlie  corner  of  I  and  Third  streets,  in  an  old  shantr 
devoid  of  lining  or  paper.  The  school  property  of 
the  city  was  valued  at  about  six  hundred  dollars. 
The  Methodists  had  partly  built  a  school  building, 
now  owned  by  the  Catholics  and  known  as  the 
Catholic  Convent,  but  failed  in  the  undertaking, 
and  it  was  sold  to  its  j)resent  owners.  The  Rev.  W. 
L.  Jones  was  County  Superintendent  of  Schools  at 
that  time. 

In  1866  Eureka  was  supplied  with  three  churches, 
the  Congregational,  the  Catholic  and  the  Methodist. 
All  the  church  buildings  of  that  time  have  since 
been  replaced  by  new,  better  and  larger  ones.  The 
First  Congregational  Church  building  then  in  use 
is  now  a  livery-stable,  and  occupied  as  such  by 
Lafayette  Ayres.  The  o  d  Methodist  building  was 
sold  to  P.  H.  Ryan,  and  moved  to  the  corner  of 
Pirst  and  E  streets,  and  is  now  run  and  known  as 
McNally's  saloon.  The  old  Catholic  building  was 
moA  ed  back  to  I  street,  and  is  yet  used  for  religious 
purposes.  The  Eire  Department  was  composed  of 
one  hand  engine  (the  present  "  Old  Torrent ")  with 
one  fire  company,  of  which  P.  H.  Ryan  was  fore- 
man. There  was  one  line  of  stages  running  between 
Hydesville  and  Eureka,  owned  by  Bullard  & 
Sweasey,  and  making  daily  trips.  One  line  was 
running  between  Eureka  and  Areata. 

Eureka   at   that  time    was   a   lively  place  for  a 


416  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

small   town,  full   of   business  and  with   plenty   of 
money. 

I  have  endeavored  to  give  my  readers  a  correct 
idea  of  what  Eureka  was  twenty-four  ^^ears  ago. 


EUREKA  AS  IT  IS  IN   1890. 

When  we  look  back  over  the  space  of  twenty- 
four  years,  we  see  the  growth  and  prosperity  of 
Eureka,  and  see  it  rise  from  a  little  hamlet  into  a 
full-fledged  city  with  over  five  thousand  inhabitants, 
without  the  aid  of  any  "  boom  "  or  wild  speculation. 
Her  growth  has  been  sure  and  permanent ;  each 
year  her  property  and  population  are  increasing, 
and  new  lines  of  business  starting  out  to  give  em- 
ployment to  her  people.  Her  business  men  as  a 
general  thing  are  doing  well.  Her  credit  stands 
number  one  abroad,  there  being  fewer  failures 
here  than  in  any  other  toAvn  in  the  State  doing  the 
same  amount  of  business.  Her  school  svstem  is 
good.  The  Public  Schools  now  employ  tAventy- 
seven  teachers,  with  two  thousand  and  sixty-seven 
children  within  school  age,  and  over  one  thousand 
in  daily  attendance.  Her  school  j)roperty  is  of  the 
value  of  one  hundred  and  seventeen  thousand  six 
hundred  and  forty  dollars.  Eureka  has  one  private 
academy  controlled  by  Prof.  N.  S.  Phelps,  and 
another  under  the  control  of  the  Catholics. 


EUREKA    AS    IT    IS    IN    1890.  417 

Eureka  has  now  eleven  church  buildings  erected, 
or  in  the  course  of  erection,  by  the  diiferent  denom- 
inations of  Christians,  and  one  congregation  of 
"  Salvationists."  Eureka  has  five  large  saw-mills 
with  shingle-mills  attached,  three  molding-mills, 
four  shingle-mills  not  connected  with  saw-mills, 
two  shipyards  where  seven  ocean  vessels  were  built 
and  on  the  stocks  this  year,  one  boiler-shop,  one 
machine-shop,  one  brass  foundry,  two  foundries, 
seven  blacksmith  and  wagon-shops,  one  saw-works, 
one  soap  factory,  two  gunsmith  shops,  seven  shoe- 
maker shoj)S,  two  candy  factories,  five  silversmith 
and  watchmaker  shops,  four  merchant  tailors, 
three  brick-yards,  two  breweries,  two  dyeing 
establishments,  four  cigar  factories,  four  harness 
and  saddlery  shoj)S,  five  butcher-shops,  two  soda 
factories,  and  two  marble -cutters. 

Her  mercantile  business  comprises  five  banks, 
twelve  grocery  and  provision  stores,  seven  clothing 
stores  for  men,  twelve  stores  of  ladies'  goods,  some 
of  them  carrying  men  and  boys'  clothing,  seven 
hardware  and  tin  stores,  seven  fruit  and  candy 
stores,  three  fruit  and  vegetable  stores,  three  whole- 
sale liquor  stores,  forty  saloons,  two  feed-stores, 
three  stationary  and  variety  stores,  four  merchant 
shoe-stores,  one  tea  and  coifee  store,  two  paint  and 
oil-stores,  two  wagon  and  carriage  houses,  seven 
drug-stores,  seven  furniture  stores,  eleven  cigar 
and  tobacco  stores,  three  steam  laundries,  five  livery- 
stables,   one  yankee  notion  store,  one  fish  market. 


418  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

one  ship-chandler's  store,  six  hotels,  five  restau- 
rants, two  daily  papers,  four  weekly  papers,  seven 
real  estate  ofiices,  seven  dentists,  ten  doctors  and 
twenty-four  lawyers. 

The  G.  A.  R.  is  represented  by  Post,  Corps 
and  Camp,  each  of  which  contains  a  large  member- 
ship. 

There  are  running  between  Eureka  and  San 
Erancisco  two  steamers  making  weekly  trips,  which 
gives  Eureka  eight  steamers  per  month,  besides 
steam  schooners  that  carry  freight  and  passengers, 
and  a  large  fleet  of  sailing  vessels  engaged  in  the 
lumber  trade,  and  a  number  of  small  steamers 
running  on  the  bay. 

Eureka's  City  Government  is  composed  of  the 
following  named  gentlemen  :  The  Hon.  John 
Vance,  Mayor ;  Councilmen,  Eirst  Ward,  Alex- 
ander Oonnick;  Second  Ward,  Henry  Sevier ; 
Third  Ward,  W.  L.  Heney  ;  Eourth  Ward,  Solo- 
mon Cooper;  Eifth  Ward,  W.  S.  Clark;  City 
Clerk,  James  Keleher ;  City  Attorney,  James  N. 
Gillett;  City  Marshal,  ]t^.  G.  Lindsay ;  Assessor, 
Daniel  J.  Eoley  ;  Treasurer,  James  G.D.  Crichton; 
Police  Judge,  John  Carr;  Health  Officer,  Dr.  S.  B. 
Eoster;  Da}^  Police,  John  Mclsaacs;  Night  Police, 
George  B.  Hall  and  Joseph  L.  Bulkeley.  Council 
meetings  first  Monday  of  each  month. 

The  city  is  completely  out  of  debt  and  on  a  cash 
basis.  The  assessed  value  of  her  property  is 
three  million  five  hundred  thousand  dollars.   There 


EUREKA    AS    IT    IS    IN    1890.  419 

are  forty  miles  of  graded  streets,  liaving  twelve-foot 
sidewalks  within  the  city  limits. 

Tlie  City  Fire  Department  is  composed  of  four 
volunteer  companies  well  organized,  and  as  effi- 
cient as  those  of  anv  citv  on  tlie  Coast.  She  lias 
two  Silsbnry's  steam  lire  engines,  one  hand  engine, 
five  thousand  six  hundred  feet  of  first-class  hose, 
five  hose-carts,  one  hook  and  ladder  apparatus. 
Cephas  Acheson  is  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the 
dej)artment,  and  Robert  Holmes  is  the  Assistant 
Engineer. 


420  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XLVII. 
BIOGRAPHY. 

This  work  would  not  be  complete  without  a  short 
biography  of  some  of  the  pioneers.  The  limits  of 
this  book  forbid  a  notice  of  all  the  pioneers  who  are 
worthy  of  such  notice.  Nevertheless,  the  list 
which  follows  will  be  found  to  be  quite  extensive 
in  respect  to  Humboldt  and  Trinity  counties,  and 
cannot  fail  to  be  of  great  interest  to  the  surviving 
pioneers  of  those  counties,  and  to  the  friends  and 
descendants  of  all  the  j)ioneers. 

ALBEE,  J.  P. — A  native  of  Ohio.  Came  from  Illinois  to  California 
in  1850,  across  the  plains.  Occupation,  stockraiser.  Was  killed  by  the 
Indians  in  1862  at  Redwood  Ranch,  Humboldt  county. 

ALBEE,  CALTHA— Wife  of  J.  P.  Albee  ;  came  to  California  by  way 
of  Nicaragua  in  1852.     Residence,  Eureka. 

ARBOGAST,  MINERVA  and  HENRY— Were  niece  and  nephew  of 
H.  F.  Janes.  Minerva  is  now  the  widow  of  E.  Prigmore,  and  a  resident 
of  Janes  Creek.     Henry  is   n  business  in  San  Jose. 

AXTON,  HENRY — A  native  of  Kentucky;  came  to  California  in 
1850,  and  engaged  in  farming.     Residence",  Eureka. 

ANDERSON,  COLIN — Is  a  native  of  Scotland  ;  came  to  California 
in  1853  ;   is  a  minister  of  the  gospel — a  Methodist. 

BUHNE,  HANS  HENRY— Was  born  in  Denmark,  and  came  to 
California  in  1847.     He  was  a  sea-faring  man,  and  his  vessel  was  from 


BIOGRAPHY.  421 

the  Behring  Sea,  where  he  had  been  whaling.  He  sailed  with  his  vessel, 
the  "Clementine,"  to  San  Francisco  for  provisions.  The  ship  returned 
from  McLena  Bay  in  Mexico  north  to  the  whaling-ground,  and  from  there 
to  the  Navigator  Islands,  where  the  ship's  crew  heard  of  the  discovery  of 
gold  in  California  about  November,  1848.  From  there  the  ship  went  to 
Chile  and  took  in  freight  and  passengers  for  San  Francisco,  where  she 
arrived  about  the  ist  of  June,  1849.  After  discharging  the  vessel  he 
went  to  Auburn  and  worked  in  the  placer  diggings  for  a  couple  of  months. 
Here  he  fell  sick,  and  lay  in  his  tent  waiting  for  death  to  come.  An  old 
townsman  of  his  came  into  Auburn  with  an  ox-team,  and,  finding  Mr. 
Buhne,  took  him  in  his  wagon  to  Sacramento,  and  thence  saw  him  safe 
to  San  Francisco.  Here  Mr.  Buhne  went  to  board  with  a  couple  of 
shipmates,  Mr.  Johnsen  and  William  Brodersen,  and  -lay  sick  for  five 
months.  Mr.  Brodersen  afterwards  was  a  partner  with  Mr.  Buhne  in 
business  on  Humboldt  Bay.  Mr.  Buhne  recovered  from  his  sickness, 
and  was  persuaded  to  ship  as  second  mate  on  the  schooner  "  Laura 
Virginia,"  bound  for  the  mouth  of  Trinity  River.  He  accepted  the  offer, 
feeling  that  it  would  be  sure  death  if  he  stayed  in  San  Francisco,  inas- 
much as  dropsy  had  set  in,  with  swelling  in  his  feet,  hands  and  face,  and 
that  by  going  to  sea  he  could  not  make  his  condition  worse. 

"The  first  night  out  from  San  Francisco  a  southeast  storm  of  rain  set 
in,  and  I  got  wet.     For  one  week  I  did  not  have  a  dry  rag  on  my  back. 

"  On  our  way  north  we  discovered  the  mouth  of  Eel  River.  We  tried 
to  enter  this  river.  Captain  Ottenger  of  the  "  Laura  Virginia"  took  two 
of  our  boats  and  tried  to  get  into  the  river.  On  the  bar  one  of  the  boats 
upset,  and  one  of  the  men  was  drowned.  When  Captain  Ottenger  w-as 
steering  the  other  boat  and  saw  the  boat  upset  in  the  breakers,  he  pulled 
back  to  the  vessel  and  got  me  to  go  with  his  boat  to  pick  up  the  man, 
who  had  succeeded  in  reaching  the  bottom  of  the  capsized  boat.  I  suc- 
ceeded in  saving  the  man  and  the  boat. 

"  Continuing  on  our  way  north  we  discovered  the  mouth  of  Humboldt 
Bay,  Trinidad,  Klamath  River  and  Crescent  City,  an  open  harbor.  Then 
the  'Laura  Virginia'  returned  south  to  Humboldt  Bar,  or  what  has 
since  been  narried  Humboldt  Bar,  on  the  morning  of  the  13th  day  of 
April,  1850.  I  took  the  Captain's  gig  and  crossed  the  bar  and  entered 
the  bay  about  1 1  o'clock  A.  M.,  the  first  American  seaman  to  enter  Hum- 
boldt Bay,  and  landed  on  the  red  bluff,  which  is  now  called  Buhne's 
Point.  I  went  on  the  bluff  and  had  a  fine  view  of  the  bar,  entrance  and 
the  bay.     The  bay  was  literally  covered  with  geese   and  ducks.     While 


422  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

waiting  for  high  water  on  the  bar,  we  started  out  and  sounded  the  channel, 
crossed  the  bar  and  went  to  the  vessel  and  reported  to  Captain  Ottenger. 
We  had  found  a  fine  channel,  with  a  depth  of  three  and  a  half  fathoms 
of  water  on  the  bar.  In  the  afternoon  about  4  o'clock  we  left  the  vessel 
with  two  boats  full  of  passengers  with  their  outfit,  and  started  to  cross 
Humboldt  bar  about  6:30  o'clock,  but  on  coming  to  the  bar  some  of  the 
passengers  refused  to  cross  it.  We  called  the  other  boat  up  to  us,  ap- 
pointed a  chairman,  and  took  a  vote  as  to  whether  we  should  go  in  or  not. 
The  majority  voted  to  go  in.  We  started,  and  passed  the  south  spit  about 
8  o'clock  p.  M.,  and  landed  about  where  the  light-house  now  stands,  and 
here  camped  the  first  night.  We  took  soundings  of  the  bay  over  to 
what  is  now  Buhne's  Point,  and  located  Humboldt  City.  Four  days  after- 
wards we  went  out  and  brought  in  the  vessel.  This  was  the  first  vessel 
to  cross  the  bar  after  the  American  occupation."' 

He  then  piloted  the  vessel  over  the  bar,  and  sailed  in  her  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  returned  to  the  bay  as  a  passenger,  arriving  in  the  bay  May 
6,  1850.  He  made  his  business  piloting  on  Humboldt  bar  and  keeping  a 
boarding-house  on  Buhne's  Point.  Growing  tired  of  the  business,  he  left  for 
Trinity  River  mines.  Not  meeting  with  much  success  in  these  mines,  he 
returned  to  Humboldt  Bay  on  foot.  He  started  to  piloting  again,  and  made 
some  money.  He  then  went  to  San  Francisco,  intending  to  go  into  the 
mercantile  business  at  Humboldt  Point.  He  got  shipwrecked  at  Bodega 
and  lost  all  his  goods,  and  he  again  went  to  San  Francisco  "  broke  "  and 
sick.  He  returned  to  Humboldt,  disgusted  with  himself  and  the  rest  of 
mankind. 

He  then  went  to  hunting  elk  and  deer  for  a  living.  His  first  butcheV- 
shop  was  a  board  laid  on  two  bo.xes  at  the  corner  of  the  plaza  at  Union- 
town,  where  the  old  Kirby  stable  now  stands.  This  was  in  1851.  He 
kept  at  the  hunting  business  until  he  shipped  as  Captain  on  the  brig 
"  Colorado."  After  he  had  made  a  couple  of  trips  in  this  vessel,  Ryan  &^ 
Duff,  Captain  James  Hasty  and  Martin  White,  hired  him  as  a  pilot  at  six 
hundred  dollars  per  month,  to  take  their  sailing  vessels  in  and  out  over 
Humboldt  bar.  November  8,  1852,  the  steam  tug  "  Mary  Ann"  arrived 
off  Humboldt  bar.  He  then  went  on  board  and  took  charge  of  her,  and 
has  had  charge  of  her  for  almost  thirty-eight  years. 

In  1865  he  entered  into  partnership  in  the  mill  business  with  D.  R. 
Jones  and  others,  forming  the  company  known  as  D.  R.  Jones  dr'  Co.  In 
1 884  he  sold  his  mill  business  to  the  California  Redwood  Company. 

He  is  still  in  business  with  H.  H.  Buhne,  Ji.,  in  the  ship-chandler  and 


BIOGRAPHY.  423 

hardware  business,  and  also  in  farming  and  dairying.  Their  hardware 
and  ship-chandler  business  is  one  of  the  most  extensive  on  the  northern 
Pacific  Coast.  They  have  to-day  part  cargoes  on  ten  different  vessels  be- 
tween New  York  and  San  Francisco.  The  house  and  business  stands 
"A  I." 

BOHALL,  WILLIAM— A  native  of  New  York  ;  came  from  Wiscon- 
sin across  the  plains  to  California  m  1852.  Occupation,  a  farmer.  Died 
in  1883. 

BOHALL,  WALTER— A  native  of  the  State  of  New  York  ;  came 
from  Wisconsin  to  California  in  1852.  A  printer.  Was  Inspector  of 
Customs  from  1862  to  1865  at  Eureka. 

BOHALL,  WILLIAM  M.— A  native  of  New  York  ;  came  from  Wis- 
consin across  the  plains  to  California  in  1852.     A  farmer. 

BOHALL,  CAROLINE  C.  CATHEY— A  native  of  Missouri  ;  came 
across  the  plains  to  California  in  1849.     Is  the  wife  of  Walter  Bohall. 

BROWN^  ELISHA — Came  from  Missouri  across  the  plains  with  the 
Lassen  part}'  in  1848.     Deceased. 

BROWN,  HANNAH— Wife  of  Elisha  Brown  ;  came  from  Missouri 
in  1848. 

BROWN,  JAMES  E. — Came  across  the  plains  in  1848  with  the  Lassen 
party  from  Missouri. 

BALL,  JOTHAM  T. — Came  from  Ohio  across  the  plains  to  California 
in  1853.     Occupation,  stockraiser.     Residence,  Salmon  Creek. 

BUCK,  S.  M. — A  native  of  Maine  ;  came  to  California  in  1856.  Was 
elected  to  the  Legislature  from  San  Joaquin  county  ;  is  one  of  the  leading 
members  of  the  bar  of  Humboldt  county.     Residence,  Eureka. 

BARBER,  J.  P. — Was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island;  came  to  California 
in  June,  1851  ;  is  a  carpenter  by  trade  ;  came  to  Humboldt  county  in 
1858  ;  died  in  1875. 

BARBER,  GAliDNER  C— Came  to  California  in  1852  and  to  Hum- 
boldt county  in  i'858  ;  was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island  ;  is  a  farmer  ; 
has  served  three  terms  as  County  Supervisor. 

BARBER,  CHARLES  J.— Came  to  Cahfornia  in  1851  and  to  Hum- 
boldt county  in  1858  ;  is  a  carpenter. 

BRUMFIELD,  W.  H. — A  lawyer;  native  of  Pennsylvania.  Came 
to  California  in  1853,  and  died  at  Eureka  in  1886. 


424  PIONEER    DAYS    IN  CALIFORNIA. 

BRUMFIELD,  ALICE  DUNBAR— Wife  of  W.  H.  Brumfield  ;  is  a 
native  of  Michigan,  and  came  to  California  in  1852. 

BEACH,  CHARLES  E.— A  native  of  New  York  ;  came  to  California 
in  1851  by  way  of  the  Isthmus.  He  arrived  in  San  Francesco  June  21, 
185 1,  and  came  to  Humboldt  in  1852.     Occupation,  miner  and  farmer. 

BURNETT,  THOMAS— A  native  of  New  York;  came  to  California  in 
1849  ;  is  a  gunsmith  in  Eureka. 

BALLENTINE,  SAM— A  native  of  Ohio  ;  came  to  California  in  1850, 
and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1856.  A  lumberman  and  book-keeper. 
Residence,  Hydesville. 

BRETT,  R.  W. — A  native  of  England  ;  came  from  New  Zealand  to 
California  in  1849.  L)ied  December  22,  1877.  A  butcher.  Was  a  member 
of  the  City  Council  of  Eureka. 

BROWN,  THOMAS  M.— A  native  of  Tennessee  ;  came  across  the 
plains  with  an  ox-team  to  California  in  1849.  ^^  ^''st  a  miner;  Sheriff 
of  Klamath  county  thirteen  years  and  of  Humboldt  county  fifteen  years. 

BULKELEY,  ELI  PHALET— Came  to  California  in  1852  from  Wis- 
consin. Was  Sheriff  of  Humboldt  four  years.  Died  in  August,  1890, 
aged  78. 

BULKELEY,  J.  L. — A  native  of  Pennsylvania;  came  from  Wisconsin 
to  California  in  1854  ;  is  a  policeman  in  the  city  of  Eureka. 

BURNS,  ALBERT — A  native  of  New  York;  came  to  California  in 
1849.     Was  a  soldier  in  the  Mexican  war.     Residence,  Eureka. 

BROWNELL,  G.  W. — Came  from  Illinois  across  the  plains  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1849. 

BROWN,  THEODORE  H.— Came  from  Missouri  in  1848  with  the 
Lassen  party. 

BRYANT,  ROLLA— Came  from  Vermont  across  the  Isthmus  in  1852. 
A  farmer.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

BRYANT,  LIZZIE — Came  from  Illinois  across  the  plains  in  1853. 

BUGBEE,  R.  J. — Came  from  Michigan  across  the  plains  to  California 
in  1853.     A  farmer.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

BUGBEE,  MARY  A.— Crossed  the  plains  in  1852.  Died,  1889.  Wife 
of  R.  J.  Bugbe 


BIOGRAPHY.  425 

BUGBEE,  MARK— Crossed  the  plains  in  1853.  Blacksmith.  Resi- 
dence, Ferndale. 

BERDING,  A. — Came  from  Rio  Janeiro  to  California  around  Cape 
Horn  in  1847.     Merchant.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

CARSON,  WILLIAM— Is  a  native  of  New  Brunswick,  and  left  his 
home  in  that  Province  in  1849  to  seek  his  fortune  in  California.  Arrivino: 
in  San  Francisco  in  the  early  part  of  1850,  he,  like  others,  went  to  the 
mines.  The  author's  first  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Carson  was  in  the 
summer  of  185 1.  He  was  then  building  what  was  known  as  the  "  Arkan- 
saw  Dam  "  on  Trinity  River,  with  a  number  of  others  that  have  since  be- 
come pioneers  of  Humboldt  county — among  them  Oliver  Gilmore,  Daniel 
Morrison,  Sandy  Buchanan  and  Jerry  Whitmore.  William  Carson  and 
Jerry  Whitmore  were  two  men  that  were  appointed  to  watch  where  the 
Indians  crossed  Trinity  River  after  the  murder  of  John  Anderson  in 
1852,  when  the  volunteers  from  Weaverville  were  on  their  track.  Mr. 
Carson,  like  many  others,  not  being  satisfied  with  the  mines,  came  to 
Humboldt  in  the  fall  of  1850,  and  went  into  the  lumbering  business. 
William  Carson  and  Jerry  Whitmore  in  November  of  that  year  cut  the 
first  tree  for  a  sawlog  that  was  ever  cut  on  Humboldt  Bay. 

He  with  John  Dolbeer  formed  the  firm  of  Dolbeer  Or'  Carson  in  1862, 
and  this  has  since  been  one  of  the  most  successful  business  firms  on  the 
Pacific  Coast,  running  mills  and  ships  and  owning  large  amounts  of  red- 
wood timber  lands,  and  conducting  other  industries  which  gave  employ- 
ment to  hundreds  of  men  each  year,  thereby  building  up  and  develop- 
ing the  county.  Mr.  Carson  is  a  man  of  liberal  ideas,  always  with  a 
liberal  hand  helping  our  public  institutions  that  are  for  the  advancement 
of  the  people  and  the  benefit  of  mankind.  He  is  now  President  of  the 
Bank  of  Eureka,  and  stands  in  the  community  as  a  man  above  reproach. 

CLARK,  Dr.  JONATHAN— Was  born  in  Crawfordsville,  Indiana,  on 
the  26th  day  of  February,  1826.  He  was  a  lineal  descendant  of 
Abraham  Clark,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

He  received  his  education  and  graduated  as  a  practitioner  in  medicine 
and  surgery  in  Iowa. 

He  crossed  the  plains  and  arrived  in  California  in  1849;  spent  four 
months  in  the  mines  on  the  American  River;  came  to  Humboldt  county 
in  the  brig  "  Reindeer"  in  June,  1850,  and  at  once  commenced  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession,  which  he  continued  for  twenty  years. 

In  November,  1853,  he  was  appointed  Acting  Assistant  Surgeon,  U.  S- 


426  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

A.,  and  assigned  to  duty  at  Fort  Humboldt,  Colonel  R.  C.  Buchanan 
being  in  command.  He  was  afterward  commissioned  as  Surgeon  of  the 
First  Battalion  of  Mountaineers,  Lieutenant-Colonel  S.  G.  Whipple 
commanding,  and  served  in  that  capacity  three  years.  At  the  close  of 
the  Indian  campaign  he  resumed  the  practice  of  medicine  in  Eureka,  and 
so  continued  until  1870,  when  press  of  private  business  compelled  him  to 
retire  from  practice. 

Dr.  Clark  was  the  first  postmaster  on  Humboldt  Bay  and  received  his 
appointment  in  185 1 ;  he  was  also  the  first  Notary  Public  in  Humboldt 
county;  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  in  1855, 
and  served  two  terms.  In  1857  he  was  appointed  County  Treasurer.  In 
1876  he  was  elected  to  the  California  Assembly,  and  was  a  very  active 
member  of  that  body;  he  served  two  terms  as  a  member  ot  the  City 
Council  of  Eureka,  and  in  1878  was  elected  Mayor  of  the  city.  At  the 
time  of  his  death  he  was  a  member  of  the  City  Council;  he  was  endeared 
to  many  by  acts  of  kindness  and  charity,  which  his  chosen  profession 
gave  him  opportunity  to  bestow.  He  was  identified  with  the  Society 
of  Humboldt  County  Pioneers,  and  no  one  took  greater  interest  in  its 
welfare  and  prosperity  than  Dr.  Clark. 

His  death  occurred  in  San  Francisco  March  29th,  1884. 

CUNNINGHAM,  J.  P.— Came  to  California  from  Ilhnois  in  1852. 
Hctel-keeper.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

CATHEY,  JOHN — Came  across  the  plains  from  Missouri  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1852.  A  stockraiser.  Died  in  1871  at  Mattole,  Humboldt 
county.     A  member  of  California  Battalion  Mountaineers. 

CHAMBERLIN,  J.  D.  H.— Is  an  attorney-at-law  by  profession.  He 
came  to  California  in  1859  by  way  of  Cape  Horn.  In  1850  he  went  to 
the  mines  in  El  Dorado  county  on  Webber  Creek,  and  afterwards  to 
Murderers'  Bar  on  the  American  River.  He  spent  several  years  in  the 
mines  with  varied  success.  He  is  a  graduate  of  Hamilton  College  in  the 
State  of  New  York. 

CLAPP,  STEPHEN— A  native  of  Maine  ;  came  to  California  in  1852. 
A  blacksmith.     Residence,  Eureka. 

CUTLER,  THOMAS — A  native  of  Connecticut  ;  came  to  California 
in  1849  via.  Cape  Horn.  Is  a  merchant  in  Eureka,  and  Collector  of 
the  Port. 

CARR,  THOMAS— A  native  of  Ireland  ;  came  to  the  United  States 


BIOGRAPHY.  427 

when  a  child  with  his  parents.  Came  from  Wisconsin  to  California 
across  the  Isthmus  in  1852  ;  settled  in  Weaverville,  Trinity  county,  then 
moved  to  Humboldt  county.  Died  at  Eureka,  February  6,  1884  ;  occupa- 
tion, carriage-maker. 

CARR,  ANN — Wife  of  Thomas  Carr  ;  native  of  Ireland;  came  to 
California  across  the  Isthmus  in  1852  from  Wisconsin. 

CARR,  JOHN — A  native  of  Ireland  ;  came  to  the  United  States  when 
a  child  with  his  parents  ;  came  to  Calitornia  in  1850  across  the  plains 
from  Peoria,  111.  Occupation,  a  blacksmith.  Was  one  of  the  first  settlers 
of  Trinity  county.  Came  to  Humboldt  county  in  1866.  Served  two 
terms  as  a  member  of  the  City  Council,  one  term  as  President  of  the 
Board.  In  1880  he  went  to  Tombstone,  Arizona,  and  was  twice  elected 
Mayor  of  that  city  ;  he  is  the  author  of  the  "  Pioneer  Days  in  California."' 
Is  now  the  Police  Judge  of  the  City  of  Eureka. 

CARR,  DELILAH — Wife  of  John  Carr,  daughter  of  George  Turner, 
of  Morris  county,  New  Jersey  ;  came  to  California  across  the  Isthmus  in 
1852. 

CAMPTON,  MRS.  M.— A  native  of  Wisconsin  ;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in  185 1.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

CAMPTON,  WILLIAM— A  native  of  Wisconsin  ;  crossed  the  plains 
to  California  in  1851.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

CAMPTON,  MORGAN— A  native  of  Wisconsin  ;  crossed  the  plains 
to  California  in  1850  ;  residence,  Rohnerville. 

DeHAVEN,  JACOB — Born  in  Jackson  county,  Ohio,  in  1812  ;  moved 
to  Missouri  and  from  Missouri  to  California  in  1849  across  the  plains, 
and  arrived  at  Sacramento,  August  9th,  of  that  year.  Came  to  Humboldt 
in  May,  1853.  Was  elected  Assesssor  of  the  county  in  1855,  and  re- 
elected to  that  office  in  1857,  serving  four  years.  Went  to  Idaho  in  1862, 
and  died  there  in  1863. 

DeHAVEN,  ELIZABETH— Wife  of  Jacob  DeHaven;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia from  Missouri  in  1849;  died  at  Eureka  in  1856. 

DeHAVEN,  SARAH— Daughter  of  Jacob  DeHaven;  now  Mrs.  John 
W.  Connick,  of  Eureka;  born  in  Missouri  ;  crossed  the  plains  when  an 
infant  with  her  parents. 

DeHAVEN,  JOHN   J. — A  native  of  Missouri  ;  crossed  the  plains 


428  PIONEER    DAYS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

from  Missouri  when  a  child  in  1849  ;  son  of  Jacob  DeHaven.  Came  with 
his  parents  to  Humboldt  in  1853.  Learned  the  trade  of  printer  in  the 
office  of  the  Humboldt  Times.  Afterwards  studied  law  and  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  ;  elected  District  Attorney  of  Humboldt  county.  Served  one 
term  as  Assemblyman  and  one  term  as  State  Senator.  Elected  Superior 
Judge  of  Humboldt  county.  Elected  member  of  Congress  in  1888  ;  re- 
signed his  seat  in  Congress,  and  was  elected  to  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  State  in  1890,  and  still  holds  that  position. 

DYER,  CAPTAIN  JOHN  M.— A  native  of  Maine  ;  came  in  the  ship 
"  Edward  Everett  "  to  California  in  1849.  Died  in  Humboldt  county  in 
November,  1867. 

DYER,  DAVID  F. — A  native  of  Maine  ;  came  to  California  in  1854. 
Residence,  Bayside. 

DODGE,  JOHN  C. — A  native  of  New  Hampshire;  crossed  the 
Isthmus  in  August,  1852.  He  is  a  resident  of  Eureka.  Occupation,  a 
gardener. 

DANIELS,  H.  S. — Came  to  California  in  1853  from  New  Hampshire; 
his  wife,  Ann  Daniels,  a  native  of  England,  came  to  California  in  1853. 

DEMING,  BYRON — A  native  ofVermoHt  ;  arrived  in  San  Francisco 
in  July,  1850. 

DEMING,  MRS.  J.— Arrived  in  California  in  1854.  Residence, 
Areata. 

DOBBYN,  WILLIAM  B.— A  native  of  Washington,  D.  C;  came  to 
California  around  Cape  Horn  in  1849.  Residence,  Rohnerville.  Served 
two  terms  as  Supervisor  of  Humboldt  county. 

DAVIS,  HARRISON — Came  from  Ohio  across  the  plains  in  1852.  A 
farmer.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

DAVIS,  JOHN  B. — Crossed  the  plains  in  1850.  A  farmer.  Residence, 
Rohnerville. 

DEER,  MARY  A. — Came  from  Ohio  across  the  plains  in  1852. 

DEER,  PETER — Came  from  Indiana  across  the  plains  in  1849.  Died, 
1889. 

DUNGAN,  G.  A. — Came  from  Iowa  across  the  plains  in  1850.  A 
farmer.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

DUNGAN,  THOMAS— Came  from  Iowa  across  the  plains  in  1850. 
A  miner.     Residence,  on  Trinity  River. 


BIOGRAPHY.  429 

DUNGAN,  JOHN — Came  from  Iowa  across  the  plains  in  1850.  A 
fanner.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

DUNGAN,  JESSE  A. — Came  from  Iowa  across  the  Isthmus  in  1851. 
Filled  the  offices  of  Supervisor  of  Humboldt  county  and  Justice  of  the 
Peace  and  Police  Judge  of  Eureka;  died  at  Eureka  in   1889. 

DUFF,  F.  S. — A  native  of  St.  Johns,  N.  B.;  came  to  California  around 
Cape  Horn  in  1849.  Was  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Ryan,  Duff  (S~»  Co. 
Occupation,  Justice  of  the  Peace.     Residence,  Eureka. 

DOLBEER,  JOHN— John  Dolbeer,  of  the  firm  of  Dolbeer  (S^  Carson, 
is  an  eminently  successful  business  man.  For  twenty-eight  years  the 
firm  has  been  doing  business  in  Eureka  and  San  Francisco,  John  Dol- 
beer attending  to  the  business  in  San  Francisco,  and  William  Carson  at 
Eureka.  John  Dolbeer  is  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  and  came  to 
California  in  1850  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1851,  engaging  here  in  the 
lumber  business.  He  left  Eureka  in  1851  and  went  to  the  mines  on 
Salmon  River  and  remained  there  one  year,  and  then  returned  to  Eureka 
in  1852,  and  went  into  the  lumber  business  with  Charles  McLane,  who 
was  drowned  on  the  "Merrimac"  on  the  bar  in  1862.  Mr.  Dolbeer  and 
Mr.  Carson  entered  into  partnership  in  1862,  soon  after  the  death  of  Mr. 
McLane.  Mr.  Dolbeer  amongst  the  business  men  of  the  Pacific  Coast 
stands  second  to  none  for  integrity. 

EWING,  JOSEPH— A  native  of  Scotland  ;  came  from  Montreal, 
Canada,  to  California  in  1850.     Died  at  Hay  Fork  Valley  in  1877. 

EWING,  HENRIETTA— Wife  of  Joseph  Ewing;  a  native  of  Canada; 
came  to  California  in  1850. 

ELLERY,  FRANKLIN— A  native  of  Massachusetts  ;  left  Boston  in 
1849  in  the  schooner  "  Mary  M.  Woods,"  and  arrived  in  California  in 
1850.     A  merchant  in  Eureka. 

EATON,  GEORGE— A  native  of  Ohio  ;  crossed  the  plains  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1850.     Miner  and  sheep-raiser.     Residence,  near  Bridgeville. 

FERNALD,  R.  M.— Native  of  Baltimore,  Md.;  came  to  California  in 
1850,  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1852.  Was  a  miner  and  proprietor  of 
Gold  Bluff  mines.  Was  Supervisor  of  Humboldt  county  for  six  years. 
Was  the  builder  of  Eureka's  first  street  railway. 

FREESE,  JONATHAN— Native  of  Maine  ;  came   to   California  by 


430  PIONEER   DAYS   IN  CALIFORNIA. 

way  of  the  Isthmus,  in  1850.  Died  in  Eureka  in  1875.  Served  one  term 
as  County  Treasurer;  one  term  as  County  Supervisor;  and  one  term  as 
member  of  the  City  Council.     Occupation,  lumberman. 

FINCH,  WILLIAM  R.— Native  of  New  York  ;  came  from  Iowa 
across  the  plains  to  California  m  1850.     Occupation,  gunsmith. 

FIELDS,  WATERMAN— Native  of  Michigan  ;  came  to  California  in 
1853,  by  way  of  the  Isthmus,  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1861.  Residence, 
Fields'  Landing. 

FLAHERTY,  JOHN— Arrived  in  California  1852  from  Boston,  Mass. 
in  ship  "  Dauntless."     Residence,  Trinidad. 

FAY,  GEORGE  M. — Native  of  Connecticut  ;  came  to  California  in 
1852  by  way  of  the  Isthmus.  Occupation,  shingle  manufacturer.  Resi- 
dence, Fair  Haven,  Humboldt  county. 

FAY,  NAH  M — Native  of  Connecticut ;  Arrived  in  California  via 
the  Isthmus  in  1852.  Occupation,  shingle  manufacturer.  Residence 
Fair  Haven,  Humboldt  county. 

FELT,  DR.  T.  D.^Native  of  Massachusetts  ;   crossed  the   plains  in 

1849  from  Tennessee. 

FELT,  MRS.  KATE— Wife  of  Dr.  Felt  ;  native  of  Pennsylvania  ; 
crossed  the  plains  to  California  in  1847.     Residence,  Eureka. 

GALLAGHER,  MICHAEL  F.— Came  from  New  York  City  to  CaH- 
fornia  in  185 1.     Died  at  Eureka  September  4,  1888. 

GARDNER,  C.  J.— Native  of  Massachusetts  ;  arrived  in  California  m 

1850  ;   carpenter  and  builder. 

GIBSON,  JOHN  W. — Native  of  Pennsylvania;  arrived  in  California 
in  185 1  ;  is  a  general  agent.     Residence,  Eureka. 

GIBSON,  DAVID— Native  of  Canada  ;  came  to  California  in  1850. 
Died  at  Hydesville  in  1885. 

GILL,  JAMES — Native  of  County  of  Leeds,  Ontario;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1852  across  the  plains,  arriving  at  Weaverville  in  1852.  Mined 
at  that  place  two  years;  came  to  Humboldt  in  1854,  engaged  in  logging 
until  1857,  then  went  back  to  Ontario  and  moved  to  Rock  county,  Wis- 
consin; in  i860  crossed  the  plains  with  ox-teams,  coming  direct  to  Hum- 
boldt county  with  his  family ;  engaged  in  farming.  Died  at  Eureka, 
January  9,  1891. 


BIOGRAPHY.  431 

GRAHAM,  GEORGE — Native  of  Virginia;  came  across  the  plains  to 
California  in  1852  ;  a  miner  and  lumberman.     Residence,  Eureka. 

GUTHRIE,  CATHERINE— Native  of  Pennsylvania  ;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia across  the  plains  in  1849.     Residence,  Humboldt  county. 

GOOD,  ABRAHAM— Native  of  Ohio  ;  crossed  the  plains  to  California 
in  1853  ;  liveryman.     Residence,  Hydesville. 

GUSHAW,  G.  F. — Native  of  New  York;  came  from  Illinois  across 
the  plains  in  1849. 

GUSHAW,  MRS.  G.  F. — Nativeof  Massachusetts;  came  to  California 
around  Cape  Horn  in  1853. 

GREENLOW,  JESSE  C— Native  of  New  Bunswick;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia by  way  of  the  Isthmus  of  Nicaragua  in  1852;  came  up  the  coast  on 
a  sailing  vessel;  fifty-eight  days  from  San  Juan  to  San  Francisco.  Lost 
twenty-two  passengers  out  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  with  fever  and 
diarrhoea;  mined  until  1858;  afterwards  lumberman  and  farmer. 
Residence,  Eureka. 

GOFF,  MRS.  JAMES— Daughter  of  N.  Patrick;  crossed  the  plains  in 
1852.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

GRAHAM,  THOMAS  R.— Native  of  Mississippi;  came  to  California 
in  1853,  when  a  boy,  with  his  parents.  Occupation,  carpenter  and  builder. 
Residence,  Eureka. 

HAYNES,  HON.  JOHN  P.— Was  born  in  Breckenridge  county, 
Kentucky,  on  the  3d  day  of  December,  1826.  In  his  childhood  his 
mother,  then  a  widow,  removed  to  Elizabethtown,  Hardin  county,  Ken- 
tucky, where  he  was  raised  and  educated.  In  his  seventeenth  year  he 
entered  a  store  as  clerk  and  salesman,  in  which  business  he  continued  for 
about  three  years.  About  this  time  the  Mexican  war  broke  out,  and  the 
young  men  of  the  county  at  once  proceeded  to  organize  a  company  of 
volunteers  for  the  service.  The  subject  of  this  notice  took  an  active 
part  in  organizing  the  company,  and  was  elected  Lieutenant.  The  quota 
of  the  State  was  filled  so  quickly  after  the  issuance  of  the  Governor's  call 
for  volunteers,  that  this  company,  with  scores  of  others,  was  rejected. 
Young  Haynes,  with  ten  or  twelve  others  of  his  company,  then  joined 
Company  C,  Captain  Rowan  Hardin,  which  was  attached  to  the  4th 
Kentucky  Volunteers,  under  command  of  Colonel  John  S.  Williams, 
popularly  known  as  "  Cerro  Gordo  "  Williams,  from  his  gallantry  in  the 


432  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

battle  fought  at  that  place.  He  remained  in  the  service  until  the  close  of 
the  war.  On  his  return  home  he  commenced  the  study  of  law,  and  in  due 
time  entered  the  Law  Department  of  the  University  of  Louisville,  and 
graduated  in  1851. 

A  few  months  afterwards  he  started  for  California  via  the  Isthmus,  and 
arrived  in  this  State  early  in  1852.  He  remained  in  San  Francisco  a 
short  time,  and  then  started  for  the  northern  part  of  the  State,  arriving  in 
Klamath  county  in  the  spring  of  that  year.  During  the  summer  and  fall 
he  was  engaged  in  prospecting  and  mining  on  the  Klamath. 

At  the  election  of  November  in  that  year  he  was  elected  District 
Attorney  of  the  county.  In  1853  he  removed  to  Crescent  City,  which 
about  that  time  became  the  County  Seat.  Here  he  commenced  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession,  and  was  re-elected  District  Attorney.  Upon  the 
removal  of  the  County  Seat  to  Orleans  Bar  he  resigned  the  office.  Upon 
the  organization  of  Del  Norte  county  soon  afterwards,  was  elected  Dis- 
trict Attorney  of  the  new  county.  He  continued  in  the  practice  of  his 
profession  in  Del  Norte  and  Klamath  until  1858,  when  he  became  a  can- 
didate for  District  Judge,  and  was  defeated  by  the  Hon.  William  R.  Tur- 
ner, by  a  majority  of  two  votes.  The  following  year  he  was  elected 
Senator,  by  a  large  majority,  from  the  12th  Senatorial  District,  composed 
of  the  counties  of  Del  Norte,  Klamath  and  Siskiyou.  At  the  expiration 
of  his  term  he  resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Del  Norte  and 
neighboring  counties,  meantime  making  some  ventures  in  mining  without 
much  success. 

On  the  i8th  day  of  February,  1868,  he  was  appointed  by  Governor 
Haight  District  Judge  of  the  Eighth  Judicial  District,  composed 
of  the  counties  of  Klamath,  Humboldt  and  Del  Norte,  to  fill  a 
vacancy  occasioned  by  the  resignation  of  Judge  Turner.  He  was  elected 
by  the  people  to  the  same  office  at  the  judicial  election  in  1869,  and  re- 
elected in  1875,  si^d  held  the  office  until  it  was  abolished  by  the  new 
Constitution,  and  at  the  first  election  under  the  new  instrument  was 
elected  Superior  Judge  of  Humboldt  county.  In  1884  he  was  defeated 
for  the  same  office  by  Hon.  J.  J.  DeHaven,  at  present  Associate  Justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court.  In  1866,  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  his  Demo- 
cratic friends,  he  accepted  the  nomination  for  the  Senate,  and  was  elected, 
notwithstanding  the  district  was  largely  Republican.  In  1888  he  was 
again  nominated  and  defeated  by  the  Hon.  Frank  McGowan,  present 
Senator.  In  politics  the  Judge  is  a  very  firm,  unswerving  Democrat,  and 
has  never  faltered  in  his  fidelity  to  the  party,  and   is  always  ready  and 


BIOGRAPHY.  433 

willing  to  give  the  reason  of  his  political  faith.  He  is  at  present  a  resident 
of  Eureka,  in  Humboldt  connty. 

HENDERSON,  JAMES  W.— Native  of  St.  Lawrence  county,  New 
York  ;  came  to  California  February  14,  1850,  crossing  the  Isthmus. 
Mined  two  and  one-half  years  on  the  American  River.  Made  three  trips 
across  the  plains  driving  stock  in  1853,  1854  and  1856.  Lived  in  Sonoma 
county  nine  years,  engaged  in  ranching  and  staging.  He  came  to  Hum- 
boldt during  the  coal  oil  excitement,  and  operated  two  years;  he  was  ap- 
pointed Register  of  the  U.  S.  Land  Office,  which  position  he  held  three 
years,  and  then  engaged  in  the  real  estate  business:  was  a  promoter  of 
the  first  railroad  in  Humboldt  county;  was  one  of  the  incorporators  of 
the  Eureka  and  Eel  River  Railroad.  At  present  is  engaged  in  the  real 
estate  and  banking  business.  He  has  been  President  of  the  Humboldt 
County  Bank  for  twelve  years. 

HULLING,  SAMUEL,  and  wife,  Phebe,  came  from  Wisconsin  to 
California  in  1852,  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1854.  Residence,  near 
Springville. 

HERRICK,  R.  F. — Native  of  Ohio;  crossed  the  plains  in  1850. 
First  Lieutenant  of  Company  D,  California  Battalion  of  Mountaineers. 
Elected  for  several  terms  County  Surveyor  of  Humboldt  county. 
Residence,  Eel  River  Valley. 

HILL,  NEIL — Native  of  Ireland;  arrived  at  San  Francisco  by  way  of 
the  Isthmus  in  1852,  and  Nancy  Hill,  his  wife,  a  native  of  Ireland, 
arrived  in  1854. 

HILDRETH,  CHARLES— Native  of  England;  arrived  in  California 
in  1852  from  Australia;  is  a  cabinet-maker. 

HUESTIS,  REV.  A.  J. — Native  of  New  Hampshire;  crossed  the  plains 
to  California  in  1849;  came  overland  to  Humboldt  county  in  the  spring 
of  i860  from  Sonoma;  was  the  first  preacher  of  the  gospel  in  Eureka; 
was  the  first  County  Superintendent  of  Schools  for  Humboldt  county; 
was  the  County  Judge  of  Humboldt  County  for  two  terms;  he  represented 
Humboldt  county  in  the  Legislature  in  1866-7;  was  also  the  first  Inspec- 
tor of  Customs  for  the  Harbor  of  Humboldt;  was  the  first  President  of 
the  Society  of  Humboldt  County  Pioneers.  Died,  March,  1883,  at 
Eureka,  aged  l"]  years. 

HUESTIS,  MINERVA   ANNIS— Wife  of  A.    J.  Huestis;  native   of 


434  PIONEER    DAYS    IN  CALIFORNIA. 

Monson,  Massachusetts;  came  to  California  with   her   husband  in  1849; 
arrived  in  Eureka  February,  22,  185 1.     Residence,  Eureka. 

HUESTIS,  SARAH  MINERVA— Wife  of  N.  Bullock,  and  daughter 
of  A.  J.  Huestis;  crossed  the  plains  with  her  parents  in  1849.  Residence, 
Eureka. 

HUESTIS,  JOHN  EMORY— Born  in  Iowa;  crossed  the  plains  in 
1849  with  his  parents.     Came  to  Eureka  in  1851.     Residence,  Eureka. 

HUESTIS,  MAJOR  W.  F. — Native  of  Virginia;  crossed  the  plains  at 
the  age  of  thirteen  years  with  his  parents,  and  in  the  spring  of  1850  arrived 
in  Humboldt  county.  In  1858  was  a  teacher  in  the  Public  Schools,  and 
for  several  years  thereafter  was  a  clerk  in  the  State  Senate.  In  1865-6 
was  Deputy  Clerk  of  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  of  California,  and 
U.  S.  Commissioner  at  San  Francisco.  In  1868  he  received  from  Gover- 
nor Haight  the  appointment  of  Assistant  Adjutant-General  of  the  Na- 
tional Guard  of  California,  with  the  rank  of  Major,  which  position  he 
held  for  two  years.  In  1878  he  was  elected  delegate  at  large  to  the  Con- 
stitutional Convention,  which  framed  the  present  Constitution  of  the 
State.  He  has  been  President  of  the  Society  of  Humboldt  County  Pio- 
neers, and  is  the  present  Secretary  of  that  Society;  he  is  also  a  Notary 
Public  and  agent  of  the  Ricks  estate  in  Eureka. 

HOWARD,  E.  H.— Native  of  New  York;  arrived  in  Cahfornia  in 
September,  1849;  he  came  overland  by  the  Santa  Fe  and  Gila  route,  and 
was  eight  months  on  the  way;  he  navigated  the  Gila  River  for  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  miles  in  his  wagon-box,  which  had  been  constructed  in  the 
form  of  a  boat.  On  arriving  at  San  Francisco  he  entered  upon  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession,  that  of  the  law.  In  March,  1850,  he  formed  a 
co-partnership  ivith  Lieutenant  Ottenger,  of  the  U.  S.  Revenue  Service, 
under  the  auspices  of  the  "Laura  Virginia  Association."  The  schooner 
"  Laura  Virginia"'  was  dispatched  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  with  Captain 
Ottenger  as  master,  and  it  was  due  to  this  enterprise  that  Humboldt  Bay 
was  discovered  by  water.  At  a  meeting  held  at  the  town  of  Humboldt 
on  the  17th  day  of  April,  1850,  of  which  meeting  Mr.  Howard  was  Secre- 
tary, the  present  name  of  Humboldt  Bay  was  proposed  and  adopted.  At 
the  same  meeting  the  subject  of  this  meeting  was  elected  Alcalde  of  the 
town  of  Humboldt.  In  1851  he  was  elected  Public  Administrator  for 
the  county  of  Trinity,  which  then  embraced  the  present  territory  of 
Humboldt.  In  1856  he  was  elected  District  Attorney  for  Humboldt 
county.     In  1858  was  elected  County  Superintendent  of  Schools;  was  ap- 


BIOGRAPHY.  435 

pointed  District  Attorney  in  1864;  for  several  years  was  Chairman  of  the 
Republican  County  Committee,  and  President  of  the  Farmers'  Union; 
served  as  Police  Judge  of  the  City  of  Eureka  from  1876  to  1880  and  from 
1882  to  1884;  was  President  of  the  Humboldt  County  Pioneers.  Resi- 
dence, Eureka.  By  profession,  a  lawyer,  and  has  been  a  frequent  con- 
tributor to  the  periodical  press. 

HOWARD,  ALVIRA  ANN— Wife  of  E.  H.  Howard;  crossed  the 
plains  with  her  husband  in   1849.     Residence,  Eureka. 

INGERSOLL,  C.  S.— Native  of  New  York;  came  to  California  across 
the  plains  in  1850.     A  physician. 

JANES,  H.  F. — Was  the  founder  of  Janesville,Wis.;  he  was  a  native  of 
Virginia,  and  came  across  the  plains  from  Missouri  to  California  in  1849; 
was  a  farmer  and  the  first  Justice  of  the  Peace  elected  in  the  county  of 
Humboldt.     Died  in  1883,  aged  80  years. 

JANES,  KEZIAH— Wife  of  H.  F.  Janes;  native  of  New  Jersey; 
crossed  the  plains  in  1849.     Died  in  1883,  aged  75  years. 

JANES,  ELIZABETH— Daughtei  of  H.  F.  Janes,  and  now  Mrs. 
Ward,  of  Sonoma  county. 

JANES,  JOHN  W. — Son  of  H.  F.  Janes;  native  of  Wisconsin;  crossed 
the  plains  with  his  parents;  served  in  First  Battalion  Mountaineers. 

JANES,  JASPER  N.— Son  of  H.  F.  Janes;  native  of  Wisconsin; 
crossed  the  plains  with  his  parents;  served  on  the  non-commissioned 
staff  in  Quartermaster's  Department  First  Battalion  Mountaineers. 

JANES,  JOSEPH  T.— Son  of  H.  F.  Janes;  now  a  resident  of  Oregon; 
native  of  Missouri;  crossed  the  plains  with  his  parents. 

JANES,  THOMAS  J.— Son  of  H.  F.Janes;  came  to  California  in  1850 
and  to  Humboldt  Bay  in  1851;  he  is  now  residing,  with  his  family,  near 
Areata  on  Janes'  Creek;  returned  to  Missouri  in  1853,  and  there  remained 
until  1870,  when  he  came  back  to  California;  he  enlisted  in  the  Union 
Army  from  Missouri  during  the  rebellion. 

JOHNSON,  CHARLES— Native  of  Ohio;  came  to  California  in  1852 
from  Wisconsin;  was  a  soldier  of  the  Black  Hawk  War.  Died  in  Hum- 
boldt county  in  1855. 


436  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

JACKSON,  E.  B. — Arrived  in  California  ini85i;he  is  a  native  of 
Maine.     Residence,  Areata. 

KINSEY,  CHARLES— A  native  of  Pennsylvania;  came  to  California 
across  the  plains  in  1850.     Residence,  Eureka. 

KIMBALL,  JOHN  H. — A  native  of  Massachusetts;  came  across  the 
Isthmus  to  California  in  1850;  was  murdered  at  his  residence  in  Eureka 
on  the  28th  day  of  May,  1866,  by  John  Rogers,  a  burglar,  who  was  exe- 
cuted after  conviction  of  his  crime.  Mr.  Kimball  held  the  offices  of 
Pubhc  Administrator  and  Coroner,  and  Justice  of  the  Peace  of  Eureka 
Township. 

KIMBALL,  SOPHIA— Wife  of  John  H.  Kimball  ;  came  across  the 
Isthmus  to  California  in  1851. 

KINMAN,  SETH— A  native  of  Pennsylvania;  crossed  the  plains  and 
arrived  in  California  in  1850,  and  came  to  Humboldt  county  in  1852; 
was  celebrated  as  a  hunter,  and  for  presenting  buckhom  chairs  to  the 
Presidents  of  the  United  States. 

KELLEN,  JOSEPH— He  came  from  Maine  to  California  in  1850. 
Occupation,  a  painter. 

KELLEN,  MARY — Wife  of  Joseph  Kellen;  came  from  Massachusetts 
in  1850. 

KNACKE,  CAPT.  GEORGE  F.— Came  from  New  York  to  California 
in  1853.     Died  March  14,  1877,  onboard  his  ship  at  Wellington  Harbor. 

KELLY,  T.  B. — A  native  of  Ohio;  came  from  Illinois  to  California  in 
1849  across  the  plains.     Merchant  and  farmer  of  Rohnerville. 

KNOWLES,  C.  M. — A  native  of  Illinois;  came  to  California  across  the 
plains  in  1850. 

KNOWLES,  ALVIRA— A  native  of  Missouri;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in  1848. 

KAUSSEN,  CHARLES — Came  from  Missouri  to  California  across 
the  plains  in  1853.     Residence,  Alton,  Humboldt  county. 

KELEHER,  JOHN — A  native  of  New  Brunswick;  came  to  California 
in  1852,  and  to  Humboldt  in  1853;  was  Register  of  the  U.S.  Land  Office 
under  appointment  by  President  Lincoln  from  1864  to  1867;  was  elected 
County  Treasurer  in  1867,  and  held  that  office  three  terms.     Was  ap- 


BIOGRAPHY.  437 

pointed  Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Town    Trustees,  and  made  a   member   of 
the  bar  in  July,  1864;  was  elected  Town   Trustee  in    1866,  and  again    in 
1870.     Died  in  1878. 

LEACH,  SYLVANUS— Crossed  the  plains  from  Ohio  in  1853.  Resi- 
dence, Rohnerville.     Occupation,  farmer. 

LINE,  JOHN — Came  from  New  York  to  California  around  Cape 
Horn  in  the  ship  "Hindoo  "in  1850.     Came  to  Humboldt  in  1852. 

LAUGH  LIN,  J.  N. — A  native  of  Kentucky;  came  from  Missouri  to 
California  across  the  plains  in  1850.     Residence,  Humboldt  county. 

LONG,  C.  W. — A  pioneer  business  man  of  Eureka  ;  is  a  native  of 
New  Brunswick,  and  emigrated  to  California,  leaving  his  home  in  1849, 
and  arriving  in  California  in  1850.  He  came  to  Humboldt  Bay  in  the 
employ  of  Ryan  dr'  Duff,  and  was  employed  in  building  the  first  sawmill 
on  the  bay  built  by  that  firm.  He  remained  in  the  lumber  business  for 
some  time,  and  then  went  into  the  mercantile  business  with  Daniel  Pick- 
ard  under  the  firm  name  of  Pickard  6~»  Long.  In  1863,  during  and  after 
the  outbreak  of  the  Indian  war,  C.  W.  Long  was  appointed  Captain  of 
Company  A,  California  Mountaineers,  by  Governor  Stanford — a  battal- 
ion raised  for  the  purpose  of  subduing  hostile  Indians,  then  at  war  with 
the  settlers  of  Northern  California.  He  served  three  years  in  the  field. 
For  his  good  conduct  as  a  soldier  and  officer,  he  was  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  Major.  After  the  war  with  the  Indians  was  brought  to  a  success- 
ful close,  Major  Long  went  into  the  livery  business  with  A.  H.  Gilbert,  on 
the  corner  of  E  and  Second  streets.  Eureka.  He  was  appointed  one  of 
the  commissioners  to  lay  out  and  accept  the  overland  wagon-road.  He 
remained  in  the  livery  business  for  several  years.  Residence,  Eureka. 
Occupation,  real  estate  dealer. 

LUTHER,  CHRISTOPHER— A  native  of  Illinois;  crossed  the  plains 
in  1851.     Miner  and  butcher.     Residence,  Eureka. 

LOWELL,  CAPT.  DAVID— A  native  of  Maine;  came  to  California  in 
1851,  and  to  Humboldt  in  1852;  was  wrecked  on  the  bar  in  the  steamer 
"Sea  Gull  "in  1852. 

LANGDON,  CHAUNCY— A  native  of  Vermont;  came  to  California 
by  way  of  Cape  Horn  in  1849.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

LANGDON,  MARY— A  native  of  New  York  ;  came  to  California 
across  the  plains  in  1852. 


438  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA- 

LEIHY,  LUCY — Crossed  the  plains  from  Wisconsin  to  California  in 
185 1.     Residence,  Chicago. 

LEACH,  ALBERT — Came  from  Ohio  to  California  in  1853.  Farmer. 
Residence,  Rohnerville. 

LEACH,  SHERMAN  H.— Crossed  the  plains  from  Ohio  to  California 
in  1853.     Residence,  San  Jose,  Cal. 

LEACH,  FRED — Came  to  California  from  Ohio  in  1853.  A  black- 
smith.    Residence,  Fortuna. 

LEWIS,  N.  T. — Came  from  Iowa  to  California  in  1853.  Farmer. 
Residence,  Fortuna. 

LONG,  ANDREW — Crossed  the  plains  in  1849  from  Tennessee. 
Residence,  Rohnerville. 

LAPIER,  BERTHA — Came  from  Missouri  across  the  plains  in  1848 
with  the  Lassen  party.     Died  in  Santa  Clara  county  in  1889. 

MURRAY,  JOHN  SUTHERLAND,  Sr.— A  native  of  Scotland; 
came  to  California  from  New  Zealand  in  1849.  Died  in  Eureka  in  1882. 
A  surveyor. 

MURRAY,  JANE  F.— Wife  of  John  S.  Murray;  came  from  New  Zea- 
land with  her  husband  in  1849.     Died  in  Eureka  in  1871. 

MURRAY,  JOHN  S.,  Jr.— Came  with  his  parents  from  New  Zealand 
in  1849.     Occupation,  bank  clerk. 

MURRAY,  MAGGIE  S.— Came  with  her  parents  from  New  Zealand 
in  1849.     Occupation,  teacher. 

MARSHALL,  J.  C. — Came  to  California  in  1849  by  way  of  Cape 
Horn;  was  shipwrecked  March  23,  1850,  at  Crescent  City  on  the  schooner 
"  Paragon." 

MARBLE,  A.  P. — A  native  of  New  York;  arrived  in  California  in 
1852;  was  a  member  of  the  Fourth  Regiment  of  U.  S.  Infantry.  Came 
to  Bucksport  in  February,  1853,  and  helped  to  build  the  fort  at  that  place. 
Present  residence,  Cape  Mendocino;  lighthouse-keeper. 

MUNSON,  DANIEL— A  native  of  Maine;  came  to  California  in  1852. 
Lumberman.     Residence,  Eureka. 

MINOR,  JACOB  A.— A  native  of  Ohio;  came  to  California  in  1850. 
Stockraiser.     Died  in  April,  1884,  in  Humboldt  county. 


BIOGRAPHY.  439 

MORRISON,  JAMES  M.— A  native  of  Richland  county,  Ohio;  came 
to  California  from  Iowa  in  1853.    Miner  and  builder.  Residence,  Eureka. 

MURPHY,  WILLIAM— A  native  of  Ireland;  came  to  California  in 
1852.     A  stockraiser.     Residence,  Areata. 

MIDDLETON,  THOMAS— A  native  of  Illinois;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in   1845.     Merchant.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

MORRISON,  SILAS  W. — A  native  of  Virginia;  crossed  the  plains 
from  Ohio  to  California  in  1850.  Elected  Supervisor  of  Humboldt  county. 
Occupation,  stockraising  and  dairying.     Residence,  Bear  River. 

MYER,  M.  B. — Came  from  Iowa  to  California  across  the  plains  in 
1850.     Residence,  Garberville. 

MONROE,  ALONZO — A  native  of  Connecticut;  arrived  in  California 
in  February,  1850;  came  to  Humboldt  in  1852.  Occupation,  stockraiser 
and  merchant.     Died  at  Eureka,  March  20,  1882. 

MONROE,  MRS.  ALONZO— Native  of  Michigan;  cameto  California 
with  her  mother,  Mrs.  Caltha  Albee,  in  1852. 

McGOWAN,  FRANK — Was  born  in  Washington  Territory  in  1859 
and  brought  to  California  in  i860;  was  educated  in  the  Public  Schools 
of  San  Francisco  and  of  Humboldt  county.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Bar 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California  in  1883;  was  elected  Assemblyman  in 
1886  and  State  Senator  in  1888. 

McCAFFERTY,  FRANK— A  native  of  Missouri;  came  to  California 
in  1849  at  the  age  of  seventeen  years,  and  drove  an  ox-team  across  the 
plains  for  H.  F.  Janes ;  was  one  of  the  Overland-road  Commissioners  in 
1847,  and  a  member  of  Captain  Messicks'  company  of  Indian  fighters. 
Arrived  in  Humboldt  county  in  1850. 

McNALLY,  LAWRENCE— A  native  of  Ireland;  came  to  California 
from  Missouri  in  1852,  crossing  the  Isthmus.     A  resident  of  Eureka. 

McCONAGHY,  JOHN— Came  to  California  from  Philadelphia,  Pa., 
by  the  way  of  the  Isthmus,  arriving  in  San  Francisco  May  4,  1850. 
Occupation,  a  farmer.     Residence,  Areata. 

McCLELLAN,  R.  S. — A  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  came  across 
the  plains  in  1852  to  California.     He  died  in   1887. 

McKINNA,  MARY — A  native  of  Wisconsin;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in  1851.     Residence,  Bay  View,  Washington. 


440  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

McCHARLES,  H.  R. — A  native  of  Indiana;  came  to  California  by 
way  of  Cape  Horn  in  1850.     Residence,  Nevada,  Cal. 

NEWTON,  DAVID  H. — A  native  of  Ireland;  came  to    California  in 
1849  across  the  plains.     Died  in  this  State  in  1869.     A  printer. 

NORCROSS,  L.  M. — A  native  of  Maine;  came  to  California  in  1850 
by  way  of  the  Isthmus.     Residence,  Eureka. 

NEWMAN,  J.  H. — Came  from  Missouri  across  the  plains  to  California 
in  1850. 

NEWMAN,  LAURA— Came  from  Iowa  to  California  in  1849.  Resi- 
dence, Hydesville. 

ORMAN,  HENRY— A  native  of  Ohio;  came  to  California  May  5, 
1852.     Residence,  Areata.     Occupation,  carpenter. 

OLM STEAD,  C.  H. — A  native  of  Maine;  came  to  California  in  185 1. 
A  blacksmith.     Residence,  Eureka. 

OLMSTEAD,  WILLIAM  T.— A  native  of  New  York;  came  from 
Michigan  to  California  across  the  plains  in  1850.  Stockraiser.  Made 
one  trip  across  the  plains  in  1853  with  a  band  of  cattle.  Was  one  of  the 
first  settlers  of  Humboldt  county.  Was  shot  twice  by  the  Indians  on  the 
1 2th  of  July,  1852,  while  driving  cattle  to  Trinity  county,  and  crippled 
for  life,  and  carries  Indian  lead  up  to  the  present  time.  Was  compelled 
to  use  crutches  for  three  years.  Hiram  Lyons,  one  of  his  party,  was 
killed  on  that  occasion.  Two  others  of  the  party  made  their  escape 
without  injury,  and  left  Mr.  Olmstead  to  fight  his  own  battle.  He  got 
under  cover  and  killed  one  of  the  Indians  with  a  Colt's  revolver,  which 
intimidated  the  Indians  so  much  that  they  left  him,  thus  saving  his  life. 
He  lay  there  wounded  until  the  next  day  about  4  o'clock,  when  a  party 
from  Yager  Creek  came  to  his  assistance,  and  shortly  thereafter  a  detach- 
ment of  soldiers  came  and  carried  him  into  the  settlements.  They 
reached  Yager  Creek  on  the  third  day  after  the  shooting.  He  lay  ten 
days,  and  was  then  carried  to  his  home  at  Hydesville,  on  a  litter,  taking 
two  days  to  make  the  trip.  Dr.  Felt  met  him  at  Yager  Creek  and  dressed 
his  wounds.     Mr.  Olmstead  is  now  a  resident  of  Eureka. 

OLMSTEAD,  LUCINDA— («^^  Garrison)— Wife  of  William  T.  Olm- 
stead; came  to  California  across  the  plains  in  1853. 


BIOGRAPHY.  441 

OUSLEY,  CAPTAIN  GEORGE  W.  —  Came  to  California  from 
Illinois  across  the  plains  in  1849 ;  served  two  years  as  Captain  of 
Company  B,  California  Mountaineers,  Residence,  San  Jose.  Came  to 
Humboldt  in  1850, 


PORTER,  ROBERT— A   native  of  Vir^jinia  ;    came  to   California  in 

1852,  and  engaged  for  a  time  in  mining  ;  came  to   Humboldt  county  in 

1859,  and  worked  in  the  mills,  and  afterwards  went   into  the  office  of 

John    Vance  ;     next     engaged     m    stock-raising    and     merchandising. 

Residence,  Hydesville. 

PARDEE,  A.  L, — A  native  of  New  York;  arrived  in  California  in 
1852. 

PARDEE,  A.  F. — A  native  of  New  York  ;  arrived  in  California  in 
1852. 

•PALMER,  JAMES— A  native  of  Missouri;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in  1853.     A  farmer.     Residence,  Hydesville. 

PALMER,  SAMUEL — A  native  of  Missouri;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in  1853.     A  farmer.     Residence,  Hydesville. 

PALMER,  JOHN — Born  on  the  plains  in  1S53.  Residence, 
Hydesville. 

PATRICK,  N. — Came  from  Illinois  across  the  plains  in  1852.  Resi- 
dence, Ferndale. 

PATRICK,  JANE— Came  from  lUinois  in  1852.     Died,  1883. 

PATRICK,  GILES— Came  from  Illinois  in  1852.  A  farmer.  Resi- 
dence, Ferndale. 

PATRICK,  Z.  B.— Crossed  the  plains  in  i852from  Illinois.  A  butcher. 
Residence,  Ferndale. 

PATRICK,  MARSHALL— Crossed  the  plains  in  1852  from  Illinois. 
A  farmer.     Residence,  Ferndale. 

PRATT,  WILLIAM  H.— Was  born  at  East  Haddam,  Conn.,  and 
was  early  left  an  orphan.  He  sailed  from  New  York  December  20,  1848, 
and  arrived  at  San  Francisco  by  way  of  the  Isthmus  Feb.  28,  1849.  He 
was  successfully  engaged  for  a  few  months  in  mining.  In  the  fall  of  1849 
he  went  to  New  York  City  and  purchased  a  large  stock  of  general  mer- 
chandise, with  which  he  returned  to  San  Francisco  and  there  opened   a 


442  PIONEER   DAYS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 

Store,  but  within  two  weeks  lost  thirty  thousand  dollars  by  fire.  He  then 
opened  a  trading-post  at  Big  Bar,  and  was  signally  successful;  was  at 
various  times  engaged  in  merchandising,  mining  operations,  hotel-keep- 
ing, brick-making  and  banking;  he  was  the  Republican  nominee  for  the 
State  Senate  in  1856 and  i860.  In  1861  he  was  appointed  Receiver  of 
Public  Moneys  at  the  Humboldt  Land  Office.  During  the  Indian  troubles 
he  was  First  Lieutenant  and  Quartermaster  of  the  First  Battalion  of 
Mountaineers,  California  Volunteers.  In  1867  he  was  appointed  Indian 
Agent  at  Hoopa  Valley.  In  1869  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business 
in  Eureka.  From  1883  to  1888  he  was  Collector  of  Customs  for  the  Dis- 
trict of  Humboldt;  was  a  delegate  in  the  National  Convention  at  Chicago 
which  nominated  General  Harrison  for  the  Presidency,  who  appointed 
him  U.  S.  Surveyor-General  for  California. 


RICKS,  C.  S. — Was  one  of  the  first  pioneers  of  Eureka;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1849,  and  arrived  at  Eureka  in  1850;  was  one  of  the  townsite 
company,  and  helped  to  lay  out  the  city;  was  largely  interested  in  real 
estate,  and  was  the  largest  real  estate  owner  in  the  city  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  June  21,  1888;  he  represented  Humboldt  county 
in  the  State  Legislature,  and  was  one  of  the  most  efficient  members  of 
that  body;  he  always  took  a  great  deal  of  interest  in  the  prosperity  of 
Eureka  and  her  institutions,  and  helped  schools  and  churches  with  a 
liberal  hand,  and  everything  else  that  was  for  the  benefit  or  the  pleasure 
of  the  city;  he  built  more  houses  than  any  other  man  in  the  city;  he  inau- 
gurated the  City  Water  Works  by  sinking  artesian  wells  and  raising  the 
water  by  steam  to  tanks,  and  thence  conducting  the  water  in  pipes 
throughout  the  city;  he  died  leaving  a  large  estate  to  his  wife  and  three 
sons.  C.  S.  Ricks  was  a  man  of  liberal  mind,  friendly  in  his  intercourse 
with  his  fellow-men,  and  of  a  generous  and  kind  disposition;  was  well 
liked  by  his  neighbors  and  all  who  knew  him.  His  presence  was  always 
welcome  wherever  he  went. 

RYAN,  JAMES  T.,  DUFF,  JAMES  R.,  TORRY,  A.  W.,  DUFF, 
FRANK  S.,  composed  the  firm  of  Ryan,  Duff  &-»  Co. — These  gentle- 
men built  the  first  merchantable  sawmill,  with  a  capacity  of  100,000 
feet  each  twenty-four  hours.  The  company  bought  the  steamer  "  Santa 
Clara,"  brought  the  vessel  to  Humboldt,  planted  her  in  the  bank,  and 
built  the  mill  alongside  her,  and  used  her  power  to  run  the  mill.  She 
left  San  Francisco  the  22d  day  of  Februrary,  1852,  andarrived  at  Eureka 


BIOGRAPHY.  443 

on  the  second  day,  with  about  forty  men  on  board,  brought  to  help  build 
the  mill.  James  T.  Ryan  was  Captain,  F.  S.  Duff  was  First  Officer  and 
John  Vance  was  Quartermaster,  The  steamer  struck  on  the  bar  while 
crossing,  and  came  near  being  a  total  wreck.  She  lost  her  deck-load,  and 
was  in  the  breakers  one  and  a  half  hours.  The  mill  ran  with  variable 
success  until  1859,  when  it  burned  down. 

James  T.  Ryan,  a  native  of  Ireland;  came  from  Boston  to  California  in 
1849  by  way  of  the  Isthmus;  he  shipped  at  Panama  for  San  Francisco  on 
an  old  vessel  called  "  The  Three  Friends."  On  her  way  up  she  put  into 
a  Mexican  port.  The  vessel  was  so  slow  that  Ryan  got  disgusted  and 
left  her  and  started  on  foot  for  San  Francisco,  and  arrived  at  that  city 
without  either  coat  or  boots  on,  and  nearly  starved.  He  "  struck  "  Frank 
Duff,  and  got  his  first  square  meal  since  leaving  the  vessel;  he  went  to 
bed  and  slept  forty-eight  hours  before  waking. 

Eureka  was  originally  and  actually  surveyed  by  Mr.  Ryan,  with  an  in- 
strument improvised  of  two  vials  and  a  bit  of  wood.  In  1861  Senator 
McDougal  thus  introduced  him  to  Abraham  Lincoln: 

"  Mr.  President,  this  is  General  Ryan,  a  loyal  neighbor  of  mine,  who 
can  build  a  cathedral  and  preach  in  it,  a  ship  and  sail  in  it,  and  an 
engine  and  run  it." 

James  T.  Ryan  was  one  of  the  most  energetic  of  Humboldt's  first 
settlers.  He  was  elected  to  the  State  Senate  in  1859,  and  died  in  Vallejo 
in   1875. 

James  R.  Duff  was  a  native  of  St.  Johns,  New  Brunswick;  he  sailed 
from  Boston  the  20th  day  of  January,  1849,  in  the  ship  "  Pharsalia,"  and 
arrived  in  San  Francisco  the  23d  of  July,  1849;  he  worked  in  San  Fran- 
cisco at  his  trade  of  carpenter  at  sixteen  dollars  per  day;  after  working  a 
week  the  carpenters  called  a  meeting  and  struck  for  twenty  dollars  a  day. 
All  those  that  were  mechanics  got  it,  and  the  "  scabs  "  were  left  outside. 
In  the  spring  of  1850  he  went  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  up  the  coast,  in 
the  schooner  "  Francis  Helen,"  with  Captain  Ottenger,  and  arrived  in 
Humboldt  the  ist  of  June,  1850;  he  found  it  to  be  a  fine  country  for  lum- 
bering purposes,  and  concluded  to  locate  at  Eureka;  he  was  one  of  the 
partners  of  Ryan,  Duff  S-'  Co.;  he  is  now  a  resident  of  San  Francisco. 

A.  W.  Torry  died  in  early  days  in  San  Francisco;  he  came  in  1849 
from  Boston. 

ROBERTS,  WILLIAM  AND  SUSAN— WiUiam  Roberts  was  a 
native  of  Vermont,  and  Susan,  his  wife,  a  native  of  Missouri;  came  across 


444  PIONEER   DAYS   IN  CALIFORNIA. 

the  plains  in  1849.  I"  conversation  with  the  old  lady,  Mrs.  Roberts,  a 
short  time  since  about  the  early  pioneers  of  California,  she  gave  me  a 
short  account  of  their  trip  across  the  plains  in  the  year  1849,  which  is 
well  worth  recording  in  the  pages  of  the  "  Pioneer  Days  in  California."  I 
will  relate  it  as  she  told  it  to  me,  as  nearly  as  I  can  in  her  own  words. 
She  is  now  in  her  eighty-fifth  year;  her  memory  is  remarkable  for  a 
person  of  her  age.     She  said: 

"  We  started  with  quite  a  large  train  of  emigrants  to  California  on  the 
22d  day  of  February,  1849.  My  husband  was  chosen  Captain  of  the 
train;  all  went  well  with  us  the  greater  part  of  the  way  across  the  plains. 
We  came  the  northern  or  Fort  Hall  route,  and  took  what  was  called 
the  Lassen  cut-ofif;  all  went  smoothly  for  a  while.  The  company  elected 
another  Captain,  who  knew  very  little  of  the  plains  or  the  Indians.  One 
night  while  camped  on  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  from  our  camp  we 
could  see  fires  and  smoke  starting  up  from  different  points  of  the  mount- 
ains surrounding  us.  My  husband  advised  the  new  Captain  to  guard  the 
stock  until  the  catlle  were  filled,  and  then  to  corral  them  for  the  night. 
*  For,' said  he,  'those  are  signal  fires,  and  we  are  in  danger  from  the 
Indians.'  The  Captain  laughed  at  his  fears,  and  said,  '  We  are  past  all 
danger.'  We  were  then  on  the  California  side  of  the  Sierras.  My  hus- 
band got  up  his  cattle  and  corralled  them,  saying  he  would  take  no 
chances.  Next  morning  the  most  of  the  cattle  were  gone,  having  been 
stolen  by  the  Indians;  not  a  whole  team  left,  except  ours,  in  the  train. 
Here  we  were  in  the  mountains  and  late  in  the  season,  short  of  teams  to 
take  us  through.  There  was  but  one  thing  to  be  done,  and  that  was  to 
lighten  up  the  wagons,  and  proceed  as  best  we  might.  All  surplus  goods 
and  provisions  were  thrown  from  the  wagons,  in  order  to  lighten  them 
for  the  reduced  teams.  We  then  got  on  very  slowly.  As  we  all  feared, 
the  storms  commenced,  and  caught  us  in  the  mountains  in  November, 
very  poorly  prepared  for  a  hard  winter.  We  kept  traveling  as  well  as  we 
could,  though  it  kept  snowing  all  the  time.  On  the  17th  day  of  November 
the  United  States  relief  train  met  us.  The  train  was  under  the  command 
of  Captain  Peeples  of  the  United  States  army,  and  had  been  sent  out  by 
the  Government  to  help  the  late  emigrants  through.  It  was  snowing 
hard  at  the  time  we  met  the  train  of  about  forty  mules.  The  Captain 
told  us  the  only  thing  for  us  to  do  was  for  us  to  leave  our  teams  and 
everything  we  had,  and  he  would  take  us  through  with  his  mules  as  he 
was  short  of  provisions,  and  they  must  make  the  settlement  as  soon  as 
possible.     My  husband  refused  to  leave  his  team,  and  I  refused  to  leave 


BIOGRAPHY.  445 

my  husband,  preferring  to  take  my  chances  with  him.  R.  R.  Roberts, 
our  son,  and  his  wife  left  with  the  Government  train,  as  his  wife  was  very 
near  her  confinement,  and  they  hoped  to  reach  the  settlements  before 
her  sickness  would  take  place.  They  started,  leaving  us  in  the  mount- 
ains, the  snow  still  falling.  They  traveled  for  two  days  with  the  relief 
■train,  and  the  third  night  after  being  with  the  train  the  party  camped  for 
the  night.  The  ne.xt  morning  the  snow  was  between  two  and  three  feet 
deep,  and  all  the  mules  but  three  had  perished  of  cold  and  hunger.  Cap- 
tain Peeples  then  found  himself  in  desperate  straits.  Here  he  was  with 
a  company  whom  he  was  sent  to  assist,  with  a  number  of  women  and 
children,  snowed  in  in  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  without  provisions  or 
transportation  for  them.  All  he  had  left  of  his  forty  mules  was  but  three, 
and  they  hardly  able  to  travel.  The  nearest  settlement  was  forty  miles 
distant.  They  made  sacks,  into  which  they  put  the  children,  and  slung 
them  on  each  side  of  the  mules.  They  had  one  old  ox,  which  they  killed 
before  starting,  but  left  part  of  the  ox  with  the  party  staying  behind. 
There  were  ten  women  in  the  party;  they  wivh  the  rest  had  to  go  on 
foot  through  the  snow,  over  two  feet  deep,  and  with  very  little  to  eat. 
They  reached  the  settlement  in  two  days,  without  loss  of  life,  which  set- 
tlement was  then  known  as  Lassen's  Ranch,  and  was  about  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  miles  above  Sacramento  City.  In  the  meantime  William 
Roberts  and  wife  had  overtaken  the  Government  train  in  camp  where  the 
mules  had  perished.  Young  Mrs.  Roberts  being  unable  to  travel,  the 
Roberts  family  had  to  remain  there  with  two  sick  men  who  had  the 
scurvy.  One  of  the  men  died  the  second  night  in  camp,  and  the  other 
got  well.  The  names  of  the  party  that  remained  in  camp  were  William 
Roberts,  Susan  Roberts,  his  wife,  R.  R.  Roberts  and  his  wife,  who  was 
about  to  be  confined,  J.  J.  Roberts  and  Mr.  Cliff,  the  teamster,  with  the 
two  sick  men.  In  a  day  or  two  Mrs.  Roberts  was  confined  in  the  wagon, 
and  a  boy  was  born — the  first  white  child  born  in  a  snowstorm  in  the  Sierra 
Nevada  Mountains,  of  whom  we  have  any  account.  The  child  grew  to 
manhood  in  Humboldt  county,  and  was  known  as  John  V.  C.  Roberts. 
In  the  meantime,  after  the  baby  was  born,  they  moved  down  the  mount- 
ains about  four  miles  and  built  a  cabin,  intending  to  have  shelter  until 
the  storm  was  over. 

The  first  night  they  moved  into  their  cabin  they  turned  out  their 
famished  oxen,  sixteen  in  number,  to  browse.  The  next  morning  it  was 
discovered  that  they  hi^d  all  been  stolen  by  the  Indians,  and  nothing  was 
left   but   one    Indian    pony.     After  completing  the  cabin,  Mr.    William 


446  PIONEER    DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

Roberts  started  for  the  settlement  in  search  of  provisions  for  the  family. 
When  he  left  the  cabin  they  had  one  very  poor  deer  which  they  had 
killed,  and  very  poor  venison  it  made.  Mr.  Roberts  was  gone  four  days 
when  he  returned,  bringing  a  few  provisions.  During  these  four  days 
the  infant  subsisted  on  kennaknick  berries  they  found  under  thesnow,  and 
picked  and  then  pressed;  the  juice  was  given  to  the  infant,  which  thrived 
well  on  such  nourishment.  The  pulp  of  these  berries  was  made  into 
bread  and  eaten  by  the  adults.  After  Mr.  Roberts  returned  to  camp,  R. 
R.  Roberts,  John  J.  Roberts  and  Mr.  Cliff  went  to  Sacramento  Valley 
for  provisions.  The  party  remained  in  camp  until  the  20th  of  February, 
when  they  left  for  the  Sacramento  Valley,  and  arrived  at  Lassen's  Ranch 
t)n  foot,  on  the  22d  day  of  February,  1850.  The  family  came  to  Humboldt 
and  arrived  at  Eureka  on  the  22d  day  of  February,  1851.  William 
Roberts  died  at  Bucksport,  Humboldt  county,  January  7,  1872,  aged  72 
years.  Susan  Roberts,  the  mother  of  pioneers,  my  informant,  is  a  hale 
and  hearty  old  lady,  now  in  her  eighty-fifth  year,  and  loves  to  talk  of  her 
pioneer  days. 

RANDALL,  ALPHEUS  W.— A  native  of  Rhode  Island;  came  to 
California  in  1849  in  the  ship  "  Learnor."  He  was  a  soldier  in  the  Mexi- 
can war;  Sergeant  of  Company  A,  Ninth  Infantry.  First  Lieutenant  of 
Company  F,  Battalion  of  California  Mountaineers.  Residence,  Eureka. 
Profession,  banker. 

RANDALL,  T.  M. — Came  from  Illinois  across  the  plains  to  California 
in  1853.     Residence,  Areata. 

RICHARDSON,  CHARLES— A  native  of  Maine;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1853.     Lumberman  and  millwright. 

RAY,  J.  G. — A  native  of  Missouri;  crossed  the  plains  to  California  with 
the  Donner  party  in  1846.     Died  in  Humboldt  county  in  1890. 

ROHNER,  HENRY— Came  from  Kentucky  to  California  in  1849. 
Capitalist.     Residence,  Fortuna. 

RUSS,  MRS.  JOSEPH— Daughter  of  N.  Patrick;  crossed  the  plains 
from  Illinois  in  1852. 

ROBINSON,  LAVINA  E.— A  native  of  Michigan;  daughter  of  J.  P. 
Albee;  came  to  California  in  1852.     Residence,  Bridgeville. 

RUSS,  JOSEPH — A  native  of  Maine;  came  to  California  in  1850  via 
Cape  Horn;  came  to  Humboldt  in  1852;  was  elected  to  the  Legislature  in 
1873  and  again  in   1884;  elected  delegate   to   the  Republican    National 


BIOGRAPHY.  447 

Convention  at  Chicago  in  1884.  Mr.  Russ  was  one  of  Humboldt's  most 
enterprising  citizens,  and  was  the  largest  land  owner  in  the  county  at  the 
time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  October,  1886. 


SEVIER,  ABNER  DILL — A  native  of  Indiana;  crossed  the  plains  in 
1850,  and  came  to  Humboldt  county  in  1851;  was  a  member  of  the  Court 
of  Sessions,  and  for  four  years  Sheriff  of  Humboldt  county.  Justice  of 
the  Peace  and  Police  Judge  of  Eureka.  Was  an  officer  in  Company  A, 
Battalion  of  California  Mountaineers.     Died  at  Rohnerville  in  li 


SEVIER,  SARAH  A.— Wife  of  A.  D.  Sevier;  was  born  in  Tennessee, 
and  came  to  California  in  1850  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1850,  as  Miss 
Stringfield. 

STRINGFIELD,  SEVIER — Was  born  in  Tennessee  in  1800;  came 
across  the  plains  in  1850,  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1851.  A  farmer 
and  Methodist  minister.     Died  in  Santa  Barbara  in  1890. 

STRINGFIELD,  M.  W. — A  native  of  Illinois;  came  across  the  plains 
to  California  in  1850.  Was  a  member  of  California  Mountaineers,  Com- 
pany A.     Also  served  in  the  Modock  war  in  1872.  Occupation,  librarian. 

STRINGFIELD,  ELIZABETH— Wife  of  Sevier  Stringfield;  came  to 
California  in  1850. 

SHUFFLETON,  HUGH  HALL— Crossed  the  plains  from  Iowa  in 
1849.     Residence,  Shasta  county. 

SHUFFLETON,  CHARLES  W.— Crossed  the  plains  from  Iowa  in 
1853.     Residence,  Eureka. 

SNEDDEN,  JOSEPH— A  native  of  Scotland;  came  from  the  State  of 
New  York  to  California  in  1852.  Belonged  to  Fourth  U.  S.  Infantry, 
Company  B,  Corporal. 

SPEARS,  A.  C. — A  native  of  New  York;  came  from  Michigan  to  Cali- 
fornia across  the  Isthmus  in  185 1.     Occupation,  lumbering  and  farming. 

SCOTT,  HENRY  P. — A  native  of  Hamburg,  Germany;  arrived  in 
California  June,  1849,  from  Valparaiso,  Chile.     A  seaman  by  occupation. 

SHELDON,  MARY  L.— Came  from  Vermont;  arrived  in  California  by 
way  of  Cape  Horn  in  1852.     Residence,  San  Francisco. 

SUTTON,  MRS.  L. — Came  from  Iowa  to  California  across  the  plains 
in  1853.     Residence,  Oroville,  Butte  county,  California. 


448  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

SHIVELY,  WILLIAM  B.— Came  from  Ohio  to  California  across  the 
plains  in  1852.     Residence,  Rio  Dell. 

SHIVELY,  CAROLINE — Came  from  Illinois  across  the  plains  in 
1852. 

SWEASEY,  MRS.  SARAH— Came  across  the  plains  from  Ohio  in 
1852. 

STANISLAUSKI,  GUSTAVE,  and  Mary  Madgeline  Stanislauski, 
his  wife,  came  to  California  in  1S51,  and  to  Humboldt  in  1852.  Resi- 
dence, Humboldt  county. 

SWEASEY,  RICHARD — A  native  of  Indiana;  came  to  California  in 
•  1850  and  to  Humboldt  in  1855.     Occupation,  merchant,  and  ship-owner. 
Residence,  Eureka. 


TILLEY,  G.  H. — Is  a  native  of  Rhode  Island;  came  to  California 
September  ist,  1849,  and  to  Humboldt  in  1850;  has  been  Supervisor 
of  Humboldt  county  two  terms. 

TYDD,  PETER — A  native  of  Ireland;  came  from  New  York  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1852;  was  a  member  of  Company  F,  Fourth  U.  S.  Infantry, 
Captain  U.  S.  Grant. 

THOMAS,  W. — A  native  of  Massachusetts;  came  to  California  in 
1849  through  Mexico;  was  a  soldier  of  the  Mexican  war. 

TOMLINSON,  CAPTAIN  EDWIN— Born  in  England  in  1809; 
came  to  the  United  States  in  181 1;  came  to  California  by  way  of  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  and  Australia  in  1852  in  the  ship  "Envelop;"  came 
to  Humboldt  in  1852;  was  shipwrecked  on  Humboldt  Bar  December 
10,  1852.     Retired   shipmaster.     Residence,  Eureka. 

TOMLINSON,  REBECCA— Wife  of  Captain  Tomlinson  ;  a  native  of 
Nova  Scotia;  came  to  California  with  her  husband  in  1852. 

TERRY,  MARY— Daughter  of  J.  P.  Albee;  a  native  of  Michigan; 
came  to  California  in  1852. 

VANSANT,  JOSHUA— A  native  of  Maryland;  came  to  California 
in  1850;  has  been  Marshal  of  the  city  of  Eureka  for  ten  years. 

VALLIER,  A.  C. — A  native  of  New  York;  came  to  California  in  1852. 
A  miner.     Residence,  Eureka. 


BIOGRAPHY.  449 

VANN,  MATTHEW — A  soldier  of  the  Mexican  war;  arrived  in  Cali- 
fornia in  1852.     A  native  of  Kentucky. 

VANN,  ELIZABETH— Wife  of  Matthew  Vann.  A  native  of  Ten- 
nessee.    Residence,  Napa. 

VAN  DYKE,  WALTER— Native  of  New  York;  studied  law  in  Cleve- 
land, Ohio,  and  admitted  to  practice  in  the  courts  of  that  State;  arrived 
in  California,  via  Tehuantepec,  in  1850,  and  was  among  the  first  explorers 
of  the  lower  Klamath  River;  belonged  to  the  Whig  party,  but  was  elected 
District  Attorney  of  Klamath  county  upon  its  organization  in  1851;  re- 
moved to  Areata  in  1852  and  engaged  in  practice  of  his  profession;  mar- 
ried Miss  Rowena  Cooper  in  1854;  partowner  and  editor  of  the  Humboldt 
Times  several  years,  and  served  the  county  as  District  Attorney;  became 
a  resident  of  Eureka  in  1858  ;  elected  to  State  Senate  in  1861,  and  was 
prominent  in  the  formation  of  the  Union  party;  he  now  resides  in  Los 
Angeles,  and  is  one  of  the  Superior  Judges  of  that  county. 

VAN  SICKLE,  THOMAS— A  native  of  New  York;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1850.     Residence,  Rohnerville.     Merchant. 

WOOD,  GABRIEL — Is  a  native  of  Prussia;  came  from  Pennsylvania 
across  the  Isthmus  to  California  in  185 1.  Residence,  Eureka.  Occupa- 
tion, a  teamster. 

WHITE,  SAMUEL  S.— A  native  of  Massachusetts;  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1852,  and  to  Humboldt  county  in  1871.     Occupation,  a  mason. 

WILT,  J.  A. — A  native  of  New  Brunswick;  came  to  California  via 
Cape  Horn  in  1850.     He  is  a  general  agent. 

WHEELER,  E.  D. — A  native  of  Connecticut;  came  to  California 
across  the  plains  from  Wisconsin  in  1849.  Profession,  lawyer.  Was  the 
first  County  Clerk  of  Yuba  county,  in  1850;  was  Mayor  of  Marysville; 
was  elected  to  the  State  Senate  in  i860;  moved  to  San  Francisco  in  1862; 
in  1872  he  was  appointed  District  Judge  of  the  Ninteenth  Judicial  Dis- 
trict by  Governor  Booth;  in  1874  was  elected  Judge  by  the  people  of  the 
District  just  mentioned;  he  served  in  this  capacity  until  1880,  when  the 
District  Courts  were  abolished  by  the  new  Constitution.  From  that 
time  to  the  present  he  has  practiced  his  profession  in  San  Francisco. 

WEBER,  MARTIN— Came  to  California  from  Illinois  in  1852.  Mer- 
chant.    Residence,  Rohnerville. 


450  PIONEER    DAYS   IN  CALIFORNIA. 

WEBER,  NICHOLAS— Came  to  California  from  Illinois  in  1852. 
Merchant.     Residence,  Rohnerville. 

WENNER,  B. — Crossed  the  Isthmus  to  California  in  1849.  Resi- 
dence, Fortuna.     A  farmer. 

WAITE,  B.  L. — Came  to  California  from  Wisconsin  across  the  plains 
in  1850.     Residence,  Grizzly  Bluff.     Farmer. 

WOOLDRIDGE,  MRS.  JOSEPHINE— Daughter  of  N.  Patrick; 
crossed  the  plains  from  Illinois  in  1852. 

WALL,  WILLIAM  H.— A  native  of  New  York;  came  to  California  in 
1846;  arrived  at  Humboldt  Bay  in  June,  1850.  Was  the  first  white  man 
married  in  Humboldt  county;  married  the  daughter  of  James  Light. 

WILLIAMS,  GEORGE— A  native  of  Ohio;  crossed  the  plains  to 
California  in  1850;  served  two  terms  as  Supervisor  of  Trinity  county;  was 
Provost  Marshal  for  Trinity  county  in  1863;  served  one  term  as  Super- 
visor of  Humboldt  county;  was  elected  to  the  Legislature  from  Humboldt 
county  in  1887.  Residence,  Ferndale.  Occupation,  stockman  and 
general  business. 

WINZLER,  JOHN — Crossed  the  plains  from  Ohio  to  California  in 
1850.     Residence,  Oregon.     Occupation,  blacksmith. 

WATSON,  JOHN  A. — A  native  of  New  Hampshire;  came  from 
Maine  to  California  in  1851;  was  elected  County  Clerk  of  Trinity  county 
in  1856;  ran  on  the  Republican  ticket  in  that  county  for  Sheriff  against 
John  P.  Jones,  now  U.  S.  Senator  from  Nevada.  The  Republican  party 
being  largely  in  the  minority,  he  failed  to  be  elected.  In  1863  he  enlisted 
in  the  California  Battalion  Mountaineers,  and  was  commissioned  First 
Lieutenant  of  Company  C,  under  Captain  Miller;  served  until  the  close 
of  the  war,  and  was  mustered  out  in  1865.  He  then  took  up  his  residence 
at  Eureka.  In  1868  he  was  elected  County  Clerk  of  Humboldt  county, 
and  held  that  office  for  six  years;  in  1874  he  was  appointed  Deputy  Col- 
lector of  Customs,  and  President  Arthur  appointed  him  Collector  of  the 
Port  when  Eureka  was  made  a  Customs  district.  He  held  the  position 
of  agent  for  Wells,  Fargo  Qr'  Co.  from  April,  1879,  until  his  death;  he 
served  six  years  as  a  member  of  the  City  Council,  and  was  one  of  the 
most  efBcient  members  of  that  body.     Died  at  Eureka  November  8,  1883. 

WALSH,  THOMAS— A  native  of  Ireland;  came  to  California  in  1851, 
and  to  Humboldt  in  1853;  was  elected  the  first  Mayor  of  Eureka  in  1874, 
and  served  two  terms;  was  again  elected  Mayor  of  Eureka  m  1880,  and 


BIOGRAPHY.  451 

served   three   terms,  or   until    1886.      Occupation,  merchant.     Died  at 
Chicago  in  1886. 

WHIPPLE,  S.  G. — Born  in  Vermont  ;  arrived  in  Cahfornia  across 
the  plains  from  Ohio  July,  1849,  and  in  what  is  now  Humboldt  county 
in  February,  1851;  established  the  Northern  Califoniian  at  Areata  in 
1858,  and  conducted  same  two  years,  when  it  was  united  with  the 
Humboldt  Times,  to  the  proprietorship  of  which  he  succeeded,  disposing 
of  the  establishment  in  1862.  Served  three  terms  in  the  State  Legislature. 
Entered  U.  S.  volunteer  military  service  spring  of  1863,  and  the  regular 
army  in  1866,  retiring  in  1884.  Resides  at  Eureka;  manager  of  the 
Humboldt  Times. 

■  WYMAN,  J.  E. — A  native  of  Massachusetts;  arrived  in  California  in 
1850,  and  in  Humboldt  in  185 1;  served  as  County  Judge  of  Humboldt 
county  for  fourteen  years;  was  the  owner  and  publisher  of  the  Htimboldt 
Times;  he  started  the  first  daily  paper  in  Humboldt  county.  Died  in 
1880,  at  Eureka. 

WOOD,  L.  K. — A  native  of  Kentucky;  came  to  California  in  1849;  he 
was  one  of  the  first  discoverers  of  Humboldt  Bay;  he  with  seven  others, 
known  as  Dr.  Gregg's  party,  left  Trinity  River  on  the  5th  day  of  Novem- 
ber, 1849,  to  explore  the  then  unknown  country  between  Upper  Trinity 
River  and  the  Pacific  Ocean.  After  incredible  hardships  and  almost 
starvation  they  reached  the  coast  at  the  mouth  of  what  is  known  as  Little 
River.  For  over  six  weeks  this  little  band  of  pioneers  tramped  over  snowy 
mountains,  and  swam  swollen  streams,  on  their  expedition  of  discovery. 
On  December  20,  1849,  David  A.  Buck,  one  of  the  party,  discovered 
the  bay,  and  named  it  Trinity  Bay.  Four  months  later  the  bay  was  dis- 
covered by  the  Laura  Virginia  Company,  and  given  the  name  of  Humboldt 
Bay,  which  name  it  still  retains. 

The  Gregg  party  then  undertook  to  return  to  the  settlements  by  the 
way  of  Eel  River,  in  the  midst  of  one  of  the  hardest  winters  known  to 
California.  Their  provisions  gave  out  in  the  midst  of  a  heavy  snowstorm, 
and  for  days  they  were  without  food.  They  were  now  reduced  almost  to 
starvation.  Three  of  the  band  went  hunting,  and  found  a  band  of  eight 
grizzly  bears,  and  necessity  compelled  them  to  attack  the  bears.  After 
they  wounded  some  of  the  bears,  the  brutes  turned  on  them,  and  getting 
hold  of  L.  K.  Wood,  they  mangled  his  body  in  a  fearful  manner.  They 
broke  one  of  his  legs  and  tore  one  of  his  arms,  and  thus  rendered  him  a 
cripple  for  life.  Finally  the  bears  left  him,  and  bis  comrades  got  him 
into  camp. 


452  PIONEER   DAYS   IN    CALIFORNIA. 

The  question  now  arose,  what  was  to  be  done  with  the  wounded  man? 
If  they  stayed  in  camp  they  would  all  perish  of  starvation,  and  his  wounds 
were  so  swollen  and  sore  that  he  could  not  be  removed.  On  consultation 
with  Mr.  Wood  himself,  he  requested  his  companions  to  shoot  him,  and 
not  leave  him  to  die  of  the  pangs  of  hunger  in  that  wilderness.  They  dis- 
cussed the  matter,  and  finally  came  to  the  conclusion  that  they  would 
make  a  litter  and  pack  him  as  far  as  possible.  This  they  did.  After  un- 
told miseries,  the  party  arrived  at  the  ranch  of  Mrs.  Mark  West  on  the 
17th  day  of  February,  1850,  and  remained  there  until  sufficiently  recov- 
ered to  proceed  to  San  Francisco.  Mr.  Wood  received  the  utmost  kind- 
ness from  every  member  of  the  family. 

Mr.  Wood  returned  to  Humboldt,  and,  in  1852,  ran  as  an  independent 
candidate  for  the  office  of  Clerk  of  Trinity  county,  of  which  county  the 
present  county  of  Humboldt  then  formed  a  part.  The  Democratic  can- 
didate was  successful.  Shortly  afterwards  Humboldt  county  was  created 
by  act  of  the  Legislature,  and  L.  K.  Wood  became  County  Clerk  of  the 
new  county.  He  afterwards  became  a  farmer  on  Areata  bottom,  and 
married  the  daughter  of  James  Hanna,  Esq.,  and  raised  a  large  family. 
Most  of  the  children  still  reside  in  Humboldt  county.  He  died  at  Areata 
on  the  1 2th  day  of  July,  1874. 

Through  the  courtesy  of  his  sons,  the  author  was  permitted  to  take  this 
sketch  from  a  narrative  written  by  L.  K.  Wood  several  years  ago,  and 
published  at  the  time  in  the  Humboldt  Times. 


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