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THE  WORKS 

or 

HUBERT  HOWE  BANCROFT 


THE    WORKS 


or 


HUBERT  HOWE  BANCROFT 


VOLUME   XXIV 


HISTORY   OF   CALIFORNIA 

VOL.  VII.     1860-1890 


SAN    FRANCISCO 

THE   HISTORY   COMPANY,  PUBLISHERS 
189Q_ 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress  in  the  Year  1890,  by 

HUBERT  H.  BANCROFT, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


All  Rights  Reserved. 


NT     wr 

COAST 


CONTENTS  OF  THIS  VOLUME, 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   DEVELOPMENT   OF    AGRICULTURE. 

1769-1889. 

C  PAGB 

The  Three  Great  Branches,  Grass,  Grain,  and  Fruit — The  Age  of  Grass 
— Pre-American  Farming — Processes  and  Products — Exhaustion  of 
Soil — Farming  and  Machinery — Irrigation — Artesian  Wells — Ripa- 
rian Rights — Droughts — Floods — Pests — Climates  and  Soils — Tem- 
perature and  Rainfalls — Configurations  as  Affecting  Agriculture ...  1 

CHAPTER    II. 

CEREALS   AND     OTHER     PRODUCTS. 

1848-1889. 

Leading  Staples — Wheat  and  Barley — Oats  and  Corn — Yield — Effect  of 
Irrigation — Rice — Conditions  of  Culture— Quality — Vegetables — 
Cotton — Flax — The  Silkworm  Excitement — Effect  of  Legislation 
on  Sericulture — Fiasco  in  Tobacco  —Mustard — Sugar 24 

CHAPTER  III. 

FRUIT-GROWING   AND   GRAPES. 

1769-1889. 

Ceres  and  Pomona — Italy  Excelled — Comparative  Yield — Fruit  Season 
and  Flavor — Products  and  Pests — Drying  and  Canning — Shipping 
— Farm  Orchards — Apples — Citrus  Fruits — The  Orange — Pears — 
Cost  of  Cultivation — Scale  Infliction — Figs — Almonds  and  Other 
Nuts — The  Olive — Berries — The  Grape — Wine-making — Raisins — 

Flowers  and  Forest  Trees 38 

(v) 


vi  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

LIVESTOCK. 

1769-1889. 

PAGB 

Pasture  Cultivation — Eastern  Grass  and  Alfalfa — Early  Stock-raising — 
Cattle  and  Sheep — Notable  Ranges — Milk  and  Cheese — Horses — 
Improvement  of  Breeds — Mules  and  Oxen — Wool-growing-Goats — 
Swine— Poultry — The  Honey  Bee — Agricultural  Societies — Patrons 
of  Husbandry — The  Grange  System — Farmers'  Protective  Union 
League 52 


CHAPTER  V. 

MANUFACTURES. 

1^48-1889. 

Mission  Work — Agricultural  and  Mining  Manufactures — High  Wages 
— Iron  and  Lead  Works — Lumber  and  Leather — Pottery  and 
Paper — Conditions  and  Climate — Material — Forest  Trees — Saw- 
mills— Charcoal — Planing-mills — Ship-building — Dry -dock — Wagons 
— Cooperage  and  Box-making— Willow-ware — Brooms — Furniture 
— Billiard  Tables — Pianos — Fish-curing  —  Whaling — Oysters — Flour 
— Confectionery — Beer  —  Spirits — Fruit-canning  —  Meat-packing  — 
Sugar  and  Tobacco — Wool,  Cotton,  and  Silk — Clothing — Leather — 
Miscellaneous  Articles — Soap — Iron — Jewelry — G'ass  and  Clay 
Works — Soda — Powder . . 


CHAPTER  VI. 

FOREIGN   COMMERCE. 

1848-1889. 

Early  Trading  Vessels — Effect  of  Gold  Discovery — Fluctuations  in 
Prices— At  the  Mines — Folly  of  Eastern  Shippers — First  to  Arrive 
— Influx  of  Vessels — 'Alternate  Scarcity  and  Plethora  of  Merchan- 
dise— Revival  of  Mining — Wages  and  Prices — Imports  and  Expo:-ts 
— Social  Influence  and  Trade  Revolutions— Treasure  Export— Trade 
Channels — Abandoned  Vessels  of  the  Argonauts — Advent  of  Clipper 
Ships — Ocean  Steamers — Later  Developments 102 


CONTENTS.  vii 

CHAPTER  VII. 

INLAND   AND    OVERLAND   TRAFFIC. 

1848-1888. 

PAOK 

Coastwise  Commerce — In  the  Bay — On  the  Sacramento — Pioneer  Steam- 
boats— Heads  of  Navigation — California  Steam  Navigation  Com- 
pany— Coast  Lines — Shipwrecks,  Collisions,  and  Explosions — Coa=t 
and  River  Surveys — Harbor  Improvements— Lighthouses — Custom 
House  Affairs — Revenue  Districts  and  Collectors — Roads,  Feme-!, 
and  Bridges — Overland  and  Interior  Postal  Service — The  Express 
Business— Stage  Lines— Pack-trains — Telegraph  Lines, , , , , 130 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

BUSINESS   METHODS   AND   CHARACTERISTICS. 

1848-1888. 

Channels  of  Trade— Auction  Houses— Business  Organizations — Insur- 
ance— Banking — Disasters  and  Revivals — Savings  Institutions — Gold 
Dust  and  Assay  Offices — Private  Coinage — Variations  in  Values — 
The  Mint — Speculative  Spirit  of  the  Flush  Times — Interior  Trade — 
Credit  System — Commercial  Catastrophes  and  Failures — Express 
and  Banking  Houses — Adams  and  Company  Failure — Mining  Stock 
Gambling — Its  Power  and  Influence— Its  Fall  and  Attendant  Disas- 
ters —  Biography , ,,,,,...., 157 

CHAPTER  IX. 

CRIMINAL    AND   JUDICIAL. 

1849-1879. 

Creation  of  Courts — Their  Powers  and  Position — Legislators,  Lawyers, 
Judges,  and  Governors,  the  Enemies  of  the  People  and  the  Friends 
of  Criminals — Early  Judges — And  yet  there  have  been  Honest  men 
on  the  Bench — Weak  and  Unprincipled  Governors — California 
the  Murderers'  Paradise — The  Noble  Profession  of  Highwayman — 
California  Banditti — Judges  who  should  have  been  Hanged — Pros- 
titution of  the  Pardoning  Power 191 

CHAPTER  X. 

THE   JUDICIARY. 
1850-1872. 

The  First  Supreme  Court — Personnel  of  the  Judges — Influence  on 
Opinion — Evils  of  an  Elective  Judiciary — Character  of  Cases  to  be 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Determined,  and  Influence  on  Industry — Land  and  Mining  Interests 
— Effect  of  the  Amended  Constitution — Federal  Courts  in  California 
— The  Municipality  and  the  Consolidation  Act — Pueblo  Lands — 
Compilation  of  the  Laws ,,,.,.,,,,,,,.,,, it.......  220 


CHAPTER  XL 

LOYALTY,    OR   DISUNION   AND   A    PACIFIC   REPUBLIC. 
I860. 

The  Legislature — Gwin-Weller  Combination — Latham's  Policy  and 
Administration — Federal  Dissolution  and  State  Division — Lecomp- 
ton  and  Other  Conventions — A  Political  Crisis — Federal  Parties 
and  Politics — Fight  for  Breckinridge — The  San  Francisco  Bulkhead 
Scare — Change  of  Constitution  and  Division  of  the  State — New  Elec- 
tion—The State  Loyal  to  the  Union. ..,,,...,,, , 251 


CHAPTER  XII. 

PERIOD   OF   CIVIL    WAR. 

1861-1865. 

Attitude  of  the  Legislature — Sentiment  of  the  People — The  Crisis — Loy- 
alty and  Disloyalty — More  of  the  Pacific  Republic — Representatives 
in  Washington — Parties  and  Politics — State  Rights  and  Secession — 
The  Pulpit  and  the  Press — Coast  Defenses — Conspiracies — Army 
and  Navy — Men  and  Money — Greenbacks  and  Gold — More  Govern- 
ors and  Legislatures — Clubs  and  Conventions — News  of  the  Death 
of  Lincoln, ,,,,,,,,.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.,,,,  , , , , 275 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

PARITY   CHANGES. 

1865-1S68. 

Introduction  of  the  Primary  System— The  People's  Party— Short  Hairs 
and  Long  Hairs — Bearing  of  the  Currency  Question — The  Boys  and 
the  Bosses — Death  of  the  Union  Party — The  Central  Pacific — Na- 
tional Republican  Party — Democracy  in  the  Ascendant — Legisla- 
tures, Representatives,  and  Governors— Conventions  and  Elections 
— Taxation,  Mongolianism,  and  Monopoly — Municipal  Politics 315 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   XIV. 


CHINESE,    THE    LABOR    AGITATION,    AND    POLITICS. 

1868-1877. 

PAGE 

Dming  of  the  Mongolians — Not  Welcome  in  California — Attitude  of  the 
Miners — Disgusting  and  Altogether  Damnable — Long  but  Powerless 
Legislation  Against  Them — Treaties  and  Commissions — Our  Masters 
of  the  Hod  and  Shovel— Kearneyism — Monopolists  Denounced — 
Sandlot  Speeches — Riots  and  Arrests — Safety  Committee — Labor 
Organizations — The  Workingmen's  Party  Becomes  a  Power — Decline 
of  Communism — More  Elections,  Legislatures,  aud  Representatives  335 


CHAPTER    XV. 

THE    NEW   CONSTITUTION. 

1878-1879. 

'roposed  Constitutional  Convention — Defect?,  of  the  Constitution  of  1849 
— Something  Different  Desired  by  the  Free-and-easy  Ruling  For- 
eigners— License  Versus  Liberty — Attitude  of  Kearney  and  His 
Workingmen's  Party — Acts  of  the  Convention— Provisions  of  the 
New  Constitution — Bill  of  Rights — Legislature — Appropriations — 
Divorces — Lotteries — Public  Debts — Bribery — Executive — Judiciary 
— Taxation — Corporations — Railways — Chinese — Education — Labor 
— Municipalities — Adoption  and  Workings  of  the  New  Constitution — 
Personnel  of  the  Convention . .  370 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

POLITICAL   HISTOKY. 

1879-1889. 

Jnder  the  New  Constitution — State  Elections- — San  Francisco  Charter 
—Municipal  Matters — Our  Imported  Rulers — Legislation  under  the 
New  Regime— Irrigation  and  Riparianjlights — An  Elective  Judi- 
ciary— Extra  Session  of  the  Legislature— Party  Issues — Grave 
Questions — Contest  for  the  United  States  Senatorship — Brief  Period 
of  Quiet — California  as  a  Type — Disturbance  of  the  Public  Mind — 
Names  of  Counties — Finances — Federal  Expenditures — Industrial 
Enterprise — Immigration — New  Era  of  Development 407 


x  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   XVII. 

MILITARY, 

1848-1888. 

PAOIM- 

California  Under  Military  Rule — Desertions — Quarters  and  Reservations 
— Lighthouses — Companies  Formed — Indian  Troubles— Posts  Estab- 
lished— Departments — Vigilance  Committee  Matters — War  for  the 
Union — Coast  Defences -^45 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

EXTERMINATION   OF  THE  INDIANS. 

1849-1887. 

Beating  up  the  Game — Treatment  by  Mexicans  and  Americans — Some 
So-called  Fighting — Congressional  Attitude  and  Action — Outrages 
and  Retaliations — United  States  Law  of  Compensation — End  ot 
Indian  Affairs  and  End  of  the  Indians 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

INCEPTION   OF  BAILWAY  ROUTES. 

1832-1862. 

Early  Transcontinental  Expeditions — Wagon-road  Projects — First  Rail- 
roads in  America — Agitations  and  Projects  for  an  Overland  Railway 
—Carver,  Plumbe,  Whitney,  Wilkes,  and  Others— The  States  Muv- 
ing — Meetings  and  Conventions — The  Question  in  Congress — Pacific 
Railroad  Bills— The  Act  of  1862. .  . 


CHAPTER  XX. 

RAILROADS — CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM, 

1852-1888. 

Organization  and  Legislation — Routes  and  Surveys — Action  of  Congress 
— Finances  and  Construction — Central  Pacific  and  Union  Pacific — 
Stock  Subscriptions  and  Subsidies — Other  Roads , . , , , , , , , . .  534 


CONTENTS.  xi 

CHAPTER   XXI. 

RAILROADS — SOUTHERN    PACIFIC   SYSTEM. 

18G5-1888. 

PAGE 

>rporation  and  Charter — Relations  to  the  Central  Pacific — Legislation 
— Yerl>a  Buena  Island  as  a  Terminus — Consolidation  of  Railroad 
Interests  in  California — Effect  iipon  Business  and  Politics 593 


CHAPTER   XXII. 

MINING    AND    MINING    STOCKS. 

1851-1889. 

Origin  and  Development  of  Quartz  Mining — Hydraulic  Mining — Effects 
Arising  from  Hydraulic  Debris — River-bed  Mining — Silver  Mining 
— Yield  of  Gold  and  Silver — Cost  and  Returns — Other  Metals  and 
Minerals — Mineral  Springs — Stock  Boards  and  Stock  Gambling . . .  636 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

PROGRESS    OF   SAN    FRANCISCO. 

1857-1889. 

and  County — Fraser  River  Excitement — Traffic  and  Improvements 
— Street  Railways — Effect  of  Floods,  Earthquakes,  and  Overland 
Railway — Evil  Influence  of  Politicians — Stock  and  Labor  Excite- 
ments— Inflations  and  Depressions— Future  of  the  Metropolis 682 


CHAPTER   XXIV. 

POPULATION    AND    SOCIETY. 

1849-1889. 

Early  Arrivals — Intercommunication — Decline  and  Advance — National- 
ities— Health  and  Diseases — Benevolent  Institutions — Woman  — 
Domestic  Life — Amusements — Drinking  and  Gambling — Mining 
Stock  Mania — Distinctive  Traits — Education — Art  —  Literature- 
Religion .695 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   XXV. 

EECENT    EVENTS. 

18S9-1S90. 

I'A    ,1 

Legislation — The  Judiciary — Police  and  Crime — Governor  Waterman's 
Administration — Public  Imvrovemeuts — State  text-books — Farming 
— Irrigation — Fruit-raising  and  Fruit  Shipments — Wine-making — 
Raisins — Stock-raising — The  Iron-moulders'  Strike—  Ship-building 
— Railroad  Indebtedness — Mining — Commerce  and  Banking — Real 
Estate— Progress  and  Prospects 734 


HISTORY   OF    OAiZFORKTA 


CHAPTER   I 

THE  DEVELOPMENT   OF   AGRICULTURE 
1769-1889 

THE  THREE  GREAT  BRANCHES,  GRASS,  GRAIN,  AND  FRUIT — THE  AGE  OF 
GRASS — PRE-AMEHICAN  FARMING — PROCESSES  AND  PRODUCTS — EXHAUS- 
TION or  SOIL — FARMING  MACHINERY — IRRIGATION — ARTESIAN  WELLS — 
RIPARIAN  RIGHTS — DROUGHTS — FLOODS — PESTS — CLIMATES  AND  SOILS 
— TEMPERATURE  AND  RAINFALLS — CONFIGURATIONS  AS  AFFECTING  AGRI- 
CULTURE. 

AFTER  the  close  of  the  pastoral  period,  the  three 
great  products  of  California  were  successively  gold, 
grain,  and  fruit.  Grass,  gold,  and  grain  have  each 
had  their  day,  and  the  epoch  of  fruit  and  the  vine 
is  upon  us.  These  dominant  developments  had  each 
their  collateral  industries.  Thus  the  grazing  period, 
which  flourished  during  the  pastoral  times  prior  to 
the  gold  discoveries,  was  attended  by  the  hide  and 
tallow  trade,  which  for  three  quarters  of  a  century 
constituted  the  basis  of  inland  and  coast  commerce. 
Digging  for  gold  developed  a  new  commerce  and  a 
new  community,  while  with  grain-growing  and  fruit- 
.  raising  came  social  refinement  and  the  higher  culture. 

The  stock-raising  pursuit  of  the  Hispano-Califor- 
nians  was  attended  by  a  little  planting,  only  enough 
for  food  to  sustain  the  inhabitants.  Horses  and  cattle, 
left  to  roam  almost  in  a  state  of  nature,  must  look  to 
nature  for  their  sustenance.  The  grass,  brought  for- 
ward by  the  rains  of  winter,  was  cured  by  the  suns  of 

VOL.  VII.    1 


2  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

summer ;  shelter  for  beasts  was  little  thought  of,  barns 
almost  unknown.  Horses  for  riding  were  broken  by 
quick  and  violent  methods ;  few  were  used  for  draught. 
Little  or  no  care  was  taken  to  improve  the  breed, 
which  rather  deteriorated.  Ploughs  were  often  nothing 
more  than  crooked  sticks;  thrashing  was  performed  by 
the  feet  of  mares;  wagons  consisted  of  rude  frames 
upon  wheels  made  from  pieces  of  board. 

Enterprise  was  mostly  confined  to  the  slowly  inflow- 
ing foreign  element.  Sutter  had  in  1840  opened 
extensive  plantations,  and  drilled  Indians  to  cultivate 
them.  Before  this  example  Anglo-Saxon  occupation 
spread  southward,  and  to  the  north,  establishing  stock- 
farms  and  orchards  between  the  Stanislaus  and  Rus- 
sian rivers.  Gold  roused  the  country  from  its  leth- 
argy, and  engendered  new  ambitions.  As  surface 
mining  became  less  remunerative,  diggers  began  to 
swell  the  agricultural  ranks,  first  as  raisers  of  potatoes 
and  other  vegetables,  almost  indispensable  to  health 
among;  miners  confined  to  a  salt-meat  diet.  Cereals 

^j 

followed,  first  barley  as  the  hardier  grain  for  the  dry 
and  sandy  soil,  and  in  demand  for  the  large  animal 
traffic;  then  others,  and  by  1854  the  state  was  practi- 
cally self-supporting.  Then  came  the  revelation  that 
the  large  interior  valleys,  condemned  as  arid,  were  well 
adapted  for  wheat,  and  soon  afterward  began  their 
cultivation,  until  the  region  took  rank  among  the 
leading  wheat-fields  of  the  world.  Speculation  en- 
tered into  the  pursuit,  which  feature  was  rather 
stimulated  than  checked  by  the  uncertain  rainfall 
which  frequently  caused  a  failure  of  crops,  leaving  to 
die  the  herds  now  becoming  somewhat  *  dependent 
upon  them  in  default  of  large  portions  of  their  other- 
wise occupied  grazing-grounds.  The  drought  of 
1862-4  gave  a  fatal  blow  to  the  aspirations  of  cattle- 
men, sweeping  away  the  pastoral  importance  of  entire 
counties  in  the  south,  compelling  tillage  and  the  sub- 
division of  ranges.  Thus  stock-raising  was  reduced 
to  a  subordinate  adjunct  of  the  farm,  with  greater 


ADVANTAGES  AND  DISADVANTAGES.  3 

attention  given  to  sheep,  the  no-fence  laws  which  fol- 
lowed almost  putting  an  end  to  the  business. 

The  possibilities  of  orchards  and  vineyards  had  been 
early  understood,  but  the  inferior  quality  of  the  mis- 
sion fruit,  especially  the  grape,  offered  but  little  em- 
ployment, until  in  later  years  the  gradual  introduction 
of  foreign  varieties  paved  the  way  for  flourishing  vine- 
yards and  orange  groves.  The  attendant  formation  of 
small  holdings  proved  a  gratifying  feature,  as  best 
adapted  to  the  general  prosperity  and  the  elevation 
of  agricultural  labor,  causing  a  superior  class  to  en- 
gage in  such  pursuits. 

The  high  prices  and  the  ready  acquisition  of  wealth 
gave  the  speculative  spirit  a  bent  for  operations  on  a 
grand  scale  on  farms  of  vast  acreage,  no  less  than  for 
superficial  methods,  with  gang-ploughs  for  scratching 
rather  than  turning  the  surface,  and  with  frequent 
recourse  to  the  ready  yet  exhausting  volunteer  crop. 
To  the  predilection  of  Californians  to  experiment  and 
change  is  due  such  results  as  the  low  pruning  and 
other  improvements  in  vineyards  and  orchards,  the 
evolution  of  superior  breeds  in  stock,  the  promising 
silk  and  cotton  culture,1  and  the  numerous  labor-sav- 
ing implements,  as  multiform  gang-ploughs  and  com- 
bined header  and  thrasher,  which  are  here  more 
widely  perfected  and  adopted  than  elsewhere.  Few 
countries  possess  so  varied  a  cultivation,  or  a  farm- 
ing community  of  higher  general  intelligence  and 
enterprise. 

This  development  has  been  wrought  in  the  face  of 
obstacles,  notably  the  dryness  of  soil  and  season,  with 
periodical  droughts.2 

1  All  countries  were  required  to  contribute  their  quota  to  the  rising  com- 
monwealth.    From  France  and  Japan  were  obtained  the  silk-worm,  from 
England  and  Kentucky  horses  and  cows  of  superior  breed,  from  Asia  minor 
the  Angora  goat,  from  Mexico  cotton  and  a  host  of  other  plants,  and  vines 
from  half  a  dozen  regions.     The  method  of   making  sparkling  wines  and 
brandy  were  studied  at  Epernay  and  Cognac,  raisin-drying  at  Malaga,  etc. 
Every  lesson  and  experiment  was  noted — every  achievement  of  science. 

2  The  north  wind  is  withering,  producing   a  suffocating,  alkaline  dust, 
which  often  affects  the  eyes  and  air  passages.     Flies  and  mosquitoes  abound 
in  some  parts,  in  others  ground-squirrels  and  rabbits;  yet  on  the  whole  these 


4  THE   DEVELOPMENT   OF   AGRICULTURE. 

The  preeminence  of  stock-raising  in  early  days  laid 
upon  farmers  the  burden  of  maintaining  fences;  but 
as  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  increased,  their  interests 
acquired  greater  weight.  It  was  shown  that  a  free 
range  for  cattle  should  not  Jbe  allowed  in  .the  great 
valleys,  where  timber  was  scarce.  The  discovery  of 
the  value  of  the  San  Joaquin  plain  for  wheat-raising 
gave  emphasis  to  this  view.  After  a  long  delay,  the 
legislature  allowed  a  test  to  be  made  in  a  small  dis- 
trict, and  with  the  decline  of  cattle-raising  subsequent 
to  the  drought  of  18G2-4,  less  difficulty  was  encoun- 
tered in  extending  the  area,  until  nearly  the  entire 
agricultural  portion  of  the  state  enjoyed  the  benefit.3 

afflictions  are  of  a  mild  nature.  Good  water  is  not  general.  But  while  the 
dryness  is  forbidding  in  some  respects,  and  at  times  delays  ploughing,  yet 
it  also  checks  weeds  and  is  a  great  boon  in  harvest-time,  permitting  cropa  to 
be  reaped  in  economic  and  convenient  security.  Trade  monopoly  has  bjun 
inveighed  against,  but  the  evil  is  not  worse  than  in  many  other  states.  More 
formidable  is  land  monopoly,  in  taxing  enterprise  and  retarding  immigration, 
but  the  remedy  lies  with  the  people.  Against  these  drawbacks  stands  an  over- 
whelming array  of  advantages  which  inspire  the  most  glowing  pride  and  hope. 
California  occupies  one  of  the  most  favored  zones  on  the  globe,  and  compared 
with  the  sister  states  of  the  union  it  is  a  summer-land.  So  attests  the  ever- 
increasing  influx  of  tourists,  who  seek  here  a  period  of  rest  and  enjoyment;  of 
invalids  in  quest  of  health  and  winter  homes;  of  immigrants  drawn  by  the  ex- 
panding fame  of  vineyards  and  orange  groves,  by  the  perennial  spring  and 
balmy  air  of  the  coast  region,  with  ever-blooming  banks  beneath  an  Italian  sky. 
Moreover,  the  land  lies  mostly  prepared  for  immediate  tillage,  with  no  heavy 
sod,  or  shrub,  or  stone  to  obstruct  the  farmer,  but  with  light  soil  and  clear  sur- 
face which  permit  gang-ploughs  to  cover  areas  much  larger  than  elsewhere,  and 
at  one  third  the  cost.  There  are  no  cold  winters  to  bury  the  ground  for  months; 
little  frost,  and  rarely  hail  or  levelling  rain  storms.  Nature  grants  extra  time 
for  uiifoldment,  as  shown  in  the  perpetual  green,  in  the  faster  growth  of  trees 
and  of  animals,  both  of  which  acquire  maturity  at  almost  half  the  age  as- 
signed in  the  eastern  states,  for  with  these  the  comparison  h  fittest.  And 
not  only  can  the  harvesting  of  grain  and  fruit  be  left  to  the  convenience  of 
the  farmer,  but  grain  may  be  cut,  thrashed,  and  sacked  in  one  operation, 
ready  for  shipment,  and  many  fruits  may  be  dried  in  the  sun  for  preservation. 
The  no-fence  law  confers  an  economic  boon  on  tillers,  without  real  detri- 
ment to  the  stock -raiser,  and  farming  has  risen  to  supreme  consideration,  as 
the  leading  industry  of  the  state,  to  the  restriction  of  formerly  preeminent 
mining  rights.  Thus  safeguards  and  natural  advantages  lighten  toil  and  ex- 
pense, supply  more  wants  and  luxuries,  and  permit  the  formation  of  the 
nost  beautiful  and  comfortable  of  homes  and  of  prosperous  fruit-growing  col- 
mies.  See  chapter  on  birth  of  towns,  vol.  vi.  Colonies  were  formed  in  all 
>arts  of  the  state,  but  flourished  best  on  the  irrigated  tracts  of  the  south, 
A'here  the  common  interests  centre  in  a  canal;  which  makes  each  small  hold- 
ng  all-sufficient  for  a  family,  yet  impels  them  to  unite  for  harvesting  and 
other  operations,  as  wine-pressing,  drying,  and  canning. 

•'The  Census  of  1880  places  the  cost  of  constructing  and  repairing  fences 
in  1879  at  $2, 120,000,  the  farm  acreage  being  16,600,000,  while  for  the  entire 
union  it  stood  at  £77,800,000  for  an  acreage  of  536,000,000.  Considering  the 


EVIL  OF  LARGE  FARMS.  5 

The  number  of  farms  in  1880  was  placed  at  36,000, 
a  doubling  within  20  years,4  and  the  average  size  at 
462  acres.5  In  1889  the  number  was  estimated  at 
55,000,  with  a  slightly  larger  average.  The  monop- 
olization of  so  much  of  the  best  land  is  due  par- 
tially to  the  old  land  laws  of  Mexico,  and  also  to  the 
acquisition  of  large  valley  tracts  by  Americans  before 
their  agricultural  value  had  become  fully  known.6  The 

small  value  of  the  live-stock,  as  compared  with  farms,  the  latter  have  the 
strength  on  their  side.  Timber  fences  cost  as  high  as  $600  per  mile.  The  barbed 
wire  fence,  howsoever  barbarous,  has  by  its  comparative  cheapness  largely 
supplanted  the  superior  board  structure;  but  in  the  redwood  didtricts,  the 
worra  and  post  and  rail  fences  naturally  sustain  themselves  better.  In  the 
south  the  cactus  was  in  vogue  at  the  missions,  but  willow  hedges  were  fre- 
quent y  grown. 

4  This  gives  one  farm  to  every  24  persons,  while  the  average  for  the  U.  S. 
is  one  for  every  dozen.     But  here  must  be  considered  the  position  of  Cal.  as 
a  mining  state,  with  the  commercial  and  manufacturing  industries,  and  the 
prevalence  of  speculative  farming,  as  indicated  by  the  great  size  of  the  farms 
and  the  largo  improved  acreage  in  each,  which  require  the  service  of  a  con- 
siderable proportion  of  the  population.     The  increase  of  farms  from  18,700  in 
1860  to  23,70J  in  1870  and  over  35,900  in  18SO,  with  an  acreage  of  8,700,000, 
11,400,000,  and  16,600,000,  respectively,  fully  corresponds  to  the  growth  of 
population,  from  380,000  to  560,000  and  865,000,  for  here  must  be  considered 
the  relatively  greater  immigration  of  females  in  late  years  and  the  expansion 
of  families,  which  form  neutral  factors. 

5  For  size  of  farms  California  exceeds  every  other  state,  and  it  is  a  peculiar- 
ity favored  by  her  speculative  spirit,  which  delights  in  operations  on  a  large 
scale,  by  the  rapid  acquisition  of  wealth  through  mining  and  other  chance 
efforts,  and  by  the  soil  and  climate,  which  favor  vast  farming  enterprises. 
Nor  h  it  a  mere  holding  of  farm,  for  the  percentage  of  unimproved  land  in 
these  tracts  is  only  35.7,  while  the  average  for  the  U.  S.  is  46.9. 

6  Of  the  Mexican  ranges  large  lots  were  sold  at  a  few  dimes  per  acre. 
Under  the  state  law  of  March  8,  1868,  which  set  aside  many  safe  restrictions, 
possessory  rights  permitted  the  temporary  enclosure  of  tracts,  to  the  preju- 
dice of  preemptors.     Under  Indian  and   eastern  agricultural  college  scrip 
large  areas  were  bought  up,  one  person  obtaining  over  300,000  acres.     The 
railways  held  back  large  lots  for  higher  prices.     The  office  of  U.  S.  sur.  -gen. 
for  Cal.  was  created  by  act  of  March  3,  1851,  and  S.  D.  King  of  the  land  dept 
at  Washington  became  the  first  incumbent,  arriving  here.on  Apr.  19,  1851. 
He  took  possession  of  the  archives  then  held  by  the  military  govt.     J.  C.  Hays 
succeeded  him  in  1853,  and  was  followed  in  Sept.  1857  by  J.  Mande villa. 
Meanwhile  extra  work  had  devolved  upon  the  office  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
labors  of  the  land  commission.     E.  F.  Bealc,  later  minister  to  Austria,  held 
office  1861-4,  L.  Upston,  long  editor  of  the  Sac.  Union,  1864-8.    The  office  is  in 
a  meaoure  under  control  of  the  state.     Mount  Diablo  forms  the  base  point  for 
surveys.     Prof.  Davidson  criticises  the  system.  Californlan,  i.  60-3.     Reports 
of  work  done  are  given  in  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  32,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  2, 
ii.  pt.  ii.  8-11,  43-9,  for  1851;  Id.,  Sess.  2,  Doc.  14,  iii.  1-11,  for  1852;  Land 
Off.  Itepfa,  passim;  in  the  preceding  act  and  in  separate  form,  with  references 
in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1852  et  seq.;  and  Id.,  Ass.,  ap.  annually;  U.  S.  Count  Sur- 
vey.    Of  the  101,000,000  of  land  in  157,800  sq.  miles  in  Cal.,  over  52,003,000 
had  been  surveyed  by  the  beginning  of  this  decade.     By  March   1857  over 
77,000  miles  of  survey  lands  had  been  measured.     Land-offices  were  recom- 
mended by  the  executive  in  1851-2.    U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  32,  Sess.  1,  H. 


6  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

evil  is  becoming  more  noticeable  of  late  years,  as  the 
increased  demand  for  small  settlements  reveals  that 
little  land  of  value  is  left  in  government  hands,  and  as 
the  riparian  question  points  out  that  numerous  holders 
of  both  small  and  large  sections  have  so  selected  their 
ground  as  to  control  still  larger  areas.7  But  the  abuse 
is  gradually  lessening,  under  the  new  horticultural  era 
which  demands  for  its  best  development  the  tenure  of 
small  sections.8 

The  comparatively  high  value  of  farms  here  is  sus- 
tained by  the  favorable  climate  and  conditions,  the 
usually  unobstructed  ground,  ready  for  immediate 
cultivation,  and  the  immense  possibilities  of  the  soil.9 

Ex.  Doc.  2,  p.  15;  Id.,  Sesa.  2,  Doc.  1,  i.  pt.  i.  76;  and  by  act  of  March  3,  1853, 
three  were  established  at  Benicia,  Marys ville,  and  Los  Angeles;  in  1858  three 
more  were  added,  at  Humboldt,  Stockton,  and  Visalia;  and  subsequently  half 
a  dozen  more,  three  of  them  east  of  the  Sierra  Nevada.  Some  were  consoli- 
dated. Id.,  Cong.  33,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  1,  i.  pt.  i.  78-9,  etc.;  Dunlop's  Laws, 
1788-91;  Van  Buren's  Remarks,  1852,  1-8;  Dowjlas  Speech,  June  2(5-8,  1850; 
Cal.  Pollt.  Code,  486;  U.  8.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  47,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  45,  pp. 
1019  et  seq. ;  Cal.  Jour.  Ass.,  passim. 

7  To  the  virtual  exclusion  of  settlers.  The  possessor  of  a  small  spring 
may  command  sections  of  land  dependent  upon  this  source. 

8'ihe  consequent  rise  of  land  values  also  promotes  subdivision,  by  tempt- 
ing the  large  holders  to  sell,  by  pressing  them  with  heavier  taxes,  and  by 
reducing  their  percentage  of  gain,  particularly  when  compared  with  the  more 
thorough  methods  of  the  small  cultivator,  sustained  by  the  reserve  force  of 
the  family.  So  far  nearly  two  thirds  of  the  farms  range  between  100  and 
500  acres,  with  over  2,500  exceeding  1,000  acres;  but  during  the  last  few  years 
the  sale  of  20-acre  lots  for  viniculture  has  become  a  marked  feature  among 
land-holders  in  the  southern  counties.  Only  one  fifth  of  the  total  number  of 
farms  are  leased  to  tenants. 

9  Of  a  total  acreage  in  farms  of  16,600,000,  there  was  unimproved  about  one 
third,  or  5,920,000  acres,  of  which  only  1,670,000  was  in  woodland.  Of  the 
improved,  6,600,000  were  tilled,  including  fallow  and  grass  in  rotation,  and 
4,060,000  in  permanent  pastures,  orchards,  and  vineyards.  Of  the  U.  S.  farm 
acreage,  536,000,000,  over  251,000,000  acres  were  unimproved,  mostly  in 
timber,  and  223,000,000  tilled.  Their  value  was  placed  at  §10,200,000,000, 
including  buildings,  equivalent  to  about  $20  per  acre.  In  Cal.  the  value  was 
$262,000,000,  equivalent  to  $16,  which  must  be  considered  high  for  so  new  a 
country.  In  Arkansas  the  valuation  is  only  $6,  and  in  old  settled  Alabama, 
little  over  $4.  The  cost  of  constructing  and  repairing  fences  was  placed  for 
1879  at  §2,100,000.  Arkansas,  with  nearly  the  same  acreage  and  population, 
spent  only  $1,580,000.  From  the  other  two  thirds  were  obtained  products 
valued  at  $59,700,000,  or  $69  for  every  inhabitant,  or  about  $750  for  every 
one  of  79,000  persons  engaged  in  agriculture,  although  the  improved  acre 
yielded  little  more  than  $5.50,  while  the  average  acre  in  the  union  brought 
nearly  $8,  yielding,  however,  only  $44  to  the  inhabitant,  or  about  $300  to 
each  farm  worker.  In  1870  the  census  returned  for  California  $49,900,000 
from  6,200,000  acres,  and  the  average  for  the  U.  S.  was  also  relatively  higher. 
The  value  of  the  11,400,000  farm  acres  was  then  $141,000,000  in  Cal.;  for 
1860,  8,700,000  acres  stood  at  only  $48.700,000;  and  for  1850,  3,900,000, 
nearly  all  unimproved,  at  $3,870,000.  The  value  of  live-stock  figured  for 


EXHAUSTION  OF  SOIL.  7 

Great  extravagance  has  been  displayed  in  by  raisers 
of  grain  in  exhausting  the  soil  without  due  attention 
to  rest,  rotation,  and  fertilization.10  As  a  rule,  the 
rains  of  November  soften  the  summer-baked  earth  suf- 
ficiently for  ploughing.  Favored  by  the  lightness  of 
the  soil  and  the  absence  of  sod,  stones,  and  bushes,  the 
operation  is  mostly  performed  by  gang-ploughs,  cut- 
ting from  four  to  eight  inches  deep,11  and  ploughing 
from  four  to  eight  or  even  more  acres  daily,  so  that 
the  cost  is  reduced  sometimes  as  low  as  forty  cents 
per  acre.12 

1850,  1860,  1870,  and  1880  at  $3,350,000,  $35,600,000,  $38,000,000,  and 
$35,500,000,  respectively;  and  farming  implements  at  $103,000,  $2,560,000, 
$5,300,000,  and  $8,450,000,  or  about  80  cents  per  improved  acre,  while  the 
average  for  the  U.  S.  was  nearly  twice  as  much;  but  then  Cal.  is  a  new  coun- 
try, with  ingenious  ideas  of  economy. 

18  There  are,  however,  numerous  instances  of  land  being  cultivated  year 
after  year,  especially  for  the  less  exhausting  barley,  with  only  a  little  falling 
off  from  the  original  productiveness.  The  only  manure  applied  in  these  cases 
was  from  the  burning  of  stubble  or  what  was  dropped  by  stock.  Some  divided 
their  land  into  three  parcels;  one  being  ploughed  to  lie  fallow;  another,  the 
last  fallow,  being  simply  sown  and  harrowed;  the  third  was  ploughed  and 
sown.  Some  permitted  volunteer  crops  every  other  year. 

11  In  the  San  Joaquin  Valley  from  two  to  five  or  even  ten  ploughs  were 
used  in  a  gang,  each  making  a  furrow  8  or  10  inches  wide  and  4  or  5  deep. 
A  gang  of  5  ploughs  will  turn  up  6  acres  in  a  day. 

12  While  on  small  farms  with  heavy  soil,  the  acre  may  cost  $2  or  $3.     In 
the  prevailing  haste  deep  ploughing  has  been  widely  neglected.     Farmers 
also  overlook  the  capillary  power  induced  by  ploughing,  for  drawing  moisture 
to  the  plant  and  attracting  solar  heat.     Some  attach  a  sower  and  harrow  to 
the  plough  and  complete  the  entire  work  at  once;  otherwise  broadcast  sowing 
is  preferred  as  the  cheapest  and  speediest,  and  the  task  may  be  delayed  for 
weeks  after  ploughing.    A  broadcast  sower  with  2  men  covers  100  acres  a  day, 
giving  work  for  7  harrows  of  100  teeth  each.     Steam  ploughs  have  been  com- 
mended as  well  adapted  to  level  fields,  with  stationary  or  locomotive  engines, 
but  experience  does  not  favor  them.     Hewlett  gives  an  account  of  the  de- 
mand for  them  in  his  Stat.,  MS.,  as  do  Nash  &  Co.  in  their  Rept,  MS.;  Cal. 
Farmer,  March  11,  1869,  describes  the  trial  of  steam  ploughs;  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
March  13,  1869;  Feb.  8,  1859;  Nov.  22,  1866;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  12,  1873;  8. 
Joaq.  Co.  Hist.,  71-2,  on  implement  manuf.  and  inventions  at  Stockton,  and 
in  Yolo  Co.  Hist.,  44;  Alta  Cal.,  Oct.  8,  1857,  Aug.  13,  1858.      The  rarity  of 
rains  during  the  summer  and  autumn  leave  harvesters  undisturbed.     Grain 
and  many  root  and  fruit  crops  may  be  left  untouched  for  weeks  after  matu- 
rity, for  the  latter  continue  to  thrive,  and  grain  capsules  retain  tenaciously 
the  kernel  until  moistened  by  rain  or  opened  by  the  thrasher.     This  gives 
the  farmer  ample  time  for  reaping,  and  he  may  safely  leave  the  grain  loose 
or  in  sheaves,  without  stacking,  till  prepared  to  thrash  it.     Usually  it  is  col- 
lected in  piles,  from  which  the  thrasher  is  fed  unless  the  cutting  is  performed 
by  the  favorite  header,  which,  sweeping  over  from  20  to  60  acres  a  day, 
delivers   the   grain  to   the   wagon  attending,    whence  it  is  drawn  up   and 
pitched  into  the  thrasher.     Latterly  a  combined  header  and  thrasher  has 
been  introduced,  which  delivers  the  grain  in  sacks  along  its  path  ready  to  be 
hauled  to  the  granary.     Thus  can  be  saved  the  expense  of  binding,  stacking, 
and  storing,  together  with  much  other  costly  labor  required  elsewhere.     The 


8  THE  DEVELOPMENT   OF  AGRICULTURE. 

The  peculiar  and  scanty  distribution  of  rain  in  Cal- 
ifornia renders  irrigation  desirable  for  a  large  portion 
of  the  soil,  and  indispensable  for  some  sections.1* 
Besides  assured  and  augmented  crops,  with  irrigation 
is  combined  several  additional  benefits :  in  fertilizing 
and  renovating  the  soil;14  in  destroying,  by  flooding, 
numerous  pests,  such  as  squirrels,  gophers,  and 
ghylloxera ;  in  enabling  the  farmer  to  select  his  own 
time  for  planting,  thus  economizing  time  and  oppor- 
tunity, and  assisting  him  to  obtain  several  crops  in 
one  season . ls  Several  advantages  combine  to  raise  the 
value  of  irrigated  lands  many  fold;  the  chief  objection 
lies  in  the  sanitary  aspect,  but  this  is  slight,  and  so 
i'ar  applies  only  to  certain  conditions.16 

Nowhere,  perhaps,  are  the  benefits  of  irrigation 
more  appreciated  than  in  southern  California,  where 
many  tracts,  before  considered  almost  worthless,  have 
been  transformed  into  the  most  productive  lands  in  tl-e 
state.  On  some  of  them  towns  have  been  built,  as  in 
the  case  of  Pomona,  a  portion  of  whose  site  was  pur- 
chased in  1882  by  Moses  L.  Wicks,17  one  of  the  most 

machinery  in  use  here  is  on  a  larger  scale  than  in  the  east,  and  several  Cal. 
inventions  have  helped  reduce  the  cost  of  harvesting  some  50  per  cent. 
Descriptions  under  manufactures,  vol.  vi.,  and  in  Mount.  Dan.,  June  1,  1878; 
Modesto  JVeivs,  June  29,  July  6,  1877,  etc. 

13  The  rainfall,  excessive  in  the  north,  decreases  going  southward,  render- 
ing cultivation  more  and  more  insecure.  The  foothills  bordering  the  valleys 
are  favored  with  the  condensation  of  moisture  by  the  ranges  and  the  coast 
feels  the  vapors  from  the  ocean.  The  melting  snows  in  March  and  April 
form  the  reserve  supply  of  water  on  which  irrigation  mainly  depends.  Irri- 
gation is  becoming  more  important  as  population  increases,  and  with  it  the 
desire  to  obtain  the  greatest  returns  from  the  soil.  Hence,  also,  the  growing 
necessity  for  occupying  the  plains  of  the  south,  whose  arid  aspect  possesses 
the  compensating  advantages  of  a  soil  and  climate  unsurpassed,  iinder  irriga- 
tion, for  productiveness  and  for  choice  and  varied  culture.  TSeir  treeless 
expanse,  devoid  of  sod,  lies  ready,  moreover,  for  immediate  cultivation. 

u  Dissolving,  as  it  does,  the  elements  required  for  organic  life.  Numerous 
instances  can  be  given  of  fields  yielding  well  for  decades  without  other  ma- 
nure. The  value  of  the  Nile  overflows  is  generally  understood.  The  saving 
in.  manure  is  an  offset  to  the  cost  of  irrigation. 

10  In  the  southern  part  of  San  Joaquin  valley  5  cuts  of  alfalfa  are  not 
uncommon.  Egyptian  corn  and  millet  have  yielded  three  crops. 

18  Partly  because  the  cultures  in  vogue  require  only  moderate  irrigation, 
and  Imcause  the  climate  has  features  modifying  the  iniiuenoe  of  malaria.  It 
is  supposed  that  rice-fields  would  be  less  healthy. 

17  Mr  Wick  ^  was  born  at  Aberdeen,  Monroe  county,  Mississippi,  on  the 
22d  of  April  1852.  His  father,  Moses  J.  Wicks,  a  native  of  Savanna,  was 
a  prominent  banker  and  railroad  man  of  Memphis,  Tennessee.  The  elder 


IRRIGATION.  9 

(enterprising  and  public-spirited  citizens  of  Los  Ange- 
les county.  On  this  property  water  was  obtained  by 
sinking  more  than  a  score  of  artesian  wells  and  by 
conveying  to  it  in  pipes  the  waters  of  San  Antonio 
canon,  whereby  an  almost  desert  region  has  been 
converted  into  a  thriving  settlement. 

Irrigation  was  introduced  during  the  first  decade  of 
Spanish  occupation,18  but  progressed  in  a  slow,  desul- 
tory manner,  at  least  north  of  Los  Angeles,  although 
aided  in  the  gold  region  by  mining  ditches.  In  the 
seventies,  however,  with  the  extension  of  settlements 
in  Sun  Joaquin  valley,  capitalists  turned  their  atten- 
tion to  it;  and  in  1871  was  begun  the  largest  canal  in 
the  state,  the  San  Joaquin  and  King  river,19  carried 

Wicks  was  the  first  one  who  contributed  to  the  support  of  the  confederate 
provisional  government  at  Montgomery,  and  by  him  was  taken  its  first  issue 
of  bonds.  Entering  the  confederate  service,  he  raised  a  regiment  of  cavalry, 
furnishing  more  than  a  hundred  horses  at  his  own  expense,  and  purchasing  a 
supply  of  arms  in  the  northern  states.  His  son  completed  his  education  at 
the  University  of  Virginia,  where  he  condensed  into  a  single  year  the  studies 
of  tLe  two  years'  law  course.  In  1875  he  married  Miss  Elizabeth  Littlejohn 
of  Memphis  and  set  forth  for  his  bridal  trip  to  Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  soon  after- 
ward opening  a  law  office  at  Anaheim.  Here  he  had  the  misfortune  to  lose 
his  wife,  a  most  amiable  and  accomplished  lady,  her  death  occurring  four 
months  af  :ar  the  birth  of  her  only  son.  After  some  two  years  of  successful 
practice  at  Anaheim  and  later  at  Los  Angele  he  found  that  his  real  estate 
transactions  and  his  various  enterprises  demanded  all  his  attention.  No  man 
has  done  moro  toward  developing  the  resources  of  this  portion  of  the  state. 
In  addition  to  the  investment  above  related  he  purchased  the  Dryfus  tract, 
forming  a  portion  of  the  San  Rafael  rancho,  together  with  a  large  tract  in. 
San  Bernardino  county,  and  the  Dalton  portion  of  the  San  Jose  ranch, 
improving  and  subdividing  them  so  that  many  of  the  purchasers  made  from 
200  to  3QO  per  cent  on  their  outlay.  Under  his  management  t!ie  property  of 
the  Temecula  Land  and  Water  company  was  developed  and  increased  largely 
in  viJue.  He  was  one  of  those  who  organized  the  Saving  *  Fund  and  Building 
association,  the  Los  Angeles  and  Santa  Monica  railroad,  the  Abstract  and 
Title  Insurance  company,  the  California  bank  and  others  of  the  leading  cor- 
porations in  southern  California.  On  improving  the  harbor  at  Ballona  he 
expended  largo  amounts,  though  the  work  belonged  of  right  to  the  government. 
He  furnished  the  hill  portion  of  Los  Angeles  with  a  plentiful  supply  of 
water.  In  a  word  there  are  few  prominent  enterprises  in  this  portion  of  the 
state  in  which  he  has  not  been  one  of  the  leading  promoters.  In  18£1  he  wa-s 
married  to  his  second  wife,  Mrs  Jennie  L.  Butler,  a  lady  who  has  been  to 
him  in  the  truest  sense  of  the  word  a  consort.  A  man  of  excellent  judgment, 
of  rare  biuine-is  ability,  and  of  the  strictest  integrity,  there  is  no  one  to  whom 
southern  California  is  more  indebted  for  her  present  era  of  prosperity. 

18 See  preceding  volumes.  The  southern  coast  counties  had  a  number  of 
ditches,  small,  and  not  well  planned.  San  Joaquin  county  applied  them  early, 
and  likewise  Yolo,  which  by  1879  had  13,000  acres  covered. 

19 Extended  by  1878  from  S.  Joaquin  river,  at  Fresno  slough,  northwest- 
ward, about  10  miles  from  the  main  river,  for  nearly  70  miles  with  subse- 


10 

by  1878  nearly  70  miles,  of  which  the  first  40  were 
built  by  John  Bensley,20  by  whom  was  incorporated 
the  San  Joaquin  and  Kings  river  canal  and  irrigation 
company.  This  he  accomplished  at  his  own  expense, 
and  under  the  most  adverse  conditions,  materials,  im- 
plements, and  supplies  being  conveyed  at  enormous 
cost  over  a  mountainous  and  difficult  country.  Sev- 
eral similar  enterprises  were  undertaken  from  Kern 
northward;  so  that  in  the  begnning  of  the  eighties 
190,000  acres  were  irrigated21  in  the  San  Joaquin 
valley,  the  price  usually  charged  being  $1.50  per 
acre.  At  first  the  dry  soil  and  the  undeveloped 
plant  require  more  water  than  subsequently.  Al- 
though flooding  by  means  of  ditches  is  the  most 
prevalent  method,  lateral  seeping  from  them  is  partly 
relied  upon  in  sandy  soil,  and  in  some  places  where 
water  is  scarce  choice  cultivation  is  supplied  through 

quent  slight  extension,  including  over  120  miles  of  branch  ditches  12  ft  wide. 
The  total  cost  was  $1,300,000,  and  the  receipts  in  1880,  $50,000,  half  of  it 
net,  from  29,000  acres,  while  120,000  acres  could  be  irrigated.  Chapman, 
Miller,  and  Lux  tapped  the  San  Joaquin  12  miles  above  its  bend,  and  ran  a 
channel  northward  for  30  miles,  to  irrigate  50.000  acres  of  their  own  land. 
Friedlaiider  and  others  opened  a  canal  from  Fresno  river  southward  for  10 
miles  to  cover  40,000  acres.  The  Kern  river  delta,  a  triangle  of  25  miles  by 
about  16  and  16,  containing  nearly  100,000  acres,  was  supplied  by  7  ditches 
of  66  miles,  costing  $4,000  a  mile. 

28  One  of  our  pioneers,  a  native  of  Mass.,  and  a  graduate  of  Columbia  col- 
lege. He  was  among  the  earliest  merchants  of  Sacramento,  but  after  the  first 
of  1852  removed  to  San  Francisco,  where  he  was  one  of  the  first  to  introduce  a 
regular  supply  of  water.  He  was  on  the  first  board  of  trustees  of  the  Citi- 
zens' Gas  company,  the  projector  of  the  Pacific  Rolling  mills  and  the  Pacific 
Oil  and  Lead  works,  was  one  of  those  who  organized  the  Electric  Light  com- 
pany, and  is  or  has  been  connected  with  other  leading  enterprises.  He  died 
in  June  18S9. 

Moses  J.  Church,  who  was  also  one  of  the  first  to  develop  our  irrigation  sys- 
tem, was  born  in  Chatauqua  co.,  N.  Y.,  in  1818.  Coming  to  Cal.  in  1852, 
after  engaging  in  various  occupations,  he  took  up  land  on  Kings  river,  near 
Centerville,  and  in  1869,  having  secured  a  franchise  to  divert  the  waters  of 
that  stream,  surveyed  and  laid  out  a  canal  to  Francha  creek.  In  the  face  of 
strong  opposition  from  cattle-kings  and  riparian  claimants,  he  pushed  forward 
the  work,  until  in  1876  he  had  completed  nearly  1,000  miles  of  main  and  lat- 
eral canals,  with  their  ditches  and  feeders,  thereby  materially  advancing  the 
industrial,  commercial,  and  financial  developments  of  the  state  a  thousand- 
fold. 

al  Or  5  per  cent  of  the  total  irrigable  amount.  A  larger  proportion  lay 
ready  for  irrigation.  Several  other  projects  were  vainly  waiting  for  aid  from 
the  government.  Petitions  in  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  41,  Sess.  1,  Sen.  Misc. 
Doc.  31;  Cal  Jour.  Sen.,  1865-6,  ap.  42t  46,  61;  1871-2,  ap.  35. 


WATER  LEGISLATION.  H 

perforated  cement  pipes.22  Reservoirs  in  the  moun- 
tains are  less  exposed  to  evaporation.  Artesian  wells 
supply  considerable  tracts  of  field  and  settlement 
through  most  of  the  San  Joaquin  counties,23  and  in 
the  adjoining  western  valleys.  Altogether  there  is 
sufficient  water  to  irrigate  most  of  the  valuable  soil,24 
say  70  per  cent  of  the  eastern  valley  side  of  the  San 
Joaquin.  The  western  side  is  not  so  well  provided, 
yet  with  winter  storage  the  limited  sources  here  and 
southward  may  be  greatly  extended. 

In  1854  the  legislature  issued  an  act  for  the  appoint- 
ment of  water  commissioners  in  several  counties,  and 
under  acts  of  May  14,  1862,  and  April  2,  1870,  most 
of  the  water  appropriated  for  irrigation  was  con- 
trolled;25 but  no  proper  measures  were  taken  by  the 
state  to  investigate  and  promote  this  important  inter- 

22  To  obviate  the  great  evaporation.     To  lay  such  pipes  costs  from  $30  to 
$50  per  acre. 

23  In  the  Sacramento  Valley  the  geologic  conditions  for  such  wells  are  rare. 
Round  Stockton  in  1887  were  half  a  score  about  1,000  feet  in  depth,  yielding 
on  an  average  150,000  gallons  per  minute.     In  Merced  they  were  feebler, 
aggregating  in  1884  a  flow  of  8.35  cubic  feet  per  second,  many  giving  also  gas 
for  illumination.     In  Tulare  their  number  increased  from  twoscore  in  1882 
to  over  100  in  1884,  aggregating  30  c.  ft  per  second,  and  supplying  6,000 
acres.     Of  the  score  in  Kern,  one  yielded  a  million  gallons  a  day  of  water 
fairly  free  from  the  alkali  which  renders  Tulare  Lake  objectionable.     In  some 
parts,  as  S.  Joaquin  and  Yolo  counties,  water  was  pumped  from  wells  wrongly 
called  artesian.    A  gardener  reported  that  such  pumping,  by  steam  instead  of 
windmills,  cost  $90  a  month  for  15  acres.  Ullteus  Com.,  408.     Pumping  from 
streams  is  occasionally  done.  Sac.   Union,  March  18,   1864,  estimates  costs. 
New  methods,  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  21,  Dec.  30,  1881.     The  number  of  artesian 
wells  in  1887  was  over  2,000,  chiefly  west  of  the  Coast  Range,  and  their  usual 
depth  was  not  over  250  feet,  though  the  range  was  from  100  to  over  1,000 
feet.     The  7 -inch  bore  cost  about  $275  for  200  feet,  $450  for  300  ft.     The  first 
flowing  well  in  Los  Angeles  was  bored  near  Wilmington,  in  1868.  L.  Ang. 
E-jcp.,  Sept.  7,  1872.     For  early  wells  and  projects,  see  Sac.  Union,  Aug.  1, 
1855;   Dec.  23,   1857;   Jan.   1,  12,   24,  1884;   Gal.  Jour.  Ass.,    1855,  ap.   14; 
1856,  Apr.  19. 

24  Notwithstanding  the  incorrect  ideas  of  Gov.  Riley  and  other  early  observ- 
ers to  the  contrary.    U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  785-6. 
The  Sac.  drains  26,600  sq.  miles,  of  which  4,000  embrace  the  valley  bed,  from 
the  Cosumnes  to  Iron  Canon.     The  S.  Joaquin  drains  31,700  sq.  miles,  11,400 
of  which  forming  the  valley  bed,  7,700  on  the  east  side.     Of  the  latter  nearly 
70  per  cent  may  be  irrigated  from  current  water  supply.     On  the  west  side  of 
the  S.  Joaquin,  with  its  scanty  drainage,  only  one  fifth  is  irrigable.     This 
leaves  about  6,000  sq.  miles,  or  3,800,000  acres  of  irrigable  land  in  the  S. 
Joaquin,  of  which  up  to  1887  only  5  per  cent  was  watered. 

20  The  civil  code  adopted  in  1872  provided  for  the  acquisition  of  rights  to 
use  water.  Yet  the  special  spasmodic  efforts  of  the  state  to  promote  irriga- 
tion brought  no  fruit. 


12  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

est  prior  to  1878,  when,  under  the  incentive  of  a  prior 
superficial  examination  by  a  federal  commission,  an 
engineer  was  appointed  to  ascertain  the  resources  and 
wants  of  the  country  in  this  regard.26  The  completion 
of  his  task  requires  time.  Meanwhile  the  absence  of 
definite  laws  on  the  subject  has  thrown  matters  into 
confusion,  with  the  prospect  of  endless  litigation. 

Under  the  laws  established  by  custom  in  the  early 
mining  days,  priority  of  occupation  and  appropriation 
gave  title  to  claims,  as  well  as  to  the  water  indispen- 
sable for  working  them,  and  this  right  was  repeatedly 
affirmed  by  the  courts  and  by  act  of  congress.27  But 
when  the  appropriation  was  extended  from  the  unnav- 
igable  head- waters  of  mining  fields  to  agricultural  dis- 
tricts, under  the  direction  of  companies  which  prepared 
almost  to  drain  several  tributaries,  then  rose  in  oppo- 
sition the  large  riparian  land-owners,  many  of  whom 
had  acquired  tracts  by  the  score  containing  hundreds 
of  square  miles,  with  a  view  to  control  the  water.28 
They  quoted  the  act  of  April  1-850,  adopting  the  com- 
mon law  of  England  as  a  rule  under  which  riparian 
land-holders  were  entitled  to  an  undiminished  flow  of 
the  stream  past  their  land,29  and  this  claim  was  sus- 
tained by  the  supreme  tribunal  of  the  state.30  There 
are  manifest  equities  which  demand  that  a  common 

26  Win.  Ham.    Hall  was  appointed,  and  preliminary  reports  of  value  ap- 
peared, on  which  part  of  the  preceding  matter  is  based,  but  he  has  outlined 
a  very  exhaustive  treatise  on  the  subject  in  several  volumes,  the  first  of 
which,  issued  in  1886,  covers  the  history  of  irrigation  in  Europe.     Under  act 
of  congress  of  March  3,  1873,  Cong.  Globe,  1872-3,  iii.  ap.  305,  a  commission 
was  appointed  to  report  a  system  of  irrigation  for  the  Sacramento  and  S. 
Joaq.  valleys,  with  a  paltry  appropriation  of  $5,000.     Its  report,  with  plan, 
91  pp.,  points  out  both  the  need  and  value  of  irrigation.   U.  S.  Gov.  DM.,  Cong. 
43,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  290;  Mendelfs  Report. 

27  Of  July  26,  1866,  confirming  also  right  of  way  for  ditches. 

28  Thus  in  Kern  one  person  bought  up  200,000  acres,  which  controlled  all  the 
available  water  on  500,000  acres.     Small  preemptors  of  160  acres,  homestead 
or  timber  privileges,  gained  control  over  large  adjoining  regions  dependent  on 
the  springs  secured  by  them. 

29  For  water-power,  navigation,  and  fishing.     Although  they  acquire  no 
ownership  in  the  river,  no  deviation  of  water  is  permittee!  without  their  con- 
sent under  Cal.  laws,  save  where  such  deviation  has  been  made  for  five  years 
unmolested. 

30  As  late  as  May  1886.  S.  F.  Chron.,  May  17-18,  1886.     It  was  argued  in 
opposition  that  the  common  law  being  adopted  before  Cal.  became  a  state,  it 
should  not  operate  on  titles  not  then  vested  in  her. 


LAND   AND  WATER   MONOPOLISTS.  13 

law,  hastily  adopted  from  a  country  so  dissimilar  in 
climate  and  condition  to  California,  should  not  be  made 
applicable  when  it  imperils  the  vital  interests  of  some 
of  the  richest  districts  of  the  country.  The  setting- 
aside  of  this  law  under  the  general  mining  custom, 
which  concedes  right  of  way  for  ditches  as  well  as 
prior  appropriation,  has  given  a  precedent  for  another 
ruling,  or  for  ready  legislative  amendment.81  The 
interests  of  a  few  land  monopolists  should  not  be  al- 
lowed to  outweigh  those  which  affect  the  prosperity  of 
large  communities.  The  rain  falls  alike  over  all  the 
earth,  on  hills  as  well  as  in  vales,  and  when  gathered 
in  channels  on  the  way  to  the  ocean,  the  property  of 
the  nations,  it  should  still  be  permitted  to  shed  its 
blessings  on  all. 

A  guiding  rule  for  riparian  decisions  lies  evidently 
in  the  universal  law  which  reserves  navigable  rivers 
as  public  property.  Some  nations  see  the  necessity 
also  to  retain  for  public  use  all  constantly  running 
streams,  thus  extending  the  law  to  meet  their  special 
wants.  Now,  California  is  an  exceptional  country  cli- 
matically, and  not  being  subject  to  the  common  mete- 
orologiolaws,  she  must  perforce  be  governed  by  distinct 
rules  and  methods,  applicable  to  this  peculiarity.  Na- 
ture clearly  designs  the  rain  for  the  land  where  it  falls, 
but  owing  to  topographic  features  beyond  the  remedy 
of  the  land-owner,  the  water  granted  to  him  drains, 
under  direction  of  the  same  all-controlling  power,  into 
springs,  pools,  and  streams  upon  adjoining  property, 
there  to  be  stored.  Now  such  storage,  in  the  case  of 
navigable  and  running  streams,  pertains  to  the  public, 
wherever  it  is  of  value  to  a  district  for  carriage,  water- 
power,  fishing,  and  so  forth.  Minor  storages  are 
abandoned  to  the  land  enclosing  them,  simply  because 
frequent  rains  provide  a  sufficient  supply  for  adjoining 
tracts,  for  agriculture  and  domestic  use. 

31  And  so  has  the  rejection  of  eastern  fence  laws,  under  different  conditions 
ruling  in  Cal.  .Even  England  has  recognized  appropriation  rights  in  many 
instances. 


14  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

The  feeling  against  monopoly  has  been  vigorously 
expressed  by  meetings  and  conventions.32  Aware  of 
the  danger,  on  the  other  side,  of  surrendering  the 
water  to  speculative  canal  companies,  many  wish  the 
state  to  assume  control;33  but  this  might  lead  to  cor- 
rupt rings  for  the  manipulation  of  bonds  and  local  in- 
terests, and  the  work,  vast  and  ill  understood,  concerns 
only  certain  districts.  The  state  certainly  should 
assert  its  right  of  eminent  domain,  and  condemn  to 
public  use  all  necessary  water;  and  in  view  of  the 
breadth  and  intricacy  of  the  distribution  system,  the 
common  good  demands  that  the  government  should 
plan  it,  leaving  the  execution  of  the  work  to  the  dis- 
tricts interested,  yet  retaining  the  supervision  of  it.34 

If  properly  distributed  during  a  California  season, 

32  Instance  that  at  Los  Angeles  in  1873,  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  27,  1873;  that  at 
S.  F.  in  1886,  S.  F.  Chron.,  May  21,  1886. 

33  The  question  of  sole  right  to  springs  on  private  land  might  be  raised 
where  public  benefit  is  affected.     A  precedent  for  such  encroachment  lies  iii 
rules  which  do  not  yield  the  ownership  of  minerals  to  the  holder  of  the  soil. 
See  mines,  vol.  vi.     The  convention  of  1873  urged  that  the  state  create  a  de- 
partment for  irrigation,  with  superintendents  for  each  county. 

34  This  idea  is  favored  by  the  U.  S.  com.  referred  to  above.     Farmers  are 
not  expected  to  readily  form  proper  associations  for  such  vast  enterprise,  and 
one  district  if  engaged  in  it  might  not  plan  well  and  economically  enough  for 
those  adjoining.     One  impartial  power  could  alone  give  the  system  intelligent 
and  comprehensive  scope.     This  being  outlined,  with  estimates  for  cost  and 
extent  in  each  section,  farmers  might  individually  or  jointly  undertake  local 
construction.     The  mere  announcement  of  such  a  project  would  raise  values 
and  permit  the  sale  of  enough  land  to  pay  the  assessment.     The  state  and 
counties  would  benefit  by  increased  revenue,  and  could  afford  to  aid.     Mr 
Ryer  advocates  that  farmers  form  districts  and  take  possession  of  all  avail- 
able water,  as  condemned  by  the  state,  leaving  owners  to  sue  for  damages, 
and  then  employ  engineers  to  plan  the  local  ditches.     Each  acre  should  be 
assessed  for  the  cost  according  to  the  benefit  derived,  and  the  funds  deposited 
in  the  county  treasury,   subject  to  orders  from  the  supervisors  for  actual 
work.     Contracts  should  be  let  to  the  lowest  bidders,  and  in  small  sections, 
so  as  to  enable  poor  men  to  pay  the  assessment  in  labor.     The  U.  S.  com. 
favored  the  sale  of  such  water-rights  with  the  land,  but  this  has  been  tried  in 
Lombanly  and  found  to  be  fraught  with  selfish  exactions.     Associations 
might  be  controlled  by  agreement  under  conditions  governing  highways. 
France  assumed  control  of  her  water  after  a  long  struggle.     Chili  and  Italy 
control  theirs,  the  latter  adding  tax  exemptions  to  the  prizes  issued  for  en- 
couraging irrigation  works.     Under  Rome  constantly  running  streams  were 
public  property,  not  others.     Concerning  the  claim  on  streams  for  navigation 
and  water-power,  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  canals  do  not  always  need 
water,  and  least  at  the  time  when  navigation  most  demands  a  filled  bed,  so 
that  navigation  would  suffer  very  little  in  behalf  of  the  other  greater  good. 
Riparian  owners  should  be  left  a  sufficient  quantity  for  use.     Specimen  cries 
against  water  monopoly  are  given  in  Sac.  Union,  July  19,  1873;  also  in  Lowe, 
the  Laborer,  1-58. 


DROUGHTS  AND  FLOODS.  15 

a  rainfall  of  a  dozen  inches  is  ample  for  the  wheat 
crops;  but  coming  too  much  together,  a  fall  of  less 
than  sixteen  inches  is  sure  to  result  in  some  failures. 
Of  such  the  state  has  had  fully  half  a  dozen  since 
the  gold  discovery,  the  driest  seasons  being  1850-1, 
1863-4,  1876-7,  indicating  intervals  of  thirteen 
years,  a  peculiarity  also  noticed  in  colonial  days.35 
The  limited  extent  of  agriculture  in  1851,  save  in 
gardening,  gave  little  scope  for  damage,  and  the 
lighter  drought  of  1855-7  proved  more  severe  in 
its  effect.  The  most  disastrous  drought  took  place 
in  1862-4,  when  crops  failed  over  vast  areas,  and  cat- 
tle died  of  starvation  and  were  slaughtered  by  the 
hundred  thousand,  completely  revolutionizing  agri- 
cultural industries.  More  than  one  southern  county 
changed  from  a  pastoral  to  a  farming  district,  and 
stock-raising  received  a  startling  curtailment  through- 
out.36 The  season  1870-1  was  a  disastrous  one,  and 
that  of  1876-7  more  so,  approaching  that  of  1862-4, 
with  losses  on  crops  and  cattle  of  some  twenty  million 
dollars.87  If  future  observations  should  confirm  our 
past  experience  as  to  the  rainfall  and  the  periodicity 
of  droughts,  the  forecast  will  be  of  no  little  benefit  to 
the  agricultural  interests  of  California,  for  the  nature 
and  treatment  of  crops  could  then  be  adapted  to  fore- 
seen conditions.  As  matters  are  at  present,  in  the 
greater  portion  of  the  San  Joaquin  valley  one  good 
crop  out  of  three  or  five  is  all  that  can  be  expected 

35  As  shown  in  my  preceding  vols.  i.-iv.     The  rainfall  of  1850-1  was  only 
7  inches  at  S.  F.  and  4.7  at  Sac.     In  1855-6  only  8  inches  fell  at  Stockton 
and  13  at  Sac.,  followed  by  still  less  in  1856-7,  and  attendant  suffering  and 
loss  of  stock,  especially  in  the  south. 

36  With  the  compulsory  subdivision  of  many  Mexican  grants. 

37  The  average  rainfall  for  1862-4  at  S.  F.  was  little  over  11  inches,  at  Los 
Angeles  4,  and  at  Sac.  9.     In  1870-1  S.  F.  had  13  inches,  Stockton  6,  Sac.  8, 
Los  Angeles  7,  Napa  10.     Details  of  these  droughts  and  their  effect  in  S.  F. 
Bulletin,  May  1,  Nov.  13,  1856;  May  6,  1857;  Apr.  16,  July  2,  Nov.   1863; 
March- Apr.,  June  22,  Oct. -Nov.   1864;   Feb.  7,  March  24,    1865;  Oct.    19, 
1871;  Apr.  13,  1873;  May-Oct.  1877,  etc.;  Los  Anr/ele*  Herald,  June  16,  Nov. 
10,  1877;  L.  A.  Exp.,  Jan.  13,  March  10,  Apr.  14,  Nov.   10,   1877;  Antioch 
Ledger,  July  22,  1877;  Alta  Cat.,  Apr.  29,  May  9,  1857;  Nov.  7,  1859;  Apr. 
2,  1863;  May  15,  1871;  Sac.  Union;  S.  F.  Call;  Hayes' Angeles,  v.  40,  etc. 


16  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF   AGRICULTURE. 

without  the  aid  of  irrigation,  the  harvest  frequently 
depending  on  a  few  light  showers,  or  even  on  the 
direction  of  the  wind  at  the  critical  moment. 

There  are  times,  however,  when  there  is  no  scarcity 
of  water,  when  floods  sweep  over  the  land,  competing 
with  droughts  for  the  vexation  of  man.'  Every  spring 
the  snows  of  the  Sierra,  melted  by  warm  and  heavy 
rains,  swell  the  streams,  which  sometimes  overflow 
their  banks  and  cover  broad  low-lying  tracts,  to  the 
great  damage  of  the  inhabitants.  And  with  the  pro- 
gress of  time  overflows  are  becoming  more  frequent, 
owing  to  the  filling  of  the  river-beds  with  mining  debris. 
The  first  great  flood  since  the  gold  discovery  in  1849- 
50  did  little  harm,  because  the  settlements  in  the  in- 
terior valleys  were  few  and  not  highly  improved ;  but 
in  1852-3  the  injury  was  greater,  and  in  1861-2  its 
course  was  marked,  especially  in  the  northern  half,  by 
disasters  never  before  equalled.  In  Yolo  Indian 
mounds  of  great  antiquity  were  swept  away.  The 
Stanislaus  washed  down  banks  formed  centuries  ago. 
On  Russian  River  an  adobe  building  several  decades 

o 

old  disappeared,  and  everywhere  the  rivers  presented 
scenes  of  desolation,  bearing  along  trees  and  buildings, 
broken  fences  and  household  commodities,  and  dead 
sheep  and  cattle,  with  now  and  then  a  human  victim.58 

38 The  official  report  of  the  flood,  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1833,  ap.  3,  p.  42-50, 
83-102,  points  to  the  cause  in  the  excessive  siiowfall  iu  the  mountains  during 
Nov.  and  Dec.,  followed  by  unusually  heavy  and  warm  rains  in  Dec.  and 
Jan.  Over  25  inches  fell  at  Red  Dog  in  19  days,  of  which  11.32  inches  were 
in  48  hours,  on  Jan.  10-1 1th.  At  Sac.  over  14  inches  fell  between  Jan.  5th  and 
22d.  It  was  shown  that  the  straits  of  Carquiuez  had  little  to  do  with  de- 
taining the  flow  from  the  two  great  tributaries,  for  the  highest  water  at 
Benicia  was  caused  by  an  unusual  tide,  several  days  before  the  highest  flood. 
For  details  of  damage,  see  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sac.  Union,  and  Alta,  for  Dec.  18G1— 
Feb.  1862,  extending  from  Klamath  southward,  the  hills  of  San  Mateo  not 
escaping.  The  legislature  proposed  measures  for  relief.  Plans  for  improved 
drainage  in  C;;l.  Jour.  Sen.,  1863,  ap.  iii.  25-31,  97-100;  Morse's  W.  Per., 
MS.,  80;  Burnett's  IfecoL,  MS.,  ii.  285;  Hayes'  Misc.,  127;  reports  on  damage 
i>i  the  south,  Winans'  Stat.,  MS.,  12;  Siskiyoii  Co.  Aff.,  MS.,  27.  The  fullest 
accounts  are  collected  in  Cal.  Floods,  Scrape,  passim;  including  information 
o'i  previous  and  subsequent  floods,  to  be  found  also  in  Alta  Cal.,  March  9,  30, 
f*c.  20,  1S52,  etc.;  Nov.  15,  1855;  March  2,  Nov.  14,  1857;  March  6,  1858; 
March  28,  July  15,  Nov.  9,  1859;  Pltrcer  Times  and  Transcript,  March  21, 
1852,  etc.;  S.  F.  Herald,  June  6,  1852;  Jan  3,  1853;  Dec.  1861;  Mun/xrille 
Appeal,  i.l. ;  county  histories;  Grass  Val.  Directory.  The  damage  at  Sacra- 
mento, Stockton,  and  Marysville  is  related  in  my  historic  sketches  of  those 
towns,  in  my  Hist.  Cal.,  vol.  vi.  The  legislature  was  driven  from  the  capital 

to&F. 


GRAIN  AND  FRUIT  PESTS.  17 

Warned  by  the  calamity,  Sacramento,  Stockton,  and 
other  important  towns  took  the  precaution  to  improve 
still  further  the  levees  raised  after  previous  inunda- 
tions, and  so  place  themselves  beyond  all  risk.  Farmers 
generally  heeded  the  lesson,  arid  subsequent  slighter 
overflows  of  1867-8,  1871-2,  1877-8,  1880,  and  1881 
were  thus  lessened  in  their  damaging  effects.  In  the 
south  the  denuded  banks  offer  so  little  check  to  the 
accumulating  waters  that  in  some  places  the  dry  bed 
may  be  converted  into  a  raging  current  within  a  few 
hours.39 

If  the  farmers  here  have  some  ills,  others  they  have 
not.  There  are  fewer  than  elsewhere  of  the  evils 
arising  from  storms,  hail,  frost,  excess  of  moisture; 
and  we  suffer,  perhaps,  in  less  degree  than  people  to 
the  eastward  from  wheat  rust,  potato  blight,  apple 
worm,  orange  scale,  and  cattle  diseases.  Yet  there 
are  pests  in  plenty.  The  spermophile,  or  California 
ground-squirrel,  is  exceedingly  destructive  to  grain 
crops,  vegetables,  fruit-trees,  and  vines,40  especially 
south  of  the  Carquinez  line,  where  they  materially 

39  Details  of  these  and  other  later  and  partial  overflows,  in  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
Dec.  2,  7-8,   1864;  Feb.   10,   1869;  Nov.  25,  Dec.  26-7,  1871;  Jan.  15,  Apr. 

4,  1872;   Feb.    5,    1874;   March   1,  9,   1878;   Feb.  3,  1880;  Jan. -Feb.   1881; 
with  accouut  of  broken  levees.  Sac.  Union,  Alta  Cal.,  S.  F.  Call,  Chronicle, 
for  about  the  same  dates;  Mt.  Messenger,  March  16,  1878;  Feb.  12,  1881;  Los 
Any.  News,  March  12,  1867;  Jan.  3,   1868;  Monterey  Dem.,  Jan.  23,   1875; 
Sonoma  Dem.,  March  15,  1878;   Amador  Ledger,  March  2,  1878;   Ferndale 
Enterprise,  March  14,  1879;  San  Jose"  Mercury,  Apr.  22,  1880;  LosAng.  Herald, 
Jan.  3,  1880;  Oroville  Merc.,  Feb.  4,  1881.     Among  severe  avalanches  which 
have  taken  place  in  the  Sierra  Nevada,  8.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  16,  1857,  and  Feb. 
9,  1859,  refers  to  two  in  Plumas  and  Shasta  which  killed  4  men  each;  S.  F. 
Post,  Jan.  21,  1875,  to  one  which  involved  the  loss  of  28  Chinese;  S.  F.  (W.) 
Call,  March  27,  1882;  Id.  (D.),  March  12,   1884,  overwhelming  Woodstock. 
In  1878  the  gov.  refused  assent  to  a  bill  for  relieving  sufferers  by  the  flood. 
Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1877-8,  342. 

40  They   are   especially   abundant   along  the  central  zone  running  from 
Pajaro  to  Amador.     The  most  effective  remedies  against  them  are  strychnine 
and  phosphorus  poison  scattered  in  saturated  wheat,  and  sulphur  smoke  blown 
into  their  burrows.     Gophers  are  treated  in  the  same  way.     The  pouched 
cheek  is  the  chief  point  of  difference  between  the  spermophiles  and  the  regu- 
lar squirrel.     There  are  two  species,  distinguished  by  the  color  of  a  stripe 
along  the  spine.     That  with  the   yellowish  hoary  stripe  abounds  south  of 

5.  F.  Bay;  the  other,  with  dark  brown  stripe,  is  found  north  of  i$  and  in  less 
numbers.     Concerning  remedies  and  enactments  for  enforcing,  see  Cal.  Squir- 
rel Law;  Burnett's  Recol,  MS.,  ii.  217-21. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    2 


18 

affect  the  value  of  farms  in  many  districts.  The 
gopher  ranks  next  as  the  destroyer  of  roots  of  fruit- 
trees,  vegetables,  newly  planted  seed,  and  sweet  buds 
in  the  coast  valleys.  Along  the  eastern  slopes  of  the 
Sierra  grasshoppers  have  occasionally  denuded  large 
districts,  leaving  not  a  leaf  or  blade  of  grass.  The  first 
notable  ravage  occurred  in  1855  and  the  last  in  1885.41 

The  great  length  of  California,  subdivided  into  nar- 
row strips  by  several  ranges,  with  cross-ridges  and 
lateral  openings,  gives  rise  to  a  variety  of  climates 
and  soils.  The  coast  has  a  very  equable  tempera- 
ture, bathed  as  it  is  by  warm  ocean  currents,  tempered 
by  almost  daily  breezes.  These  also  modify  to  a  great 
extent  the  heat  concentrated  within  the  interior  by 
the  enclosing  mountain  walls,  and  it  is  only  in  the 
desert  region  of  the  south-east  that  the  heat  becomes 
extreme. 

In  the  northern  part,  where  no  heated  interior 
basins  exist  to  draw  the  cooling  currents,  the  prevail- 
ing wind  is  north-westerly,  laden  with  summer  showers. 
Below  Cape  Mendocino  this  changes,  and  rains  depend 
on  south-westerly  currents,  which  are  very  rare  be- 
tween May  and  October,  but  rule  through  the  winter 
months.  Their  opposite  exists  in  the  dreaded  Boreas, 
moisture  consuming  and  shrivelling,  whether  hot  or 
cold.42  During  the  six  months  beginning  with  No- 

41  Trenches  and  smoke  are  the  only  partial  safeguards  against  them.    Placer 
lost  a  large  portion  of  its  crops  in  1855  by  their  raid,  and  Shasta,  Yolo,  Suisun, 
and  the  S.  Joaquin  east  counties  shared  more  or  less  in  the  disaster.     They 
have  penetrated  to  the  coast  counties.     Other  visitations  are  mentioned  in 
Id.,   May  8,  June  27,  1856;  June  21-2,   1859;  June  13,  1861;  S.  F.  Times, 
Apr.  1,  June  11,  1869,  in  Lassen;  S.  F.  Call,  June  27,  1871;  Folsom  Teleg., 
Junfe  8,  1872;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  June  14,  1858;  July  2,  1884;  June  8,  1885.     In 
U.  8.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  45,  Sess.  2,  Entomolog.  Kept  for  1878-9,  p.  xviii. 
322,  80,  are  considerations  of  remedies.     In  some  parts  wild  geese  have  been 
so  destructive  that  bands  of  hunters  were  kept  to  exterminate  them.  S.  F. 
Call,  May  7,  1882.    Prov.  Sec.,  iii.  131,  alludes  to  the  chahuistle  wheat  ravage 
in  1783,  and  to  dread  of  locusts.     Concerning  worms  injurious  to  fruit,  see 
Treatise  on  Fruit  Trees;  L.  Lake  Bull,  June  19,  1880;  S.  F.  Times,  June  6, 
1867;  Oakl.  Transcr.,  Sept.   1,  1877;  Castrov.  Argus,  Sept.  4,   1869;  8.  Jo*<i 
Merc.,  Nov.  23,  1883;  Alta  Cal,  March  9,  Apr.  13,  July  22,  1859;  S.  F.  Call, 
July  18,  1871;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  25,  Aug.  9,  1859;  Cal.  Agrk.  Soc.,  Tram.; 
Rural  Press,  passim. 

42  Occasi«nally,  it  has  become  a  veritable  siroces,  as  at  Santa  Barbara  in 
June  1859,  when  trees  were  blasted,  fruit  literally  roasted  on  the  trees,  and 
birds  and  calves  suffocated.  Sta  B.  Gazette,  June  23,  1859,  etc.;  Stockton  Argus, 
id.;  8.  F.  £uUetin,  June  14,  1864. 


RAINFALL.  19 

vember,  the  dried-up  or  shrunken  streams  are  replen- 
ished, at  first  from  the  rains,  arid  subsequently,  in 
March  and  April,  from  the  melting  of  the  Sierra  snow. 
The  rainfall  varies  from  an  annual  mean  of  70  inches 
in  the  extreme  north-west  to  40  inches  above  Cape 
Mendocino,  about  22  near  San  Francisco,  16  below 
Monterey,  and  10  inches  at  San  Diego.  A  corre- 
sponding decrease  takes  place  along  the  interior  val- 
ley strip,  with  a  relatively  lighter  fall  than  that  on  the 
more  humid  coast,  in  similar  latitudes.  Thus  the 
average  fall  at  Redding  is  42  inches,  at  Red  Bluff  24, 
at  Sacramento  18,  at  Modesto  9,  Tulare  6,  Sumner  4 
inches.  As  the  moisture-condensing  Sierra  is  ascended, 
the  fall  increases  to  34  inches  at  Auburn,43  and  60  at 
Cisco.44  The  general  average  for  the  greater  part  of 

*30r  about  1  inch  for  every  100  or  150  feet,  while  the  corresponding  lati- 
tude in  the  bottom  of  the  valley  is  18  inches.  The  lava  beds  in  the  north- 
east corner  are  exceptionally  drier.  Yet  the  temperature  up  the  Sierra  slopes 
remains  as  warm  as  the  valley  for  the  first  2,000  or  2,500  feet  during  summer. 
The  winter  is  colder. 

4*  The  appended  tables  of  temperature  and  humidity  in  connection  with 
the  preceding  observations,  and  those  given  in  the  opening  chapter,  will 
suffice  for  a  better  understanding  of  the  present  topic.  The  peculiarity  men- 
tioned calls  for  a  statement  of  rainfall  by  the  season. 

-Temperature. >    Rainfall.  Elev. 


Summer. 

Winter. 

Av. 

Av. 

Coast  Region. 

Deg. 

Deg. 

Deg. 

Inches. 

Feet. 

Camp  Lincoln,  Del  Norte  co  

..  59.5 

47.2 

53.9 

73.4 

Fort  Humboldt,  Humboldt  co  

..  58.2 

47.0 

52.9 

35.9 

50 

Camp  Wright,  Mendocino  co  

..  74.7 

58.8 

57.8 

43.9 

Napa,  Napa  co  

..  70.3 

49.3 

59.9 

26.6 

95 

San  Francisco  

..  58.0 

50.1 

55.2 

20.7 

130 

Martinez,  Contra  Costa  co  

..  70.1 

48.9 

60.3 

16.1 

San  Jose,  Santa  Clara  co  

..  66.7 

49.5 

56.8 

11.4 

91 

Monterey,  Monterey  co  

..  59.7 

50.2 

55.5 

15.7 

140 

Soledad,  Monterey  co  

..  66.9 

48.8 

57.8 

7.9 

Santa  Barbara,  Santa  Barbara  co  .  . 

.  67.9 

54.1 

61.4 

16.2 

20 

Los  Angeles,  Los  Angeles  co  

.  73.2 

55.6 

64.9 

12.0 

265 

San  Diego,  San  Diego  co  

..  63.7 

56.8 

62.0 

9.3 

64 

Interior  Section. 

Fort  Jones,  Siskiyou  co  

..  71.1 

34.1 

52.3 

21.7 

2,570 

Redding,  Shasta  co  

..  81.6 

47.3 

63.4 

42.1 

556 

Red  Bluff,  Tehama  co  

.  .  80.8 

47.5 

C3.7 

24.0 

308 

Marysville,  Yuba  co  

..  78.7 

49.5 

64.4 

17.8 

67 

Sacramento,  Sacramento  co  

..  71.8 

48.2 

60.8 

18.7 

30 

Stockton,  San  Joaquin  co  

..  72.5 

48.2 

60.8 

15.8 

23 

Merced,  Merced  co  

.  .  79.1 

49.0 

63.4 

9.7 

171- 

Fresno,  Fresno  co  

..  84.1 

51.3 

67.6 

7.0 

292 

Tulare,  Tulare  co  

.  .  83.8 

45.9 

64.4 

6.2 

282 

Sumner,  Kern  co  

.  .  83.2 

48.7 

67.3 

4.2 

415 

Foothills. 

Auburn,  Placer  co  

..  74.1 

45.4 

58.6 

34.0 

1,360 

Cisco,  Placer  co  

.  .  60.9 

32.8 

45.2 

60.3 

5,934 

20  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

the  state  would  be  utterly  inadequate  for  this  zone, 
but  for  its  distribution  during  the  half-year  when 
most  needed,  leaving  the  summer  and  autumn  dry. 
This  peculiarity  regulates  the  agricultural  system, 
making  the  winter  season  so  busy,  and  the  harvest- 
time  so  early  and  convenient. 

The  agricultural  value  of  districts  depends  in  Cali- 
fornia less  on  the  underlying  geologic  formation,  which 
forms  the  base  in  most  countries,  than  on  climatic  con- 
ditions, the  south  being  especially  dependent  on  the 
topography  and  hydrography.  Yet  the  Sierra  Ne- 
vada has  left  its  impress,  as  shown  by  the  sandy  sur- 
face deposits  in  San  Joaquin  valley,  and  the  more 
clayey  soil  in  Sacramento.  Owing  to  the  elevated 
slope  and  vast  drainage  area,  its  foothills  extend  in  a 

The  information  is  based  in  part  on  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  47,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex. 
Doc.,  vii.  335-6,  385,  565-84,  626;  Cal.  Climate  Scraps,  4  et  seq.;  Hayes'  Nat. 
Phenom.,  i.-ii. ;  the  SmitJisonian  Reports,  by  the  railway  companies  and  by  pri- 
vate individuals;  Schott's  Tables;  Turrill's Notes,  18-21;  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans., 
1868  et  seq.;  Hittelfs  Res.,  94,  etc.  The  following  is  a  fair  average  at  various 
points  in  the  Pacific  and  eastern  states  and  in  Europe: 

/ —  Temperature.  — >       / Rainfall. v 

Degrees.  Inches. 

Jan.      July.     Diff.     Spring.    Sum.       Aut.      Wint.      Year. 
Fort  Humboldt  . . . .     40        58        18        13.5        1.2        4.9        15.         34.6 

Sacramento 45         73          '.8          7.0        0.  2.6         12.1       21.7 

San  Francisco 49        57          8          6.6        0.1        3.3        13.3      23.4 

San  Diego 51        72        21          2.7        0.5        1.2          5.9       10.4 

Fort  Yuma 56        92        36          0.3        1.3        0.9          0.7        3.2 

Astoria,  Oregon 16.4        4.0       21.8        44.2       86.0 

New  York 31         77        46        11.7       11.6        9.9        10.4      43.7 

New  Orleans 55         82        27         11.3       17.3         9.6         12.7       50.1 

St.  Louis 12.9      14.1        8.7          6.3      42. 

Liverpool 6.2        9.8      10.8          7.3      34.1 

Paris 5.5        5.9        6.5          4.7      22.6 

Rome 7.3        3.4       10.9          9.3      30.9 

Naples 46        76        30          

London 37        62        25        

Storms  are  rare,  and  the  occasional  severe  ones  have  not  inflicted  much  dam- 
age. Instances  in  AUa  Cal.,  Dec.  15,  1849;  Jan.  3,  1855;  March  2,  1861;  S.  F. 
Bulletin,  March  4,  1857;  June  14,  Aug.  6,  Sept.  10,  Dec.  2,  1864;  Jan.  2-9, 
1872;  May  30,  1878;  8.  F.  Call,  Apr.  11,  1884.  A  small  district  in  Shasta 
was  on  May  10,  1856,  damaged  by  a  hail-storm.  Cloud-bursts  have,  on  rare 
occasions,  done  some  harm  in  the  south  and  in  the  Sierra.  L.  Any.  Exp., 
Jan.  3,  1880;  Inyo  Indep.,  Aug.  1,  1874;  Vallejo  Recorder,  Nov.  18,  1870;  Red 
Bluff  Sentinel,  March  22,  1873;  Quincy  Union,  July  16,  1864.  Meteoric  showers, 
with  meteor  falls.  S.  F.  Times,  Feb.  23-5,  Aug.  7-10,  1869;  S.  F.  Call,  Nov. 
16,  1867;  Nov.  15,  1868;  Aug.  12,  1869;  Apr.  21,  1871;  Sac.  Union,  May  7, 
1859;  Net.  Gaz.,  Dec.  29-31,  1866. 


GEOLOGY  AND  CHEMISTRY  21 

long,  gentle,  talus-like  slope,  which  forms  a  kind  of 
upland  plain,  with  a  breadth  in  the  north  and  centre 
of  50  to  70  miles,  between  the  elevations  of  500  and 
4,000  feet,  but  narrowing  in  the  south,  where  the 
transverse  incisions  or  lateral  valleys  are  widely  bor- 
dered with  bare,  abrupt  bluffs,  while  in  the  Sacra- 
mento section  they  are  rounded  and  tree-lined.  On 
the  west  side  the  slope  from  the  Coast  range  is  from 
10  to  40  miles  wide  in  Shasta  and  Teharna  counties, 
after  which  it  lessens  to  a  narrow  strip.  The  lower 
foothills  below  the  altitude  of  2, 000  or  2, 500  feet  enjoy 
the  same  temperature  with  greater  moisture,  and  yield 
the  same  products  as  the  valley  land,  including  semi- 
tropic  plants,  fruit  thriving  relatively  better.45 

The  Sacramento  valley  land  proper  is  gently  undu- 
lating, dotted  with  hillocks  known  as  hog- wallows,  and 
lined  by  strips  and  blocks  of  adobe  soil.  In  the  lower 
half  the  river  bottoms  on  the  east  side  are  widely  cov- 
ered with  mining  debris,  termed  slickens,  which  have 
converted  once  fertile  tracts  into  sterile  wastes,  and  so 
filled  up  the  river-beds  as  to  increase  the  frequency 
and  extent  of  floods,  and  to  cause  the  wider  spread  of 
this  destructive  deposit.46  All  this  expanse  of  Allu- 
vial land  is  very  productive,  with  little  need  for  irri- 
gation;47 but  in  the  San  Joaquin  drainage  region  the 
lighter  soil  and  scantier  rain  increase  the  need  for 
artificial  watering,  while  in  the  south  it  becomes 
absolutely  necessary.  The  sandy  and  less  compact 
soil  does  not  retain  the  moisture  so  well,  and  the 
number  of  intermittent  streams  increase,  especially  on 
the  west  side,  with  its  bare  and  abrupt  Coast  range. 

40  Their  soil  has  a  general  similarity  in  its  orange -reel  tint,  due  to  an  iron 
oxide  admixture  of  4  to  12  or  even  more  per  cent,  with  a  texture  varying  from 
moderately  heavy  loam  to  stiff  clay,  with  rolled  gravel  often  in  excess.  The 
percentage  of  lime  increases  toward  the  central  counties,  and  diminishes  be- 
yond the  Tuolumne.  The  proportion  of  phosphates  is  low.  Deep  ploughing 
is  advisable. 

4G  True,  a  small  admixture  of  such  sandy  ingredients  is  beneficial  to  certain 
heavy  soil;  but  when  a  succession  of  layers  is  made,  the  benelib  bocoines  an 
evil  which  can  bo  remedied  only  by  years  of  costly  effort,  with  special  plant- 
ing, ploughing,  and  counter-manuring. 

"  Tho  rainfall  ranging  from  40  to  20  inches,  with  usually  slight  snow  in 
the  winter  and  frost  temperature  at  night  for  several  months. 


22  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

The  Tulare  section  contains  much  delta  land  easily 
irrigated.43 

A  large  portion  of  the  valley  trough,  especially  tow- 
ard the  mouths  of  the  two  converging  main  rivers,  and 
round  the  lakes,  is  marshy,  and  known  as  tule  land  from 
the  rush  growing  upon  it.49  Another  large  area  of  such 
lands,  subject  to  overflow  from  salt  water,  lies  along  the 
coast,  but  chiefly  within  the  bays,  forming  in  all  some 
3,000,000  acres,  much  of  it  exceedingly  productive. 
A  portion  has  been  reclaimed  by  levees,  but  these  are 
in  many  places  insecure,  owing  to  the  porous  and  buoy- 
ant nature  of  the  foundation,  which  in  other  parts 
have  so  far  baffled  all  efforts  of  engineers.  In  the  San 
Joaquin  delta  the  matted  tule  forms  large  floating 
islands.50 

48  Round  Visalia  is  the  one  heavily  wooded  oak  region  of  the  S.  Joaquiu 
valley.  From  Merced  to  San  Joaquin  county  stretches  an  irregular  belt  of 
black  adobe.  Round  it  the  soil  is  calcareous,  the  lime  admixture  ranging 
from  half  to  three  per  cent,  and  it  is  consequently  very  productive  under  irri- 
gation, yet  with  little  phosphoric  acid.  It  has  the  advantage  of  being  deep, 
so  as  to  permit  roots  to  seek  compensation  for  dryness  by  wider  sinking. 
In  the  uplands  the  phosphates  will  soon  be  exhausted.  In  the  lake  districts 
the  prevalent  alkali,  which  dissolves  the  humus,  needs  only  the  corrective  of 
gypsum,  for  the  soil  composition  is  otherwise  good.  Between  Calaveras  and 
the  American  extends  a  great  plain  of  rich  dun-colored  loam,  broken  only  by 
timber  belts  of  rivers  and  easily  tilled.  In  the  Sac.  valley  the  lime  admix- 
ture *is  generous,  and  by  retaining  the  humus  tends  to  counteract  dryness; 
potash  abounds,  but  phosphates  are  rare. 

*9  Known  as  cat-tail,  or  typha.  The  round  rush  proper  on  salt  marshes  is 
the  scripus  locustris. 

M  So  that  the  famous  floating  gardens  of  the  Aztecs  here  find  their  counter- 
part. The  lake  region  is  so  strongiy  impregnated  with  alkali  as  to  render 
reclamation  unpromising.  Most  of  the  reclaimed  land  lies  within  the  delta 
region  of  the  confluent  Sac.  and  San  Joaquin,  protected  by  dikes  of  5  to  10 
feet  in  height,  with  a  base  of  20  to  30  feet  and  a  summit  5  feet  broad.  Tho 
cost  has  been  about  1 1  cents  per  cubic  yard.  The  legislature  of  1872  authorized 
the  sale  of  bonds,  in  mortgage  on  reclaimed  districts,  to  promote  such  work, 
but  the  scheme  did  not  succeed;  in  time  better  plans  may  be  adopted.  For 
suggestions,  reports,  and  state  measures,  see  every  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.  and  Ass., 
including  governor's  message  and  surveyor-general's  report.  Cal.  Agric.  Soc., 
Tram.,  1860,  285-9,  etc.;  Hayes*  Agric.,  233-41;  Rural  Press,  etc.  The  first 
reclamation  act.  Cal.  Statutes,  1851,  409.  County  histories  of  S.  Joaq.,  Sac., 
Sutler,  Contra  Costa,  and  Yolo,  give  accounts  of  plans  and  work  done.  U.  S. 
Agric.  Rept,  1872,  179-87.  Concerning  special  drainage  canals,  from  Fresno 
slough,  Report  on  Canal  from  Fresno  Slou-jh  to  Antioch;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  11, 
1880;  Jan.  17,  1881.  The  reclamation  of  Colorado  desert,  by  turning  in  the 
waters  of  Colorado  River,  has  been  widely  discussed.  Meanwhile  several 
oases  have  been  formed  in  this  quarter  with  the  aid  of  wells.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc., 
Cong.  36,  Sess.  1,  Sen.  Com.  Rept  276,  ii. ;  Cong.  43,  Sess.  1,  Son.  Misc. 
Doc.  84,  i.;  Cong.  44,  Sess.  2,  U.  S.  Statutes  377;  Wheeler's  Surveys,  1876, 
70-2,  109-25;  Cal.  Statutes,  1859,  238,  392;  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1874, 
363-6;  Hayes'  S.  Diejo,  i.  127-34,  216-21;  Overland,  xv.  17-53. 


VALLEYS  AND  HILLS.  23 

The  terrace  formation  noted  in  the  great  valley 
ranges  from  the  low,  rich  bottom-land  to  a  second 

O 

poorer  bench,  and  to  a  third  less  regular  surface  with 
comparatively  little  valuable  land.  The  coast  region 
enjoys  the  advantage  of  ocean  moisture,  combined  with 
a  soil  which  increases  in  heaviness  and  timber  wealth 
northward.  Thermal  belts  occur  in  several  parts, 
chiefly  near  the  bay,  which  are  exempt  from  frosts. 

Within  recent  years  portions  of  southern  California 
before  considered  almost  worthless  have  been  turned 
to  good  account  as  agricultural  areas,  their  virgin  soil 
producing  abundant  crops  of  fruit  and  cereals,  under 
the  improved  methods  which  have  superseded  primi- 
tive systems  of  farming.  Many  of  them  are  now 
occupied  by  thriving  colonies,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
Chino  ranch  in  San  Bernardino  county,  which,  in 
1881,  passed  into  the  hands  of  Richard  Gird,52  a 
wealthy  and  enterprising  citizen  of  southern  Califor- 
nia. Here  families  have  been  introduced  and  settle- 
ments founded  on  a  tract  of  more  than  20,000  acres, 
set  apart  for  the  purpose,  every  ten  acres  of  which,  it 
is  estimated,  is  capable  of  supporting  a  family. 

52  Richard  Grird,  a  native  of  Litchfield,  N.  Y.,  came  to  California  in  1852, 
and  first  tried  his  fortune  at  the  placer  mines  of  El  Dorado  co.  Here  he  was 
prostrated  by  Panama  fever,  contracted  during  the  voyage,  and  after  his 
recovery,  engaged  in  farming  in  Sonoma  co.,  which  occupation  he  followed 
till  1858,  when  he  embarked  for  Chili,  and  was  there  appointed  a  surveyor  on 
the  first  railroad  built  by  Henry  Meiggs.  Returning  to  this  coast  in  1860, 
after  a  brief  visit  to  his  home,  he  took  part  in  several  expeditions  against 
the  Apaches  in  Arizona,  of  which  territory,  by  order  of  the  legislature,  he 
made  a  topographical  survey,  and  published  what  is  to-day  the  only  official 
map.  In  1872,  after  suffering  business  reverses  in  San  Francisco,  we  again 
find  him  in  Arizona,  where  he  arrived  with  a  capital  of  $16.  A  few  years 
later  he  became  a  millionaire,  being  one  of  the  discoverers  of  the  Tombstone 
mine,  and  disposing  of  his  interest  for  $1,000,000.  A  portion  of  this  money 
he  invested  in  the  Chino  ranch  of  36,000  acres,  to  which  he  has  since  added 
14,000  acres,  making  in  all  50,000  acres  of  the  choicest  land,  all  in  one  body, 
and  under  one  fence.  He  also  owns  a  half  interest  in  500,000  acres  in 
Sonora,  Mex.,  together  with  valuable  oil  lands  and  brown-stone  quarries,  is 
one  of  the  largest  share-holders  in  the  Elsinor  and  Pomona  railroad,  and  has  a 
controlling  interest  in  the  Farmers'  Exchange  and  Second  National  banks  in 
San  Bernardino.  He  purposes  to  use  the  bulk  of  his  fortune  in  founding  the 
largest  industrial  school  in  the  world,  where  orphan  children  will  receive  free 
of  charge  a  practical  education.  As  a  self-made  man,  a  self-denying  man,  a 
philanthropist,  and  a  benefactor  to  the  community,  this  gentleman  has  no 
superior  in  the  city  and  state  of  his  adoption. 


CHAPTER  II. 

CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

1848-1889. 

LEADING  STAPLES — WHEAT  AND  BARLEY — OATS  AND  CORN — YIELD — EFFECT 
OF  IRRIGATION — RICE — CONDITIONS  OF  CULTURE — QUALITY — VEGETA- 
BLES —  COTTON  —  FLAX  —  THE  SILK-WORM  EXCITEMENT  —  EFFECT  OF 
LEGISLATION  ON  SERICULTURE — FIASCO  IK  TOBACCO — MUSTARD — SUGAR. 

NOTWITHSTANDING  the  many  other  growing  indus- 
tries of  California,  cereals  must  always  hold  a  con- 
spicuous place  as  a  staple  product,  favored  by  easy 
tillage  and  the  many  advantages  of  climate.  Though 
not  always  the  case,  grain-growing  under  favorable  con- 
ditions is  still  profitable,  even  if  the  yield  does  not 
reach  the  former  figures  of  70  bushels  of  wheat  and 
100  of  barley  to  the  acre.  The  latter  grain  was  the 
favorite  during  the  fifties,  owing  to  the  demand  for 
animal  feed  under  the  increasing  traffic,  and  to  its 
special  adaptability  to  the  sandy  soil  and  dry  climate. 
In  1852  more  than  2,000,000  bushels  were  harvested; 
and  this  quantity  was  nearly  doubled  during  every 
succeeding  decade,  till  it  was  estimated  at  20,000,000 
bushels  by  1888,  used  largely  for  malting.1 

1  The  crop  of  9,700  bushels  reported  for  1850  rose  to  over  2,000,000  ia  1852; 
and  although  soon  yielding  to  wheat,  the  increase  continued,  under  the  grow- 
ing demand  for  horse-feed  and  brewing,  the  yield  for  1860,  1870,  and  1880 
standing  at  4,400,000,  8,780,000,  and  12,400,000  bushels  respectively,  the 
last  from  583,000  acres,  Alameda  county  leading  with  1,200,000  bushels. 
The  home  consumption  is  estimated  at  210,000  tons,  of  which  32,003  Avcre  for 
brewing.  Commerce  and  Ind.,  282.  The  lower  price  received  for  barley  was 
offset  by  a  larger  and  surer  yield.  The  assessor  of  Monterey  county  re- 
ported for  1853  a  crop  of  9,000  bushels  from  a  field  of  100  acres  in  Pajaro 
Valley,  one  acre  yielding  149  bushels;  Burrell  of  Sta  Cruz  was  credited  in 
1859  with  a  small  field  of  90  bushels  to  the  acre.  See  also  Alta  CaL,  Sept.  15, 
1851;  Apr.  19,  1859;  8.  F.  Bulletin,  June  18,  1856;  in  Yuba  100  acres  aver- 
aged 69  bushels,  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  27,  1858;  crop  in  January.  In  volunteer 

(24) 


KINDS  AND  QUANTITIES.  25 

Oats  suffer  under  the  conditions  favorable  to  barley, 
thriving  well  only  in  the  northern  and  central  coast 
counties,  with  an  average  yield  surpassing  that  of 
any  other  cereal,  yet  with  little  prospect  for  increased 
production  beyond  the  present  million  and  a  half 
bushels.2  Rye  and  buckwheat  are  only  slightly  culti- 
vated. 

Maize,  or  Indian  corn,  is  likewise  limited  by  the 
dryness  of  the  soil  and  coolness  of  the  nights  It 
thrives  best  in  the  sheltered  valleys  of  the  northern 
coast,  but  owing  to  the  inherent  predilection  of  the 
Spanish  race,  it  is  raised  chiefly  in  the  south,  and  with 
the  aid  of  irrigation  can  be  made  to  yield  two  crops. 
The  average  yield  within  recent  years  may  be  stated  at 
4,000,000  to  5,000,000  bushels.3  The  attempts  to  cul- 
tivate rice  have  so  far  been  unpromising  experiments.4 

crops,  barley  excels;  and  in  Yolo  a  field  was  said  to  have  yielded  five  in  suc- 
cession, the  last  of  30  bushels  to  the  acre.  HittelVs  Res.  Gal.,  231.  This  was  of 
the  nepaul  kind,  which  shares  with  the  Chevalier  in  a  limited  cultivation,  the 
latter  being  used  chiefly  for  pearl  barley,  yielding  about  15  per  cent  less  than 
the  common  barley. 

2  The  production  for  1860,  1870,  and  1880  stands  at  1,043,000,  1,757,000,  and 
1,341,000  bushels  respectively,  Humboldt  yielding  over  one  fourth,  and  San 
Mateo  one  tenth.     In  1852  it  was  94,000.     Heavy  crops  are  frequently  re- 
ported, especially  from  Del  Norte,  as  high  as  125  and  even  157  bushels  to  the 
acre.   Crescent  C.  Herald,  Oct.   1857;  in  Sta  Barbara  4  acres  gave  15  tons. 
Sac.  Union,  July  6,  1855.     Of  the  several  kinds  grown,  the  Feather  flourishes 
best  in  sandy  loam,  and  Bare  and  Tucker  in  heavy  soil.     The  other  leading 
varieties  are  Australian,  English,  and  Norway.     Of  rye  and  buckwheat,  the 
former  yielded  for  I860,  1870,  and  1880  about  52,000,  26,000,  and  181,000 
bushels,  chiefly  from  San   Joaquin   county;    the  latter  76,800,  22,000,  and 
22,300,  one  third  from  Sac.  county. 

3  Irrigation  is  as  a  rule  esteemed  too  costly  for  the  grain.     Besides  the 
north  coast  valleys,  some  of  the  moist  bottom-lands  of  the  lower  Sac.,  and  on 
the  San  Gabriel  are  favorable.     .Russian  River  is  a  favorite  haunt,  says  Sac. 
Union,  Aug.  2,  1859;  see  also  county  histories  of  Mendocino,  Yuba,  and  Los 
Angeles;    but   Los   Angeles   county  in   1879  yielded  752,000  bushels,   from 
22,700  acres,  out  of  the  total  1,993,000  bushels.     Egyptian  corn,  though  as 
yet  little  known  or  in  demand,  recommends  itself  as  requiring  less  moisture 
even  than  barley,  producing  one  fourth  more  weight  of  grain  to  the  acre  than 
other  cereals,   and  yielding  good  forage.  Nnpa  Register,  Dec.  27,  1878;  8. 
Diego  News,  Feb.  20,  1878. 

*  The  planting  of  rice  was  early  suggested  by  the  influx  of  Chinese  and 
the  extent  of  swamp-land,  and  under  the  spell  of  experiments  so  prevalent 
in  the  fifties,  a  feeble  attempt  was  made  therein.  The  state  offered  a  pre- 
mium to  encourage  it,  but  in  vain.  The  inducements  were  not  sufficient  to 
overcome  the  many  obstacles  in  the  way.  The  U.  S.  Census  for  1 860  reports 
a  crop  of  2,140  Ibs.;  Hayes"  Ayric.,  242-4;  Cal,  Farmer,  Sept.  1862;  Jan.  26, 
1871;  8.  F.  Bulletin,  Aug.  2,  Sept.  3,  1856;  Jan.  29,  1857;  March  3,  July  30, 
1862;  Salinas  Democ.,  May  16,  1874. 


26  CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

For  none  of  these  cereals  is  there  any  promising 
opening  beyond  the  local  requirement,  save  for  wheat, 
whose  valuable  glutinous  quality  has  made  it  highly 
esteemed,  and  whose  flinty  dryness  permits  it  to  en- 
dure, without  special  preparation  or  care,  the  long  sea 
voyage  to  Europe.  The  difficulties  in  the  way  of  corn 
obliged  the  Spanish-Californians  to  give  it  greater 
prominence,  and  before  the  gold  discovery  it  was  raised 
to  some  extent  even  east  of  the  Coast  Range.  Toward 
the  close  of  the  fifties  its  production  began  to  surpass 
that  of  barley;  but  it  was  not  till  the  value  of  the 
plains  of  the  great  valley,  especially  the  San  Joaquin, 
burst  like  a  revelation  upon  its  decriers  that  wheat- 
lands  began  to  be  fully  appreciated.  Under  the 
facilities  for  shipment  presented  by  a  large  fleet, 
whose  predecessors  had  to  depart  in  ballast,  the  yield 
increased  rapidly  from  less  than  6,000,000  bushels  in 
1860  to  over  30,000,000  in  the  early  eighties,  with 
Stanislaus  county  in  the  front  rank,  followed  by 
Colusa  and  San  Joaquin.  The  crop  for  1889,  one  of 
the  largest  in  the  history  of  the  state,  was  estimated 
at  nearly  50,000,000  bushels,  the  product  of  about 
3,250,000  acres,  and  realizing  at  tide-water  $35,000,- 
000.  The  export  rose  from  nearly  three  quarters  of 
a  million  bushels  in  1867  to  more  than  treble  that 
amount  by  1888.  Under  hasty  methods  of  farming, 
the  average  crop  has  fallen  to  about  16  bushels  to  the 
acre,  or  about  one  fourth  more  than  the  average  for 
the  union,  and  even  less  with  diminished  rains  and 
withering  north  winds.  Nevertheless,  when  con- 
ducted on  a  large  scale,  it  is  still  a  fairly  profitable 
industry,  even  at  the  low  prices  prevailing  within  re- 
cent years.  With  steam  machinery,  now  largely  used, 
as  a  motive  power,  it  is  estimated  that,  where  cheap 
communication  exists,  wheat  can  be  sown,  reaped,  and 
forwarded  to  market  from  interior  valleys  at  a  cost  of 
from  thirty  to  forty  cents  per  bushel. 

5  According  to  the  census  of  1850,  the  crop  was  only  17,328  bushels.  By 
1852  it  had  risen  to  297,000,  by  I860  to  5,900,000,  by  1870  to  16,000,000,  by 
1880  to  29,000,000,  of  which  Colusa  county  leads  with  over  4,500,000,  Glenn 


VEGETABLES.  27 

After  the  gold  excitement  had  begun  to  subside,  at- 
tention was  first  of  all  directed,  as  I  have  said,  to  the 

being  the  prominent  farmer,  followed  by  San  Joaquin  with  3,500,000  bushels, 
Butte  with  2,200,000,  and  Yolo  and  Solano  with  2,000,000  each,  several  others 
having  over  1,000,000.  By  1883  Stanislaus  had  assumed  the  lead  with  4,600,- 
000  bushels  out  of  a  total  of  32,600,000.  The  1880  figure  represents  an  aver- 
age yield  of  only  16.1  bushels  to  the  acre. 

The  Hispano-Californians  planted  wheat  from  the  first,  and  at  the  opening 
of  the  century  it  was  surpassing  the  favorite  maize  for  which  the  climate 
was  not  so  well  adapted.  By  1784  the  grain  crop  reached  20,000  fancgas  and 
shipments  from  Mexico  for  the  garrisons  were  declared  needless.  Cat.  Prov. 
Rec.,  i.  184.  The  dryness  of  some  districts  combined  with  fickleness  of  climate 
in  discouraging  growers,  as  in  San  Diego,  where  crops  failed  in  1770  and  1781. 
S.  Diego  Arch. ;  Parr.  Mont.,  24  et  seq. ;  Bandini,  Doc.,  2,  etc. ;  Sta  Barb.  Arch., 
v.,  ix.-x.;  S.  P.  Miss.,  i.  18,  68-71;  Prov.  S.  P.,  v.,  vi.;  Dept.  S.  P.,  S.  Jost, 
i.  7-10;  Vallejo,  Doc.,  iii.  228-30.  Mexicans  carried  it  in  1834  to  the  north 
side  of  the  bay,  where  Russians  had  prior  to  this  made  a  beginning.  Sutter 
introduced  it  with  the  forties  into  Sac.  valley,  and  in  1845  it  was  cultivated 
in  Yolo  and  Placer.  In  1847,  the  Californian  of  July  10th  boasts  of  the  expand- 
ing wheat  culture,  which  had  brought  flour  down  to  $6  per  100  Ibs.  at  S.  F., 
which  is  one  fourth  above  the  average  for  the  U.  S.,  but  far  bolow  that  of 
several  larger  wheat-producing  western  states.  Nevertheless  it  u  widely  as- 
sumed that  the  soil,  in  favorable  seasons,  and  with  the  precautions  prevalent 
elsewhere,  can  be  made  to  yield  more  to  the  acre  than  perhaps  any  other 
country  on  the  globe.  Brewer,  in  U.  S.  Census,  1880,  ii.  78,  admits  that  the 
soil  and  climate  are  peculiarly  well  adapted  for  wheat,  yielding  marvellous 
crops.  Several  cases  of  over  70  bushels  to  the  acre  were  reported  to  him,  and 
he  saw  '  crops  reputed  to  be  heavier  than  that. '  Bidwcll  responded  to  the 
premiums  offered  by  the  State  Agric.  Soc.  by  harvesting  '  upward  of  73  bushels 
per  acre  on  10  acres... in  the  presence  of  witnesses.  Mission  records,  ubi 
sup.,  refer  to  30  and  33  fold  yields,  which  Colton,  Three  Years,  442-5,  speaks 
of  over  100-fold,  as  does  Bryant,  Gal.,  304.  At  San  Ramon  90  bushels  to  the 
acre,  reports  the  S.  F.  Call,  Oct.  3,  1865;  near  S.  Jose,  87  bushels.  Sac.  Union, 
Aug.  10,  1855.  See  also  HittelCa  Res.  CaL,  227.  The  average  was  higher  in 
earlier  years  before  the  non-rotation  in  crops  tended  to  impoverish  the  soil. 
Other  drawbacks  lie  in  volunteer  crops  and  hasty  cultivation  of  the  soil,  espe- 
cially among  the  speculative  tillers  of  San  Joaquin  valley,  and  under  such  ne- 
glect the  average  has  fallen,  as  in  1871,  to  9  bushels.  The  lack  of  timely  rain 
has  been  the  trouble,  excess  of  rain  seldom  doing  harm,  and  the  baating  down 
of  crops  by  storms  is  rare;  but  hot  winds  come  at  times  to  shrivel  the  grain 
while  it  is  in  milk.  Smut  does  comparatively  little  damage.  Allusions  to, 
in  Sac.  Union,  June  15,  Oct.  15,  Nov.  15,  1855;  Marin  Tocsin,  Apr.  24,  1879. 
The  Australian  shows  the  greatest  tendency  toward  this  disease.  As  it  is, 
the  treatment  with  sulphate  of  copper  is  almost  general  among  wheat-growers. 
Odessa,  or  old  Californian,  is  the  favorite  variety  in  the  southern  part  of  the 
state.  Elsewhere  the  Chile  holds  the  sway;  with  a  decided  concession  to 
club,  red  Mediterranean,  and  Sonora,  and  a  proportion  of  Oregon  white, 
bald,  and  Egyptian.  The  last,  while  yielding  well,  lacks  gluten.  The 
Sonora,  while  smaller  in  head,  ripens  early,  so  as  to  escape  the  shrivelling 
northers.  The  winter-wheat  of  the  east  does  not  thrive  till  the  second  year, 
when  it  has  become  acclimated  and  converted  into  spring- wheat,  as  all  Cali- 
fornia varieties  may  be  called.  Red  seeds  turn  white  during  this  conversion. 
The  great  merit  of  California  wheat  lies  in  its  gluten,  of  which  it  possesses  a 
larger  proportion  than  that  of  any  other  North  American  state.  It  is  there- 
fore sought  as  an  admixture  to  the  weaker  grain  of  countries  not  favored  with 
sunshine  and  the  loose  soil  of  El  Dorado.  The  sheltered  coast  valleys  excel  in 
this  respect  the  moister  ocean  slopes  and  the  over-heated  San  Joaquin  and 
Sacramento.  Another  advantage  is  its  extreme  dryness,  which  permits  it  to 
be  shipped  through  the  tropics  without  danger  of  sweating,  although  taken  di- 


28  CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

raising  of  various  kinds  of  vegetables,  immigrants  and 
miners,  who  had  hitherto  lived  mainly  on  a  diet  of  salt 
meat,  having  a  more  decided  taste  for  these  esculents 
than  the  shiftless  Mexicans,  who  cared  for  little  in  this 
respect  save  beans.  The  first  who  engaged  in  garden- 
ing were  rewarded  by  high  prices,  which  enabled  them 
to  make  money.  The  consequent  rush  of  competitors, 
especially  foreigners  of  the  Latin  race  who  had  been 

rect  from  the  field.  Even  the  kiln-dried  and  pressed  flour  of  the  Altantic  does 
not  keep  so  well.  The  hot  winds  of  the  great  valley  often  injure  the  plump- 
ness and  size  of  the  grain,  which  nevertheless  compares  well  with  the  eastern; 
in  weight  it  exceeds  eastern,  the  bushel  being  over  60  Ibs.,  seldom  less,  some- 
times 65  Ibs.  Whiteness  and  thin  skin  appear  coordinate,  for  where  the  coast 
fogs  impart  an  exceptional  darkness  of  color,  there  the  skin  increases  in 
thickness  and  bran.  Objections  have  been  raised  to  the  lack  of  sifting,  and 
more  attention  is  now  given  to  grain  cleaners  and  separators,  as  instanced  in 
Sac.  Union,  Aug.  14,  1865;  Jan.  1,  1881;  Napa  Reg.,  March  4,  1879;  Petal 
Conner,  Aug.  14,  1878;  and  to  improving  the  grade  of  the  flour.  S.  F.  C'hron., 
Apr.  6,  1881. 

Wheat-sowing  extends  during  the  last  two  and  the  first  three  months  of 
the  year,  preferably  during  Jan.  and  Feb.,  the  latter  succeeding  best  with 
heavy  spring  rains,  while  earlier  fields  gain  their  strength  from  moderate 
moisture.  Glenn  used  90  Ibs.  of  seed  on  early  fields,  and  1 00  Ibs.  for  late  sow- 
ing. In  Los  Angeles  45  Ibs.  was  deemed  sufficient.  U.  S.  Census,  1880,  iii. 
76-7.  The  immunity  from  rain  during  the  summer  and  early  autumn  allows 
the  grain  to  be  left  standing  for  weeks  after  maturity,  while  awaiting  its 
turn  in  the  harvest.  Little  is  lost  by  shaking  from  wind  or  machinery,  the 
club  grain  especially  holding  itself  remarkably  well  till  the  first  rains  relax 
the  capsules.  The  average  cost  of  production  ranges  between  $6  and  $9  per 
acre;  ploughing  $1  to  $1.50;  seed  80  cents  to  $1.50;  sowing  and  harrowing  50 
to  75  cents;  heading  $1.20 to $1.50;  thrashing $1.25;  sacks$l;  hauling 50  cents 
to  $1;  add  rent  and  taxes.  In  the  great  valley  a  saving  is  widely  effected  by 
combining  the  sowing  and  harrowing  operation  with  the  ploughing,  at  a  total 
cost  of  $1  per  acre,  and  ploughing  has  been  done  as  low  as  50  cents.  With  an 
average  yield  of  16  bushels  there  is  a  fair  return,  even  with  wheat  at  $1.25 
per  bushel.  The  lightness  of  the  soil,  with  freedom  from  sod,  stones,  and 
shrubs,  permits  ready  cultivation;  combination  machinery,  so  widely  ado'pted, 
whether  rented  or  owned,  reduces  the  cost,  especially  of  man  power;  the  dry 
climate  gives  time  for  harvesting  and  obviates  the  need  for  barns  and  attend- 
ant handling;  add  to  this  volunteer  crops,  and  Cal.  presents  numerous  advan- 
tages over  other  wheat  countries.  Standing  crops  are  widely  insured 
against  fire.  By  burning  the  high  stubble  left  by  headers,  the  injury  to  the 
soil  by  deficient  rotation  or  fallowing  is  greatly  counteracted.  England  offers 
the  best  market  for  Cal.  wheat,  which  there  commands  an  extra  price  for  its 
glutinous  properties.  Frisbie,  Remin.,  MS.,  37,  speaks  of  the  first  regular  cargo 
in  1860.  la,  1867  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  million  tons  were  exported,  and  in  1 881 
more  than  three  times  this  quantity,  leaving  nearly  as  much  behind  for  lack 
of  tonnage.  High  freights  and  competition  from  Russia  and  the  eastern 
states  in  the  limited  markets  tend  to  reduce  profits,  so  that  the  average  net 
return  has  fallen  to  4  per  cent.  During  the  preceding  decade  prices  for 
wheat  ranged  from  a  minimum  of  $1.05  during  the  winter  1869-70,  and  an 
average  of  81. C5  in  1872,  1874-5,  1876,  to  a  maximum  of  §3.20  in  1877,  and 
an  average  of  $3.10  in  May  1871.  Hence  with  rent  and  heavy  hauling  and 
handling  even  fair  crops  failed  at  times  to  remunerate.  Cal.  obtained  a  gold 
medal  for  cereals  at  the  Paris  exhibition.  S.  F.  Times,  Aug.  27,  1868. 


COTTON  AND  FLAX.  29 

driven  from  the  mines,  rapidly  reduced  values,  but  an 
encouraging  compensation  was  found  in  the  suspris- 
ingly  large  yield,  the  uninterrupted  growth  of  most 
vegetables  throughout  the  year,  and  their  generally 
thriving  condition,  marked  by  size  and  weight  greatly 
in  excess  of  products  in  the  eastern  states,  pota- 
toes sometimes  weighing  several  pounds,  cabbages  50 
pounds,  and  squashes  over  300  pounds.  There  was 
one  drawback  in  the  comparatively  inferior  flavor, 
owing  partly  to  the  rapidity  of  growth;  and  choice 
potatoes  were  imported.  Within  recent  years,  how- 
ever, this  has  been  remedied,  and  in  1889  some  250  car- 
loads of  vegetables  were  sent  to  the  eastern  states.6 

6  Comments  on  early  neglect  of  vegetables,  in  Cal.  Star.,  March  11,  1848. 
Miners  planted  patches  round  their  cabins,  after  the  lessons  taught  by  scurvy 
and  hunger,  and  gardeners  followed  the  advancing  prospectors  to  reap  a  rich 
harvest.  Gardens  sprang  up  in  1849  round  Coloma.  El  Dor.  Co.  Hi-it.,  110- 
11.  Lassen  raised  vegetables  on  the  Feather  in  1851,  Plumas,  Id.,  295,  and 
Siskiyou  boasted  of  her  .potatoes  in  1852.  Established  farmers  around  the 
bay  and  near  Sac.  applied  themselves  with  especial  zeal,  and  the  earliest  in 
the  field  made  much  money.  Four  men  near  Sac.  received  $40,000  from  16 
acres.  A  tomato  crop  of  1^  acres  was  valued  at  $18,000.  S.  F.  Herald,  Aug. 
1,  1850.  Homer,  near  San  Jose,  cultivated  150  acres,  raising  potatoes,  onions, 
and  tomatoes,  and  realizing  over  $200,000  net,  for  1850.  Several  gardens 
yielded  over  $3,000  per  acre  in  1849.  Sac.  Transcript,  Oct.  14,  Nov.  29,  1850; 
Feb.  28,  March  14,  May  15,  1851;  Farnham's  Gal,  142-3;  Lambertie,  Voy., 
208-9;  Matthewson's  Stat.,  MS.,  4-7.  Many  Frenchmen  and  Italians  aban- 
doned the  gold-fields  before  Anglo-Saxon  persecution  and  sought  the  safer 
occupation  of  gardening.  Wilieys  Mem.,  100-2;  Hayes'  Agric.,  191-2,  216; 
Sac.  Directory,  1871,  76;  Pac.  News,  Apr.  26,  May  3,  1850;  Jan.  25,  Feb.  15, 
1851;  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  9,  Sept.  2,  Nov.  13,  Dec.  27,  1850;  Feb.  18,  Apr. 
10,  1851;  S.  F.  Herald,  Jan  6,  1851;  Alta  Cal.,  Oct.  4,  Nov.  14,  1851;  Tay- 
lor's El  Dorado,  i.  122-4.  The  high  prices  brought  shipments  from  Oregon  to 
compete  with  the  growing  production,  and  carry  disappointment  and  loss  to 
many.  On  the  other  hand  came  large  crops,  and  general  surprise  was  created 
by  the  size  and  beauty  of  the  fruit.  Potatoes  were,  as  a  rule,  much  larger 
than  those  of  New  England,  with  numerous  specimens  weighing  1  lb., 
and  some  of  4  and  even  7  Ibs.  Pajaro  Valby  sent  a  sack  of  tubers,  none 
of  which  weighed  less  than  3  Ibs.  A  Santa  Cruz  farmer  raised  2,500 
bushels  from  25.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  28,  1850.  Onions  have  been  displayed 
measuring  22  inches  in  circumference  and  weighing  47  oz.  Burnett's  Rec., 
MS.,  ii.  233-6.  Carrots  15£  Ibs.  Golden  Era,  Dec.  26,  1868.  Turnips  of  26 
Ibs.,  it  is  said;  tomatoes  26  inches  in  circumference;  one  vine  bore  608  Ibs. 
Id.,  Dec.  30,  1855;  S.  F.  Times,  Oct.  19,  1869.  Squashes  or  pumpkins,  265, 
279,  and  340  Ibs.,  with  several  fellows  on  the  same  vine  of  over  100  Ibs.  each. 
Alta  Cal.,  Oct.  5,  26,  1856;  Oct.  1,  1857.  Melons  64^  Ibs.,  3  weighed  178^ 
Ibs.  Id..,  Sept.  20,  1856;  Oct.  9,  1858.  Pac.  News,  Aug.  1,  1850;  Apr.  11, 
1851.  1,331  full  pods  grown  from  2  beans.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  29,  1856; 
Sac.  Union,  Dec.  1,  1858.  Cabbages  of  over  50  Ibs.,  with  solid  heads,  are 
recorded,  and  others  converted  into  evergreen  tree-like  plants,  with  stalks 
several  feet  high.  Alta  Cal.,  Aug.  25,  1853;  Oct.  26,  1859;  Sac.  Union,  May 
3,  1860;  Sept.  15,  1862.  Most  of  the  vegetables  can  be  found  in  the 


30  CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

The  Spaniards  brought  with  them  from  Mexico  the 
indigenous  cotton-plant,  and  one  mission  father  culti- 
vated it  to  some  extent  at  Pala,  for  a  time.  Subse- 
quently planters  from  the  southern  states  brought  their 
knowledge  to  bear,  but  only  in  experimental  form, 
and  no  real  effort  was  made  until  the  oifer  of  pre- 
miums by  the  state.  In  1865  several  fields  of  a  hun- 
dred acres  each  were  exhibited  in  Los  Angeles  and 
the  valley  of  the  San  Joaquin ;  but  the  cultivation  was 
finally  reduced  to  a  limited  section  in  Merced  and 
Kern,  where  a  yield  of  one  ton  to  eight  acres  brought 
an  estimated  profit  of  ten  dollars  per  acre.  With  im- 
proving methods  and  quality  of  fibre  there  are  pros- 
pects for  a  revival  in  cultivation.7 

market  throughout  the  year;  others,  as  pease,  melons,  tomatoes,  asparagus, 
enjoy  here  an  extra  long  season.  Potatoes  were  found  to  thrive  best  in  the 
light  sandy  loam  and  misty  atmosphere  of  the  coast  region,  notably  from 
Tomales  to  Pajaro,  and  along  the  warm  Sac.  sloughs,  where  the  sweet  potato 
flourishes.  At  Suisun  15-lb.  specimens  have  been  grown.  Id.,  Sept.  29,  1857; 
Oct.  26,  1858.  Both  potatoes  are  inferior  in  flavor  to  the  eastern,  and  the 
Irish  is  subject  to  blights.  These  as  well  as  many  other  roots  may  be  left 
in  the  ground  all  winter.  In  1852  the  state  raised  1,350,000  bushels  Irish 
potatoes,  of  which  277,000  were  in  Sonoma,  which  also  had  a  large  propor- 
tion of  the  10,000,000  Ibs.  of  onions  for  that  season.  In  1860,  1870,  and 
1S80  the  potato  crop  stood  at  1,789,000,  2,049,000,  and  4,550,000  bushels,  in- 
creasing  to  5,000,000  bushels  before  1890,  while  the  crop  of  sweet  potatoes 
diminished  during  the  same  years.  Pac.  Rural  Press,  Jan.  13,  March  3,  1877, 
etc.;  HitteU's  Res.  Gal,  232-8.  In  1889  over  10,000  tons  of  beans  were  for- 
warded to  the  eastern  states.  Lima  beans  are  a  specialty  at  (Jarpenteria, 
Santa  Barbara.  At  present  vegetables  are  mainly  cultivated  for  the  market 
by  Italians,  Portuguese,  and  Chinese,  whose  windmills  for  irrigation  form  a 
striking  feature  in  the  outskirts  of  towns. 

7  For  early  efforts,  see  Hist.  Cal,  ii.-iii.,  this  series;  S.  Diego  Co.  Hist.,  189; 
Gal.  Courier,  Sept.  19,  1850,  commended;  and  S.  F.  Herald,  Oct.  21,  1852,  re- 
ferred to  experiments;  and  Sue.  Union  of  Dec.  5,  1854,  spoke  of  a  small  fourth 
crop.  In  1856  the  state  agricultural  society  began  to  offer  premiums,  and 
reported  upon  a  patch  in  Los  Angeles,  where  several  subsequent  efforts  were 
made,  although  not  so  sustained  as  indicated  in  Los  Anycles  Co.  Hist.,  85. 
Alta  Cal.,  Oct.  9,  Nov.  8,  Dec.  9,  1856,  alludes  to  plants  raised  in  Shasta,  and 
in  San  Joaquin  by  Holden.  There  is  good  cotton  land  in  San  Diego  county. 
In  1865  Calaveras  had  a  12-acre  crop.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  8,  1865.  In 
1863  the  state  itself  offered  several  prizes  of  from  $1,000  to  §3,003  for  planta- 
tions of  not  less  than  10  acres  and  for  the  first  100  bales  of  cotton,  and  Los 
Angeles  in  1865  obtained  §3,000  for  100  acres,  the  yield  being  one  third  of  a 
bale  per  acre.  Several  other  plantations  existed  here  and  in  Fresno  and 
Tulare,  here  one  of  130  acres.  Cal.  St.  Agi-ic.  Soc.,  Tranaac.,  1856,  et 
seq.,  with  resume  in  1872;  U.  S.  Agric.  Rept.,  1864  et  seq.;  Hilgard's  Re- 
port, 72-5;  Nordhofs  Cal,  225;  Hayes  Any.,  vii.  261;  Overland,  vi.  326-35; 
xiii.  18-25;  McP/ierson's  Angeles,  55-8;  Lake  Co.  Hist.,  85,  refers  to  experi- 
ments in  the  Lake  valley.  Early  in  the  seventies  wider  efforts  were  made, 
and  San  Diego,  San  Bernardino,  Yolo,  and  Sac.  counties  entered  the  field, 
which  soon,  however,  was  yielded  to  Merced  and  Kern,  the  former  varying 


SERICULTURE.  31 

Flax  was  also  commended  to  the  early  colonists  by 
the  authorities,  but  no  one  has  so  far  seen  any  profit 
in  it.  Nevertheless  a  considerable  area  has  been 
planted  in  common  with  castor-beans,  to  raise  seed  for 
oil-mills.  As  regards  fibre,  attention  is  turning  rather 
to  the  somi- tropic  ramie  and  jute,  the  latter  largely 
imported  for  the  manufacture  of  bags.8 

A  singular  episode  in  the  history  of  California 
agriculture  is  the  silk- worm  excitement,  which  had 

during  1879-81  from  240,  695,  and  550  acres,  the  yield  being  about  one  ton 
to  8  acres,  bringing  12  cents  a  pound.  The  expenses  for  60  acres  in  Kern 
were:  ploughing  $104.50,  irrigating $120. 50,  hoeing  $295.50,  picking  $578,  gin- 
ning and  baling  $99.61,  rope,  ourlap,  and  seed  $89.31,  total  $1,287.42,  leaving 
a  net  profit  of  $9.24  per  acre.  Other  calculations  lower  the  cost  and  raise  the 
prospective  price,  so  that  the  outlook  is  by  no  means  discouraging.  Further 
details inAlta  Cal,  Aug.  16, 1861;  Sept.  27,  Oct.  13, 1862;  Apr. -July,  1863,  etc. 
On  Jan.  11,  1864,  it  speaks  of  the  first  cotton-press;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  26, 
1861;  Dec.  6,  1862;  Feb.  11,  March 27,  1863;  Apr.  13, 1864;  Nov.  29,  1871;  Nov.. 
25,  1881;  Jan.  3,  1882;  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  11,  1855;  Oct.  12,  1858,  concerning 
El  Dorado;  Oct.  24,  Nov.  11,  1861;  March  31,  1864;  Nov.  17,  1868;  Com.  Her- 
all,  Nov. -Dec.  1870;  Stockton  Rep.,  Nov.  30,  1872;  Fresno  Expos.,  Nov.  20, 
1872;  Kern  Courier,  Nov.  30,  Dec.  7,  1872;  S.  Diego  Union,  Nov.  15,  1872; 
Snellinfj  Argus,  Dec.  7,  1872;  Bakersfield  Cal.,  July  8,  1880;  Sta  Rosa  Dem., 
Jan.  8,  1881;  S.  F.  Call,  Aug.  16,  1874;  Jan.  31,  1882. 

8  Flax  grows  wild  in  California  and  has  led  many  to  advocate  its  cultivation. 
Even  the  colonial  authorities  of  the  preceding  century  sought  to  foster  it. 
Azanza,  Instruct.,  89;  Cal.  St.  Pap.,  Sac.,  iv.  6-7.  But  farmers  failed  to  be- 
come interested  until  the  establishment  in  the  sixties  of  oil-mills  encouraged 
them  to  plant  it  for  seed.  The  stalk  proved  vigorous  and  yielded  1,500  Ibs. 
of  seed  to  the  acre.  In  1867  they  produced  150  tons,  partly  from  Sta  Cruz. 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  30,  1867.  In  1879  Los  Angeles  had  400  acres,  with 
prospects  that  encouraged  others.  Los  Any.  Co.  Hist.,  62.  San  Mateo  held 
the  lead  in  production,  however,  with  28,300  bushels  out  of  a  total  45,700  for 
that  year,  Ventura  following  with  13,000,  Sta  Barbara,  Solano,  and  S.  Joaquin 
having  each  1,000  to  1,300.  U.  S.  Census,  1880,  215,  reports  no  fibre,  only 
823  tons  flax  straw.  Ventura  Co.  Pict.,  24;  Anaheim  Gaz.,  Apr.  28,  1877;  Cas- 
trov.  Argus,  Dec.  18,  1869;  Nov.  29,  1879;  Petal.  Argus,  March  29,  1878;  San 
Benito  Advance,  Oct.  2,  1879;  Lake  Democ.,  May  24,  1879;  S.  L.  Ob.  Tribune, 
Oct.  27,  1877;  Stockton  Herald,  March  11,  1878;  Sac.  Union,  July  14,  1855, 
reports  a  crop;  S.  F.  Times,  March  22,  1867;  June  23,  1869;  Cal.  Farmer,  Aug. 
29,  1867,  etc.;  Scientific  Press,  July  16,  1875,  et  seq.  Hemp  has  been  still 
more  neglected.  Alta  Cal.,  Nov.  4,  1862.  Napa  Reg.,  March  20,  27,  1880, 
points  to  the  soil  as  favorable  to  jute.  Arguments  for  ramie  culture  in  S.  F. 
Call,  Oct.  9,  1870;  June  6,  1871;  May  31,  1872;  Feb.  3,  1873;  Salinas  Dem., 
Feb.  7,  1874;  Antioch  Ledger,  March  28,  1874.  S.  Jose  Mercury,  Sept.  22,  1883, 
describes  the  pampas  plume  industry  at  Sta  Barbara;  Alta  Cal.,  May  11,  1863, 
comments  on  teasel,  and  Sac.  Union,  July  30,  1855,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  31, 
1865,  S.  F.  Times,  March  9,  1869,  give  accounts  of  broom-corn  fields,  which 
in  1874  yielded  191,600  Ibs.,  chiefly  in  Sutter  county.  Besides  flaxseed  the 
castor-bean  is  cultivated  for  oil.  Los  Angeles  having  in  1879  fully  350  acres, 
yielding  525,000  Ibs.  Los  Ang.  Hist.,  62;  Sutler  Co.  Hist.,  84;  S.  F.  Times, 
March  23,  1867;  Cal  Farmer,  Oct.  27,  1870;  S.  J.  Mercury,  Dec.  25,  1879. 
The  sunflower  is  grown  to  a  limited  extent.  S.  F.  Alta,  Oct.  20,  1858,  illus- 
trates its  flourishing  condition.  Los  Angeles  grows  canary-seed,  and  the 
soap-plant  or  amole,  chlorogalum  pomeridianum,  is  gathered  for  its  fibre. 


32          CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

its  beginning  in  the  experiments  of  L.  Prevost  at  San 
Jose,  in  1853.  The  favorable  reports  from  France 
upon  his  products  lent  confirmation  to  the  claim  that 
the  state  was  well  adapted  for  sericulture.  The  equa- 
ble climate  was  free  from  the  storms  and  cold  which  in- 
terfered with  the  growth  and  quality  of  the  mulberry- 
tree  and  silk  in  Europe,  and  gave  rise  to  destructive 
diseases  among  the  worms.  Trees  here  acquired  in 
three  years  a  growth  equivalent  to  that  of  five  years 
in  Europe,  produced  more  and  superior  leaves,  and 
showed  such  power  of  recuperation  as  to  permit  the 
pruning  of  entire  branches  for  feeding,  keeping  the 
leaves  fresher  and  cleaner,  and  affording  the  worm  a 
more  spacious  field,  while  preventing  the  waste  of 
leaves,  and  enabling  one  person  to  do  the  work  of  six. 
Two  crops  could  be  raised  if  required,  with  an  average 
yield  for  each  cocoon  of  400  yards  of  silk,  more  than 
one  eighth  above  the  yield  in  Europe.  Impressed  by 
these  advantages,  the  state  was  rashly  induced  in  18G6 
to  offer  heavy  premiums  without  due  restrictions; 
whereupon  a  host  of  speculators  entered  the  field, 
intent  only  upon  planting  by  any  makeshift  process 
a  sufficient  number  of  trees,  and  raising  inferior  Japan- 
ese bivoltines  and  trivoltines,  till  immature  trees  and 
diseased  cocoons  multiplied  into  the  millions,  with  a 
prospect  of  swamping  the  state  treasury.  The  alarmed 
legislature  hastened  to  reform  the  premium  act,  and 
the  governor  very  properly  refused  to  pay  claims  for 
worthless  productions.  The  bubble  burst  with  a 
heavy  loss  to  those  concerned.  No  market  having  as 
yet  been  opened  for  the  proportion  of  good  ware,  the 
enterprise  received  a  further  check.  In  1880  it  was 
revived  by  some  philanthropic  women  to  build  up  a 
congenial  occupation  for  their  sex,  for  the  prospects 
had  again  brightened  under  the  efforts  of  a  few  stanch 
sericulturists,  who,  by  selecting  superior  trees  and 
annual  cocoons,  were  gradually  finding  a  market  for 
their  silk.  The  culture  by  1888  was  developing  on  a 
sound  basis,  stimulated  by  the  wide  margin  for  profit 


TOBACCO.  33 

held  out  by  the  import  duty  on  silk  fabrics,  and  by 
the  undeniable  advantages  of  the  climate  as  an  offset 
to  higher  wages  and  other  obstacles.9 

9  In  addition  to  the  advantages  already  mentioned,  the  comparative  cheap- 
ness of  land  must  be  considered,  which  permits  trees  to  be  more  readily  given 
their  due  space,  two-year-old  shoots  thriving  best  when  standing  from  1  to  2  feet 
apart  in  rows  3  to  4  feet  apart.  Two  crops  of  cocoons  can  be  raised  in  May 
and  July  without  need  for  kilns  to  kill  the  insect,  although  the  annual  is 

f  referable,  and  even  those  yield  an  average  of  400  yards  of  silk  each,  or  £  to 
more  than  in  Europe.  Details  in  Prevost,  Mem.  Silk  Culture,  1868;  Silk- 
growers  Manual  of  1882 ;  Pioneer  Silk-growers'  Rept;  Neumanns  Mem.,  in  Cal. 
Jour.  Sen.,  1867-8,  ap.  24,  76,  84,  ii.-iii.;  1869-70,  ap.  105,  iii.;  Cal.  St.  Ac/ric. 
Soc.,  Trans.,  1864,  pp.  256,  289;  1866,  pp.  469-81.  Assisted  by  the  Swiss 
banker,  H.  Hentsch,  of  S.  F.,  Prevost,  a  French  nurseryman  of  San  Jose  had 
in  1853-4  planted  mulberry  seed  and  sent  twice  to  China  for  eggs.  Both  con- 
signments were  spoiled  or  sent  in  unfertilized  condition  by  the  suspicious 
Orientals,  and  Prevost  in  his  disappointment  destroyed  a  part  of  his  25,000 
trees.  Hentsch,  in  1859,  obtained  eggs  from  France  which  produced  the 
most  encouraging  results,  notwithstanding  the  drawbacks  attending  a  first 
experiment.  The  cocoons  were  in  France  declared  to  be  of  superior  quality, 
and  several  orders  came  for  eggs,  also  from  Italy  and  Mexico.  Prevost  con- 
tinued his  efforts,  and  pointed  out  zealously  the  advantages  for  silk  culture. 
He  obtained  several  small  premiums  at  the  fairs,  and  in  1862  the  state  offered 
a  bounty  of  $2,000  for  the  first  ten  bales  of  raw  silk,  100  Ibs.  each.  Cal.  Stat., 
1862,  p.  416.  Herein  could  lie  no  inducement  for  beginners,  and  so  in  1866 
the  legislature  rushed  to  the  extreme  of  offering  for  4  years  a  premium  of  $250 
for  each  plantation  of  5,000  trees  two  years  old,  and  $300  for  each  1,000  cocoons. 
Id.,  1865-6,  p.  660.  Such  liberality,  without  restrictions  as  to  method,  qual- 
ity of  tree  or  silk,  when  cocoons  brought  only  some  $2  per  1,000  in  the  mar- 
ket, brought  into  the  field  a  number  of  speculators,  who,  regardless  of  the 
future  or  for  the  requirements  of  real  plantations,  sought  to  win  the  bounty 
by  the  readiest  and  cheapest  means.  The  morus  multicaulis  were  planted  in 
nursery  rows  by  the  thousands,  on  a  space  suitable  only  for  a  hundred,  and 
the  best  annual  worms  were  discarded  for  the  inferior  Japanese  bivoltines  and 
trivoltines,  which  produced  several  times  more  cocoons.  Trees  rose  by  the 
hundred  thousand,  and  in  1868  over  1,000,000  cocoons  appeared,  with  the  sure 
prospect  of  treble  the  quantity  in  1869,  and  quadruple  this  number  for  1870. 
Legislators  then  demanded  the  repeal  of  the  act  to  save  the  state  from  bank- 
ruptcy, but  were  induced  in  1868  by  the  Pioneer  Silk  Growers'  and  Manuf. 
Assoc. ,  then  formed,  to  issue  a  modified  offer,  whereby  the  prize  of  §250  was 
limited,  once  to  each  person,  for  properly  laid  out  plantations,  and  $300  prize 
for  100,000  cocoons.  Cal.  Stat.,  1867-8,  p.  699.  Concerning  the  spread  of  the 
culture,  see  Cal.  St.  Agric.  Soc.,  Tram.,  and  county  histories  for  Los  Angeles, 
Contra  Costa,  Sta  Clara,  Yolo,  Nevada.  West  Store  Gaz.,  1867,  p.  106-9,  and 
notices  on  state  and  county  fairs  in  1867-71  in  the  journals.  With  unmethodic 
culture,  cocooneries  in  unwholesome  situations,  and  worms  mismanaged,  dis- 
ease broke  out,  worms  died  in  large  numbers,  eggs  became  infected  and  cocoons 
worthless.  In  addition,  the  governor,  sustained  by  the  courts,  refused  to  pay 
bounties  under  either  act  for  the  unmerchantable  ware,  and  the  disappointed 
speculators  retired  with  losses  entering  into  the  hundred  thousand.  Oovernor'ts 
Message,  1869-70,  p.  53.  Sup.  court  opinion  in  38  Cal.  291.  The  legislature 
was  sufficiently  startled  by  the  stormy  claimants  to  repeal  the  act.  Cal.  Stat., 
1869-70,  p.  79;  Id.,  Jour.  Sen.,  55-6,  ap.  6,  p.  6.  In  addition  to  this,  the 
Franco-German  war  intervened  to  cut  off  the  only  market,  leaving  a  largS 
supply  of  cocoons  and  eggs  upon  the  hands  of  producers.  This  caused  the 
abandonment  of  many  excellent  plantations,  so  that  only  a  limited  number 
were  left.  Even  the  pioneer  association  lost  interest,  of  which  I.  N.  Hoag  of 
Sac.  had  been  the  sustaining  pillar.  The  depressed  condition  of  labor  in  the 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  3 


34  CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

The  sericultural  bubble  was  followed  by  an  equally 
costly,  though  less  wide-spread  fiasco  in  tobacco.  Its 
cultivation  had  early  commended  itself  to  inwandering 
southerners,  but  the  dry  climate  was  found  to  be  de- 
trimental to  the  quality.  J.  D.  Gulp  sought  a  remedy 
for  the  defect  in  a  patent  process  for  curing  the  leaf 
which  was  claimed  by  the  inventor  to  be  economic  as 
well  as  improving  to  the  flavor.  A  company  undertook 
in  1872  to  carry  out  the  idea  on  a  large  scale  without 
due  preliminary  experiments.  The  process  proved 
less  satisfactory  than  expected,  and  reckless  manage- 
ment assisted  to  bring  about  failure  and  discourage- 
ment, so  that  production  fell  from  1,240,000  pounds 
in  1874  to  73,000  in  1879,  yet  not  without  the  pros- 
pect of  a  gradual  revival  under  growing  experience.10 

latter  part  of  the  seventies  led  Mrs  T.  Hittell  in  1880  to  organize  the  Silk  Cul- 
ture Association,  and  to  give  fresh  impulse  to  the  industry,  especially  among 
women.  Within  a  brief  period  more  than  half  of  the  counties  in  the  state 
gave  evidence  of  participation  on  a  small  scale,  the  state  created  a  board  of 
silk  culture,  with  an  appropriation  of  $5,000  toward  establishing  a  filature. 
A  school  was  established,  in  which  young  women  were  taught  reeling  and 
other  arts,  and  two  factories  arranged  to  offer  them  employment.  Greater 
attention  is  given  to  cultivating  the  superior  morus  alba  tree  for  annual 
cocoons,  so  that  the  Cal.  silk  by  1888  was  rising  in  favor,  and  the  prospects 
for  an  expansion  of  the  industry  was  promising.  Hoag  states  that  in  1868  he 
.  cleared  $3,920  from  3|  acres,  while  the  expense  amounted  to  only  $472.  The 
receipts  came  mainly  from  eggs  sold  at  $4  per  ounce.  He  calculated  that  even 
the  low  Japanese  silk  would  at  $7  per  Ib.  yield  $4,480  per  acre,  less  an  expense 
of  $2,140,  of  which  $800  was  for  cultivating  land  and  feeding,  $50  for  rent  of 
land  and  cocoonery,  and  $1,280  for  reeling  640  Ibs.  of  silk  by  girls  or  China- 
men at  $1  a  day.  A  yard  of  silk  dress  goods  weighing  3  ounces  costs  the 
European  manufacturer  $2.15;  import  duty  and  freight  brings  the  price  in 
S.  F.  to  over  $4,  leaving  a  wide  margin  for  higher  wages.  Cal.  St.  Agric. 
Soc.,  Trans.,  1866,  p.  452;  1868-9,  p.  251-6.  The  California  Silk-growers' 
Manual,  14  et  seq.,  states  that  5  acres  may  be  safely  calculated  to  yield  4,000 
Ibs.  of  cocoons,  worth  $1,400,  and  that  the  profit  cannot  fall  below  $425.  For 
extent  of  culture  and  methods,  see,  further,  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  1,  1884;  S.  F. 
Call,  Apr.  21,  1883;  Nov.  9,  Dec.  9,  1884;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  20,  1882;  S.  F. 
C/iron.,  Feb.  8,  June  4,  1881;  Cal.  Res.,  March  1881;  Cronise  Cal.,  393-5;  Cal 
Farmer,  Dec.  9,  1868;  Sept.  16,  1869;  May  19,  1870,  etc.  See  also  under 
manufactures,  this  history. 

19  As  early  as  1854  a  number  of  planters  were  raising  the  leaf.  The  rise 
in  prices  with  the  outbreak  of  the  union  war  in  1861  gave  a  stimulus  which 
blinded  farmers  to  the  mediocrity  of  results  so  far,  and  opened  a  large  area 
to  the  plant,  notably  in  the  Napa  and  Russian  River  regions.  See  county 
histories  for  Mendocino,  Butte,  Sta  Barbara,  Los  Angeles;  Alia  Cal.,  June  3, 
1854;  Oct.  28,  1857;  Feb.  7,  1859;  March  11,  July  17,  Sept.  22,  1861;  Aug. 
2,  20,  1862;  Feb.  14-15,  May,  3,  June  22,  1863;  Jan.  2,  March  13,  1872; 
Sept.  7,  1873,  etc.;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  22,  Apr.  3,  May  18,  June  6,  Sept.  13, 
Oct.  31,  1855;  Feb.  13,  1856;  Apr.  22,  1858;  Nov.  12,  1861;  Sept.  17,  1863, 
etc.  Unfortunately  the  dryness  of  the  climate  proved  detrimental  to  the 


SUGAR  AND  TEA.  35 

Experiments  have  been  and  continue  to  be  made 
•with  different  plants,  chiefly  by  model  farmers,  and 
in  course  of  time  additional  sources  of  profit  will  no 
doubt  be  revealed,  although  there  is  so  far  a  sufficient 
number  of  incipient  productions  to  tempt  a  wide  ex- 
pansion. The  mustard-plant,  which  is  a  veritable 
pest  to  wheat-fields  in  many  directions,  has  become 
valued  for  its  spice  as  well  as  oil;11  and  for  hops  the 
climate  has  been  found  exceptionably  favorable  in  its 

quality,  and  the  decline  in  prices  added  to  the  discouragement.  A  decade 
later  J.  D.  Gulp  obtained  patents  for  his  improved  curing  process,  consisting 
of  alternately  piling  the  plant  for  fermentation  and  drying  it  in  horizontal 
position  in  close,  heated  buildings,  an  operation  of  3  to  6  weeks,  followed  by 
a  six  months'  stacking  in  bulk.  He  claimed  that  this  method  not  only  over- 
came the  climatic  difficulties,  but  obviated  the  damage  inflicted  by  the  vari- 
able eastern  weather,  and  imparted  a  superior  and  uniform  quality  to  the  leaf, 
diminishing  the  expense  of  curing  it  and  saving  more  tobacco.  So  promising 
was  the  showing  that  the  American  Tobacco  Co.,  incorporated  in  1872  to 
wield  the  patents,  planted  in  the  following  year  some  400  acres,  and  prepared 
to  extend  the  plantation  to  1,000  acres,  besides  stimulating  a  large  cultiva- 
tion in  other  counties.  The  production  for  1874  was  reported  at  800,000 
Ibs.  in  Sta  Clara  and  San  Beuito,  in  addition  to  more  than  100,000  Ibs. 
each  in  Los  Angeles  and  Alameda,  70,000  Ibs.  each  in  Sta  Cruz  and  Sta 
Barbara,  60,000  in  Lake,  and  40,000  in  S.  Mateo,  total  1,240,000  Ibs.  Cal. 
Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1874,  p.  287.  But  the  management  was  bad,  the  pro- 
cess failed  to  work  so  well  as  expected,  and  the  company  proved  a  disastrous 
failure.  The  experience  served,  however,  to  guide  the  prudent  survivors  of 
the  tobacco  excitement.  The  acreage  for  1879  had  fallen  to  84  with  a  yield 
of  73,300  Ibs.,  of  64  acres  with  59,000  being  in  S.  Benito,  10  acres  with  8,200 
Ibs.  in  Los  Angeles,  and  1  or  2  acres  in  several  other  counties,  chiefly  on  the 
northern  coast,  yet  the  prospects  in  1888  were  deemed  good  for  a  steady 
growth  of  the  industry,  as  shown  also  by  the  increasing  production,  from 
1,000  Ibs.  in  1850,  and  3,150  Ibs.  in  1860,  to  63,800  Ibs.  in  1870.  Details  of 
progress  and  method  in  S.  F.  Call,  Nov.  24,  Dec.  2,  1868;  Apr.  21,  June  29, 
1871;  Sept.  7,  1872;  Jan.  20,  July  17,  Aug.  6,  23,  1873;  Aug.  18,  Oct.  12, 
1874,  etc;  Stockton  Indep.,  Apr.  19,  1879;  Ukiah  Dem.,  Sept.  21,  1878;  Shasta 
Conner,  Sept.  14,  1878;  Sta  Barb.  Press,  March  11,  1876;  Antioch  Ledger, 
Nov.  14,  1874;  S.  Benito  Advo.;  Salinas  Dem.,  June  20,  1874;  Com.  Herald, 
Sept.  10,  1867;  Sept.  10,  1874;  Scient.  Press,  Oct.  1,  1870;  March  23,  1872; 
Dec.  11,  1875.  It  is  pointed  out  that  the  plant  grows  wild  in  Tehama,  S. 
F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  8,  1859,  and  that  the  long  seasons  permit  4  crops  of  cigar 
and  2  of  chewing  tobacco. 

11  S.  F.  Call,  Sept.  21,  1865;  Dec.  10,  1868,  etc.;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  24, 
1865.  Nutmeg-trees,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Aug.  25,  1859;  March  16,  1869;  Sac. 
Union  recommended  June  18,  1869.  Red  pepper  grows  in  Los  Angeles. 
Concerning  peppermint,  see  S.  J.  Herald,  March  12,  1877.  Camphor,  S.  F. 
Alta,  Apr.  2,  1859.  Sumach  is  found  wild  in  S.  Diego,  and  its  cultivation 
has  been  tried  in  Sta  Clara.  Alameda  Endnal,  July  20,  1878.  Chikcot,  or 
Giant  Bitter  Root,  is  treated  of  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  July  17,  1865.  Opium  cul- 
ture in  Id.,  Dec.  1,  1879;  Sta  Rosa  Times,  Dec.  17,  1879;  Alta  Cal,  Aug.  13, 
1871-  Insect  powder.  Pr.  Dent.  Zeitung,  July  13,  1878;  Jackson  Ledger,  July 
21,  1877.  Indigo  and  cochineal  prospects  in  Alta  Cal.,  May  1,  1856;  Sept.  7, 
1859;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  27,  1859;  Scient.  Press,  May  6,  1871.  These  and 
other  odd  cultures  are  considered  especially  in  the  Rural  Press;  Cal.  Agric. 
Soc.,  Trans.;  Commerce  and  Industries,  and  in  numerous  other  places. 


36  CEREALS  AND  OTHER  PRODUCTS. 

freedom  from  summer  rains  and  heavy  dews  and  fogs, 
which  produce  the  destructive  blights  and  wash  away 
the  strength  of  the  flower.  The  result  is  surer  and 
superior  crops,  as  well  as  safer  and  easier  means  for 
curing  them,  than  in  the  eastern  states.  The  cul- 
tivation has  developed  since  the  fifties,  yielding  by 
1880  a  million  and  a  half  of  pounds,  with  the  prospect 
of  a  large  increase.12 

Several  materials  have  been  tested  for  sugar-mak- 
ing, among  them  grapes  and  melons,  which  proved  as 
unsuccessful,  from  an  economic  point  of  view,  as  the 
sugar-cane,  of  which  only  a  small  quantity  is  raised 
in  the  south  for  chewing ;  sorghum  is  reserved  for 
fodder.  Sugar-beet  has  alone  been  found  to  answer, 
and  sufficiently  so  to  encourage  a  larger  cultivation  of 
it,  with  a  marked  increase  in  sweetness  that  places  it 
far  above  European  beets.13 

12  By  low  trailing  the  roots  are  sheltered  from  excessive  heat,  and  three 
years  suffice  for  attaining  the  maturity  elsewhere  requiring  five  or  six.     An 
extraordinary  proportion  of  the  valued  lupuline  is  here  obtained,  and  the 
fresh  green  color  is  well  preserved.     A  St  Helena  crop  took  the  premium  at 
the  Centennial  Exposition  in  1876.  NapaCo.  Hist.,  11.     The  total  yield  in 
1879  was  1,444,000  Ibs.  from  1,119  acres.     Sacramento  leading  with  684,500 
Ibs.  from  402  acres,  followed  by  Mendocino  with  229,600  Ibs.  from  279  acres, 
and  Napa,  S.  Joaquin,  and  Alameda  with  from  99,000  to  73,000  Ibs.    The  census 
of  1870  reported  625,000  Ibs.,  and  that  of  1860  only  80  Ibs.,  showing  a  rapid 
increase.    For  reports  on  development  and  methods,  see  Pac.  Rural  Press,  May 
8,  1875;  Jan.  6,  June  2,  1877;  July  6,  1878;  Napa  Reg.,  July  10-13,   1878; 
Anaheim  Gaz.,  March  10,  June  9,  July  14,  1877;  Merced  Argus,  Oct.  12,  1878; 
Sac.   Union  of  Dec.  11,   1855,  Jan.   1,   1884,  records  attempts;  also  July  11, 
Nov.  14,  1863;  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.   15,  1859;  S.  F.  Times,  Feb.  12,  June  30, 
1868;  Aug.  12,  1369;  S.  F.  Call,  June  6,  Sept.  22,  1871;  Aug.  17, 1874;  March 

15,  1882;  St  Helena  Star,  Sept.  29,  1876;  Aug.  3,  1877;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr. 

16,  1884. 

13  Chinese  sugar-cane  has  been  cultivated  in  Los  Angeles  since  1854,  and 
syrup  made,,  but  not  successfully  enough.     The  U.  S.  Census  mentions,  how- 
ever, for  1879,  2,459  gallons  of  sorghum  molasses,  mostly  in  Kern  and  Tulare. 
Sutler  Co.   Hist.,   84 — culture  abandoned  lately.     Sugar-beet  has  alone  an- 
swered.    During  the  greater  part  of  the  last  decade  the  only  mill  in  opera- 
tion for  the  manufacture  of  beet  sugar  was  at  Alvarado.     Besides  paying  $4.50 
a  ton  for  beets,  it  offered  premiums  for  beet  culture.     In  1887  a  large  refinery 
was  built  at  Watsonville,  and  has  thus  far  met  with  fair  success.     See,  fur- 
ther, under  manufactures;  Los  Any.  Co.  Hist.,  62;  Com.  and  Ind.,  540;  Cal. 
Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1868-9,  272-302;  1873,  323-444;  Sac.  Union,  March  25, 
Oct.  16.  1857;  Dec.  31,  1870;  Kern  Co.  Cal.,  Jan.  8,  1880;  S.  F.  Call,  Dec.  23, 
1868;  Jan.  21,  1870;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Dec.  29,  1889. 

A3  one  who  has  done  much  to  develop  the  agricultural  and  other  interests 
of  Los  Angeles  co.  and  of  southern  California  should  be  mentioned  James  Boon 


PROMINENT  AGRICULTURISTS.  37 

Lankershim,  who  came  to  San  Francisco  in  1 860,  and  after  graduating  at  the 
high  school,  began  farming  in  connection  with  his  father,  first  in  Fresno  and 
then  in  San  Uiego  co.  In  1873  he  removed  to  Los  Angeles,  where  he  was  the 
first  one  to  engage  extensively  in  wheat-raising,  and  to  prove  that  such  farm- 
ing was  profitable.  He  helped  to  build  the  first  flouring  mill  in  Los  Angeles, 
and  to  organize  the  Lankershim  Land  and  Water  company,  12,000  acres  of 
whose  domain  were  sold  in  small  tracts  for  colonization  purposes.  A  director 
of  the  Farmers'  and  Merchants'  bank,  the  Los  Angeles  Savings  bank,  and  many 
other  prominent  institutions,  he  is  known  as  one  of  the  most  public-spirited 
men  in  this  portion  of  the  state. 

Daniel  Freeman,  a  native  of  Ontario,  Canada,  who,  after  practising  for 
some  years  as  a  barrister,  came  to  this  coast  in  1873,  was  also  among  the  first 
in  Los  Angeles  co.  who  engaged  largely  in  farming.  Leasing  and  afterward 
purchasing  from  a  Scotch  baronet  the  Centinela  ranch,  containing  more  than 
25,000  acres,  he  began  raising  cereals  in  1877;  in  1884  his  crop  was  about 
1,000,000  bushels.  Two  years  later  he  sold  one  half  of  this  estate  for  $25  an 
acre,  and  in  1887  most  of  the  remainder  for  $125  an  acre,  with  two  fifths  of 
the  profits  made  by  its  sale  and  subdivision.  Here  the  town  of  Inglewood 
has  since  been  laid  out  by  the  purchasing  company. 

Probably  the  largest  farmer  and  land-owner  in  Tehama  county  is  Joseph 
S.  Cone,  on  whose  ranch  of  nearly  100,000  acres  in  the  neighborhood  of  Red 
Bluff  the  average  crop  of  wheat  is  125,000  bushels,  and  of  wool  275,000 
pounds,  in  addition  to  a  large  amount  of  citrus  and  other  fruits.  A  native  of 
Marietta,  0.,  and  of  noble  lineage,  Mr  Cone  came  across  the  plains  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1850,  and  after  engaging  in  various  occupations,  in  1860  began 
stock-raising  on  Alder  creek.  His  present  estate  he  purchased,  as  opportu- 
nity offered,  for  $50,000.  In  1876,  in  conjunction  with  Charles  Cadwallader, 
he  established  the  bank  of  Tehama  co.,  one  of  the  most  successful  in  the  state, 
and  of  which  he  is  vice-president.  He  is  also  at  the  head  of  the  large  mer- 
cantile firm  of  Cone,  Kimball,  &  Co.  As  one  of  the  railroad  commissioners 
selected  under  the  new  constitution,  he  rendered  most  faithful  and  efficient 
service. 

One  of  the  most  successful  among  those  who  adopted  the  cooperative  sys- 
tem of  farming  was  the  late  Wm  F.  Downing,  who  at  his  decease  in  1887 
ranked  among  the  wealthiest  men  in  the  Santa  Clara  valley.  From  his  birth- 
place at  Newark,  Mo. ,  where  he  worked  on  his  father's  farm  until  the  age  of 
twenty-one,  he  started  in  1859  for  Pike's  peak,  Col.,  and  some  two  years  later 
came  to  Cal. ,  where,  after  engaging  in  various  occupations,  he  began  farming 
and  stock-raising  in  Santa  Clara  co. 

Worthy  of  mention  among  the  leading  farmers  of  northern  Cal.  is  Neu- 
schwander  D.  Julien,  a  native  of  the  Canton  de  Vaud  in  Switzerland,  who 
came  to  this  coast  in  1849,  and  after  engaging  in  store -keeping,  hotel-keeping, 
and  cattle-dealing,  began  farming  and  fruit-raising  in  Siskiyou  co.  He  is 
also  connected  with  the  bank  of  Yreka,  in  which  he  holds  a  one-fifth  interest. 


CHAPTER   III. 

FRUIT-GROWING  AND  GRAPES. 
1769-1889. 

CERES  AND  POMONA — ITALY  EXCELLED — COMPARATIVE  YIELD — FRUIT  SEASON 
AND  FLAVOR — PRODUCTS  AND  PESTS — DRYING  AND  CANNING — SHIPPING 
— FARM  ORCHARDS — APPLES — CITRUS  FRUITS — THE  ORANGE — PEARS — 
COST  OF  CULTIVATION — SCALE  INFLICTION — FIGS — ALMONDS  AND  OTHER 
NUTS — THE  OLIVE — BERRIES — THE  GRAPE — WINE-MAKING — RAISINS — 
FLOWERS  AND  FOREST  TREES. 

FRUIT  culture  and  the  vine  are  the  rising  industries 
of  California,  and  although  Ceres  may  retain  control 
over  the  large  areas,  Pomona  will  count  under  her 
sway  a  greater  number  of  subjects,  with  votaries  of 
high  intelligence  and  prosperity,  who  shall  vest  in  this 
Italy  of  America  the  choicest  treasures  of  southern 
Europe. 

Few  countries  can  display  so  great  a  variety  of  ex- 
cellent fruit,  some  of  which,  like  the  grape  and  pear, 
seem  to  have  found  here  their  best  development,  while 
others,  as  the  apricot,  olive,  and  fig  thrive  nowhere 
better  throughout  the  United  States.  The  loose 
soil  and  sunny  climate  combine  to  give  the  trees  and 
shrubs  a  strong  and  rapid  growth,  with  early  bearing 
arid  large  and  abundant  fruit.  As  compared  with  the 
eastern  states,  the  yield  is  about  double,  and  trees 
begin  bearing  at  half  the  age.  Vines  and  many  other 
plants  yield  about  twice  the  quantity  of  fruit  obtained 
in  Europe,  and  for  product  as  well  as  size  our  or- 
chards excel.  Cherries  are  in  the  market  from  May 
to  October;  strawberries  nearly  all  the  year,  in  the 

(38) 


PICKING  AND  PACKING.  39 

south.  Indeed,  fruit-picking  never  ceases,  for  the 
citrus  season  covers  all  the  months  when  other  or- 
chards sleep.  Owing  to  the  equable  temperature, 
failures  of  crops  are  rare,  and  partial  at  the  most,  and 
pests  are  comparatively  few  and  mild  in  their  ravages, 
particularly  under  the  remedial  measures  favored  by 
climate,  irrigation,  low  training  of  trees  and  shrubs, 
and  other  methods.  There  is  also  the  advantage  that 
fruit  may  be  left  upon  the  trees  long  after  maturity. 
The  principal  drawback  lies  in  the  inferior  flavor  of  our 
apples,  peaches,  and  strawberries,  but  other  fruits  com- 
pare well  with  foreign  varieties,  some,  as  the  pear, 
being  unsurpassed,  under  the  improvements  effected 
within  recent  years. 

The  state  has  experienced  several  excitements  in 
horticulture,  first  in  the  products  of  colder  climates, 
then  for  vines  and  oranges,  with  relapses  due  to  rash 
selections  of  seedlings  and  soil,  inexperience  in  methods, 
and  overstocked  markets;  but  the  revivals  have  been 
strengthened  by  each  ordeal.  Of  late  years  better 
facilities  are  offered  by  the  railways  for  transporting 
fresh  fruit  eastward,  and  canneries  assist  in  opening 
wider  outlets.  Their  business  has  steadily  augmented, 
from  4,500,000  cans  in  1875  to  more  than  11,000,000 
two-and-a-half-pound  cans  in  1881,  including  4,700,000 
cans  of  vegetables.  The  climate  gives  the  advantage 
that  raisins,  figs,  and  prunes  can  be  safely  and  cheaply 
dried  in  the  sun,  although  fruit  requiring  slicing  de- 
mands kilns  and  other  means  to  protect  it  from  dust, 
insect,  and  the  like.1 

1  The  Hispano-Californians  planted  numerous  orchards  in  the  south,  espe- 
cially with  semi-tropic  fruit  and  pears,  as  shown  in  my  preceding  volumes, 
but  mostly  of  an  inferior  kind,  and  which  deteriorated  by  neglect.  North 
of  the  bay  Russians  had  planted  a  few  slips,  and  in  the  third  decade  the  mis- 
sionaries followed  the  example,  providing  also  means  for  succeeding  American 
settlers  to  do  likewise.  Sacramento  had  an  irrigated  orchard  in  1849.  Placer 
and  counties  farther  north  began  to  plant  in  1846-8;  Trinity  had  fruit-trees 
in  1853,  and  Siskiyou  about  the  same  time;  Coloma  became  famous  for  certain 
fruits.  See  county  histories  for  Sac.  districts  and  northward.  American 
garden  seeds  and  apple  slips  were  brought  from  Oregon  in  1849.  Or.  Specta- 
tor, Apr.  29,  1849,  Pac.  News,  May  27,  1850,  and  Sac.  Transc.,  i.  no,  5,  refer 
to  scarcity  of  fruit,  and  urge  planting,  fl.  Lewelling  of  N.  Carolina  carried 
seedlings  to  Oregon  in  1847,  and  his  brother  John  took  a  selection  from  him 


40  FRUIT-GROWING  AND  GRAPES. 

The   predilection   of  Anglo-Saxons   for   apples   is 
marked  by  the  great  predominance  of  this  fruit  in  the 

to  Cal.  in  1851,  establishing  an  orchard  at  S.  Lorenzo,  from  which  locality 
seeds  were  later  sent  to  many  foreign  countries.  Kilburn  of  Napa  had  a  peach 
orchard  in  1852,  the  trees  having  come  by  sea  from  the  east.  Bartletfa  Nar.t 
ii.  14-25.  Greeley,  Journey,  328,  is  enthusiastic  over  Cal.  fruits.  All  during 
the  fifties  orchard-planting  kept  pace  with  the  spread  of  settlement,  but 
the  cost  and  difficulty  of  obtaining  good  seed,  and  the  inexperience  with 
regard  to  soil  and  irrigation,  led  to  numerous  failures.  In  the  sixties  came  the 
grape  excitement;  and  this  resulting  through  similar  causes  in  more  disappoint- 
ment than  success,  orchards  revived  in  favor,  and  with  more  discrimination, 
promoted  by  the  greater  choice  of  cheap  and  good  varieties,  and  vine-planting 
shared  subsequently  in  this  improvement.  L.  J.  Rose,  W.  Wolfskill  of  Ange- 
les, G.  G.  Briggs,  near  the  Yuba,  and  W.  Meek,  were  among  the  leading  orchard- 
ists  ia  1888.  Lord,  B.  C.  Nat,  230,  says  that  a  peach  orchard  of  200  acres 
near  Marysville  yielded  $80,030  for  the  year.  AUa  Cal,  June  21,  1858;  Hunt's 
May.,  xxxi.  129,  refer  to  another  large  orchard  of  early  days.  The  rapid 
recuperation  in  this  climate  encourages  the  replanting  of  inferior  orchards. 
For  the  supposed  counteraction  in  early  decay  there  seems  to  be  no  ground, 
for  the  old  mission  orchards  show  themselves  fully  as  enduring  as  the  eastern. 
As  for  growth,  there  are  instances  of  cherry-trees  attaining  to  a  height  of  14 
feet  in  one  year,  and  peach-tree  trunks  to  a  diameter  of  2  or  3  inches.  Vaca 
and  Pleasant  valleys  are  noted  for  early  spring  fruit.  Cherries  are  in  the 
market  from  the  middle  of  May  to  October,  yet  AUa  Cal.,  Jan.  30,  1869, 
alludes  to  ripe  cherries  in  Jan.;  Sac.  Union,  of  July  14,  1855,  boasts  of  ripe 
peaches  and  apples  early  in  July;  strawberries  grow  in  the  open  garden  in 
Dec.,  observes  £.  F  Call,  Dec.  18,  1SG8;  Id.,  Dec.  21,  1867;  Sac.  Union,  Oct. 
27,  1857;  Nov  19,  1859;  Oct.  9,  1861;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  6,  1856,  refer 
glowingly  to  second  crops  of  pears  and  apples.  The  second  crop  from  vines 
is  discouraged  as  injurious  to  the  quality.  The  Sta  Barbara  region  failed  to 
respond  to  efforts  for  raising  early  fruit.  Sta  Barb.  Co.  Hist.,  131,  398-9. 
Instances  of  large  fruit  exist  in  pears  of  3$  Ibs.,  cherries  3  inches  in  circum- 
ference, and  strawberries  1^  ounces  in  weight.  The  state  in  1888  was  prac- 
tically free  from  the  curcubio  pest;  plums  suffered  but  little  from  the 
aphis,  and  apples  from  borers,  only  during  the  first  year;  yet  since  1877  the 
codling  worm  has  become  troublesome;  in  some  parts  bugs  and  bees  attack 
the  apricot,  peach  is  becoming  more  subject  to  the  curled-leaf  disease,  and 
the  scale  frightened  orange  growers  a  while;  but  these  troubles  are  not  exten- 
sive, and  remedies  have  been  found  for  checking  several  of  them.  By  train- 
ing trees  low,  with  the  lower  limbs  one  or  two  feet  from  the  ground,  the 
trunk  is  protected  against  sun-scald,  and  the  roots  are  kept  moist,  the  effect 
of  winds  being  also  lessened.  As  a  further  protection  against  sun  and  wind, 
trees  are  planted  nearer  together  than  in  the  east,  without  diminishing  their 
productiveness;  the  intervening  space  is  seldom  used  for  cultivation.  Fruit 
can  be  left  on  the  trees  long  after  maturity  without  risk,  the  citrus  for  over 
half  a  year.  The  outlet  for  this  growing  interest  lies  partly  through  the  over- 
land railway,  with  its  improving  arrangements  for  special  cars  and  speedy 
transmission,  favored  by  the  early  maturity  of  fruits  here.  Cal.  shippers  can 
with  proper  precautions  be  assured  of  fair  profits.  Freight  trains,  occupying 
18  to  21  days  in  the  journey  to  N.  York,  charged  about  $2.50  per  ICO  Ibs. 
early  in  the  eighties;  passenger  trains,  occupying  8  days,  charged  double. 
The  shipments  have  largely  increased  during  the  last  15  years.  The  chief 
outlet,  however,  is  provided  by  means  of  drying,  canning,  and  other  preserv- 
ing processes,  which  open  wider  markets  and  render  growers  less  dependent 
on  fluctuating  demands.  The  growing  favor  of  such  goods  attest  the  quality 
of  the  fruit.  Raisins,  figs,  and  prunes  are  cheaply  and  safely  dried  in  the 
sun,  but  for  fruit  that  requires  slicing,  and  would  suffer  from  dust  and  insects, 
kilns  and  other  means  are  used.  Several  special  fruit-drying  factories  have 


PEACH,  TEAR,  AND  ORANGE.  41 

farm  orchards,  exceeding  that  of  all  the  other  trees  of 
temperate  climes  combined.  The  peach  follows  with 
800,000;  yet  the  pear,  only  one  half  as  numerous,  is 
gaining  in  favor  as  the  best  among  this  class  of  fruit, 
led  by  the  famous  Bartlett,  which  is  finding  a  wide 
market  in  the  east.  Some  old  trees  bear  40  bushels 
annually.  Apricots  are  both  prolific  and  delicious, 
and  in  demand  eastward,  and  prunes  are  acquiring  a 
deserving  reputation,  the  crop  for  1889  being  esti- 
mated at  18,000,000  pounds.2 

been  started  to  this  end,  as  described  in  Nnpa  Kef].,  July  20,  1878;  Amador 
Ledyer,  July  12,  1877;  Hall's  Gal,  25;  Los  Any.  Hist.,  70,  157;  Sonora  Union 
Dem.,  Dec.  15,  1877;  March  23,  1878.  Different  driers  are  described  in 
Castrov.  Argus,  Feb.  28,  1878;  Monterey  Dem.,  May  18,  July  27,  1878;  Cala- 
veras  Citizen,  March  24,  Apr.  14,  1877;  S.  L.  Ob.  Tribune,  Nov.  19,  1879. 
Several  large  canneries  exist,  to  be  noticed  in  the  chapter  on  manufactures. 
In  the  stress  of  competition,  some  firms  have  resorted  to  inferior  fruit,  glu- 
cose, poor  tins,  and  low  weight,  to  the  injury  of  the  state.  Nevertheless  their 
production  has  steadily  increased  from  4,500,000  cans  of  2  Ibs.,  fruit  and 
vegetables,  in  1873,  to  over  11,000,000  2.]j-lb.  cans  in  1881,  the  latter  includ- 
ing 4,700,000  of  vegetables,  chiefly  tomatoes,  and  700,000  of  jams  and  jellies; 
S.  F.  furnished  8,OJO,000,  and  S  Jose  2,000,000.  The  price  in  1SS1  ranged 
between  $1.85  and  $2.50  per  dozen  cans  of  table  fruit;  one  third  less  for  pie- 
fruit.  Canneries  paid  in  1880  $40  to  $60  per  ton  for  pears,  plums,  and 
peaches,  $70  to  $80  for  apricots,  $100  to  §200  for  cherries.  Conventions  of 
fruit-growers,  as  instanced  in  S.  F.  Call,  Dec.  7,  18S1,  have  taken  steps  to 
check  frauds.  At  the  close  of  the  last  decade  California  was  estimated  to 
possess  2,400,000  apple-trees,  800,000  peach,  350,000  pear,  230,000  plum 
and  prune,  250,000  apricot,  130,000  cherry,  50,000  fig,  30,000  nectarine, 
140,000  lemon,  and  20J,000  oranges  in  bearing,  with  rapid  increase.  The 
value  of  orchard  products  for  1879  is  placed  by  the  U.  S.  Census  at ';  2, 01 7, 000, 
in  which  Sta  Clara  leads  with  ££28,000,  followed  by  Alameda  with  $210,000, 
Sac.  $179,000,  Sonoma  $169,000,  Los  Angeles  8123,000,  then  Solano,  El  Dorado, 
and  Napa,  with  from  $92,000  to  $82,000,  Placer  65,000,  Modoc  and  Mono 
standing  lowest.  For  detailed  information  on  fruit  culture,  I  refer  to  U.  S. 
Ar/ric.  Reports,  Col.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.;  Pac.  Rural  Press;  Cal.  Horticulturist; 
Hayes'  Afjr'tc.;  S.  Joaq.  Ayrir,.  Soc.,  Trans.;  Overland,  xi.  239;  Nordhojfs  Cal., 
166-73;  Cook's  Treatise  on  Fruit. 

2  Although  the  average  California  apple  is  inferior  in  flavor  and  for  keep- 
ing, the  different  climates  presented  by  lowland  and  foothill,  moist  and  windy 
coast  and  warm  valleys,  permit  many  excellent  varieties  to  be  grown,  even 
of  the  so-called  winter  apple.  Of  these,  the  Spitzenberg  and  Wine  Sap  flourish 
at  l.OOJ  to  3,000  feet  up  the  Sierra  Nevada  slope.  Ocher  kinds  are  named  in 
HittelFs  Ri:s.,  259-60.  For  size  and  beauty  they  are  unsurpassed  anywhere 
in  the  world;  the  Gloria  Mundi  attaining  to  20  ounces,  or  even  to  2^  Ibs. 
The  best  of  the  temperate  zone  fruits  is  the  pear,  for  size  and  delicacy  of 
flavor,  and  for  abundant  yield.  It  thrives  everywhere,  and  suffers  little  from 
pests,  except  the  codling  worm.  It  was  the  favorite  among  the  Mexicans, 
though  inferior  to  the  present  varieties.  At  S.  Jose  are  old  trees  which  pro- 
duce 2,500  Ibs.,  or  40  bushels,  annually.  The  Bartlett  flourishes  in  the  so- 
called  Bartlett  belt  of  the  Sac.  Valley  foothills,  also  in  Contra  Costa  county, 
and  has  netted  $300  per  acre.  Peaches  of  the  Sierra  foothills  equal  the  east- 
ern, surpassing  those  of  the  coast  and  along  the  Sac.  Barnes,  Or.,  MS.,  15, 
assumes  that  some  were  planted  in  Butte  in  1849.  Tykr's  BidwdVs  Bar,  MS., 


42  FRUIT-GROWING   AND  GRAPES 

The  orange  is  fast  outnumbering  the  preceding 
fruits  under  periodic  citrus  excitements,  and  the  im- 
proved arrangements  for  export.  The  fruit  thrives 
throughout  the  Sacramento  valley,  and  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  1,000  feet  it  here  ripens  earlier  than  in  Los 
Angeles,  the  centre  of  the  orange  region,  which  is  gen- 
erally assumed  to  be  south  of  35°  latitude.  The  crop 
for  1889  was  estimated  at  about  850,000  boxes,  and 
its  total  value  at  nearly  $1,500,000,  or  an  average  of 
$1.75  per  box.  The  lemon  and  lime  form  a  large  per- 
centage in  the  groves.  Irrigation  adds  to  the  ex- 
penses, so  that  the  care  of  an  orchard  for  five  years, 
or  until  bearing  begins,  may  be  placed  at  from  $400 
to  $500  per  acre.3 

The  fig  is  very  prolific,  and  flourishes  in  the  same 
zones,  but  the  black  Turkey,  which  so  far  forms  the 

6-7.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  1,  1858,  alludes  to  trees  bearing  nearly  a  ton  of 
peaches,  some  22  ounces  in  weight  and  over  a  foot  in  circumference.  Apri- 
cots, almost  unknown  in  the  east,  are  here  most  prolific  and  delicious, 
especially  in  warm  districts.  Quinces  are  increasing.  Cherries  are  widely 
grown  in  Alameda.  Plums  thrive  best  in  Sonoma  and  adjoining  valleys, 
where  prunes  are  produced  equal  to  all  but  the  very  choicest  French.  S.  Josi 
Mercury,  March  11,  1885,  comments  on  the  spread  of  the  fruit. 

3  Of  the  200,000  orange-trees  in  bearing  early  in  1880,  Los  Angeles  con- 
tained 193,000,  largely  at  S.  Gabriel  and  Riverside;  S.  Bernardino  had 
9,000,  S.  Diego  2,500,  and  Sonoma,  Sta  Clara,  and  Placer  somewhat  over  6,000 
together.  Placer  had  several  in  1860,  and  Solano  and  Butte  a  few.  See  their 
county  histories.  W.  Wolfskill  appears  to  have  been  the  first  foreigner  to 
imitate  the  early  missionaries  in  planting  the  citrus,  and  the  large  profits 
made  by  him  attracted  others,  L.  J.  Rose  being  the  only  large  grower,  how- 
ever. The  appearance  of  the  scale  pest  began  to  check  progress  as  early  as 
1857,  and  the  prospect  of  having  to  wait  half  a  dozen  years  before  the  first 
good  crop  could  be  obtained  was  not  encouraging.  Of  late,  however,  a  de- 
cided revival  has  taken  place  in  fruit  culture,  the  number  of  trees  by  1888 
entering  far  into  the  millions.  The  net  profits  in  former  times  reached  $500 
per  acre.  In  1882  shipments  were  made  to  the  east  at  $300  per  car-load. 
The  disadvantages  are  exposure  to  scale  bugs  and  gophers,  and  need  for  irri- 
gation, with  only  a  slight  demand  for  preserves.  But  with  increasing  railway 
facilities  wide  markets  are  waiting  in  the  east.  The  lemon  and  lime  form  a 
large  percentage  in  the  citrus  groves.  See  county  histories  for  Ventura,  Sta 
Bdrbara,  Butte,  and  above  all  Los  Angeles,  for  details;  Hayes'  Agric.,  and  other 
general  references  under  fruit.  A  valued  contribution  comes  from  Rose, 
Stat.,  MS.,  one  of  the  early  growers;  Gunnison's  Rambles,  159-78;  Contra  C. 
Gaz.,  of  Feb.  1863,  glows  over  the  first  open-air  product  in  its  vicinity. 
Napa  Reg.,  Dec.  14,  1878;  Calaveras  Citizen,  Apr.  20,  1877;  Id.,  Chron.,  Apr. 
14,  1877;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Feb.  16,  1885,  concerns  Butte;  Los  Ang.  Exp.,  Jan. 
10,  1880,  on  frost  damage.  Id.,  March  19,  1874,  alludes  to  the  discussion  con- 
cerning origin,  showing  that  S.  Gabriel  can  claim  only  the  first  large  grove, 
not  the  first  tree.  See  Overland,  xii.  235,  560;  and  Valkjo,  Doc.,  xxxvi.,  no. 
283. 


FIG  AND  OLIVE.  43 

staple,  is  not  in  favor  for  export,  and  varieties  such  as 
the  Smyrna  and  White  Adriatic  are  introduced  to 
improve  upon  it.4  Almonds  planted  in  Placer  county 
in  1846  took  the  premium  at  the  first  state  fair,  but 
in  parts  it  blooms  without  yielding  fruit.  Several 
other  varieties  of  nuts  are  grown,  from  walnuts  to 
peanuts.5  The  olive  is  a  promising  product,  for  which 
the  dry  and  otherwise  comparatively  worthless  hill 
lands  of  the  south  are  well  suited,  though  the  valley 
lands  are  better.  The  tree  is  exceedingly  healthy  and 
prolific,  free  from  the  pests  which,  along  the  Mediter- 
ranean, cause  failures  at  frequent  intervals,  although 
not  yielding  equally  large  crops  every  year.6  Straw- 
berries, which  are  practically  in  bearing  nearly  all  the 
year  round,  are  cultivated  for  market  chiefly  in  Santa 
Clara  and  Alameda,  together  with  several  other  ber- 
ries.7 

Chief  among  all  first  products,  however,  is  the 
grape,  the  cultivation  of  which  has,  within  the  past 

4  Nevada  had  fig-treea  in  1859.  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  24,  1859. 

5  Concerning  early  almonds,  see  Placer  Co.  Hist.,  239;  Sta  Bdrl).  and  Los 
Ang.  Co.  Hist.     Although  less  numerous,  there  are  more  than  100,000  Eng- 
lish walnut  trees,  yielding  in  1881  about  10  Ibs.  to  the  tree.     Owing  to  slow 
growth,  15-20  years,  and  blights,  they  are  not  in  favor.     Madeira  nuts  exist. 
Id.;  also  Ventura;  S.  Jost  Mercury,  Dec.  8,  1880.     Chestnuts  and  butternuts 
have  been  tried.     Peanuts  of  a  tine  quality  are  grown  in  different  parts,  on 
about  500  acres,  greatly  by  Chinese.     In  Los  Angeles  75  acres  yielded  75,000 
Ibs.    WestS.  Gaz.,  Yolo,  104-6;  S.  F.  Bull.,  Nov.  7,  1SGG;  county  histories  of 
Los  Ang.  and  Butte.     Pine-nuts,  etc.    Cal.  Sclent.  Press,  May  15,  18G9;  S.  F. 
Call,  Oct.  24,  1872;  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  25,  1859.     There  are  dates  and  bananas  in 
the  south.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  22,  1884;  Los  Ang.  Times,  Nov.  17,  1883;  Sta 
Barb.  Press,  July  28,  1877. 

6  Its  slow  growth  has  checked  planting,  and  in  the  beginning  of  this  decade 
there  were  only  13,000  trees  in  orchard,  some  of  which  have  returned  $500  to 
the  acre.     See  Coopers  Treatise  Olive,  MS.;  Hayes' Any.,  vii.  264;  Calif ornian, 
March  1881;  8.  F.  Chron.,  May  19,  1878;  Jan.  4,  1885;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  10, 
1855,  refers  to  early  bearing  at  S.  Jose;  also  county  histories  for  S.  Diego, 
Los  Ang.,  Sta  Barb. 

TAt  the  close  of  the  last  decade  there  were  12,000,000  strawberry  vines 
and  1,000,000  raspberry  bushes.  The  Alameda  raspberry  production  is  about 
1,500  Ibs.  to  the  acre;  5  tons  from4  acres,  says  Alta  Cal.,  Jan.  8,  1858.  Straw- 
berries for  the  S.  F.  markets  are  supplied  chiefly  from  Alameda,  and  near  S. 
Jose.  Here  300  acres  are  under  irrigation,  34  of  which  are  said  to  have  yielded 
100  tons.  They  are  usually  cultivated  by  Chinese,  on  shares.  S.  Jose  Pioneer, 
March  24,  1877,  states  that  Shelton  introduced  them  at  Sta  Clara  in  1852. 
Gooseberries  are  in  small  demand.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Nov.  16,  1881.  Raspberries, 
blackberries,  and  currants  enjoy  fair  attention 


44  FRUIT-GROWING  AND  GRAPES. 


decade,  roused  the  interest  of  the  entire  community 
and  absorbed  the  chief  attention  among  inflowing 
land -tillers,  who  are  assisting  to  extend  our  neat 
and  attractive  vineyards  over  valleys  and  foothills 
throughout  the  state.  During  the  first  years  of 
Spanish  occupation  were  introduced  from  Mexico  the 
two  leading  varieties  of  the  deteriorated  yet  hardy 
fruit  of  South  Spanish  stock  now  known  as  the  mis- 
sion grape,  first  the  reddish  black  grape  of  Los  An- 
geles, rich  in  sweet  juice,  then  the  fruitier  bluish 
black  Sonoma,  which  yields  a  lighter  wine.  Los 
Angeles  long  retained  the  supremacy  in  viniculture, 
producing  in  1850  some  57,000  gallons  of  wine;  but 
the  high  prices  realized  led  to  a  rapid  extension  even 
far  up  the  Sacramento  valley,  where  the  vine  had 
been  planted  shortly  before  the  gold  discovery. 

Well-known  varieties  were  brought  from  central 
Europe,  such  as  the  Zinfandel,  yielding  the  popular 
red  table-wine,  and  the  Reisling,  esteemed  for  its 
light  dry  wine.  Toward  the  close  of  the  fifties  it  was 
recognized  that  these  foreign  cuttings  yielded  a  supe- 
rior product,  although  the  doubt  as  to  their  relative 
value  served  to  sustain  the  mission  grape,  while  the  in- 
ferior quality  of  the  wine  tended  to  restrict  the  culture. 
The  state  took  an  interest  in  the  matter,  and  A.  Har- 
aszthy,  whose  efforts  in  behalf  of  the  industry  have 
procured  for  him  the  appellation  of  father  of  vinicul- 
ture in  California,  was  induced  to  visit  Europe  as  com- 
missioner to  study  the  subject  and  bring  back  cuttings. 
The  experiments  then  introduced  led  in  due  time  to 
another  fever,  which  received  a  check  from  the  phyl- 
loxera, and  other  more  threatening  than  actually 
serious  troubles.  This  had  the  effect  of  confining  the 

O 

business  more  among  thorough  vmiculturists,  whose 
experience  and  caution  induced  them  to  seek  superior 
and  reliable  varieties  and  improve  the  wine-making. 
Their  success  gave  rise  toward  the  close  of  the  seven- 
ties to  a  healthier  revival,  which  has  steadily  unfolded, 
stimulated  to  some  extent  by  the  misfortunes  of  France. 


VINICULTURE.  45 

The  south  still  retains  the  preponderance,  reenforced 
by  the  southern  counties  of  San  Joaquin  valley,  while 
the  essentially  vinicultural  regions  of  the  north,  So- 
noma and  Napa,  are  strongly  supplemented  by  El 
Dorado  and  districts  beyond  it  in  the  Sacramento 
valley.  By  1889  about  150,000  acres  were  planted 
with  some  120,000,000  vines,  half  of  them  in  bearing, 
and  fully  half  as  yet  in  mission  grapes;  but  a  few  years 
hence  the  area  will  be  doubled,  with  a  preponderance 
of  foreign  varieties.  In  1888  about  800  vines  were 
planted  to  the  acre.  An  advantage  here  gained  is 
the  self-supporting  stalk  after  the  third  year.  It  is 
pruned  to  a  height  of  about  18  inches,  a  process 
which  hastens  maturity  and  reduces  the  danger  from 
wind  and  frost.  At  full  maturity  a  yield  of  three  to 
four  tons  of  grapes  to  the  acre  may  be  expected,  al- 
though some  vineyards  produce  double  that  quantity, 
and  occasionally  even  16  tons.  The  average  from 
each  vine  may  be  placed  at  seven  pounds,  and  from 
a  ton  of  grapes  may  be  obtained  130  gallons  of  wine. 
So  far,  about  half  the  crop  is  pressed,  two  per  cent 
exported  fresh,  four  per  cent  made  into  raisins,  the 
product  of  which  increased  from  1,800,000  pounds  in 
1881  to  28,000,000  pounds  in  1889,  besides  a  percent- 
age equivalent  to  2,000,000  gallons  of  wine  for  con-- 
version into  one  fifth  that  amount  of  brandy.  The 
total  wine  product  for  1889  was  estimated  at  14,000,- 
000  gallons,  with  the  promise  of  a  rapid  increase 
through  the  growing  home  and  eastern  demand. 

With  nearly  double  the  amount  of  sugar  contained 
in  European  grapes,  the  California  wines  are  as  a 
whole  strong,  and  lacking  in  delicacy  of  flavor,  the 
heavier  southern  resembling  those  of  Spain,  Hungary, 
and  Greece,  while  the  central  and  northern  resemble 
German  and  French  standards.  The  defect  is  greatly 
due  to  the  lowland  soil  and  irrigation,  which  being 
necessary  in  the  dry  south  was  long  advocated  else- 
where, and  favored  as  more  convenient;  but  Haraszthy 
upheld  non-irrigation,  and  it  is  now  becoming  recog- 


46  FRUIT-GROWING  AND  GRAPES. 

nized  that  the  poorer  hill  lands,  though  yielding  less 
and  involving  more  work,  are  the  best.  With  the 
additional  care  bestowed  by  wine  merchants  in  press- 
ing their  own  grapes,  the  improvement,  already  so 
marked,  will  make  steady  progress,  until  the  brands 
of  California  acquire  a  general  recognition,  based  on 
their  merits.  The  champagne  now  made  is  winning 
favor.  The  different  advantages  enumerated  tend, 
indeed,  to  sustain  the  claim  for  the  state  of  being  one 
of  the  best  grape  regions  in  the  world.8 

8  In  my  Hist.  Mex.,  ii.-iii.,  this  series,  reference  is  made  to  the  introduc- 
tion and  spread  of  viniculture  in  Mexico.  Lower  California,  as  the  mother 
province  for  Alta,  Cal.,  supplied  the  first  slips.  Vina  Madre,  of  San  Gabriel, 
as  its  name  implies,  claims  to  be  the  mother  vineyard  of  California,  but 
Padre  Serra  and  his  missionaries  made  the  first  planting  at  San  Diego, 
whence  San  Gabriel  was  provided.  Discussion  in  Hayes'  Legal  Hist.  S.  Diego, 
i.  29-32.  Some  regard  this  vine  as  derived  from  a  Malaga  stock,  much 
changed  by  transplanting  in  Mexico;  others,  like  Barrows,  identify  it  with 
the  Alicante.  Los  Any.  Co.  Hist.,  64.  It  is  the  so-called  Los  Angeles  grape, 
to  be  found  in  all  old  vineyards,  and  throughout  the  south,  a  reddish  black 
berry,  rich  in  sweet  juice.  The  Sonoma  grape,  introduced  north  of  S.  F.  Bay 
about  1820,  is  smaller,  of  bluish  black  color,  covered  at  maturity  with  a 
grayish  dust,  and  has  more  meat  and  fruitiness  of  flavor,  yielding  a  lighter 
wine.  It  is  ascribed  to  Madeiran  stock,  and  prevails  more  widely  through- 
out the  northern  valleys.  Both  are  classed  under  the  term  of  Mission,  native, 
or  California  grape,  and  recognized  as  hardy,  productive,  and  of  early  bear- 
ing; but  even  in  these  qualities  they  are  surpassed  by  several  foreign  varie- 
ties, which,  as  a  rule,  far  excel  in  flavor.  Los  Angeles  was  the  vine  region 
of  the  flush  times,  and  as  early  as  1831  its  present  city  limits  claimed  numer- 
ous vineyards,  covering  fully  100  acres,  with  half  of  the  nearly  200, 000  vines 
of  the  country.  Hayes,  Los  Aug.,  29,  increases  this  estimate.  FroeM's  A  us. 
Am.,  i.  521-2.  The  census  of  1850  credits  Los  Angeles  with  57,355  gallons 
of  wine,  and  Sta  Barbara  with  700,  yet  Sonoma  and  other  sections  had  in  all 
a  large  additional  amount.  Vallejo,  for  instance,  expected  to  clear  $25,000 
from  his  small  crop.  Sac.  Transcript,  Oct.  14,  1850.  In  1852,  Sta  Clara  fig- 
ured for  16,800  vines,  Solano  for  5,811,  Sta  Barbara  for  46  barrels  of  wine. 
U.  S.  Census,  1850,  985.  Wilkes,  Ex.  Exp.,  condemned  the  wine  as  '  miserable 
stuff, '  but  this  applied  rather  to  the  light  kind,  for  port,  angelica,  and  other 
sweet  varieties  were  by  no  means  so  bad.  W.  Wolfskill  appears  to  kave 
been  the  first  in  1849  to  ship  wine  to  S.  F.  The  high  prices  realized,  espe- 
cially for  the  luscious  grapes — Sonoma  bringing  3  bits  a  lb.,  Pac.  News,  Oct.  16, 
1850 — led  quickly  to  increased  planting,  even  in  the  mining  region.  A  man 
has  just  set  out  1,000  grape  cuttings  on  the  Calaveras — noted  for  its  wild 
vines — and  quite  a  number  have  done  likewise  in  different  places,  observes 
Sac.  Transcript,  March  14,  1851;  S.  Joaq.  Co.  Hist.,  71-2,  claims  wine-mak- 
ing for  Stockton  in  1850.  It  is  pressed  in  S.  Diego,  says  S.  F.  Herald,  Feb. 
26,  1853.  Haraszthy,  who  had  planted  a  vineyard  here  in  1851,  began  in 

1853  to  introduce  vines  from  the  eastern  states  and  Europe,  notably  the  now 
famous  Zinfandel,  as  before  stated.     Not  long  after  he  bought  the  Kelsey  or 
Buena  Vista  vineyard  of  Sonoma,  the  largest  north  of  the  bay.     Delmas,  in 

1854  and  later,  introduced  other  varieties,  especially  the  black   Malvoisie 
and  Charbonneau,  and  other  French  grape-growers  obtained  cuttings  of  dif- 
ferent varieties,  but  the  native  plant  commending  itself  as  the  readiest  and 
cheapest,  the  inexperienced  beginners  had  recourse  to  it,  so  that  few  out  of 


MISSION  VARIETY.  47 

Many  of  tne  preceding  plants  find  places  in  the  or- 
namental gardens  which  form  so  attractive  a  feature  of 

the  1,500,000  bearing  vines  reported  for  1855  were  foreign.  In  1856  three 
vineyards  of  Los  Angeles  had  27,000,  20,000,  and  18,000  vines,  respectively. 
'  I  have  16,000  vines,  each  promising  a  gallon  of  wine,'  writes  White  in  Sac. 
Union,  Oct.  9,  1855;  Sept.  25, 1854.  The  grape  interest  was  carefully  nursed 
by  the  press,  as  instanced  in  Alta  CaL,  Sept.  25,  Dec.  18,  1854;  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
May  1,  1856;  Oct.  11,  15,  1856;  and  by  such  publications  as  Haraszthy's  Trea- 
tise on  Culture  of  Grapes,  1858,  1-21.  Los  Angeles  continued  to  lead,  as 
shown  by  the  census  report  of  1860  conceding  to  her  163,000  of  the  total 
246,500  gallons  of  wine,  and  she  claimed  in  1858  nearly  2,000,000  vines, 
half  of  them  in  bearing.  Sta  Barbara  and  Mariposa  ranked  next  with  some 
10,500  each.  Sonoma  figures  for  only  2,000,  for  her  grapes  went  to  S.  F. 
Before  the  real  gold  excitement  began  vines  had  been  planted  north  of  the 
American,  on  Bear  River,  Placer  Co.  Hist.,  239,  and  thence  it  spread  2  or  3 
years  later  to  Sutter,  Yuba,  and  Butte,  Trinity  boasting  of  it  here  about 
1853.  Cox's  Annalx,  56,  43,  177.  Merced  had  started  the  first  vineyard  in 
1855.  Merced  Co.  Hist.,  121.  In  Fresno,  subsequently  so  promising,  the  first 
vine  was  planted  only  in  1873,  and  200  gallons  of  wine  were  pressed  out  in 
1875.  Fresno  Co.  Hist.,  211. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  fifties  it  became  recognized  that  the  foreign  grape 
was  superior  to  the  Mission.  The  state  lent  its  aid  toward  raising  the  standard 
for  the  culture,  besides  exempting  it  from  tax,  CaL  Statutes,  1859,  260,  and 
Haraszthy's  importations  reached  500  varieties.  But  a  doubt  long  prevailed 
as  to  the  relative  value  of  these  strange  kinds,  which  it  would  take  years  to 
solve,  so  that  although  the  Mission  vine  declined  in  appreciation,  it  was  sus- 
tained to  some  extent  by  the  uncertainty  and  by  its  value  for  certain  sweet 
wines.  The  planting  of  both  classes  continued,  stimulated  by  the  record  of 
profits  for  early  years,  and  by  the  belief  in  a  growing  foreign  demand.  But 
the  inferior  quality  of  the  wine  assisted  the  established  brands  of  Europe  to 
overshadow  it,  and  so  reduce  prices  as  to  render  the  culture  largely  unprofit- 
able. Mildew,  phylloxera,  and  other  troubles  came  to  ruin  many  vineyard- 
ists.  Nevertheless,  the  steady  gains  of  certain  prudent  ones,  either  by 
improving  the  manufacture  of  sweet  wine  from  old  vines,  or  by  gaining 
recognition  for  the  value  of  new  plants,  restored  confidence,  and  toward  the 
close  of  the  seventies  a  sounder  excitement  set  in,  fostered  greatly  by  the 
misfortunes  of  the  French  viniculturists.  By  1882  she  had  about  80,000 
acres  in  vines,  which  at  an  average  of  800  to  the  acre  indicated  64,000,000 
vines,  of  which  half  were  in  good  bearing  condition,  about  equally  divided 
between  European  and  Mission,  less  than  10  per  cent  of  the  total  being  dis- 
eased or  valueless.  Of  the  foreign  varieties  which  are  now  almost  exclusively 
planted  or  grafted  upon  old  stock,  the  Alexandrian  Muscat  is  most  esteemed 
for  its  size  and  flavor,  and  value  for  raisins  as  well  as  wine,  and  for  table.  It 
thrives  best  in  gravelly  loam,  especially  in  Sonoma,  where  in  good  years  it 
yields  9,000  Ibs.  to  the  acre,  and  inclines  to  two  crops  a  year,  although  this  is 
not  favored  by  prudent  culturists.  The  French  Muscat  is  esteemed  for  vine- 
gar. Zinfandel  yields  the  now  most  popular  red  table-wine.  Reisling  is  in- 
sipid as  a  grape,  but  growing  in  favor  with  its  dry  white  wine.  Early  July 
grapes  are  the  White  St  Peter,  Madeline  Blanche,  Black  July,  Sweetwater, 
Shasselas,  and  Fontainebleau.  In  Oct.  the  Alexandrian  Muscat,  Muscatel, 
White  Malaga,  Rose  of  Peru,  Red  Tokay,  and  Cornichon  become  abundant. 
Berger,  Malvoisie,  Charbonneau,  and  seedless  Sultana  are  among  the  well 
yielding.  The  American  Catawba,  Isabella,  and  Concord  are  less  valued,  as 
inferior  in  yield  and  fine  quality,  and  costly  to  train;  yet  the  Vitis  Riparia 
and  JEstivalis  are  recommended  for  grafting  stock,  as  exempt  from  phyllox-* 
era. 

The  long  absence  of  rain  led  to  the  planting  of  vineyards  in  bottom-lands 
open  to  irrigation,  which  also  proved  more  convenient  to  cultivate-     Subse- 


48  FRUIT-GROWING   AND  GRAPES. 

California  towns      The  climate  admits  not  alone  a  vast 
variety,  but  forces  them  rapidly  to  maturity,  and  keeps 

quently  Haraszthy  and  others  began  to  advocate  non-irrigation  as  conducive 
to  superior  quality,  and  of  late  years  hill  lands,  as  significantly  pointed  out 
in  the  Germantown  weinberg,  are  gaining  in  favor;  yet  the  value  of  flooding 
in  the  case  of  certain  pests  has  been  urged  with  effect,  and  south  of  35°  lat. 
it  is  considered  necessary.  In  planting,  the  flattened  crowbar  is  preferred  to 
the  spade.  The  vines  are  placed  from  (j^  to  8  feet  apart,  the  former  distance 
prevailing  in  Los  Angeles,  the  latter  in  Sonoma;  wide  apart  rows  gaining  in 
favor,  thus  leaving  plenty  of  room  for  the  branches  and  cultivation,  and  with 
frequent  intersection  in  large  fields  for  wagon  roads,  to  save  hand  carriage. 
In  old  vineyards  the  stalks  stand  3  to  5  feet  high.  Now  the  custom  is  to  prune 
them  to  18  inches,  a  proximity  to  the  ground  which  hastens  maturity  and 
reduces  tho  danger  from  wind  and  frost.  During  the  first  year  there  is  little 
increase  of  wood.  In  the  second  the  rooted  vines  may  bear  a  few  grapes. 
The  third  year  3  to  4  Ibs.  of  grapes  should  bo  obtained  from  each  vine.  After 
this  the  stalks  are  self-supporting.  The  increase  in  yield  continues  till  full 
maturity  in  the  sixth  and  seventh  year.  One  writer  refers  to  vines  70  years 
old,  fruitful  as  ever.  There  are  vines  in  different  parts  with  trunks  a  foot  in 
diameter  and  with  branches  sufficient  to  cover  an  arbor  fourscore  feet  square, 
as  at  Coloma,  San  Buenaventura,  Blakes  in  Napa,  Cajon  Valley.  That  of 
Montecito,  dating  since  1795,  is  widely  celebrated.  Alta  Col.,  March  27,  1858; 
S.  F.  Call,  Sept.  12,  16,  1875;  Vischers  Miss.,  41.  It  is  supported  by  an  ar- 
bor 115  by  78  feet,  and  has  borne  4  tons  of  grapes  in  favorable  years.  The 
largest  vineyard  in  Cal.  and  in  the  world  is  that  of  Leland  Stanford  in  Tehama 
co.,  named  the  Vina.  In  1888  it  included  3,575  acres,  planted  with  2,860,000 
vines,  and  formed  a  part  of  the  endowment  of  the  Leland  Stanford  Junior  uni- 
versity. A  list  of  others,  below  400  acres,  is  given  in  Com.  and  Ind.,  244-5; 
Hayes1  Angeles,  v.  46;  Hyatt's  Grape  Culture,  ap.  1-6, 27-9.  The  average  produc- 
tion is  far  above  that  of  European  vineyards,  12,000  Ibs.  of  grapes  per  acre  being 
as  common  as  half  that  quantity  in  France,  and  20,000  Ibs.  not  unfrequent, 
while  16  tons  had  been  gathered,  or  equivalent  to  2,000  gallons  of  wine. 
The  average  is  probably  7  Ibs.  to  the  34,000,000  well-bearing  vines  of  1881,  or 
about  120,000  tons,  half  of  which  may  be  set  aside  for  wine,  equivalent  to 
fully  8,000,000  gallons,  at  the  rate  of  130  gallons  to  the  ton,  or  one  gallon  to 
15  Ibs. ;  about  4  per  cent  is  made  into  raisins,  2  per  cent  are  exported  fresh, 
leaving  a  very  large  amount,  say  fourscore  Ibs.,  for  each  inhabitant,  to  be  con- 
sumed in  the  country,  or  wasted,  and  a  percentage  corresponding  to  2,000,000 
gallons  to  be  converted  into  400,000  gallons  of  brandy.  Sixty  per  cent  of  the 
wine  is  supposed  to  be  received  at  S.  F.,  amounting  in  1881  to  4,885,000  gal- 
lons, of  which  Napa  and  Sonoma  supplied  half,  and  southern  California  one 
fifth.  In  1877  the  S.  F.  receipts  were  3,337,000  gallons.  The  export  for 
1881  rose  to  somewhat  over  3,000,000  gallons,  with  a  slight  preponderance 
in  favor  of  railway  shipments,  300,000  being  from  Sacramento,  and  40,000 
from  Los  Angeles;  of  the  total  98  per  cent  passed  through  S.  F.  As  more 
vines  are  rapidly  coming  into  bearing,  and  as  each  acre  can  be  estimated  to 
yield  500  gallons,  the  calculation  for  188G-7  might  not  unreasonably  be  placed 
at  30,000,000,  and  yet  this  would  amount  to  only  1-J  per  cent  of  the  yield  by 
France  before  the  phylloxera  ravage.  In  1867  the  production  was  hardly 
2,000,000,  by  1871  it  had  risen  to  4,540,000.  Haraszthy  assumes  10,000,000 
gallons  for  1880,  less  than  7  per  cent  of  which  were  sweet  wine,  worth  on  an 
average  60  cents  per  gallon,  the  rest  dry  wine,  for  which  the  producers  ob- 
tained 25  cents  from  the  wine  dealer,  the  latter  buying  within  10  months 
after  the  vintage. 

Owing  to  the  growth  of  small  vineyards,  a  large  portion  of  the  grapes  are 
now  pressed  by  special  wine  makers,  or  by  wine  dealers,  who  are  thus 
enabled  to  better  sustain  the  reputation  of  their  labels,  for  the  advantage  of 
the  country  in  general.  Ihe  first  of  the  regular  wine  merchants  was  Charles 


FLOWER  GARDENS.  49 

most  of  them  green  throughout  the  winter,  with  larger 
and  brilliant  flowers  though  less  perfume.     The  rose 

Kohler,  a  German,  who  arrived  at  S.  F.  in  1853,  and  is  now  deceased.  In  the 
following  year  he  formed  a  partnership  with  J.  Frohling,  who  bought  a  vine- 
yard in  Los  Angeles,  while  Kohler  opened  and  managed  the  cellar  at  the  bay 
city.  For  a  long  time  the  business  was  unprofitable,  bnt  Kohler's  enthusiasm 
and  energy  succeeded  in  building  up  a  large  trade,  and  to  him  was  largely 
due  the  impulse  given  to  viniculture.  His  Wine  Production,  MS.,  dictated  for 
my  work,  has  furnished  many  of  the  facts  here  given.  Fermentation  has 
usually  been  effected  in  140-gallon  casks,  at  first  filled  only  with  about  115 
gallons  of  must.  The  southern  wine  stands  preeminent  for  sweetness,  with 
much  spirit  and  little  aroma;  the  Coast  Range  district,  especially  of  Napa  and 
Sonoma,  yield  more  acid  white  and  red  wines;  and  from  the  foothills  of  the 
Sierra  Nevada  come  the  larger  proportion  of  sherry,  Madeira,  and  high  aroma 
German  wines.  Of  late  the  vinicultural  development,  particularly  in  the 
great  valley,  has  been  so  immense  and  varied  as  to  require  a  new  classification. 
The  grape  ripens  so  rapidly  as  to  produce  an  excess  of  sugar,  nearly  double  that 
of  the  average  European.  Hence  a  haste  to  press  in  advance  of  full  maturity. 
The  proportion  of  alcohol  in  the  lighter  wine  is  from  10  to  14  per  cent,  which 
renders  fermentation  difficult  and  lessens  the  delicacy.  The  selection  for  cel- 
lars is  improving,  and  the  advisability  is  considered  of  using  fire  to  modify 
the  temperature.  In  the  south  more  adobe  houses  have  been  used.  Hill 
tunnels  are  commended.  The  rejection  of  rotten  or  unripe  grapes  is  so  small 
as  to  speak  highly  for  their  quality.  Grapes  were  shipped  to  the  Atlantic 
states  in  1854,  Hayes'  Aug.,  v.  21,  and  wine  consignments  began  soon 
after.  By  1881  the  latter  had  risen  to  more  than  3,000,000  gallons,  of  which 
45  per  cent  consisted  of  light  red  wine,  35  per  cent  of  light  white,  and  the 
remainder  of  port,  sherry,  and  angelica,  the  latter  verging  toward  a  cordial. 
This  proportion  answers  well  enough  for  estimates  of  the  total.  The  Zinfan- 
del  now  leads  the  dry  red,  and  Reisling  the  dry  white.  Golden  Chasselas  and 
Bergcr  follow  the  latter;  Pinot,  Charbonneau,  and  Malvoisie  the  former.  In 
the  latter  part  of  the  sixties  the  eastern  demand  preferred  the  hock,  port, 
(whereof  150,000  gallons  sold  at  New  York  in  1867),  angelica,  sherry,  cham- 
pagne, muscat,  and  claret  in  the  order  named.  Crontse's  Gal.,  390.  Califor- 
nia will  no  doubt  in  time  assert  herself  for  special  new  brands,  rather  than 
cling  to  imitations.  Noteworthy  are  the  efforts  of  Arpad  Haraszthy  to  foster 
a  taste  for  pure  champagne,  free  even  from  the  flavoring  so  widely  practised 
in  France,  and  at  a  sufficiently  low  price  to  gain  advantage  over  the  machine- 
aerated  productions  so  widely  circulated  under  forged  labels.  Champagne 
was  made  at  S.  Gabriel  prior  to  1856.  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  9,  1855.  Sansevain 
tried  shortly  after  to  manufacture  it  for  the  market,  but  failed.  Haraszthy 
studied  the  process  at  Epernay,  and  after  costly  failures  to  produce  the 
sparkling  wine  he  attained  success,  as  related  in  Com.  and  Ind.,  249-52;, 
Id.,  Agric.,  MS.,  21-2.  Brandy  has  also  been  improved  in  quality,  after  long 
contentment  with  crude  processes  and  inferior  grapes.  Naglee  of  S.  Jose 
made  it  his  specialty,  Baldwin  and  Rose  of  Los  Angeles  rank  as  chief  producers 
in  the  south,  and  the  Johnson  and  Brighton  distilleries  on  the  Sac.  lead  in 
the  north.  Codman,  Hound  Trip,  106-8,  describes  Naglee's  efforts.  A  grow- 
ing proportion  of  culturists  devote  themselves  to  making  raisins.  This  began 
as  an  industry  at  Los  Angeles  in  1859,  says  Los  Ang.  Co.  Hist.,  65,  but  it 
dates  commercially  only  since  1872,  when  the  first  good  American  raisins 
appeared.  See  also  S.  Bern.  Co.  Hist.,  and  S.  Diego  Co.  Hist.  In  1875 
the  crop  was  18,000  boxes  of  20  Ibs.;  in  1880  fully  160,000,  with  prospect- 
ive large  increase.  The  raisin  region  extends  from  S.  Diego  far  into  the 
Sac.  Valley,  and  the  demand  in  the  U.  S.  alone  is  sufficient  to  encourage  a 
wide  cultivation.  The  white  Muscats  are  preferred.  They  are  dried  in  the 
sun  on  trays,  and  ready  for  the  sweat-box  within  two  weeks.  In  1881  River- 
side growers  reported  a  yield  of  200  boxes  to  the  acre,  worth  nearly  $2  a  box, 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  4 


60  FRUIT-GROWING  AND  GRAPES. 

and  many  others  bloom  the  year  round.  The  streets 
of  the  interior  towns  are  as  a  rule  profusely  adorned 
with  trees,  which,  being  ever  green,  help  to  relieve 
their  plainness,  and  to  provide  the  shade  so  much 
needed  during  a  rainless  summer.  The  Australian 
gum  is  preferred  for  its  rapid  growth  and  stately  bear- 
ing, as  well  as  its  sanitary  qualities,  though  sapping 
the  soil  of  its  strength  for  some  distance  around.  Tim- 
ber cultivation  has  also  been  considered  for  the  bare 

while  the  cost  of  preparing  and  packing  amounted  to  only  one  third,  leaving  a 
net  yield  of  $250  per  acre.  The  common  price  of  grapes  for  wine  in  that 
year  was  $25  per  ton,  or  nearly  $100  per  acre. 

The  foregoing  shows  that  California  has  exceptional  advantages  for  vini- 
culture, and  may  be  regarded  as  perhaps  the  best  grape  country  in  the  world. 
The  yield  is  double  that  of  European  vineyards,  with  a  larger,  juicier  fruit  and 
sounder  stalks,  which  in  being  self -supporting  obviate  much  labor  and  risk,  as 
does  the  speedier  growth.  A  greater  variety  of  grapes  thrive  here,  and  fer- 
mentation is  easier  to  effect.  Failure  of  crops  is  almost  unknown,  owing  to 
the  equability  of  the  climate,  devoid  of  the  severe  frosts,  hails,  and  storms 
which  do  so  much  damage  in  Europe.  Abundant  time  is  afforded  for  gathering 
the  grape.  Its  afflictions,  as  phylloxera,  mildew,  and  grape-fly,  promise  to  be 
mild.  The  first  has  beset  one  eighth  of  the  field  in  northern  and  central  dis- 
tricts, but  destroyed  only  a  small  proportion.  The  south  owes  its  immunity 
probably  to  irrigation.  The  mildew  is  arrested  by  sulphur  sprinkling,  and  the 
fly  by  letting  sheep  enter  after  the  crop  is  gathered  to  eat  the  egg-speckled 
leaves.  Report  on  phylloxera  treatment.  Col.  Jour.  Sen.,  1875-6,  ap.  55,  v. 
Several  of  the  above  features  offset  the  prevailing  higher  wages,  while  the  bad 
situation  of  so  much  vine-land  and  the  inexperience  concerning  soil  and  methods 
are  disadvantages  fast  dwindling.  The  comparative  cheapness  of  land  has 
helped,  to  draw  attention,  especially  after  the  disasters  which  reduced  the  pro- 
duction and  quality  of  French  vineyards.  These  have  also  tended  to  open  a 
wider  market  for  wine  from  other  regions,  to  justify  the  rapid  expansion  of 
viniculture  in  California,  so  that  promises  to  become  the  leading  industry  of 
the  state.  Grape-growers,  who  had  held  more  than  one  convention  before 
1872,  then  organized  for  the  protection  of  Cal.  wines.  In  1880  the  state  viti- 
cultural  commission  organized.  Sta  Rosa  Dem.,  June  5,  1850;  8.  F.  Chron., 
Apr.  20,  1883;  S.  F.  Call,  May  8,  1870;  Dec.  20,  1872.  In  1859  vines  and 
olives  were  exempt  from  taxes.  Cal.  Stat.,  1859,  p.  210.  Resolutions  against 
wine  tax,  etc.  U.  8.  Govt  Doc.,  Cong.  38,  Sess.  1,  H.  Misc.  Doc.  7,  i.  8,  in  Id., 
Cong.  41,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  103,  etc.  See  also  essays  and  reports  in 
Cal  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1858,  et  seq.;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1861,  p.  253-60,  ap. 
13;  1862,  ap.  13,  28;  1863,  ap.  27;  1865-6,  ap.  44;  1867-8,  ap.  72;  1869-70, 
ap.  43,  54,  etc.;  Viticulture,  1st  An.  Kept,  et  seq.;  Cal.  1st  Blen.,  Kept  Labor 
Stat.,  1883-4,  p.  178-80;  with  reference  to  openings  for  labor;  U.  S.  Pat.  Off. 
Rept,  1858,  etc.;  Overland,  Jan.  1884,  1-5,  etc.;  Harper's  Mag.,  xxix.  22-30; 
local  journals,  like  Anaheim  Gaz.,  Napa  Reg.,  etc.,  as  well  as  scattered  articles 
in  S.  F.  and  Sac.  newspapers;  Cal.  Sports,  Scraps,  44,  etc.;  county  his- 
tories, passim;  Pet.  Crescent,  Jan.  31,  1872,  refers  to  a  dance  in  the  then  largest 
vat  of  50,000  gallons;  Folsom  Teleg.,  Jan.  20,  1872;  Hayes'  Any.,  iv.  63;  v. 
46;  viii.  21;  Id.,  Misc.,  64,  76;  Id.,  Agric.,  passim;  Id.,  Cal  Notes,  iii.  79; 
Hunt's  Mag.,  IviiL  387;  Mechanics'  Instit.,  Exhib.  Repts;  Langley's  Trade  Pac.t 
i.  4-5,  15;  Powers'  Afoot,  274-6;  Player-Froivd's  Cal,  142-6;  McPherson's 
Los  Aug.,  14  et  seq.;  Codman's  Rd  Trip,  64-9,  100-10;  Price's  Two  Amer., 
196,  234;  Nordho/'s  Cal,  215-22. 


TIMBER   CULTURE.  51 

valleys,  for  which,  as  is  shown  by  the  several  groves 
of  giant  trees  so  much  admired  by  tourists,  they  are 
well  adapted.9  The  planting  of  forests  would  un- 
doubtedly tend  to  modify  the  objectionable  features 
of  the  interior  valleys,  and  promote  greater  hu- 
midity, and  besides  providing  material  for  fuel  and 
fences,  would  diminish  the  withering  effect  of  the 
northers.10 

'The  first  grove  of  blue  gum  planted  for  timber  was  set  out  in  1869,  in 
Castro  Valley,  being  over  10  acres,  with  nearly  1,000  to  the  acre;  seven  years 
later  they  were  thinned  to  100,  yielding  over  $900  net  for  fuel  and  telegraph 
poles.  A  rental  for  grain  would  not  have  produced  so  much.  The  gum-tree, 
however,  was  introduced  earlier.  8.  F.  Gait,  Dec.  8,  1868;  Apr.  7,  1871;  Feb. 
27,  1873;  Aug.  14,  1874,  etc.  Pertinent  points  for  tree  culture  are  given. 
Sonora  Indep.,  Jan.  6,  1877;  Marysv.  Appeal,  Dec.  13,  1878;  Merced  Argus, 
Dec.  7,  1878;  Castrovilk  Argus,  Sept.  4,  1869;  Salinas  Dem.,  Jan.  17,  1874; 
Calav.  Citizen,  June  22,  1878.  While  the  gum  is  valuable  for  fuel,  drainage, 
and  durable  wood,  other  useful  trees  could  be  added,  as  the  cork,  growing  in 
Sta  Barbara,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  22,  29,  May  27,  1859,  the  bamboo,  8 dent. 
Press,  June  19,  1869,  the  Peruvian  bark,  the  Japan  varnish  tree,  etc.  The 
useful  date-palm  and  banana-tree  are  grown.  S.  F.  Call,  Apr.  30,  1871;  July  1, 
1877.  Transplanting  from  nursery  soil  requires  special  care,  owing  to  the 
tendency  of  the  tree  in  this  drier  atmosphere  to  send  down  deep  pump  roots. 
Despite  its  adaptability  the  country  has  furnished  few  of  the  garden  plants ; 
the  ceonothus  is  the  chief  ornamental  shrub.  Yet  it  has  some  striking  pecu- 
liarities, as  in  the  mammoth  sequoia  and  the  Monterey  cypress;  and  more  or 
less  broad  differences  stamp  the  vegetation,  as  may  be  expected  from  the 
isolated  position  of  the  state,  bojmded  on  one  side  by  the  ocean  and  on  others 
by  lofty  ranges  and  deserts. 

10  The  legislature  made  a  wise  enactment  on  March  30,  1868,  in  encourag- 
ing the  planting  of  fruit  and  shade  trees  along  the  highways.  Cal.  Statutes; 
Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1872,  p.  27. 

One  of  the  earliest  fruit-growers  in  Cal.  was  0.  W.  Childs,  who  was  born 
in  Vt  in  1824,  and  came  to  this  coast  in  Aug.  1850,  with  but  $12  in  his  pocket. 
After  engaging  in  various  occupations,  he  began  this  business  at  Los  Angeles, 
clearing  in  a  short  time  $100,000.  In  1856  he  purchased  a  tract  of  land  in 
the  suburbs  of  that  city,  planting  it  as  a  nursery  and  with  fruit  trees,  whereby 
he  realized  handsome  profits,  though  the  bulk  of  his  fortune  was  made  by 
judicious  investments  in  real  estate. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

LIVE-STOCK. 
1769-1889. 

PASTURE  CULTIVATION  —  EASTERN  GRASS  AND  ALFALFA — EARLY  STOCK- 
RAISING — CATTLE  AND  SHEEP — NOTABLE  RANGES — MILK  AND  CHEESE — 
HORSES — IMPROVEMENT  OF  BREEDS — MULES  AND  OXEN — WOOL-GROWING 
— GOATS — SWINE — POULTRY — THE  HONEY  BEE — AGRICULTURAL  SOCIE- 
TIES— PATRONS  OF  HUSBANDRY — THE  GRANGE  SYSTEM — FARMERS'  PRO- 
TECTIVE UNION  LEAGUE. 

So  far  there  has  been  little  cultivation  of  pasture, 
but  with  the  extension  of  farming  interests  and  the 
consequent  limitation  of  cattle  ranges,  and  the  effort 
to  improve  the  breed  of  animals  for  different  purposes, 
the  industry  is  gaining  ground.  Among  the  reasons 
for  the  neglect  is  the  mildness  of  the  winter,  which 
obviates  the  need  for  special  winter  fodder,  and  the 
dryness  of  the  summer,  which  kills  most  of  the  favor- 
ite grasses,  and  obliges  frequent  replanting.1 

1  For  this  reason  the  alfalfa,  or  lucerne,  is  gaining  favor,  as  it  sends  down 
deep  roots,  and  thrives  luxuriantly  with  irrigation.  Col.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans., 
1877,  150-9;  Alfa  Gal,  June  29,  1851;  May  19,  1860;  Eureka  Times,  Sept. 
29,  1877;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  27,  1858;  Nov.  20,  1871;  Reno  Jour.,  June  18, 
Sept.  27,  1873;  May  23,  1874.  Hay  worth  12  cents  per  Ib.  in  1849.  Wood- 
ward's Stat.,  MS.,  7;  Kern  Co.  Hist.,  113.  Ensilage  system  introduced  by 
J.  W.  Green.  Hist.  Mont.  Co.,  164.  Of  wild  grasses,  the  bunch-grass  in  small 
detached  tufts  affords  almost  perpetual  pasture  on  dry  hills,  in  being  proof 
against  drought.  The  flattened  tufts  of  the  alfilleria  also  endures  well.  The 
lupin,  which  is  cultivated  in  France,  grows  here  wild  among  the  sand  hills. 
The  bur  clover,  mostly  in  the  south,  sustains  the  stock  during  autumn  with 
its  rich  oily  seed,  scattered  almost  invisibly  on  the  ground.  Among  sheep  it 
injures  the  wool,  and  at  times  the  throat.  The  most  striking  pasture  is  pre- 
sented by  the  wild  oats,  with  small  grains,  and  bent,  bearded  projections, 
which  is  frequently  cut  for  hay,  yielding  on  an  average  one  ton  per  acre. 
Cultivated  oats  are  preferred  to  barley,  which,  like  green  wheat,  is  widely 
harvested  for  hay.  The  rough  tule-grass  saved  many  cattle  during  the 
drought  of  1864.  The  hay  harvest  occurs  about  May  1st.  One  turning  and 

(52) 


MEXICAN  BREEDS.  53 

Stock-raising  was  the  chief  occupation  of  colonial 
days,  and  hides  were  almost  the  only  medium  of  ex- 
change. The  animals  introduced  from  Mexico,  of  de- 
teriorated Spanish  breed,  increased  rapidly,  until  in 
1834,  the  last  year  of  mission  prosperity,  they  num- 
bered scores  of  thousands.  They  roamed  in  untamed 
freedom,  and  a  portion  overran  the  interior  valleys  in 
a  wild  state,  a  condition  which  by  no  means  served  to 
improve  the  quality,  distinguished  as  it  was  by  ' scrub' 
colors  and  light  weight;  the  cattle  by  long,  thin  legs, 
heads  high  and  slender,  wide-spread  horns;  and  the 
sheep  by  short,  coarse  wool.  The  incoming  Ameri- 
cans brought  at  first  stock  valued  chiefly  for  strength 
and  endurance.  A  large  special  importation  followed 
in  response  to  the  high  prices  of  early  mining  days, 
partly  for  breeding,  and  by  1862  the  number  of  cattle 
had  increased  to  over  2,000,000,  as  compared  with 
262,000  in  1850.  Then  came  the  disastrous  droughts 
of  1862-4,  which  destroyed  several  hundred  thousand 
by  starvation  and  forced  slaughter,  and  created  so 
wide-spread  a  mistrust  as  to  greatly  curtail  the  indus- 
try. It  made  a  perfect  revolution  in  the  business,  by 
giving  prominence  to  sheep,  by  changing  many  cattle 
districts  to  farming  regions,  and  by  obliging  the  adop- 
tion of  more  careful  methods,  such  as  the  better 
apportionment  of  cattle  to  pasture,  and  the  wide  intro- 
duction of  fencing,  partly  under  compulsory  laws.  But 
compensation  was  found,  in  the  improved  feeding  and 
breeding,  marked  also  by  greater  and  better  yield  of 
beef  and  milk,  and  by  reduced  loss  from  diseases 
and  accidents,  with  diminished  expenses  for  herding. 
Cows  calve  before  they  are  two  years  old.  The  busi- 
ness is  now  mostly  combined  with  farming,  with  a 
desire  to  still  further  raise  the  breed.  Few  of  the 
Spanish  stock  remain,  for  the  south  had  suffered  most 
from  the  droughts.  The  census  for  1870  returned 

one  day's  curing  is  enough.  The  Census  gives  the  hay  harvest  for  1850,  1860, 
1870,  a,ul  1880  at  2,000,  305,000,  551,000,  and  1,135,000  tons,  the  last  named 
from  758,000  acres,  Sta  Clara  leading  with  71,000  tons. 


54  LIVE-STOCK. 

only  631,000  cattle,  and  the  increase  since  has  been 
slow,  partly  owing  to  the  increased  price  of  land,  un- 
der the  steady  encroachments  of  agriculture.  In  1889 
the  number  was  estimated  at  about  725,000,  worth 
from  $13,000,000  to  $14,000,000,  while  the  total  value 
of  all  live-stock  might  be  placed  at  nearly  $60,000,000.2 

2  The  first  live-stock  was  brought  with  the  first  exploring  expedition  from 
L.  Cal.  in  1769,  followed  by  frequent    additions    for    private  and  official 
account,  as  shown  in  my  preceding  volumes.     By  1784  there  was  enough  to 
feed  the  settlers  regularly,  and  after  1800  even  Indians  were  not  stinted. 
Alvavado,  Hist.,  i.  32-3.     Horses  were  invoiced  at  $9  in  1776.     In  1781  they 
rose  to  $10,  mares  $4,  cows  $5,  mules  $20.  Prow.  St.  Pap.,  Ben.  Mil,  i.  45. 
Official  regulations  were  issued  for  the  care  and  utilization  of  the  herds. 
Cows  were  not  permitted  to  be  killed  for  a  long  period.     Slaughterings  were 
ordered  for  May  and  June.     Settlers  were  loanecf  stock,  to  be  repaid  in  kind. 
The  18  heads  of  cattle  allowed  to  each  mission  at  founding  had  by  1784  in- 
creased, among  9  of  them,  to  5,384,  besides  5,629  sheep  and  4,294  goats. 
Palou,  Vida,  172;  Prov.  St.  Pap.,  i.  196,  201;  iii.  141-3;  vi.  154-5;  Dept.  St. 
Pap.,  S.  Jos&,  i.  11.     By  1800  there  were  reported  74,000  cattle,  24,000 
horses,  and  88,000  sheep.     Of  these,  a  large  proportion  belonged  to  the  mis- 
sions, but  their  seciilarization,  begun  at  this  time,  led  to  a  rapid  spoliation 
and  scattering  of  the  animals,  some  of  which  ran  wild  in  the  ranges  and  val- 
leys to  the  eastward.  Pac.  News,  Dec.  28,  1850;  Sac.  Transcript,  Jan.  14, 
1851.     The  stock  was  light  and  hardy,  tough  of  flesh,  and  the  cows  yielding 
little  milk.     Emigrants  from  the  United  States  brought  a  superior  breed. 
Almost  every  early  journal  from  Aug.  to  Dec.  contained  notices  of  overland 
arrivals  with  stock.     Crow  left  Pike  co.  in  May  1850,  with  800  cows,  and  ar- 
rived with  524  in  Sept.,  which  were  placed  on  the  Stanislaus.  Sac.  Transcript, 
Oct.  14,  1850;  Feb.  14,  28,  1851.     Sac.  became  a  great  stock  market.     The 
price  of  cows  fell  from  $300  and  $500  at  the  close  of  1849  to  $50  and  $150 
early  in  1851.     Hayes'  Agric.,  133-46;  Nev.  Jour.,  Nov.   10,  1854,  refer  to 
losses  from  poisonous  grass  and  Indians.     Some  40,000  on  the  way,  writes 
AUa  Cal.,  Aug.  11,  1856;  Sept.  13,  1857;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1855,  pp.  43-^t. 
Oregon  and  New  Mexico  sent  special  droves.     Cal.  subsequently  repaid  by 
export  to  adjoining  mining  regions,  etc.,  partly  for  breeding.     In  1880  she 
sent  7,500  cattle,  180,000  sheep,  and  6,400  swine,  the  cattle  chiefly  to  Oregon 
and  Arizona,  the  sheep  to  Montana  and  Utah.  U.  S.  Census,  1880,  iii.  1045; 
Salinas  Dem.,  Aug.  22,  1874.     The  increase  was  rapid  under  the  efforts  to 
continue  the  former  staple  industry,  and  with  free  and  vast  ranges.     The 
census  figure  of  262,000  cattle  for  1850  rose  by  1860  to  1,180,000,  and  the 
generally  accepted  estimate  for  1862  was  3,000,000,  the  maximum.     Then 
came  the  several  severe  droughts.     Those  of  1862—4  are  said  to  have  destroyed 
half  the  stock  in  Los  Angeles,  while  that  of  Sta  Barbara  was  reduced  from 
200,000  to  a  mere  remnant.  Sta  Barb.  Co.  Hist.,  125.     The  total  loss  by  star- 
vation was  estimated  at  300,000,  and  by  compulsory  slaughter  still  more. 
The  loss  of  confidence  in  the  industry  led  to  wide  curtailments,  and  by  1870 
the  census  returned  only  631,000  cattle,  and  815,000  for  1880,  the  county  as- 
sessors giving  only  621,000.     Preference  was  now  accorded  to  the  hardier  and 
more  profitable  small  stock,  notably  sheep,  which  increased  from  a  little  over 
1,000,000  in  1860  to  fully  6,000,000  within  a  few  years.     Of  the  cattle  on 
farms,  the  census  of  1880  enumerates  only  664,000,  of  which  210,000  were 
milch  cows,  and  2,200  working  oxen.     Of  the  815,000  total,  250,000  were 
classed  as  American  stock,  assessed  at  $18,  425,000  as  seven  eighths  blood 
American,  assessed  at  $10.39,  110,000  as  one  half  to  three  fourths  blood,  as- 
sessed at  $9.49  29,000  California  or  Spanish,  at  $8,  and  1,000  thoroughbred, 
at  $57.     It  will  be  seen  that  only  a  small  proportion  of  the  Spanish  stock  re- 


CATTLE.  55 

The  new  restrictive  methods  are  particularly  favor- 
orable   to   the   development  of  dairying,  which  was 

mains,  under  the  constant  introduction  of  the  heavier  American,  which  is  far 
superior  for  milk  and  beef,  though  excelled  for  special  purposes  by  Jerseys, 
Durhams,  Ayrshires,  and  Alderneys.  These  growing  favorites  deteriorate  on 
the  wild  pastures,  but  with  the  growing  price  of  land  and  expansion  of  farm- 
ing and  horticulture,  the  ranges  are  being  reduced,  and  cattle-raising  is 
becoming  more  and  more  associated  with  other  branches,  within  cultivated 
fields  and  pastures  more  suited  for  the  finer  breed.  The  greater  part  is  con- 
fined to  farms,  serving  to  glean  stubble  and  weed,  and  returning  manure. 
Some  farmers  are  still  able  to  send  their  stock  to  the  mountains,  if  numerous, 
and  so  impart  to  it  the  benefit  of  continued  pasture,  together  with  an  invigo- 
rating climate.  The  plains  begin  to  dry  in  July.  The  mountains  supply  the 
deficiency  better  until  Oct.;  then,  till  Jan.,  follows  a  season  of  scanty  feed, 
under  which  the  stock  grows  thin,  a  percentage  dying  of  starvation  almost 
every  year.  The  available  acreage  under  these  conditions  is  greatly  reduced 
in  value.  In  the  rugged  northern  border  counties  an  average  range  of  35 
acres  is  calculated  for  every  head,  from  Shasta  to  35°  lat.  25  acres,  although 
some  assume  5  acres  of  valley  land,  or  20  of  mountain  slopes,  to  suffice  in 
central  California,  and  so  in  Los  Angeles;  others  insist  upon  10  acres  on  S. 
Joaquin  plains.  In  the  more  humid  coast  counties  of  Humboldt  and  Mendo- 
cino,  7  acres  are  sufficient.  Of  sheep,  4  to  5  subsist  on  the  acreage  for  1 
cow.  The  return  per  acre  is  not  large  in  a  stock-raising  business  alone. 
The  effort  of  stock-raisers  is  to  secure  water,  so  as  to  control  much  of  the 
adjoining  government  land.  Thus,  El  Tejon  rancho  of  200,000  acres,  which 
contains  all  the  available  water,  controls  300, 000  acres  of  public  land.  Miller 
&  Lux  own  750,000  acres,  costing  them  on  an  average  $6,  500,000  acres  be- 
ing under  fence,  and  estimated  to  sustain  one  head  on  every  three  acres. 
Their  success  is  due  to  an  admirable  business  tact,  associated  with  prudence 
and  personal  supervision,  ever  eliminating  the  wasteful  and  applying  im- 
proved methods.  William  Dunphy  and  Gen.  Beale  rank  among  the  first  in 
importance,  and  J.  D.  Carr,  P.  Saxe,  C.  Younger,  and  J.  Bidwell  are  among 
leading  breeders  of  fine  stock. 

Mr  Dunphy  was  a  pioneer  of  1849,  a  man  of  great  ability  and  merit,  who 
associated  himself  with  T.  Hildreth  to  form  one  of  the  leading  cattle  firms  on 
the  coast,  with  Nevada  as  chief  range  for  his  20,000  head  of  cattle,  and  S.  F. 
for  a  market.  In  the  north-east  section  of  the  state,  chiefly  dedicated  to 
stock-raising,  Irvin  Ayres  holds  a  corresponding  position.  He  was  born  on 
March  30,  1832,  in  Montgomery  county,  N.  York,  where  his  father  prac- 
tised as  physician.  Reaching  California  in  1853  he  became  agent  for  the 
Cal.  Stage  Co.  at  Tehama,  and  drifted,  after  a  brief  experience  as  livery-stable 
keeper,  into  the  trading,  notably  at  Fort  Bidwell,  at  present  as  member  of 
the  firm  of  D.  L.  Beck  &  Sons.  During  the  union  war  he  drilled  several 
companies  for  service,  and  was  barely  restrained  by  business  pressure  from 
joining  the  fortunes  of  his  brother,  Gen.  R.  B.  Ayres,  a  graduate  of  West 
Point,  stationed  in  Cal.  in  1854  and  1859,  who  acheived  a  brilliant  record  as 
one  of  the  five  foremest  artillerists  during  that  war. 

Miller  &  Lux  are  able  to  brand  90  per  cent  of  calves,  while  on  some  of 
the  open  ranges  of  Kern  only  60  per  cent  are  branded.  The  increase  in 
weight  since  in  1855,  under  improved  breed,  feed,  and  method,  has  been  fully 
200  Ibs.  per  head,  the  average  weight  of  yearlings  in  1855  being  250  to  400 
Ibs.  net,  and  in  1880,  400  to  450,  and  of  beeves  450  to  500  Ibs.  as  compared 
with  750  to  800  in  1880.  The  live  weight  of  American  three-and-a-half-year- 
old  beeves  is  placed  at  1,100  Ibs.,  worth  $24;  graded  American  1,150  Ibs., 
worth  §25;  three-fourths  American  950  Ibs.,  $21;  half-breed  Californian  875 
Ibs.,  $21;  California  800  Ibs.,  $19.  U.  S.  Census,  1880,  iii.  1035.  The  average 
value  of  cows,  $17;  of  calves,  $7.  Every  100  cows  are  estimated  to  drop  80 
calves,  73  surviving  to  yearlings.  The  percentage  of  loss  among  cattle  over 


56  LIVE-STOCK. 

much  neglected  by  the  Spanish  colonists,  partly  be- 
cause their  cows  gave  but  little  milk.  The  Americans 
infused  new  life  into  the  business,  and  hastened  to  im- 
prove their  stock  for  dairy  purposes  from  the  best 
eastern  and  English  sources.  In  1889  there  were 
about  260,000  milch  cows,  the  production  of  butter 
being  then  placed  at  17,000,000  pounds,  and  cheese 
at  3,000,000  pounds.  The  business  is  chiefly  confined 
to  the  moister  pastures  of  the  coast,  especially  north 
of  and  near  San  Francisco,  as  the  principal  market.3 

12  months  old  was  in  1880  placed  at  4.9.  The  ruling  diseases  are  big  head 
or  big  jaw,  bloat,  black  leg,  abscess  of  liver,  and  Texas  or  splenic  fever. 
The  latter,  originating  probably  about  Tulare  Lake,  killed  10,000  head  for  a 
Kern  breeder  in  1879.  The  remedy  seems  to  be  removal  from  low  to  elevated 
districts,  the  exercise  itself  being  beneficial.  The  finer  breeds  suffer  most. 
Abscess  of  liver  is  supposed  to  result  from  excess  of  dry  food  and  from  alkali, 
the  latter  reducing  more  speedily  the  breeding  power.  Storms  and  poisonous 
grasses  assist  to  bring  the  loss  in  some  parts  of  Kern  to  5  or  7  per  cent.  The 
loco  plant  and  its  effect  is  considered  in  17.  S.  Agric.  Sept,  1874,  159-60. 
With  increased  fencing,  herding  expenses  are  greatly  reduced.  Miller  &  Lux, 
with  100,000  cattle  and  80,000  sheep,  require  200  regular  men.  One  man  looks 
after  several  pastures.  Branding  takes  place  about  April  1st.  The  market 
season  for  purely  grass-fed  cattle  is  from  February  to  July,  when  the  pasture 
fails,  although  beef  is  turned  off  at  all  times  for  S.  T?.,  which  in  the  beginning 
of  this  decade  consumed  annually  96,000  beeves,  24,000  calves,  440,000  sheep, 
225,000  lambs,  and  150,000  hogs.  Com.  and  Ind.,  268.  One  bull  for  20  cows 
18  deemed  best.  Cows  calve  before  they  are  two  years  old,  with  instances 
before  attaining  the  age  of  14  or  18  months.  Calves  suckle  from  6  to  10 
months.  The  largest  herd,  probably  in  San  Bernardino,  numbered  about 
1,300  head. 

The  rodeo  has  lost  the  gay  and  romantic  aspect  imparted  to  it  during 
Hispano-Californian  times,  when  families  gathered  from  afar  in  festive  assem- 
bly, the  older  folk  to  exchange  business  ideas  and  gossip,  the  young  to  court, 
with  serenade  and  dance  and  sports,  the  cavaliers  striving  above  all  to  win 
admiration  by  dashing  feats  of  horsemanship  during  the  rodeo,  or  during 
games  attending  it.  In  the  south  a  gathering  of  owners  is  still  held  for  picking 
out  strayed  stock,  but  as  a  rule  it  now  implies  merely  a  driving  in  of  animals 
for  the  annual  branding.  Several  regulations  appeared  in  colonial  days  con- 
cerning brands.  In  case  of  frequent  sale  the  shoulder  as  well  as  hip  become 
covered  with  marks.  Col.  Statutes  have  regulated  these  matters.  A  law  of 
1851  made  the  annual  rodeo  compulsory,  and  gave  unmarked  cattle  to  the 
owner  of  the  rancho  where  found  when  the  mothers  were  unknown.  This 
gave  ris3  to  much  stealing,  observes  Barton,  Tulare,  MS.,  12.  American 
herders  have  become  expert  in  the  use  of  the  reata  or  raw-hide  rope  for  lasso- 
ing. Further  details  on  methods  and  development  are  given  in  Cal.  Agric. 
Soc.,  Trans.;  S.  Joaq.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1861,  etc.;  Hayes1  Agric.;  Pac. 
Rural  Press;  Cal.  Farmer;  surveyor  reports  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.;  First  Nat. 
Convention  Cattlemen,  Proceedings,  1884,  12-13;  Stebbins'  Industry,  37-68;  Bar- 
stow 's  S 'tat.,  14;  flollister's  Stat.,  MS.,  11;  and  Cal.  Pastoral,  this  series. 

3  The  Mexicans  did  not  take  kindly  to  milking,  and  little  of  it  was  done 
save  for  the  children,  and  for  a  little  cheese.  Americans  introduced  high- 
bred animals,  that  is,  eastern,  crossed  with  British  stock,  together  with  a  few 
of  pure  blood,  for  producing  the  best  quality  and  the  largest  quantity  of  milk. 
The  census  of  1880  enumerates  210,000  milch  cows,  and  12,000,000  gallons  of 


HORSES.  57 

The  achievements  lately  performed  on  eastern 
courses  by  California  race-horses  have  gained  for  the 
state  a  wide  reputation  as  an  exceptionally  favorable 
breeding  ground,  both  for  swift  and  enduring  animals. 
The  Spanish  horse,  introduced  by  Cortes  into  Mexico 
and  thence  into  California,  is  small  and  deficient  in 
strength  and  beauty,  and  little  fitted  for  cart  or  plough, 
yet  quick  and  tough,  and  with  a  record  since  1846 
for  remarkable  riding  feats.  He  is,  however,  of  a 
base  and  blotchy  color,  and  neither  honest  nor  gentle. 
This  stock  by  1888  was  reduced  to  less  than  a  fourth 

milk  sold  or  sent  to  factories.  Of  butter,  14,090,000  Ibs.  were  made,  against 
8,000,000  in  1870,  3,100,000  in  1860,  and  705  in  1850;  of  cheese,  2,560,000  in 
1880,  against  3,400,000  in  1870,  1,340,000  in  1860,  and  150  in  1850.  S.  F.  is 
placed  far  above  any  other  county  as  a  milk  producer,  with  over  5,400,000 
gallons,  perhaps  without  due  credit  for  supplies  from  San  Mateo,  which  is 
credited  with  only  740,000  gallons.  Marin,  properly  the  leading  dairy  county, 
is  accorded  3, 170,000  gallons  of  milk,  2,500,000  Ibs.  of  butter,  its  staple  article, 
and  65,000  Ibs.  of  cheese.  Next  comes  Sac.,  partly  owing  to  its  swamp-land, 
with  1,240, 000  gallons  of  milk,  540, 000  Ibs.  of  butter,  and  182,000  Ibs.  of  cheese; 
then  S.  Mateo  with  283,000  Ibs.  of  butter,  and  288,000  Ibs.  of  cheese.  Both 
are,  however,  surpassed  as  butter  counties  by  Sonoma,  with  1,900,000  Ibs., 
S.  L.  Obispowith  1,1 50, 000  Ibs.,  and  Humboldtwith  993,000  Ibs  ,  while  Santa 
Clara  leads  as  a  cheese  producer,  with  740,000  Ibs.,  followed  by  S.  Mateo  and 
Sonoma.  The  immediate  vicinity  of  S.  F.  excels  in  milk,  and  the  largest 
milk  dairy  in  the  state  is  the  Jersey  farm,  near  S.  Bruno,  which  milks  500  OB 
600  cows  daily,  yielding  400,000  gallons  a  year,  nearly  all  carted  into  S.  F. 
The  next  nearest  line  predominates  in  butter  and  cheese,  as  shown  by  San 
Mateo,  Sonoma,  and  Sta  Clara.  The  chief  butter  district  is  Point  Reyes,  in 
Marin,  covered  by  6  dairy  tracts  of  54,000  acres,  with  about  5,000  cows,  upon 
some  30  tenant  farms.  The  proprietors  lease  them  at  a  rental  of  $20  or  $25 
for  each  cow  and  a  portion  of  the  calves.  Each  cow  yields  nearly  200  Ibs.  of 
butter,  equivalent  to  $40.  Other  sources  produce  $10  more.  The  average 
life  of  a  cow  is  10  years.  J.  Russ  of  Humboldt  sustained  over  2,000  cows  on 
13,700  acres.  Details  in  Humboldt  Co.  Hist.,  135  et  seq.,  and  Marin,  Id.;  also 
for  Sta  Barb.,  Sta  Cruz,  etc.  Cheese  is  made  as  a  rule  from  unskimmed  milk 
and  sold  while  new.  The  Limburger  and  Swiss  varieties  are  well  imitated. 
A  few  factories  exist,  yet  large  dairymen  prefer  to  manufacture  for  themselves. 
The  largest  cheese-makers  are  Steel  Brothers  of  S.  L.  Obispo,  who  keep  fully 
1,500  cows.  S.  L.  Ob.  Co.  Hist.,  224-7;  Pac.  News,  Apr.  30,  1850,  commends 
the  cheese  made  by  Wilkes  near  San  Jose.  Reports  on  dairies  in  U.  S.  Agric. 
Jiept,  1S70,  326-9,  etc.;  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.;  Hayes,  and  other  general 
authorities  already  given.  Premium  cheeses  mentioned  in  Sac.  Union,  Dec. 
3,  1855;  Sept.  24,  1859;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  5,  1864;  Oct.  24,  1873.  Oleomar- 
garine was  rousing  attention  already  in  1873.  S.  F.  Chron.,  Sept.  20-2,  March 
1,  8,  Oct.  28,  1874;  Cronise's  Cal.,  368-70.  The  dependence  on  indigenous 
grasses  by  dairies  is  indicated  by  the  great  fluctuation  in  butter  prices,  from 
about  24  cents  from  April  to  June,  to  40  cents  from  Oct.  to  Dec.  Many 
dairymen  of  the  great  valley  drive  their  cows  to  the  mountains  after  May, 
returning  in  Oct.  with  their  butter  to  seek  the  high  market.  Yet  a  good 
deal  of  green  corn,  beets,  and  alfalfa  is  cultivated  for  butter  dairies.  Round 
S.  F.  refuse  malt  is  largely  given  to  stimulate  the  yield  of  milk,  notwithstand- 
ing the  deteriorating  effect. 


58  LIVE-STOCK. 

of  the  total  237,700,  given  by  the  census  of  1880, 
under  constant  admixture  with  the  larger,  finer,  and 
stronger  American  breed,  which  is  also  more  trac- 
table, though  less  tough  and  healthy.  Its  further 
improvement  with  thoroughbred  blood  is  promoted 
by  the  general  and  commendable  ambition  among 
farmers  to  possess  fine  animals.4 

Mules  are  regarded  by  small  farmers  as  too  dear 
and  unattractive,  but  for  packing  and  hauling  trains 
they  present  the  advantage  of  superior  strength  and 
endurance,  with  less  need  for  care.  Working  oxen 
are  condemned  as  too  slow  in  this  progressive  land.5 

*  Leland  Stanford  has  done  much  to  raise  the  grade  of  Cal.  horses  and 
achieve  a  record  in  the  eastern  fields.  His  stock  farm  at  Palo  Alto  is  prob- 
ably the  most  complete  horse-breeding  establishment  in  the  world,  celebrated, 
moreover,  for  new  training  methods.  The  peculiar  features  of  Palo  Alto  are 
the  liberal  scale  on  which  the  breeding  and  training  is  performed,  the  great 
care  given  to  the  brood  mares,  with  due  use  of  stalls,  sheds,  and  fields,  the 
feeding  of  colts  with  steamed  grain,  and  their  daily  paddock  practice  at  high 
speed,  though  of  short  duration.  Over  500  horses  of  the  finest  blood  have 
been  collected  here,  two  costing  $25,000.  In  1881  the  best  eastern  record 
for  two-year-old  trotters  was  here  reduced  to  2.21,  and  that  of  yearlings  to 
2.36^.  Like  other  live- stock,  the  horse  develops  in  Cal.  faster  in  weight  and 
other  qualities.  Of  Spanish  horses,  a  large  proportion  is  still  allowed  to  run 
semi-wild,  in  bands  of  SO  or  CO,  led  by  the  garanon,  or  stallion,  which  guards 
the  mares  with  jealous  care,  and  exhibits  remarkable  intelligence  in  seeking 
out  good  pastures,  and  thwarting  the  interference  of  herders.  The  mares  foal 
with  great  regularity  before  the  third  year.  Colts  are  weaned  at  8  or  10 
mouths  old,  and  broken  in  the  third  or  fourth  year,  after  which  they  are  sent 
to  the  broken  herd.  Mexicans  have  a  prejudice  against  breaking  mares.  S. 
Joaquin  and  Sonoma  have  the  largest  proportion  of  horses,  13,000  and  10,700, 
respectively.  The  totals  for  1850,  I860,  and  1870  stand  at  21,700,  160,000, 
and  192,000,  respectively.  Dissensions  have  risen  concerning  the  first  Ameri- 
can horse  here,  in  Sac.  Union,  July  6,  1872;  Yreka  Union,  July  10,  1869; 
Marysville  Appeal,  Dec.  26,  1874,  which  refer  it  to  1849,  but  immigrants 
brought  the  animal  long  before.  8.  F.  Call,  May  3,  1871;  A Ita  Cal.,  Apr.  16, 
1873;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr.  19-26,  1873,  1875,  etc.  English  and  American 
thoroughbreds  are  widely  distributed,  trotters  having  so  far  been  the  favor- 
ites. The  Blydesdale,  crossed  with  both  American  and  Spanish  stocks,  had 
supplied  most  of  the  heavy  draught-horses.  A  half-blood  of  this  breed,  from 
Spanish  stock,  weighs  1,300  when  four  years  old;  a  three-quarter  blood, 
1,500  Ibs.  Pac.  News,  Jan.  10,  1850,  refers  to  4  stallions  brought  from  New 
South  Wales  for  breeding.  See  also  Alia  Cal.,  May  31,  1857.  Concerning 
advantages  for  breeding,  Rose,  Slot.,  15-19,  has  glowing  opinions.  See  also 
Hayes"  Mont.,  209,  etc.;  Berry's  Up  and  Down,  111-14;  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.t 
Trans.,  etc.  Although  horses  ran  wild  in  S.  Joaquin  Valley,  S.  F.  Herald, 
Jan.  16,  1853,  yet  prices  were  high  at  early  mining  camps;  $100  for  broken 
horses,  $50  for  wild.  Bauer's  Stat.,  MS.,  7.  Later  in  1882,  Vallejo  sold 
mares  and  stallion  at  $20.  Vallejo,  Doc.,  xxxiii.  263;  Alia  Cal.,  June  6,  1852. 

5  And  have  declined  from  26,000  in  1860  to  2,290  in  1880.  Camels  have 
been  tried  in  the  south,  but  abandoned.  Vischer's  Cal.,  66-7.  Jacks  and  she- 
asses  were  early  introduced,  costing  in  1784  $5.  Prov.  Rec.,  iii.  249-50. 
Fully  100  mules  came  in  1776.  Palou,  Vida,  vii.  209-11.  Black  were  preferred, 


SHEEP.  59 

California  may  not  be  especially  adapted  for  large 
cattle,  despite  its  early  pastoral  rank,  yet  for  sheep  it 
presents  exceptional  advantages.  The  mild  climate 
permits  an  uninterrupted  growth,  so  that  at  two  years 
of  age  they  are  as  well  developed  as  those  of  three 
years  in  the  eastern  states.  They  give  a  larger  in- 
crease and  more  wool;  they  require  only  grass  for 
food,  and  little  care,  save  shelter  in  some  parts  from 
wild  beasts,  and  are  remarkably  free  from  disease.  The 
low  grade  Spanish-Mexican  stock,  introduced  also  dur- 
ing early  mining  years  from  New  Mexico,  and  marked 
by  short,  coarse  wool,  were  mostly  consigned  to  the 
butcher;  and  wool-raising  began  properly  with  the 
introduction  of  American  sheep  in  1853.  Attention 
was  soon  given  to  improve  the  breed  with  Spanish 
merinos  from.  Vermont,  till  the  high-grade  merinos 
number  three  fourths  of  the  total  of  about  4,000,000 
assigned  for  1889.  Although  checked  like  cattle  by 
droughts,  their  hardier  nature  induced  stock-raisers 
largely  to  turn  to  them  after  the  disaster  of  1862-4; 
since  when  their  predominance  dates.  The  profit  on 
them  is  increased  by  their  adaptability  to  cheaper 
pastures,  their  large  natural  increase  of  fully  80  per 
cent,  sustained  by  a  large  proportion  of  twins,  and  the 
heavy  yield  of  wool,  averaging  in  1888  over  seven 
pounds  for  ewes  and  wethers,  from  two  clippings,  as 
against  four  pounds  for  the  United  States.  The  clip 
for  1880  reached  23,000  tons,  after  which  it  declined. 
The  average  price  for  a  dozen  years  has  exceeded  19 
cents  per  pound.  It  may  be  asserted  that  no  branch 
of  agriculture  has  paid  so  well  throughout  as  sheep- 
raising,  and  with  the  reputation  acquired  by  Califor- 
nia wool  factories,  the  prospect  continues  favorable.6 

as  hardier.  Alvarado,  Hist.,  i.  31.  If  mules  20  years  old  are  brought  to  Cal. 
from  the  east  they  take  a  second  growth,  observes  McDaniel,  Early  Days, 
MS.,  10.  The  Census  of  1880  places  the  number  of  mules  and  asses  at  28,300, 
4,000  being  in  Colusa,  and  2,000  in  Stanislaus.  In  1850,  1860,  and  1878 
there  were  1,660,  3,680,  and  17,500,  respectively. 

6  In  the  early  colonial  period  there  were  large  flocks  in  the  south,  of  a  poor 
stock,  with  short,  coarse  wool;  but  they  were  mostly  killed  after  the  seculari- 
zation, the  rest  falling  into  neglect.  Similar  low-grade  animals  were  brought 
in  large  numbers  from  New  Mexico  to  supply  the  mining  markets.  In  1849-51 


60  LIVE-STOCK. 

Goats  receive  little  attention,  although  a  number 
are  always  found  in  the  outskirts  of  towns  and  vil- 

large  numbers  came.  Cerruti's  Ramblinys,  MS.,  39--40;  1852,  40,030,  some  sell- 
ing for  |1C;  in  1853,  135,000,  selling  for  $9;  and  by  1858  over  370,000  more, 
with  prices  falling  to  $3.37.  The  loss  on  the  way  from  dust,  thirst,  Indians, 
etc.,  tended  to  stop  the  traffic  after  1800.  Hayes'  Agric.,  127-32;  Id.,  Ind.,  i. 
211-16;  AltaCal.,  Feb.  8,  1852,  etc.,  for  imports  prior  to  1853;  for  subsequent, 
see  Haves'  Misc.,  64;  Van  Tramp's  Adv.,  306;  U,  S.  Census,  1880,  iii.  1035. 
From  Hawaii  came  some  in  1847.  Pickets  Expos.,  15.  The  first  to  introduce 
American  sheep  for  wool-raising  was  W.  W.  Hollister,  in  1853,  and  he  quickly 
made  his  fortune  thereby,  as  related  in  his  Stat.,  MS.,  2-4.  He  became  the 
worthy  magnate  of  S.  Benito  county,  which  has  named  its  seat  after  him. 
Flint,  Bixby,  and  Cole  were  other  prominent  breeders.  Monterey  Co.  Hist., 
157,  etc.  Attention  was  specially  directed  to  improve  the  breed  with  Spanish 
merinos,  for  which  Vermont  ranked  as  the  centre  in  the  U.  S.,  and  during 
the  rapid  growth  of  the  industry  during  20  years  75  per  cent  of  the  sheep 
have  become  high-grade  merinos.  Among  the  largest  flocks  is  Strobridge  s 
at  Hay  wards,  which  has  brought  an  average  of  $30  for  breeding  ewes.  A  few 
Southdowns  and  Cotswolds  were  here,  and  it  is  supposed  that  with  the  modifi- 
cationsof  closer  settlements,  the  English  sheep  will  grow  in  favor,  with  itslonger 
fleece  and  savory  mutton.  Hoyt  of  Suisun  is  the  leading  breeder  of  Shropshires. 
So  far  the  Spanish  thrives  best.  The  U.  S.  Census  of  18SO,  iii.  781,040,  assigns 
California  4,150,000  sheep,  exclusive  of  spring  lambs,  and  unenumerated  range 
flocks,  which  would  make  the  total  5,700,000.  Fresno  and  Los  Angeles  lead 
from  the  first  total  with  383.000  and  330,000,  respectively,  followed  by  Men- 
docino  with  296,000,  Humboldt  186,000,  S.  Joaquin  182,000,  Colusa  168,000, 
Merced  167,000,  Sonoma  156,000.  Gordon's  report  in  Id.  raises  the  number 

Beatly.  Tlae  total  census  figures  for  1850,  1852,  1860,  and  1870  stand  at 
,500,  35,800,  1,088,000,  and  2,768,000,  respectively.  In  1875-6  the  dept  of 
agriculture  raised  the  total  to  6,700,000,  reducing  it  to  3,700,000  in  1879.  The 
increase  has  been  checked  by  severe  droughts,  such  as  in  1861-2  and  1863-4, 
when  several  southern  districts  were  almost  stripped  of  sheep;  in  1871  they 
lost  20  per  cent;  in  1877  about  2,500,000,  it  is  claimed,  owing  to  overstocked 
pastures;  1874-5  and  1879-80  were  particularly  severe  for  the  north.  The 
growth  of  settlements,  with  increased  cost  of  land  and  fence  laws  is  now  im- 
posing restrictions.  The  average  range  required  is  two  acres  for  each  sheep; 
in  the  north  one  acre  is  frequently  enough.  The  expense  is  calculated  at  35 
to  50  cents  per  head,  exclusive  of  land,  which  can  be  leased  at  10  to  25  cents 
per  acre,  or  bought  at  $2  to  $5.  See  U.  S.  Census,  1880,  1037^43,  for  estimates. 
Only  a  proportion  of  the  fine  breed  receive  shelter  and  cultivated  food.  The 
sheep  are  reckoned  at  $2.20  a  head.  The  receipts  may  be  placed  at  $1.50  for 
wool,  and  the  increase  at  fully  80  per  cent,  an  average  sustained  by  early 
bearing,  often  before  the  sheep  are  a  year  old,  and  by  a  large  proportion  of 
twins  and  triplets,  the  average  twin-bearing  being  over  30  per  cent  between 
the  third  and  tenth  year.  A  loss  of  ten  per  cent  may  be  ascribed  to  straying 
and  neglect,  to  storms  and  wild  beasts  and  dogs,  poisonous  weeds,  and  dis- 
eases. The  only  wide-spread  malady  is  scab,  which  exists  only  in  mild  form. 
Fluke,  water  on  the  brain,  and  foot-rot  are  still  less  prevalent.  Droughts, 
fluctuating  prices,  and  bad  management  bring  occasional  heavy  inflictions. 
The  two  annual  shearings,  in  May  and  September,  lambs  preferably  in  July 
and  August,  yield  4  Ibs.  and  3  Ibs.  '  in  the  grease, '  respectively.  The  average 
in  1880  was  S.  11  Ibs.  from  wethers,  6.33  from  ewes,  and  5.40  from  lambs.  The 
average  for  the  U.  S.  is  little  over  4  Ibs.  The  aim  is  to  improve  the  breed  to 
a  larger  yield.  Strobridge *s  merinos  yielded  an  average  of  20  Ibs.,  and  Griz- 
zly's 14-month-old  fleece  weighed  42  Ibs.  Hittell's  lies.,  273.  Shropshires 
yield  7  to  14  Ibs.  The  loss  in  scouring  is  about  65  per  cent.  The  Oregon 
annual  6-lb.  fleece  loses  60  per  cent.  The  rainier  north  districts  have  cleaner 
wool,  but  the  southern  claim  heavier  fleeces  from  their  more  nourishing  though 


PIGS  AND  POULTRY.  61 

lages.  Angoras  were  introduced  with  great  flourish 
in  the  fifties,  but  failed  to  meet  expectations.  They 
and  the  cashmeres  form  the  only  herd  animals,  but 
with  very  few  of  high  grade,  and  not  of  great  value 
for  the  wool.7 

The  raising  of  swine  is  restricted  by  dry  pastures ; 
the  warm  climate  interferes  with  pork  packing,  and 
fence  laws  have  proved  a  check  in  some  quarters; 
nevertheless,  there  are  favorable  localities,  especially 
in  the  tule  regions  of  San  Joaquin  and  Sacramento, 
and  the  rapid  increase,  the  ready  markets,  and  the 
growth  of  irrigation  are  promoting  the  expansion  of 
the  industry.8 

dry  and  bur-infested  pastures;  and  they  assume  the  advantage  in  breed. 
U.  S.  Census,  1880,  1043.  The  Cal.  wool  is  fine,  though,  and  the  products  of 
her  factories  are  widely  esteemed.  Griser's  tables  place  the  total  wool  yield 
at  150  tons  in  1855,  1,500  in  1860,  10,000  in  1870,  28,000  in  187G,  20,400  in 
1878,  23,000  in  1880,  and  21,500  in  1001.  The  census  reduces  the  spring  fleece 
for  1880  to  16,800,000  Ibs.  from  4,150,000  sheep.  The  price  rose  from  14 
cents  per  Ib.  in  1870  to  29  in  1G72,  declined  gradually  to  14^  in  1876,  and  re- 
vived to  £2  in  1880;  average  for  11  years  19£  cents,  equivalent  to  $78,000,000. 
Review  in  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  notably  1873-7;  concerning  frauds,  Cal. 
Jour.  Sen.,  18G7— 8,  Apr.  87.  Wool-growers' conventions  touching  these  points, 
etc.,  are  noted  in  Sac.  Union,  Sept.  20, 10G1;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  22,  1874.  Of  late 
years  only  occasional  choice  animals  have  been  introduced,  but  the  export 
has  been  growing,  from  50,  COO  in  1G77  to  nearly  150,000  in  1S80  to  Idaho, 
Montana,  Arizona,  and  New  Mexico,  v/hich  latter  seeks  the  superior  merinos. 
The  drive  across  Arizona  occupies  fully  S3ve:i  months.  In  Cal.  one  ram  can 
serve  100  ewes  for  three  years.  A  few  dogs  are  used.  One  shepherd  is  regarded 
as  sufficient  for  l,CCOto  2,000  sheep.  The  flock  is  usually  driven  into  corrals 
or  pens  during  the  night  to  escape  wild  animals.  The  change  of  pasture  from 
the  drying  valleys  to  the  mountains  in  summer  is  undoubtedly  beneficial. 
With  proper  care  during  certain  seasons,  especially  afber  rains,  the  ranges 
rather  profit  by  sheep,  although  some  claim  that  the  quality  of  the  grass  de- 
teriorates. 

T  Yet  they  are  hardy,  easily  herded,  and  there  is  room  to  expand  in  order 
to  meet  the  demand  for  skins,  etc.  The  Sierra  Nevada  slopes  present  the 
best  ground  for  them.  Pac.  Rural  Press,  May  15,  1875;  May  10,  June  7,  1079; 
Sta  Barb.  Press,  Jan.  8,  March- Aug.,  Nov.-Dec.,  1876;  8.  Joss  Tines,  Aug. 
26,  1879;  Colusa.  Sun,  May  £7,  1070;  Jackson  Ledger,  March  30,  1G78;  Placero 
Rejnib.,  Jan.  11,  1077;  March  £0,  1070;  Watsonville  Transcr.,  June  2,  1877; 
Sept.  13,  1870;  Yrc7xt  Union,  Oct.  £7,  1077;  Oct.  26,  1078;  Petal.  Courier, 
Dec.  21,  1G7C;  S.  L.  05.  Tribune,  Feb.  23,  1878;  8.  F.  Call,  May  28,  July  13, 
Dec.  29,  1071;  Dept.  21,  1875;  Plumes  Net.,  June  15,  1872;  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
Oct.  31,  1GC5;  July  17,  1GC8;  July  £5,  1071;  Jan.  28,  1880.  For  laws  to 
restrain  and  protect  sheep,  see  especially  Cal.  Statutes,  1057,  227;  1058,  165; 
1859,  119;  10GO,  332;  also  1GG2,  10GG,  1070,  1874;  Thompson's  Law  cf  Farm; 
essays  and  reports  en  sheep  in  Cal.  Aijric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1863,  13-1-45;  1864-5, 
63-5,  279-C6,  406;  1074,  449-510,  5C3-9;  Butler's  Monterey,  14-16;  Cal.  Jour. 


breeder  of  Angoras,  owning  7,000. 

8  The  number  of  swine  has  increased  from  2,700  in  1850  to  456,000  in 


62  LIVE-STOCK. 

Poultry  have  been  profitable  on  a  small  scale,  but 
attempts  to  extend  the  business  have  for  the  most 
part  proved  failures.9 

The  honey-bee  was  not  found  in  California  prior  to 
1852,  when  the  first  hive  was  brought  from  the  east. 
Although  suffering  in  some  districts  from  drought,  it 
increased  rapidly  along  the  streams,  and  especially  in 
San  Diego  county.10 

I860,  444,600  in  1870,  and  603,500  in  1880.  Tulare,  with  its  rich  tule  region, 
leads  with  36,000,  followed  by  Los  Angeles,  rich  in  maize-fields,  with  33,600; 
by  Colusa,  Ventura,  Sonoma,  Yolo.  For  early  droves,  see  Los  Ang.  Co.  Hist., 
and  Sonoma  Id.;  and  for  first  arrivals,  Prov.  St.  Pap.,  Ben.  Mil.,  i.  18;  Mon- 
terey Parr.,  22.  '  Berkshires  were  introduced  in  1847.  Pickett's  Expos.,  15; 
AUa  Gal,  Nov.  15,  1857;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  July  11,  1859;  Nov.  21,  1860,  etc.; 
Sta  Bdrb.  Press,  March  9,  1878;  May  17,  1879. 

9  The  collection,  exceeding  say  500  hens,  attracts  a  sweeping  apoplectic 
epidemic.  Artificial  hatching  establishments  are  increasing.  The  census  of 
1880  places  the  number  of  poultry  at  1,600,000,  producing  5,770,000  dozen 
eggs  in  1879.  Alto,  Cal.,  Aug.  8,  1854,  comments  on  th«  growth  of  poultry- 
raising.  Prov.  St.  Pap.,  Ben.  Mil.,  i.  18,  refers  to  introductions  in  1772. 
Ostrich  farming  has  of  late  years  become  an  industry  in  Los  Angeles.  S.  F.  W. 
Call,  Dec.  21,  1882;  8.  F.  Bull,  Oct.  18,  1883;  Oct.  30,  1885,  refer  to  its 
introduction  from  South  Africa  and  the  favorable  progress. 

19  W.  A.  Buckley  brought  the  first  hive  from  New  York.  AUa  Cal.,  July 
1,  1852.  T.  Shelton,  wrongly  claimed  to  be  the  first,  in  S.  J.  Pioneer,  Jan. 
27,  1877.  He  obtained  12  swarms  from  a  disgusted  passenger  at  Aspinwall, 
and  landed  one  in  safety  in  March  1853,  which  threw  off  three  swarms  the 
first  season.  Two  of  these  sold  in  Dec.  1853  for  $105  and  $110.  The  same 
year  some  of  the  small  and  stingless  Mexican  bees  arrived.  In  1855-6,  sev- 
eral large  importations  were  made,  from  which  honey  sold  at  $1.50  to  $2  per 
Ib.  Among  the  importers  was  Harbison,  subsequently  the  leading  apiarist  of 
the  state,  who  published  The  Bee-keepers  Directory,  S.  F.,  1861,  12°,  440  pp., 
to  guide  the  rising  industry.  This  in  1859-60  embraced  6,000  swarms,  but 
soon  met  with  reverses  from  diseases  and  inexperience,  and  from  declining 
prices,  25  cents  per  Ib.  in  1867.  Cronises  Cal.,  373.  Los  Angeles  was  then  the 
leading  producer.  Harbison,  so  far  at  Sacramento,  opened  about  this  time  in 
San  Diego,  which  soon  assumed  the  head,  claiming  20,000  stands  in  1880.  It 
was  followed  by  S.  Bernardino,  Sta  Barbara,  Ventura,  Los  Angeles,  Kern, 
and  S.  Joaqnin,  whose  production  of  honey,  according  to  the  U.  8.  Census  of 
1880,  stand  respectively  at  91,000,  83,600,  55,000,  48,000,  44,500,  29,700,  and 
25,000  Ibs.,  the  total  for  the  state  being  574,000  Ibs.  of  honey,  and  14,600  of  wax. 
It  was  at  first  supposed  that  the  bee  could  not  thrive  in  so  dry  a  summer  re- 
gion, and  indeed,  heavy  losses  have  occurred  through  droughts  as  in  1877,  but 
they  do  well  along  streams  and  also  in  mountain  regions.  Many  a  hive  has 
made  200  Ibs.  in  a  season.  Horticulturists  have  frequently  raised  an  outcry 
against  them,  Hayes'  Monterey,  90,  Taylors  Bet.  Gates,  268-9,  for  feeding  on 
grapes,  and  especially  apricots.  The  wild  sage  of  the  mountains  yields  a  fine 
honey,  and  some  apiarsts  of  the  great  valley  used  to  send  their  hives  to  the  Sierra 
slopes  for  fresh  pasture.  The  honey  of  the  coast  valleys,  with  their  varied 
flowers,  has  a  peculiar  flavor  resembling  that  of  Mt  Hymettus.  That  from 
the  honey  dew  deposited  by  the  aphis  is  coarse  and  unfit  for  market.  The 
great  enemy  of  the  bee  is  the  bee-moth,  which  enters  the  hives  and  ruins 
them,  unless  closely  watched;  the  bee-bird  and  lizard  confine  their  raids  to 
bees  on  the  flowers.  Estimates  of  expenses  are  given  in  Com.  and  Ind.,  275; 
in  Harbison;  McPhersons  Los  Ang.,  32-4;  Hayes'  Agric.,  186;  Hawky's  Ange- 


AGRICULTURAL  SOCIETIES.  63 

Agriculturists  took  an  early  opportunity  to  impress 
upon  the  community,  by  means  of  exhibitions,  that 
the  wealth  of  California  was  not  restricted  to  the 
fields,  but  that  her  countless  valleys  contained  the 
most  prolific  of  soils  and  the  most  attractive  features 
for  building  homes  and  yielding  sure  competence  and 
even  riches.  Enterprises  of  this  nature,  being  left 
to  private  efforts,  were  led  by  T.  Shelton,  who  in 
November  1851  gave  at  San  Francisco  a  display  dig- 
nified by  the  appellation  of  agricultural  and  mineral 
fair,  with  fine  specimens  from  farms  and  gardens  in  the 
bay  counties,  and  even  from  Nevada  and  Tuolumne.11 
His  success  induced  Warren  &  Son  to  open  a  more 
imposing  exhibition  at  Sacramento  on  September  20, 

1852,  and   another  at  San  Francisco  on   October  5, 

1853,  with  mineral  collections,  art  treasures,  lectures, 
and  other  attractions,  and  a  number  of  valuable  pre- 
miums.12 

With  so  encouraging  an  example,  a  number  of 
prominent  agriculturists  united  to  organize  in  1854 
the  State  Agricultural  Society,13  which  henceforth 

les,  101-2;  Century,  July  1882;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Nov.  12,  1883;  CaL  Argic.  Soc., 
Trans.,  1859,  292-308. 

11  Yet  chiefly  from.  Sta  Clara.     A  few  prizes  were  distributed,  notably  one 
to  a  hat  manufacturer.  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  14,  1851;  Alia,  etc. 

12  In  cups,  medals,  etc.     In  Oct.  1853  a  church  congregation  held  a  World's 
Miniature  Fair  with  curious  and  artistic  exhibits  representing  different  coun- 
tries. Alia  Cat.,  Oct.  6,  1853;  Id.,  Sept.  20  to  Oct.  1852;  Oct.  3,  Nov.  14,  1853; 
Herald,  etc.;  CaL  State  Fair  Scraps,  9  et  seq. 

13  Under  the  presidency  of  F.  W  Macondray,  with  six  vice-pres.     Incor- 
porated May  13,  1854,  with  power  to  buy  land  and  erect  buildings  for  model 
farms  and  exhibitions.     After  shifting  from  place  to  place  it  was  in  1860  per- 
manently located  at  Sac.     By  act  of  March  20,  1858,  the  management  was 
intrusted  to  a  board,  consisting  of    a  president  and  nine  directors,  to  be 
elected  after  1862  by  an  annual  convention  of  members  of  said  society,  and 
delegates  from  county  and  district  agric.  societies.     An  act  of   March  21, 
1372,  appropriated  $5,000  for  the  society,  $3,000  for  the  Bay  District  Agric. 
Soc.,  and.  $2,000  each  for  a  number  of  county  and  district  societies,  solely 
toward  premiums.     Any  person  was  admitted  a  member  on  paying  $5  a  year, 
with  privilege  to  use  the  library.  Cal.  Statutes,  1854,  1858,  1872,  etc.;  Cal. 
Ayric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  prefaces,  etc.     It  long  struggled  under  a  debt  which  at 
one  time  reached  $30,000,  but  this  was  cleared  off  by  1870.     The  need  for 
new  buildings,  grand-stand,  and  improvements  in  the  park  caused  an  expen- 
diture of  $45,000  in  1872-5,  toward  which  the  state  contributed,  besides  adding 
to  premiums,  leaving  only  $16,000  debt.     Since  then  the  society  has  pros- 
pered.    Report  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1875-6,  ap.  43;  Id.,  1862,  ap.  34;  1854, 
1353,  etc.;  Hittett's  Code,  ii.  1660.     Park  inauguration.  Alta  Cal.,  July  24, 
1870. 


64  LIVE-STOCK. 

assumed  the  lead  in  such  exhibitions,  beginning  with 
1854,  and  fostering  improvements  in  farming,  horti- 
culture, stock-breeding,  and  cognate  industries,  aided 
by  the  state  with  premiums  and  means  to  sustain  ex- 
perimental grounds.  It  became  the  head  for  the 
county  and  district  agricultural  societies,  which  sprang 
up  throughout  the  state,  with  similar  local  aims  and 
exhibits.14 

These  organizations  lent  interest  to  the  general  and 
special  meetings,  such  as  conventions  of  stock-raisers, 
wheat  and  fruit  growers,  gardeners,15  and  sericultur- 
ists  for  promoting  certain  objects.  They  did  much  to 
sustain  the  excitement  in  various  industries  that  agi- 
tated the  state  at  different  times,  and  to  seek  protec- 
tion against  opposing  interests.  At  one  time  apiarists 
and  horticulturists  were  in  array  against  each  other. 
Then  raisers  of  cereals  and  live-stock,  during  the  fence- 
law  movement  of  the  sixties.  Then  again  all  these 
united  together  to  face  the  merchants,  freight  carriers, 

14  An  act  of  1866,  Col.  Statutes,  sought  to  encourage  their  formation,  and 
by  act  of  1872  §2,000  each  were  granted  for  premiums  to  those  of  Sta  Clara, 
Sonoma  and  Maria,  S.  Joaquin,  Northern  district,  Upper  Sac.,  Siskiyou,  Los 
Angeles,  Bay  District  Horticultural  and  Cal.  Vine  Growers.     For  their  de- 
velopment, see  8,  Jose  Pioneer,  June  8,  1878;  Bay  Dist.  Hortlc.  Soc.,  Trans., 
1772,   etc.;  S.  Joaq.  Agric.  Soc.,   Trans.,  1861,  etc.,  the  latter  organized  in 
1859,  when  Sac.  also  formed  a  special  agric.  soc.     The  Southern  Cal.  Ag. 
Soc.  had  troubles  in  1873.     The  Sonoma  formed  in  1855,  and  also  the  Yuba- 
Sutter.  Sic.  Union,  May  14,  July  24,  Aug.  17,  1855.  /The  state  horticultural 
society  proposed  a  fair  in  1856.  Id.,  Dec.  19,  1856.     The  transactions  of  many 
of  these  societies  are  published  in  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.     See  abo  county 
histories  in  HayeJ  Agric.,  Cal.  Farmer,  Rtiral  Press.     Citrus  fairs  have  lately 
become  a  feature  in  Los  Angelas,  Sta  Barbara,  and  S.  Diego.  L.  Ann.  Herald, 
March  6,  1880;  March  17,  22,  1881;  May  24,  1882;  S.  F.  Call,  March  16,  1882. 
S.  F.  and  Sac.  follow  the  example.  8.  F.  Chron.,  Jan.  14,  26,  1886.     In  early 
days  female  equestriennes  formed  a  feature  at  the  fairs.  Alta  Cal.,  Sept.  29, 
1855.     Later  gambling  has  risen  into  an  evil.     Agric.  displays  form  a  feature 
also  in  the  industrial  exhibitions  under  auspices  of  the  Mechanics'  Institute, 
organized  in  1855,  and  opening  its  first  fair  at  S.  F.  on  Sept.  7,   1857,  for 
three  weeks.  Mech.  Instil.,  Report  First  Indmt.  Exh.,  1-157;    Williams'  Stat., 
MS.,  16,  comment  on  its  site,  corner  of  Sutter  and  Montgomery  sts,  and  its 
success.  A  Ita  Cal.,  Bulletin,  Sept.  1857.     The  legislature  created  a  state  agric.  • 
board  to  foster  farming.     See  report  by  it  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1865  6,  ap.  15. 
But  the  agric.  soc.  carry  out  its  aims  equally  well. 

15  A  general  convention  held  at  Sac.  in  1855  is  reported  in  Hayes'  Agric., 
46-50;  Sac.  Union,  Apr.  26,  1855.     Wheat-growers  proposed  an  organization 
in   1881.  S.  F.  Chron.,   Sept.    15,  1881.     Fruit-growers  met  in  enthusiastic 
spirit  in  1859,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  10,  1859,  and  organized  in  1885.  S.  F.   \ 
Chron.,  Oct.   15,  Nov.  12,  1885;  Jan.  22,  1886.     The  Gardeners' Ass.,  dating   : 
since  1874,  is  composed  chiefly  of  Italians. 


PATRONS  OF  HUSBANDRY.  65 

and  other  middle-men,  who,  not  content  with  growing 
rich  at  the  expense  of  producers,  combined  in  rings 
and  monopolies  to  manipulate  markets  and  rates  for 
ruinous  extortion.  These  evils  had  already  roused 
the  farmers  of  the  eastern  states  to  organize  in  18G7 
the  order  of  patrons  of  husbandry,  centring  in  a 
national  grange.  After  an  attempt  in  1871  to  create 
a  special  union,  the  farmers  of  California  in  1873 
joined  this  successful  movement  and  formed  a  state 
grange,  which  within  six  months  counted  more  than 
TOO  subordinate  granges,  in  24  counties.  At  first  an 
established  business  firm  was  chosen  to  export  and  sell 
their  surplus  grain  and  produce,  and  fifteen  cargoes 
were  despatched  in  1874;  but  this  house  failing,  the 
grangers'  business  association  was  organized,  which 
also  undertook  by  direct  arrangement  with  importers 
and  manufacturers  to  procure  and  forward  implements, 
groceries,  and  other  goods  at  low  rates.  The  grange 
and  its  branches  further  promoted  the  establishment 
of  farmers'  banks,  warehouses,  and  cooperative  stores 
in  several  towns,  even  the  construction  of  railways; 
all  aiming  to  defeat  speculators  and  extortion,  and 
obtain  ready  and  direct  markets,  saving  in  commis- 
sions and  profits  from  5  to  50  per  cent,  on  sales  as 
well  as  purchases,  and  benefiting  the  farming  commu- 
nity throughout  by  forcing  competing  middle-men  to 
greater  compliance.16 

16  This  very  compliance,  and  the  growth*of  carrying  enterprises,  in  which 
many  farmers  were  interested,  served  in  a  measure  to  check  the  ardor 
which  marked  the  first  enrolment  for  the  grange  and  its  tributary  undertak- 
ings. They  prosper,  nevertheless,  sufficiently  to  continue  their  task  so  widely 
beneficent,  direct  and  indirect.  The  success  of  the  no-fence-law  agitation 
had  served  to  reveal  to  the  farmers  their  growing  strength,  and  to  encourage 
them  to  band  for  resistance  against  other  extortions  and  encroachments. 
They  had  long  clamored  against  the  merchants  and  middle-men,  who  availed 
themselves  of  the  helpless  condition  of  a  large  proportion  among  husbandmen. 
Transportation  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  monopolists,  who  forced  the  pro- 
ducers to  pay  enormous  prices  for  moving  their  grain  and  fruit.  The  banks 
also  conspired  to  demand  a  higher  percentage  for  loans  upon  county  property 
than  upon  city  estate.  For  these  ills  lay  remedy  in- cooperation.  On  Dec. 
7,  1871,  a  farmers'  club  was  formed  at  Sac.,  followed  by  similar  associations 
in  other  towns,  and  soon  after  their  representatives  met  in  convention  to 
organize  the  Farmers'  Protective  Union  League,  of  which  J.  Bidwell  became 
the  first  president.  At  the  first  meeting  of  the  board,  in  January  1872,  were 
discussed  plans  for  a  produce  exchange,  loan  bank,  etc.,  with  appeals  for 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  5 


66  LIVE-STOCK. 

local  clubs  to  form  and  sustain  them.  Cal.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1872,  777-84. 
The  S.  Joaquin  Farmers'  Union  formed  at  Stockton,  and  so  forth.  At  the 
second  meeting  in  April  1873,  petitions  were  framed  for'the  legislature  to 
advocate  reduction  of  duty  on  sacks,  jute,  etc.  By  this  time  the  members 
had  become  impressed  with  the  superior  features  of  the  grange  movement  in 
the  eastern  states,  and  this  meeting  with  general  favor,  the  union  disbanded. 
0.  H.  Kelley,  of  the  bureau  of  agriculture  at  Washington,  had  in  1866 
been  struck  by  the  helpless  condition  of  the  farming  interests,  and  conferring 
with  W.  M.  Ireland,  of  the  post-office,  and  others,  he  compiled  a  plan  for  the 
Order  of  Patrons  of  Husbandry.  W.  Saunders,  of  the  agricultural  dept,  gave 
it  his  active  support,  and  established  the  National  Grange  on  Dec.  4,  1807. 
Martin's  Hist.  Grange  Movement,  407-9.  At  first  the  expansion  was  gradual, 
and  in  1873  it  embraced  only  10  states,  but  by  1874  over  30  had  joined,  and 
in  1875  over  1,400, 000  members  stood  enlisted,  with  over  $18, 000, 000  invested 
in  warehouses,  elevators,  mills,  bag  factories,  fruit  canneries,  cotton  gins,  etc. 
In  Iowa  more  than  half  the  elevators  were  controlled  by  Patrons.  The 
grange  promoted  the  formation  of  mutual  insurance  companies,  published 
information  on  crops  and  markets,  fostered  arbitration  in  lieu  of  costly  litiga- 
tion, and  established  agencies  in  all  parts  for  exchanging  produce  and  arrang- 
ing for  cheaper  groceries,  implements,  clothing,  etc.  In  Indiana  alone  the 
agency  did  a  business  of  over  $250,000,  saving  to  Patrons  on  implements  35 
to  50  per  cent,  and  on  groceries  and  clothing  5  to  20  per  cent.  W.  H.  Baxter, 
of  Napa,  had  communicated  with  the  national  grange  in  1871,  and  received 
a  commission  as  deputy.  He  took  part  in  the  deliberations  of  the  Farmers' 
Union,  and  prepared  the  way  for  the  special  deputy,  N.  W.  Garretson,  who 
organized  the  requisite  number  .of  subordinate  granges  toward  forming,  at 
Napa,  on  July  15,  1873,  the  Cal.  State  Grange  of  Patrons  of  Husbandry, 
with  J.  W.  A.  Wright  as  first  master.  Its  members  to  be  composed  of  mas- 
ters of  sub-granges,  and  their  wives,  as  matrons;  its  officers  to  be  chosen 
every  two  years,  including  an  executive  committee  of  six;  meeting  annually, 
on  the  first  Tuesday  in  Oct.  Any  person  interested  in  agricultural  pursuits 
might  be  admitted  as  a  member  of  sub-granges;  fee  §5  for  males,  $2  for 
females;  minimum  monthly  dues  10  cents  from  each  member,  a  percentage 
going  to  the  state  grange;  officers  elected  annually;  the  sick  must  be  visited 
and  cared  for;  cruelty  to  animals  forbidden.  Further  general  rules  and  by- 
laws in  Carr's  Husbandry,  153-7.  Special  laws  in  Patrons  of  Husbawlry, 
Linden  Grange  (no.  56),  Constit.,  1-21.  At  the  first  annual  meeting  held  in 
Oct.  1873,  at  S.  Jose,  104  granges  from  24  counties  were  represented.  Aha 
Cal.,  Oct.  15,  1873.  It  was  here  resolved  to  employ  business  agents  at  S.  F., 
and  the  best  proposals  coming  from  A.  F.  Walcott,  of  the  firm  E.  E.  Mor- 
gan's Sons,  of  N.  York  and  Liverpool,  he  received  the  appointment,  G.  P. 
Kellogg  being  the  first  special  agent  for  the  grange  to  watch  the  operations 
of  this  firm,  and  arrange  with  importers  and  dealers  in  implements,  grocer- 
ies, etc.,  for  reduced  rates  to  Patrons.  Roused  by  this  independence  of 
action,  the  opposition  bestirred  themselves  to  inflate  the  market,  to  transfer 
to  Walcott  their  chartered  vessels  at  a  heavy  advance,  and  to  excite  him  to 
make  heavy  advances  and  rash  purchases.  The  grange  of  only  one  year's 
existence  saw  with  pride  the  departure  of  15  vessels  in  1874,  laden  with  their 
grain;  but  before  they  reached  their  transatlantic  market  Walcott  had  suc- 
cumbed in  bankruptcy,  leaving  a  host  of  farmers  to  rue  their  confidence. 
The  grange  had  nevertheless  demonstrated  its  value  by  the  large  sav- 
ings effected  through  its  own  agent  on  grain  commissions,  shipping  charges, 
and  tonnage,  and  on  implements  and  groceries,  by  promoting  dealings  direct 
with  principals.  Carr,  Husbandry,  160,  estimates  the  saving  to  patrons 
alone  at  over  $5,000,000  for  the  first  year.  This  prospect  had  encouraged 
the  grange  in  April  1874  to  promote  a  system  of  warehouses  and  banks,  con- 
nected with  a  central  establishment  at  S.  F.  That  year,  accordingly,  the 
Grangers'  Bank  of  California  was  organized,  with  a  capital  of  $5,000,000. 
Within  a  year  1,500  patrons  subscribed  for  half  the  capital,  and  others  helped 
to  bring  deposits  to  $2,  000,000.  A  Farmers'  Saving  and  Loan  society  had 
formed  in  Stanislaus  in  1873,  and  now  other  farmers' banks  opened  i:i  Solano, 


THE  GRANGERS.  67 

Colusa,  and  elsewhere.  At  Modesto  and  other  places  were  opened  grangers' 
warehouses  and  cooperative  unions  and  stores,  one  at  S.  Jose  proving  a  marked 
success,  dealing  as  it  did  in  almost  everything  required  by  the  community, 
implements,  groceries,  etc.,  and  all  at  greatly  reduced  prices.  For  rules 
governing  such  stores,  see  Carr's  Husbandry,  167.  A  farmers'  Mutual 
Insurance  Company  was  formed,  and  after  Walcott's  failure,  the  grange  pro- 
moted the  organization,  on  Feb.  18,  1875,  of  the  Grangers'  Business  Asso- 
ciation of  California,  with  a  capital  of  $1,000,000.  By-laws  in  Id.,  207-9.  It 
proposed  to  deal  in  all  kinds  of  produce,  goods,  and  implements,  and  act  as 
factors  and  brokers  in  shipping  and  selling  grain.  In  1882  it  assumed  wider 
powers  to  borrow  money,  acquire  real  estate,  etc.  S.  F.  Call,  March  16,  1882. 
The  prudent  management  of  its  eleven  directors,  annually  elected,  has  pro- 
duced most  gratifying  results.  A  further  instance  of  the  energetic  efforts  of 
the  grangers  exists  in  the  narrow-gauge  railway  from  Salinas  to  Monterey, 
affording  a  cheap  outlet  for  the  grain  of  this  valley. 

The  largest  stock-raiser  in  Cal.,  and  one  of  the  largest  in  the  world,  is 
Henry  Miller,  a  native  of  Brackenheim,  Wurtemburg,  who  came  to  San 
Francisco  in  1850,  and  soon  afterward  became  the  leading  wholesale  butcher 
in  the  state.  In  1857  he  entered  into  a  partnership  with  Charles  Lux,  which 
lasted  until  the  decease  of  the  latter,  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  after- 
ward. Purchasing  lands  and  stock  as  opportunity  offered,  they  became  the 
owners  of  750,000  acres  in  eleven  counties  of  Cal.,  besides  large  possessions 
in  Or.  and  Nev.  On  them  were  depastured  in  1888  about  100,000  cattle  and 
80,000  sheep,  the  sales  of  meat  amounting  for  that  year  to  $1,500,000.  To 
Mr  Miller  is  largely  due  the  successful  operation  jof  the  San  Joaquin  and 
Kings  river  canal  company,  the  largest  irrigation  enterprise  on  the  coast. 

Among  others  in  southern  California  is  Jefferson  G.  James,  a  Missourian 
by  birth,  who  came  to  this  country  in  1850,  and  after  a  brief  mining  experi- 
ence engaged  in  cattle-farming,  first  in  Los  Angeles  co.,  and  afterward  at  the 
head  of  Fresno  slough,  where  he  was  one  of  the  pioneer  stock-raisers,  and 
where  are  still  his  headquarters.  Here  and  at  other  points  he  now  controls 
about  100,000  acres,  on  which  are  depastured  some  15,000  head  of  cattle.  In 
1882  he  was  elected  to  the  S.  F.  board  of  supervisors,  and  in  1888  to  the  board 
of  education,  rendering  good  service  in  both  capacities, 

Albert  H.  Denny,  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  and  one  of  the  oldest  settlers 
in  Siskiyou  co.,  is  also  one  of  the  most  successful  stock-raisers  and  merchants 
in  that  section.  Reaching  Cal.  in  1852,  after  a  somewhat  harsh  experience 
at  the  mines,  he  began  dairy-farming  in  the  Shasta  valley.  In  1865  he  en- 
gaged in  business  at  the  town  of  Callahan's,  where  the  sales  of  his  -firm  up  to 
18UO  exceeded  $1,000,000. 

Among  other  stock-raisers  of  Siskiyou  co.  may  be  mentioned  Samuel 
Jackson,  a  prominent  citizen  of  Yreka,  and  a  native  of  Frederick  co.,  Va. 
Landing  in  San  Francisco  in  1852,  after  a  somewhat  checkered  experience  as 
a  miner,  a  farmer,  and  in  various  other  occupations,  he  became  the  owner  of 
several  valuable  ranches  in  Siskiyou  co.,  to  the  management  of  which  his 
attention  is  now  devoted. 

One  of  the  leading  cattle-farmers  in  Humboldt  co.  is  Hy  Curtner,  a  native 
of  Fountain  co.,  Ind.,  who  came  to  this  coast  in  1852  with  $20  in  his  pocket, 
and  is  now  the  owner  of  several  large  ranches  in  Cal.  and  Nev.,  and  of  sev- 
eral thousand  head  of  stock.  In  1857  he  engaged  in  fruit-raising,  his  orchard  in 
the  thermal  belt  of  the  Alameda  foothills  being  among  the  choicest  in  the  state. 


CHAPTEK  V. 

MANUFACTURES. 

1848-1889. 

MISSION  WORK — AGRICULTURAL  AND  MINING  MANUFACTURES — HIGH  WAGES 
— IRON  AND  LEAD  WORKS — LUMBER  AND  LEATHER — POTTERY  AND  PAPER 
— CONDITIONS  AND  CLIMATE — MATERIAL — FOREST  TREES — SAW-MILLS — 
CHARCOAL — PLANING-MILLS — SHIP-BUILDING — DRY-DOCK — WAGONS  — 
COOPERAGE  AND  BOX-MAKING — WILLOW-WARE — BROOMS — FURNITURE — 
BILLIARD-TABLES  —  PIANOS  —  FISH- CURING  —  WHALING  —  OYSTERS  — 
FLOUR  —  CONFECTIONERY  —  BEER  —  SPIRITS  —  FRUIT  CANNING  —  MEAT- 
PACKING—SUGAR AND  TOBACCO — WOOL,  COTTON,  AND  SILK— CLOTH- 
ING — LEATHER — MISCELLAN  EOUS  ARTICLES  —  SOAP — IRON  —  JEWELRY 
— GLASS  AND  CLAY  WORKS — SODA — POWDER. 

o  IT  has  long  been  predicted  by  political  economists 
that  the  manufacturing  interests  of  California  will 
eventually  surpass  both  mining  and  agriculture  in 
volume  and  value  of  output.  Although  this  proph- 
ecy has  not  as  yet  come  to  pass,  its  fulfilment,  not- 
withstanding many  obstacles,  would  appear  by  no 
means  improbable,  in  view  of  the  ever-increasing  sup- 
ply of  cheaper  labor  and  capital,  of  superior  facilities, 
and  of  the  steady,  if  slow  and  in  some  directions  still 
inadequate,  demand  for  manufactured  goods  of  home 
production. 

The  main  check  here  interposed  has  been  in  the  high 
cost  of  labor,  weighing  alike  on  the  production  of  raw 
material  and  on  refining  processes,  and  opening  wide 
the  portals  for  goods  from  eastern  and  European  fac- 
tories. Certain  advantages  remained  with  California, 
by  reason  of  the  long  distance  from  these  sources 
of  supplies,  brought  in  early  days  by  the  circuitous 
routes  over  the  Isthmus  or  round  Cape  Horn,  which  in- 

(68) 


MILLS  AND"  MACHINERY.  69 

volved  loss  of  time — then  of  exceeding  value — and 
high  freights,  particularly  on  bulky  and  dangerous  arti- 
cles, both  presenting  a  wide  margin  for  the  application 
of  costlier  and  inferior  local  efforts  to  the  vast  re- 
sources near  at  hand.  An  impetus  was  accordingly 
given  to  saw  and  flour  mills,  fisheries,  and  other  pri- 
mary branches  of  industry.  The  sudden  expansion  of  a 
vast  traffic  gave  rise  to  wagon-making  and  ship-build- 
ing, the  latter  embracing  the  putting  together  and  the 
repair  of  steamboats,  which  added  important  depart- 
ments to  foundries  and  cognate  establishments  for  the 
supply  of  mining  implements.  The  large  amount  of 
repairs  required  was  sufficient  to  give  a  foothold  to 
a  number  of  enterprises,  and  so  to  strengthen  their 
means,  capacity,  and  skill  as  to  permit  the  acceptance 
of  large  special  orders,  and  in  time  to  prepare  stock 
for  the  trade. 

To  the  obstacle  of  high  wages  came  that  of  novel 
features  and  conditions,  both  of  which  the  self-reliant 
American  undertook  to  overcome  with  characteristic 
energy  and  originality.  Thus  in  mining  a  number  of 
methods  were  evolved  of  such  importance  and  scope 
as  to  revolutionize  the  industry,  and  extend  operations 
to  unparalleled  magnitude,  notably  in  placers  and 
deep  mines.  Instance  the  development  of  the  sluice 
from  the  torn,  rocker,  and  pan,  and  of  the  hydraulic 
pipe,  which  enabled  one  man  to  perform  the  labor  of 
hundreds,  and  undertake  tasks  that  once  appeared 
impossible,  thus  opening  to  enterprise  new  fields  and 
hitherto  neglected  regions.  A  demand  rose  in  conse- 
quence for  peculiar  implements  and  machinery,  sug- 
gested by  obstacles  and  requirements  as  they  occurred. 
This  served  to  retain  for  California  also  their  manu- 
facture, and  to  attract  foreign  orders  for  apparatus 
alone  invented  .and  understood  here.  Thus  it  is  that 
the  foundry  business  of  San  Francisco  acquired  a  vast 
importance,  notwithstanding  the  high  cost  of  labor 
and  the  necessity  of  importing  the  raw  material. 
The  dry  climate  and  special  wants  called  for  ditches, 


70  MANUFACTURES. 

aqueducts,  and  windmills,  which  gave  wider  opportu- 
nities for  mills  and  shops,  and  led  to  such  inventions 
as  the  inverted  syphon  and  peculiar  frames.  Deep 
mines  demanded  novel  and  strong  machinery  for  sink- 
ing, and  hydraulic  pumps,  air  compressors  and  hoisting 
gear,  to  overcome  heat,  water,  and  distance.  Differ- 
ent kinds  of  ore,  crumbling,  rebellious,  or  mixed  with 
tenacious  substances,  had  to  be  treated  on  different 
plans,  and  crushers  and  amalgamators  multiplied. 
New  explosives  were  introduced  for  blasting,  and 
extended  here  to  submarine  operations.  A  high- 
pressure  accumulator  facilitated  the  use  of  hydraulic 
power.  Rolling-mills  found  their  origin  in  the  accu- 
mulation of  old  rails,  which  could  not  profitably  be 
exported.  The  lead  brought  to  light  in  the  search 
for  precious  metals  gave  an  opening  for  shot-towers 
and  lead-works.  The  difficulty  of  mountain  trans- 
port, and  the  irregular  topography  of  San  Francisco, 
suggested  wire-rope  ways  and  cable  roads,  which  over- 
came the  obstacles  presented  by  hills  and  ravines. 

The  V-flume  did  a  similar  service  for  lumbering, 
by  giving  easy  and  cheap  access  to  mountain  timber 
scores  of  miles  distant  from  available  points,  and 
hitherto  valueless.  The  loading  chute  remedied  the 
lack  of  good  shipping-places;  the  adjustable  saw-tooth 
proved  of  great  importance  for  saw-mills;  and  the 
triple  circular  saw,  the  logging,  gang-slicing  machines, 
the  guides  and  levers,  were  designed  in  particular  for 
manipulating  the  enormous  and  valuable  redwood  and 
other  trees  of  the  state; — all  assisting  to  raise  the 
lumber  industry  within  its  different  limits  to  an  ex- 
traordinary magnitude  and  excellence,  the  fountain- 
head  for  a  number  of  others. 

In  agriculture,  the  straw-burning  machine,  the  com- 
bined harvester,  the  multiple  gang-ploughs,  and  a 
number  of  other  improvements,  have  tended  to  reduce 
the  cost  of  field-work  fully  fifty  per  cent,  and  to  make 
California  conspicuous  for  vast  and  cheap  operations. 
Her  superior  wheat  encouraged  the  grinding  of  flour 


VARIOUS  INDUSTRIES.  71 

to  the  extent  of  more  than  a  dozen  million  dollars, 
largely  for  export.  The  fine  malt  and  hops,  and  the 
difficulty  of  introducing  beer  by  sea  in  good  condition, 
favored  breweries,  whose  production  in  1888  exceeded 
four  million  dollars.  Fine  and  abundant  fruit,  vege- 
tables, and  salmon  led  to  the  establishment  of  nu- 
merous canneries,  which  sustained  several  vinegar 
factories,  and  consumed  a  large  proportion  of  the 
seven  million  dollars'  worth  and  more  of  sugar  from 
the  local  refineries.  Proximity  to  the  Hawaiian  Is- 
lands for  raw  sugar  was  a  fostering  factor.  The 
excellence  of  the  chestnut-oak  bark  raised  tannery 
products  to  three  and  a  half  million  dollars,  and  brought 
a  foreign  demand,  which  extended  to  saddlery,  shoes, 
gloves,  and  belting,  with  a  total  out-turn  of  more  than 
six  million  dollars.  The  abundance  of  tallow  and 
other  substances  account  for  soap  factories.  A  fine 
quality  of  wool  and  a  substantial  weft  sustained  the 
mills  against  many  adverse  influences.  Simplicity  of 
fabrication  and  nearness  of  sources  for  raw  material 
built  up  jute  and  bag  factories,  while  paper-mills 
found  an  abundance  of  good  straw  and  rags.  The 
discovery  of  antimony  brought  type  foundries  to  the 
front.  The  risk  and  cost  of  transporting  crockery 
and  glassware  gave  an  opening  for  potteries  and  glass- 
works. The  possession  of  quartz  promoted  a  special 
branch  of  jewelry.  The  lead  joint  for  water-pipes, 
the  pneumatic  clock,  and  the  photography  of  animals 
in  motion  are  also  among  California's  inventions.  A 
number  of  other  devices  might  be  named  which  have 
contributed  to  her  fame,  and  to  the  increasing  develop- 
ment of  her  resources. 

The  general  wealth  has  maintained  large  orders  at 
high  rates  for  domestic  purposes,  so  as  to  support 
many  otherwise  impracticable  industries.  A  number 
of  others  are  due  entirely  to  Chinese,  whose  cheap  and 
in  many  respects  undesirable  labor  is  largely  forced 
upon  the  country  by  white  workingmen. 

High  wages  have  been  sustained  by  a  variety  of 


72  MANUFACTURES. 

causes,1  such  as  the  fascinations  of  the  gold-fields, 
cheap  lands,  and  other  undeveloped  resources,  the 
falling  off  of  immigration,  and  the  indolent  and  un- 
yielding habits  among  a  large  class,  fostered  by  inter- 
ruptions from  seasons  and  unstable  conditions.  These 
drawbacks,  especially  the  irregularity,  affected  em- 
ployers seriously,  and  compelled  them  to  have  recourse 
to  Chinese.  To  a  certain  stage  the  latter  have  un- 
doubtedly been  a  useful  and  even  necessary  element, 
for  without  their  aid  must  have  been  deferred  the 
construction  of  railroads  to  facilitate  the  introduction 
of  white  labor,  the  opening  of  ditches,  reclamation  of 
land,  the  planting  of  vineyards,  and  the  establishment 
of  many  manufactures,  such  as  woollen-mills,  which  all 
help  to  provide  more  employment  for  superior  white 
men  and  for  capital.2  But  before  the  Chinese  came 
it  was  said  that  the  Indians  were  degrading  labor, 
when  white  men  were  too  lazy  to  work.  The  gold 
excitement  with  its  immense  influx  of  people  soon 
dissipated  this  idea  by  a  healthy  democratic  feeling, 
the  maintenance  of  which  is  particularly  desirable  in 

1  The  gold-fields  held  out  prospects  of  independence  and  fair  returns  for 
labor,  gilded  by  occasional  glittering  prizes,  so  as  to  greatly  lower  the  attrac- 
tions of  other  pursuits.  This  field  was  ever  extended  by  new  discoveries, 
sufficient  to  greatly  counteract  the  effects  of  immigration.  Agriculture  pre- 
sented in  somewhat  less  degree  similar  attractions,  with  the  charm  of  home- 
building.  The  mass  of  undeveloped  resources  offered  avenues  to  wealth  and 
opportunity  for  independent  enterprise.  The  magnetism  of  the  first  gold 
discoveries  gone,  the  cost,  length,  and  danger  of  the  journey  to  the  Pacific, 
and  the  attractions  of  nearer  countries,  interposed  a  check  on  the  influx  of 
workingmen,  and  with  every  slight  decline  in  wages  a  number  of  branches 
appeared  to  compete  for  labor,  to  enlarge  the  field  for  employment,  and  re- 
tard the  decline  in  earnings,  so  that  they  still  rule  higher  than  in  the  eastern 
states.  For  early  rates,  see  my  chapter  on  trade.  To  this  must  be  added 
the  periodical  indulgence  in  idleness  by  a  large  class,  fostered  by  the  no- 
madic and  independent  mining  life,  with  its  gambling  spirit,  its  irresponsible 
bachelorhood,  the  scanty  and  insecure  inducements  in  early  days  for  saving 
and  investing,  the  liberal  revenue  which  provided  ample  means  for  enjoy- 
ment and  rest,  the  compulsory  interruptions  caused  by  climate  and  agricul- 
tural seasons,  by  new  and  irregular  industries,  and  the  stress  upon  employers 
to  eliminate  in  the  training  process  less  valuable  hands.  Men  preferred  also 
to  wait  for  the  higher  pay  of  the  busy  periods,  and  hold  back  at  other  times 
rather  than  accept  reductions. 

'*  Without  them  a  number  of  industries,  like  the  making  of  shoes,  under- 
clothing, and  cigars,  could  not  have  been  maintained.  Yet  the  question  arises 
whether  it  might  not  have  been  better  to  await  the  cheapening  of  white  labor. 
No  people  can  be  permanently  benefited  by  the  introduction  of  a  low  foreign 
element,  black,  white,  or  copper  colored. 


AIDS  AND  OBSTACLES.  73 

a  republican  country.  In  California  it  would  tend  to 
redeem  the  youth,  which,  on  the  plea  of  shunning  the 
labor-levelling  Chinese,3  is  drifting  into  deplorable 
idleness,  vagabondage,  and  lawlessness,  which  retard 
progress  and  desirable  immigration,  and  deter  capi- 
tal from  opening  new  avenues  for  employment  and 
wealth. 

Among  other  obstacles  may  be  mentioned  a  high 
rate  of  interest,4  the  larger  profits  of  elementary  in- 
dustries, the  lack  of  water-power  in  eligible  quarters, 
the  cost  of  transportation,  the  high  value  of  good 
sites,  and  doubtful  land  titles,  scanty  population, 
unsettled  conditions,  the  limited  quantity  of  iron  and 
hard  wood,  arid  the  high  price  of  coal. 

The  civil  war  gave  a  decided  impulse  to  industries, 
by  increasing  the  cost  and  risk  of  transportation.  But 
the  opening  of  the  overland  railway  undermined  many 
kinds  of  business  by  bringing  cheap  markets  so  much 
nearer,  and  it  disturbed  many  more  by  unsteady  rates 
and  other  attendant  insecurity.  The  speculative 
spirit  of  Californians  had,  moreover,  tempted  to 
many  undertakings,  with  insufficient  capital  and  ex- 
perience, and  the  consequent  failures  spread  discour- 
agement and  lowered  industrial  credit.  Nevertheless, 
progress  has  been  rapid  for  so  young  a  state,  dating 
properly  from  1849,  and  this  in  face  of  so  many 
obstacles  and  the  naturally  slow  unfolding;  of  manu- 

«/  V-? 

factures.  In  the  accompanying  end  note  I  give  an 
outline  of  the  leading  industries,  chiefly  with  respect 
to  their  beginning.  Their  development  is  best  com- 
pared by  an  examination  of  the  census  reports.  That 
of  1860  enumerates  nearly  1,450  establishments,  with 
a  capital  of  $11,000,000,  employing  6,400  hands,  pay- 
ing $5,500,000  in  wages,  using  $11,000,000  worth  of 

8  This  undesirable  competition  and  consequent  hostility,  and  the  irregu- 
larity of  employment,  hold  back  much  desirable  immigration  and  capital. 
Australia  has  pointed  a  way  in  not  only  imposing  a  protective  tariff  against 
cheap  foreign  production,  but  against  the  entry  of  undesirable  labor  in  the 
form  of  an  inferior  and  unassimilating  race. 

4  Two  and  three  per  cent  monthly  in  early  years,  and  one  per  cent  until 
lately. 


74  MANUFACTURES. 

raw  material,  and  producing  goods  to  the  value  of 
$23,500,000.5  By  1870  the  establishments  numbered 
3,980,  with  $40,000,000  capital,  25,400  hands,  receiv- 
ing $13,000,000  in  wages,  using  $35,000,000  of  mate- 
rial, and  producing  $66,000,000  worth  of  goods.  In 
1880  the  figures  had  risen  to  5,890  establishments, 
with  $61,000,000  capital,  43,700  hands,  $21,000,000 
wages,  $72,600,000  of  raw  material,  and  $116,200,000 
of  products,6  increased  to  $160,000,000  by  1889. 

San  Francisco,  as  the  chief  harbor  of  the  coast,  and 
the  main  dep6t  for  most  of  the  raw  and  refined  ma- 
terial, has  naturally  become  the  centre  for  manu- 
factures; and  the  congregation  here  of  Chinese  for 
mutual  protection  has  assisted  to  so  maintain  it  for 
branches  not  requiring  proximity  to  existing  local 
sources. 

The  annual  mechanics'  fair,  as  well  as  the  county 
fairs,  has  exerted  a  fostering  influence  in  a  marked  de- 
gree, and  gives  evidence  of  continual  advance  in  all 
branches.  This,  indeed,  is  to  be  expected  with  the 
possession  of  so  many  natural  resources,  with  an  ever- 
augmenting  surplus  of  raw  products,  with  the  disclosure 
of  additional  coal-beds,  and  the  rapid  exploitation  of 
iron  deposits  so  essential  to  the  development  of  other 
branches.  The  planting  of  the  eucalyptus  and  other 
trees  promises  in  time  to  remedy  the  sensible  de- 
fect in  hard  and  elastic  woods.  Along  the  Sierra  slopes 
is  water-power  in  abundance,  and  with  spreading  set- 
tlements they  will  become  more  eligible;  while  the 
increasing  population  will  provide  hands  at  sufficiently 
low  rates  to  encourage  the  launch  of  new  enterprises, 

5  Of  which  S.  F.  produced  $19,600,000.     Flour  leads  with  over  $4,600,000, 
lumber  $3,900,000,  sugar  $1,586,000,  machinery  $5,575,000.     The  rest  all  fall 
below  the  million,  save  liquor.     This  order  was  very  nearly  maintained  in 
1870. 

6  Fisheries  excluded.     S.   F.   leads  with  2,970  estab.,  28,400  hands,  and 
$77,800,000  products;  Alameda  following  with  $5,300,000  worth  of  products, 
Sac.  $4,200,000,  S.  Joaquiu  $3,200,000,  Sta  Clara  $2,890,000,  Solano  $2,760,- 
000.     Seven  other  counties  exceed  $1,000,000.     Flour  leads  with  $12,700,000; 
next  come   slaughtering  and  meat-packing  $8,000,000,   leather  $6,200,000, 
sugar   $5,930.000,    foundry-work   $4,800,000,    lumber   $4,400,000,     clothing 
$4,000,000,  cigars,  etc.,  $3,950,000,  liquor,  shoes,  printing,  exceed  $3,000,000 
each,  bread  and  bags  exceed  $2,000,000. 


INDUSTRIAL  INCONGRUITIES.  75 

and  the  training  of  workers  for  more  refined  produc- 
tions. The  greater  part  of  the  wool  still  exported 
can  thus  be  retained  to  swell  the  list  of  woollen  fabrics 
which  enjoy  so  high  a  reputation  abroad ;  and  so  with 
leather  and  several  other  products.  With  increas- 
ing railway  competition,  the  raw  material  will  be 
cheapened,  and  it  is  calculated  that  cotton  can  be 
brought  from  Texas  at  nearly  as  low  a  rate  as  to 
Lowell,  and  so  open  the  prospect  for  a  resumption  of 
cotton  spinning,  to  be  sustained  also  by  local  planta- 
tions. The  effort  for  fine  productions  should  be  espe- 
cially fostered,  for  these  form  the  chief  drain  upon 
remittances  from  California,  which  makes  plenty  of 
flannels  and  blankets,  but  imports  fine  cloth;  exports 
sole  leather,  but  buys  uppers  for  shoes  and  fine  gloves; 
produces  common  crockery  and  bottles,  but  introduces 
table-ware  and  window-glass;  manufactures  printing- 
paper,  but  sends  for  writing-paper. 

In  addition  to  the  preceding  prospects,  the  advan- 
tage remains  with  California  of  a  protective  tariff  in 
the  shape  of  freight  and  risk  on  transports  from  the 
east,  most  foreign  goods  being  restricted  by  duty,  and 
by  the  demand  for  special  urgent  work.  Favorable 
conditions  are,  moreover,  presented  by  the  equable 
climate,  which  permits  almost  uninterrupted  work 
throughout  the  year,  obviates  the  necessity  for  the  sub- 
stantial and  costly  buildings  required  in  the  eastern 
states,  to  the  saving  also  of  rent  and  fuel.  California 
possesses  facilities  for  manufactures  decidedly  superior 
to  those  of  several  interior  states  and  regions  to  the 
south,  so  that  a  vast  area  of  the  Pacific  slope,  already 
made  tributary  by  her  geographic  position  and  trade 
channels,  may  be  counted  upon  to  sustain  her  industrial 
aspirations.7 

7  The  area  covered  by  forests  in  California  13  very  small  in  proportion  to 
its  size,  478,000  acres  in  a  total  acreage  of  11,400,000,  according  to  the  for- 
estry statistics  in  U.  S.  Ayric.  Kept,  1875,  pp.  245,  328-30,  which  placo  it  lowest 
among  the  36  states  there  listed.  This  gives  an  average  of  only  4. 1  per  cent 
of  forest  land,  S.  Diego  and  Alameda  ranking  lowest,  with  0.1  and  0.2  per 
cent,  and  Nevada,  Mariposa,  and  Santa  Cruz  highest,  with  55.9,  53.2,  and 
52.8  per  cent,  respectively/^  The  valuable  timber  belts  are  confined  to  the 


76  MANUFACTURES. 

humid  coast  and  mountain  regions  in  central  and  northern  parts,  from  37" 
lat.  to  the  Oregon  border;  and  the  interior  valleys  and  the  south  arc  com- 
paratively bare,  relieved  by  clumps  along  the  streams,  and  occasionally 
by  a  scanty  vegetation  on  the  less  arid  north  side  of  the  hills.  The  trees 
have  their  peculiarity,  like  the  other  flora  as  well  as  fauna,  the  country 
being  remarkable  for  containing  the  largest  coniferous  trees  in  the  v.-crl  1, 
growing  to  a  height  of  300  feet,  and  a  thickness  of  8  feet  and  more. 
The  best  known  are  the  redwood,  the  sequoia  sempervirens,  to  which  belong 
the  mammoth  tree;  the  sugar-pine,  pinna  lanibertiana,  the  red  and  yellow 
fir,  and  the  arbor-vitse.  Then  there  are  the  laurel,  madrono,  evergreen  oak, 
and  the  nut-pine — evergreen  trees.  The  few  deciduous  trees  are  of  small  in- 
dustrial value.  CThe  foremost  place  commercially  is  held  by  the  redwood, 
which  extends  along  the  coast  from  Santa  Cruz  for  350  miles,  with  an  aver- 
age breadth  of  10  miles,  and  20,000  feet  of  standing  lumber  to  the  acre, 
epuivalent  to  over  40,000,000,000  feet,  and  sufficient  for  two  centuries,  with- 
out counting  the  self-renewal  of  cut  forests.  On  Eel,  Mud,  and  Little  rivers 
are  nearly  100,000  acres,  averaging  from  100,000  to  250,003  feet  each,  and 
there  are  acres  bearing  2,000,000  feet.  In  the  Sierra  groves  are  clusters 
of  trees  20  feet  in  diameter,  standing  so  close  together  that  a  wagon  cannot 
pass  between  them.  A  common  height  is  200  feet,  and  in  Humboldt  the 
average  saw-log  is  nearly  5  feet  thick,  with  many  reaching  as  high  as  20, 
and  yielding  100,000  feet  of  lumber?)  It  is  unequalled  for  ready  and  smooth 
splitting  along  its  straight  grain,  remarkably  free  from  knots  for  the  fir^t  100 
feet,  trebly  superior  in  this  respect  to  eastern  timber,  and  exceedingly  dura- 
ble, offering  the  readiest  and  cheapest  of  material  for  railway -ties,  fence-rails, 
etc.  Notwithstanding  its  softness  for  working,  it  is  not  brittle,  coarse,  flinty, 
or  gummy,  and  for  size,  beauty,  and  density,  and  general  value,  it  is  one  of 
the  most  precious  of  trees.  Hardly  inferior  is  the  sugar-pine,  which  forms  a 
large  proportion  in  the  forests  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  but  owing  to  its  remote- 
ness from  markets,  only  certain  sections,  chiefly  along  the  railway  lines,  have 
been  invaded.  The  red  fir  and  yellow  pine  are  also  much  sought,  as  well  as 
the  cedar  of  the  north-west;  but  hard,  elastic  wood,  like  the  hickory  and 
white  oak  of  the  Atlantic  slopes,  is  rare,  and  the  scanty  walnut,  maple,  wild 
cherry,  and  ash  are  too  small  for  general  use. 

The  Spanish  Californians  gave  little  heed  to  the  timber  resources,  and 
even  in  the  forest  regions  they  preferred  adobe  houses.  The  few  boards  re- 
quired were  mostly  imported  before  the  entry  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  who,  with 
their  training  in  Canada,  Maine,  etc.,  felt  a  natural  inclination  for  lumbering. 
The  first  regular  whip-saw  pit  for  rftanufacturing  lumber  for  sale  is  attributed 
to  Jas  Dawson  of  Bodega,  in  1835,  according  to  Son.  Co.  Hist.,  203.  Soon 
after  1840,  Read  opened  a  mill  on  Corta  de  Madera,  and  Isaac  Graham  an- 
other near  Sta  Cruz.  In  1843,  S.  Smith,  who  had  long  laid  his  plans,  arrived 
at  Bodega  with  machinery  for  the  first  steam  mill,  saw  and  grijt,  an  effort 
which  was  rewarded  by  a  large  grant  of  land.  Cat.  Dcpt.  St.  Pap.,  v.  MS., 
15-17;  Alvarado,  Hist.,  v.  MS.,  5-7.  His  example  went  for  little,  however, 
and  not  until  after  the  U.  S.  conquest  did  mills  begin  to  rise.  After  opening 
a  pit  near  Amador  Creek  in  1843,  'Sutter  built  the  water-power  mill  at  Co- 
loma  in  1847-8,  which  proved  instrumental  in  discovering  gold.  Napa 
claimed  a  similar  smaller  mill  in  1817,  and  San  Mateo  one  in  1848.  See  my 
preceding  vols.  In  1849  several  were  erected  as  far  north  as  Yuba,  with  the 
first  circular  saw,  it  is  said,  and  Nevada,  with  application  of  steamboat  and 
other  engines  for  motive  power.  Placer  Times,  May  19,  1849.  Mills  followed 
close  upon  the  heels  of  the  advancing  miners.  Sierra  obtaining  one  in  1850, 
Plumas  in  1851,  after  using  whip-saws  for  a  time;  first  oil  Mill  Creek,  rays 
Boynton,  Stat.,  MS.,  3;  Siskiyou  in  1852,  when  lumbering  began  on  a  large 
scale,  for  shipment,  iu  Meudocino,  under  H.  Meiggs,  and  in  Humbolut.  Even 
Tulare  co.  was  then  erecting  a  mill.  Alta  Cat.,  Dec.  11,  1G52.  The  C'ciunu)  for 
1852  credits  Butte  with  3  steam  and  11  water-power  mills;  S.  F.  (S.  Mateo) 
with  5;  Marin  with  4  steam  mills,  producing  9,000,000  feet  a  year,  capital, 
$150,000;  Yuba,  18  mills,  producing  the  same  quantity,  capital,  $81,000;  Ne- 
vada had  §129,000  in  mills,  Mendocino  £66,000,  of  which  §6,000  represented 


LUMBER  AND  PLANING-MILLS.  77 

water-power,  and  Calaveras  $60,000.  See  also  Williams'  Rec.,  MS.,  4;  Bran- 
hams  Remin.,  MS.,  which  dates  the  first  Sta  Cruz  Mt  mill  1847;  Stockton 
Repub.,  Deo.  1852;  Sac.  Union,  June  16,  1882;  SMlengers  Remin. ,  MS.;  Ban- 
ning s  Wilmington,  MS.,  5,  refers  to  first  steam  mill  in  the  south;  Polynesian, 
v.  150;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  June  8,  1875j  Lake  Co.,  Rept.  Co.  Clerk,  71;  surveyor's 
reports,  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  passim;  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  22,  1852,  etc.;  Cal. 
Register,  1857,  240-9,  etc.;  Cal.  Lumkr  Scraps,  20  et  seq. 

The  lack  of  roads  and  minor  harbors,  the  high  wages  and  the  large  size  of 
the  trees,  called  for  the  application  of  improved  methods,  to  which  Califor- 
nians  contributed  several  valuable  inventions,  such  as  Dolbeer's  steam  logging 
machine  for  moving  timber,  the  treble  circular  saw  for  cutting  the  extraor- 
dinarily thick  logs  here  prevailing,  and  adjustable  teeth '  for  such  saws,  the 
carriage  for  handling  long  logs,  and  the  V-shaped  flumes,  some  over  40  miles 
in  length,  along  the  Sierra  slope,  from  Madera  northward,  which  tend  not 
alone  to  cheapen  lumber  by  means  of  their  ready  and  economic  transport,  but 
to  open  otherwise  inaccessible  forest  regions.  Concerning  the  experiments  of 
J.  W.  Haines  of  Genoa,  and  his  claims  to  the  invention,  see  Com.  and  Ind., 
42D-1.  The  largest  fluming  enterprise  is  that  of  the  Sierra  Flume  and  Lumber 
Co.  of  1875,  which  bought  60,000  acres  of  sugar  and  yellow  pine  timber  land 
in  Sierra  region  in  and  near  Plumas,  built  10  mills,  and  150  miles  of  flume  to 
carry  the  lumber  to  the  valley.  An  investment  of  $2,500,000  was  followed  by 
failure,  but  the  creditors  continued  the  business  successfully.  Drives  and 
booms  are  used,  and  the  slide  has  been  applied  to  novel  chutes  for  loading 
vessels  anchored  at  some  distance  from  the  harborless  shore.  These  different 
methods  and  features,  calling  for  large  and  varied  machinery  and  vast  and  ex- 
peditious operations,  impart  to  the  lumber  industry  in  the  state  an  extraor- 
dinary magnitude  and  excellence.  The  tracts  owned  by  many  mill  companies 
are  veritable  principalities,  exceeding  50,000  acres,  with  towns,  harbors,  water 
routes,  special  railv/ays,  and  electric  lights  for  night  labor.  The  Census  of 
I860  enumerated  279  saw-mills,  with  $1,923,000  capital,  and  1,870  hands  re- 
ceiving 01,443,000  in  wages  and  producing  $3,944,000  worth  of  material.  That 
of  1880  reduced  the  establishments  to  251,  but  of  increased  magnitude  with  the 
aid  of  improved  appliances  and  capital,  the  latter  being  placed  at  $3,454,000. 
The  hands  had  increased  to  3,430,  while  the  wages  amounted  to  only 
$1,096,000;  and  the  vaster  production,  including  305,000,000  feet  of  lumber 
(board  measure),  was  valued  at  only  $4,430,000,  half  of  which  figured  as  value 
of  material.  The  motive  power  was  obtained  from  211  steam-engines,  of 
8,760  horse-power,  and  90  water-wheels  of  2,230  horse-power.  This  produc- 
tion was  half  as  much  more  than  that  of  Washington  territory,  and  double  that 
of  Oregon.  For  railway  ties  fully  24,000,000  feet  were  required,  and  for  fence- 
posts  10,000,000.  Shingle  machines  were  offered  in  1850,  Pac.  Neics,  Jan. 
15,  1850;  and  Shingle  Springs  in  El  D.  obtained  its  name  from  one  in  use  there 
in  1849,  it  is  said.  The  demand  upon  the  yellow  pine  of  the  Sierra,  chiefly 
in  Butte,  for  turpentine  and  resin,  was  prompted  by  the  war  of  1SG1,  which 
cut  off  supplies  from  the  cast.  The  legislature  in  1862,  Cal.  Statutes,  offered 
premiums  as  an  incentive.  J.  W.  Jacobson  gained  the  first,  and  in  18G4  fully 
350,000  Ibs.  of  crude  pitch  was  collected,  from  which  3  distilleries  made  over 
7,000  gal.  of  turpentine,  and  1,150  barrels  of  resin,  each  tree  yielding  3  gal. 
crude.  The  cessation  of  the  war  reduced  the  production  to  small  proportions. 
A  small  factory  opened  in  S.  Diego  in  1872  to  supply  local  demand.  The 
camphene  distillation,  so  common  before  1860,  from  North  Carolina  turpen- 
tine, has  almost  ceased.  Sac.  Union,  May  7,  Nov.  17,  27,  1863;  Al'ci  Cal., 
May  14,  18G3;  June  27,  1S72;  Sclent.  Press,  March  20,  1869;  Call,  Jan.  6, 
18G4;  Feb.  14,  1CG5. 

Charcoal  has  been  burned  since  the  early  fifties,  and  is  now  produced  chiefly 
by  Italians,  from  oak  and  partly  from  willow.  S.  F.  used  in  1881  120,000  sacks 
of  60  Ibs.  each,  or  3,600  tons,  worth  about  $65,000.  This  came  chiefly  from 
Sonoma.  In  Nevada  and  other  mining  regions  large  quantities  were  used  for 
low-grade  ore,  at  about  28  cents  a  bushel.  Sar.  Union,  Aug.  1,  1855,  etc. 
Peat  is  gathered  in  Alameda  and  other  marshy  districts.  S.  F.  Times,  Feb. 
8,  1867,  refers  to  a  special  company  to  work  them.  Under  all  these  inroads, 


78  MANUFACTURES. 

favored  by  the  small  value  of  land  in  early  days,  there  has  been  a  great 
waste  of  forest  resources,  and  in  spots  accessible  for  shipping  and  near  settle- 
ments, as  in  Santa  Cruz  and  San  Mateo,  and  in  the  mining  belt,  there  13  little 
timber  left,  large  districts  being  entirely  denuded.  Before  the  U.  S.  occupa- 
tion, forest  fires  regularly  devastated  large  sections,  owing  to  the  custom, 
among  Indians  especially,  of  thus  gathering  insects  and  other  articles  of 
food.  This  is  one  of  the  evident  checks  to  forests  in  the  valleys.  Subse- 
quently shepherds  and  hunters  were  in  the  habit  of  firing  large  tracts  to 
promote  the  growth  of  pastures.  Sheep  in  particular  have  kept  down  the 
renewal  of  forests  by  eating  the  shoots.  Yet  after  all,  the  inroads  upon  timber 
do  not  aCbct  more  than  one  fifth  of  the  entire  area,  and  most  of  this  is 
renewing  itself,  so  that  the  supply  is  practically  inexhaustible.  This  is  nota- 
bly the  case  in  the  redwoods  and  partly  in  the  mining  belt,  and  it  is  believed 
that  the  Truckee  region  will  also  revive.  Laws  have  been  passed  for  the 
protection  of  forests,  but  with  little  effect.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  41,  Sess. 
3,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  71;  Cong.  42,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  323,  p.  218-37;  Cong. 
45,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Kept  122;  Statutes,  89-01;  Cong.  47,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc. 
5,  p.  370;  H.  Misc.  Doc.  38,  p.  200-2;  Cong.  Globe,  1877-8,  32,  2."9,  etc.;  Col 
Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  18G8-9,  p.  28;  1872-3,  pp.  339etseq.;  U.  S.  Land  Off. 
Kept,  1805,  26,  etc.;  Cal.  Lumber  Scraps,  43-9.  So  far  the  private  owner- 
ship of  land  has  served  best  for  protection,  by  rousing  private  interests  to 
check  fires  and  renew  the  growth.  There  is  a  further  compensation  in  tlie 
artificial  planting  of  trees,  fostered  by  the  state,  and  latterly  by  Arbor-day 
festivals.  This  is  extended  not  alone  to  roads  and  settlements,  for  shade, 
screen,  and  embellishment,  but  to  entire  groves  of  forest  dimensions,  for  fuel 
and  industrial  purposes,  notably  for  remedying  the  lack  of  hard  wood  suf- 
ficient to  supply  in  due  time  the  demand  and  to  balance  destruction  elsewhere. 
The  sycamore,  willow,  and  cottonwood  grow  readily,  for  fences  and  fuel,  also 
Lombardy  poplar,  but  the  black  locust  and  especially  the  eucalyptus  are  most 
widely  planted,  the  latter  promising  to  prove  very  desirable  for  elasticity  and 
hardness.  One  party  planted  100,000  in  1875  near  Florence.  Los.  Any.  Co. 
Hist.,  63.  The  olive  and  mulberry  will  no  doubt  receive  attention.  Noyes" 
Lumbering,  1-107;  Sierra  Lumber  Co.,  Prosp.;  Van  Dgke's  Stat.,  MS.,  8,  etc.; 
Colusa  Annual,  1878,  80;  Overland,  xiii.  242  et  seq.;  Harper's  May.,  Dec. 
1873;  Nov.  1878;  Jan.  1883,  with  cuts;  Hawley's  Humboldt,  13-37;  Vischcrs 
Pict.  Cal.,  95-108;  U.  S.  Land  Off.  Repts;  Kellogg's  Forest  Trees  of  Cal,  1- 
145;  U.  S.  Geol.  and  Georj.  Survey  of  Territ.,  9;  Sargent's  Forest  Trees.  , 

In  connection  with  lumber  manufacture  have  sprung  up  a  number  of 
planing-mills  for  preparing  frames,  casings,  doors,  sashes,  balustrades,  cor- 
nices, and  other  ornaments,  with  special  factories  for  several  branches.  The 
redwood  is  admirable  for  these  purposes  in  being  easily  worked,  and  as  it 
does  not  warp,  crack,  or  stain,  the  export  demand  extends  to  these  manu- 
factures. The  first  planing-mill  is  ascribed  to  Hutton  on  Market  st,  S.  F., 
the  second  to  Meiggs  at  North  Beach,  both  soon  after  ISoO.  The  first  sash 
and  door  factory  is  claimed  by  Marysville  for  1854.  There  were  in  1888  a 
score  of  mills,  with  a  capital  of  $1,000,000,  employing  1,500  men,  and  pro- 
ducing nearly  §5,000,000  worth  of  articles.  Petaluma  claims  a  special  stair- 
building  factory.  The  progress  of  San  Diego  finds  an  illustration  in  the 
rapid  success  of  the  Enterprise  planing-mills,  although  established  only  in 
1885.  The  founder,  Henry  Allen  Perry,  born  in  Huron  co.,  N.  Y.,  on  May  1, 
1843,  has  been  connected  with  the  city  since  1873  in  various  contract  works. 
The  mills  are  sustained  by  the  general  predilection  for  wooden  dwellings, 
brick  being  objected  to  on  account  of  dampness  and  a  lurking  fear  of  earth- 
quakes, so  as  to  be  virtually  restricted  to  business  houses,  which  require 
greater  stability  and  security  against  fire.  Even  in  the  south  adobes  are  yield- 
ing to  light  and  handsome  wood  buildings.  The  apparently  flimsy  yet  strong 
Chicago  frame  structure  is  the  favorite,  with  elaborate  facades,  S.  F.  being 
remarkable  for  the  use  of  bay-windows  for  catching  the  sun  and  enjoying  a 
view  in  comfort,  piazzas  and  balconies  being  here  too  exposed  to  the  windy 
and  chilly  atmosphere. 

With  an  extensive  and  widely  settled  coast  line,  full  of  resources,  ship- 


STEAMBOATS  AND  STAGES.  79 

building  received  an  early  impulse.  Craft  had  been  constructed  for  bay 
traffic  before  the  U.  S.  occupation,  as  shown  in  my  preceding  volumes.  The 
gold  fever,  with  its  attendant  unfolding  of  commerce,  gave  a  start  to  ship- 
yards during  the  winter  1848-9,  and  in  the  middle  of  1849  S.  F.  ar.d 
Boiiicia  became  the  headquarters,  the  latter  for  launching  several  steamboats, 
and  even  Sac.  put  forth  a  scow  during  the  late  summer.  See  chapter  on 
commerce.  Williams,  the  builder,  Stat.,  MS.,  9,  made  one  at  Sauzalito  for 
$2,000,  the  lumber  being  hand-sawed.  Napa  abo  claimed  a  launch  in  1849, 
after  having  constructed  craft  in  1341  and  1S45.  Hist.  Napa  Co.,  58;  Sac. 
Union,  May  19,  1858.  Stockton  had  its  first  sloop  in  1850.  In  the  sixties 
ship-builuing  became  common,  and  at  Lindsay  Pt  44  vessels,  of  which  24  were 
steamboats,  were  launched  1804-78.  Hist.  S.  Joaq.  Co.,  26,  71.  Along  the 
coast  several  places  joined  in  the  industry,  Sta  Cruz  since  1848.  Sta  Cruz  Co. 
III.,  14.  Bolinaa,  Tomales,  Pt  Arena,  Mcndocino,  all  figured;  Humbcldt  ILy 
taking  the  lead,  however,  and  launching  in  1854  also  a  steamer.  HuTnboldt 
Co.  Hist.,  145;  Norm  Co.  Hist.,  270-1,  295,  303.  For  operations  at  S.  F.,  see 
Alta  Cal,  1849  et  seq.;  8.  F.  Herald,  June  8,  10,  1350;  Dec.  31,  1354.  U.  S. 
Com.  and  Navig.,  1851,  et  seq.,  has  not  very  complete  records  i;i  its  ship- 
building tables.  Mendoc.  Co.  Hist.,  384,  438;  Hopkins'  Ship  B.,  MS.,  14-18, 
has  general  accounts  for  the  coast.  The  first  ocean  steamer  built  entirely  in 
Cal.  is  said  to  be  the  Del  Norte,  with  187  feet  of  keel,  18  state-rooms,  etc., 
launched  Dec.  14,  1864.  The  boilers  were  made  also  at  S.  F.,  but  the  engine 
was  taken  from  the  Republic.  Description  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  15,  18G5. 
The  Census  of  1880  credits  Cal.  with  62  ship-building  establishments,  with  a 
capital  of  §1,800,000,  employing  534 men,  wages  8589,000,  using  6,700,000  feet 
of  lumber,  3,000,000  Ibs.  of  metal,  and  producing  221  boats  and  vessels,  made 
and  repaired,  valued  at  §1,800,000.  Of  these  21  were  new  vessels  of  7,361 
tons,  valued  at  §771,000  from  13  establishments,  employing  181  men,  using 
4.000,000  feet  of  lumber.  Repairs  to  the  value  of  $969,000  were  done  on 
40  vessels.  The  200  boats  came  from  9  establishments,  value  about  $57,500. 
In  1882  Cal.  built  8,000  tons  of  the  17,000  for  the  U.  S.  Pac.  coast,  the  aver- 
age size  of  vessels  being  250  tons;  4  ocean  steamers  were  launched.  The 
construction  is  about  as  cheap  here  as  in  the  east,  for  higher  wages  are  bal- 
anced by  cheaper  timber,  easier  to  work  at  least  in  the  timber  region.  The 
best  lumber  at  S.  F.  comes  from  Puget  Sd.  For  fitting,  most  of  the  material 
must  be  imported.  In  1889  the  prospects  of  this  industry  were  encouraging, 
several  large  vessels  being  completed,  including  the  iron  steamer  Pomona  of 
1,200  tons.  Three-masted  schooners,  suitable  for  the  lumber  trade,  could  be 
built  in  Cal.  cheaper  than  in  Me.  With  larger  vessels,  however,  Cal.  was  at 
a  disadvantage,  the  cost  of  a  1,000-ton  ship  being  about  $72.50  per  ton  against 
$65  in  Me.  The  railway  company  at  Oakland  has  a  large  yard.  At  S.  F.  are 
several.  A  dry-dock  was  completed  in  the  summer  of  1851  at  the  foot  of  Second 
Bt,  S.  F.,  the  brig  Sidi  Hammet  entering  to  receive  the  first  coppering  in  Cal., 
the  Hawaiian  Islands  having  so  far  done  such  work.  The  subsequent  U.  S. 
dry-dock  at  Mare  Island  is  spoken  of  elsewhere.  In  Alto-  Cal.,  Apr.  16, 
1855,  both  advertise  for  vessels.  A  third  is  recommended  in  Id.,  Dec.  31, 
1855,  at  the  foot  of  Lombard  st.  Later  was  constructed  the  fine  stone  dock 
at  Hunter's  Pt,  over  400  ft  long,  which,  with  two  floating  docks,  is  controlled 
by  a  company.  There  are  also  several  slips  for  repairing.  S.  F.  Call,  Apr. 
23,  July  24,  1868. 

Traffic  was  complemented  on  land  by  elaborate  stage-carriages  and  huge 
freight-wagons.  The  Alta  Cal.,  Sept.  29,  1856,  describes  one  of  4,000  Ibs.  in 
weight,  9  feet  high,  to  carry  15,000  Ibs.  The  Spanish  Californiaiis  were  as  a 
rule  content  with  rude  frames  on  disks  of  board  for  wheels,  though  occasional 
light  wagons  were  made  with  the  help  of  foreign  sailors  in  1797.  Cal.  Prov. 
Sec.,  MS.,  vi.  79;  Alvarado,  Cal.,  MS.,  31;  Vallejo,  Rem.,  40.  There  was  a  sen- 
sation when,  in  1845,  the  first  American  wagon  entered  S.  Jose,  observes  AUa 
Cal.,  March  3,  1851.  A  carriage  factory  was  established  at  Los  Angeles  in 
1849.  L.  Aug.  Co.  Hist.,  69.  In  the  bay  towns  several  started,  Sac.,  Stock- 
ton (in  1851),  and  Marysville  following  S.  F.  Hist.  Yuba,  S.  Joaq.,  and  Mateo. 
Sacramento  claimed  in  1858  nearly  4  score  shops,  with  340  hands,  producing 


80  MANUFACTURES. 

$750,000  worth.  With  the  decline  in  mining  and  the  construction  of 
ways,  the  business  fell  off.  Two  large  factories  of  S.  F.,  dating  1851,  dis 
peared,  and  in  1881  less  than  half  the  product  of  1869  was  manufactured  here. 
In  1870  over  80  establishments  existed  in  Cal.,  employing  630  men,  and  pro- 
ducing §1,309,000  worth.  The  demand  for  vehicles  continues,  however,  excep- 
tionally large,  owing  to  the  general  wealth,  the  lively  trade,  the  value  of  time, 
cheap  animals  and  feed,  sparse  population,  and  fair  roads.  Favored  by  the 
overland  railway,  business  wagons  are  mostly  brought  from  Michigan  in 
pieces.  Wheels  and  tongues  are  frequently  made  elsewhere,  and  white  oak 
and  hickory  must  be  brought  for  the  light  vehicles  made  here,  S.  F.  with  one 
third  of  the  industry  turning  out  about  500  wagons,  500  buggies,  etc.  Car- 
works  have  sprung  up  at  Vallejo,  Sacramento,  Newark.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  July 
18,  1863;  Vallejo  Bee.,  Nov.  10,  1868;  Sac.  and  Alameda  Co.  Ifists.  Carriage 
springs  invented  and  made.  S.  F.  Times,  Sept.  15,  1868;  8.  F.  Jour.  Com., 
Apr.  25,  1877. 

Cooperage  is  also  impeded  by  the  insufficient  supply  of  coopers,  and  the 
necessity  for  importing  hoops  and  staves  for  superior  casks.  Much  redwood 
and  other  soft  material  is  used.  The  chief  demand  is  for  wine,  liquor,  and 
beer,  and  especially  for  wine-casks.  In  1881  there  were  on  the  Pac.  coast, 
nearly  all  in  Cal.,  about  100  shops,  with  over  500  men,  producing  some  200,- 
000  casks  and  kegs  for  such  liquors,  worth  $900,000;  350,000  barrels  and  half 
barrels  for  sugar,  worth  $210,000;  35,000  barrels  for  provisions,  valued  at 
$55,000;  and  95,000  powder-kegs,  worth  $43,000,  making  a  total  of  $1,206,000. 
To  this  must  be  added  the  value  of  ship  cooperage,  about  $40,000,  and  of 
lime  and  cement  barrels,  $25,000.  Com.  and  hid.,  621.  Tubs,  chests,  and 
the  like  were  made  by  3  wooden-ware  factories,  two  of  which  were  in  S.  F. 
and  one  in  Sac.,  producing  nearly  $'200,000  worth.  The  first  was  Elam  & 
Howes'  of  1852.  Armes  &  Dallam  opened  at  first  in  Sonoma  1853,  and  were 
alone  in  1864  for  a  time.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Dec.  1,  1864;  S.  F.  Times,  Feb.  21,  18(57. 
Trays  and  axe-handles  are  imported.  Of  late  4  establishments  manufacture 
bungs  and  faucets,  one  of  metal. 

Box-making  is  rapidly  growing,  with  the  increase  in  drying  and  canning 
Oof  fruit  and  fish,  and  the  export  of  fresh  fruit.  There  are  several  factories 
at  S.  F.,  and  one  each  at  different  places.  Aside  from  the  above,  two  fifths 
of  the  product  is  required  for  soap,  candles,  sugar,  and  crackers.  There 
are  special  cigar-box  factories  at  S.  F.,  turning  out  nearly  3,500,000  boxes  a 
year,  worth  over  $300,000,  60  per  cent  being  twentieths  (to  hold  50).  In 
1881  over  200  workers  were  employed,  a  quadruple  increase  since  1870.  A 
dozen  persons  made  jewelry  boxes,  worth  $25,000.  Nearly  double  the  value 
are  imported.  S.  F.  had  also  9  trunk-factories,  manufacturing  $150,000  of 
leather  and  wood  into  $350,009  of  goods.  The  small  importation,  say  one 
tenth,  includes  fancy  bags,  locks,  and  hinges,  and  is  fully  balanced  by  the 
export.  The  wages  in  this  branch  average  $625  a  year.  Coffins  are  made 
mostly  of  redwood  by  5  special  and  several  other  establishments,  employing 
fourscore  men,  and  producing  $300,000  worth.  In  1860  there  was  only  one 
maker.  The  importation  of  metallic  and  rosewood  caskets  has  declined. 
There  is  a  factory  at  Sfca  Clara.  S.  J.  Merc.,  Jan.  1,  1880.  The  embalming 
process  obtains.  Elko  Indep.,  Jan.  7,  1871. 

Of  willow-ware,  the  larger  proportion,  about  $60,000  worth,  comes  from 
Europe,  despite  duty  and  freight.  There  are  30  men,  chiefly  Europeans,  em- 
ployed, besides  some  Chinese.  Sac.  had  a  factory  in  1855.  Sac.  Union,  Feb. 
10,  1855.  Last-making  began  in  1864,  and  in  1888  there  were  two  factories 
in  S.  F.,  with  14  hands,  producing  30,000  pieces  a  year,  worth  $30,000. 
Brooms  are  made  by  about  50  establishments,  fully  half  in  S.  F.,  with  400 
hands,  half  Chinese,  producing  80,000  dozen  a  year,  worth  $350,000;  2  per 
cent  are  exported.  Broom  corn  is  cultivated  since  1851  in  several  counties, 
yielding  4  tons  per  acre,  sufficient  for  fully  100  dozen  brooms.  Los  Angeles 
opened  a  factory  1852.  L.  Anrj.  Co.  Hist.,  133;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  8,  1855;  Feb. 
28,  1856;  Alta  Cal,  Oct.  3,  1857. 

Owing  to  the  scantiness  of  suitable  woods,  and  the  high  wages,  half  of  the 


WOOD-WORK  AND  PROVISIONS.  81 

furniture  is  still  imported,  much  of  it  in  sections,  to  be  fitted  here.  One  half 
the  wood  used  comes  from  Oregon  and  Washington;  Cal.  primavera  is  becom- 
ing a  favorite  for  its  fine  wavy  grain.  The  laurel  is  beautiful,  but  used 
chiefly  for  veneering.  Alaska  cedar  promises  to  take  a  prominent  place. 
Redwood  has  the  advantage,  aside  from  its  many  good  qualities,  of  receiving 
almost  any  stain  for  imitating  dark  woods.  With  this  growing  appreciation 
and  lower  wages,  the  manufacture  is  increasing,  favored  by  the  high  freight 
and  equable  clime.  The  first  decided  impulse  was  given  by  the  war  of  1861, 
and  S.  F.  had  in  1888  fully  2  dozen  factories,  employing  1,000  hands,  with 
$750,000  in  wages,  and  producing  over  $3, 000, 000  worth.  Wig  more' sS  tat.,  MS. 
The  S.  F.  Chron.,  Dec.  29,  1889,  gives  only  $1,250,000  as  the  output  for  that 
year.  Finer  moulding  and  gilding  of  frames  is  done  here,  and  partly  the  sil- 
vering of  mirrors.  Home  decoration  is  exceptionally  large,  and  over  a  dozen 
firms  supply  artists'  material. 

The  manufacture  of  billiard-tables  was  early  encouraged  by  the  great  de- 
mand. P.  Liesenfeld,  the  earliest  existing  firm,  began  in  1855.  In  the  follow- 
ing year  the  Alta  Gal.,  March  5,  Oct.  21,  Dec.  14,  1856,  refers  to  two  more, 
Strahle  and  Vasselin.  In  I860  there  were  5,  with  $30,000  sales.  By  1870 
the  sales  had  trebled  from  6  factories.  A  dozen  years  later  the  figure  had 
risen  to  $203,000,  with  a  small  export.  The  make  is  fully  equal  to  eastern. 
One.  establishment  turns  billiard-balls. 

Pianos  claim  nine  tenths  of  the  millions  annually  spent  on  music  instru- 
ments. Two  thirds  are  imported,  the  rest,  over  800  pianos,  200  house  organs, 
some  guitars,  and  other  instruments,  occupy  150  men  and  a  capital  of  three 
quarters  of  a  million,  in  making  cases  and  putting  together  the  parts  manu- 
factured elsewhere  by  special  factories.  The  chief  demand  is  for  upright 
cases  of  ebonized  wood.  The  first  piano  is  credited  to  Jacob  Zech,  a  six- 
octave  square  piece  made  at  S.  F.  in  1856.  In  the  same  year,  S.  F. 
Butt.,  May  22,  1856,  Mar.  20,  1857,  June  30,  1863,  refers  to  J.  H.  Allen  as 
having  made  one.  The  first  upright  piece  was  turned  out  by  G.  Rudolf  in 
1865.  By  this  time  the  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  3,  1864,  Jan.  3,  June  10,  1866,  Jan.  3, 
1867,  Aug.  2,  1888,  refers  to  J.  Bender  and  other  makers;  S.  F.  Mission  Local, 
Jan.  19,  1877;  Jour.  Com.,  Apr.  4,  1877.  The  demand  for  organs  is  only  one 
fourth  that  of  pianos,  mostly  imported,  but  the  local  manufacture  is  increas- 
ing. Church  organs  were  first  made  by  Jos.  Mayer,  in  1856,  followed  by  the 
Schowstoins,  the  factory  of  J.  Bergstrbm  dating  from  1864,  being  the  largest 
and  best  known.  Some  4  score  have  been  constructed,  at  from  $1,000  upward, 
partly  for  export.  Keys  are  made  by  one  house,  flutes  and  orchestrions,  fully 
30  of  the  latter,  by  others.  Of  these  minor  instruments  the  annual  produc- 
tion amounts  to  $10,000,  or  one  fourth  of  imports.  Guitars  and  violins  were 
first  made  at  S.  F.  by  C.  Stumcke  in  1857. 

The  first  fisheries  of  California  were  in  connection  with  the  fur  trade,  par- 
ticularly for  catching  otters  and  seals,  and  this  pursuit  has  continued  in  ever- 
diminishing  degree,  although  the  Census  for  1880  still  places  its  value  at 
$15,700  a  year.  Nidever,  Life,  MS.,  140,  engaged  therein  with  a  schooner  ia 
1850-1;  Hayes'  Ang.  Arch.,  v.  55;  Hist.  Sta  Barb.  Co.,  254-8;  Pac.  R.  R. 
Kept,  vi.;  Newberry's  Rept,  42-51;  Custcr's  Stat.,  MS.;  Alta  Cal.,  July  7^8, 
1857,  July  11,  1859,  relating  also  to  sea-lion  catch,  locations,  etc.  Protective 
laws  in  Cal.  Statutes,  18G5-5,  633.  Trappers  entered  along  the  Sac.  and  other 
streams  to  swell  the  fur  supply,  especially  with  beavers,  and  furs  are  still 
bought  at  country  stores  for  S.  F.  dealers.  Deer,  water-fowl,  and  other 
game  yield  additional  profits.  S.  F.  is  the  centre  of  the  Pacific  fur  trade,  with 
chief  sources  in  Alaska,  its  total  value  exceeding  $5,000,000,  one  third  con- 
trolled by  the  Alaska  Com.  Co.,  one  fourth  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Co.,  which 
ships  direct  from  Victoria — see  Hist.  Brit.  Col.,  Northwest  Coast,  and  Alaska, 
this  series.  The  fur  seals  constitute  two  fifths  of  the  total,  which  in  England 
rises  in  prepared  form  to  $10,000,000.  The  local  fur  sale  in  S.  F.  reaches 
$300,000,  mostly  goods  returned  from  London.  Of  other  pelts  only  $15,000 
worth  are  sold.  The  regular  fisheries  of  Cal.,  as  a  special  industry,  came  into 
consideration  shortly  after  the  U.  S.  conquest.  The  Californian,  Apr.  19, 
1848,  reported  that  a  company  was  forming  to  improve  the  salmon  fishery  at 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL  6 


82  MANUFACTURES. 

Brazoria.  The  gold  fever  interfered,  and  fishery  projects  were  not  resumed 
until  the  winter  of  1849-50.  The  Sac.  Transc.,  June  29,  1850,  March  14,  1851 , 
refers  to  the.  operations  of  the  Sac.  Fishing  Co.,  which  included  a  catch  of 
sturgeons  weighing  200  and  300  Ibs.  Roder,  Selling.  Bay,  MS.,  6-7,  who 
bought  an  interest  in  the  concern  in  1851,  credits  Capt.  Webb  with  starting 
it.  G.  Cooper  was  then  also  in  the  business.  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  149.  By  1855 
three  firms  were  engaged  in  curing  salmon  in  this  vicinity,  employing  200 
men  for  several  months.  Directory  Sac. ,  1856,  p.  xvii.-xviii. ;  Sac.  Union,  June 
30,  1855.  Since  then  the  industry  has  gradually  increased,  until  the  Pacific 
coast  in  1881  canned  salmon  to  the  value  of  $5,000,000  a  year.  Of  this  the 
Sac.  canneries,  from  Vallejo  upward,  assisted  by  the  propagation  efforts  of 
the  state,  produced  nearly  200,000  cases,  against  little  over  60,000  in  1880,  and 
still  less  in  preceding  years,  according  to  Hughes'  Circular.  The  cases  of  24 
two-pound  cans  were  valued  at  $5,  or  nearly  $1,000,000.  Eel  and  Smith 
rivers  added  7,000  and  6,000  cases,  respectively.  For  methods  and  leading 
companies  in  Cal.  and  northward,  see  Com.  and  Ind.,  county  histories  of  Sac., 
Solano,  C.  Costa;  S.  F.  Herald,  March  20,  1853,  etc.;  S.  F.  Bull,  Sept.  13, 
1859;  Nov.  26,  Dec.  26,  1878;  June  6,  1879;  Sept.  17,  1881;  Alta  Cal,  Sept. 
13,  1859,  etc.  There  are  a  dozen  canneries  on  the  Sac.  alone,  and  several 
fruit  canneries  share  the  business.  Profits  are  becoming  less  and  more  uncer- 
tain. The  laws  for  protecting  the  fish,  for  gill  nets,  for  covering  only  one 
third  of  the  river  width,  for  abstaining  from  catching  in  August,  are  little 
respected,  partly  owing  to  the  frequent  change  of  regulations.  Cal.  Statutes, 
1853,  54;  1854,  158,  167;  1855,  220;  1872,  1004;  1875-6,  ap.  53. 

Salmon  form  the  staple  of  the  fisheries,  which  according  to  the  Census  of 
1880  employed  a  capital  of  $1,140,000,  3,090  men,  including  1,000  shore  men, 
49  vessels  of  5,200  tons,  valued  at  $500,000,  850  boats  valued  at  §90,000, 
bringing  a  total  product  of  $1,800,000.  The  catch  is  estimated  at  12,000  tons 
a  year,  of  which  4,000  were  from  S.  F.  bay  and  its  tributaries.  The  Chinese 
sweep  the  bay  flats  to  the  destruction  of  fish,  and  catch  large  quantities  at 
different  points,  as  at  Monterey  and  the  Sta  Barbara  isles.  Fully  threescore 
deep-sea  boats  are  engaged  to  supply  the  S.  F.  market,  almost  wholly  decked, 
each  with  7  or  8  men,  and  long  trawling  lines.  A  fishing  outfit  costs  from 
$500  to  $1,000.  The  fishermen  are  mostly  of  the  Latin  race,  the  Italians 
leading,  who  earn  fair  returns,  on  shares,  but  are  improvident,  with  frequent 
intervals  of  idleness  and  dissipation.  Chinese  are  content  with  less  profit- 
able fishing  near  the  shore.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc. ,  Cong.  47,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc. 
xviii.  881;  U.  S.  Census,  1860,  and  1870;  Price's  Two  Amer.,  209-26;  Dixon's 
White  Cong.,  i.  23-7;  ii.  251-8;  Sac.  Directory,  1857-8,  p.  xiv.,  etc.;  Harpers 
Mag.,  xlvii.  911;  Hayes'  Ang.,  v.  66-72;  U.  S.  Com.  and  Navig.,  1877. 

With  salmon  is  caught  a  quantity  of  sturgeon,  from  which  about  10  tons 
of  caviare  is  made  annually,  worth  $5,000.  Herring  forms  the  staple  of  the 
bay  men's  catch,  notably  between  Oct.  and  Jan.  preceding  the  salmon  sea- 
son. The  smaller  kind  is  marketed  as  sardines.  This  branch,  together  with 
smelts,  affords  chief  occupation  for  75  boats  and  200  men.  In  1880  the  first 
special  vessel  was  sent  to  gather  halibut.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  July  18,  1859;  Alta 
Cal.,  Sept.  1,  1859;  Dec.  29,  1872;  S.  F.  Call,  Apr.  23,  1871;  June  25,  1874. 
Cod  banks  were  discovered  in  1863,  in  the  Northern  Pacific.  The  following 
year  a  vessel  was  despatched  to  try  them.  Alta  Cal.,  June  2,  1864.  She  did 
so  well  that  7  sailed  in  1865,  bringing  700  tons,  cured  partly  on  Goat  Island. 
Id.,  Sept.  27,  1864;  S.  F.  Call,  June  6,  1868.  Since  then  the  fleet  •. is  varied 
between  3  in  1872  and  21  vessels  in  1870  and  1878,  the  latter  bringing  1,700 
to  1,850  tons.  Latterly  a  few  large  vessels  bring  the  same  amount  for  three 
firms,  with  prospects  for  a  wider  demand.  The  drying  grounds  and  ware- 
houses are  chiefly  in  Marin;  6,000  gallons  of  cod-liver  oil  and  other  material 
are  produced.  Whaling  was  pursued  in  the  Pacific  by  Americans  long  before 
they  acquired  Cal.,  until  the  number  of  vessels  in  1855  reached  500,  with 
chief  rendezvous  at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  After  1865  S.  F.  became  their 
headquarters,  and  here  were  owned  in  1888  half  a  dozen  of  the  40  vessels  to 
which  the  fleet  had  declined  by  1881,  including  4  steamers,  first  employed  in 
1880.  The  S.  F.  vessels  are  worth  $15,000  to  $40,000  each.  Early  in  the 


FISHING  AND  CANNING.  83 

fifties  Capt.  Davenport,  an  old  whaling  master,  organized  a  company  at 
Monterey  to  pursue  the  passing  whales  in  boats.  His  success  led  to  the  for- 
mation of  other  parties  at  different  points,  notably  in  1855  of  17  Portuguese 
at  Monterey,  who  obtained  24,000  barrels  in  three  years.  In  1862  the  Car- 
mel  Co.  was  formed.  Mont.  W.  Herald,  Aug.  1,  1874;  Sac.  Union,  June  11,  27, 
Nov.  14,  1855;  Oct.  2,  1856;  S.  F.  £««.,' Nov.  12,  1855;  Cal.Jour.  Ass.,  1856, 
30-1;  1860,  ap.  3,  p.  68;  Id.,  Sen.,  1860,  ap.  3,  p.  72;  1867-8,  ap.  3,  p.  104-7; 
Hayes'  Mont.,  137-55;  Id.,  Any.,  \.  56-73;  Id.,  S.  Diego,  i.  40-2;  Cal.  Agric. 
Soc.,  Trans.,  1864-5,  229;  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  30,  1859;  U.  S.  Com.,  passim; 
L.  Ann.  Go.  Hist.,  70;  Hayes'  Emig.  Notes,  461-4;  AUaCal,  Sept.  30,  1856; 
Nov.  13,  1857;  Savages  Coll,  MS.,  iv.  262-3;  S.  F.  Post,  Nov.  1,  1883,  with 
allusions  to  stations  at  Crescent  City,  Bolinas,  L.  Angeles,  S.  Diego.  The 
stations  are  now  restricted  to  Monterey,  S.  Simeon,  Pt  Conception,  and  San 
Luis  Obispo,  each  employing  about  a  dozen  men  and  obtaining  500  barrels. 
The  gray  whales,  which  provide  the  main  supply,  yield  only  20  barrels  on  an 
average.  Between  April  and  Sept.  the  men  are  engaged  in  farming.  The 
Census,  1880,  places  the  total  value  of  Cal.  whaling  at  $202,000.  Sharks  are 
caught  at  Humboldt,  Sta  Catalina,  and  Anaheim,  chiefly  for  their  fine  liver 
oil.  Cal.  Chron.,  May  20,  1856. 

Oysters  were  first  brought  from  Shoal  water  Bay,  in  1850,  by  Capt.  Felt- 
stead,  but  spoiled  on  the  way.  A.  Ludlum  succeeded  better  in  1851,  after 
which  the  supply  became  regular.  With  the  opening  of  the  overland  railway, 
fresh  oysters  were  brought  for  transplanting,  or  rather  for  fattening,  in  the 
shallows  of  S.  F.  Bay,  as  the  spawn  does  not  thrive.  In  1888  four  companies 
owned  600  acres  of  beds,  with  a  capital  of  $300,000.  In  the  third  year  they 
reach  the  size  of  200  to  the  bushel.  Canned  oysters  are  imported  to  the 
amount  of  400  tons,  and  the  transmission  in  ice  is  increasing.  The  total  sales 
reach  $1,250,000  a  year.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  13,  1868;  Aug.  14,  1871;  Jan. 
27,  1875;  8.  F.  Call,  Aug.  1,  1874;  March  4,  1875;  Com.  and  fnd.,  362-4. 

In  connection  with  oyster-planting  should  be  mentioned  John  S.  Morgan, 
a  native  of  Westfield,  N.  Y.,  and  a  Cal.  pioneer.  In  1853  he  brought  to  San 
Francisco  the  first  cargo  of  oysters  from  Shoalwater  bay,  and  later  explored 
the  entire  coast,  from  Puget  sound  to  the  gulf  of  Cal.,  for  the  purpose  of  find- 
ing oysters  fit  for  transplanting.  Between  1860  and  1869  his  operations  were 
limited  to  the  culture  and  sale  of  native  oysters  from  Shoalwater  bay;  but  on 
the  completion  of  the  overland  railroad  he  began  the  importation  and  trans- 
planting of  eastern  oysters. 

Nearly  300  species  of  fish  have  been  reported  in  Cal.,  130  being  in  S.  F. 
Bay,  25  pertaining  to  fresh  water.  Some  of  them  lack  the  flavor  of  the 
Atlantic  varieties,  of  which  many  of  the  most  desirable  are  absent.  Under 
the  incentive  of  a  congressional  act  creating  a  fish  commission,  to  import 
and  distribute  food  fishes,  three  commissioners  were  appointed  for  Cal.  Stat- 
utes, 1889-70,  663-5.  A  dozen  varieties  were  accordingly  introduced,  all  of 
which  promise  fairly,  save  the  eel.  A  standing  arrangement  was  made  to 
put  from  a  half  to  two  million  salmon  every  year  into  the  tributaries  of  the 
Sac.,  and  a  hatching  establishment  on  McLeod  River  yielded,  about  1888, 
from  600,000  to  10,000,000  fish  annually,  saving  50  fold  above  the  former  rate 
of  survival.  It  is  the  most  extensive  institution  of  the  kind,  and  sends  eggs 
to  every  part  of  the  globe.  N.  Y.  Tribune,  Nov.  16,  1878.  It  seems  that  a 
species  of  salmon,  suitable  for  warmer  waters,  is  developing.  The  catfish 
thrives  best  of  all,  and  in  1888  was  found  throughout  the  state.  Of  shad, 
over  half  a  million  were  placed  in  the  Sacramento  prior  to  1882,  and  are  fairly 
abundant,  but  they  need  protection.  Several  rivers  have  been  well  stocked 
with  trout.  Whitefish  was  among  the  early  introductions,  but  is  not  yet 
profitably  abundant.  Shad,  bass,  lobsters,  and  carp  are  promising.  The  last 
is  bred  with  success  in  ponds  and  lakes  for  the  market,  as  by  the  Lenni  fish 
propagation  company,  which  also  deal  in  trout  and  frogs.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct. 
13,  1881;  Lake  Co.  Hist.,  155.  See,  further,  Overland,  xiii.  228-33,  3J1-15; 
xiv.  79-85;  Cal  Jour.  Sen.,  1873-4,  ap.  68-9;  1875-6,  ap.  3,  53;  1877-8, 
ap.  21,  54;  Sonoma  Co.  Hist.,  461-4;  Fisheries,  Rept  Com.,  for  different 
years;  U.  S.  Oov.  Doc.,  Cong.  *2,  Sess.  3,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  74;  Cong.  44, 
Sess.  1,  food  fishes;  Cong.  45,  dess-  2,  Sen.  Misc.,  iii.  797-810;  Cong.  47, 
Seas.  1.  i'd..  iii,  1063-84. 


84  MANUFACTURES. 

The  high  quality  of  Cal.  wheat  is  maintained  to  a  great  extent  also  in  the 
flour,  the  finest  coming  from  mills  at  Vallejo  and  S.  F.,  whose  products  com- 
mand 25  cents  per  barrel  extra.  Spanish  Californians  produced  grain  only 
for  their  own  wants,  and  were  content  to  grind  it  on  the  household  metate, 
or  at  best,  with  arastras,  by  mules,  a  machine  described  under  mining. 
The  Americans  quickly  applied  water-power  to  the  mills  erected  in  the  early 
forties  in  Sta  Cruz,  Sta  Clara,  Sonoma,  S.  Joaquin,  and  by  Sutter,  Capt.  Smith  a 
combined  saw  and  grist  mill  possessing  the  only  steam-power  before  the  gold 
era.  Major's  mill  in  S.  Agustin  had  horse-power,  and  likewise  Cooper's  in 
Salinas.  Mont.  Hist.,  109;  Sta  Cruz  Hist.,  12.  In  Sonoma,  Hagler's  mill  dated 
nearly  as  early  as  Smith's.  Son.  Hitt.,  213,  375.  And  Alexander's  rose  in 
1845-6,  about  the  same  time  as  Weber's  near  Stockton.  Tinkhams  Stockton, 
62-3,  382;  S.  Joaq.  Hist.,  71,  101.  Placer,  Co.  Hist.,  239,  claimed  one  in  1846. 
Sutter  was  building  his  large  new  mill  at  Brighton  in  1847-8;  Hist.  Sac.,  146; 
and  a  small  one  was  then  on  the  Cosumnes,  at  Daylor's.  Sand.  I.  Nc/r^  \\. 
194;  Or.  Spect.,  June  10,  1847.  After  1849  a  number  began  to  rise,  largely 
operated  by  steam,  Sac.  alone  claiming  three  in  1850.  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  18, 
1850;  but  only  two  in  1851.  Culor's  Sac.  Dir.,  96-8.  For  others,  see  Altn 
Cal,  Nov.  29,  Dec.  5,  1852;  March  4,  Aug.  5,  Oct.  5,  1853;  Jan.  1,  isr»4; 
YoloHist.,  77;  Herald,  Aug.  12,  Sept.  4,  24,  1852;  Sept.  1,  1853;  Tuba  Ui^t., 
69-70;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  1,  3,  7,  Dec.  1,  5,  20,  25,  1854,  etc.;  L.  Any.  Ji:.-t.., 
134;  Sutler  Hist.,  48.  One  established  in  Colusa  in  1852  is  still  working. 
L.  Angeles  obtained  a  large  mill  in  1851;  Bidwell  erected  the  first  near 
Chico  in  1853.  North  Enterprise,  Oct.  17,  1873.  Siskiyou,  Hist.,  193, 
claims  one  for  the  same  year,  yet  Crescent  City  regarded  its  first  mill,  of 
1856,  as  the  most  northerly.  AltaCal,  Oct.  24,  1856.  In  1S53  both  Mer- 
ced, Hist.,  142,  and  Stanislaus,  Hist.,  100,  118,  had  mills.  Data  for 
1855-6  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  Apr.  5,  1856,  and  following  years.  Also  Census, 
1852.  In  1854  there  were  54  mills,  with  a  capacity  of  1,250,000  barrels 
a  year;  in  1860  91  mills;  in  1870  115.  The  Census  of  1883  enumerates 
150,  with  $4,360,000  capital,  190  hands,  455  runs  of  stone,  58,6DO  bushels 
daily  capacity,  using  8,200,000  bushels  of  wheat  and  3,470,000  of  other 
grain,  and  producing  $12,700,000  worth;  97  mills  were  operated  by  steam 
of  5,770  horse-power,  out  of  a  total  of  7,440.  The  largest  mill,  erected 
at  Vallejo  in  1869,  has  a  capacity  of  1,700  barrels  a  day,  and  storage  for 
50,000  tons.  It  grinds  about  1,003  barrels  a  day,  and  ships  more  than  1,800 
tons  monthly  to  Europe.  Cal.  in  1881  consumed  1,1 00,0 JO  barrels,  and  ex- 
ported 785,000  barrels  against  465,000  in  1867,  a  maximum  for  several  years, 
and  644,700  in  1873-4,  of  which  364,000  to  England  of  high  grade.  Even 
China,  which  ranks  next  as  a  market,  is  demanding  more  of  the  high-grade 
flour.  Cent.  Am.  and  Hawaii  Isl.  follow,  Australia  taking  some  at  times. 
High  wages  and  the  lack  of  an  outlet  for  middlings,  bran,  and  .screenings  are 
obstacles  which  keep  a  number  of  mills  closed.  The  custom  of  eastern  states 
to  grind  for  a  share  or  for  a  rate  is  not  in  vogue  save  in  remote  districts.  The 
rule  is  for  millers  to  buy  grain  and  take  their  chances  for  selling.  The  '  high 
grinding'  Hungarian  system  has  not  yet  gained  much  favor.  Of  cracked 
wheat  and  oatmeal  3,500  tons  each  were  produced  in  1881,  the  latter  largely 
from  Oregon  oats.  The  oatmeal  importation  from  the  east,  of  4,000  barrels, 
has  declined.  In  1852  '  Emperor  'Norton  erected  the  first  rice-mill  at  S.  F.; 
larger  ones  rose  in  1853,  etc.  Alta  Cal.,  Jan.  3,  1854;  March  15,  1855;  Id., 
Nov.  9,  1855;  May  10,  1857;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  10,  1855,  refer  to  two  starch 
factories  in  Contra  Costa  and  S.  F. ;  and  there  was  one  in  Sta  Clara,  but  all 
failed  save  one  of  S.  F.,  dating  1854,  which  produced  in  1811  100  tons  of  the 
1,300  tons  used  on  the  coast,  employing  6  men. 

The  demand  of  miners  and  crews  for  ship-biscuits  led  in  1849  to  the  opening 
of  a  cracker  factory  by  W.  B.  Gorman,  followed  by  Deeth  &  Hore,  the  last 
adding  steam  machinery.  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  4,  1851;  Feb.  21,  1855;  Sept. 
14,  1860;  S.  F.  Bull,  Feb.  8,  1865;  Alia  Cal,  Aug.  10,  1855.  Deeth's  enter- 
prise stood  prominent  in  18S8.  The  three  of  186J  increased  to  ten  by  1881, 
with  a  production  of  10,500  tons,  worth  $1,500,003;  prices  3  to  28  cents  per 
Ib. ;  225  hands  employed;  imports  declining,  especially  since  1872,  while  the 


BREWERIES  AND  DISTILLERIES.  86 

export  has  increased  to  1,000  tons.  There  were  six  macaroni  factories;  the 
first  opened  at  S.  F.  in  1855  by  Meuli  &  Schulthess.  S.  F.  Jour.  Com.,  May 
5,  1875;  Alta  Gal,  Dec.  8,  1850;  S.  F.  Bull.,  Dec.  27,  1864.  Forty  varieties 
were  made;  a  small  lot  from  Italian  wheat.  The  annual  consumption  in  1881 
was  145,000  boxes,  or  950  tons,  worth  $200,000;  30  tons  being  exported. 

The  annual  consumption  of  confectionery  was  estimated  in  1881  at  $850,- 
000,  three  fourths  was  sold  at  S.  F.,  the  wholesale  dealings  reaching  $450,000, 
one  third  being  imported.  The  invested  capital  was  $375,000;  the  hands  num- 
ber 250.  I.  Regan  made  the  first  candy  for  sale  in  S.  F.  in  1849.  Casnin'n 
8 tat.,  MS.,  7.  Syrup,  extracts,  and  cordial  factories  are  mentioned  in  Afai 
Cal.,  Sept.  16,  1857;  S.  F.  Bull.,  Dec.  14,  1870;  S.  F.  Post,  Sept.  1,  1877; 
Jour.  Com.,  June  6,  1877.  Yeast  was  used  to  the  extent  of  75,000  cases  in 
1881,  one  third  imported,  with  prospective  increase.  The  manufacture  was 
estimated  at  $225,000,  a  case  being  valued  at  $4.50;  100  hands  employed;  ex- 
port 1,600  cases.  Chocolate  is  made  at  two  factories,  to  the  extent  of  350,000 
Ibs.,  worth  $100,000,  in  1881;  imports  100,000  Ibs.  The  leading  factory  was 
established  by  D.  Ghirardelli  in  1852.  News  Letter,  Apr.  20,  1867.  These  are 
combined  with  coffee  and  spice  mills,  first  established  by  W.  H.  Bovee  in 
1850.  Although  groceries  in  different  towns  have  their  own  hand-mills  and 
small  ovens,  yet  half  the  business  is  done  by  factories  at  S.  F.,  turning  out 
5,700,000  Ibs.  in  1881.  Of  spices  250  tons  were  ground.  One  firm  makes  a 
specialty  of  mustard.  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  9,  1854.  Alta  Cal.,  Sept.  25,  1857,  re- 
fers to  a  horseradish  factory.  Chiccory  is  prepared  at  two  factories,  one  at 
Sac.,  the  larger  one  at  Stockton,  since  1872;  the  two  produce  500  tons;  300 
more  comes  from  Germany.  Id.,  March  14,  26,  1859;  May  19,  1872;  Price's 
Cur.,  June  15,  1855;  S.  F.  Times,  Jan.  10,  1868;  17.  S.  Agric.  Rept,  1874,  277; 
S.  F.  Chron.,  Nov.  3,  1872.  Vinegar  is  mostly  made  from  cider  in  the  in- 
terior, from  malt  in  S.  F.,  of  which  2,300  tons  was  used  in  1881;  wine  has 
been  found  too  dear.  The  total  production  exceeded  3,000,000  gallons, 
valued  at  25  cents  each,  fully  half  being  required  for  canneries;  French  im- 
ports fell  to  100  barrels  from  500  in  1875.  The  first  factory  was  opened  in 
1854  by  A.  D.  Baker.  Advertisement  in  Merc.  Oaz.,  June  26,  1858.  The 
Cr/tviiH  of  1870  reported  only  3  factories,  with  a  production  of  little  over 
$50,000.  Mann  Hint.,  291-2.  Pickle-making  is  largely  combined  with  the 
preceding,  both  branches  employing  threescore  hands  each.  About  20,000 
sacks  of  vegetables  are  used.  The  business  was  fairly  large  already  in  1855. 
S.  F.  Bull,  Dec.  1,  1855;  Jan.  11,  1856. 

Beer,  as  well  as  vinegar,  was  made  in  colonial  days  on  a  small  scale,  the 
former  being  credited  to  W.  McGlone,  a  sailor,  in  1837.  Mont.  Cal.,  March 
19,  1878.  The  first  regular  brewery,  however,  was  the  Empire,  of  W.  Bull, 
recorded  in  KimbalVs  S.  F.  Directory,  1850,  42.  A.  Roy  and  W.  McCoy 
figure  shortly  after.  Pac.  News,  Jan.  10,  1851.  Sutter,  Co.  Hist.,  47-8, 
claims  one  in  the  same  year.  The  Lafayette  of  S.  F.  aspires  to  a  similar 
date.  The  difficulty  of  introducing  malt  liquor  in  good  condition  gave  zest 
to  the  business,  and  breweries  spread  in  all  directions,  from  Stockton  and 
Marysville  in  1851  and  1852  to  Plumas  and  Los  Angeles  in  1854,  and  to  all 
larger  towns.  See  histories  of  Yuba,  69;  S.  Joaq.,  71-2;  Plumas,  464;  L. 
Any.,  69;  El.  Dor.,  etc.  By  1881  there  were  about  350  breweries  on  the 
coast  north  of  Mexico,  with  a  capital  of  $3,700,000,  and  a  production  valued 
at  $4,500,000,  the  barrel  being  calculated  at  $7.50.  Nearly  nine  tenths  of 
this  amount  pertains  to  Cal. ;  S.  F.,  with  38  establishment  figuring  for  280,000 
barrels,  the  largest  yielding  threescore  thousand;  only  two  were  then  mak- 
ing lager  beer,  one  at  Boca,  but  since  then  this  production  is  increasing;  ale 
and  porter  amounted  to  30,000  barrels  more.  So  far  the  liquor  was  mostly 
quick-brewed,  of  3  days' fermentation.  The  import  of  2,500  barrels  was  fully 
balanced  by  the  export  of  4,000.  Over  34,000  tons  of  grain  were  used  for  malt- 
ing, four  fifths  being  converted  by  the  breweries,  yet  special  malt-houses  exist, 
the  largest,  established  in  1857  by  II.  Zwicg,  producing  5,000  tons.  Hops 
have  improved  till  they  equal  the  best.  The  leading  brewery  on  the  coast  is 
the  Philadelphia,  the  success  of  which  is  due  to  the  enterprise  of  John 
Wielaud,  a  native  of  Wurtemberg,  boru  Oct.  6,  1829.  In  1S49  he  abandoned 


86  MANUFACTURES. 

viniculture  to  seek  his  fortune  in  America,  and  reached  California  in  1851. 
With  the  money  gathered  at  first  as  a  miner  and  then  as  proprietor  of  the 
Union  bakery,  S.  F.,  ho  in  1855  bought  an  interest  in  Holscher's  brewery,  of 
which  he  gained  sole  control  in  1867,  and  at  once  took  steps  to  enlarge  oper- 
ations, raising  the  production  from  less  than  4,000  barrels  in  1862  to  over 
threescore  thousand  by  1885.  In  this  year  his  public-spirited  career,  tinged 
with  a  whole-souled  benevolence,  was  cut  short  by  an  accident.  His  sons 
have  since  displayed  marked  ability  in  still  further  extending  the  business  of 
their  father. 

Cal.  possesses  15  of  the  28  distilleries  on  the  coast,  producing  in  1881  over 
1,800,000  gallons  of  whiskeys,  cordials,  and  bitters.  Brandy  has  been  men- 
tioned under  viniculture.  The  first  is  claimed  for  Sonoma.  Co.  Hist.,  215,  in 
1851.  The  Mission  Creek  distillery  is  mentioned  in  Alia  Cal.,  Apr.  5,  1854. 
For  several  others,  with  new  processes,  full  particulars  will  be  found  in 
AUa,  Jan.  30,  1870;  Jan.  10,  1875;  S.  F.  Post,  Oct.  31,  1873;  S.  F.  Times, 
Oct.  20,  1868;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  47,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  xiv.  100-2; 
Sess.  2,  xv.  106-7,  117.  The  largest  made  4,200  gallons  of  rectified  spirits 
daily  in  1881.  Id.,  p.  81,  alludes  to  illicit  stills;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  24,  1872, 
to  seizures.  A  little  rum  was  distilled  at  L.  Ang.  in  1858-9.  A  factory 
for  cordials,  essences,  etc.,  existed  in  1852.  The  import  in  1881  stood  at 
24,000  barrels  of  whiskey,  8,000  of  other  spirits,  and  30,000  cases  (2,300  bar- 
rels) of  bitters  and  cordials. 

The  Pacific  distillery  is  mainly  controlled  by  Henry  Voorman,  a  pioneer 
of  1849,  who  stands  conspicuous  as  the  promoter  of  several  enterprises  of 
value  to  the  state.  He  was  born  in  Hanover,  Aug.  58,  1826.  An  unsuccess- 
ful attempt  at  mining  brought  him  back  to  the  mercantile  business,  for  which 
he  had  been  trained,  and  after  keeping  store  for  a  few  years  in  S.  F.  he  be- 
came in  the  sixties  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Van  Bergen  &  Sons,  with  whom  he 
started  the  Bay  sugar  refinery,  while  associating  himself  with  others  to  open  • 
the  Pacific  distillery,  to  reclaim  the  swamp-land  of  Bouldin  Island,  of  the  San 
Joaquiii  delta,  to  found  the  flourishing  Scandinavian  colony  in  Fresno,  and  to 
extend  irrigation  in  this  region.  His  views  on  matters  connected  with  these 
undertakings  have  proved  of  great  value  for  my  industrial  chapters. 

Of  soda  the  coast  consumed  10,000,000  bottles,  worth  $330,000.  Though 
readily  manufactured,  a  number  of  special  works  exist,  several  of  which  yield 
100  to  150  dozen  bottles  a  day.  Three  were  recorded  at  Sac.  in  S.  F.  Herald, 
Nov.  18,  1850.  Cal.  consumed  35,000  tons  of  ice  in  1881,  one  third  at  S.  F. 
Alaskan  ice  was  much  introduced  at  one  time,  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  7,  1854;  but 
the  opening  of  the  overland  railway  gave  access  to  the  Sierra,  where  heavy 
storages  are  made.  One  sixth  of  the  total  was  in  1881  of  artificial  production. 
Over  $500,000  capital  is  invested,  employing  some  600  men  for  a  season. 
S.  F.  Post,  June  18,  1881;  S.  F.  Herald,  March  19,  1859;  S.  F.  Bull.,  March 
9,  1871;  Yreka  Union,  Dec.  27,  1879. 

Canning  of  fruit,  and  partly  of  vegetables  as  well  as  fish,  is  a  fast-growing 
industry,  fostered  by  the  excellent  quality  of  certain  varieties,  their  increasing 
abundance  and  cheapness,  and  their  scarcity  in  other  parts  of  the  U.  S.  In 
1889  the  entire  fruit  and  vegetable  pack  was  placed,  according  to  the  most 
conservative  estimates,  at  not  less  than  1,250,000  cases,  and  by  others  at 
1,500,000  cases.  More  than  half  contained  fruit,  and  fully  two  thirds  came 
from  S.  F.  establishments,  with  large  shipments  from  S.  Jose.  The  fish  can- 
ning swells  the  figure  largely,  as  already  shown.  See  also  under  agriculture; 
for  details  about  canning  firms,  see  Com.  and  Ind.,  240  et  seq.  A  cannery 
exchange  existed  for  a  time  to  promote  the  industry,  to  check  frauds  by  imi- 
tators, etc.  S.  F.  Call,  June  26,  July  3,  1883;  county  histories  of  Butte,  16; 
Sonoma,  16;  Fresno,  123;  L.  An;/.,  70,  157;  S.  Bern.,  124-35;  and  Sta  Clara. 

The  climate  is  rather  warm  for  meat-packing,  and  the  consequence  is  a 
heavy  salting,  especially  of  pork,  which  rises  as  a  main  objection  to  the  pro- 
duct. At  certain  places,  however,  notably  S.  F.,  the  atmosphere,  laden  with 
sea  breezes,  preserves  meat  remarakbly  well  for  several  days.  Nevertheless, 
artificial  temperature  is  largely  depended  upon,  and  with  this  device  the  op- 
erations have  been  satisfactorily  improved,  so  as  to  permit  ' sweet '  curing  and 


SUGAR  AND  TOBACCO.  87 

pickling  throughout  the  year.  As  a  result,  the  coast  trade  is  fast  being  ab- 
sorbed. Although  the  early  efforts,  since  1853,  at  salting  were  not  very  suc- 
cessful, packing  continued  to  some  extent  at  different  places,  enough  for 
miners' requirements.  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  8,  1855;  S.  F.  Bull.,  July  26,  185(5;  Alta 
CaL,  Jan.  26,  1856;  Trinity  Jour.,  March  1867;  S.  F.  Times,  March  23,  1867. 
The  process  with  beef  became  profitable  only  in  the  seventies,  and  since  then 
large  orders  are  filled  for  Siberia,  Spanish  America,  etc.,  as  well  as  for  gov- 
ernment and  trading  fleets.  The  beef  is  still  too  light  in  weight.  Pork  suc- 
ceeded better  from  the  first,  anil  the  breed  is  improving  with  Berkshire 
crossing,  and  with  corn  and  wheat  feed;  the  acorn  given  in  some  parts  yields 
a  soft,  oily,  and  poor  pork.  Sugar-curing  has  reached  such  excellence  that 
Oregon,  a  former  caterer,  now  draws  on  Cal.  About  150,000  hogs  are  killed 
annually  at  S.  F.,  two  thirds  by  two  leading  firms.  In  1880,  Cal.  packed 
4,900  tons  of  bacon,  2,300  of  ham,  and  1,680  of  lard.  Imports  fell  by  1881  to 
1,900  tons  of  ham,  with  very  little  lard  and  bacon.  The  Census  of  1880  credits 
Cal.  with  51  wholesale  slaughtering  and  meat-packing  establishments;  capital, 
$2,130,000,  490  hands,  using  112,000  beeves  averaging  1,061  Ibs.  each,  414,000 
sheep  of  90  Ibs.,  236,000  hogs  of  211  Ibs.,  all  worth  $5,923,000.  Of  this, 
7,400,000  Ibs.  of  beef  and  9,650,000  Ibs.  of  pork  were  salted  or  canned,  and 
9,970,000  Ibs.  of  pork  made  into  bacon  and  ham,  yielding  also  4,390,000  Ibs. 
of  lard;  total  value,  $7,950,000.  See  also,  for  pork-packing,  Los  Any.  Hist., 
70;  Humb.  Hist.,  146.  The  Cal.  salt  is  improving  so  much  as  to  supplant  the 
Lower  Californian  and  English  supplies. 

Sugar  finds  a  very  large  consumption  in  Cal.,  and  the  numerous  canneries 
demand  an  ever-increasing  quantity.  Of  54,000  tons  of  raw  sugar  used  in  1881, 
four  fifths  came  from  the  fertile  plantations  of  Hawaii,  against  only  23,500 
tons  in  1879.  Since  the  reciprocity  treaty  of  1876,  the  plantations  exceed  50, 
largely  owned  by  Americans,  who  employ  9  vessels  of  from  400  to  700  tons  iii 
the  trade.  Hawaii  responds  by  taking  more  of  Cal.  manufactures  than  any 
other  foreign  state.  Manila,  which  used  to  be  the  principal  source,  sent  only 
8,200  tons,  against  20,000  in  1878;  from,  China  came  2,300  tons,  and  a  few 
hundred  tons  from  Cent.  America.  The  cultivation  of  cane,  and  efforts  to 
obtain  sugar  from  sorghum,  melons,  and  grapes,  have  not  proved  a  financial 
success,  as  tried  at  Tele  ton  and  Los  Angeles;  here  in  the  fifties  and  in  1880. 
S.  F.  Call,  Dec.  1,  1863;  S.  F.  Bull,  Aug.  31,  1876;  L.  Aug.  Hint.,  70-1. 
Beet  was  tried  with  poor  results  in  1857,  at  S.  Jose.  Sac.  Union,  March  18, 
1857;  at  Alvarado  in  1870,  Cal.  Farmer,  Dec.  1,  1870;  Alam.  Gaz.,  Nov.  1870; 
whence  the  factory  was  moved  to  Soqucl.  Monterey,  Democ.,  Nov.  10,  1877; 
Lassen  Advoc..,  Nov.  11,  1876;  county  histories  of  Sta  Cruz,  51;  Sac.,  145, 
221;  Sutler,  48;  Alameda,  26;  Nordliofs  Cal,  210-13;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  23, 
1869;  Aug.  13,  1870.  A  Sac.  factory  was  in  1879  moved  to  Alvarado,  Alam. 
Anjus,  Dec.  18,  1879;  the  only  one  working  in  1882,  and  under  judicious 
management  it  has  made  a  promising  start,  producing  in  1881  some  700  tons 
of  sugar,  worth  $150,000  besides  pulp  and  syrup.  The  beet  is  growing  richer 
in  sugar,  and  encouraging  other  mills.  The  first  refinery,  the  S.  F.,  was 
opened  in  1855.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Oct.  31,  1856;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  28,  1857.  It 
began  promisingly,  but  is  now  closed,  overshadowed  by  two  larger  estab- 
lishments, both  founded  by  C.  Spreckels,  one  in  1863,  and  subsequently  sold 
to  C.  A.  Low,  and  the  other  in  1869,  S.  F.  Times,  Apr.  4,  1869,  to  which  a 
million-dollar  establishment  was  added  in  1881.  8.  F.  W.  Call,  June  2,  1881; 
S.  F.  Post,  Dec.  24,  1881.  The  total  product  rose  from  $1,600,000  in  1860  to 
$4,000,000  in  1870,  over  $7,000,000  in  1881,  and  nearly  $11,000,000  in  1889. 
There  was  still  in  1881  an  importation  of  3,300  ton's  of  refined  sugar  from 
the  Atlantic  states,  partly  offset  by  a  growing  export  of  1,400  tons,  some  of 
it  to  the  sugar-producing  countries.  For  cane  syrup,  see  under  agriculture. 
The  manufacture  of  blood  albumen  was  begun,  but  discontinued  in  1881. 

Although  the  Culp  process  of  preparing  and  improving  Cal.  tobacco  has 
failed  to  meet  expectations  —see  the  chapter  on  agriculture — the  manufacture 
of  cigars  and  other  tobacco  from  imported  leaf  lias  assumed  vast  proportions, 
chiefly  with  aid  of  Chinese  labor,  which,  indeed,  is  able  to  underbid  eastern 
*ates  so  to  permit  a  small  export.  In  1881  the  revenue  office  reported  251 


88  MANUFACTURES. 

cigar  factories  in  Cal.,  216  being  at  S.  F.,  paying  for  stamps  over  $900,000. 
Of  the  150,000,000  cigars  consumed,  98  per  cent  were  made  here,  valued  at 
§5,000,000,  of  which  38  per  cent  pertained  to  material,  33  to  labor,  and  the 
rest  to  duty  and  profit.  Some  of  the  leading  establishments  employed  250  to 
350  operatives,  and  produced  from  5,000,000  to  7,000,000  cigars  annually, 
mostly  by  piece-work.  In  1882  only  one  factory  made  light-pressed  tobacco 
in  different  styles.  Cigarettes  and  pipes  are  for  the  most  part  imported.  The 
growing  agitation  of  white  operatives  against  Chinese,  who  in  1882  formed 
four  fifths  of  the  total  force,  served  rather  to  cast  more  of  the  trade  into 
Mongol  hands,  to  the  injury  of  white  operatives  and  factories. 

The  first  textile  fabrics  of  Cal.  were  the  coarse  blankets  made  at  the  mis- 
sions, to  replace  the  scanty  fibre  weft  of  the  unconverted  Indians.  The  pro- 
duction disappeared  with  the  fall  of  these  institutions.  Davis1  Glimpses,  MS., 
7.  During  the  gold  excitement  the  meat  of  the  now  reduced  flocks  of  sheep, 
formerly  of  little  value,  became  the  only  desirable  substance,  and  pelts  were 
even  thrown  away,  till  junk-dealers  began  to  collect  them.  Alti  Cal.,  June 

15,  1854.     The  resumption  of  weaving  would  have  been  long  delayed  by  the 
high  wages  but  for  the  influx  of  cheap  labor  in  the  form  of  Chinese.     In  1859, 
accordingly,  a  regular  mill  was  opened,  the  Pioneer,  by  Heyneman,  Peck,  & 
Co.     It  proved  fairly  successful  with  coarse  goods,  so  much  so  that  when  de- 
stroyed by  fire  in  1861  a  company  was  formed  to  rebuild  it  on  a  larger  scale  at 
Black  Point.     At  the  close  of  1859  the  mission  mills  started,  to  be  merged  14 
years  later  in  the  Pioneer,  which  is  now  the  largest  on  the  coast.     Tho  civil 
war  increased  the  demand,  and  before  1888  production  ro.^e  to  over  a  million. 
Id.,  Jan.    14,  1861;  8.  F.  Herald,  Dec.  3,   1861;  8.  F.  Bull.,  Jan.  20,  1860; 
Oct.  18,  1865;  Hayes'  Agric.,  97-8;  Ruslincfs  Across,  307.     The  foothold  ob- 
tained by  these  mills,  and  the  increase  of  labor,  led  to  the  formation  of  other 
establishments,  at  Marysville  in  1867,  S.  F.  Times,  March  13,  Aug.  5,  1867; 
at  Merced  falls,  1867;  at  S.  Jose  in  1869,  one  remaining  out  of  two;  Sac., 
1870;  Stockton,   1870;  Los  Angeles,  1872;  Sta  Rosa,  1877;  a  third  at   S.  F. 
1880,   and   others  at  Petaluma,  in   Humboldt,   and  in  S.  Bernardino.    Id., 
March  13,  June  13,  1868;  S.  F.  Call,  Feb.   19,  Aug.  23,  1868;  Dec.  20,  1870; 
Oct.   8,    1872;  Nov.   1,   1875;  Petal.   Argus,  Sept.  4,  Oct.   16,  1878;   Lamjlt-y's 
Trade,    i.   6-8;  S.  Bern.    Times,  July  20,    1878;  S.   F.   Pott,  Aug.  6,    1875; 
July  31,    1876;  county  histories  of   Yuba,    70-1;    S.   Joaq.,  40,   72;    tioiioma, 

16,  439;    L.   Ann.,   70;   Sta   Clara,   12-16;    Merced,    117;  Sac.,    157-8.     The 
Census  of   1880  enumerates  9  mills,  with  $1,680,000  capital,  835  hands,  re- 
ceiving $334,000  in  wages,  60  sets  of  cards  with  7,240  Ibs.  daily  capacity, 
230   looms,    138    knitting-machines,    18,740    spindles,    using   3,560,000    Ibs. 
crude   wool,    with    a   small   quantity   of    foreign   wool,    camel    and  buffalo 
hair,  cotton,  etc.,  $73,000  of  chemicals,  producing  81,800  pairs  of  blankets, 
633,000  yards  of  cloth,  etc.,  1,453,000  yards  of  flannels,  and  13,900  shawls; 
wholesale   value   $1,635,000.      Since  then    the    number   of    mills   and    the 
production  have  increased,  Com.  and  Ind.,  437,  raising  the  total  to  nearly 
13,000,000,  and  the  hands  to  1,600.     Little  more  than  one  fifth  of  the  wool 

Eroduct  was  retained  on  the  coast  in  1881,  but  this  is  changing,  in  Cal.  at 
jast;  for  the  fineness  of  its  wool,  and  the  substantial  nature  of  the  blankets, 
cloths,  and  flannels,  have  acquired  a  wide  fame,  sustained  by  premiums  and 
gold  medals,  so  that  a  considerable  amount  is  exported.  The  cloth  fabrics 
are  as  yet  remarkable  for  strength  rather  than  fineness,  and  while  the  local 
mills  have  since  1865  almost  driven  out  foreign  goods  in  their  line,  the 
above  deficiency  assists  to  sustain  the  imports  of  woollens  at  about  $5,000,000. 
Hosiery  was  knitted  at  several  of  the  mills  to  the  value  of  $200,000  in  1881,  but 
a  special  factory  opened  in  that  year  with  great  success.  Of  the  exported 
wool,  neasly  all  was  sent  unsecured  till  1877.  Since  then  several  firms  have 
entered  the  business  at  S.  F.  with  100  hands,  and  in  1881  28  per  cent  of  the 
clip  on  the  coast  was  scoured,  or  8,000  out  of  the  19,000  tons  shipped.  The 
consequent  saving  of  two  thirds  of  the  weight  is  a  great  item  when  shipment! 
are  made  chiefly  by  rail. 

Although  cotton  was  raised  to  a  small  extent  in  colonial  times,  no  spinning 
\vas  attempted.  In  1865  W.  H.  Rector  &  Son  built  a  cotton-mill  at  Clinton  ia 


COTTON  AND  WOOLLEN  GOODS.  89 

East  Oakland.  Oakl.  News,  Nov.  1865;  S.  F.  Bull,  Sept.  4,  Nov.  29,  18G5;  Jan. 
16,  18u7;  Hnlley's  Ala.rn.,  208-9.     The  production  in  1867  was  50,000  yards 

Eer  month,  chiefly  for  flour-bags  and  sheeting.  Cronise's  Cal,  151-2.  It 
died  to  pay,  however,  and  was  in  18G9  converted  into  a  bag  and  jute  factory. 
S.  F.  Herald,  March  27,  1859;  8.  F,  Bull,  Nov.  26,  1867;  June  27,  1868; 
Dec.  16,  1875;  Cal  Farmer,  March  17,  1870.  This  employed  800  hands  in 
18S1,  nearly  all  Chinese,  without  whom  operations  would  be  economically 
impossible.  The  first  Scotch  operators  soon  got  better  employment.  The 
120  looms  each  produce  90  yards  of  burlap  daily,  nearly  all  of  which  is  made 
into  more  than  5,000,000  bags,  on  the  premises.  Alain.  Hist.,  22.  Several 
other  firms,  including  a  farmer's  cooperative  company,  make  bags,  employing 
100  hands;  some  dating  since  the  early  fifties.  Yuba  Hint.,  69;  Alia  Cal., 
Sept.  4,  1857;  July  31,  1858;  Sac.  Union,  June  6,  1855;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Oct. 
3,  1873;  Jan.  12-13,  1875;  S.  F.  Post,  Aug.  15,  1873;  Sept.  12,  1874;  Jan. 
25,  1875;  July  24,  1882,  with  allusions  to  a  linen  company  and  to  the  jute 
factory  opened  in  S.  Quentin  prison  in  1882  with  100  looms. 

Silk  in  1888  was  promising  better  than  cotton,  although  several  of  the 
half-dozen  establishments  for  its  manufacture  had  failed.  The  first  was 
opened  by  Newman  at  Sta  Clara  in  1867,  and  revived  after  a  brief  stoppage. 
Cal  Aijric.  Soc.,  Trails.,  1866-7,  198-200;  S.  J.  Merc.,  Dec.  12,  1867;  A  (to, 
June  22,  Dec.  18,  1867;  Oct.  3,  1871;  S.  F.  Call,  Nov.  8,  1867;  Oct.  20,  1872; 
S.  F.  Tines,  Apr.  16,  July  6,  1868;  May  20,  26,  1869;  S.  F.  Post,  June  4, 
1872.  The  Census  of  1880  credits  Cal.  with  §7,645  worth  of  silk  textiles, 
and  enumerates  two  factories  with  engines  of  52  horse-power.  The  principal 
factory  in  south  S.  F.  spun  20,000  Ibs.  of  raw  silk  in  1881,  worth  §150,000, 
chiefly  for  twist  and  coarser  goods,  yet  of  good  quality.  The  reel  silk  was 
largely  imported.  Over  100  hands  were  employed,  mostly  women  and  chil- 
dren. "S.  F.  Bull,  Feb.  16,  1882;  Stockton  Indep.,  Apr.  27,  1881,  with  allu- 
sion to  a  new  local  company.  8.  F.  Post,  Dec.  18,  1873,  alludes  to  a  ribbon 
factory  in  Oakland,  and  Altn  Cal,  Jan.  14,  1872,  to  one  in  S.  F.  The  total 
value  of  all  textile  fabrics  on  the  Pacific  coast  was  in  1882  estimated  at 
nearly  $12~000,000,  produced  by  6,000  hands,  earning  $2,500,000,  and  using 
nearly  $6,000,000  of  material,  while  the  report  for  1870  gave  only  1,700 
operatives,  and  a  production  of  $3,750,000,  an  increase  for  a  dozen  years  of 
more  than  threefold.  Cotton  fabrics  in  1888  were  imported  to  the  extent  of 
$  10,000,000,  but  cotton  could  be  brought  by  rail  from  Texas  at  nearly  as  low 
a  rate  as  to  Lowell;  so  that  with  available  cheap  labor,  factories  could  readily 
be  established.  Unfortunately  the  labor  market  is  so  uncertain,  especially 
in  face  of  the  agitation  against  Chinese,  that  capital  will  not  hazard  the  ex- 
periment, as  shown  by  the  comparatively  small  development  of  woollen  mills 
under  far  more  promising  conditions.  The  abundance  of  available  labor  is 
otherwise  demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  a  large  amount  of  the  imported 
cotton  fabric  is  made  into  overalls,  underwear,  and  similar  goods,  and  sent 
back  to  eastern  states  at  a  profit.  Nevertheless,  the  production  of  textiles  to 
the  invested  capital  stands  only  at  3  to  2  as  compared  with  6  and  9  to  2  in 
many  other  industries. 

In  clothing,  there  has  been  an  abatement  in  the  importation  to  the  coast, 
when  compared  with  the  increase  in  population,  from  7,000  cases  in  1876  to 
6,700  in  1878,  1879,  and  1880,  and  7,500  in  1881,  the  last  year  showing  also  a 
largely  augmented  local  manufacture,  reaching  about  $3,500,000  by  nearly 
2,000  hands,  of  which  $1,500,000  from  home  fabrics.  Yet  no  organized  cloth- 
ing factory  can  be  said  to  exist.  In  1882  only  two  substantial  firms  devoted 
themselves  to  ready-made  suits,  but  the  work  was  given  out  by  contract,  as 
was  the  case  with  a  number  of  smaller  houses.  Most  of  it  was  done  by  Chi- 
nese firms,  and  a  portion  by  small  cooperative  bodies  of  whites.  Eastern 
factories  have  the  advantage  of  subdivided  labor.  Of  ducks  and  denims, 
$750,000  worth  are  made,  against  $75,000  imports.  There  was  an  overall  fac- 
tory running  in  1888.  The  foreign  export,  553  cases  in  1881,  is  increasing.  The 
demand  for  oil  clothing  is  limited  by  the  dry  weather,  and  by  rubber  compe- 
tition, to  $60,000  for  the  coast,  90  per  cent  of  which  is  made  at  S.  F.,  partly 
with  aid  of  two  patents  for  imparting  black  color  and  incombustible  proper- 


90  MANUFACTURES. 

ties.  S.  F.  Bull,  Oct.  9,  1875.  Of  the  $10,000,000  worth  of  cotton  fabrics 
imported,  somewhat  over  half  may  be  classed  as  '  domestics, '  most  of  which 
is  made  into  garments  at  S.  F.,  and  the  rest  imported,  including  the  finer 
grades  of  women's  goods.  Dry-goods  and  other  shops  control  the  contract 
work,  yet  there  are  several  shirt  factories,  where  the  larger  proportion  of 
labor  is  white,  450  out  of  650.  The  production  is  fully  37,000  doz.en,  worth 
$600,000,  about  half  to  order;  imports,  three  fourths  more.  The  introduction 
of  neckties  reach  the  large  sum  of  $1,000,000,  only  one  eighth  of  which  is 
made  at  S.  F.,  by  4  factories,  with  30  to  35  hands.  The  material  is  imported 
for  these  as  well  as  for  the  $20,000  worth  of  suspenders  made  by  two  young 
houses.  There  was  a  hoopskirt  factory  in  the  sixties.  S.  F.  Call,  March  12, 
1864;  March  30,  1867.  Hats  were  manufactured  in  the  early  fifties,  and  a 
premium  granted  at  the  first  agricultural  fair  in  1851.  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  14, 
1851;  AUaCal,  Feb.  13,  1853;  July  3,  1856;  Apr.  29,  1857;  also  in  Sacra- 
mento. Sac.  Union,  Oct.  10,  1856.  But  few  are  made  beyond  silk  plush  hats, 
and  these  have  been  subject  to  many  fluctuations,  chiefly  owing  to  the  favor 
enjoyed  by  stiff  felt  hats.  In  1882  barely  two  dozen  hands  were  engaged  on 
silk  hats,  producing  $100,000  worth.  Sustained  by  a  guild,  they  keep  up 
prices.  Caps  for  railway  men,  boys,  etc.,  are  made  to  the  value  of  $40,000. 
Two  straw-works  existed  in  the  sixties.  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  3,  1866;  May  12, 
1870;  8.  F.  Times,  Aug.  26,  1868.  But  the  production  is  limited  to  3,000 
dozen  a  year,  chiefly  men's  hats,  worth  $15,000.  The  material  is  chiefly  Chi- 
nese. For  women  the  main  work  is  to  renovate.  One  factory  employs  25 
hands  during  the  season;  another  makes  buckram  and  stiff  net  frames.  There 
are  several  dyeing  and  scouring  establishments.  Corn,  and  Ind.;  Sac.  Union, 
Jan.  1,  1881. 

Parasols  were  made  to  the  value  of  $55,000  in  1881,  and  umbrellas,  $35,000, 
the  imports  being  somewhat  more  than  double,  including  material  for  the 
manufacture,  which  employs  threescore  hands,  connected  with  eight  estab- 
lishments in  S.  F.  The  large  number  of  fraternal  societies  on  the  coast  calls 
for  regalia  to  the  amount  of  $50,000  annually,  all  manufactured  here,  save  5 
per  cent,  chiefly  by  two  firms  and  about  30  hands.  D.  Norcross  began  the 
business  in  1852.  Alta  Gal,  Sept.  11,  1857;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  5,  1865.  He  also 
prepared  flags,  although  two  other  firms  give  more  attention  to  this  branch, 
selling  in  the  centennial  year  fully  $50,000  worth.  Prices  Cur.,  Oct.  22,  1853; 
S.  F.  Herald,  Jan.  23,  1869,  alluding  to  the  first  silk  flag.  Fringe  and  tassel 
making  is  connected  with  the  preceding  business  to  some  extent,  yet  of  dress 
trimmings  barely  a  fifth  of  the  $375,000  in  use  comes  from  home  source.  Of 
upholstery  trimmings  $35,000  worth  are  made  at  S.  F.  Both  classes  occupy 
about  90  hands  belonging  chiefly  to  4  firms. 

The  abundance  of  wealth  in  the  community  gave  impulse  to  a  taste  in- 
herited in  the  colder  eastern  states  for  home  comforts  and  embellishments. 
This  applies  rather  to  the  towns,  for  in  the  country  the  out-door  life  fostered 
by  the  climate  gives  another  direction  to  the  taste,  as  noted  especially  among 
Spanish  Californians.  In  early  days  a  rich  harvest  was  reaped  by  upholsterers, 
and  by  1860  a  regular  factory  opened  for  superior  uphostery.  The  union  war 
decided  numerous  well-to-do  persons  to  remain  permanently  in  Cal.  and  the 
subsequent  mining  speculation  fostered  lavish  expenditure,  till  the  demand  for 
fine  goods  has  here  become  larger  in  proportion  to  the  population  than  in  other 
states.  The  business  in  1888  was  still  controlled  by  furniture  manufacturers, 
and  most  of  the  material  was  imported,  but  the  high  freight  on  such  goods 
insures  the  local  industry.  The  better  furniture  is  stuffed  with  curled  hair 
and  moss,  inferior  with  gray  hair,  soap-root,  or  Eureka  hair,  excelsior,  wool, 
and  tow.  Only  two  of  these  are  produced  here,  the  shoddy  or  patent  wool, 
in  1881  to  the  amount  of  more  than  400  tons,  and  300  tons  of  soap-root  fibre, 
resembling  horse  hair  when  prepared,  and  recommended  as  cool,  lasting,  and 
healthy,  but  cheaper  substitutes  prevail.  Pulu  has  also  been  supplanted. 
The  total  value  of  the  material  for  filling  exceeds  $400,000,  of  which  nearly 
two  thirds  are  from  local  sources.  S.  F.  employs  about  350  hands  on  mat- 
tresses and  bedding,  producing  goods  worth  at  least  $1,000,000,  including 
perhaps  $100,000  worth  of  pillows,  although  most  of  the  feathers  used  are 


CARPETS,  ROPE,  AND  LEATHER.  91 

imported  from  the  east  or  from  Germany.  Of  late  years  most  of  the  springs 
for  mattresses  are  prepared  by  three  S.  F.  firms,  employing  in  1881  two  dozen 
hands,  using  600  tons  of  imported  wire,  worth  $120,000,  and  producing  springs 
to  the  value  of  $200,000.  One  firm  makes  woven  wire  mattresses.  Comforters 
are  gaining  in  favor,  owing  to  their  lightness  and  cleanliness.  One  factory 
produces  $2,500  worth  per  month,  one  tenth  of  the  total  in  use;  the  filling  is 
cotton  batting.  Two  houses  clean  feathers,  mostly  imported,  by  distinct 
patent  processes,  and  make  pillows. 

The  first  factory  carpet,  three-ply,  was  made  at  the  S.  F.  Mission  mills  in 
1864,  but  like  ingrain  carpets,  their  manufacture  proved  unprofitable.  Of 
rag  carpets  the  largest  S.  F.  house  produces  only  10,000  yards  a  year.  Fac- 
tories have  been  described  at  Vallejo  and  Red  Bluff.  Red  Bluff  People's  Cause, 
Apr.  17,  1879;  S.  F.  Post,  May  12,  1875;  S.  F.  Bull.,  Jan.  19,  1872.  For  car- 
pet lining,  tule  matting  is  used  to  some  extent,  but  cotton  batting  saves  the 
carpet  more.  The  sand-laden  breezes  of  S.  F.  assist  to  sustain  several  car- 
pet-beating houses. 

There  was  a  rope-walk  in  1856,  and  others  opened  subsequently,  but  there 
was  only  one  establishment  in  1882,  at  S.  F.,  supported  by  proximity  to  sources 
of  supply  for  raw  material  and  by  orders.  It  employed  about  100  hands,  and 
produced  2,000  tons  of  rope  and  cordage  a  year  from  Manila  and  Sisal  hemp. 
Sail-making  occupies  threescore  men,  belonging  to  several  firms,  the  annual 
value  amounting  to  some  $200,000.  In  1870  an  oakum  factory  opened  at  S.  F., 
which  produces  nearly  80  per  cent  of  the  bales  annually  required,  employing 
two  dozen  hands.  Old  rope  and  imports  from  Liverpool  supply  the  material. 
Less  than  one  tenth  of  the  $40,000  worth  of  fishing-tackle  used  on  the  coast  is 
made  here  to  order.  S.  F.  Jour.  Com.,  Aug.  23,  1876;  Soc.  Union,  Dec.  7, 
1858;  S.  F.  Bull,  Jan.  7,  1857;  8.  F.  Call,  Aug.  27,  1865;  May  10,  1872;  8.  F. 
Herald,  Dec.  6-8,  1857;  Berk.  Advoc.,  Dec.  29,  1877. 

Leather  manufactures  have  been  favored  by  the  excellent  quality  of 
tanned  products,  and  in  some  branches  by  the  cheap  Chinese  labor.  The 
possession  of  raw  material  led  the  missionaries  to  introduce  tanning,  but  only 
for  local  wants.  The  export  of  hides  was  a  simpler  process,  and  it  continued 
until  the  disastrous  seasons  of  1862-4  checked  cattle -raising,  and  till  home 
consumption  retained  its  share.  The  latter  grew  so  fast  as  to  require  the  impor- 
tation in  1881  of  nearly  80,000  hides,  and  double  as  much  in  1885.  Never- 
theless, the  railway  then  carried  east  1,600  tons  of  dry  hides  of  certain  qual- 
ity, valued  at  over  $600,000.  An  American,  P.  Sweet,  began  to  tan  at  Sta 
Cruzinl843.  Hist.  S.  CruzCo.,  11,74.  Sutter  opened  a  tannery  about  the  same 
time.  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  157.  Smith  had  one  at  Bodega  in  1851,  and  by  1852  a 
number  were  in  operation.  Yuba  Co.  Hist.,  70;  Census,  1S52;  S.  Joaq.  Co. 
Hist.,  71;  El  Dor.,  Id.,  114;  Los  Any.,  Id.,  69,  157;  Cox's  Annals  Trin.,  22; 
Matthewsons  Stat.,  MS.,  3.  The  war  of  1861-5  gave  impulse  to  the  industry, 
and  by  1881  the  production  exceeded  8,700  tons,  valued  at  over  $3,700,000; 
the  hides  and  skins  cost  $1,900,000;  the  28,000  cords  of  bark,  $560,000; 
600  tons  tallow,  3,600  gallons  oil,  550  tons  gambier  and  sumach,  $140,000. 
Of  the  $2,000,000  capital  invested,  S.  F.  held  $800,000,  the  tanneries  being 
here  chiefly  found  in  Islais  Valley.  The  Census  of  1880  enumerates  77  tan- 
neries, with  a  capital  of  $1,750,000,  employing  630  men,  using  22,000  tons  of 
oak  bark,  and  producing  510,000  sides  of  leather  and  1,300,000  skins,  worth 
$3,740,000.  The  curried  leather  branch  is  assigned  to  63  establishments, 
capital  $427,000,  230  men  producing  266,000  sides  of  leather  and  466,000 
skins,  worth  $2,000,000.  The  bark  of  the  chestnut  oak  in  Sta  Cruz,  Mendo- 
cino,  and  Humboldt  contains  double  the  usual  amount  of  tanning  matter,  but 
imparts  strength  and  other  qualities  rather  than  weight.  It  increases  100 
Ibs.  of  hides  to  140  Ibs.  of  leather,  while  the  eastern  hemlock  bark  produces 
170-200  Ibs.  of  hide.  It  is  becoming  less  abundant,  and  tanners  are  turn- 
ing their  attention  to  the  black  wattle  of  Australia,  which  presents  the  ad- 
vantage of  renewing  its  bark.  Gambier  and  sumach  are  also  imported,  the 
latter  growing  to  some  extent  in  S.  Diego.  What  effect  the  change  will  have 
on  the  leather  is  problematic.  So  far  it  is  the  chestnut  tan  which  prompts 
the  growing  demand  forCal.  leather.  In  1881  Cal.  exported  920  tons,  largely 


92  MANUFACTURES. 

above  the  shipments  of  former  years,  and  far  in  excess  of  imports  of  certain 
qualities.  Loathcr  for  saddles  and  harness  is  sought  by  Spanish  America. 
Wool-pulling  has  been  long  connected  with  tanning,  but  is  becoming  a  sopa- 
rate  business.  The  pelts  yield  2  to  2^  Ibs.  of  wool  worth  about  36  cents  a 
lb.,  while  the  skins  range  from  10  to  15  cts,  large  quantities  being  sent  away  ia 
pickle.  Of  pulled  wool  S.  F.  exports  fully  1,200  tons  a  year,  two  thirds 
coming  from  two  establishments.  By  the  Napa  tan  process,  s';ins  are  now 
rendered  strong  yet  soft,  resembling  buckskin.  There  are  six  glue  factories 
in  Cal.,  employing  twoscore  hands,  but  the  profits  are  far  below  those  ob- 
tained in  1870  when  only  two  existed.  The  Pioneer  factory  advertises  in 
Alto,  Cal.,  Feb.  18,  1857.  Cal.  saddlery  is  in  demand  all  over  the  Pacific 
slope  a:id  in  Spanish  America,  yet  40  per  cent  of  the  material  is  imported, 
and  aLo  $50,003  worth  of  certain  qualities  of  saddles,  wrappers,  and  harness. 
The  larj'C  firm  of  Main  &  Winchester  has  existed  since  1849.  In  1850  a 
number  of  smaller  rivals  entered  the  field.  Yuba  Co.  Hist.,  71;  Golden  Era, 
Dec.  18,  1853.  By  1870  the  Census  enumerates  over  200  establishments,  pro- 
ducing Cl,  070, 000  in  goods.  In  1881  about  1,000  hands  were  employed,  and 
the  trade  of  S.  F.  was  estimated  at  nearly  §2,000,000.  Chinamen  are  learn- 
ing the  business.  In  1881  there  was  only  one  whip  factory  on  the  coast,  and 
the  home  production,  by  three  dozen  men,  was  valued  at  $40,000,  little  more 
than  the  imports.  The  pioneer  factory  is  mentioned  in  Cal.  Farmer,  Oct.  7, 
1863.  The  first  organized  manufacture  of  boots  and  shoes  is  credited  to  the 
senior  partner  of  the  firm  of  Porter,  Slessinger,  &  Co.,  who  in  1S63  engaged 
convict  labor  for  making  coarse-grade  goods.  Buckingham  &  Hecht,  later 
the  leading  house,  entered  the  field  soon  after.  Account  of  the  pioneer  fac- 
tory in  S.  F.  Bull,  Jan.  21,  1870;  Alto.  Cat.,  Apr.  2,  1869;  Mining  Press, 
June  23,  1886,  refers  to  a  boot-nailing  machine.  The  Census  of  1S80  has  81 
establishments,  with  2,500  hands,  using  $2,000,000  worth  of  material  and 
producing  247,000  pairs  of  boots,  including  ladies'  lace  boots,  and  1,600,000 
pairs  of  shoes,  value  $3,650,000  against  $1,400,000  in  1869.  By  1889  there 
was  a  large  increase  to  over  $5,000,000,  it  is  claimed,  nearly  all  produced  in 
S.  F.  Chinese  formed  two  thirds  of  the  force  employed  for  low-grade  goods 
and  slippers,  but  white  workmen  have  been  gaining  a  firmer  foothold  again. 
They  earr"make  an  average  of  $16  a  week  on  their  piece-work.  This  high 
rate,  and  the  necessity  to  import  three  fourths  of  the  material,  aside  from 
sole  leather,  gives  an  opening  for  the  continued  importation  of  one  third 
of  the  total  manufactured  goods;  but  this  is  nearly  balanced  by  the  export 
of  $1,600,000  worth  in  1881,  with  prospects  of  an  increase.  The  giant 
seam  for  heavy  water-proof  goods  is  a  Cal.  patent,  supplementary  to  the 
sewing  and  screw  machines  from  the  east.  At  Benicit,  is  a  shoe-stock  factory 
aided  by  a  patent  water-proof  paste.  In  1855  a  party  is  said  to  have  col- 
lected old  boots  and  shipped  $3,000  worth  of  boot-legs  to  Europe. 

Glove  factories  were  not  started  prior  to  1860,  and  the  Census  of  1870  re- 
ports a  production  of  only  $62,000  from  six.  By  1881  this  had  risen  to  half 
a  million,  at  16  factories,  employing  250  hands,  and  producing  400, 000  pairs  of 
gloves,  three  fourths  being  common  grades,  consuming  250,000  skins  of  buck, 
goat,  etc.  The  export  amounted  to  $150,000,  due  to  the  excellent  tanning  and 
sewing,  for  the  price  was  enhanced  by  wages  one  third  above  eastern.  Kid 
gloves  are  little  made  except  to  order  from  imported  skins;  of  other  kinds  less 
than  $100,000  worth  are  brought.  The  hose  and  belting  business  has  been  sus- 
tained chiefly  by  the  superior  strength  and  quality  of  Cal.  leather,  which  re- 
sists a  high  pressure.  The  eastern  rubber  hose  is  now  preferred  by  the  S.  F. 
fire  dept,  but  interior  towns  retain  the  cheaper  and  more  lasting  leather. 
Belting  continues  in  demand  for  the  mines.  The  first  factory  is  alluded  to  ia 
Alta  Cal.,  May  '25,  1855;  Oct.  3,  1857.  In  1881  there  were  four  at  S.  F.,  pro- 
ducing 200,000  feet  of  belting,  6,000  of  hose,  and  175,000  of  lacing,  worth 
$250,000,  employing  40  hands.  The  import  of  $30,000  was  more  than  bal- 
anced by  growing  export  of  $.10,000.  The  fulling  process  of  Roger  adds 
freatly  to  strength  and  pliancy.  Of  rubber  goods  two  companies  import 
1,000,000  worth,  manufacturing  only  a  few  articles  to  order.  Bellows  were 
first  made  by  C.  Van  Ness  in  1859.  S.  F.  Bull,  Dec.  2,  1864.  Later  there  were 


SOAP  AND  PAINTS.  93 

two  factories,  with  a  dozen  men,  producing  1,800  pairs  annually,  worth 
$30,000,  leaving  a  surplus  for  export.  The  bellows  are  marked  by  two 
patents  for  reversible  nozzle  and  safety-valve.  Trusses  and  surgical  appli- 
ances are  made  by  over  a  dozen  persons,  to  the  value  of  as  maiiy  thousand 
dollars,  an  equal  quantity  being  imported. 

The  abun  lance  of  tallow  led  early  to  the  manufacture  of  soap,  Carpenter 
figuring  in  1834  ad  preparing  it  for  market,  at  Los  Angeles.  Co.  Hist,,  69; 
Alvarado,  //«<.,  MS.,  ii.  73-4;  Hijar,  14.  Yet  J.  J.  Bergin  claims  to  have  in 
1850  opened  the  tirst  factory  for  the  trade,  in  S.  F.  Culver 's  Sac.  Direct.,  96. 
The  oldest  existing  factory  is  J.  H.  Heihnann's,  established  at  Sac.  in  1850,  re- 
moving to  S.  F.  in  1855.  Alta  Cal.,  June  28,  1852;  Apr.  16,  1855;  Sac.  Union, 
Feb.  8,  18S5;  Nov.  28,  1856.  In  1858  some  Frenchmen  began  to  make  toilet 
soaps,  but  failed.  The  largest,  in  West  Berkeley,  has  a  capacity  for  7,000 
tons  a  year.  Of  the  $1,033,000  invested  in  the  business  on  tho  Pacific  coast, 
the  neighborhood  of  S.  F.  controls  three  fourths,  employing  over  433  hands. 
The  Census  of  1880  credits  Cal.  with  a  production  of  over  11,003,000  Ibs. 
worth  $524,000;  a  little  fish,  olive,  cocoa-nut,  and  palm  oil  supplant  the  tallow 
material;  and  Nevada  supplies  most  of  the  caustic  soda.  Before  the  intro- 
duction of  kerosene,  whale-oil  was  refined  by  four  factories;  now  there  is  only 
partial  occupation  for  one  small  house.  Of  linseed-oil,  the  coast  uses  1,500,000 
gallons,  partly  pressed  from  home-produced  seed,  partly  from  East  Indian. 
The  first  factory  opened  in  1866.  Painters  are  the  large  consumers.  The 
Census  of  1880  credits  Cal.  with  50,000  gallons  of  castor-oil,  and  395,000  Ibs. 
glycerine.  Dried  cocoa-nut  meat  13  brought  from  Hawaii  to  be  pressed  for 
oil,  S.  F.  producing  nearly  all  of  the  90, 000  gallons  used  on  the  coast.  There 
is  one  special  mill,  at  Alameda,  supplied  by  three  schooners.  The  material 
from  which  the  oil  has  been  pressed  is  fed  to  cattle,  and  so  is  linseed.  S.  J. 
Capistrano  mission  had  an  oil-press  in  early  days.  Cal.  Dept.  St.  Pap. ,  xviii. 
53.  Concerning  modern  mills,  see  Ventura  Co.  Pict.,  9;  Sta  Barb.  W.  Press, 
Dec.  7,  1878;  S.  J.  Merc.,  Dec.  4,  1879;  S.  F.  Call,  Aug.  20,  1838;  Alta  Cal, 
Jan.  3,  1867;  Sutler  Co.  Hist.,  48;  Los  Ang.  Id.,  70.  S.  F.  manufactures 
candles  for  the  entire  coast,  to  the  extent  in  1881  of  135,000  boxes,  worth 
$325,000;  98,000  boxes,  $235,000,  being  imported,  and  20,000  shipped;  150 
hands  employed.  The  Census  of  1880  gave  the  home  manufacture  at  $375,- 
000,  but  it  has  been  fast  decreasing  since  1875-8,  when  the  imports  alone 
amounted  to  5,003  tons  for  the  mines,  which  continue  the  chief  consumers. 
Culver '.s  Sac.  Directory,  96,  claims  a  factory  for  Sac.  in  1851.  By  1855  several 
existed,  S.  F.  Herald,  Feb.  10,  1855,  Alta  Cal.,  Apr.  16,  1855,  offering  moulds 
for  sale.  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  8,  1855;  8.  F.  Bull.,  March  9,  June  11,  1856.  S.  F. 
also  makes  150  of  the  200  tons  of  axle-grease  used  on  the  coast,  the  rest  is 
imported,  together  with  the  resin  and  some  oil;  25  tons  are  shipped;  10  hands 
find  employment;  total  value  $45,000;  first  factory  dates  1852.  Alta  Cal., 
March  30,  1855;  one  more  exists. 

The  fast-extending  settlement,  and  the  general  use  of  wooden  buildings, 
call  for  $2,000,003  worth  of  paint  and  varnish  on  the  coast,  of  which  5.000 
tons  of  white-lead  cost  about  $800,000.  This  and  the  varnish  are  chiefly 
made  at  S.  F.,  but  the  preparation  of  other  pigments,  though  existing,  has 
not  proved  profitable.  The  Census  of  1880  credits  Cal.  with  4,000,030  Ibs. 
white-lead,  worth  $260,000;  other  salts  of  lead,  $65,000.  The  only  special 
factory  employs  150  men.  One  establishment  failed  a  few  years  ago.  Averill's 
paint,  against  heat  and  moisture,  employs  one  factory,  which  at  times  produces 
500  tons  a  month,  by  secret  process;  it  also  makes  150  tons  of  putty,  and  250 
tons  of  pigment.  Of  rubber  paint,  against  moisture,  80,030  gallons  are  used 
from  another  factory.  A  similar  quantity  of  varnish  is  required,  cluoily  for 
furniture;  20,033  gallons  of  fine  quality  comes  from  England;  the  rest  is  made 
by  several  factories,  one  dating  1857.  a.  F.  Visitor,  Sept.  25,  1875;  Alta  Cal., 
March  10,  1872;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  3,  1871;  March  22,  1873;  Apr.  12, 
1879;  Sclent.  Press.,  Jan.  11,  1873. 

Of  $500,000  worth  of  perfumery  used  on  the  coast,  one  fifth  is  made  at 
S.  F.,  by  15  hands,  chiefly  children.  The  extracts  for  it  are  imparted.  S.  F. 
Times,  May  7,  1858;  Sclent.  Press,  Aug.  22,  1838;  Jan.  6,  1872;  S.  F.  Call, 


94  MANUFACTURES. 

Nov.  11,  1871;  Jan.  22,  1873.  Col.  Farmer,  June  11,  1868,  refers  to  sponge- 
beds  in  Cal.,  and  to  the  preparation  of  special.sponges.  The  manufacture  of 
brushes  is  increasing,  of  late  even  in  finer  grades,  despite  the  cheaper  eastern 
competition  and  the  necessity  to  import  most  of  the  material,  for  bristles 
here  are  short.  Of  $350,000  worth  in  use  on  the  coast  one  sixth  is  made,  the 
first  factories  rising  in  1856  at  S.  F.  and  Sac.  Soap-root  fibre  provides  valuable 
material. 

Favored  by  the  demand  for  peculiar  machinery,  for  mining  and  field 
operations,  not  well  understood  in  the  eastern  states,  and  by  the  distance 
from  these  sources,  as  well  as  by  freight,  duty,  and  other  charges,  the  iron 
industry  received  a  strong  impulse  in  face  of  such  obstacles  as  the  importation 
of  most  of  the  material,  even  coal,  and  high  wages.  The  local  coal  is  not 
suited  for  castings,  and  that  in  use  costs  three  times  more  than  in  Penn. 
Wages  are  one  third  higher;  yet  men  can  work  better  in  the  S.  F.  climate. 
Iron  ore  is  abundant,  and  owners  of  furnaces  promised  in  1881  to  lay  down  iron 
at  S.  F.  for  about  $24  per  ton,  or  somewhat  less  than  imported  material  would 
cost.  Of  this  14,000  tons  came  annually  during  the  latter  half  of  the  seventies, 
after  which  the  import  declined.  The  chief  demand  so  far,  however,  is  for 
machinery  rather  than  plain  casting,  and  this  on  an  average  comes  to  $5  per 
100  Ibs.  The  total  production  rose  to  §6,000,000  in  1871,  and  to  nearly  $20,- 
000,000  ten  years  later,  under  the  energy  and  enterprise  which  are  gradually 
supplanting  eastern  goods  and  gaining  new  fields  beyond  the  state,  as  in 
Hawaiian  sugar  machinery  and  mining  outfits  for  Mexico,  Arizona,  and 
Nevada.  It  must  grow  still  further  with  the  unfolding  of  iron  deposits,  and 
the  increase  of  railways  and  factories,  farming,  and  quartz-mining. 

The  eager  demand  for  mining  implements  after  1848  brought  forward 
blacksmiths  and  machinists,  and  in  1849  the  Donahue  brothers  established 
the  first  iron -works,  now  known  as  the  Union.  Donahue's  Stat.,  MS.;  Wood- 
ward's Stat.,  MS.,  14;  Sayivard's  Stat,  MS.,  4;  Mining  Press,  July  3,  1875; 
S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  23-4,  1857.  E.  Anthony  of  Sta  Cruz,  Co.  Hist.,  29,  claims 
to  have  made  the  first  mining  pick  and  cast-iron  plough  in  Cal.  In  Pac.  News, 
Dec.  20,  1849,  J.  P.  Hudson  advertises  his  ship-yard,  and  offers  to  work  iron. 
In  1850  rose  the  Vulcan  and  Pacific  foundries,  and  the  Sutter  iron-works. 
Sac.  Transc.,  Sept.  30,  1850;  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  17,  1850;  S.  F.  Post,  Aug. 
21,  1872;  U.  8.  Census  Rept,  1851-2,  157.  In  1851  the  Eureka  offered  its 
specialties  in  railings,  balconies,  etc.  At  Sacramento,  Woodcock  &  Burnett 
began  to  make  mining  implements  in  1850,  Sac.  Transc.,  May  29,  1850;  and 
Stow  &  Carpenter  opened  iron-works  in  the  fall.  Neither  lasted.  In  1851 
the  Eureka  foundry  was  established,  and  in  1852  the  Sac.  iron-works.  Direct. 
Sac.,  1856,  p.  xx.;  Culver's  Dir.  Sac.,  96;  S.  F.  Herald,  Dec.  25,  1851. 
Marysville  had  a  foundry  in  1852,  Yuba  Co.  Hist.,  70,  when  the  Pac.  M.  S.  S. 
Co.  operated  one  at  Benicia.  Alta  Cal.,  Nov.  30,  1852.  This  place  had  special 
iron- works  soon  after.  Id.,  March  29,  1855;  Prices  Cur.,  Apr.  7,  1854;  Sac. 
Union,  July  24,  1855;  Alta  Cal.,  June  29,  1852;  Jan.  4,  June  18,  1853;  Jan. 
1,  1854,  with  allusions  to  other  early  works,  which  spread  rapidly  to  leading 
towns.  See  county  histories,  as  Amador,  219,  etc.  -The  interest  fluctuated 
with  those  of  the  mines,  and  many  foundries  opened,  only  to  collapse  after  a 
brief  existence,  as  in  1861-2,  owing  to  lack  of  means  to  tide  over  dull  seasons. 
In  1860  S.  F.  had  14  foundries  and  machine-shops,  with  220  men,  producing 
$1,200,000  worth  of  machinery.  In  1881  about  1,200  men  were  employed, 
producing  $4,000,000  from  the  larger  works,  three  fourths  for  mines,  the  rest 
for  marine  and  agricultural  purposes,  etc.  By  1889  the  output  had  increased 
to  about  $7,000,000,  and  the  number  of  hands  in  proportion.  For  mining  ma- 
chinery, the  S.  F.  foundries  stand  unsurpassed,  sustained  by  long  experience  and 
special  appliances  and  inventions.  The  variety  of  mines  and  their  increasing 
depth  tax  constantly  inventive  and  mechanical  skill  to  meet  the  difficulties. 
For  pumps,  engines  of  700-horse  power  have  been  made;  the  famous  Dickie 
pump,  for  the  Chollar-Norcross  mine,  which  lifts  1,600  gallons  of  water  per 
minute  800  feet,  in  one  stream,  with  aid  of  higher  water  pressure;  and  the 
Union  mine  pump,  costing  $500,000.  S.  F.  Sail.,  Nov.  25,  1867.  Of  small 
household  pumps,  only  $200,000  worth  are  made,  at  about  $11  each;  quad- 


THE  IRON  INDUSTRY.  95 

rnple  the  number  is  imported.  Cables — special  factories  noted  in  8.  F.  Time*, 
May  22,  1861— are  still  drawn  largely  from  England.  Cal.  possesses  numer- 
ous improvements  in  drills,  crushers,  and  means  for  saving  fuel,  lessening 
friction,  etc.  Patent  drills  are  worked  with  compressed  air  for  purifying  the 
atmosphere  below.  Combination  amalgamating  pans  cost  about  $500.  Smelt- 
ing and  assaying  are  treated  under  mining,  but  special  metallurgical  works 
have  been  erected  in  the  leading  bay  towns.  S.  F.  Bull.,  July  2,  Aug.  15, 
1856;  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  30-Dec.  5,  1857.  Boilers  are  made  at  several  of  the 
foundries,  besides  the  special  establishments.  About  700  are  made  annually, 
valued  at  $700,000.  Horizontal  tubes  made  at  these  places  are  preferred. 
One  firm  alone  has  fully  three  dozen  in  hand  at  a  time.  J.  Donahue  made 
them  in  1853.  Alta  Cal.,  June  18,  1853.  Peter  Donahue,  the  pioneer  foun- 
dryman  of  California,  was  born  at  Glasgow  on  Jan.  11,  1822,  of  Irish  parent- 
age. Brought  to  America  at  the  age  of  11,  he  was  placed  as  apprentice  at 
the  machine-shops  of  Paterson,  N.  J.,  and  after  some  experience  at  other 
foundries,  he  went  to  Peru  in  1847,  as  assistant  engineer  of  a  gunboat,  pass- 
ing thence  to  S.  F.  in  charge  of  Oregon 's  machinery.  His  brother  James,  a 
boiler-maker,  encountered  him  here,  and  jointly  they  opened  a  smithy  on 
Montgomery  st,  in  1849,  moving  in  the  following  spring  to  the  Happy  Valley 
region,  to  form  the  beginning  for  the  present  Union  iron-works.  Taking  into 
partnership  their  brother  Michael,  a  moulder,  thus  forming  a  union  of  three 
leading  arts  in  their  craft,  they  made  the  first  castings  in  the  state,  con- 
structed the  first  steam-engine,  later  in  use  on  the  Tiburon,  the  monitor 
Camanche,  and  other  important  works.  Michael  returned  east,  and  became 
thrice  mayor  of  Davenport,  Iowa.  Peter  entered  with  zest  into  a  number  of 
enterprises,  assisting  to  establish  the  S.  F.  gas-works  in  1852-4,  the  Omnibus 
street-railway,  the  first  of  its  kind  in  S.  F.,  and  the  S.  F.  and  San  Jose  rail- 
way, the  profits  and  sale  money  from  which  enabled  him  to  build  the  S.  F. 
and  North  Pacific  railway.  His  zeal  for  industrial  undertakings  hastened 
his  death,  which  occurred  Nov.  26,  1885,  and  held  him  back  from  political  and 
other  honors,  although  he  accepted  the  position  of  lieut-col  on  Gen.  Cobb's  staff, 
and  for  a  time  the  presidency  of  the  society  of  Pioneers.  There  is  room  for 
many  imitators  of  Col  Donohue's  successful  career,  as  may  be  instanced  by 
one  of  the  youngest  firms  in  this  branch,  Rifenburg  &  Hughes,  of  the  S. 
Diego  Standard  iron- works,  started  in  1885.  W.  G.  Rifenburg  was  born  in 
Cortland  co.,  N.  Y.,  Jan.  3,  1836,  and  became  noted  for  his  fortunate  experi- 
ments in  fruit  Culture. 

Much  of  the  material  for  the  foundries  comes  from  a  local  rolling-mill. 
A  portion  of  the  old  iron  was  formerly  exported  at  a  profit;  to  the  larger 
neglected  part  rails  were  in  due  time  added  which  might  with  little  labor  be 
reconverted  into  useful  material.  This  gave  rise  in  1866  to  a  rolling-mill, 
the  Pacific,  to  which  was  granted  a  tract  of  land  at  Potrero  Pt,  S.  F.  It 
opened  in  July  1868,  and  has  gradually  increased  its  capacity,  with  the  aid  of 
gas-furnaces,  so  that  it  now  employs  about  800  men,  often  night  and  day,  half 
a  dozen  engines,  as  many  hammers,  and  other  machinery.  It  contains  depts 
for  puddling,  for  bars  and  beams,  for  iron  and  steel  rails,  the  latter  since 
1881  for  engine  forgings,  for  car  and  ship  iron,  for  bolts,  nails,  and  washers, 
for  coil  chains,  for  repairs,  etc.  Another  rolling-mill  has  been  opened  at  the 
railway  shops  in  Sacramento.  The  Census  of  1880  credits  the  one  rolling-mill 
then  existing  with  $1,000,000  capital,  320  men,  3  puddling  furnaces,  5  ham- 
mers, 4  trains  of  rolls,  with  a  capacity  for  100  tons  a  day,  and  a  total  product 
of  14,000  tons,  worth  $780,000,  the  material  being  placed  at  $535,000,  and 
the  wages  at  $177,700.  S.  F.  Bull.,  May  26,  1866;  S.  F.  Times,  Feb.  27,  1868; 
8.  F.  Chron.,  Jan.  17,  1881. 

The  first  railway  locomotive  was  made  in  1865  at  the  Union  works,  for 
the  S.  Jose  road,  and  so  well  that  a  dozen  have  since  been  ordered  there. 
8.  F.  Bull.,  July  18,  Aug.  7,  1865.  But  an  earlier  locomotive  engine  was 
turned  out  by  the  Vulcan  works  in  1862,  for  Oregon.  Sac.  Union,  May  22, 
1862;  Alta  Cal.,  May  18,  1862;  Oct.  13,  1871.  A  toy  engine  made  by  Chinese 
was  exhibited  in  1856.  Id.,  March  5,  1856.  In  1881  the  railway  shops  at 
Sacramento  produced  7  locomotives,  100  cars,  nearly  10,000  wheels,  and  a 


96  MANUFACTURES. 

mass  of  castings;  1,200  men  are  employed.  The  rolling-mill  was  addei  in 
1881;  boiler,  copper,  and  tin  shops  exist.  Watsons  Stat.,  MS.,  1-3.  Robert- 
son's Track  Laying  Mach.  Co.  was  formed  in  1869.  S.  F.  Calf,  Apr.  21,  18b'7. 
Architectural  iron-work  forms  a  large  branch,  one  house  casting  ornamental 
pieces,  another  producing  wrought  girders,  beams,  railings,  vault  material, 
and  shutters.  The  last  is  noticed  in  Alia  Cal.,  Apr.  29,  1853.  The  business 
amounts  to  half  a  million  a  year.  The  second  branch  of  importance  for  iron- 
workers lies  in  the  increase  of  agriculture,  for  which  over  $4,000,003  worth  of 
implements  are  annually  bought.  According  to  U.  S.  Cemus,  18SO,  barely 
$600,000  worth  was  made  here  by  21  establishments,  with  290  nan  Is,  includ- 
ing 6,000  ploughs.  Com.  and  Ltd.,  674-5,  doubles  these  figures.  The  eastern 
factories  have  the  advantage,  in  patents,  specialties,  duplication  of  sections, 
and  good  ready  material,  but  Cat.  is  gaining  more  and  more  of  the  work. 
The  Bcnicia  Agric.  Works  are  among  the  largest  in  the  U.  S.  Jackson,  of 
the  firm  of  Jackson  &  Truman,  leads  as  an  inventor  in  this  line,  of  improved 
thrashing-machines,  with  self-feeder  and  distributor,  portable  derrick,  with 
horse  and  steam  fork,  etc. ,  by  which  the  cost  of  thrashing  has  been  reduced 
one  half  since  1870.  Windmills  are  widely  used,  owing  to  the  prevailing  sea 
wind  and  the  absence  of  rain,  and  most  large  towns  have  factories,  usually 
of  self-regulating  mills.  Eastern  are  not  so  well  adapted  to  this  climate. 
The  first  is  ascribed  to  W.  I.  Tustin  of  Benicia,  1849.  Stockton,  the  wind- 
mill city,  now  excels.  S.  Joaq.  Co.  Hist.,  71. 

Of  stoves,  the  imports  amount  to  §1,000,000.  The  local  manufacture 
reaches  only  one  fourth  as  much,  under  the  advantages  possessed  by  eastern 
factories  in  controlling  patents.  The  Alvarado  stove-works  employed  30 
hands  in  1882,  and  was  progressing.  Sclent.  Press,  Jan.  13,  1872,  etc.  There 
is  only  one  chain  factory,  Gordon's,  employing  from  5  to  15  men.  The  demand 
from  mines  and  cable-cars  increased  the  manufacture  of  wire.  A.  S.  Halli- 
die  has  the  most  important  wire-drawing  and  rope  works,  started  by  G. 
Dennis  in  1854.  He  controls  several  patents  for  cable  roads,  and  makes  all 
classes  of  wire  articles;  among  other  shops,  some  devoted  to  barbed  wire. 
AUa  Cal.,  Aug.  1,  1858,  March  26,  Sept.  26,  1859,  refers  to  S.  &  J.  Tristam's 
wire-works.  S.  F.  Call,  Aug.  18,  1868;  Apr.  9,  1872.  Starrs  Merc/iarul. ,  MS., 
relates  to  a  nail  factory.  Of  the  annual  sale  of  $300,000  worth  of  wagon 
springs,  Cal.  makes  only  one  seventh,  in  one  factory,  the  Betts,  started  in 
1868.  Elevators  are  little  used  outside  of  S.  F.,  where  are  held  the  best  hy- 
draulic and  other  patents,  covering  the  best  motive  power.  The  elastic  wire 
rope  is  the  favorite.  A  few  score  are  made  annually,  and  the  demand  is 
steadily  increasing. 

Of  tools  only  a  small  stock  of  local  manufacture  is  kept,  production  de- 
pending largely  on  orders,  which  are  filled  by  different  factories,  some  for 
leather  workers,  others  for  smiths,  miners,  etc.  Needle  factory  noticed  in 
S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  29,  1873.  The  Pac.  Saw  Manuf.  Co.,  the  only  one  of  the 
kind,  was  started  in  1866,  with  cooperation  of  N.  W.  Spaulding,  whose  ad- 
justable tooth  for  circular  saws  has  had  a  great  influence  on  lumber  manufac- 
ture. The  annual  out-turn  amounts  to  §100,000,  a  portion  representing  3,600 
dozen  cross-cut  saws.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Sept.  18,  1875;  Mechanics'  Fair  Press,  Aug. 
13,  1868.  Files  were  manufactured  here  by  three  factories  some  15  years 
ago,  but  the  overland  railway  opened  the  gate  for  eastern  goods,  and  now 
little  else  in  done  than  recutting  old  files.  Cutlery  in  general  suffers  under 
similar  disadvantages  and  little  more  than  special  orders  are  filled.  Hugh 
McConnell  made  large  knives  in  1852.  A  sword  was  sent  hence  in  1859  to 
Victor  Emanuel.  S.  F.  Bull.,  June  17,  1859.  The  annual  production  is 
estimated  at  §80,000.  Nautical  and  mathematical  instruments  have  been 
made  here  since  1849,  and  surveyors'  outfits,  scales,  etc.,  have  increased  the 
out-turn  to  fully  §40,000,  besides  repairing.  Spectacle  lenses  are  made.  J. 
Tenncnt  figures  as  instrument-maker.  A  ltd  Cal,  June  15,  1853;  Dec.  21,  1856; 
Feb.  23,  1858;  Sept.  11,  1864;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  1,  1865;  Jan.  12,  186o;  Dec. 
2,  1870,  with  allusion  to  telescopes,  trusses,  etc.  Fire-arms  are  limited  to  a 
few  special  orders,  yet  some  cannon  have  been  cast,  AUa  Cal.,  July  2,  1859, 
and  many  guns  put  together.  Teluama  Co.  Hist.,  97,  prides  itself  upon  a  noted 


METALS,  BRICK,  AND  STONE.  97 

local  factory.  Several  inventions  in  this  line  are  recorded.  Alia  Cal.,  Oct.  6, 
lS5i»;  Stockton  Indep.,  Nov.  1866;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  1,  1865;  Nov.  29,  1866; 
Oct.  2,  1870;  S.  F.  Bull.,  Nov.  5,  1879;  Post,  July  31,  1876;  Merc.  Gaz.,  Dec. 
8,  18U5;  S.  F.  Times,  Jan.  25,  1867.  And  so  with  locks,  Alia  Cal.,  Sept.  11, 
1867;  but  the  only  factory,  Adams',  of  1875,  failed.  Special  safes  were  made 
in  1888  by  but  one  man. 

la  other  metal  branches,  a  dozen  coppersmiths  turn  out  articles  with  over 
$250,000,  whereof  sufficiently  is  exported  to  balance  the  small  import.  J. 
Macken  opened  the  first  shop  about  1852.  A  number  of  brass  foundries  pro- 
duce a  large  variety  of  metals,  to  the  value  of  $300,000  at  S.  F.  alone,  by 
300  hands.  W.  T.  Garratt  started  the  first  works  in  185G.  His  sinking  and 
steam  pumps  are  well  known.  The  largest  bells  on  the  coast  came  from  his 
shop.  The  first  bell  of  1851,  described  in  S.  F.  Heralil,  Dec.  11,  1855;  Alta 
Cal.,  Jan.  3,  1853;  Jan.  20,  1855;  Sept.  7,  1858;  Jour.  Com.,  May  2,  16,  1877. 
Lead-works  were  first  opened  by  T.  H.  Selby  in  1865,  stimulated  by  the  abun- 
dance of  lead  and  antimony.  3.  F.  Bull.,  Apr.  10,  1867;  Sept.  1,  1868.  In 
1881  the  production  of  sheets,  bars,  pipes,  wire  bullets,  etc.,  exceeded  5,000 
tons,  worth  $800,000;  150  hands  were  employed.  In  the  plumbing  business, 
about  $750,000  is  invested,  with  products  half  as  much  larger  and  equivalent 
to  the  imports  of  chandeliers,  hardware,  etc.  The  plumbing  work  of  the 
Palace  hotel  cost  $350,000.  The  sale  of  tinware  equals  that  of  plumbers'  pro- 
ducts, two  thirds  being  local  ware.  The  tin  comes  from  Australia,  which 
sent  750  tons  in  1881,  a  doubling  of  former  imports  due  to  increased  canning 
operations.  For  the  latter  branch  alone  150  men  were  employed,  one  half 
Chinese.  Fully  half  the  tinware  is  made  in  S.  F.  since  1860,  prior  to  which 
Sacramento  employed  nearly  100  hands,  sustained  by  the  mines.  G.  H.  Tay 
&  Co.,  established  in  1848,  own  the  largest  factory.  Of  galvanized  iron  only 
small  articles  are  made  here,  by  two  do/en  hands.  Cornices  and  other  archi- 
tectural ornaments  consume  some  700  tons  of  coated  sheet  iron  annually,  and 
employ  at  times  over  150  hands.  Japanning  work  does  not  exceed  $40,000, 
the  imports  being  equal.  Metallic  signs  represent  $10,000.  The  Cal.  electri- 
cal works  were  the  sole  manufacturers  on  the  coast,  in  1881,  of  telegraphic 
and  electrical  instruments,  to  the  value  of  nearly  $75,000.  Nickel  plating  is 
done.  Electrical  works  are  now  increasing  in  number.  Gilding  and  silver- 
ing are  done  to  the  value  of  $100,000,  largely  for  battery  plates,  employing 
three  dozen  hands.  The  nickel  plating  is  worth  $15,000.  J.  Martell  pro- 
duced hand-plated  articles  in  1857.  S.  F.  Times,  Sept.  3,  1868.  Plated  ware 
proper  is  imported  to  the  value  of  about  $750,000.  The  gold-beating  factory 
of  1853  hag  alone  survived  the  shops  since  opened,  and  it  produces  only  a 
small  part  of  the  $150,000  worth  of  leaf  sold. 

The  manufacture  of  jewelry  was  fostered  toward  the  close  of  the  forties, 
by  miners  who  desired  specimens  polished,  set,  or  made  into  chains  and  rings. 
Abalone  shells  and  quartz  soon  became  a  specialty  sought  by  all  visitors. 
Barrett  &  Sherwood  sent  quartz-work  to  the  world's  fair  at  N.  York  in  1853. 
Of  the  total  jewelry  sales,  $3,000,000,  only  one  fourth  represents  local  manu- 
facture, which  is  of  admirable  design  and  workmanship.  Owing  to  the  grow- 
ing demand  for  plated  goods,  the  sale  of  silver-ware  is  limited  to  $200,000, 
fully  one  half  imported.  Nevertheless,  a  few  establishments  work  up  50,000 
or  60,000  ounces  a  year  of  silver.  Half  a  score  of  shops  do  lapidary  work, 
valued  at  $150,000,  exclusive  of  material.  A  watch-case  factory  was  adver- 
tised in  1860;  now  several  makers  exist.  Sac.  Union,  June  2,  1860;  S.  F. 
Bull.,  Jan.  24,  1860;  Alta  Cal,  March  25,  1853;  March  17,  1855.  A  watch 
factory  was  started  in  1874,  but  it  soon  failed.  S.  F.  Post,  Dec.  24,  1873;  Dec. 
12,  1874;  Jan.  16,  30,  1875;  Feb.  12,  1876.  There  was  but  one  clock  factory 
in  1880,  which  held  a  patent  for  pneumatic  regulators. 

The  general  preference  for  wood,  and  its  cheapness,  have  limited  the  use 
of  other  material  for  building  purposes  and  for  household  ware.  Settlements 
have  not  yet  developed  sufficiently  to  warrant  the  establishment  of  costly 
factories  for  other  than  common  goods. 

The  buildings  of  Spanish  Californians  were  almost  exclusively  of  adobe,  or 
sun-dried  brick.     Brick  proper  was  first  burned  by  G.  Zins  at  Sutterville,  in 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    7 


98  MANUFACTURES. 

1847,  when  40,000  were  produced,  followed  by  100,000  in  1848.  See  my 
chapter  on  cities,  in  vol.  vi.;  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  146.  Yet  Tyler,  Mormon  Bat- 
talion, 286-7,  claims  the  first  burning  for  S.  Diego,  in  1847.  After  1848 
brick -yards  multiplied  under  the  cost  of  transporting  timber,  and  the  frequent 
conflagrations.  S.  F.  Herald,  June  8,  July  10,  Oct.  18,  1850;  July  18,  1851; 
AUa  Cal.,  July  10,  1851;  June  27,  1852;  March  6,  Aug.  22,  1856;  county 
histories  of  Sac.,  146,  219;  Yuba,  69;  L.  Ana.,  69;  S.  Joaq.,  26,  71-2;  8. 
Mateo,  29;  Alam.,  25;  Fresno,  122;  Tinkham's  Stockton,  189;  Cal.  Census,  1852. 
Of  the  many  that  have  risen,  the  U.  S.  Census  of  1880  reports  only  50  aa 
remaining,  employing  840  men,  receiving  $210,000  in  wages,  producing  63,400,- 
000  common  brick,  1,140,000  pressed  and  fire  brick,  $60,000  worth  of  tiles, 
$1,000  of  pipe,  total  value  $516,000.  The  convicts  of  S.  Quentin  made 
6,500,000  brick  in  1878.  Fire-brick  are  still  imported,  as  ballast,  over  700,000 
in  1881.  The  demand  in  general  has  increased  largely  since  1870,  with 
growing  stability,  though  fluctuating  with  the  direction  of  settlement  and 
the  money  market.  In  1881  over  120,000,000  were  reported.  The  Hoffman 
process  is  gaining  in  favor,  by  using  cheaper  coal  and  producing  brick  within 
two  days  by  baking  in  furnaces.  S.  F.  Post,  Aug.  5,  1878. 

While  not  abundant,  lime  is  found  in  many  places,  notably  along  the  Sierra 
slope  from  Auburn  to  Mariposa,  and  in  Sta  Cruz,  the  latter  suppling  more 
than  half  the  total  requirement.  A  kiln  was  opened  here  in  1851,  or  shortly 
after.  Sta  Cruz  Hist.,  28.  Other  kilns  are  noted  in  A Ita  Cal.,  May  20,  Oct. 
18,  1852;  Oct.  26,  1855;  Jan.  23,  1857;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr.  23,  1859.  El 
Dorado  had  8  kilns  in  1855.  Co.  Hist.,  253.  Of  hydraulic  cement  100,000 
barrels  are  used,  one  third  of  which  is  prepared  by  a  factory  with  a  dozen 
men,  at  Benicia.  Hist.  Solano,  181.  For  pipe  this  cement  is  mixed  with  New 
York  brands,  clean  beach  sand  and  gravel  being  added.  About  125,000  feet 
are  annually  called  for,  value  $40,000;  made  by  half  a  dozen  men.  Several 
companies  have  failed  in  the  production  of  artificial  stone,  owing  to  inferior 
quality  or  excessive  cost.  Marble-works,  opened  at  Oakland  in  1871,  prom- 
ised well  for  a  time.  Obstacles  have  gradually  been  overcome,  and  both  the 
Ransom,  since  1868,  and  Shillinger  processes  are  now  meeting  with  favor, 
the  latter  chiefly  for  pavements,  the  other,  an  English  invention,  for  walls, 
foundations,  pipes,  statuary,  etc.  The  annual  production  reaches  $400,000, 
giving  employment  to  more  than  100  hands.  Sdent.  Press,  Sept.  24,  1870;  S.  F. 
Call,  Aug.  26,  Sept.  4,  1868;  Jan.  9,  1874;  S.  F.  Post,  July  13,  Sept.  5,  1872; 
Apr.  21,  1874,  with  allusions  to  statuary  for  the  capitol;  A  Ita  Cal.,  Oct.  1, 
1864,  records  the  first  mosaic  flooring;  S.  F.  Times,  May  30,  1868;  S.  F.  Bul- 
letin, May  19,  1873;  Yolo  Democ.,  Feb.  27,  1879;  L.  Ang.  Hist.,  70-1;  L.  Ang. 
Exp.,  Apr.  28,  1877.  Real  stone  pavements  were  not  laid  till  1856.  There 
is  one  mill  for  the  manufacture  of  plaster  of  Paris,  opened  in  1874  at  S.  F., 
yet  plaster  has  been  made  since  1861.  Merc.  Oaz.,  Aug.  30,  1861;  S.  F.  Bul- 
letin, Jan.  26,  1865.  Since  1875  imports  have  fallen  from  20,000  barrels  to 
less  than  5,000  in  the  early  eighties.  The  annual  consumption  is  100,000  bar- 
rels of  285  Ibs.,  three  fourths  for  buildings.  Plaster  decorations,  for  ceilings, 
etc.,  employ  two  dozen  hands,  belonging  to  four  establishments.  One  of  them 
makes  $3,000  worth  of  statuary.  Sculptured  figures  and  designs,  and  the  cut- 
ting of  marble  and  granite,  employ  more  than  100  firms  and  600  hands,  whose 
productions  exceed  $1,250,000.  Ornamental  pieces  are  mostly  of  Italian 
marble.  The  import  of  carved  and  rough  pieces  is  valued  at  $150,000,  and 
chiefly  controlled  by  an  Italian  house,  which  also  saws  most  of  the  stone.  The 
leading  firm  in  monumental  pieces  produces  $70,000  worth  a  year.  Alta  Cal., 
Dec.  3,  1852;  March  30,  1853;  Jan.  1,  Dec.  22,  1854;  April  8,  1857;  Golden 
Era,  Dec.  18,  1853;  S.  Joaq.  Hixt.,  71-2,  refer  to  early  marble  cutting  and 
carving.  An  asphaltum  mine  in  S.  L.  Obispo  supplies  much  of  the  material 
for  covering  roofs.  Alta  Cal.,  Aug.  28,  1856;  Jan.  21,  1857;  S.  F.  Call,  Aug. 
18,  1868,  concerning  concrete  roofing.  CaL  Census,  1852,  refers  to  a  pitch 
well  in  L.  Angeles  used  for  roofing. 

California  possesses  the  best  beds  of  potters'  clay  on  the  coast,  notably  in 
the  centre  of  the  great  valley,  and  in  Contra  Costa,  where  it  is  worked  in  con- 
nection with  coal-mining.  The  factories  number  10,  employing  over  200  hands, 


GLASS,  SODA,  AND  POWDER.  99 

one  third  Chinese,  and  produce  pipe,  tile,  brown  earthen-ware,  jugs,  and  other 
coarse  goods  to  the  amount  of  about  $250,000,  yet  4,000  packages  of  crockery 
are  imported.  The  Sewery  Pipe  Association  has  adopted  a  uniform  scale  of 
prices  for  S.  F.  One  firm  makes  floor  tiles,  and  another  has  tried  glazed  yel- 
low ware.  The  manufacture  of  fine  articles  is  augmenting.  Early  works  are 
noticed  in  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  15,  1854;  July  30,  1855;  Nov.  6,  1856;  S.  F. 
Herald,  June  13,  1856;  Alta  CaL,  June  1,  1856.  Terra-cotta  made  at  Oak- 
land. S.  F.  Post,  June  25,  Nov.  7,  1874.  Porcelain  at  L.  Angeles.  L.  A. 
Herald,  Sept.  1875;  S.  F.  Call,  Oct.  4,  1875;  C.  Costa  Gaz.,  June  20,  1868; 
S.  F.  Times,  Nov.  18,  1867;  June  22,  1868;  Red  Bluff  P.  Cause,  May  20,  1879; 
Alam.  Hist.,  22;  Oromlle  Merc.,  July  23,  1880. 

High  freight  and  large  breakage  encouraged  the  opening  of  a  bottle  fac- 
tory in  1858,  after  a  trial  in  1855,  but  it  failed  to  produce  good  glass.  In 
1859  two  other  parties  made  the  attempt,  with  similar  ill  success.  Alta  CaL, 
July  11,  Nov.  2,  Dec.  14,  1859.  In  1862  a  third  and  successful  effort  was 
made  by  the  Pacific  glass-works,  so  much  so  as  to  lead  to  the  opening  in  1865 
of  the  S.  F.  works,  which  soon  absorbed  the  other.  8.  F.  Bull.,  July  13,  Nov. 
5,  1859;  June  17,  1863;  June  11,  1864;  July  25,  1865,  etc.;  S.  F.  Times,  July 
24,  1868.  In  1881  rose  a  cooperative  factory.  S.  F.  Chron.,  Aug.  5,  1881. 
Mont.  Democ.,  May  4,  1878,  records  a  project  in  its  vicinity.  The  consolidated 
firm  is  the  only  one  recorded  in  U.  S.  Census  for  1880,  with  a  capital  of  $75,000, 
2  furnaces,  7  pots,  125  hands,  wages  $46,000,  material  $48,000,  product 
$140,000.  Subsequently,  it  claims  increased  capacity  and  yield,  with  flint- 
glass  works  for  lamp-chimneys,  vials,  etc.  Bottles  and  fruit-jars  are  the  chief 
goods;  most  other  ware  is  imported  to  the  value  of  $2,500,000,  one  fourth  of 
which  consists  of  window-glass,  the  rest  being  mostly  table-ware.  The  sand 
is  brought  from  Monterey,  the  lime  from  Auburn,  the  manganese  and  oxide 
from  other  places  in  Cal.  Ornamental  and  bent  glass  employs  four  firms 
with  a  score  of  men;  product,  $75,000.  There  is  also  a  special  lamp  and  glass 
reflector  factory.  Mirrors  are  prepared  at  two  places,  chiefly  with  plate 
from  Europe;  20,000  sq.  feet  are  covered  yearly,  value  $160,000.  In  1860 
only  one  man  was  engaged  in  this  business.  S.  F.  Bull,  Oct.  11,  1866. 

Soda  is  consumed  to  the  amount  of  6,000  tons,  value  $350,000,  of  which 
70  per  cent  comes  from  England,  mostly  soda-ash,  and  1,000  tons  are  made 
at  S.  F.  at  one  factory,  with  a  score  of  hands,  in  the  form  of  sal-soda,  bicar- 
bonate, crystals,  and  washing-powder.  The  material  is  drawn  from  Nevada. 
The  annual  consumption  of  cream  of  tartar  is  about  150,000  Ibs.,  value 
$60,000,  of  which  three  fourths  is  refined  from  French  argol,  chiefly  for  yeast- 
powder,  but  the  collection  of  the  crude  material  is  increasing  among  wineries. 
The  first  production  was  by  E.  Vacht  of  Los  Angeles  in  1860. 

Although  explosive  powder -works  were  projected  in  the  middle  of  the 
fifties,  Alta  Cal.,  Aug.  10,  1855,  Sac  Union,  Oct.  11,  1855,  S.  F.  Herald, 
Feb.  1,  1858,  referring  to  saltpetre  discoveries,  yet  not  till  1863  was  the 
pioneer  company  formed  which  created  the  Cal.  powder-works  on  S.  Lorenzo 
Creek  near  Sta  Cruz.  Pdjaro  Times,  May  1863;  Merc.  Gaz.,  May  22,  1863; 
S.  F.  Bull.,  May  5,  1863;  Oct.  31,  1866;  Hist.  Sta  Cruz,  49-50.  The  com- 
pany expanded  till  it  owned  21  mills,  10  shops,  6  magazines,  and  an  entire 
village,  although  the  ordinary  force  is  only  60  hands;  capital  $1,500,000.  It 
makes  the  only  military  and  sporting  powder  on  the  coast;  the  first  produc- 
tion dating  1864.  A  branch  work  at  Pinole  Pt  makes  Hercules  powder. 
There  are  a  number  of  other  mills  for  the  manufacture  of  high-grade  explo- 
sives, which  have,  after  some  opposition  by  miners,  almost  superseded  the 
ordinary  black  powder  for  blasting.  These  mills  aie  mostly  known  by  the 
compound  prepared,  as  tonite,  giant,  vigorit,  safety  nitro,  granite  safety, 
thunder,  vulcan.  Alta  Cal.,  Apr.  22,  1867;  Jan.  2,  1872;  S.  F.  Times,  Dec. 
14,  1868;  Meek.  Fair  Press,  Sept.  11,  1868,  referring  to  Hafenegger  powder; 
8.  F.  Call,  Aug.  17,  1867,  March  5,  1881,  Jan.  22,  1883,  referring  also  to  ex- 
plosions; S.  F.  Chron.,  July  3,  1881;  C.  Costa  Hist.,  17,  419-22;  Marin  Hist., 
281.  Of  high  explosives,  1,500  tons  were  used  in  1881,  of  black  powder  over 
2,000  tons,  total  value  $2,400,000.  Cal.  exported  nearly  1,000  tons,  the  im- 
port of  sporting  and  cartridge-powder  being  only  150  tons.  The  industry 


100  MANUFACTURES. 

employed  nearly  $3,000,000  capital,  and  300  men.  The  Census  of  1880  credits 
Cul.  with  1,250,000  Ibs.  nitro-glycerine,  and  395,000  Ibs.  of  glycerine.  There 
is  sulphur  in  Nevada,  but  much,  as  well  as  other  ingredients,  is  imported. 
There  were  three  fuse  factories,  dating  from  1863-8,  employing  40  hands  and 
supplying  the  coast,  even  Montana  and  Mexico.  Sclent.  Press,  Apr.  25,  1868, 
July  2,  1870,  refers  one  to  1863.  S.  F.  Times,  Jan.  29,  1867.  Fire- works 
have  been  made  since  1852.  The  opening  of  this  decade  found  two  factories 
at  S.  F.,  one  established  in  1853,  with  20  hands,  producing  $40,000  worth  of 
goods,  the  Chinese  adding  somewhat  to  the  amount.  Exports  balance  im- 
ports. Com.  Herald,  Jan.  22,  1874.  Of  match  factories,  S.  F.  contained  eight, 
though  many  more  have  existed  since  1855.  Merc.  Oaz.,  Sept.  11,  1857;  Alto, 
Gal.,  May  29,  1858;  Aug.  26,  1859;  Vail.  C/tron.,  July  13,  1878;  Marys. 
Appeal,  Jan.  17,  1879;  Mech.  Fair  Press,  Aug.  17,  1865;  Hixt.  L.  Aug.,  70, 
referring  to  others  in  Eureka  and  Oakland.  The  wood  comes  from  Port  Or- 
ford,  the  sulphur,  etc.,  from  England  and  N.  York.  The  entire  production 
reached  500,000  gross,  mostly  in  blocks,  four  fifths  from  S.  F.,  and  em- 
ployed about  125  hands,  one  fifth  by  Chinese;  60,000  gross  were  exported. 
Gas-works  exist  in  all  large  towns,  though  partly  superseded  by  electric 
lighting.  S.  F.  consumes  400,000,000  feet  annually,  and  the  rest  of  the  state 
half  as  much.  The  capital  invested  is  about  $15,000,000,  employing  nearly 
600  men.  In  smaller  towns  and  a  few  large  buildings  gas  is  made  from  petro- 
leum. Gas  lighting  began  at  S.  F.  in  1852.  S.  F.  Herald,  May  17,  1852;  Jan. 
4,  1856;  and  see  my  chapters  on  S.  F.,  and  on  cities;  also  county  histories. 
All  the  best  systems  of  electric  lighting  are  now  represented  in  S.  F.,  with 
two  manufactories  and  several  supply  companies. 

The  requirements  of  mining  alone  demand  large  varieties  of  acids,  which 
are  supplied  by  five  factories,  one  in  Nevada,  producing  altogether  15,000  tons 
of  nitric  and  sulphuric  acids,  and  from  400  to  500  tons  of  muriatic,  sulphate 
of  copper  and  iron  and  Prussian  blue,  valued  at  $1,500,000;  over  100  hands 
are  employed.  Imports  are  limited  to  a  little  Prussian  blue.  The  nitrate 
of  soda  comes  from  Peru.  The  oldest  factory  dates  from  1854.  Sac.  Union, 
Dec.  13,  1854;  Nov.  28,  1857;  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  26-8,  1857;  Neo.  Co., 
Oaz.,  Feb.  1867;  S.  F.  Bull,  Feb.  28,  1867;  Dec.  7,  1870.  The  Census  of 
1880  places  the  total  value  of  chemical  products  at  $3,180,000.  Bisulphide 
of  carbon  is  made  by  one  factory,  to  the  amount  of  perhaps  1,000  Ibs.  daily 
during  the  season,  for  destroying  squirrels  and  other  pests.  Two  factories 
prepare  4,000  tons  of  bone  charcoal  and  kindred  substances,  for  sugar  refin- 
ing and  agricultural  uses.  S.  F.  Call,  March  23,  1878,  etc.  Of  inks,  mucilage, 
and  blacking,  usually  made  at  the  same  establishments,  to  the  amount  of 
$80,000,  imports  reach  $30,000,  and  the  export  500  cases;  15  hands  are  em- 
ployed. S.  F.  Bull.,  March  29,  1867;  Com.  and  Ind.  Hayes'  Miss.  B.,  118, 
refers  to  a  native  berry  from  which  the  padres  made  ink.  Printing  ink  is 
manufactured  at  one  factory,  with  half  a  score  of  hands,  to  the  amount  of 
$60,000,  150  cases  being  exported,  and  very  little  introduced. 

Leads  and  slugs  were  made  in  1850  by  the  firm  of  Jobson,  Sterett  & 
Painter,  and  in  1853  a  type  foundry  was  started  by  E.  Pelonze.  The  business 
acquired  importance  only  in  1866.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Aug.  25,  Dec.  11,  1866;  S.  F. 
Times,  Jan.  1,  1868;  Com.  Herald,  Dec.  30,  1867;  and  now  sustains  four 
establishments,  with  60  or  70  operatives,  producing  type  to  the  value  of 
$70,000,  so  that  few  imports  are  required  save  of  patent  and  display  types. 
Refined  lead  and  antimony  are  obtained  in  Cal.  Of  printers'  material,  nearly 
half  is  imported.  There  were  two  electrotype  establishments  in  1888,  the 
chief  one  being  that  of  the  Filmer-Rollius  Co.  Lithographic  printing  is 
alluded  to  in  Alta  Cal.,  Apr.  25,  1853;  S.  F.  Herald,  Dec.  26,  1850.  Pho- 
tographers were  numerous  by  1850.  Pac.  News,  Dec.  29,  1849;  Jan.  19,  May 
8,  1850;  Jan.  29,  1851. 

The  first  paper-mill  was  built  by  V.  B.  Post  and  S.  B.  Taylor  in  Marin, 
and  completed  early  in  1857,  driven  by  water-power,  and  sustained  success- 
fully. S.  F.  Bull,  Apr.  1,  1857;  Altn  Cal.,  Aug.  3,  1852;  Feb.  21,  Dec.  10, 
1856;  Sept.  8,  1858;  Sac.  Union,  Apr.  10,  Nov.  30,  1855;  Jan.  17,  June  26, 
Oct.  17,  1856;  Apr.  23,  1857,  with  allusions  to  earlier  projects  for  Sonora,  San 


PAPER.  101 

Antonio,  Alta,  Dentville,  and  Folsom.  The  Census  of  1880  enumerates  5 
more  mills,  at  Alviso,  Saratoga,  Soquel,  Corralitos,  and  Stockton,  with 
$610,000  capital,  160  hands,  $87,600  wages,  using  over  4,000  tons  of  straw, 
865  of  rags,  562  of  old  paper,  512  of  manila,  $56,700  worth  of  chemicals,  pro- 
ducing 1,280  tons  of  printing-paper,  2,590  of  wrapping,  with  some  pasteboard, 
etc. ;  value  $386,000.  Since  then  there  has  been  an  increase,  yet  not  sufficient 
to  supply  even  half  of  the  printing-paper  required,  while  no  writing-paper  is 
made.  Fully  8,000  tons  of  printing-paper  are  required  on  the  coast,  of  which 
about  one  fourth,  with  5,000  or  6,000  tons  of  other  kinds,  are  produced  here. 
Writing-paper  is  entirely  imported.  Stockton  Indep.,  March  22,  29,  1879;  S. 
J,  Merc.,  Apr.  24,  Nov.  13,  1879;  Com.  Herald,  June  8,  Oct.  22,  1874;  Tink- 
ham's  Stockton,  384-5;  county  histories  of  L.  Ang.,  70;  Sta  Cruz,  Sta  Clara, 
16;  S.  Joaq.,  72;  Marin,  133,  279;  Mendoc.,  377-9,  etc.  Newspapers  abound, 
and  in  1882  were  issued  from  400  of  the  700  printing  establishments  on  the 
coast,  fourscore  using  steam-power.  In  1889,  524  newspapers  were  published 
in  Cal.  The  annual  value  of  the  newspaper  and  literature  business  is  placed 
at  §4,500,000,  the  book  and  job  printing  at  $3,000,000,  employing  fully  2,500 
compositors.  There  are  more  than  two  dozen  book-binderies  in  Cal.,  two 
thirds  of  them  at  S.  F.,  doing  in  1881  $550,000  worth  of  work. 

Among  Cal.  manufacturers,  the  following  are  worthy  of  special  notice: 

Glaus  Spreckels,  who  has  a  national  reputation  as  one  of  the  prominent 
business  men  of  Cal.,  was  born  at  Lamstedt,  Hanover,  July  9,  1828.  In 
1857  he  started  the  Albany  brewery  in  S.  F.,  and  in  1863  organized  the  Bay 
Sugar  Refining  co.  Two  years  later  he  sold  his  interest,  and  going  to 
Europe  studied  the  manufacture  of  sugar  in  all  its  aspects.  Returning  to 
Cal.  he  engaged  more  extensively  than  ever  in  business,  having  large  interest 
in  manufactures  and  shipping,  both  in  Cal.  and  in  the  Hawaiian  islands. 
His  sons,  John  D.,  Adolph  B.,  and  C.  August,  assume  an  active  manage- 
ment in  his  extensive  business,  which  reaches  all  parts  of  the  world. 

Charles  Kohler,  the  tirst  to  make  wine  on  a  large  scale,  was  born  in 
Mecklenburg-Schwerin  in  1830,  receiving  a  business  education.  In  1850  he 
emigrated  to  New  York,  coming  to  S.  F.  in  1854.  In  1857  Kohler,  Frohling, 
and  Geo.  Hansen  planted  in  vines  a  large  tract,  selling  shares  among  a  num- 
ber of  Germans,  from  -which  the  colony  of  Anaheim  was  stated.  Kohler  was 
a  member  of  the  S.  F.  vigilance  committee  in  1856,  and  one  of  the  original 
incorporators  of  the  cable-road  system  in  S.  F.,  besides  the  German  Savings 
bank  and  S.  F.  Fire  Insurance  co.  He  died  in  1888. 

James  Donahue  was  the  youngest  of  three  brothers — Michael,  Peter,  and 
James — natives  of  Glasgow,  Scotland.  They  all  came  to  Cal.  during  the 
flush  times,  the  Union  Iron  works  being  the  keystone  of  their  fortunes,  which 
industry  was  closely  followed  by  gas-works  and  other  important  enterprises. 
James  died  at  his  country  seat  near  San  Jose  in  1862,  leaving  a  name  re- 
spected by  the  entire  community. 

Conspicuous  among  the  early  industries  of  S.  F.  was  the  brewery  of  John 
Wieland.  A  native  of  Wurtemburg,  born  Oct.  6,  1829,  he  came  to  Cal.  in 
1851,  and  after  mining  for  a  short  time,  began  business  in  S.  F.  Later 
he  visited  Europe,  and  with  his  son  Herman  made  an  inspection  of  the  lead- 
ing establishments  in  his  line  in  the  U.  S.  His  death  occurred  Jan.  2,  1885. 
The  deep,  strong,  and  warm-hearted  nature  of  Mr  Wieland  had  gained  the 
hearts  of  the  community,  and  his  body  was  followed  to  the  Masonic  ceme- 
tery by  a  large  concourse  of  mourners. 

Caleb  S.  Hobbs,  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  came  to  Cal.  in  1853,  first 
being  employed  as  a  pattern-maker,  afterward  making  boxes  by  hnnd  until 
he  organized  the  firm  of  Hobbs,  Gilmore  &  Co.,  the  first  box  factory  on  the 
Pac.  coast.  A  planing  and  saw  mill  was  operated  in  connection  with  the 
box  factory  from  1855  to  1873,  when  the  partnership  of  Hobbs,  Pomeroy  & 
Co.  was  formed,  continuing  under  that  style  until  1880,  when  it  became  Hobbs, 
Wall  &  Co.  Mr  Hobbs  was  connected  with  many  other  enterprises. 

Domingo  Ghirardelli,  a  native  of  Italy,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  first  en- 
gaging in  mining  and  afterward  in  mercantile  business.  In  1851  he  opened 
a  coffee  saloon,  and  selling  it,  began  in  the  confectionery  business,  afterward 
manufacturing  chocolate  and  conducting  a  general  merchandise  business. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

FOREIGN    COMMERCE. 

1848-1889. 

EARLY  TRADING  VESSELS — EFFECT  OF  GOLD  DISCOVERY — FLUCTUATIONS  IN 
PRICES — AT  THE  MINES — FOLLY  OF  EASTERN  SHIPPERS— FIRST  TO  AR- 
RIVE— INFLUX  OF  VESSELS — ALTERNATE  SCARCITY  AND  PLETHORA  OF 
MERCHANDISE — REVIVAL  OF  MINING — WAGES  AND  PRICES- -IMPORTS  AND 
EXPORTS — SOCIAL  INFLUENCE  AND  TRADE  REVOLUTIONS — TREASURE  EX- 
PORT— TRADE  CHANNELS — ABANDONED  VESSELS  OF  THE  ARGONAUTS — 
ADVENT  OF  CLIPPER  SHIPS — OCEAN  STEAMERS — LATER  DEVELOPMENTS. 

THE  sudden  unfolding  of  wealth  in  California  led 
naturally  to  a  corresponding  development  of  com- 
merce. The  congregation  of  people  in  a  hitherto 
desert  quarter,  and  the  immense  influx  from  abroad, 
called  into  existence  fresh  avenues  and  means  for  traf- 
fic, and  new  implements  and  larger  supplies  for  a 
novel  field  of  enterprise,  while  the  abundance  of  gold 
bred  a  wasteful  extravagance  which  greatly  swelled 
the  demand. 

Hitherto  trading  vessels  had  been  peddling  their 
cargoes  along  the  coast,  and  occasional  supply  ships 
from  Mexico  provided  for  the  easily  estimated  wants 
of  a  small  and  steady  population.  The  people  relied, 
indeed,  too  much  upon  this  ready  source,  for  many 
articles  were  purchased  which  could  have  been  pro- 
duced at  small  cost  from  resources  within  reach,  such 
as  dairy  produce  and  lumber.1  When  the  gold  excite- 

1  Instance  pressed  candles  bought  at  75  cents  a  pound  when  tallow  was 
sold  for  5  or  8  cents;  flour  brought  from  Chile  and  Oregon  at  $4  or  §6  per 
cwt.,  while  wheat  was  offering  at  50  cents  a  bushel.  And  so  with  dairy 
produce  and  lumber,  although  the  farms  and  hills  abounded  with  live-stock 
and  trees.  Thus  local  resources  were  neglected;  and  even  direct  trade,  to  the 

(102) 


THE   OLD   AND   THE  NEW.  103 

merit  opened  the  eyes  of  local  traders  to  their  possible 
share  in  the  wealth,  several  hastened  to  despatch 
orders  to  Hawaii,  Chili,  arid  other  customary  resorts, 
and  to  keep  a  close  watch  for  stray  trading  vessels, 
with  many  a  ruse  to  anticipate  competitors.2 

Under  the  increased  demand  from  a  fast-growing 
multitude,  the  neglect  of  local  farmers,  and  the  cost  of 
transportation,  prices  for  everything  rose  immensely,3 

benefit  of  entrepots  like  Hawaii  and  Chili.  Cal.  Star,  March,  Apr.  1, 
1848,  etc. 

2Larkin,  Doc.,  MS.,  vi.  167,  sent  to  Mexico  for  a  cargo  in  Aug.  1848. 
Men  were  stationed  on  the  hills  to  signal  vessels,  and  boats  lay  ready  to  con- 
vey the  trader  to  them,  with  fast  rowers  to  elude  pursuing  rivals.  Then  a 
spirited  bidding  for  the  whole  cargo,  including  much  useless  materials.  Mel- 
lus  &  Howard  bought  $15,000  worth  in  May  1848.  Id.,  111.  Later  enterpris- 
ing men  went  to  meet  emigrant  trains  across  the  Sierra  to  buy  their  surplus 
animals.  Barstoins  Stat.,  MS.,  13.  Imports  for  1848,  chiefly  in  last  half, 
amounted  to  about  $100,000;  for  the  six  months  ending  March  31,  1849,  to 
$1,000,000.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  5,  i.  158,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1. 

3In  March  1848  the  rates  were:  Hour  $4  per  cwt. ;  beans  $1.37  per  bushel; 
wheat  62^  cents  per  bushel;  beef  $2  per  cwt.;  beef  cattle  $5  to  $8  per  head; 
sheep  $2;  horses  $15  to  $30;  bvitter  50  cents;  pickled  salmon  $8  to  $9  per 
barrel;  tallow  5  cents  per  Ib. ;  lumber  §40  to  $50  psr  thousand  feet;  coffee 
32  cts;  sugar  6  to  12  eta;  Cal.  whiskey  §40  per  barrel;  tobacco  30  to  G2J  cts; 
cotton  8  to  14  eta  a  yard.  Californian,  March  15;  Cal.  filar,  March  18,  1848, 
etc.  Many  articles,  like  implements,  jumped  at  once  in  May  to  high  figures; 
others  advanced  gradually,  till  in  Dec.  the  rates  stood:  for  flour  $25  to  $27 
per  barrel;  wheat  $6  per  fanega;  beef  $20  and  pork  $60  per  barrel;  sugar  20 
to  25  cts;  lumber  $125  per  thousand.  Id.,  Dec.  16.  At  the  mines  goods 
brought  from  300  to  500  per  cent  profit,  writes  Larkin,  Doc.,  vi.  74,  1(31-3. 
See  also  his  much-quoted  letters  to  Washington  of  June  1st  and  28th.  At  the 
Dry  Diggings,  remote  from  the  easier  river  traffic,  prices  in  Aug.  were  double 
the  rates  ruling  on  the  Yuba,  where  they  were  twice  as  high  as  at  Sutter's 
Fort.  Flour  being  here  $18  in  Aug.  and  at  the  Yuba  $30  to  $40.  Biscuits 
rose  $1  to  $2  a  Ib.  Findla's  Stat.,  MS.,  4-7.  Medicine  $16  a  dose.  Burnett's 
Sec.,  MS.,  i.  375,  404.  The  French  consular  report  places  flour,  sugar,  and 
rice  in  July  at  $1  alb.;  liquors  $8  a  bottle;  fresh  meat  12J  cts.  Fern/,  Cal., 
320.  Flour  $50,  and  shovels  $10,  in  Oct.  at  S.  F.,  says  Buffum.  In  Nov.  ho 
found  flour  $60  and  pork  $150  a  barrel  at  Sutter's.  Six  JlontJis,  55.  Prices 
fluctuated  during  the  autumn,  under  arrivals  from  Oregon,  etc.  By  the  middle 
of  Dec.  they  fell  greatly,  partly  under  a  lessened  demand  for  the  mines, 
from  which  diggers  were  returning.  Flour  $12  to  $15;  brandy  $8  a  gallon, 
while  gold-dust  brought  only  $10^  an.  ounce. 

This  was  merely  a  temporary  relapse,  for  early  in  1849  they  rose  again,  to 
continue  high  until  the  autumn.  Board  cost  $20  a  week  and  upward,  a  meal 
at  any  decent  restaurant  coming  to  several  dollars;  bread,  50  cts  for  a  small 
loaf;  eggs  $9  to  $24  a  dozen;  potatoes  50  cts  and  upward;  apples  $3  each; 
milk  $1  a  quart.  Lumber  rose  to  $600  per  thousand,  and  in  Jan.  1850,  £1,000 
was  paid  for  fine  flooring.  Williams'  Stat.,  MS.,  4-5;  Ross,  Stat.,  MS.,  12. 
Unskilled  labor  was  $1  an  hour;  artisans  obtained  $12  to  $20  a  day;  picks  and 
shovcla  were  $15  each.  Washing  was  so  costly  that  men  preferred  to  throw 
away  soiled  linen.  Doctors  charged  $25  and  upward  for  a  visit.  The  rent 
for  a  one-story  central  house  for  business  was  $3,000  a  month.  See  further, 
on  this  point,  the  chapter  on  S.  F.  in  vol.  vi.  In  the  mines  prices  varied 
in  accordance  with  facilities  for  access  and  the  momentary  amount  of  supplies. 


104  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

so  that  flour  and  beef,  which  in  March  1848  cost  $4 
and  $2  per  hundredweight,  respectively,  reached  in 
December  $27  and  $20,  with  pork  at  $60  a  barrel. 
By  the  middle  of  1849  they  were  quoted  at  more  than 
double  these  rates.  For  certain  articles,  like  eggs  and 
apples,  $2  and  $3  each  were  frequently  demanded; 
tacks,  scales,  cotton  cloth,  brought  fancy  prices.  Saler- 
atus,  which  cost  four  cents  a  pound  in  the  east,  rose  to 
$16,  as  a  substitute  for  baking-powder.  Lumber  cost 
$600  per  100  feet,  and  a  brick  house  could  be  esti- 
mated at  $1  for  each  brick.  Common  labor  Avas  $1 
an  hour;  artisans  received  from  $12  to  $20  a  day. 
The  cheapest  boarding-house  demanded  $20  per  week; 
a  drink  cost  fifty  cents,  and  nothing  less  than  this 
amount  could  be  offered  for  the  slightest  service,  while 
twenty-five  cents  was  for  a  long  time  the  smallest  sum 
recognized  by  traders. 

Prices  at  the  mines  depended  greatly  on  the  nature 
of  the  roads;  for  rains,  floods,  and  mountain  ridges 
tended  to  raise  the  charges  of  the  costly  supply  train, 
and  even  to  cut  off  communication  for  weeks  at  a 


Even  at  Stockton,  flour  and  potatoes  rose  at  times  to  $1|  a  Ib.  Randolph's 
Stat.,  MS.,  8.  Yet  here  and  at  Sacramento  rates  ranged  little  above  those  at 
S.  F.  On  the  Yuba  during  the  winter  most  necessaries  were  $1  a  Ib.,  though 
rising  to  $2  a  Ib.  for  pork  and  $300  a  barrel  for  flour.  AUa  Cal.,  Dec.  15,  1849, 
etc.  And  so  at  Coloina,  where  Little,  Stat.,  MS.,  3-6,  also  obtained  $16  a  Ib. 
for  powder;  blankets  2  ounces  of  gold;  boots  the  same.  At  the  southern 
mines  prices  rose  to  §40  for  blankets  and  boots,  liquor  $20  a  bottle  or  $2  a 
drink,  in  Feb.,  on  the  Stanislaus.  Bauer's  Stat.,  MS.,  314-15;  Buffunis  Six 
Mo.,  98;  Schenck's  Vig.,  MS.,  15-20.  American  horses  brought  §500  to  $000. 
Say  ward' 8  Pioneer,  MS.,  6.  Yet  this  varied  with  the  condition  of  arriving 
overland  trains.  Coleman  sold  two  yoke  of  oxen  for  $450.  Vig.,  MS.,  141-2; 
Boynton's  Stat.,  MS.,  1.  Saleratus  for  bread  $12  to  $16  alb.  Low's  Observ., 
MS.,  3;  Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  3.  Additional  references  at  the  end  of  this  chap- 
ter. At  the  mines,  and  even  at  certain  Sac.  saloons,  drinks  were  $1.  Articles 
on  the  north  branch  of  the  American  bring  $5  a  pound,  writes  the  Pac.  News, 
May  17,  1850;  Cal.  Courier,  Dec.  23,  1850,  quotes  flour  on  Feather  River  at 
$2.40.  Confirmation  of  above  figures,  with  curious  instances,  may  be  found 
in  Fay's  Hist.  Facts,  MS.,  3;  Brown's  Early  Days,  MS.,  11;  Connor's  Early 
Cal,  MS.,  2;  Mattliewson's  Cal  Aff.,  MS.,  9-10;  Hensltaw's  Events,  MS.,  4-10; 
Button's  Exper.,  MS.,  1,  10;  McCollum's  Cal,  36,  64;  NeaWs  Vij.,  MS.,  5,  13, 
22;  Willeys  Per.  Mem.,  MS.,  99;  Barstow's  Stat.,  MS.,  12;  Boynton's  Sl.il., 
MS.,  1;  Armstrongs  Exper.,  MS.,  8,  11,  13;  Garniss'  Early  Days,  MS.,  10-17; 
Miscel  Stat.,  MS.,  18;  Dean's  Stat.,  MS.,  4;  Doios  Vig.,  MS.,  2;  Coleman's 
Vig.,  MS.,  142-3,  150-5;  Mayliews  Sec.;  Hancock's  Tliirtien  Years,  MS., 
118-35;  Fernandez'  Cal.,  MS.,  175;  Janssen's  Vida,  MS.,  205;  Kirkpatrick's 
Jour.,  MS.,  32-4. 


FIRST  ARRIVALS.  105 

time.  At  river  towns,  therefore,  rates  ruled  lower, 
but  in  the  interior  fancy  prices  prevailed,  with  an 
average  of  $1  a  pound  for  most  articles  of  necessity 
in  the  nearer  camps,  and  the  same  rate  for  the  indis- 
pensable drink  of  whiskey;  although  even  here  $1.50 
for  flour  and  $2  for  a  pound  of  pork  were  common 
enough,  while  in  some  places  $5  a  pound  was  asked. 

The  news  of  these  prices  roused  as  much  excite- 
ment in  the  commerical  circles  of  the  world  as  the 
gold  discoveries  among  the  fortune-hunters.  The 
spirit  of  adventure  and  speculation  was  abroad.  A 
host  of  men  were  seized  with  the  vision  of  enrich- 
ment; of  sharing  in  the  spoils  of  El  Dorado,  if  not 
by  personal  participation,  by  the  indirect  methods  of 
trade.  Anything  being  deemed  good  enough  for 
such  a  wilderness,  old  and  shop-worn  goods  were 
raked  from  dusty  shelves  and  sent  off,  without  re- 
gard to  suitability  or  the  state  of  the  market.  The 
prudent  calculations  that  usually  govern  merchants 
as  to  supply  and  demand,  and  the  requirements  of  the 
new  field,  were  cast  to  the  winds;  and  while  many 
articles  of  prime  necessity  were  omitted,  others  of  no 
value  filled  their  places,  as  broadcloth  and  silk  hats, 
instead  of  blankets  and  sombreros;  fine  linen  and 
shoes,  in  lieu  of  woollen  shirts  and  cow-hide  boots; 
female  apparel,  domestic  utensils,  and  costly  furni- 
ture came  where  family  life  was  unknown;  bibles, 
perchance,  when  men  demanded  playing-cards.* 

The  first  shipments  to  arrive,  especially  from  the 
near-lying  South  American  ports,  naturally  realized 
enormous  profits,5  even  on  less  needful  merchandise; 
for  midst  the  prevailing  dearth  and  wild  inflation  every- 
thing turned  into  gold.  But  the  aspect  changed  as 
the  Atlantic  cargoes  began  to  pour  in,  till  the  ships  in 

*  Much  of  this  foolishness  was  due  to  a  deficient  knowledge  of  the  new 
country,  its  climate,  and  the  conditions  of  mining  life.  Of  the  many  com- 
paiue.i  formed  ab  various  points  to  despatch  goods  and  passengers,  those  of 
Paris,  aa  advertised  in  the  Journal  des  Debate,  1849-50,  stood  first  in  extrava- 
gant promises.  Pianos  were  advertised  in  Pac.  News,  Dec.  27,  1849. 

5  Smith's  Report,  Apr.  5,  1849. 


106  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

the  harbor  were  counted  by  the  hundreds.  Thei 
were  few  wharves  and  warehouses,  and  these  were 
quickly  occupied;  lighterage  and  storage  cost  enor- 
mously;8 money  was  rated  at  ten  per  cent  per 
month,  and  meanwhile  ship- masters  clamored  for  their 
freight.  The  only  recourse  was  to  sell  the  cargoes  at 
auction.  And  here  ensued  another  scramble  to  be 
first  in  the  market  before  the  prices  dropped  to  noth- 
ing under  the  inflowing  consignments.  To  this,  in- 
deed, it  did  come.  Goods  became  unsalable.7  Some 
were  left  to  rot  with  the  deserted  vessels;  others 
were  thrown  out  from  the  warehouses  to  serve  for 
sidewalks  and  street  fillage.8  Toward  the  end  of  the 
year  came  heavy  rains  to  close  interior  traffic  and  in- 
crease the  stagnation,  until  flour  fell  below  $7  per 
hundredweight,  and  other  supplies  in  proportion. 
Failure  followed  failure;  real  estate  was  cast  upon 
the  market  to  be  sacrificed  at  one  tenth  its  cost;  fires 
came  to  ruin  others,  and  in  September  1850  a  com- 
mercial panic  was  in  full  blast.9 

6  And  this  in  itself  interfered  with  distant  storage.     At  S.  F.  storage  in 
1849  was  from  $2  to  $10  per  ton  monthly,  and  lighterage  $3  to  $4.    U.  S.  Govt 
Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  31-2;  Hunt's  Mag.,  xxiv.  G31-2; 
xxvi.  489;  xxxi.  111-12,  with  brokerage,  etc.     Teamsters'  rules  in  S.  F.  Her- 
ald, July  19,  1850. 

7  F.  F.  Low,  Stat.,  MS.,  5.     Agents  from  the  east  were  often  present,  but 
unprovided  with  money  to  check  the  crash.  Neall's  Vig.,  MS.,  15;  Bartletfa 
Stal.,  MS.,  7;    Velasco,  Son.,  308. 

6  As  described  in  chapter  on  S.  F.,  vol.  vi.  See  also  Garnish  Early  Days, 
MS.,  14;  Johnson's  CaL,  101-2;  Buttons  Exper.,  MS.,  7;  Olney's  Stat.,  MS.,  1. 
Most  of  them  speak  of  choice  tobacco,  beans,  metals,  etc.,  buried  in  the  mud 
of  S.  F.  streets.  Dow,  Vig.,  MS.,  1-3,  instances  two  ship-loads  of  heavy 
Spanish  wine  and  brandy,  which  landed  at  North  Beach,  covered  an  acre  of 
ground.  Liquors  were  abundant  at  most  times.  Imported  houses  helped  to 
reduce  the  value  of  lumber,  of  which  millions  of  feet  lay  in  the  bay  lacking 
purchasers.  Placer  Times,  Feb.  23,  1850;  Pac.  News,  Dec.  6,  1849;  Jan.  10, 
1850.  Later,  when  sailors  could  be  obtained  to  move  the  ships,  much  useless 
merchandise  was  sent  back  to  the  Atlantic  states. 

9C'al.  Courier,  Sept.  9,  1850;  S.  F.  Picayune,  etc.  The  prices  in  Alta  CaL 
for  May  1850  are:  flour  $6.70  per  cwt.;  bread  2  to  9  cts  per  lb.;  rice  8  cts; 
jerked  beef  3^  to  5  cts  per  lb.;  mess  beef  $14  to  $16  per  barrel;  pork  $25  to 
$35;  coffee  28  cts  per  lb. ;  sugar  27  to  50  cts;  whiskey  70  cts  per  gallon — 
yet  Dow,  Viij.,  MS.,  1-3,  declares  that  large  lots  were  sold  about  this  time 
for  25  cts,  wines  in  proportion,  although  by  regular  dealers;  tobacco  from  10 
cts  upward;  blankets  $2.50  to  $5  a  pair;  lumber  $40  to  $60  per  thousand. 
By  April  1851,  after  several  fluctuations,  flour  fell  below  $6  per  cwt.,  with  pros- 
pects of  a  further  decline,  says  Pac.  Ncivs,  Apr.  17,  1851.  Pork  sank  to  £15, 
sugar  to  5  cts,  and  coffee  to  12  cts,  while  rice,  tobacco,  etc.,  were  steadier. 
By  Dec.  1851  beef  aiid  pork  stood  at  $10  per  barrel,  and  rice  and  sugar  as  low 


EARLY  LOSSES.  107 

The  forced  and  ruinous  sales  in  the  autumn  of  1849 
served  to  cool  the  ardor  of  importers,  and  by  the 
following  autumn  the  market  grew  steadier  under 
somewhat  reduced  supplies.  But  the  gold-fever  con- 
tinued ;  and  in  view  of  the  large  emigration  for  the 
gold-fields,  the  slightest  prospect  of  improvement  suf- 
ficed to  reanimate  speculators  to  fresh  orders  and  con- 
signments, heedless  of  past  lessons  and  of  prudent  ad- 
monitions. Boston  banks  remonstrated,  and  refused 
to  grant  credits  to  California  shippers.10  The  news  of 
fresh  shipments  brought  prices  lower  than  ever  in 
1851,  until  flour  in  July  was  quoted  at  $9  for  the  200- 
pound  sack,  and  beef  and  pork  touched  $10  per  bar- 
rel in  the  following  January,  while  rice  and  beans  fell 
to  two  cents  a  pound,  coflee  to  nine  cents,  sugar  and 
dried  apples  to  four  cents,  and  coal  shortly  before  to 
$10  per  ton.11  In  order  to  properly  grasp  the  ruinous 
nature  of  these  rates,  it  is  necessary  to  consider  the 
high  freights  ruling,  owing  to  the  demand  for  ves- 
sels on  the  California  route,  their  detention  here 
through  the  desertion  of  crews,  and  the  cost  of  han- 
dling merchandise.  The  crash  did  not,  however,  reach 
so  far  as  to  condemn  merchandise  for  street  filJasre, 

O      " 

as  had  happened  during  the  preceding  spring ;  for  with 
fleets  liberated  by  the  return  of  sailors,  relief  could  be 
found  in  reshipments.  Yet  most  ventures  proved  a 

as  2  and  4  cts,  respectively,  while  flour,  etc.,  had  risen  somewhat;  anthracite 
coal  jumped  from  $8  to  $20.  Prices  Current.  Even  the  interior  responded  in 
many  directions  to  the  decline.  Along  the  San  Joaquin,  flour  could  be  had  in 
August  1850  at  $15  per  cwt.;  sugar  40  cts;  potatoes  16  cts;  coffee  40 
cts;  boots  $8-10.  At  remote  Georgetown  flour  stood  in  July  at  $17,  pork  28 
cts  a  lb.,  coffee  80  cts,  beans  30  cts.  Yet  at  Sonora  flour  was  75  cts,  pork  50 
cts,  sugar  62^  cts  a  lb.,  and  at  other  places  much  higher.  Cal.  Courier,  July 
11-12,  Sept.  11,  Oct.  18,  1850;  Pac.  News,  Dec.  13,  29,  1849;  8.  F.  Picayune, 
Aug.  6,  Dec.  18,  1850.  At  Sac.  beef  was  15  cts  and  pork  20  cts  in  July;  Sac. 
Direct.,  1853,  9;  yet  milk  remained  at  $1  a  quart,  butter  $2.50  to  $3,  liquor  $1 
a  glass.  Officials'  accounts  for  1851  place  board  in  private  houses  at  $25  to 
$30  a  week;  shaving  50  cts;  washing  $6  per  dozen.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Spec. 
Seas.  1853,  Sen.  Doc.  4,  p.  54;  Cong.  33,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Doc.  16,  vi.  22-7;  Wil- 
liams' Rec.,  MS.,  4-5;  McCollums  Cal.,  65;  Sac.  Transcript,  June  29,  1850. 
Fortunes  could  have  been  made  by  resliipments  to  N.  York,  says  Schenck, 
Vig.,  MS.,  15-18.  He  refused  coffee  at  5  cts  because  lighterage  was  too  high. 
Indeed,  the  cost  of  handling  goods  alone  kept  up  regular  market  rates. 

40  8.  F.  Picayune,  Aug.  9,  1850,  etc. 

11  It  rose  to  $32  by  Jan.  1852. 


108  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

loss,  in  some  instances  totally  so,  owing  to  the  cost  of 
storage,  with  the  alternative  of  forced  sales.  A  main 
cause  was  the  unprecedentedly  small  rainfall  during 
the  season  1850-1,  which  obliged  a  general  retrench- 
ment, and  spread  such  discouragement  that  many 
abandoned  the  country  as  doomed. 

The  loss  fell  upon  individual  importers,  and  chiefly 
upon  eastern  and  foreign  consigners,  who  in  their 
wrath  and  despair  threw  the  blame  on  the  country 
and  their  agents,  without  reflecting  that  it  was  due  to 
their  own  recklessness.  True,  there  were  several  con- 
ditions which  here  interfered  with  reliable  calculations, 
notably  the  distance,  which  involved  a  period  of  about 
eight  months  between  the  sending  of  an  order  to  the 
eastern  states  and  the  arrival  of  the  goods  by  way  of 
Cape  Horn.  The  ship  which  under  unfavorable  cir- 
cumstances came  first  into  port  to  supply  existing 
deficiencies  might  bring  a  fortune  to  its  patrons,  and 
leave  only  loss  and  ruin  for  those  following.12  Ship- 
ments were,  moreover,  made  from  all  quarters  of  the 
globe,  of  which  merely  imperfect  notice  could  be 
gained.13  Lack  of  rain,  obstructed  roads,  and  the  fre- 
quent movements  of  the  population  affected  the  mar- 
ket. The  several  sweeping  fires  in  San  Francisco  and 
elsewhere  created  sudden  gaps  and  demands,  while  the 
fear  of  such  disasters  caused  many  a  forced  sale.  Local 
jobbers,  and  the  people  at  large,  were  gainers,  for  they 
kept  only  small  supplies  at  ordinary  seasons,  while  able 
to  buy  largely  during  a  decline,  and  to  keep  their  goods 

12 This  is  shown  by  the  violent  market  fluctuations.  Smiley,  Vig.,  MS., 
16-18,  relates  that  a  small  consignment  of  tacks  saved  a  tottering  firm  by 
bringing  extraordinary  prices  after  the  fire  of  1851.  Two  shipments  of  flour 
and  whiskey  by  the  Damascus,  in  1850-1,  would  have  realized  a  fortune  for  the 
former  and  an  utter  loss  for  the  other,  if  the  ship  had  arrived  on  time.  As  it 
was,  mishaps  kept  her  back  for  several  months,  and  the  result  was  reversed. 
Schenck,  Viy.,  MS.,  15-18,  Coleman,  Vig.,  MS.,  151-3,  Burnett,  Rec.,  MS., 
ii.  204,  Garniss,  Early  Days,  MS.,  15,  instance  rapid  fluctuations.  Howard 
bought  flour  for  $50  and  sold  it  at  $5  before  landing.  Findla's  Stat.,  MS.,  8. 

13  The  wide  practice  of  N.  Y.  shippers  at  one  time  to  hide  the  nature  of 
their  consignments  under  vague  terms  did  harm  to  many  without  correspond- 
ing gain  to  themselves. 


PROGRESS  OF  TRADE.  109 

until,  in  the  course  of  trade,  a  more  favorable  market 
should  prevail. 

The  severe  warning  of  1851  naturally  checked  con- 
signments and  relieved  the  market,  which  also  felt  in 
some  degree  the  demand  created  by  the  gold  excite- 
ment in  Australia,  whither  many  undesirable  characters 
betook  themselves.  The  improvement  was  strength- 
ened by  copious  rains;  and  during  the  latter  half  of  1852 
prices  advanced,  under  small  supplies  and  increased 
consumption,  until  flour,  pork,  and  other  staples  rose 
to  four  or  five  times  the  rates  ruling  a  year  before, 
rice  from  two  cents  to  thirty  cents  a  pound.14  Again 
came  prompt  response  from  shippers,  with  the  conse- 
quent sharp  fluctuations,  according  to  the  momentary 
ability  of  the  market  to  meet  a  sudden  demand,  and  to 
climatic  and  other  influences  upon  supply  and  distribu- 
tion,15 such  as  storms  and  contrary  winds  on  the  ocean, 
obstructed  river  navigation  and  roads  in  the  interior, 
or  the  rush  of  miners  to  a  new  district,  opening  fresh 
markets  and  routes.  By  this  oscillation,  so  marked 
for  several  years,  nearer-lying  sources,  like  Chili, 
Hawaii,  and  Oregon,  were  the  chief  gainers,  while  the 
remote  supply  stations  of  the  Atlantic  borders  had  to 
depend  mainly  on  chance  for  their  ventures. 

In  1853  mining  received  a  decided  impulse,  partly 
from  the  development  of  quartz  veins  and  other 
means,  until  the  yield  exceeded  any  previous  record, 
and  that  with  every  prospect  of  a  still  greater  advance. 
Meanwhile  farming  was  rising  into  prominence,  with 

14  Compare  prices  in  the  list  following. 

15  Flour,  for  instance,  fell  below  $8  in  May,  while  beef  rose  suddenly  to 
$30.     The   latter   movement  was   due   to  the   delay  of  vessels   by  storms. 
Freights  ruled  at  60  to  100  cents  per  foot.     Chili,  being  nearest,  seat  in  so 
large  a  supply  of  flour  as  to  drive  the  price  below  $10  by  May  1853,  when  rice 
also  touched  3  cts,  coffee  11^  cts,  sugar  less  than  7  cts,  and  coal  $13.     The 
Atlantic  states  being  less  prompt  to  respond,  owing  to  distance,  the  prices  for 
salt  meat,  etc.,  were  longer  sustained;  but  in  the  latter  part  of  the  summer 
fleets  poured  in,  and  beef  tumbled  from  $28  to  below  $12  during  the  winter, 
and  pork  declined  steadily  to  below  $17.     Flour,  rice,  coffee,  etc.,  fluctuated 
widely,  influenced  to  a  great  extent  by  the  demand  during  the  spring  from 
the  mines,  with  which  communication  had  been  cut  off  for  some  time  by 
flooded  roads. 


110  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

large  crops,  so  that  the  year  proved  most  prosperous 
for  the  entire  country.  San  Francisco  felt  the  im- 
provement, and  responded  with  fresh  enterprises, 
particularly  in  real  estate  and  substantial  building 
operations,  attended  by  increased  wages.  Unfortu- 
nately, success  led  as  usual  to  excess  with  wild  specu- 
tion.  The  reaction  came  in  1854,  marked  by  tenant- 
less  houses  and  falling  rents,  till  the  latter  stood  at 
one  tenth  the  rate  ruling  four  years  before.  Under 
abundant  stocks,  well-supplied  interior  markets,  and 
delayed  autumn  rains,  the  depression  culminated  in  the 
severe  monetary  crisis  of  February  1855.  The  con- 
sequently forced  sale  of  several  incoming  cargoes 
tended  to  check  the  improvement  created  by  a  reviv- 
ing demand  from  the  mines,  and  prices  for  certain 
articles  fell  more  than  fifty  per  cent;  flour,  for  in- 
stance, under  the  prospect  of  a  large  home  crop, 
touched  the  hitherto  unexampled  figure  of  $5.50.16 

After  this  the  market  became  less  subject  to  disas- 
trous fluctuations;  for  the  experiences  of  1854-5  had 
o  served  to  establish  a  more  correct  standard.     With 
increased  warehousing  facilities,  and  cheaper  lighterage 
and  wages,17  merchants  were  able  better  to  manipulate 

"Per  200  Ib.  bag  to  $5J.  Rice  fell  to  5  cts,  coffee  to  13  cts,  coal  to  $15, 
etc.;  a  decline  of  about  100  per  cent  for  flour,  50  per  cent  for  beef,  etc. 
Under  reduced  arrivals  and  continued  mining  prosperity,  stocks  diminished 
sufficiently  to  raise  prices  by  autumn  to  about  January  rates,  which  led  to 
several  orders  for  supplies  from  abroad,  and  these,  again,  to  a  number  of  less 
advisable  consignments. 

17  Wages  ruled  in  1849-50  at  about  $1  an  hour  for  laborers,  as  we  have 
seen.  In  the  mines  §12  a  day,  with  food,  was  common,  or  $16  without  board. 
Artisans  obtained  one  fourth  to  one  half  more;  yet  in  the  winter  of  1849-50, 
Williams,  the  builder,  Rec.,  MS.,  4,  successfully  resisted  a  carpenters'  strike 
from  $12  for  $16.  Washing  was  over  $6  per  dozen,  or  even  $1  for  a  shirt. 
Burnett's  Rcc.,  MS.,  i.  375,  404.  Clerks  obtained  from  $200  to  $500  per 
month.  Instances  of  early  wages  in  Larkins  Doc,,  MS.,  vi.  74,  111,  144,  161; 
Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  13;  Fernandez  Col,  MS.,  180-2;  Barstow's  Stat.,  MS.,  1; 
Wood's  Sixteen  Mo.,  76;  Garniss  Early  Days,  MS.,  13;  Findla's  Stat.,  MS., 
4;  Bartlett's  Stat.,  MS.,  4-5;  Armstrong's  Exper.,  MS.,  10;  Cokman's  Vig., 
MS.,  143-6;  Moore's  Pioneer,  MS.,  6.  At  Benicia  the  government  paid 
laborers  $16  in  1849.  Sherman's  Mem.,  i.  78.  Sailors  then  received  $150  and 
$200.  Friend,  Dec.  1,  1849.  Early  in  1848  wages  were  only  from  $1  to  §3  a 
day.  CaUfornian,  July  15,  1848.  In  1850  masons  struck  against  $12  for  $14 
a  day.  In  July  1853  strikes  were  frequent,  longshoremen  securing  $6  for  9 
hours'  work  against  $5  for  10  hours;  masons  $12  against  $10;  carpenters  had 
$8;  firemen  $100  a  month.  In  1854  common  labor  fell  to  $3,  artisans  getting 
$5  to  $6.  In  Jan.  1855  the  quotations  stood:  masons  $8,  carpenters  $6, 
laborers  $3,  deck  hands  $60  per  month.  A  year  later  they  had  declined  to 
$4  or  $5  for  masons  and  carpenters,  and  $2  to  $2^  for  laborers,  deck  hands 


PRICES. 


Ill 


stocks,  and  to  control  prices  in  accordance.  It  was  also 
becoming  manifest  that  the  rapidly  growing  products 
of  California  must  enter  more  and  more  into  the  calcula- 
tions of  shippers,  for  she  was  already  producing  grain 
beyond  her  own  requirements.  That  this  industrial 
revolution  was  not  foreseen  was,  indeed,  a  main  cause 
for  recent  losses,  and  for  the  excessive  speculation 
which  led  to  the  reaction  at  San  Francisco  in  1854-5. 
Instance  the  importation  in  1853  of  grain  and  flour, 
representing  about  eight  million  dollars,  which  was  en- 
tirely dispensed  with  three  years  later;  and  compare  the 
reduction  in  other  commodities  within  the  same  period, 
as  shown  in  the  list  of  imports,  with  only  a  slight 
compensating  increase  in  a  few  other  directions. 
Observe  also  the  corresponding  decline  in  maritime 
traffic,  and  in  the  business  and  profits  of  traders,  ware- 
housemen, and  handlers  of  freights,  and  we  find  an 

receiving  $40  to  $50,  and  sailors  $20  per  month.  Prices  Current,  Jan.  1,  1855; 
Merc.  Gaz.,  Jan.  1,  1857;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  5,  1857,  etc.  The  government 
paid  $3  for  laborers  in  1854.  U.  S.  Oovt  Doc.,  Cong.  33,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc. 
82;  Id.,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Doc.  16,  pp.  22-6.  Many  were  then  unemployed. 
Montgomery's  Retnin.,  2-3;  see  also  Alta  Gal.;  Sac.  Union,  etc. 

PRICES   FOR   STAPLES,  1851-6. 


Ijl 

M  M"* 

3 

o 
ggfl 

MjU     ' 

||fi 

In6' 

||fi' 

™ 

ill 

1 

E$> 

O 

« 

«s 

9 

1* 

Jan.  1851..  . 

$ 
13-16 

14-17 

$ 

17-15 

Cts. 
4-6 

Cts. 
6-5 

Cts. 
14-16 

Cts. 

6-8 

Cts. 
8-12 

14-15 

July  

12-14 

14-15 

9-11 

5 

3-4% 

12-13 

4-5 

7%-5 

10-11 

Jan.  1852..  .  . 

10-12 

10-12 

11 

2-3 

2-3 

9-11 

4-5% 

4-5% 

30-32 

May  

Sept  

30-25 
16-17 

20-23 
35-48 

7%-9 
32-30 

5 
30 

4-4% 
10 

13-13% 
20-21 

9-10 
8-8% 

9 
10 

42-35 
40 

Dec  

16-17 

45-35 

41-30 

12%-15 

5-4 

20%-U 

6 

10-12% 

19-22 

May  1853.  .  . 

25-28 

28-21% 

9%-10% 

4-3 

5%-7% 

11% 

6^-7 

9V| 

13-18 

Aug  

25-16% 

28-24 

19-18 

4%-7% 

5 

16-14% 

10-11 

10-10% 

24 

Jan.  1854..  .  . 
March  
May  

15-12% 
11-16 
18-22 

16% 
19 
26 

f-9 

6-4% 

4Jlftv 

(H3% 

7%-5% 
7-6% 

20-11% 

7^-8  * 

9-6 
6^-8 
11-10 

32-38 
26-25 
30-40 

Sept...  . 

11-20 

IRIX 

*>—  4V 

6-7 

18 

21-32 

Jan.  1855..  .  . 

23-16 

w2 

9-114 

"^7% 

10-8 

6 

14 

1$-112 

"ii 

21-18 

May 

14-15% 

17 

5%-6 

5-7 

<7_K  I/ 

14-13 

CS/^  Qi/ 

oix_ai/ 

15-19 

Oct 

22-24 

38 

9-7 

ft-81/ 

18 

0_Q  I/ 

^/4   °/2 

20—24 

June  1856  .  . 
Dec.... 

16 
16 

24 
37 

7  (Cal'.)2 

7-8 
6% 

6%      * 

3213% 

8%g4 

10 
12-12% 

llf-20 
16 

Sheeting,  blankets,  whiskey,  tobacco,  corresponded  more  evenly  with  eastern 
prices,  usually  at  a  fair  advance.  Lumber  ruled  at  $60  per  thousand  feet  at 
the  close  of  1850,  and  continued  to  decline  till  it  touched  $15  in  the  middle 
of  1855,  after  which  it  rose,  during  1856,  to  about  $25,  average  low  rate. 
Refined  sugar  is  rated  about  double  above  prices,  and  Carolina  rice  was  at 
tirst  worth  double  the  Chinese  grade. 


112  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

explanation  for  the  reaction  following  the  metropolitan 
excitement  of  1853,  which  was  based  on  the  increase 
of  mining  and  business  in  that  year.  The  growth  of 
dairy  and  stock-raising  interests  threatened  to  rapidly 
reduce  other  imports,  and  give  the  distribution  to  dif- 
ferent interior  places,  while  in  due  time  large  exports 
promised  to  fill  the  gap.  The  imports  of  1856  were 
still  in  excess  of  the  demand ;  but  owing  to  the  easy 
financial  condition  in  the  eastern  states,  which  re- 
quired no  forced  sales,  and  to  the  control  of  the  mar- 
ket by  consignees,  disasters  were  obviated.  The 
average  result  was  negative,  with  prices  closing  at  $7 
for  flour,  and  other  goods  in  near  proportion.  Al- 
though fluctuations  had  now  been  greatly  checked, 
any  excess  of  receipts  over  three  months'  require- 
ments was  apt  to  disturb  values,  as  it  was  the  habit 
of  many  eastern  shippers  to  invoice  goods  under  the 
vague  term  of  merchandise.  Hitherto  the  abatement 
in  navigation  on  the  upper  rivers,  during  the  dry 
autumn,  diminished  supplies  in  many  quarters,  and 
gave  activity  to  early  winter  operations.  The  inter- 
ruption by  rains  to  road  traffic  was  followed  by  a 
further  increase  of  trade.  Now,  with  augmenting 
agriculture  came  an  enlarged  spring  demand,  followed 
by  a  busy  autumn. 

As  imports  are  usually  governed  by  social  condi- 
tion, it  is  not  difficult  to  estimate  the  nature  of  those 
required  for  California.  As  the  quiet  pastoral  people 
of  the  forties  bought  in  exchange  for  their  hides  and 
tallow  the  manufactured  goods  of  the  civilized  centres 
which  guided  their  tastes  and  aspirations,  so  the 
teeming  miners  of  1849  and  the  early  fifties,  similarly 
remote  from  the  world,  but  without  any  direct  re- 
sources, demanded  food,  clothing,  and  supplies  of  a 
class  suited  to  an  almost  exclusively  male  population. 
While  rude  camp-life  required,  above  all,  staples  like 
salt  meat  and  flour,  beans  and  hard  bread,  coffee  and 
sugar,  with  dried  apples  as  the  readiest  substitute  for 
fruit,  the  abundance  of  wealth  called  for  luxuries  of 


CONDITIONS  AND  DEMAND.  113 

every  description,  the  supply  of  all  fluctuating  with  mer- 
cantile speculation  and  the  controlling  climatic  and  so- 
cial influences.  With  the  growth  of  family  relations,  a 
larger  variety  of  goods  came  into  use,  for  women  and 
domestic  purposes*  while  the  expansion  of  mining  in 
quartz  and  hydraulic  branches  brought  forward  new 
adjuncts  and  requirements.  The  simultaneous  devel- 
opment of  agriculture  and  other  industries,  partly  at 
the  expense  of  mining,  created  still  wider  openings  for 
machinery,  seed,  timber,  and  other  materials  for  estab- 
lishing farms  and  homes. 

The  revolution  in  trade  becomes  strongly  marked 
after  1853,  when  home  products  augment  so  rapidly 
as  to  supplant  imported  cereals  within  the  following 
two  or  three  years.  Rice  alone  is  sustained  by  a 
growing  Chinese  population.  Thus  the  importation 
of  grain  falls  from  740,000  bags  in  1853  to  nothing  in 
1855,  and  flour  from  500,000  bags  to  one  tenth  of 
that  figure,  hard  bread  suffering  equally.  Salted 
and  cured  meats  are  supplanted  more  gradually, 
pork  diminishing  from  over  50,000  barrels  in  1853  to 
20,000  in  1856.  The  slower  decline  in  dairy  products 
is  due  partly  to  the  cost  of  labor,  partly  to  the  prefer- 
ence for  vaster  and  more  speculative  operations  in  grain 
and  stock-raising.18  Other  articles,  notably  coffee, 
tea,  sugar,  tobacco,  liquors,  articles  of  dress,  and 
powder,  which  could  not  as  yet  be  produced  at  home, 
offer  a  certain  compensation  for  the  above  reductions 
through  the  demands  of  an  increasing  population.  Na- 
tive fruits  and  wines  begin  to  compete,  however,  and  the 
lessened  consumption  of  champagne  serves  to  indicate 
the  wide  retrenchment  attending  the  change  from  the 
flush  mining  days  to  an  era  of  more  sedate  occupations.19 

18  The  decline  in  other  effects  belongs  to  a  later  period. 

19  The  change  in  trade  values  can  be  better  appreciated  when  it  is  borna 
in  mind  that  the  grain,  flour,  and  beans  imported  in  1853  were  worth  ovej 
eight  millions,  and  that  this  amount,  together  with  other  large  sums  repre- 
sented by  salt  meats,  bread,  etc.,  passed  away  from  shippers  within  two  or 
three  years.     Ship-owners  were  abo  heavy  losers,  for  freights  which  in  1853 
amounted  to  $11,700,000  fell  by  1855  to  about  $4, 000, 000,  from,  reduced  rates 
as  well  as  cargoes.     The  imports  of  1850  continued  large,  partly  because  the 
news  of  falling  prices  could  not  arrive  in  time  to  stop  shipments  for  the  early 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VU.    8 


114 


FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 


In  the  following  decade  two  important  modifying 
factors  appear,  affecting   shippers  as  well  as  prices. 

months,  partly  because  the  continued  rush  of  gold-seekers  buoyed  speculation 
in  many  quarters.  Thus  flour  reached  300,000  bags  of  200  fts.,  of  which  three 
fourths  was  from  Chili;  23,000  bags  of  Central  American  coffee  arrived;  of 
tea,  7,700  chests;  sugar,  194,000  quintals;  pork,  55,000  barrels;  lard,  58,000 
kegs,  etc.;  butter,  55,030  kegs.  Records  for  early  times  are  not  wholly  reli- 
able, owing  to  the  destruction  of  the  custom-house  with  its  books  in  1851. 
The  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  1,  1851,  Hunt's  Mag.,  xxiv.  544,  reproduced 
among  other  journals  the  above  statement.  In  addition  came  $1,700,000, 
chiefly  in  coin  for  circulation.  The  subsequent  flow  of  merchandise  can  be 
readily  understood  by  comparing  the  number  of  vessels  arriving  annually,  and 
also  the  rise  and  fall  of  prices,  as  exhibited  in  the  respective  tables.  It  must 
be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  after  1849  the  proportion  of  merchandise  is 
greater  as  compared  with  the  number  of  arriving  ocean  vessels,  owing  to  the 
absorption  of  passenger  traffic  by  the  steamship  lines.  With  1853  so  marked 
a  change  begins  in  the  kind  and  quantity  of  goods  that  the  details  of  the  ap- 
pended table  of  imports  of  staple  commodities  cannot  fail  to  prove  interesting: 

Year  1853.  Year  1854.  Year  1855.  Year  1856, 

Grain,  bags 740,000 

Flour,  sacks  and  barrels 499,000 

Rice,  bags 420,000 

Beans,  bags  and  bbls 103,000 

Bread,  casks 23,700 

Bread,  cases 35,300 

Apples,  dried,  bbls 10,500 

Apples,  dried,  pkgs 5,300 

Raisins,  boxes 49,000 

Coffee,  bags 128,500 

Tea,  chests 162,200 

Sugar,  ref.  and  domes.,  bbls. .       40,000 

Sugar,  foreign  and  raw,  bags.     167,000 

Beef,  barrels 16,300 

Pork,  barrels 51,200 

Bacon,  tcs  and  bbls 9, 100 

Bacon,  boxes 9,400 

Hams,  casks 41,000 

Butter,  casks 93,700 

Butter,  cases 28,700 

Lard,  kegs 83,000 

Candles,  boxes 173,900 

Tobacco,  bales 2,100 

Tobacco,  cases 29,000 

Liquors,  alcohol,  casks 13,500 

Liquors,  cases 16,500 

Whiskey,  bbls 20,000 

Brandy,  casks 21,700 

Brandy,  cases 8,000 

Wine,  bbls 11,500 

Wine,  cases 157,000 

Champagne,  cases 34,000 

Dry  goods,  bales 35,200 

Dry  goods,  cases 36,600 

Blankets,  bales 4,000 

Shoes,  cases 67,500 

Powder,  kegs 15,000 

Lumber,  thousand  feet  t 58,000 

Lumber,  pieces 400,000 

Coal,  tons 82,000 


*  Oregon  wheat. 


190,000 

11,700' 

218,000 

49,300 

36,700 

168,700 

198,000 

348,000 

43,000 

45,000 

61,000 

8,300 

800 

6,200 

800 

7,700 

6,800 

3,400 

4,000 

5,400 

36,000 

19,300 

38,600 

63,000 

66,500 

85,000 

97,400 

53,000 

53,400 

87,400 

34,700 

70,000 

92,700 

118,000 

126,000 

157,600 

10,500 

4,600 

9,000 

32,700 

12,900 

28,500 

9,500 

3,800 

5,300 

5,200 

1,600 

1,900 

29,800 

21,300 

22,900 

40,400 

38,000 

9,000 

10,600 

4,500 

57,903 

34,400 

20,000 

41,000 

86,000 

133,600 

273,000 

1,000 

1,700 

2,100 

20,300 

26,000 

29,000 

7,500 

10,000 

11,800 

6,000 

7,300 

18,000 

13,000 

12,000 

30,000 

9,500 

11,900 

7,000 

7,100 

7,700 

56,000 

6,700 

16,800 

17,300 

59,200 

123,700 

130,300 

16,300 

26,000 

20,000 

18,500 

17,000 

36,300 

20,500 

19,000 

31,600 

1,900 

1,300 

2,000 

60,700 

82,000 

87,400 

9,000 

35,600 

35,500 

62,000 

32,000 

38,400 

182,000 

66,000 

2,230 

67,500 

86,000 

65,000 

f  Not  Including  shingles,  clapboards,  etc. 


EFFECT  OF  CIVIL  WAR.  115 

First  the  union  war  of  1861-5,  which  disturbed  the 
production  of  raw  and  refined  staples,  retained  a  larger 
amount  for  home  consumption,  and  checked  the  ship- 
ment of  the  surplus,  at  least  in  American  vessels, 
which  were  the  prey  of  confederate  cruisers.  The 
state  was  accordingly  thrown  more  upon  its  own  re- 
sources, to  the  development  of  much  neglected  wealth, 
and  had  in  other  respects  recourse  to  the  compara- 
tively cheaper  foreign  products.  These  were  favored, 
moreover,  by  the  fast-growing  wheat  export,  especially 
in  English  ships,  which  could,  therefore,  afford  to 
bring  merchandise  at  a  lowr  freight.  A  few  years 
later  the  opening  of  the  overland  railway  assisted  to 
revive  the  demand  for  American  goods,  notably  of  a 
costlier  grade,  with  a  gradual  increase  in  finer  articles 
under  the  improved  quality  of  eastern  and  home  man- 
ufactures. 

The  opening  of  the  Central  and  Union  Pacific  rail- 
roads was  not  followed,  as  might  have  been  expected, 
by  a  considerable  decrease  in  the  volume  of  importa- 
tions by  sea,  though  to  the  same  result  tended,  in 
later  years,  the  completion  of  the  Northern  Pacific, 
the  Southern  Pacific,  the  Canadian  Pacific,  and  other 
lines  making  connection  with  the  Atlantic  states.  On 
the  contrary,  under  the  increase  of  population  and 
wealth,  and  the  rapid  growth  of  industries,  our  for- 
eign imports  by  sea  increased  from  less  than  $20,000,- 
000  in  1869  to  more  than  $50,000,000  in  1889.20 

Among  notable  imports  are  230,000  bricks  in  1856,  of  a  special  grade;  for 
by  this  time  the  reduced  price  of  labor  permitted  the  manufacture  of  such 
articles.  There  are  also  5,000  crates  of  crockery.  Glass,  paper,  hardware, 
etc. ,  form  part  of  staple  imports.  The  imports  for  this  year  may  be  valued 
at  $36,000,000.  In  Com.  and  Navuj.  for  1854-6,  the  foreign  imports  for  these 
three  years  are  placed  at  $8,408,000,  $5,951,000,  and  $7,289,000,  respectively, 
$2,063,000  of  the  latter  being  duty  free. 

29  The  foreign  imports  at  S.  F.  after  1856  are  placed  by  U.  S.  Com.  and 
Navig,,  passim,  at  $8,985,000  in  1857-8,  $11,156,000  in  1858-9,  $8,366,000  in 
1861-2,  followed  by  a  rise  to  $20,300,000  by  1864-5,  during  the  war;  then  a 
fall  to  $15,570,000  in  1865-6,  after  which  a  gradual  rise  to  $20,390,000  by 
1870-1,  with  a  jump  to  $39,420,000  in  1872-3,  due  to  mining  excitement; 
then  a  rise  from  $29,700,000  in  1874-5  to  $44,670,000  in  1880-1,  and 
$51,640,000  in  1881-2.  Of  the  last  amount  $41,000,000  was  merchandise, 
and  $10,640,000  coin  and  bullion.  S.  Diego,  the  other  port  of  entry,  received 
during  1881-2  $679,000  in  merchandise.  The  total  introduction  of  merchan- 


11G  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

The  gold  discovery  had  interposed  a  check  on  the  ex- 
port trade,  which  under  the  stimulating  efforts  of  Amer- 
ican settlers  was  slowly  expanding  beyond  the  former 
narrow  limits  of  hides  and  tallow.21  Cattle  came  to 
be  slaughtered  solely  for  the  meat,  which  suddenly 
came  into  active  demand  from  being  a  mere  refuse 
or  surplus  commodity.  Gradually,  however,  the  ne- 
glected hides22  crept  back  into  notice,  quicksilver  rose 
to  a  leading  article  of  export,  and  San  Francisco  be- 
came an  entrep6t  for  the  reshipinent  of  eastern  and 
European  merchandise  to  different  Pacific  ports,  partly 
from  her  overstocked  markets.  Soon  native  grain 
and  flour  entered  the  list,  and  in  1855  they  together 
exceeded  in  value  any  other  export  article,  always 
excepting  treasure.  Exports  in  1855  amounted  to 
$4,200,000,  and  in  1856  to  $4,300,000,  of  which 
quicksilver  constituted  $976,000  and  $883,000,  re- 
spectively; flour  followed,  at  about  $816,000  and 
$760,000  for  the  two  years;  then  came  grain,  hides, 
tallow,  and  wool,  reshipped  goods  forming  a  minor 
proportion  only.  All  this  gave  little  occupation  to 
shipping,  however,  and  return  cargoes  for  the  in- 

dise  for  1881  is  estimated  at  $67,600,000,  of  which  $38,600,000  from  foreign 
countries,  paying  $7,450,000  in  duties.  Of  the  rest,  from  eastern  states, 
$16,400,000  came  by  railway,  $12,000,000  by  sailing  vessel,  and  §500,000  by 
Panama^  steamer.  Of  the  foreign  goods,  $11,000,000  came  from  China  and 
Singapore,  $6,870,000  from  Japan,  largely  silks,  $6,400,000  from  Hawaii, 
chiefly  sugar,  $3,850,000  from  England,  $1,880,000  from  Central  America, 
$1,700,000  from  the  East  Indies,  $1,100,000  from  Australia,  $1,000,000  fro:.i 
B.  Columbia,  and  $840,000  from  France.  The  figures  for  following  years  cor- 
respond more  with  those  of  1880-1  than  1881  -2.  Hawaiian  imports  have 
come  to  the  front,  reaching  over  $10,000,000  for  1886,  Japan  following  with 
over  $8,000,000,  then  China  $5,000,000,  and  England  nearly  $3,000,000.  Of 
the  treasure  import,  exceeding  $5,000,000,  half  came  from  Mexico  and  one 
fourth  from  Australia.  The  nature  of  the  imports  will  be  further  explained 
by  a  comparison  with  the  chapter  on  manufactures;  with  U.  S.  Com.  ltd., 
annual  reports;  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Statistics;  8.  F.  Merc.  Gaz.;  Hunt's  Merck. 
Mag.;  S.  F.  Cam.  Assoc.,  ]869,  etc.;  8.  F.  Cliamber  Com.,  1851. 

al  In  1846  1,000,000  feet  of  lumber,  10,000  fanegas  of  wheat,  and  $10,000 
worth  of  soap  were  added  to  the  60,000  arrobas  of  tallow,  80,000  hides,  1,000 
!>arrels  of  brandy  and  wine,  and  $20,000  worth  of  furs.  See  Hist.  CaL,  v.  570, 
ihis  series.  The  exports  and  imports  of  S.  F.  for  the  last  quarter  of  1847 
amounted  to  $49,600  and  $53,600,  respectively. 

M  Hides  have  so  far  been  thrown  away,  writes  one  in  the  Sac.  Transcript, 
Jan.  14,  1851,  but  soon  a  ship-load  is  to  be  sent  from  Sacramento. 


DRIFT  OF  TREASURE  AND  GRAIN. 


117 


pouring  fleets  had  to  be  sought  in  other  latitudes  and 
even  on  Asiatic  shores.23 

By  adding  treasure,  we  reach,  according  to  mani- 
fest figures,  the  respectable  export  of  some  $330,000,- 
000  by  1856,  or  an  average  of  over  $40,000,000  for 
the  eight  export  years  1849-56,  to  which  can  safely 
be  added  one  fourth  more  for  unrecorded  values. 
With  a  lack  of  reliable  banking  and  express  facilities 
in  early  years,  it  is  but  natural  that  miners  preferred 
to  carry  away  their  dust  privately;  but  after  1850, 
this  habit  decreased  until  the  secretly  exported  treas- 
ure fell  below  ten  per  cent  of  the  recorded  amount. 
The  latter  corresponded  to  the  importation  of  goods 
for  a  growing  population,24  to  remittances  by  departing 
persons  and  interested  absentees,  and  to  the  with- 
drawal of  capital  for  relieving  money  pressure  abroad, 
while  the  surplus  left  by  increasing  home  productions 
permitted  the  retention  of  larger  sums  for  circulation, 
plate,  and  jewelry.25 


23  Exports  of  California  products  other  than  treasure: 


Year  1856. 
23,000 
13.000t 

5,000 
74,000t 

5,000 

170,000 
5,000 
1,700 
4,000 
1,200 
23,70011 


Year  1854.  Year  1855. 

Wheat,  bags 5,000  83,000 

Oats,  bags 3,200  49,000 

Barley,  bags 15,000  73,000 

Flour,  bags  and  bbls 58,000  116,000 

Grits  and  bran,  bags 12,000 

Potatoes,  bags 20,000  12,000 

Hides,  no 44,000  112,000 

Skins,  bales 1,600 

Tallow,  bbb 500 

Wool,  bales 1,100  2,500 

Lumber,  thousand  f eet* . .       3, 200  2, 500 

Quicksilver,  flasks 21,000  27,200 

*  Besides  large  quantities  of  shingles,  etc. 
f  Chiefly  to  Peru, 
f  Chiefly  to  Australia.    • 

||  Over  half  to  Mexico,  rest  to  Peru,  China,  and  New  York, 
tralia.    In  1853, 18,800  flasks  were  shipped. 

Although  the  above  staples  include  a  small  portion  of  imported  goods,  they 
may  be  essentially  called  California  products.  In  1855  they  formed  consid- 
erably more  than  half  the  value  of  exports,  excluding  treasure.  The  re  mainder 
included  iron-work  and  other  California  manufactures,  so  that  the  proportion  of 
mere  reexports  was  not  large.  In  1856  the  value  of  produce  shipped  fell  off 
somewhat,  but  the  large  increase  in  both  years  over  the  exports  of  1854  show 
the  nature  of  the  industrial  revolution  then  beginning.  S.  J.  Pioneer,  March 
3,  1877,  claims  for  Peebles  and  Wadsworth  the  first  wheat  shipment  from 
Peeble's  farm.  AUa  Cal,  June  11, 1853,  records  the  first  salmon  shipment  to 
Australia.  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  13,  26,  1855.  Crary,  Stat.,  MS.,  2-3,  alludes  to 
earlier  flouriiigs,  and  later  ones  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr.  24,  1856. 

'•"  Compare  with  figures  given  under  imports. 

25  For  making  estimates  of  actual  gold  yield,  J.  Ross  Browne  assumes  that 


and  a  little  to  Aus- 


118  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

Metals  formed  the  main  feature  of  exports  for  many 
years,  even  to  foreign  countries;  but  in  this  respect 
a  change  took  place  before  the  close  of  the  fifties,  with 
the  increase  of  wheat  shipments,  which  have  since 
assumed  the  preponderating  lead,  although  checked 
occasionally  by  droughts,  as  in  1 863-5.  By  1881  they 

$200,000,000  may  be  added  to  the  export  figures  for  the  16  years  following 
1848,  which  is  evidently  nearer  the  truth  than  the  not  uncommon  estimate 
of  $40,000,000  for  the  nine  years  ending  in  1856.  Yet  I  prefer  to  be  less 
sweeping  in  my  calculations.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  unrecorded 
amounts  carried  away  gradually  decrease  with  the  establishment  of  banks 
and  reliable  expresses;  that  the  abatement  in  certain  imports  had  great  effect, 
though  counteracted  by  the  demands  of  a  growing  population  in  other  direc- 
tions; by  the  drain  through  absentees,  by  home  circulation  and  absorption 
for  manufactures,  and  by  monetary  disturbances,  as  in  1855.  While  export 
figures  must  form  the  basis  for  estimates,  I  find  them  unsatisfactory,  owing 
to  the  destruction  of  early  custom-house  records  by  fire,  and  the  contradic- 
tions presented  by  official  documents  for  different  years.  Some,  for  instance, 
give  the  steamer  shipments  and  neglect  wholly  or  partially  the  remittances 
by  sailing  vessels,  or  to  less  prominent  destinations.  Boss  Browne  and  oth- 
ers correct  their  earlier  figures,  and  still  exhibit  oversights.  Not  feeling 
myself  warranted  in  going  outside  of  these  sources,  I  can  only  select  those 
amounts  which  appear  best  supported  in  their  details,  using  the  statements 
of  the  Pacific  Mail  S.  S.  Co.;  of  Butler  King,  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  650; 
reports  from  custom-house;  estimates  of  L.  A.  Garnett  of  the  S.  F.  refinery; 
J.  Ross  Broume's  Report,  1867,  p.  50;  1868,  p.  292;  Merchants'  Mag.,  xxiv. 
547,  etc.;  Cal.  Register,  1857,  p.  112;  Blake's  Product.  Free.  Metals,  20-1,  a 
somewhat  mixed  estimate;  the  more  acceptable  Del  Mar's  Hist.  Prec.  Metals, 
166;  Phillips'  Mining,  66;  Hittell's  Resources,  240;  the  hasty  Bowie's  Hydraulic 
Mining,  288;  Batch's  Mines,  697,  etc.;  and  reports  in  AUa  Cal.,  8.  F.  Bulletin, 
Prices  Current,  and  Mercant.  Gazette. 
Treasure  export: 

As  Recorded.  Estimated  Yield. 

1848 $2,000,000  $10,000,000 

1849 4,900,000  40,000,000 

1850 29,400,000  50,000,000 

1851 42,600,000  60,000,000 

1852 46,600,000  60,000,000 

1853 57,300.000  65,000,000 

1854 52,000,000  60,000,000 

1855 45,200,000  55,000,000 

1856 51,000,000  56,000,000 

Totals $331,000,000  /   $456,000,000 

The  receipts  at  eastern  mints  up  to  Jan.  1854  have  been  given  at  6'210,- 
000,000,  with  variations  of  ten  per  cent  from  this  figure.  The  Pac.  Mail  Co. 
claimed  to  have  carried  $15,100,000,  in  bullion,  between  Apr.  11,  1849,  and 
July  1,  1850,  Sac.  Transcript,  July  3,  1850,  charging  5  per  cent  for  freight 
and  insurance.  Alia  Cal..,  Dec.  15,  1849. 

Of  the  shipments  in  1853,  about  $48,000,000  went  to  New  York;  $5,000,- 
000  to  England;  $900,000  to  China.  In  1854  $46,500,000  went  to  New  York, 
etc. ;  $3,800,000  to  England;  $1,000,000  to  China.  In  1855  $38,700,000  went 
to  New  York,  etc.;  $5,200,000  to  England;  $900,000  to  China.  In  1856 
40,000, 000  went  to  eastern  U.S.;  $8, 700, 000  to  England;  $1,500. 000  to  China; 
SOO.OOO  to  Panama,  Pacific  islands,  South  America,  East  Indies,  Australia, 


FURTHER  ITEMS  ON  EXPORTS.  .      119 

reached  nearly  1,000,000  tons,  worth  $31,000,000, 
though  decreasing,  with  some  fluctuations,  to  about 
675,000  tons,  worth  nearly  $20,000,000,  for  the  cereal 
year  ending  June  30,  1889.  This  amount  was  sup- 
plemented by  flour  worth  nearly  $5,000,000,  by  bar- 
ley, fruit,  canned  goods,  and  wine.  Refined  sugar, 
explosives,  and  lumber  are  among  goods  which  help 
to  swell  the  total  export  from  Sari  Francisco  to 
over  $100,000,000,  half  of  it  in  domestic  merchan- 
dise, and  one  sixth  in  bullion,  for  aboard.  The  rest 
goes  inland  and  to  the  Atlantic  states,  in  which 
last  direction  bullion  sustains  itself  at  the  head;  for 
although  the  yield  of  the  California  mines  has  steadily 
declined  to  below  $20,000,000,  yet  gold  and  silver 
totals  stood,  as  late  as  1877,  at  $70,000,000,  under  con- 
signments from  Nevada.  Since  then  the  latter  have 
declined  to  less  than  the  California  production.  The 
causes  which  are  tending  to  diminish  imports,  such  as 
reduced  wages  and  increasing  industries,  help  also  to 
augment  the  surplus  for  export.  To  this  end  have 
likewise  contributed  the  mining  discoveries  in  Cali- 
fornia and  adjoining  states  and  territories,  by  bring- 
ing an  army  of  workers  and  enlarging  the  markets. 
Increased  railway  competition  promotes  the  same 
object,  in  opening  wider,  not  alone  the  eastern  por- 
tals, but  those  of  several  intermediate  regions.26 

26  After  1856  the  exports  of  S.  F.  follow  approximately  the  variations  in- 
dicated under  imports.  According  to  U.  S.  Com.  and  Navi(j.,  passim,  they 
are  valued  at  about  $12,000,000  of  domestic  goods  and  bullion,  and  $2,200,000 
to  $3,500,000  of  foreign  goods  and  bullion,  for  1856-7,  1857-8,  and  1858-9;  in 
1859-60  they  fell  to  $7,400,000  and  $2,900,000,  for  domestic  and  foreign, 
rising  to  $11,700,000  domestic,  although  only  $1,900,000  foreign,  in  1861-2; 
and  in  1863-4  to  $48,200,000  domestic  and  $2,200,000  foreign,  under  the 
strictures  imposed  by  the  war.  A  decline  followed  to  $23,800,000  domestic 
and  $3, 133,000  foreign  in  1867-8;  after  a  fall  to  $20,800,000  domestic  and 
$2,860,000  foreign  in  1870-1,  came  a  rise  to  $43,500,000  domestic  and 
$4,400,000  foreign  in  1876-7,  then  a  decline  below  $40,000,000  till  1881-2 
when  the  domestic  reached  $55,900  and  the  foreign  $2,860,000.  Of  these 
last  two  amounts,  the  merchandise  stands  for  nearly  $53,000,000  domestic  and 
$700,000  foreign,  and  the  com  and  bullion  for  $3,000,000  domestic  and 
$2,150,000  foreign.  San  Diego  is  credited  with  $516,000  domestic  and 
$15,000  foreign  merchandise.  The  export  of  merchandise  and  treasure  to 
the  east  and  abroad  stood  in  1859 at $6, 000, 000 and $48, 000, 000,  respectively; 
in  1861  at  $10,000,000  and  $41,000,000;  in  1864  at  $13,000,000  and  $57,000,000; 
the  merchandise  export  rose  to  $23,000,000  in  1868,  while  the  treasure  ship- 
ments declined  to  $33,000,000  in  1870,  both  falling  in  1871  to  $14,000,000 
and  $17,000,000;  in  1873  they  stand  at  $31,000,000  and  $25,000,000.  Mer- 


120  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

The  direction  of  trade,  which  at  first  sought  near- 
lying  ports  along  the  Pacific  for  urgent  supplies,27  fell 
quickly  into  the  main  channel  flowing  from  New  York 
and  other  large  cities  of  the  United  States,  whence 
came  the  main  supplies  of  merchandise,  under  a  protect- 
ing tariff  which  hampered  foreign  competition.  This 
trade  reached  its  maximum  in  1852-3,  after  which  the 
growing  home  productions  of  California  rapidly  elim- 
inated cereals,  then  salted  provisions,  and  gradually  dif- 
ferent products,  till  the  number  of  cargoes  diminished 
from  344  in  1853  to  128  in  1856.28  The  traffic  with  Chili, 

chandise  continued  to  increase  in  amount  to  $55,000,000  in  1882,  declining 
to  §35,300,000  in  1885,  all  exclusive  of  transit  goods,  since  when  it  is 
again  rising.  The  staple  export  was  wheat,  which  during  the  war  dimin- 
ished from  100,000  tons  in  1861  to  14,000  in  1865,  owing  to  drought,  and 
then  sprang  to  250,000  tons  in  1867  and  following  years,  falling  to  100,000 
in  1872  and  rising  to  600,000  in  1877  and  to  nearly  1,000,000  tons  in 
1881,  valued  at  §30,800,000.  In  1885  it  stood  at  $16,100,000,  and  rose  again 
before  1888.  A  large  proportion  went  to  England.  The  flour  export  rose  to 
$5,300,000  in  1884.  Of  the  total,  $4,700,000,  in  1886,  England  and  China 
took  more  than  $1,500,000  each.  Wool  shipments  advanced  steadily  to 
28,000  tons  for  1876,  but  had  by  1886  declined  to  17,000,  worth  $5,500,000. 
Quicksilver  declined  hi  production  fully  one  half  after  1881,  when  shipments 
reached  $1,000,000.  Horticultural  products  were  rapidly  increasing,  on  the 
other  hand.  In  1886  the  wine  export  by  sea  stood  at  more  than  750,000 
gallons,  chiefly  to  N.  York,  to  which  must  be  added  considerable  consign- 
ments by  land.  Canned  goods  are  growing  in  favor.  Barley,  refined  sugar, 
borax,  powder,  lumber,  are  among  noteworthy  exports,  ranging  from 
$500,000  downward.  While  agricultural  products  have  taken  the  lead  in 
this  gold  land,  to  the  overshadowing  of  its  once  all-important  treasures,  the 
export  of  the  latter  was  nevertheless  maintained  at  the  head  till  the  latter 
part  of  the  seventies,  reaching  $58,000,000  in  1877;  but  this  was  due  to  the 
Nevada  mines,  which  burst  into  prominence  early  in  the  sixties,  with  a  yield 
increasing  to  over  $50,000,000  in  1877,  but  fell  off  by  1881  to  less  than  a 
dozen  millions,  with  subsequent  further  decline.  The  yield  of  Cal.  had  con- 
tinued to  steadily  diminish  from  $51,000,000  in  1857  to  $17,000,000  in  1881, 
yet  it  reached  a  trifle  higher  in  1886,  when  the  shipments  by  sea  stood  at 
$18,200,000,  of  which  $11,200,000  to  China  and  $2,000,000  to  Japan,  both 
mostly  in  silver.  Inland  remittances  stood  $29,700,000.  For  additional 
leading  authorities,  see  notes  under  imports. 

27  Even  in  1852  large  quantities  of  flour,  rice,  etc.,  were  bought  at  various 
ports  for  the  rising  market  at  S.  F.,  with  large  profits,  as  Crary,  Staf.,  MS., 
2,  relates.  Hawley  in  Feb.  1850  bought  2,500  barrels  of  potatoes  and  almost 
cleared  the  Islands  of  produce;  but  the  cargo  was  destroyed  by  fire.  Half  of 
it  had  been  sold  for  $250,000.  Stat.,  MS.,  6-7.  Exports  to  Hawaii  in  1848, 
$12,800;  in  1849,  $131,500;  in  1850,  $306,000,  according  to  the  Friend,  vii.  14; 
Polynesian,  vi.  141;  vii.  149;  Star  and  Cal,  Nov.  25,  1848.  Concerning  Chili 
flour  ventures,  Schenck,  Vij.,  MS.,  20,  Belden,  Stat.,  MS.,  60-1,  Roach,  Stat., 
MS.,  16,  give  some  interesting  facts.  Even  the  Farallones  were  ransacked 
for  eggs,  as  described  in  Harpers  Ma^.,  xlviii.  622-5.  See  also  Colemana 
Vig.,  MS.,  151-2;  Fay  s  Facts,  MS.,  9-10. 

8  The  arrivals  from  the  U.  S.  Atlantic  ports,  which  in  1853  stood  at  the 
high  figure  of  344  vessels  with  a  tonnage  of  260,000,  fell  rapidly  in  1854  to 


COAST  TRAFFIC.  121 

as  the  chief  flour  warehouse  for  California,  declined  in 
a  more  striking  degree,  during  the  same  period,  from 
127  cargoes  to  II.29  The  imports  from  Mexico,  China, 
the  Pacific  islands,  and  East  Indies,  consisting  of  sugar, 
tea,  rice,  fruit,  and  the  like,  not  being  among  the  grow- 
ing home  productions,  the  trade  was  sustained.  And 
so  with  Australia,  although  here  with  a  partial  re- 
versal, for  many  articles,  like  flour,  once  introduced, 
were  now  returned  to  supply  the  antipodal  gold-fields.30 
The  steady  intercourse  with  Panamd  and  Nicaragua 
was  maintained  by  the  leading  steamship  lines,  but 
with  a  shrinkage,  due  on  the  one  hand  to  the  with- 
drawal of  rival  lines,  on  the  other  to  Walker's  inva- 
sion. England,  France,  the  Hanse  towns,  and  other 
European  contributors  had  been  greatly  supplanted 
by  the  eastern  United  States,  through  which  most 
California  immigrants  passed. 

These  different  curtailments  were  balanced  numeri- 
cally, although  hardly  as  to  tonnage,  by  the  growth  of 
the  coast  traffic,  which  in  1855  employed  a  tonnage  of 
190,000.31  It  had  been  fostered  primarily  by  the  ex- 

153,000  tons,  and  in  1856  to  140,000  tons,  covered  by  128  vessels,  evidently  of 
a  superior  class.  Few  cleared  direct  for  the  east,  but  sought  return  cargoes 
elsewhere. 

29  The  127  vessels  entered  in  1853  measured  37,000  tons;  in  1854  came  39, 
and  in  1856  only  11,  of  barely  4,000  tons.  Peru  participated  largely  in  the 
decline. 

MSac.  Transcript,  Aug.  30,  1850,  comments  on  the  fine  quality  of  flour 
then  brought  from  Australia. 

31  The  following  list  exhibits  the  extent  of  the  export  trade  in  different 
directions  for  1856:  To  New  York,  132,000  hides,  3,900  bales  wool,  skins,  oil, 
mustard  seed,  etc.,  besides  2,400  flasks  of  quicksilver;  value  $1,114,003. 
Australia,  63,400  barrels  flour,  32,500  bags  grain,  250  flasks  quicksilver,  etc.; 
value  $1,123,000.  Mexico,  13,500  flasks  quicksilver,  2,600  cases  wine,  etc.; 
vr.lue  $781,000.  Peru,  4,500  flasks  quicksilver,  bags,  etc.;  value  $338,000. 
Hawaii,  shoes,  biscuits,  etc.;  value  $249,000.  China,  4,200  barrels  flour, 
3,COD  flasks  quicksilver,  etc.;  value  $240,000.  Russian  N.  W.  Possessions, 
various  store  supplies,  $128,000.  Chili,  $117,000;  Society  Islands,  $62,003; 
ITew  Granada,  $43,000;  Vancouver  Island,  $23,000;  Costa  Rica,  $12,000. 
Total  export  value,  $4,271,030. 

Early  in  1849  I  find  only  three  consular  representatives  in  Cal.,  even 
England  not  being  represented,  in  spite  of  the  urgings  in  parliament.  Han- 
8. ml' s  Parl.  Deb.,  c.  ii.  5G7,  1C27;  Alta  Cal.,  Jan.  25,  1849;  Polynesian,  v. 
159;  Star  and  Cat.,  Nov.  25, 1C48.  But  there  were  enough  in  1852,  being  con- 
suls for  Austria,  Great  Britain,  Bremen,  Belgium,  Chile,  Denmark,  France, 
Hamburg,  Hanover,  Hawaii,  Mecklenburg,  Mexico,  Netherlands,  Sweden  and 
Norway,  Nicaragua,  Oldenburg,  Peru,  Portugal,  Prussia,  Spain,  Switzerland, 


122 


FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 


tension  of  mining  northward,  and  gradually  by  the 
ever-augmenting  flow  of  supplies  and  passengers  to 
and  from  the  expanding  settlements  in  different  direc- 
tions. While  eastern  lumber  was  at  first  supplanted 
by  the  timber  from  Puget  sound  and  northward,32 
California  developed  this  and  other  resources  within 
her  own  territory,  and  so  in  due  time  with  articles 
like  ice,  which  coming  first  from  Boston  was  sup- 
planted by  the  fields  of  Alaska,33  and  finally  by 

and  Sardinia.  Soon  after  came  additions  for  China,  Central  America,  Ecua- 
dor, Nueva  Granada,  and  Russia. 

DISTRIBUTION  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO'S  TRADE. 


1853. 

1854. 

1855. 

1856. 

Arrivals. 

Clear- 
ances. 

Arri- 
vals. 

Clear- 
ances. 

H 

Clear- 
ances. 

Arrivals. 

Clear- 
ances. 

Vessels. 

Tonnage. 

Vessels. 

Tonnage. 

Vessels. 

Tonnage. 

Vessels. 

Tonnage. 

Tonnage. 

Tonnage. 

Vessels. 

Tonnage. 

Vessels. 

Tonnage. 

U.  S.  Atl.  ports. 
U.  S.  Pac.  ports 
Whalers  
Rus.N.W.  ports 
British  Colum. 
Mexico  
Nicaragua.  .... 
Cent.  America. 
N.  Gran.,  Pan.. 
Ecuador  
Peru  
Chile  
Australia  
Manila  .  .  . 

:;i4 
110 
11 
6 

20 
41 

45 

11 
127 
9 

(i 
47 

2i 

55 
1 
1 
1 

81 

M 

6 

15 
1 

260845 
64668 
2545 
1883 
3695 
7177 
30262 

54526 

2117 
37137 
3179 
2402 
7052 
2439 
3G83 
24323 
8C2 
181 

10415 
35334 
3417 
83S9 
330 

25 
721  i 
7 
5 
21 
72 
28 
8 
89 
2 

2!i'J 

126 

52 
21 

66 
28 

(iS 

96 
2 

30580 
137860 
1835 
1481 
4654 
16363 
26472 
797 
5385C 
44G 
169022 
40321 
14428 
15930 
16479 
5600 
41750 
58207 
636 

8 

21 

2(1 

2G 

4 

i<; 

10 

15 

56 

153313 
650 

3765 
3.77 
31014 

54121 

689 
12336 
6854 

8426 
2551 

31160 

4562 
22114 
3030 

14 

58,  i 
7 

2-1 
86 
25 

33 

124 
80 

40 

52 
14 

117 

8637 
138100 
1921 

4976 
8065 
28957 

52994 

82458 
134S2 
10292 

13893 
228V 

91987 

147870 
189635 
3609 

3626 

6409 
5986 

10169 
3705 

17626 
25333 

2535 
15043 

15309 

10720 
2313 

128 
1034 
12 
5 
3 
38 
13 
1 
26 

7 
11 
11 

7 
31 
22 
10 
43 
5 

18 
21 

7 

149370 
138149 
2879 
2527 
537 
5531 
15574 
182 
49903 

879 
3985 
3375 
2031 
6683 
2522 
3983 
27110 
2049 

7619 
11723 

2815 

7 

SliO 
IS 
9 
5 
48 
11 

a 

20 

59 
21 
23 
19 

42 
15 

73 
1 

6032 
137456 
3855 
4737 
638 
8873 
180G2 
34J 
50627 

56573 
85o2 
12558 
17629 
15555 
1971 
28805 
72734 

900 

Hawaii.  .  .  . 

Other  Pac.  isl'si 
East  Indies  
China  

Lrazil. 

Spain  

Italy  
France  
Great  Lritain.. 
Holland. 

Haii:  e  towns.. 
Denmark  

32  British  Columbia  supplies  of  timber  and  salmon  were  largely  supplanted 
by  those  of  the  adjoining  U.  S.  territories. 

33  Operations  began  here  by  the   American-Russian    Com.   Co.,  and  in 
March  1853  the  Consort  arrived  with  the  first  cargo.     Only  1,200  tons  were 
brought  that  year;  but  depots  were  formed  at  Sitka  and  Kocliak,  with  brick 
ice-houses  at  the  leading  trading  towns  in  Cal.,  with  capacity  ranging  from 
400  to  1,300  tons,  to  be  supplied  by  monthly  vessels.    ^Details  in  my  H'mt. 
A  luska.     First  eastern  cargo,  sadly  wasted  by  equatorial  heat,  reported  hi  Cal. 
Courier,  July  13,  26,  1830.     Growth  of  ice  trade  in  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  3,  1855; 
Jan.  7,  14,  17,  March  13,  May  1G,  June  3,  185Gj  Alfa  Cal.,  Oct.  20,  1854. 


CUSTOM-HOUSE  STATISTICS.  123 

the  Sierra.  With  the  return  of  cheaper  prices,  whalers, 
rhich  once  resorted  to  the  bay,  began  again  to  show 
ippreciation  of  the  facilities  here  offered  for  repairs. 
5an  Francisco  naturally  remained  the  objective  point 
for  ocean  traffic,  and  consequently  the  great  depot  in 
this  respect;  but  for  home  products  different  distribu- 
tary places  arose  to  wrest  from  her  this  profitable 
business,  and  cloud  her  prospect  for  a  time. 

With  the  growth  of  wheat  shipments,  England  be- 
came the  leading  customer,  by  taking  one  half  of  the 
total  export  to  foreign  countries,  and  returning  about 
one  sixth  in  direct  imports.  Hawaii  stands  next  on 
the  list,  by  contributing  one  fourth  of  the  imports, 
nearly  all  in  raw  sugar,  and  receiving  fully  one  fourth 
of  its  value  in  provisions  and  manufactures.  China 
takes  a  large  proportion  of  the  flour,  and  most  of  the 
silver  coin  sent  from  here,  returning  chiefly  tea  and 
rice;  while  Japan  shares  in  the  silver  and  manufac- 
turing export,  and  offers  especially  silk  in  exchange. 
Mexico  requires  mostly  mining  machinery  and  quick- 
silver; Central  America  requires  flour,  and  in  Austra- 
lia canned  fish  find  a  market;  while  wood  and  iron 
manufactures  compete  with  English  ware.  The  posi- 
tion of  San  Francisco  as  the  importing  centre  for  the 
coast,  and  the  exceptionally  rich  and  varied  produc- 
tions of  the  state,  and  its  superior  advantages  for 
many  manufactures,  have  resulted  in  a  coast  trade, 
which  during  the  two  decades,  1856-76,  grew  sixfold 
in  tonnage.34 

The  sudden  rise  of  San  Francisco  in  1849-50,  from 
an  almost  unknown  village  to  a  centre  of  maritime 
trade,  stands  unprecedented  in  the  annals  of  navigation. 
The  entries  of  vessels  at  the  custom-house  during  the 
nine  months  ending  December  1849  being  over  700, 
and  for  the  year  ending  June  1851  more  than  850.35 

3*  Compare  notes  for  shipping,  exports,  and  imports. 

35  A  statement  of  the  collector  at  S.  F.  on  Nov.  10,  1849,  places  the  ar- 
rivals since  April  Ist-at  697,  of  which  401  were  American,  with  a  tonnage  of 
87,494,  and  296  foreign,  tonnage  32,823,  including  some  vessels  which  mado 
more  than  one  visit,  such  as  mail  steamera  and  coasters;  several  men-of-war 


124 


FOREIGN   COMMERCE. 


Most  of  those  arriving  during  the  first  twelve  months 
were  left  to  swing  at  anchor  in  the  bay,  untenanted, 


also  entered.     Only  312  vessels  were  then  recorded  as  lying  there,  while  the 


year  ending 

tonnage  of  258, 128,  of  which  379  were  American,  while  the  clearances  were 
1,330,  mostly  American.  See  third  note  following;  U.  8.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  32, 
8333.  1;  Sen.  Rep.,  i.  pt.  xiv.  3-4;  Id.,  Cong.  31,  Seas.  1,  Sen.  Doc.  3,  v.; 
Pioneer  Arch.,  109-82;  King's  Sept,  1;  Buffurn's  Six  Mo.,  124;  S.  F.  IRr- 
cld,  June  12,  Dec.  25,  1850;  Atta  Cd.,  1849-50,  passim;  Pac.  Neu-s,  Dec. 
1349,  and  passim;  S.  F.  Directory,  1852,  10-11,  14;  Niks'  fieg.,  Ixxv.  403; 
Lancey's  Cruise,  87;  Wllley's  Per.  Mem.,  MS.,  82-4;  Winans'  Stat.,  MS.,  4; 
Dean's  Stat.,  MS.,  1-2;  Amer.  Q.  Eeffist.,  ii.  115-20;  Polynesian,  v.  166;  Pan. 
Star,  L  no.  1,  etc.;  Friend,  viL,  passim;  Williams'  Early  Bee.,  MS.,  12;  Say- 
ward;  S.  F.  Picayune,  1G50,  passim.  Hunt's  Merch.  Mag.,  xxii.  208,  gives  the 
departures  from  U.  S.  Atlantic  ports  by  Dec.  25,  1849,  at  775.  Nearly  CO 
sails  entered  during  the  48  hours  ending  Nov.  24th.  Sac.  Transcript,  Nov.  29, 
1850.  S.  P.  was  in  1850  the  fourth  city  in  the  U.  S.  by  tonnage  entries.  C"l. 
Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  653—4. 

Arrivals  and  departures  at  San  Francisco  for  the  civil  years  1851-6,  from 
custom-house  reports  and  summaries  in  Prices  Current,  Mercantile  Gazette,  A  Ua 
Cal.,  Herald,  Bulletin,  and  other  journals. 

Arrivals.  Clearances. 

Vessels.    Tonnage.      Vessels.      Tonnage. 
1S51.  Totals 847         245,678         1,315         422,043 


1852.  American  arrivals  from  abroad. . .  346 
Foreign  arrivals  f  roin  abroad ....  450 
Coasters,  domestic  and  whalers . .  351 


188,575 
229,603 
198,282 


405 
387 
833 


216,642 
121.310 
115,432 


1,147        514,460        1,625        453,444 


1853.  U.  S.  from  abroad 179 

Foreign  from  abroad 381 

Coasters,  etc 466 


1854.  Totals.. 


1,026 
.   620 


1855.  U.  S.  from  abroad 210 

Foreign  from  abroad 135 

Coasters,  etc 479 


112,066 
119,000 
327,036 

558,102 
406,114 

127,321 

50,166 

234,599 


481 
416 
756 

338,407 
131,433 
170,232 

1,653 

640,072 

1,193 

515,861 

328 
145 
548 

254,575 
54,019 
133,193 

824        412,086        1,021        441,787 


1856.  U.  S.  from  abroad 168 

Foreign  from  abroad 113 

Coasters,  etc 1, 174 


109,919 

39,698 

290,498 


283 
115 
885 


255,771 

42,783 

147,313 


1,455        440,015         1,283        445,867 

The  marked  differences  between  some  of  these  numbers  is  due  partly  to 
the  destruction  of  the  earlier  custom-house  records,  the  neglect  to  duly  dis- 
tinguish coasting  vessels  from  domestic  arrivals,  or  even  to  record  them,  and 
mistakes  in  summaries.  Thus  Alta  Cal.  and  Merc.  Gazette  assign  for  1853, 
1354,  and  1855  arrivals  of  1,902,  1,893,  and  1,606  (or  1,520),  respectively. 
And  for  the  year  ending  Dec.  20,  1850,  the  S.  F.  Herald,  Dec.  25,  1850,  gives 
508  American  and  only  58  foreign  arrivals. 


DESERTED  SHIPS. 


125 


for  the  gold-smitten  crews  hurried  off  to  the  mines, 
regardless  of  wages  or  remonstrances.  In  July  1850 
fully  500  abandoned  vessels  lay  rocking  in  front  of  the 
city,  some  with  cargoes  undisturbed,  for  it  did  not  pay 
to  unload  with  costly  labor  upon  a  glutted  market.  A 
number  were  accordingly  sent  up  the  Sacramento  and 
San  Joaquin  rivers,  where  it  was  hoped  to  sell  the 
goods,  while  saving  transport  charges.36  Many  were 
sold  for  port  dues  and  broken  up  for  building  material ; 
others  were  hauled  ashore  and  converted  into  stores 
and  lodging-houses;  still  others  rotted  and  sank  at 

Arrivals.  Clearances. 

Steamers.  Tonnage.  Steamers.  Tonnage. 

1852.  U.  S.  from  abroad 69  72,441  66  68,511 

Foreign  from  abroad 1                 389  2  778 

Coasters  57  46,046  90  57,758 

1853.  U.  S.  from  abroad 66  82,415  64  82,088 

Coasters 38  41,025  108  69,305 

Arrivals  and  departures  in  California,  according  to  the  U.  S.  Commerce 
and  Naviij.  Reports,  for  the  year  ending  June  30th,  chiefly  San  Francisco: 

-Entries. *  , Clearances. * 

'?n  Tonnage. 


1849-50. 
1850-1  * 
1851-2 t 
1852-3J 
1 853-4  § 
1854-5  ;| 
1855-6 1 


140 
379 
342 
216 
184 
208 
194 


47,950 
115,779 
145,893 
120,211 
123,351 
128,713 
125,137 


355   82,914 

—  —  VylCttl 

303  104,266 

482  142,349 

815  293,435 

376  115,459 

486  233,810 

444  137,817 

456  297,110 

271   97,835 

418  328,511 

135   52,220 

379  266,703 

127   46,003 

312  259,042 

320 
515 
420 
465 
301 
160 
127 


75,862 

136,735 

127,062 

149,391 

104,335 

61,414 

49,216 


*  Of  which  12  entered  and  13  cleared  from  S.  Diego,  and  2  entered  and  cleared 
from  Monterey. 

•f-The  entries  at  other  ports  were  29 'at  S.  Diego,  6  at  Monterey,  and  1  at  Sacra- 
mento ;  the  clearances  were  13  from  S.  Diego  and  4  at  Monterey. 

t  Outside  entries  were  3  at  S.  Diego  and  1  at  Monterey;  the  clearances,  3  and  4, 
respectively. 

{Entries,  at  S.  Diego  1,  Monterey  9;  clearances,  6  from  Monterey. 

\\  Entries  at  S.  Diego  3,  Monterey  1,  Sonoma  7 ;  clearances,  5,  7,  and  6,  respectively. 

IT  Entries,  at  Sonoma  4,  S.  Pedro  1 ;  clearances,  3  and  2,  respectively. 

86  At  S.  F.  526  are  said  to  have  been  counted  at  anchor  in  the  early  part  of 
1850,  and  120  in  cr  near  the  two  upper  rivers.  Threescore  at  Benicia,  says 
the  Solano  Co.  Hist.,  164;  Findlas  Stat.,  MS.,  9;  Pierce's  Rmujh  Sketch,  MS., 
108-10.  The  list  in  Alia  Cal.,  of  July  1,  1850,  places  the  number  then  in  the 
harbor  at  512,  of  which  149  were  full-rigged  ships,  158  barks,  128  brigs,  70 
schooners,  and  3  steamers.  The  greater  proportion  were  registered  in  the 
U.  S. ,  New  York  claiming  60  and  Boston  57.  Of  foreign  vessels,  Gt  Britain 
claimed  fully  a  score,  including  Irish  hulks;  Australia  about  the  same  number, 
including  New  Zealand;  East  Indies  2,  China  2,  Hawaii  9,  Chili  11,  Peru  12, 
Central  American  states  4,  Mexico  4.  As  for  the  European  continent,  almost 
every  maritime  county  was  represented:  Portugal  1,  Italy  1,  France  several, 
Austria  1,  Holland  2,  Germany  half  a  score,  Russia  2.  From  other  countries 
passengers  had  come  by  way  of  England  and  the  U.  S.  Besides  this  number, 
about  100  were  lying  at  the  upper  ports  of  the  bay.  The  Saratoga,  with  2,400 
tons  of  freight,  stood  in  the  front  rank  of  early  large  ships.  S.  F.  Picayune, 
&ug.  24,  1850.  Cal.  Courier  reports  on  June  1,  1850,  at  S.  F.,  635  vessels,  and 


126  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

their  moorings.37  Toward  the  close  of  1850,  the 
return  of  disappointed  miners  permitted  the  engage- 
ment of  crews  with  which  to  spread  the  long-folded 
sails.33 

The  decline  in  immigration  and  placer  mining  had 
their  effect  on  shipping,  which  fell  off  rapidly  after 
1853,  until  it  reached  the  low  figure  of  147,000  tons 
for  1857-8;  but  with  the  gradual  increase  of  popula- 
tion and  the  development  of  resources,  especially  the 
growth  of  cereals,  it  began  to  rise  again,  until  over 
1,000,000  tons  stood  recorded  for  1881-2,  but  with  a 
decrease  to  less  than  700,000  tons  for  1888-9.  The 
civil  war,  the  overland  railway  competition,  and  other 
causes  served  as  a  check  on  American  vessels  in  favor 
of  foreign.  This  is  mainly  due  to  the  increase  of  the 
wheat  export,  for  in  other  respects  the  preponderance 
is  in  favor  of  the  United  States.  The  coast  traffic  has 
encouraged  the  acquisition  of  vessels,  of  which  887 
were  enrolled  and  registered  by  1882,  including  170 
steamboats.  The  constancy  of  the  winds  on  this  coast 
favors  the  use  of  sails.39 

148  at  Sac.  and  other  bay  and  river  ports.  Hunfs  Mag.,  xxiii.  324.  In  Feb. 
1851  the  Sac,  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  1851,  reports  547  vessels  at  S.  F.,  of  which 
374  were  American  and  90  British. 

37  As  instanced  in  the  chapter  on  S.  F.     Placer  Times,  May  13,  1850,  and 
Sac.  Transcript,  June  29,  1850,  show  that  out  of  more  than  80  vessels  entered 
there,  33  were  used  for  stores;  while  the  Annals  S.  F.,  208,  223,  355,  claims 
148  store-ships  at  S.  F.  in  Oct.   1851.     Concerning  condemned  vessels,  see 
U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  800,  928.     Vessels  were 
sold  for  ridiculous  prices.  Polynesian,  vii.  34;  HensJiaw's  Events,  MS.,  9.  Con- 
cerning harbor  obstruction  by  sunken  vessels,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  27,  1857. 
By  the  spring  of  1851  over  250  vessels  had  been  transferred  to  owners  at 
S.  F.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  653-4. 

38  Hence  the  large  excess  of  clearances,  1,330,  over  entries,  861,  as  shown 
in  a  preceding  note.     Yet  even  in  Aug.  1850  sailors  demanded  $100  a  month. 
S.  F.  Herald,  Aug.  9,  21,  1850.     Action  of  captains,  etc.,  Alta  Cal.,  Dec.  15, 
1849;  Pac.  News,  Aug.  21-2,  1850;  Pierce 's  Sketch,  MS.,  112. 

39  The  variations  in  arrivals  at  S.  F.  from  foreign  countries  show  a  decline 
in  tonnage  to  147,200  for  1857-8,  followed  by  a  sudden  increase  to  221,500  in 
1858-9,  with  a  fairly  steady  advance  to  321,300  in  1864-5,  to  443,700  in 
1068-9,  and  after  a  decline  to  353,500  in  1870-1,  to  548,500  in  1872-3,  to 
720,400  in  1874-5;  then  several  fluctuations  between  621, 000  and  724,000,  and 
a  sharp  rise  to  806,700  in  1880-1,  and  to  1,117,000  in  1881-2,  under  the  large 
wheat  shipments,  followed  by  an  abatement  for  three  seasons,  to  which  suc- 
ceeded another  rise.     In  1885-6  the  figure  was  767,600  tons.     The  figure  for 
1881-2  includes  398  American  vessels  of  454,200  tons,  and  524  foreign  vessels 
of  662,700  tons,  or  922  vessels  in  all,  of  which  83  in  ballast.     In  1885-6  there 
were  438  American  and  259  foreign  vessels.     San  Diego  swells  the  amount  for 


INFLUENCE  OF  CLIPPER  SHIPS.  127 

The  stimulus  imparted  to  trade  by  the  gold  rush, 
while  affecting  all  other  carrying  routes  by  the  diver- 
sion of  vessels,  especially  of  whalers,  led  to  a  strong 
demand  for  fast  sailers,  owing  to  the  distance  and  the 
high  prices  ruling  at  the  new  market.  American 
builders  responded  by  an  adaptation  of  their  clipper 
models,  hitherto  used  only  for  smaller  craft,  to  large 
ships,  whose  shapely  outlines,  with  sharp  bows,  tall 
masts,  and  spread  of  canvas,  eclipsed  all  rivals  in 
beauty  and  speed.  Several  of  them  reduced  the 
passage  from  New  York  to  less  than  three  months, 
and  paid  for  themselves  in  one  or  two  trips.40  Steain- 

1881-2  with  60  American  and  29  foreign  vessels  of  62,700  tons.  The  clearances 
at  S.  F.  for  1881-2  stand  at  461  American  and  531  foreign  vessels,  of  1,200,000 
tons;  at  San  Diego,  63  vessels  of  26,000  tons.  Of  steamers  S.  F.  received  123 
American  of  242,100  tons,  and  84  foreign  of  170,600  tons,  clearing  199  of 
401,600  tons.  S.  F.  shared  the  bay  cargoes  with  a  number  of  towns.  Of  the 
356  vessels  laden  with  grain  and  flour,  103  loaded  at  S.  F.,  97  at  Vallejo,  84 
at  Port  Costa,  33  at  Oakland,  31  at  Benicia,  and  the  rest  elsewhere.  Of  this 
fleet  191  were  British,  123  American,  22  German,  14  French,  3  Norwegian,  2 
Italian,  and  1  Dutch.  Arrivals  from  Atlantic  domestic  ports  declined  to 
110,000  tons,  rising  to  157,000  in  1859,  falling  off  under  the  union  war  to 
91,000  tons  in  1865.  By  1869  they  had  advanced  to  161,000,  but  now  with 
the  opening  of  the  overland  railway  came  a  diminution  to  68,000  by  1871, 
after  which  the  growth  of  population  assisted  to  raise  the  figure  to  150,000  in 
1877.  The  subsequent  additional  railway  competition  has  naturally  tended 
to  check  shipments  by  sea.  Coast  traffic,  on  the  other  hand,  shows  a  steady 
increase  from  158,000  tons  of  shipping  to  320,000  in  1866,  to  625,000  in  1871, 
941,000  in  1876,  and  still  further  subsequently,  although  with  some  fluctua- 
tions, due  partly  to  increasing  railway  communications.  There  has  conse- 
quently been  a  rapid  increase  in  the  control  of  vessels,  so  that  in  1881-2  their 
number  stood  at  887,  of  211,100  tons,  of  which  188  were  registered,  574 
enrolled,  and  125  licensed;  656  were  sailing  vessels,  170  steamers  of  75,400 
tons,  and  61  barges  of  8,200  tons.  U.  S.  Com.  and  Navirj.,  passim;  S.  F.  Cu»t.- 
Ho.  Lists;  S.  F.  Directories;  Harbor-master's  Reports,  in  S.  F.  Municip.  Reports, 
1859  et  seq. ;  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Statistics. 

**  The  passage  of  the  average  vessel  was  150  days  from  the  Atlantic  U.  S. 
ports,  S.  F.  Trade  List,  Jan.  14,  1853,  hence  it  proved  a  revelation  when,  in 
1851,  the  Flying  Cloud  made  the  passage  from  N.  Y.  to  S.  F.,  13,610  nautical 
miles,  in  89  days,  sailing  374  miles  in  one  day.  In  1853,  the  Flying  Dutchman 
made  the  voyage  from  N.  Y.  to  S.  F.  and  back  in  six  months  and  21  days, 
including  the  time  occupied  in  discharging  and  loading.  The  Trade  Wind 
sailed  from  S.  F.  to  N.  Y.  in  75  days.  The  voyage  from  S.  F.  to  Sydney  was 
made  in  38  days  in  1875,  from  S.  F.  to  Liverpool  in  86 J  days  in  1860,  etc. 
McCarty,  Annual  Statistician,  1880-1,  566;  Alta  Gal,  Aug.  2,  1852;  Jan.  17, 
1853;  Sept.  29,  1854;  Hunt's  Mag.,  xiv.  64;  S.  F.  Herald,  July  3,  1850;  June 
1,  1852;  Placer  Times,  Sept.  15,  1851.  Races  were  frequent.  S.  F.  Whig, 
July  23,  1853.  The  freight  demanded  by  them  ruled  for  a  long  time  at  |50 
per  ton  on  certain  goods,  which  was  three  or  four  times  the  rate  that  had 
been  paid  for  such  distances.  Their  names  were  frequently  suggestive,  as 
shown  above.  Concerning  the  fate  of  the  early  clippers,  see  under  wrecks, 
and  in  S.  F.  Call,  Apr.  28,  1886. 


128  FOREIGN  COMMERCE. 

ers,  which  had  so  far  entered  little  into  freight  traffic 
on  the  ocean,  began  to  join  in  the  competition,  a  num- 
ber being  especially  built  for  this  trade,  besides  those 
of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship  company,  which  opened 
regular  communication  in  February  1849,  as  described 
elsewhere.  Early  in  1851,  fourscore  steamers,  meas- 
uring 19,600  tons,  were  connected  with  California, 
twenty-three  plying  on  the  ocean,  fifteen  running 
southward,  chiefly  to  Panama^  and  seven  northward, 
including  three  of  the  semi-monthly  Oregon  mail  line. 
In  1852,  the  southern  lines  were  increased  by  four 
steamers  of  the  Nicaragua  route,  after  which  no  ma- 
terial change  took  place  in  the  foreign  steamship  traffic 
for  a  considerable  time,41  yet  several  lines  were  pro- 
posed for  China,  Australia,  and  Hawaii,  of  which  only 
the  last  obtained  a  partial  realization  during  this 
period.42  Meanwhile,  sailing  packets  maintained  a 
steady  connection  with  these  and  other  countries.43 

Steamers  could  always  be  found  for  occasional  trips 

in  different  directions.     In  1866  a  line  opened  to  the 

o  Hawaiian  Islands,44  which  subsequently  became  a  way- 

41  The  AUa  Gal,  March  15,  1853,  enumerates  83  steamers,  of  which  60  be- 
longed to  the  inland  fleet,  including  tow-boats,  consuming  over  2,000  tons  of 
coal  monthly.     On  Dec.  23d,  no  less  than  14  steamers  were  lying  at  Central 
wharf.  Id.,  Dec.  24,  1850;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  16,  1850.     A  rival  line  was 
projected  in  1850.     Pac.  News,  Jan.   10-12,   1850.     In  1853  there  were  18 
ocean  steamers.  Annals  S.  F.,  494-5.     8.  F.  Directory,  1852,  25,  names  20, 
embracing  three  lines  to  Panama^  of  which  two  had  only  three  steamers.     See 
also  advertisements  in  S.  F.  Trade  List,  1852-3. 

42  Three  steamers  preparing  for  experimental  voyage  to  the  Islands,  the 
first  link  toward  China,  as  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  28,  May  15,  1851,  expresses 
it.     See  also  Placer  Times,  Nov.  30,  1851;  Polynesian,  vii.  158.     The  first  left 
Dec.   23d,  says  S.  F.  Herald,  Dec.  16,   1851.     Steam  communication  with 
China  was  advocated  in  1848  in  connection  with  the  Panama  line,  Hunt's 
Merch,  Mag. ,  xviii.  467-76,  xxix.  549-59,  and  repeatedly  pressed  before  con- 
gress, although  for  several  years  in  vain.     An  English  steamer  came  from 
China  in  Oct.  1849.    Williams'  Rec.,  MS.,   12;   U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.   31, 
Sess.  2,  H.  Com.  Rept  34;  H.  Ex.  Doc.  1,  pp.  208-9,  with  favorable  reports; 
Cal.  Jour.  Ass.,   1854,  671;  Speeches,  etc.,  in  favor,  Thompsons  Mem.,  1-16; 
Lathams  Speech,  1855,  1-15;  De  Bow's  Rev.,  Oct.  1855,  456;  AUa  Cal,  Apr.  7, 
14,  Aug.  2,  1854;  Nov.  9,  1855.     The  last-named  authority  has  remarks  also 
upon  an  Australian  line. 

43  Instance  the  irregular  vessels  from  China  in  1850-1,  in  Sac.  Transcript, 
Oct.  14,  1850;  Feb.  28,  1851;  Polynesian,  vii.  150,  with  passages  as  low  as  34 
days;  Daily  Balance,  Jan.  30,   1851.     A  regular  packet  for  China  began  in 
1852.  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  24,   1852;  July  26,  Aug.   3,  1850;  Hawaiian  and 
Mexican  packets,  in  Alta  Cal.,  Sept.  4,  Oct.  6,  1856;  New  York  packets,  etc.; 
Cokmans  Stat.,  MS.,  166. 

44 By  the  Cal.  Navig.  Co.,  monthly,  S.  F.  Bull,  Jan.  12,  1866;  a  failure, 
Hayes"  R.  R.  Arch.,  v.  165. 


STEAMSHIP  LINES.  129 

station  for  Australian  packets,  and  has,  since  the  treaty 
of  1875,  been  provided  with  an  additional  special  line.45 
The  filibuster  war  in  Nicaragua  cut  off  the  only 
powerful  rival  of  the  Panama  line,  leaving  it  soon  in 
almost  undisputed  control  of  the  profitable  traffic  with 
the  Atlantic  states  and  Mexico.  A  subsidy  from  the 
postal  service  encouraged  it  to  inaugurate  in  1867  a 
monthly  connection  with  China  by  way  of  Japan, 
which  soon  expanded  into  a  traffic  so  remunerative 
as  to  bring  a  rival  upon  that  route.  A  subsidy  con- 
tract with  the  Australian  governments  maintained  the 
branch  line  to  Australia.47  The  opening  of  the  over- 
land railway  proved  a  severe  blow  to  the  Isthmus 
traffic.  Then  come  disasters,  stock  jobbing,  and  brib- 
ery further  to  reduce  its  importance.  ^ 

45  The  Oceanic,  which  extends  to  Australia,  besides  sailing  lines.  Hayes 
Pac.  Interests,  pt.  i.-ii. ;  Hawaii  Almanacs,  and  Customs  Statistics,  SpreckeFs 
Pac.  Lines,  MS.;  Treaty,  in  U.  S.  Statutes,  1874-5,  69-71;  McCorkle's  Speech 
on  Annexation,  Wash.,  1852. 

46  Especially  in  carrying  coolies.     This  raised  an  outcry  from  anti-Chinese 
parties,  and  the  subsidy  was  lost  after  a  few  years.  S.  F.  <&  China  Communic., 
1-7;  U.  S.  Govt  Doc.,  Cong.  41,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  34,  128,  on  grow- 
ing profits;  Cong.  43,  Sess.   1,  Sen.  Rept  286,  Misc.  Doc.   102;  H.  Id.,  74, 
213,  275;  H.  Rept  598;  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Kept  C74;  H.  Kept  268,  Sen.  Misc. 
Doc.  83,  all  with  pro  and  contra  arguments.   Congress.  Globe,   1874-5,   120; 
S.  F.  Chamber  Com.,  1870,  28-30.     Petitions  for  such  a  line,  in  U.  S.  Govt 
Doc.,  chiefly  Misc.  Doc.  since  Cong.  35;  Acts  1865,  14-15;  Latham's  Speeches, 
1-13;  Cal.  Steam  Mail,  3-104;  S.  F.  Times,  Dec.  31,  1866;  Jan.  3,  1867.     The 
Occidental  and  Oriental  S.  Co.  a  few  years  later  opened  a  monthly  rival  line  in 
connection  with  the  overland  railway.     Treaty  with  Japan,  in  Perry's  Exped., 
i.  379;   U.  S.  Govt  Doc.,  Cong.  33,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Doc.   10;  Cong.  36,  Sess.  1, 
Mess.  &  Doc.,  i.  8-9;  8.  F.  Times,  Aug.  3,  Sept.  2,  1868. 

47  Supplanted  in  1883  by  the  Oceanic  line,  under  a  new  contract  with  New 
South  Wales  and  New  Zealand.  See  under  mails;  S.   F.  Call,  Jan.  22,  26, 
1882;  May  25,  1871.     The  first  through-mail  had  come  in  1870.  S.  F.  Alta, 
May  6,  1870;  S.  F.  Post,  Nov.  1,  1873;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1869-70,  ap.  56. 

48 Its  vicissitudes  are  depicted  in  Roberts'  Navig.,  MS.,  5  et  seq. ;  Williams' 
Pac.  Mail,  MS.;  Simpson's  Stat.,  MS.;  Lloyd's  Lights,  423-7;  Hayes'  Cal.  Notes, 
iii.  11G;  Com.  and  Ind.,  200-2.  Concerning  additional  Mexican  steamers  and 
treaties,  see  Hist.  Mex.,  vi.,  this  series.  Steamer  lines  to  Alaska  are  treated 
under  coast  traffic.  U.  S.  Com.  Bel.  contain  the  best  annual  account  of  for- 
eign trade. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL    9 


CHAPTER   VII. 

INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

1848-1888. 

COASTWISE  COMMERCE — IN  THE  BAY — ON  THE  SACRAMENTO — PIONEER  STEAM- 
BOATS— HEADS  OF  NAVIGATION — CALIFORNIA  STEAM  NAVIGATION  COM- 
PANY— COAST  LINES — SHIPWRECKS,  COLLISIONS,  AND  EXPLOSIONS — COAST 
AND  RIVER  SURVEYS — HARBOR  IMPROVEMENTS — LIGHT-HOUSES — CUS- 
TOM-HOUSE AFFAIRS — REVENUE  DISTRICTS  AND  COLLECTORS — ROADS, 
FERRIES,  AND  BRIDGES — OVERLAND  AND  INTERIOR  POSTAL  SERVICE 
— THE  EXPRESS  BUSINESS — STAGE  LINES — PACK-TRAINS—TELEGRAPH 
LINES. 

DURING  Mexican  times,  traffic  along  the  coast  was 
conducted  by  foreign  trading  vessels.  This  privilege 
was  not  permissible  under  United  States  laws,  but 
owing  to  the  lack  of  other  vessels  the  military  govern- 
ment countenanced  it1  during  1849.  On  the  bay  a 
few  whale-boats  and  sloops  had  maintained  regular 
communication  with  different  settlements,  especially 
Sutter's  Fort.2  With  the  rush  for  the  mines  anything 
available  for  navigation  was  impressed,  and  several 

1  Petitions  in  Cal.  Star  and  CaL,  Dec.  16,  1848.     Collector  Collier  in  Nov. 
1849  notified  the  authorities  that  he  must  revoke  the  coast-trade  license  of 
foreign  vessels.   U.  8.  Oov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  35;  Id., 
Sen.  Doc.  47,  viii.  86. 

2  A  small  schooner  manned  by  six  Indians  made  tri-weekly  trips  from  S. 
F.,  and  two  smaller  craft  joined  at  times.    The  schooner  was  the  Sacramento, 
bought  from  the  Russ.  -Amer.  Co.     It  was  converted  later  into  a  roofed  house 
for  salmon  fishers.     The  other  two  were  the  Indian  Queen,  a  sloop  of  10  tons, 
and  the  White  Pinnace,  an  open  yawl,  which  occasionally  brought  down  hides, 
etc.,  from  Feather  River,  and  ascended  to  the  Stanislaus  in  the  other  direc- 
tion. Placer  Times,  May  13,  1850.     Cordua  advertised  in  the  Cali/ornian,  Apr. 
26,  1 848,  a  monthly  launch  for  Feather  River.    The  Stockton  traded  weekly  with 
Sonoma,  and  launches  passed  up  to  Napa,  all  touching  at  way-places,  and 
some  connecting  with  wagons  for  interior  ranches.    There  was  a  ferry  across 
Carquinez.  Id.,  Feb.  16,  1848;  fiichardson's  Kcplor.,  MS.,  11-12;  Deans  Stat., 
MS.,  4;  Cal  Star,  Feb.  26,  1848. 

(130) 


PIONEER  STEAMBOATS.  131 

craft  made  lucrative  trips  to  Sacramento3  until  the 
steamboats  sent  out  by  enterprising  eastern  firms  ab- 
sorbed at  least  the  conveyance  of  passengers. 

The  pioneer  of  this  class  was  a  tiny  side-wheel  craft, 
brought  from  Sitka  in  1847,  and  wrecked  within  a  few 

o  * 

weeks.4  The  next  appears  to  have  been  the  Wash- 
ington, launched  in  August  1849  at  Benicia,  which 
met  a  similar  fate  after  a  few  trips  below  and  above 
Sacramento.  She  was  followed  by  the  Sacramento,5 

3  Men  gladly  paid  $50  for  the  privilege  of  working  their  passage,  or  even 
$200,  says  Crosby,  Stat.,  MS.,  14-15;  Cassiris  Stat.,  MS.,  5.    Barges  for  han- 
dling freight  sold  for  $4,000,  while  a  ship  was  worth  $30.000.  Williams'  Stat., 
MS.,  9;  Dean's  Stat.,  MS.,  3;  Sac.  Directory,  1853,  5.     Passage  rates  were  at 
times  below  $20.     Incidents  of  trips  in  Kip's  Sketches,  13-16. 

4  Fully  described  in  Hist.  Cal.,  vol.,  v.,  575-9,  this  series     It  ran  subse- 
sequently  as  the  yacht  Rainbow  on  the  Sacramento. 

5  Concerning  the  second  bay  steamer  there  is  much  dispute.     The  S.  F. 
Annals,  235,  followed  with  slight  variation  by  a  number  of  writers,  including 
Hittell,  CaL,  ii.  731,  claim  the  credit  for  the  Pioneer,  an  iron  boat  brought 
from  Boston  and  launched  at  S.  F.,  'the  first  that  had  penetrated  so  far  into 
the  interior,"  as  the  Sac.  River.     S.  F.  Directory,  1852,  11,  places  the  launch- 
ing in  Oct. ;  the  others  intimate  Sept.     But  from  the  contemporary  evidence 
of  journals,  it  appears  that  the  claim  must  be  awarded  to  a  little  side-wheel 
boat,  80  feet  by  18,  with  an  engine  of  twelve-horse  power,  and  drawing  20 
inches,  which  was  launched  at  Benicia  early  in  August  1849.     In  McKinstry's 
Papers,  MS.,   19,  she  is  called  the  Pioneer.     She  reached  Sac.  Aug.  17th. 
Placer  Times,  Aug.  18,  1849.     After  two  trips  to  Sac.  she  was  sold,  and  put 
on  the  route  between  this  town  and  Marysville,  but  was  wrecked  on  a  snag 
in  Feather  River  in  Sept.     This  wreck  is  identified  in  the  contemporary 
Placer  Times  of  Oct.  5,  1849,  as  the  Geo.   Washington,  returning  from  Vernon 
to  Sac.,  the  name  becoming  confused  with  the  Lady    Washington,  a  steam 
scow,  which  a  widely  quoted  pioneer  writer  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  21,  1868, 
also  declares  to  have  been  the  second  steamboat,  although  he  has  her  launched 
at  Sac.  in  Sept.     She  was  the  first  to  ascend  above  Sac.,  going  to  Coloma. 
She  was  raised  and  renamed  the  Ohio.     In  Solano  Co.  Hist.,  159,  the  first  Be- 
nicia boat  is  called  New  England,    and  by  Moore,  Exper.,  MS.,  2,  the  Colusa. 
The  name  Pioneer  may  have  been  attributed  to  her  afterwards,  from  being  a 
pioneer  boat.     Still  others  identify  her  with  the  Edward  Everett,  Jr,  a  wheeled, 
flat-bottomed  boat,  brought  out  from  Boston  by  the  company  which  arrived 
in  the  Edward  Everett,  and  launched  at  Benicia  on  Aug.  12th.     Reached  Sac. 
on  Aug.  llth,  says  Culver,  Sac.  Directory,  74.     In  July,  it  is  intimated  in 
the  contemporary  record  of  the  Polynesian,  vi.  71.     After  three  trips  the 
engine  was  sold  to  Nevada  miners,  and  the  hull  for  a  ferry  at  Fremont.  S.  F. 
Chronicle,  Aug.  22,  1878;   Wilmington  Journal,   Apr.  8,   1863;  Preble's  HM. 
Steam  Navig.,  404.     The  Solano  Co.  Hist.,   159,  declares  this  boat  to  have 
been  the  second  or  third  launched  at  Benicia,  and  in  McKinstry's  Pap.,  19,  a 
second  is  alluded  to  as  on  the  stocks  when  the  Pioneer  was  floated.     Ball,  in 
Sac.  Directory,  1871,  103,  upholds  J.  Van  Pelt  as  the  first  steamboat  captain 
on  the  river,  and  the  Sacramento  as  the  first  steamer,  launched  at  Sacramento 
in  Sept.     Placer  Times,  Aug.  18,  1849,  distinctly  mentions  this  boat,  under 
Van  Pelt,  as  subsequent  to  the  Benicia  boat.     She  wras  placed  on  the  S.  F. 
route,  but  too  weak  to  face  the  bay  waves,  she  connected  at  New  York  of 
the  Pacific  with  the  schooner  John  L.  Day,  the  total  trip  taking  from  18  to 
32  hours,  freight  $50  per  ton,  fare  $30.  Sac.  Illust.,  8.     He  applies  also  the 
name  Sacramento  to  the  next  steamer,  'the  Pioneer  of  the  Ed.  Everett  com- 


132  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

also  plying  on  the  river  of  that  name  to  the  head  of 
steamboat  navigation,  until  the  appearance  in  Octo- 

pany,'  while  others  confuse  the  Pioneer  with  Ball's  Sacramento.  The  latter 
was  a  ferry  at  Sac.  as  late  as  Jan.  1851.  The  Placer  Times  vaguely  alludes 
to  a  Sacramento  prior  to  Van  Pelt's,  but  it  looks  doubtful.  Benicia  undoubtedly 
launched  the  first  steamer,  and  as  one  was  evidently  running  below  Sac. 
when  the  Washington  was  wrecked,  at  least  two  must  have  existed  before  Oct. 
Further,  as  this  Washington  was  made  the  pioneer  boat  above  Sacramento, 
after  having  performed  a  few  trips  on  the  lower  and  more  important  part  of 
the  river,  she  must  have  been  replaced  by  another,  namely,  Van  Pelt's  craft, 
which  may  therefore  be  placed  third.  The  next  place  is  contested  by  the 
Yulja,  a  scow  intended  for  dredging,  but  used  for  traffic  on  the  upper  river, 
and  sold  for  $40,000.  Ball,  ubi  sup.  However  this  may  be,  there  are  clear 
records  in  Oct.  for  the  three  most  notable  of  early  steamboats,  the  Mint,  a 
small,  careening,  yet  fast  craft,  which  made  its  trial  trip  on  Oct.  9th  from  S.  F. 
to  Sac. ;  the  McKim,  of  400  tons,  by  ocean  from  New  Orleans,  which  left  S.  F. 
on  Oct.  26th,  and  arrived  at  Sac.  in  17  hours.  Placer  Times,  Nov.  3,  1849. 
She  made  $16,000  in  one  trip  on  this  route,  but  was  sold  in  1855  for  $600, 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  26,  1855;  and  the  famous  Senator,  a  still  larger  and  faster 
vessel,  which  reached  Sac.  on  Nov.  8th.  Id.,  Nov.  10th.  During  the  first 
year  her  net  profits  exceeded  $60,000  a  month.  Matthewson's  Stat.,  MS.,  2; 
fiyckman's  Vig.,  MS.,  6-7;  Cat.  Assoc.  Pioneers,  N.  Y.,  1875,  45-6;  Williams' 
Stat.,  MS.,  12;  Alameda  Gaz.,  March  8,  1873,  and  other  journals.  Among 
other  early  boats  were  the  Merrimac,  first  to  reach  Stockton,  S.  Joaq.  Co.  Hist., 
23;  the  second  place  being  disputed  by  Gen.  Suiter,  Mint,  and  M.  White; 
the  Laivrence,  which  followed  in  Nov.,  and  then  passed  to  Marysville;  the 
propellor  Hartford,  appearing  in  Dec.;  the  Linda,  put  in  Dec.  upon  the 
upper  Sac.  route;  the  El  Dorado,  arriving  at  Sac.  in  Jan.  1850;  the  New 
World,  which  had  escaped  from  the  sheriff  at  New  York;  the  Firefly,  April 
1850;  the  ^Etna,  claimed  by  Placer  Times,  Apr.  22,  1850,  to  have  first  as- 
cended the  American;  the  Gold  Hunter,  May  1850,  later  on  the  Oregon  route; 
Lucy  Long,  which  first  ascended  above  Feather  River,  Ben.  Tribune,  Feb.  14, 
1874;  Jack  Hays,  first  to  reach  Tehama  in  May,  Placer  Times,  May  22,  1850, 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  21,  1868;  the  Capt.  Sutler,  a  Stockton  trader;  the  Napa 
City,  trading  to  the  place  of  that  name;  the  Major  Thompkins,  which  exploded 
Jan.  1851;  the  Santa  Clara,  Fashion,  Phoenix,  West  Point,  N.  B.  Reading; 
Mariposa,  sunk  Oct.  1850;  Gov.  Dana,  of  the  spring  of  1850;  Confidence,  Cali- 
fornia, Georgina,  Maunsel  White;  Butte,  to  run  to  Butte  City  in  Ma}7  1850, 
Placer  Times;  Antelope,  Wilson  G.  Hunt,  Benicia,  H.  T.  Clay,  Erastus  Corning, 
Star,  Tehama,  Wm  Robinson;  and  the  Sagamore,  exploded  Oct.  1850.  To 
these  are  added  the  Union,  Missouri,  Ion,  Chesapeake,  C.  W.  Grinnel,  Martha 
Jane,  Libertad,  Com.  Jones,  New  England,  Kennebec,  Gen.  Warren,  Victor  Con- 
stant, Rew  Star,  San  Joaquin,  Jenny  Lind,  and  New  Orleans,  by  a  special  letter 
of  Jan.  1851  to  Hunt's  Merchants'  Mag.,  xxiv.  545-6,  549,  which  states  that 
270  other  craft  were  engaged  in  the  river  trade.  Of  the  regular  lines  in  Dec. 
1850,  8  boats  were  running  from  S.  F.  to  Sac.,  7  to  Stockton,  3  to  San  Jose, 
3  from  Sac.  to  Marysville,  others  going  less  regularly  beyond,  in  different  di- 
rections. I  will  not  pass  beyond  1850  for  further  names,  but  may  add  that 
the  San  Joaquin  claims  to  have  first  reached  Red  Bluff,  in  1853,  the  Express 
meanwhile  trading  to  Monroeville.  Sac.  Bee,  Aug.  24,  1869;  AUa  Cal.,  May 
1,  1854.  The  first  Oakland  ferry  was  the  Hector,  the  Contra  Costa  Ferry  Co. 
being  subsequently  organized,  with  E.  Corning  for  ferry.  A  lambda  Gaz.,  May 
31,  1873.  Klamath  navigation  was  projected  in  1850.  Sac.  Transcript,  Oct. 
14,  1850.  Borthwick,  Cal,  95-7,  and  Farwell,  Stat.,  MS.,  1-3,  explain  con- 
cisely how  Cape  Horn  was  weathered  by  the  first  steamers.  The  names  of 
the  steamers,  etc.,  are  found  in  Alta  Cal.,  Pac.  News,  Cal  Courier,  S,  F.  Her- 
ald, and  other  journals  for  the  time,  especially  the  Placer  Times.  See  also 
Boyton's  Stat.,  MS.,  1;  Sac,  Directory,  1853-4,  18;  Carson's  Early  Rec.,  23; 


FREIGHT  AND  PASSAGE.  133 

ber  of  the  large  steamers  McKim  and  Senator,  which 
absorbed  this  passenger  traffic,  and  drove  inferior 
boats  of  the  now  fast-growing  fleet  to  minor  routes 
within  the  bay,  and  the  light-draught  ones  up  the 
river  and  into  the  American,  the  Feather,  and  the 
Yuba.  The  head  of  navigation  on  the  Sacramento 
was  rapidly  extended  to  Colusa.  The  Jack  Hays  as- 
cended, in  May  1850,  to  Trinidad  City,  close  to  Red 
Bluff,  which  became  the  head  soon  after,6  and  the  San 
Joaquin  was  navigated  for  150  miles  above  Stockton, 
at  high  water.7  With  a  monopoly  of  routes  for  a  time, 
several  of  the  boats  made  fortunes,  as  well  they  might, 
with  passenger  rates  averaging  $25  to  Sacramento,  and 
freight  $50  a  ton.8  Yet  by  September  1850,  competi- 
tion offered  to  reduce  the  fare  to  even  $1,9  and  Cali- 
fornia builders  were  beginning  to  increase  the  number 
of  boats  navigated  round  Cape  Horn,  or  brought  in 
sections  as  cargo,  so  that  before  the  close  of  1850  the 
inland  fleet  embraced  some  four  dozen  steamers.10  In 


Wakeman's  Log,  114-38,  220;  Stockton  Tndep.,  Aug.  3,  17,  1878;  S.  F.  Call, 
Nov.  29,  1885;  Crosby's  Stat.,  MS.,  54;  Wood's  Pioneer,  MS.,  13;  Connors 
Stat.,  MS.,  6;  Warren's  Dust,  146;  McCollum's  Cal,  64.  The  New  World  re 
duced  the  trip  to  Sac.  to  6  hours  and  3  m.  Alia  Cal.,  Jan.  10,  1852.  Id.,  of 
Aug.  31,  1849,  has  a  long  list  of  sailing  vessels  running  up  the  Sac.  and  S. 
Joaq.  Crary,  Stat.,  MS.,  1-3,  gives  the  history  of  the  Union  steam  line. 

6  See  preceding  note.    Yet  Marysville  was,  in  the  autumn  of  1850,  deprived 
by  low  water  of  its  steamers,  which  lay  too  deep.  Sac.  Transcript,  Aug.  30, 
1850. 

7  Navigated  by  steam  to  Fresno,  observes  S.  F.  Bull.,  June  8,  1859.     The 
Mokelumne  was  early  ascended  by  boats  and  sailing  vessels.     In  1862  the 
steamboat  Pert  reached  Lockeford,  and  a  company  formed  to  continue  the 
traffic,  aided  by  a  river  improvement  franchise,  charging  10  cents  per  ton  on 
freight,  but  the  railway  soon  came  to  check  the  enterprise.   S.  Joaq.  Hist., 
36-9,  134. 

8  Taylors  Eldorado,  ii.  46-7.     To  Stockton  $40,  says  Bauer s  Stat.,  MS.,  3. 
From  Sacramento  to  Marysville,  in  Jan.  1850,  the  Lawence  charged  $25  fare, 
and  8  cents  per  pound  for  freight.  Marysville  Direct.,  1855,  p.  v. 

9  S.  F.  Picayune,  Sept.  19,  1850.     By  the  end  of  1849,  says  Buffum,  Six 
Month  9,    123-4,  there  were  10  or  12  bay  steamers.     A  year  later,  about  50 
steamers  were  employed  in  the  river  trade  of  the  state,  according  to  Sac. 
Transcript,  Jan.   14,  1851,  of  which  15  plied   above   Sac.  in  the   spring   of 
1850,  Id.,  Apr.  26,  1850;  and  9  between  Stockton  and  S.  F.  by  Nov.   Cal. 
Courier,  Nov.  16,  1850. 

18  Culver  enumerates  9  running  between  S.  F.  and  Sac.,  and  10  above  Sac. 
Sac.  Directory,  84.  AUa  Cal.,  March  15,  1851,  mentions  60  inland  boats,  in- 
cluding tow-boats.  Steamboat-building  in  Happy  valley,  says  Pac.  News, 
Apr.  30,  1850,  the  material  being  introduced.  Williams,  Rec.,  MS.,  13,  de- 
clares Capt.  Suiter  as  the  first  boat  built  on  the  bay.  Trial  trip,  Nov.  16, 


134  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

1854,  the  leading  owners  combined  to  form  the  Cali- 
fornia Steam  Navigation  company,  with  the  view  to 
better  control  the  traffic  and  earnings,  while  appeasing 
the  taxed  public  with  at  least  a  superior  system.11 
For  two  decades  the  bay  and  river  steamers  flourished, 
till  the  opening  of  railways  reduced  most  of  them  to 
mere  freight  carriers,  with  diminished  profits  and  im- 
portance. 

This  system  extended  also  to  coast  traffic,  which, 
aside  from  sailing  vessels,  had  been  supplied  by  the 
Panamd,  mail  line,  and  after  1851  also  by  the  Nicara- 
gua packets,  on  the  route  south  of  San  Francisco,  and 
northward  to  the  Columbia,  by  connecting  steamers. 
Rivals  were  ever  prepared  to  meet  additional  demand 
for  service,  and  finally  a  special  regular  line  was  opened 
to  Humboldt  Bay,  Trinidad,  and  Crescent  City,  and 
still  earlier,  in  1851,  one  to  San  Diego  and  San  Pedro, 
touching  at  Santa  Barbara,  San  Luis  Obispo,  and 
Monterey.12 

1849.  The  Paul  Pry,  launched  here  in  Dec.  1856,  was  perhaps  the  first 
steamer  of  exclusively  Cal.  manufacture.  In  my  preceding  vols  are  allusions 
to  early  ship-building,  even  on  the  Sacramento. 

"Capital  $2,500,000,  in  shares  of  $1,000.  Incorp.  Feb.  22,  1854.  The 
corporation  absorbed  the  bulk  of  the  bay  traffic  during  this  and  the  following 
decade,  with  profits  that  enabled  them  to  pay  in  dividends  as  much  as  3  per 
cent  monthly.  The  fare  established  to  Sacramento  and  Stockton  was  $10 
for  cabin,  $7  for  deck;  freight  $8  and  $6  per  ton;  to  Marysville,  $15  per  ton. 
The  public  protested  against  the  monopoly,  but  it  proved  all-powerful.  Re- 
port upon  its  condition  in  1855,  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1856,  ap.  xxi.  1-12;  S.  F. 
Argonaut,  June  22,  1878;  Observations,  MS.,  5  et  seq.,  by  Low,  one  of  the 
directors;  also  a  later  chapter.  See  also  Prices  Current,  Sept.  9,  1854. 

12  This  one,  long  owned  by  Wright,  was  in  1856  transferred  to  the  Cal. 
Steam  Navig.  Co. ,  which  then  controlled,  besides  two  bay  steamers,  the  Cres- 
cent City  line.  S.  F.  Directory,  1856,  128.  The  pioneer  of  the  southern  line 
was  the  Ohio,  Jan.  1851,  followed  by  the  Sea  Bird,  as  the  most  regular,  both 
running  for  several  years.  The  Goliah,  Southerner,  Isthmus,  Fremont,  America, 
Republic,  and  Senator  shared  in  the  traffic,  some  as  rivals,  others  as  substi- 
tutes. Hayes'  Angeles  Arch.,  MS.,  v.  330-67;  Ifawley's  A mjeles,  23.  In  Dec. 
1850  the  GoUah,  Chesapeake,  and  Gen.  Warren  were  running  to  Gold  Bluff. 
Hunt's  Mag.,  xxiv.  545.  In  1851  there  were  seven  steamers  on  the  northe/n 
coast,  including  the  Oregon  mail  packets.  Alta  Cal.,  March  15,  1851.  A7nong 
them  were  the  Gold  Hunter  and  Sea  Gull.  Pac.  News,  Jan.  15,  1851 ;  and  Hunt's 
Mag.,  May  1850,  545.  In  1854  efforts  were  made  to  establish  a  line  to  Puget 
Sound.  Concerning  Mudd's  scheming,  see  Crane's  Past,  34-5.  The  Pacific 
Mail  S.  S.  Co.  sold  its  Oregon  branch  line,  and  gave  the  Oregon  R.  R.  & 
Navig.  Co.,  jointly  with  the  Pacific  Coast  S.  S.  Co.,  plying  more  than  a  dozen 
steamers  from  San  Diego  on  one  side  to  Alaska  on  the  other,  touching  at  B. 
C.  ports.  A  Humboldt  and  S.  F.  line  was  also  started,  and  there  were  in 
1888  a  few  independent  steamers,  one  formerly  belonging  to  the  Eel  River 


OCEAN  AND  RIVER  DISASTERS.  136 

The  sudden  and  great  expansion  of  maritime  traffic 
upon  waters  little  explored  could  not  fail  to  be  attended 
by  many  deplorable  accidents.  A  large  proportion  of 
the  vessels  engaged  in  the  California  trade  being 
old  hulks,  some  of  them  entirely  unfit  for  the  voyage, 
it  was  only  to  be  expected  that  several  should  collapse 
before  a  half-year's  buffetings.  Others  suffered  from 
the  absence  of  good  charts,  and  often  from  the  inex- 
perience and  carelessness  of  inefficient  captains.  Not- 
withstanding this  increase  of  unfavorable  causes,  the 
disasters  to  sailing  craft  were  not  so  frequent  as  might 
have  been  expected.  Much  more  startling  wrere  those 
connected  with  the  comparatively  few  steam-vessels, 
which  rose  between  1849-54  to  a  score  for  the  ocean 
lines,  and  of  which  seven  were  on  this  coast.  The 
Vanderbilt  company  alone  lost  five,  while  the  Pacific 
Mail  company,  with  a  much  larger  but  finer  fleet,  had 
its  first  wreck  only  in  1853.  This  unprecedented 
record  for  steam  navigation  becomes  the  more  glaring 
when  we  add  the  misfortunes  of  the  river  boats,  em- 
bracing another  score  during  the  same  six  years,  and 
with  frequent  loss  of  life,  ranging  above  fifty.  Some 
came  to  grief  upon  snags,  some  yielded  to  the  flames, 
others  collided,  and  still  others  exploded  through  the 
reprehensible  passion  for  racing,  the  inferior  boiler 
material,  and  the  lack  of  efficient  engineers.13 

Co.  Steamers  began  running  to  Alaska  in  1867,  the  Oriftamme  being  the  first. 
8.  F.  Bull.,  Apr.  13,  1867.  A  regular  line  opened  to  Coos  Bay  in  1879.  Or. 
D.  Zeituny,  Apr.  12,  1879.  Act  for  a  line  to  Crescent  City.  Cal.  Statutes. 
1863-i,  105-7.  First  descent  of  Klamath  River.  Alia  Cal.,  June  13,  1853. 
Steamer  on  Klamath  Lake  launched.  S.  F.  W.  Call,  July  21,  1881.  Steamer 
Comet  on  Lake  Tahoe.  See  Preble's  Hist.  Steam,  253.  Steamers  plied  on 
the  Colorado  in  the  fifties,  Hayes'  S.  Dieyo,  i.  181-3,  192-3,  and  a  co.  organ- 
ized in  1865  for  its  navigation.  S.  F.  Call,  June  24,  1865;  Roberts'  Navit/., 
MS.,  6  et  seq.;  Woodward's  Stat.,  MS.,  22-3;  Moore,  Pio.  Exp.,  MS.,  23^7. 
"13  In  the  U.  S.  law  of  1852,  providing  for  steamboat  inspectors,  California 
was  omitted  as  a  district,  and  the  local  inspectors  sxibsequently  appointed 
had  to  refer  decisions  to  New  Orleans.  Crane's  Past,  31.  In  my  preceding 
volumes  are  allusions  to  several  wrecks  along  the  coast,  although  at  rare  in- 
tervals, since  so  few  vessels  touched  here;  but  with  1849  the  list  swells 
rapidly.  All  are  not  recorded,  and  I  will  name  only  the  more  noted  instances. 
Tonquin  and  Ascension,  in  1849;  Popmunett,  Friendship,  Crown  Princess,  a  for- 
eign vessel,  Utica,  Mary  Jane,  Frolic,  Somerset,  Marshall,  and  Brothers,  burned 
in  1850;  Arcadia,  Buen  Dia,  1851;  Oxford,  Sea  Gull,  1852;  Vandalia,  Jenny 
Lind,  Aberdeen,  Wiltimantic,  Carrier  Pigeon,  Eclipse,  1853;  Golden  Fkece, 


136  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

Navigation  was  long  fettered,  until  hydrographic 
and  cognate  surveys  marked  the  way,  and  till  im- 
provements could  be  effected  in  harbors  and  rivers, 

Walter  Claxton,   San  Francisco,   1854.     Losses  in  sailing  vessels,  involving 
life  as  well  as  cargoes,  may  be  placed  at  more  than  $3,000,000,  additional 
interest  being  attached  to  disasters  suffered  by  the  proportionately  smaller 
number  of  steamers.     This  list  may  be  made  more  complete,  and  extended 
even  to  casualties  beyond  the  actual  coast  limit  when  involving  California 
s,hips.     Their  navigation  began  really  in  1849,  and  so  did  their  misfortunes, 
headed  by  the  propeller  Edith,  of  the  U.  S.  navy,  which  struck  near  Point 
Concepcion  in  Aug.      In  May  1850,  the  Commodore  Preble  was  wrecked  near 
Humboldt  Bay;  in  July  1851,  the  Union,  on  the  Lower  California  coast;  in 
Oct.  1851,  Chesapeake,  in  Jan.  1852,  Sea  Gull,  both  near  Humboldt  Bay;  a 
week  later  the  Gen.   Warren,  on  the  Oregon  coast,  with  the  loss  of  twoscore 
lives.     These  five  belonged  to  independent  lines,  and  were  valued  at  $50,000 
each,  except  the  Union,  which  was  worth  three  times  that  sum.     In  Feb.  and 
Aug.  1852  Vanderbilt's  Nicaragua  line  lost  the  North  America  and  Pioneer, 
below  the  California  coast,  involving  values  of  §150,000  and  $250,000,  re- 
spectively.    In  Oct.  1852  the  N.  York  and  S.  F.  line  lost  the  City  of  Pittsburrj, 
near  Valparaiso,  value  $250,000,  and  in  the  same  year  was  wrecked  the  Com- 
modore Stockton,  of  the  independent  line,  value  $60,000.     In  1853  Vanderbilt 
lost  three  more  steamers,  the  Independence,  S.  S.  Lewis,  and   Washington,  in 
Feb.,  March,  and  April,  respectively;  the  first  at  Margarita  Island,  the  second 
off  S.  F.  Bay,  the  third  off  Mexico,  the  value  of  these  inferior  vessels  being 
about  $70,000,  $150,000,  and  $40,000,  and  the  loss  of  life  150.     In  March 
1853  the  Pacific  Mail  S.  S.  Co.  lost  the  Tennessee,  off  S.  F.,  value  $300,000.  the 
only  important  disaster  met  by  this  company  during  these  early  years.     The 
Winfield  Scott,  of  N.  Y.  and  S.  F.  line,  value  $290,000,  was  lost  in  Dec.  1853. 
For  the  following  year  are  to  be  recorded  the  disasters  to  the  Golden  Gate 
(which  suffered  also  in  1855),  near  Panama,  the  Yankee  Blade,  near  Point 
Concepcion,  the  Southerner,  near  Columbia  River,  Arizpe,  etc.     See  Alto,  Cal., 
and  contemporary  papers,  for  above  years.     Partial  lists  are  in  Prices  Current 
and  Ship  List,  Apr.  29,  1853;  Helper's  Land  of  Gold,  28;  Hayes'  Cal.  Notes, 
iii.  78;  Hawley's  Humboldt,  29-30;  Scott's  Speech,   1858,  2-4.     Among  river 
steamers  a  still  larger  number  of  casualties  occurred,  beginning  in  June  1850, 
when  the  Gold  Hunter  ran  into  and  sank  the  McKim,  near  Benicia.     For 
disasters  of  later  years  I  refer  to  Com.  Rev.  and  U.  S.  Life  Saving  Service, 
annually.    Other  notable  collisions  took  place  between  the  Mariposa  and  West 
Point,  in  Oct.  1850,  near  New  York  of  the  Pacific,  the  former  sinking;  between 
the  J.  Bragdon  and  Comanche,  in  Jan.  1853,  in  the  Carquinez  strait,  with  losa 
of  life.     Several  similar  accidents  were  recorded  in  the  following  years.     In 
Feb.  1851  three  river  steamboats,  the  Missouri,  Yuba,  and  Jack  Hays,  were 
snagged  on  the  Sac.,  the  first  a  total  loss.     In  Jan.   1853  the  ComancJie 
sank  near  Benicia,  and  in  1854  the  regular   Sac.  boat  New   World.     Two 
steamboats,  the  Santa  Clara  and  Hartford,  were  burned  at  Central  wharf, 
in  March  1851,  the  former  totally;  in  June  1855  the  America  succumbed  in 
the  same  manner  at  Crescent  City.     More  startling  and  deplorable  were  the 
explosions  which  destroyed  so  many  steamboats,  and  always  with  loss  of  life, 
in  some  instances  over  50.     The  first  to  blow  up  was  the  Sagamore,  at  S.  F.,  in 
Oct.  1850,  with  fourscore  killed  and  wounded;  the  Major  Thompkins,  in  Jan. 
1851,  2  killed;  the  R.  K.  Page,  formerly  the  Jack  Hays,  in  March  1853,  two 
dozen  casualties,  both  on  the  Sacramento;  the  Jenny  Lind,  April  1853,  on 
S.  F.  Bay,  south,  casualties  over  30;  the  American  Eagle  and  Stockton,  both 
in  Oct.   1853,  on  the  San   Joaquin,  twoscore  casualties  on  the  former;  the 
Ranger,  at  Alameda,  the  Secretary,  on  the  northern  part  of  the  bay,  the  Helen 
Hensley,  at  S.  F.,  all  three  in  Jan.  1854;  the  Secretary  had  over  30  casualties. 
Among  the  disasters  in  1855-6  may  be  mentioned  the  Peart  and  the  Belle, 
with  over  50  and  30  casualties,  respectively. 


SURVEYS  AND  LIGHT-HOUSES.  137 

the  latter  filled  with  snags  that  caused  many  a  disas- 
ter.14 The  expedition  under  Wilkes  in  1841  did 
make  a  partial  exploration,  and  the  naval  officers  of 
184G-8  extended  it  somewhat.  In  the  latter  year 
the  war  department  directed  a  joint  commission  of 
officers  to  promptly  explore  the  Pacific  coast  harbors 
and  rivers  for  determining  needful  defences,  depots, 
mail  stations,  and  safeguards  for  navigation.15  The 
California  legislature  and  private  enterprise  cooperated 
in  different  directions,  stimulated  by  the  rewards  of 
trade  and  the  appeal  of  citizens.16  Sacramento  river 
attracted  special  attention  owing  to  debris  obstructions 
deposited  by  hydraulic  mines  in  particular,  which  have 
stopped  navigation  and  ruined  farming  land  in  many 
quarters.  The  ocean  line  was  intrusted  to  the  coast 
survey  department,  which  began  operation  in  1849 
under  two  parties,  although  the  organization  of  the 
Pacific  branch  properly  dates  from  the  advent  in  1850 
of  George  Davidson  and  his  party,  whose  services  un- 
der adverse  circumstances  are  marked  no  less  by  well- 
attested  skill  than  by  heroic  devotion.17 

U8ac.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  1851;  Placer  Times,  Oct.  5,  1849. 

15  U.  S.  Govt  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  266-71,  800-1;  Id., 
Sen.  Doc.,  x. 

16  Instance  the  early  improvements  in  the  San  Diego  and  Colorado  rivers 
by  the  federal  gov.  Id.,  Cong.  33,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  1,  i.   pt.  iii. ;  Hayes' 
Miscd.,  80;  Id.,  S.  Diego,  i.  31-2,  127-31,  178;  the  bills  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen., 
1850,  pp.  1302-6,  for  opening  and  improving  different  streams;  the  examina- 
tion of  Humboldt  bay  for  a  port  whence  to  supply  Trinity  River  mines  and 
the  subsequent  founding  of  towns  there.     Details  in  S.  F.  Journ.  Com.,  Apr. 
25,  1850;  HumboWt  Times,  Feb.  7,  14,  1863;  Apr.  15,  1876;  Overland,  i.  144-5; 
West  Coast  Signal,  Feb.  14,  Apr.  3,  1872;  Jan.  10,  1877;  Pac.  News,  May  22, 
Sept.  7,  1850.     In  connection  with  improvements  of  the  San  Joaquin,  as  in- 
stanced in  Cal.  Jour.  Ass.,  1858,  Sen.,. 1800,  ap.  iii.  38,  came  the  idea  of  a 
ship-canal  to  Stockton,  which  remained  a  project.  Stockton  Indep.,  May  1870; 
8.  F.  Call,  May  24,  1870;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  43,  Sess.  1,  H.  Misc.  Doc. 
137.     The  debris  agitation  is  considered  elsewhere.     A  new  outlet  was  pro- 
posed for  the  Sac.  in  1867,  and  Capt.  Eads  came  to  plan  a  system  similar  to 
that  of  the  Mississippi.     The  govt  held  aloof,  however,  until  the  debris  ques- 
tion should  be  settled.  Id.,  Cong.  45,  Sess.  2,  Doc.  17;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1867-8, 
ap.  80;  Eads'  Report.     It  was  proposed  in  1874  to  turn  San  Diego  River  into 
False  Bay,  which  was  done.     Concerning  the  lakes  and  their  navigation,  see 
U.  8.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  47,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  46,  p.  59;    Wheelers  Sur- 
vey, 1876,  p.  189;  1877,  p.  1287;  Savages  Doc.,  MS.,  ii.  124-7. 

17  The  hydrographic  labor  began  in  1849  under  Lieut  P.  Me  Arthur,  U.  S. 
N.,  and  shore  duty  under  Capt.  J.  S.  Williams,  assistant;  but  the  anomalous 
conditions  of  the  time,  with  high  prices  and  desertion,  gave  little  opportu- 
nity for  work,  and  that  chiefly  by  McArthur.     The  mouth  of  San  Francisco 


138  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

Among  the  results  of  these  efforts  were  the  light- 
houses, which  from  the  first  edifices  in  San  Francisco 
bay  spread  in  due  time  along  the  coast,  although  with 
provoking  slowness.18  This  harbor  naturally  received 
the  earliest  attention.  Buoys19  began  to  be  placed  in 

Bay  and  Mare  Island  harbor  were  examined,  and  the  coast  from  Monterey  to 
the  Columbia  River.  This  ill  success  obliged  the  sending  out  of  younger 
officers,  stimulated  by  ambition  to  make  a  record.  Geo.  Davidson  accepted 
the  responsibility,  was  raised  to  assistant  in  charge,  and  selected  for  aids 
James  S.  Lawson,  A.  M.  Harrison,  and  John  Rockwell.  Finding  S.  F.  too 
costly,  Davidson  selected  Point  Concepcion  for  the  opening  task,  including 
survey  for  a  light-house.  Thence  he  passed  to  Point  Pinos,  San  Diego,  and  to 
the  Columbia  river,  declining  the  brilliant  offers  made  for  laying  out  towns 
and  other  private  work,  and  struggling  honorably  on  the  scanty  pay  allowed, 
which  for  his  assistants  was  only  $30  a  month,  while  their  cook  received  more 
than  four  times  as  much.  The  Pacific  appropriation  for  the  fiscal  year  of 
1850-1  was  $190,000,  most  of  it  for  a  steamer  to  be  built;  the  following  year 
$150,000  was  demanded,  and  the  service  now  permitting  of  greater  extension, 
Harrison  was  detached  with  Lawson  for  separate  work,  and  R.  D.  Cutts  was 
ordered  to  replace  Williams.  The  results  attained  are  shown  in  the  annual 
reports  of  the  Coast  Survey.  A  special  valuable  history  of  the  service,  with 
interesting  details  not  there  found,  I  possess  in  the  Autobiography,  MS., 
1-104,  of  James  S.  Lawson,  who  reviews  30  years  of  his  connection  with  the 
service,  wherein  he  stands  connected  with  some  of  its  most  brilliant  achieve- 
ments. See  also  Baches  Notices;  U.  S.  Govt  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  Acts  122; 
GwinsMem.,  MS.,  68-9;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Nov.  7,  22,  1858;  Hayes"  S.  Diego,  i. 
70-1;  Jtinggold's  Corresp.,  1-15;  Belknap's  Deep  Sea  Soundings  N.  Pac. 

18  On  Sept.  20,  1850,  $90,000  was  appropriated  for  six  light-houses:  on 
Alcatraz  Island,  and  at  the  entrance  of  S.  F.   bay,  on  the  Farallones,  at  Mon- 
terey, Point  Concepcion,  and  San  Diego.     On  March  3,  1851,  $15,000  more 
for  a  tower  at  Humboldt   bay.     These  appropriations  were  about  threefold 
geater  than  for  the  Atlantic  side,  owing  to  the  high  cost  of  labor.     The  first 
two  were  the  earliest  completed,  although  the  entrance  light  was  interfered 
with  by  fortification  works.     Monterey  and  Point  Bouita  came  into  operation 
after  1854,  the  rest  following  at  the  snail-pace  consonant  with  the  government 
red-tape  system.  Alta  Cal,  Oct.  23,  1855.     Buoys,  at  from  $500  to  $2,000, 
were  provided  by  order  of  March  3,  1853,  four  for  S.  F.  bay,  one  each  for  Sac- 
ramento River,  Humboldt  Bay,  and  the  Umpqua.     Subsequently  a  beacon 
was  added  to  Humboldt  Bay.     On  March  3,  1853,  $25,000  was  appropriated 
for  light-houses  at  Point  Bonita  and  San  Pedro;  on  Aug.  3,  1854,  $100,000 
for  Santa  Cruz,  Santa  Barbara,  Point  Lobos,  Punta  de  los  Reyes,  Crescent 
City  and  Trinity  Bay.     By  the  close  of  1856  there  were  in  operation  light- 
houses at  Pt  Loma,  San  Diego,  Santa  Barbara,  Point  Concepcion,  Point  Pinos 
of  Monterey,  South  Farallones  Island,  Pt  Bonita,  Fort  Point,  and  Alcatraz, 
Humboldt  bay,  and  Crescent  City;  description  of  each  in  Cal.  Register,  1857, 
p.  140-4;  Coast  Survey,   1850  et  seq. ;  Light-House  Board  Reports;  U.  S.  Gov. 
Doc.,  Cong.  32,  Sess.  1,  Sen.  Doc.,  66,  ix.;  Id.,  22,  80-95,  111,  v.;  Cong.  32, 
Sess.  2;  Id.;  Cong.  33,  Sess.  2;  H.  Ex.  Doc.  3,  p.  307-8,  ii.;  Id.,  10,  288-7, 
402-20,  iv. ;  Cong.  34,  Sess.  1;  also  Finance  Repts  for  these  years;  AUa  Cal., 
June  4,  1853;  June  12,  Aug.  24,  1854;  March  16,  Aug.  10,  Nov.  7,  1855;  S.  F. 
Herald,   March  23,  1853.     In  Hayes'  Monterey,  44,  is  a  description  of  the 
buildings.     Concerning  navy-yard,  see  chapter  on  towns  under  Vallejo. 

19  Under  the  survey  of  Ringgold,  U.  S.  N.  See  preceding  notes;  Coast 
Survey,  1856,  119-20.  The  harbor  has  been  improved  by  the  removal  of  the 
Rincon  and  other  rocks.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  40,  Sess.  2,  Sec.  War,  ii.  51, 
507;  Cong.  43,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  189;  Chief  Eng.  Rept,  1808,  p.  73,  883; 
Alta  Cal.,  ap.  24,  1870;  Overland,  xv.  401-7,  with  remarks  on  deposits.  The 


CUSTOMS  COLLECTIONS.  139 

1849,  signal  stations  were  established,  and  regula- 
tions issued  for  pilots20  and  harbor-masters.21 

Owing  to  the  political  changes  in  California,  from  a 
Mexican  province  to  an  Anglo-American  territory, 
under  military  rule,  and  subsequently  to  a  recognized 
part  of  the  United  States,  but  for  a  time  without 
regular  revenue  system,  custom-house  affairs  became 
somewhat  mixed,  with  variations  according  to  the 
mood  of  the  ruling  power  and  the  pressure  of  cir- 
cumstances,22 with  a  predominance  of  Mexican  rules. 
Foreign  vessels  and  cargoes  were  in  1849  admitted 
under  protest  as  an  indispensable  convenience,  the 
United  States  tariff  of  July  1846  being  henceforth 
applied,  with  its  several  grades  of  ad  valorem  duties 
from  five  to  forty  per  cent,  with  one  of  a  hundred  for 
spirits.23  By  act  of  March  3,  1849,  California  was 

extension  of  Oakland  pier  has  enabled  many  vessels  to  discharge  coal  here, 
and  to  load  grain  direct  from  the  railway  cars.  A  breakwater  protects  the 
dredged  approach  to  her  inner  harbor,  San  Antonio,  used  chiefly  by  a  few 
bay  steamboats.  Vallejo  became  a  large  shipping  place,  and  of  late  years 
Port  Costa  has  acquired  a  similar  prominence  for  the  San  Joaquin  Valley. 

20  Naval  officers  joined  in  offering  services.   Fremont's  Travels,  99.     The 
organization  was  left  for  the  legislature.    U.  8.  Goo.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess. 
1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  864.      Sacramento  received  its  quota  in  1850.  Sac. 
Transcript,  May  29,  1850.     By  1852  pilotage  fell  to  $10  per  foot  from  beyond 
the  bar.     Tonnage  dues  were  4  cents  a  ton;  dockage  3  to  6  cents  a  ton  daily. 
Prices  Current,  Dec.  31,  1852.    Vessels  entering  or  leaving  S.  F.  harbor,  unless 
engaged  in  whaling,  fishing,  or  coast  trade,  paid  $5  per  foot  draught.     Pilot- 
age is  4  cents  per  ton  extra  for  vessels  exceeding  500  tons.     Vessels  discharg- 
ing paid  from  $5  to  §23.50  per  day,  for  sizes  ranging  between  225  and  2,100 
tons;  half -rate  while  loading  or  doing  nothing.     The  wharfage  toll  on  goods 
was  5  cents  per  ton.     A  shipping  commission  was  created  in  1872. 

21  S.  F.  Manual,  169-83;  Cal.  Jour,  House,  1850,  p.  1340;  Cal.  Polit.  Code. 
Prior  to  this,  military  and  local  autho.      3s  had  appointed  temporary  officers. 
Valiejo  Doc.,  xxxv.  259.     The  registratic     ?f  vessels  was  at  first  referred  to 
Washington.    Californian,  Oct.  7,   1848.     C    arcres  against  harbor-master  of 
S.   F.,   in  Barry's  Up  and  Down,   114.     Concerning  wharves,  etc.,  see  the 
chapter  on  S.  F. 

22  Civil  collectors  were  retained  at  S.  F.,  Monterey,  Santa  Barbara,  San 
Pedro,  and  San  Diego,  till  Oct.  1847,  when  military  collectors  entered  a  while. 
Certain  staples  were  in  March  1847  admitted  free  of  duty,  together  with  car- 
goes from  the  U.  S.,  while  other  foreign  goods  had  to  pay  15  per  cent  on 
value.     In  Oct.  1847  the  latter  rate  was  increased  to  20  per  cent,  and  in  April 
1848  extended  to  20  and  30  per  cent  for  two  classes  of  goods.     In  Aug.  1848 
civil  collectors  were  reappointed.     W.  Richardson  was  replaced  by  E.  Har- 
rison as  collector  at  S.   F.,   Gilbert   having  been  considered.     Concerning 
changes  and  rules,  see  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p. 
687-95,  719-20,  781,  833,  besides  my  preceding  vol.  v.  572-5. 

23  Under  40  per  cent  were  embraced  notably  preserves,  dried  fruits,  spices, 
wines,  fabricated  tobacco;  under  30  per  cent,  weapons,  beer,  jewelry,  fresh 


140  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

declared  a  collection  district,  with  San  Francisco  for 
port  of  entry,  and  delivery  ports  at  Monterey,  San 
Diego,  and  on  the  Rio  Colorado,24  and  James  Collier 
was  appointed  collector.25  He  took  possession  in 
November  1849,  at  first  in  the  old  custom-house  on 
Portsmouth  square.26  With  less  discretionary  power 
than  the  military  rulers,  he  proceeded  to  suppress  cer- 
tain privileges  so  far  allowed  to  foreign  vessels,  in  the 
coasting  trade  and  in  the  landing  of  effects,  despite  in- 
dignant protests.27 

fruit,  apparel,  medicine,  manufactured  goods  of  leather,  iron,  hair,  glass,  etc. , 
paper,  sugar,  leaf  tobacco;  under  25  per  cent,  silk,  cotton,  and  woollen  fabrics; 
under  20  per  cent,  lumber,  bricks,  leather,  certain  fruit,  certain  grain,  meat, 
etc. ;  under  10  per  cent,  certain  dyes,  soap,  etc. ;  under  5  per  cent,  certain 
metals,  etc.  Tariff  changes  since  then  have  been  numerous. 

24  Subject  for  the  present  in  revenue  matters  to  the  courts  of  Oregon  or 
Louisiana.  Gal.  Statutes,  1850,  37-8. 

25  His  pay,  §1,500,  as  per  act,  with  $1,000  for  deputies  at  delivery  ports; 
his  commission,  three  per  cent  on  duties,  yet  not  over  §3,000  a  year  to  be  re- 
tained from  emoluments  as  collector,  and  $400  for  services  in  other  capacities. 
An  inspector  can  be  appointed  as  aid  at  S.  F.,  pay  not  over  $3  a  day;  also 
temporary  inspectors.     Recognized  coins  alone  to  be  received  for   duties. 
Further  details,  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  12-15. 
Concerning  his  subappointments,  see  Id.,  16-23,  796. 

26  On  Nov.  12th.     Removal  in  Jan.  1850.  Alta  Cal,  Jan.  25,  1850.     In  ac- 
cordance with  proposals  in  the  east  to  erect  fire-proof  warehouses  at  S.  F.,  to 
be  rented  at  $7,000  a  year,  arrangements  were  made  for  a  four-story  building 
of  brick  and  iron,  25  feet  by  100,  to  be  leased  for  15  years  from  Sept.  1,  1850; 
rent  to  be  settled  later.  Id.,  18-22.     This  rose  on  the  s.  w.  corner  of  Cal.  and 
Montgomery  streets,  but  was  burned  May  4,   1851.  S.  F.  Herald,  Aug.  1, 
1850,  Feb.  20,  1851,  refers  to  arrival  of  sections  for  it,  etc.     The  next  custom- 
house site  was  on  the  corner  of  Kearny  and  Washington,  whither  King,  the 
new  collector,  removed  the  treasure  of  about  a  million  dollars  on  May  28th, 
with  such  excessive  precautions  as  to  evoke  general  ridicule.  Alta  Cal.,  May 
29-30,  1851.  Id.,  May  8,  1852,  refers  to  new  plans  for  one.     See  U,  S.  Acts, 
Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  170,  on  earlier  orders  for.     In  Nov.  1853  was  occupied  the 
so-called  custom-house  block  of  three  stories,  costing  $140,000,  exclusive  of 
land,  and  standing  on  s.  E.  corner  of  Sansome  and  Sacramento  sts.     The 
bonded  warehouse,  which  partly  caved  in  April  1854,  stood  on  Battery  and 
Union  st.  Alta  Gal.,  Jan.  5,  1870;  Annals  S.  F.,  334,  473,  529.     In  1854  the 
state  made  partial  gift  to  the  U.  S.  of  a  site  on  which  a  permanent  custom- 
house and  appraisers'  store  were  erected.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1855,  27,  70-2;  Id., 
Ass.,    ap.    24.     Progress,  appropriations,  etc.,   U.  8.   Gov.  Doc.,    Cong.  33, 
Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  15,  v.,  Doc.  118-19,  xiv.;  Cong.  34,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  10,  iv. 
228,  235.     Collier  had  rented  Starkey,  Janioii,  &  Co.'s  warehouse  on  Cal.  st. 
Pac.  News,  Dec.  20,  1849,  and  countenanced  use  of  vessels  for  storage.     He 
met  with  great  inconvenience,  owing  to  the  high  prices  ruling,  and  as  the 
officials  were  resigning — Doc.  17,  p.  24-6,  31-2,  55-9,  ubi  sup. — he  was  obliged 
to  incur  extra  expenditures,  concerning  which,  as  well  as  his  own  increased 
claims  and  pay,  he  had  trouble  afterward.    See  Dickinsons  Speeches,  i.  407-39, 
defending  him.     He  claimed  half  of  $94,700  worth  of  seized  goods.     He  was 
replaced  m  1851  by  T.  B.  King.     When  M.  S.  Latham  entered  in  Sept.  1855, 
Sac.  Union,  Sept.  24,  1855,  the  pay  was  $10,400;  deputies,  §3,000  to  $4,000, 
with  fees. 

27  Brandy  in  bottles  he  confiscated  because  the  tariff  referred  only  to  casks. 


PORTS  OF  ENTRY.  141 

Personal  gain  appears  to  have  prompted  this  strict- 
ness, although  precautions  were  needed  to  check  the 
smuggling,  which,  fostered  under  a  heavy  Mexican 
tariff  and  tax  supervision,  took  advantage  of  the  irreg- 
ular official  service  in  the  early  flush  days.28 

Owing  to  the  strife  for  port  of  entry  privileges 
among  different  coast  and  bay  towns,  congress  con- 
ceded them  to  Sacramento,  Benicia,  Stockton,  Mon- 
terey, San  Pedro,  and  San  Diego,  as  a  test  for  final 
decision;29  but  their  trade  proved  insignificant,  and  the 

He  seized  a  British  vessel  for  bringing  goods  both  from  Puget  sound  and 
Vancouver  Island  without  the  formality  which  he  thought  necessary,  and  so 
forth.  See  Doc.  17,  pp.  29-33,  as  above;  and  protests  by  French  and  English 
traders,  and  condemnation  by  others.  Shaw's  Golden  Dreams,  236;  Kelly's 
Excurs.,  ii.  250;  Ferry,  Cal,  246;  S.  F.  Herald,  June  8,  1850;  Auger,  Voy., 
222-4. 

28  Collier  found  great  looseness  at  San  Pedro.     In  Feb.  1849,  rumor  reached 
Col.  Mason  of  the  proposed  landing  of  several  cargoes  on  the  coast,  and  in  June 
Gen.  Riley  reported  landings  in  the  bays  of  San  Simeon  and  San  Luis  Obispo. 
Goods  came  by  way  of  Sonora.     Doc.   17,  pp.  496-8,  696,  771;  Pac.  News, 
May  14,  1850.     Wines,  etc.,   were  landed  at  Humboldt   bay  and  brought 
down  by  coasting  vessels.     Collier  pleaded  for  a  cutter  in  addition  to  the 
Lawrence  in  use  Nov.  1849,  to  guard  the  coast.     Also  in  1853,  in  U.  S.  Gov. 
Doc.,  Cong.  32,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  51,  vii.     The  W.  L.  Marcy  was  in  service 
in  1856.     Opium  and  silks  form  the  chief  contraband  by  ocean  route,  and  the 
Mexican  and  B.  C.  frontiers  favor  illicit  trade. 

29  Most  were  created  in  the  second  session  of  the  31st  congress.     Gwin, 
Mem.,  MS.,  70,  who  promoted  the  experiment,  sought  to  add  Humboldt. 
S.  Pedro  gained  the  privilege  in  1854.     The  foreign  entries  and  clearances  at 
these  ports  were,  for  1851,  San  Diego  12  and  13  respectively;  Monterey  2  and 
2;  for  1852,  S.  Diego  29  and  13;  Monterey  6  and  4;  Sacramento  1  entry;  for 
1853,  S.  Diego  3  and  3;  Monterey  1  and  4;  for  1854,  Monterey  9  and  6;  S. 
Diego  1  entry;  for  1855,  S.  Diego  3  and  5,  Monterey  1  and  7,  Benicia  7  and 
6;  for  1856,  Benicia  4  and  3,  San  Pedro  1   and  2.   U.  S.  Com.  and  Naviy., 
1851-6.     The  value  of  imports  in  1854  was,  at  S.  Diego  $105,800,  at  Benicia 
$8,200,  at  Monterey  $23.800.     The  gross  revenue  in  the  same  year  was,  at 
S.  Diego,  about  $18, 100,  Monterey  $6,000,  Benicia  $2,900,  Sacramento  $700, 
Stockton  $300,  San  Pedro's  was  smaller.   U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  34,  Sess. 
1,  Sen.  Doc.  83,  xiv.     San  Diego  lost  the  port  of  entry  privilege  in  1862,  but 
regained  it  in  1872.  Cong.  Globe,  1873,  iii.  ap.  293;  Hayes' Misc.,  51.     In  1881 
its  foreign  imports  amounted  to  $351,000,  two  thirds  being  railway  material. 
The  exports  reached  $234,000.     Wilmington  received  goods  from  35  foreign 
vessels,  one  being  very  large,  and  20  were  loaded  there,  with  17,000  tons  of 
wheat.   L.  Ang.  Herald,  Jan.   10,  1880,  et  seq. ;  Manning's  Wilmington,  MS., 
12-13;  Com.  and  Ind.,  214.     Collier  favored  Santa  Barbara  as  a  port,  and 
recognized  the  importance  of  San  Pedro.  Id.,  H.  Misc.  Doc.  85,  ii.;  Id.,  Cong. 
33,  Sess.  1,  Laws,  345.     The  progress  of  S.  Pedro  is  depicted  in  Hawley's  Los 
Aug.,  21-6.     The  mercantile  trade  of  other  ports  is  alluded  to  in  the  chapter 
on  towns  in  my  preceding  vol.    Sta  Barbara,  Mendocino,  Humboldt,  Trinidad, 
Crescent  City,  all  strove  to  obtain  harbor  improvements  and  privileges,  as 
instanced  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1851,  p.  1826,  1853,  ap.  62;  1867-8,  ap.  34-6; 
1869-70,  ap.  45,  91;  Ass.,   1875-6,  279,  etc.;  Hayes   Monterey,  33;  Id.,  Los 
Angeles,  iv.  22;  v.  281  etseq. ;  McPhersons  Los  Angeles,  47-8;  Los  Ang.  Arch., 
iii.  268-71;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  8,  1850;  Coast  Survey,  1854,  ap.  35;  1875,  p.  61 


142  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

privileges  lapsed.  Yet  San  Diego  regained  the  posi- 
tion, while  Los  Angeles  strove  to  obtain  a  part  for 
herself,  the  best  claim  centring  in  Wilmington  har- 
bor, on  which  large  sums  have  been  expended.  San 
Francisco  remained  the  indisputably  supreme  entrep6t 
for  the  state  as  well  as  for  adjoining  territories,  as 
shown  by  the  traffic  and  custom-house  revenue.  The 
latter  increased  from  about  $20,000  for  the  first  half 
of  1848  to  $175,000  for  the  second  half,  and  to  $4,- 
430,000  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  1852.  The 
total  receipts  from  August  1848  to  the  end  of  1856 
were  a  little  over  $1 7,000,000,  and  the  expenses  about 
one  fourth  of  that  amount.30  By  1880  the  annual  re- 
ceipts reached  nearly  $6,000,000,  rising  in  1881  to 
more  than  $7,400,000. 

Communication  by  land  before  Anglo-American 
times  was  carried  on  by  the  usual  Mexican  system  of 
mule-trains  and  horseback  conveyance,  which,  being 

et  seq.;  Eureka  Times,  April  15,  1876;  West  Coast  Star,  Dec.  30,  1875.  The  U. 
S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  42,  Sess.  2,  H.  Misc.  Doc.  143,  Cong.  44,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  102, 
161,  contain  petitions  for  improvements  at  Crescent  City,  Trinidad,  and  Men- 
docino,  and  reports  on  plans  and  work  are  given  in  Id. ,  Cong.  40,  Sess.  2, 
Sec.  War,  ii.  507-18;  Cong.  41,  Sess.  2,  H.  Misc.  Doc.  98;  Sen.  Doc.  25; 
Cong.  42,  Sess.  3,  Sec.  War,  ii.  97,  998-1009;  Cong.  43,  Sess.  2;  Id.,  ii.  pt 
i.  118,  pt  ii.  368-85;  Cong.  45,  Sess.  3,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  22,  extending  over  S. 
Diego,  Wilmington,  San  Buenaventura,  Sta  Barbara,  and  S.  L.  Obispo;  Id., 
Sess.  2,  iii.  pts  ii.  985-1009;  Chief  Eng.  Rept,  1868,  886-9;  Hawleys  Los 
Any.,  13-20;  Banniwjs  Wilmington,  MS.,  8-9;  Sta  Monica,  The  Comimj  City, 
8-9;  Davidsons  Coast  Pilot,  with  complete  account  of  all  harbors. 

3(1  The  receipts  during  military  rule  from  Aug.  6,  1848,  to  Nov.  12th,  when 
Collector  Collier  took  possession,  were  $1,365,000;  during  Collier's  adminis- 
tration till  Jan.  14,  1851,  $2,684,500,  of  which  $1,980,000  for  duties,  $43,380 
for  tonnage  and  lights,  $23,570  for  hospital,  $551,660  special  deposits,  $10,- 
970  fines,  $2,350  storage,  $57, 900  proceeds  of  seized  goods,  $5,661  rents.  U.  S. 
Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  32,  Sess.  1,  Sen.  Doc.  103,  x.  3.  The  gross  revenue  from 
Nov.  12,  1849,  to  June  30,  1850,  was  $998,720;  for  the  fiscal  year  1850-1,  end- 
ing June  30,  1851,  $1,672,870;  for  1851-2,  $4,429,810;  for  1852-3,  $2,391,100; 
for  1853-4,  $2,256,580;  for  1854-5,  $1,590,020;  for  1855-6,  nearly  $1,850,000. 
The  annual  receipts  at  the  minor  ports,  as  in  preceding  notes,  formed  in  total 
little  over  one  per  cent  of  these  figures.  Id.,  Cong.  34,  Sess.  1,  Sen.  Doc. 
83,  xiv.;  Id.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  5,  i.  11,  95,  157-94,  passim; 
Id.,  Doc.  72.  ix.  13;  Id.,  Sen.  Doc.  47,  x.  79-81;  Governors  Mess.,  Cal.,  1857. 
The  expenditures  fromNov.  12, 1849,  to  June  30, 1856,  were  about  $4,200,000, 
including  hospital  expenses,  or  an  average  of  $6,000,000  a  year.  Owing  to 
the  scarcity  of  coin,  deposits  in  gold-dust  were  received  until  currency  could 
be  obtained,  as  proposed  by  the  Californian,  Aug.  14,  1848.  Collier  was  re- 
moved in  1851  for  mismanagement,  the  charges  being  that  he  was  careless  in 
keeping  accounts,  that  he  loaned  money  to  banks,  etc. ,  at  good  interest,  that 
he  pocketed  money  for  rents  on  government  land.  U.  S.  Sen.  Doc.,  5  Spec. 
Sess.,  1853. 


ROADS  AND  MAILS.  143 

due  chiefly  to  the  lack  of  roads,  did  not  encourage  the 
opening  of  anything  beyond  rude  and  circuitous  trails. 
Under  United  States  control  these  multiplied  in  a 
more  direct  and  expeditious  form,  to  be  quickly  fol- 
lowed by  regular  roads,  which  were  constructed  partly 
by  private  companies,  partly  by  local  and  state  author- 
ities, and  extended  within  a  few  years  to  the  remote 
northern  frontier.  Costly  blasting  and  filling,  corduroy 
and  planking,  with  imposing  suspension  bridges,  marked 
the  substantial  nature  of  the  work,31  and  regular  and 
bustling  traffic  sprang  up  where  shortly  before  roamed 
only  wild  beasts  and  savages. 

Under  Mexican  rule  mails  depended  on  the  irregu- 
lar arrival  of  supply  vessels  and  couriers  and  the  con- 
venience of  commandants.  The  United  States  military 
authorities  improved  upon  this  by  the  establishment 
of  a  regular  service  between  their  posts,  open  also  to 
the  public,32  and  by  sending  occasional  messengers  to 

31  Ferries  were  rapidly  replaced  by  bridges.  Little,  Stat.,  MS.,  12-13,  built 
several  in  1850,  one  of  which,  at  Coloma,  costing  $20,000,  paid  for  itself  within 
90  days.     Murderer's  bar  had  a  wire-rope  suspension  bridge  in  1854.  Hist. 
El  Dor.,  126.    Concerning  some  costly  bridges  in  the  mining  region,  see  Placer 
Times,  May  27,  1850;  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  29,  Apr.  10,  May  10,  June  14,  July  3, 
Aug.  7-8,  Nov.  19,  1855;  Alta  Cat.,  Oct.  6,  1856,  etc.    In  1856  it  was  even  pro- 
posed to  bridge  S.  F.  bay,  a  project  revived  several  times.  8.  F.  Call,  Oct. 

15,  22,  27,  Nov.  4.     Several  private  plank  roads  existed,  one  being  opened 
between   S.  F.  and  the   mission   early  in   1851;   another  from   Sacramento 
toward  Auburn  later.  Id.,  March  1,  1853.     By  1856   there  were  about  117 
bridges,  costing  over  half  a  million,  and  §300,000  was  invested  in  ferries.  Cal. 
Routes  and  Roads,  15-16.     Concerning  turnpike  roads,  see  Sac.  Union,  Jan. 

16,  Feb.  20-1,  Sept.  25,  1855.     In  May  1850  a  road  was  cut  to  Georgetown 
from  Coloma,  Pac.  News,  May  29,  1850;  and  in  1852  the  legislature  agitated 
for  a  road  from  Sac.  to  the  northern  counties,  so  as  to  keep  trade  within  Cal. , 
and  subsequently  asked  congress  for  $150,000  to  open  a  military  highway. 
Cal.  Jour.  Ass.,   1852,  p.  528;  Statutes,  1852,  305;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  34, 
Sess.  1,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  8.     A  Sacramento-Yreka  wagon-road  was  much  used 
in  1856.     For  later  roads,  see  reports  of  surveyors  in  Cal.  Jour.  Ass.,  app., 
and  under  railways  for  routes  eastward.  In  Sac.  Union,  Apr.  30,  June  3,  30, 
Dec.  23,  1856.     It  was  then  proposed  to  open  another  between  Humboldt  Bay 
and  Petaluma.  S.  F.  Bulletin,   May  31,  Aug.  27,   1856;   Mt  Herald,  Dec.  2, 
1854;  Pac.  R.  R.  Rep.,  vi.;  Abbot's  Rept,  54;  Hayes'  Misc.,  59;  Atta  Cal,  May 
28,  1853,  with  allusions  to  other  long  roads.     Early  legislative  steps  for  such 
in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.  and  Ass.,  1850,  and  following  years.     The  road   eastward 
across  the  Sierra  will  be  considered  under  the  transcontinental  railroad  sur- 
veys.    For  leading  Cal.  branches  of  it,  see  Hist.  Placer  and  El  Dorado.     List 
of  leading  roads  in  Cal.  Register,  1857,  151-2.     Roads  to  Mt  Diablo  and  Yo- 
semite  were  completed  in  1874. 

32  Cal.  Star,  Apr.  17,  May  29,  1847;  Calif ornian,  June  5,  1847.     Bimonthly 
to  San  Diego,  two  soldiers  meeting  half-way  and  exchanging  mails.     It  took 
a  fortnight  for  each  to  go  and  return.     Irregularity  crept  in  after  Aug.  1845, 


144  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

Washington  city.  Private  enterprise  prepared  in  1848 
to  inaugurate  an  overland  mail  by  the  emigrant  route, 
and  the  newspapers  actually  despatched  an  express  in 
April,33  but  the  gold  excitement  interrupted  the  ser- 
vice. In  February  1849  arrived  the  first  steamer  of 
the  Panama"  mail  line,  under  a  monthly  contract,  which 
in  1851  was  extended  to  a  semi-monthly  service,34  at 
a  total  cost  of  $700,000  or  $800,000  a  year,  for  At- 
lantic and  Pacific  ocean  routes  and  Panamd,  transit, 
while  the  receipts,  amounting  to  $529,000  for  the  fis- 
cal year  1850-1,  fell  in  1852-3,  under  reduced  postage, 
to  $263,000.  After  this  the  gain  was  slow.  It  was 

but  in  May  1849  the  semi-monthly  connection  was  ordered  to  be  restored  and 
extended  to  Sutter's  Fort,  Stockton,  and  Sonoma,  which  had  not  at  first 
enjoyed  the  benefit.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p. 
876-86,  905-6. 

33Cal.  Star,  Feb.  12,  March  1,  1848.  New  Helvetia  Diary,  Apr.  15,  1848,  re- 
cords its  departure  thence.  Letters  were  carried  for  50  cents,  and  the  news- 
papers for  12J  cents.  On  Apr.  22d,  it  announced  another  express  for  June 
20th,  and  offered  to  contribute  toward  a  weekly  interior  service.  Also  Cali- 
fornian,  March  1,  May  3,  10,  1848,  which  announced  an  overland  mail  for 
May.  Polynesian,  v.  186. 

34  Already  bargained  for  in  the  original  contract  with  the  P.  M.  S.  S.  Co. ; 
-and  the  amount  so  far  allowed,  $199,000  a  year,  was  accordingly  increased  by 
75  per  cent  to  $348, 250,  at  which  it  remained  for  many  years.  The  Atlan- 
tic line,  from  New  York  to  Chagres,  started  from  the  first  under  a  semi- 
monthly contract  for  §290,000.  The  transport  of  mails  across  the  Isthmus 
was  at  first  taken  charge  of  by  the  New  Granada  government,  then  transferred 
in  1851  to  the  Panama  R.  R. ;  but  the  charge  by  weight,  which  from  a  cost 
of  less  than  $50,000  in  1850-1  had  by  1856-7  risen  to  $160,000,  was  now 
changed  to  an  annual  allowance  of  $100,000.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  32,  Sess. 
1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  2,  ii.  pt  ii.  417-^6,  470-87;  Id.,  Cong.  34,  Sess.  1,  i.  pt  iii. 
317  et  seq. ;  Id.,  Cong.  35,  Sess.  1,  ii.  pt  iii.  961  et  seq.  Reports  of  poat- 
master-general  1850  et  seq.,  passim.  A  weekly  service  was  agitated  in 
congress,  but  failed  to  pass.  Congress.  Globe,  1849-50,  ap.  19;  1850-1,  p.  385, 
403,  and  index.  The  rate  for  letters,  at  first  fixed  at  40  cents,  papers  3  cents, 
interior  letters  12|  cents,  was  reduced  in  1851  to  6  cents,  and  half  that  amount 
for  the  Pacific  states.  The  number  of  letters  in  Sept.  1850  was  112,000,  to 
and  fro  on  this  line;  in  Sept.  1851,  119,000.  The  postage  paid  for  the  fiscal 
year  1850-1  was  $529,341,  which  under  cheaper  rates  fell  off  to  $263,137  in 
1852-3,  and  to  $316,477  in  1854-5,  on  2,828,946  letters  and  3,814,077  papers, 
while  the  ocean  service  cost  nearly  three  times  the  former  sum.  During  the 
year  1856-7  the  letters  carried  by  ocean  numbered  2,227,780,  and  the  papers 
4,215,222,  the  postage  amounting  to  $314,343,  whereof  $42,152  was  for  papers 
at  1  cent.  An  extra  direct  line  to  Chagres  ran  for  a  time,  for  which  the  gov- 
ernment was  asked  to  grant  compensation.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  38,  Sess.  1, 
Sen.  Com.  Rept,  30.  Rival  bidders  stepped  in  partly  for  the  route  via  Mexico 
and  Nicaragua,  but  with  little  success,  chiefly  owing  to  their  unreliability. 
See  Id.,  Cong.  33,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  47,  v.;  Cong.  33,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  1,  i.  pt 
iii.  722  et  seq.;  Mex.  Ocean  Mail  Co.,  Repts,  3-44,  3-22;  Savage's  Coll.,  MS.,  iii. 
138-9;  Pac.  Mail  Co.,  Mem.,  1-18;  Cranes  Past,  34-5;  Lathams  Speech  China 
Mail. 


OVERLAND  SERVICE.  145 

not  until  1858  that  the  government  extended  to  a  reg- 
ular overland  mail  the  limited  service  so  far  maintained 
by  way  of  Los  Angeles  and  the  United  States  military 
posts  to  St  Louis.35 

The  first  contract  for  semi-weekly  trips  cost 
$600,000.  Owing  to  the  civil  war,  it  was  trans- 
ferred in  1861  to  the  central  or  Salt  Lake  route, 
which  had  long  been  used  in  some  degree,  and  ex- 
tended to  six  trips  a  week,  reducing  the  three  weeks' 
journey  by  two  to  four  days.  The  southern  route  sub- 
sequently revived.  In  1869  the  completed  overland 
railway  supplanted  as  mail  and  passenger  carrier  both 
stages  and  Isthmus  steamers,  diminishing  the  expense, 
while  lowering  the  transit  time  to  one  fourth.38 

35  The  cost  of  which  to  California  was  about  $143,000  a  year  for  1853-7, 
Oregon  paying  less  than  $40,000  and  New  Mexico  somewhat  over  $30,000. 
In  May  1859  the  letters  by  this  route  numbered  over  $15,000.  Hunt's  Mag., 
xli.  37;  Sac.  Union,  July  19,  1855.     Utah  participated  in  this  service,  the  cost 
ascribed  to  her  growing  from  about  $2,600  in  1853  and  1854,  to  $14,800  in 
1855,  and  $32,500  in  the  following  years.     A  contractor  carried  the  Salt 
Lake  mail  by  way  of  Carson,  at  $14,000  per  month.  Id.,  984-5.     An  express 
also  connected  with  Salt  Lake,  as  advertised  in  1855.  Hayes  Any.,  v.  74, 
363-5. 

36  In  1857  G.  H.  Giddings  established  a  mail  line  from  San  Antonio,  Texas, 
to  El  Paso,  New  Mexico,  whence  J.  C.  Woods  assisted  to  extend  it  to  San 
Diego,  the  first  arrival  here  being  on  Aug.  31,  1857.  Hayes'  Emir).  Notes,  MS., 
270;  Alta  CaL,  Sept.   12,   1857.     Meanwhile  Butterfield  and  partners  were 
arranging  for  a  regular  semi- weekly  service  by  this  route  from  the  Missis- 
sippi, the  contract  for  which  was  signed  in  Sept.  1857,  giving  them  $600,000 
a  year.     Text  in  U.  S.  Gem.  Doc.,  Cong.  35,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  2,  ii.,  pt  iii., 
986  et  seq.     The  routes  from  St  Louis  and  Memphis  joined  at  Fort  Smith.     The 
first  stages  left  St  Louis  and  S.  F.  on  Sept.  15th,  taking  23  days  for  the  trip. 
A  line  was  also  maintained  by  way  of  Placerville  and  Salt  Lake,  which  at  the 
close  of  1860  was  running  semi-monthly  from  Julesburg.  8.  F.  Bull.,  Oct.  13, 
1858;  March  19,  Dec.  8,  1860.     The  first  arrival  at  Placerville  was  on  July 
21,  1858,  and  the  first  departure  July  24th,  to  reach  St  Louis  Sept.  1st.  Alta 
CaL,  Aug.  5,  1858.     The  overland  acquired  such  favor  that  most  letters  began 
to  turn  in  this  direction,  and  Butterfield  accordingly  proposed  to  carry  a 
daily  mail  in  17  days.     In  accordance  with  congress,  act  of  March  2,  1861, 
for  discontinuing  the  southern  route,  and  to  arrange  with  the  same  company 
for  '  a  six-times-a-week  mail  by  the  central  route,  a  contract  was  signed  for 
three  years  ending  July  1864,  at  $1,000,000  per  annum,  to  embrace  the  entire 
letter  mail,  to  be  carried  through  within  20  days  for  8  months,  and  within  23 
days  for  the  other  4  months,  from  St  Joseph  to  Placerville,  via  Salt  Lake,  with 
branch  lines  to  Denver.     When  the  Union  war  began,  Omaha  and  Ft  Kearny 
supplanted  St  Joseph  as  distributing  point.  Id.,  Cong.  37,  Sess.  2,  Postmaster- 
Gen.  Report,  560-1.     The  first  stage  left  St  Joseph  July  1,  1861,  and  arrived 
at  S.  F.  July  18th,  with  a  passenger.  -S'.  F.  Bull,  July  18,  1861;  Dec.  17, 
1866;  Hooker's  Stat.,  MS.     In  1865  congress  authorized  a  weekly  mail  from 
San  Bernardino  to  Santa  Fe,  via  Prescott,  connecting  eastward.     In  Dec. 
1866  the  route  via  St  Louis  was  changed  to  Chicago,  to  avail  itself  of  the  rail- 
way.    The  contract  expiring  in  1868  reduced  the  time  between  Atchison  and 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    10 


146  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

A  striking  episode  of  this  service  appeared  in  the 
pony  express,  by  which  for  nearly  two  years  a  light 
letter  mail  was  conveyed  across  the  continent  by  soli- 
tary riders.  They  relieved  each  other  at  intervals  of 
about  75  days,  and  heroically  pursued  their  path,  re- 
gardless of  snows  and  storms,  of  savages  and  beasts 
of  prey,  yet  not  without  the  sacrifice  of  life.37  Be- 
tween 1867  and  1875  regular  mail  connections  were 
opened  with  China  and  Japan,  the  Hawaiian  Islands 
and  Australia,  partly  sustained  by  subsidies.33 

S.  F.  to  16  days  in  summer.  Changes  continued  to  be  made  as  the  railway 
advanced,  the  Union  Pacific  R.  R.  earnings  growing  from  $7,290  in  1866-7  to 
$82,950  in  1867-8,  and  $226,100  in  1868-9.  U.  8.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong  42,  Sess. 
2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  151.  The  last  overland  stage  contract  was  awarded  to  Wells, 
Fargo,  &  Co.,  on  Oct.  1,  1868,  for  $1,750,000  per  annum,  with  deduction.for 
carriage  by  the  railway,  which  being  completed  in  May  1869  took  mails  and 
passengers  from  stages  and  steamers.  The  Central  Pacific  R.  R.  carried  5,300 
Ibs.  daily  of  mail  matter  in  March  1870  The  Union  Pac.  R.  R.  earned  from 
$272,000  in  1869-70  to  $283,800  in  1871-2.  In  1882-3  the  Central  Pac.  R.  R. 
received  $343,900  upon  its  leading  overland  contract.  The  mail  route  via 
Panama  was  discontinued  after  June  1870.  Latterly  it  had  received  $150,000 
for  tri-monthly  services,  carrying  chiefly  printed  matter.  Id. ,  Cong.  35,  Sess. 
2,  Sen.  Doc.  48;  H.  Ex.  Doc.  2,  ii.  pt  iv.  718-844;  Cong.  41,  Sess.  2,  Sen. 
Misc.  Doc.  35,  62,  86,  105;  Cong.  42,  Sess.  3,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  151;  Postmaster- 
Gen.  Reports,  passim;  Giddinys'  Case,  1-39;  Overland  Mail  Service,  1-45;  Id., 
Memorial,  1-7;  Id.,  Observ.,  1-7;  Hayes'  S.  Diego,  Arch.,  ii.  27-107;  Id., 
Ang.,  v.  379-418. 

37  In  the  winter  of  1859-60  W.  H.  Russell,  of  St  Louis,  and  others,  arranged 
for  a  special  semi-weekly  service  on  horseback  to  carry  15  Ibs.  of  letters  at  §5 
per  half-ounce.     Stations  were  erected  about  two  dozen  miles  apart;  each 
rider  to  span  three  stations  at  about  8  miles  an  hour.     The  first  messenger 
left  S.  F;  Apr.  3,  1860,  and  the  first  arrival,  on  the  14th,  was  enthusiastically 
received.     The  time  for  letters  from  N.  York  was  reduced  to  13  days;  the 
actual  ride  took  10^  days;  telegraph  stations  shortened  message  time  to  9 
days.     The  high  charges  prevented  the  line  from  being  profitably  patronized; 
it  seldom  carried  over  200  letters,  and  at  times  less  than  20;  the  best  pay 
came  from  a  mail  contract.     Indian  troubles  brought  interruptions.     With 
the  completion  of  the  overland  telegraph  in  Nov.  1861,  it  was  abandoned;  yet 
the  mail  contract  of  1868  stipulated  for  a  partial  pony  service  till  the  railway 
was  opened.  Details  and  incidents  in  Sac.  Union,  Alta  Col.,  and  8.  F.  Bull., 
March  30,  Apr.  3,  Dec.  29,  I860,  et  seq.;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  37,  Sess.  2, 
Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  54,  85. 

38  The  Pacific  Mail  S.  S.  Co.  inaugurated  the  line  to  Japan  and  China  in 
Jan.  1867,  and  the  postage  grew  from  $3,556  in  1867  to  $15,327  in  1869. 
U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  41,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.  125.     Pro  and  anti  Chinese 
resolutions  came  pouring  in  during  1869-75  concerning  the  $500,000  subsidy, 
and  finally  it  was  replaced  by  a  mere  postage  allowance,  which  in  1882-3 
amounted  to  only  $3,925.  Id.,  Postmaster-Gen.  Reports,  1869  et  seq.     For 
the  Hawaii  service  $75,000  was  allowed  in  the  sixties,  soon  also  to  be  stopped. 
The  Australian  line  opened  in  1874,  and  was  for  several  years  sustained  by 
the  New  Zealand  and  N.  South  Wales  govts  with  a  subsidy  of  $400,000  for  a 
monthly  service.     This  has  been  somewhat  reduced,  for  N.  Zealand  is  the 
only  real  gainer  in  time  by  this  route.     The  postage  granted  by  the  U.  S. 


POST-OFFICE  AFFAIRS.  147 

The  interior  postal  service  was  for  a  long  time 
utterly  inadequate  to  the  demand,  owing  to  the  small 
pecuniary  allowance  to  meet  the  ruling  high  prices.39 
Postmasters  could  afford  neither  to  engage  the  need- 
ful assistance  nor  to  decline  the  outside  emoluments 
that  were  within  the  reach  of  their  office.40  Routes 
were  accordingly  opened  slowly,  and  as  late  as  June 
1851  there  were  only  34  offices  in  the  state,  even  popu- 
lous central  counties  having  to  be  content  with  one 
weekly  mail.41  But  the  attempt  to  limit  local  ex- 
amounted  in  1882-3  to  $12,500.  Id.  The  railway  into  Mexico  has  affected 
the  steamer  mails  in  that  direction. 

39  Agent  Allen  undertook  in  1849  to  appease  public  clamor  by  extending 
routes,  but  was  rebuked  with  an  order  to  limit  expenditure  to  net  revenue. 
Id.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  17,  p.  974-5. 

49  The  first  mail  agent,  W.  Van  Voorhees,  coming  with  the  first  steamer, 
appointed  C.  L.  Ross  temporary  postmaster  of  S.  F.  till  the  following  month, 
when  J.  W.  Geary  replaced  the  latter.  Williams'  Stat.,  MS.,  7-9.  See  also 
the  chapter  on  S.  F.  concerning  post-office  sites.  Voorhees,  being  unable  to 
carry  out  his  instructions  for  establishing  routes  and  postmasters,  owing  to 
the  high  cost  of  everything,  was  replaced  in  the  middle  of  1849  by  R.  T.  P. 
Allen,  and  J.  B.  Moore  was  appointed  postmaster  of  S.  F.,  but  this  did  not 
remove  difficulties.  Instructions  and  correspondence  in  U.  8.  Gov.  Doc., 
Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  956-76;  Gal.  Statutes,  1850,  37,  revenue. 
The  first  interior  offices  were  established  in  June-July  1849,  at  Benicia,  Sac- 
ramento, Stockton,  San  Jose,  Vernon,  Coloma,  and  Sonoma,  all  with  weekly 
mail  by  water,  except  the  last  two  places,  which  received  it  by  horseback. 
Names  of  postmasters  in  Doc.  17,  p.  969-72,  as  above. 

41  Instance  El  Dorado,  with  25,000  souls,  while  Butte  co.  had  not  even  a 
post-office.  Sac.  Transcript,  Jan.  14,  Feb.  14,  March  14,  1851.  Yet  Placer- 
ville  and  Coloma  were  this  year  granted  a  tri-weekly  service  from  Sac.  As 
late  as  Sept.  1850,  places  on  the  main  route  of  traffic,  like  Benicia,  Stockton, 
and  San  Jose,  had  only  a  tri-weekly  mail;  but  in  1851  daily  delivery  was  ex- 
tended to  several,  while  others  continued  to  be  neglected,  San  Luis  Obispo,  for 
instance,  complaining  in  1855  that  only  8  mails  had  been  received  in  18  months, 
and  Los  Angeles  had  had  no  mail  for  six  weeks.  Los  A.  Star,  Jan.  22,  1853; 
Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  15;  Sfterwood's  Cat.,  MS.,  25-6;  Garniss'  Early  Days,  MS., 
28-9;  Sherman's  Mem.,  i.  46;  S.  F.  Herald,  June  27,  1850,  speaks  of  the  first 
daily  mail  to  Sacramento;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Sept.  19,  1850;  Cat.  Courier,  Sept. 
20,  1850;  Alta  Cal.  reviews  contracts  and  irregularities,  Jan.  12,  1850;  March 
28,  June  22,  Nov.  14,  Dec.  16,  1853;  May  29,  1855;  Ev.  Journal,  Jan.  24,  1855; 
Sac.  Union;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  etc.;  Hayes'  Angeles,  v.  330-76,  on  south  Cal.  mails; 
U.  S.  Mail  Scraps,  6-10.  Among  the  irregularities  may  be  mentioned  the 
neglect  of  the  Panama  steamer  to  touch  at  San  Diego,  and  the  lack  of 
accommodation  by  mail  carriers,  Hayes'  Angeles,  v.  340-50;  the  unwilling- 
ness of  postmasters  to  forward  letters  by  mail  to  applicants,  chiefly  with  a 
view  to  favor  express  agents  from  whom  they  were  receiving  a  good  revenue. 
This  and  other  abuses  were  to  be  checked,  so  as  to  gain  public  favor  and  in- 
crease receipts,  observes  the  postmaster-general  in  his  report  for  1853-4,  p. 
705-6.  Of  the  34  offices  in  .1851,  only  5  were  rated  at  $2,000  salaries,  and  4 
at  about  $1,000;  15  ranged  between  $25  and  $100.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  32, 
Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Dec.  2,-'iL  pt  ii.  419.  Postmasters  had  therefore  to  seek 
extra  income. 


148  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

penditure  by  receipts  and  by  eastern  rates  was  soon 
abandoned  before  the  pressure  of  public  demand;  and 
transportation,    which    for    the    fiscal    year    1850-1 
amounted   to  $130,270,  was  by    1852-3  greatly  ex- 
tended, although  at  such  reduced  prices  that  the  cost 
did  not  exceed  $174,243.     In  1854-5  the  number  of 
offices  had  been  augmented  to  256,  and  contracts  were 
renewed  in  many  instances  at  half  the  former  rates, 
permitting  an  increased  frequency  of  service,  so  that 
in  1856-7  routes  3,084  miles  in  length,  involving  a 
transit  of  847,614  miles,  were  covered  by  $143,797. 
The    charges    for    transportation   against    California 
stood,  however,  at  $245,831,  to  which  must  be  added 
$114,022   for  salaries  and  incidentals,  giving  a  total 
expense  of  $359,853,  while  the  receipts  amounted  to 
$256,994.     The  real  deficit  was  still  larger,  for  the 
Pananid,  service,  costing  three  quarters  of  a  million 
dollars,  was  a  Pacific  coast  item.42     The  balance  still 
remains  against  California,  and  although  the  revenue 
has  increased  to  more  than  a  million  and  a  quarter  of 
dollars  from  about  1,000  offices,  yet  the  expenditure 
exceeds  this  figure  by  about  one  fifth.     Steamers  and 
railways  cover  as  yet  little  more  than  a  fifth  of  the 
total  route  mileage.43 

42  Yet  several  central  eastern  states  appeared  with  large  deficits,  as  New 
Jersey,   with  receipts  placed  at  $117,903,   against  $151,070   for   expenses; 
Maine,    $154,565    receipts,    $186,159    expenses;    Utah   stood    lowest,    with 
$1,383  receipt,  against  $68,874;  Mew  Mexico  followed  close  behind,  and  Ore- 
gon's expenses  were  nearly  triple  the  receipts.  Id.,  Cong.  35,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  2, 
ii.  pt  iii.  1095,  1053,  etc.     Concerning  California  for  1850-1,  see  Id.,  Cong.  32, 
Sess.  1,  Doc.  2,  ii.  pt  ii.  418,  434,  470-2,  488,  etc.,  wherein  the  cost  of  trans- 
port by  water  is  given  at  12  cents  per  mile;  by  land  at  21  cents.     For  1854-5 
the  transportation  is  placed  at  $135,386,  and  the  receipts  at  $234,591.  Id., 
Cong.  34,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  1,  i.  pt  iii.  431,  etc.     Concerning  the  extension  of 
routes,  offices,  etc.,  see  also  intermediate  reports  of  the  postmaster-general. 
Armstrong's  Exper.,  MS.,  15-16;   Valkjo,  Doc.,  xii.  ?20;  xii.  19,  etc.;  S.  D. 
Arch.,  iv.  352;  Cltarpenning's  Case,  1-56,  with  contract  claims;  Churchwdfs 
Ocean  Mail,  1-29;  U.  S.  Mail  Scraps,  10  et  seq. 

43  When  the  overland  railway  opened  in  1869  Cal.  had  469  offices;  the 
routes  extended  over  7,384  miles,  of  which  865  were  covered  by  steamboats, 
it  a  cost  of  $62,000,  and  775  miles  by  railways  for  $196,500,  the  rest  by 
stages,  etc.     The  total  cost  was  $673,358,  3,200,000  miles  being  travelled  an- 
nually.    For  1882-3  the  postmaster-general  reports  971  offices,  with  rapid 
increase  under  expanding  colonies.     Of  these  57  were  presidential  offices,  and 
154  issued  money-orders.     The  revenue  amounted  to  $1,241,600,  or  2.77  of 
the  total  for  the  U.  S.,  and  the  expenses  to  $1,518,619,  or  $277,000  in  excess 


EXPRESS  COMPANIES.  149 

The  many  short-comings  of  the  postal  department 
obliged  the  public  to  seek  other  facilities  for  letter 
delivery,  notably  by  private  express  lines,  which  under 
liberal  patronage  assumed  large  proportions,  with  re- 
lays of  conveyances  and  wide-spread  agencies,  until 
they  became  a  prominent  feature  of  trade  and  inter- 
course. Indeed,  the  enterprise  of  the  people  was  in 
no  way  more  manifest  than  in  this  branch  of  business, 
marked  as  it  was,  not  alone  by  bulk  and  extent,  but 
by  the  speed  and  endurance  brought  out  by  compe- 
tition for  public  favor.43  Several  express  agents  rose 
in  the  latter  part  of  1849,  among  them  the  firm  of 
Adams  and  company,  which  absorbing  several  minor 
houses  rapidly  increased  its  interoceanic  business  by 

of  receipts.  The  transportation  figured  for  $930,940;  postmasters'  salaries 
for  $268,770;  clerks,  rent,  etc.,  for  §146,500;  route  agents  and  carriers  for 
$172,400.  At  S.  F.  the  receipts  were  $558,000,  against  $100,500  expendi- 
tures; here  were  72  carriers,  handling  24,700,000  pieces,  at  a  cost  of  $65,500. 
Post-office  orders  amounted  to  $5,000,000.  For  references,  see  indices.  S.  F. 
Chamber  Com.,  Report  on  Post.;  U.  S.  Mail  Scraps,  passim;  also  account  of 
mails  in  my  histories  of  Oregon,  Wash.,  B.  Col.,  and  Alaska,  this  series. 

43  Express  agents  had  for  a  long  time  the  habit  of  paying  25  cents  for  each 
letter  to  postmasters  for  the  privilege  of  obtaining  mails  in  advance  of  regular 
office  delivery.  In  April  1855  the  Nevada  agents  determined  to  save  the  fee  by 
taking  their  places  in  the  line  of  ordinary  applicants.  This  withdrawal  in- 
flicted a  loss  of  several  hundred  dollars  to  the  postmaster.  Indeed,  the  revenue 
from  agents,  letter-boxes,  and  other  incidentals  alone  induced  the  postmasters 
of  early  days  to  accept  office.  Randolph's  Stat. ,  MS. ,  9.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
encroachments  of  the  expresses  upon  the  postal  business  caused  a  serious  loss 
of  revenue  to  the  government,  Adams  &  Co.  going  so  far  as  to  carry  letters, 
even  from  New  York,  at  half  the  government  rate.  Postmasters  clamored  for 
restrictions,  but  the  public,  recognizing  the  benefit  of  these  enterprising  com- 
panies, resolved  to  uphold  them,  if  only  to  stir  the  slow  official  machinery. 
Even  the  Cal.  legislature  of  1855  paid  to  expresses  $24,900  in  postage,  and 
only  $2,067  to  the  post-office.  Political  influence  played  here  its  part.  Dur- 
ing the  rainy  season  especially,  the  express  agents  performed  feats  which  offi- 
cials never  dreamed  of  undertaking,  facing  pitiless  storms,  plunging  through 
rushing  streams,  and  braving  robbers  and  wild  beasts.  On  important  occasions, 
notably  during  elections,  their  relays  of  fast  horses  and  wagons  enabled  them 
to  equal  the  average  time  by  many  a  later  railway  route.  In  transmitting  the 
president's  message,  on  Dec.  30,  1853,  Wells,  Fargo,  &  Co.  claimed  to  have  sur- 
passed even  the  boasted  speed  of  Adams  &  Co.,  whose  men  traversed  the  dis- 
tance from  S.  F.  to  Weaverville,  330  miles  in  30  hours.  Their  agents  leaving 
S.  F.  at  midnight,  reached  Stockton  at  10.40  A.  M.,  Sonora  at  7.30  P.  M.,  Marys- 
ville,  8  P.  M.  Alta  Cal.,  Dec.  11,  1852;  Jan.  1-3,  1854,  etc.  On  such  occasions 
money  was  not  spared  in  the  charter  of  a  steamer  or  other  accommodation,  and 
when  it  came  to  outstrip  a  rival  agent,  ruse  and  bluster  were  added  to  gain  a 
vantage,  as  Todd  says.  Miscel.  Stat.,  MS.,  27-8.  Ballou,  Advent.,  MS.,  2, 
relates  one  of  his  daring  encounters  with  robbers,  on  the  Downieville  route, 
when  he  and  the  driver  repulsed  13  assailants,  and  saved  the  treasure-box 
with  $35,000.  The  two  heroes  received  an  ovation  at  Marysville,  with  sub- 
stantial presents. 


150  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

establishing  branches  in  every  promising  town  and 
camp,  with  assaying  and  banking  departments,  until 
it  stood  indisputably  supreme,  with  yearly  profits 
exceeding  half  a  million  dollars.44  Rivals  of  local  and 
general  character  sustained  themselves,  however,  par- 
ticularly Wells,  Fargo,  &  Co.,  established  here  in  1852, 
which,  by  tiding  successfully  the  financial  crisis  of 
1855  that  overthrew  Adams  &  Co.  with  several 
others,  was  enabled  to  assume  the  leading  position,45 

44  The  claim  to  the  first  express  in  California  is  made  for  C.  L.  Cady,  who 
announced  a  weekly  service  between  S.  F.  and  Sutter's  Fort  in  the  Californian, 
July  24,  1847;  but  it  was  short-lived.     The  business  subsequently  rose  from 
among  the  agents  and  messengers  sent  from  camps  or  business  houses  to  the 
main  or  branch  post-office  for  letters.  Soule's  Stat.,  MS.,  4.     The  first  regular 
express  is  said  to  have  been  started  by  Ballou,  Advent.,  MS.,  1,  for  the  south- 
ern mines,  late  in  1849;  but  Alex.  H.  Todd  shows  in  his  Stat.,  in  Miscel.  Stat., 
MS.,  21-8,  that  he  began  the  business  in  July  1849,  by  registering  miners' 
names  at  $1  each,  and  going  down  to  S.  F.  for  their  mail  and  charging  as 
much  as  $4  for  delivering  letters  or  papers  in  the  southern  camps.     He  quickly 
gained  their  confidence,  and  undertook  to  carry  gold-dust  and  packages,  charg- 
ing five  per  cent  on  dust  from  Stockton  to  S.  F.     This  soon  grew  into  a  bank- 
ing business,  with  a  charge  of  from  one  half  to  one  per  cent  on  deposits.     T.  R. 
Hawley  claims  the  first  organized  express,  advertised  in  Oct.  1849  as  Weld 
&  Co.,  and  changed  some  time  after  to  Hawley  &  Co.,  which  continued  till 
Dec.  1850.  Alta  Cal.,  July  10,  I860.     Ballou  writes  that  after  himself,  about 
Dec.  1849,  Upman,  formerly  a  messenger  for  Harnden,  the  pioneer  express- 
man of  the  U.  S. ,  started  a  line  between  Sacramento  and  S.  F.     Both  were  ab- 
sorbed by  Adams  &  Co.,  whose  manager,  D.  H.  Haskell,  had  arrived  on  Oct. 
31st,  to  found  a  branch  house.     He  opened  in  Nov.,   Williams'  Stat.,  MS.,  13, 
and  at  first  limited  his  operations  to  a  mere  interoceanic  business,  with  lines 
only  to  Stockton  and  Sac.,  where,  he  connected  with  Freeman's  northern  and 
Newell's  southern  expresses.    These  also  were  absorbed.    Additional  local  and 
general  lines  sprang  up,  however,  to  share  in  a  business  from  which  the  above 
leading  house  made  over  half  a  million  profits  yearly.     Those  with  oceanic 
routes  in  1849-50  were  Gregory  &  Co.,  Haven  &  Co.,  and  Livingston  &  Wells; 
Kelsey,  Smith,  &  Risley,  agents  for  Miller  &  Co.  's  U.  S.  &  Cal.  Express;  la- 
dependent  Mail  Co.  of  Pac.  States  and  Cal. ;  and  Dodge  &  Co.     Bedford  & 
Co.  maintained  a  daily  connection  with  San  Jose;  Hawley  &  Co.  with  Sacra- 
mento and  the  northern  mines,  in  which  direction  Gregory  also  claimed  lines; 
and  Todd  &  Co. ,  the  chief  agency  for  the  southern  mines,  closely  followed  by 
Randolph.     Palmer  &  Co.  rivalled  Freeman  &  Co.  on  the  Sacramento  route, 
and  Bowers  Bros,  had  the  Nevada  City  line.     In  the  interior  almost  every 
district  obtained  rival  lines  within  a  year  or  two.     Ballou  joined  Langdon  in 
the  Yuba  express;  Stockton  had  several  forwarding  agencies;  C.  J.  Brown 
had  the  Columbia  route;  Wood  &  Bro.  had  a  letter  express;  Cram,  Rodgers, 
&  Co.  opened  in  due  time  between  Shasta  and  Weaverville,  and  so  forth. 
Pac.  News,  Nov.  6,  22,  Dec.  4,   18,  27,  1849;  Jan.  1,  5,  Oct.  22,  26,   1850; 
Alta  Cal.,  Dec.   15,   1849,  etc.;  Cal.  Courier,  Nov.   18,   1850;  S.  F.  Directory, 
1850,  125-6;  Orass  Val.  Directory,  1856,  20. 

*JThe  firm  was  incorporated  in  1851-2,  under  New  York  laws,  with  a  cap- 
ital of  $300,000,  to  extend  the  Pacific  business  of  Livingston  &  Wells.  Col 
Pardee  was  sent  out  to  manage  it,  and  despite  rivalry  he  made  good  progress, 
aided  by  the  failure  in  1852  of  Gregory  &  Co.,  whose  agents  and  lines  he 
hastened  to  secure.  The  failure  of  Adams  &  Co.  enabled  the  company  to 
distance  such  competitors  as  the  Pacific  and  Union  expresses,  the  former 


STAGE  SERVICE.  151 

and  gradually  to  gain  undisputed  control  of  the  entire 
field,  with  only  local  rivals. 

The  intimately  associated  stage  lines  sprang  into 
existence  about  the  same  time,46  multiplying  with  the 
spread  of  mining  camps.  They  centred  in  Sacramento, 
as  the  chief  point  of  distribution  for  the  mines,  and  in 
the  beginning  of  1853  a  dozen  lines  were  owned  there, 
with  from  three  to  twelve  coaches  each  and  numer- 
ous relays,  valued  at  a  third  of  a  million  dollars,47  and 
with  connection  to  all  parts  of  the  state.  Their  consoli- 
dation shortly  after  into  the  California  Stage  company, 
while  operating  against  the  public  by  checking  corn- 
started  by  Adams  &  Co.'s  late  employees.  Under  the  management  of  Louis 
McLane  several  new  features  were  introduced,  such  as  stamped  government 
envelopes  with  W.,  F.,  &  Co.'s  express  mark,  which  soon  sold  at  the  rate  of 
$140,000  monthly,  at  10  cents.  The  overland  express  was  perfected.  The 
capital  of  the  company,  increased  to  $2,000,000,  came  with  the  ensuing  current 
of  success  quickly  back  into  the  pockets  of  the  share-holders.  In  1866  the 
business  was  sold  to  the  Holladay  Overland  Express  Co. ,  with  increased  capi- 
tal, now  limited.  In  1869  the  Pacific  Express  Co.  rose  in  formidable  rivalry, 
backed  by  railway  privileges,  but  it  was  consolidated  with  W.,  F.,  &  Co. 
In  1881  this  company  had  offices  in  more  than  800  towns,  employed  some  1,300 
men,  transported  goods  to  the  value  of  $250,000,000  a  year,  sent  messengers 
regularly  by  all  stages  over  7,000  miles  of  route,  by  8,000  miles  of  railways, 
and  by  12,500  miles  of  ocean  routes.  It  is  an  unobjectionable  monopoly,  and 
the  few  independent  firms  in  the  business  are  mostly  confined  to  small  districts 
and  auxiliary  to  it.  Wells,  Fargo,  &  Co.'s  Instruc.  to  Agents,  1-69;  U.  8.  Mail 
Scraps,  47  et  seq.;  S.  F.  Call,  June  27,  1876;  S.  F.  Bultetin,  Dec.  31,  1878; 
Button  s  Exper.,  MS.,  1;  S.  F.  Directory,  1856,  p.  108,  shows  six  express  at  S.  F. 

46  Transcontinental  stages  were  advertised  at  St  Louis  in  1849,  fare  $200, 
but  they  did  not  prove  a  success.  McCall's  Cal.  Trail,  35;  St  Louis  Repub.; 
Placer  Times,  Oct.  13,  1849.     The  rush  of  miners  in  1849  produced  a  demand 
for  conveyances  to  the  camps,  and  Jos.  Birch  is  credited  with  establishing 
the  first  line,  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  28,   1851,  from  Sac.  to  Mormon   island, 
beginning  in  Sept.  1849,  fare  $16  to  $32  according  to  times.  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  206. 
This  was  extended  through  Placerville  to  Georgetown,  says  Placer  Times, 
Apr.  13,  1850.     In  the  mining  district  the  stage  traffic  increased  so  that  river 
towns  like  Marysville  had  land  competition  in  July  1850.  Delano's  Life,  290. 
Ramsey  opened  a  line  from  Stockton  to  the  Calaveras  in  1849.   Taylor's  El- 
dorado, i.  79.     In  1851  Stockton  had  seven  stages  daily.  S.  F.  Herald,  June 
16,  1851.     The  entrepot  town,  Benicia,  started  one  in  1849,  Solano  Co.  Hist., 
155;  but  the  first  line  to  San  Jose  opened  only  in  April  1850,  time  9  hours, 
fare  two  ounces;   yet  competition  sprang  up,  reducing  the  fare  that  same 
year  to  $10.  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  26,  1850;  Pac.  News,  May  20,  Oct.  29,  1850; 
Hall's  Hist.  S.  Jose,  236-7.     Loa   Angeles   received,  its  first  stage  in  1852. 
Los  A  ng.  Hist. ,  55.     In  the  same  year  a  line  began  running  between  Marys- 
ville and  Shasta.  Northern  Enterprise,  Oct.   17,   1873;  Id.,  El  Dor.,   126-7; 
Hawley's  Tattoe,  MS.,  3. 

47  A  Ita  Cal,,  March  22,  1853,  assigns  from  35  to  150  horses  to  each  line,  and 
places  the  total  value  at  $335,000.  Sac.  Directory,  1853-4.     The  termmi  were 
Coloma,  Nevada,  Placerville,  Georgetown,  Yankee  Jim's,  Jackson,  Stockton, 
Shasta,  and  Auburn,  some  with  rival  lines. 


152  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

petition,  served  to  promote  a  superior  system,  with 
greater  regularity,  extension,  and  comfort.48  This 
corporation,  as  well  as  the  overland  line  dating 
from  1857,  disappeared  before  the  railways  which 
occupied  the  leading  routes,  and  relegated  the  stages, 
as  well  as  wagon  and  mule  trains,  to  mere  tributaries 
of  the  rail  routes.  That  valued  agent  of  intercourse, 
the  stage-driver,  whose  self-reliance  has  been  fostered 
by  varied  contact  with  men  and  the  control  of  brutes 
of  all  tempers,  developed  in  California  to  the  highest 
perfection,  and  displayed  a  dash,  skill,  and  gallantry 
that  drew  the  admiration  of  travellers  from  all  nations, 
and  has  been  so  frequently  described  in  the  writings 
of  tourists  and  travellers. 

The  most  indispensable  and  earliest  of  the  expresses 
were  the  freight  trains,  started  by  traders  for  the 
different  camps,  and  following  their  movements  to 
new  fields.  They  consisted  mainly  of  wagons,  usually 
the  large  vehicles  brought  by  immigrants,  and  known 
as  prairie-schooners,  carrying  from  5,000  to  16,000 
pounds,  and  requiring  sometimes  a  dozen  yoke  of 

48  The  consolidation  was  effected  in  1853,  with  Birch,  the  stage-line  founder, 
for  president.  The  new  management  began  operations  on  Jan.  1,  1854,  with 
a  capital  of  one  million,  Alia.  CaL,  Jan.  3,  1854;  and  introduced  several 
reforms  and  extensions,  among  which  was  a  line  across  the  Sierra,  a  trial  trip 
by  way  of  Honey  lake  being  made  in  May  1857.  The  company  flourished, 
since  it  was  better  able  to  suppress  competition;  its  stock  paid  as  much  as 
five  per  cent  monthly  dividends.  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  30,  Feb.  20,  Apr.  24,  May 
2,  June  26,  1855,  etc.;  Mayhem's  Recol,  MS.  In  1860  the  Cal.  Stage  Co.  con- 
trolled 8  lines  northward,  the  longest  extending  710  miles  to  Portland,  with 
60  stations,  35  drivers,  and  500  horses,  11  drivers  and  150  horses  pertaining 
to  the  rest.  There  were  7  independent  lines,  covering  464  miles,  chiefly  east 
and  south,  the  longest  to  Virginia  City.  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  1,  1861.  The  Cal.  & 
Oregon  Stage  Co.  incorporated  in  1867,  S.  F.  Call,  Sept.  29,  1867,  taking  the 
leading  place  in  this  branch.  Overland  stages  are  described  above,  in  con- 
nection with  mails.  Garniss1  Early  Days,  MS.,  30-1,  refers  also  to  Washoe 
staging;  Burnetts  Rec.,  MS.,  ii.  238-40;  Senton's  Cal.  Pilgrim,  169.  Los 
Angeles  claimed  half  a  dozen  lines  in  1855.  Hayes*  Angeles,  Arch.,  v.  365. 
Stage  vehicles  varied  from  common  mud  wagons  to  luxurious  Concord 
coaches,  with  from  4  to  6  horses,  carrying  9  inside  and  from  2  to  5  out- 
side, and  making  10  or  12  miles  an  hour  on  good  roads.  The  drivers  of 
California  have  been  extolled  by  every  visitor.  '  These  men  I  consider  the 
finest  whips  in  creation,'  exclaims  Major  Sir  Rose  L.  Price.  Two  Amer.,  197; 
Conway's  Early  Days,  MS.,  2-3;  HutcMnys'  Mag.,  iv.  364,  419.  In  Los  Any. 
Hist.,  55,  the  first  carriage  in  California,  aside  from  an  old-fashioned  vehicle 
of  the  friars,  is  said  to  have  been  a  rockaway,  sold  in  Jan.  1849  by  Capt.  Kane 
to  Temple  &  Alexander  of  San  Pedro. 


TEAMS  AND  PACK-TRAINS.  153 

oxen,  or  mules.49  For  the  southern  mining  region, 
with  its  steeper  ridges  and  abrupt  ravines,  pack-mules 
presented  the  only  possible  means  of  transport;  and 
indeed,  until  the  extension  of  roads  they  were  widely 
used  in  different  directions.  The  train  numbered  a 
score  of  mules  and  upward,  each  laden  with  from  200 
to  400  pounds  of  merchandise,  which  had  to  be  secured 
and  balanced  with  great  nicety  to  withstand  the  in- 
equalities of  the  trail.  Patient  and  watchful,  the 
animal  would  guard  his  load  against  projecting  crags 
and  drooping  branches,  and  signal  by  a  stop  when 
anything  went  amiss.  Freight  charges  were  regu- 
lated both  by  the  demand  and  the  prevailing  high 
price  for  labor,  so  that  for  a  time  one  dollar  per  pound 
for  a  distance  of  100  miles  was  no  uncommon  rate.50 
The  danger  from  robbers,  especially  on  return  trips 
with  treasure,  tended  to  sustain  prices. 

As  compared  with  the  lumbering,  creaking  wagons, 
dragged  wearily  along  by  dilatory  oxen,  the  mule 
train  presented  a  striking  appearance  as  it  advanced 
in  winding  file,  now  climbing  a  ridge,  now  fringing 
some  precipitous  slope,  now  disappearing  in  the  wood- 

49  Wagons  were  made  which  measured  6  feet  in  depth  of  hold  and  17  feet 
in  length  on  top.  Their  cost  ranged  between  $8,000  and  §1,500,  harness  $300 
to  $600,  mules  $500  to  $1,000  a  pair,  so  that  an  outfit  would  often  exceed 
$5,000.  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  11,  1856,  instances  some  huge  teams.  Carson,  ubi 
sup.,  describes  the  unwieldy  carretas  of  the  Spanish  Calif ornians,  with  wheels 
formed  of  but  blocks  from  the  buttonwood-tree,  20  inches  thick. 

59 Barstow's Stat.,  MS.,  3;  Hemhaw's  Events,  MS.,  2;  Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  12. 
Even  the  early  launches  from  S.  F.  to  Sac.  demanded  50  or  75  cents  per 
pound,  observes  Carson,  Early  Rec.,  37-8.  A  man  paid  $1,140  for  yokes, 
wagons,  and  expenses,  and  made  $2,200  freight  on  2  tons  in  one  trip.  8.  F. 
Bulletin,  Sept.  26,  1877.  In  1848  the  rate  to  Coloma  was  only  $10  per  100 
Ibs.  Californian,  July  15,  1848.  By  Dec.  1852  the  freight  from  Stockton  to 
Sonora  had  fallen  to  $20  per  cwt.  Alta  Cal,  Dec.  15,  1849;  Nov.  25,  Dec.  8, 
1852,  with  subsequent  greater  decline.  In  the  fall  of  1850  were  counted  70 
wagon  teams  and  over  200  pack-mules  on  the  road  between  Stockton  and  the 
Stanislaus.  8.  F.  Picayune,  Sept.  19,  1850;  Barstow's  Stat.,  MS.,  12.  For 
muleteers  and  their  trains,  I  refer  to  the  commerce  chapters  in  Hist.  Mex., 
iii.  vi.,  this  series.  Borthwick,  Cal.,  196-8,  also  describes  them,  and  Hutch- 
ings'  Mag.,  i.  241;  Lord's  Naturalist,  ii.  202-10;  Dunravens  Gt  Divide,  139; 
Frynet,  Cal,  118-20; Sac.  Union,  Jan.  18,  31,  Feb.  2-6,  15,  March  6,  1856,  etc., 
on  different  express  features;  also  Suttons  Exper.,  MS.,  1;  Moore's  Pioneer, 
MS.,  8.  Goods  were  carried  in  porfleshes,  pockets  of  hides,  over  pack-saddles 
to  prevent  tearing  against  branches,  etc.  The  horses  dragged  long  trail  ropes 
to  facilitate  catching  them.  Brooks'  Four  Mo.,  49-50.  Banning,  Wilmim/ton, 
MS.,  4-5,  gives  an  account  of  the  first  goods  train  to  Salt  Lake  from  this 
coast. 


154  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

clad  vale,  at  its  head  the  leader,  usually  an  old  horse, 
the  musical  tingle  of  whose  bell  found  response  in  the 
pricking  ears  of  his  followers.  Along  the  line  rode, 
centaur-like,  the  dusky  Mexican  muleteers,  in  pictur- 
esque garb,  rousing  echoes  from  the  cliffs  with  moni- 
tory cries  to  their  beasts.  Twenty-five  miles  usually 
intervened  between  the  camping-grounds,  which,  se- 
lected on  some  grassy  river  plat,  lay  outlined  by  the 
unpacked  loads  ranged  with  military  precision,  while 
around  browsed  the  liberated  animals.  The  flickering 
fire  at  first  stimulated  to  enlivening  chat  and  song, 
but  the  noise  of  voices  was  soon  hushed  by  the  absorb- 
ing excitement  of  the  monte  game,  or  the  slumbers  of 
advancing  night. 

Communication  within  California  was  further  accel- 
erated by  the  construction  of  telegraph  lines,  the  first 
to  be  completed,  in  September  1853,  extending  merely 
from  the  business  quarter  of  San  Francisco  to  the  en- 
trance of  the  bay,  for  signalling  vessels.51  During  the 
previous  year,  however,  work  had  begun  on  the  line 
Q  of  the  first  telegraph  company,  the  California,  connect- 
ing with  Marysville  by  way  of  San  Jose,  Stockton,  and 
Sacramento,  which,  after  several  interruptions,  was 
completed  on  October  24,  1853.  By  this  time  several 
other  lines  were  foreshadowed,  and  one  was  under- 
taken between  San  Francisco  and  Nevada,  by  way  of 
Auburn,  Placer ville,  and  Sacramento,  from  which, 
like  the  other,  branches  extended  in  succession.62 

61  It  was  constructed  by  Sweeney  &  Baugh,  of  the  Merchants'  Exchange, 
who  controlled  the  signal  station  on  Telegraph  hill,  and  the  first  report  came 
on  Sept.  llth,  A Ita  Cal.,  Sept.  12,  1853;  although  the  formal  opening  dates 
from  Sept  21st  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  23,  1853;  Prices  Current,  Sept.  24,  1853. 

52  The  Marysville  line  was  projected  in  1852,  by  0.  E.  Allen  and  C.  Burn- 
ham,  who,  on  May  3,  1852,  obtained  a  franchise  to  this  end.  The  line  was 
to  be  constructed  within  18  months,  and  pay  to  the  state  three  per  cent  on 
the  net  profit  after  three  years.  Cal.  Statutes,  1852,  169-70.  The  California 
State  Telegraph  Co.  was  now  organized,  and  reorganized  in  the  following  year 
with  W.  B.  Ransom  as  superintendent,  and  W.  M.  Rockwell  for  contractor. 
The  erection  of  poles  began  in  1852,  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  28,  1852;  Hayes'  Ange- 
las, MS.,  v.  419:  Los  Any.  Star,  Dec.  4,  1852;  but  fire  and  other  misfortunes 
interfered,  and  the  wire  party  of  six  men,  under  Jas  Gamble,  later  telegraph 
manager,  did  not  start  till  Sept  13th.  It  made  amends,  however,  by  laying 
from  five  to  seven  miles  of  wire  daily.  From  Belmont  the  first  test  message 
was  sent,  and  at  San  Jose  the  first  station  was  established.  S.  F.  Herald, 


TELEGRAPH  LINES.  155 

Yroka  was  reached  in  1858,  and  the  overland  line, 
begun  in  the  same  year,  was  completed  in  1861  with 

Oct.  15,  27,  1853.  Gamble  relates  in  the  Californian,  Apr.  1881,  321-2,  how 
the  mystified  natives  watched  for  a  visible  message  along  the  wires,  regarding 
the  armed  poles  as  crosses  to  ward  off  evil  spirits.  Beyond  San  JosiS  heavier 
wire  retarded  progress,  but  a  party  working  from  the  other  end  met  them, 
and  on  Oct.  24th  the  line  was  completed  a  week  within  the  franchise  time. 
The  rate  charged  was  §2  for  ten  words  to  Marysville;  and  half  that  sum  to 
San  Jose.  In  1855  the  company  declared  monthly  dividends  of  one  per  cent. 
Sac.  Union,  Apr.  19,  1855.  Before  its  completion  other  men  awoke  to  the 
value  of  telegraph  investments,  and  several  lines  were  projected,  that  of  the 
Alta  Tel.  Co.,  between  Nevada  and  S.  F.,  by  way  of  Auburn,  Placerville, 
Mormon  island,  and  Sac.,  being  far  advanced  in  Sept.  1853.  Alta  Cal.,  Sept. 
24,  1853.  Rivalry  began;  within  two  years  cables  were  laid  under  the 
waters  of  the  bay,  and  by  1856  the  leading  counties  in  the  state  were  in 
connection.  Lines  were  then  actively  planned  even  to  distant  Yreka  on  the 
north,  and  to  Carson  on  the  east.  Id.,  Nov.  28,  1856;  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  27, 
May  1,  Oct.  26,  1855;  June  19,  Oct.  21,  28,  1856;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  26, 
July  26,  Sept.  15,  Oct.  23,  30,  Dec.  11,  1856;  Golden  Era,  Jan.  6,  1855.  The 
line  to  Yreka  was  completed  in  1858,  after  a  vain  effort  in  1854.  Alta  Cal., 
Aug.  6,  1858,  et  seq. ;  Hist.  Siskiyou,  167.  This  success  gave  zest  to  the  project 
for  a  connection  with  the  Atlantic  slope.  In  1858  two  companies  were  in  the 
field.  Act  in  Cal.  Statutes,  1858,  73-4.  The  Pacific  and  Atlantic  Co.  was  push- 
ing a  line  southward  along  the  Butterfield  overland  mail  route,  via  San  Jose, 
and  reached  Los  Angeles  in  1860,  there  to  halt.  S.  F.  Herald,  Oct.  10,  1860. 
A  central  line  was  started  by  the  Placerville  and  Humboldt  Co.,  which  planted 
the  first  pole  on  July  4,  1858,  and  reached  Carson  in  the  spring  of  1859,  and 
soon  after  Fort  Churchill.  Cal.  offered  $6,000  a  year  as  an  inducement  for 
the  first  overland  line.  Cal.  Statutes,  1861,  344-5.  Now  eastern  companies 
awoke  to  the  emergency,  and  congress  was  in  1860  persuaded  to  grant  an 
annual  subsidy  of  $40,000  for  ten  years,  and  a  quarter-section  of  land  for 
every  15  miles  of  line,  against  a  free  transmission  of  govt  messages  to  the 
above  amount,  the  rate  for  any  message  being  limited  to  $3  for  10  words.  The 
Western  Union  Co.  secured  the  grant,  and  offered  to  divide  with  Cal.  if  the 
Pacific  companies  would  consolidate  for  cooperating  with  the  eastern  ring. 
This  was  done.  The  Cal.  State  Tel.  Co.,  with  a  capital  of  $1,250,000,  gained 
control  of  the  Pacific  system,  covering  over  1,600  miles  in  Cal.  and  Oregon, 
with  threescore  stations.  The  Overland  Tel.  Co.  was  now  formed  with  a 
similar  capital,  as  a  branch  of  the  preceding,  and  it  undertook  to  perfect  and 
extend  the  Placerville  line  to  Salt  Lake  City,  reaching  this  point  Oct.  24, 
186L  -The  Western  Union,  under  the  title  of  the  Pacific  Tel.  Co.,  capital 
$1,000,000,  carried  its  line  via  Omaha  to  the  same  point,  arriving  here  Oct. 
19th.  On  Oct.  24th  the  first  message  was  transmitted.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Apr.  6, 
Oct.  23-5,  Nov,  7,  1861;  Alta  Cal,  Oct.  7,  1858;  Hayes'  Cal.  Notes,  Arch.,  v. 
39  et  seq.  The  Western  Union  soon  acquired  a  controlling  interest  in  the 
Cal.  lines  and  leased  them,  and  so  became  the  largest  telegraph  co.  in  the 
world.  Portland  having  been  brought  into  connection,  the  co.  in  1865  pre- 
pared to  extend  the  line  from  Fraser  River  through  Alaska  to  Siberia,  to  con- 
nect with  Europe,  but  it  proved  so  costly  as  to  forbid  competition  with  the 
Atlantic  cable,  and  it  was  abandoned  in  southern  Alaska.  Act  to  aid  it  in 
U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  38,  Sess.  1,  Acts  350-2;  Id.,  Cong.  44,  Sess.  1,  Acts 
201,  to  encourage  a  trans-Pacific  cable;  Latham's  Speeches,  27-31;  Owing 
Mem.,  122;  S.  F.  Bull.,  March  6,  1865.  An  ocean  cable  was  projected  in 
1858.  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  5,  1858;  June  14,  1859.  See  also  my  histories  of 
Oregon,  B.  Col.,  and  Alaska,  this  series.  Humboldt  county  obtained  its 
branch  line  1864.  Alta  Cal.,  Oct.  11,  1864.  Mendocino  took  steps  for  exten- 
sion in  1871.  8.  F.  Chron.,  Jan.  21,  1871.  S.  Diego,  which  had  projected  a 
line  in  1853,  Marysv.  Herald,  Jan.  27,  1853,  obtained  it  only  in  1870,  Alta 


156  INLAND  AND  OVERLAND  TRAFFIC. 

subsidies  from  legislature  and  congress,  and  with  the 
cooperation  of  the  state  companies,  consolidated  for 
the  purpose,  and  of  the  Western  Union,  which  soon 
acquired  control  of  the  Pacific  system,  and  extended 
it  rapidly  in  all  directions.  An  attempt  in  1865  to 
carry  a  line  through  Alaska  to  Siberia  and  Europe 
proved  a  failure,  but  a  trans-Pacific  cable  cannot  be 
long  deferred. 

Cal.,  Aug.  21,  1870;  when  it  was  extended  also  to  Sta  Barbara.  Bodie  Stan- 
dard, May  15,  1878,  announces  its  arrival  at  Bodie.  A  few  local  independent 
lines  exist,  in  S.  F.  the  District  (with  improved  signal-boxes)  and  Gold  Stock 
telegraphs.  S.  F.  Call,  July  11,  1875;  S.  F.  Post,  June  8,  1878;  S.  F.  Cliron., 
Apr.  17,  Aug.  6,  1878;  Nat.  Tel.  Co.,  Art.,  1-10;  Com.  and  fnd.,  192-3.  The 
telephone  was  introduced  in  1877,  and  within  4  years  5,000  came  into  use, 
half  the  number  at  S.  F. ;  the  extension  continues  fast.  G.  S.  Ladd  devised 
the  telephone  exchange  system  through  the  central  station.  The  Western 
Union  absorbed  many  lines,  while  the  Mackay -Bennett  overland  line  entered 
into  formidable  competition. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

1848-1888. 

CHANNELS  OF  TRADE— AUCTION  HOUSES — BUSINESS  ORGANIZATIONS — INSUR- 
ANCE—BANKING— DISASTERS  AND  REVIVALS — SAVINGS  INSTITUTIONS — 
GOLD  DUST  AND  ASSAY  OFFICES — PRIVATE  COINAGE — VARIATIONS  IN 
VALUES — THE  MINT — SPECULATIVE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  FLUSH  TIMES — IN- 
TERIOR TRADE — CREDIT  SYSTEM — COMMERCIAL  CATASTROPHES  AND  FAIL- 
URES— EXPRESS  AND  BANKING  HOUSES — ADAMS  AND  COMPANY  FAILURE 
— MINING  STOCK  GAMBLING — ITS  POWER  AND  INFLUENCE — ITS  FALL  AND 
ATTENDANT  DISASTERS. 

THERE  were  no  distinctly  marked  channels  of  trade 
in  the  early  days,  such  as  we  find  connected  with 
old  established  firms  and  accumulated  capital;  nor 
business  ancestry  to  hedge  the  path.  The  field  lay 
open  to  any  one  to  enter  upon  any  trade  or  undertak- 
ing, and  to  create  his  own  fortune.  The  general  and 
brilliant  success  of  dealers  before  the  autumn  of  1849, 
and  the  subsequent  tempting  fluctuations,  lured  hosts 
of  ambitious  speculators  into  the  fold,  some  to  be  fa- 
vored by  fortune,  but  most  to  become  involved  and  over- 
whelmed by  the  flood  of  competition,  by  financial 
eddies  and  ebullitions,  by  fires  and  other  disasters. 
Firms  succeeded  firms  in  rapid  succession,  rising  on 
tottering  ruins  and  falling  with  the  crumbling  mass: 
thrifty  and  observant  clerks  stepping  into  the  shoes 
of  their  principals;  employes  changing  places  with  em- 
ployers. Yet  with  all  this  absence  of  conservatism, 
middlemen  were  quick  to  resent  any  disregard  of  their 

(157) 


158  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

claims  by  outsiders,1  and  in  due  time  each  branch  of 
commerce  became  affected  by  exclusiveness. 

Business  drifted  quickly  into  recognized  localities. 
Commission  merchants,  auctioneers,  and  bankers  settled 
in  Montgomery  street ;  wholesale  traders  followed  the 
extending  water-front  into  the  cove,  retail  shops  cen- 
tred along  Kearny  street,  dry-goods  dealers  grouped 
round  Clay  street,  Chinese  bric-a-brac  collections  be- 
gan in  Sacramento  street,  professionals  and  caterers, 
while  scattered  in  between,  had  also  their  nuclei.2 

Owing  to  the  lack  of  buildings  to  accommodate  the 
early  influx  of  people,  valuable  merchandise  was  ex- 
posed; not  only  sheds  and  tents,  but  street  stalls 
abounded.8  Even  when  regular  stores  and  offices 
increased,  few  of  the  occupants  owned  them.  Money 
with  them  was  too  valuable  to  be  tied  up  in  real  estate, 
and  their  plans  were  too  ephemeral.4 

A  prominent  feature  of  business  at  San  Francisco 
presented  itself  in  her  auction-houses,  which  were 
well  adapted  to  the  California  temperament,  by  their 
open  proceedings,  readiness  of  access  to  all  parties, 
and  prompt  and  time-saving  methods.  The  chief 
reason  for  their  existence  here  lay  in  the  sudden  rise 
of  commerce,  with  the  consequent  absence  of  repu- 
table consignees,  in  the  lack  of  warehouses  for  storing 
goods,  and  in  the  instability  of  affairs  from  fires,  panics, 
and  migrations.  Auctions  proved  valuable  vent-holes 
during  these  ever-threatening  disasters,  and  within 
their  shanty  walls  entire  cargoes  were  disposed  of  at  a 
moment's  notice,  and  millions  changed  hands  in  the 
course  of  a  month.5  They  also  afforded  excellent 

1  In  1 852  the  captain  and  consignees  of  the  Victory  sought  to  evade  mid- 
dlemen and  license  by  pedling  their  goods  in  small  lots  for  cash.  Their 
posters  were  torn  down,  and  traders  combined  against  them  with  effect 

*  As  shown  in  the  chapter  on  S.  F.  in  1848-50. 

3  Hawley,  Observ.,  MS.,  4,  began  with  many  others  to  sell  valuable  goods 
in  this  manner. 

4  The  lucky  speculator,  with  a  sudden  excess  of  means,  or  the  returned 
digger,  usually  anchored  his  surplus  in  this  way. 

0  As  business  became  settled,  with  warehouses  and  credit,  they  declined 
in  importance.  In  the  preceding  chapter  on  S.  F.  in  1849-50,  I  have  men- 
tioned the  leading  auctioneers,  among  them  Bleaker,  Van  Dyke,  &  Co.,  one  of 
whose  partners  sold  his  interest  in  the  firm  for  $200,000  in  1850. 


AUCTIONS  AND  INSURANCE.  159 

opportunities  /or  those  who  had  been  overtaken  by 
such  calamities  to  repair  their  losses,  as  happened,  for 
instance,  to  a  gentleman  who  now  ranks  among  the 
leading  citizens  of  Los  Angeles,  named  Prudent 
Beaudry,  who,  after  losing  nearly  all  that  he  pos- 
sessed by  the  conflagrations  of  1850-1,  was  thus 
enabled  to  secure  the  means  whereby  he  has  largely 
contributed  to  the  growth  of  the  southern  metropolis.* 
While  strongly  independent  in  disposition  and  enter- 
prise, Americans  possess  in  a  high  degree  the  ability 
to  associate  labor,  skill,  and  capital  for  a  common 
object.  Among  purely  business  corporations  I  will 
refer  to  insurance  companies  and  bankers.  The  com- 
bustible nature  of  California  towns,  and  the  frequent 
fires,  kept  back  insurance  agents,1  and  it  was  not  till 
the  autumn  of  1852  that  the  first  one  became  estab- 
lished.* With  high  premiums,  prudent  selection  of 
risks,  and  improved  fire  departments,  the  profits  grew 
so  large  as  to  quickly  attract  a  number  of  eastern  and 
foreign  companies,  for  marine  risks*  as  well  as  fire  and 
fife  " 


•Prudent  Beaadry,  a  satire  of  Canada,  passed  the  earlier  yean  of  his 
ife  m  the  eastern  and  southern  state^  where  he  coixlacted  a  dry-good*  btisi- 
sen.  Reaching  San  Franctseo  in  1850;  after  Bsectingwiih  the  leiuuss  above 
~  he  remored  in  1832  to  Los  Angeles,  and  there  engaged  in  his 


fmrmrr  Tin  fur  1111  milil  ITOn,  alii  u  In    1 1  liii  illialkm  In  iinluilili       In 

1S75,  in  partnership  with  four  others,  he  incorporated  the  Lake  Vineyard 
Land  and  Water  association,  its  object  being  to  improve  and  place  on  the 
market  6,000  acres  of  land  in  San  Gabriel  valley,  including  the  present  srtes 
of  Pasadena  and  Alhambra,  these  lands  being  no  v  worth  from  ^500  an  acre 
to  $800  a  front  foot.  This  wefl-matared  scheme  was  crashed  by  an  advene 
dnenion  of  the  Mint  erne  court,  coupled  with  the  scarcity  of  money  caused  by 
the  failure  of  the  bank  of  California*  whereby  he  lost  the  control  of  property 
now  worth  several  millions.  Nevertheless,  there  B  no  one  to  whose  enter- 
prise and  public-spirited  policy  Los  Angeles  is  more  indebted  for  herdenlsn- 
EMst  from  a  struggling  village'in  1332,  to  JtspaasuBtliii»itiusi««^he  •Hiopniii 
of  southern  California. 

T  A  few  risks  were  eorered  abroad  at  exorbitant  rates.  £cfanafeff*  £**., 
MS.,  6.     See  also  the  S.  F.  chapter  on  fires. 

*  J.  P.  Haven,  for  the  Liverpool,  London,  and  Globe.  S.  F.  HtmU,  Sept 
8,  1832.     He  charged  fire  per  rent  and  accepted  only  fire-proof  buildings. 

*  The  North  American  of  PhiL  had  the  first  marine  agency  in  1S53,  but 
it  soon  retired.   Haven,  as  prominent  nMMJaaadjaiihii,  8.  P.  Dim-tan,  1S52, 
31,  acted  for  it     The  rival  adjuster,  Cant  Hoyt  was  doped  by  many  swin- 
dlers.  Saywarfs  StaL,  MS.,  19-36.     In  1S54  C.   K.  Garrison  represented 
two  small  companifs,  the  Undson  and  Franklin.   Gnat  Rtr.,  x.  1SS-9.     The 


160  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

but  owing  to  the  personal  liability  imposed  by  the 
constitution  on  stockholders  in  corporations,10  local 
organizations  did  not  venture  into  the  field  for  many 
years."  The  first  successful  San  Francisco  com- 
pany was  the  California  of  186 1,12  followed  by  a  score 
more,  of  which  eleven  remained  at  the  close  of  1888, 
with  159  eastern  and  foreign  companies,  the  business 
transacted  for  that  year  including  $353,000,000  of  fire 
insurance,  with  $6,100,000  in  premiums,  and  $3,050,- 
000  in  losses;  $134,000,000  of  marine  insurance,  with 
$1,750,000  in  premiums,  and  $950,000  losses;  and 
$70,500,000  of  life  insurance,  with  $2,800,000  pre- 
miums, and  $1,200,000  losses  and  endowments. 

Mercantile  houses  attended  to  the  banking  business 
in  California  until  1849,  when  the  increase  of  com- 
merce called  into  existence  special  banking  firms,  as 
Naglee  &  Sinton,  Burgoyne  &  Co.,  B.  Davidson, 
T.  G.  Wells,  Wright  &  Co.,  and  James  King  of  Wil- 
liam,13 whose  operations  soon  expanded  from  dealings 

National  Life  and  British  Com.  Life  existed  in  1854.  S.  F.  Directory,  1854, 
p.  234. 

18  Which  were,  moreover,  restricted  to  organize  under  general  laws.  Art. 
iv.,  sec.  31-6;  IlittM's  Codes,  sec.  5322;  Cal.  Laws  Insurance,  1-128. 

11  The  Pacific  Marine  Ins.  Co.  was  organized  in  Dec.  1850,  by  Macondray 
and  others,  AUa  Cal,  Dec.  21,  1850;  Pac.  News,  Dec.  19,  1850;  but  like  more 
than  one  subsequent  attempt,  did  not  succeed.  A  German  mutual  association 
alone  held  out. 

'"  First  known  as  the  Cal.  Mutual  Marine,  but  reorganized  to  take  fire 
risks.  It  was  quickly  followed  by  the  S.  F.  Fire,  discontinued  in  1866;  the 
Cal.  Lloyds,  an  unincorporated  association  of  capitalists,  merged  in  the  Union 
in  1867;  the  Merchants'  Mutual  Marine  of  1863  discontinued  in  1874;  the 
Pacific,  the  Fireman's  Fund,  the  Cal.  Home,  the  Home  Mutual,  all  of  1863. 
By  1881  there  were  148  companies  and  agencies  on  the  coast,  of  which  9  were 
Cal.  corporations,  carrying  risks  for  $68,000,000  on  fire,  $2,750,000  on  ma- 
rine, and  a  large  sum  on  life;  70  U.  S.  companies  with  about  $75,000,000 
risks;  and  69  foreign  companies,  35  being  British,  with  risks  exceeding 
$138,000,000.  The  average  fire  loss  to  the  companies  between  1876  and  1880 
was  $1,175,000,  on  $2,526,000  worth  of  property  destroyed.  Cal.  paid  in 
1881  $3,108.000  in  fire  and  marine  premiums  to  foreign  companies,  and  re- 
ceived for  losses  $1,084,000,  leaving  them  nearly  two  thirds  for  expenses  and 
profits.  A  board  of  fire  underwriters  embraces  most  of  the  insurance  compa- 
nies, and  it  has  greatly  promoted  the  efficiency  of  the  fire  dept,  which  is  paid 
in  the  leading  towns.  At  S.  F.  the  loss  on  $2,680,000  of  insured  property 
was  restricted  in  1879-80  to  $212,000.  Coa»t  Review,  passim. 

13  The  first  two  opened  on  Jan.  9th  and  June  5th,  the  others  in  Sept.  and 
Dec.  Sinton  soon  retired  and  left  Naglee  to  continue  the  business  till  the 
crisis  of  Sept.  1850,  when  he  closed,  as  did  Wells  &  Co.  (late  of  T.  G.  Wells) 
on  Oct.  3,  1851.  Wright  &  Co.  also  disappeared;  the  others  maintained 
themselves.  Their  capital  being  small— Wright  &  Co.  advertised  a  capital 
of  $200.000.  Pac.  Newt,  Nov.  17,  1849;  Sultan's  Stat.,  MS.,  1 1— mercantile 


BANKING.  161 

in  gold-dust  and  deposits  to  more  important  transac- 
tions.    In  1850  D.  J.  Tallant,  Page,  Bacon,  and  Com- 
pany, and  F.  Argenti  and  Company  joined  the  list, 
followed  by  a  number  of  others  in  this  and  following 
years,  notably  Drexel,  Sather,  and  Church,  and  Adams 
and  Company."     The  last,  as  the  most  wide-spread 
express  agency  on  the  coast,  extended  banking  facili- 
ties to  every  town  and  camp  of  importance.15     While 
banks  in  California  were  somewhat  fettered  by  cor- 
poration laws  and  the  prohibition  to  issue  paper  money, 
they  enjoyed  in  other  respects  vast  opportunities,  from 
the  immense  yield  of  gold,  the  large  import  and  traffic, 
the  speculative  spirit  of  the  people,  and  the  rapid 
development  of  resources  and  settlements.     The  pur- 
chase of  gold-dust  alone  was  for  a  long  time  highlv 
profitable,  owing  to  the  low  prices  paid  as  compared 
with  mint  values.18     Methods  differed  widely  at  first 
from  those  ml  ing  in  long-established  business  centres, 
chiefly  owing  to  the  scarcity  of  reliable  securities  and 
firms  of  good  standing,  towns  being  combustible  and 
uncovered  by  insurance,  and  fires,  floods,  and  panics 
ever   pending.     One   result  was  exorbitant  rates  of 
interest,  which  ruled  at  ten  per  cent  per  month  even 

houses  continued  to  act  aa  bankers  for  some  years.  Instance  Gildemeester  ft 
De  Fremerv,  who  advertised  as  bankers.  Pat.  S'etrs,  Jan.  5,  1830;  3.  F. 
IJemid,  July  1,  Sept.  14,  1850.  King  of  Wm  and  Wells  represented  east- 
ern banks.  Davidson  was  Rothschild's  agent 

"Bolton,  Barren,  ft  Co.,  K  C.  Dunbar,  and  W.  F.  Young  figured  in  1850, 
as  did  S.  Beebe,  Lndlow,  and  Godeffroy,  Sillem  4  Co.,  agents  tor  New  York 
and  Hamburg  banks.  Jlerckamfg  Mag.,  xxiv.  548.  The  list  in  8.  F.  Direc- 
tory, 1832,  p.  94,  adds  Delessert,  Cordier,  *  Co.;  J.  W.  Gregory,  express; 
McXulty,  Carothers,  ft  Co.;  Robinson  &  Co.,  savings  bank;  California  Savings 
Bank;  F.  G.  Smith,  savings  bank;  K  Rodgers;  Sanders  ft  Brenbam;  Todd's 
Express;  Wells,  Fargo,  ft  Co.,  express.  G.  Ward  figured  also  aa  banker  in 
1850.  Garni***  Early  Dayt,  MS.,  1C;  S.  F.  Herald,  July  1, 13,  Sept  14, 1850; 
B<udxrJ  Jlag.,  Apr.  1877;  CaL  Courier,  Feb.  21,  185L  In  S.  F.  Directory, 
1S54,  p.  232,  several  of  the  above  are  no  longer  found,  but  Abel  Gay,  Tj"»-, 
Turner,  ft  Co.  managed  by  Sherman,  later  general,  Palmer,  Cook,  ft  Co., 
Timmerman  ft  Co.,  savings,  J.  L.  Woolsey  ft  Co.,  savings,  and  A.  S.  Wright, 
savings  and  exchange,  are  added.  Shermans  J/ou.,  L  92,  100. 

15  Leading  towns  early  obtained  special  banks.  At  Sac.  several  mercan- 
tile firms  opened  special  banking  departments,  Barton  Lee  and  Baker  ft  Co. 
being  the  most  prominent  Wkeaton't  StaL,  MS.,  9;  Sac.  TroMarpi,  May  29, 
1S50,  names  also  Warfaass  ft  Co.;  Hensley,  Merrill,  ft  King,  and  Henley, 
McKnight,  ft  Co.  Plater  Tines,  March  2,  9,  1S50. 

"Soon,  however,  this  trade  was  abandoned  to  brokers,  among  them  Say- 
ward,  who  gives  interesting  information  concerning  it  Pioneer,  MS.,  12-19. 
Hist  CAL^  VOL.  Vn.  11 


162  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

after  1849,  or  even  double  that  for  short  loans.17  In 
1852  it  declined  to  three  and  soon  after  to  two  and 
one  and  a  half  per  cent  per  month,  at  which  it  stood 
for  some  time,  while  operations  adjusted  themselves 
more  and  more  to  eastern  forms.  The  wide  prevalence 
of  advances  for  mining  and  agricultural  purposes, 
dependent  largely  on  seasons  and  yield,  the  enterprise 
stirred  by  the  fast-developing  resources  of  a  new  coun- 
try, and  the  speculative  character  of  the  people,  re- 
quire more  liberal  concessions  from  banks  than  in  the 
settled  east,  as  marked  also  by  the  higher  banking 
rate  still  maintained  here.18  This  requirement  was 
more  pressing  in  early  days,  and  corporations  which 
hesitated  to  enlarge  their  risks  had  to  retire.19  The 
new  generation  of  banks  largely  accepted  mining 
stock  as  security,  especially  in  the  seventies,  although 
with  the  wide  margin  called  for  by  their  rapidly  fluc- 
tuating values.20  Notwithstanding  these  hazardous 
operations,  failures  were  comparatively  few,  and  not 
until  1877  was  a  panic  precipitated  by  the  collapse 
of  inflated  mining  stocks,  assisted  by  the  general 
impoverishment  through  speculation  therein,  and  by 
business  stagnation,  which  again  fostered  a  communis- 
tic and  anti-Chinese  agitation.  Confidence  had  also 
been  shaken  by  the  temporary  suspension,  in  1875,  of 

17  Money  is  from  8  to  10  per  cent  per  month,  and  there  have  been  loans  at 
from  12  to  20  per  cent,  observes  Sac.  Transcript  as  late  as  Jan.  14,  1851. 
Commercial  paper,  1  per  cent  per  day  discount.  The  leading  bank  at  Sacra- 
mento paid  ten  per  cent  interest  on  deposits  in  1850.  Wheaton's  Stat.,  MS., 
9;  8.  Josi  Pioneer,  June  2, 1877.  In  1849-50, 1 5  per  cent  was  a  common  rate  for 
sums  even  above  §5,000.  SchmkdelFs  Stat.,  MS.,  2.  The  attempts  of  the  legis- 
lature to  check  usury,  etc.,  by  enactments  could  do  no  good  save  at  exceptional 
periods,  for  which  they  were  not  intended.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1856,  248-51.  Com- 
ments in  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  2G-8,  Feb.  5,  20-6,  March  3,  18,  1856;  AUa  Cal, 
March  30, 1858,  etc.  High  interest  goes  hand  in  hand  with  demand  and  pros- 
perity; restrictions  are  reactive  and  foster  fraud.  People  can  be  trusted  to 
manage  money  as  they  do  other  things.  With  declining  rates  and  pressing  com- 
petition, prudent  bankers  found  the  risk  growing  beyond  profits.  See  Shermans 
Mem.,  i.  103,  etc.  Gold-dust  was  after  1852  brought  mostly  direct  from  the 
camps.  Deposits  were  drained  by  every  fortnightly  steamer.  Adams  &  Co. 
alone  used  to  send  home  §500,000  every  month  for  miners. 

8  Reported  at  6  to  7  per  cent  in  S.  F.,  in  1889,  and  8  to  10  in  the  interior. 

"  Like  Lucas,  Turner,  &  Co.     Several  firms,  like  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co., 
disappeared  under  the  frown  raised  by  a  neglect  to  promptly  fulfil  obligations. 

**  The  Nevada  Bank,  with  a  capital  of  $10,000,000,  opened  in  Oct.  1875, 
advanced  money  on  mining  stocks. 


STOCKS  AND  FAILURES.  163 

the  bank  of  California,  the  leading  institution  in  the 
state,  brought  about  by  the  imprudent  operations  of 
its  president.21 

The  panic  brought  down  a  number  of  lesser  estab- 
lishments, but  it  gave  a  salutary  check  to  stock  spec- 
ulation and  reckless  loans.  The  depression  continued 
for  some  time,  however,  partly  owing  to  the  new  con- 
stitution of  1879,  which,  by  calling  for  largely  increased 
taxation  on  capital,  drove  away  some  rich  men,  im- 
posed a  restraint  on  investments  in  many  directions,22 
and  diminished  deposits  at  the  savings  banks.  After 
1880  a  revival  became  perceptible,  as  shown  by  the 
augmented  clearances  at  the  clearing-house,  from 
§486,000,000  in  1880  to  $844,000,000  in  1889.  In 
July  1889  there  were  117  commercial  banks,  with  re- 
sources placed  at  over  $108,000,000,  paid-up  capital 
$37,600,000,  and  $50,600,000  due  depositors.23  The 

11 W.  C.  Ralston.  With  marked  business  ability  and  tact,  he  had,  as  mem- 
ber of  the  Garrison  and  other  banking  firms,  won  the  confidence  of  the  commu- 
nity by  judicious  advances  to  houses  of  standing.  This  influence  enabled  him 
in  1864,  after  a  decade  of  success,  to  enlist  D.  O.  Mills  and  other  capitalists  in 
the  establishment  of  the  Bank  of  CaL  AUa  Col.,  June  16,  1864.  His  experi- 
ence and  energy  speedily  gained  for  him  the  sole  control  of  its  affairs,  finally 
as  president.  Of  this  position  he  took  advantage  to  indulge  in  speculations 
of  his  own,  and  to  promote  undertakings  of  doubtful  promise,  thus  absorb- 
ing within  a  few  years  nearly  the  entire  paid-up  capital  of  the  bank,  amount- 
ing to  §5,000,000.  This  state  of  affairs  was  long  hidden  by  the  exhibition 
of  borrowed  bullion  on  examination  days.  Nevertheless,  the  disclosure 
came  on  Aug.  26,  1875,  and  on  the  very  same  day  Ralston  found  hia 
death  in  the  bay.  His  lavish  patronage  of  industrial  enterprise  and 
plans  for  pnblic  improvements,  his  generosity  and  princely  hospitality,  had 
made  him  a  favorite  with  a  certain  class,  which  rose  in  defence  of  his  repu- 
tation when  assailed  at  his  death.  See  S.  F.  Chron.,  Call,  and  other  journals 
of  the  day;  special  disclosures  in  S.  F.  BulL,  July  27,  1876,  and  Jfatthewsons 
Stat.,  MS.,  11—12.  No  bank  so  heavily  involved  has  perhaps  ever  recovered, 
but  the  stockholders,  including  several  millionaires,  feared  that  greater  loss 
would  follow  abandonment  than  resumption,  and  foresaw  litigation  touching 
their  responsibility,  and  headed  by  D.  O.  Mills,  they  promptly  subscribed  the 
capital,  and  restored  the  bank  to  its  old  position. 

M  The  bank  of  Nevada  reduced  its  capital  from  $10,000,000  to  $3,000,000, 
and  others  followed  its  example.  The  $75,000,000  deposits  at  the  savings 
banks  in  1878  melted  by  1881  to  less  than  §50,000,000;  the  commercial  banks 
lost  $8,500,000  in  capital  and  surplus.  One  effect  was  to  draw  the  masses 
from  stock-gambling,  which  had  reached  an  average  of  §150,000,000  for  sev- 
eral years,  and  to  diminish  their  debt  to  the  banks,  notably  on  mortgages; 
but  this  was  not  an  unalloyed  benefit,  since  it  also  indicated  a  stagnation  in 
business.  The  consequent  decline  in  rates  of  interest  led  to  large  investments 
by  banks  and  individuals  in  U.  S.  bonds. 

n  Other  liabilities  about  $7,000,000;  cash  on  hand,  $16,000.000;  surplus 
and  reserve,  §13,400,000.  There  were  also  35  national,  34  private,  and  5 


164  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

savings  banks,  which  properly  date  from  1857,  had 
increased  to  28  stable  concerns,  with  $96,000,000  in 
resources,  and  over  $87,000,000  in  Deposits.  The 
first  one  was  the  San  Francisco  Savings  and  Loan 
Association,  founded  in  1854  by  Albert  Miller  and 
Henry  Meiggs,  its  interests  being  incorporated,  three 
years  later,  with  the  Savings  and  Loan  society,"4  of 
which  E.  W.  Burr  was  president  and  Miller  vice- 
president. 

The  fluctuations  in  the  price  of  gold,  varying  from  $10 
in  1849to$l72iinl851,waslongignoredbytraders,and 
this  neglect,  together  with  the  prevailing  liberal  disre- 
gard for  a  pinch  more  or  less  in  disbursements,  favored 
many  tricks  and  frauds.26  Although  gold-dust  passed 

branches  of  foreign  banks.  In  1880  the  banking  establishments  of  the  state 
numbered  111.  Of  these,  74  were  incorporated  companies,  not  subject  to 
national  banking  law;  8  national  banks,  and  a  number  of  foreign  establish- 
ments. The  commercial  proper  numbered  54,  and  the  savings  institutions  20. 
The  74  companies  had  on  July  1,  1881,  a  paid-up  capital  of  $24,000,003, 
$11,000,000  in  surplus  and  reserve  funds,  $14,870,000  in  U.  S.  bonds, 
$11,000,000  in  cash,  and  $82,700,000  belonging  to  depositors.  The  S.  F. 
clearing-house,  dating  1876,  the  only  one  on  the  coast,  exhibited  the  amount 
of  $486,000,000  for  1880,  against  its  maximum  figure  of  $844,000,000  in  1889. 
Reports  of  bank  commissioners;  periodical  reviews  in  journals;  special  infor- 
mation in  Burnetts  Jiewl.,  MS.,  ii.  330-66,  412-38;  Mills'  Stat.,  MS.;  Sher- 
mans Mem.,  i.  132-8;  Bankers  Mag.,  x.  276;  Frisbies  Remin.,  MS.,  37-8; 
Colemans  Vig.,  MS.,  166-8. 

24  The  first  stable  institution  of  this  class.  It  was  at  first  able  to  pay  18 
per  cent  in  dividends.  The  rates  charged  ranged  from  17  per  cent  in  I860 
to  6  or  7  in  1SS9,  though  the  rate  was  gradually  reduced  until  for  1889 
savings  banks  dividends  were  about  4  per  cent  for  ordinary,  and  5  to  5.^  per 
cent  for  term  deposits.  The  Savings  and  Loan  was  followed  by  the  Hibernia 
and  others,  till  they  numbered  '28,  with  $75,003,000  deposits  at  the  close  of 
1877.  Then  banks  were  placed  under  govt  supervision,  which  reduced  the 
number  to  a  score,  weeding  out  the  weaker  ones,  and  reviving  the  confidence 
shaken  by  the  disastrous  crisis  of  1877.  See  reports  of  bank  commissioners 
and  of  the  different  banks.  The  28  savings  banks  in  operation  on  the  1st  of 
July,  1889,  had  a  paid-up  capital  of  $5,100,000;  surplus  and  reserve.  $3,100,- 
WO;  cash  on  hand  and  in  other  banks,  $4,600,000;  loans  on  real  estate, 
$',>4,300,000;  loans  on  stocks  and  bonds,  $7,000,000;  investments  in  stocks 
and  bonds.  $17,250,000.  The  average  deposit  in  1878  was  about  $700,  and 
was  somewhat  larger  by  1889.  See  reports  of  bank  commissioners.  Hew- 
lett s  Stat.,  MS.,  11-12;  Overland  Monthly,  xi.  267-72;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Dec.  29, 
1889. 

*•  At  a  meeting  in  1848.  In  many  interior  places  it  fell  far  below  $10. 
Simpsons  A  urr.,  6;  Vattejo  Doc.,  MS.,  xxxv.  68;  Unbound  Doc.,  143;  Dally  a 
Aam,  MS.,  51-3.  The  price  was  formally  advanced  in  1851  to  $17  and 
>I7.40,  at  which  it  long  remained.  Crosby's  Eetnla,  MS.,  20.  Brn.nnan  bought 
gold  from  Ins  Mormons  as  low  as  $5  per  ounce.  linen's  Mem.,  MS.,  69;  Cal. 
Citron.,  May  20,  1856. 

M  Admixtures  of  black  sand,  etc.,  were  common;  spelter  and  packages  with 


GOLD-DUST  AND  COINAGE. 


as  currency,  the  demand  for  stamped  coin  became  so  im- 
perative for  custom-house  payments  and  general  con- 
venience,*1 that  several  private  establishments  began 
to  coin  money  ,*  from  pieces  of  two  and  a  half  dollars  to 


spurious  dsatandesm  were  p»asi-il  S.  F.  PSeaymme,  OcL  14,  185ft  Gold  from 
low-grade  districts  was  transferred  to  others  far  admixture  with  higher  qnali- 
Scales  were  taumend  with,  weights  were  made  fejhft,  MM  mwewaxed 
v  P-  .-^l  w  1^.  „-.,...  -~.-»f^*-~«f 


to  seiae  upon  gold.     v  P-y  .-^l  w  1^.  „-.,... 
1855.  Z*rs»,  floe.,  MSu,  riL  28;  Jfi«t   #«t  Pop.,  MS.,  doe.  34;  Placer 
TMKS,  Apr.  a*.  USD;  &K.  rnmerifrf,  Jan.  39,  185O, 

Zfer., 


>  See  complaints  m  01  &.  GM* /fee.,  Cong.  31,  Seas.  1.  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  n. 
C43,ete.;  fiacre's  TOTT,  254,  Indiam  gare  frequently  an  ounce  of  gold  for  a 
sirrer  doBar. 

•At  first  rectangular  bars  worth  $20  and  $50;  then  gold  pieces  of  $21, 
$5,  $10,  $20,  125,  and  $50,  resembling  national  coins,  with  eagles  and  other 
( of  the  coiners,  and  usually  the  initials  a  M.  V. 
Valufi     although  mostly  somewhat  bdow  this.     The  alloy 
sQrer,  which  imparted  a  gi  imy  tint.     One  third  were  fuDy 


to  the  U.  8.  isjutu,  some  without  afioy,  several 


•  -----: 

,„    y.  ^ 


to  pass  unchallenged  by  traders,  but  the  rest  had  to  submit  to  a  discount  of 
from  50  ets  to  $2  for  every  ten  daDars.  The  difference  between  the  price  of 
dust  at  $16  or  $17  and  the  £aee  raise  left  the  coiners  suftoent  profit.  The 


Philadelphia  mint  reports  in  1S51  upon  the  coinage  of  fifteen  private  Califor- 

Kins-  mVBKmwL  'WltJO  uPIMB  4f94?  wO  lOttT  •BCT'rtTwintMVyff****!^  Ouf  ^?ff**%  49usC!fi~          1*      n  OCustfl  V  d!&~ 


its  daim  to  the  foU  weight  of 


withowt 
2L 


-*tr«-y.  eagles  and  balf-eagies,  were  nmed  by  the  Oregon  Exchange 
iy.  3.  The  Miner's  bank  iainfd  a  plain  ten-dollar  piece,  worth  from 
>9BLS7.  4.  MolE**  COL,  i«18«9  and  1890,  isntated  the  national  fire 


$».75to$9.S7.    4,  MofiatftCo.,  m  1S49 and  1850, 

and  ten  dollar  pieces  with  an  average  rame  of  $9.97.    5.  J.  S.O.: 

dollar  piece  worth  $9.37.    6.  Templeton  Beid  made  a  twenty-fire-dollar 

piece  worth  without  the  aDoy  $24.50,  and  a  ten-dollar  piece  vabud  at  $9.75. 

7.  The  Cincinnati  Mining  and  Trading  company,  IS®,  coined  fire  and  ten 

dollar  pieces,  worth  $1.95  and  $9.70,  respectrrdy.     &  The  Pacific  company. 


,  .  ..  .  . 

1SI9,  coined  irregnlar  and  debased  five  and  ten  dollar  pieces,  worth  about 
$1.48  and  f7.8&  9.  A.  pretty  fire-dollar  piece  debased  with  copper  was 
nade  by  the  Mi»»lim.tli  and  California  company,  18i9.  10.  Baldwin 


CoLisHed  fcarTariHini  i  fire-dollar  piece,  1850,  and  a  1  1 
1861,  in  imitation  of  the  national  coinage,  a  twenty-dollar  piece,  and  a  ten- 
dollar  piece,  1S30,  the  latter  stamped  with  a  momnted  caballero  handling  a 
SMBOU  1L  Dnbosq  ft  Co.  iititatrd  the  national  coinage  in  ten*  and  fires 
averaging  par  rane.  12.  Shnltz  ft  Co.,  1S51,  fmitateif  national  •»•  iliillii 
pieces,  worth  ff  97.  13.  The  Mormon  coin  was  exeented  in  Utah,  thoogh 
compooed  of  Calif  orniaaeold.  There  were  four  denominations,  two  and  a  half, 
fire,  ten,  and  twenty  dollar  pieces.  They  were  irregular  in  weight  and  fine- 
ness, areraging  about  $&50  to  the  ten  dollars.  14.  Donbar  ft  COL'S  imita- 
tion  of  the  national  fire^dollar  pic  mis«iyed  about  $J.98L  15.  The  fifty-dollar 
piece  or  shg  of  the  United  States  sMiyti  at  San  Fr  isiBMSy  AaMslns  Hnnt- 
bert,  appointed  by  act  of  congress  in  1S50,  was  folly  np  to  its  alleged  Yahw 
when  caned,  hut  not  being  hardened  by  copper  the  wear  was  rapid.  This 


, 

piece  was  octagonal  in  shape,  stamped  880  and  887  fine,  the  iuasMii  wi 
two  and  three  quarters  ounces.     Stamped  ingots  were  also  used  as  currency 
-in  those  days.    The  inconvenience  arising  front  the  nse  of  the  stag,  or  fifty- 
donar  piece,  induced  Wass,  Moiitor,  ftCo.  to  issue  in  January  1858  a  new 
five-donarpiece,  surrounded  by  a  raised  milled  edge,  and  superior  in  •«*  t* 


166  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

fifty -dollar  'slugs,'  which  found  general  circulation  for 
some  years.  Some  proved  of  even  higher  value  than 
the  legal  coin,  but  others  were  defective  and  suffered 
rebate.  Silver  coin  was  imported  in  large  quantities 
from  different  parts  of  the  world  by  shrewd  traders, 
who  relying  on  the  unscrutinizing  extravagance  of 
these  days  passed  inferior  denominations  at  some 
twenty  per  cent  or  more  above  their  real  value.  In- 
deed, silver  was  frequently  raked  into  the  drawer  with- 
out counting  or  inspection,  and  anything  approaching 
in  size  and  appearance  a  half  or  quarter  dollar  piece 
was  accepted  as  such,  and  smaller  pieces  for  a  bit.29 

any  hitherto  made  in  California.  It  was  a  fac-simile  of  government  coin,  ex- 
cept on  one  side  was  stamped  '  W.  M.  &  Co., 'and  on  the  other,  'In  California 
gold. '  The  value  of  this  coin  was  four  cents  more  than  that  of  the  govern- 
ment, having  a  uniform  standard  of  880  fine,  and  weighing  131.9  grains,  with 
no  other  alloy  than  that  of  the  silver  which  combined  naturally  with  the  gold. 
Their  coining  machinery  was  in  Naglee's  building  on  Merchant  street,  after- 
ward for  13  years  occupied  by  the  author  as  a  part  of  his  book  and  station- 
ery establishment.  They  could  coin  seven  or  eight  thousand  dollars  a  day, 
including  correspondingly  good  ten-dollar  pieces,  which  were  all  readily  re- 
ceived on  deposit  by  the  banks.  Some  of  the  coining  machinery  brought  out 
by  different  trading  companies  found  its  way  to  Sacramento,  where  J.  S. 
Ormsby  &  Co.  struck  coins  for  miners.  According  to  the  S.  Jos6  Pioneer,  May 
5,  1877,  their  royalty  was  20  per  cent.  Bankers  resolved  in  1851  to  decline 
all/private  coins;  but  Adams  &  Co.  insisted  on  their  accepting  those  of  Wass, 
Molitor,  &  Moffatt,  and  traders  found  it  good  policy  to  countenance  many 
more.  By  raising  the  price  of  dust  to  $17,  the  banks  did,  however,  interpose  a 
check,  as  did  the  attempt  of  the  government  in  1852  to  refuse  even  the  slugs 
issued  under  its  auspices,  a  step  which  for  a  time  placed  legal  coins  at  a  high 
premium,  as  had  been  the  case  in  1848-9  for  custom-house  duties.  The  legis- 
lature passed  an  act  to  prevent  private  coinage,  but  repealed  it  on  March  25th, 
and  issued  another  on  Apr.  21st,  obliging  coiners  to  mark  the  actual  value  on 
their  issues,  and  redeem  them  with  legal  money.  Cal.  Statutes,  1851,  171,  404. 
The  establishment  of  the  mint  in  1854  proved  the  best  restraint,  and  in  1856 
the  final  condemnation  was  passed  on  private  coins.  Alta  Cal.,  March  28,  Apr. 
1,  1851;  Oct.  24,  1852;  Oct.  5,  12,  1854;  Apr.  10,  1856;  Nov.  28,  1868;  Pac. 
tfews,  May  9,  Sept.  21,  Nov.  11,  1850;  Feb.  1,  Apr.  5,  9,  17,  1851;  Cal. 
Courier,  March  6,  1851;  S.  F.  Herald,  Feb.  8,  Oct.  15,  1851;  Jan.  17,  1852; 
Sac.  Union,  Apr.  30,  1855,  etc. ;  Polynesian,  vi.  J26;  vii.  130;  Garniss'  Early 
Days,  MS.,  12;  Placer  Times,  Feb.  23,  1850;  Mountain  Democ.,  Nov.  25,  1854; 
Hunts  Ma(j.,  xxix.  236,  743.  Dickeson'a  Amer.  Numismatic  Man.  contained 
engravings  of  California  coins.  In  Mexican  times  hides,  cattle,  etc.,  had  to 
supply  the  lack  of  coin. 

a  A  trader  imported  $100,000  Austrian  zwanzigers  at  17  or  18  cts  and 
passed  them  for  25  cts.  Fernandez,  Cal.,  MS.,  175-6.  Stout  found  15-ct 
coins  passed  for  25  cts.  First  S.  S.  Pioneers,  120;  Smiley's  Via.,  MS.,  19. 
irancs,  English  shillings,  Danish,  East  Indian,  and  other  coin  circulated, 
san  Franciscan  precautions  drove  the  debased  foreign  coinage  after  some 
years  to  the  interior,  where  it  still  commanded  a  premium,  even  after  Stock- 
ii  banks  in  Oct.  1854  resolved  to  recognize  francs  only  at  20  cts  and  other 
oins  in  proportion.  Soon  afterward  the  5-ct  piece  began  to  circulate;  yet  to 
tnis  day  dealers  accord  it  only  partial  acknowledgment. 


ASSAY  OFFICE  AND  MIST.  167 

In  1850  the  government  provided  for  an  assay  office 
at  San  Francisco,  and  although  a  merely  semi-official 
establishment  was  opened,30  it  rendered  good  service 
in  checking  inferior  coinage  and  correcting  irregulari- 
ties with  gold-dust.  Two  years  later  an  appropriation 
was  granted  of  $300,000  for  a  branch  mint,31  which 

"The  agent  in  charge,  A.  Humbert,  made  contracts  with  private  firms  to 
iscoe  stags,  etc.  Crane,  Pott,  28-9,  condemns  it  as  a  'sharing  shop.'  The 
legislature  passed  an  act  Apr.  20,  1850,  for  the  appointment  of  an  assayer. 
Placer  Times,  May  22,  1850.  Kohler  was  appointed.  Soe.  Tnaucript,  June 
29,1850. 

31  For  measures  to  this  end  since  1850,  see  U.  8.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Seas. 
2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  i,  p.  10;  Cong.  32,  Sess.  1,  Doc.  92,  v.,  Doc.  132,  xiii.;  Id.,  H. 
MisceL  Doc.  60;  petitions,  in  Uubond  Doe.,  136-7;  Hayt*'  Mimmg  ArdL, 
MS.,  L  5;  Id.,  Pmh.  Lanes,  11-13;  Pac.  Xeux,  May  13,  Nov.  1,  1850;  comments 
of  Gwin,  Mem.,  67,  81,  who  introduced  the  ML  N.  An.  Rev.,  Ixxv.  410-24; 
Aita  CaL,  Apr.  13, 1852.  The  absence  of  a  mint  was  estimated  to  cause  a  loss 
of  $10,000,000  a  year  to  the  state.  Curtis  &  Perry,  assayers  on  Commercial 
st,  contracted  with  the  government  to  make  certain  additions  to  their  estab- 
lishment and  pot  in  the  necessary  machinery  for  the  sum  of  $296,000.  The 
contractors  turned  over  the  mint  to  L.  A.  BirdsaH,  the  superintendent,  and 
all  was  ready  for  the  reception  of  gold-dost  the  3d  of  April,  1854.  The  new 
machinery  was  manufactured  in  Philadelphia,  under  the  supervision  of  George 
Eckfeldt  of  the  U.  S.  mint,  and  put  up  conjointly  by  tiimo«Jf  and  hist  son, 
John  M.  Eckfeldt,  the  first  coiner.  J.  B.  Snyder  was  the  first  treasurer, 
John  Hneston,  melter  and  refiner,  A,  Haraszthy,  assayer,  and  there  were  some 
25  assistants.  For  assaying  and  running  into  bars,  the  then  prevailing  local 
charge  of  one  half  of  one  per  cent  was  made.  For  assaying  and  refining,  the 
rate  was  11  cents  an  ounce,  or  six  tenths  of  one  per  cent.  Half  of  one  per 
cent  additional  was  charged  for  coining,  thus  making  the  whole  cost  for  turn- 
ing gold-dust  into  coin  1.10  per  cent.  Seven  eighths  of  one  per  cent  was  the 
Philadelphia  rate.  At  this  time  only  one  private  coining  establishment  was 
in  operation  here,  that  by  Kellogg  ft  Richter.  It  is  estimated  that  only  one 
fourth  of  the  gold  so  far  produced  had  been  coined  in  S.  F.  A  description 
of  the  mint  is  given  in  Alia  CaL,  Apr.  5,  Sept.  25,  1853;  Jan.  4,  March  28, 
Apr.  4,  May  16,  1854,  and  other  papers;  and  a  view  in  Ammalt  S.  F.,  526. 
For  cost  and  later  appropriations,  with  salarim,  see  U.  S.  Goo.  Doe.,  Cong. 
33,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doe.  3,  ii.  357;  Cong.  34,  Sess.  3,  Doc.  32,  v.;  Htad't 
Mag.,  xxxL  228;  xxxiiL  353-5;  Golden  Era,  Dec.  18,  1853;  Hayes'  Mating,  L 
90.  Operations  were  temporarily  suspended  on  several  occasions  within  the 
following  three  years.  P.  Lott  succeeded  as  snpt  in  1853,  salary  $4,500. 
8.  P.  BmOetim,  Nov.  14,  1855,  Oct.  10,  Nov.  1, 1856.  In  1857  several  charges 
of  embezzlement  were  preferred  against  employes.  The  coinage  for  l&>4-6 
amounted  to  $9,731,574,  $21,121,752,  and  $28,516,147,  respectively,  of  which 
$164,075  and  $200,609  were  in  silver  for  1855-6,  mostly  quarter-dollars,  and 
about  half  as  many  fifty-cent  pieces.  The  gold  embraced  over  2,000,000 
double  eagles,  some  200,000  eagles,  150,000  half-eagles,  some  three-dollar, 
quarter-eagle,  and  dollar  pieces,  besides  some  $12,000,000  in  bars.  U.  S.  Gov. 
Doe.,  Cong.  35,  Sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  3,  L  72-80.  The  pressure  of  business 
under  the  growing  silver  production  led  congress  in  1864  to  appropriate  $300^000 
for  a  more  commodious  structure.  Additional  appropriations  were  granted, 
and  in  1874  was  opened  the  new  edifice  on  Fifth  st,  whose  hollow  parallelo- 
gram, in  two  stories,  covers  an  area  of  160  by  217  feet.  It  is  in  Doric  style, 
with  brick  walls  faced  with  blue-gray  sandstone.  Inauguration  in  &  F.  CaU, 
Nov.  1,  6,  1S74;  AUa  Col.,  May  25.  1S70;  Taylor*  Gate*,  174-91.  The  coin- 
age, which  in  1860  had  fallen  to  $12,000,000,  ranged  between  $14,000,000 


168  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

opened  in  April  1854,  and  gave  quick  relief  to  legal 
currency  by  issuing  over  fifty-nine  millions  by  the  end 
of  1856,  of  which  two  thirds  were  in  double  eagles 
alone.  In  1886,  with  a  coinage  of  $25,000,000,  half- 
eagles  formed  this  proportion.  Attempts  to  circulate 
paper  notes  met  with  little  favor;  and  subsequently  a 
special  legislative  act  prohibited  such  money,32  greatly 
to  the  benefit  of  the  community;  for  by  leaving  to 
California  a  purely  metallic  currency  the  financial 
convulsions  ever  threatening  a  field  so  speculative 
have  been  greatly  softened.  The  eastern  crisis  of 
1851  was  greatly  mitigated  by  gold  shipments  from 
California.  Even  treasury  notes  were  restricted  to  a 
small  circulation  under  the  specific-contract  act  of  the 
state.83 

Early  California  speculations  partook  in  a  marked 

and  §22,000,000,  during  1863-73.  After  this,  the  Nevada  yield  increased  it 
to  $50,000,000  by  1877.  For  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1885,  it  fell  to 
about  §24,000,000,  and  after  some  fluctuations,  stood  at  nearly  the  same 
figure  for  the  year  ending  June  30,  1889.  U.  S.  Mint  Reports;  Hayes'  Mining 
Arch.,  i.  92,  110.  Comment  on  silver  and  currency,  and  their  effect  on  trade, 
S.  F.  Chamber  Com.,  1873,  15-29;  Cal.  demonetization,  1-91;  Buttemer's  Coin- 
age, 1-18. 

One  of  the  ablest  and  most  esteemed  mint  superintendents  was  H.  L. 
Dodge,  the  descendant  of  a  family  which  traces  the  departure  of  its  founder 
from  England  in  1629.  Born  at  Montpelier,  Vt,  Jan.  31,  1825,  he  was  edu- 
cated at  the  state  university.  While  preparing  for  the  profession  of  law,  the 
gold  fever  carried  him  away  to  S.  F. ,  where  he  as  clerk  of  the  court  and  coun- 
cil took  a  prominent  part  in  the  development  of  the  city  during  1849-50. 
Two  years  later  he  was  here  admitted  to  the  bar  and  gathered  a  large  client- 
age, but  soon  abandoned  it  to  join  his  brothers  in  establishing  the  wholesale 
provision  house  of  Dodge,  Sweeney,  &  Co.  After  a  brief  term  as  supervisor, 
he  was  in  1862  and  following  years  sent  successively  to  the  legislative  assem- 
bly and  senate.  In  1877  he  accepted  an  appointment  on  the  U.  S.  treasury 
commission  and  the  superintendency  of  the  mint,  which  he  left  with  a  rarely 
equalled  record  for  judicious  and  honorable  management.  He  subsequently 
served  on  the  U.  S.  Mint  Assay  commission,  as  president  of  the  chamber  of 
commerce  and  of  the  pioneer  society. 

32  Cal.  Statutes,  1855,  128.     Banks  were  already  prohibited  by  the  consti- 
tution from  issuing  paper  money.     F.  Marriott  issued  notes  in  Dec.    1851, 
for  one  and  five  dollars,  under  the  name  of  '  cash  orders, '  but  none  would  ac- 
cept them.     The  common  use  of  gold  created  a  contempt  for  less  tangible 
currency. 

33  Under  which  contracts  define  the  currency  to  be  paid.     Many  patriots 
raised  an  outcry  against  the  discrimination,  but  metal  prevailed,  and  remains 
the  medium  in  19  out  of  20  instances,  although  greenbacks  have  here  recov- 
ered from  their  position  practically  of  merchandise,  and  deprived  gold-note 
banks  of  their  vantage.    The  period  of  1861-5  proved  a  golden  harvest  for  mer- 
chants dealing  with  the  east.     The  present  amount  of  coin  on  hand  within 
the  state  has  been  calculated  at  $80,000,000,  of  which  five  sixths  is  in  mint, 
treasuries,  and  banks. 


RECKLESSNESS  AXD  SHREWDXESL  168 

degree  of  the  gambling  spirit  connected  with  mining, 
and  the  bizarre,  capricious  extravagance  produced  by 
the  sudden  unfolding  of  wealth.  An  independence 
and  daring  prevailed,  which  soared  above  petty  hag- 
gling, and  revelled  in  dashing  operations  and  great  pro- 
jects. Partnerships  and  contracts  were  accepted  on 
the  spur  of  the  moment.*4  Gold  was  taken  by  liberal 
pinches.  Prices  were  regulated  by  an  elastic  con- 
science, guided  by  a  keenness  sharpened  with  experi- 
ence. Men  preferred  to  speculate  at  great  odds  rather 
than  endure  irksome  stagnation,  and  stoical  as  to  the 
immediate  results,  they  were  ever  buoyed  by  the  hope 
of  a  happy  turn.  They  met  the  mockery  of  chance  with 
cheerful  energy  and  recuperative  power,  and  if  over- 
whelmed one  moment  by  some  sweeping  financial 
crash  or  obliterating  conflagration,  they  were  on  their 
feet  the  next,  planning  fresh  undertakings,  and  con- 
structing new  buildings.33 

Although  accident  rather  than  perseverance  brought 
fortune36 — the  happy  speculation  on  the  turn  of  the 

31  And  without  knowing  anything  about  the  partner  or  parties,  adds 
White,  Phmerr,  MS.,  194,  201. 

*Hawley,  Oterv.,  MS.,  7-8,  writes  that  he  was  burned  oat  six  times 
within  less  than  a  year  and  a  half;  and  fceall,  Tig.,  MS.,  15-16,  four  times 
within  14  months.  Of  coarse  many  succumbed.  James  Phelan  was  engaged 
in  trade  at  Cincinnati  when  the  gold  fever  induced  him  to  transfer  hi*  gen- 
eral merchandise  to  3.  F.,  and  there  establish  himself  in  Aug.  1S49  with  his 
brother,  under  the  firm  J.  A  M.  Phelan,  for  which  a  third  brother,  John,  a 
merchant  of  N.  York,  acted  as  frflm-t'i'  agent.  Fires  and  mismanagement 
by  partners  made  inroads  in  time,  but  Mr  Phelan  tinned  to  the  rescue  and 
continued  as  sole  trader  till  1869,  to  devote  Ji™«>lf  to  MB  iaiwest  in  hanking 
and  real  estate,  the  latter  distributed  in  digeienfc  sections  of  the  coast,  and 
including  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  buildings  of  S.  F.  In  1870  he  ^"^p*^ 
to  organize  the  first  national  bank,  as  president,  acting  also  as  director  of  the 
national  bank  of  San  Jose.  He  also  participated  in  forming  the  Western 
Fire  and  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  and  in  pushing  operations  on  the  Pinanvi 
canal.  By  all  who  knew  him  he  was  acknowledged  as  one  of  the  most  enter- 
prising of  our  Cal-  pioneers,  and  as  one  to  whom  the  state  was  indebted  for 
much  of  its  early  prosperity. 

"One  class  of  goods  in  an  invoice  would  frequently  bring  a  fortune,  while 
the  rest  proved  a  loss.  Instances  by  Coleman,  Tig.,  MS.,  155-65;  Dea*'* 
StoL,  MS.,  3.  In  1850  four  firms  contracted  with  a  Chile  house  for  100,000 
to  200.000  barrels  of  flour  at  $14,  each  firm  assuming  responsibility  for 
$700,000,  with  a  forfeit  of  f  100,000.  The  market  rose,  they  speedily  made 
several  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  could  have  retired  with  a  large  surplus 
after  paying  the  forfeit,  but  they  continued  to  accept  the  floor,  which  fell  and 
swallowed  much  more  than  the  profits.  Hitttir*  8.  P.,  213-14.  Cheney  it 
Haad-ine  of  Sac.  made  a  profit  of  $390,000  on  $80,000  invested  in  flour. 


170  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

market,  or  the  fortunate  possession  of  goods  to  meet  a 
demand — yet  shrewdness  and  observation  were  profit- 
able. The  dealer  could  feel  the  market  by  advancing 
his  prices  upon  each  successive  purchaser;  he  could 
sell  one  class  of  goods  on  condition  that  certain  unde- 
sirable effects  should  be  taken;37  he  could  buy  at 
forced  auction  and  send  the  merchandise  to  better 
inland  markets,  or  sell  it  out  on  the  street  corners  at 
great  profit.38 

The  cost  of  handling  goods  and  the  combination  of 
traders  tended  to  maintain  retail  prices  within  certain 
limits,  especially  in  the  interior,  with  its  numerous 
points  of  distribution,  so  that  the  miners  gained  only 
in  a  measure  by  the  decline  at  San  Francisco.  They 
were,  for  that  matter,  the  golden  geese,  to  be  plucked 
primarily  by  the  store-keepers  who  followed  their  trail, 
and  indirectly  by  merchants,  carriers,  and  manufac- 
turers.33 By  maintaining  agents  at  the  chief  martr 
and  communication  with  the  camps,  dealers  at  the  in- 
terior entrepots  could  do  a  safe  and  profitable  trade,40 
and  camp  stores,  with  their  small  and  varied  stock, 
ran  little  risk.  Competition  naturally  caused  great 
fluctuations  also  here,  within  the  bounds  assigned  by 
the  cost  of  local  transportation,  but  if  one  camp  was 
well  provided,  the  supply  train  would  usually  distribute 
its  cargo  in  smaU  lots  at  different  diggings.  Although 
flour  sold  during  the  middle  of  1850  at  fifteen  and 

Crary'a  Vig.,  MS.,  3.  Schwartz,  opposite  Sac.,  from  the  sale  of  melons,  real- 
ized that  year  (1849)  $30,000.  Burnett's  Rec.,  MS.,  ii.  132-3.  White  of  San 
Jose  had  a  patch  of  onions  which  netted  him  over  $12,000  in  1849.  Crosby's 
Event*,  MS.,  128;  Wood's  Sixteen  Mo.,  171. 

87  If  only  to  save  storage.  The  price  for  goods  would  often  differ  widely 
at  different  shops.  Schmiedell's  Slat.,  MS.,  1-2. 

38 Smiley,  Vig.,  MS.,  17-22,  sold  some  crockery  at  $5  a  crate,  and  found 
the  buyer  retailing  it  at  $5  a  piece.  Boots  purchased  at  auction  for  $10  to 
$16  a  pair  were  sold  on  the  street  at  $50  to  $100,  and  so  with  wines,  etc. 
Cokmans  Vig.,  MS.,  155-65.  Butter  at  20  cts  was  sent  to  Coloma  to  sell  for 
80  cts,  etc.;  Oakland  Transcript,  March  12,  1874;  Nealts  Stat.,  MS.,  7-9. 
Unsalable  japanned  waiters  were  transformed  into  valued  torn-irons  for  min- 
ers; the  emptied  bottles  of  seltzer  water  sold  for  more  than  the  original 
cases. 

39  Helper,  Land  of  Gold,  140-1,  bestows  a  wail  over  the  drones. 

40  Sac.  Transcript,  Jan.  14,  1851,  instances  a  successful  firm  of  Sac.,  which 
in  8  mouths  sold  $450,003  worth  of  goods. 


ABSENCE  OF  LAW.  171 

seventeen  dollars  per  hundred-weight  in  certain  interior 
stations,  with  other  articles  in  proportion,  vet  in  these 
early  days  the  rate  was  usually  kept  above  twenty-five 
cents  a  pound.  The  increase  of  light  river  steamers 
tended  mainly  to  reduce  the  cost  of  transport,  for  they 
penetrated  into  most  of  the  tributaries,  and  in  the 
mountain  districts  the  abundance  of  game  served  as  a 
check  on  traders.  Nevertheless,  if  these  were  re- 
strained in  certain  directions,  they  could  always  rely 
on  one  prolific  source  of  revenue,  in  the  extravagant 
and  convivial  habits  of  the  miners,  most  of  whom 
spent  all  their  golden  winnings  at  the  bar  if  not  at  the 
counter.  The  simple-minded  Indians  and  the  prodi- 
gal Mexicans  were  even  more  welcome  customers.41 

The  risk  attending  early  California  commerce  was 
increased  by  the  absence  of  civil  government  and  laws 
to  enforce  the  observance  of  obligations,  midst  the 
general  disorganization.  This  had  to  be  left  to  the 
honor  of  the  parties ;  and  at  first  the  method  worked 
well,  partly  because  the  readiness  with  which  wealth 
presented  itself  reduced  the  temptation  to  defraud. 
Misfortune  always  met  with  consideration,  while  sum- 
mary justice*2  was  apt  to  be  meted  to  suspicious 
parties.  With  growing  pressure  and  strange  admix- 
ture of  men,  trickery  and  rascality  grew  apace.  The 
distance  from,  foreign  and  eastern  claimants  was  great, 
and  evasion  easy,  with  frequent  conflagrations,  and 
pliant  or  fictitious  partners  to  cover  any  manipulation.0 

«The  Indian  were  found  to  be  good  evstonen  from  their  lack  of  appre- 
ciating the  value  of  money,  and  the  readiness  with  which  they  could  be  im- 
upon, especially  to  purchase  baubles  and  inferior  articles.     Bujfnm,  Six 

.,  142^  gire  striking  iMtanm.     Span- 


i«h  Americans  proved  no  less  profitable  from  their  extnvan 
to  spend  money,  as  BeUea,  £fat,  MS.,  55^  found  im  hii  dealings  with  then. 
"There  was  no  tine  to  hunt  rascals;  but  those  within  reach  were  liable 
Garniss  relates  that  a  vadDatiBg  party  to  a  con- 


trar*  wa«  pMaptly  ~— i»A»l  «£  Ai,*j  Ky  K^w^g  I.M  »M»«ri«.  «1LJ  Jn^lpMp 

of  ««edinen  who  wereeridendy  a  waiting  or3erB.  Jbrfa;  DsfA  MS.,  13. 

u  After  great  fires  it  was  Cfleumn  enough  to  fe%n  or  magnify  loeses.  One 
lartner  wouU  seU  to  anodier,  and  when  he  iafled,  b«y  back  the  interest  at  a 
nonunalsnm.  For  false  entries  and  transfers  the  ease  of  Cronin  & .MarMsv 
of  1851  affords  a  trtrisTng  *~-*»~H*  Fraudulent  brokers,  bankers,  insorance 


172  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

The  credit  system  of  California  was  fraught  with 
much  hazard,  aside  from  the  prevalent  spirit  of  specu- 
lation which  required  it;  instance  merely  the  climatic 
influence  on  mining,  particularly  on  so-called  dry  dig- 
gings, where  the  realization  of  many  months  of  labor 
depended  upon  the  brief  rainy  season,  a  season  which 
again  closed  operations  and  intercourse  in  other  quar- 
ters. Payments  were  also  largely  connected  with  the 
success  of  prospectors,  so  that  camp  traders  had  to 
count  upon  many  risks,  which  in  turn  extended  from 
them,  as  the  chief  and  primary  agents,44  to  all  branches 
of  business.  The  organization  of  the  Chamber  of 
Commerce  in  185045  brought  early  remedies  for  many 
difficulties,  but  nothing  save  bitter  experience  could 
check  the  recklessness  and  over-confidence  which 
stamped  flush-time  trading. 

The  main  causes  of  commercial  disasters  were  the 
excessive  and  badly  selected  shipments  which  periodi- 
cally, upon  slight  encouragement,  flooded  the  mar- 
kets,46 to  the  ruin  of  merchants.  Then  came  a  series 

of  devastating  fires  to  undermine  additional  numbers, 

o 

agents,  etc.,  posed  a  while  till  their  net  was  filled.  How  high  interest  could 
rapidly  eat  away  a  large  capital  may  be  seen  from  the  case  of  Glad  win,  Hugg, 
&  Co.,  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  29,  1858.  Adulteration  of  flour  led  to  strong 
measures.  Id.,  Apr.  28,  1856;  Alta  Cal,  Feb.  14,  1852.  Certain  defects 
and  losses  were  ascribed  to  rats.  Nealfs  Vig.,  MS.,  17.  Notwithstanding  a 
prohibition  act  against  lotteries,  Cal.  Statutes,  1851,  p.  211,  these  apertures 
for  deception  and  for  unsalable  effects  continued  to  flourish  for  several  years, 
as  shown  in  my  preceding  chapter  on  society.  There  was  an  outcry  against 
them  in  the  legislature  as  early  as  1854.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1854,  pp.  324-6,  ap. 
7;  1855,  pp.  47-9;  1856,  pp.  514-19,  ap.  21. 

41  To  refuse  credit  was  not  politic  among  so  fraternal  a  class  as  miners. 
Fernandez,  Cal.,  MS.,  178.  Culver  laments  in  1851  the  uncertainty  of  repay- 
ments. Sac.  Directory,  74.  An  unjust  attachment  law,  which  gave  property 
to  creditors  according  to  the  date  of  their  levies,  exposed  to  seizure  also  un- 
paid goods  in  possession  of  the  debtor. 

45  On  May  1,  1850;  incorporated  Nov.  3,  1851.   Pac.  News,  May  10,  1850; 
Nov.  27,  1849,  etc.;  8.  F.  Herald,  June  5,  1850;  Com.  Herald,  Nov.  18,  1867. 
Its  location  was  in  the  merchants'  exchange,  which  had  opened  in  Dec.  1849. 
See  AUa  Cal,  Dec.  15,  1849;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  10,  1859;  Neail's  Vig.,  MS., 
18-20.     Its  annual  reports  have  proved  valuable  for  the  present  chapter; 
likewise  those  of  the  S.  F.  Commercial    assoc.,  aiming  to  protest  against 
frauds. 

46  California  traders  were  less  to  blame  for  this  rush.     They  suffered  also 
from  unprincipled  shippers,  who  would  take  hints  from  orders  received  and 
forward  them  by  slow  vessels,  while  sending  consignments  of  their  own  by 
faster  sailers,  and  so  forestall  the  customer. 


173 

and  affect  every  inhabitant  in  San  Francisco.  Under 
such  circumstances  it  is  strange  that  so  few  panics  are 
to  be  recorded.  The  first,  in  September  1850,  attended 
by  a  'run'  upon  the  banks,  resulted  in  the  suspension 
of  the  pioneer  banking  establishment.  About  the 
same  time  the  three  leading  banks  of  Sacramento 
collapsed  with  a  shock  that  was  felt  throughout  the 
mining  region.^ 

The  second  and  greater  monetary  crisis  occurred  in 
1855,  after  brewing  for  several  years.  A  revolution 
had  gradually  taken  place,  in  the  industrial  and  com- 
mercial condition  of  the  state.  The  diggings  were 
declining,  and  although  nearly  balanced  by  the  devel- 
opment of  quartz  veins,  mining  was  passing  largely 
into  the  hands  of  companies  and  employers,  to  the 
exclusion  of  a  host  of  humble  miners,  who  were  cast 
adrift  to  swell  the  labor  market,  and  lower  incomes  in 
every  direction.  Their  chief  recourse  was  agriculture, 
with  the  effect  of  increasing  the  yield  of  wheat  and 
barley  alone  from  less  than  30,000  bushels  in  1350  to 
over  8,000,000  bushels  in  1856,  and  decreasing  to  a 
mere  trifle  the  import  of  staple  provisions,  which  dur- 
ing the  early  years  had  almost  all  been  introduced 
from  abroad.  The  change  in  occupation  and  income 
produced,  moreover,  additional  contractions  from  re- 
trenchment and  home  production.  Yet  commercial 
circles  remained  stupidly  blind  to  the  variation,  hug- 
ging themselves  with  the  delusion  that  local  mishaps 
and  ephemeral  causes  were  accountable  for  a  depres- 
sion that  must  be  temporary.  And  so  over-trading, 
speculation,  and  extravagance  continued,  with  growing 
indebtedness,  glutted  markets,  and  a  dulness  which  at 
San  Francisco  was  soon  manifested  in  declining  ton- 
nage, tenantless  houses,  and  falling  real  estate  values. 

The  convulsion  began  in  1855  with  the  news  that 
the  St  Louis  parent  house  of  Pasre,  Bacon,  and  Com- 
pany, leading  bankers  of  San  Francisco,  had  suspended. 


^Barton  Lee  made  an    '  mil  inn  nl  en  Aug.  5th,  with  ITn '  TTTl'  i  orer 
$1,000,000;  tbe  firms  of  Healey  and  Wabus  followed  xhortlT  after. 


174 

The  first  manifestation  was  a  run  upon  this  bank, 
which  succumbed  on  February  22d,  followed  by  the 
suspension  of  a  large  number  of  establishments,  nota- 
bly Adams  and  Company.  This  was.  an  express  and 
banking-house,  with  branches  in  almost  every  town 
and  mining  camp  on  the  coast.  It  had  grown  up  in 
the  confidence  of  the  people,  and  among  its  depositors 
were  many  who  had  entrusted  their  all  to  its  keeping. 
When  this  institution  fell,  faith  in  bankers  seemed  for 
the  time  destroyed.  A  financial  storm  swept  over 
the  country,  leaving  in  its  track  disaster,  ruin  and  con- 
fusion. In  San  Francisco  alone,  two  hundred  firms 
failed  that  year,  with  liabilities  exceeding  eight  mil- 
lions, and  assets  estimated  at  less  than  one-fifth  of  this 
amount;  and  yet  the  city  numbered  scarcely  40,000 
inhabitants.  Of  firms  established  before  1850  not  one 
in  tan  survived.  On  the  22d  of  February,  not  then  a 
legal  holiday,  a  quiet  run  was  made  upon  Adams  and 
Company,  and  it  was  said  that  $250,000  and  upwards 
was  withdrawn.  Still  the  general  feeling  was  that 
the  bank  would  maintain  itself,  and  during  the  run, 
while  eager  demands  were  made  by  some  patrons, 
others  came  to  express  confidence  and  to  extend  the 
time  on  their  deposits.  The  officers  of  the  bank,  how- 
ever, looked  with  alarm  upon  anothers  day's  run ;  for 
while  it  seemed  certain  that  its  assets  were  sufficient, 
much  of  its  funds  were  held  in  different  branch  offices. 
Without  this  help,  which  could  not  be  had  in  time, 
because  there  was  no  railroad  communication  with 
any  of  these  offices,  and  telegraphic  lines  to  only  two 
or  three  of  them  near  the  city,  another  day's  run 
would  bs  a  catastrophe. 

A  consultation  with  the  best  legal  talent  on  the 
Pacific  coast  was  had  ;  the  whole  night  of  the  22d  was 
spent  in  efforts  to  meet  the  crisis.  I.  C.  Woods,  part- 
ner and  manager  of  the  bank,  was  of  the  opinion  that 
the  coin  would  give  out  early  in  the  day,  and  in 
this  event  it  was  a  question  whether  excited  and 
suspicious  depositors  would  accept  gold-dust.  Trenor 


A  DEMORALJZESG  FACTOR.  175 

W.  Park  insisted  that  it  would  be  a  hazardous 
experiment  to  offer  gold-dust.  Others  tried  to  pre- 
vail upon  Woods  to  open  the  bank  and  pay  out 
gold-dust  if  necessary,  because  it  was  fairly  current, 
and  because  also  it  would  be  more  acceptable  with 
whatever  discount,  than  to  undergo  the  expense  and 
uncertainty  of  litigation.  But  Park  prevailed.  In 
what  way  then  could  the  bank  be  closed  ?  What 
legal  form  invoked  ?  Superior  counsel  pointed  out 
to  Woods  that  a  petition  in  insolvency  to  liquidate 
the  debts  of  the  bank  pro  rala  had  better  be  made. 
But  finally  it  was  determined  to  appoint  a  receiver, 
and  the  man  selected  was  A.  A.  Cohen,  who  after 
some  demur  consented,  his  bonds  of  $1,000,000  being 
immediately  furnished  and  approved. 

Before  proceeding  further,  it  should  be  here  re- 
marked that  as  to  Mr  Cohen's  receivership,  I  have  in 
the  main  followed  his  own  statement,  in  the  absence 
of  conclusive  evidence  to  the  contrary,  taking  him  at 
his  word. 

It  was  suggested  that,  owing  to  the  excitable  char- 
acter of  the  population,  an  attack  would  doubtless  be 
made  upon  the  bank  and  the  funds  carried  away; 
therefore  it  might  be  advisable  for  the  receiver  to 
remove  the  coin,  gold-dust,  and  valuables.  Cohen 
acted  upon  this  advice;  but  owing  to  the  limited 
time,  it  was  impossible  to  have  the  coin  counted 
and  the  gold-dust  weighed ;  besides,  it  was  not  neces- 
sary, as  Woods  assured  him  that  two  employes  of 
the  bank  had  already  taken  an  account  of  the  contents 
of  the  vaults,  which  were  then  hurriedly  removed  and 
deposited  with  Alsop  and  Company,  private  bankers 
of  San  Francisco.  This  same  morning  the  bank  of 
Adams  and  Company  was  surrounded  by  a  threaten- 
ing and  angry  mob  of  creditors,  who  demanded  pay- 
ment of  their  various  claims.  Similar  scenes  were 
enacted  around  all  the  branch  offices  in  the  state. 

In  those  days  we  were  without  railroads,  and  except 
one  or  two  near  points,  without  telegraphic  connection. 


176  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND   CHARACTERISTICS. 

It  was  therefore  difficult  to  communicate  with  the 
agents  of  the  company,  only  a  few  near  offices  answer- 
ing the  demand  of  the  receiver  by  sending  coin  and 
dust.  The  creditors  in  the  interior,  immediately  they 
learned  of  the  suspension  of  the  bank,  attached  what- 
ever they  could  get,  while  sheriffs  and  constables 
broke  open  safes  and  vaults  of  the  company,  and  took 
away  in  every  case  much  more  than  sufficient  to  pay 
the  amounts  covered  by  the  writs  of  attachment  in 
their  hands;  in  many  cases  the  original  demands 
were  less  than  twenty  dollars,  the  costs  of  these 
amounted  to  four  times  that  sum.  It  was  not  possi- 
ble to  get  possession  of  the  scattered  assets  of  Adams 
and  Company. 

It  became  apparent  to  the  receiver  that  Adams  and 
Company  could  not  resume  business,  and  upon  making 
an  examination  of  the  books  which  came  to  him  from 
the  San  Francisco  office,  he  found  that  the  money 
which  he  had  actually  received  was  considerably  less 
than  the  amount  which  the  books  showed  he  should 
have  on  hand.  It  was  ascertained  that  when  the 
stoppage  of  the  bank  had  been  resolved  upon,  and 
before  the  receiver  had  been  notified,  a  large  amount 
of  gold-dust  and  coin  had  been  removed  from  the 
office  of  Adams  and  Company  to  the  private  assay 
office  of  Kellogg,  Hewston  and  Company,  and  that 
the  gold-dust  which  had  been  received  from  the  in- 
terior on  the  evening  of  the  22d  of  February  had 
been  taken  to  the  same  place.  These  funds  had  been 
dissipated,  whether  rightfully  or  wrongfully,  and  with- 
out remedy.  Part  of  the  amount  was  covered  by 
cash  checks,  while  the  gold-dust  abstracted,  it  was 
claimed,  was  not  the  property  of  the  bank,  and  was 
held  for  the  account  of  those  who  had  shipped  it 
through  the  company  as  an  express  agent.  Finally 
the  attorneys  of  Adams  and  Company,  realizing  that 
there  was  no  possibility  of  winding  up  the  affairs  of 
the  firm  through  a  receiver,  and  not  being  able  to 
induce  any  one  to  accept  this  office  who  could  at  the 


THE  ASSIGNEES.  177 

aaae  time  give  the  necessary  bond,  adopted  the  idea, 
first  suggested  by  John  T.  Doyle,  of  settling  the  es- 
tate by  a  proceeding  in  insolvency.  It  may  here  be 
remarked  that  this  gentleman,  elsewhere  quoted  as 
authority  in  my  California^  has  been,  since  the  early 
days  of  this  state,  a  very  conspicuous  and  reputable 
jurist ;  recognized  not  only  as  among  the  ablest  law- 
yers on  the  coast,  but  as  one  who  can  be  depended 
upon  to  maintain  the  honor  and  dignity  of  the  bar; 
and  withal,  a  scholar  of  rare  culture  and  refinement. 

The  court  entertained  the  petition,  and  three  as- 
signees were  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the  estate 
and  administer  it.  Thereupon  Cohen  did  not  im- 
mediately press  his  application  to  be  discharged  as 
receiver,  but  awaited  the  election  of  the  assignees 
to  whom  he  might  turn  over  his  accounts.  Those 
selected  were  Richard  Roman,  Edward  Jones,  and 
A.  A.  Cohen.  At  once  turning  over  to  the  assignees 
all  moneys  and  property  of  every  description,  the  re- 
ceiver took  a  receipt  for  the  same,  and  thereupon 
pressing  his  application  to  be  relieved,  the  court 
appointed  William  G.  Wood  referee  to  examine  his 
accounts.  Wood  made  his  report,  showing  that 
Cohen  had  fully  and  fairly  accounted  for  ever  thing; 
and  now  the  court  made  an  order  directing  that  his 
bonds  be  cancelled  and  he  be  relieved. 

Soon  afterward  great  confusion  was  caused  by  the 
decision  of  the  supreme  court  that  all  proceedings  in 
insolvency  were  void;  for  the  creditors  of  Adams  and 
Company  thereupon  brought  suit  to  attach  the  funds 
of  that  firm,  now  deposited  in  the  banking  house  of 
Palmer,  Cook  and  Company,  and  garnished  all  the 
debtors  who  owed  them  money. 

The  court  then  required  Cohen  again  to  take  charge 
of  this  property  as  receiver,  which  he  refused  to  do, 
on  the  ground  that  he  had  been  discharged  and  his 
bonds  cancelled.  Meanwhile,  during  his  temporary 
absence  in  the  eastern  states,  the  court  had  seen  fit 
to  order  his  removal  from  the  receivership,  and  to 

HXR.CU..TOL.  VH.   TO. 


178  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

appoint  to  that  place  Henry  M.  Naglee.  Cohen, 
being  required  by  the  court  to  account  for  the  missing 
funds  of  Adams  and  Company,  set  forth  the  facts  as 
above  narrated,  showing  that  he  had  lost  all  authority 
and  control  over  the  same,  and  that  he  had  no  power 
to  account  for  them,  and  was  altogether  unable  to  sur- 
render the  same  to  the  court.  A  suit  was  then  com- 
menced through  Naglee,  on  account  of  Adams  and 
Company,  against  Cohen.  It  was  a  most  vexatious 
suit.  A  o-reat  deal  of  excitement  prevailed,  and  the 
press  of  San  Francisco  preferred  to  lay  all  blame  upon 
and  to  criminate  the  most  convenient  person  for  use 
in  its  articles,  and  manifested  neither  the  disposition 
nor  the  capacity  to  consider  the  embarrassing  circum- 
stances under  their  legal  aspect.  Cohen  was  tempo- 
rarily made  the  scapegoat  for  all  in  the  court-house. 
The  verdict  agianst  him,  by  which  he  was  attached 
and  required  to  give  bond,  was  really  ineffective,  and 
remained  in  statu  quo.  Various  motions  were  made, 
exceptions  taken,  divers  proceedings  were  instituted, 
but  no  judgment  was  entered,  as  it  was  necessary  for 
a  further  accounting  before  any  final  judgment  could 
be  rendered. 

After  waiting  until  1862,  soliciting  investigation  at 
all  times,  and  vindicating  himself  whenever  opportu- 
nity was  allowed,  at  last,  feeling  that  to  permit  ad- 
verse record  against  him  any  longer  was  not  only 
doing  an  injustice  to  himself,  but  was  doing  himself 
and  his  friends  an  injury,  Cohen,  through  his  attor- 
neys, insisted  that  whatever  prosecution  was  to  be 
made  against  him  should  be  made  and  finished  forth- 
with. Hence,  after  he  had  been  imprisoned  for  six 
months,  awaiting  trial  in  the  district  court  of  the 
fourth  judicial  district  of  the  state  of  California,  on 
the  30th  of  June,  1862,  it  was  ordered  by  the  court 
that  this  suit  be  forever  dismissed.48 

48  Alfred  A.  Cohen  was  born  in  London  July  17,  1829.  His  father  was  a 
coffee  planter  in  the  West  Indies,  who  failed  as  the  result  of  the  emancipa- 
tion act  of  1838,  and  was  unable  to  complete  the  education  of  his  son,  who 


CONTUSION.  179 

The  litigation  which  followed  the  first  proceedings 
in  the  failure  of  Adams  aud  Company  lasted  for  nearly 
a  decade,  and  swallowed  up  their  assets.  Under  the 
law  a  bank  could  not  avail  itself  of  its  insolvency  act. 
nor  could  its  creditors  demand  an  equitable  distribu- 
tion. The  amount  received  depended  upon  the  grasp, 
more  or  less  forcibly  fixed  and  tenaciously  maintained, 
by  lawyers  who  divided  the  spoil  with  their  client-, 
aud  not  upon  the  just  amount  of  the  claims.  The 
poorer  depositors,  who  were  not  able  to  fight  against 
heavy  odds,  realized  nothing.  But  from  first  to  last 
the  public  never  understood  how  disaster  occurred,  or 
where  the  money  went  which  should  have  been  in  the 
bank  to  meet  the  claims  of  its  patrons.  The  newspapers 
could  only  recite  those  matters  which  were  made 
known  through  the  courts,  the  courts  were  not  free 
from  the  imputations  of  fraud,  the  rage  of  the  business 
community  against  them,  exhibited  later  by  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Vigilant  committee,  compelled  the 
judges  to  vacate  the  bench,  and  all  was  confusion. 

The  effect  was  continuous,  assisting  in  1856  to  drag- 
down  over  one  hundred  and  forty  firms,*9  but  with  lia- 

was  put  to  the  study  of  the  law,  but  at  the  age  of  fourteen  went  to  Canada 
to  start  in  life  for  himself.  In  1847  he  went  as  clerk  to  Jamaica,  an  i  in 
1849  left  New  York  for  California,  where  be  arrived  in  1850,  engaging  in  the 
business  of  a  commission  merchant  in  Sacramento  and  San  Francisco.  In 
1857  he  was  formerly  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  shortly  after  was  appoime  1 
justice  of  the  peace  for  Alameda  county,  occupying  Ki»»««>1f  also  with  farming 
aad  horticulture.  In  1SG2  he  retired  'from  practice.  He  was  the  builder  of 
the  San  Francisco  and  Alameda  railroad,  which  was  completed  fal  IS64,  and 
afterwards  extended  to  Haywards.  In  1865  he  obtained  control  of  the  San 
Francisco  and  Oakland  railroad,  and  built  the  steamers  El  Capita*  and 
Alameda  —  the  first  double-enders  on  the  coast.  In  1S69  be  sold  ont  his  nil- 
road  interests  to  the  Central  Pacific  company.  In  1867  be  was  admitted  to 
practice  before  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  From  1S76  to  1883, 
when  he  retired  almost  entirely  from  practice,  be  took  only  cases  involving 
large  results,  and  was  usually  successful,  being  for  several  years  employed 
as  attorney  for  the  Central  Pacific,  He  died  suddenly  while  en  route  late 
in  1887  from  New  York  to  his  home  in  *,lam*ri^ 

*  On  Feb.  17,  1855,  the  steamer  brought  news  of  the  suspftmion  of  the 
St  Louis  firm  of  Page,  Bacon  ft  Co.,  and  a  run  ensued  upon  this  bank.  This 
was  well  sustained  with  nearly  $1,200,030  in  the  vaults,  but  five  days  Uter 
die  firm  announced  its  suspension.  Sherman,  Mtm..  L  109-16,  had  been 
warned  of  danger  with  regard  to  the  firm  in  1854,  and  be  states  that  the 
managing  partner  objected  to  freely  exhibit  die  condition  of  the  bank  during 
the  crisis.  It  paid  out  some  9600,000  before  closing  on  Feb.  22d-  Business 
was  resumed,  but  further  bad  news  from  St  Louis  forced  it  Sto  liquidation 


180  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

bilities  of  hardly  three  and  a  half  millions.  The  most 
serious  was  the  failure  of  the  bank  of  Palmer,  Cook 
and  Company,  which  involved  a  number  of  officials,50 
and  shook  the  credit  of  the  state.  Then,  with  a  mis- 
understood uprising  of  popular  power,  California  sank 
into  disgrace  abroad.  But  it  was  only  for  a  time. 
In  view  of  the  apparently  reckless  way  of  doing 
business,  California  has  been  remarkably  free  from 
financial  convulsions,  and  these  misfortunes,  the  only 
great  disasters  during  flush  times,  were  brought  upon 
her  primarily  through  her  connections. 

The  crisis  of  1855-6  was  but  the  clouded  change 
from  the  magnificent  disorder  of  the  golden  period  to 
the  better  regulated  tenor  of  a  setttled  era;  from  the 
speculative  mania  of  general  mining  to  the  sedate 
habits  of  broad  industrial  expansion.  On  the  ruins 
of  mushroom  firms  rose  the  substantial  houses  of  men 
trained  and  purified  by  varied  experience ;  men  who 
had  helped  to  raise  reliable  safeguards  against  hurt- 
ful fluctuations,  and  established  standards  for  more 
legitimate  business,  under  which  San  Francisco  was 
to  retain  the  high  position  gained  as  the  fifth  commer- 
cial city  in  the  union,  and  the  foremost  on  the  Pacific. 

in  May.  Nine  years  later  there  was  still  half  a  million  owing,  besides  in- 
terest, with  a  residue  of  barely  five  per  cent  to  meet  it.  Meanwhile  the 
run  extended  to  other  banks,  among  them  foremost  Adams  &  Co.  The  fail- 
ures for  the  year,  chiefly  connected  with  this  crisis,  numbered  197,  with 
liabilities  over  $8,300,000,  and  assets  estimated  at  only  $1,500, 000.  Among 
these  figured  Markwald  &  Caspari  with  about  $268,000  liabilities,  J.  B.  Bi- 
dleinan  $261,000,  A.  J.  Tobias  $250,000,  E.  Vischer  $192,000,  J.  Middleton 
$180,000,  Chapin  &  Sawyer  $180,000,  Gibbs  &  Co.  $166,000,  T.  F.  Gould 
$145,000,  A.  S.  Wright  $145,000,  C.  H.  West  $144,000,  R.  H.  Chenery 
$140,000,  J.  A.  McCrea  $131,000,  F.  Vassault  $119,000,  M.  A.  Correa 
$116,000,  T.  Sherry  $115,000,  Lepien,  Schultz  &  Co.  $112,000.  Lucas,  Tur- 
ner &  Co  ,  B.  Davidson  &  Co.,  and  Drexel,  Sather  &  Church  sustained  them- 
selves under  heavy  pressure;  Palmer,  Cook  &  Co.,  and  Tallant  &  Wilde 
were  considered  sound  enough  to  escape  the  fury;  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  sus- 
pended only  temporarily  for  lack  of  ready  coin;  but  Wright's  Miners'  Ex- 
change bank  succumbed,  as  did  Robinson  &  Co.  's  savings  bank.  Other  savings 
banks  are  mentioned  elsewhere. 

°*  Who  had  intrusted  it  with  large  sums  of  public  money  on  the  strength 
of  the  surety  offered  for  them.  Its  liabilities  as  bondsmen  for  state  officials 
alone  were  placed  at  $583,000.  Sac.  Union.  Oct.  17,  1855;  July  1856;  S.  F. 
Billion,  Nov.  28,  1855;  July  30,  1856;  Alta  Cal  In  June  1856  the  firm 
failed  for  the  second  time  to  pay  the  interest  on  the  state  bonds  at  N.  York, 
and  to  meet  their  own  drafts  there.  Among  the  leading  bankrupts  were 
Clifford  &  Simmons  for  §355,000.  Friedlander  &  Kirchner  $285,000,  H.  A. 
Breed  $132,003,  H.  B.  Pomeroy  $107,000,  E.  S.  Perkins  $108,000. 


FEAZER  RIVER   EXCITEMENT.  IS1 

The  Frazer  river  excitement  of  1858  placed  a  tem- 
porary check  on  revival,  and  the  civil  war,  while 
imparting  greater  stability  to  Californian  enterprise, 
deranged  the  order  of  affairs  to  some  extent.  Finan- 
cially, it  proved  a  golden  harvest  for  dealings  with  the 
eastern  states,  where  a  depreciated  paper  currency 
prevailed,  while  sales  here  com  manded  coin.  Distance 
and  uncertainty  concerning  the  duration  of  the  strug- 
gle impeded  the  nearer  adjustment  of  values  which 
the  overland  railway  helped  to  establish  after  1869. 
The  effect  on  trade  by  railway  communication  was  at 
first  depressing;  it  cut  off  many  industries,  and  ruined 
many  firms.  Under  diminishing  imports  by  saa,  and 
the  opening  of  the  interior  to  direct  eastern  sources, 
San  Francisco  suffered  hi  particular.  She  had,  more- 
ever,  to  share  the  growing  export,  notably  wheat,  with 
several  bay  ports.  But  compensation  in  due  time  arose 
in  the  general  increase  of  trade,  due  to  growth  of  pop- 
ulation, and  expansion  of  settlement,  stimulated  by 
mining  and  agricultural  developments  throughout  the 
state  and  in  adjoining  territories.  These  remain  trib- 
utarv  to  the  bav  citv  as  the  onlv  scood  harbor  except 

tf  j*  *  «       ™  f 

that  of  San  Diego  along  a  coast  line  of  thirteen  de- 
grees of  latitude,  at  the  gate  of  the  richest  valleys  on 
the  Pacific  slope,  and  consequently  the  main  distrib- 
uting point  for  an  ocean  traffic  which  extends  from 
Alaska  to  South  America,  from  Australia  to  China. 
The  railway  systems  concentrating  at  this  outlet  are 
subsidiary  channels  to  fresh  fields  in  adjacent  states 
and  on  the  Atlantic  slope,  while  a  growing  competi- 
tion facilitates  the  introduction  of  supplies  for  local 
manufactures.  The  manifold  resources  of  California, 
which  exceed  those  of  any  Pacific  coast  region,  and 
her  superior  advantages  in  many  important  indus- 
tries over  countries  in  the  south  and  in  the  orient, 
hold  out  the  prospects  of  an  ever-widening  range  of 
markets. 

So  far  the  proportionately  greater  wealth  among 
the  Pacific  coast  population,  marked  by  higher  wages, 


182  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

and  their  enterprising  and  open-handed  disposition, 
fostered  by  recent  settlement  and  climatic  conditions, 
has  tended  to  promote  a  lively  trade,  far  above  the 
average  for  eastern  states.  This  was  stimulated  by 
the  frequent  renewal  of  mining  excitements,  through 
the  opening  of  fresh  deposits  in  and  beyond  the  state, 
which,  on  the  other  hand,  tended  to  keep  alive  in  a 
great  measure  the  speculative  spirit  of  the  flush  times, 
and  to  stimulate  a  demoralizing  gambling  in  mining 
shares.  By  this  means  a  large  class  was  impoverished, 
and  taxed,  moreover,  with  assessments  to  feed  tricky 
managers,  who  gained  control  of  mines  purely  for 
fraudulent  manipulations  on  the  stock  market.51  Such 
operations  could  not  fail  to  affect  commercial  morality 
to  a  certain  degree,  and  to  endanger  the  standing  of 
the  numerous  banks  and  firms  connected  therewith. 

This  state  of  affairs,  the  wide  collapse  of  mines,  the 
failure  of  crops,  and  the  inflated  value  of  real  estate, 
contributed  to  bring  about  the  financial  crisis  of  1877, 
the  solitary  one  for  a  long  period,  attended  by  bank 
failures  and  a  threatening  attitude  on  the  part  of  the 
laboring  classes,  directed  particularly  against  the  Chi- 
nese.52 With  the  reaction  came  a  more  sound  condi- 

51  Favored  by  loose  state  laws,  unscrupulous  speculators  could  practise 
their  swindles  \vith  impunity.  They  would  acquire  the  management  of  mines 
by  election  tricks,  and  then  use  their  position  to  '  bear  and  bull '  the  shares 
to  their  own  gain,  concealing  valuable  discoveries  made  by  the  diamond  drill, 
or  other  means,  until  the  share  could  be  depreciated  by  damaging  reports  and 
secured;  or  when  lodes  gave  signs  of  exhaustion,  to  unload  the  shares  upon 
a  duped  public  dazzled  by  unwarranted  dividends.  The  directors  contracted 
with  themselves  as  owners  of  quartz-mills,  timber-land,  and  teams,  to  crush 
ore  which  often  was  too  poor  to  pay  the  expense,  or  to  do  other  needless  or 
costly  work,  employed  their  tools  at  high  salaries.  For  all  of  which  the  de- 
luded public  hail  to  pay  in  assessments  or  deductions  from  profits.  The  chief 
men  in  these  transactions  usually  disguised  their  rascality  by  holding  their 
shares  in  the  name  of  trustees,  who  frequently  knew  not  the  actual  owner. 
Within  22  years  fully  §70,000,000  was  thus  extorted  in  assessments  alone. 
In  1872  the  sale  of  shares  amounted  to  §200,000,000,  and  this  was  by  no 
means  the  maximum  figure.  The  levy  was  largely  for  worthless  mines, 
gilded  by  reflections  from  such  glittering  sources  as  the  Crown  Pt  and 
liJcher  mines,  which  yielded  over  340,000,000  in  three  and  a  half  years,  and 
those  of  the  still  richer  Consolidated  Virginia.  For  a  history  of  the  stock 
exchanges,  see  especially  Mininr]  Review,  1878-9,  5-21;  periodical  reviews  by 
different  journals;  references  in  the  chapter  on  mining. 

'*  The  direct  loss  by  the  drought  was  some  $20,000,000.  The  two  leading 
Comstock  mines  alone  shrank  $140.000,000  in  value  within  two  years,  and 
many  disappeared  from  view,  ingulfing  scores  of  supposed  millionaires. 


THE  REACTION.  181 

tion  of  business,  purged  of  many  objectionable  features. 
Impressed  by  the  lesson,  the  masses  widely  abandoned 
stock-gambling  for  more  provident  habits,  and  their 
increased  means,  applied  to  home  building  and  com- 
forts, gave  a  material  prop  to  legitimate  trade,  which 
by  18S1-2  rose  to  unequalled  proportions,  and  con- 
tinued to  acquire  strength  for  the  bright  future  as- 
sured to  it 

California  occupies  a  position  of  rare  importance, 
and  her  influence  reaches  far  beyond  the  limits  of  the 
Pacific  coast  Through  her  the  United  States  have 
been  placed  a  half-century  in  advance  of  other  nations 
in  mercantile  enterprise.  Her  gold  yield,  while  chang- 
ing the  value  of  this  medium  of  exchange,  as  the  early 
Spanish  discoveries  did  that  of  silver,  has  stimulated 
throughout  the  world  an  industrial  and  commercial 
activity  never  before  imagined.** 


**  Amoazthe  leading  ^*v^i  •*  •).  iasarancs,  aad  basiaess  ava  of  this  state 
ti*e  following  are  worthy  of  note: 

WJiiani  Alvord,  ex-president  of  the  bonk  of  CaL,  was  bora  at  Albany, 
K.  Y-,  Jan.  3,  1833,  came  to  CaL  in  1853,  cnadaeted  the  hardware  basiaaN 
of  Airord  aad  HarQaad,  MaryjrflJe,  for  two  years,  aiHn  ahah  he  eoatiaaed 
«he  business  in  Sen  Francisco  voder  the  aaiae  of  William  Aboard  *  Co.. 
anta  1866,  and  was  one  of  those  who  ia  tint  jew  organized  the  Pacific 
.-.-•-z  :  .;-  -_.^- -.--.. -,.-.:  i.-  .:  ^:.-..:-  L_  .  -r  -:  :•.- 


•d.  wuc,  liajlue  of  the  college  of  Oil- ;  president  of  the  SL  F".  art  awo- 
on;  preadsntof  the  Fnilhannanic  society;  Tiee-preadeat  of  the  Lonag 
dab;  Goldea  Gate  puk  com.;  police  coax;  aad  mayor  of  S.  F. 

Diiios  Ogdea  Mills,  who  caaw  so  opportaaely  to  the  rescae  of  the  bank 
af  Calif oraia,  was  a  tnuned  baaker  before  nachiag  thatcaaat.  He  was  also 
fortuiedLy  eaHysdj  rdance;  for  ahfaoaga  hb  father  was  a  bad-holder  aad 
jactace  of  tibe  peace  at  North  Sakaa,  ».  Y.,  where  Darias  was  bom  Seat.  5, 
USS,  be  was  left  to  make  ha  owa  way  sooner  than  expected.  By  1817  ha 
becaineca^S^  and  partner  m  the  Merchaaia' bank  of  Baaalo,  bataaaedby 
the  spirit  of  adreatare,  he  started  ia  1S48  far  Catiforaia,  aad  atoaca  lamacaed 
into  trade  at  Sacramento.  Widim  a  few  awaths  he  had  cleared  $10,000,  aad 


i  after  opened  a  bank  aader  his  name.     Ia  1364  he  lent  his  aid  to  f  oaad 
the  bank  of  California,  holding  the  presidency  till  1873,  after  MJnag  the 
iaatitatioa  to  the  first  rank. 

AaMiag  interior  bankers  niay  W  aMatioaed  Otirer  Sw  Witberfay,  president 
of  &e  consolidated  bank  of  San  Diego,  iato  which  were  merged  the  bank  e* 
S.  D.  and  the  Coaiawraal  bank,  with  the  rank  of  national  bank.    Hi*  career 
exhibits  a  wide  range  of  expeneaee.     BaraatCmnaaaii  Feb.  19,  1S13,  aad 
edacated  at  Miami  university,  he  catered  the  legal  profession,  only  to  yield 
to  the  thirst  ^«r  FT*TH»^ygWyt*y<J«»'™g  ia  Ian  Bfnikaa  •••  ••  •  Bnairamat 

of  Tolonteers,  aad  then,  after  a,  brief  career  as  editor,  to  join  tin  llmaaa 
boaadary  cmaminioa  as  oaarteraaster,  ia  which  chararirr  he  iiiarfcai  Saa 
DiegoialSOl  Here  he  setfled,  aad  was  chosen  tonuauiauat  ftecaaafaria 
the  first  aad  aabnaaeat  legolateres.  la  1S50  be  was  jadce  of  the  first 
jadieial  district,  then  coUector  of  easterns,  and  fiaaDy  he  < 


184  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

A  colleague  and  contemporary  pioneer  is  E.  Weed  Morse,  born  Oct.  16, 
1823,  at  Ainesbury,  Mass,  and  who  came  to  Cal.  in  July  1849. 
shortly  aft?r  by  fever  while  mining,  he  sought  the  climate  of  San  Diego, 
even  then  noted  as  a  health  resort.  Here  he  successfully  engaged  in  general 
trade,  and  took  position  as  a  representative  citizen.  In  1852  he  was  elected 
associate  justice  of  the  court  of  sessions,  and  soon  after  a  city  trustee  and 
secretary.  In  1850  he  was  admitted  to  practice  in  the  district  court.  On 
resuming  trade,  he  received  the  agency  for  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  and  moved 
in  1801)  to  new  San  Diego,  assisting  there  to  organize  the  bank  of  S.  D.,  and 
continuing  as  director  of  its  successor,  identified,  moreover,  with  road  and 
railway  building,  and  holding  office  as  public  administrator  and  county 
treasurer. 

Another  colleague  is  Bryant  Howard,  born  at  Buffalo,  May  17,  1835,  who 
settled  at  San  Diego  in  1807,  and  became  the  first  cashier  of  the  bank  of 
S.  D.,  taking  the  position  in  1879  of  president  of  the  Consolidated  bank, 
which  he  filled  with  honor.  He  has  taken  a  prominent  part  in  the  building 
up  of  the  city,  figuring  as  founder  of  the  Benevolent  society,  as  member  of 
the  citizens'  railway  committee,  treasurer  of  the  Central  Market  co.,  and 
the  Masonic  building  association,  president  of  the  free  library,  and  since 
1880  as  city  treasurer.  He  is  also  a  director  and  founder  of  the  Savings 
bank  of  South.  Cal.  at  Los  Angeles,  where  he  has  other  business  interests. 

To  A.  Pauly  credit  is  due  as  one  of  the  founders  of  the  chamber  of  com- 
merce at  San  Diego,  of  which  he  became  the  president.  He  was  born  at 
Lebanon,  Ohio,  May  24,  1812,  and  reached  Cal.  as  a  pioneer  of  1849,  engag- 
ing first  in  general  trade  in  Butte,  and  then  in  stock-raising  till  1809,  when 
he  moved  to  S.  D.,  landing  the  first  goods  on  Horton's  wharf  for  his  general 
store.  Since  1875  he  has  devoted  himself  to  real  estate  business,  and  to  the 
duties  of  tax  collector. 

A  striking  instance  of  southern  progress  is  presented  in  Santa  Ana,  which 
within  a  few  years  has  risen  from  a  rancho  to  a  town  of  2,500  inhab.  Win 
H.  Spurgeon  was  mainly  instrumental  in  laying  out  this  place,  where  he 
opene.l  the  first  general  store,  still  the  leading  establishment,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Spurgeou  bros.  He  was  born  in  Henry  co.,  Ky,  Oct.  10,  18'2!),  and 
came  to  this  coast  in  1852.  After  mining  for  four  years,  he  returned  home, 
but  could  not  long  resist  the  attractions  of  California. 

James  R.  Toberman,  a  native  of  Va,  came  to  Cal.  in  1859.  After  en- 
gaging iu  several  branches  of  business  in  different  places,  he  became  inter- 
ested in  banking  at  Los  Angeles,  and  entered  politics,  being  elected  to  the 
office  of  mayor  of  Los  Angeles  in  1878.  With  the  prosperity  of  Los  Angeles 
Mr  Toberman  prospered. 

Another  prominent  banker  of  Cal.  is  E.  F.  Spence.  Born  in  Ireland  in 
1832,  he  came  to  Cal.  at  the  age  of  J9,  and  embarked  in  the  drug  business 
at  Nevada  city,  where  he  continued  for  fourteen  years.  In  1869  he  made  a 
tour  of  Europe,  and  on  his  return  went  to  San  Jose,  where  he  first  became 
connected  with  the  banking  business  through  the  San  Jose  savings  bank. 
In  1871  he  went  to  San  Diego,  and  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Com- 
mercial bank;  three  years  after  he  went  to  Los  Angeles  to  organize  a  bank, 
bought  property,  for  which  $500  per  foot  for  the  lot  was  paid,  and  helped  to 
organize  the  Commercial  bank  of  Los  Angeles.  In  1881  it  was  changed 
from  a  state  to  a  national  bank,  Spence  becoming  its  president.  He  became 
connected  with  eight  banks  in  southern  Cal.,  being  president  of  two  of  them. 
During  the  time  he  was  at  Nevada  city  he  filled  the  offices  of  city  trustee 
and  county  treasurer,  and  in  1860  was  elected  to  the  legislature  on  the 
republican  ticket,  serving  a  term  also  as  mayor  of  Los  Angeles  in  1885. 

One  of  those  who  in  1859  organized  the  Hibernia  savings  and  loan  society 
was  the  late  Edward  Martin,  who  was  also  one  of  the  first  trustees,  and  later 
secretary  and  treasurer,  which  offices  he  held  until  his  death.  A  native  of 
hnnescortliy,  Ireland,  where  he  was  born  March  3,  1819,  he  came  to  Cal.  in 
Sept.  1848,  and  soon  afterward  engaged  in  the  real  estate  business.  In  1863 
he  established  the  wholesale  liquor  business  of  E.  Martin  &  Co.,  and  soon 


BANKERS,  INSURANCE  AND  BUSINESS  MEN.  185 

after  wari  became  one  of  the  largest  land-owners  on  the  coast,  with  450,000 
acres  of  farming,  grazing,  and  Umber  lands  in  eastern  Oregon. 

Albert  Miller,  a  native  of  Hanover,  came  to  San  Francisco  in  1851,  and  a 
few  yean  later  became  a  partner  in  a  leading  dry-goods  firm.  In  1861,  in 
conjunction  with  John  Archbald  and  James  de  Fremery,  he  established  the 
San  Francisco  Savings  Union,  of  which  he  has  ever  since  been  president  or 
vice-president.  In  1888  he  was  one  of  those  who  incorporated  the  ^ithnr 
Banking  company.  He  is  also  agent  and  manager  of  the  Central  Gas  com- 
pany, and  is  connected  with  other  l*a«Kng  enterprises,  in  the  management 
of  which  he  takes  an  active  part. 

Among  the  i««ji"g  bankers  of  southern  California  is  Major  George  H. 
Boncbrake,  who  in  1883  organized  and  is  still  the  president  of  the  Los  An- 
geles National  bank.  He  also  aided  in  organizing  the  First  National  banks 
at  Pasedena,  Pomona,  Riverside,  Santa  Ana,  and  Santa  Monica,  the  state 
bank  at  Santa  Paula,  Ventura  co.,  and  others,  which,  like  the  above,  are  in 
a  sound  and  flmii  lulling  condition.  A  native  of  Preble  co.,  O.,  after  guihv 
ating  with  distinction  at  the  Otterbein  university,  serving  with  greater  dis- 
tinction almost  throughout  the  civil  war.  after  practising  law  at  Winchester, 
in  partnership  with  General  Thomas  M.  Browne,  in  1ST*  he  came  to  Los  An- 
geles on  account  of  his  wife's  failing  health,  and  there  be  has  ever  smce 
resided. 

One  of  the  directors  of  the  Los  Angeles  co.  bank  is  Hugh  Livingston 
MacNeO,  a  native  of  Perth,  Can.,  where  he  was  born  Aug.  9,  1850.  In  1876 
be  came  to  CaL  for  his  health's  sake,  and  in  Jan.  following  was  appointed 
teller  and  book-keeper,  and  three  years  later  cashier  of  the  bank,  which 
position  be  held  until  1886.  Meanwhile  be  invested  in  country  and  city 
lands,  and  with  such  n*¥x*m  that,  though  still  almost  a  young  man,  he  is 
now  worth  $1,500,000. 

Prominent  among  the  bankers,  business  men,  and  stock-raisers  of  Siski- 
you  co.  is  Jerome  Churchill,  a  native  of  Elizabethtown,  N.  V.,  who  came  to 
CaL  in  1849,  and  after  following  various  occupations,  in  1S5I  established 
general  merchandise  stores  at  Yreka  and  Humbug  city,  engaging  also  in  the 
freighting  business.  He  is  president  of  the  Yreka  bank,  and  the  owner  of 
three  large  ranches,  on  which  he  raises  hones  and  beef -cattle. 

Channcey  H.  Phillips  was  in  former  years  a  leading  banker  in  San  Luis 
Obtspo  co.,  first  in  partnership  with  H.  M.  Warden,  and  afterward  as  cashier 
and  manager  of  the  bank  of  San  Luis  Obtspo.  A  native  of  Medina  co..  O., 
he  came  to  this  coast  in  1864,  and  after  filling  various  positions,  engaged  in 
ranching  and  real  estate  operations.  In  18S6  he  was  one  of  the  five  men  by 
whom  was  organized  the  West  Coast  Land  co.,  of  which  he  was  the  pro- 
jector. 

By  David  Burns  was  established,  in  1875,  the  bank  of  Sonoma,  of  which 
he  has  ever  since  been  president.  To  him  also  is  due  the  organization  of  the 
Santa  Rosa  bank,  some  years  before  that  date.  A  native  of  Mo.,  Mr  Burris 
is  a  pioneer  of  1849,  and  has  made  his  fortune  principally  by  stock-raising 
in  Tnlare  co.,  in  which  occupation  be  is  still  engaged. 

An^nmg  those  of  central  California  is  John  D.  Stephens,  by  whom  was 
organized,  in  1868,  the  bank  of  Woodland,  which  under  his  able  minyi 
ment  has  paid  nearly  $1,000,000  in  dividends.  A  native  of  Cooper  co.,  Mo., 
but  of  Virginian  parentage,  Mr  Stephens  is  one  of  oar  pioneers,  his  first 
occupation  being  stock -raising  in  Tolo  co..  where  he  was  also  the  first  to 
introduce  sheep  husbandry.  By  him  Woodland  and  h*  neighborhood  were 
furnished  with  a  plentiful  supply  of  cheap  water  and  gas,  and  otherwise, 
especially  in  educational  matters,  he  has  Largely  aided  this  section  of  the 
state. 

Prominent  among  insurance  men  is  William  D.  Garland,  for  many  years 
the  manager  of  the  Equitable  Insurance  co.  of  N.  Y.  Born  Sept.  "27,  1828, 
in  Penobseot  co..  Me,  where,  except  for  a  year  or  two,  his  youth  was  passed, 
he  arrived  in  this  state  in  Aug.  1S50.  Within  17  months  he  made  a  small 
fortune  at  the  mines,  and  returning  east  increased  it  largely  in  the  lumber 


185  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

trade,  but  was  one  of  those  who  suffered  financial  shipwreck  in  the  panic  of 
1857.  Coming  hack  to  this  coast,  after  some  further  mining  experience  in 
Nev.,  he  was  appointed  in  1863  an  insurance  agent  for  the  Mutual  Life  Ins. 
co.  of  N.  Y.,  and  from  that  position  rose  to  be  general  agent  and  manager  of 
the  Equitable.  In  1887  he  retired  from  active  business  with  a  stainless  repu- 
tation and  a  reputed  income  of  §15,000  a  year. 

Among  our  prominent  business  men  was  Andrew  J.  Bryant,  a  native  of  New 
Hampshire,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  when  he  was  18  years  of  age.  In 
1851  he  was  doing  business  in  Benicia,  where  he  was  twice  elected  city  mar- 
shal, afterward  establishing  a  business  in  Sac.,  and  in  1860  in  S.  F.,  continu- 
ing in  business  until  he  was  appointed  naval  officer.  In  1870  he  became 
general  agent  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  the  Brooklyn  Life  Insurance  co.,  and 
was  for  many  years  manager  of  the  State  Investment  and  Insurance  co. 
Mr  Bryant  was  chairman  of  the  Union  party  in  1864,  and  afterward  held 
the  same  position  on  the  democratic  state  central  committee.  In  1875  he 
was  elected  mayor  of  S.  F.,  which  he  held  for  two  years.  He  died  in  1888. 

The  name  of  William  F.  Babcock  has  ever  been  prominent  among  San 
Francisco  business  men.  Mr  Babcock  is  descended  from  a  long  line  of 
English  ancestors,  the  family  in  the  new  world  being  as  conspicuous  as  in 
the  old  world.  He  was  born  in  Mass  in  1820,  and  entered  a  counting-house 
in  New  York  city  at  the  age  of  16,  removing  thence  to  New  Orleans  in  1845, 
and  coming  to  Cal.  in  1852,  conducting  here  the  extensive  business  of  Davis, 
Brooks  &  Co.,  with  which  he  had  been  associated  in  New  York  and  New 
Orleans,  and  taking  charge  of  their  steamers  on  the  Pacific,  finally  becoming 
associated  with  A.  B.  Forbes  in  the  agency  of  the  Pacific  mail  steamship 
company.  In  Feb.  1864  he  was  made  president  of  the  Spring  Valley  water 
works,  and  in  1866  became  a  partner  in  the  house  of  Alsop  &  Co.  Mr 
Babcock  in  1850  married  Miss  Kate  Duer  Babcock,  a  second  cousin.  He 
died  Sept.  22,  1885,  highly  respected. 

A.  B.  Forbes  was  born  in  New  Jersey  July  15,  1824,  and  came  to  Cal.  in 
1849.  He  was  purser  on  the  steamer  California,  and  later  was  made  agent 
of  the  line  at  S.  F.,  in  company  with  Mr  Babcock.  Mr  Forbes  was  alwaya 
a  public-spirited  man,  interested  in  the  welfare  of  the  city. 

Thomas  H.  Selby  was  born  in  New  York  city  May  14,  1820,  entered  the 
dry-goods  houses  of  A.  T.  Stewart  &  Co.  at  the  age  of  17,  after  engaging  in 
business  with  two  brothers  on  their  own  account.  He  married  Miss  Jane 
Williams  of  Stockbridge,  Mass,  who  was  the  mother  of  Clara  W.  and  Pren- 
tiss  Selby,  and  who  died  in  1848.  In  1849  Mr  Selby  came  to  Cal.  and  en- 
gaged in  the  metal  business  in  S.  F.,  where  to  the  day  of  his  death  he 
remained  one  of  San  Francisco's  most  honored  merchants.  He  was  early 
city  alderman,  and  later  mayor.  In  1853  Mr.  Selby  married  in  S.  F.  Mrs. 
Henrietta  I.  Reese,  who  bore  him  six  children,  four  surviving.  Mr  Selby 
died  June  9,  1875. 

Henry  M.  Newhall  was  a  native  of  Saugus;  Mass.  After  a  sailor  trip  to 
the  West  Indies,  he  entered  an  auction  house  in  Phila,  and  conducted  busi- 
ness on  his  own  account  in  Nashville,  Term.  Coining  to  Cal.  in  1849,  after 
a  short  experience  in  the  mines,  he  engaged  in  the  auction  business  in  S.  F., 
where  he  soon  took  the  lead.  He  invested  heavily  in  landed  property,  and 
founded  the  town  of  Newhall  in  southern  Cal.  He  was  twice  married,  first 
at  Nashville  to  Sarah  White,  by  whom  he  had  three  sons,  Henry  G.,  William, 
and  Edwin,  who  succeeded  to  the  business  upon  the  death  of  the  father, 
which  occurred  in  1882.  His  second  wife  was  Margaret  White,  sister  of  the 
first  wife,  by  whom  he  had  two  sons,  Walter  S.  and  George  A.  Mr  Newhall 
was  a  man  of  strong  character  and  sterling  integrity. 

Aimer  I.  Hall,  a  native  of  Wallingford,  Connecticut,  came  to  San  Josd  in 
!49,  where  he  began  the  hotel  business,  the  chambers  of  his  hotel  being 
used  for  the  senate  of  the  first  legislature  of  Cal.  In  1850  he  removed  to 
S.  F.,  where  he  engaged  in  the  auction  business,  and  was  burned  out  in  1851, 
afterward  becoming  the  New  York  agent  for  Newhull  &  Co.  After  the  death 
of  Mr  Newhall,  he  established  the  firm  of  A.  I.  Hall  &  Son  of  S.  F.  He 
married  Miss  Mary  Hall  in  1853,  and  had  three  children. 


BANKERS,  INSURANCE,  AND  BUSINESS  MEN. 


Charles  M.  Plum,  one  of  our  1*»«*™g  merchants  in  the  line  of  fuiuit«i» 
and  uphoktery,  was  bora  in  New  York  city  Dec.  31,  180,  and  cnme  to  CaL 
inlMJ.  Hewaai«mdentoftheMrrhanic«*a»«it«X»iiiil  I  of  the  school 
board,  and  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  Lick  fund. 

Among  tiie  commercial  houses  of  the  Pae  coast  none  rank  higher  than 
tike  great  hardware  firm  known  as  the  Huntington- Hopkins  co.,  in  rnuma 
tiffs  with  -nrhirh  thrniM  1~r  mmtnmril  thr  pr»-^»*-%«f*  «•>»  «^tpwirt»p»,  *H"«t 
GalUfciu.     Born  in  M.  T.  state  Dec.  10,  1 835,  Mr  Gailatin  passed  his  boy- 

"-  -.  :  -  ' 
•to  this  state  in 
;  in  the  Sacramento  store, 
at  that  date  the  only  store  ~of  Huntington,  Hopkins  ft  Co.  Beginning  a?  a 
porter,  he  displayed  such  ability  and  seal  that  in  1868  he  was  admitted  to  a 
junior  partnership,  and  in  1888  was  elected  president  of  the  company  in 
which  the  business  of  the  firm  was  merged. 

One  of  our  leading  liuiim  •  men  and  riniculturists  is  Gustave  Niebaam, 
who  began  life  as  a  sailor  boy  in  tike  service  of  the  Russian  American  co.,  re- 


After  the  transfer,  he  determined  to  try  his  fortune  in  seal  hunting,  and  on 
year  landed  at  St  Pan!  island.     Daring  the  en 


Chiiilmn  ere  of  the 

he 

&  F-,  and  entered  int 
in  1S72  transferring  t 


about  10,000  seal-skins,  with  which  he  came  to 
tnenhip  with  Hutchinson,  Kohl  &  Co.,  the  firm 
terests  to  tbe  Alaska  Commercial  co.,  of  which 

Mr  Niebaam  was  general  manager.     Later  he  embarked  in  various  branches 
of  business,  in  1880  purchasing  a  ranch  of  11.000  acres,  and  engaging  in  ninn 
^•fcmg.  in  which  he  was  very  tmt,tt  iufnl,  his  vintage  for  1884  being  110.000 
j  - 

In  tike  wool  Tiiiiiniii  the  most  prominent  man  is  John  EL  Wise,  of  the 
well-known  S.  F.  firm  of  Christy  and  Wise.  Born  in  Aecomark  co.,  Va, 
July  19,  1329,  and  a  graduate  of  tike  university  of  Ind.,  he  began  life  in  tbe 
employ  of  the  Atlantic  coast  survey.  Coming  to  S.  F.  in  1833,  be  found 
employment  in  the  custom-house,  and  in  1861,  having  meanwhile  passed 
anme  yean  in  Washington,  where  he  was  chief  mMfchw,  first  turned  his 
attention  to  the  wool  business,  taking  into  partnership  Simeon  P.  Christy, 
whoae  interest  was  transferred  in  1876  to  James  Denigan,  from  the  first  an 
employe  of  the  firm.  By  this  firm  is  now  handled  about  one  half  of  the 
entire  wool  crop  of  tike  state.  As  president  of  tike  Commercial  Insurance  eo., 
the  Pacific  States  Savings  and  Loan  co.,  and  other  associations,  Mr  Wise  is 
also  well  known  in  business  and  financial  circles. 

There  are  few  «•»«•£  the  merchants  of  San  Francisco  whose  memory  is 


so  much  respected  as  that  of  the  late  John  Deane,  formerly  a  partner  in  the 
wholesale  dry-goods  house  of  Murphy,  Grant  ft  Co.  A  native  of  co.  Mayo, 
Ireland,  in  1851  Mr  Deane  came  with  his  father  and  his  eloW  brother  Coil  to 
Philadelphia,  and  in  ISM,  after  some  years  of  service  at  tbe  headquarters  of 
that  firm  in  New  Ycrk,  was  promoted  to  a  partnership  in  the  S.  F.  In  snch, 
which  position  he  retained  until  his  decease  on  the  27th  of  April,  18S3. 

Among  our  trading  burinras  men  in  the  line  cf  high  explosives  ts  Julius 
B!^-^»  a  native  of  Hamburg,  where  he  was  born  July  ft  1SS.  After 
receiving  his  education  and  g»«»i»g  an  insight  into  business  in  that  city, 
where  he  was  in  the  employ  of  one  of  the  largest  firms,  he  came  to  this  coun- 
try in  early  manhood,  and  in  partnership  with  Han*  Hitman,  introduced 
Alfred  Nobel's  high  exptoshres,  for  which  the  firm  were  general  agents.  He 
afterward  became  one  of  tbe  largest  stockholders  in  the  Atlantic  Dynamite 
co.,  vfajch  has  now  tbe  most  extensive  !••«•»•  ™  in  this  line.  For  a  number 


of  years  he  conducted  the  selling  department  of  the  Giant  Powder  co.,  whkh 


One  of  the  most  prominent  merchants  and  pioneers  of  San  Francisco  was 
the  late  Joseph  Emrric.  a  native  of  Nouelks.  in  the  sooth  of  France,  who, 
after  receiving  a  thorough  t™j*fm»  training  in  his  native  land,  came  to  this 
const  in  Feb.  1S49L  After  i^gagiag  in  varinoa  orcapariona,  he  began  mrmrtg 


188  BUSINESS  METHODS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

on  the  San  Table  ranch,  near  Berkeley,  where  he  soon  became  the  owner  of 
2,500  acres  of  land,  now  worth  nearly  $l,000,00i).  He  was  also^a  member  of 
the  finance  committee  of  the  board  of  supervisors  for  Contra  Costa  co.  In 
1800  he  established,  in  S.  F.  a  general  commission  house,  importing  largely 
of  French  goods  and  wines  from  Mediterranean  ports.  On  his  decease,  in 
June  18u9,  the  bulk  of  his  ample  estate  was  left  to  his  son,  Henry  F.  Emeric. 

In  the  lumber  business  one  of  the  most  prominent  men  is  Asa  M.  Simpson, 
who  was  born  in  Brunswick,  Me,  in  1825',  and  came  to  this  state  in  Apl 
1850.  After  working  for  a  time  at  the  mines,  he  began  shipping  lumber 
from  S.  F.  to  Stockton  and  Sacramento,  and  in  1852  started  the  manufacture 
of  lumber  at  Astoria,  gradually  enlarging  his  operations  on  the  Columbia 
river  anil  elsewhere,  though  still  with  his  headquarters  at  S.  F.  By  him  was 
established  at  Gray's  harbor  a  ship-yard,  at  which  have  been  built  a  number 
of  sailing  vessels  and  steamboats. 

Harry  N.  Morse  was  born  in  New  York  Feb.  22,  1835,  attending  the 
public  schools  until  he  was  ten  years  of  age,  when  his  parents  consented  for 
him  to  become  a  sailor.  In  1849  he  came  to  Cal.,  and  after  various  changes 
of  residence  he  removed  in  1854  to  Oakland  and  started  in  business.  He 
was  elected  sheriff  in  1864,  holding  the  office  consecutively  for  14  years.  In 
1855  he  married  Miss  Heslap,  who  bore  him  seven  children,  three  surviving. 

Another  successful  man  was  the  late  David  L.  Beck,  who  was  born  in 
New  York  city  Sept.  26,  1814;  in  1841  he  became  a  partner  in  the  establish- 
ment of  Hoyt  &  Bogart,  came  to  S.  F.  in  1850,  engaging  in  general  mer- 
chandising and  commission  business.  He  afterward  established  himself  in 
the  commission  business  under  the  firm  name  of  D.  L.  Beck  &  Sons.  For 
two  or  three  years  before  his  death,  in  1884,  he  did  not  take  an  active  part 
in  business,  it  being  carried  on  by  his  sons.  He  was  an  advocate  of  the 
people's  party,  and  one  of  the  early  founders  of  the  fire  department,  and  of 
the  presbyter ian  church.  In  1841  he  married  Miss  Wardle,  and  had  four 
children,  two  surviving. 

A  successful  business  man  of  Oakland  has  been  Frederick  Delger,  a  native 
of  Prussia.  Edward  F.  Delger,  his  son,  was  born  in  S.  F.  Oct.  U4,  1859,  his 
parents  shortly  afterward  removing  to  Oakland,  where  he  attended  school, 
continuing  his  studies  in  Europe.  Marrying  Miss  Prior  of  S.  F.  in  1885,  he 
engaged  in  business  in  Oakland,  taking  also  an  active  interest  in  politics. 

In  Sacramento  one  of  the  leading  merchants  is  Eugene  J.  Gregory,  who 
was  born  in  S.  F.  Aug.  15,  1854,  and  finished  his  education  at  the  Santa 
Clara  college.  In  1874  his  father  died,  leaving  a  large  business,  which  he 
conducted  until  1882,  when  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  himself  and  brother, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Gregory  bros.  He  was  also  elected  and  served  a 
term  as  mayor  of  Sac.  city. 

Eugene  Germain,  a  native  of  Switzerland,  came  in  1869  to  Los  Angeles. 
Here  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business,  and  by  close  attention  and 
economy  he  was  enabled  to  extend  his  operation  from  time  to  time  until  he 
became  president  of  the  Germain  Fruit  co.,  the  largest  fruit  shippers  of 
southern  Cal.,  and  also  president  of  the  Los  Angeles  board  of  trade,  and 
the  Cal.  Fruit  and  Produce  Shippers'  association.  Germain  was  also  presi- 
dent of  the  Produce  Exchange  for  two  years,  and  is  a  firm  believer  in  the 
future  greatness  of  Los  Angeles. 

The  French  consul  at  Los  Angeles  is  L.  Loeb,  a  member  of  the  dry-gooda 
firm  of  Stern,  Cahn  &  Loeb,  proprietors  of  the  City  of  Paris  store,  the  largest 
in  the  southern  metropolis.  Leaving  France  in  1865,  he  settled  at  Los  An- 
geles in  Feb.  of  the  following  year,  and  gradually  won  for  himself  the  posi- 
tion which  he  now  occupies  as  one  of  her  leading  business  men  and  most 
public-spirited  citizens. 

Among  the  merchants  of  San  Jose  should  be  mentioned  T.  W.  Spring, 
who  came  to  this  coast  in  1849  as  a  member  of  Magruder's  battery,  and  to 

F.  in  1851,  when  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  late  H.  M.  Newhall  to 
whom  he  owes  his  start  iu  life.  Though  meeting  with  strong  opposition,  he 
gradually  won  his  way  to  a  foremost  rank  among  the  business  men  of  the 
garden  city. 


AUTHORITIES.  189 

Prominent  among  the  authorities  that  have  been  consulted  in  preparing 
the  preceding  chapters  are  the  United  States  government  documents,  of  which, 
with  reference  to  the  respective  indices,  the  most  important  are  the  agricul- 
tural, industrial,  census,  and  land-office  reports;  the  reports  of  the  secre- 
taries of  the  interior;  the  H.  Ex,  Doc.,  and  Misc.  Doc.;  the  Sen.  Ex.  Doc., 
Sen.  Mite.  Doc.,  and  Sen,  Com.  Septs;  also  Public  Laws,  Mess,  and  Doc., 
Coast  Surrey,  Patent  Of.  Sept,  and  Cony.  Globe.  To  which  must  be  ad.Ievl 
California  official  documents:  CaL  Sea.  Jour.,  and  Assem.  Jour.,  Cal. 
State  Ayric.  Soe.,  Trans.,  and  reports  of  the  different  departments.  ALo 
among  general  authors:  Burnett's  RecoU.,  MS.,  L  373;  iL,  passim;  Alameda 
Co.  Hist.,  Atlas:  Alexander,  Mendel,  etc..  Kept,  passim;  Annals  S.  F.;  Bay 
DisL  HorticulL  Soe.,  Trans.,  1872,  1-40;  Cox's  Annals  of  Trinity  Co.;  Brere- 
tons  Kept,  1-11;  Amador  Co.  Hist.;  Data's  Tour,  37-52,  1S2-4;  Dye's  Recoil., 
MS.,  5,  20;  Barnes  Or.  and  CaL,  MS.,  15;  Balch's  The  Mines,  etc.,  569-71, 
575,  577;  Owens'  8ta  Clara  VaL,  1  9,  20  1;  Bartons  HisL  Tulare,  12 
Brace's  New  West,  21S-329,  430;  Frere's  Antipodes,  518-29;  Boynton's  State, 
meat,  MS.,  1-3;  Andersons  Silver  Country,  11,  84-6,  93;  Appletons  Guide, 
363,  369-75,  382;  American  Naturalist,  L  337-42;  Lux'  Pastoral  Life,  MS.; 
Bayer's  Orient  to  Occident,  124-38;  Player- Prowd's  CaL,  40-7,  58,  65-84,  130- 

50,  153-7,  162-4;  George's  Progress  and  Poverty;  Helpers  Land  of  Gold,  16- 
20,  34-5,  58-9,  101-3,  138-42,  162-3;  Hittelfs  Res.  CaL,  25-6,  79-80,  151-237, 
240;  Id,,  S.  F.,  128-488;  Codes  Cal.,  iL  1660,  1861;  Yosemitr,  35-6,  40-2; 
Commerce  and  Industrie*,   143,   148;  Fay's  Hist.  Facts,   MS.,   3-10,    14,    17; 
Field*'  Reminis.,  MS.,  12,  14-15,  138-42,  208-12;  Hayes'  CoL,  including  agri- 
culture, mining,  and  industries,  natural  phenomena  and  material  relating  to 
the  history  of  cities  and  towns  in  California;  Fisher's  CaL,  2-9,  19-27;  Faitii- 
fuTs  Three  Visits,  237-42;  Fosters  Statement,  MS.;  Id.,  Gold  Region,  17-22; 
Fowler's  Btar  Party,  MS.,  7;  Bailey's  West  Coast  Amer.,  413;  Gordon's  Great 
Gcytcrs,  1-53;  Gicin's  Speeches  on  Land  Titles;  Id.,  Memoirs,  MS.,  67-73,  81, 
122,  178-85;  Gift's  CaL,  13,  19-32;  Bartlett's  Narr.,  MS.,  3-8,  54;  Gunnimn's 
Rambles,  127-56,  159-78;  HUgard's  Phys.  and  Agric.:  Roach's  StaL,  MS.,  5, 
13,  16;  Roue's  Slot.,  MS.,  3-20,  24-30;  Ross'  From  Wis.  to  CaL,  125-7;  But- 
ler's Res.  Monterey  Co.,  14-21;  Hoyden's  Surveys;  Hyatt's  Grape  Cult.,  226, 
app.  1-6,  27-9;  Harasttky's  Cult.  Grapes,  1-21,  85-6;  Browne's  Resources,  275- 
80,  439;  Id.,  Min.  Res.,  1868,  432-41;  Browns  StaL,  MS.,  11,  15-16;  Revere's 
Keel  and  Saddle,  165;  Id.,  TourofLuty,  254;  Lowe's  The  Laborer,  58;  Goi.sa- 
ks'StaL,  MS.;  Humboldt  Co.  Hist.;  Haffs  CaL,  4-7,  8-11,  25,  113-14,  193-4; 
Lord's  Naturalist,  88,  230,  238-44;  Laneey's  Cruise  of  the  Dale,  87,  189-90; 
Late  Co.  Clerk  Rept,  68-71;  Roes'  Stat.,  MS.,  9-13;  Hastings'  Emig.  Guide, 
124-6;  Harrisons  Guide,  50;  CaL  Commis.  for  Land  Claims,  1-20;  Howe's  Win- 
ter Homes,  18-37,216;  v.  124;  Bauer's  Stat.,  MS.,  3,  7,  14-15;  Bancroft's  Jou: 
t)  Or.,  19-20;  Id.,  Guide  Pac,  States,  3-6,  150-6;  Hollister's  StaL,  MS.,  2-4, 
8-12;  Harston's  Silver  Coinage;  Lawrence's  Reply,  etc.,  passim;  Bowies'  Pec. 
R.  R.,  78-90;  Beadle's  UndeveL  We*t,  255-89;  Id.,  Western  World,  112-14, 
141-61;  Fresno  Co.  Hist.;  Hawley's  Los  Ang.,  etc.;  Id.,  Humboldt  Co.;  Hay- 
den's  Great  West,  374-81;  Butte  Co.  HisL,  7,  12-17,  206-9,  227-S,  248,  252-3, 
259-60,  263;  Rowley  Wood,  etc.,  Mem.,  passim;  Larkin,  Doe.,  MS.,  vL  74,  107, 
111,  144,  161,  163,  167;  Hintons  Ariz.,  22-4,  33;  BunnclTs  Yosem.:  Langty* 
Trade  Pac.,  L  4-5,  13-15;  Monterey  Parr.,   15-31;  Hutching*'  Yosem.,  1877, 
3-102;  Barry's  Up  and  Down,  111-14;  Los  Ang.  Hist.;  Belden's  StoL,  MS., 

51,  60-1;  Dans'  Glimpses,  MS.,  7,  111-12;  Biti  of  Travel  at  Home,  44-51,  87- 
139;  De  Bonnemains  Stock  Raising,  MS.,  10-12;  Kelly's  Excursion,  ii.  14-16, 
243,  250;  Kern  Co.  HisL;  Barstow's  StaL,  MS.,  1-14;  Lambertie's  Vo>j.,  £98-9; 
Kmedan£s  Yosem.,  26-7,  30;  Douglas'  Speeches,  June  26-8,  1S50;  Krulfs  Stit., 
MS.;  CaL  Digger's  Hand  Book,  27,  32-4,  37,  49;  Kohler's  Wine  Prod.,  3-22; 
Clark's  Reminis.,  MS.,  2-5;  Cooke's  Treatise;  Dunp/iys  StaL,  MS.;  Calutoga 
Hand  Book;   Insects  Injurious  to  Fruit    Trees;   CaL  Irrigation;  Froebel,  Aui 
Amer.,  ii.  521-2;  NatMnal  Aim.,  1864,  434-5;  CampbeL's  Notes,  L  71,  78-80; 
Frisbies  Reaanin.,  MS.,  37-8,  40;  CaL  S</uirrcl  Law:  Denison's  Y&x™.   Views; 
Avery's  CaL  Pictures;  Puriama  Miss.  Arch.,  MS.,  33-4;  Chaboya  r*  17.  S.,  1- 
120;  Rusliny's  A...er.,  307,  4C7,  493-1;  CaL  Minend  Sprinys,  Scraps,  1-6,  28; 


19o  AUTHORITIES. 

San  Luis  Ob.  Co.  Hist.;  Morris  <t-  Bennett's  Manuf.   Int.,  1-46;  Tyson's  Oeol, 


tiers 

Mayhew's  Recol.^ 

Personal  Mem.,  MS.,  82-110;  Williams  Rec.  Early  Days,  MS.,  4-5,  9,  11-16; 
Id.,  Pac.  Mail  Steam.  Co.,  MS.;  Id.,  Mam.  Trees  Cat.;  Id.,  Pac.  Tourist,  214- 
19,  248;  Simpson s  Gold  Mines,  6,  24-5;  Tyler's  Mormon  Bat.,  286-7;  Trask's 
Geol.  Cal,  14-18;  Savage,  Col.,  iii.  128,  138-9;  Id.,  MS.,  iv.  43-4,  52,  262-3; 
Carson's  Early  Recol,  6-50;  Turk's  Son.  Wines,  2-14,  22-6;  Wood  Bros'  Live 
Stock  Move.;  Stebbins' Eighty  Years,  37-68,  81;  Schlagintweit,  Cal.,  101-42;  Mont- 
gomery's Reminis.,  MS.,  2-3;  McCollum's  Cal,  36^0,  64-5;  Yolo  Co.  Hist.: 
Staples'  Stat.,  MS.,  5-17;  Strobel's  Slat.,  MS.;  Vischer's  Pkt.  Cal.;  Stephen- 
son^  Stat.,  MS.;  Shuck's  Repres.  Men  of  S.  F.,  1015-20,  1077;  Yosem.  and  Bij 
Ti-ees;  Wigmore'sStat.,  MS.,  1-2;  Mc.Kinstry's Papers,  19;  Starr's  Merch.  Pac., 
MS.;  Currey's  Incidents,  MS.,  11-12,  Cronise's  Cal.;  Woods'  Pioneer  Work,  12- 
13,  16,  22-3;  Id.,  IS  Months,  76,  38,  171;  Smyth's  Law  Home.,  45,  467;  Soc. 
Max.  Georj.,  vi.  77;  Skellenger's  Reminis.,  MS.;  Schott's  Precip.,  74-7,  116-17; 
1:1.,  Distributions,  12-15;  Century  Mag.,  July  1882,  388;  Nov.  1883,  27;  Simp- 
son's Stat.,  MS.;  Ventura  Co.  Pen  Pictures,  9-10,  21-3;  Weed's  Cal.;  Spreckela' 
Pac.  Steam.  Lines,  MS.,  1-149;  Stearns'  Stat.,  MS.,  17-19;  Nidever's  Life  and 
Advent.,  140-2;  Wakemans  Log,  114-38,  223-1;  Souk's  Stat.,  MS.,  4;  Button's 
Stat.,  MS.;  Serrano,  Apuntes,  139,  146-8,  153-4;  White's  Pict.  Pioneer  Times, 
MS.,  194;  N.  Amer.  Rev.,  Ixxv.  410-24;  Shaw's  Golden  Dream*,  235;  Smiley 's 
Vi:J.  Com.,  MS., ^16-22;  West  Shore  Gaz.,  Yolo  Co.,  137-58;  Sac.  Illus.,  8-9; 
Wilder  s  L'.il.;  Walton's  Min.  Springs;  Whitney's  Mt  Heights,  4-6;  Sac.  Direc- 
tory, 1853-4,  1856,  1857-8,  1871;  Sac.  Co.  Hist.;  Stanislaus  Co.  Hist.;  Van 
Buren's  Remarks,  March  1852,  1-8;  Winan's  Stat.,  MS.,  4-16;  Tvmbley's 
Meteor.  Oakland;  Noyes'  Redwood  and  Lumber,  in  Cal.;  S  utter  Co.  Hist.;  Sii- 
Jsiyou  Co.  Hist.;  Id.,  A/airs,  MS.,  27,  29;  Woodivard's  Stat.,  MS.,  14,  18-23; 
Powers'  Afoot,  274-6;  Peto's  Res.  Amer.,  153,  305;  Sola  no  Co.  Hist.;  Sonoma, 
Co.  Hist.;  Powell's  Land  of  Arid  Re-j.,  47-56;  Schmiedell's  Stat.,  MS.,  1-2,  6; 
NealVs  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  5,  7-9,  11-22;  Proceed.  1st  Nat.  Conv.  Cattlemen; 
Schcnck's  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  15-22;  Warren's  Dust  and  Foam,  146;  Tex.  Aim., 
1859,  139-50;  Turrill's  Cal.  Notes,  18-21,  87-95,  177-8,  232;  Sayward's  Per- 
sonal Reminis.,  MS.;  Tiffany's  Guide,  36,  72;  Cal.  Bureau  Labor  Statistics, 
18S3-4;  California^  1881,  April,  1-20;  Aug.,  321-6;  S.  F.  Manual,  169-83; 
San  Bernardino  Co.  Hist.;  Treasury  of  Travel,  103-4;  San  Luis  Obispo  Co. 
Hist.;  Whitney's  Yosem.,  9-15,  24-41),  113-55;  Santa  Clara  Vol.  Res.,  22,  24; 


Jfat.;  Id.,  Directory,  1878,  42-4;  Id.,  Vol.  Agric.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1861,  4-150, 
168-71;  1863,  62-77,  107-93;    Vallejos  Reminis.,  MS.,  34-5,  39-40;  Van  Allen's 


Stat.,  MS.,  29-31;  Santa  Clara  Co.  Hist.,  Atlas,  10-17;  Santa  Cruz  Co.  Hist.; 
Van  Tra.up's  Advent.,  308;  Taylor's  Spec.  Press;  Id.,  Cal.  Notes,  58-60;  Id., 
Betioeen  Gates,  146-65,  174-92,  239,  268-9;  Id.,  Cal  Life  Illus.,  248-9;  Id., 
Eldorado,  i.,  ii.;  San  Mateo  Co.  Hist.;  Van  Dyke's  Stat.,  MS.,  8-9;  Throck- 
morlona  Min.  Rept,  1-15;  Vattejo,  Docs.,  iii.  228-30;  xii.  320;  xiii.  19,  37, 
179;  xxvhi.  98-101;  xxix.  48;  xxxiii.  263;  xxxv.  68;  Baudin,  Doc.,  2,  3,  4; 
Jieadlcs  Monthly,  Nov.  1866;  Bryant's  Cal.,  304,  449.  Moreover,  a  multitude 
of  newspapers  and  periodicals  published  in  California  and  elsewhere,  too  nu- 
merous to  specify,  have  been  examined.  Mention  can  only  be  made  of  a  few; 
namely,  the  Alta,  Evening  Bulletin,  Chronicle,  Morning  Call,  Evening  Post,  Hcr- 
ald  Itrnes,  News  Letter,  Gollen  Era,  Examiner,  Scientific  Press,  Daily  Stock 
Exchange,  Argonaut,  Abend  Post,  and  La  Sociedad,  all  issued  in  San  Francisco. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

CRDOXAL  AND  JUDICIAL 
MMMST91 

GKEATKS  or  Corns— THEIK  POWERS  ASD  Posmoy— LEGISLATORS,  Lvr- 
TZXJy  JrDGEX,  AXB  GoYEKSOKS,  THE  EsEXEES  OF  THE  PMKB  AM»  THE 
FRIESDS  OF  CKTSCESALS — EAKJ.T  JCDGES — AXD  TXT  THERE  HAVE  BEES 

H03Z3T  ILEX  OX  THE  BfcXCH — WEAK  AM>  USTRETCTFLED  GOVEESOES — 
CALETOS51A    THE    MCKDEKEKS'  PiEAMSE — THE    XoBLK  FfcOFBSSIOX  OF 

H«SHVAT3tAS — CALIFORNIA   BAXOTTTI — JCDCEJ    •*•>    SBOTLD    HAVE 

•anrx  HASGED — PEOSTTTTTTiOS  OF  THE  PAELDOM5G   POVKK. 

THE  constitution  of  California  vested  the  judicial 
power  in  a  supreme  court,  district  courts,  county 
courts,  and  justices  of  the  peace;  and  the  legisla- 
ture had  power  to  establish  such  municipal  and  other 
inferior  courts  as  might  be  necessaiy.  The  supreme 
court  had  appellate  jurisdiction  in  matters  in  dis- 
pute exceeding  $200,  and  decided  questions  of  law 
concerning  tax,  toll,  import,  and  felony  cases.  The 
district  courts  had  original  jurisdiction  in  law  and 
equity  in  all  civil  cases  where  the  amount  exceeded 
$200.  In  criminal  cases,  not  otherwise  provided  for, 
and  in  all  issues  of  feet  joined  in  the  probate  courts, 
their  jurisdiction  was  unlimited.  The  county  courts 
were  also  probate  courts ;  and  the  county  judge,  with 
two  justices  of  the  peace,  constituted  a  court  of  ses- 
sions, with  such  jurisdiction  as  the  legislature  should 

confer ;    but  the    county     courts    had    no    original 

.   ,.  ..  J 

jurisdiction. 

The  first  legislature  established  the  superior  court 
of  San  Francisco,  consisting  of  a  chief  justice  and  two 
associate  justices.  This  court  had  the  same  original 

.:•: 


192  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

jurisdiction  as  conferred  upon  district  courts.  Either 
of  the  justices  might  hold  court  for  the  trial  of  causes, 
and  different  trials  might  take  place  at  the  same  time 
before  different  judges;  but  all  points  reserved  and 
issues  of  law  were  argued  before  at  least  two  of  the 
three  justices.  The  superior  court  had  no  power  to 
send  any  process  beyond  the  limits  of  the  town,  ex- 
cept to  subpoena  witnesses,  and  in  such  cases  as  those 
in  which  district  courts  might  issue  final  process  be- 
yond their  limits.  A  cause  might  be  transferred 
from  the  district  court  of  San  Francisco  to  the  supe- 
rior court.  Each  of  the  justices  had  the  power  to 
issue  writs  of  habeas  corpus  at  the  instance  of  any 
person  held  in  actual  custody,  and  had  in  fact  the 
same  powers  as  district  judges.  The  judges  in  all  the 
courts  of  the  state  were  to  be  chosen  at  the  general 
election,  except  those  first  appointed  by  the  legisla- 
ture.1 Superior  judges  held  their  offices  three  years, 
one  being  appointed  each  year,  as  vacancies  occurred; 
district  judges  for  two  years,  and  supreme  justices  for 
six  years.  Thus  the  machinery  of  justice  seemed  pro- 
vided for,  and  it  was  only  by  its  numerous  failures  that 
its  weakness  was  discovered. 

The  end  sought  to  be  attained  by  a  state  govern- 
ment, which  was  the  prevention  and  punishment  of 
crime,  the  regulation  of  landed  property,  and  general 
good  order  of  society,  was  defeated  by  a  number  of 
causes,  the  chief  of  which  were  found  to  be  the  de- 
fective laws  enacted,  and  imperfect  organization  of  the 
courts;  the  incompentency  of  the  district  attorneys, 
who  were  generally  young  men  without  an  adequate 
knowledge  of  the  law  ;  the  want  of  secure  prisons ; 

•The  legislature  of  1850  appointed  P.  H.  Morse  chief  justice  of  the  sup. 
court  of  S.  F.,  and  Hugh  C.  Murray  and  James  Caleb  Smith  associates.  The 
state  was  divided  into  nine  districts,  numbered  from  San  Diego  toward  the 
north,  S.  F.  co.  being  the  4th,  and  Sac.  and  El  Dorado  the  6th.  The  judges 
appointed  by  the  first  legislature  were,  for  the  1st  district  0.  S.  Witherby, 
2.1  Henry  A.  Tefft,  3d  John  H.  Watson,  4th  Levi  Parsons,  5th  Charles  M. 
Creaner,  6th  James  S.  Thomas  7th  Robert  Hopkins,  8th  William  R.  Turner, 
9th  W.  Scott  Sherwood.  C\tL  Jour.  Lej.,  1850,  283-4,  256-65;  Cal.  Stat., 
1850,  93. 


IX  EFFICIENCY  OF  LAWS  ASTD  JUDGES.  193 

the  expense  of  keeping  prisons  and  convicts,  the  diffi- 
culty of  enforcing  the  attendance  of  witnesses,  and 
the  impossibility  of  securing  good  jurymen,  especially 
in  the  principal  towns  where  there  was  a  large  pro- 
portion of  idle,  reckless,  disappointed,  and  desperate 
men.  ready  to  be  summoned,  and  more  than  willing 
to  be  bribed. 

It  has  been  many  times  remarked  that  crime  was 
much  increased  in  frequency  after  the  adoption  of  a 
state  government,  as  if  the  laws  were  chargeable  with 
the  crimes ;  but  the  truth  was  that  the  laws  were 
not  chargeable  with  the  punishment;  and  the  discov- 
ery of  this  fact  emboldened  a  constantly  increasing 
criminal  element,  which  took  upon  itself  to  still  fur- 
ther defeat  the  ends  of  justice  by  corrupting  elections, 
and  placing  its  own  creatures  in  public  offices.  In 
the  first  grand  jury  report,  in  San  Francisco,  were 
eight  indictanents,  two  of  which  were  for  murder;  all ' 
of  them  were  quashed  en  some  technicality  of  the 
law.  Crime,  they  said,  stalked  abroad  in  open  day, 
and  they  were  instructed  by  the  court  that  they  could 
not  take  cognizance  of  it. 

In  his  message  to  the  legislature,  in  January  1851, 
Governor  Burnett  urged  the  necessity  of  amending 
the  criminal  laws,  pointing  out  that  the  original  juris- 
diction in  felony  cases  was  confined  to  the  district 
courts,  which  were  required  to  be  held  only  at  certain 
periods,  with  long  intervals  between,  while  there  were 
few  prisons  in  which  to  detain  the  offenders.  He 
suggested  conferring  criminal  jurisdiction  upon  the 
court  of  sessions  for  some  counties,  and  requiring 
them  to  hold  frequent  terms,  with  called  terms  when 
necessary  to  try  a  criminal,  giving  the  right  of  appeal. 
He  recommended  that  for  grand  larceny  and  robbery 
the  punishment  should  be  death  until  the  state  should 
be  provided  with  county  prisons  and  a  penitentiary. 
"  The  crime  of  grand  larceny,  in  stealing  horses  and 
cattle,  has  become  so  common  hi  many  places."  says 
the  message,  "a»  to  diminish  their  value  fifty  per 

HIST.  CAL,  VOL.  YTL   13 


194  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

cent.  In  some  instances  whole  bands  of  tame  cattle 
have  been  stolen,  and  farmers  have  lost  all  their  teams, 
and  been  compelled  to  abandon  their  business  in  con- 
sequence." This  condition  of  affairs  led  to  the  crea- 
tion of  a  class  of  judges  not  before  known  to  legal 
parlance,  who  were  denominated  Judges  of  the  Plains, 
whose  duties  were  to  attend  rodeos,  and  to  decide 
disputes  concerning  ownership.  An  appeal  might  be 
taken  to  a  justice  of  the  peace  of  the  township,  pro- 
vided it  were  taken  within  twenty-four  hours  after 
the  decision.  These  officers  were  appointed  by  the 
court  of  sessions.  In  1857  this  act  was  amended  so 
as  to  empower  the  judge  of  the  plains  to  make  arrests, 
and  take  before  a  magistrate  any  persons  suspected  of 
stealing,  hiding,  or  killing  cattle  or  horses.  "We 
believe,"  said  one  of  the  public  journals,  "that  there 
are  over  1,000  men  in  California  who  make  horse- 
stealing  a  regular  business."  But  it  disapproved  of 
hanging  for  stealing,  as  a  disgrace  to  the  statutes, 
saying  a  jury  would  not  condemn  a  horse-thief  to 
death.  It,  however,  declared  the  courts  not  summary 
enough,  straw  bail  too  common,  peace  officers  not 
sufficiently  responsible.  Murders,  it  said,  might  be 
nightly  committed  in  saloons  with  impunity  had  the 
victim  no  friend  present.  Officers  executed  warrants 
as  they  pleased,  before  pursuing  a  fleeing  criminal 
asking  the  price  of  county  scrip. 

Concerning  the  number  of  assassinations,  another 
authority  says,  "  There  was  no  crime  for  which  im- 
munity could  not  be  bought.  Many  times  have  I  met 
in  the  street  a  man  who  was  known  to  be  guilty  of 
murdering  his  companion  for  $2000,  half  of  which 
distributed  among  his  judges  had  obtained  him  a  full 
acquittal."  Murder  was  even  more  lightly  judged 
than  robbery,  for  a  man  carried  his  life  about  with 
him,  and  was  generally  esteemed  capable  of  taking 
care  of  it;  but  property  was  the  object  of  living,  and 
was  often  defenceless ;  crime  against  property,  there- 
fore, was  taken  more  notice  of  than  crime  against  life, 


CRIMES  ASD  FUMSHMESTS-  136 

except  where  murder  was  committed  in  a  stealthy  and 
treacherous  manner. 

Taking  note  of  these  things,  and  considering  the 
governor's  suggestions,  the  legislature  in  1851  per- 
formed some  tinkering  of  the  laws  affecting  the  courts, 
leaving  them  no  more  effective  than  before.  The 
original  statute  fixed  the  time  of  holding  the  district 
courts  absolutely ;  the  amended  law  left  the  times  of 
holding  terms  in  the  most  important  counties  entirely 
to  the  judges,  without  increasing  the  number  of  terms. 
Some  additional  power  was  conferred  upon  the  court 
of  sessions  in  criminal  cases.  The  act  concerning 
crimes  and  punishments  was  amended  so  as  to  leave  it 
to  the  discretion  of  the  jury  whether  to  bring  in  a 
verdict  of  death  for  robbery  or  the  former  extreme 
penalty  of  ten  years  in  prison.  Grand  larceny  was 
defined  as  feloniously  taking  any  property  of  the  value 
of  fifty  dollars  or  more,  and  was  punishable  by  im- 
prisonment from  one  to  ten  years,  "  or  by  death,  in 
the  discretion  of  the  jury."  *  But  few  cases  of  hang- 
ing occurred  under  this  law,  demonstrating  that  the 
normal  impulse  of  the  people  was  toward  ordinary 
clemency,*  a  jury  at  this  period  fixing  the  penalty. 

By  the  original  law,  judges  of  the  supreme,  dis- 
trict, and  superior  courts  were  forbidden  to  absent 
themselves  from  the  state  without  the  consent  of  the 
legislature,  if  in  session,  or  of  the  governor,  who  was 
required  to  appoint  to  the  vacancy.  This  guard  on 
the  administration  of  justice  was  repealed  by  the  leg- 
islature of  1851,  which  first  granted  leave  of  absence 
to  the  judges  of  the  2d,  5th,  and  7th  judicial  districts, 
then  opened  the  door  to  the  others.  There  was  no 


»Gw-  An.  Mamyt,  1851,  15-16;  CaL  Jamr.  Bern.,  1851,  22-3: 
8*+*,*,  MR,  12;  8.  P.  Piagaf,  Jnne  11, 1851;  &  P.  Ata,  Jnne  12,  1851; 
Sar.  Tmterip^  Feb.  4,  1851;  Wot  Store  QmeUe,  Yolo  eo.,  23:  Amgmr,  2W; 
C«i  SloC..  1851,  406-7. 

*  A  bandar  in  Gran  Taller  was  hm|rd  for  taking  a  aher  watch  in  1852. 
Thb  ww  the  first  capital  pvnnhnient  in  tiiis  district.  There  was  al»  the 
eaae  of  one  Tanner,  taken  in  the  act  of  wfr-aHng  &  wagon-load  of  gw>**  from 
a  warehoBse  in  &  F.  The  rieflance  MMiiaiUiMi  handed  the  culprit  over  to 
the  eonrts,  where  he  was  enmetod ^and  hanged.  P.  P.  La**  MS.,  8-«. 


196  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

provision  in  the  law  for  requiring  the  district  judges, 
or  superior  judges  to  attend  court,  except  at  their 
pleasure,  and  the  sheriff  had  power  to  adjourn  the 
court  until  the  next  term,  should  a  judge  of  a  district 
be  absent  for  three  successive  days,  the  matters  pend- 
ing being  continued  over,  and  the  same  latitude  ex- 
tended also  to  the  superior  judges.  It  is  needless  to 
point  out  the  effect  of  this  lax  judicial  system,  when 
combined  with  the  conditions  of  society  already  men- 
tioned. In  the  elective  system  was  an  evil  of  still 
greater  magnitude,  for  the  very  worst  men  sought 
office,  and  were  supported  by  those  who  intended  to 
use  them  for  nefarious  purposes.  Says  one  authority, 
there  were  those  "  holding  offices  of  trust  and  dignity 
whose  moral  life  would  disgrace  the  lowest  resorts  of 
the  most  degraded  beings  in  human  form."  A 
Botany  bay  convict  was  a  town  constable  ;  the  county 
judge  was  a  drunkard  and  debauchee ;  his  successor 
could  not  spell  correctly.  A  man  caught  in  the  act 
of  committing  grand  larceny  was  tried  and  acquitted 
on  a  quibble.  A  dozen  years  later  this  man  was 
elected  county  judge  of  one  of  the  best  counties,  and 
pronounced  sentence  upon  similar  offenders  in  the 
presence  of  the  lawyer  who  had  defended  him. 

To  the  8th  judicial  district,  in  1850,  the  legislature 
appointed  a  southerner  from  the  lone-star  state,  one 
who  had,  together  with  a  narrow  mind  and  bitter 
prejudices,  the  bowie-knife  manners  of  that  border- 
land. Therefore,  when  an  attorney  from  New  York 5 
sent  him  a  package  of  New  York  papers,  as  a  very 
proper  attention,  he  became  enraged  at  an  article  in 
the  Evening  Post,  and  made  war  on  this  young  law- 
yer, fining,  imprisoning,  banishing  him  from  court, 
and  ruining  his  business.  He  went  still  further  and 
sent  the  sheriff  to  arrest  the  county  judge,6  who  was 

*Farnham,  Cal,  464-7;  Hutchinys,  i.  409.  The  people  of  Martinez  de- 
manded the  resignation  of  George  F!  Worth,  as  he  was  unfit  to  hold  the  office 
of  county  judge.  8.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  24,  1855. 

'Stephen  J.  Field.  See  Field's  Early  Days  in  Cal.,  41-55. 

6  Haun,  who  was  appointed  U.  S.  senator  in  Broderick's  place,  was  judge 


ERA  OF  CRIME.  197 

sitting;  in  court  at  the  time.     The  judge  reminded 

•F^       t? 

the  sheriff  of  his  duty,  at  the  same  time  pointing  a 
naw  revolver  at  him  when  he  retreated.  The  sheriff 
was*  fined  $200  for  contempt ;  but  such  was  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Texan  that  the  county  judge,  Haun,  be- 
ing also  a  pro-slavery  man,  was  forced  to  apologize 
to  him  for  having  behaved  in  a  friendly  manner  to- 
ward the  disbarred  attorney.  The  supreme  court  or- 
dered the  lawyer  rienstated,  but  the  Texan  refused  to 
obev  the  mandate,  and  threatened  violence.  After 
carrving  a  pair  of  revolvers  for  some  time  to  defend 
himself,  the  lawyer  was  luckily  elected  to  the  legisla- 
ture, where  he  employed  himself  "reforming  the 
judiciary,"  one  part  of  his  reform  being  the  ban- 
ishment of  the  southerner  by  so  arranging  the  judi- 
cial districts  that  he  was  sent  to  the  wUds  of  Trinity 
and  Klamath.  which  counties  were  made  to  constitute 
the  8th  district.  He  also  moved  his  impeachment, 
whereupon  R.  F.  Moore,  another  southerner,  made 
him  the  subject  of  disparaging  remarks,  with  the  ap- 
parent intention  of  provoking  a  duel,  which  was  hap- 
inly  averted  by  the  interposition  of  friends,  Moore 
apologizing  before  the  assembly.  A  brother  of  the 
judge,  soon  after  the  adjournment  of  the  legislature, 
attempted  to  assassinate  this  northern  •"abolitionist" 
in  a  public  saloon,'  but  was  fortunately  prevented. 

of  Ynba  CD.  Attorneys  J.  O.  Gooiwin  and  S.  R  Msiford  were  expelled 
Cmmeont  along  with  KekL  Tuner  relates  these  incidents  n  Ire  Z>:<vaMHft, 
«fc,  MS.  UeajsdiuFieUs£Eie^sfiredlOarI^iiioteathndaiiBgtiie 

1  Field  relates  bow  OB  two  oi-camVm*  Broderick  befriended  him,  eren  to 
saving  his  life.  The  fink  was  when  he  left  he  oust  offer  to  ri^ht  Moore,  bat 
eonld  find  BO  one  wflling  to  act  a*  his  second  on  accent  of  the  prorinaa 
against  dneDing  in  the  constitntian.  « Whibt  thinking  the  natter  am,' 
says  he,  « I  happened  abort  9  o'clock  m  lai  i  \\tmmg  In  ••!!  ialn  Ihn  iiaiila 
chamber,  aad  there  fond  Mr  David  C.  Broderkk,  afterwaid*  U.  &  senator, 
sitting  at  im  de&k.  wiitnic-  He  was  at  titat  dme  preadenx  pro  tern.  I  had 
known  hint  for  some  tine,  bat  not  fntinatrir:  we  were  mere  liunini  ne- 
•naintanrra.  A*  I  entered  he  looked  np  and  said,  "Why.  Jndge.  ynu  doml 
look  wdU  what  is  the  matter?"  I  annrered  that  I  did  not  fed  veD.  f or  I 
had  not  a  friend  in  the  world.  He  replied,  "What  »  H  that  worries  you  *"" 
When  the  matter  had  been  erphhird,  Btoderiek  said,  -  My  dear  Field.  I 
wfll  he  yonr  friend  in  this  mattet,  jeo  and  write  at  <an»e  a  note  to  Moore,  and 
I  wOl  ddavcr  it  mjadL"*  Draiy  Baldwin  was  Moore*  «•  fiiead,"  and  npon 


198  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

Upon  such  slender  threads  hung  the  lives  of  great 
and  small  in  this  epoch  of  crime. 

Among  the  dangers  by  which  men  were  perpetuall}1- 
surrounded  was  that  of  being  murdered  for  their 
money  or  property.8  To  mention  even  a  small  pro- 

him  Broderick  called  for  the  answer  to  Field's  note.  Baldwin  replied  that 
his  principal  had  given  up  doing  anything  further  in  the  matter.  Broderick 
then  said  that  Field  would  rise  in  his  seat  in  the  house,  and  after  giving  a 
statement  of  all  that  had  passed,  call  Moore  a  liar  and  coward.  '  Then, ' 
said  Baldwin,  '  Judge  Field  will  get  shot  in  his  seat. '  '  In  that  case, '  re- 
joined Broderick,  'there  will  be  others  shot.'  When  the  house  met,  Field 
took  his  seat  prepared  to  do  as  Broderick  had  said,  who  sat  behind  him  with 
several  of  his  personal  friends,  all  armed.  Just  as  Field  rose,  Moore  also 
rose,  and  the  speaker  recognized  him  first.  He  made  a  complete  apology, 
and  that  put  a  stop  to  southern  badgering  for  that  term.  But  in  May  fol- 
lowiug,  Field  beiug  in  iSan  Francisco,  and  visiting  Broderick  at  his  hotel, 
while  taking  wine  together  at  the  bar,  Broderick  suddenly  threw  himself 
before  him,  and  with  great  violence  pushed  him  out  of  the  room.  To  Field's 
astonished  and  indignant  question,  '  What  does  this  mean,  Mr  Broderick  ?  " 
he  received  for  reply  that  V.  Turner,  a  well  known  desperado,  had  drawn 
from  beneath  his  Spanish  cloak  a  navy  revolver,  and  levelled  it  at  Field,  see- 
ing which  Broderick  threw  himself  between  them  and  carried  off  the  intended 
victim.  Early  Days  in  Cal,  77-83;  Yulta  Co.  Hist.,  51-2. 

8  There  were  3  classes  of  acknowledged  criminals — the  native  Calif ornians, 
who  stole  horses,  and  lassoed  travellers;  the  '  Sydney  ducks,'  who  committed 
grand  larceny  in  the  towns,  and  killed  the  successful  miners  returning  to 
S.  F.  to  ship  for  home;  and  those  from  the  states,  who  were  either  profes- 
sionals, or  through  ill  luck  and  evil  associations  had  become  inducted  into 
crime.  The  victims  of  robberies  were  almost  always  killed,  whether  or  not 
murder  was  necessary  to  the  consummation  of  the  robbery.  Of  the  Mexicans, 
there  were  some  who  were  thieves  only,  but  who  paid  the  penalty  of  their 
crimes  '  at  the  discretion  '  of  a  miners'  jury  by  strangulation.  Deiv's  MS.,  3-5; 
Bothwkk,  2*26-7;  Popular  Tribunals,  this  series,  passim.  The  miners  being 
much  troubled  by  this  class,  took  advantage  of  the  amended  criminal  law  to 
rid  themselves  informally  of  the  dangerous  men  who  prowled  in  the  vicinity 
of  their  camps,  but  particularly  of  the  natives  of  Mexican  origin.  There  ex- 
isted for  10  or  15  years  after  the  conquest,  among  the  ignorant,  half -Indian, 
native  population,  a  hatred  of  Americans  which  they  nourished  as  patriotism, 
and  justified  upon  the  ground  that  as  the  Americans  had  taken  the  country, 
with  the  gold  in  it,  away  from  them,  it  was  quite  fair  to  take  the  lives  of  the 
intruders,  and  repossess  themselves  of  the  treasure  stolen  from  their  country. 
Hundreds  of  murders  on  the  highway  in  every  part  of  the  state  were  com- 
mitted by  these  assassins.  About  1850  they  began  to  form  banditti,  formi- 
dable for  their  number  and  crimes.  At  first  they  operated  chiefly  in  the 
southern  counties,  but  soon  infested  all  the  mining  portions  of  the  state,  and 
the  roads  m  every  direction.  There  were  several  Mexican  robber  bauds 
One  was  headed  by  Andreas  Armijo,  and  another  by  Tomas 
JNlaria  Carrillo,  a 'disbanded  soldier  of  the  late  Californian  army.  Brooks, 
F»mr  Months,  168-9,  187-8.  Still  another  celebrated  bandit  was  Salomon 
ttco,  who  committed  a  great  many  crimes.  Ord,  in  Misc.  Docs,  1-9;  Green, 
Life  and  Adventures,  19.  Pico  ranged  in  the  region  of  Monterey.  In  April 
fixed  upon  a  day  to  visit  the  Escobar  rancho,  6  miles  from  town,  in 
?e  of  an  American,  Josiah  Swain,  who  was  to  be  killed,  but  one  of  his 

id  refusing  to  take  part  in  the  murder  was  threatened,  and  deserted,  ex- 


VIGILANCE  COMMITTEES.  199 

portion  of  the  outrages  perpetrated  upon  the  indus- 
trious by  the  profligate  class  would  convert  history 
into  a  police  report.  Justice  did  not  reach  the 
offenders,  and  the  people  became  sheriff,  jury,  judge, 
and  executioner.  Lynching  became  common,  and  was 
often  justifiable,  for  what  was  to  be  done  with  a  red- 
handed  murderer  or  a  highwayman  by  a  community 
which  had  no  prison,  and  whose  sheriff,  for  anything 
they  knew  to  the  contrary,  might  be  in  collusion  with 
the  criminal.  Possibly  they  sometimes  hanged  an  in- 
nocent man ;  but  the  district  courts  were  liable  to  error, 
as  in  the  case  of  Thomas  Burdue,9  where -mistaken 

posing  his  former  confederates.  A  company  was  raised  in  Monterey,  and 
the  robbers  intercepted  on  the  18th.  Five  were  arrested,  and  two  discharged 
for  want  of  evidence.  Pico,  Cecilia  Mesa,  and  William  Otis  were  tried  by  a 
people's  court,  and  sentenced  to  be  hanged,  bat  the  legal  authorities  inter- 
fered. Mesa  was  discharged.  State  senator  de  la  Guerra  became  bail  for 
Pico,  who  ran  away,  when  Gnerra  refused  to  be  made  responsible.  Otis, 
whose  alias  was  Bill  Woods,  but  whose  real  name  was  William  Otis  Hall, 
having  no  friends,  languished  in  prison  for  some  time,  but  finally  escaped. 
He  was  retaken,  and  hanged  by  the  people.  The  newspapers  and  books  of 
travel  and  adventure  of  the  period  record  a  fearful  list  of  felonies. 

According  to  the  proclamation  of  the  governor  of  Sonora,  there  was  a 
band  of  American  highwaymen,  300  strong,  ranging  about  the  crossing  of 
the  Colorado  for  the  purpose  of  robbing  returning  miners.  The  governor 
directed  an  investigation  to  be  made,  and  the  proceedings  sent  to  him. 
Piivirt,  ColL,  no.  1077.  On  the  other  hand  the  California  newspapers  attrib- 
uted the  same  robberies  to  banditti  from  Mexico,  which  was  more  probable. 
S.  F.  Pif,  News,  Aug.  1,  1850.  During  May  1851,  a  b^nd  or  robbers,  under 
the  leadership  of  John  Irving,  a  Texan,  raided  the  county  of  Los  Angeles, 
striking  terror  into  the  hearts  of  the  native  population,  many  of  whom  fled  to 
the  camp  of  the  militia  ma j. -gen.,  Joshua  H.  Bean,  who  was  at  Cajon  pass 
in  pursuit  of  the  Indian  murderers  of  eleven  men  who  kept  a  ferry  on  the 
Colorado  river.  Irving  had  threatened  the  ranches  of  several  Spaniards  in 
Los  Angeles  co.  who  fled  before  him,  leaving  their  property  to  be  pillaged. 
Irving  was  finally  killed  with  10  of  his  men,  by  Juan  Antonio,  a  chief  of 
the  Cohnilla  tribe,  and  an  alcalde  in  his  district,  who  with  his  people  fol- 
lowed and  fought  the  banditti.  In  his  turn  Antonio,  alarmed  at  a  rumor 
that  200  white  men  were  about  to  attack  him  in  revenge  for  Irving's  death, 
fled  to  the  mountains,  two  of  his  children  being  lost  in  his  flight,  who  were 
not  recovered  for  several  days.  The  grateful  inhabitants  soon  found  means 
to  reassure  Antonio,  and  return  him  to  his  home  at  Apolitan,  on  the  San 
Bernardino  rancho.  There  was  a  scandal  connected  with  Bean's  command 
to  the  effect  that  some  of  the  volunteers  were  in  sympathy  with  Irving,  and 
mutinied  because  they  were  not  permitted  to  punish  the  Indians,  breaking 
up  the  command.  GOT.'*  Amer.  Message,  1851,  9;  Hayes  Scraps,  Imlians,  L 
61-5,  68;  Id,  Angeles,  L  106-12.  Bean  was  assassinated  in  Nov.  1852,  at 
Los  Angeles,  by  three  Mexicans  who  were  tried  and  hanged  by  the  people 
Dec.  11. 

'  Berdne  petitioned  the  legislature  in  1853  for  indemnity  to  the  amount 
of  $4.000  for  the  injury  to  his  feelings,  person,  and  estate,  suffered  in  his 
imprisonment  and  triaL  The  report  of  the  judiciary  com.  on  the  subject 


200  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

identity  was  proved  and  the  innocent  man  narrowly 

escaped. 

In  May  1851,  state  senator  S.  E.  Woodworth  was 
commissioned  by  Governor  McDougal  to  raise  a  com- 
pany of  rangers  to  capture  horse-thieves  in  Montere}?- 
county.  Only  one  of  the  band  was  caught,  who  after 
confessing,  and  inculpating  others,  endeavored  to  es- 
cape and  was  shot.  The  expedition  cost  the  state 
$9,000.19  One  of  the  singular  features  of  this  epi- 
demic of  crime  was  that  men  in  good  standing  became 
infected ;  and  not  only  the  low  and  depraved  were 
engaged  in  robberies,  but  those  who  had  previously 
sustained  good  reputations.  They  behaved  like  peo- 
ple at  a  shipwreck  or  a  fire,  who  carry  off  what  does 
not  belong  to  them  to  prevent  other  people  from  so 
doing. 

Nor  was  this  period  confined  to  the  first  three  or 
four  years  of  excitement  and  foreign  immigration.  It 
reappeared,  over  and  over  again,  notwithstanding 
criminal  laws,  and  vigilance  committees,  and  notwith- 
standing that  laws  were  passed  against  convict  immi- 
gration, making  it  a  misdemeanor  for  any  master  of 
a  vessel  or  other  person  knowingly  to  land  a  felon 
or  convict  upon  California  shores.  It  was  not  that 
so  many  confessed  outlaws  had  immigrated  to  the 
new  state,  but  that  the  conflict  of  races,  of  ideas,  of 
customs,  and  of  the  principles  of  the  world's  future 
government,  taking  root  in  the  soil  of  the  Pacific, 
and  steeped  in  the  crude  semi-civilization  of  Spanish 
territories,  produced  this  strange  crisis  in  morals. 

was  a  refusal,  with  the  remark  that  in  society  the  innocent  often  were  wrong- 
fully accused,  and  he  should  be  rejoiced  that  the  laws  afforded  him  protec- 
tion when  wrongfnlly  accused.  Col.  Sen.  Jour.,  1853;  App.  Doc.,  37.  The 
history  of  the  Burdue  case  is  given  in  full  in  vol.  i.  of  my  Popular  Tribunals. 
MS.  F.  Alta,  May  14  and  June  3,  1851.  The  same  paper  of  March  21, 
said  that  Pacheco's  rancho,  at  the  foot  of  Pacheco  pass,  San  Joaquin  valley, 
had  lost  900  head  of  horses  about  the  10th  of  that  month.  Pacheco  had 
been  robbed  of  §15,000  in  gold  a  short  time  previous.  Salinas  valley  was 
raided.  Theodore  Gondolez  lost  most  of  his  stock.  Juan  Anser  of  St  John 
valley  lost  all  of  his;  around  Mission  Soledad  160  were  taken,  and  a  reign 
of  despair  existed  among  the  rancheros,  whose  business  demanded  the  service 
of  many  horses. 


JURORS  AND  JUDGES.  201 

"What  then  shall  cleanse  thy  bosom,  gentle  earth, 
from  all  its  painful  memories  of  guilt  ?  The  whelm- 
ing flood,  or  the  renewing  fire,  or  the  slow  ranges  of 
time  ?  That  so  at  least  the  horrid  tale  of  perjury  and 
strife  which  we  call  history  may  seem  a  fable,  like  the 
inventions  told  by  poets  of  the  gods  of  Greece." 

The  miners  occasionally  framed  municipal  regula- 
tions within  the  limits  of  their  camp  or  district,  ex- 
cludino-  oramblers:  gambling  generally  beinor  a  prelude 

•  T»l       *" 

to  robbery  and  murder.  At  a  camp  in  Placer  county, 
in  1853,  the  miners  lost  one  of  their  number  at  the 
hands  of  a  gambler,  who  shot  the  man  in  simulated 
anger,  for  detecting  a  false  play.  The  sound  of  his 
pistol  was  hardly  stilled  before  he  found  himself 
seized  and  pinioned.  In  another  half  hour  he  was 
swinging  stark  on  the  limb  of  a  neighboring  oak  tree. 
The  following  day  the  sheriff  of  the  county,  a  friend 
of  the  dead  gamester's,  appeared  with  a  posse  to  arrest 
the  persons  concerned  in  the  hanging  ;  but  the  miners 
having  decided  upon  a  course  of  action  in  such  an 
event,  were  prepared,  and  on  a  concerted  signal  sur- 
rounded the  officer  of  the  law,  and  accusing  him  and 
his  posse  of  being  confederates  hi  evil  of  the  man  they 
had  executed,  gave  him  five  minutes  to.  consider  the 
propriety  of  withdrawing  from  the  camp,  or  suffering 
the  alternative  of  being  lynched  with  his  lieutenants. 
The  sheriff  could  only  submit.11 

In  this  case  the  letter  of  the  law  was  violated,  both 
in  the  unauthorized  hanging  of  the  gambler,  and  re- 
sistance to  the  sheriff.  Yet  the  murderer  only  met 
his  just  deserts,  and  the  miners  were  right  to  prevent 
his  executioners  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  those 
whom  they  suspected  of  having  no  regard  for  the  law, 
while  they  used  it  as  a  cloak  for  their  crimes.  This 
same  camp  afterward  made  and  enforced  a  regulation 
against  gambling,  but  again  violated  the  law  in  so  do- 

n  Life  im  Ae  Nanbums  or  FO«T  Xomfa  im  Ox  IT,*-*,  30-32.  The  aether  of 
this  brochure  signs  himself  S.  Western,  and  says  he  was  many  years  principal 
of  a  public  grammar  school  at  Providence,  R,  L 


202  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

ing,  as  only  a  license  was  required  by  the  statutes  to 
make  gambling  legal. 

Highwaymen,  as  well  as  criminals  of  a  higher  social 
position,  perceived  the  weakness  of  the  laws  and  their 
ineffectual  operation.  Force  could  be  met  only  by 
force ;  hence  the  vigilant  sytem,  and  ubiquitous  Judge 
Lynch.  In  the  meantime  business  men  and  well- 
disposed  people  were  in  despair,  and  by  an  uprising  in 
1856  gained  a  temporary  relief,  especially  for  San 
Francisco  and  the  principal  towns.  But  upon  the 
highways  leading  from  camp  to  camp,  from  town  to 
town,  safety  had  not  been  secured.  With  the  estab- 
lishment of  mail  and  stage  lines  into  the  mountains, 
and  particularly  with  the  opening  of  the  Pioneer 
stage  line  to  Carson  valley,  and  the  overland  line  from 
St  Louis,  via  New  Mexico,  Sonora,  and  San  Diego,  to 
San  Francisco,  there  sprang  up  a  new  class  of  high- 
waymen whose  business  it  was  to  rob  coaches  of 
treasure  in  transit,  and  to  pillage  travellers  by  stage. 
Murder  did  not  always  accompany  a  robbery,  but  was 
not  infrequent.  This  form  of  brigandage  came  up 
about  1859,  and  is  not  quite  done  away  with  to  this 
day.  An  armed  guard,  and  a  coach  full  of  armed 
travellers  were  generally  unable  to  prevent  the  plun- 
dering of  the  express  company's  treasure-box,  the 
mails,  and  the  passengers  themselves,  owing  to  the 
suddenness  with  which  the  order  was  given  to  "halt! 
hold  up  your  hands,"  enforced  at  the  muzzles  of  sev- 
eral rifles.  Resistance  was  seldom  offered,  although 
occasionally  shooting  occurred,  and  one  or  more  per- 
sons were  killed;  at  other  times  drollery  or  mock 
generosity  was  indulged  in  by  the  robbers. 

Chinamen  were  very  often  losers.  They  usually 
walked  to  the  mines,  or  travelled  on  Indian  ponies ; 
but  returning,  if  they  had  treasure,  they  took  the 
coach,  and  by  this  means  frequently  lost  a  whole  sea- 
son's profits.  The  express  companies  were  the  heav- 
iest sufferers.  The  state  had  no  banking  system  or 
medium  of  exchange  between  the  interior  towns  and 


BAXDITTL  908 

the  metropolis  of  San  Francisco,  except  coin  and  gold- 
dust;  hence  large  amounts  were  frequently  carried 
over  the  roads  on  Wells.  Fargo  &  Co/s  coaches,  which 
sums  were  greatly  augmented  by  the  opening  of  the 
Comstock  lode  about  this  period.  Such  was  the  loss 
and  danger  resulting  from  brigandage  that  the  gov- 
ernor, in  1860,  recommended  that  it  should  be  pun- 
ished with  death." 

After  the  expulsion  of  the  foreign  convict  class,  in 
1856,  the  banditti  of  the  state  were  predominantly 
Mexicans,  or  native  Californians,13  for  the  next  ten 

"Kmar,  ITmlaynmmA,  851-7;  P*.  Jftmttfe,  xL  831-5;  Red  Bbf  Iwif- 
«•**,  Feb.  14,  1866;  Gnm  YaOeg  Umam,  July  31,  1866;  .Ycrdiaf«Cut, 
234;  CaL  J<mr.  Aacm.,  1861,  384. 

0  AsMmg  the  CaHforaians  was  Joaqnin  Muiieta/a  young  Sonoran,  who 
was  chief  of  a  i  imiid*  i  ihlf  company  of  natrres.  He  told  a  romantoe  story 
of  sumg  and  innui  mitm  heaped  span  him  by  the  -Amtatmmm  in  Cabreras 
eo.  His  lubbeiiea  were  innumerable,  and  usually  accompanied  by  murders. 

inmates  before  they  realized  their  danger.  Travellers  received  a  baH  in  the 
back  of  the  head.  Raarhm  were  invaded  and  pillaged.  Chinamen  were 
kuledashuuters  kfllaeoreyof  quail.  Many  attempts  were  made  to  capture 
Marie**,  but  he  had  the  fleetest  hones  in  the  eontry  with  relays  in  the 
hands  of  confederates,  and  wa*  nerer  approached  nearer  than  half  a  mile 
by  pwrsaen.  Th»  gare  him  die  adrantage  of  being  persoaally  imlairwn 
T1»e  eavnties  he  ravaged  were  Calareras,  Taotomne,  and  Son  Jomqpm.  Aft 
length  the  goremor  offered  a  reward  of  $1-000  for  his  eaptore,  dead  or  aHve, 
which  was  tmttnurA  to  fiOOO.  Being  in  Stockton  in  disguise  and  seeing 
the  handhflk  omning  tine  reward,  he  wrote  mndemeath  in  pencil  'I  win  gpv» 
$10.000  myself.  Jonqmin.'  The  reward  offered  by  the  government  proved 
•nfiaent  to  hunt  him  down,  and  he  was  finally  surprised,  and  after  a  de*- 
perate  resisUnce  k£De>l  in  1S33,  and  his  head  sent  to  Sto^bw  liylhii  nilh 
&e  hand  of  Three-lingered  Jack,  a  well-known  member  of  hk  band.  The 
legislature  pasaed  an  act  grring  the  reward  of  93,000  to  Henry  Lore,  who 
•^"**»J  the  capture.  Joaomin's  tme  name  was  CarnDo,  of  a  »"T-f '"ifl 
Mexican  anuly,  and  J.  3i.  Gorarnhias,  when  the  bfll  omkmw  a  reward  for 
the  eaptnre  of  the  bandit  chief  was  before  the  romnrittee  of  which  he  was 
chairman,  lepurted  against  it.  on  the  ground  that  to  set  a  price  upon  the 
head  of  any  mdrndnal  who  had  not  been  examined  and  cmmeted,  is  to  prv>- 
ceedmponan««mn|iriMi  of  hbgnflL*  OaL  Jamr.  AttaA,  1853,  70a  H.  C. 
Miller,  'the  poet  of  the  sierras,'  obtained  bis  sombriquet  of  Jokfnni fimni  ibe 
rerafied  story  of  the  robber's  fife.  Harry  Lore  was  a  noted  mountaineer, 
and  •  described  a*  resembling  Walter  Scott  s  black  knight.  He  sometimes 
wore  a  sword  ptestnted  to  him  by  a  wealthy  Mexican,  whom  he  mcnul 
from  the  sarages  Amwng  his  nxmal  iin  fife.  He  appeared  at  a  Fourth  of 
July  celebration  at  Santa  Crn  in  1863,  when  the  Pajam  TSmet  •poke  of  him 
as  of  a  'lall,  manly  figure,  with  unarlrfing  eyes,  long  curling  hair  falling 
far  down  his  shnnMrrs,  with  his  knightly  word  hinrnnf-  by  Ms  side.'  Bat 
others,  who  hated  almotft  evajbudj  connected  with  the  repressiaii  of  crime, 
said  he  looked  more  fike  a  large-ned  ape  than  a  man,  that  he  was  flfiterate 
and  a  coward.  8.  P.  Port,  April  12,  1S79L  Much  has  been  written  about 
Joaqum  Murvia  to  give  **"*»  a  durable  character  icsesibling  ' 


204  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

years,  after  which  there  was  an  influx  of  the  outlaw 
class  from  the  states  in  rebellion,  who  naturally  took 
to  the  highways,  making  a  pretence  of  having  public 
grievances  to  adjust  by  private  reprisal.  It  required 

A  few  of  his  men  were  captured  with  him,  and  several  were  afterward 
taken  and  executed  in  southern  Cal. 

A  Mexican  named  Claudio  was  a  contemporary  of  Murieta,  perhaps  a 
little  earlier.  During  1852  he  kept  the  southern  mines  in  a  state  of  terrorism. 
He  was  captured  in  1853  on  his  way  to  .Monterey  with  6  of  his  men  by  H. 
Cocks,  justice  of  the  peace  at  Salinas,  who  headed  a  party  of  8  resolute  men. 
Claudio  and  5  of  his  men  were  killed  in  the  fight  with  Cocks'  party.  Ihe 
one  who  escaped  was  afterward  hanged  by  the  people.  San  Joaquin  Vall<y 
Ar:fus,  June  13,  1874;  Hayes  Scraps,  Cal.  Notes,  v.  71;  Streeter's  Becoll.,  155; 
Janssens'  Vida  y  Av.,  221.  Francisco  Garcia  was  the  next  famous  robber,  at 
the  head  of  a  mixed  company  of  Mexicans  and  ruflianly  Saxons.  8.  F.  Alt.i, 
Oct.  22,  1854;  H 'ayes'  Scraps,  Monterey,  112-13.  He  was  wounded  by  his  own 
lieutenants  in  a  quarrel  over  the  spoils.  One  of  these,  Sebastian  Flores, 
quarrelling  with  the  other,  Beas  Angelino,  turned  state's  evidence,  and  had 
Angelino  hanged.  Garcia,  after  a  bloody  career  of  17  years,  was  tried  on  an 
old  indictment  at  San  Jose,  Flores  being  detained  as  a  witness.  The  case  was 

Sut  off,  and  at  the  next  session  of  court  Garcia  was  acquitted.  San  Jose-  Patri  f, 
ct.  18,  1879.  Anastasio  Garcia,  another  of  this  band,  was  sentenced  to 
state  prison  for  horse-stealing,  and  on  regaining  his  freedom,  in  1856,  has- 
tened to  Los  Angeles  to  revenge  himself  upon  the  informer.  While  hiding 
in  the  hills  he  fell  in  with  another  evil-doer,  and  in  a  brief  time  had  gathered 
to  himself  a  dozen  kindred  spirits,  most  of  whom  were  Angelenos.  Among 
them  were  Pancho  Daniel,  Juan  Flores,  Espiiiosa,  Andres  Fontes,  Varela, 
'El  Chino,'  Pigumini,  'El  Tuerto,'  Faustino  Garcia,  Juan  Cartabo,  and  Ar- 
dillero,  'el  huero.'  They  called  themselves  'los  Manilas,'  and  used  pass- 
Words,  etc.  Their  trade  was  horse-stealing,  with  its  attendant  incidents. 
Anastacio  Garcia  and  his  manilas  dogged  the  steps  of  the  informant  to  San 
Juan  Capistrano,  but  the  man  escaping,  they  murdered  the  storekeeper  at 
that  place,  and  robbed  the  place  of  goods,  spending  the  night  in  drunken 
revelry.  Word  being  sent  to  Los  Angeles,  Sheriff  James  Barton,  with  six 
well-armed  men,  two  of  whom  were  constables,  William  H.  Little  and 
Charles  R.  Baker,  set  out  for  San  Juan.  They  were  ambuscaded  at  the 
Barrauco  de  los  Alisos,  and  Barton  and  the  two  constables  killed,  the  re- 
mainder of  the  party  escaping  back  to  Los  Angeles.  Hayes,  Amjeles,  i.  647-8. 
This  occurrence  greatly  alarmed  the  Angelenos,  as  the  bandits  were  all  native 
Calif  orniaiis,  and  the  Americans  and  other  foreign-born  residents  feared  that 
the  Californians  sympathized  with  the  criminals.  The  excitement  ran  high, 
and  the  feeling  of  insecurity  became  so  great  that  an  armed  defensive  atti- 
tude was  mutually  maintained.  But  confidence  was  restored  when  several 
prominent  Californians  took  horse  at  the  head  of  40  of  their  countrymen,  and 
pursuing  the  outlaws  captured  most  of  them  in  the  Sierra  de  Santiago,  and 
brought  them  to  Los  Angeles,  where,  after  a  trial  by  the  people,  they  were 
hanged.  Tomas  Sanchez,  who,  with  Andreas  Pico,  was  active  in  making 
these  captures,  was  afterward  sheriff,  and  maintained  a  party  of  mounted 
;n  until  all  the  manilas  had  been  taken  and  executed.  This  action  on  the 
part  of  the  Californians  restored  confidence  between  the  two  races.  Coronet, 
Mena,  204-9.  Varela,  a  person  who  was  well  connected,  was  pardoned,  and 
at  the  breaking  out  of  the  civil  war  joined  the  confederate  army,  but  returned 
to  Los  Angeles  and  lived  conformably  to  the  laws.  Kraszewsli,  1-17;  Sta 
Barbara  Press,  March  9,  1878.  Sato  and  Senati  were  two  other  native  ban- 
dits, notorious  about  1850.  Dixvis  White  Contjuest,  i.  67-74,  110.  Tiburcio 
V  asquez  figured  at  a  later  period.  His  pride  was  to  surprise  large  parties; 


EXTINCT  HIGHWAYMEf.  205 

nerve  to  attack  these  outlaw  organizations.  Valuable 
lives  were  lost  in  attempts  to  make  arrests,  but  occa- 
sionally a  man  attained  to  fame  by  his  daring  in  pur- 
suing banditti.  The  general  government  was  fre- 
quently appealed  to  for  aid  down  to  1877." 

Banditti,  such  as  swept  through  the  southern  coun- 
ties while  the  population  was  sparse,  can  no  longer 
exist.  Rebels  against  labor  and  order  now  tramp 
about  the  country  in  the  role  of  mendicants,  but  so 
watched  and  suspected  that  they  are  powerless,  the 
law  having  asserted  itself  everywhere.  Occasionally 
one  bolder  than  his  comrades  in  distress  waylays  a 
country  stage  and  "  holds  up  "  the  passengers ;  or  some 

35  men  were  bound  and  robbed  at  Kingston,  Fresno  en.,  by  13  of  his  gang, 
who  CTCupH  with  their  booty.  He  was  finally  captured  by  the  officers  « f 
Los  Angeles  co..  in  May  157-4,  and  hanged  in  187A.  His  obliging  guard  one 
day  asked  him  if  there  was  anyone  he  would  like  to  have  Tnwfc  him.  "Who 
is  that  little  Irishman*— the  poll  tax  collector?1  asked  Vasqnez.  'Mike 
Madman,'  replied  the  guard,  'would  yon  like  to  see  him?"  'No, 'said  Yaa- 
'bnt  be  is  a  fanny  little  fellow.  I  was  riding  alone  in  the  canon  de  las 
as  when  I  met  nun  driving  in  a  baggy.  He  asked  in  a  very  important 
•  whether  I  had  paid  my  poll-tax.  I  said  no,  and  be  asked  if  I  wonld 
pay  it  then.  I  answered  that  I  would,  for  I  was  a  good  citizen,  and  always 
paid  my  taxes.  He  drew  a  book  and  pencil  front  ma  pocket,  and  swelling 
up  like  a  turkey-cock  inquired  my  name.  When  I  said  Tibnrcio  Vasquez, 
his  hand  shook  *o  that  he  could  hardly  write  the  receipt.  I  paid  him  the  $2. 
and  without  saying  good-bye  he  whipped  up  his  horse,  and  kept  whipping 
as  far  as  I  could  see  him.'  There  is  «1««««±  as  much  literature  about  tikis 
rogue  as  about  some  earlier  ones,  as  Gamer  tsfTiamrdo  FmauCT»  being  sauna 
from  newspapers;  OtmsS,  BamJLSmyt,  MS.,  147;  Vaajma,  H*»  Carver,  in  S.  F. 
CO,  Oct.  25,  1S73:  8.  F.  BmOOm,  Jan.  5,  1*75;  S.  F.  P*A,  May  15,  1574; 
S.  F.  AUa,  April  21  and  May  15,  1S74;  ffaya,  MrmtnMfm.  123-5:  CoL 
Crimaamd  Society  Sfnrf^lW-l;  SmDieyo  Umam,  May  21,  1874;  SmSmmt  C*f 
Democrat,  May  25,  1S74.  Santos  SoteDo,  the  successor  to  the  honors  of  Vaz- 
quez, was  sent  to  prison  in  1S77,  and  was  the  last  of  the  robber  chiefs  of 
jiWiqan  birth  who  hare  troubled  the  border  counties.  fliilaHn  •  1 n  arrested, 
single-handed,  by  a  young  Calif ornian,  B^fa^  Lopez,  who  thereby  acquired 
an  honorable  reputation.  Chavez,  one  of  his  lieutenants,  was  captured  and 
killed  a  little  earlier,  and  these  losses  broke  up  the  band.  There  was  a 
daim  for  his  capture  before  the  CaL  legislature  in  1S77-&.  Of  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  robbers,  Tom  BelL  born  in  Albany,  K  Y.,  figured  in  1S56,  and  was 
executed  by  the  people  with  a  number  of  his  followers.  Jack  Powers  was 
another  well-known  robber  of  1S56-7.  In  1S5S,  San  Luis  Otecpo  and  San 
Diego  were  terrorized  by  organized  bands  of  outlaws.  8.  F.  Atot,  June  14  and 
Aug.  27,  1S5S.  The  crrQ  war  drew  a  good  many  of  this  class  away,  asd  the 
dose  watch  kept  upon  all  kinds  of  outlawry  during  1S63-5  was  a  ilrrulrJ 
check  to  crime.  Sta  Baton  GmeUe,  23-33,  6*1-70,  S7-109. 

U8nch  a  man  was  Stephen  Venard,  a  detectnre  employed  by  Wells, 
Fargo  ft  Co.,  who  made  several  important  captures,  and  killed  half  a  dozen 
highwaymen.  Utiak  Prat,  Nov.  16,  1S71;  Cm*  Faflry  Umam,  May  16,  1866; 
fftaliUmry  flag,  imS.F.  BmtteSm,  Jan.  9,  1880;  C.  S.  H.  Dx.,  13,  p.  202-3, 


206  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

desperate  rogues  plan  the  capture  of  railroad  trains, 
in  which  enterprises  they  have  sometimes  been  suc- 
cessful. As  the  certainty  of  punishment  becomes 
more  evident,  the  number  of  offences  gradually  lessens. 

I  have  given  considerable  space  to  outlawry,  yet 
have  only  outlined  it.  Without  presenting  this  picture 
it  would'  be  difficult  to  represent  fairly  the  responsi- 
bility resting  upon  the  courts  and  officers  of  the  law. 
Add  to  the'crimes  of  banditti  the  individual  crimes 
committed  from  various  impulses,  the  reckless  shoot- 
ing by  gamblers  and  drunkards,  the  vendetta,10  bur- 

15  An  instance  of  the  vendetta,  in  Monterey  co.,  resulting  in  10  murders 
and  a  number  of  wounded,  illustrates  a  phase  of  society  in  southern  conn- 
ties.  Jose  Maria  Sanchez  was  accidently  drowned  in  1852,  and  left  an 
estate  worth  from  $60,000  to  $90,000.  William  Roach  administered  upon 
the  estate,  and  Lewis  Belcher  was  his  bondsman.  Roach  obtained  posses- 
sion of  all  the  money  and  property,  and  Belcher  quarreled  with  him  for  a 
share  in  it.  Mrs  Sanchez  had  married  a  Dr  Sanford,  who  sided  with  Bel- 
cher in  the  quarrel,  and  legal  proceedings  were  commenced  against  Roach, 
who  was  arrested  and  lodged  in  Stockton  jail.  But  Roach  persuaded  his 
jailer  to  liberate  him,  and  fly  with  him  to  Monterey.  Here  he  defied  the 
law,  and  gathered  about  him  a  following  of  personal  friends  on  whom  he 
could  rely.  Belcher  also  had  a  party  on  his  side,  and  a  body-guard,  among 
whom  was  Anasta^io  Garcia,  before  mentioned,  who  was  living  at  the  Carmel 
mission.  He  determined  to  take  Roach,  and  the  feud  was  at  a  white  heat. 
McMahon,  a  brother-in-law  of  Roach,  meeting  Sanford  in  a  bar-room,  both 
men  fired,  and  both  fell  dead.  A  brother-in-law  of  Sanford,  named  Atwood, 
in  the  excitement  of  these  proceedings  blew  out  his  own  brains.  Two 
friends  of  Roach,  Isaac  B.  Wall,  collector  of  the  port  of  Monterey,  speaker 
of  the  assembly  in  1853,  and  Thomas  Williamson,  late  of  Tenn.,  set  out  for 
San  Luis  ObUpo  with  pack  mule  and  arms.  They  had  not  proceeded  many 
miles  when  they  were  assassinated,  as  it  was  supposed  by  Belcher's  tool, 
Anastacio  Garcia.  The  sheriff  went  to  Garcia 's  house  to  arrest  him  with  a 
posse,  3  of  whom  were  killed  by  Garcia,  who  escaped.  On  the  1 8th  of  June 
1856,  Belcher,  standing  in  the  barroom  of  the  Washington  hotel  was  shot 
by  some  unknown  person  on  the  outside,  and  died  next  day.  In  his  dying 
deposition  he  said  he  believed  that  Roach,  Garcia,  and  others  whom  he 
named,  were  his  assassins.  But  as  there  was  no  proof  on  examination, 
nothing  could  be  done.  After  Belcher's  death  Roach  retired  to  his  farm  in 
Santa  Cruz  co.  and  lived  quietly.  Garcia,  however,  was  arrested  and  thrown 
into  prison,  for  the  murder  of  Wall  and  Williamson.  Some  persons  obtained 
access  to  his  cell  and  hanged  him  there,  it  was  said  lest  he  should  confess 
and  implicate  them.  After  a  time  Roach  too  was  assassinated  near  Watson- 
ville,  it  was  alleged,  on  the  ground  that  he  talked  too  freely  about  past  occur- 
rences for  the  safety  of  his  former  confederates.  In  this  feud,  arising  from 
the  efforts  of  'two  men  to  rob  a  woman  of  her  estate,  eleven  persons  were 
killed — Gomez  says  13 — and  several  wounded.  Meantime  the  woman  had 
married  George  Crane,  who  persuaded  her  to  deed  all  the  property  to  him, 
which  he  spent  in  a  short  time,  and  going  east  died,  and  the  object  of  these 
dozen  murders  was  accomplished,  namely,  robbing  a  widow.  S.  F.  Herald, 
June  21,  1856.  The  only  one  of  these  criminals  punished  was  Garcia,  and 
he  was  hanged  by  his  friends  and  not  by  the  law. 


JURIES.  :•;: 

glaries,  larcenies,  and  other  felonies,  with  the  great 
burden  of  civil  suits  of  all  kinds,  and  the  labor  of  dis- 
posing of  all  appears  Cyclopean.  Says  one  who  had 
every  opportunity  of  knowing,  "People  from  IS 50  to 
1858  complained  of  corruption  in  the  courts,  but  the 
accusations  were  unfounded.  The  courts,  as  a  general 
rule,  administered  the  law  to  the  best  of  their  ability." 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  courts  were  often 
crippled  in  their  action  by  juries  who  decided,  not 
according  to  feet,  but  to  expediency;  who,  instead 
of  inquiring  did  the  prisoner  commit  the  crime,  asked 
did  the  murdered  man  deserve  to  be  killed  ?  A  distinc- 
tion which,  if  not  good  law,  was  sometimes  good  jus- 
tice. But  it  was  the  general  opinion  that  the  courts 
and  juries  erred  on  the  side  of  clemency.  The  pris- 
oner might  have  Mends  on  the  jury;  or  a  juror 
might  have  sensitive  qualms;  or  he  might  be  affected 
with  the  moral  disease  about  him.  Such  things  are 
not  unknown  even  now;  but  probably  the  infection 
referred  to  was  the  most  dangerous,  because  the  most 
subtle  enemy  with  which  the  law  had  to  contend,  for 
when  a  judge  or  juror  condones  a  crime,  he  is  an 
accessory  after  the  fact,  as  far  as  the  moral  of  it  goes. 

I  have  no  means  of  determining  what  was  the  pro- 
portion of  punishment  to  crime,  but  the  judges  re- 
ceived a  large  amount  of  blame,  and  the  press,  which 
but  echoed  the  public  sentiment,  fell  under  the  dis- 
pleasure of  the  courts  in  several  instances.  A  certain 
judge  of  the  4th  judicial  district  suggested  to  the 
grand  jury  which  met  in  March  1851,  "the  propriety 
of  inquiring  into  the  conduct  of  the  press,  and.  if  it  trans- 
cended certain  limits,  of  presenting  it  as  a  nuisance." 
The  editor  of  a  San  Francisco  journal  of  respectabil- 
tty  was  arrested  for  contempt  of  court,  in  commenting 
on  the  judge's  charge  to  the  grand  jurv,  and  without 
the  benefit  of  jury,  the  judge  himself  sitting  in  judg- 
ment, was  sentenced  to  pay  a  fine  of  $500  or  in  default 
of  payment  to  go  to  prison.  An  indignation  meeting 
of  citizens  was  thereupon  held  at  the  plaza,  speeches 


£03  CRIMINAL  AXD  JUDICIAL. 

made  condemning  the  action  of  the  judge,  and  reso- 
lutions of  censure  passed,  with  talk  of  impeachment 
and  a  complaint  to  the  president  of  the  United  States, 
who  had  nothing  to  do  with  it,  since  the  state  legisla- 
ture had  elected  the  judges.  The  grand  jury  for  the 
following  term  gave  even  more  cause  for  displeasure, 
since  it  censured  the  judge  officially,  and  in  no  mild 
terms,  insomuch  that  he  was  constrained  to  move  the 
court  of  sessions  to  strike  out  from  their  report  the 
stinging  paragraphs.18 

The  judge  of  the  10th  judicial  district,  which  then 
consisted  of  Yuba, .  Nevada,  and  Sutter  counties," 
was  spoken  of  as  the  most  dissolute  man  that  ever 
wore  the  ermine  of  justice,18  a  gambler,  and  associate 
and  protector  of  gamblers.  Great  effort  was  being 
made  to  have  laws  enacted  against  gambling  by 
men  and  women,  and  trenchant  articles  were  written 
for  the  press  in  all  parts  of  the  state;  but  this 
infamous  jurist  only  gave  encouragement  to  the  sport- 
ing fraternity,  and  became,  according  to  one  of  the 

lGCurrey  Incidents,  10-11;  ,S.  F.  AUa,  March  9  and  10,  1851.  The  report 
concerned  the  vigilance  committee  of  1851,  and  read  as  follows:  'When  we 
recall  the  delays,  the  insufficient  and,  we  believe  with  much  truth  it  may  be 
said,  corrupt  administration  of  the  law;  the  incapacity  and  indifference  of 
those  who  are  its  sworn  guardians  and  ministers;  the  frequent  and  un- 
necessary postponement  of  important  trials  in  the  district  court;  the  dis- 
regard of  duty  and  impatience  while  attending  to  perform  it,  manifested  by 
some  of  our  judges  having  criminal  jurisdiction!  the  many  notorious  villains 
who  have  gone  unwhipped  of  jiistice  lead  us  to  believe  that  the  members  of 
that  association  have  been  governed  by  a  feeling  of  opposition  to  the  manner 
in  which  the  law  is  administered,  and  those  who  have  administered  it, 
rather  than  a  determination  to  disregard  the  law  itself.'  S.  F.  Herald,  Aug. 
3,  1851. 

17  The  legislature  of   1851   increased  the  judicial  districts  to  11.     The 
llth  consisted  of  Yolo,  Placer,  and  El  Dorado  counties.  Cal.  State,  1851,  12. 

18  Nevada  Gazette,  Dec.  9, 1864.     The  judge  challenged  Field  to  fight  a  duel, 
but  made  it  appear  that  he  was  the  challenged  in  order  to  secure  the  choice 
of  arms.     He  selected  bowie-knives  and  colt  revolvers;  the  fighting  to  be 
done  in  a  room  20  feet  square,  the  principals  to  be  placed  with  their  faces  to 
the  walls,  and  to  turn  and  fire  at  a  given  signal,  then  to  advance  with  their 
knives.     Field  accepted,  believing  this  a  device  of  a  coward,  and  so  it  proved, 
for  the  judge  first  modified  his  mode,  and  then  withdrew  altogether  from  the 
fight,  screening  himself  behind  his  judicial  office.     He  threatened,  however, 
to  kill  anyone  who  should  assault  him.     Hearing  that  his  course  had  been 
ridiculed,  he  attempted  to  shoot  Field  from  behind,  the  latter  being  unarmed. 
Fii'ld'a  Early  Days,  100-107.     The  judge  was  indicted  in  1854  for  a  criminal 
offence,  but  continued  in  office  from  1852  to  1858. 


A  DISGUSTED  GRAXD  JURY.  209 

judges  of  the  court  of  sessions  in,  Yuba  county,  "the 
head  of  the  hell-concocted  junta,  headed  by  the  judge 
of  the  10th  district,  and  tailed  by  a  noted  gambler  of 
Marysville."  Some  libel  suits  grew  out  of  this  free- 
dom of  speech,  but  public  sentiment  sustained  the 
press,  as  did  also  the  courts  in  general.13 

The  grand  jury  of  San  Francisco,  at  the  September 
term,  1851,  wished  to  resign,  because  the  governor 
had  pardoned  a  certain  notorious  character  who  had 
been  convicted  of  a  brutal  assault  and  sent  to  prison; 
but  Campbell,  who  had  succeeded  Murray  on  his 
promotion  to  the  supreme  bench,  refused  to  discharge 
them.  The  jury  represented  in  their  report,  that  if 
the  judgment  of  the  courts  and  the  lives  and  property 
of  the  people  were  to  be  set  at  naught  by  the  execu- 
tive, their  acts  as  grand  jurymen  were  not  required. 
But  this  was  only  the  temporary  disgust  and  despair 
which  overcame  the  people  when  the  highest  officials 
failed  in  their  duty.  In  1856  the  grand  jury  had  be- 
come less  sensitive.  Its  bill  for  expenses  for  a  single* 
term  was  almost  $1,000. 

The  organization  of  a  county,  or  the  establishment 
of  a  new  judicial  district,  was  the  occasion  for  the 
swarming  of  the  office-seekers,  who  were  thereupon 
hived  by  their  leaders.  In  1852,  the  Tulare  valley  was 
explored  by  an  expedition  under  Indian  Agent  Savage, 
the  legislature  having  divided  Mariposa  county  by  act 
of  April  20,  1852,  named  the  southern  portion  Tulare, 
and  provided  for  an  election  in  July  for  choosing 
county  officers.  As  the  new  county  was  inhabited 
solely  by  Indians,  Savage  and  company  were  the  first 
"settlers."  They  proceeded  to  hold  an  election  the 
day  after  arriving,  at  Poole's  ferry,  on  King  river, 
and  at  a  place  called  Woodville,  on  the  Kaweah  river, 
from  a  trader  named  Wood,  who  had  established  a 

°The  first  libel  suit  against  a  newspaper  was  in  re  Melhado  «.  Crane  A 
Rice.  The  verdict  of  the  lower  court  was  against  the  defendants,  but  Judge 
Murray  declared  it  contrary  to  law  and  fact,  and  granted  a  new  trial  Sac, 
Transcript,  Feb.  28,  1851. 

HIST.  CAL,  VOL  VH.    14 


210  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL, 

post  there,  but  whom  the  Indians  had  killed.  The 
number  of  votes  polled  at  both  places  was  109,  but 
from  this  population  the  requisite  officials  were  chosen, 
a  certain  major  being  elected  county  judge.  Next 
day  most  of  the  electors  and  elected  returned  to 
Mariposa.  Shortly  after  he  qualified  as  judge,  the 
major  killed  Savage  in  a  quarrel,20  and  under  circum- 
stances which  caused  people  to  regard  the  death  of 
the  Indian  agent  as  the  result  of  a  conspiracy  to  vacate 
his  position.  The  major  had  only  organized  the  court 
of  sessions,  and  his  own  arrest  was  the  first  in  Tulare 
county.  He  was  permitted  to  go  free,  but  public 
sentiment  being  much  against  him,  he  left  the  coun- 
try, and  Thomas  Baker  was  appointed  in  his  place. 

But  the  wrong-doing  was  not  by  any  means  all  on 
the  side  of  the  courts.  In  Napa,  in  1851,  J.  A.  Sel- 
lers, justice  of  the  peace,  nonsuited  a  certain  person 
for  being  absent.  Meeting  the  justice  in  a  public 
place,  the  other  endeavored  to  provoke  a  quarrel,  which 
the  justice  equally  endeavored  to  avoid,  but  finally,  be- 
ing irritated,  said  that  if  he  really  wished  to  fight,  he 
would  send  a  negro  to  fight  him,  whereupon  he  was 
stabbed  in  the  breast,  and  died  in  a  few  minutes.21 
The  legislature  passed  an  act  within  a  week  providing 
for  a  special  term  of  district  court  in  Solano  county 
to  try  the  murderer  of  Sellers,  but  he  escaped  punish- 
ment. In  1850  a  Sacramento  judge  was  publicly 
whipped  by  a  man  whom  he  had  not  long  before  sen- 
tenced. There  were  none  to  interfere,  and  the  judge 
resigned  his  office.  Such  examples  were  not  encour- 
aging to  the  administration  of  justice.  Judge  Wilson 
of  the  Sacramento  court  of  sessions,  in  1852,  was  as- 
saulted on  leaving  the  court-room  by  two  men,  one 
of  whom  was  a  prominent  lawyer  of  that  place, 

*>Cal.  Courier,  Sept.  10,  1851;  8.  F.  Atta,  March  14,  1856.  Savage  was 
the  3d  man  of  the  expedition  who  was  killed  before  the  year  was  out. 
Barton,  Hi»t.  Tularf,  3. 

'nSat.  Transcript,  March  14,  1851;  Hartncll,  Convention,  MS.,  pt  18,  1-4. 
Another  man  attempted  to  kill  Judge  McCabe.  but  was  pardoned.  S.  F. 
Alhi,  March  1?,  1855. 


ADMDsISTRATIOX  OF  JUSTICE.  211 

while  both  had  figured  in  the  squatter  riots,  and  also 
owed  him  a  grudge.  Wilson  defended  himself  with 
a  cane-sword,  which  he  thrust  into  the  lawyer's  left 
lung.  A  sheriff  named  McDonald  interfering,  dis- 
armed the  judge,  whereupon  the  latter  was  shot  at, 
but  the  sheriff,  in  endeavoring  to  shield  Wilson,  re- 
ceived the  bullet  in  his  own  person.  A  great  excite- 
ment arose,  and  the  vigilance  committee  was  called 
together.  The  offender  was  taken  in  charge,  and  placed 
on  the  prison  brig,  and  the  committee  demanded  an 
immediate  trial.  Chief  Justice  Willis  could  not  pre- 
side at  the  case  because  the  affray  took  place  at  his 
rooms.  Aldrich,  the  district  judge,  could  not  try  him 
until  he  was  indicted.  It  was  decided,  however,  to  let 
the  law  take  its  course,  and  the  wounded  man  recov- 
ering, the  affair  blew  over.  Grand  juries  were  ex- 
tremely negligent  hi  bringing  evil-doers  to  trial, 
frequently  ignoring  assaults  with  intent  to  kill,  and 
manslaughter.  Men  of  criminal  reputation  often 
went  free  for  years,  committing  numerous  crimes 
against  life  without  being  punished.11 

The  difficulty  in  bringing  a  cause  to  trial  where  the 
parties  charged  with  crime  were  of  southern  antece- 
dents, and  especially  if  they  occupied  official  positions, 
was  illustrated  by  the  ease  with  which  Terry  eluded 
the  law  for  the  killing  of  Broderick.  A  change  of 

^ 

venue  to  a  district  where  the  judge  was  also  a  south- 
erner and  sympathizer,  a  trick  to  delay  witnesses,  a 

8  The  Lloyd  family  were  an  example.  Edward  Lloyd  shot  and  killed 
Thornton,  a  teamster,  in  1861,  at  Orovflle.  He  was  tried  and  sentenced  to 
10  years  in  state  prison,  bat  through  a  decision  of  the  supreme  court  was 
released.  In  1862  he  was  killed  by  T.  N.  Smith,  in  the  fight  between  steam- 
boat runners  in  Sacramento.  Smith  remained  in  the  county  jail  six  months, 
when  the  grand  jury  ignored  the  charge  against  him.  Within  an  hour  after 
his  discharge  he  was  killed  by  George  Lloyd,  who  was  tried  and  acquitted; 
but  was  killed  in  a  quarrel  over  mining  claims  in  Xevada,  the  murderer  being 
supposed  to  be  his  brother-in-law,  Coleman,  who  was  also  shot  and  killed  at 
Pioche,  by  Barney  Flood,  in  1867,  the  grand  jury  refusing  to  indict  Flood. 
Thomas  Lloyd  shot  and  killed  a  man  in  S.  F.  in  1865,  and  was  sentenced  to 
10  years  in  prison.  Sears,  an  intimate  of  the  Lloyds  stole  a  horse,  was  pur- 
sued and  killed.  Not  long  after  the  owner  of  the  horse  was  assasinated, 
presumably  by  the  Lloyds,  or  their  friends.  Four  other  deaths  resulted  from 
the  violence  of  this  ruffianly  association,  m^Ung  12  in  all,  yet  the  only  one 
punished  by  the  law  was  Thomas  Lloyd.  S.  F.  Alto,  April  15,  1S71. 


212  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

dismissal  of  the  case,  and  all  was  settled.  No,  not 
all,  for  the  legislature  in  the  case  of  certain  criminals 
passed  ex  post  facto  amendments  to  the  laws  for  their 
benefit.23 

A  case  which  may  be  here  recorded,  comprehend- 
in«-  all  these  judicial  and  legislative  artifices,  occurred 
in  1861.  A  feud  had  grown  up  between  a  Balti- 
morean  and  a  Kentuckian,  both  citizens  of  a  certain 
town  in  Placer  county,  of  which  the  latter  had  been 
mayor.  The  quarrel  arose  concerning 'some  personal 
remarks  made  first  by  the  Kentuckian's  wife,  who 
was  a  sister  of  the  judge  of  the  16th  judicial  district, 
and  replied  to  in  kind  by  the  other.  Something  of  a 
political  aspect  was  given  to  the  hostilities,  the  Bal- 
timorean  being  a  Douglas  democrat,  while  the  Ken- 
tuckian was  of  the  Lecompton  order.  The  former, 
who  was  a  newspaper  publisher,  went  to  San  Fran- 
cisco to  purchase  stock  for  his  office.  He  was  followed 
by  the  judge  and  the  ex-mayor,  who  did  not  conceal 
their  intention  of  killing  him  should  they  meet  him, 
which  they  did  in  the  forenoon  of  New  Year's  day 
on  Sacramento  street.  The  Kentuckian  at  once  at- 
tacked with  a  bowie-knife,  and  soon  his  victim  lay  dead 
on  the  ground.  With  his  accomplice,  who  was  close 
at  hand,  he  then  walked  arm-in-arm  to  the  police  sta- 
tion, and  was  introduced  by  his  companion  to  the  chief 
of  police,  who  locked  the  murderer  up,  safe  away  from 
vigilance  committees,  or  any  honest  man  who  might 
hurt  him.  A  writ  of  habeas  corpus  was  issued  by  Rob- 
inson, judge  of  the  Sacramento  county  court,  which 
required  the  prisoner  to  be  brought  before  the  12th 
district  court,  Campbell,  judge.  His  attorney  applied 
for  change  of  venue,  but  the  application  was  denied. 
The  ex-mayor  then  petitioned  the  legislature  to  pass 

23  An  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  an  act  to  regulate  proceedings  in 
criminal  cases,  passed  May  1,  1851.  Cal  Stat.,  1860,  71.  This  amendment 
provides  for  granting  a  change  of  venue,  and  was  passed  after  the  Terry 
fiasco.  In  1857  it  was  proposed  to  pass  an  act  requiring  a  judge  to  grant  a 
change  of  venue,  but  the  judiciary  committee  to  whom  it  was  referred  repu- 
diated it 


LEGAL  PROTECTION  OF  ASSASSINATION.  213 

an  act  directing  the  court  to  grant  a  change  of  venue 
to  Placer  county,  and  such  was  the  influence  of  the 
southern  minority  in  that  body  that  a  bill  was  actually 
passed  by  a  large  majority,  requiring  the  submission 
of  Campbell  to  legislative  interference  with  his  duties. 
The  governor  vetoed  the  bill,  but  nevertheless  it  was 
passed  over  his  head,  through  the  exertions  of  lobby- 
ists who  persuaded  some  of  those  who  had  voted 
against  it  to  pair  off,  and  leave  the  bill  to  its  sup- 
porters. The  constitutionality  of  the  act  was  argued 
before  Campbell,  who  decided  against  it  on  many 
grounds,  but  particularly  because  it  was  a  special  act 
to  liberate  the  assassin. 

The  opinion  of  Campbell  being  conclusive,  instead  of 
appealing  to  the  supreme  court,  the  murderer's  friends 
again  applied  to  the  legislature  to  enact  a  general 
law  covering  all  similar  cases  as  well  as  this  one. 
Certain  public  journals  had  commented  from  time  to 
time  upon  the  case,  and  the  same  influence  which  had 
procured  the  special  act  for  the  relief  of  a  murderer, 
caused  the  introduction  of  a  bill  declaring  "it  unlaw- 
ful to  print  in  a  newspaper  the  testimony  or  facts,  or 
the  probable  testimony  or  facts,  or  any  statement 
whatever  of  the  testimony,  facts,  or  circumstances,  or 
anything  purporting  to  be  such  evidence  or  statement 
of  facts  or  circumstances  relative  to  any  crime  or  mis- 
demeanor in  this  state,  under  a  penalty  of  from  $50 
to  §500  for  each  offence;"  but  the  publication  of  the 
general  nature  of  an  offence  with  the  name  of  the  ac- 
cused, or  the  proceedings  after  trial,  was  not  prohib- 
ited, nor  the  publication  of  evidence  of  an  offence  of  a 
political  or  insurrectionary  character,  or  of  the  wrong- 
ful acts  of  public  officers.  Murder,  only  murder,  was 
to  be  so  sheltered  and  defended,  that  the  bowie-knife 
chivalry  might  have  their  safety  in  their  own  hands, 
whatsoever  lives  they  might  choose  to  take. 

The  legislature  did  not,  however,  venture  upon 
this  further  outrage  to  public  sentiment.  As  for 
the  chief  instigator  of  the  acts  above  related,  he 


214  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

was  indicted  for  the  murder  of  the  Baltimorean  by  the 
grand  jury  of  San  Francisco,  and  arrested  at  Sacra- 
mento on  "the  28th  of  March,  on  the  ground  that  he 
was  an  accessory  before  the  fact,  and  in  the  eye  of  the 
law  equally  guilty  with  the  other.  A  habeas  corpus 
was  issued  by  Baldwin,  judge  of  the  supreme  court, 
returnable  before  Judge  Kobinson  of  Sacramento,  who 
declined  to  have  anything  to  do  with  it.  A  writ  was 
then  issued  returnable  before  Judge  McKinstry  of 
the  7th  district,  who  also  declined  jurisdiction.  Still 
another  writ  was  made,  returnable  before  Judge  Mc- 
Kune  of  the  6th  district.  About  the  middle  of  April 
the  supreme  court  rendered  an  opinion  that  the  special 
act  of  the  legislature  was  constitutional,  and  Judge 
Campbell  made  the  order  transferring  the  assassin  to 
the  llth  district  court  in  his  own  county,  which  ac- 
quitted him.  His  accomplice  was  soon  again  seated 
upon  the  judicial  bench,  and  the  doctrine  that  homi- 
cides could  be  cleared  by  the  legislature  was  soundly 
engrafted  upon  California  jurisprudence.  In  1863, 
the  ex-mayor  having  knocked  down  an  agent  of  Wells, 
Fargo  &  Co.  at  Virginia  City,  Nevada,  was  shot,  and 
died  from  the  wound.  The  judge  was  impeached  upon 
charges  of  malfeasance  in  office,  of  uttering  disloyal  sen- 
timents, and  language  unbecoming  his  high  position. 
W.  H.  Badgely  succeeded  him  as  judge  of  the  district. 
While  it  is  extraordinary  that  so  many  men  chosen 
to  administer  the  law  in  criminal  courts  should  prove 
themselves  criminal,  they  were  after  all  the  excep- 
tions." California  had  forty-three  counties,  each 
with  its  county  court,  and  court  of  sessions  ;  eighteen 
judicial  districts  with  a  judge  for  each  ;  the  superior 
court  of  San  Francisco,  with  three  justices ;  lower 

"5.  F.  Bulletin,  March  22,  1861;  Cal.  Jour.  Assem.,  1862,  566-72,  609-11, 
653-6,  753;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  30,  1861.  Yet  there  were  in  California 
model  judges,  impartial  and  decorous,  men  of  whom  any  people  might  be 
proud.  There  were  Edward  Norton  of  the  12th  district,  afterwards  supreme 
judge;  John  S.  Hager  of  the  4th  district,  and  Shattuck  of  the  superior 
court  of  S.  F.  Camphell  of  San  Francisco  was  an  able  and  honest  judge  iu 
early  times. 


CATALOGUE  OF  MURDER.  215 

municipal  courts  in  towns  with  as  many  justices  as 
required ;  a  supreme  court,  and  a  United  State  cir- 
cuit court.  It  would  seem  that  with  so  much  legal 
machinery,  order  should  have  reigned.  But  it  took 
the  strong  hand  of  the  general  government  to  evolve 
order  out  of  the  discordant  element  in  California ;  and 
in  that  respect  the  civil  war  was  a  blessing. 

From  1849  to  1854  inclusive,  4,200  murders  were 
committed  in  California,*4  In  San  Francisco  there 
were  1,200,  and  only  one  conviction.  In  1855,  538 
persons  died  by  violence  out  of  a  population  embrac- 
ing 110,223  voters.  *  One  wishes  to  turn  away  from 
such  wholesale  blood-letting,  and  yet  if  we  consider 
the  character  of  the  population  and  the  infrequency 
of  punishments,  we  have  no  reason  to  be  surprised 
at  this  enormous  proportion  of  homicide*.  In 
the  county  of  Sacramento  during  thirty  years, 
from  1850  to  1880,  there  were  21  legal  executions. 
The  record  of  San  Francisco  from  1852  to  1882 
shows  that  there  have  been  but  16  legal  execu- 
tions, and  139  convictions  for  different  degrees  of 
manslaughter  which  were  punished  with  imprison- 

*  Helper  in  his  Landof  GWS,  29,  gives  a  list  of  lives  lost:  murders 4,200; 
killed  by  Indians  en  route  to  CaL  1,600;  perished  of  want,  and  accident, 
and  by  Indians  in  CaL,  5,900;  wrecked  and  lost  at  sea,  en  route,  2,200; 
suicides  1,400;  became  insane  1,700;  total  16,400. 

*Ot  these  357  were  white  persons;  133  Indians;  32  Chinamen:  3 negroes. 
Exclusive  of  Indians  these  were  405  homicides.  The  particulars  are  not 
always  given  but  the  following  are  known:  found  murdered,  46;  executed  by 
mobs,  47;  executed  according  to  law,  9;  killed  by  sheriffs  or  police.  10;  killed 
by  collectors  of  miners  license,  6;  killed  by  Indians,  32 — civilization  is  far 
before  savagism  in  human  butchery — in  justifiable  homicides,  17;  in  quarrels 
about  mining  claims,  12;  in  gambling  disputes,  8;  for  robbery,  16.  HttttH, 
ReymntA,  375-7;  8.  F.  Atta,  March  19,  1855.  The  WteMy  Gazette  of  Sta 
Barbara,  June  7,  1855,  says  that  according  to  the  calendar  published  in 
the  Chroiuclt,  there  were  152  murders  committed  in  the  state  during  the  first 
four  months  of  the  year;  two  were  hanged  by  the  sheriff;  14  by  the  excited 
mob,  and  8  convicted. 

f  The  first  man  hanged  under  CaL  laws  was  a  Mexican  in  Mariposa 
county.  So*  Jocupum  RrptbUca*  in  S.  F.  Alta,  June  9,  1851.  The  first  in 
San  Francisco  co.  was  a  Spaniard,  Jose  Farmi,  who  was  hanged  on  Russian 
hill  in  1852.  There  was  no  legal  execution  in  Motterey  until  IS5S,  when 
Jose  Anastacio  was  sentenced  bv  Judge  Hester  and  hanged.  Monterey  lltr- 
oW,  Oct.  23,  1S75. 


216  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

ment.  Of  these  31  were  sentenced  to  imprisonment 
for  life.  The  total  of  155  convictions  for  the  thou- 
sands of  lives  taken  in  over  thirty  years,  gives  us  a 
sense  of  something  peculiar  in  the  laws  themselves, 
or  in  their  administration.  What  it  is,  let  the  stu- 
dent of  law  and  social  science  determine ;  the  fact  re- 
mains that  an  average  of  25  homicides  has  taken 
place  yearly  in  this  city  for  the  last  decade,  during 
which  none  of  the  exciting  causes  of  the  first  twenty 
years  have  existed,  and  that  out  of  the  250  or  more 
homicidal  crimes,  only  four  have  been  punished  capi- 
tally, and  seventy-seven  by  imprisonment.  In  all  the 
other  cases  the  juries  probably  agreed  that  the  victim 
deserved  to  be  killed,  the  attorney  for  the  defence 
usually  being  chosen  for  his  skill  in  proving  murder 
justifiable,  and  his  patience  in  exhausting  the  privi- 
leges of  all  the  courts.  In  1871,  when  people  wished 
to  have  handed  Laura  D.  Fair  for  the  murder  of  her 

O 

paramour  in  the  presence  of  his  family,  the  crime  be- 
ing augmented  by  the  social  eminence  of  the  man, 
they  were  restrained  in  the  expression  of  this  feeling 
by  a  sense  of  the  shame  it  would  be  to  make  an  ex- 
ample of  a  woman,  when  they  allowed  four  out  of  five 
men  to  escape.  But  of  the  several  atrocious  public 
assassinations  by  men  of  social  standing  since  that 
event,  not  one  has  resulted  in  conviction. 

The  combined  operation  of  all  of  the  courts  in  the 
state,  even  in  this  laxity  in  administering  the  laws, 
furnishes  a  large  number  of  prisoners  to  the  peniten- 
tiary. The  whole  number  received  at  the  state  prison 
from  1851,  when  it  was  first  occupied,  until  1880,  when 
the  new  constitution  went  into  effect,  was  9,320,  of 
whom  7,756  had  been  discharged,  and  1,564  remained. 
In  the  first  decade  so  many  prisoners  escaped  "  that  the 

*In  1856  the  convicts  confined  in  the  prison  brig  at  Sac.  conspired  to 
murder  the  officers  and  escape,  but  were  suspected,  and  the  first  plot  frus- 
trated. A  second  attempt  was  discovered  to  the  officers  by  one  of  their 
number  under  sentence  of  death,  for  which  service  the  governor  commuted 
Ins  sentence.  Sac.  Union,  June  3,  1856;  S.  F.  Alta,  Sept.  27,  1856.  In  the 
(spring  of  1857,  4  convicts  escaped  from  San,  Quentin  in  an  opeu  boat,  but 


WHOLESALE  PARTOXISG.  217 

pardoning  power  was  not  called  into  exercise  to  any 
great  degree.     The  disposition  to  pardon  felons  Las 
since  increased  to  such  an  an  extent  as  to  make  the 
trying  and  sentencing  them  appear  an  official  farce. 
In  1861  the  governor  pardoned  41  convicts  out  of  the 
penitentiary.       In    1862-3    there   were    26    pardons. 
From  1863  to  1865  the  number  was  reduced  to  an 
average  of  eleven  pardoned  yearly  by  Governor  Low. 
But  from  1865  to  1867  the  governor  liberated  83 
state  prisoners,  and  17  from  county  jails.     From  1867 
to  1869  were  pardoned  42  out  of  the  state  prison  and 
two  out  of  jail:  and  from  1869  to  1871  the  governor 
freed  70  from  state  prison  and  13  from  jail     From 

were  retaken.  In  the  following  November,  some  convicts  being  on  a  wood- 
boat,  which  they  were  unloading,  moved  the  boat  onward,  as  they  afterward 
alleged,  by  the  order  of  the  person  having  them  in  charge:  but  a  guard 
standing  by  a  6-pound  gun  seeing  the  movement,  and  remembering  the  late 
escape,  fired  on  the  prisoners,  tiffing  3  and  wounding  5.  S.  F.  BrnHeti*,  Nov. 
9,  1857.  The  conduct  of  the  prison  under  the  contract  system  was  higfcly 
discreditable  to  the  state.  The  state  was  robbed,  and  the  prisoners  were 
starved  and  ill-treated.  Escapes  were  frequent.  It  used  to  be  said  of  crim- 
inals that  they  '  might  as  well  have  been  freed,  for  if  the  courts  do  not  turn 
them  loose,  Estill  wflL'  S.  F.  BmOetim,  March  2,  1857.  In  1858,  Gov. 
Weller  took  forcible  possession,  for  the  good  of  both  state  and  prisoners,  and 
began  the  reform  which  has  culminated  in  a  thoroughly  good  system  of  prison 
discipline  and  management,  although  the  policy  of  legislation  forbidding 
prison  labor  to  compete  with  outside  manufactures  has  deprived  one  third  of 
the  prisoners  of  the  benefits  of  employment.  Reft  Dir  oj'CaL  State  Pritom, 
July  1,  1879.  When  Gov.  Weller  instituted  his  reforms  there  were  585  con- 
victs crowded  into  a  building  which  could  not  comfortably  accommodate 
more  than  350.  At  present,  with  more  than  twice  the  number,  the  arrange- 
ments for  healthfumess,  moral  training,  religious  instruction,  reading,  and 
schools  for  the  younger  prisoners,  are  admirable.  In  May  1859,  14  convicts 
escaped  from  San  Qnentin,  and  in  June  another  attempted  escape  was 
planned,  in  the  execution  of  which  5  were  killed.  In  Oct.  there  was  still 
another  daring  effort  made  to  secure  freedom,  bnt  the  prisoners  were  this 
time  safely  recommitted.  The  great  revolt  occurred  in  1862,  when  the  lieut- 
gov.  was  visiting  the  prison.  He  was  seized  by  a  body  of  nearly  200  convicts, 
who  bore  him  before  them  around  the  walls,  and  compelled  him  to  signal  to 
Fort  MeOellan  not  to  fire  on  them.  The  officers,  however,  managed  to  get 
in  one  shot  without  hitting  the  lieut-gov.,  which  partially  disbanded  them, 
and  through  the  assistance  of  the  citizens  of  San  Rafael  the  main  body  of 
them  were  captured  and  returned  to  prison.  Ten  were  killed  and  30  wended. 
Sam  Rafael  Journal,  July  26,  1862;  Marim  Co.  But,,  130-2:  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
July  23,  1892.  In  1864,  whfle  the  prisoners  at  San  Qnentin  were  at  work  in 
the  brick-yard,  an  effort  was  made  to  escape  by  scaling  the  wall  and  taking 
post  No.  4.  The  guard  was  assailed  with  every  sort  of  missile  at  their  com- 
mand, and  to  prevent  the  prisoners  using  the  cannon,  spiked  them.  After  a 
hard  battle  between  the  4  guards  at  the  post  and  23  convicts,  the  latter  were 
compelled  to  return  to  the  prison,  4  being  killed,  8  wounded,  3  mortally. 
S.  F.  BmOetiM,  April  4,  1864. 


218  CRIMINAL  AND  JUDICIAL. 

1871  to  1875  were  liberated  80  from  the  state  prison, 
18  from  jails,  and  commuted  the  sentences  of  12 
convicts.  Pacheco,  who  held  the  office  of  governor 
only  from  February  to  December  1875,  released 
60  state  prisoners,  16  county  prisoners,  and  com- 
muted the  sentences  of  five.  Irwin  followed  in 
1876-7  and  1878-9,  with  109  pardons  for  state  pris- 
oners and  21  for  county  prisoners,  beside  25  commu- 
tations of  sentence.  Thus  in  nineteen  years,  after 
society  had  recovered  from  its  first  fermentative  state, 
there  were  deliberately  liberated  in  its  midst  536 
state  criminals  and  81  prisoners  confined  in  county 
prisons,  while  42  had  their  sentences  commuted.  In 
these  660  cases  were  the  grand  juries  mistaken  ?  Did 
the  witnesses  perjure  themselves,  were  the  judges 
mistaken  in  the  law,  or  unduly  severe  in  their  decrees  ? 
These  are  seldom  urged  as  reasons  for  exercising  the 
pardoning  power.  A  petition  for  the  release  of  a 
prisoner,  containing  certain  statements  to  account  for 
his  incarceration,  and  favoring  his  liberation,  to  which  is 
appended  a  long  list  of  names,  among  them  being  often 
those  of  the  prosecuting  attorney  who  convicted  and 
the  judge  who  sentenced  him,  is  the  evidence  which 
undoes  all  that  the  former  testimony  had  effected. 
These  petitions  are  signed  by  persons  who  know  noth- 
ing of  the  merits  of  the  case,  and  who  do  not  even 
stop  to  inquire  the  contents  of  the  paper  to  which 
they  subscribe.  This  part  of  a  dangerous  act  may 
be  attributed  to  a  reprehensible  carelessness;  but 
when  those  who  administer  the  laws  petition  to  have 
their  operation  set  aside,  the  conclusion  is  soon  arrived 
at  that  the  majesty  of  the  law  has  departed.  As  for 
the  governor,  he  is  but  an  instrument,  and  if  the  law- 
makers and  law-administrators  counsel  him  to  return 
so  many  electors  to  their  forfeited  privileges,  what 
then?  It  would  be  curious  if  the  evil-disposed  should 
show  greater  respect  for  the  government  which  fails 
in  respect  for  itself. 

In  the  report  of  the  board  of  prison  commissioners 


IXHOIAXE  INJUSTICE.  219 

for  1879,  with  the  governor's  name  at  the  head,  was 
the  following  paragraph  which  should  have  some 
meaning:  "I  would  use  the  pardoning  power  ten 
times  where  it  is  now  used  once ;  would  not  use  it 
absolutely  but  conditionally.  The  governor  may  im- 
pose any  condition  he  pleases;  he  may  confine  one 
man  to  the  limits  of  a  particular  town  ;  another  to  a 
county  or  a  farm,  or  he  may  send  him  out  of  the 
state  or  the  United  States,  or  he  may  pardon  him 
upon  condition  that  he  pay  a  sum  of  money  for  the 
support  of  the  prison,  or  that  he  furnish  beef  for  the 
prison  for  a  certain  time.  There  are  at  least  100 
prisoners  here  who  ought,  in  my  judgment,  to  be 
pardoned ;  and  there  are  at  least  200  serving  ex- 
cessive, unheard  of,  inhuman  sentences.1*  Then, 
again,  there  are  at  least  200  prisoners  here,  under 
short  sentences,  who  should  either  have  been  sent  for 
life,  or  long  terms. "  The  legislature  was  requested 
to  devise  some  plan  for  the  equalization  of  sentences, 
which  was  certainly  only  proper,  to  prevent  the  state 
of  things  here  represented  ;  but  making  the  governor 
a  pardon-broker,  with  unlimited  powers,  would  have 
been  strange  legislation. 

In  the  next  chapter  I  shall  have  particular  refer- 
ence to  courts  of  appeal,  their  constitution,  history, 
and  decisions. 

9 The  governor  may  hare  found  some  cases  like  this  oca:  a  Mr  Levy,  m. 
1855,  was  sentenced  to  a  year  in  state  prison,  and  a  forfeit  of  §30,000.  for 
smuggling  cigars.  S.  F.  Alto,  Nov.  6,  1855.  This,  while  murderers  went 
free!  The  report  of  the  assembly  com.  on  prisons  for  18S1,  gives  a  list  of  26 
prisoners  convicted  of  robbery,  whose  sentences  vary  all  the  way  from  one 
year  to  life,  five  being  in  for  their  natural  Urea. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  JUDICIARY. 

1850-1872. 

THE  FIRST  SUPREME  COURT — PERSONNEL  OF  THE  JUDGES — INFLUENCE  ON 
OPINION— EVILS  OF  AN  ELECTIVE  JUDICIARY — CHARACTER  OF  CASES  TO 
BE  DETERMINED,  AND  INFLUENCE  ON  INDUSTRY— LAND  AND  MINING 
INTERESTS — EFFECT  OF  THE  AMENDED  CONSTITUTION — FEDERAL  COURTS 
IN  CALIFORNIA — THE  MUNICIPALITY  AND  THE  CONSOLIDATION  ACT- 
PUEBLO  LANDS — COMPILATION  OF  THE  LAWS. 

THE  supreme  judges  elected  by  the  legislature  in  1850 
were  S.  C.  Hastings,  chief  justice,  and  H.  A.  Lyons  and 
Nathaniel  Bennett,  associates.  Hastings  served  his 
term  of  two  years.  Lyons  became  chief  justice  by 
seniority  in  1852,  but  resigned  in  April.  Bennett 
had  resigned  in  October  1851.  Thus,  in  the  course 

O  ' 

of  a  little  more  than  two  years,  the  whole  supreme 
bench  was  changed.  Solomon  Heydenfeldt  was  the 
first  elected  supreme  judge  to  succeed  Hastings. 
To  fill  vacancies,  Hugh  C.  Murray  was  appointed 
vice  Bennett ;  A.  Anderson  vice  Lyons.  At  the 
general  election  of  1852,  Murray  was  chosen  to  fill 
the  unexpired  term  of  Bennett;  and  in  1855-he  was 
re-elected,  to  a  full  term,  but  died  before  the  end  of 
his  term.  At  the  same  election  Alexander  Wells 
was  chosen  for  the  unexpired  term  of  Lyons,  and  in 
1853  he  was  elected  for  a  full  term,  but  died  in  Octo- 
ber 1854.  Charles  N.  Bryan  was  appointed  to  the 
vacancy  until  September  1855,  when  David  S.  Terry 
was  elected  to  the  unexpired  term  of  Wells,  ending 
in  1859.  Heydenfeldt  served  until  January  1857, 
when  he  resigned,  and  P.  H.  Burnett  was  appointed 
to  the  vacancy.  Thus  in  seven  years  there  were  ten 

(220) 


221 

judges  on  the  supreme  bench,  and  the  intent  of  the 
constitution  in  classifying  the  first  three  appointments 
so  that  the  election  of  justices  for  long  terms  should 
be  the  more  quickly  secured,  was  defeated. 

Questions  of  law  arose  among  the  judges  on  the 
supreme  bench.  The  temporary  absence  of  one  of 
the  three  judges  made  a  decision  impossible  in  the 
case  of  a  disagreement  between  the  remaining  two. 
In  February  1852  the  legislature  granted  Heyden- 
feldt  leave  of  absence  for  six  months,  and  in  March 
passed  an  act  authorizing  the  governor  to  fill  tempor- 
ary vacancies  by  appointment.  The  governor  of- 
fered the  place  left  by  Heydenfeldt  to  Burnett,  who 
declined,  deeming  the  act  unconstitutional.  Wells, 
however,  accepted.  The  constitutionality  of  the  act 
was  tested  on  an  agreed  case.  Murray  decided 
against,  and  Anderson  in  favor  of  it.  There  being 
therefore  no  decision,  Wells  remained  upon  the  bench 
until  Heydenfeldt's  return,  when  Murray's  opinion 
was  concurred  in,  and  his  occupancy  by  appointment 
during  a  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  voluntary  ab- 
sence of  a  judge  who  had  not  resigned,  was  declared 
to  be  unconstitutional.  His  subsequent  election  soon 
restored  him  to  his  place  on  the  supreme  bench. 
When  Murray  took  his  seat  in  1856  for  the  beginning 
of  a  new  term,  he  claimed  that  by  virtue  of  his  ap- 
pointment in  1851,  and  election  hi  1852,  he  was  the 
senior  justice  in  commission.  Heydenfeldt,  who  was 
elected  in  1851,  was  entitled  to  the  place,  but  not 
liking  to  have  a  quarrel,  yielded  his  right. 

Murray  dying  in  September  1857,  Burnett,  then 
serving  as  associate  justice,  was  appointed  to  that 
vacancy,  and  Stephen  J.  Field  to  the  place  left  va- 
cant by  Burnett's  promotion.  Field  was  at  that  time 
associate  justice  elect,  to  succeed  Heydenfeldt  in 
January  1858.  Murray's  successor  was  Joseph  G. 
Baldwin,  elected  to  fill  the  unexpired  term,  ending  in 
January  1862.  By  the  expiration  of  Heydenfeldt's 
term,  Terry  became  chief  justice.  He  resigned  just 


222  THE  JUDICIARY. 

before  his  time  expired  by  limitation,  and  W.  W.  Cope 
was  elected  to  succeed  him,  Field,  who  had  been  only 
a  little  more  than  one  year  on  the  bench,  taking  the 
chief-justiceship.  Baldwin's  successor  was  Edward 
Norton,  pioneer  lawyer  of  San  Francisco. 

The  constitution  of  California  said  that  the  justices 
of  the  supreme  court  should  be  elected  for  six  years ; 
yet  Murray, Wells,  Terry,  and  Baldwin  were  elected  for 
unexpired,  or  short  terms,  varying  from  two,  to  four, 
and  five  years.  The  constitution  said  that  the  gov- 
ernor should  have  power  to  appoint,  when  any  office 
became  vacant,  from  any  cause,  but  the  commission 
should  expire  at  the  end  of  the  next  legislative  ses- 
sion, or  at  the  next  election  by  the  people.  The  con- 
stitution had  not  provided  a  mode  for  filling  a 
vacancy  in  the  supreme  court.  The  governor  there- 
fore appointed,  temporarily,  and  issued  a  proclamation 
for  an  election  of  a  judge,  or  judges,  at  the  next  gen- 
eral election,  but  "  for  the  unexpired  term " ;  and 
neither  the  bench,  the  bar,  nor  the  people  found  fault 
with  this  interpretation,  although  it  plainly  defeated 
the  evident  intent,  and  the  letter  of  the  constitution. 
The  governor,  also,  as  in  the  case  mentioned  above, 
appointed  when  there  was  no  actual  vacancy,  the 
judge  being  still  in  commission,  and  only  absent  for 
his  own  pleasure. 

The  administration  of  justice,  particularly  of  the 
higher  courts,  is  beyond  everything  the  most  impor- 
tant part  of  the  government.  By  the  degree  of  en- 
lightenment in  the  jurisprudence  of  the  country,  its 
advancement  in  national  greatness  is  to  be  estimated. 
But  it  is  irrational  to  expect  of  an  elective  judiciary, 
nominated  in  party  conventions,  taking  part  in  excit- 
ing campaigns,  cognizant  of,  and  sharing  in  the  per- 
sonal abuse  of  the  rostrum,  that  dignity,  purity,  or 
learning  which  constitute  an  enlightened  judiciary. 
The  judicial  ermine  which  has  been  dragged  through 
the  political  pool  in  any  state  must  have  lost  its 
whiteness.  What  then  of  the  immaculateness  of 


LAW  WORSE  THAX  JUDGES.  223 

elected  judges  during  the  first  decade  of  California 
judicial  history  ?  The  framers  of  the  constitution  in 
their  honest  dependence  upon  the  virtue  supposed  to 
reside  in  the  exercise  of  the  electoral  privilege,  lost 
sight  of  the  peculiar  conditions  likely  to  accompany 
that  franchise  in  California.  But  who  shall  say  that, 
had  the  elective  power  been  conferred  upon  the  legis- 
lature, the  welfare  of  the  people  would  have  been 
more  safe  than  in  the  hands  of  the  judges  elected  by 
themselves?  for  the  legislatures  were  not  much  above 
political  conventions. 

In  the  older,  agricultural  states,  settled  slowly  by 
industrious  and  conscientious  men,  with  parents  and 
grandparents,  brothers  and  sisters,  wives  and  children, 
each  in  their  way  influencing  legislation,  the  purity  of 
the  ballot-box,  and  the  honesty  of  the  law-makers 
might  be  depended  upon  for  a  generation  at  least. 
Bat  in  California,  overrun  by  adventurers  from  every 
land  under  heaven,  with  the  scum  of  the  great  sea  of 
humanity  floating  to  its  shores,  until  earth,  air,  and 
water  shared  the  contamination,  the  body  politic  could 
not  be  healthy,  nor  its  soul  pure ;  least  of  all  should 
we  look  for  that  highest  expression  of  social  integrity 
and' culture,  a  perfect  judiciary. 

Yet  we  should  be  justly  surprised  not  to  find  among 
the  aspirants  to  positions  of  trust,  who  have  secured  the 
favor  of  a  majority  of  the  electors,  some,  even  many, 
who  deserved  that  favor ;  for  even  a  political  conven- 
tion may  respect  the  prejudices  of  the  better  portion 
of  society  sufficiently  to  put  forward  its  most  respect- 
able material,  mtellectually,  or  otherwise,  to  be  voted 
for.  And  so  it  fell  out,  that  in  the  rudest  times  of 
the  rude  epoch  of  California  history  the  superior  and 
supreme  judges,  with  certain  marked  and  most  in- 
famous exceptions,  made  themselves  respected.1  But 

1  None  more  so  than  Orrffle  C.  Pratt,  a  native  of  Ontario  co.,  X.  Y., 
where  he  was  born  April  24,  1819.  After  practising  as  a  lawyer,  first  at 
Rochester,  X.  Y.,  and  later  at  Galena,  HL,  he  was  appointed  associate  jndge 
in  Oregon,  where  he  rendered  excellent  service  in  the  Whitman  in  i  MM.M 
cases,  and  in  the  famous  location  controversy  of  1851-2.  In  1S56  he  re- 


224  THE  JUDICIARY. 

they  could  not  always  make  the  constitution  and  laws 
respected,  because  some  faults  in  both  interfered  with 
their  satisfactory  interpretation,  a  matter  to  which  I 
shall  again  refer.  .  . 

The  difficulty  of  keeping  the  private  opinions  of  a 
judge  out  of  the  legal  decisions  was  illustrated  by 
Burnett  in  the  case  of  the  negro  Archy,  related  in  an- 
other place.  Burnett  decided  that  Stovall,  who 
claimed  Archy,  was  not  entitled,  under  the  law  of  the 
state,  to  have  possession  of  him  ;  but  that  "  there  were 
circumstances  connected  with  the  particular  case  that 
may  exempt  him  from  the  operation  of  the  rules  we 
have  laid  down,"  and  being  "not  disposed  to  rigidly 
enforce  the  rule  for  the  first  time,"  Stovall  might 
have  the  negro,  though  this  decision  was  not  to  be  a 
precedent  for  the  future,  in  similar  cases.  The  criti- 
cal, and  by  no  means  reverent  California  public,  openly 
ridiculed  the  opinion  of  one  whose  prejudices  and 
amiability  together  had  led  him  to  commit  a  judicial 
blunder,  of  which  much  worse  judges  and  men  would 
not  have  been  guilty.  In  this  judgment  Terry,  of 
course,  concurred. 

As  I  have  before  said,  it  was  the  law,  more  than 
the  judges,  which  was  at  fault,  though  the  latter 
were  also  to  blame.  For  a  considerable  period  in 

moved  to  San  Francisco,  where  after  practising  for  three  years  in  partner- 
ship with  Alex.  Campbell,  he  was  elected  judge  for  the  twelfth  judicial 
district.  His  decisions  are  among  the  classics  of  the  law,  and  as  a  jurist  he 
has  won  a  reputation  second  to  none  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

The  Hrst  chief  justice  of  California,  Hastings,  was  a  native  of  Jefferson 
co.,  N.  Y.,  at  the  time  36  years  of  age,  tall  and  powerful  frame,  genial 
manner,  and  some  legal  lore.  He  was  elected  to  congress  in  1846,  and  ap- 
pointed chief  justice  of  the  supreme  court  of  Iowa  in  1848,  but  resigned  to 
come  to  Cal.  the  following  year.  He  retired  from  public  life  in  1853,  having 
served  one  term  as  attorney-general.  Of  his  associates,  Lyons  and  Bennett, 
the  same  might  be  said.  Bennett  was  also  a  New  Yorker,  born  in  1815,  and 
educated  at  Hamilton  college.  He  came  to  Cal.  in  1849  by  sea.  Murray 
was  of  Scottish  descent,  but  was  born  in  St  Louis,  and  reared  in  southern 
III.  He  joined  the  14th  infantry  regiment  at  the  age  of  21  to  fight  in  the 
battles  under  Scott  in  Mexico,  winning  the  commission  of  a  lieut.  Coming 
to  Cal.  in  1849,  he  was  elected  one  of  the  associate  justices  of  the  superior 
court  of  S.  P.,  created  by  the  legislature  of  1851.  J.  Caleb  Smith  of  Va  was 
lii.i  associate,  and  Morse  presiding  judge.  Sac.  Union,  Sept.  19,  1857.  It  is 
said  that  being  asked  what  he  knew  about  law,  he  replied,  'I  do  not  know 
much  about  it,  and  am  too  indolent  to  study.  If  I  am  elected  I  shall  acquire 


EARLY  JUDGES.  225 

1856  no  supreme  court  was  held.  Heydenfeldt  was 
absent  from  the  state;  Terry  was  in  confinement  by  the 
vigilance  committee;  and  Murray  utilized  the  period 
while  the  people  usurped  his  powers,  to  visit  some 
springs  and  remain  in  seclusion  away  from  the  shadow 

knowledge  without  effort.  Every  lawyer  who  comes  before  me  will  be  a 
compulsory  teacher,  giving  me  the  benefit  of  his  midnight  cramming  and 
tedious  search  after  authorities.'  Calistoga  Tribune,  Aug.  8,  1872.  Such  was 
the  activity  of  his  intellect  and  the  power  of  his  memory,  joined  to  a  naturally 
judicial  mind,  that  he  soon  became  a  good  judge  of  law,  and  was  appointed 
to  the  supreme  bench  to  fill  the  place  made  vacant  by  Bennett's  resignation; 
was  elected  to  it  in  1852  by  the  democrats,  and  reflected  in  1855  by  the 
know-nothings.  For  five  years — a  lifetime  in  effect  to  many  whose  fortunes 
hong  upon  the  supreme  bench  decisions — this  magistrate  ruled  the  chief 
court  in  Cal.  and  even  the  others  by  appeal. 

The  associate  justices  who  occupied  the  bench  for  the  greatest  length  of 
time  with  Murray  were  Heydenfeldt  and  Terry.  Both  were  democratic  pol- 
iticians, Heydenfeldt  being  Weller's  manager  in  the  senatorial  contest  in 
He  did  much  to  support  the  reputation  of  the  state,  and  although 
often  included  in  the  denunciations  hurled  against  the  supreme  bench,  was 
certainly  the  least  deserving  of  censure  of  either.  Terry  was  a  southern  man, 
of  acquirements,  with  a  Texan  experience,  a  typical  chivalry  judge,  given  to 
assaulting  those  who  offended  him,  even  when  practising  in  court,  and  exhib- 
iting a  warm  friendship  for  those  who  pleased  him — a  man  of  extremes. 
During  vigilance  committee  times,  he  descended  from  the  dignity  of  his  high 
office  to  go  to  S.  F.  at  the  instance  of  a  brother  of  Billy  Mulligan,  who  was 
to  be  brought  by  them  before  the  judge  on  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus  for  which 
the  prisoner  had  not  asked.  When  the  committee  sent  an  officer  to  take 
Mulligan,  he  resisted  the  arrest,  fomented  a  quarrel,  and  stabbed  the  officer, 
being  himself  arrested.  The  vigilance  committee  detained  him  prisoner  for 
6  weeks,  and  released  him  at  last,  more  out  of  respect  for  the  office  he  de- 
graded than  out  of  their  sense  of  justice  to  the  man.  Terry  was  one  of  a 
party  of  about  40  men  which  left  Texas  for  Cal.  in  April  1849.  Two  other 
parties,  one  from  La  and  one  from  Miss,,  travelled  in  company.  After  his 
arrival  in  CaL  he  had  a  political  dispute  with  M.  R.  Evans,  attacking  him 
with  a  pistol  and  beating  him  until  he  was  senseless.  Sa»  Jote  Telegraph, 
July  8,  1856.  During  Terry's  incarceration  in  1856,  the  Texan  legislature 
addressed  a  memorial  to  congress  praying  the  govt  to  interfere  to  protect 
him;  and  afterward  also  passed  resolutions  of  esteem  and  admiration  toward 
the  committee  for  the  fair  trial  granted  to  him.  He  had  probably  a  narrow 
escape,  for  if  Hopkins  had  died,  he  would  certainly  have  been  hanged.  He 
was  not  without  friends.  Frink  relates  that  there  was  a  movement  in  Sac. 
to  come  down  200  strong,  and  take  Terry  by  a  coup  d'etat.  Ten  thousand 
men  could  not  then  have  taken  him.  Sac.  in  those  days  was  strongly  south- 
ern in  sentiment,  which  accounts  for  the  disposition  to  serve  Terry.  Every 
effort  was  made  tc  save  Hopkins'  life  by  friends  and  foes  alike.  Perhaps  no 
man  in  CaL  has  had  more  written  about  him  than  Terry,  whose  fame  cannot, 
with  it  all,  be  considered  a  happy  one.  The  works  in  my  library  which 
refer  to  him  are  numerous,  of  which  the  following  are  some:  Colemam,  fig. 
Com.,  MS..  109-17;  Tntett,  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  3;  Cole,  Vig.  Corn.,  MS.,  7-8; 
Crary,  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  9-10;  Rogen,  Via.  Com.,  MS.,  12;  Bhaomt,  MS.,  17- 
18;  Ol*ey,  MS.,  18-21;  Denmter,  MS.,  4-11;  Xyctmam,  MS.,  18;  Durtee, 
Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  3-5;  Danf9  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  8;  Mamrow,  Vig.  Com.,  MS..  9; 
FarwelL  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  22-3;  Smiley,  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  10-12;  ffoduM,  Vig. 
Com.,  MS.,  22-3;  GiBefpie,  MS.,  10;  Lloyd,  Light*  cmd  Skoda,  25-6;  besides 
the  report  of  his  trial,  and  all  the  newspaper  articles. 
HIST.  CAU,  VOL.  VIL  15 


226  THE  JUDICIARY. 

of  their  displeasure.  The  chief  justice,  for  reasons  of 
his  own,  was  somewhat  shy  about  coming  in  contact 
with  the  people's  police  while  they  held  entire  con- 
trol of  the  city  and  were  in  a  dangerous  humor. 
But  the  people  had  a  proper  regard  for  appear- 
ances, and  left  their  supreme  court  to  the  judg- 
ment of  the  world,  from  which  there  is  no  appeal, 
whose  verdict  no  bribery  can  reverse.  Terry  was 
discharged  with  the  admonition  that  the  state  desired 
his  resignation,  which  he  heeded  not,  resuming  his 
seat  upon  the  bench  until  he  stepped  from  his  pedes- 
tal in  1859  to  kill  Broderick.  Murray  died  in  Sep- 
tember 1857,  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-two,  expiating 
thereby,  it  would  seem,  the  failings  of  his  life,  for  bar, 
press,  and  pulpit  paid  to  his  memory  the  tributes  due 
to  goodness  and  greatness,  as  lavishly  as  they  had 
only  a  few  months  before  censured  him  for  his 
infirmities. 

Yet,  it  would  be  altogether  unfair  to  withhold 
from  Murray  and  his  associates  the  credit  of  hav- 
ing done  much,  while  dispensing  justice,  to  frame  the 
judicial  system  of  California,  which  became  for  equity 
and  soundness  unsurpassed  by  any  of  the  older  states. 
Upon  the  supreme  court,  during  the  first  half-dozen 
years  of  its  existence,  devolved  the  task  of  testing 
the  constitution  and  laws  of  the  new  commonwealth, 
cases  of  appeal  from  the  courts  beneath  being  very 
frequent,  and  many  of  great  importance  in  themselves, 
and  as  establishing  precedents  in  similar  cases ;  Mexi- 
can law,  federal  law,  and  the  laws  of  California,  con- 
cordant or  conflicting,  increasing  the  difficulty  of 
arriving  at  correct  decisions.  The  study  of  these  knotty 
questions,  whether  aboriginal,  or  by  the  help  of  the 
ablest  members  of  the  bar,  rapidly  developed  the  ju- 
rist, so  that  California  in  a  few  years  had  acquired,  in 
spite  of  the  drawbacks  above  cited,  a  high  legal 
reputation. 

The  act  of  1851  defining  the  jurisdiction  and  powers 


QUALITY  OF  DECISIONS.  227 

of  every  judicial  officer  in  the  state  was  the  produc- 
tion of  Field,  then  a  young  practitioner  smarting  un- 
der the  tyranny  of  the  district  judge,  and  recently 
elected  to  the  California  legislature.  It  was  not  likely 
therefore  that  he  would  be  guilty  of  an  hi  fraction  of 
the  law  which  had  emanated  from  his  own  brain.  He 
became  chief  justice  on  the  resignation  of  Terry, 
which  position  he  retained  until  1863,  when  he  was 
promoted  to  the  bench  of  the  United  States,  and  as- 
signed to  the  circuit  of  the  Pacific  states.1  At  the 
time  Field  came  to  the  bench  in  California  there  was 
a  vast  amount  of  litigation  growing  out  of  land  ques- 
tions, and  he  did  much  by  way  of  evolving  out  of 
chaos  a  system  which  could  be  understood,  to  bring 
these  claims  to  a  settlement.  He  held,  in  the  first 
place,  that  the  obligation  on  the  part  of  the  United 
States  was  imperative  to  protect,  according  to  the 
treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  Mexican  grantees,  in 
the  enjoyment  of  their  lands.  In  the  second  place, 
that  they  were  entitled  to  possession,  and  to  recover 
in  ejectment,  until  their  claims  had  been  passed  upon 
by  the  agents  of  the  government;  and  when  the 
grant  was  not  a  mere  float,  but  was  defined  by  boun- 
daries embracing  a  greater  amount  than  specified,  that 
the  grantee  could  retain  possession  of  the  whole 
against  intruders,  until  the  measurement  had  been 
determined  by  the  government  surveys.  Such  deci- 
sions, although  evidently  just,  were  denounced  by  a 
large  class  of  squatters,  and  others,  who  asserted  in 
no  qualified  terms  that  the  judges  so  deciding  were  in 
the  interests  of  monopolists  and  land-grabbers. 

Decisions  in  cases  of  government  lands,  whether 

'Stepheu  J.  Field  was  born  in  Conn,  in  1816,  his  father  removing  to 
Stockbridge,  Mass.,  soon  after.  He  was  educated  at  Williams  college  and 
in  European  schools.  He  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  settling  at  Mary-mile,  where 
he  was  first  alcalde,  and  justice  of  the  peace.  He  did  not  always  escape 
censure,  though  by  impartial  observers  it  has  generally  been  admitted  that 
his  administration  was  one  of  the  purest  in  the  earlier  records  of  oar  Califor- 
nia judiciary.  His  later  reputation,  at  least,  has  not  been  attacked,  perhaps 
for  the  reason  that  his  position  removes  him  from  politics. 


228  THE  JUDICIARY. 

mineral  or  agricultural,  offered  less  difficulty,  and  were 
accepted  with  greater  approbation.  The  mining 
statutes  of  California,  from  which  the  mining  laws  of 
the  more  recent  states  and  territories  were  chiefly 
borrowed,  provided  that  in  suits  for  mining  claims, 
brought  in  magistrate's  courts,  the  customs  and  regu- 
lations of  the  miners  in  the  vicinity  should  be  put  in 
evidence,  and  when  not  in  conflict  with  the  constitu- 
tion and  laws  of  the  United  States,  should  govern  the 
decision.  Thus  the  miners  became  their  own  law- 
makers, the  same  principle  being  adopted  in  all  the 
courts.  The  first  appropriator  of  a  claim  was  consid- 
ered to  be  the  owner,  from  whom  title  could  be  ac- 
quired by  another. 

This  principle  was  applied  to  possessory  rights  in 
all  the  public  lands,  the  government,  which  owned 
the  lands,  not  interfering.  To  interfere  in  all  these 
cases,  as  a  party  to  the  suit,  would  have  produced  in- 
describable confusion ;  but  the  court  proceeded  as  if 
a  grant  really  existed  to  the  first  claimant  of  mines, 
water-privileges,  or  lands. 

In  the  early  years  of  mining,  an  opinion  of  the  su- 
preme court  gave  weight  to  the  belief  entertained  by 
some,  that  gold  and  silver  belonged  to  the  state,  by 
virtue  of  her  sovereignty  ;  that  the  state  had  the  sole 
right  to  authorize  the  mines  to  be  worked,  to  frame 
laws  and  regulations,  to  license  miners,  and  to  affix 
such  terms  and  conditions  as  she  might  deem  proper 
to  the  freedom  of  their  use.  Under  this  decision  the 
lands  of  private  proprietors  were  invaded  for  mining 
purposes  as  freely  as  public  lands.  This  brought  on 
numerous  suits  for  intrusion  on  private  property 
claimed  under  United  States  laws,  and  the  supreme 
court  was  forced  to  modify  this  opinion,  and  to  decide 
that  "  an  invasion  of  private  property  in  order  to  en- 
joy a  public  franchise  would  require  more  specific  leg- 
islation than  any  yet  resorted  to."  This  right  to 
invade  private  lands  in  search  of  gold  was  first  repu- 
diated in  1859,  by  Judge  Field,  he  finally  establishing 


LAND  TITLES.  229 

the  doctrine  that  gold  and  silver  belonged  to  the 
land,  like  any  other  product,  or  any  property  fixed  to 
its  surface.  This  opinion  is  now  never  seriously  de- 
nied ;  but  the  supreme  court,  as  in  other  cases,  was 
much  maligned  by  the  laboring  class,  who  believed 
that  the  court  was  governed  in  its  decision  by  the  in- 
fluence of  capital. 

Titles  to  land  in  San  Francisco  led  to  incessant 
trouble;  and  the  decisions  of  the  courts  constantly 
occasioned  bitterness  of  feeling.  Under  Mexican  laws 
San  Francisco  was  a  pueblo,  entitled  to  four  square 
leagues  of  laud,  which  the  municipal  magistrates  were 
authorized  to  apportion  in  small  quantities,  to  the  in- 
habitants. The  city  of  San  Francisco  succeeded  to 
the  landed  proprietorship  of  the  pueblo,  and  lots  were 
sold  by  the  alcaldes  during  the  military  government 
of  California,  for  trifling  sums.  But  many  immi- 
grants treated  the  land  as  belonging  to  the  United 
States,  claiming  any  vacant  lots  they  conveniently 
could,  their  claims  being  resisted  by  others,  the  result 
being  never-ending  controversies,  emphasized  some- 
times with  bloodshed,  and  employing  the  whole  legal 
learning  of  the  city  in  their  settlement. 

In  1850  San  Francisco  was  incorporated,  and  with 
a  recklessness  characteristic  of  the  times,  contracted 
more  debts  than  she  was  able  to  pay.  Executions 
were  levied  upon  the  city's  lands.  That  portion  of  the 
population  which  denied  the  city's  right  to  the  pueblo 
lands  laughed  at  the  sheriff's  sales;  but  suits  of  eject- 
ment followed  rapidly.  Property  of  great  value  was 
sold  on  execution  for  merely  nominal  prices,  and  the 
supreme  court  soon  had  to  decide  upon  the  validity 
of  the  sales.  Its  decision  confirmed  among  others 
the  validity  of  the  Peter  Smith  sales.  In  1855,  Van 
Ness  being  mayor,  the  city  council  passed  an  ordi- 
nance which  bears  his  name,  and  of  which  he  was  the 
author.  It  relinquished  the  city's  interest  to  lands 
within  its  corporate  limits,  as  defined  by  charter,  with 
certain  exceptions,  to  the  persons  in  actual  possession 


230  THE  JUDICIARY. 

on  or  before  January  1,  1855,  provided  they  were 
still  in  possession  in  June  of  that  year,  when  the  or- 
dinance would  be  introduced  into  the  common  coun- 
cil, and  to  all  persons  holding  under  grants  made  by 
the  alcaldes  before  July  7,  1846,  or  by  virtue  of  a 
grant  subsequently  made  by  those  magistrates,  if  the 
grant  had  been  properly  entered  in  a  book  of  record 
in  custody  of  the  recorder  of  the  county,  previous  to 
April  3,  1850.  This  ordinance  was  approved  by  act 
of  the  legislature  in  1858,  and  by  a  test  case  brought 
before  the  supreme  court,  settled  definitely  the  land 
cases  within  the  city  limits,  the  court  confirming  the 
titles  under  the  ordinance.  Millions  worth  of  prop- 
erty belonging  to  the  city  was  rescued  from  specula- 
tors, and*  thousands  of  homes  saved  from  the  spoiler  ; 
yet  such  was  the  hatred  incurred  by  the  judges  from 
disappointed  contestants,  that  if  ever  they  had  enjoyed 
any  rose-hued  visions  of  the  dignity  of  their  office, 
such  illusions  were  dissipated,  often  to  give  place  to 
dread  of  assassination. 

There  was  another  part  of  the  city  land  question 
which  had  to  be  adjudicated  upon.  This  was  the 
right  of  the  city  to  the  whole  of  the  four  square 
leagues  belonging  to  the  pueblo.  The  board  of  land 
commissioners  created  in  1851,  by  act  of  congress  at 
Gwin's  suggestion,  confirmed  that  portion  embraced 
within  the  charter  limits  only.  The  city  appealed  to 
the  district  court,  but  the  case  remained  undecided 
until  September  1854,  when  it  was  by  congressional 
act  transferred  to  the  circuit  court  of  the  United 
States,  and  decided  by  Justice  Field  as  it  had  been 
when  he  was  on  the  supreme  bench  by  Baldwin,  that 
the  city  had  succeeded  to  the  whole  of  the  pueblo  lands. 
This  decision  was  the  occasion  of  an  attempt  on  Field's 
life  above  referred  to.3 

3 16  Cal.,  p.  572;  Hicks  vs  Sell,  3  Cal.,  p.  219;  Steals  vs  Barrett,  5  Cal.,  p. 
37;  Fide?*  Early  Days,  140;  2  Cal.,  pp.  524-57.  In  1866,  when  on  the  sup. 
bench  of  the  United  States,  Field  received  a  package  at  his  rooms  in  Wash- 
ington containing  a  torpedo.  In  the  appendix  to  Early  Days  in  Cal,  exhibit 
K,  pp.  243-5,  is  an  account  of  the  circumstance  by  Judge  Lake,  who  waa 


JUSTICES  AND  JUSTICE.  231 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  injury  which  certain  per- 
sons, justly  or  unjusth',  sustained  by  the  decision  of 
the  United  States  circuit  court  was  due  to  Field,  he 
having  been  the  author  of  those  parts  of  the  congres- 
sional act  previously  alluded  to,  which  authorized  the 
district  court  to  transfer  to  his  court  the  cases  pend- 
ing, in  which  the  title  to  lauds  within  the  corporate 
limits  of  a  city  or  town  were  undetermined,  and  which 
relinquished  the  right  of  the  United  States  to  any  of 
the  land  within  such  limits,  in  trust  to  the  city  and 
its  successors,  for  the  uses  specified  in  the  Van  Ness 
ordinance,  except  such  reserves  as  the  government 
had  made  for  military  or  other  public  uses. 

It  might  reasonably  be  questioned  whether  a  judge 
should  be  allowed  so  far  to  interfere  with  matters 
originating  in  another  court  as  to  procure  an  act  of 
congress  transferring  it  to  his  own  court;  but  most  men 
are  reconciled  to  irregular  proceedings  instituted  to 
result  in  better  order.  So  nature  travails,  while  a 
mountain  or  a  mouse  is  born,  and  thenceforth  through- 
out the  ages  mountains  and  mice  abound,  the  forme" 
regulating  the  winds  that  cool,  and  the  waters  that 
fertilize  the  earth,  the  latter  adding  their  quota  to 
the  sum  of  vermin  without  which  the  universe  would 
remain  unfinished.  This  society,  oppressed  for  long 
years  with  unbearable  wrongs,  is  suddenly  aroused  in 
all  its  majesty,  and,  ignoring  law  and  the  machinery 
of  justice,  exacts  and  obtains  a  justice  higher  than 
the  law. 

The  decision  here  referred  to  was  rendered  in  Octo- 
ber 1864,  but  a  motion  for  a  rehearing  kept  it  in 
court  until  May  1865,  when  the  decree  was  finally 
entered.  The  United  States  appealed  from  it  to  the 

present,  and  cautioned  Field  not  to  open  it.  When  it  was  finally  opened, 
after  being  well  soaked  in  water,  it  was  found  to  have  pasted  inside  the 
cover  a  newspaper  slip  as  follows:  'Monday,  Oct.  31,  1864.  The  City  of  San 
Francisco  vs  United  States.  Judge  Field  yesterday  delivered  the  following 
opinion  in  the  above  case.  It  will  be  read  with  interest  by  the  people  of  this 
city.'  It  may  have  been  to  kill  somebody;  it  may  have  been  a  harmless 
joke. 


232  THE  JUDICIARY. 

supreme  court,  in  toto,  and  the  city  from  that  part  of 
it  which  reserved  certain  quantities  of  land  to  be  des- 
ignated by  the  president  within  a  given  time.  The 
appeal  not  being  likely  to  be  reached  in  the  supreme 
court  for  a  long  time,  and  the  secretary  of  war  being 
consulted  as  to  reservations,  and  not  finding  any 
necessary,  Field  drew  a  bill  which  the  California  del- 
egation *  took  in  hand  and  carried  through  both  houses 
o?  congress,  quieting  the  city's  title  to  all  the  land 
embraced  within  the  decree  of  confirmation.  This  act 
was  signed  in  March  1866.  The  appeals  were  dis- 
missed, and  the  city  was  finally  at  rest  on  the  subject 
of  titles.  The  municipal  authorities  took  measures  to 
set  apart  lots  for  public  buildings  and  schools,  and 
reserved  for  a  park  that  generous  quantity  of  land 
now  rapidly  being  made  one  of  the  finest  of  pleasure 
resorts,  overlooking  the  Golden  Gate,  and  within 
sound  of  the  sea's  unending  melody.6 

The  city  of  San  Francisco,  after  going  through  all 
the  courts  for  a  long  series  of  years,  during  which  the 
value  of  property  had  increased  extraordinarily,  was 
at  length  placed  upon  a  footing  similar  to  that  of 
towns  upon  public  lands  of  the  United  States,  under 
the  town-site  laws;8  that  is,  it  held  its  lands  in  trust 
for  the  occupants,  to  be  conveyed  to  them  upon  such 
terms  as  the  legislature  might  prescribe.  If  it  took 
possession  of  any  lot  or  parcel  already  occupied  for 
public  purposes,  it  assessed  those  occupants  to  whom 
title  had  passed  upon  agreement,  and  raised  the  money 
required  to  make  reasonable  compensation  to  the  dis- 
possessed.7 Instead  of  the  insecurity  of  titles  which 

4  Senator  John  Conness  and  Representative  McRuer  had  charge  of  the 
bill. 

5  Frank  McCoppin,  elected  mayor  of  the  city  in  1867,  was  the  prime 
mover  in  the  improvement  of  the  park  lands. 

6  Act  of  May  23,  1844;  of  March  2,  18G7;  and  of  June  1868. 

7  To  the  distinguished  author  of  Early  Days  in  Gal  I  am  indebted  for  the 
candid  statement  of  his  part  in  the  labor  of  adjusting  land  matters  in  Cali- 
fornia, for  while  wading  through  Cat.  fiepvrts  and  U.  S.  supreme  court  de- 
cisions may  convey  elaborate  information,  it  fails  to  impress  the  reader  like 
the  narrative  of  the  actors  in  the  strife. 


THE  BAD  BALDWIN.  233 

for  fifteen  years  prevented  permanent  improvements, 
a  disputed  title  is  now  as  rare  as  it  was  once  common. 
Baldwin,  on  the  bench  of  California  with  Field,  was 
an  able  lawyer.  He  was  from  Alabama,  although 
of  Connecticut  stock,8  and  his  Yankee  shrewdness  was 
toned  down  by  the  more  genial  southern  temperament. 
He  arrived  in  San  Francisco  in  1854,  and  making: 

^? 

friends  with  the  Murray  fraternity,  "as  a  legitimate 
consequence,"  one  says,  "he  was  soon  overwhelmed 
with  great  cases,  some  of  which  involved  the  public 
interests."  These  cases  were  chiefly  city  suits,  drag- 
ging through  the  courts  from  year  to  year,  to  the 
profit  of  the  lawyers  and  the  ruin  of  client. 

In  1862,  the  constitution  was  amended  in  its  legis- 
lative, executive,  and  judicial  departments.  The 
supreme  court  was  made  to  consist  of  a  chief  justice 
and  four  associate  justices,  the  presence  of  three  being 
necessary  to  the  transaction  of  business,  except  such 
business  as  might  be  done  at  chambers,  and  the  con- 
currence of  three  justices  was  made  necessary  to  pro- 
nounce a  judgment.9  The  offices  were  still  elective,  but 

8  J.  G.  Baldwin  was  a  kind  of  prodigy.  At  the  age  of  12  years  he  per- 
formed the  duties  of  dept.  dist  court  clerk;  at  17  he  conducted  a  newspaper. 
At  21  he  went  to  Ala.,  and  was  soon  in  the  legislature.  In  1844  he  canvassed 
the  state  for  the  whig  ticket;  in  1849  he  was  beaten  for  congress  by  S.  W. 
Inge.  He  wrote  the  Fhish  Times  in  Alabama,  being  a  picture  of  local  char- 
acter, and  Party  Leaden,  a  history  of  politics  under  the  management  of  such 
statesmen  as  Jefferson,  Hamilton,  Jackson,  Clay,  and  Randolph. 

•  First  were  the  city  slip  cases,  involving  §80,000.  A  corrupt  common 
council  in  1853  sold  at  auction  certain  water  lots  set  apart  for  a  public  dock, 
for  an  average  price  of  §9,784,  or  a  total  of  $1,193,750,  one  quarter  paid 
down,  half  in  two  months,  and  the  remainder  in  four  months.  Two  wharf 
companies  threatening  to  enjoin  the  sale,  on  the  ground  that  their  wharves 
were  built  on  the  faith  of  the  ordinance  setting  aside  these  lots  for  a  public 
dock,  the  council  passed  an  ordinance  to  quiet  these  objectors,  allowing  them 
$185,000  indemnity  for  the  injury  sustained.  Soon  after  the  sale,  property 
declined  rapidly,  and  several  of  the  purchasers  of  the  city  slips  were  anxious 
to  draw  back  from  their  bargain,  and  were  shown  by  their  lawyer,  Baldwin, 
a  way  to  do  it,  which  was  to  have  their  titles  attacked,  and  on  being  de- 
clared invalid,  to  sue  the  city  for  judgments.  Test  cases  were  prepared,  and 
after  tedious  delays,  Burnett  and  Terry  decided  for  the  city,  Murray  dis- 
senting. These  cases  were  again  opened  in  1860,  Baldwin  being  now  on  the 
bench,  his  decision  that  no  title  passed  making  the  city  liable  to  return  $800,- 
000  cash  for  the  scrip  paid  in  on  account  of  the  slip  purchases.  The  city  still 
contested  the  judgment,  and  the  matter  was  kept  in  court,  at  enormous 


234  THE  JUDICIARY. 

by  a  special  election,  at  which  no  officer,  other  than 
judicial,  except  for  the  superintendent  of  public  in- 
struction, should  be  chosen.  Their  term  was,  more- 
over, increased  to  ten  years  from  the  1st  of  January 
next  after  their  election,  except  those  elected  at  the  first 
election,  who  should  be  so  classified  among  themselves 
by  lot  that  one  should  go  out  of  office  every  two 
years,  the  justice  drawing  the  shortest  term  to  be 
chief  justice. 

Under  this  amended  law,  the  justices  elected  under 
the  former  one  were  legislated  out  of  office,  namely, 
W.  W.  Cope  and  Edward  Norton,10  Field  resigning 
in  May  1863,  and  E.  B.  Crocker  being  appointed  to 
the  vacancy.  The  justices  elected  under  the  amended 
constitution,  and  on  the  republican  ticket,  were  Silas 

costs,  until  an  entirely  new  set  of  officers  were  on  the  bench,  and  the  prop- 
erty had  so  enhanced  in  value  that  35  of  the  purchasers  of  the  city  slips  de- 
ciding to  keep  the  lots,  the  city  consented,  and  gave  bonds  for  $1,000,000  to 
be  paid.  Six  others  brought  suit  later,  and  were  beaten  by  a  legal  quibble 
as  absurd  as  the  first,  which  saved  the  city  $190,000. 

In  the  case  of  Bid  die  Boggs  vs.  the  Merced  Mining  Co.,  brought  to  test 
the  right  of  Fremont  to  the  gold  in  the  land  of  his  Mariposa  grant,  argued 
for  Fremont  by  Baldwin,  before  Burnett  and  Terry  in  1858,  it  was  decided 
that  the  gold  belonged  to  the  U.  S.  gov't,  the  Alvarado  grant  being  for 
the  land  only.  In  1859  the  decision  was  reversed  by  Field  and  Cope — Bald- 
win not  sitting — and  Fremont,  or  his  creditors,  were  adjudged  to  own  the 
contents  of  the  land.  Another  important  suit  lost  by  Baldwin  as  a  lawyer, 
and  revived  while  he  was  on  the  bench,  was  that  of  McCauley  vs.  The  State 
Controller,  involving  the  prison  contract,  of  which  mention  has  been  made  in 
a  previous  volume.  In  I860  the  court  reversed  the  decision  of  Burnett  and 
Terry,  and  the  controller  was  served  with  a  mandamas  for  $40,000,  which, 
under  the  advice  of  Terry,  now  acting  as  counsellor,  he  refused  to  obey.  A 
compromise  was  effected,  the  state  paying  $270,000,  ten  per  cent,  of  which 
went  to  McCauley's  lawyers.  One  of  the  projectors  of  the  bulkhead  scheme 
which  so  troubled  S.  F.  for  so  many  years,  was  Felton,  the  quondam  partner- 
at-law  of  Baldwin;  and  one  of  its  supporters  was  John  Conness,  then  assem- 
blyman from  El  Dorado  co.,  who  afterward  was  elevated  to  the  U.  S.  senate. 
What  more  natural  than  that  people  should  say  that  Felton  labored  to  place 
Conness  where  he  could  assist  Field  in  settling  land  questions  agreeably  to 
Baldwin,  and  his  former  clients  ?  These  are  some  of  the  features  of  an  elec- 
tive judiciary. 

18  W.  W.  Cope,  of  Amador,  was  a  southerner.  Field  speaks  of  him  as 
'possessed  of  a  superior  mind,  and  genial  nature.  He  made  an  excellent 
judge.'  Later  he  continued  the  practice  of  the  law  in  S.  F.  ' Norton, '  says 
the  same  authority,  was  'learned,  patient,  industrious,  and  conscientious; 
bat  he  was  not  adapted  for  an  appellate  tribunal.  He  had  no  confidence  in 
his  own  unaided  judgment.'  Early  Days  in  Gal,  118-19.  Tuthill  says  that 
while  Norton  was  judge  of  the  12th  district  court  he  was  particularly  averse 
to  criminal  trials,  but  that  he  was  an  excellent  man. 


BIOGRAPHICAL. 

W.  Sanderson,"  who  drew  the  short  term,  Lorenzo 
Sawyer,  John  Currey,  Augustus  L.  Rhodes,11  and 
Oscar  L.  Shatter.1*  Sanderson  was  reflected  to  suc- 
ceed himself,  but  resigned  in  1869,  when  Jackson 
Temple  was  appointed  by  the  governor,  and  obtained 
a  nomination  in  1871,  but  was  beaten  bv  Addisou  C. 

^ 

Niles,  for  the  unexpired  term.  Currey,1*  who  was 
chief  justice  for  two  years,  went  out  in  1868,  and  was 
defeated  for  reelection  by  William  T.  Wallace.1* 
Sawyer's"  term  expired  in  1867,  and  he  was  defeated 

u  Sanderson  was  a  native  of  Vt,  born  in  1824,  and  educated  at  Williams 
college,  Mass,  and  Union  college,  N.  T.,  where  he  graduated  in  1&46.  He 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  at  Albany  in  1849,  and  began  practice  in  Florida, 
bat  came  to  CaL  in  1851,  settling  in  El  Dorado.  Although  a  whig,  when 
there  was  a  whig  party,  he  was  elected  district  attorney  in  1858  by  the 
democrats.  In  1862  he  was  elected  by  the  Union  party  to  the  assembly, 
where  he  distinguished  himself  by  becoming  the  author  of  the  Specific  Con- 
tract Act.  '  As  a  judge  he  knew  no  politic  "s  creed,  color,  nationality,  in- 
fluence, or  wealth.'  At  the  expiration  of  his  term  he  was  elected  for  ten 
years. 

UA-  L.  Rhodes  was  born  in  Oneida  co.,  X.  T.,  in  1821,  educated  at 
Hamilton  college,  and  after  studying  law  migrated  to  Green  co.,  Ind.,  whence 
he  came  to  California  in  1852.  He  settled  at  San  Jose,  being  district  attor- 
ney, and  state  senator  in  1859.  As  a  member  of  the  judiciary  committee, 
he  urged  the  amendments  which  were  afterwards  adopted. 

UO.  L.  Shatter  was  born  in  Vt. ,  in  1812.  His  parental  grandfather  fought 
at  Banker  hill,  Bennington,  and  Saratoga,  and  was  afterward  for  25  years  a 
member  of  the  Vermont  legislature.  His  father  was  county  judge,  member 
of  the  constitutional  convention  of  his  state  in  1836,  and  several  times  a 
member  of  the  legislature.  He  was  educated  at  Wilbraham  academy  and 
the  Wesleyan  university,  graduating  in  1834,  after  which  he  studied  law  at 
the  Harvard  law  school,  under  Judge  Story.  He  came  to  CaL  in  1S54, 
practicing  his  profession  until  elected  associate  justice  of  the  supreme  court. 
He  resigned  on  account  of  failing  health,  and  went  abroad:  but  recovery 
was  impossible,  and  he  died  in  Italy  in  1873. 

"John  Currey  was  a  native  of  PeekskflL,  N.  Y.,  where  his  family  had 
been  established  for  a  century.  He  was  born  in  1814,  and  educated  at  his 
native  town,  Vermont  academy  and  Middle  town  college,  Conn.,  studying  law 
with  William  Nelson  of  PeekskilL,  and  being  admitted  to  practice  in  1842. 
He  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  and  passed  through  the  stormy  political  period  of 
the  following  10  years  without  ever  soiling  his  fame  as  an  honest  and  pure 
man.  He  was  one  of  the  first  to  make  headway  against  the  Lecompton 
democracy.  Williams  college,  Mass.,  conferred  on  him  in  1870  the  title  of 
L.L.D. 

u  William  T.  Wallace,  born  in  Ky.,  in  1828,  was  bred  to  the  profession  of 
the  law,  having  just  completed  his  studies  when  he  moved  to  CaL  in  1S50. 
Settling  at  San  Jose,  he  formed  a  partnership  with  Burnett  and  Rylaud; 
and  soon  married  Ronertte,  daughter  of  Ex-gov.  Burnett.  He  was  a  candi- 
date in  1868  for  the  U.  S.  senate,  and  also  for  presidential  election.  He 
oved  his  election  as  judge  of  the  supreme  court  in  1S69  to  the  democratic 
party. 

w Lorenzo  Sawyer  was  born  in  Le  Roy,  Jefferson  co.,  X.  Y.,  in  1S20,  his 
father  Jesse  Sawyer  and  his  grandfather  being  among  the  pioneers  of  the 


236  THE  JUDICIARY. 

by  Koyal  T.  Sprague,17  who  died  in  February  1872, 
when  Isaac  S.  Belcher  was  appointed  in  his  place,  his 
successor,  E.  W.  McKinstry,  being  chosen  in  1873. 
Rhodes'  term  expired  in  1871,  when  he  was  reflected. 
Shatter  resigned  in  December  1867,  Joseph  B.  Crock- 
ett being  appointed,  and  in  1869  elected  for  the  short 
term,  to  succeed  him.  Sawyer  was  chief  justice  in 
1868-9,  Rhodes  in  1870-1,  Sprague  in  1872,  succeeded 
by  Wallace  the  same  year,  who  being  in  for  ten  years, 
remained  chief  justice  until  the  adoption  of  a  new  con- 
stitution again  legislated  out  of  office  the  supreme 
judges. 

Both  parties  in  1869,  by  their  ballots,  declared  the 
existence  of  a  long  and  short  term,  and  again  in  1871, 
when  Rhodes  was  chosen  for  the  long  term,  and  Niles 
for  the  short  term.  But  Justice  Crockett,  who  was 
elected  for  an  unexpired  term  of  four  years,  when  it 
was  ended  contended  that  he  had  been  chosen  for  ten 
years,  and  he  was  sustained  in  his  opinion  by  the 
bench.  It  was  evidently  the  intention  of  the  leg- 
islature in  amending  the  constitution  in  1862  to 
prevent  the  frequent  recurrence  of  judicial  elec- 
tions, arid  to  separate  them  as  much  as  possible 
from  politics,  yet  the  politicians  were  as  ready  as 

Black  river  country.  On  the  maternal  side  he  was  related  to  the  Col  Pres- 
cott  who  led  the  American  forces  at  Bunker  hill,  and  to  the  historian  of  that 
name.  Lorenzo  lived  upon  a  farm  until  16  years  of  age,  but  being  studious, 
acquired  the  rudiments  of  a  good  education  at  home,  and  at  the  Black  river, 
institute  in  Watertown.  He  went  to  Ohio  in  1840,  and  studied  for  a  time  at 
the  Western  Reserve  college,  after  which  he  read  law  with  Gustavus  Swan, 
and  Noah  H.  Swayne  now  on  the  U.  S.  supreme  bench.  On  coming  to  Cal. 
in  1850,  he  located  himself  at  Nevada  city,  but  soon  removed  to  S.  F.  His 
practice  was  large  and  profitable.  He  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the 
republican  party  of  Cal.  In  18G9  when  his  term  expired  on  the  supreme 
bench  of  the  state,  he  was  made  U.  S.  circuit  judge  of  the  9th  circuit,  which 
he  took  in  1870.  In  1877  Hamilton  college,  N.  Y.,  conferred  upon  him  the 
honorary  degree  of  L.L.D.  His  supreme  court  reports  fill  15  vols,  and  his 
circuit  court  reports  5  vols. 

4  17  T.  Sprague  was  a  native  of  Vt. ,  whence  he  removed  to  Ohio,  where  he 
acquired  his  legal  knowledge.  He  migrated  to  Cal.  in  1849,  making  his  res- 
idence in  Shasta  co.  He  was  elected  to  the  state  senate  for  1854-55,  but 
declined  reelection  and  devoted  himself  to  his  profession.  Of  him,  as  a 
judge,  chief  justice  Wallace  declared  that  '  no  judicial  officer  ever  possessed 
in  a  higher  degree  that  absolute  independence  of  soul  which  acknowledged 
accountability  to  none  save  God  and  his  own  good  conscience  for  the  motives 
by  which  his  course  here  was  actuated  and  determined." 


CREATION  OF  COURTS.  237 

before  to  avail  themselves  of  a  vacancy  to  introduce 
short  terms. 

After  eight  years  trial  of  the  amended  judicial 
system,  the  legislature  of  1869-70  proposed  again  to 
amend  so  as  to  establish  courts  of  exclusive  criminal 
jurisdiction  in  cities  or  towns;  to  abolish  special  elec- 
tions of  supreme  and  district  judges,  and  to  confine  a 
judge  elected  to  fill  a  vacancy,  to  the  unexpired  term 
only.  Any  judicial  officer  •wilfully  absenting  himself 
from  the  state  for  thirty  days  forfeited  his  office.  The 
judges  already  in  office  should  hold  for  their  full 
term,  after  which  one  justice  should  go  out  and  his 
successor  be  elected  every  two  years,  the  judge  hav- 
ing the  shortest  term  to  be  chief  justice ;  but  this 
change  appears  not  to  have  been  made  at  that  time. 

Congress  in  1855  established  a  circuit  court  of  the 
United  States,  which  had  appellate  jurisdiction  over 
the  federal  courts  of  the  northern  and  southern  dis- 
tricts. This  act  removed  from  the  United  States  dis- 
trict courts  the  special  jurisdiction  before  vested  in 
them  over  the  board  of  commissioners  for  the  settle- 
ment of  land  claims.  The  circuit  judge  was  also  re- 
quired, from  time  to  time,  to  form  part  of  and  preside 
over  the  federal  district  courts  when  either  was  en 
gaged  in  the  discharge  of  appellate  jurisdiction  over 
the  board  of  commissioners.  He  had  no  seat  on  the 
supreme  bench  of  the  United  States,  but  his  office 
was  exclusive  to  the  Pacific  coast.18  The  first  and 
only  judge  of  this  court,  Matthew  Hall  McAllister,1' 
resigned  in  1862,  and  the  court  was  abolished  soon 
after.  The  subsequent  elevation  of  Field  to  the 
supreme  bench  of  federal  judges,  with  the  circuit  of 
the  Pacific  states,  revived  its  powers. 

18  Crane  mentions  this  with  indignation,  being  the  only  state  in  the  union 
without  a  judicial  representative  at  Washington.     Past  and  Prtgenf,  36. 

19  M.  H.  McAllister  was  born  in  Savannah,  Ga.,  in  1800,  and  educated  at 
Princeton  college,  N.  J.,  after  which  he  was  trained  in  the  law,  to  which  his 
father  was  also  bred.     He  practised  in  Savannah  29  years,  and  was  U.  S. 
atty  for  the  southern  dist  of  Ga.     As  a  legislator,  and  judge  of  law,  he  was 
equally  distinguished.     He  died  in  S.  F  in  1865,  universally  regretted. 


238  THE  JUDICIARY. 

The  United  States  district  courts,  as  the  reader 
will  remember,  were  two  in  number,  a  northern  and 
southern.  In  1866  the  southern  district  was  abol- 
ished, and  its  jurisdiction  conferred  on  the  court  of 
the  northern  district.  The  ostensible  reason  for  dis- 
pensing with  one  of  the  federal  courts  was  that  there 
was  nol;  enough  business  to  give  it  constant  occupa- 
tion. But  while  this  was  true,  it  was  equally  true 
that  many  land  titles  were  still  unsettled,  which  had 
been  thrown  into  litigation  by  the  United  States 
and  not  by  the  claimants.  Many  claimants  were 
already  ruined  by  endless  law-suits;  and  now  the  re- 
mainder were  required  to  travel  with  their  witnesses 
several  hundred  miles  to  San  Francisco,  and  to  incur 
an  expense  they  were  unable  to  bear.  It  had  been 
bad  enough  going  to  Monterey  to  attend  court,  but 
this  was  an  additional  infliction. 

A  petition  praying  for  a  restoration  of  the  south- 
ern district,  and  a  term  of  the  court  annually  at  the 
city  of  Los  Angeles  was  forwarded  to  congress,  the 
business  of  the  federal  courts  having  increased  be- 
yond their  capabilities.  An  effort  was  made  by 
Senator  Stewart  of  Nevada  to  have  the  Nevada 
judicial  district  joined  to  the  southern  district  of  Cali- 
fornia. Nothing  however  was  done  during  the  twenty 
years  from  1866  to  1886,  when  a  new  district  was 
formed,  but  congress  failing  to  provide  the  means  to 
set  the  court  in  operation,  no  judge  was  appointed. 
Ogden  Hoffman  long  remained  upon  the  bench  where 
he  was  placed  when  a  young  man  in  185  1.2' 


Angeles  Neios,  Jan.  22  and  25,  1867;  S.  F.  Com.  Herald  and  Market 
Review,  Feb.  18,  1868;  Cal.  Judidai-y  Scraps,  3-8;  8.  F.  C/mmber  of  Com.  Rept. 
1870,  24-7;  Monterey  Democrat,  Feb.  8,  1868.  Isaac  S.  K.  Ogier  was  the  first 
incumbent  of  the  U.  S.  dist  bench  in  southern  Cal,  Judge  Jones  having  died 
soon  after  his  appointment.  He  died  of  apoplexy  at  Bear  Valley,  May  21, 
1861.  He  was  formerly  U.  S.  atty  for  the  southern  district.  Ogier  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Fletcher  M.  Haight,  who  also  died  in  office,  and  the  place  re- 
mained vacant  for  several  years.  According  to  the  S.  F.  Chronicle  Jan.  30, 
1869,  the  efforts  made  at  Washington  to  have  a  certain  obnoxious  individual 
elevated  to  the  position  of  U.  S.  district  judge,  was  the  cause  of  the  abolish- 
ment of  the  district  —  to  be  rid  of  persistent  and  disgusting  importunities. 
However  that  may  be,  there  was  much  difficulty  to  secure  its  re-establish- 


PRESS  OF  BUSINESS.  239 

If  the  federal  and  supreme  courts  were  crowded 
with  business  the  inferior  courts  were  even  more  so. 
The  6th  district  court,  which  opened  in  May  1850, 
at  Sacramento,  had  in  October  450  cases  on  its  docket. 
The  business  of  the  most  populous  districts  was  re- 
tarded, and  became  sometimes  ruinously  involved 

tf 

through  the  interference  of  the  higher  courts  with 
the  lower.  In  1854,  Judge  Heard,  of  Sacramento 
county  court,  on  an  appeal  from  a  justice's  court,  de- 
cided that  where  the  matter  in  dispute  exceeded  $'200 
it  was  unconstitutional  for  the  justice's  court  to  take 
cognizance  of  them.  As  a  result  the  county  court 
was  inconveniently  crowded  with  cases  on  appeal,  be- 
ing continued  from  time  to  time,  waiting  for  an  opinion 
of  the  supreme  judges  who  failed  to  agree,  until  by 
the  death  of  one  of  them,  a  change  in  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  bench  was  brought  about. 

The  constitutionality  of  the  superior  court  of  San 
Francisco  was  also  called  in  question  in  1855.  The 
supreme  bench  decided  in  its  favor ;  but  in  the  follow- 
ing year  it  declared  that  this  court  was  merely  muni- 
cipal in  its  jurisdiction,  and  its  authority  must  be 
confined  to  the  territory  for  which  it  was  created. 
By  this  decision  the  superior  court  became  virtually 
disabled,  and  the  litigants  seriously  injured. 

Another  difference  of  opinion  arose  between  the 
supreme  court  and  the  United  States  district  courts 

ment  Of  U.  S.  attys  for  the  southern  dist,  Alfred  Wheeler  was  the  first.  He 
wa  born  in  New  York  city,  April  30,  1S22,  and  came  to  CaL  in  1S49.  He 
was  succeeded  in  office  by  Ogier,  and  he,  on  his  promotion,  by  Pacific-US  Ord, 
who  held  the  office  under  him.  B.  C.  Whiting  was  U.  S.  attorney  during 
Haight's  term.  The  first  U.  S.  marshal  for  this  district  was  Pablo  Xoriega, 
of  San  Jose;  the  second,  Edward  Hunter,  of  same  place,  and  A.  S.  Taylor 
clerk;  third,  Henry  D.  Barrows.  The  U.  S.  attorneys  for  the  northern  dist 
were,  Calhoun  Benham,  S.  W.  Inge,  and  Wm.  H.  Sharp:  the  marshals  were 
David  F.  Douglass,  William  H.  Richardson:  clerk,  JoLn  EL  Monroe:  third, 
James  Y.  McDnffie,  and  Chas.  W.  Rand.  Delos  Lake  was  appointe-1  U.  S. 
district  attorney  in  1863.  Lake  was  born  in  Ot^ego  co.,  N.  Y.,  in  IS'JO.  He 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  at  the  age  of  21.  The  following  year  he  practised 
before  the  supreme  court,  and  settled  in  Utica,  where  he  became  city  attor- 
ney, but  was  drawn  away  from  a  good  practice  to  CaL  in  1S50.  In  1851  he 
was  appointed  district  judge,  to  fill  a  vacancy,  but  resigned  in  1S.>5  to  return 
to  the  business  of  a  lawyer.  He  was  one  among  those  who  maintained  a 
spotless  reputation  while  on  the  bench. 


240  THE  JUDICIARY. 

in  regard  to  jurisdiction;  the  state  supreme  court 
holding  in  the  face  of  the  highest  authority,  that  no 
cause  could  be  appealed  from  the  state  courts  direct 
to  the  United  States  court,  Judge  Lake  of  the  4th 
district,  and  Judge  Shattuck  of  the  superior  bench 
having  made  orders  on  motions  to  remove  cases  from 
their  courts  to  the  United  States  district  courts.21 
There  was  established  in  1855  a  circuit  court  of  the 
United  States,  in  and  for  California,  with  appellate  ju- 
risdiction over  the  other  federal  courts.  Affairs  were 
growing  daily  more  unsatisfactory,  when  the  great  up- 
rising occurred  in  1856,  which  would  never  have  hap- 
pened had  the  courts  discharged  their  duty  to  the 
public.  In  April  1856  there  were  absent  from  their 
places,  McAllister,  of  the  United  States  circuit  court ; 
Heydenfeldt,  of  the  supreme  court ;  Ogier,  of  the 
United  States  district  court ;  and  Hager,  of  the  4th 
district.  Their  places  were  partly  filled  by  substi- 
tutes, but  not  in  the  manner  demanded  by  the  people. 
Early  in  the  year,  Shattuck,  of  the  superior  court, 
had  petitioned  to  have  this  tribunal  abolished,  owing 
to  the  decision  of  the  supreme  court  that  it  was  in- 
competent to  protect  its  own  receiver,  or  send  its  final 
process  out  of  the  city.  Defendants  in  certain  cases, 
on  account  of  this  opinion,  refused  to  comply  with  the 
order  of  the  superior  judge  to  surrender  property,  and 
the  course  of  justice  was  impeded  in  proportion  to  the 
amount  of  business  thus  obstructed. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  the  judiciary  of  San 
Francisco  and  the  state,  when  the  revolution  occurred 
which  resulted  in  an  improved  administration  of  jus- 
tice. Only  a  few  months  before  this  revolutionary 
movement,  there  was  passed  by  the  legislature  the 
consolidation  act,  by  which  the  city  and  county  gov- 

11  Shattuck  was  commanded  to  revoke  the  order  removing  a  case  to  the 
U.  S.  district  court,  and  refused  to  comply.  Sac.  Union,  March  10,  1855. 
Should  he  obey  the  mandate,  the  U.  S.  court  could  imprison  him  for  not 
sending  the  case  as  ordered;  and  should  the  supreme  court  choose  to  notice 
his  refusal,  it  could  punish  him  for  disobedience.  It  was  plain  that  the  supe- 
rior court  must  give  way. 


CONSOLIDATION   ACT.  241 

ernments  of  San  Francisco  were  merged  in  one.  Bv 
this  act,  which  went  into  effect  in  July,  the  superior 
court  was  abolished,  a  county  and  police  judge  and 
twelve  justices  of  the  peace  constituting  the  local 
judiciary. 

Had  it  not  been  for  the  change  in  the  city  govern- 
ment at  this  juncture,  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  the 
reforms  brought  about  in  criminal  matters  by  the 
vigilance  committee  could  have  been  made  permanent, 
nor  how  the  courts  could  have  purified  themselves 
from,  former  practices.  But  the  law  going  into  effect 
in  July,  and  an  election  of  a  new  set  of  officers  taking 
place  in  the  autumn,  gave  an  opportunity  for  the  car- 
rvinof  out  of  the  reform  measures.  Previous  to  this 

J          O 

change  every  city  and  county  office  was  in  the  hands 
of  despoilers.  Taxes  were  exorbitant;  yet  the  streets, 
wharves,  and  public  buildings  were  neglected  and  de- 
caying. The  money,  if  ever  it  reached  the  city 
treasury,  was  immediately  spirited  away.  Those  who 
had  claims  against  the  city  for  labor  or  material,  were 
forced  to  accept  scrip,  which  was  nearly  worthless ; 
and  soon  they  charged  the  city  five  prices  for  services 
or  property,  heaping  up  a  debt  which  the  new  gov- 
ernment was  compelled  to  extinguish.  But  the  new 
law  enjoined  the  old  officers  while  they  remained  in 
office  from  contracting  any  further  debts,  and  when 
the  new  incumbents  came  into  power,  so  poor  was  tbe 
city  government  that  there  were  no  funds  in  the 
treasury  with  which  to  pay  for  lighting  the  streets, 
or  purchasing  furniture  for  the  court-room  of  the 
police  judge,*1  who  was  presented  with  a  docket  by  a 
benevolent  citizen,"  and  who  bought  candles  at  his 

»H.  P.  Coon,  a  native  of  Colombia  co.,  N.  T.,  educated  at  Williams  col- 
lege, Mass.,  and  a  practitioner  of  medicine,  who  came  to  CaL  in  lS5i  was 
chosen  and  urged  to  accept  the  office  of  police  judge,  which  he  held  for  four 
years.  He  became  part  owner  in  the  chemical  works  established  to  supply 
the  mint,  soon  after  coming  to  S.  P.,  bat  when  not  in  office  practised  his  pro- 
fession. He  was  chosen  mayor  in  1863.  Under  his  administration  the  city 
was  well  governed. 

sThu  was  Dr  Samuel  Merritt.  Coo*.  Awtalg,  8.  P.,  MS.,  10. 
HIST  CAL-,  VOL.  VIL    16 


242  THE  JUDICIARY. 

own  expense  to  hold  his  evening  sessions,  as  well  as 
stationery  for  the  use  of  the  court.  In  less  than  a 
year  the  men  nominated  by  the  People's  nominating 
committee,  and  elected  by  the  People's  party,  had 
so  changed  the  complexion  of  things,  that  there  was 
money  in  the  treasury,  and  a  new  prosperity  apparent 
everywhere. 

The  consolidation  act  was  exceedingly  stringent. 
Definite  salaries  were  fixed,  only  a  few  officers  elected 
under  the  old  county  government  being  allowed  to 
retain  their  fees  until  the  legislature  could  be  brought 
to  eliminate  them, after  the  law  had  been  tested.  No 
more  public  money  went  into  the  keeping  of  the  "po- 
litical bank  in  Kearney  street."  A  police  department 
was  created  which  became  famous  for  its  efficiency 
and  men,  and  women  too,  were  safe  to  go  everywhere 
in  the  city  by  day  or  night.  The  consolidation  a,ct 
had,  however,  to  undergo  the  scrutiny  of  the  supreme 
court,  where  it  was  sustained.  But  it  often  gave  the 
people  a  shock,  as,  for  example,  when  it  was  decided 
that  the  state  debt  was  unconstitutional,  and  there- 
fore that  the  credit  of  the  state  was  ruined;  and  that 
when  the  people  determined  that  the  debt  should  not 
be  repudiated,  the  legislature  acted  unconstitutionally 
in  recognizing  the  indebtedness.  The  legislature  was, 
however,  permitted  to  shift  the  responsibility  upon 
the  electors,  the  adoption  of  such  a  debt  by  the  state 
not  being  provided  for  in  the  constitution.  It  would 
be  too  much  to  expect,  even  in  a  supreme  court,  to  be 
always  consistent. 

In  1859  Hoffman  of  the  United  States  district 
court  made  a  decision  in  regard  to  the  banishment  of 
a  certain  obnoxious  person  by  the  vigilance  committee 
of  1856.  This  person,  one  Martin  Gallagher,  who 
among  his  other  accomplishments,  encompassed  that 
of  ballot-box  stuffing,  sued  the  captain  of  the  Live 
Yankee,  on  board  which  vessel  he  was  placed  by  the 
committee — an  alternative  to  save  him  from  hanging 
— for  damages,  the  case  being  decided  in  his  favor  by 


GIGANTIC  LAXD  SWINDLES.  843 

the  court,  which  awarded  Gallagher  $3,000.  Aside 
from  the  annoyance  to  the  committee  of  having  these 
disturbing  questions  re-opened  in  San  Francisco,  its 
friends  contended  that  the  captain  of  the  Live  Yankee 
had  no  option,  any  more  than  Gallagher,  the  citv  be- 
ing under  a  revolutionary  government,  and  he  forced 
to  obey  the  committee,  and  transport  the  exile  to  a 
foreign  shore,  namely  the  Hawaiian  Islands;  also  that 
Gallagher  was  really  benefited,  as  it  saved  his  life, 
which  would  have  been  taken  had  he  not  been  con- 
veyed out  of  the  country.  The  press  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, moreover,  charged  the  author  of  the  decision 
with  an  intention  to  irritate  and  annoy,  a  grave 
charge  when  applied  to  a  judge  of  a  high  court  of  the 
United  States,  and  illustrative  of  the  antagonism  be- 
tween the  courts  and  people. 

The  confirmation  of  the  Limantour  and  Santillian 
claims,  of  so  much  importance  to  the  city  of  San 
Francisco,  to  the  state,  and  United  States,  by  the 
claim  commissioners,  was  a  source  of  justifiable  dis- 
content For  some  time  the  citizens  of  San  Francisco 
regarded  these  claims  as  having  been  instigated  with 
the  purpose  of  levying  black-mail,  and  gave  them 
little  attention,  but  when  they  saw  them  confirmed, 
their  alarm  became  proportioned  to  the  injury  about 
to  be  inflicted.  The  general  government,  also,  fear- 
ing for  the  presidio  lands,  custom-house,  mint,  and 
other  United  States  property,  appropriated  $200,000 
for  the  purpose  of  defending  its  rights,  and  defeating 
fraudulent  claims,  as  they  should  come  up  in  the 
United  States  district  court.  This  amount  was  ex- 
pended in  opposing  the  Limantour  claim,  which  was 
proved  to  be  a  forgery,  and  little  resistance  was  of- 
fered to  the  Santillian  claim,  which  was  hastened 
through  this  court  almost  unchallenged,  to  a  complete 
confirmation.14  Owners  of  property  then  became  dis- 

*This  claim  was  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  southerly  line  of  the  Yerba 
Buena  Tillage,  corresponding  with  what  is  now  California  st,  on  the  sooth  by 
the  Buri  Ban  rancho,  sweeping  across  the  peninsula  for  the  entire  width, 


244  THE  JUDICIARY. 

turbed,  and  some  government  officials  displayed  their 
opposition  by  entering  an  appeal  to  the  supreme  court 
at  Washington. 

At  this  point  in  the  history  of  the  case,  and  when 
the  claimants  were  confident  of  a  victory,  a  few  citi- 
zens who  feared  for  the  result,  the  claimants  having 
the  record  in  their  favor,  called  a  public  meeting, 
and  sought  to  arouse  the  people  to  a  realization 
of  their  peril.  A  committee  of  twenty  was  appointed 
to  resist  land  frauds  in  the  city  and  county  of  San 
Francisco,  of  which  Police-judge  Coon  was  chairman, 
and  became  somewhat  famous  in  this  connection. 
The  chief  difficulty  being  the  procurement  of  funds, 
Coon  applied  himself  to  securing  contributions.  A 
memorial  to  congress  was  proposed  by  William  J. 
Shaw,  praying  that  the  case  might  be  remanded  back 
to  the  United  States  district  court  for  re-trial  on  its 
merits,  offering  to  show  the  pretended  grant  a  fraud, 
and  setting  forth  particulars.  Care  was  taken  to 
bring  this  memorial  to  the  attention  of  all  the  United 
States  judges,  including  the  supreme  bench.  The  at- 
torney employed  was  Nathaniel  Bennett,  who  pre- 
sented an  able  printed  argument  against  the  claim  in 
the  United  States  supreme  court,25  and  finally  through 
these  measures,  the  case  being  fairly  brought  to  the 
attention  of  the  highest  tribunal,  the  claim  was  re- 
jected. But  for  this  action  on  the  part  of  the  people 
the  Santillian  claim  would  have  been  confirmed. 

I  have  already  spoken  of  the  settlement  of  the  pue- 

and  over  that  part  of  the  city  west  of  Stockton  st.  Some  of  its  supporters 
however,  for  the  purpose  of  quieting  opposition,  alleged  that  the  claim 
affected  property  only  south  of  a  certain  fictitious  line  called  Vallejo  line. 
To  the  Philadelphia  Land  Company,  however,  which  purchased  the  claim, 
it  was  represented  as  embracing  all  outside  of  the  little  Spanish  village 
bounded  by  California  and  Stockton  streets.  Limantour  was  a  Frenchman, 
long  resident  in  the  city  of  Mexico.  When  the  fraud — which  was  detected 
by  discovering  that  the  seal  of  the  state  of  Mexico  was  counterfeit— was  ex- 
posed he  deposited  $30,000,  the  amount  of  his  bail,  with  his  bondsmen,  and 
fled  the  country.  Owin,  Mem.,  MS.,  66.  Santillian  was  a  half -mendicant  priest, 
who  never  owned  any  land.  Coon.  Annals,  S.  F.,  15. 

ai  Coon  says  that  the  U.  S.  atty-gen.  has  since  been  '  proved  to  have  been 
deeply  interested  in  the  claim,  and  strove  hard  to  prevent  this  printed  argu- 
ment from  reaching  the  hands  of  the  judges.'  Annals  S.  F.,  MS..  19. 


REFORM  INSTITUTED.  045 

blo  and  government  titles  by  the  supreme  court  of 
California,  and  by  the  Van  Ness  ordinance.  It  only 
remained  for  the  city  to  extend  the  provisions  of  the 
Van  Ness  ordinance  over  the  lands  lying  outside  of 
the  charter  line  of  1851,  and  provide  for  the  proper 
distribution  of  these  lands  according  to  the  act  of  con- 
gress. This  was  done  by  a  municipal  regulation 
known  as  the  Outside  Land  ordinance,  which  made 
provisions  for  granting  deeds  to  such  persons  as  were 
entitled  to  them.  A  committee  of  the  board  of  super- 
visors, called  the  outside  land  committee,  deter- 
mined this  question  and  extended  the  deeds. 

The  city  slip  cases  mentioned  in  the  previous 
chapter  entered  into  politics  as  late  as  1863.  In  the 
first  place,  the  money  derived  from  the  sale  of  the 
city's  lots  went  into  that  vortex  where  all  the  people's 
money  went,  from  1851  to  1856.  Next  came  the  at- 
tempt on  the  part  of  the  purchasers  to  compel  the 
city  to  pay  back  the  purchase  money  with  interest 
for  ten  years.  In  1863,  when  the  People's  noniinat- 
ino-  committee  beoran  its  sessions,  the  course  of  the 

O  O 

city-slip  owners  and  the  city  attorney  was  being  freely 
discussed  in  the  daily  press,  and  it  was  discovered 
that  the  candidate  for  mayor  was  among  these  specu- 
lators, when  he  was  hastily  dropped,  and  H.  P.  Coon, 
a  friend  of  the  city,  substituted.  One  of  his  first  offi- 
cial acts  was  the  acknowledgement  of  service  of  a 
mandate  from  the  supreme  court  of  California,  com- 
manding him  and  the  board  of  supervisors  to  pay 
the  city-slip  judgments.  Finding  on  examining  the 
matter  that  there  could  be  no  escape  from  ultimate 
compliance  with  the  final  judgment  of  the  court,  he 
proposed  a  plan  for  settlement  which  was  carried  into 
effect.  But  for  this  there  would  have  been  no  com- 
promise, and  the  city  would  have  been  greatly  em- 
barrassed. 

So  many  causes  of  discontent  as  the  foregoing  his- 
t  >rv  has  revealed,  could  not  long  be  borne  without 

w 


246  THE  JUDICIARY. 

creating  a  feeling  of  rebellion  against  the  constitution 
and  laws  of  the  state,  which  permitted  them.  As 
early  as  1856  the  necessity  of  immediate  constitu- 
tional reform  was  urged,  and  a  long  bill  of  indictments 
brought  against  the  organic  law  of  California.  Gross 
defects,  especially  in  the  judiciary,  were  apparent.  A 
large  part  of  the  people  were  in  favor  of  a  territorial 
government;  but  the  dread  of  slavery 26  had  urged 
them  on  to  organize  a  free  state,  and  they  had  no  alter- 
native but  to  erect  their  structure  upon  a  hastily  im- 
provised legal  foundation.  Since  that  time  the  same 
dread  had  kept  them  from  re-modelling  the  constitu- 
tion, knowing  that  to  call  a  convention  would  open 
the  door  to  a  division  of  the  state. 

No  provision  was  made  in  the  organic  law  for  the 
certain  and  prompt  punishment  of  official  or  of  ju- 
dicial misconduct,  and  to  impeach  an  officer  under  it 
was  an  expensive  and  ineffectual  proceeding.  Judges 
were  treated  as  superior  to  legislators,  and  the  con- 
stitution "almost  completely  surrendered  into  their 
hands  the  very  rights  of  justice  itself,  of  which  they 
are  the  mere  servants."  :  "  The  clothing  of  judges 
with  an  official  importance  beyond  other  mortals,"  said 
the  complainants,  "  has  no  sound  arguments  to  support 
it ;  and  it  may  be  questioned  whether  it  does  not  lead 
to  the  very  abuses  it  is  designed,  if  there  be  any  de- 
sign in  it,  to  prevent.  In  ages  past  English  judges  ex- 
ercised the  power,  now  boldly  employed  by  the  Califor- 
nia judiciary,  of  making  laws  upon  the  bench  ;  but  all 
the  English  judges  combined  could  not  prevent  an 
appeal  to  the  upper  branch  of  the  legislative  power. 
"Who  are  our  judges?"  they  asked.  "What  would  they 

26  Speech  of  Wm  J.  Shaw  in  the  state  senate  in  1856. 

27  The  supreme  court  decided  on  the  eve  of  the  general  election  of  1855, 
the  case  being  one  where  application  was  made  to  the  supreme  court  in 
a  hypothetical  case,  that  naturalization  papers  could  not  be  taken  out  in  any 
courts  of  the  state  except  district  courts,  not  even  in  the  U.  S.  courts.     Ex 
parte  Frank  Knowles,  application  for  naturalization.  Sac.   Union,   Aug.  14, 
1855.     A  former  decision  had  been  that  a  voter  could  not  be  required  to 
show  his  naturalization  papers;  hence  of  what  effect  was  one  court  more 
than  another.  Id,,  Tli£  Pe.opk  vs.  Gordon  and  Warren. 


LAW  AND  EQUITY.  947 

be  off  the  bench  I  What  were  they  before  ascending 
it  ?  Do  cushioned  chairs  and  scarlet  curtains  change 
then-  character  ?  Are  we  fools,  to  give  up  to  names 
what  belong  only  to  entities,  and  take  for  wisdom  and 
learning  the  vaunting  of  conceit  ?  Are  we  freemen, 
and  willing  to  give  the  department  authorized  to 
administer  the  laws,  the  power  to  change  them  with 
impunity  \"  In  the  superior  court  two  men,  being  a 
bare  majority  of  three,  may  condemn  a  man  to  death, 
or  deprive  him  of  his  property,  or  his  liberty ;  but  the 
senate,  consisting  of  more  than  ten  times  as  many, 
could  not  convict  a  judge,  a  state  attorney,  or  a  sur- 
veyor, by  less  than  a  two-thirds  Tote. 

Everybody  knew  that  the  laws  of  California  made 
no  distinction  between  cases  in  equity  or  chancery, 
and  cases  in  common  law ;  and  no  distinction  as  to 
the  mode  of  ascertaining  the  facts  in  issue  had  ever 
been  tolerated  between  equity  and  law  cases.  The 
legislature  had  provided  that  all  matters  of  fact  aris- 
ing in  such  cases  hi  the  district  courts  should  be  dis- 
posed of  by  juries.  But  the  supreme  court,  "  having 
become  fond  of  power,  and  grown  bold  hi  its  usurpa- 
tions," had  decided  that  in  chancery  cases,  district 
judges  should  be  chancellors,  and  the  litigants  not  en- 
titled to  trial  by  jury.  It  was  not  denied  that  the 
jury  system  needed  re-modelling,  but  it  was  asserted 
that  the  court  of  last  resort  had  no  right  to  deprive 
the  people  of  trial  by  j  ory  in  the  lower  courts.  These 
defects  of  the  judicial  system  under  the  constitution 
of  1849  were  strongly  urged  as  a  reason  for  its 
abolition. 

At  length,  in  1861,  certain  amendments  affecting  the 
judicial,  as  well  as  the  executive  and  legislative  de- 
partments of  the  government,  were  proposed,  con- 
sented to  by  the  electors  in  1862,  and  went  into 
effect  in  1863.  By  this  change  the  supreme  bench 
was  made  to  consist  of  five  judges,  to  be  elected  at 
special  elections,  and  to  hold  office  for  ten  years.  The 
state  was  divided  into  fourteen  judicial  districts,  sub- 


248  THE  JUDICIARY. 

ject  to  alteration  from  time  to  time,  the  judges  to  be 
chosen  at  the  special  election  provided  for  judges  of 
the  supreme  court,  and  to  hold  office  for  six  years. 
The  legislature  was  deprived  of  the  power  to  grant 
leave  of  absence  to  any  judicial  officer ;  but  any  such 
officer  who  should  absent  himself  for  more  than  one 
month  should  be  deemed  to  have  forfeited  his  office. 
County  judges  should  hold  office  for  four  years,  and 
should  have  the  power  to  issue  naturalization  papers. 
A  probate  judge  was  allowed  for  the  city  and  county 
of  San  Francisco,  whose  term  should  be  four  years. 
The  jurisdiction  of  each  of  the  courts  was  distinctively 
defined,  as  well  as  the  duties  of  the  district  attorneys 
and  clerks. 

The  period  when  these  changes  were  made  being 
that  of  the  rebellion,  loyalty  to  the  government  was 
required  to  be  sworn  to  by  all  judges  and  court  offi- 
cers. Lecompton  democracy,  with  its  office-seeking, 
its  rapacity,  and  its  political  tyranny,  was  pushed 
aside,  and  ordered  to  be  silent,  while  loyalty  and  de- 
votion to  principle  dominated  the  hour.  No  faith- 
ful historian  but  would  declare  the  change  was 
for  the  better,  or  that  the  judgment  was  a  right- 
eous one  which  required  the  chivalry  to  step  down 
and  out. 

Reckless  legislation  during  the  reign  of  the  chivalry 
often  obstructed  justice,  as  I  have  pointed  out  in  in- 
dividual cases,  and  was  fruitful  of  crimes.  Attorney- 
general  Williams  in  1859  and  1860  made  a  number 
of  suggestions  in  his  report  to  the  governor,28  concern- 

28  Among  other  matters,  he  recommended  the  repeal  of  all  that  portion 
of  the  act  of  1851  concerning  attorneys  and  counsellors  at  law,  after  section 
12.  According  to  the  letter  of  this  act  any  outrage  or  contempt  may  be 
committed  against  the  courts,  other  than  the  supreme  court,  without  remedy, 
except  by  the  dilatory  process  of  application  to  the  latter  court.  A  felon, 
or  any  one  who  has  heaped  every  imaginable  insult  upon  a  district  or  other 
lower  court,  may  continue  practising  in  such  court  until  application  shall 
have  been  made  to  the  supreme  court  for  his  expulsion,  such  application 
made,  and  a  judgment  fully  rendered.  This  is  manifestly  wrong.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  injustice  which  may  be  inflicted  upon  the  lower  courts,  without  a 
speedy  remedy,  the  statute  under  consideration  may  be  liable  to  two  con- 
stitutional objections:  First,  it  gives  the  supreme  court  original  jurisdiction 
of  a  proceeding  in  its  nature  criminal,  when  that  court,  under  the  constitu- 


CODE   COMMISSION.  249 

ing  legislation  on  crimes,  and  criminal  practice,  as 
well  as  civil  practice.  He  urged  the  propriety  of  ap- 
pointing a  commission  to  codify  the  laws.  "  The  de- 
lays and  difficulties  attendant  upon  ill-digested  legis- 
lation," he  said,  "have  cost  this  state  more  than  the 
expense  of  many  such  commissions,  and  yet  the  injury 
sustained  by  the  state,  as  such,  has  not  been  a  tithe 
of  that  of  her  citizens."  In  March  1868  an  act  was 
passed  providing  for  the  revision  and  compilation  of 
the  laws  of  California^  with  their  publication,  J.  B. 
Harman,  John  Currey,  and  Henry  P.  Barber  being 
appointed  commissioners  to  meet  in  San  Francisco, 
and  complete  their  work  by  the  first  of  July,  1869. 
The  commission  was  unable  to  finish  its  labors  before 
the  meeting  of  the  next  legislature,  when  another 
act  was  passed,  April  4,  1870,  authorizing  the  gov- 
ernor to  appoint  three  commissioners  to  meet  in  Sac- 
ramento and  organize  as  a  board  for  the  prosecution 
of  this  purpose,  continuing  the  labor  of  the  first  com- 
mission. The  work  was  revised  by  Charles  A.  Tuttle 
and  Sidney  L.  Johnson,  and  finally  by  a  committee 
consisting  of  Creed  Haymond,**  John  C.  Burch,  and 
Charles  A  Tuttle.  By  an  act  approved  in  March 

tion,  can  only  exercise  appellate  jurisdiction.     Secondly,  it  interferes  with 
the  inherent  light  of  self -protection  which  rests  in  every  court,  etc. 

9  Creed  Raymond  was  born  in  Beverly,  Randolph  co.,  Va,  April  22,  1S36, 
his  father  being  W.  C.  Raymond,  a  lawyer  of  prominence  At  the  age  of 
16,  young  Haymond  came  to  CaL  overland,  and  engaged  in  mining,  packing, 
merchandising,  and  ditching,  until  he  had  laid  up  some  money.  He  then 
studied  law,  and  became  eminent.  It  is  claimed  that  California  had  the  first 
complete  code  ever  adopted  by  any  state  of  the  union,  or  any  English -speak- 
ing people.  Haymond  was  chairman  of  the  code  committee,  and  connected 
with  many  great  civil  cases,  and  many  noted  criminal  ones.  He  defended 
Shepardson,  charged  with  highway  robbery  in  Shasta  co.,  and  the  More  mur- 
derers in  San  Buenaventura,  saving  all  these  villains  from  their  just  deserts. 
He  was  captain  of  the  Sierra  Grays,  a  militia  company,  serving  under  Col 
Jack  Hays  in  the  spring  of  I860,  against  the  Indians  in  Nevada,  after  the 
Pyramid  lake  massacre,  and  for  some  time  col  of  the  1st  artillery  regt, 
National  Guard  of  CaL  In  1882,  he  became  attorney  for  the  Central  Fac 
Railway  co.,  and  in  the  railroad  tax  cases  raised  for  the  first  time  the  ques- 
tion of  the  protecting  influence  and  power  of  the  14th  amendment  of  the 
U.  S.  constitution  against  the  exercise  of  the  discriminative  power  by  a  state, 
contending  that  the  state  could  not  discriminate  in  the  matter  of  taxation 
between  citizens  holding  the  same  class  of  property,  nor  as  to  property  of  the 
same  class  because  of  its  ownership  by  citizens  or  associations  of  citizens. 
This  position  was  affirmed  by  the  U.  S.  circuit  court  in  CaL,  and  by  the 
highest  courts  of  several  other  states. 


250  THE  JUDICIARY. 

1872,  parts  of  the  penal,  political,  and  civil    codes 
went  into  effect.3' 

The  expense  of  the  code  commission  was  not  less 
than  $50,000,  but  it  was  of  the  greatest  value  to  the 
state  in  pruning  the  laws  of  that  unwholesome  redun- 
dancy which  had  given  shelter  to  ill-omened  birds  of 
prey  ever  watchful  of  the  unwary.  But  once  having 
begun  to  charge  whatever  was  wrong  in  affairs  to  the 
constitution  and  laws,  the  idea  of  change  became  a 
point  with  politicians.  The  state  had  grown  fairly  in 
population,  and  made  strides  in  the  direction  of  in- 
dustries, commerce,  transportation,  social,  religious, 
and  educational  matters ;  but  along  with  this  growth 
had  run  a  reactionary  tendency — a  sort  of  undertow 
from  the  whelming  tide  of  early  affluence  which  had 
dizzied  the  brain  and  bewildered  the  moral  sense  of 
those  who,  for  a  time,  had  been  borne  upon  the  flood's 
crest.  A  dozen  years  after  the  amendment  of  the 
constitution  and  codification  of  the  laws,  a  demand 
arose  for  a  radical  change,  the  history  of  which  must 
follow  the  recital  of  the  events  which  led  up  to  it. 

G 

39  Cat.  Proceed,  of  Commis.  for  Revision  of  Laws,  8pp.;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct. 
31,  1871;  Cnl.  Jour.  Sen.,  1871-2,  app.  No.  41-3,  iii.;  S.  F.  AUa,  Nov.  16, 17, 
18,  20,  21,  1872;  Cal  Jour.  Sen.,  1873-4,  app.  No.  17,  59-60,  iv.,  vi.;  8.  F. 
Altn,  July  11,  1873;  S.  F.  Call,  Feb.  4,  and  Dec.  14,  1873. 

Worthy  of  note  among  the  former  members  of 'the  judiciary  is  R.  M. 
Widney  of  Los  Aiigelej,  a  native  of  Ohio,  who  set  forth  westward  in  1855. 
After  studying  law  and  engaging  in  various  pursuits,  among  others  the  real 
estate  business,  he  was  appointed  district  judge  by  Gov.  Booth  to  fill  the  un- 
expired  term  of  Judge  Morrison,  deceased.  He  was  the  originator  of  the 
system  governing  the  university  of  southern  California,  of  which  mention 
is  made  in  a  later  chapter.  Through  his  bravery,  coolness,  and  determina- 
tion at  the  time  of  the  Chinese  riot  at  Los  Angeles  in  1871,  he  was  largely 
instrumental  in  checking  a  wholesale  slaughter.  In  this  good  work  he  was 
aided  by  his  brother,  J.  P.  Widney,  who  came  to  California  in  1862,  and 
af  !;er  studying  at  the  Toland  medical  college,  S.  F.,  and  serving  for  two  years 
in  Arizona  as  assistant  surgeon  ia  the  U.  S.  army,  in  1868  settled  at  Los  An- 
geles, where  he  practised  his  profession.  He  was  also  one  of  the  promoters 
and  is  still  a  trustee  of  the  university  of  southern  California. 

Among  the  former  leaders  of  the  San  Francisco  bar  may  be  mentioned 
the  late  James  Parker  Tread  well,  a  native  of  Ipswich,  Mass,  who  after  grad- 
uating at  Harvard  and  practising  law  in  Boston  came  to  this  state  in  1851. 
He  was  known  as  a  man  of  great  and  varied  information,  of  strong  reason- 
i  ig  powers,  and  as  one  who  would  never  espouse  a  cause  or  question  that  he 
bolieved  to  be  wrong. 


CHAPTER  XL 

LOYALTY,  OR  DISUXIOX  AXD  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

I860. 
THE  LEGISLATURE — GWTX-WELLER  COMBINATION — LATHAMS   POLICY  AND 

ADMTNtiTRATIOX FEDERAL     DISSOLUTION     AND     STATE     DIVISION — LE- 

COMPTON  AND  OTHER  CONVENTIONS — A  POLITICAL  CRISIS — FEDERAL 
PARTIES  AND  POLITICS — FIGHT  FOR  BRECKEN  RIDGE — THE  SAX  FRAN- 
CISCO BULKHEAD  SCARE — CHANGE  OF  CONSTITUTION  AND  DIVISION  o» 
THE  STATE — NEW  ELECTION — THE  STATE  LOYAL  TO  THE  UNIOS 

THE  legislature  elected  in  1859,  which  convened 
January  2,  1860,  was  the  last  in  which  the  element  of 
chivalry  and  Lecoinptonism  prevailed.  Had  Brode- 
rick's  death  occurred  before  instead  of  after  the  election, 
it  would  not  have  had  a  pro-slavery  majority.  Nem- 
esis was  already  shadowed  in  the  air,  albeit  invisible 
to  her  victims. 

The  Gwin-Weller  combination,  which  had  so  long 
retained  its  power,  was  broken  by  the  choice  of  La- 
tham *  for  governor,  who,  while  a  Lecompton  demo- 
crat, was  regarded  as  a  friend  of  San  Francisco,  which 
had  suffered  so  much  from  former  administrations. 
He  was,  indeed,  pledged  to  use  his  influence  against 
the  obnoxious  bulkhead  scheme,*  which  at  that  juncture 

1  Milton  S.  Latham  was  born  in  Ohio,  May  23,  1829.  his  father  being  a 
native  of  Va.  and  his  mother  of  N.  H.,  both  being  originally  of  old  Xew 
England  stock.  He  graduated  from  Jefferson  college,  Pa,  in  1S46,  soon  after 
going  to  Ala  where  he  studied  law,  and  was  appointed  clerk  of  the  circuit 
court  of  Russell  co.  He  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  and  soon  after  arriving  was 
elected  dist  atty  for  the  judicial  dist  of  Sac  and  El  Dorado  cos.  In  1851  he 
was  elected  congressman  and  remained  in  this  office  until  1856,  after  which 
he  was  appointed  collector  of  the  port  of  San  Francisco.  His  senatorial 
aspirations  and  election  to  the  executive  office  have  been  recorded  in  the 
preceding  volume.  The  sec.  of  state,  under  the  administration  was  Johnson 
Price,  a  native  of  Ky,  and  an  officer  of  Ky  vols  in  the  Mexican  war. 

*  The  legislature  of  1863  created  a  board  of  harbor  commissioners  consist- 
ing of  3  members,  one  to  be  elected  at  the  election  for  assemblymen,  one  by 

(251  > 


252    LOYALTY,   OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

threatened  the  city  and  state  with  a  heavy  tax  upon 
its  commerce,  and  the  growth  of  a  giant  monopoly 
to  rule  for  fifty  years.  A  majority  of  the  legislature, 

joint  convention  of  both  houses  of  the  legislature,  and  one  by  the  electors  of 
the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco.  Term  of  office,  4  years.  They  were 
authorized  to  take  possession  of  and  hold  all  that  portion  of  the  bay  of  San 
Francisco  lying  along  the  water  front  to  a  distance  of  600  feet  into  the  waters 
of  the  bay  from  the  line  of  the  water  front,  as  defined  by  the  act  of  1851,  to- 
gether with  all  of  the  improvements,  rights,  privileges,  and  appurtenances 
appertaining  thereto,  except  such  portions  as  were  held  under  valid  leases, 
and  of  those  as  soon  as  the  leases  should  expire.  This  board  was  to  have  the 
entire  management  of  the  state's  property  in  the  harbor,  to  collect  rents, 
tolls,  etc.,  which  were  to  be  paid  into  the  state's  treasury,  and  drawn  there- 
from to  construct  the  improvements  required  by  commerce.  They  were  to 
provide,  out  of  the  surplus  funds,  for  the  construction  of  a  sea-wall  along 
the  water  front  from  Harrison  st  to  Vallejo  st,  and  after  the  completion  of 
this  portion  as  much  further  as  should  be  found  necessary  to  the  protection 
of  the  harbor,  and  consistent  with  the  state  of  the  fund.  William  J.  Lewis 
was  the  first  civil  engineer  employed  on  the  sea-wall.  In  1872,  the  legisla- 
ture granted  to  the  city  and  county  of  S.  F.  'all  the  streets  and  alleys  in  the 
city  and  county  of  San  Francisco  which  lie  within  the  exterior  boundaries  of 
certain  salt,  marsh,  and  tide  lands  donated  by  the  state  to  the  Southern  Pa- 
cific R.  R.  Co.  and  the  Western  Pacific  R.  R.  Co.  for  terminal  purposes,'  by 
an  act  of  1868;  and  also  '  all  streets  and  alleys  within  the  exterior  boundaries 
of  lands  lying  within  the  boundaries  of  said  lands  not  donated  to  said  rail- 
road companies,  but  reserved  for  market  places,  and  known  as  Produce  Ex- 
change and  Market  Place,'  and  '  the  lands  set  apart  by  the  board  of  tide-land 
comm'rs  for  basins  known  as  China  and  Central  basins,'  with  full  power  to 
regulate,  manage,  donate,  or  dispose  of  the  same  for  railroad  or  other  com- 
mercial purposes, on  condition  that  any  lands  thus  donated  should  revert  to 
the  state  if  at  any  time  the  railroad  company  holding  should  cease  to  use 
them.  This  power  to  sell  or  in  any  manner  to  alienate  this  property  was 
revoked  by  the  legislature  of  1874,  which  left  the  city  only  the  right  to  lease 
it.  In  1878  another  act  was  passed  dedicating  to  public  use  the  basins  in  the 
harbor,  and  providing  for  the  construction  by  the  harbor  commissioners  of  a 
sea-wall,  and  a  thoroughfare  200  feet  in  width,  from  the  east  line  of  Taylor 
st  to  the  boundary  between  the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco  and  the 
county  of  San  Mateo.  The  means  to  be  used  in  its  construction  were  to  be 
derived  from  rents,  wharfage,  and  tolls,  and  the  sea-wall  was  declared  to  be 
for  public  use,  together  with  the  land  created  by  filling  in  the  lots  formed  by 
running  the  line  of  the  sea-wall  straight  from  point  to  point.  In  1886  the 
value  of  this  new  land  amounted  to  $1,300,000.  Various  suggestions  were 
offered  as  to  the  use  to  which  it  should  be  devoted  by  the  state.  It  was  once 
proposed  by  the  chamber  of  commerce  that  free  grain  warehouses  should  be 
erected  upon  these  lots,  but  it  was  found  that  this  would  necessitate  a  rail- 
road, which  was  not  practicable.  Some  persons  proposed  making  public 
parks  of  the  state  land;  others  that  it  should  be  held  for  high  prices,  and  sold; 
and  still  others  that  it  should  be  sold  as  fast  as  wanted,  and  the  proceeds  de- 
voted to  the  more  rapid  extension  of  the  sea-wall.  After  much  discussion 
and  consultation  between  the  state  and  city  authorities,  a  proposition  was 
made  to  have  the  whole  sea-wall  property  transferred  to  San  Francisco,  upon 
condition  that  the  system  of  tolls  should  be  abolished,  and  bonds  issued  by 
the  city  to  the  amount  of  $4,000,000  for  the  completion  of  the  sea-wall,  the 
money  to  be  recovered  by  the  lease  of  the  made  land,  and  the  land  to  remain 
unsold.  A  railroad  to  connect  the  wharves  and  warehouses  along  the  sea- 
wall is  also  talked  of.  The  legislature  and  the  freeholders  who  form  the 
new  city  charter  will  probably  soon  decide  the  question  of  sea-wall  and  bonds. 


IMPOLITIC  SCHEMES.  253 

it  was  well  understood,*  could  be  purchased,  aud  upon 
the  governor  depended  in  a  great  measure  the  pre- 
vention of  this  iniquity. 

There  was  universal  surprise  and  disapproval,  there- 
fore, when,  on  the  day  after  his  inauguration,  the 
legislature  went  into  joint  convention,  and  elected 
Governor  Latham  to  the  seat  in  the  United  States 

J  The  senate  for  1860  was  composed  of  Andres  Pico,  Los  Angeles,  San  Ber- 
nardino, and  San  Diego;  P.  de  la  Gnerra,  Sta  Barbara,  San  Lois  Obispo; 
J.  H.  Watson,  Sta  Cruz  and  Monterey;  R.  A.  Redman,  Sta  Clara  and  Ala- 
meda;  S.  H.  Sharp,  T.  G.  Phelps,  A.  C.  Peachy,  S.  H.  Parker,  S.  F.  and 
San  Mateo;  S.  A.  Merritt,  Tulare,  Fresno,  Mariposa,  and  Merced;  J.  J. 
Franklin,  I.  X.  Qninn,  Tuolumne  and  Stanislaus;  G.  W.  Dent,  Contra  Costa 
and  San  Joaquin;  R.  C.  Clark,  James  M.  McDonald,  Sac.;  H.  Edgerton, 
Solano,  Xapa  and  Yolo;  Jasper  O'Farrell,  Marin,  Sonoma,  and  Mendocino; 
J.  P.  Haynes,  Klamath,  Del  Xorte,  and  Siskiyon;  Jonathan  Logan,  Colusa, 
Shasta  and  Tehama;  J.  M.  Vance,  S.  A-  Ballou,  Butte  and  Plumas;  H.  P. 
Watkins,  K  D.  Wheeler,  W.  H.  Parks,  Yuba  and  Sntter;  S.  H.  Chase,  C. 
J.  Lansing,  Xevada;  T.  J.  Leet,  James  Anderson,  Placer;  W.  R  Dickinson, 
R  D.  Crittenden,  A.  S.  Denver,  L  S.  Titus,  El  Dorado;  J.  A.  Eagan,  B.  T. 
Bradley,  Amador  and  Calaveras;  M.  Kirkpatrick.  Sierra;  James  T.  Ryan, 
Humboldt  and  Trinity.  Officers  of  the  senate:  J.  X.  Qninn,  pres't  pro  tern.; 
J.  R.  Beard,  sec.;  D.  J.  Williamson,  asst  sec.;  Cyril  Hawkins,  enrolling 
clerk;  W.  S.  Teteher,  engrossing  clerk;  W.  H.  Bell,  sergt-at-anns;  J.  Me 
Clenchy,  asst  sergt-at-arms. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of:  P.  C.  Johnson,  John  Bowman,  Amador; 
P.  K.  Shattnck,  Alameda;  John  Lambert,  Batte;  P.  A.  Gallagher,  Samuel 
Wilson,  BL  A.  Shelton,  Calaveras;  E.  A.  Stevenson,  Colusa;  Cornelius 
Yager,  Contra  Costa;  John  Daggett,  Del  Xorte;  John  Conness,  D.  C.  Patten, 

D.  Fail-child,  W.  H.  Stone,  Asa  H.  Hawley,  Jack  C.   Bell,  G.  H.  Watson, 

E.  Dunlap,  El  Dorado;  T.  M.  Heston,  Fresno,  Tulare  and  Buena  Vista;  L. 
M.  Bnrson,   Hnmboldt;  A.  J.   King,  J.  J.   Warner,  Los  Angeles;  Samuel 
Lewis,  Marin;  J.  R  Hammond,  Mariposa;  F.  F.  Jenkins,  Merced;  Mariano 
Malaria.  Monterey;  Xathan  Coombs,  Xapa;  Henry  Hayes,  Samuel  T.  Cur- 
tis, C.  F.   Smith,   Philip  Moore,  M.  P.   O'Conner,  Xevada;  S.   W.   Lovell, 
D.  S.  Beach,  J.  S.  Mackin,  J.  W.  Harville,  Placer;  T.  R  Shannon,  P.  O. 
Hundley,  Plumas;    Henry  Starr,  D.  W.   Welty,  B.  F.llig,  L.   C.  Goodman, 
Sac.;  W.  A-  Conn,  San  Bernardino;  Robert  W.  Groom,  San  Diego;  Abner 
Phelps,  J.  C.  Schmidt,  Daniel  Rogers,  Jasper  Babcock,  Samuel  L.  Theller, 
B.  T.  Tate,  F.  A.  Sawyer,  S.  S.  Telton,  San  Francisco;  W.  B.  Maxon,  San 
Mateo;  W.  L.  Campbell,  Thomas  Laspeyre,  San  Joaquin;    B.   M.   Henry, 
San  Luis  Obispo;  J.  M.  Covarrnbias,  Sta  Barbara;  J.  M.  Williams,   D.  B. 
Bailey,  Santa  Clara;  J.  L.  Halstead,  Sta  Cruz;  John  White.  Shasta;  James 
A.  Johnson,  T.  J.  Halliday,  Sierra;  Charles  McDermirt  Siskiyou;  Thomas 
M,  Swan,  Solano;  Charles  P.  Wilkins,  Sonoma;  Miner  Waldron.  Stanislaus; 
J.  L.  Smith,  Sntter;  A.  C.  Lawrence,  Trinity;  G.  W.  Bailey,  F.  Yaney,  K 
A.    Rodgers,  Robert  Howe,  Tuolumne;   H.  Gwinn.  Yolo;  C.    H.    Kungle, 
Benjamin  T.  O"Rear,  Benjamin  P.  Hugg,  J.  M.  Crowell,  J.  Westcott,  Yuba. 
Officers  of    the  assembly:   Philip  Moore,    speaker;  J.   M.   Anderson,  chief 
clerk;  R.  K.  Weston,  asst  clerk;  C.  W.  Tozer,  sergt-at-arms;  William  Xew- 
som,   asst  sergt-at-arms;  EL   W.   Casey,   engrossing  clerk;  H.   C.   Kibbe, 
enrolling  clerk. 


254      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

senate*  left  vacant  by  Broderick,  and  filled  temporarily 
by  Haun.  The  whole  appeared  to  be  a  trick,  and 
people  said  in  their  wrath  that  Latham  had  sold  him- 
self, or  had  been  elected  to  the  senate  by  the  arch- 
plotters  to  get  him  out  of  their  way  for  infamous 
purposes.6 

The  legislature  of  1859  had  passed  an  act  author- 
izing the  people  of  the  six  counties  of  San  Luis  Obispo, 
Santa  Barbara,  Los  Angeles,  San  Diego,  San  Ber- 
nardino, and  a  part  of  Buena  Vista,  or  all  that  part 
of  the  state  south  of  the  36th  parallel,  to  vote  upon 
the  question  of  separation  from  the  state,  with  the 
design  of  being  relegated  to  a  territorial  condition. 
The  Lecomptonites,  taking  advantage  of  the  fact  that 
the  native  Californians  had  always  been  opposed  to 
being  taxed  for  the  support  of  a  state  government,6 
that  they  complained  of  the  inequality  of  taxes  as  be- 
tween agriculturalists  and  miners,  and  maintained 
their  right  to  carry  slaves  into  any  territory,  had 
fixed  upon  this  means  of  consummating  their  purpose 
of  bringing  slave  property  to  the  Pacific  coast.  By 
shrewdly  fanning  the  flame  of  discontent  in  the  south- 
ern counties,  they  managed  to  secure  a  two-thirds 

*Says  Tuthill:  97  of  them,  democrats,  went  into  caucus  together,  and  on 
the  1st  ballot  ex -governor  Weller  had  38  votes,  ex -congressman  Denver  31, 
Judge  Baldwin  11,  Collector  Washington  9,  and  Gen.  McDougall  8.  They 
tried  it  again  on  an  early  ensuing  evening;  Baldwin  was  withdrawn,  Denver 
stepped  aside,  and  the  first  ballot  showed  Latham  51,  Weller  43,  Washing- 
ton 2.  The  two  houses  met  in  joint  convention  on  the  llth  of  January.  A 
Sac.  member  nominated  Latham,  a  San  Franciscan  nominated  Oscar  L. 
Shafter,  and  John  Conness  for  the  anti-Lecomptonites  nominated  Edmund 
Randolph.  The  first  ballot  gave  Latham,  who  the  day  before  was  inaugu- 
rated governor,  97,  Randolph  14,  Shafter  3. 

5 One  obnoxious  scheme  was  the  Omnibus  Wagon  Road  bill,  which  pro- 
vided for  the  construction  of  several  different  roads  over  the  Sierra,  in  the 
same  direction,  and  at  a  great  expense,  to  give  contracts  to  political  friends. 
This  the  governor  vetoed.  Another  bill  vetoed  was  for  changing  the  venue 
in  the  murder  case  related  in  cap.  ix.,  pp.  212-14,  of  this  vol.  But  the  legis- 
lature of  1861  passed  it  over  his  head.  Gal.  Stai.,  1861,  47-8;  Quiyley,  Irish 
Race,  308. 

«  Vol.  Doc.,  MS.,  35,  p.  262,  and  13,  pp.  39-45;  Sta  Barbara  Archives,  MS., 
8,  pp.  229  30,  233;  Cota,  Call,  MS.,  25-36;  Parkas'  Letter-book,  MS.,  93; 
Hayes'  Constit.  Law,  i.  pp.  47-8;  Hayes'  Scraps,  Anyeles,  iv.  125;  Sat.  Union, 
Feb.  15,  April  14,  May  11,  Sept.  15,  1855;  Col.  Jour.  Assem.,  1858,  564-5; 
Califonuan.  Feb.  1881,  pp.  124-7. 


STATE  DIVISION.  255 

majority  for  the  division.  But  there  being  a  question 
of  the  right  of  a  state  to  take  such  a  step,  Latham 
had  employed  some  of  his  leisure  in  preparing  an  ar- 
gument in  its  favor,  for  the  perusal  of  the  president  ' 
which  on  his  inauguration  he  presented  to  the  legisla- 
ture for  its  consideration.  "The  origin  of  this  act," 
he  said,  "is  to  be  found  in  the  dissatisfaction  of  the 
mass  of  people  in  the  southern  counties  of  this  state 
with  the  expenses  of  state  government.  They  are  an 
agricultural  people,  thinly  scattered  over  a  large  ex- 
tent of  country.  They  complain  that  the  taxes  upon 
their  land  and  cattle  are  ruinous,  entirely  dispropor- 
tionate to  the  taxes  collected  in  the  mining  region; 
that  the  policy  of  the  state  hitherto  having  been  to 
exempt  mining  claims  from  taxation,  and  the  mining 
population  being  migratory  in  its  character,  and  hence 
contributing  but  little  to  the  state  revenue  in  propor- 
tion to  the  population,  they  are  unjustly  burdened; 
and  that  there  is  no  remedy,  save  in  a  separation  from. 
the  other  portion  of  the  state.  In  short,  that  the 
union  of  southern  and  northern  California  is  unnatural." 
A  resolution  of  the  assembly  was  passed  jointly  by 
both  houses  to  instruct  senators  and  representatives 
in  congress  to  oppose  the  execution  of  the  act  of  1859 
dividing  the  state.  This  resolution,  together  with 
the  governor's  division  document,  was  referred  to  the 
committee  on  federal  relations,  a  majority  of  which 
reported  in  favor  of  the  legality  of  the  ant,  and  against 
the  resolution.  But  a  minority  report  was  presented 
which  answered  the  governor's  arguments  by  others 
in  nowise  less  logical.*  It  contended  that  there  was 
no  authority  hi  the  constitution  of  the  state  for  the 
action  of  the  previous  legislature,  no  precedent  in  the 
history  of  the  United  States,  no  consent  given  by  the 
whole  people  of  the  state,  but,  instead,  a  protest  from 

TCWL  Dmtiem  of  State  (pamphlet,  I860);  CaL  Jottr.  Ana*.,  I860,  p.  125. 

•The  majority  report  was  signed  simply  Chas  P.  Wilkms.  chairman,  bat 
the  minority  report  was  sipped  by  J.  R.  Williams  of  Santa  Clara,  B.  A. 
Rodgera  of  Tuolumne,  P.  C.  Johnson  of  Amador,  and  J.  W.  Harrille  of 


256      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

one  of  the  counties  included  in  the  dissevered  por- 
tion, and,  in  case  they  should  be  set  off,  inextricable 
confusion  imminent  in  the  courts,  and  all  county  busi- 
ness, including  the  collection  of  their  portion  of  the 
state  debt.9 

"The  strongest  barrier  we  have  against  the  en- 
croachment of  federal  power  would  be  broken  down, 
and  it  would  be  only  necessary  to  secure  the  legisla- 
tures of  the  various  states  by  money  or  political  favors, 
in  order  to  centralize  all  power,  and  consolidate  all 
government."  Thus  spoke  the  minority,  and  as  '  state 
rights '  was  one  of  the  hobbies  of  the  party  in  power, 
they  could  not  but  pay  some  heed  to  the  suggestion. 

The  matter  was  debated  with  much  warmth  in  the 
assembly,  and  some  pointed  criticisms  were  uttered 
concerning  the  "governor  of  the  day"  who  had  felt 
it  his  duty  to  declare  in  favor  of  a  law  which  he  ad- 
mitted was  opposed  to  the  sentiment  of  the  state  at 
large,  which  was  overwhelmingly  against  it.  The 
interest  created  at  home  by  these  debates  was  over- 
shadowed at  the  national  capital  by  more  important 
interests,  and  passed  as  merely  an  incident  of  these 
uneasy  times.  Whatever  the  California  delegation 
had  to  say  about  its  ex-officers  does  not  appear  in 
the  proceedings  of  congress.1' 

Before  the  adjournment  of  the  legislature,  which 
remained  in  session  until  April  30th,  the  political 
cauldron  was  set  boiling,  in  which  was  destined  to  go 
ingredients  more  full  of  horrible  witchery  than  was 
dreamed  of  even  by  the  iugglers  themselves.  In 

T  T  c3c3 

January  the  Lecompton  state  central  committee  held 
a  meeting  at  Sacramento  and  made  its  appointment, 
taking  the  highest  vote  cast  for  any  candidate  at  the 

•The  act  of  1859  declared  that  a  commission  should  be  appointed  to  ad- 
just the  financial  affairs  between  Cal.  and  the  new  govt,  and  to  determine 
the  amount  of  the  new  govt  to  Cal.  on  account  of  the  state  debt,  the  expenses 
of  the  said  comm'rs  to  be  borne  equally  by  the  two  govts,  but  no  plan  of  pay- 
ment of  the  debt  was  even  suggested.  Cal.  Stat.,  1859,  310-11.  The  name 
proposed  for  the  contemplated  territory  was  Colorado.  Sac.  Union,  April  18, 
1855. 

"There  is  a  mere  mention  in  U.  S.  Miss.  Doc.,  2,  36  cong.  1  sess. 


DELEGATES  TO  CHICAGO  CONVENTION.  257 

state  election,  and  appointed  February  29th  for  a  con- 
vention. The  anti-Lecompton  democratic  state  cen- 
tral committee  followed  suit,  and  held  a  meeting  on 
the  same  and  following  days;  resolving  that  the  re- 
enunciation  of  his  federal  heresies  by  James  Buchanan, 
demanded  that  they  should  renew  their  adherence  to 
old  principles,  namely,  those  expressed  in  the  Cincin- 
nati platform,  and  to  the  "great  doctrine  of  popular 
sovereignty,11  as  expounded  in  1856."  It  was  de- 
cided by  the  anti-Lecompton  democrats  not  to  send 
delegates  to  the  national  convention  to  be  held  at 

j^ 

Charleston,  hence  not  to  hold  a  convention.  The  re- 
publicans, who  were  silently  gaining  ground,  and  who 
felt  that  the  hour  had  come  for  action,  held  their 
state  convention  February  23d,  to  choose  delegates  to 
the  national  convention  at  Chicago,  to  be  held  June 
15th,  instructing  them  to  vote  for  W.  H.  Seward,  or 
in  case  the  convention  could  not  agree  upon  him,  for 
whomever  it  should  agree  upon.12 

The  delegates  chosen  to  attend  the  Chicago  con- 
vention were  T.  P.  Tracy  of  San  Francisco,  Leland 
Stanford  of  Sacramento,  A.  A.  Sargent  of  Nevada 
city,  D.  W.  Cheesman  of  Butte,  and  D.  J.  Staples 

u  A  writer  in  the  Nevada  Journal,  Oct.  5,  1860,  makes  the  distinction  be- 
tween popular  and  squatter  sovereignty.  'We  understand,  by  squatter 
sovereignty,  a  so-called  inherent  right  of  the  people  in  an  unorganized  ter- 
ritory to  govern  themselves.  The  doctrine  of  squatter  sovereignty  is  that 
preached  by  Pngh,  Broderick,  and  the  Sac.  Union,  that  the  people  of  a  terri- 
tory have  a  right  of  themselves  to  organize  a  government,  and  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  U.  S.  does  not  extend  over  them  nntil,  at  their  option,  sanctioned 
by  congress.  It  is  the  doctrine  taught  in  Lieber's  work  on  political  ethics. 
By  popular  sovereignty  we  understand  the  exercise  of  the  right  of  govern- 
ment by  the  people  of  a  territory  after  an  enabling  act  has  granted  the  per- 
mission. That  is  the  phase  of  the  doctrine  taught  by  Douglas ....  He  asserts 
that  a  government  like  that  undertaken  by  CaL  in  1849  is  irregular  and  rev- 
olutionary. The  case  of  Cal.  is  one  of  squatter  sovereignty,  not  popular 
sovereignty.'  The  terms  are  often  used,  even  by  politicians;  but  popular 
sovereignty,  as  here  defined,  was  the  principle  for  which  Douglas  and  Brod- 
erick contended  in  discussing  the  Kansas  question. 

*'  Samuel  H.  Parker  was  pres't  of  the  republican  state  convention  for  the 
choice  of  delegates  to  the  national  convention;  vice-pres't,  J.  F.  Chilles  of 
Trinity;  T.  G.  Phelps  of  San  Mateo;  J.  S.  McLean  of  Yuba;  William  W. 
Belshaw  of  Amador,  and  G.  W.  Towle  of  Santa  Clara.  The  secretaries 
were  Dr  William  Rabe  of  S.  F.,  and  William  M.  Lyon  of  Sonoma.  From 
the  proceedings  it  appears  that  the  republican  ranks  received  important 
accessions  from  the  anti-Lecompton  democrats. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  17 


258      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

of  San  Joaquin.  The  alternates  chosen  were  J.  C. 
Hinckley  of  Shasta,  a  recruit  from  the  anti-Lecompton 
ranks,  Isaac  M.  Baldwin  of  Sonoma,  John  B.  Yan  of 
San  Francisco,  Francis  Snyder  of  Calaveras,  and 
James  Churchman  of  Nevada. 

The  democratic  state  convention  was  a  stormy  one, 
being  distracted  by  the  absence  of  any  one  leader  of 
power  to  control  it,  and  having  for  every  would-be 
leader  an  antagonistic  pretender.  Philip  Moore  was 
elected  president.  The  two  prominent  factions  were 
the  Gwin-Weller  combination,  and  the  Latham-Den- 
ver opposition.  In  the  choice  of  delegates  to  the 
Charleston  convention  the  opposition  were  triumphant, 
electing  seven  out  of  eight  of  their  nominees.  The 
man  of  most  prominence  among  them  was  John  Bid- 
well  of  Butte;  the  others  being  G.  W.  Patrick  of 
Tuolumne,  John  S.  Dudley  of  Siskiyou,  William 
Bradley  of  San  Joaquin,  Newell  Gregory  of  Mon- 
terey, John  A.  Dreibelbiss  of  Shasta,  Austin  E. 
Smith  of  San  Francisco,  John  Raines  of  San  Ber- 
nardino. So  long  had  the  Gwin-Weller  alliance  been 
in  power  that  only  men  connected  with  it  were 
familiar  figures  in  politics,  and  this  was  the  beginning 
of  a  new  dispensation.  The  delegates  were  instructed 
to  vote  for  Daniel  S.  Dickinson  as  California's  first 
choice,  but  if  he  should  not  receive  the  support  of  a 
majority  of  the  states,  to  do  their  best  for  the  demo- 
cratic party,  without  regard  to  choice. 

Both  republicans  and  democrats  felt  that  a  great 
crisis  was  upon  the  nation.  The  southern  wing  of 
the  latter  party  had  openly  declared  that  the  election 
of  a  republican  president  would  be  ground  for  the 
secession  of  the  southern  states.  Senator  Gwin  had 
said,  in  a  speech  delivered  December  12,  1859,  in  the 
senate  chamber,  "I  believe  that  the  slave-holding 
states  of  this  confederacy  can  establish  a  separate  and 
independent  government  that  will  be  impregnable  to 
the  assaults  of  all  foreign  enemies,"  and  had  gone  on 
to  show  why  they  should,  and  how  they  could,  exist 


POLITICAL  JUGGLERY.  259 

as  a  separate  government.  He  had  also  said  that  if 
the  southern  states  went  out  of  the  union  "  California 
would  be  found  with  the  south ; "  but  he  was  careful 
to  expunge  this  and  other  similar  remarks  from  the 
official  report  of  his  speech.  It  was  intended  for  the 
senate  and  not  for  the  ear  of  California;  but  it  was 
.wafted  on  the  wings  of  newspaper  gossip,  and  was 
known  before  either  of  the  conventions  met  to  choose 
a  course  for  the  future. 

Latham  challenged  Gwin's  declaration  that  Califor- 
nia would  go  with  the  south,  to  which  the  latter  re- 
plied that  he  had  never  said  so;  that  the  statement 
was  destitute  of  truth.  "I  hope,  Mr  President," 
said  the  suave  politician,  "that  this  union  will  be  im- 
perishable, but  if  it  is  ever  broken  up,  the  eastern 
boundary  of  the  Pacific  republic  will  be,  in  my  opinion, 
the  Sierra  Madre  and  the  Rocky  mountains."  There 
was  no  little  talk  thenceforth  about  the  Pacific  re- 
public and  Gwin's  designs,  but  people  were  not  yet 
quite  ready  to  believe  there  was  anything  in  it. 

Broderick,  lest  he  should  become  a  republican,  was 
removed  from  earth.  Douglas,  because  he  held  to 
his  popular-sovereignty  beliefs,  was  removed  from  the 
position  of  chairman  of  the  committee  on  territories. 
The  same  influence  accomplished  both  ends.  Gwin 
himself  relates  that  it  was  through  his  management, 
as  chairman  of  the  sub-committee  of  democratic  sen- 
ators, who  reported  to  the  democratic  caucus  nominees 
for  the  various  committees,  that  Douglas  was  re- 
moved.13 It  was  only  another  instance  of  that  "in- 
sidious tyranny"  of  which  Broderick  complained. 

uGficai,  Jftm.,  MS.,  165.  In  the  controversy  between  Gwin  and  Douglas 
which  followed,  and  in  speeches  in  the  senate  at  the  beginning  of  the  36th 
congress,  it  came  out  how  near  Douglas  had  been  to  yielding  his  position, 
which  he  would  have  done  but  for  Broderick.  According  to  the  corres- 
pondent of  the  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  2,  1860,  this  fact  was  common  talk  in 
Washington.  Says  F.  F.  Low,  in  his  California  Affairs,  MS.,  19,  John 
Hickman,  hearing  that  Douglas  intended  to  back  down,  and  yield  the  fight 
to  Buchanan,  went  to  Broderick's  room  and  told  him  of  it.  Broderick, 
thunderstruck,  raged  like  a  lion.  He  refused,  at  first,  to  believe  the  story, 
then  in  his  imperious  way,  he  ordered  Hickman  to  find  Douglas,  and  bring 
him  to  his  room.  When  Douglas  came  he  found  Broderick  pacing  the  floor. 


260      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

Latham  now  proceeded  cautiously.  He  said  in  re- 
ply to  Gwin's  disavowal,  that  he  was  glad  to  have 
his  impression  corrected ;  that  Mr.  Gwin  knew  that 
California  possessed  resources  not  belonging  to  any 
other  state  of  the  union,  and  the  most  energetic  pop- 
ulation on  earth,  and  "  why  should  we  trust  to  the 
management  of  others  what  we  are  abundantly  able 
to  do  ourselves  ?  Why  depend  on  the  south  or  the 
north  to  regulate  our  affairs  ?  And  this,  too,  after 
the  north  and  south  have  proved  themselves  incapa- 
ble of  living  in  harmony  with  one  another.14  Here 
was  more,  but  impartial  independence  of  the  federal 
government.15 

California  was  still  the  elf-child  of  the  union,  never 
regularly  baptized  into  the  family  of  states,  one  which 
felt  the  isolation  of  her  foreign  blood,  the  pride  of 
her  dreamy  ancestry,  and  the  self-assurance  of  un- 
questioned native  resources.  Many  things  could  have 
been  forgiven  her  had  she  needed  forgiveness,  which, 
to  her  glory  be  it  spoken,  she  never  required,  although 
her  mistaken  representations  would  often  have  per- 
suaded the  federal  sisterhood  it  was  her  purpose  to 
betray  them.  Said  Latham,  following  the  lead  of 
Hammond  of  South  Carolina,  who  denominated  the 
white  laboring  class  as  the  "mud-sills  of  society," 

'  Mr  Douglas, '  said  he,  '  I  hear  you  propose  to  abandon  the  fight. '  Douglas 
answered,  '  I  see  no  hope  of  success;  they  will  crush  us;  and  if  they  do, 
there  is  no  future  for  any  of  us,  and  I  think  we  can  agree  upon  terms  that 
will  virtually  sustain  ourselves.'  Broderick  replied:  '  You  came  to  me  of 
your  own  accord,  asking  me  to  take  this  stand.  I  have  committed  myself 
against  this  infernal  Lecompton  constitution.  Now,  if  you  desert  me,  (with 
an  oath)  I  will  make  you  crawl  under  your  chair  in  the  senate'.  Douglas  at 
once  resolved  to  stand  firm,  and  not  to  support  the  English  bill  on  which  he 
was  wavering.  In  the  republican  convention  at  Sac.  for  the  choice  of  presi- 
dential electors,  A.  H?  Myers  said:  'A  more  noble,  open,  glorioiis,  manly 
statesman  never  lived  than  David  C.  Broderick.  The  proudest  act  of  my 
life  will  have  been  to  canvass  this  state  with  him;  and  I  tell  you  I  would 
rather  live  in  retirement  all  my  life  than  to  vote  for  Stephen  A.  Douglas, 
the  professed  friend,  who  vilely  betrayed  him,  and  the  man  who  voted  for  the 
confirmation  of  the  appointment  of  Calhoun  Benham,  one  of  the  seconds  in 
that  fatal  duel,  as  United  States  district  attorney  for  Calif ornia. '  Sac.  Union. 
June  21,  1860. 

uOwin,  Mem.,. MS.,  175-6. 

15 Dempster  tells  us  in  his  MS.,  3-4,  that  in  vigilance  committee  sessions, 
independence  of  the  federal  government  was  broached,  but  discountenanced 
by  the  majority.  Coleman  MS.  refers  to  the  same  thing. 


SLAVERY  POLITICS.  261 

and  as  "white  slaves"116 — "the  political  institutions 
of  a  country  have  very  little  to  do  with  the  relative 
position  of  capital  and  labor."  This  his  opponents 
construed  into  a  declaration  that  the  majority  every- 
where, which  represented  labor,  should  never  be 
anything  but  servants  to  the  minority,  which  repre- 
sented capital,  and  should  never  be  granted  equal 
political  rights.  The  men  who  had  elected  him 
governor,  and  their  representatives  who  chose  him 
to  sit  in  the  United  States  senate,  were  chiefly 
those  who  labored  with  their  hands,  but  who 
never  expected  to  be  classed  with  slaves,  or  with 
the  laboring  classes  of  India  or  Europe;  much  less 
to  be  presented  as  an  apology  for  slavery  in  the 
south,  or  as  saying  to  the  north,  "  As  long  as  you 
make  the  slavery  question  the  battle-cry  of  your  sec- 
tional adherents  it  is  impossible  for  the  south  to  trust 
you,  or  to  look  upon  your  proceedings  with  indiffer- 
ence. Abandon  it,  and  the  south  will  again  unite 
with  us  upon  all  questions  concerning  our  common 
welfare.  The  south  claims  nothing  but  her  constitu- 
tional rights."  This  was  equivalent  to  saying  that 
the  south  had  the  right  to  carry  slavery  into  all  the 
territory  of  the  United  States  not  organized  under 
state  crovernment,  from  which  it  would  in  time  drive 

O 

free  labor ;  it  meant  that  the  millions  of  freemen 
being  born  every  year  in  the  federal  union  should  be 
confined  to  northern  territory  or  become  like  the 
"  poor  white  trash "  of  the  south,  which  the  very 
slaves  despised  for  their  enforced  poverty  and  ignor- 
ance. The  enunciation  of  these  sentiments,  in  obedi- 
ence to  the  Lecompton  senatorial  rele,  roused  that 
portion  of  the  democratic  party  in  California  which 
was  not  distinctly  pro-slavery  to  take  a  stand  against 
Lecomptonism. 

What  the  California  senators  did  not  accomplish  by 

way  of  alienating  the  northern  democracy  of  California, 

%^. 

"Cong.  Globe,  1857-8,  pt.  2,  p.  962. 

n  Lai/tarns  Speech,  in  Cong.  Globe,  1859-60,  pt  2,  p.  1727;  Sac.  Union,  May 
9,  1860. 


262      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

the  delegates  to  the  Charleston  convention  did.  They 
obeyed  their  instructions  so  far  as  to  vote  for  Daniel 
S.  Dickinson  on  the  first  ballot,  after  which  they  went 
over  to  the  ultra-southern  pro-slavery  democracy, 
forsaking  the  Cincinnati  platform,  the  Pacific  railroad, 
and  everything  they  had  been  intrusted  to  labor  for, 
following  the  seceders  even  to  Richmond.  In  doing 
this,  and  forsaking  the  northern  democracy,  they  had 
gone  directly  counter  to  the  best  interests  of  their 
state.  But  they  were  infatuated.  "What  is  it?" 
asked  the  Sacramento  Union,  "which  has  so  bewitched 
the  California  representatives,  from  senator  to  dele- 
gates to  the  convention  ? "  The  answer  was  not  far 
to  find.  It  was  that  ''insidious  tyranny"  which  ter- 
rorized and  flattered  alternately,  which  broke  up  the 
Charleston  convention,  seceded  a  second  time  from 
the  Baltimore  convention,  and  threatened  the  ruin  of 
the  democratic  party,  should  not  the  ultra  wing  be 
permitted  to  dictate  to  the  national  party. 

The  long  and  bitter  contest  ended  by  the  nomina- 
tion of  two  tickets :  Stephen  A.  Douglas  of  Illinois, 
with  Herschel  V.  Johnson  of  Georgia,  for  the  nation- 
als, and  John  C.  Breckenridge  of  Kentucky,  with 
Joseph  Lane  of  Oregon,  for  the  Lecomptonites.  The 
latter  party  dared  not  put  forward  a  candidate  from 
the  gulf  states  for  fear  of  being  considered  sectional, 
knowing  the  northern  democrats  had  set  their  hearts 
on  Douglas. 

'There  are  hills  beyond  Pentland, 
There  are  friths  beyond  Forth: 
If  there  are  lords  in  the  southland, 
There  are  chiefs  in  the  north,' 

quoted  a  Maine  delegate  in  the  Baltimore  convention. 
The  southland  dared  not  place  upon  their  ticket  its 
lordliest  lords.  The  nationals  boldly  supported  their 
chief. 

The  surprise  of  the  Californians  at  the  rejection  by 
the  eastern  republicans  of  their  foremost  leader,  Sew- 
ard,  was  only  equalled  by  their  dissatisfaction.  The 
distance,  and  the  tune  occupied  by  mail  transit,  even 


STATE  RIGHTS.  268 

with  the  pony  express,  just  established,1*  prevented 
that  perfect  knowledge  of  the  situation  at  the  centres 
of  political  agitation  which  could  render  satisfactorily 
accountable  the  action  of  either  of  the  great  parties. 
Why  Lincoln,  then  little  known,  should  be  preferred 
to  men  of  national  reputation,  did  not  at  first  appear. 
It  did  not  occur  to  them  that  to  be  too  promi- 
nent is  to  be  in  danger  of  destruction  from  the  cross- 
fire of  factious  with  past  grievances  to  redress. 
Although  doubtful  of  the  result,  the  names  of  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  of  Illinois,  and  Hannibal  Hamlin  of 
Maine,  were  placed  before  the  republicans  of  the  state 
for  president  and  vice-president.  Still  another  presi- 
dential ticket  was  in  the  field,  that  of  the  Americans, 
or  as  they  now  called  themselves,  the  constitutional 
union  party,  who  might  more  properly  be  named  con- 
servative republicans,  and  whom  the  regular  republi- 
cans had  at  first  hoped  to  receive  in  their  convention; 
but  they  met  at  Baltimore  and  nominated  John  Bell 
of  Tennessee  for  president,  and  Edward  Everett  of 
Massachusetts  for  vice-president. 

With  regard  to  slavery,  the  republicans  contended 
that  it  could  exist  only  by  virtue  of  municipal  law, 
that  no  such  law  existed  in  the  territories,  nor  any 
power  to  enact  one.  Congress  could  not  establish  or 
legalize  slavery,  and  was  bound  to  prohibit  it  in  any 
federal  territory,  whenever  there  was  a  necessity  for 
such  exclusion.  The  Douglas  democracy  declared 
that  slavery  or  no  slavery  in  any  territory  was  optional 
with  the  people,  and  neither  congress,  nor  any  other 

18  la  several  parts  of  my  history  I  hare  given  some  account  of  the  Pony 
Express.  It  was  a  private  enterprise,  undertaken  by  Russell  Majors  and 
Co.,  owning  the  central  stage  line  route,  via  Salt  lake  and  Carson  valley, 
and  carried  a  mail  weekly  from  St  Joseph  to  Sac.,  time  8  days.  The  first 
mail  received  by  pony  arrived  in  Sac  on  the  afternoon  of  the  13th  of  April, 
I860,  and  was  received  with  wild  enthusiasm.  It  brought  SO  letters  for  S.F. 
and  half  a  dozen  for  Sac.  Public  news  of  importance  was  printed  upon  tissue 
paper  almost  without  weight,  and  by  this  means  full  reports  of  the  political 
conventions  were  received  long  before  the  arrival  of  the  steamer  mails.  This 
mail  was  interrupted  by  Indian  hostilities  in  the  Carson  and  Humboldt  val- 
leys in  the  month  of  June,  occasioning  much  discontent,  but  soon  resumed. 
The  first  pony  mail  bound  east  left  Sac.  April  4th,  carrying  70  letters. 


264      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

part  of  the  union,  had  a  right  to  intermeddle.  The 
Breckenridge  democracy  claimed  the  right  to  carry 
slaves,  as  property,  into  any  territory,  and  that  con- 
gress was  bound  to  protect  such  property  when 
necessary,  whether  or  not  the  territorial  legislature 
sanctioned  it,  or  the  majority  of  the  people  approved. 
All  the  parties  in  California  favored  a  transcontinental 
railroad,  that  being  the  sine  qua  non  of  support  with 
the  people  of  the  Pacific  coast,  who  just  then  were 
more  troubled  about  transportation  and  mails  than 
about  ethical  politics,19  but  who  received  neither  from 
the  out-going  administration. 

"The  majority  of  the  people  of  Cal.,  as  I  have  mentioned  in  the  preced- 
ing volume,  preferred  the  central  to  the  southern  route  for  mail  transit.  The 
central  route  was  gradually  opened,  first  from  Salt  lake  to  the  Missouri 
river,  then  by  wagon  from  Placerville  to  Carson  valley,  and  finally  to  Salt 
lake,  connecting  there  with  the  mail  to  St  Joseph.  George  Chorpenning 
owned  the  western  division,  but  his  means  were  limited  and  the  management 
bad.  Broderick  endeavored  to  procure  the  adoption  of  the  central  route  by 
the  government  in  place  of  the  southern  or  Butterfield  route,  established  in 
1857,  and  thereby  incurred  the  hostility  of  Gwin  and  the  southern  influence. 
The  exposure  of  Gwin's  methods  had  the  effect  to  cause  him  to  withdraw  his 
opposition  to  the  central  route,  but  he  did  so  then  only  when  he  fancied  he 
saw  an  opportunity  to  make  capital  for  himself  out  of  it.  Senator  Hale,  of 
N.  H.,  introduced  a  bill  which  could  have  been  passed,  which  would  have 
given  California  a  daily  mail  over  the  central  route.  But  Gwin  had  several 
motives  for  preventing  the  passage  of  this  bill.  One  was  that  he  was  re- 
tained in  the  interest  of  the  steamship  company;  another  that  he  would  do 
nothing  so  pleasing  to  the  republicans  as  to  allow  this  republican  bill  to  pass, 
thus  overshadowing  him;  and  again,  that  he  reserved  to  himself  the  glory 
of  appearing  as  the  author  of  the  contract  for  a  tri-Mreekly  mail  over  the  cen- 
tral route.  He  introduced  another  bill  to  embarrass  Bale's,  and  allowed 
neither  to  pass.  But  this  plank,  on  which  he  hoped  to  stand  when  the  next 
U.  S.  senator  should  be  chosen  in  Cal.,  slipped  away  from  him  when,  going 
to  Postmaster-general  Holt,  after  the  close  of  the  session,  that  official  flatly 
refused  to  carry  out  the  terms  of  the  bargain  between  them,  In  this  manner 
Cal.  was  deprived  of  mail  service,  except  over  the  Butterfield  route,  until 
the  secession  of  the  southern  states  and  a  change  of  administration  caused 
the  suspension  of  this  line,  and  the  establishment  of  the  central  route.  Sac. 
Union,  June  15,  26,  and  July  23  and  28,  1860.  Latham  offered  some  amend- 
ments to  Hale's  bill  when  it  was  before  the  senate,  but  they  were  defeated 
with  the  rest.  He  presented  some  figures  which  are  interesting.  From 
Sept.  1858  to  and  including  March  1860,  there  were  685,960  letters  sent  over 
the  Butterfield  route,  the  postage  on  which  was  $71,378.63;  and  over  the 
route  via  Salt  lake  15,725,  the  postage  on  which  was  $865.51.  The  Butter- 
field  contractors  received  $600,000  for  tri-weekly  •  service.  This  was  one  of 
the  profitable  contracts  given  to  southern  men  by  the  consent  of  California 
senators,  but  the  service  performed  was  never  complained  of.  The  Pacific 
Mail  Steamship  company  in  1860  refused  to  carry  express  packages  contain- 
ing mail  matter,  or  to  carry  the  newspaper  mails,  which1  could  not  go  over- 
land, the  ^  object  of  the  refusal  being  to  force  congress,  with  the  help  of 
California's  senior  senator,  to  give  the  .mail  contract  to  Vanderbilt's  company. 


HIGH  CHIVALRY  DsFAMY.  :  : 

The  platforms  being  settled  and  nominations  made, 
there  began  the  most  remarkable  struggle  for  princi- 
ples ever  decided  by  ballot.  The  whole  congressional 
delegation  returned  to  California  early  in  August  to 
support  the  Breckenridge  ticket;  but  they  were  met 
with  reproaches  which  augured  ill  for  their  political 
preferment  hereafter.  The  San  Francisco  Bulletin  and 
the  Sacramento  Union  bore  hard  upon  Gwin  for  his 
treachery  to  the  interests  of  the  state,  and  his  com- 
plicity in  the  Lime  Point  sale  to  the  government,  re- 
ported to  be  just  consummated,  by  which  $200,000 
was  paid  for  a  point  of  barren  rock  at  the  Heads, 
which  the  state  would  have  sold  for  $2,000,  or  what- 
ever price  a  jurv  empanelled  by  the  district  court 
should  declare  it  to  be  worth.**  They  quoted  from 
his  speech  in  the  United  States  senate,  where  he  had 
said;  "The  northern  states  are  laboring  under  a  de- 
lusion if  they  think  that  the  southern  states  cannot 
separate  from  them,  either  violently  or  peaceably— 
violently  if  necessary.  They  can  take  possession  of 
all  the  public  property  within  their  limits,  and  pre- 
pare against  any  aggression  of  the  non-slave-holding 
states,  or  any  power  that  may  choose  to  infringe  upon 
what  they  conceive  to  be  their  rights."*1  These  were 
alarming  utterances,  whether  it  was  believed  or  not 
that  the  south  could  succeed  in  parting  from  the 
union. 

As  for  the  junior  senator,  who  had  been  elected 
governor  only  a  few  months  before,  as  one  whom  the 
people  could  trust,  he  shared  the  opprobrium  of  hav- 
ing neglected  the  state's  interests,"  and  having  taken 

•The  legislature  of  1859  passed  a  law  intended  to  meet  cases  of  this  kind, 
that  is.  There  the  govt  required  a  piece  of  land,  and  the  owner  was  a  minor 
or  non-resident,  or  for  any  reason  refused  to  sell  the  land,  a  jury  should  ap- 
praise it,  and  the  sheriff  of  the  county  should  execute  a  deed  to  the  U.  S. 
CaL  StaL,  1859,  36-7. 

*€**,.  Globe,  1859-60,  pL  1,  p.  125. 

52  The  legislature  of  I860  had  passed  a  concurrent  resolution  instructing 
the  CaL  senators  and  representaares  to  use  their  influence  to  procure  the 
passage  of  a  law  by  congress  donating  to  actual  settlers  160  acres  ot  land  for 
homesteads,  title  to  be  given  after  a  residence  of  5  years  or  more.  CaL  ffiM, 


266      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

sides  with  the  bolters  from  the  regular  democratic 
party,  who  by  their  action  imperilled  its  existence. 
Such  was  the  political  situation  in  California  in  July, 
followed  by  a  peremptory  marshalling  of  clans,  and 
an  exciting  campaign.  A  number  of  national  demo- 
crats, chiefly  those  who  had  been,  or  who  hoped  to  be 
federal  office-holders,  under  democratic  administra- 
tions, went  over  to  the  Lecomptonites.  These  poli- 
ticians published  a  lengthy  manifesto  to  show  that  by 
the  two-thirds  rule  adopted  at  the  Charleston  conven- 
tion, Douglas  had  not  received  the  nomination.  They 
did  not  attempt  to  show  that  Breckenridge  had  been 
regularly  nominated,  but  only  claimed  the  right  to  be 
regarded  as  the  real  democratic  party,  because  their 
principles  had  been  indorsed  by  "every  certain  demo- 
cratic state,"  or  in  other  words  every  slave  state. 
Ex-governor  Weller  declared  his  devotion  to  party 
principles,  and  emphasized  the  declaration  with  the 
avowal  that  he  had  been  compelled  by  his  fealty  to 
party  to  vote  for  "a  gambler  of  thirty  years  stand- 
ing to  be  high  sheriff  of  San  Francisco,"  instead  of 
a  better  man  who  was  opposed  to  him.  His  example 
was  offered  as  an  instance  of  those  high  sentiments 
of  duty  entertained  by  the  chivalry  in  party  matters."3 

I860.  p.  419.  Johnson  of  Tenn.  introduced  a  homestead  bill  in  the  senate 
in  Dec.  1859.  It  occupied  much  time,  being  opposed  by  southern  senators, 
and  frequently  amended,  but  was  finally  passed  by  a  vote  of  44  to  8,  June 
10,  I860.  President  Buchanan  vetoed  it  upon  the  ground  that  it  was  unjust 
to  the  old  settlers  who  had  paid  §1.25  per  acre  for  their  lands,  and  toother 
classes  of  people,  not  agriculturalists,  who  had  an  equal  interest  in  the  com- 
mon inheritance  of  all  the  people.  An  amendment  was  offered  by  Gwin, 
and  supported  by  Latham,  giving  miners  a  right  to  occupy  public  mineral 
lands  without  being  considered  trespassers.  Gwin  was  artful  enough  always 
to  have  some  popular  measure  pending,  but  his  colleague  had  not  so  much 
tact.  Ihe  first  bill  before  the  senate,  embodying  homestead  principles,  was 
introduced  by  Gwin  in  1850-1.  At  the  next  session  he  spoke  in  favor  of  a 
house  and  homestead  bill,  introduced  separately.  This  measure  was  kept  in 
the  prospective  down  to  1860,  and  finally  passed,  doubtless  with  the  knowl- 
edge that  it  would  be  vetoed.  It  served  the  purpose  of  flattering  the  people, 
while  the  more  important  objects  of  mail  and  railroad  communication 
suffered  neglect,  and  the  Lime  Point  swindle  was  perfected,  in  which  a  hand- 
some bonus  was  believed  to  have  been  paid  to  the  venal  senators.  Congress 
enacted  a  homestead  law  in  1862;  and  in  1866  an  act  similar  to  the  mining- 
law  amendment  offered  by  Gwin  in  1860  was  passed. 

23  A  Breckenridge  meeting  was  held  in  S.  F.,  July  28,  1860,  when  the  fol- 


FEDERAL  AND  STATE  POLITICS.  267 

The  Douglas  men  were  not  attracted  by  the  pros- 
pect of  being  forced  to  vote  for  gamblers,  embezzlers, 
or  other  swindlers,  and  did  not  obey  the  call."  They 
also  published  a  manifesto  in  which  they  claimed  the 
nomination  of  their  chief  to  be  regular ;  and  accused 
the  Breckenridge  democracy  of  being  revolutionists, 
disunionists,  and  conspirators.  At  a  meeting  of 

lowing  officers  were  chosen:  R.  A.  Thompson,  pres't;  O.  C.  Pratt,  B.  F. 
Washington,  G.  W.  P.  Bissell,  R.  McMdlen,  S.  Heydenfeldt,  Thomas 
Hayes, ,  V.  E.  Howard,  R,  R.  Provines,  L,  Ryan,  C.  H.  Hempitead,  G.  O. 
Mc'Mullin,  J.  E.  Addison,  A.  Hollub,  T.  J.  Haynes,  A.  Phelps,  W.  H. 
Moore,  J.  H.  Bosworth,  Hall  McAllister,  A.  C.  Peachy,  J.  H.  Cutter,  F.  A. 
Benjamin,  John  Roach,  W.  L.  Higgins,  C.  L.  Weller,  Jacob  Cramer,  R.  P. 
Ashe,  G.  R  Grant,  A.  Churchill,  J.  R  Schaffer,  B.  Schloss,  G.  D.  Xaglee, 
A.  Wassennan,  Fred.  Griffin,  vice  pres'ts;  J.  C.  McCeny,  Alex.  P.  Green,  J. 
Frank  Lawton,  sec'tys.  The  meeting  was  addressed  by  R.  A.  Thompson, 
ex-gov.  Weller.  V.  E.  Howard,  and  Calhonn  Benham.  S.  F.  BvUttin,  July 
30,  1860.  These  and  others  signed  the  Breckenridge  address,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  Xaglee  and  Peachy. 

11  The  Douglas  manifesto  was  signed  by  John  G.  Downey,  Joseph  P. 
Hoge,  J.  Mora  Moss,  Wm  M.  Lent,  Owen  McMahon,  Richard  P.  Hammond, 
H-  W.  Halleck,  John  Parrott,  James  A.  McDougall,  James  T.  Ryan,  Wil- 
liam S.  Long,  Frederick  Billings,  Eugene  Casserly,  Samuel  M.  Wilson,  SoL 
A.  Sharp,  George  Wallan,  X.  K.  Masten,  Charles  Hosmer,  Charles  de  Ro, 
Wm  H.  Rogers,  George  A.  Harris,  Charles  F.  Hamilton,  J.  P.  Gervey.  A. 
Hayward,  James  Denman,  Wm  V.  Garvey,  A.  J.  Hotalling,  George  O. 
Ecker,  Leander  Ransom,  John  Reynolds,  Isaac  Hartman,  K  P.  Peckham, 
L.  R  Mizner,  Jasper  J.  Papy,  J.  W.  Hawkins,  Louis  MeLane,  Wm  R. 
Garrison,  H.  J.  Bowie,  George  F.  Sharp,  John  S.  Williams,  William  D. 
Chapman,  H.  A.  Cobb,  H.  P.  Heintzelman,  R.  C.  Mathieson,  Robert 
C.  Page,  C.  M.  Brosnan,  C.  McC  Delaney,  C.  S  Whitney,  A.  J.  Bryant, 
Ira  A.  Eaton,  Terrence  Faley,  Elisha  Cook,  Wm  C.  Ho$  R  M.  Henry, 
Charles  Ruehl,  J.  Gnndlach,  Herman  Hertzer,  D.  Clement,  Joseph 
Campe,  Frederick  Epting,  W.  G.  Barneman,  Jacob  F.  Haehnlen.  John 
Pforr,  Jacob  Knell,  J.  Startz,  Wm  Hnemer.  L.  Shearer,  C.  J.  Eaton, 
K  H.  Lloyd,  C.  T.  Emmett,  H.  J.  Labatt,  Joseph  J.  Labatt,  E.  D.  Sawyer, 
Thomas  X.  Cazenean,  Henry  Gregory.  Daniel  Welcom,  J.  P.  Buckley,  Wm 
G.  Wood,  Amos  Xoyes,  James  Donahue,  James  Sharkey,  H.  F.  Williams, 
Wm  Wright,  James  Graves,  John  Whipple,  Wm  Hammond,  H.  C.  Moore, 
John  A.  Richart,  Xat.  L.  Braughton,  John  Vantlewater,  Charles  L.  Wilson, 
F.  O.  Dennis,  J.  O.  Callahan,  W.  D.  Fordham,  Cornelius  D.  Sullivan,  John 
Kelley,  Jr,  Francis  OTarral,  Richard  S.  Haven,  John  Flannagan,  D.  J. 
Oliver,  James  Hayden,  Alfred  T.  Beall,  Pierre  R  Cornwall,  Joseph  J.  Bab- 
cock.  C.  F.  McDermott,  Wm  Hayes,  John  McLellan,  Daniel  T.  Murphy, 
Lewis  L,  Aldrich,  J.  H.  Blood,  Thomas  C.  Browne,  F.  S,  Wensinger, 
Charles  H.  Parker,  P.  Rfley,  A.  F.  Sawyer,  P.  A.  Oweus,  J.  S.  Jenkins, 
Fred.  K.  Collier,  George  F.  Price,  Frankiin  L.  Jones,  C.  T.  Ryland,  Robert 
Pollock,  George  C.  Parkinson,  F.  Vassault,  John  C.  Leach,  Myron  Xorton, 
W.  Porter,  Wm  G.  Ross,  H.  L.  Barker,  T.  W.  Freelon,  Anthony  Lndlum, 
S.  P.  Bowman,  David  Scannel,  R.  H.  Sinton,  J.  X.  Daniels,  Samuel  Purdy, 
F.  Kingsbury,  Henry  Gerke,  J.  E.  Xuttman.  E-  B.  Mastick,  James  P. 
Ames,  P.  H.  Owens,  David  Jobson,  W.  H.  Harvey,  S.  T.  Leet,  C.  H. 
Shear,  P.  Hunt.  On  the  anti-Lecompton  side  were  J.  W.  Denver,  S.  W. 
Inge,  E.  D.  Wheeler,  J.  R.  Roseborough. 


268      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

the  state  central  committee  in  San  Francisco  on  the 
31st  of  July,  J.  P.  Hoge  being  chairman,  an  effort 
was  made  to  harmonize  the  two  wings  of  the  old 
party  by  resolving  that  each  might  select  two  presi- 
dential electors  for  whom  the  united  party  should 
vote,  the  electors  being  pledged  to  cast  their  votes 
in  the  electoral  college  for  the  democratic  candidate 
receiving  the  majority  in  the  presidential  election. 
But  to  this  the  Breckenridge  delegates  would  not 
agree,  and  Hoge  withdrew  from  the  committee, 
Charles  Lindley  of  Yuba  being  chosen  chairman  in 
his  place.  The  result  was  a  split,  and  the  nomination 
of  two  sets  of  electors  by  two  separate  conventions. 
This  would  seem  to  have  left  a  clear  field  for  the 
republicans,  but  they  also  had  their  difficulties.  Ever 
since  the  adoption  of  the  charter  of  1856,  and  the 
rule  of  the  vigilance  committee  in  San  Francisco,  the 
municipal  officers  of  the  consolidated  county  and  city 
were  nominated  by  a  People's  nominating  committee 
irrespective  of  the  political  bias  of  the  nominee,  and 
dependent  wholly  on  his  fitness  for  the  office.  Under 
this  order  of  affairs  the  city  had  prospered  and  en- 
joyed honest  administration.  The  republicans  who 
had  so  far  aided  now  wished  to  absorb  the  people's 
party,  its  efforts  being  regarded  with  disfavor  by  many 
of  the  best  citizens.  Besides,  the  state  was  still 
strongly  democratic,  and  not  favorable  to  repub- 
licanism which  had  so  far  done  nothing  for  California, 
except  once  or  twice  to  hold  a  scheming  legislature  in 
check.  But  clubs  were  rapidly  formed  both  in  country 
and  city,  and  their  organizations  grew  apace.*5 

25  The  names  which  appear  as  officers  of  the  central  republican  club  of 
S.  F.,  are  William  Sherman,  pres't;  M.  S.  Whiting  and  B.  F.  Perkins, 
sect'ys;  Alpheus  Bull,  treas'r;  Peter  Witbeck,  marshal;  D.  C.  McRuer, 
Alexander  Campbell,  A.  T.  Lawton,  T.  J.  L.  Smiley,  Henry  Seligman,  R. 
Marton,  William  Ireland,  J.  Regensburger,  H.  J.  Rogers,  N.  C.  Lane,  B. 
T.  Case,  F.  G.  E.  Tittle,  George  C.  Waller,  Joseph  Weed,  H.  C.  Squire, 
William  H.  Culver,  C.  W.  Howe,  Andrew  Walker,  C.  H.  Dexter,  George 
Amarige,  C.  L.  Hobbs,  John  Swett,  H.  A.  Sontag,  P.  W.  Shephard.  Other 
prominent  republicans  were  E.  B.  Crocker,  S.  B.  Mulford,  E.  Lander,  L. 
Stanford,  Louis  R.  Lull,  H.  H.  Haight,  C.  Webb  Howard,  R.  B.  Swain,  0. 
F.  Willey,  A.  J.  Pope,  Seth  H.  Wetherbee,  Alfred  J.  Ellis,  Ira  P.  Rankin, 


FEDERAL  AND  STATE  POLITICS.  269 

The  Bell  and  Everett  men  took  the  name  of  the 
union  party,  and  held  their  convention  for  the  nomi- 
nation of  presidential  doctors.  They  were  chiefly  of 
the  conservative  class,1"  and  lacked  the  eager  spirit  of 
the  republicans,  many  of  whom  were  young  men  de- 
sirous of  attaching  themselves  to  a  party  with  princi- 
ples on  which  they  could  rely  to  build  up  the  state, 
and  satisfy  personal  ambition  at  the  same  time.  In 
San  Francisco  the  republican  central  club  won  the 
applause  of  the  better  class  of  citizens  by  consenting 
not  to  run  a  municipal  ticket,  but  to  allow  the  people's 
nominating  committee  to  make  up  a  non-partisan 
ticket  which  they  would  support ;  but  a  faction  per- 
sisted in  making  a  race  for  the  offices  by  bringing 
out  a  straight  republican  ticket. 

These  matters  settled,  the  campaign  was  prosecuted 
with  enthusiasm"  on  all  sides,  the  republicans,  notwith- 
standing some  rough  treatment  in  those  districts  where 
the  pro-slavery  population  was  in  the  majority,  making 
good  progress,  and  in  November  giving  a  plurality 
for  Lincoln  over  Douglas  of  700,  although  Douglas 
received  3,000  more  votes  than  Breckenridge.  Bell 
had  a  meager  6,049  votes.  Lincoln  received  the  four 
votes  of  the  state  in  the  electoral  college." 

J.  M.  Batchelder,  C.  C.  Webb,  Frank  M.  Pixley,  William  C.  Talbot,  Alfred 
J.  Ellis,  James  Laidlev,  Caleb  Burbank,  Thomas  Fitch,  Captain  Frank 
Folger,  Dr  Wm  Rabe,  E.  R.  Hawley,  E.  Harte,  George  W.  Tyler,  Harvey 
S.  Brown,  William  H.  Weeks,  Cyrus  Palmer,  John  P.  Taylor. 

x  The  Bell  and  Everett  delegates  of  S.  F.  to  the  Union  State  convention, 
were  D.  O.  Shattnck,  J.  E.  Wainwright,  Capt.  Samuel  Card,  James  Dawes 
H.  B.  Livingston,  J.  H.  Gardner,  L.  J.  Wilder,  Mark  Bittmagim,  J.  B. 
Crockett,  Win  Taffee,  L.  L.  Treadwell,  Thomas  H.  Selby,  John  S.  Bray,  E. 
C.  M.  Chadwick,  Wm  N.  Coghill,  Wm  Alvord,  Henry  B.  Brooks.  From 
Sac'to,  G.  W.  Bowie,  A.  P.  Catlin,  H.  O.  Beatty,  R.  H.  McDonald,  V.  J. 
Fourgoud,  John  H.  Gass,  David  Meeker,  R  F.  Wallace,  E.  M.  Chemault, 
Benjamin  Orrick,  J.  Beam,  James  Maddux,  Cyrus  S.  Coffin,  James  Queen, 
Alfred  Morton,  J.  Neely  Johnson,  L.  A.  Booth,  Daniel  Moore,  P.  H.  Lee, 
Robert  M.  Folger,  D.  S.  Hayden,  J.  H.  Shirley,  L.  F.  Reed,  Seth  R. 
Kneeland,  George  Griggs,  Edward  Stockton,  G.  W.  Whitlock,  James  Scott, 
Jesse  MorrilL 

17  Of  the  domestic  newspapers  in  the  state  24  were  for  Douglas  and  22 
for  Breckenridge.  The  republicans  were  represented  by  only  7,  and  the 
Union  party  by  3.  The  Bulletin  explains  the  large  number  which  declared 
for  Breckenridge  by  showing  how  many  had  been  purchased  for  the  cam- 
paign, by  sums  varying  from  $500  to  $10,000. 

»The  republican  presidental  electors  were  Charles  D.  Tuttle,  northern 


270      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

The  revolution  which  had  occurred  was  directly 
chargeable  to  the  pro-slavery  wing  of  the  democratic 
party.  It  was  the  result,  so  far  as  Breckenridge  was 
concerned,  of  the  killing  of  Broderick  by  Terry.  It 
was  the  consequence,  so  for  as  Douglas  was  concerned, 
of  the  impression  upon  the  anti-Lecompton  mind  in 
California  that  Douglas  had  been  untrue  to  Broderick. 
It  was  the  use  made  by  the  republicans  of  the  action 
of  the  California  senators  in  dragging  the  state  into 
the  quarrel  between  the  north  and  south,  against 
which  the  whole  population,  except  the  Lecomptonites, 
had  always  protested,  and  of  the  fact  of  their  having 
grossly  neglected  the  welfare  of  the  state  while  giving 
aid  and  comfort  to  disunion  agitators.  Only  one  year 
before,  the  chivalry  had  exulted  over  the  defeat  of 
free  principles  in  California  ;  one  year,  and  they  had 
by  their  own  acts  put  an  end  to  all  their  greatness, 
turning  a  majority  of  nearly  21,000  to  a  defeat. 

The  legislature  elected  in  1860  was  not  so  largely 
republican  as  the  presidential  vote  might  lead  one  to 
expect.  The  hold-over  senators  were  eighteen  in 
number,  eleven  of  whom  were  Douglas  democrats, 
six  Breckenridge  domocrats,  and  one  republican.  The 
senators  elect  were  divided  between  Douglas  demo- 
crats eight,  Breckenridge  democrats  five,  republicans 
four.  In  the  assembly  there  were  thirty-eight  Doug- 
las democrats,  twenty-two  Breckenridge  democrats, 
union  one,  and  republicans  nineteen.  Thus  the  legis- 
lative power  was  wrested  from  the  chivalry  by  the 
anti-Lecompton  democrats.  There  were  two  issues 
on  which  the  legislature  had  been  elected ;  one  the 

dist;  W.  H.  Weeks,  central  dist;  C.  H.  Washburn,  S.  F.;  Antonio  Maria 
Pico,  southern  dist.  The  electors  chosen  by  the  Union  party  were  J.  B. 
Crockett  and  G.  W.  Bowie,  at  large ;  Phiueas  L.  Miner,  Tehama;  James  Lan- 
der, Los  Angeles.  Alternates,  A.  M.  Roseborough,  of  Siskiyou;  William  R. 
Langley,  of  Placer;  Dr  E.  Gibbons,  of  Alameda,  R.  H.  Daly,  of  Mariposa. 
Ihe  Douglas  democrats  chose  Humphrey  Griffith,  of  Yolo;  Richard  B.  Ham- 
mond, of  Stockton;  Pablo  de  la  Guerra  ,  of  Santa  Barbara;  G.  F.  Price,  of 
Yreka.  1  he  Breckenridge  choice  for  electors,  were  V.  E.  Gieger,  of  Tehama; 
A.  P.  Dudley,  of  Calaveras,  Zach.  Montgomery,  of  Sutter,  Antonio  F.  Coro- 
nel,  of  Los  Angeles. 


BRODERICKISM  ASCENDANT.  271 

defeat  of  a  proposition  of  the  preceding  legislature  to 
hold  a  convention  for  the  revision  and  change  of  the 
constitution,  and  the  other  to  prevent  the  passage  of 
a  bulkhead  act.  Although  it  was  acknowledged  that 
the  organic  law  needed  revision,  the  people  feared  to 
incur  the  danger  of  a  convention  lest  the  southern 

o 

counties  should  be  separated  from  the  state.  And  as 
to  the  fifty  years'  monopoly  of  the  water-front  of  San 
Francisco,  for  which  the  bulkhead  conspirators  were 
still  plotting,  that  must  be  defeated. 

The  legislature*'  did  not  disappoint  its  constituents 

aThe  hold-over  senators  were  J.  A.  Eagan.  James  M.  Vance,  John  P. 
Haynes,  W.  B.  Dickinson,  R  D.  Crittendan,  James  T.  Ryan,  S.  H.  Chase, 
G.  T.  Leet,  T.  G.  Phelps,*  Solomon  A.  Sharp,  R,  C.  Clark,  John  H.  Watson, 
Pablo  de  la  Guerra,  Andres  Pico,  J.  Logan,  Henry  Egerton,  J.  J.  Franklin, 
H.  P.  Watkins,  Senators  elect,  A.  L.  Rhodes,*  Alameda  and  Santa  Clara; 
Richard  Irwin,  Butte  and  Plumas;  P.  A.  Gallagher,  Calaveras;  A.  St  Clair, 
Denver;  O.  Harvev,  El  Dorado;  A.  Merritt,  Mariposa,  Merced,  Buena  Vista, 
and  Tnlare;  William  Watt.  Nevada;  Phil.  W.  Thomas,  Placer;  Caleb  Bur- 
bank,*  James  McM.  Shatter,*  S.  F,;  R  H.  Heacock,  Sac'to;  F.  M.  Warm- 
castle,  San  Joaqnin  and  Contra  Costa;  H.  I.  Thornton,  Sierra;  Dr  Hill, 
Sonoma,  Mann,  and  Mendocino;  C.  V.  Williamson,  Tnolumne  and  Stanis- 
laus; William  H.  Parks,  Yuba  and  Sntter;  C.  E.  De  Long,  Yuba.  The  offi- 
cers of  the  senate  were  Pablo  de  la  Guerra,  pres't;  Richard  Irwin  Pres't, 
pro  tern;  Charles  W.  Tozer,  sec.;  D.  J.  Williamson,  ass't.  sec.;  George  C. 
Gorham,  enrolling  clerk;  George  A.  Gillespie,  engrossing  clerk;  William  F. 
Williamson,  serg't-at,arms;  C.  A.  Uhrig,  ass't  serg't-at-arms. 

The  assembly  consisted  of,  Frank  Fargo,*  Alameda;  R.  Burnell,  T.  M. 
Hornell,  AmadoY:  W.  P.  Tilden,  P.  H.  Harris,  Butte;  R  E.  lippincott, 
William  Childs,  Thomas  O'Brien,  Calaveras;  Dr  Durst,  Colnsa  and  Tehama; 
C.  B.  Porter,*  Contra  Costa;  W.  L.  Buell,  Del  Norte  and  Klamath;  John 
Conness,  Theoran  Foster,  James  J.  Green,  Robert  Henderson,  Alexander 
Hunter,  William  Coleman,  Samuel  Hill,  C.  W.  Coltrin.  El  Dorado;  O.  K. 
Smith,  (Union.),  Fresno  and  Tulare:  W.  B.  Hagans,  Humboldt;  Murray 
Morrison,  Abel  Stearns,  Los  Angeles;  X.  M.  Gordon,  Marin;  Daniel 
Showalter,  Gregory  of  Mariposa;  Martin  Baechtel,  Mendocino;  A.  W. 
Blair,*  Monterey:  J.  R  Scott,  Napa;  E  F.  Spence,*  J.  M.  Avery,*  R  W. 
Councilman,  J.~R  Eastman,  X.  C.  Miller,  Nevada;  L.  G.  Smith;  W.  J. 
Harrison,  P.  Munday.  D.  W.  Harriman,*  Placer;  A.  Wood,  Plumas;  N. 
Greene  Curtis,  Joseph  Powell,  Amos  Adams,  Charles  Crocker,*  Sac'to; 
Charles  W.  Percy,  San  Bernardino;  D.  B.  Kurtz,  San  Diego;  S.  S.  Tilton,* 
John  W.  Cherry,"*  Alvan  Flanders,*  F.  G.  E  Tittel,*  Robert  Clark,*  Alex- 
ander Campbell,*  J.  A.  Banks,*  O.  F.  Willey,*  L.  R.  Bradley,  Thomas 
Laspeyre,  San  Joaquin;  C.  R  Johnson,  San  Luis  Obispo;  James  G.  Dennis- 
ton,  San  Mateo;  J.  M.  Covarrnbias,  Santa  Barbara;  H.  W.  Briggs,*  J.  H. 
Morgan,*  Santa  Clara;  Charles  Ford,*  Santa  Cruz;  John  White,  Shasta; 
J.  Dougherty,  Thomas  Wright,  Sierra;  F.  Sorrel,  Siskiyou;  D.  B.  Hoi  man, 
Solano;  William  Ross,  Sonoma;  Waldram  of  Stanislaus;  Z.  Montgomery, 
Sutter;  F.  Walters,  Trinity;  G.  W.  Patrick,  M.  Y.  Gillett,  Fleming  Amyx, 
T.  J.  Chandler,  Tuolumne;  W.  C.  Wood,  Yolo;  Lloyd  Magruder,  R  Lalor, 
J.  H.  Harrison,  D.  L.  Hann,  C.  H.  Kungle,  Yuba. 

The  assembly  was  ten  days  ballotting  for  a  speaker,  and  at  last  elected 
E.  BurrelL  For  chief  clerk,  J.  M.  Anderson;  ass't  clerk,  J.  W.  Scobey; 


LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

in  these  important  issues.  It  declined  to  approve  of 
the  proposal  for  a  convention  by  submitting  it  to  the 
people,  but  instead  offered  several  amendments  to  the 
constitution,  which  were  adopted  in  1862,  and  which 
made  the  legislative  sessions  biennial,  the  governor's 
term  of  office  four  years  in  length,  and  changed  the 
judiciary  system,  as  I  have  elsewhere  fully  explained. 
There  was  a  good  deal  of  legislating  about  railroads, 
and  a  number  of  franchises  granted,  with  more  liber- 
ality than  foresight,  but  the  general  character  of  the 
acts  passed  was  an  improvement  upon  the  work  of 
their  predecessors. 

Among  the  resolutions  passed  in  the  early  part  of 
the  session  was  one  expunging  that  passed  by  the 
legislature  of  1859,  censuring  Broderick  for  not  sup- 
porting the  administration,  and  requesting  him  to 
resign.  The  new  resolutions  declared  that  "the  peo- 
ple of  the  United  States  have  by  a  very  large  major- 
ity endorsed  the  course  of  D.  C.  Broderick  against 
the  Kansas  policy  of  the  late  president,"  and  that  the 
former  resolutions  were  "unjust  to  his  character  while 
living,  and  derogatory  to  the  honorable  and  patriotic 
fame  which  a  true  and  faithful  record  of  his  acts  will 
always  accord  to  his  memory  ;"  and  further,  that  they 
were  "  not  true  in  fact,  and  were  not  sanctioned  by  the 
people  of  California,  but  on  the  contrary,  the  people 
of  this  state  will  cherish  with  profound  respect  the 
memory  and  character  of  the  late  Broderick,  adorned 
as  his  character  eminently  was  by  integrity,  firmness, 
and  patriotism."  The  events  of  the  winter  of  1860- 
61  caused  a  resolution  of  fidelity  to  the  union  to  be 
passed,  declaring  that  "  California  is  ready  to  main- 
tain the  rights  and  honor  of  the  national  government 
at  home  and  abroad,  and  at  all  times  to  respond  to  any 
requisition  that  may  be  made  upon  her  to  defend  the 
republic  against  foreign  or  domestic  foes."  So  it  was 

serg't-at-arms,  M.  Gray;  ass't  serg't-at-arms,  J.  H.  Leese;  engrossing  clerk, 
E.  Corbett;  enrolling  clerk,  H.  C.  Kibbe.  The  republicans  in  both  houses 
have  been  marked  with  an  asterisk,  as  it  is  not  unimportant  to  know  the 
pioneers  of  a  great  political  movement. 


SENATORIAL  CONTEST.  273 

Ihat  this  digging,  delving,  half-foreign,  rich  young 
state  was  not  after  all  able  to  keep  out  of  the  quarrel 
between  the  north  and  south.  As  the  mails  brought 
reports  of  the  disunion  speeches  of  pro-slavery  sena- 
tors, and  the  disloyal  acts  of  southern  people,  her 
nerves  tingled,  and  her  blood  was  up.  Disunion? 
Never  1  A  Pacific  republic  ?  Never  1 

Upon  this  question  of  loyalty  or  disloyalty  turned 
the  choice  of  a  senator  to  succeed  Gwin,  who  was  now 
politically  dead.  The  Douglas  democrats  in  caucus 
chose  James  A.  McDougall,"  a  few  votes  being  given 
to  Edmund  Randolph,  Henry  Edgerton,  and  Hum- 
phrey Griffith.  The  republicans  chose  Timothy  G. 
Phelps.  The  Breckenridge  democrats  could  not  for 
some  time  obtain  a  caucus.  In  joint  convention,  on 
the  first  ballot,  Weller  received  twenty-seven  votes, 
McDougall  twenty-seven,  Phelps  twenty-three,  Nu- 
gent nine,  Denver  sixteen.  The  Breckenridge  members 
ten  days  afterward  fixed  upon  John  Nugent  for  their 
nominee.  Nugent  was  former  editor  of  the  San  Fran- 
cisco Herald,  a  democratic  newspaper  which  had  come 
out  for  Breckenridge  in  the  late  campaign,  but  after 
he  had  become  disconnected  with  it  by  selling  out  to 
the  Lecomptonites.  When  Nugent  was  made  candi- 
date by  choice,  the  votes  stood  on  the  twenty-second 
ballot,  McDougall  fifty-six,  Nugent  forty-seven,  Weller 
six,  Phelps  one,  and  Creanor  one.  The  number  re- 
quired to  elect  was  fifty-seven,  and  Phelps  changed 

"James  A.  McDougall  was  born  in  Albany  co.,  N.  Y.,  in  Nov.  1819,  re- 
ceiving a  grammar  school  education  at  Albany.  While  still  a  youth,  he  as- 
sisted in  the  survey  of  the  first  railroad  in  the  state  of  New  York— that 
between  Albany  and  Shenectady.  He  then  turned  his  attention  to  the  law 
and  studied  with  enthusiasm.  In  1837  he  migrated  to  Pike  co.,  DL,  and  in 
1842  was  elected  attorney-general  of  that  state,  being  reelected  in  1844. 
During  this  period  of  his  life  he  became  acquainted  with  Baker,  Pratt,  and 
Hoge,  all  afterward,  like  himself,  prominent  in  California  politics.  In  1849 
he  came  to  CaL,  overland,  from  the  headquarters  of  the  Rio  del  Norte.  where 
he  had  been  erploring  for  the  precious  metals  with  a  party  from  TIL  He 
settled  in  S.  F.,  and  began  the  practice  of  the  law,  in  which  he  soon  became 
distinguished  for  wit,  sarcasm,  and  classicism.  He  was  elected  attorney-gen- 
eral of  CaL  in  1850,  and  member  of  congress  in  1853.  His  talents  were  un- 
doubted, though  his  motives  have  been  sometimes  impugned.  He  died  in 
1867  in  his  native  state. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VTL    18 


274      LOYALTY,  OR  DISUNION  AND  A  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC? 

his  vote  to  McDougall,  who  was  thereby  elected.  The 
republicans  used  their  votes  to  secure  a  loyal  senator, 
even  though  he  were  not  of  their  party.  McDougall 
was  the  only  candidate  professing  union  sentiments 
who  could  be  elected  by  a  democratic  legislature  with 
twenty-seven  Breckenridge  members  in  it  voting  sol- 
idly for  their  nominee. 

Gwin  and  Latham  returned  to  Washington,  where- 
they  quarreled  over  the  action  of  the  former  in  at- 
tempting the  final  defeat  of  the  house  bill  for  an  over- 
land daily  mail  by  the  central  route.  When  Gwin 
found  his  treachery  exposed  he  changed  his  tactics, 
and  adroitly  placing  himself  at  the  front,  stole  Latham's 
laurels.  But  California  was  too  glad  to  get  a  daily 
service  to  care  whence  it  came.  Latham  took  back 
his  assertion  concerning  the  independence  of  his  state 
in  the  event  of  disunion,  and  confessed  that  he  had 
been  mistaken  in  his  estimate  of  the  loyalty  of  the 
majority.  When  congress  adjourned  in  the  spring  of 
1861  he  returned  to  California,  and  spoke  for  the 
cause  of  the  union,  acting  with  the  administration 
party  in  the  senate  for  that  year;  but  in  1862,  the 
last  year  of  his  term,  his  southern  sympathies  assumed 
ascendancy,  and  he  denounced  abolition  like  a  born 
slave-holder. 

McDougall  came  into  the  senate  at  a  time  when  the 
administration  was  overwhelmed  with  the  responsibility 
of  suppressing  rebellion,  and  he  made  no  opposition  ; 
but  gave  a  half-hearted  support  which  failed  to  sat- 
isfy his  state,  and  was  repudiated  by  the  legislature  of 
1864  in  concurrent  resolution. 


CHAPTER  XII 

PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR 
1861-1865. 

ATTITUDE  or  THE  LEGISLATURE — SENTIMENT  of  THE  PEOPLE — THE  CRISIS — 
LOYALTY  AND  DISLOYALTY — MORE  OF  THE  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC — REPRESEN- 
TATIVES IN  WASHINGTON — PARTIES  ANI>  POLITICS — STATE  RIGHTS  AND 
SECESSION — THE  PULPIT  AND  THE  PRESS — COAST  DEFENSES — CONSPIRA- 
CIES— ARMY  AND  NAVY — MEN  AND  MONEY — GREENBACKS  AND  GOLD — 
MORE  GOVERNORS  AND  LEGISLATURES — CLUBS  AND  CONVENTIONS — NEWS 
OF  THE  DEATH  OF  LINCOLN. 

THE  legislature  of  1861  had  not  declared  for  the 
support  of  the  federal  government  without  some 
prompting.  The  generations  of  fealty  to  party  to 
which  the  democracy  of  the  country  had  been  trained 
rendered  it  painful  to  the  "regular  "  to  discard  his 
factioned  brother.  It  was  against  party  usages,  also, 
for  a  democratic  legislature  to  pledge  its  support  to 
any  other  than  a  democratic  administration.  But  the 
times  were  out  of  joint.  California's  representatives 
in  congress,  and  the  president  himself  appeared  to  be 
somewhat  indifferent  to  the  welfare  of  the  Pacific 
states,  and  this  neglect  tended  to  make  them  disloyal. 
Lane  of  Oregon,  following  in  the  path  marked  out  by 
his  superior,  Gwin,  abandoned  the  interests  of  his 
state,  whereby  he  brought  condemnation  upon  his 
head,  even  more  marked  than  that  of  California  toward 
her  senators.  His  course,  almost  more  than  any  other 
cause,  turned  the  thoughts  of  the  Oregonians  toward 
their  danger  and  their  duty,  and  prepared  the  way  for 
the  incoming  of  the  republican  party  to  power  in  that 
state.  Baker,  only  a  short  time  in  QaHforjiia,  had 
given  them  the  Benefit  of  his  rhetoric,  fand  been 


276  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

elected  to  represent  them  in  the  United  States  senate, 
in  place  of  Lane.  When  he  returned  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, on  his  way  to  Washington,  he  aided  in  arousing 
union  sentiment  in  California.  In  a  speech  at  the 
American  theater,  in  October,  1860,  he  talked  of  lib- 
erty— though  why  he  should  now  have  inflicted  this 
discourse  on  his  audience  I  know  not,  unless  it  be 
that  the  tongue  of  the  American  stump-speaker 
cannot  withhold  itself  from  such  indulgence.  "As 
for  me,  I  dare  not,  I  will  not  be  false  to  freedom. 
Where  the  feet  of  my  youth  were  planted,  there,  by 
freedom,  my  feet  shall  stand.  I  will  walk  beneath 
her  banner.  I  will  glory  in  her  strength.  I  have 
watched  her,  in  history,  struck  down  on  an  hundred 
chosen  fields  of  battle.  I  have  seen  her  friends  fly 
from  her ;  her  foes  gather  round  her.  I  have  seen 
her  bound  to  the  stake  ;  I  have  seen  them  give  her 
ashes  to  the  winds.  But  when  they  turned  to  exult 
I  have  seen  her  again  meet  them  face  to  face,  resplen- 
dent in  complete  steel,  brandishing  in  her  right  hand 
a  flaming  sword,  red  with  insufferable  light.  I  take 
courage.  The  people  gather  round  her.  The  genius 
of  America  will  at  last  lead  her  sons  to  freedom." 

In  December  South  Carolina  seceded,  and  Fort 
Moultrie  was  evacuated  by  the  federal  forces  for  the 
stronger  position  of  Sumter.  In  January  the  news- 
paper press  of  California  was  still  undecided  what 
course  ought  to  be  pursued.  Union  meetings  were 
hinted  at  by  the  loyal  journals,  but  many  influential 
business  men  thought  that  nothing  California  could 
do  would  have  any  effect  upon  the  result  of  the  na- 
tional controversy,  and  counselled  neutrality  as  the 
most  safe  and  comfortable  course.  To  this  the  press 
replied  that,  isolated  though  she  was,  California  had 
a  duty  toward  the  loyal  states  to  perform,  by  proclaim- 
ing her  fidelity  to  the  bond  of  federal  union,  and  in- 
fluencing the  votes  of  her  delegation  in  congress.  If 
the  cotton  states  were  allowed  to  believe  that  their 
withdrawal  from  the  union  would  be  followed  by  the 


UNION  MEETING.  277 

organization  of  a  Pacific  republic,  they  would  thereby 
be  greatly  encouraged  in  their  course.  "  The  repudia- 
tion of  the  Pacific  republic  notion  by  California,"  said 
the  Bulletin,  "  and  her  declaration  against  secession  in 
any  form,  may  therefore  prove  an  important  step  to- 
ward restoring  harmony  to  the  country."  If  the  union 
were  to  be  dissolved,  what  was  to  become  of  the  Pa- 
cific railroad  ?  No  portion  of  the  country  had  so 
much  to  gain  by  the  preservation  of  the  union  as  Cal- 
ifornia, and  both  people  and  legislature  should  take 
immediate  action  ;  such  was  the  conclusion  arrived  at. 
But  the  California  representatives  had  already  de- 
clared their  convictions,  each  in  his  chosen  manner, 
Gwin  and  Latham  in  the  senate,  Scott 1  and  Burch  in 
the  house  of  representatives.  An  attempt  to  pass 
resolutions  of  loyalty  and  support  to  the  federal  gov- 
ernment by  the  California  legislature  called  out  the 
(forensic  talent  of  that  body,1  while  it  betrayed  the 
lurking  fear  of  being  beforehand  with  its  duty.  To 
keep  the  union  sentiment  up  to  a  safe  and  proper  point 
a  mass  meeting  was  arranged  to  take  place  on  the  22d 
of  February.  This  meeting,  intended  for  a  test,  was 
attended  by  fully  fourteen  thousand  people.  The  day 
was  fine ;  flags  fluttered  from  house-tops  and  windows ; 

I  Scott  wrote  a  letter  to  the  chairman  of  the  state  central  democratic  com- 
mittee, Charles  V.  landley,  in  which  he  said,  '  If  this  union  is  divided,  and 
two  separate  confederacies  are  formed,  I  will  strenuously  advocate  the  se- 
cession of  California,  and  the  establishment  of  a  separate  republic  on  the  Pa- 
cific slope ...  If  California  links  her  destiny  with  the  northern  government, 
crippled  and  ruined  as  she  must  necessarily  be  by  the  separation  and  with- 
drawal of  her  southern  allies,  California,  instead  of  being  benefited,  and  re- 
ceiving aid  from  the  northern  confederacy,  will  be  heavily  taxed  to  carry  on 
the  machinery  of  their  government.'  Address  of  Charles  L.  Scott  of  California 
to  his  constituents  on  the  constitutional  right  ofsccesxion,  in  Hayes'  CaL  PoL,  1861- 
2,  vol.  iii.,  p.  54.     Burch,  hia  colleague,  declared  in  favor  of  union;  but 
should  the  union  be  dissolved,  he  favored  a  Pacific  republic.      Gwin,  the 
power  behind  the  throne,  remained  discreetly  silent,  while  Latham  boldly 
corrected  his  blunder  of  the  previous  session. 

I 1  allude  to  speeches  in  the  senate  from  Edgerton  of  Napa,  in  favor  of 
coercion;  Thornton  of  Sierra,  against  coercion;  Crittenden  of  El  Dorado,  in 
favor  of  reconstruction,  or  secession;  to  speeches  in  the  assembly  by  Durst 
of  Colusa,  on  the  preservation  of  the  govt;  Kungle  of  Yuba,  in  defence  of 
slavery;  Morrison  of  Los  Angeles,  in  favor  of  letting  the  rebellious  states 
take  their  own  course,  because  they  were  'brothers '  to  the  loyal  states,  and 
should  have  kind  treatment;  and  Conness  of  £1  Dorado,  on  the  duty  of  sus- 
taining the  govt. 


278  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

bands  discoursed  brilliant  music;  the  streets  were 
thronged  with  glad-visaged  men  and  women,  and  en- 
thusiasm for  the  support  of  the  government  every- 
where displayed  itself.  Speeches  were  delivered  by 
Edward  Stanley,  Delos  Lake,  J.  B.  Crockett,  Thomas 
Starr  King,  and  James  Shields.  Union  clubs  which 
were  forming  in  the  city  and  country  increased  from 
this  time  on.  But  it  required  the  overt  act  to  fix  the 
determination  of  union  men  to  support,  at  all  hazards, 
the  execution  of  the  federal  laws,  and  the  power  of 
the  federal  government.  That  motive  was  furnished 
when  in  April  Fort  Sumter  surrendered,  and  blood 
was  spilled.  The  news  was  received  in  San  Francisco 
April  24th.  A  call  was  made  for  the  republican  clubs 
of  the  campaign  of  1860  to  meet  for  the  purpose  of 
organizing  as  Administration  Union  clubs  on  the  27th. 
The  response  surprised  those  who  made  the  call,  so 
great  was  the  attendance.8 

An  address  was  presented  to  the  People's  nomi- 
nating committee  on  the  26th,  signed  by  more  than 
one  thousand  business  men  of  San  Francisco,  request- 
ing them  to  assemble  and  make  their  nominations  for 
city  and  county  officers.  The  republicans  followed 
with  monster  petitions  to  the  republican  county  com- 
mittee to  make  nominations.  Both  parties  professed 
the  utmost  devotion  to  the  union  ;  but  the  republicans 
plainly  meant  to  demand  recognition  as  the  adminis- 
tration party,  and  to  strive  for  the  city  and  county, 
as  well  as  the  state  offices,  against  the  people's  party 
to  which  they  resigned  their  rights  in  I860.4 

3  Four  companies  were  formed  out  of  the  clubs  in  the  12  districts.     Each 
company  was   officered  by  a  marshal,  two  aids,  a  sec'y  and   treas'r.     An 
executive  committee  of  12,  one  from  each  district,  was  appointed  by  the 
pres't  of  the  meeting,  William  Sherman,  which  should  have  a  general  super- 
vision, and  appoint  such  general  officers  as  should  be  deemed  expedient. 
These  clubs  constituted  a  thoroughly  organized  military  police  during  the 
years  of  the  civil  war,  no  more  relaxing  their  vigilance  than  did  the  famous 
committee  of  1856. 

4  The  republicans  nominated  the  following  ticket:  for  mayor,  Caleb  T. 
Fay;f  for  treas'r,  Asa  L.  Lawton;  for  recorder,  Charles  W.  Rand;  for  asses- 
sor, Thomas  D.  Matthewson;  for  sheriff,  James  Laidley;  for  surveyor,  Milo 
Hoadley;  for  harbor  master,  N.  Proctor  Smith;  for  supt  of  pub.  schools, 


THE  PEOPLE  MOVING.  279 

On  the  llth  of  May  business  was  suspended  in  San 
Francisco  that  a  loyal  demonstration  might  be  made. 
The  city  was  swathed  in  national  colors,  and  one  lone 
palmetto  flag,  raised  by  a  daring  Breckenridge  man 
named  Nash,  was  lowered  by  the  people  hi  an  emphatic 
manner.5  Several  prominent  citizens  of  dubious  ten- 
dencies took  their  stand  openly  for  the  federal  govern- 
ment against  secession.  Senators  Latham  and  Mc- 
Dougal,  generals  Shields  and  Suniner,  and  others 
made  speeches  in  favor  of  coercion.  At  this  date 
John  G.  Downey,8  as  lieutenant-governor,  had  suc- 
ceeded to  the  executive  office  vacated  by  Latham. 

The  rapid  growth  of  union  sentiment  throughout 
the  state  decided  the  legislature  to  pledge  the  support 
of  the  government,  which  it  did  on  the  17th.1  The 

John  H.  Brewer.  In  Fay  i  Historical  Fact*,  MS.,  which  is  an  autobiography 
chiefly,  it  is  mentioned  that  in  the  elections  of  I860  he  received  bat  1500 
votes,  bat  that  in  1861  he  came  within  500  of  an  election.  Fay  was  born  in 
Southboro,  Mass.,  and  came  to  CaL  by  sea  in  1S49,  as  one  of  a  company  of 
22,  calling  itself  the  Northwestern  Association  of  Boston,  owning  the  vessel 
in  which  they  sailed.  He  went  into  business  in  the  mines,  and  afterward  in 
S.F. 

*&  P.  BuOttiM,,  May  11,  1861.  A  Pacific  republic  flag  was  hoisted  on 
board  a  surveying  schooner  at  Stockton  Jan.  16th,  creating  much  feeling. 
In  S.  F.  the  palmetto  flag  was  raised  in  Feb.,  and  hauled  down  again.  In 
May  the  Bear  flag  was  raised  at  Los  Angeles.  This  flag  was  raised  at  So- 
noma and  at  San  Bernardino.  It  was  simply  a  secession  demonstration,  and 
was  not  allowed  to  float  any  length  of  time.  S.  F.  Alia,  June  22  and  July  9, 
1S61;  Soe.  Union,  Jane  24,  1864, 

'  A  native  of  county  Roscommon,  Ireland,  and  of  distinguished  ancestry, 
Gov.  Downey  came  to  California  in  1849  with  $10  in  his  pocket,  and  after  a 
varied  experience  opened  at  Los  Angeles  in  1850  what  was  then  the  only 
drag-store  between  San  Francisco  and  San  Diego.  Here  he  accumulated 
$30,000  within  three  years,  and  then  engaged  in  stock-raising  and  real  estate 
operations,  whereby  he  accumulated  a  handsome  fortune,  purchasing  about 
75,000  acres  near  the  present  site  of  Downey,  Wilmington,  San  Pedro,  and 
elsewhere.  Among  his  possessions  is  the  Santa  Gertrudes  rancho,  noted  for 
its  beauty  and  mineral  springs.  His  administration  as  governor  was  univer- 
sally commended,  and  as  a  private  citizen,  and  one  to  whose  enterprise  and 
liberality  is  largely  due  the  prosperity  of  southern  California,  he  is  no  less 
widely  esteemed. 

7  On  the  authority  of  Gen.  Wool,  Floyd,  the  secretary  of  war,  placed, 
for  safe-keeping,  in  southern  arsenals  135,430  government  arms  from  the 
Springfield,  Mass.,  U.  S.  armory  alone,  with  ordnance  and  military  stores. 
This  was  independent  of  the  quota  of  these  states.  To  CaL  7,000  were  sent 
to  which  the  state  had  no  claim.  The  whole  number  of  arms  surreptitiously 
sent  to  CaL  was  50.000,  of  which  30,000  was  returned  in  1861.  About 
the  1st  of  Feb.  1861,  Crittenden,  assemblyman  from  EH  Dorado,  said  :n  effect 
that  30.000  men  in  CaL  would  take  up  arms  in  defence  of  secession,  if  the 
government  attempted  to  enforce  the  federal  laws  in  this  state.  Rumors 


280  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

militia  law  had  already  been  thoroughly  revised,  the 
state  militia  being  organized  in  six  divisions  and  twelve 
brigades,  with  a  full  staff  of  officers  for  each,  and  for 

were  afloat  that  the  presidio  and  the  forts  on  Alcatraz  island  would  be  cap- 
tured, with  the  custom-house,  mint,  post-office,  and  all  U.  S.  property,  after 
which  the  rebels  would  proceed  to  invade  Sonora,  to  add  that  territory  to 
the  Pacific  republic.  Officers  were  named.  The  Mexican  vote  was  counted 
upon,  and  it  was  hoped  to  catch  the  Irish.  The  catholic  vote  was  counted 
upon,  because  both  these  men  were  of  that  faith,  and  so  the  French.  It 
appears  from  revelations  made  at  a  later  period  that  Floyd  sent  in  all 
75,000  muskets  to  Cal.  without  the  knowledge  of  congress.  About  the  time 
a  man  named  Street  was  postmaster  at  Shasta.  His  successor  discovered 
among  a  lot  of  waste  papers  a  number  of  letters  from  a  brother  of  this  man, 
Charles  R.  Street,  editor  of  the  Marysville  Express,  the  same  one  who  after- 
wards conducted  disloyal  newspapers  in  Idaho  and  other  territories.  These 
letters  came  into  the  possession  of  Judge  Goodwin  of  Yuba.  They  revealed 
much  of  the  plan,  with  some  of  the  names  of  the  conspirators,  but  only  a 
portion  of  them  were  published,  in  the  Stockton  Independent  of  Aug.  31, 
1863.  One  of  these  letters  dated  Dec.  27,  1860  at  S.  F.  declares  that  the 
writer  Charles  R.  Street,  had  a  talk  with  several  men  here  about  what  Cali- 
fornia would  do  in  the  event  of  a  separation  between  the  northern  and  south- 
ern states.  "Mr  Guthrie  of  the  Herald  declines  to  publish  the  letter  of  Mr 
Burch  for  the  present — wants  to  wait  for  further  news  from  the  east,  at 
least  until  the  arrival  of  one  pony.  The  fact  is  he  is  afraid  of  the  issue, 

and  perhaps  not  without  reason 1  saw  Gen.  Shields  this  morning  and 

had  quite  a  talk  with  him  about  the  matter. . . .  and  I  will  predict  here  that 
if  any  great  effort  is  made  to  separate  from  the  east,  he  will  be  the  leader  of 
the  movement. . . . He  intimates  that  it  had  been  proposed  to  him  to  take  the 
initiative  in  this  thing,  but  that  he  had  replied  as  Benton  had  replied  on 
a  Certain  occasion.  '  No,  I  will  not  do  it;  it  is  useless  to  shoot  at  the  moon.' 
Yet  I  could  not  help  perceiving  that  he  thought  circumstances  might  arise 
before  the  trouble  works  itself  out,  that  would  turn  the  current  of  opinion 
in  favor  of  a  separate  republic.  In  this  correspondence  Street  said  that 
congressman  Burck  declared  all  the  representatives  of  Oregon,  Washington, 
and  Arizona  in  favor  of  the  movement,  and  that  Latham  approved  it. 
Latham  afterward  retracted.  So  did  I.  I.  Stevens  of  W.  T.,  but  Lane 
blindly  ruined  himself  by  it.  Downey  is  mentioned  as  uncertain.  Dosh,  of 
the  Shasta  Courier  was  named  as  favorable.  '  I  will  keep  you  posted, '  said 
Street  to  his  brother,  '  as  far  as  I  am  able,  of  events  and  purposes  here,  and 
advise  you  to  caution  and  secrecy.'  '  We  have  not  the  least  doubt,'  said  the 
editor  of  the  Stockton  Independent,  '  that  Gwin  was  at  the  head  of  this  con- 
spiracy; not  the  least  doubt  that  Johnston  was  sent  to  the  command  of  this 
department  at  the  request  of  the  conspirators,  and  for  the  express  purpose 
of  doing  their  executive  work.'  Whatever  intention  the  conspirators  may 
have  entertained,  there  is  still  an  honorable  doubt  of  Johnston  s  complicity. 
Probably  they  hoped  to  use  him  for  their  purposes;  but  the  arrival  of  Sum- 
ner  at  too  early  a  moment  prevented  the  consummation  of  any  project  to 
secure  the  public  property  in  and  about  S.  F.  The  conspirators  had  confided 
in  Doane,  the  sheriff  of  S.  F. ,  whom  they  believed  to  be  a  secessionist,  but 
who  was  a  union  man,  and  who  consulted  with  the  chief  of  the  fire  depart- 
ment, who  entered  into  his  plans,  several  of  the  fire  companies  being  also 
military  companies  that  would  number  1,000  men,  who  could  be  called  to- 
gether at  a  given  signal  of  the  fire-bell,  armed  and  equipped.  This  matter 
being  arranged  there  was  held  an  interview  with  Gen.  Johnston,  who  denied 
all  knowledge  of  the  plot.  The  S.  F  Bulktin  of  Feb.  2,  1861,  contains  an 
editorial,  headed  Needless  Alarms,  declaring  'there  are  100,000  men  in  Cal- 
ifornia who  would  have  to  be  put  to  the  sword  before  any  secession  tricks  or 


THE  PATRIOTIC  PONY.  281 

regiments  and  battalions,  with  provision  for  their 
equipment  and  regulations  for  drilling  and  calling 
them  into  service. 

News  was  received  every  ten  days  by  pony.  That 
coming  by  the  Butterfield  route  was  double  the  time ; 
what  came  by  steamship  was  from  three  to  four  weeks 
old  when  it  arrived.  In  the  spring  of  1861  the 
Apaches  on  the  southern  route  attacked  and  delayed 
the  mails.  It  was  the  pony  to  which  every  one 
looked  for  intelligence ;  men  prayed  for  the  safety  of 
the  little  beast,  and  trembled  lest  the  service  should 
be  discontinued.  Telegraphic  dispatches  from  New 
York  were  sent  to  St.  Louis,  and  thence  to  Fort 
Kearney,  whence  the  pony  brought  them  to  Sacra- 
mento, where  they  were  telegraphed  to  San  Francisco. 
Great  was  the  relief  of  the  people  when  Hale's  bill  for 
a  daily  mail  was  passed,  and  the  service  changed  from 
the  southern  to  the  central  route,  as  it  was  early,  in 
the  summer.  News  by  the  daily  mail  was  eighteen 
days  old  at  the  shortest,  but  it  was  regular  and  con- 
secutive at  short  intervals,  which  was  far  more  satis- 
factory than  the  former  arrangement.  After  all  it 
was  to  the  flying  pony  that  all  eyes  and  hearts  were 
turned;  and  to  the  praise  of  the  St  Joseph  company 
be  it  recorded  that  they  kept  up  the  service,  at  a  loss, 
until  the  -4ke-  telegraph  was  completed  across  the 
continent  in  October,  1861.  Their  first  object  was  to 
exemplify  the  practicability  of  a  mail,  or  railroad  line, 
on  or  about  the  41st  parallel.  After  that  was  dem- 
onstrated, they  had  no  further  interest  hi  the  pony 
express,  except  through  patriotism. . 

The  Pacific  republic  idea  which  had  always  haunted 
the  southern  brain  had  assumed  some  definiteness,  or 
was  at  least  more  openly  broached,  when  the  southern 
states  seceded.  The  California  senators  had  proclaimed 

Pacific  republic  forces  could  be  successfully  practiced  on  this  coast. '  Not- 
withstanding its  tone  of  affected  security,  when  Sumner  unexpectedly 
arrived  in  April,  the  same  paper  declared  that  it  breathed  more  freely,  and 
that  the  general's  arrival  would  be  '  a  cordial  to  all  union  men.' 


282  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

it  in  Washington  in  1860  to  intimidate  the  north,  and 
it  continued  to  be  talked  of  in  a  threatening  manner 
during  the  winter  of  1860-1.  The  inside  workings  of 
the  conspiracy  were  not  divulged.  There  was  a  secret 
movement,  with  a  history,  carried  on  by  an  order 
called  Knights  of  the  Golden  Circle.  And  there  were 
other  organizations.  Even  at  the  time  enough  was 

O  ,  *-* 

known  at  Washington  to  cause  the  president  to  dis- 
patch, with  every  effort  at  secrecy,  General  Edwin  A. 
Sumner  to  the  Pacific  coast  to  relived  General  Albert 
S.  Johnston  of  the  command  oithe  military  depart- 
ment. But  with  all  the  caution  observed  in  this 
transaction,  Johnston  received  information  by  pony 
express  in  time  to  resign  before  Sumner  arrived.  Not 
an  hour  was  lost  when  the  general  landed  before  taking 
command,  but  Johnston  was  evidently  not  surprised. 
He  yielded  gracefully,  no  doubt  gladly,  and  was  soon 
on  his  way  overland,  via  Texas,  with  other  officers 
and  volunteers  for  the  southern  confederacy.8  He 
was  a  Kentuckian,  and  was  imbued  with  that  devo- 
tion to  state,  instead  of  general  government,  which 
was  the  political  religion  of  the  south.  He  gave  his 
sword  to  the  "  lost  cause,"  and  laid  down  his  life  at 
Shiloh  as  a  proof  of  his  loyalty  to  an  idea. 

The  officers  in  command  at  San  Francisco  when 
Sumner  arrived  were  Captain  Stewart,  a  Kentuckian, 
at  Alcatraz  Island;  Colonel  Merchant,  a  New  Yorker, 
at  the  presidio;  and  Major  Austin  of  Connecticut  at 
Fort  Point.  Probably  they  were  soon  ordered  east 
among  other  regular  officers.  Early  in  May,  the 
president  having  called  for  seventy-five  thousand 
troops,  volunteering  was  begun  in  California,  and 
drilling  of  the  militia  by  officers  assigned  by  Sumner, 

8  Johnson  was  joined  by  a  company  of  officers  who  had  also  resigned, 
namely,  heuts  R.  H.  Brewer,  1st  drag.;  F.  Mallory,  3d  inf.;  E.  B.  Dudley 

-iley,  and  A.  Shoaf,  4th  inf. ;  and  M.  Wickliffe,  9th  inf.  U.  S.  A.  They 
were  escorted  by  18  secessionists,  Alonzo  Ridley,  of  Los  Angeles,  was  captain 
ot  the  company  and  escort,  and  remained  with  Johnson  until  his  death. 

tterward  he  went  to  Texas,  and  killed  Commander  Wainwright,  with  his 
rifle,  at  the  taking  of  the  Harriet  Lane.  He  subsequently  served  in  the 
lexan  cavalry. 


CALIFORNIA  HYSTERICS.  2S3 

Lieutenant  John  Hamilton,  3d  artillery,  being  made 
military  instructor  of  the  second  division  of  the  state 
troops,  and  now  the  military  spirit  ran  high. 

Meantime  each  latest  arrival  of  intelligence  from 
the  east  added  fresh  fuel  to  the  flame  of  loyalty  now 
brightly  blazing  on  the  Pacific  coast.  Pacific  republic 
schemes  had  small  opportunity  to  develop,  and  plots 
were  invariably  found  out  and  frustrated.  Even  Ed- 
mund Randolph,  though  a  Virginian,  until  his  state 
seceded  and  he  became  half  demented,9  was  loyal,  and 
was  said  to  have  given  the  president  warning  of  the 
conspiracy  to  take  California  out  of  the  union.  Per- 
haps there  was  something  hysterical  on  both  sides. 
At  all  events,  a  great  moral  crisis  had  arrived,  of 
which  all  men  were  strongly  conscious. 

It  was  not  in  California  only  that  Californians  were 
under  excitement.1*  Much  fear  was  entertained  on 

*  Randolph,  who  unexpectedly  appeared  in  the  Breckenridge  convention, 
in  July,  was  tempted  to  make  a  speech,  though  suffering  from  illness.  He 
said,  in  a  frantic  manner:  'To  me  it  seems  a  waste  of  time  to  talk.  Par 
God's  sake,  gentlemen,  tell  me  of  battles  fought  and  von.  Tell  me  of  usurp- 
ers overthrown;  that  Missouri  is  a  free  state,  no  longer  crushed  under  the 
armed  heel  of  a  reckless,  odious  despot.  Tell  me  that  the  state  of  Mary- 
land lives  again;  and,  oh !  gentlemen,  let  us  read,  let  us  hear,  at  the  first 
moment,  that  not  one  hostile  foot  now  treads  the  soil  of  Virginia.  If  this  be 
rebellion,  then  I  am  a  rebel.  Do  yon  want  a  traitor?  then  I  am  a  traitor. 
For  God's  sake,  speed  the  ball,  may  the  lead  go  quick  to  his  heart,  and  may 
our  country  be  free  from  the  despot  usurper  that  now  claims  the  name  of 
president  of  the  United  States.'  This  outburst  of  Randolph's  reveals  the 
early  inception  of  the  conspiracy  against  the  president's  life. 

*•  Immediately  after  the  president's  call,  April  21st,  the  following  notice 
was  placarded  in  the  streets  of  Xew  York:  'Californians — to  arms  !  Califor- 
nia steamers  in  danger  !  RaUy  Calif oraians,  the  federal  capital  is  in  danger. 
Californians,  Oregon  iann,  coast  men,  and  men  who  have  seen  service,  nwnt- 
tion !  A  meeting  win  be  held  at  Metropolitan  hotel  at  one  o'clock  to-day, 
Sunday,  in  order  to  form  a  California-  regiment.  None  but  men  accustomed, 
to  work  are  requested  to  attend.  Over  $25,000  on  hand  to  equip  the 
regiment,  and  sustain  it.'  There  were  present  upon  this  hiatjr  •»""•*""• 
about  200  Pacific  coast  men.  J.  C.  Birdseye  was  chairman;  William  T. 
Coleman,  C.  K.  Garrison,  J.  Y.  Halleck,  D.  L.  Ross,  Folger,  Leonard.  Eu- 
gene Kelly,  J.  P.  F.  Wentworth,  S.  W.  Bryant,  Minor  Frink,  W.  S.  Denio, 
EL  D.  Baker,  Charles  Watrous,  D.  W.  Cheeseman,  Samuel  Carnage,  Kinzer, 
Martin.  Ira  P.  Rankin,  S.  H.  Parker,  James  Satterlee,  all  residents  of  CaL, 
on  a  visit  to  the  east.  W.  B.  Farwefl,  J.  J.  Arrington.  and  Ross  Irish,  of 
Maryland,  were  secretaries.  Baker  addressed  the  meeting,  followed  by 
Gilpln  and  Parker,  who  had  been  appointed  postmaster  at  8.  FV  the  organi- 
zation of  a  regiment  was  begun  on  that  day.  Baker  was  elected  col;  Brain- 
ard,  lient-col;  Lemon,  major — killed  at  South  mountain — Ross  A  Fish, 
capt. — imprisoned  twelve  months  by  the  rebels.  The  reg't  was  armed  and 


284  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

both  sides  of  the  continent  that  rebel  cruisers  would 
capture  some  of  the  mail  steamers  laden  with  treasure. 
Insurance  rose  to  three  per  cent — before  the  close  of 
the  war  going  up  to  seven  per  cent — and  despatches 
were  received  in  April  to  stop  the  shipment  of  gold, 
as  insurance  was  suspended.  With  the  completion  of 
the  telegraph  line  much  of  the  inconvenience  attend- 
ing the  transaction  of  business  was  overcome. 

In  October,  Sunnier,  much  to  the  regret  of  loyal 
men,  was  called  east11 ;  but  colonel  George  Wright  was 

equipped  in  six  weeks,  and  in  camp  near  Fort  Ellsworth  on  Staten  island; 
the  camp  being  named  after  California's  new  senator,  McDongalL  This 
reg't  drew  on  the  union  defence  committee  for  only  $1,505.  Baker  was 
tendered  a  brigade  and  resigned.  R.  Matheson  being  elected  col— killed  at 
South  mountain— Baker  afterward  accepted  the  command  of  the  71st  Pa 
rec 't,  and  through  his  known  connection  with  the  Cal.  reg't  this  Pa  organi- 
zation was  mistakenly  called  the  First  Cal.  reg't.  Sac.  Union,  May  10,  1861; 
S.  F.  Call,  Feb.  11,  1864;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  June  19,  1861. 

11  Either  by  accident  or  design,  Gen.  Sumner  and  staff  sailed  on  the  same 
vessel  with  Senator  Gwin  and  Calhoun  Benham.  Gwin  had  returned  to  Cal. 
in  June,  and  remained  until  Oct.,  but  found  no  opportunity  to  carry  out  any 
of  the  confederate  design."  against  the  public  property,  and  was  now  depart- 
ing on  the  Oriznba  to  prosecute  them  elsewhere.  Just  before  reaching 
Panama,  on  learning  that  some  of  his  officers  had  been  approached,  Sumner 
arrested  Gwin,  Benham,  and  J.  L.  Brent  on  a  charge  of  treason,  compelling 
them  to  accompany  him  to  New  York  and  Washington.  On  the  evidence  it 
appeared  that  Gwin  expected  to  meet  Slidell  and  Mason,  the  confederate 
com'rs  to  Europe,  at  Habana,  and  proceed  with  them  abroad.  Had  not  his 
plans  been  frustrated,  he  must  have  been  arrested  in  their  company  and 
confined  in  Fort  Warren.  As  it  was,  they  had  a  brief  residence  in  Fort  La- 
fayette, and  were  released.  Benham  and  Brent  joined  the  confederate  army 
at  the  first  opportunity,  and  Gwin  spent  some  time  in  Miss,  before  going  to 
France  to  labor  for  the  recognition  of  the  confederacy.  Sumner  did  not 
seem  to  realize  that  he  had  it  in  his  power  to  discover  all  the  plans  of  the 
conspirators  on  the  Orizaba.  He  simply  sent  for  them  to  come  to  the  cap- 
tain s  office,  when  he  placed  them  under  arrest,  but  not  in  confinement. 
They  retired  to  their  rooms,  and  threw  overboard  a  quantity  of  maps  and 
papers,  a  fact  unknown  for  half  an  hour  afterward.  At  this  point  Gwin  dis- 
appears from  the  political  history  of  CaL,  whose  senator  he  had  been  for  10 
years.  Like  Lane  of  Oregon,  to  whom  his  example  was  fatal,  he  betrayed 
his  state  and  his  country.  It  remains  now  only  to  briefly  relate  his  subse- 

Sient  career  as  he  has  himself  reco'rded  it  in  his  Memoirs,  MS.  in  my  library, 
e  was  the  son  of  a  methodist  p'reacher,  and  was  born  in  Tenn.  in  1805,  was 
educated  at  Transylvania  university,  Ky,  and  for  several  years  practised 
medicine  in  Tenn.  and  Miss.  He  was  appointed  marshal  of  Miss,  about 
1833,  and  relinquished  his  profession.  In  1841  he  was  elected  to  congress. 
In  1847  he  was  appointed  to  superintend  the  erection  of  the  U.  S.  custom 
house  at  N.  O.  His  love  for  political  life  led  him  to  come  to  Cal. ,  and  take 
a  leading  part  in  the  affairs  of  the  Pacific  coast.  That  he  was  already  im- 
bued with  the  sentiments  of  disunionists,  his  record  sufficiently  proves.  He 
possessed  in  a  peculiar  degree  that  smooth  self-assertion  and  readiness  at 
extricating  himself  from  embarrassing  positions  without  blame  which  is 
knowu  as  diplomatic  talent.  That  it  did  not  save  him  from  severe  humilia- 


THE  CLERGY  285 

placed  in  command,  whose  conscientious  discharge  of 
duty  in  his  whole  department  was  of  the  greatest 
value  to  the  government  and  the  state.  Nothing  es- 
caped his  observation,  and  at  every  turn  the  disaf- 
fected were  met  with  stern  reproof. 

To  keep  public  sentiment  up  to  the  point  of  ardent 
patriotism  during  the  reverses  of  the  first  eighteen 
months  of  the  war  was  the  care  of  loyal  men  of  influ- 
ence, of  the  pulpit,  the  press,  the  military,  and  of  all 
good  men — for  it  was  not  admitted  that  a  good  man 
could  be  a  sympathizer  with  rebellion.  The  patience 

tions,  or  from  displaying  a  revolting  degree  of  sycophancy  in  his  dealings 
with  a  foreign  aristocracy,  his  own  narrative  is  evidence.  Before  proceeding 
to  the  closing  chapter  of  his  public  career,  I  cannot  refrain  from  giving  his 
statement  concerning  his  influence  in  the  conduct  of  national  affairs.  .Seward, 
he  says,  was  made  sec.  of  state  through  his,  Gwin's,  representations  to  Lin- 
coln that  it  would  be  agreeable  to  the  south;  and  that  he  had  immediately 
written  to  Jefferson  Davis  that  Seward  was  to  be  secretary,  and  there  would 
be  peace.  But  the  south  was  opposed  to  Chase  as  sec.  of  the  treasury,  and 
when  his  appointment  was  officially  announced,  he  was  forced  to  telegraph 
the  news  to  Davis  to  expect  war,  or  bear  the  opprobrium  of  having  misled 
the  south.  The  despatch  was  shown  to  Seward,  who  altered  it  to  read  that 
Chase's  selection  would  be  favorable  to  peace.  It  was  taken  to  the  telegraph 
office  by  a  mutual  friend,  who,  he  believes,  copied  it,  and  used  it  to  obtain, 
a  perilous  influence  over  Seward,  who,  he  says,  continued  to  use  him,  Gwin, 
as  an  intermediary  between  himself  and  the  southern  commissioners.  But 
when  they  demanded  something  more  than  polite  verbal  messages,  Seward 
fell  ill  of  lumbago,  and  could  see  no  one.  Gwin  accepted  his  dismissal,  and 
left  Washington,  having  discovered  that  two  could  engage 'in  the  game  of 
dissimulation  when  necessary.  Memoirs,  MS.,  186-200.  After  his  arrest,  as 
related  above,  he  went  to  Paris,  where  his  family  resided  for  several  years, 
while  he  labored  for  the  recognition  of  the  confederate  states,  the  emperor 
being  in  favor  of  it,  but  the  French  people  against  it.  Had  Slidell  and  Ma- 
son consented  to  address  a  note  to  the  emperor's  minister  of  foreign  affairs, 
stating  that  in  the  event  of  achieving  indepenence  the  confederacy  would 
pass  laws  looking  to  the  emancipation  of  slaves  in  10,  20,  or  any  number  of 
years,  the  confederacy  would  have  been  recognized.  Instead  of  entertaining 
this  proposition,  Slidell  was  so  viAlent  in  his  language  as  to  affront  the  Mar- 
quis de  Montholon,  who  offered  it.  GICMI,  Mem'.,  MS.,  202-3. 

Success  no  longer  attended  "his  best  laid  schemes,  and  the  latter  part  of 
his  life  was  spent  in  retirement  in  Cal.  The  subject  of  his  disloyalty  is 
carefully  avoided  in  his  memoirs.  That  he  dreamed  at  one  time  of  estab- 
lishing an  aristocratic  government,  in  which  he  was  to  figure  prominently, 
there  can  be  no  doubt.  He  died  in  New  York  in  the  autumn  of  1S85.  and 
was  buried  at  San  Francisco.  Of  his  private  life  little  has  been  said,  and 
that  little  not  interesting.  In  public  affairs  he  was  avaricious,  heartless,  and 
devoted  to  his  own  aggrandizement,  N.  T.  Tribune,  of  Oct.  1SS5;  MarystMc 
Herald,  Sept  26,  1854;  Crosby's  Statement,  MS.,  66-7;  AT.  O.  RepubUean,  March 
18,  1871;  Torres  Perm.,  76;  8.  F.  Alto,  July  3,  1851,  and  Nov.  12,  1863;  U. 
8.  Fordy*  Affairs,  Mess,  and  Doc.  p  111,  p.  417,  519-21;  39  ctmg;  1  sess; 
Somk,  Htm.  S.  P.,  790-3;  Contemp.  Shg.,  i.  234;  S.  F.  BnOftin,  Dec.  20,  23, 
1856,  and  Jan  4,  1857;  Gwin,  Congress.  Record,  16  pp;  Sonora  Periodic*)  Offi- 
cial, Nov.  3,  1865,  p  3;  Diana  del  Imperio;  Piitart  ColL,  MS.  passim. 


286  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

of  the  people  was  sorely  tried  when  a  presbyterian 
minister  changed  his  form  of  prayer,  calling  God's 
blessing  on  the  presidents  of  these  American  states, 
instead  of  the  president  of  the  United  States.  Minis- 
ters generally  were  haranguing  heaven  for  curses  on 
the  confederacy,  notwithstanding  their  master  had 
told  them  to  bless  their  enemies.  But,  in  truth,  it 
made  little  difference.  Trying  as  it  was,  however,  to 
know  that  Jefferson  Davis  was  prayed  for  in  a  San 
Francisco  pulpit  by  a  fashionable  preacher,  no  public 
demonstration  occurred  until  the  reverend  doctor 
voted  '  no'  to  some  loyal  resolutions  offered  in  a  meet- 
ing of  the  presbytery  by  another  preacher.12  The  pro- 
ceedings appeared  in  the  newspapers,  and  the  following 
Sunday  morning  a  United  States  flag  floated  from 
the  top  of  Calvary  church,  where  it  had  never  before 
been  seen,  and  from  each  lamp-post  in  front  of  the 
edifice  other  flags  were  flying,  while  from  the  window 
of  a  building  opposite  dangled  an  effigy  placarded  "  Dr. 
Scott,  the  reverend  traitor."  A  large  crowd  collected 
about  the  church,  and  filled  it  to  overflowing  during 
the  service.  All  ears  were  strained  to  catch  the  word- 
ing of  the  morning  prayer,  which  on  this  occasion 
contained  no  reference  to  presidents  in  the  plural.  The 
minister  after  service  reached  his  carriage  in  safety, 
though  not  without  jostling  from  the  dense  crowd. 
Though  there  had  been  no  actual  violence,  the  scene 
was  too  suggestive  to  bear  repetition,  and  resigning 
his  ministry,  Doctor  Scott  with  his  family  soon  after 
took  steamer  for  Europe.  His  friends  spoke  of  him 
as  a  martyr,  while  they  filled  his  pockets  with  gold 
for  the  journey.  This  was  one  phase  of  the  subject. 
A  different  view  was  that  presented  by  another 

13  Archbishop  Alemany,  of  the  Roman  church,  published  a  pastoral  letter 
against  divorces  and  duels,  which  he  condemned — and  ended  by  calling  at- 
tention to  the  national  divorce  and  duel,  which  of  course  came  under  the 
same  condemnation.  6'.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  25,  1861.  Of  the  career  of  this 
well-known  and  much  respected  prelate,  whose  decease  occurred  in  J889,  it 
is  unnecessary  to  make  further  mention  in  these  pages,  except  for  his  con- 
nection with  the  church,  which  will  be  noticed  in  a  later  chapter. 


COAST  DEFENCES.  287 

preacher,  Thomas  Starr  King,  whose  lectures  became 
largely  attended.  Small  of  stature,  delicate  in  health, 
with  a  soft  and  luminous  brown  eye,  betokening  his 
gentleness  of  disposition,  he  was  yet,  when  aroused, 
able  to  sway  multitudes.  All  through  the  most  doubt- 
ful and  trying  period  of  the  civil  war  his  voice  en- 
couraged and  animated  the  people,  whom  his  eloquence 
fascinated.  He  was  invited  as  far  as  Oregon  to  deliver 
one  of  his  famous  lectures.  He  lived  long  enough  to 
see  victory  perched  upon  the  union  banner,  but  not  to 
see  the  end,  dying  in  the  spring  of  1864,  of  diphtheria. 
From  the  roof  of  his  church  the  national  flag  was 
kept  flying  during  the  four  years'  struggle.  Indeed, 
to  hang  his  banner  on  the  outward  wall  became  the 
ambition  of  many  householders. 

In  October  the  propriety  of  maintaining  a  coast 
guard  and  training  artillerymen  was  discussed  in  the 
public  prints.  It  was  urged,  with  truth,  that  the 
harbor  of  San  Francisco  was  poorly  defended,  and 
that  against  a  single  privateer  no  effectual  resistance 
could  be  made  with  the  guns  of  Alcatraz  and  Fort 
Point,  the  danger  from  which  to  a  ship  in  passing 
would  be  momentary,  whereas  the  peril  of  the  town 
would  be  imminent,  and  might  be  fatal.  Temporary 
fortifications  and  water-batteries  were  suggested  by 
the  state  adjutant-general,  and  the  legislature  was 
recommended  to  avail  itself  of  the  aid  of  Colonel  de 
Hussy,  a  competent  engineer  at  that  time  on  the  coast. 
Nothing,  however,  was  undertaken,  although  alarms 
frequently  existed,  and  more  than  one  danger  was 
averted  by  discovery."  The  government  occasionally 

u  Several  efforts  had  been  made  by  certain  parties  to  purchase  fast-sail- 
ing vessels  upon  a  pretence  of  wishing  to  convey  munitions  of  war  to  the 
assistance  of  Mexico  against  the  French,  and  to  enjoy  a  trade  in  such  arti- 
cles. So  plausible  were  these  representations  that  loyal  merchants,  not- 
withstanding federal  and  state  laws  intended  to  prohibit  the  exportation  of 
military  supplies,  were  prevailed  upon  to  sell  privately  a  cargo  of  mired 
goods,  arms,  powder,  etc.,  to  one  Ridgely  Greathouse  and  his  agents,  to  be 
placed  on  board  the  fast-sailing  clipper  schooner,  the  J.  W.  Chapman^  which 
arrived  out  from  New  York  in  Feb.  1863,  and  was  sold  to  Greathonse.  The 
movements  of  her  purchasers  had  not  escaped  the  observation  of  the  naval 
authorities  in  the  harbor,  and  at  the  moment  when  she  was  ready  to  quit  the 


288  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

sent  an  armed  vessel  into  the  Pacific,  and  finally  fitted 
out  two  cruisers  for  the  protection  of  the  coast,  be- 
side dispatching  to  San  Francisco  an  iron  monitor  in 
sections,  to  be  put  together  by  a  local  firm  whose  long 
dalliance  with  the  contract  caused  them  to  be  accused 
of  treachery,  the  Aquilla,  which  had  the  plates,  being 
sunk  at  her  wharf  without  apparent  cause.  So  long 
was  the  completion  of  the  Monitor  postponed  that 
she  was  never  of  any  service  to  the  state  or  to  the 
Pacific  coast. 

port  she  was  boarded  by  boats  from  the  man-of-war  Cyane  lying  in  the 
harbor,  and  her  officers  and  crew  placed  under  arrest.  The  Chapman  was 
found  to  have  on  board,  besides  her  cargo  of  miscellaneous  goods,  shipped  by 
merchants  to  Manzanillo,  cannon,  arms  and  ammunition,  and  a  party  of 
armed  men  concealed  in  the  hold.  Search  revealed  a  supply  of  uniforms 
provided  for  the  intended  pirates,  the  oath  of  secrecy  to  be  taken  before  go- 
ing into  an  engagement,  and  other  papers  of  importance  showing  the  nature 
of  the  undertaking.  Upon  a  separate  examination  of  the  prisoners,  it  was 
ascertained  that  the  purpose  of  the  conspirators  was  to  throw  overboard  the 
cargo  on  getting  to  sea,  and  take  on  board  further  supplies  at  a  rendezvous 
on  the  southern  coast,  to  which  they  had  been  sent  to  avoid  suspicion.  After 
that  the  vessel  was  to  lie  in  wait  for  the  steamship  Oregon,  capture  her, 
transfer  the  armament  of  the  C/iapman  to  the  steamer,  and  use  the  latter  to 
capture  two  or  more  of  the  treasure -laden  steamers  from  S.  F.,  after  which 
the  pirates  would  repair  to  Victoria,  V.  I. ,  to  divide  the  spoils.  In  connec- 
tion with  this  piratical  scheme  was  a  plan  to  form  secret  associations  of  men 
favorable  to  the  confederacy  in  every  community,  who  were  to  be  secretly 
armed,  and  when  their  numbers  were  deemed  sufficient  to  meet  at  Sac. ,  cut 
the  telegraph  wires,  seize  a  steamboat,  run  down  to  Benicia,  secure  the 
arsenal,  take  by  surprise  Fort  Point  and  Alcatraz,  which  three  objects  being 
accomplished,  they  would  declare  Cal.  out  of  the  union,  and  one  of  the  con- 
federate states.  The  conspirators  besides  Greathouse  were  Alfred  Rubery, 
an  Englishman;  W.  W.  Mason,  of  Alabama,  nephew  of  the  confederate 
comm'r  to  England,  and  a  disorderly  fellow;  Asbury  Harpending,  a  violent 
secessionist,  and  author  of  the  enterprise;  Albron  T.  Crow,  late  of  the  con- 
federate army;  John  E.  Kent,  a  sympathizer,  from  111.;  Wm  C.  Low,  of 
New  York,  commander,  who  offered  to  turn  state's  evidence;  Lorezo  L. 
Libby,  1st  officer;  Thomas  Reole,  Joseph  W.  Smith,  alias  Snyder,  of  Ky; 
Alfred  Armond,  Ottawa,  C.  W.;  Henry  C.  Boyd,  of  Del.;  R.  H.  Duval,  of 
Florida;  William  D.  Moore,  J.  W.  McFadden,  William  W.  Maron,  D.  W. 
Brown,  John  Fletcher,  James  Smith,  George  W.  Davis,  M.  H.  Marshall,  five 
sailors,  and  cabin  boys.  The  principals,  who  proved  to  be  Greathouse, 
Harpending,  and  Rubery,  were  convicted  on  trial,  sentenced  to  ten  years  im- 
prisonment, and  to  pay  a  fine  of  $10,000,  each,  and  confined  in  Fort  Lafa- 
yette. The  president  pardoned  the  Englishman,  at  the  solicitation  of  John 
Bright,  and  Greathouse  was  '  released  by  Judge  Hoffman's  strict  construc- 
tion of  the  amnesty  proclamation.'  Some  authorities  say  that  he  escaped 
and  went  to  Europe.  A  plot  to  take  Mare  island  and  the  Navy-yard  was 
discovered  only  a  little  later  than  the  Chapman  affair.  The  steamboat 
OwuMupe,  in  Napa  creek  was  to  be  taken  by  a  force  of  200  men  who  were 
to  cross  over  to  Vallejo,  take  the  works  and  gov't  shipping  by  surprise,  and 
with  the  vessels  and  arms  obtained,  the  plotters  were  to  make  an  assault  on 
S.  F.  The  discovery  of  the  conspiracy  was  its  defeat;  but  it  was  of  sufficient 
importance  to  detain  the  U.  S.  steamer  Saginaw  from  leaving  the  harbor. 


PARTY  POLITICS.  289 

That  portion  of  the  population  which  gave  the  most 
trouble  was  in  the  southern  counties,  requiring  volun- 
teer companies  to  be  stationed  at  some  points,  which 
perhaps  did  not  pour  oil  on  the  troubled  waters.  The 
Tulare  Post  was  the  organ  of  the  fire-eaters,  whose 
diatribes  stirred  up  the  ire  of  the  "  blood-hounds  of 
Zion "  as  the  union  men  were  denominated.  The 
quarrel  was  carried  into  local  politics,  the  anti-coer- 
cionists  electing  their  candidate  to  the  legislature,  as 
well  as  filling  the  county  offices.  The  Post  became 
the  Equal  Rights  Expositor,  more  fire-devouring,  if  pos- 
sible, than  its  predecessor.  Finally  its  publishers 
were  arrested  by  the  commanding  officer  at  Camp 
Babbitt,  and  imprisoned  at  that  post.  One  of  them 
took  the  oath  of  loyalty,  the  other  refused,  and  was 
discharged  by  order  of  General  Wright.  Both  re- 
turned to  the  publication  of  the  disloyal  journal, 
which  was  destroyed  by  the  troops  after  two  of  the 
volunteers  had  been  killed  in  some  of  the  quarrels, 
which  were  of  daily  occurrence.  This  state  of  affairs 
lasted  throughout  the  war.  There  was  never  a  mo- 
ment when  the  advocates  of  secession  and  anti-coer- 
cion did  not  assert  their  freedom  from  any  allegiance 
to  the  o-overnment."  Soon  after  the  rebellion  closed, 

^j 

and  the  union  was  restored,  it  took  several  years  for 
this  class  to  learn  that  they  could  not  still  control 
public  affairs  in  these  counties. 

Congress  required  passports  to  be  taken  by  immi- 
grants from  the  east  to  California,  to  prevent  insur- 
gents from  embarking  for  England  and  France  via 
Aspinwall.  But  immigration  from  California  over- 
land into  the  rebel  states  was  comparatively  secure, 
and  in  the  early  months  of  the  war  was  frequent. 
This  way  went  Terry,  Daniel  Showalter,  and  other 
noted  secessionists.  To  check  seditious  adventures 
General  Wright  made  Fort  Yuma  a  strong  post  and 
military  prison,  threatening  disloyalty  with  condign 
punishment.  In  this  solitary  citadel  Showalter  and 
a  number  of  his  associates  were  confined  in  the  winter 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VH.    19 


290  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

of  1861-2  for  several  months,  but  finally  liberated, 
representation  being  made  to  General  Wright  by 
Showalter  that  the  incriminating  letters  and  papers 
upon  which  the  arrests  had  been  made  were  known  to 
him  alone,  and  that  there  was  no  organization,  as  had 
been  believed,  of  recruits  for  the  southern  confederacy, 
but  merely  an  accidental  meeting  of  persons  travelling 
in  the  same  direction.  Showalter,  at  least,  made  use 
of  his  liberty  to  join  the  confederate  army.  Pass- 
ports were  afterward  required  to  be  granted  by  the 
commander  of  the  department  before  travellers  could 
pass  the  frontier  of  California  in  the  direction  of 
Texas.  The  conduct  of  certain  army  officers  in 
Arizona,  and  a  rumor  that  secessionists  under  Van 
Dorn  were  marching  upon  California  led  Sumner  in 
the  early  part  of  September  1861  to  publish  a  gen- 
eral order:  "No  federal  troops  in  this  department  of 
the  Pacific  will  ever  surrender  to  rebels ; "  which 
laconic  hint  was  not  disregarded  by  plotters  in  and 
out  of  the  state. 

With  military  encampments  on  every  hand  for  the 
training  of  the  state  and  volunteer  troops,  California 
developed  a  readiness  in  the  pursuit  of  war  which 
could  not  have  been  expected  of  a  community  seem- 
ingly devoted  to  mining,  commerce,  and  agriculture. 
That  portion  of  the  people  heretofore  engaged  in 
managing  the  politics  of  the  state  found  their  occupa- 
tion gone  and  their  power  passed  away.  They  were 
unable  to  elect  more  than  a  small  minority  to  the 
legislature,  and  the  state  and  federal  offices  had  slipped 
from  their  grasp.  The  death  of  Douglas,  in  June 
1861,  left  the  Douglas  democracy  without  a  leader. 
The  Breckenridge  party,  which  still  held  together, 
and  which  dared  not  bring  out  a  decided  secession 
platform,  adopted  the  principle  that  California  could 
not  be  neutral  in  the  pending  conflict,  but  must  either 
remain  in  the  union  or  go  out  of  it,  and  the  party  in- 
tended it  should  remain  in;  the  duty  of  California, 
moreove^  was  to  contend  in  congress  for  peace.  If 


REPUBLICAN  VICTORY.  291 

peace  could  not  be  had  with  union,  then  the  southern 
states  should  be  allowed  to  depart  without  an  effort 
being  made  to  subjugate  them.  Before  announcing 
these  principles  the  Breckenridge  men  had  offered  to 
fuse  with  the  regular  democratic  party,  which,  how- 
ever, rejected  them. 

The  republican  party,  having  achieved  a  great  vic- 
tory in  1860,  was  reluctant  to  relinquish  any  of  its 
honors,  and  so  declined  the  overtures  of  the  union 
men  irrespective  of  party  in  the  democratic  ranks, 
and  in  1861  enjoyed  the  satisfaction  of  a  victory  in 
the  election  of  a  republican  state  ticket.  Leland  Stan- 
ford, one  of  the  founders  of  the  republican  party  in 
California,  was  elected  governor.  It  was  alleged  that' 
he  would  have  been  elected  without  the  help  of 
political  opponents  who  voted  for  him  to  make  sure  of 
a  union  governor.14  The  republicans  carried  the  elec- 
tion by  a  great  majority,  but  they  said  little  about 
their  gains,  knowing  that  it  was  a  desire  to  save  the 
union,  and  prevent  revolution  in  California,  which 
had  so  swelled  their  ranks.16  In  1862  they  acknowl- 
edged the  propriety  of  this  action  by  dropping  the 
name  of  republicans,  and  coming  out  as  a  union  party 
to  which  all  loyal  men  might  belong. 

The  congressmen  elected  by  the  republicans  in 
1861,  were  Aaron  A.  Sargent,  Timothy  G.  Phelps, 
and  Frederick  F.  Low.17  Sargent  was  from  Massa- 

"McDamets  Early  Days,  MS.,  44-5;  Staples  Statement,  MS.,  14;  U.  8. 
Stn,  Doc.,  4,  voL  iv,  37  cong.  2  sess.;  S.  F.  AUa,  Feb.  5,  1862;  Doc.,  22; 
Misc.  Hist.  P. 

15  The  Breckenridge  men  called  themselves  the  regular  democrats,  and 
nominated  John  R.  McConnell  of  Nevada.  The  union  democrats  nominated 
John  Conn  ess;  the  settlers,  a  local  Sac.  ticket,  nominated  Conness  also. 
The  republicans,  Stanford,  and  for  lieut-gov.,  J.  F.  Chelles  of  Trinity, 
Stanford  received  nearly  53,000  votes  or  almost  double  that  of  either  of  the 
other  candidates.  Wm  H.  Weeks  of  Sac.  was  elected  sec.  of  state;  Gilbert 
R.  Warren,  of  Stockton,  comptroller;  D.  R.  Ashley,  of  Monterey,  treasurer; 
Frank  M.  Pixley,  of  S.  F.,  attorney-general;  J.  F.  Houghton,  Sac.,  snrv.- 
gen.;  John  Swett,  supt  pub.  inst.;  W.  C.  Kibbe,  ajdt-gen;  Benjamin  P. 
Avery,  of  Marysville,  state  printer.  Edward  Norton  was  elected  supreme 
judge  in  place  of  Baldwin,  term  expired. 

l6DwinfOe,  Notice*  of  CaL,  ix.;  Hayes'  Scraps,  Angeles,  vi.;  S.  F.  AUa, 
July  1,  1862. 

17  The  U.  S.  act  allowing  CaL  three  congressmen  had  not  been  passed, 


292  PERIOD   OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

chusetts,  had  been  a  printer,  and  was  one  of  the 
"  argonauts,"  as  well  as  one  of  the  founders  of  repub- 
licanism in  California.  He  labored  for  the  construc- 
tion of  a  Pacific  railroad,  and  with  marked  success, 
as  will  appear  in  the  later  chapters  of  this  volume. 
Starr  King  was  asked  to  enter  the  race  with  Sargent, 
Conness,  Hoge,  Shurtleff,  and  others,  but  declined; 
his  ways  were  not  as  their  ways. 

It  was  the  hope  of  good  men  that  with  the  retire- 
ment of  the  party  which,  had  so  long  ruled  California, 
certain  political  practices,  such  as  lobbying,  bribery, 
extravagance  and  dishonesty  in  office,  with  similar 
evils,  would  be  abandoned,  and  that  the  new  party  in 
power  would  set  an  example  of  reform.  I  cannot  say 
that  all  of  them  did  so  conduct  themselves.  Like  other 
victors,  they  claimed  the  spoils.  The  public  journals 
still  complained  of  venality  in  the  legislature.  "And 
why  not?"  said  the  new  men.  "The  democrats  have 
enjoyed  these  privileges  and  perquisites  for  many 
years,  why  should  not  we  ?  "  Millions  for  spoils,  and 
not  one  cent  for  reform.  But  their  legislation  after 
all  was  not  really  bad,  and  they  were  intensely  loyal  I 
And  how  could  it  be  possible,  when  heaven  itself  is 
set  before  us  as  a  reward,  and  not  as  a  sequence,  of 
our  actions,  that  a  man  who  serves  his  country  should 
not  want  office  ?  or  that  the  new  president  should  not 
be  overwhelmed  with  applications  for  places  under  the 
government?  Baker,  who  had  only  gone  to  Oregon 
to  be  made  a  senator  of  the  United  States,  to  be 
nearer  his  former  intimate  friend,  Abraham  Lincoln, 
and  who  felt  himself  at  heart  a  Californian,  could  not 
help  suggesting  to  the  president  his  choice  of  men  to 
fill  important  places.  The  intrusion  upon  their  pre- 
rogative was  quickly  resented  by  the  Californian  dele- 
gation, and  Lincoln,  with  his  usual  good  sense,  put  an 
end  to  the  quarrel  by  giving  the  Californian s  their 

but  was  passed  at  the  29th  sess.  37  cong.,  see  p.  102  acts  of  that  session. 
For  Low  s  arguments  on  his  right  to  a  seat  see  U.  S.  H.  Misc.  Doc.,  4  and  19, 
37  cong.  2  sess. 


THE  SESSION  IN  SAN  FRANCISCO.  293 

choice.16  Soon  afterward,  Baker  left  the  senate 
chamber  for  the  battle-field,  on  whose  bloody  plain  he 
was  stricken  down  in  October  1861.  The  first  through 
despatch  on  the  completed  overland  telegraph  brought 
the  intelligence  of  his  death. 

The  winter  of  1861-2  being  the  season  of  a  great 
and  destructive  inundation  of  the  Sacramento  valley, 
the  legislature,  and  the  government  in  all  its  depart- 
ments, was  forced  to  adjourn  to  San  Francisco  in  Jan- 
uary, at  which  place  the  session  was  continued  to  its 
close.19  The  Sacramentans  feared  this  might  be 

18  The  most  important  appointments  of  the  president  in  1861  were  as 
follows:  collector  at  S.  F.,  Ira  P.  Rankin;  appraisers,  S.  J.  Bridge  and  R 
W.  Madge;  collector  at  Benicia,  S.  M.  Swain;  at  Monterey,  John  F.  Porter; 
at  Stockton,  S.  W.  Sperry;  at  San  Diego,  Joshua  Sloan;  at  San  Pedro,  Oscar 
Many;  at  Sta  Barbara,  S.  B.  Brinkenhoff:  supt.  of  the  mint,  R.  S.  Stevens; 
coiners,  William  Schmalz  and  Conrad  Wiegand;  Bub-treasurer,  D.  W.  Chees- 
man:  post-master,  S.  H.  Parker;  register  of  land-office  at  S.  F.,  George  B. 
Tingley;  receiver  of  public  moneys,  R.  H.  Waller;  register  at  Los  Angeles, 
Antonio  Maria  Pico;  receiver,  Louis  Sperry,  register  at  Stockton,  George 
D.  Webster;  at  Visalia,  Henry  W.  Briggs;  at  Humboldt,  John  W.  Eddy; 
at  Marysville,  A.  J.  Snyder;  receiver  at  Visalia,  George  M.  Gerrish;  at 
Marysville.  J.  Compton;  at  Humboldt,  William  Pratt;  postmaster  at  Sac., 
George  Rowland;  William  Rabe,  U.  S.  marshal  of  the  northern  dist;  William 
B.  Sharp,  U.  S.  atty;  George  M.  Hanson,  Ind.  supt.;  Henry  D.  Barrows, 
marshal;  Kimbell  H.  Dimmeck,  att'y;  Minor  Frank,  Ind  supt  of  the 
southern  dist. 

"The  senate  of  1862  was  composed  of  the  following  members:  hold-over 
senators,  A.  L.  Rhodes,  Richard  Irwin,  P.  A.  Gallagher,  A.  St  Clair  Denver, 
O.  Harvey,  S.  A.  Merritt,  William  Watt,  PhiL  W.  Thomas,  James  McM. 
Shafter,  E.  H.  Heacock,  F.  M.  Warmcastle,  John  H.  Hill.  C.  V.  William- 
son, William  H.  Parks,  C.  E.  De  Long;  republicans  3,  union  democrats  9, 
secessionists  3.  Elected  in  1862:  J.  C.  Bogart,  San  Diego  and  San  Bernar- 
dino; J.  R.  Vineyard,  Los  Angeles;  R.  Pacheco,  Sta  Barbara  and  San  Luis 
Obispo;  Thomas  Baker,  Tnlare  and  Fresno;  G.  K.  Porter,  Santa  Cruz  and 
Monterey;  B.  W.  Hathaway,  Samuel  Sonle,  R.  F.  Perkins,  J.  A.  Banks, 
San  Mateo  and  S.  F.;  A.  M.  Crane,  Alameda;  C.  H.  Chamberlin,  San  Joa- 
quin;  L.  Quint,  Tuolumne  and  Mono;  William  T.  Lewis,  Calaveras;  R.  Bnr- 
nell,  Amador;  A.  B.  Nixon,  Sac.;  O.  R  Powers,  Solano  and  Yolo;  William 
Holden,  Xapa,  Lake,  and  Mendocino;  W.  D.  Harriman,  Placer;  Joseph 
Kutz,  Nevada;  William  KimbalL  Sierra;  R.  C.  Gaskell,  Butte.  J.  G.  Dall, 
Te  ha  ma  and  Colnsa;  Benjamin  Shurtleff,  Shasta  and  Trinity;  W.  Van  Dyke, 
Humboldt,  Klamatb,  and  Del  Norte;  George  B.  Oulton,  Siskiyou.  Repub- 
licana  14.  union  democrats  7,  secessionists  4.  The  officers  chosen  were  J. 
McM.  Shafter  pres't  pro  tern.,  Thomas  Hill  sec,,  A.  A.  De  Long  ass't  sec., 
Archil>ald  G.  Turner  serg't-at-anns,  Charles  E.  Abbott  minute  clerk,  W.  F. 
Henstis  journal  clerk,  rL  C.  Kibbe  enrolling  clerk,  George  A.  Gillespie  en- 
grossing clerk,  George  C.  Harriman,  C.  B.  Bonestel  copying  clerks;  three 
porters,  4  pages,  and  a  paper-folder. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of  S.  B.  Bell,  J.  M.  Moore,  Alameda:  G.  W. 
Seaton,  W.  A.  Waddell,  Amador;  J.  M.  Kunnard,  George  W.  Printy,  Butte; 
Ihomas  Campbell,  J.  W.  Griswold,  Thomas  O'Brien,  Calaveras;  C.  R  Por- 
ter, Contra  Costa;  Seneca  Dean,  J.  Frasier,  J.  H.  Dennis,  H.  G.  Parker,  El 


294  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

taken  advantage  of  to  create  a  movement  for  a  perma- 
nent change  of  capital,  but  the  following  winter  saw 
the  legislature  reestablished  in  the  legal  seat  of  gov- 
ernment. The  session  of  1861-2  was  a  long  one,  the 
members  sitting  as  a  high  court  of  impeachment  to 
try  Hardy,  judge  of  the  16th  district,  upon  charges 
of  disloyalty  and  violation  of  his  oath  of  office.  His 
sentence  was  dismissal  from  the  bench.  It  must  be 
admitted,  I  think,  that  while  the  evidence  was  suffi- 
cient to  convict  on  the  counts,  the  trial  was  brought 
on  quite  as  much  by  the  recollection  of  previous  defi- 
ance of  law  and  travesties  of  justice2'  as  by  the  more 
recent  offences. 

Among  the  concurrent  resolutions  passed  was  a  re- 
newed pledge  of  loyalty,  and  one  authorizing  the  gov- 
ernor to  notify  by  telegraph  the  secretary  of  the 
United  States  treasury  of  the  intention  o.  California 
to  pay  at  once  the  direct  tax  of  $254,538,  apportioned 
•  to  the  state  by  congress,  as  her  share  of  the  interest  on 
the  public  debt.  There  was  no  niggardliness.  Money 
was  poured  out  in  every  way  that  could  help  the  gov- 

Doraclo;  James  Smitn,  Fresno;  G.  W.  Werk,  Humboldt;  S.  P.  Wright, 
Klamath  and  Del  Norte;  James  A.  Watson,  Murray  Morrison,  Los  Angeles; 

A.  C.  McAllister,  Mariii;  J.  G.  McCullough,  Mariposa;  T.  W.  Lane,  Merced 
and  Stanislaus;  T.  M.  Ames,  Mendocino;  Juan  W.  Cot,  Monterey;  Edward 
Evey,  Napa  and  Lake;  J.  M.  Avery,  James  Collins,  William  H.  Sears,  Reu- 
ben Leach,  Nevada;  John  Yule,  E.  W.  Hillyer,  C.  C.  Dudley,  Placer;  T.  B. 
Shannon,  Plumas;  J.  E.  Benton,  W.  H.  Barton,  J.  H.  Warwick,  R.  D.  Fer- 
guson, J.  B.  Saul,  Sac. ;  Benjamin  Barton,  San  Bernardino;  D.  B.  Hoffman, 
San  Diego;  S.  S.  Tilton,  William  Lowry,  James  Otis,  George  Barstow,  J.  W. 
Van  Zandt,  George  B.  Reeve,  W.  W.  Battles,  George  Amerige,  Caleb  T.  Fay, 

B.  Dare,  William  T.  Reese,  S.  C.  Bigelow,  S.  F. ;  John  Thompson,  Samuel 
Myers,  San  Joaquin;  C.  W.  Dana,   San  Luis  Obispo  and  Sta  Barbara;  S. 
Tilton,  San  Mateo;  Charles  Maclay,  Joseph  E.  Brown,  John  Zuck,  Sta  Clara; 
T.  Eager,  Sta  Cruz;  George  W.  Woodman,  Shasta;  D.  Love,  E.  B.  Smith, 
Sierra;  William  Irwin,  C.  N.  Thornbury,  Siskiyou;  J.  M.  Dudley,  Solano; 
W.  A.  Ellason,  G.  W.  Reed,  J.  G.  Dow,  Sonoma;  C.  E.  Wilcoxon,  Sutter; 
J.  W.  Thompson,  Tehama  and  Colusa;  J.  H.  Matthews,  Trinity;  J.  C.  Pem- 
berton,  Tulare;  T.  N.  Machin,  C.  W.  Kendall,  B.  K.  Davis,  Tuolumne  and 
Mono;  I.  N.  Hoag,  Yolo;  J.  C.  Sargent,  E.  Teegarden,  T.  O.  Jackson,  Yuba. 
Republicans  41,  union  democrats  29,  secessionists  10.     Officers  of  the  house: 
George  Barstow  speaker,  John  Sedgwick,  W.  N.  Slocum,  W.  G.  Wood,  H. 
H.  Fellows,  Sheldon  Allen,  George  A.  Hill,   George  C.   Hough,  C.  T.  Jen- 
nings  clerks,   H.  J.   Clayton,  Jeremiah  Watts   serg'ts-at-arms.  Cal.   Jour. 
Astern.,  1862,  25-6. 

=*  Notably  the  failure  to  try  Terry  for  the  killing  of  Broderick.     See  Sen. 
and  Assemb.  Jour.,  1862,  App,  Rept,  37,  p.  703;  Cal.  Stat.,  18G2,  613. 


PECUNIARY  AID.  -.5 

eminent.  The  encampments  with  which  the  state 
was  charged  cost  the  treasury  $200,000  in  1863.  The 
United  States  sanitary  commission,  from  first  to  last, 
received  from  California  $1,234,257.31."  Fortunately 
for  the  liberal  desires  of  the  people,  the  mines  of  Ne- 
vada, owned  chiefly  by  Californians,  were  yielding  at 
this  period  an  amount  of  bullion  which  seemed  to  >X 
justify  a  prodigal  generosity.  J/' 

The  number  of  electors  in  the  military  service  of 
the  United  States  caused  the  legislature  of  1863  to 
pass  an  act  requiring  the  adjutant-general  of  the  state 
to  make  out  a  list  of  their  names,  from  which  separate 
lists  should  be  sent  to  the  commander  of  each  regiment 
in  camp,  with  ballot-boxes,  that  the  volunteers  might 
not  be  deprived  of  the  privilege  of  voting  at  the  elec- 
tion of  that  year.  This  law  was  called  in  question  by 
certain  candidates  who  were  beaten  by  volunteer 
votes,  and  the  courts,  district  and  supreme,  declared 
that  the  soldiers'  ballots  should  be  excluded  from  the 
count,"  judges  Sawyer,  Shafter,  and  Rhodes  agree- 
ing, and  Currey  and  Sanderson  dissenting.  The 
legislature  asserted  its  superiority  to  the  courts  by 
renewing  the  act  hi  1864,  and  volunteer  votes  were 
not  again  questioned. 

The  invitation  of  the  republicans  to  the  loyal  demo- 
crats to  join  them  in  a  union  party,  irrespective  of  old 

aThe  movement  for  sanitary  help  began  in  1862,  in  S.  F.,  -when  in  one 
evening  $6,600  was  subscribed  by  a  few  persons,  and  it  was  proposed  to  sys- 
tematize the  work  of  collecting  funds.  The  matter  was  taken  op  by  the 
board  of  supervisors,  and  public  meeting  appointed  for  Sept.  10th,  when  a 
committee  was  chosen  consisting  of  M.  C.  Blake,  Eugene  Casserly,  R.  G. 
Sneath,  D.  C.  McRuer,  and  S.  H.  Washburn,  afterward  increased  to  13. 
Before  the  middle  of  Sept.  $160,000  had  been  subscribed  and  remitted  in 
one  bill  of  exchange.  Two  weeks  later  another  $100,000  was  sent,  and  be- 
fore the  dose  of  the  year  the  third  $100,000.  Up  to  the  time  that  CaL 
opened  .  long  purse  the  work  in  the  east  was  insignificant;  after  that  it 
became  au  ^titution,  and  during  the  duration  of  the  war  was  carried  on  in 
a  liberal  spin:,  bnt  nowhere  so  generously  as  on  our  Pacific  coast.  The  pres. 
of  the  U.  S.  sanitary  commission,  W.  Bellows,  paid  a  visit  to  S.  F.  in  the 
spring  of  1864  to  address  the  people;  $200,000  was  paid  to  him,  ami  as  said 
above  the  total  amount  contributed  was  over  a  million  dollars.  Nevada, 
Oregon,  and  other  west  coast  territories  contributed  $234, 506  25.  Sleek,  Hut. 
U.  S.  Sfa.  Com.,  197-243  and  app.  No.  5. 

*CaL  Sup.  Gmrt,  Soldier*  Vote,  pp.  24;  Sac.  Uma*,  Feb.  S,  1864. 


PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR 

party  lines,  and  its  acceptance,  was  the  distinguishing 
feature  of  California  politics  in  1862.  To  it  was  added 
the  intimation  that  there  would  be  a  departure  from 
established  practices  in  the  matter  of  political  bribery 
by  the  new  party.  The  constitutional  amendments, 
making  the  governor's  term  of  .office  four  years,  the 
legislative  sessions  biennial,  and  changing  the  judicial 
system,  were  adopted  by  the  people  in  1862,  and  con- 
firmed by  the  legislature  in  1863." 

23  The  senators  elected  in  1862  for  the  legislature  of  1863,  the  last  under 
the  annual  rule  were,  besides  the  hold-over  members  elected  the  previous 
year  J.  G.  McCullough,  Merced,  Mariposa,  and  Stanislaus;  Joseph  S. 
Wallis,  Sta  Clara;  Alexander  G.  Abell,  G.  W.  Clark,  M.  S.  Whiting,  S.  F. ; 
C.  B.  Porter,  Contra  Costa  and  Marin;  Joseph  M.  Cavis,  Tuolumne  and 
Mono;  William  Higby,  Calaveras;  O.  Harvey,  A.  H.  Sexton,  El  Dorado; 
Newton  Booth,  Sac. ;  James  H.  McNabb,  Sonoma;  T.  B.  Higgins,  Placer; 
J.  C.  Birdseye,  Nevada;  Francis  Anderson,  Sierra;  William  H.  Park,  Yuba 
and  Sutter;  Lewis  Cunuingham,  Yuba;  Thomas  B.  Shannon,  Butte  and 
Plumas.  All  were  chosen  on  the  administration  ticket.  The  officers  of  the 
assembly  chosen  were:  A.  M.  Crane,  pres't  pro  tern;  John  White,  sec.;  H. 
G.  Stebbins,  asst  sec.;  George  I.  Lytle,  E.  W.  Councilman,  sergt-at-arms; 
John  E.  VanDareo,  W.  F.  Heustis,  J.  B.  Reed,  Robert  Henderson,  L.  M. 
Foulke,  Holland  Smith,  clerks. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of  Thomas  Scott,  Henry  Robinson,  Alameda; 
A.  B.  Andrews,  E.  M.  Simpson,  Amador;  F.  M.  Smith,  J.  G.  Moore,  Butte; 
Teuton  G.  McDonald,  James  Barclay  (Thomas  Campbell,  elected,  died), 
Calaveras;  T.  G.  Butler,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  T.  G.  Wright,  Contra  Costa; 
S.  W.  Sanderson,  Thomas  Fitch,  J.  R,  Clark,  James  Burr,  El  Dorado;  James 
Smith,  Fresno  (elected,  died);  Stephen  G.  Whipple,  Humboldt;  S.  P.  Wright, 
Klamath  and  Del  Norte;  E.  J.  C.  Kewen,  J.  A.  Watson,  Los  Angeles; 
Robert  Torrence,  Marin;  J.  W.  Wilcox,  Mariposa;  T.  M.  Ames,  Mendocino; 
James  W.  Robertson,  Merced  and  Stanislaus;  M.  A.  Castro,  Monterey; 
Chancellor  Hartsan,  Napaand  Lake;  James  Collins,  William  H.  Sears.  John 
M.  Rule,  Seth  Martin,  Nevada;  C.  C.  Dudley,  John  Yale,  N.  W.  Blanchard, 
Placer;  M.  D.  Howell,  Plumas;  W.  H.  Barton,  M.  M.  Estee,  Amos  Adams, 
J.  H.  Warwick,  Charles  Duncombe,  Sac.;  R.  S.  Allen,  San  Bernardino; 
George  A.  Johnson,  San  Diego;  George  Barstow,  Henry  L.  Dodge,  O.  P. 
Sutton,  John  E.  Kincaid,  Cyrus  Palmer,  Jacob  Duth,  James  A.  Banks,  John 
F.  Swift,  Hugh  Farley,  Benjamin  Dore,  Andrew  J.  Gunninson,  William  R. 
Wheaton,  S.  F.;  T.  J.  Keys,  Samuel  Myers,  San  Joaquin;  Ramon  J.  Hill, 
San  Luis  Obispo  and  Sta  Barbara;  James  G.  Denniston,  San  Mateo;  J.  J. 
Owen,  J.  W.  Owen,  D.  W.  Harrington,  Sta  Clara;  I.  C.  Wilson,  Sta  Cruz; 
J.  N.  Chappell,  Shasta;  E.  B.  Smith,  James  Crawford,  Sierra;  William 
Irwin,  B.  T.  Varney,  Siskiyou;  J.  M.  Dudley,  Solano;  E.  F.  Dunne,  W.  M. 
Rider,  J.  B.  Beeson,  Sonoma;  C.  S.  Harwell,  Sutter;  M.  W.  P^rsonette, 
Trinity;  J.  W.  Freeman,  Tulare  and  Buena  Vista;  T.  N.  Ma  a,  N.  M. 
Orr,  Frederick  Lux,  Tuolumne  and  Mono;  Edwin  Patten,  Y  ,  J.  C.  Sar- 
gent, 0.  F.  Redfield,  D.  O.  Adkinson,  Yuba.  All  were  electe  ^  on  the  union 
administration  ticket,  except  10  union  democrats  who  would  not  fuse,  and  7 
secessionists.  Ou  a  joint  ballot  there  were  94  administration,  15  union  demo- 
crats, and  1 1  secessionists  from  the  southern  counties.  The  officers  of  the 
assembly  were:  T.  N.  Machin,  speaker;  James  Collins,  speaker  pro  tern.; 
N.  G.  Wortlungton,  W.  N.  Slocum,  W.  G.  Wood,  James  G.  Smith,  G.  H. 
Marble,  George  A.  Hill,  H.  Policy,  E.  M.  Lynde,  clerks;  Thomas  Eager, 
A.  H.  \Vinu,  sg  ts-at-arms.  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  5,  18G3;  Cal  Jour.  Sen.,  1863,20.21. 


ACTS  OF  THE  LEGISLATURE.  297 

By  every  act  possible,  except  one,  the  state  of  Cal- 
ifornia, through  its  legislature,  declared  its  devotion 
to  the  government.  It  appropriated  $24,260,  which 
State-treasurer  Ashley  had  saved  to  the  treasury  by 
paying  the  federal  tax  in  legal  tender  notes  instead  of 
the  gold  collected,  to  the  purpose  of  aiding  recruiting 
officers  in  filling  up  the  volunteer  regiments.  It  ap- 
propriated $5,000  out  of  the  general  fund  for  the  re- 
lief of  the  family  of  Colonel  Roderick  Matheson,  who 
was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Crampton  Gap  October  2, 
1862.  For  placing  the  coast  in  a  more  efficient  state 
of  defence  it  appropriated  $100,000;  and  §600,000 
was  set  aside  as  a  separate  fund,  to  be  known  as  the 
Soldiers'  Relief  Fund,  for  the  purpose  of  paying  a 
compensation  to  volunteers  in  the  service  of  the 
United  States  over  and  above  their  regular  army  pay. 
It  enacted  the  law  in  reference  to  soldier's  election 
privileges  already  mentioned,  which  a  majority  of  the 
supreme  bench  pronounced  unconstitutional.  It  de- 
clared by  act  secession  flags  and  insignia  a  nuisance, 
to  be  abated  by  the  sheriff  and  destroyed ;  made  the 
arming  and  equipping  of  vessels  for  piratical  purposes" 

MThis  law  was  intended  to  stop  the  practice  of  exporting  ammunition 
and  arms  under  the  pretence  that  they  were  required  in  Mexico,  toward 
which,  in  its  struggles  for  freedom  from  a  foreign  invader,  Americans  enter- 
tained sympathy.  That  these  supplies  did  not  always  go  to  Mexico  was 
more  than  suspected.  The  schooner  Live  Oak,  in  Jan.  '1863,  sailed  from  S.F. 
with  10  tons  of  powder  on  board,  whose  destination  was  unknown  at  the 
time,  and  never  since  explained.  In  the  spring  of  1864,  there  was  much 
sensation  over  the  discovery  of  a  plot  to  capture  the  Cal.  mail  steamers,  as 
follows:  S.  R.  Mallory,  sec.  of  the  confederate  navy,  in  May  of  this  year 
ordered  acting  master  T.  E.  Hogg  to  proceed  with  the  men  under  his  com- 
mand from  Wilmington,  Del.,  by  the  shortest  and  safest  route,  to  Panama, 
there  to  take  passage  on  board  the  Guatemala  or  San  Salvador,  steamers  trad- 
ing between  Panama  and  Realejo,  and  to  devise  means  to  capture  the  vessel, 
after  reaching  the  high  seas,  in  the  name  of  the  confederate  govt.  Having 
secured  the  steamer,  he  was  to  take  measures  to  arm  her,  and  '  proceed  to 
cruise  against  the  enemy  in  the  Pacific,'  and  to  endeavor  to  strike  a  blow 
against  the  Cal.  trade,  and  the  whalers  in  the  north  Pacific.  Hogg  went  to 
Habana,  where  he  lietrayed  his  mission  to  Thomas  Savage,  American  consul  - 
at  that  port,  and  later  one  of  my  most  valued  assistants,  who  took  care  that 
the  officers  of  the  threatened  steamers  should  be  informed  through  U.  S.  Ad- 
miral Pearson  at  Panama.  A  watch  was  kept,  and  when  the  agents  of  the 
confederate  govt  appeared,  they  were  arrested  and  brought  to  S.  F. ,  where 
they  were  tried  by  a  military  commission  which  sentenced  them  to  be  hanged. 
McDowell  commuted  their  sentence  to  imprisonment  for  life  for  Capt.  Hogg, 
and  ten  years'  confinement  for  E.  A.  Swain,  John  S.  Hiddle,  ^  .  L.  Black, 


298  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR, 

a  felony,  punishable  by  imprisonment  for  not  more 
than  twenty  nor  less  than  five  years,  or  by  death,  as 
the  jury  might  determine;  excluded  secessionists  and 
alien  enemies  from  courts  of  justice;  required  attorneys 
to  take  an  oath  to  support  the  constitution  of  the 
United  States  and  the  state  of  California,  and  declared 
that  denunciation  of  the  government,  and  wishing  evil 
to  it,  was  a  criminal  abuse  of  the  freedom  of  speech, 
to  be  punished  by  imprisonment  in  the  county  jail  for 
one  year,  or  a  fine  of  $1000,  or  both.  Resolutions 
were  passed  thanking  Colonel  Connor  and  the  volun- 
teers of  the  2d  cavalry  of  California  for  their  gallant 
action  at  Bear  river,  in  Utah.  It  renewed  its  resolu- 
tions of  loyalty,  and  declared  itself  a  "union  league  to 
sustain  the  administration ; "  expressed  regret  at  the 
death  of  Sumner,  "  by  whose  prompt  and  decisive 
action  the  state  was  saved  from  anarchy,  and  the  hor- 
rors of  civil  war."  Lastly,  the  emancipation  procla- 
mation of  Lincoln  was  approved,  and  California 
pledged  to  the  support  of  the  measure 

T.  J.  Grady,  R.  B.  Lyon,  and  Joseph  Higgin,  his  associates.  They  were 
tried  as  belligerents,  violating  the  rules  of  war.  Foiled  in  this  undertaking, 
the  rebel  cruiser,  Shenandoah,  was  sent  to  the  whaling  grounds  of  the  north 
Pacific  via  China,  thus  escaping  our  cruisers,  and  succeeded  in  destroying 
the  following  vessels,  at  or  near  Ascencion  island:  April  1st,  the  Edward 
Carey,  Capt.  Baker;  Harvest,  Capt.  Eldridge  ;Pearl,  Capt.  Thompson;  Hector, 
Capt.  Chace;  May  27th,  Alriyail,  Capt.  Nye;  June  2Ist,  Euphrates,  Capt. 
Hathaway;  June  22d,  William  Thompson,  Capt.  Tucker;  Sophia  Thornton, 
Capt.  Smith;  Uriah  Swift,  Capt.  Williams;  June  23d,  Susan  Abiyail,  Capt.  F. 
S.  Redfield;  June  25th,  General  Williams,  Capt.  Benjamin;  June  26th,  Nimrod, 
Capt.  Clark;  Catherine,  Capt.  William  H.  Phillips;  William  (7.  Nye,  Capt.  P. 
A.  Cootay;  June  27th,  Gipxy,  Capt.  Orlando  G.  Robinson;  Isabelte,  Capt. 
Hudson  Wiiislow;  June  28th,  Hillman,  Capt.  Macomber;  J.  Howland,  Capt. 
Ludlow;  Nassau,  Capt.  Green;  Brunswick,  Capt.  Potter;  Waverly,  Capt.  Holly; 
Mart/in  2d,  Capt.  Macomber;  Conr/ress,  Capt.  Wood;  Favorite,  Capt.  T.  G. 
Young;  C'ovimjton,  Capt.  Jenks.  Four  other  vessels  captured  were  sent  to 
Honolulu  and  S.  F.  with  the  crews  of  the  plundered  and  destroyed  vessels. 
They  were  the  Milo,  Capt.  Hawes,  June  22d;  General  Pike,  Capt.  H.  M. 
Crowell,  New  Bedford,  June  27th;  Nile,  Capt.  Fish,  New  London,  June  28th; 
and  James  Maury,  New  Bedford,  June  28th.  Capt.  Nye,  of  the  Abitjail,  who 
was  put  on  board  the  Milo,  taking  advantage  of  a  dense  fog,  manned  a  whale 
boat,  and  went  to  warn  the  fleet,  succeeding  in  saving  two  vessels.  The  loss 
of  the  whaling  fleet  was  a  serious  blow  to  the  business  of  the  S.  I.  as  well  as 
ruinous  to  the  private  fortunes  of  New  England  and  other  owners.  The 
value  of  a  vessel  and  cargo  would  average  ^45,000,  making  the  loss  about 
$1,500,000.  There  were  at  this  time  7  U.  S.  men-of-war  in  the  Pacific,  but 
all  top  busily  employed  to  go  cruising  after  the  Shenandoafi.  The  total  loss 
sustained  by  Cal.  from  cruisers  on  both  oceans  was  §2,000,000,  of  which  the 
claimants  received  by  award  about  seven  per  cent. 


SPECIFIC-COXTRACT  ACT  299 

But  the  one  thing  California  rebelled  against  was 
the  idea  of  accepting  United  States  legal  tenders  as 
currency.  In  the  east,  business  was  based  upon  the 
value  of  the  bills  of  specie-paying  banks,  which,  with 
gold,  formed  the  currency.*4  In  California  there  were 
no  banks  of  issue,  and  business  was  based  solely  on  a 
gold  and  silver  standard  of  values.  In  the  east  gold 
was  treated  as  merchandise  and  purchased  with  legal 
tenders,  which  fluctuated  in  value  with  the  news  from 
every  battle-field.  In  California  government  paper 
was  merchandise,  purchased  at  a  very  profitable  rate 
of  exchange  with  gold,  which  circulated  as  currency, 
while  legal  tenders  did  not,  except  at  the  discount 
which  every  day's  bulletins  announced.  No  mer- 
chant would  risk  being  paid  in  legal  tenders,  dollar 
for  dollar,  for  goods  purchased  with  gold,  and  sold  at 
gold  prices.  To  avoid  losses  of  this  nature  it  was 
necessary  to  make  contracts,  naming  the  kind  of 
money  in  which  debts  were  to  be  paid;  and  then  it 
was  necessary  to  enact  a  law  enforcing  the  observ- 
ance of  these  contracts.  Such  a  law,  called  the 
specific  contract  act,  was  accordingly  passed  by  this 
legislature,  about  one  }*ear  after  the  notice  of  suspen- 
sion of  specie  payment  by*  the  eastern  banks  and  the 
federal  government.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  gold  pay- 
ments were  not  entirely  suspended  by  the  government 
until  about  March  1863.  There  had  been  much  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject  during  this  year,  and  two  classes 
of  opinions  were  held.  While  the  judge  of  the  4th 
district  decided  that  a  plaintiff  must  receive  "green- 
backs," instead  of  coin,  in  satisfaction  of  a  judgment, 

*  Sec.  Chase,  and  McCullough,  his  successor,  were  of  the  opinion  that  the 
CaL  gold  law  was  against  sound  policy,  and  advised  repeal.  The  latter,  in  a 
letter  to  Thompson  Campbell  of  this  state,  declared  the  specific  contract  act  in 
opposition  to  a  necessary  war  measure,  and  that  thereby  it  assailed  the  national 
credit,  but  acquitted  the  people  of  any  such  design.  It  was  the  opinion  of  the 
secretary  that  the  effect  in  CaL  of  a  purely  metallic  currency  was  injurious 
to  her  own  prosperity,  because  no  country  could  long  prosper  where  money 
commanded  so  high  a  rate  of  interest.  Immigration,  he  thought,  would  be 
checked,  manufactures  prevented,  and  commerce  crippled  until  Cal.  had  a 
sound  banking  system,  such  as  provided  by  the  national  currency  act. 


300  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

another  authority  contended  that  paper  money  issued 
by  the  government  was  unconstitutional;  and  Attor- 
ney-general Pixley,  always  pronounced  in  his  loyalty, 
condemned  as  traitors  those  who  refused  to  take  green- 
backs at  their  face  value.  To  settle  this  vexed  ques- 
tion the  specific-contract  act  was  deemed  necessary, 
and  proved  satisfactory,  although  objections  continued 
to  be  raised  that  the  state  was  disloyal  as  well  as  short- 
sighted in  a  business  point  of  view,  in  excluding  cheap 
money.  But  all  attempts  to  repeal  the  act  failed. 
The  supreme  court  decided  that  the  government  notes 
were  constitutional,  and  also  that  the  specific-contract 
act  was  equally  so.  These  decisions  smoothed  the 
public  temper,  and  California,  while  making  a  hand- 
some profit  on  importations  from  the  east  purchased 
with  greenbacks  and  sold  for  specie,  returned  a  good 
share  of  this  difference  to  the  nation  at  large.  Oregon 
and  Nevada  followed  her  example,  and  passed  specific- 
contract  laws,  and  the  questions  raised  concerning  the 
validity  of  such  acts  was  finally  settled  by  the  federal 
supreme  court,  which  held  that  a  contract  to  pay  in 
any  kind  of  legal  tender  was  valid,  whether  written 
or  not.  Some  hostility  was  exhibited  toward  gov- 
ernment paper  as  late  as  1868,  when  the  legislature 
was  asked  to  pass  two  bills  intended  to  exclude  it 
from  circulation  in  California,  but  which  failed  through 
the  opposing  report  of  the  judiciary  committee. 

Another  tender  point  with  the  people  of  California 
was  the  taxation  of  the  mines,  which  they  had  always 
resisted.  They  alleged  that  the  state  furnished  the 
gold  to  sustain  the  nation's  credit,  and  although  the 
mineral  lands  belonged  to  the  government,  it  was  un- 
wise to  impose  any  tax  upon  the  product  of  the  mines 
which  would  tend  to  embarass  them  in  any  degree. 
Yet  when  in  1864  a  levy  of  one  half  of  one  per  cent 
was  placed  upon  gold  and  silver  bullion,  it  was 
promptly  paid  as  due  to  loyalty. 

Assemblyman  Dudley,  of  Placer,  introduced  a  bill 
proposing  an  amendment  to  the  constitution  ^xclud- 


PARTY  POLITICS.  301 

ing  colored  persons  from  the  state.  Hartson  of  Napa, 
chairman  of  the  judiciary  committee  to  which  it  was 
referred,  reported  an  amendment  excluding  traitors. 
"It  is  self-evident,"  said  the  report,  "that  if  it  is  nec- 
essary or  proper  to  exclude  any  class  of  people  from 
the  state,  it  is,  first  and  above  all,  those  entirely  over- 
looked in  this  bill,  but  described  in  the  amendment — 

those  of  bloodv  hands  and  black  hearts,  and  therefore 

•  • 

your  committee  recommends  its  passage  as  amended." 

Something  of  this  spirit  showed  itself  in  the  col- 
lisions which  now  and  then  occurred  between  union 
men  and  confederate  sympathizers.  Yet  it  was  chiefly 
men  with  nothing  at  stake  who  were  boisterous  seces- 
sionists. The  way  in  which  General  Wright  sought 
to  hold  secession  in  check  was  by  excluding  disloyal 
newspapers  from  the  mails,  and  by  declaring  the  es- 
tates of  secessionists  subject  to  confiscation  by  the 
government.  To  this  congress  added  the  suspension 
of  habeas  corpus  by  the  president  when  emergency 
required  it  within  the  Pacific  department.  It  was  in 
this  manner  that  California  fought  the  battles  of  the 
union. 

The  new  departure  in  politics  instituted  by  the 
union  party,  that  bribery  was  to  be  discountenanced, 
furnished  the  rock  on  which  two  senatorial  aspirants 
were  wrecked,  and  gave  an  unexpected  turn  to  the 
legislative  choice.  Both  Sargent  and  Phelps,  con- 
gressmen, desired  to  step  across  the  vestibule  leading 
to  the  senate  chamber,  but  during  the  preliminary 
caucus  a  friend  of  Phelps  was  so  indiscreet  as  to  ap- 
proach an  adherent  of  Sargent  with  an  offer  for  his 
vote.  This  being  exposed  by  Sargent's  friends  ruined 
Phelps'  prospects,  and  Phelps'  friends,  in  revenge, 
frustrated  Sargent's  hopes.  One  of  the  consequences 
was  that  John  Conness,  who  had  not  been  popular 
with  the  republicans,  and  could  not  be  made  governor 
in  1861,  was  elected  to  the  United  States  senate  in 
1863,  to  succeed  Latham,  who  had  fallen  out  with  the 


302  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

administration,  and  no  longer  truly  represented  his 
state. 

The  proneness  of  California  senators  to  political 
backslidings  forms  one  of  the  curiosities  of  history, 
unless  we  accept  as  true  the  theory  that  peculiar  in- 
fluences were  brought  to  bear  that  were  not  applied 
to  senators  of  other  free  states.  One  of  them,  who 
had  been  chosen  for  his  declared  loyalty  and  devotion 
to  the  state,  had  become  so  infatuated  with  the  pleas- 
ures of  Washington  life  that  he  had  not  once  returned 
since  taking  his  seat  to  learn  what  were  the  wishes  of 
his  constituents,  for  which  apparently  he  cared  very 
little.  On  this  and  other  grounds  he  was  brought  to 
book  by  his  colleague,  who  very  plainly  declared  that 
he  misrepresented  the  sentiment  of  California,  and  be- 
trayed the  trust  reposed  in  him  by  reason  of  his  own 
professions.  The  debate  was  upon  the  constitution- 
ality of  confiscating  rebel  property,  which  the  other 
denied.  For  this  and  other  reasons  he  was  censured, 
as  many  thought  unjustly,  by  a  resolution  of  the  legis- 
lature of  1864. 

The  constitution,  as  amended,  required  the  election 
in  1863  of  a  governor  for  four  years,  a  legislature,  a 
part  of  whose  senators  should  hold  over  for  four  years, 
a  new  bench  of  supreme  judges  to  hold  office  for  ten 
years,  and  an  entire  corps  of  state  officers,  the  legisla- 
ture elect  to  meet  in  December,  when  the  new  gov- 
ernment would  go  into  operation.  In  view  of  the 
condition  of  the  country,  the  fact  that  the  new  officers 
would  be  in  for  four  years,  and  the  certainty  that 
every  effort  would  be  made  to  secure  some  political 
strength  by  secessionists,  the  election  was  regarded  as 
one  of  unusual  importance.  Nor  was  this  view  an 
exaggerated  one,  the  length  of  the  war,  its  cost,  hard- 
ships, reverses,  and  the  necessity  of  a  draft,  being 
made  the  ground  of  backsliding  among  the  weaker 
sort  of  union  democrats,  who  gave  a  moral  support  to 
rebellion  by  opposing  the  vigorous  prosecution  of  the 
war.  This  faction,  defined  as  " copperheads"  by  the 


WIRE-PULLING  SYSTEM.  303 

more  strictly  loyal  men,  had  never  as  much  compara- 
tive strength  in  California  as  in  the  older  states,  but 

^5 

its  existence  was  an  important  factor,  and  one  which 
had  to  be  considered  in  electing  state  officers;  all  the 
more,  too,  that  the  following  year  would  bring  on  an- 
other presidential  campaign,  with  its  momentous  issues. 

Sargent,  who  had  been  disappointed  in  being  beaten 
for  senator,  wished  to  be  made  governor,  and  had  no 
rival  this  time  in  Phelps,  who  did  not  want  the  office. 
There  would  have  been  no  difficulty  with  the  people 
in  either  of  these  cases,  but  Senator  Conness,  follow- 
ing the  traditions  of  the  democratic  party,  to  which 
he  belonged,  took  the  management  of  the  union  nom- 
inating convention  in  his  hands,  and  made  up  the 
state  ticket,  with  the  help  of  those  he  was  able  to 
reward. 

The  system  always  obtaining  in  the  state,  of  primary 
elections,  made  it  possible  for  an  active  politician,  by 
the  use  of  money  and  by  voting  the  same  men  several 
times  over,  to  secure  any  nomination  he  chose.  The 
primaries,  conducted  in  this  manner,  determined 
who  should  be  brought  forward  in  county  conventions, 
and  informed  the  wire-pullers  of  the  number  of  votes 
that  could  be  depended  upon  in  the  state  convention. 
Our  formulas  of  government  are  by  no  means  perfect. 
The  same  system  prevails  to-day,  and  an  honest  elec- 
tion is  an  impossibility,  candidates  being  placed  before 
the  people  for  whom  the  political  "  bosses"  alone  are 
responsible,  and  in  whom  the  people  take  little  inter- 
est. Hence  it  is  that  the  best  citizens  stay  away  from 
the  polls,  except  in  some  great  crisis. 

Senator  Conness  performed  the  duties  of  "  boss  "  in 
1863,  making  up  his  slate  unalterably,  and  having  his 
candidates  elected.  They  were  F.  F.  Low,  late 
United  States  collector  at  San  Francisco,  for  gov- 
ernor; T.  N.  Machin,  of  Tuolumne,  for  lieutenant- 
governor;  B.  B.  Redding,  of  Sacramento,  secretary 
of  state ;  Romaldo  Pacheco,  of  San  Luis  Obispo, 
state  treasurer;  George  Oulton,  of  Siskiyou,  state 


304  PERIOD  OP  CIVIL  WAR. 

controller;  John  G.  McCollough,  of  Mariposa,  attor- 
ney-general ;  W.  D.  Harriman,  of  Placer,  clerk  of  the 
supreme  court ;  O.  M.  Clayes,  of  San  Joaquin,  state 
printer ;  J.  F.  Houghton,  of  Solano,  surveyor-general; 
Charles  L.  Taylor,  of  San  Francisco,  harbor  commis- 
sioner ;  and  for  congressmen,  Thomas  B.  Shannon,  of 
Plumas;  William  Higby,  of  Calaveras ;  and  Cornelius 
Cole,  of  Santa  Cruz.  Cole  was  the  only  spontaneous 
choice  of  the  convention.  All  the  elect  were  firm  union 
and  war  men.  The  election  of  the  union  candidates 
was  a  foregone  conclusion  from  the  first,  but  the 
copperheads  ran  a  ticket  at  the  head  of  which  were 
several  well-known  politicians,  John  G.  Downey  for  gov- 
ernor; E.  W.  McKinstry,  for  lieutenant-governor ; 
John  B.  Weller,  John  Bigler,  and  N.  E.  Whitesides, 
for  congressmen ;  and  Beriah  Brown,  for  state 
printer.  The  majority  of  Low  over  Downey  was  19,- 
831,  arid  for  Machin  over  McKinstry  21,120.  The 
curiosity  of  the  election  was  the  bolting  of  the  inde- 
pendent unionists  of  San  Francisco  city  and  county, 
who  made  up  their  own  legislative  ticket,  and  elected 
two  to  one  of  San  Francisco's  delegation  without  in- 
jury to  the  union  state  ticket. 

On  the  21st  of  October  occurred  the  special  elec- 
tion of  the  judiciary,  according  to  the  amended  con- 
stitution, when  the  five  supreme  judges  selected  by 
the  convention,  namely,  O.  L.  Shafter,  Lorenzo  Saw- 
yer, S.  W.  Sanderson,  John  Currey,  and  A.  L. 
Rhodes,  were  chosen,  together  with  fourteen  district 
judges,"  forty-two  county  judges,  and  other  judicial 

26 The  district  judges  elected  by  the  union  party  were:  1st  district,  Pablo 
de  la  Guerra;  2d,  W.  T.  Sexton;  3d,  S.  B.  McKee;  4th,  E.  D.  Sawyer;  5th, 
James  M.  Cavis;  6th,  J.  H.  McCune;  7th,  J.  B.  Southard;  8th,  William  R. 
Turner;  9th,  E.  Garter;  10th,  I.  S.  Belcher;  llth,  S.  N.  Brockway;  12th, 
0.  C.  Pratt;  13th,  J.  M.  Bouderant;  14th,  J.  B.  McFarland.  The  13th 
dist  alone  elected  a  copperhead  judge.  This  was  composed  of  the  counties 
of  Tulare,  Mariposa,  etc.  The  legislature  created  another  district,  the  15th, 
at  the  session  of  1863-4,  when  S.  H.  Dwindle  was  chosen  judge.  Cal  Rept, 
24,  1864;  Hayex  Scraps,  Cal.  Nntes,  iv.  15-92.  De  la  Guerra  had  made  a 
speech  in  the  state  senate  on  a  bill  that  threatened  Mexican  claims,  and  this 
speech  had  great  influence  in  electing  him  over  Benjamin  Hayes,  copperhead, 
in  a  copperhead  district.  Hayes  was  the  collector  of  the  numerous  vols  of 


LEGISLATURE  OF    1863.  305 

officers.  The  state  was  now  completely  loyalized,  so 
far  as  its  public  servants  were  concerned. 

The  legislature  elect,27  met  on  the  7th  of  Decem- 

scraps  referred  to  under  different  heads  in  this  work.  Hia  patience  and  fore- 
thought in  saving  these  helps  to  the  historian  has  proved  invaluable.  He 
was  for  a  long  time  judge  of  his  district,  but  when  the  rebellion  broke  out 
sympathized  with  the  secessionists  with  whom  he  was  associated.  He  was 
pure-hearted  and  high-minded  in  every  respect. 

21  The  senate  was  composed  of  the  following  members:  W.  W.  Crane, 
jr,  Alameda;  R.  Burnell,  Amador;  R.  C.  Gaskill,  T.  M.  Smith,  Butte  and 
Plumas;  Joseph  Shepard,  W.  H.  Leonard,  Calaveras;  J.  A.  Rush,  Colusa 
and  Tehama;  C.  B.  Porter,  Contra  Costa  and  Marin;  S.  P.  Wright,  Del 
Norte,  Humboldt,  and  Klamath;  A.  C.  Henry,  F.  L.  Maddux,  El  Dorado; 
J.  W.  Freeman,  Fresno  and  Tulare;  Chancellor  Hartson,  Lake,  Napa,  and 
Mendocino;  H.  Hamilton,  Los  Angeles;  W.  S.  Montgomery,  Mariposa, 
Merced,  and  Stanislaus;  George  S.  Evans,  J.  W.  Haskin,  Mono  and 
Tuolumne;  W.  E.  Lovett,  Monterey  and  Sta  Cruz;  Joseph  Kutz,  E.  W' 
Roberts,  Nevada;  John  Yule,  J.  E.  Hale,  Placer;  James  McShafter,  J.  H. 
Reddington,  H.  L.  Dodge,  J.  P.  Buckley,  Horace  Hawes,  S.  F.;  E.  H.  Hea- 
eock,  J.  A.  Bsnton,  Sac.;  Samuel  Myers,  San  Joaqnin;  M.  C.  Tuttle,  San 
Bernardino  and  San  Diego;  J.  Y.  Cot,  San  Luis  Obispo  and  Sta  Barbara; 
W.  S.  McMurtry,  Sta  Clara;  John  P.  Jones,  Shasta  and  Trinity;  J.  W. 
Nayle,  Sierra;  L.  M.  Foulke,  Siskiyou;  J.  T.  Hall,  Solano  and  Yolo;  George 
Pierce,  Sonoma;  Lewis  Cunningham,  C.  S.  Haswell,  Yuba  and  Sutter. 
Pres  pro  tern,  of  the  senate,  R.  Burnell;  sec.,  Charles  Westmoreland; 
asst  sec.,  A.  W.  Bishop;  serg'ts-at-arms,  John  Helmsley,  James  A.  Stidger; 
clerks,  J.  S.  VanDorn,  W.  F.  Heustis,  Albert  Clark,  M.  A.  Gelston,  F. 
HallowelL  W.  A.  Plunkett. 

The  assembly  consisted  of  Thomas  Scott,  Asa  Walker,  Alameda;  A.  C. 
Brown,  W.  B.  Ludlow,  Amador;  George  S.  Sumner,  A.  C.  Buffman,  Butte; 
S.  N.  Parker,  L.  Langdon,  B.  Dyer,  Calaveras;  T.  J.  Wright,  Contra  Costa; 
S.  Jennison,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  R.  P.  Hurst,  Del  Norte  and  Klamath.  T. 
Fraser,  P.  Tearse,  F.  A.  Dow,  J.  S.  Campbell,  El  Dorado;  J.  N.  Walker, 
Fresno;  A.  Wiley,  Humboldt;  W.  R.  H.  Dodson,  Lake  and  Napa;  E.  J.  C. 
Kewen,  J.  Sepulveda,  Los  Angeles,  S.  Johnson,  Marin;  J.  W.  Wilcox,  Mari- 
posa;  L.  Wilsey,  Mendocino;  W.  S.  Dickinson,  Merced  and  Stanislaus;  Freder- 
ick Lux,  Ofcis  Perrin,  E.  F.  Mitchell,  Mono  and  Tuolumne;  Estevan  Castro, 
Monterey;  W.  H.  Sears,  J.  W.  Rule,  S.  Martin,  A.  A.  Smith,  Nevada;  M.  C. 
Winchester,  J.  D.  Pratt.  E.  H.  Snyder,  Placer;  R.  A.  Clark,  Plumas;  Francis 
Tukey  J.  P.  Rhodes,  W.  B.  Hunt,  Alexander  Badlum,  Jr,  J.  R.  Watson, 
Sac.,  George  J.  Brooks,  James  Bowman,  C.  F.  Mebins,  Charles  Clayton, 
Nathaniel  Gray,  John  Lynch,  John  S.  Hittell,  Henry  Dutton,  L.  W.  Mc- 
Collian,  Thompson  Campbell,  Joseph  Wood,  J.  W.  Cherry,  S.  F.;  E.  H. 
Allen,  J.  E.  Perley,  San  Joaquin;  J.  J.  Owen,  William  Erkson,  J.  D.  Van 
Schaick,  Santa  Clara;  O.  H.  Hoag,  M.  Whellon,  J.  Smith,  Sonora;  R.  C. 
Scott,  S.  L.  Litchfield,  Siskiyou;  R.  S.  Weston,  S.  H.  Allay,  Sierra;  Van 
Leuven,  San  Bernardino;  Kendrick,  San  Diego;  Ramon  J.  Hill,  San 
Luis  Obispo  and  Santa  Barbara;  H.  Devoe,  Santa  Cruz;  J.  N.  Chappel, 
Shasta;  A.  T.  Green,  San  Mateo;  Milton  Wasson,  Solano;  M.  Boulware, 
Sutter;  M.  W.  Personette,  Trinity;  S.  C.  Brown,  Tulare;  J.  B.  Hartsough, 
Yolo;  O.  F.  Redfield,  L.  Hubbard,  J.  H.  Beaman,  Yuba.  Officers  of  the 
assembly:  Williams  H.  Sears,  speaker;  J.  J.  Owen,  speaker,  pro  tern;  O. 
C.  Wheeler,  R.  H.  Daly,  Martin  Rowan,  J.  H.  Marple,  A.  N.  Gambill,  L. 
S.  Taylor,  H.  A.  Leese,  Nicholas  Moritz,  clerks;  William  Rider,  J.  F.  Hol- 
loway,  serg'ts-at-arms.  Col.  Jour.  Assem,  1863-4.  35  out  of  40  senators, 
and  72  out  of  80  assemblymen  were  unionists.  The  seat  in  the  senate  of 
Hamilton  of  Los  Angeles,  secessionist,  was  contested  by  R.  P.  Ramirez,  on 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  20 


306  PERIOD  OF   CIVIL  WAR. 

ber,  and  in  its  adminstrative  zeal  had  nearly  repealed 
the  specific  contract  act;  but  Governor  Low28  and  the 
public  press  presented  so  many  good  reasons  for  the 
law  as  it  was,  that  the  bill  failed  to  pass.  Strong 
union  resolutions  were  adopted.  An  investigation, 
which  was  found  to  be  necessary,  was  held  as  to  the 
cause  of  the  destruction  by  fire  of  the  carriages  of 
seven  guns  furnished  the  state  by  the  United  States, 
but  with  what  motive  could  only  be  suspected.  Three 
thousand  dollars  was  appropriated  to  remount  the 
guns.  The  federal  government  was  asked  to  establish 
a  naval  depot  and  force  in  the  bay  of  Monterey,  to 
mount  cannons  on  the  old  fort,  and  to  construct  addi- 
tional fortifications  on  water-line  batteries  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  harbor.  The  poll-tax  of  two  dollars  a 
head  was  remitted  to  volunteers,  and  a  bounty  was 
granted  to  men  enlisting  thereafter  for  three  years  or 
during  the  war,  of  $160  in  installments  to  be  paid 
every  six  months ;  and  to  honorably  discharged  vet- 
erans reenlisting,  an  additional  sum  of  $140,  paid  in 
like  manner.  To  meet  these  obligations  the  treasurer 
Was  directed  to  prepare  bonds  of  the  state  to  the 
amount  of  $2,000,000,  to  redeem  which  a  tax  of 
twelve  cents  was  levied  on  each  $100  of  valuation  of 
real  and  personal  property  in  the  state,  estimated  at 
$174,000,000.  Yet  no  loyal  citizen  thought  of  pro- 
testing, although  the  state  was  then  paying  two  per 
cent  monthly  on  a  large  portion  of  the  current  expen- 
ditures. The  debt  of  the  state,  including  the  soldiers' 
bounty  bonds,  was  $5,365,640.71,  and  the  money  in 
the  treasury  was  less  than  it  should  have  been  by  a 

the  ground  of  disloyalty,  being  an  Englishman,  and  not  eligible.  The  evi- 
dence of  disloyalty  was  complete,  but  it  was  determined  that  Hamilton  was 
legally  elected. 

28  Frederick  F.  Low,  ex-congressman,  collector  of  the  port  of  S.  F.,  gov- 
ernor of  Cal.,  and  minister  to  China,  was  born  in  1828  at  Frankfort,  Maine, 
and  came  to  Cal.  in  1849.  After  a  period  at  mining  he  engaged  in  business 
in  S.  F.  and  Marysville.  He  was  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Cal.  Steam 
Navigation  co.,  and  established  a  banking  house  at  Marysville. 


PARTY  ISSUES.  307 

considerable  amount,  owing  to  the  defalcation  of  G. 
R.  Warren,  republican  controller  elected  in  186 1.7' 

The  great  contest  was  approaching  of  the  presiden- 
tial election,  which  would  be  governed  chiefly  by  the 
conduct  of  the  war,  as  the  copperhead  element  in  pol- 
itics was  gaining  ground  in  the  eastern  states  with 
the  necessity  of  providing  substitutes  to  fill  the  places 
of  drafted  men.  There  was  no  draft  in  California, 
her  volunteers  exceeding  her  quota,  and  being  needed 
where  they  were,  and  her  treasure  flowing  freely  to 
support  men  in  the  field.  But  there  was  a  democratic 
peace-on-any-terms  party  and  press,  which  was  put- 
ting forth  its  strongest  efforts  in  opposition  to  the 
union-administration  party,  and  encouraging  disloy- 
alty by  studied  misrepresentation  of  the  aims  of  the 
government."  In  the  southern  counties  it  was  im- 
possible to  hold  a  primary  election  at  which  true 
union  men  could  vote,  copperheads  calling  themselves 
unionists  taking  possession  of  the  polls  by  various  de- 
vices, among  others,  postponing  a  meeting,  and  when 
the  honest  voters  had  gone  home,  opening  the  polls 
for  half  an  hour  to  allow  the  conspirators  to  choose 
delegates." 

On  the  24th  of  March  the  union  state  convention 
met  at  Sacramento,  W.  H.  Sears  president,  to  elect 
delegates  to  the  national  convention  at  Baltimore,  and 
selected  Thompson  Campbell,  a  lawyer  of  San  Fran- 

9The  embezzlement  amounted  to  §12,217.92,  and  was  taken  from  the 
stamp  account.  Warren  fled,  and  his  sureties  were  made  to  pay  the  deficit, 
the  first  instance  in  the  history  of  CaL,  where  bondsmen  had  been  held  to 
the  responsibility  of  such  a  debt.  CaL  Jour.  Sen^  1865-6;  App.,  no.  5.  p.  4,  L 

34  Of  this  class  of  journalists  was  Beriah  Brown,  a  Vermonter,  He  first 
established  the  RtpuWcan,  in  Stockton,  which  was  removed  to  Sac.;  and 
finally  he  conducted  the  Democratic  Press,  of  S.  F.,  a  bitter  anti-administra- 
tion journal.  He  was  one  of  that  clsss  selected  by  secession  leaders  to  pro- 
mulgate disunion  under  the  pretence  of  only  demanding  constitutional 
rights.  Being  condemned  by  the  public  sentiment  of  S.  F.,  he  first  vrent  to 
Guaymas,  Mexico,  to  join  Gwin,  who  failing  him,  he  removed  to  Oregon, 
and  then  to  Washington  Ter.,  where  he  established  a  successful  journal  at 
Seattle  after  the  close  of  the  war.  The  Marysville  Express,  Stockton  Beacon, 
Merced  Democrat,  Napa  Pacific  Echo,  Tulare  Post,  fsftial  Rights  Ejcr 
and  other  newspapers  were  engaged  in  covertly  aiding  tha  confederacy. 

»SaaayeDoc,,  ii.  MS.  102-12. 


303  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR 

cisco ;  M.  C.  Briggs  of  Sacramento,  a  methodist 
preacher ;  John  Bid  well  of  Butte,  a  landed  proprietor  ; 
and  Phineas  Banning  of  Los  Angeles,  a  loyal  busi- 
ness man,  to  represent  the  state  at  large.  The  district 
delegates  were  Nathan  Coombs  of  Napa;  Robert 
Gardiner  of  Yolo ;  William  Hitter  of  Sacramento ; 
O.  H.  Bradbury  of  Tuolumne  ;  James  <3tis  of  San 
Francisco,  and  William  S.  McMurty  of  Santa  Clara. 
There  was  nothing  very  remarkable  recorded  of  these 
men;  but  California  had  gone  through  some  disagree- 
able experiences  with  her  brilliant  men  which  made 
the  usefulness  of  others  apparent.  They  were  in- 
structed to  vote  for  Lincoln. 

The  democratic  copperhead  state  convention  met  in 
San  Francisco  May  10th,  having  for  president  John 

B.  Weller.     Among  the  delegates  elected  to  the  Chi- 
cago convention  were  the  president,  and  three  other 
ex-governors,  Bigler,  Downey,  and  McDougal, — four 
governors,  and  four  Johns — but  McDougal  declining, 
Thomas  Hayes  was  substituted.     The  district  dele- 
gates were  C.  L.  Weller  and  William  J.  Whipple  of 
San  Francisco ;  J.  B.  Stevens  of  Calaveras  ;  Clayton 
Wetherill  of  Tuolumne  ;  J.  J.  Berry  of  Butte,  and 

C.  D  Semple  of  Colusa. 

C.  L.  Weller  was  the  copperhead  candidate  for 
sheriff  of  San  Francisco,  and  was  beaten  at  the  city 
and  county  election,  H.  L.  Davis,  people's  candidate, 
having  a  majority  over  him  of  4,244  votes.  Whether 
or  not  his  defeat  embittered  him,  he  was  arrested  in 
July,  by  order  of  General  McDowell,  for  language 
calculated  to  discourage  enlistment  and  incite  to  vio- 
lent resistance  to  a  draft,  should  one  be  made  in  Cal- 
ifornia. He  was  confined  in  Alcatraz  until  the  middle 
of  August  when  he  offered  to  take  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance, and  was  released  at  the  solicitation  of  his  fam- 
ily and  friends.  A  mass  meeting  was  held  at  Hayes 
park  during  his  incarceration,  which  violently  de- 
nounced the  military  authorities  and  federal  govern- 
ment for  the  arrest ;  and  Weller  as  soon  as  liberated 


PRESS  INFLUENCES.  309 

gave  utterance,  at  public  assemblages,  to  language 
scarcely  less  objectionable  than  that  for  which  he 
was  imprisoned.  A  few  others  were  arrested  for  sim- 
ilar offences.  Had  these  Hotspurs  had  their  head, 
there  might  have  been  civil  war  on  the  Pacific  in  1864. 
McDowell,  however,  while  issuing  orders  as  placable 
as  possible,  said  succinctly:  "  No  armed  organizations 
will  be  suffered  in  the  department,  save  those  sanc- 
tioned by  competent  constituted  authority." 

The  methodist  church  south  formed  a  factor  in 
anti-war,  anti-administration,  and  pro-slavery  politics, 
and  had  its  emissaries  in  the  rural  districts,  extending 
as  far  north  as  the  Columbia  river  in  Oregon.  Thus 
it  happened  that  Bishop  Kavanaugh,  of  Georgia,  who 
had  introduced  himself  into  the  state  under  a  pass 
from  the  confederate  authorities  only,  was  arrested  on 
suspicion,  but  released  on  his  assurance  that  his  visit 
was  made  in  obedience  to  the  commands  of  the  church, 
and  had  no  political  significance,  while  he  would  will- 
ingly take  the  oath  of  loyalty. 

Yet  that  disloyalty  was  more  outspoken  in  1864 
than  it  had  been  since  the  beginning  of  the  war  not- 
withstanding the  vigilance  of  the  authorities,  the 
watchfulness  of  union  leagues,  and  the  unremitting 
teachings  of  the  loyal  press,  was  not  to  be  denied. 
This  was  partly  owing  to  the  effect  upon  an  illiterate 
southern  population  of  the  tirades  indulged  in  by  the 
copperhead  press,  partly  to  the  virulence  of  feeling 
induced  by  sympathy  with  relatives  and  neighbors  in 
the  southern  states  whose  fortunes  had  been  ruined 
in  the  long  strife,  but  chiefly,  after  all,  to  the  selfish 
partisanship  of  northern  men  whose  insane  ambition 
was  to  be  still  recognized  as  representatives  of  the 
"chivalry"  of  former  days.  Encouraged  by  their 
seditious  utterances,  the  class  just  referred  to  became 
more  and  more  disposed  to  violate  all  law,  and  actu- 
ally in  some  instances  attempted  to  inaugurate  a 


310  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

system  which  would  have  ended  in  guerrilla  warfare, 
had  it  not  been  promptly  checked.32 

The  intelligence  received  in  June  that  Lincoln  was 
renominated  excited  extraordinary  enthusiasm.  The 
remainder  of  the  summer  was  a  political  joust,33  in 
which  there  was  much  confident  anticipation  on  one 
side,  and  some  rather  feeble  attempts  to  seem  confi- 
dent on  the  other.  Frequent  processions  were  in- 
dulged in,  and  almost  any  night,  as  the  election  drew 
near,  the  democratic  broom-rangers  of  San  Francisco, 
as  they  were  facetiously  named,  paraded  the  streets, 
following  after  a  band  playing  Dixie  Land,  Johnny 
Comes  Marching  Home,  or  other  popular  songs  of 
the  confederates  during  the  war.  Then  came  the 
momentous  days  of  the  presidential  election.  Every 
precaution  had  been  taken  to  prevent  any  disturbance 
at  the  polls.  Business  was  suspended,  drinking-places 
closed,  and  additional  police  placed  on  duty.  The 
city  was  dressed  in  the  national  colors,  and  the 
weather  being  bright  presented  an  inspiring  appear- 
ance. Every  face  met  upon  the  streets  wore  a  look 
of  earnest  and  suppressed  feeling.  Even  ordinary 
conversation  was  carried  on  more  quietly  than  usual. 
There  was  no  doubt  of  California,  but  there  was 
anxiety  about  the  east,  for  the  copperhead  influence 
had  been  increasing  there  also.  Late  in  the  day  the 

32  An  organization  was  formed  among  the  farmers  and  residents  in  Santa 
Clara  county  for  procuring  volunteers  for  the  confederacy,  and  also  the 
money  to  support  them.  Several  robberies  vere  perpetrated  on  the  stage- 
line  from  Placerville  to  Carson  in  Nevada.  In  June  1864,  two  coaches  were 
robbed  by  a  party  of  eight  men,  who  secured  eight  sacks  of  bullion,  and  a 
box  of  treasure.  Their  captain  sent  a  receipt  to  Wells  Fargo,  &  Co.,  for 
—  cash,  signed  'B.  Henry  Ingram,  com'd'g  co.,  C.  S.  A. '  Dep't  sheriff 
Staples,  of  El  Dorado,  was  killed  in  arresting  some  of  the  gang.  Sheriff 
Adams,  of  Santa  Clara  co.,  and  a  Mr  Conney,  were  wounded  in  the  capture 
of  others.  Thomas  B.  Poole  was  tried  and  hanged  for  killing  Staples. 
Mountain  Democrat,  Sept  30,  1805.  A  number  of  the  organization  were  ar- 
rested at  a  democratic  meeting  in  San  Jose  in  Aug.  Hays  Cal.  Pol.;  vii.  72. 
Three  union  men  in  Tulare  co.,  were  killed  because  of  their  union  sentiment. 
Among  100  guests  at  some  springs  in  Santa  Barbara  co.,  were  only  two 
union  men  One  left  to  avoid  trouble,  and  the  other,  a  Carolinian,  who  had 
left  his  state  to  avoid  rebellion,  was  killed.  Four  other  union  men  who  ac- 
companied him  as  far  as  Texas,  were  murdered  there  for  their  loyalty. 

'Ml>arti/ti  Jieflec.  Hlspan.  Amer.,  1-4. 


EXCITING  SCENES.  311 

indications  of  California's  30,000  majority"  for  Lin- 
coln over  McClellan  began  to  come  in  from  such  por- 
tions of  the  state  as  could  be  heard  from  by  telegraph. 
The  excitement  was  as  tense  as  it  was  quiet.  The 
city  waited  breathless,  far  into  the  night,  for  the  first 
news  from  east  of  the  Missouri,  and  while  it  waited 
windows  were  illuminated  and  few  households  thought 
of  sleep.  Toward  midnight  there  began  to  move 
through  the  principal  streets  a  solid  column  of  4,000 
of  San  Francisco's  chief  citizens,  singing  in  one  grand 
chorus  the  Battle  cry  of  Freedom  and  other  songs 
of  the  war,  not  forgetting  John  Brown's  bodv  lies 

tf 

mouldering  in  the  grave,  etc.,  while  women  crowded 
the  balconies  and  windows  waving  handkerchiefs  and 
flags,  laughing  and  weeping  together  in  a  contagion 
of  exultant  emotion ;  for  then  it  was  known  that  the 
president  whom  all  trusted  was  to  remain  in  his  place, 
and  his  policy,  which  was  believed  to  be  wise  and 
right,  carried  out. 

What  a  different  scene  was  that  which  San  Fran- 
cisco witnessed  on  the  following  15th  of  April.  The 
city  was  in  gala  dress  in  honor  of  victories  on  the 
field  and  in  the  cabinet.  A  waving  sea  of  starry  ban- 
ners flooded  every  house-top  with  a  crimson  radiance, 
and  a  glad  light  was  reflected  on  thousands  of  faces. 
Suddenly  the  crimson  sea  was  calmed,  the  banners, 
drooped  and  lowered,  were  darkened  by  bands  of  crape 
—the  shadow  of  a  monstrous  crime,  and  a  nation's 
despair.  Shudderingly  the  bells  of  the  city  tolled 
forth  the  dread  intelligence.  On  every  face  the  glad- 
ness was  quenched  beneath  a  pallor  such  as  blanches 
the  cheeks  of  strong  men  seldom  in  a  lifetime.  Grasp- 
ing each  others'  hands,  looking  in  each  others'  eyes, 
unable  to  syllable  the  emotions  of  grief  mingled  with 
horror  and  rage  which  possessed  them,  the  citizens, 

"The  vote  of  S.  F.  was  21,024,  while  Boston  with  a  population  nearly 
double,  returned  20,807  votes.  The  preponderance  of  adult  males  is  not 
sufficient  to  account  for  the  vote  of  S.  F. ,  and  even  the  absence  of  a  registry 
law  in  addition,  is  hardly  sufficient  to  do  so.  There  was  an  increase  of  6,- 
000  in  one  year. 


312  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

forsaking  all  business,  congregated  on  the  streets,  or 
wandered  restlessly  about,  benumbed  by  the  unparal- 
leled calamity  of  the  tragedy  at  Washington. 

But  soon  hot  blood  began  to  stir.  Terrible  denun- 
ciation and  threats  of  retribution  passed  from  quiver- 
ing lip  to  lip.  Nothing  more  fitting  could  be  thought 
of  than  that  those  newspapers  which  had  encouraged 
treason  should  be  destroyed,  and  to  this  work  the  peo- 
ple lent  themselves  with  a  will.  Four  years  of  pa- 
tient tolerance  of  too  great  freedom  of  speech  was 
revenged  by  demolishing  a  number  of  newspaper  offi- 
ces. It  was  a  spontaneous  expression  which  was  not 
checked  until  the  Democratic  Press,  owned  by  Beriah 
Brown  ;  the  Occidental,  owned  by  Zachariah  Mont- 
gomery ;  the  Monitor,  a  disloyal,  catholic  journal, 
owned  by  T.  A.  Brady ;  the  Franco-Americaine,  and 
the  News  Letter,  were  destroyed.  The  Echo  du  Pacifique 
would  have  received  the  same  treatment  but  for  the 
fact  of  its  press  being  in  the  A  ltd  building,  which 
would  have  shared  in  the  loss.35  As  soon  as  possible 
the  'military  were  called  out  to  assist  the  police  in 
suppressing  the  riot,  but  only  a  few  arrests  were  made. 
Public  feeling  would  not  condemn  the  demonstration, 
although  to  prevent  bloodshed  it  was  necessary  to 
check  the  proceedings.  Addresses  were  made  by  Mc- 
Dowell and  others,  and  5,000  men  were  placed  under 
arms  to  patrol  the  streets.  By  the  next  morning  quiet 
was  restored. 

But  public  confidence  was  much  shaken.  It  was 
feared  that  the  war  would  be  reopened  in  the  east, 
where  it  was  confidently  expected  the  loyal  troops 
would  avenge  the  president's  death  by  the  slaughter 
of  confederates.  Greenback  currency,  the  national 
barometer, went  down  to  thirty-three.  Before  the  20th, 
however,  when  the  obsequies  of  the  president  were  to 
be  celebrated,  the  people  had  been  brought  back  from 

^Brady  of  the  Monitor  applied  to  the  legislature  of  1865-6  for  relief,  and 
a  bill  was  introduced  for  that  purpose,  but  the  S.  F.  delegation,  to  vhom  it 
was  referred,  reported  against  it.  Col.  Jour.  Sen.,  1865-6.  App.  No.  62,  iii. 


TRIBUTES  OF  RESPECT.  313 

their  implicit  reliance  on  one  man  to  realize  that  the 
government  was  not  of  men,  but  of  laws,  and  that 
irreparable  as  was  their  loss,  the  nation  remained,  and 
the  laws  would  be  executed.  Then  they  paid  their 
last  sad  tribute  of  respect  and  love  in  a  grand  funeral 
pageant,  in  which  the  whole  city  participated  amid 
the  tolling  of  bells,  the  booming  of  guns,  the  meas- 
ured beating  of  muffled  drums,  and  the  music  of 
bands  playing  solemn  marches.  Fourteen  thousand 
people  were  said  to  have  been  in  the  procession  which 
followed  the  catafalque  to  the  Mechanics'  pavilion, 
where  the  literary  services  were  conducted.  Among 
these  were  the  reading  of  Lincoln's  second  inaugural 

C7 

address,  the  devotional  tenor  of  which  made  it  pecu- 
liarly appropriate  to  the  time  and  scene ;  Horatio 
Stebbins,  Starr  King's  successor  in  the  Geary  street 
Unitarian  pulpit,  delivered  the  address ;  Frank  Soule 
read  an  original  poem ;  the  Bianchi  opera  troop  ren- 
dered an  anthem ;  but  the  most  thrilling  effect  was 
produced  when  all  the  thousands  present  sang  hi 
chorus  the  Battle  cry  of  Freedom,  as  it  had  not 
been  sung  since  that  night  in  November  when  it  cele- 
brated the  triumph  of  the  nation's  chief  at  the  polls. 
It  was  a  happy  augury  then;  it  was  the  revival  of 
hope  now. 

As  suddenly  as  it  began  the  war  was  ended,  and 
with  the  exception  of  some  secession  outrages"  in 

xThe  growing  offensrreneaB  of  secession  in  the  pro-slavery  districts  was 
exhibited  by  the  rejoicings  at  the  death  of  the  president,  and  other  acts.  In 
Solano  co.,  at  Green  valley,  there  were  open  rejoicings.  The  military  at 
Benicia  being  notified,  a  company  was  sent  to  tint;  place,  the  confederates 
firing  upon  them,  having  fortified  themselves  in  the  house  of  one  David 
James.  The  fire  was  returned,  and  two  of  them  wounded,  when  the  party 
surrendered.  They  were  David  James  and  two  sons,  William  P.  Dnrbin  and 
son,  Charles  Ramsey  and  son,  A.  O.  Laramel  and  son.  and  John  Stiltz. 
They  were  brought  to  Benicia  to  be  tried  for  treason.  They  had  threatened 
to  shoot  Capt.  Robinson  of  the  volunteers  for  recruiting  in  that  district. 
This  neighborhood  contributed  J.  Milton  Jones  to  the  Chapman  piratical 
crew,  ana  offered  others.  In  Tehachapi  valley  a  band  of  guerrillas  occupied 
themselves,  in  the  spring  cf  1S65,  in  robbing  union  men  ot  horses  and  other 
property,  and  committing  occasional  murders.  The  military  were  appealed 
to,  but  no  troops  could  be  spared  for  that  service.  During  the  tirst  week  in 
Hay  1865,  the  inhabitants  of  San  Bernardino  were  greatly  alarmed  by  the 
rumor  that  in  their  vicinity  were  300  to  700  guerrillas  from  the  confederate 


314  PERIOD  OF  CIVIL  WAR. 

certain  localities  for  a  time,  there  was  no  occasion  to 
entertain  further  anxiety.  It  was  some  months  before 
the  California  volunteers  were  released  from  the  duty 
of  holding  forts  and  guarding  routes  of  travel.  It 
has  been  said  that  California  cut  no  figure  in  the  war, 
which  assertion  most  assuredly  was  not  true.  Cali- 
fornia had  few  men  on  the  battle-fields  where  most 
blood  was  spilt,  not  because  they  were  not  offered, 
but  because  they  were  not  wanted  there.  The  popu- 
lation of  the  whole  Pacific  coast  of  the  United  States, 
including  Utah  and  Colorado,  was  not  equal  to  one 
quarter  of  the  population  of  the  single  state  of  Penn- 
sylvania. Yet  to  the  volunteers  of  this  sparse  popu- 
lation was  entrusted  the  labor  of  aweirig  avowed 
secession  at  home,  guarding  against  foreign  interfer- 
ence, and  fighting  numerous  Indian  tribes  from  Ore- 
gon to  New  Mexico.  The  readiness  with  which  war 
taxes  were  paid,  the  cheerful  contributions  to  the 
sanitary  fund,  and  the  loyal  expressions  of  every 
legislative  body,  were  a  moral  as  well  as  material 
support,  without  which  the  war  must  have  been  in- 
definitely protracted,  or  the  union  dismembered.  The 
attitude  of  California  discouraged  rebellion,  which  had 
relied  upon  seizing  the  west  coast  of  the  continent 
whereon  to  found  an  empire  for  the  perpetuation  of 
slavery.  In  common  with  the  other  Pacific  states, 
California  poured  forth  like  water  her  mineral  treas- 
ure, without  which  the  government  would  have  been 
well-nigh  bankrupt,  and  her  currency  selling  probably 
at  ten  dollars  to  one  of  gold.  For  these  services  in  the 
contest  for  freedom  she  should  share  in  the  glory  of 
having  helped  to  preserve  the  integrity  of  the  union. 

army,  who  proposed  to  sack  and  pillage  that  town,  and  proceed  thence  to 
Lower  California.  The  settlers  flocked  into  the  place,  and  every  citizen  was 
uiirler  arms.  See  Los  Angeles  New*,  May  6,  1865;  Marysville  Appeal,  May  14, 
5>(w;  Pajaro  Times,  May  20,  1865:  Hayes'  Scrap*,  S.  Cal.  Wilm.,  56.  San 
l>iego  was  also  threatened.  S.  F.  Alia,  May  9,  1865.  These  alarms  resulted 
in  nothing  more  than  the  loss  of  stock,  and  some  personal  encounters,  and 
terminated  in  a  few  mouths,  when  the  confederates  were  compelled  to  take 
the  oath  of  loyalty 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

PARTY  CHANGES. 
1865-1868. 

OF    THE    PRIMARY    SYSTEM — THE    PEOPLE'S    PARTY — SHORT 

HAIRS  AXD  LOXG  HAIRS — BEARIXG  OF  THE  CCRREXCY  QrE-mox — -THE 
BOYS  AXD  THE  BOSSES — DEATH  OF  THE  Uxiox  PARTY — THE  CENTRAL 
PACIFIC — XATIOXAL  REPCBLICAX  PARTY — DEMOCRACY  EJ  THE  ASCEXD- 
AXT — LEGISLATrRES,  REPRESENTATIVES,  AXD  GOVERNORS — CoXVEXTIOXS 
AXD  ELECTIOXS — TAXATION,  MOXGOLIAXLSM  AXD  MOXOPOLY — iluxici- 
PAL  POLITICS. 

CALIFORNIA  had  never  more  reason  to  regret  the 
adoption  of  primary  elections,  than  in  1865.  The 
practice  was  begun  by  the  democracy  as  early  as 
March  1850,  when  a  meeting  was  held  at  Portsmouth 
square  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  the  county  of  San 
Francisco,  and  a  county  committee  was  appointed 
which  a  year  and  a  half  later  called  a  primary  election 
for  December  23d,  to  elect  delegates  to  the  Sacra- 
mento state  convention,  who  were  to  appoint  others 
to  the  national  convention  for  the  nomination  of  presi- 
dent of  the  United  States.  The  committee,  to  keep 
control  of  the  organization,  selected  but  one  polling 
place  in  the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco,  and  al- 
lowed but  six  hours  for  receiving  votes.  John  A. 
McGlynn,  chairman  of  the  county  committee,  was  ap- 
pointed inspector,  and  his  associates  were  Edward 
McGowan  and  T.  A.  Lynch.  A  large  number  of 
democrats  protested,  claiming  the  right  of  the  people 
to  set  themselves  in  motion  without  any  delegated 
authority,  and  published  a  call  for  the  democratic 
electors  of  each  ward  and  precinct  of  the  city,  to  meet 


316  PARTY  CHANGES 

in  their  respective  localities  on  the  24th,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  appointing  inspectors  of  election,  and  deter- 
minino-  the  time  and  place  of  holding  primaries  at 
which  all  democrats  might  have  an  opportunity  of 
voting,  with  the  object  of  effecting  a  re-organization 
of  the  party. 

Notwithstanding  this  movement  by  the  majority, 
the  county  committee  held  its  election,  at  which  841 
votes  were  polled  out  of  3,000  democratic  electors, 
and  a  full  list  of  delegates  declared  elected.  The  pro- 
testing democrats  held  their  meetings  on  the  24th  to 
appoint  inspectors,  and  held  their  primary  elections 
on  the  26th,  at  which  2,900  votes  were  cast,  the  com- 
mittee's men  voting  a  second  time.  Gross  frauds 
were  charged  against  the  committee,  but  the  protest- 
ants  elected  a  majority  of  the  delegates  to  the  county 
convention  which  was  to  choose  delegates  to  Sacra- 
mento. When  the  county  convention  assembled,  the 
committee  attempted  to  elect  McGowan  chairman, 
pro  tern.,  but  were  outvoted,  and  John  W.  Dwinelle 
was  chosen.  In  an  attempt  to  force  their  choice  on 
(the  convention  after  the  election  of  Dwinelle,  the 
committee  had  recourse  to  riotous  demonstrations, 
and  a  scene  of  disorder  occurred  most  disgraceful  to  the 
party  and  the  city.  There  was  a  division,  the  protest- 
ants  withdrawing,  and  holding  their  convention,  while 
the  county  committee  went  on  with  its  proceedings, 
both  electing  a  list  of  delegates  to  the  Sacramento 
convention.  When  that  body  met,  the  struggle  was 
renewed,  and  continued  for  two  days,  or  until  the 
delegates  of  the  protestants  were  declared  admitted 
by  the  majority  of  the  delegates  from  the  other 
counties. 

Similar  scenes  were  enacted  on  many  succeeding 
occasions.  At  state  conventions  the  country  delega- 
tions had  it  in  their  power  to  rebuke  the  rowdy  dem- 
ocracy of  San  Francisco  ;  but  the  city  was  powerless 
in  their  grasp  until  the  vigilance  committee  brought 
about  a  reform,  and  the  people's  party,  a  purely  local 


IMPORTANT  QUESTIONS.  317 

organization,  took  the  government  of  the  city  and 
county  in  its  hands.  But  the  primary  elections  still 
governed  the  city's  relation  to  state  politics,  and 
always  prevented  anything  like  harmony  between 
San  Francisco  and  the  state.  The  custom  established 
of  a  few  professional  politicians  naming  candidates  for 
all  offices  descended  from  one  dominant  party  to  an- 
other, and  was  not  abandoned  by  the  union  party  in 
its  time  of  strength. 

The  most  important  question  in  politics  in  1865  was 
the  election  of  a  United  States  senator.  There  were 
a  number  of  candidates,  but  Governor  Low  and  John 
B.  Felton,  a  successful  lawyer  with  a  large  income, 
hitherto  unknown  as  an  aspirant  for  office,  were  the 
leading  favorites.  The  Low  party  were  called 
Short  Hairs,  and  the  anti-Low  party  Long  Hairs. 
When  these  two  factions  of  the  union  party  met  in 
county  convention  at  Sacramento,  July  25th,  exactly 
the  same  scene  occurred  as  that  which  disgraced  the 
democratic  party  hi  1861.  The  short  hairs  finding 
themselves  in  a  minoritv,  and  unable  to  control  the 

v   ' 

convention,  resorted  to  the  exercise  of  muscle,  and 
inflicted  severe  personal  injury  upon  a  number  of  their 
opponents,  whereupon  the  convention  divided,  and 
the  loner  hairs  chose  another  place  of  meeting.  Soon 

^j  i  ^y 

after  this  exhibition  of  the  uses  of  primary  elections, 
Governor  Low  published  a  card,  withdrawing  from 
the  senatorial  contest,  and  disavowing  any  connection 
with  the  short  hairs,  who  had  used  his  name  without 
leave.  This  course,  although  commended  by  union 
men  as  maintaining  the  dignity  of  the  executive  office, 
gave  his  opponent  a  free  course  in  the  primaries. 

The  short  hairs  were  the  democrats  who,  now  that 
the  union  was  preserved,  eagerly  returned  to  the  pur- 
suit of  politics  as  a  trade.  The  question  of  loyalty, 
vital  during  the  period  of  the  war,  was  now  caught 
up  by  a  demagogue  press,  which  aimed  to  procure  the 
repeal  of  the  specific-contract  law,  or  by  pointing  out 
the  friends  of  the  law  charge  them  with  disloyalty  for 


318  PARTY  CHANGES. 

resisting  the  change  to  a  paper  currency,  and  thereby 
accomplish  their  political  ends.  The  importance  of 
national  banks  was  not,  however,  denied  by  the  advo- 
cates of  gold  currency.  The  act  of  congress  appor- 
tioned to  California  but  $3,000,000  for  a  circulating 
medium,  whereas  there  was  fully  $35,000,000  in  gold 
employed  as  money.  The  three  millions  could  not 
take  the  place  of  thirty  millions,  but  it  could  be  used 
to  develop  the  resources  of  the  country  as  far  as  it 
would  go,  and  being  cheaper  than  gold  could  be  used 
more  profitably  for  such  purposes.  That  proposition 
was  not  disputed,  but  the  hard-money  advocates  would 
not  consent  to  bankrupting  the  state  by  a  sudden 
change  of  the  currency.  So  hard  pressed  were  they, 
however,  by  the  politicians,  that  the  people's  nomi- 
nating committee  was  overawed  by  it,  and  driven, 
unwisely,  to  adopt  a  resolution  offensive  to  the  better 
class  of  democrats  who  had  hitherto  voted  with  them, 
that  no  candidate  before  them  could  be  nominated 
who  had  not  voted  for  Lincoln  and  Johnson  at  the 
election  in  1864. 

Public  meetings  were  held  in   San  Francisco,  and 

O  7 

resolutions  passed  declaring  that  a  public  and  uncon- 
ditional endorsement  of  the  specific-contract  law  would 
be  required  of  every  candidate  for  any  legislative 
office.  An  independent  call  was  made  for  a  reorgan- 
ization of  the  union  party,  and  signed  by  about  two 
thousand  citizens  of  good  standing,  who  named  dele- 
gates to  a  union  county  convention  and  solicited  them 
through  the  press  to  act  as  such,  by  this  means  obvi- 
ating any  primary  election.  Upon  those  men,  selected 
by  responsible  citizens,  devolved  the  duty  of  appoint- 
ing a  union  county  committee  for  the  year ;  of  ap- 
pointing delegates  to  the  judicial  convention  for  that 
year,  under  the  amended  constitution,  and  of  nominat- 
ing candidates  for  the  state  senate  and  assembly. 
They  repudiated  the  doings  of  the  county  committee 
above  spoken  of,  and  known  as  'the  boys,'  and  declared 
their  wish  that  in  the  nomination  of  candidates  for 


FACTIONS  AND  FUSIONS,  319 

the  legislature  the  convention  should  select  men  of 
the  "highest  capacity,  purest  integrity,  and  most  de- 
voted loyalty;"  that  they  should  be  left  unpledged 
and  free  in  regard  to  senatorial  perferences;  and  that 
in  selecting  delegates  to  the  state  convention,  and  hi 
the  choice  of  a  county  committee  the  same  principles 
should  be  observed.  But  when  they  came  to  meet 
the  boys  and  the  long  and  short  hairs  in  convention 
at  Sacramento,  the  independents  were  not  recognized, 
and  withdrew.  The  moral  effect  of  their  presence 
was  not  altogether  lost,  and  the  convention  performed 
its  duties  in  a  manner  leaving  nothing  to  complain  of 
except  the  defeat  of  a  proposition  from  James  M. 
McShafter  to  vote  on  the  question  of  primaries  or  no 
primaries  at  the  next  general  election. 

S.  W.  Sanderson  was  renominated  for  supreme  judge, 
and  elected  by  a  majority  of  6rOOO  over  H.  H.  Hart- 
ley, but  only  such  candidates  of  the  people's  union 
party,  represented  by  the  independents,  as  had  great 
strength  personally,  were  elected  this  year,  and  in 
1867  the  sceptre  passed  away  completely,1  since  which 
time  primaries  and  bosses  have  ruled  the  hour  in  the 
metropolis.  Between  factions  and  fusions  the  political 
muddle  was  often  unintelligible.  In  San  Francisco, 
in  1865,  the  boys,  or  short  hairs,  fused  with  the  demo- 
crats; in  Sacramento  they  did  the  same,  but  there 
was,  nevertheless,  a  working  majority  of  union  mem- 
bers in  the  legislature,*  which  performed  some  good 

*Cvm's  Amnk  of  S.  P.,  MS.,  27. 

"The  state  senators  elected  in  1865  were  Henry  Robinson,  Alameda;  6. 
W.  Seaton,  Alpine  and  Amador;  J.  W.  Freeman,  Fresno  and  Tnlare;  P. 
Banning,  Los  Angeles;  A.  L.  Tnbbs,  William  J,  Shaw,  J.  S.  Hager,  S.  F.; 
P.  W.  Murphy,  Sta  Barbara  and  San  Luis  Obispo;  W.  J.  Knox,  Sta  Clara; 
L.  E,  Pratt,  Sierra;  E.  Wadsworth,  Siskiyon;  L.  B.  Mizner.  Solano  and 
Yolo:  George  Pearce,  Sonoma;  E.  Teegarden,  Sutler  and  Ynba.  S.  P. 
Wright,  a  hold-over  senator  from  Klama  th.  Humboldt.  and  Del  Norte,  was 
chosen  pres't.  The  sec.  elected  was  John  White,  ass't  sec.  Charles  W.  Gor- 
don, clerks  Martin  Rowan,  W.  F.  Heustis,  Albert  Hart,  M.  E.  Gebton,  E. 
B.  Edion,  Bart.  Morgan;  sergts-at-arms,  John  Moran,  James  Lane. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of  John  L.  Wilson,  Thomas  Eagan,  Alameda; 
Miner  Frink  jr,  Harvey  Lee,  Alpine  and  Amador;  W.  P.  Tflden,  GeorgB  K 
Smith,  Butte;  Isaac  Ayres,  M.  M.  Coffier,  X.  G.  Sawyer,  Calaveras;  Wil- 
liam  a  Long,  Colusa  andTehama;  F.  A.  Brown,  Contra  Costa,  L.  H.  March, 


320  PARTY   CHANGES. 

service,  among  which  was  the  passage  of  a  registry 
law  for  the  purification  of  the  ballot-box,  and  also  a 
law  for  the  protection  of  primary  elections.  In  view 
of  President  Johnson's  policy  toward  the  states  late 
in  rebellion,  resolutions  were  passed  endorsing  that 
policy  so  far  as  to  declare  that  those  states  had  no 
ri^ht  to  resume  domestic  government,  or  send  repre- 
sentatives to  congress  before  they  had  fulfilled  cer- 
tain conditions  in  determining  the  terms,  of  which 
they  should  have  no  voice,  but  denying  the  right  of 
the  executive  branch  of  the  government  to  determine 
those  conditions.  On  the  contrary  all  questions  per- 
taining to  the  status  of  the  states  late  in  rebellion 
should  be  left  to  congress;  and  any  other  course 
would  be  dangerous  to  republican  liberty.  The  second 
clause  of  the  constitutional  amendment,  empowering 
congress  to  abolish  slavery,  would  become  a  dead 
letter  with  a  congress  composed  of  the  late  masters 
of  those  whose  freedom  the  amendment  contemplated 
to  pass  upon  the  measure.  California  senators  were 
requested  to  give  their  full  support  to  the  amendment, 
to  the  end  that  the  rebel  states  when  admitted  should 

Del  Norte  and  Klamath;  J.  S.  Campbell,  J.  S.  Kidder,  E.  L.  Smith,  Ed.  F. 
Taylor,  El  Dorado;  R.  P.  Mace,  Fresno;  S.  Cooper,  R.  J.  Heustis,  Humboldt; 
John  M.  Coghlan,  Lake  and  Napa;  J.  D.  Goodwin,  Lassen  and  Plumas;  W. 
H.  Peterson,  E.  C.  Parrish,  Los  Angeles;  D.  Olds  jr,  Marin;  J.  \V.  Wilcox, 
Mariposa;  William  Holden,  Mendocino;  R.  H.  Ward,  Merced  and  Stanislaus; 
J.  E.  Goodall,  L.  I.  Hogle,  Otis  Perrin,  Mono  and  Tuolumne;  M.  G.  Ireland, 
Monterey;  John  Pattison,  George  D.  Darrin,  Reuben  Leech,  H.  L.  Hatch, 
Nevada;  John  Yule,  William  Sexton,  John  Bosquet,  Placer;  Dwight  Hollis- 
ter,  William  B.  Hunt,  Thomas  Hansbraw,  J.  M.  Maholmb,  P.  J.  Hcpper, 
Sac. ;  J.  W.  Satterwhite,  San  Bernardino;  D.  B.  Kurtz,  San  Diego;  Charles 
Clayton,  James  Bowman,  C.  L.  Wiggin,  S.  C.  Bugbee,  Henry  Dutton,  David 
Dwyer,  J.  A.  McClelland,  M.  A.  Brayley,  Michael  Hawkins,  George  Hearst, 
Samuel  L.  Lupton,  E.  J.  Chase,  S.  F. ;  C.  H.  Chamberlain,  W.  E.  Green, 
San  Joaquin;  R.  J.  Hill,  San  Luis  Obispo  and  Sta  Barbara;  George  M. 
Howard,  San  Mateo;  John  Zuck,  J.  M.  Corey,  A.  B.  Hunt,  Sta  Clara;  Wil- 
liam Anthony,  Sta  Cruz;  J.  N.  Chapelle,  Shasta;  M.  A.  Singleton,  G-.  Meri- 
deth,  Sierra;  Thomas  H.  Steele,  J.  K.  Tutrell,  Siskiyou;  James  M.  Lemon, 
Solano;  0.  H.  Hoag,  A.  C.  Bledsoe,  J.  L.  Downing,  Sonoma;  Francis  Hamlin, 
Sutter;  J.  C.  Dorr,  Trinity;  J.  C.  Brown,  Tulare;  Charles  F.  Reed,  Yolo; 
T.  J.  Sherwood,  A.  J.  Batchelder,  Orrin  Stewart,  Yuba.  Yule  was  elected 
speaker,  and  Wilcox  speaker  pro  tern. ;  Marcus  D.  Boruck,  John  H.  Roberts, 
J.  M.  Wood,  J.  E.  Youngberg,  B.  S.  Marston,  John  Drum,  E.  L.  Selfridge, 
J.  C.  Breen,  clerks.  Benjamin  Dore,  Charles  Roberts,  sergts-at-arms;  M.  C. 
Bnggs,  chaplain;  J.  H.  Hathaway,  watchman.  Col.  Jour.  Sen.  and  Assem., 
18G5-(j. 


LEGISLATIVE  LABOR  32! 

be  reduced  to  an  equality,  as  to  representation,  with 
the  loyal  states.  The  adoption  of  this  amendment, 
and  possibly  others,  should  precede  the  restoration  of 
civil  power  to  the  states  late  in  rebellion.  The  Freed- 
man's  Bureau  bill3  was  approved,  and  the  president's 
refusal  to  sign  it  declared  "  totally  indefensible,  and 
an  assumption  of  dictatorial  power  justly  calculated 
to  awaken  the  gravest  apprehension  in  the  minds  of 
a  people  jealous  of  their  liberties."  In  the  proper 
sentiment  and  action  of  congress  the  utmost  confidence 
was  expressed. 

The  repeal  of  the  specific-contract  act  was  attempted, 
but  failed,  and  that  law  remained  upon  the  statute 
book  notwithstanding  that  the  supreme  court  of  the 
neighboring  state  of  Nevada  had  decided  against  it, 
and  that  the  new  secretary  of  the  federal  treasury, 
McCulloch,  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that  California 
would  have  been  more  prosperous  with  paper  money 
than  with  gold  currency.  California  felt  that  she 
might  please  herself  in  the  matter  of  her  currency  so 
long  as  she  paid  her  full  share  of  federal  taxes,  and 
bought  liberally  of  United  States  bonds,  quite  as  much 
out  of  patriotism  as  with  an  eye  to  business.*  In 
truth,  the  state  needed  the  money  for  its  own  devel- 

*CaL  Stat.,  1865-6,  288-301.  There  was  a  convention  of  the  colored 
population  of  Cal.  held  in  Sac.  in  Oct.  1865.  The  report  showed,  in  Colnsa 
county,  black  pop.  21,  churches  none,  schools  none,  valuation  of  property 
$22, 300;  Tehama,  pop.  73,  churches  none,  schools  none,  prop.  §69,500;  Santa 
Clara,  pop.  175,  churches  1,  schools  1,  prop.  $75,000;  Napa,  pop.  48,  churches 
none,  schools  1,  prop.  $51,290;  Mariposa,  pop.  72,  churches  none,  schools 
none,  prop.  $26,000;  Merced,  pop.  27,  schools  none,  prop.  $30,000;  Sac., 
pop.  620,  churches  2,  schools  (49  pupils)  1,  prop.  $141,895;  S.  F.,  pop.  1850, 
churches  3,  schools,  day  and  evening,  4;  prop.  $750,000.  Total  of  wealth 
represented  in  the  convention,  not  including  Solano,  Sta  Cruz,  and  Contra 
Costa  cos,  $1,417,585,  belonging  to  a  population  of  3,425.  In  some  of  the 
counties  just  named  there  were  7  schools,  and,  including  Contra  Costa,  1 1 
churches. 

4  Cal.  Stit.,  1865-6,  909-11.  In  1864  Cal.  dug  out  of  the  ground  and  paid 
to  the  federal  govt  for  war  customs  duties  $6,378,384  in  gold.  She  also  paid 
$3,000,000  war  taxes  in  paper,  worth  $1,500,000  in  gold.  There  was  dis- 
bursed by  congress  for  all  expenses  on  the  coast,  overland  mail  included, 
$9,670,656  in  legal  tenders,  or  $4, 481,000  in  gold,  leaving  $3,497,384  net  con- 
tribution of  the  16- years-old  state  to  the  support  of  the  govt,  besides  taking 
several  millions  of  the  govt  loan  at  a  much  less  rate  of  interest  than  the  same 
amount  would  bring  if  invested  in  this  state. 

HIST  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    21 


322  PARTY  CHANGES. 

opment,  which  was  retarded  by  the  prodigality  of  its 
offerings  in  the  cause  of  the  whole  country. 

The  consciousness  of  being  regarded  in  a  false  light 
by  congressmen  and  others  in  the  older  states  caused 
the  legislature  by  a  concurrent  resolution  to  request 
the  president  to  give  a  seat  in  the  cabinet  to  a  citizen 
of  the  Pacific  coast,5  and  subsequently  to  recommend 
Frederick  Billings  of  San  Francisco  to  the  president's 
notice,  should  the  request  be  favorably  received.  No 
appointment  was  made  of  a  cabinet  officer  from  the 
Pacific  coast  until  1871,  and  then  not  of  a  Californian. 

Early  in  the  session  the  election  of  a  successor  to 
McDougall  in  the  United  States  senate  took  place 
without  any  excitement,  Cornelius  Cole 6  being  chosen 
on  the  first  ballot,  W.  T.  Coleman  being  nominated 
with  him.  This  was  the  first  senatorial  election  in 
California  not  governed  by  cliques  for  the  succession 
or  parcelling  out  of  offices  for  years  to  come.  The  ac- 
ceptable record  of  the  early  part  of  the  session  was 
clouded  later  by  the  passage  of  bills  taxing  the  state 
heavily  for  the  benefit  of  the  railroad  companies,  and 
for  the  increase  of  fares  on  the  street  railways  of  San 
Francisco.  The  direct  tax  was  vetoed  by  Governor 
Low,  but  the  indirect  tax  became  the  law.  Money 
was  freely  used  in  the  passage  of  these  bills,  and  in 
the  endeavor  to  induce  the  legislature  to  grant  to  in- 
dividuals large  tracts  of  state  lands  on  the  waterfront 
of  San  Francisco  and  Oakland,  which,  however,  failed 
through  exposures  made  by  the  press. 

*Cal  Stat.,  1865-6,  899,  905.  The  Nevada  legislature  reported  against 
petitioning  for  the  admission  of  a  Pacific  coast  man  to  the  cabinet  or  other 
representation.  New  Jour.  Sen.,  1866,  157.  The  first  appointment  of  a  presi- 
dential adviser  from  the  Pacific  states  was  George  H.  Williams,  senator  from 
Oregon,  to  be  attorney-general. 

6 Cornelius  Cole  was  born  at  Lodi,  N.  Y.,  in  1822,  and  educated  at  the 
Wesleyan  university,  Conn.  He  studied  law,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar, 
but  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  working  for  a  year  in  the  gold  mines,  after  which 
he  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He  was  district  attorney  of 
Sac.  from  1859  to  1862,  a  member  of  the  national  republican  committee  from 
1856  to  I860,  was  a  representative  in  the  38th  congress,  and  elected  to  the 
.  S.  senate  as  a  union  republican  in  1866,  for  a  term  of  6  years,  from  March 
1867  to  March  1873.  Poore,  Cony.  Dir.,  40  cong.  5-6 


SENATOR  AND  GOVERNOR.  323 

About  this  time  it  became  apparent  that  the  Cen- 
tral Pacific  railroad  was  becoming  a  power  in  the 
land.  There  were  many  who  declared  that  the  direc- 
tors would  dictate  who  should  be  elected  to  the  legis- 
lature, and  through  the  legislature  who  should  be 
chosen  United  States  senator;  hi  short,  that  the 
state  was  about  to  pass  under  the  rule  of  a  danger- 
ous monopoly.  But  as  a  fact  they  interfered  but 
little  in  politics,  and  then  only  to  secure  their  rights 
or  the  passage  of  such  measures  as  were  necessary  to 
the  completion  of  their  enterprise.  It  was  at  this 
time  that  Senator  Conness  appeared  upon  the  scene, 
and  assumed  control  of  union  primaries  and  conven- 
tions, with  the  result  that  the  party  was  divided  and 
fell. 

The  governor  proposed  by  Conness  was  George 
C.  Gorham,7  a  politician  by  no  means  popular  in 
San  Francisco,  on  account  of  his  attitude  as  to 
the  waterfront  question  in  1859-60,  and  the  ob- 
noxious railroad-tax  bills  in  1865—6,  whereby,  but 
for  the  governor's  veto,  the  state  would  have  been 
forced  to  donate  to  railroad  companies  an  amount 
equal  to  about  §3,000,000,  a  percentage  of  which 
would  have  gone  to  his  account  for  services  ren- 
dered. After  the  ticket  made  up  by  the  union 
convention,  against  wrhich  the  independent  press  of 
the  state  energetically  protested,  was  published,  a 
second  convention  was  held,  which  revised  the  nomi- 
nations, placing  on  the  ticket  the  name  of  John  Bid- 
well  for  governor,  and  changing  three  other  nominations 

7  Geo.  C.  Gorham  was  born  in  New  London  Ct.  in  1833,  and  came  to  Cal. 
in  1849.  VaUejo  Recorder,  June  29,  1867;  Marysville  North  CaUforman,  June 
17,  1869.  Another  and  perhaps  better  authority  says  he  was  born  in  Green- 
port,  L.  L,  in  1832,  and  removed  to  New  London  in  1833.  On  arriving  in 
Cal.  he  settled  at  Marysville,  and  became  clerk  in  the  office  of  the  alcalde, 
Field,  which  position  he  held  until  American  courts  were  established.  In 
1853  he  visited  the  east,  returning  to  Cal.  in  1855,  and  was  employed  to 
edit  the  Herald  at  Marysville.  In  1856  he  was  elected  city  clerk,  and  in 
1859  nominated  county  recorder.  In  1860  he  edited  the  S.  F.  Nation  for  a 
short  time,  soon  purchasing  the  Marysville  Democrat,  and  in  1861  became 
associated  with  the  Sac.  Union.  He  was  appointed  supt  of  the  state  reform 
school  in  1862,  and  in  1863  clerk  of  the  U.  S.  circuit  court.  He  served  as 
private  secretary  to  Gov.  Low  in  1864.  In  1867  he  aspired  to  be  governor. 
See  further  San  Andreas  Register,  Aug.  3,  1867;  Cokua  Sun,  April  11,  1874. 


324  PABTY  CHANGES. 

to  state  offices.8  These  changes  were  made  upon 
principle  by  those  union  men  who  were  formerly  re- 
publicans, and  who  viewed  with  dismay  the  union 
party,  which  had  so  clean  a  record,  being  prostituted 
to  place  and  money-getting  without  reference  to  the 
welfare  of  state  or  nation  by  men  who  made  noisy 
pretensions  to  patriotic  sentiments,  yet  whose  acts  be- 
lied their  declarations.  These  seceders  now  re-allied 
themselves  to  the  national  republican  party. 

Bidwell,  however,  declined  the  nomination,  pre- 
ferring, perhaps,  the  quiet  and  profit  of  his  estate  to 
the  doubtful  honors  to  be  derived  from  being  beaten 
by  a  division  in  his  own  party.  The  candidate  sub- 
stituted for  the  ex-congressman  was  Caleb  T.  Fay,9 
who  accepted  with  a  full  knowledge  that  he  would 
probably  be  beaten.  His  letter  of  acceptance,  and 
speech  on  the  occasion  of  his  nomination  were  remark  - 

8  These  were  William  H.  Parks,  for  sec.  of  state,  changed  to  J.  G.  Mc- 
Callum;  Josiah  Howell,  controller,  changed  to  William  Jones;  and  D.  D. 
McCarthy,  state  printer,  changed  to  E.  G.  Jeffries.  McCallum  was  formerly 
state  senator  from  El  Dorado,  serving  with  distinction.  He  was  also  presi- 
dential elector  in  1864,  carrying  the  certified  vote  of  the  state  for  Lincoln  to 
Washington.  Jones  was  from  the  same  county  where  he  settled  in  1850. 
He  was  a  mechanic,  had  been  mayor  of  Placerville,  and  was  a  colonel  in  the 
2d  regt  Cal.  vols.  in  the  union  army,  having  enlisted  as  a  private.  Jones 
was  a  native  of  N.  Y.  In  1873  he  was  the  candidate  of  the  independents 
for  state  senator.  In  1875  he  was  the  republican  candidate  for  assemblyman 
but  was  beaten  by  G.  J.  Carpenter,  dem.  In  1867  he  was  again  a  candidate 
for  the  same  position,  but  died  before  the  election  was  officially  decided,  at 
the  age  of  60  years.  Jeffries  was  one  of  the  original  publishers  and  propri- 
etors of  the  Sacramento  Union,  a  good  printer  and  a  good  man. 

•  Caleb  T.  Fay,  a  native  of  Maas.,  born  in  1821,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  on  a 
vessel  which,  with  the  cargo  was  owned  by  the  Northwestern  association 
of  Boston  as  the  emigrants  to  the  land  of  gold  styled  themselves.  George 
W.  Denny,  pres't  of  the  Granite  bank  of  Boston,  was  pres't  of  the  associa- 
tion, and  the  company  was  composed  of  the  sons  of  prominent  men.  The 
vessel  was  commanded  by  Capt.  Moore,  of  the  U.  S.  navy.  Fay  soon  drifted 
into  a  profitable  business.  He  ran  for  mayor  of  S.  F.  on  the  republican 
ticket  in  1860,  and  took  a  prominent  part  in  forming  that  party.  Only  1500 
votes  were  given  for  the  republican  ticket  for  mayor  in  1860,  but  in  1861  he 
came  within  500  votes  of  an  election.  In  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  the 
republicans  elected  their  whole  legislative  ticket,  and  in  1862  elected  Fay 
mayor  of  S.  F.  as  a  unionist.  In  1867  he  was  defeated  for  governor.  In 
1872  he  opposed  the  claim  of  the  Central  Pacific  R.  R.,  to  the  possession  of 
Goat  island,  and  was  appointed  a  commissioner  to  proceed  to  Washington 
in  company  with  Gen.  Alexander  and  Prof.  Davidson  of  the  coast  survey,  to 
represent  the  matter  to  the  gov't,  and  succeeded  in  defeating  the  claim. 
'Ihis  placed  him  in  antagonism  to  the  railroad  supporters  in  Cal.,  and  was  a 
point  in  the  campaign  of  1867.  Fay's  Hint.  Facts,  MS.,  1-23. 


POLITICAL  HISTORY.  325 

able  for  their  propriety  of  principle  and  diction,  and 
considering  the  character  of  some  of  California's  ex- 
ecutives, it  was  to  many  a  source  of  regret  that  a 
candidate  so  manifestly  possessing'  the  firmness  and 
dignity  required  for  the  position  should  be  sacrificed 
to  circumstances  so  untoward  as  those  attending  this 
campaign.  He  was  not  unknown  in  politics.,  having 
served  in  the  legislature,  and  as  federal  assessor  in 
the  1st  California  district.  He  was  spoken  of  for 
governor  by  the  best  men  in  the  union  party  before 
the  division,  but  was  found  too  inflexible  for  the  ap- 
proval of  the  Conness-Gorham  management. 

The  democratic  candidate  for  governor  was  H.  H. 
Haight,10  a  man  who  enjoyed  an  excellent  reputation, 
though  one  long  accustomed  to  politics  and  place.  The 
contest  under  these  conditions,  with  the  existence  of 
a  party  at  stake  on  one  hand,  the  success  of  deep-laid 
schemes  on  the  other,  with  a  third  party  striving  to  re- 
turn to  power,  was  the  most  bitter  and  exciting  of  the 
many  exciting  political  campaigns  witnessed  by  this 
politician-ridden  state.11  It  ended,  as  might  have  been 
expected,  in  the  triumph  of  the  democratic  third  party, 
and  the  extinction  of  the  union  organization,  composed 
originally  of  the  best  men  in  the  commonwealth,  but 

"Henry  H.  Haight  was  bora  in  Rochester.  N.  Y.,  in  1825.  His  father, 
Fletcher  M.  Haight.  was  judge  of  the  U.  S.  Dist  court,  for  the  southern  disc 
of  CaL  The  sen  came  to  CaL  in  ISaO,  from  Sfc  Louis,  having  graduated  at 
Yale,  studied  lav,  and  been  admitted  to  the  bar  in  that  city.  The  father 
fallowed  in  1354,  and  together  they  practised  law  in  S.  P. 


irnnrr  For  congress,  1st  dist,  T.  G.  Fhelps;  2d  dist.  William  Higby:  3d 
dst,  C.  Harteon;  governor,  George  C.  Gorham;  bent-gov.,  J.  P.  Jones;  sec. 
of  state,  William  H.  Parks:  controller,  Josiah  Howefl;  supreme  judge.  John 
Carrey;  art'y-gen.,  John  G.  McCnOoagh;  snr.-gen.,  Charles  F.  Reed;  trea?.. 
Romoaldo  Pacheco;  harbor  eom'r.  Charles  Clayton;  clerk  of  sup.  et.,  R.  H. 
Farquahar;  state  printer,  D.  O.  McCarthy;  sop.  of  public  instroc.,  John 
Swett.  The  revised  ticket,  as  before  stated,  changed  four  of  these  candi- 
dates. The  democratic  ticket  contained  the  names  of  the  following  candi- 
dates: foreongress,  1st  dist,  S.  R  AiteD;  2d  dist,  James  W.  Coffiroth:  3d 
dist,  James  A.  Johnson;  gov.,  H.  H.  Haight:  lieot-gov.,  William  Holden; 
see.  of  state,  H.  L.  Xichob;  controller,  Robert  Watt;  treas..  Antonio  F. 
Carooel;  snr.-gen..  John  W.  Rost;  att  y-gen.,  Joseph  Honuhon:  harbor 
eomV,  James  H.  Cotter;  derk  of  snp.  ct.  George  Seckel;  state  printer,  D. 
W.  Gehrieks;  snp'tpnb.  instrnc.,  O.  P.  Fitzgerald;  judge  of  sop.  ct,  Royal 
L. 


326  PARTY   CHANGES. 

now  being  used  to  promote  the  personal  aims  of 
aspiring  politicians.12  "  In  some  respects,"  said  the 
Sacramento  Union,  "it  is  the  strangest  chapter  in 
the  strange  political  history  of  California." 

The  union  party  for  four  years  had  been  guided 
and  directed  by  pure  men  and  patriots,  but  with  the 
coming  of  peace  the  old  hungry  brood  of  place-hun- 
ters, basing  their  claims  to  public  favor  on  the  actions 
of  better  men,  now  paraded  their  spurious  patriotism, 
and  demanded  their  reward,  while  the  more  modest 
real  benefactors  of  their  country  were  artfully  retired 
from  observation  by  the  tricks  of  primaries  and  con- 
ventions. The  tricksters  had  forced  many  of  the 
best  men  out  of  the  union  party.  The  seceders  had 
exposed  their  methods,  the  small  vote  drawn  by  the 
republicans  only  adding  to  the  democratic  majority  of 
9,546  for  Haight,  and  a  proportionate  majority  for 

12 Said  Gorham:  'And  now  in  relation  to  the  bill  to  grant  aid  to  the 
Western  Pacific  Railroad  company.  .  .  I  knew  some  of  the  parties  inter- 
ested, and  holding  no  public  office,  and  being  under  no  obligation  whatever 
to  represent  the  state's  side  of  the  question,  I,  as  a  private  citizen,  did  just 
a?  I  had  a  right  to  do,  namely:  I  seconded  the  application  of  the  company 
for  aid.  Was  it  immoral  for  them  to  ask  for  a  bounty  at  the  hands  of  the 
government?  Was  it  immoral  in  me  to  join  in  this  request?  Ought  the 
company  to  have  opposed  the  bill  ?  Ought  I,  as  a  friend,  to  have  opposed 
it?  We  did  not  say  the  state  owed  anything  to  the  company.  We  said: 
"Give,  if  you  please."  Was  there  anything  dishonest  in  this?  It  so  hap- 
pened that  I  did  not  own  any  interest  in  the  Western  Pacific  railroad,  or  in 
the  contract  to  build  it.  ...  It  would  have  been  in  perfect  accordance 
with  good  morals,  I  suppose,  for  me  to  have  owned  an  interest.  Well,  the 
bill  passed,  and  was  vetoed.  Since  that  time  the  W.  P.  R.  R.  co.,  have 
sold  out  to  the  Central  Pacific  company.'  Letter  to  D.  M.  Kelsey,  in  Sac.  Union, 
Aug.  1,  1867.  In  1863  a  bill  passed  the  legislature  authorizing  San  Francisco 
to  subscribe  $400,000  in  aid  of  the  Western  Pacific.  The  subsidy  was  voted 
for,  but  the  supervisors  refused  their  consent.  The  matter  was  compromised 
by  a  grant  of  $200,000  in  bonds.  As  to  Conness,  the  S.  F.  Flag  newspaper 
had  this  elegant  charge:  'If  a  popular  citizen  is  suggested  as  a  suitable 
person  for  a  certain  office,  he  cannot  be  nominated  without  having  been  first 
chalked  out  on  Conness'  slate;  he  must  express  his  readiness  to  pack  sand 
and  eat  dirt  for  the  Great  Senatorial  Manipulator.  If  we  require  a  member 
of  the  legislature,  he  must  be  a  friend  of  our  'only  sober  senator.'  If  we 
want  a  sheriff,  the  Great  Western  Prestidigitateur  pours  him  out  of  a  magic 
bottle.  If  we  desire  a  justice  of  the  peace,  the  Great  First  Cause  creates 
one  directly.  If  we  would  have  a  head  schoolmaster,  that  eminent  scholar 
sets  his  traps  and  catches  one.  If  a  special  policeman  be  required,  Senator 
Conness  springs  his  rattle  and  presto  !  we  have  one  of  his  friends. ' 


POLTTICAL  HISTORY.  327 

the  whole  democratic  ticket,1*  except  in  the  case  of 
Higby  reflected  to  congress.1* 

It  was  with  unfeigned  sorrow  that  the  founders  of 
the  union  party  beheld  it  hi  extremes  ;  not  because 
their  political  hopes  went  down  with  it,  but  because 
it  represented  the  most  unselfish,  patriotic,  and  pure- 
minded  political  organization  which  the  state  had  ever 
known.  For  a  short  time  they  flattered  themselves 
that  at  the  judicial  election  in  October  their  candi- 
dates might  be  elected,  but  such  was  not  the  result, 
and  the  conviction  was  settled  that  the  "  dear  old 
party  "  was  dead.  The  first  impulse  was  to  lay  all 
the  blame  at  the  door  of  the  self-constituted  party 
managers ;  but  unscrupulous  as  they  had  shown  them- 
selves, this  was  not  all  the  cause.  There  were  no 
longer  any  but  local  issues  except  the  one  of  the  quar- 
rel between  congress  and  the  president,  and  the  dem- 
ocrats sympathized  with  the  latter.  To  strengthen 
their  party  they  had  taken  up  the  cause  of  the  work- 
ingmen,  who  were  clamoring  for  an  eight  hour  law. 
This  forced  the  unionists  to  adopt  this  plank  in  their 
platform  also.  But  as  the  majority  of  workingmen 
belonged  primarily  to  the  democratic  party,  this  was 
little  to  the  advantage  of  the  opposing  party.  As  to 
other  issues,  they  were  chiefly  those  which  aflected 
San  Francisco,  in  which  the  voters  in  distant  counties 
felt  little  interest.  Thus  the  politics  of  the  state  were 
settling  back  into  their  ante-rebellion  footing. 

The  legislature  of  1867—8  consisted  of  seventy 
democrats  and  ten  republicans.14  It  selected  Eugene 

B  Haight's  majority  over  Gorham  was  8,546;  Fay's  Tote  was  only  2,088. 

11  The  congressmen  serving  from  1865  to  1867  were  John  Bidwell.  William 
Higby,  and  Donald  C.  McRuer.  Higby  was  born  in  Essex  co.,  X.  Y.,  in 
1813,  educated  at  the  university  of  Burlington,  Vt,  and  read  law  for  a  pro- 
fession, practising  in  his  native  co.  until  1850,  when  he  came  to  CaL,  settled 
himself  in  Calaveras  co.,  and  was  elected  dist  att'y  in  1853:  holding  his  office 
until  1859.  In  1861  he  was  a  Douglas  democrat,  and  aided  in  forming  the 
union  party  in  1862,  which  elected  him  to  the  state  senate.  In  1S63  he  was 
chosen  member  of  congress  from  the  state  at  large;  in  1864  he  was  reflected, 
and  for  the  third  time  in  1867,  participating  in  the  action  of  congress  through 
the  most  interesting  period  of  its  history. 

15  The  senators  elect  were  E.  L.  Brady,  Placer;  Horace  Beach,  Ynba  and 


328  PARTY  CHANGES. 

Casserly,16  an  Irish  lawyer  of  prominence,  to  succeed 
Conness,  Thomas  A.  Brown  of-  Contra  Costa  being 
the  next  most  popular  candidate.  Casserly,  like 
Haio-ht,  was  a  man  of  pure  private  character,  and  also 
of  varied  talents  and  accomplishments,  superior  to  Con- 
ness  as  a  man,  but  inferior  to  him  as  a  manager  of  party 

Sutter;  William  A.  Conn,  San  Diego  and  San  Bernardino;  N.  Greene  Curtis, 
Sac.;  John  Conly,  Butte,  Plumas,  and  Lassen;  J.  N.  Chapelle,  Shasta  and 
Trinity;  Janson  J.  Green,  Contra  Costa  and  Marin;  George  W.  Hunter,  El 
Dorado;  H.  Kincaid,  S.  F.  and  San  Mateo;  James  Lawrence,  Mariposa, 
Merced,  and  Stanislaus;  E.  J.  Lewis,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  F.  A.  McDougall, 
Monterey  and  Santa  Cruz;  J.  W.  Mandeville,  Inyo,  Mono,  and  Tuolumne; 
D.  L.  Morrill,  Calaveras;  L.  H.  Murch,  Del  Norte,  Humboldt,  and  Klamath; 
J.  E.  Perley,  San  Joaquiu;  William  Pendergast,  Lake,  Napa,  and  Mendo- 
cino;  E.  W.  Roberts,  Nevada;  A.  H.  Rose,  Amador  and  Alpine;  John  H. 
Saunders,  S.  F.;  Charles  Tweed,  Plac.r.  Republican  majority  of  two. 
Officers  of  the  senate:  L.  Mizner  (hold-over),  president;  John  White,  sec.; 
Wilbur  F.  Heustis,  asst  sec..  C.  E.  Barnes,  John  E.  Dent,  W.  H.  Frink,  W. 
L.  Hawkins,  A.  W.  Perley,  B.  S.  Marston,  George  W.  Dixon,  clerks;  F.  S. 
Tarduer,  T.  Mahoney,  sergts-at-arms. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of  W.  C.  Agney,  C.  T.  Ryland,  John  H. 
Moore,  Sta  Clara;  Thomas  J.  Abies,  Marin;  Isaac  Ayer,  L.  S.  Beaver,  Otto 
Mentzell,  Calaveras;  Thomas  A.  Brown,  Contra  Costa;  E.  B.  Bird,  Charles 
Gildea,  Hugh  >'ewell,  Stephen  Willetts,  El  Dorado;  J.  R.  Buckbee,  Plumas 
and  Lassen;  Marion  Biggs,  Paschal  Coggins,  A.  Comte  jr,  Bruce  Lee,  Charles 
Walleb,  Sac.;  T.  S.  Battelle,  J.  W.  Downer,  Sierra;  B.  J.  Broderson,  Mat- 
thew Oanavan,  David  W.  Connely,  Thomas  E.   Farrish,   Samuel   Lupton, 
John  Middleton,  Frank  Mahone,  J.  J.  O'Malley,  Jasper  S.  Papy,  A.  G.Russ, 
Frank  Scudder,  Thomas  Wand,  S.  F.;  J.  C.  Brown,  Tulare  and  Kern;  A.  J. 
Batchelder,  L.  B.Clark,  J.  K.  Smith,  Yuba;  A.  M.  Church,  John  W.  Dwin- 
elle,  Alameda;  John  C.  Crigler,  Napa  and  Lake;  R.   M.  Cochrane,  W.  M. 
Ord,  Butte;  William  H.  Cureton,  Mendocino;  William  Caldwell,  S.  M.  Mar- 
tin, J.  B.  Warfield,  Sonoma;  J.  M.  Days,  G.  D.  Dornin,  H.  G.  Rollins,  John 
D.  White,  Nevada;  Perry  Dyer,  Sierra;  W.  A.  Davies,  M.  Meagher,  B.  A. 
Mardis,  Tuolumne,  Mono,  and  Inyo;  Asa  Ellis,  A.  J.  Watson,  Los  Angeles; 
John  B.   Frisbie,   Solano;  J.  A.  Fairchild,   Elijah  Steele,    Siskiyou;    J.   B. 
Gregory,^  George  Payne,  Amador  and  Alpine;  W.  S.  Green,  Colusa  and  Te- 
hama;  Francis  Gdtner,  Mariposa;  Benjamin  Hayes,   San  Diego;  John  M. 
James,  San  Bernardino;  T.  E.  Jones,  Trinity;  John  M.  Kelly,  Yolo;  R.  P. 
Mace   Fresno;  L.  J.  Morrow,  Warner  Oliver,  San  Joaquin;  R.  L.  Mattingly, 
San  Mateo;  W.  T.  McElhany,  Sta  Barbara  and  San  Luis   Obispo;  J.  W. 
Xewsom,  Merced  and  Stanislaus;  George  Pardee,  Sta  Cruz;  Thomas  H.  Rec- 
tor, Klamath  .and  Del  Norte;  C.  G.  Spencer,   C.   A.  Tuttle,   M.  Waldron, 
R.  Spillman,  Sutter,  E.  C.  Tully,   Monterey;  Charles  Westmore- 
Democratic  majority  22.     Officers  of  assembly,  C.  T.  Ry- 
nd,  speaker;  J.  J.  O'Malley,  speaker  pro  tern. ;  John  A.  Eagan,  Newton 
Benedict,  D.  F.  Beveridge,  R.  M.  Clarkian.  H.  G.  Siebert,  W.  S-  Croper,  J. 
(Tiierra   clerks;  John  K.  Luttrell,  William  H.  Peterson,  sergts-at-arms; 
I.  H.  B.  Anderson,  chaplain. 

"  Eugene  Casserly  was  born  at  Mulligar,  county  Westmeath,  Ireland,  in 
122,  his  family  being  a  branch  of  the  O'Connors.     His  father  was  a  man  of 
Iture,  and  on  arriving  in  New  York  was  engaged  as  a  teacher  of  the 
ics.     Ihe  talents  and  superior  training  of  Eugene  recommended  him  to 
ntion  of  prominent  men.  especially  as  editor  of  a  democratic  news- 
paper, the  Freeman's  Journal.     He  abandoned  editorial  life  for  the  study  of 


FRAXK  M.  FEXLEY.  219 

politics,  if,  indeed,  he  were  not  above  the  business. 
A  republican  senate  and  democratic  assembly  holdin<y 
each  other  in  check,  fewer  obnoxious  bills  were  en- 
acted into  laws  than  usually  happened.  The  Central 
Pacific  railway  company  made  an  effort  at  this  ses- 
sion to  obtain  a  gift  from  the  state  of  a  large  portion 
of  the  tide-lands  at  San  Francisco,  with  the  result  of 
securing  a  conditional  grant  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
acres ;  the  condition  being  that  the  land  should  be 
used  solely  for  the  purposes  of  a  terminus,  or  other- 
wise revert  to  the  state.  The  company  could  not 
demand  or  receive  any  wharfage  or  other  revenues 
from  the  possession  of  this  land. 

During  the  presidential  canvass  of  1868  the  usual 
excitement  occurred.  The  republican  party,  which  in 
California  still  loved  to  call  itself  the  union  party," 
met  in  convention  at  Sacramento  on  the  1st  of  April 
to  choose  delegates  to  the  national  convention  at  Chi- 
cago, Frank  M.  Pixley  being  chosen  president.18  Ten 
delegates  were  selected,  ,two  from  each  congressional 

the  law,  which  he  pursued  in  the  office  of  John  Bigelow,  afterwards  U.  S. 
minister  to  France.  In  1844  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  in  1S£0  came 
to  CaL,  bringing  with  him  the  materials  of  a  printing  office,  and  starting,  in 
connection  with  Benjamin  R.  Bnckalew,  the  publication  of  a  daily  paper, 
the  Pttblif  JtakuHXj  from  which  the  latter  withdrew  in  a  few  months,  when 
the  name  of  the  paper  was  changed  to  True  Balance,  and  subsequently  to 
the  Standard.  He  was  elected  state  printer  by  the  first  legislature;  but  the 
fire  of  1851  swept  away  all  his  office  material.  His  library,  however,  was 
saved,  and  he  returned  to  the  practice  of  law,  and  united  himself  to  the 
democratic  party.  During  the  civil  war  he  was  a  unionist,  but  when  it  was 
over  rejoined  his  former  party. 

17  The  cafl  for  a  state  convention  was  issued  as  a  call  for  a  'union  state 
convention.'  Saf.  Union,  March  'Zl,  1868. 

18  Frank  M.  Pixley  was  born  in  Oneida  co.,  N.  Y.,  in  1825,  of  a  race  of 
fanners  of  English  descent     He  received  an  academic  education,  after  which 
he  studied  law,  and  moved  to  Mich.;  but  being -of  an  adventurous  disposi- 
tion, set  out  for  OaL  in  1848,  wintering  in  Mo.,  arriving  in  the  mines  in  1849, 
and  settling  himself  in  S.  F.  in  1851-     He  was  elected  city   attorney;  in 
1858  became  a  republican,  and  was  elected  to  the  assembly,  where  he  fought 
the  Parsons  bulkhead  bill  successfully.     In  1861  he  was  elected  atty-gen. 
Subsequently  he  was  active  in  politics,  and  although  defeated  in  1868  far 
congress    was   widely  known  for   his  polit-'eal  opinions    uttered  from  the 
platform,  and  with  much  vigor  in  the  editorial  columns  of  the  AryutatA,  to 
which  his  writings  gave  a  strong  individuality.     He  has  had  many  enemies, 
and  has  been  often  assailed;  but  his  disposition  is  both  generous  and  pugna- 
cious, and  in  order  to  be  himself  he  was  usually  to  be  found  on  the  weak  or 
unpopular  side  of  any  question. 


330  PARTY  CHANGES. 

district,  and  four  from  the  state  at  large.1'  They 
were  instructed  to  vote  for  Grant  for  president,  and, 
as  might  seem  best,  for  either  Wade  or  Colfax  for 
vice-president.  The  meeting  adjourned  after  choosing 
a  state  central  committee 

The  democratic  state  convention  met  in  San  Fran- 
cisco April  29th,  lieutenant-governor  Holden  presid- 
ing, and  elected  to  the  national  convention  to  be  held 
in  New  York  one  delegate  at  large,  and  three  from 
each  congressional  district.2'  Presidential  electors 
were  also  chosen,  although  the  presidential  nomina- 
tions were  yet  to  be  made,  every  elector  being  an 
anti-war  democrat.  Upon  many  propositions  the  de- 
mocracy were  purer  and  sounder  than  other  parties 
which  had  more  recently  been  corrupted  by  power. 
Their  ideas  were  certainly  sound  when  they  resolved 
"  that  it  is  not  only  the  patriotic  duty  but  the  delib- 
erate purpose  of  the  democratic  party  never  to  submit 
to  be  governed  by  negroes,  n^or  by  those  claiming  to 
be  elected  by  negro  suffrage  ;  and  we  do  earnestly 
recommend  the  adoption  of  this  resolution  by  the  na- 
tional convention  of  the  democratic  party  which  shall 
assemble  in  July  next."  Now,  if  in  this  resolution 
the  low  Irish  could  have  been  included,  the  political 
millennium,  indeed,  were  at  hand.  But  the  party  de- 
pended upon  this  element  for  its  strength. 

The  Chicago  convention  met  in  May,  nominating 

19  The  delegates  at  large  were  P.  E.  Conner,  James  Casy,  John  Stratman, 
and  James  Green.  Alternates,  Joseph  Benrimo,  John  C.  Byers,  B.  N.  Bug- 
bee,  and  John  O'Brien.  The  district  delegates  were  William  E.  Lovett  and 
Williams  H.  Sears,  1st  dist;  J.  M.  Days  and  Charles  Higby,  2d  dist;  Thomas 
Spencer  and  J.  S.  Rogers,  3d  dist.  Alternates,  C.  E.  Allen  and  Benj.  Dore, 
1st  dist;  Henry  G.  Rollins  and  Abijah  Baker,  2d  dist;  C.  F.  Reed  and  T.  G. 
French,  3d  dist. 

"Thomas  Hayes  was  elected  delegate  at  large,  with  two  alternates. 
The  district  delegates  were:  A.  Jacoby,  James  Roberts  and  R.  C.  Page,  1st 
dist;  Richard  Heath,  H.  Rose  and  John  Bigler,  2d  dist;  S.  C.  Fairfax, 
Thomas  H.  Steele  and  Woodward,  3d  dist.  Alternates:  John  Buckhalter, 
B.  T.  Myers  and  J.  M.  Martin  for  the  three  districts  in  the  order  named. 
The  presidential  electors  chosen  by  the  democratic  convention  were  E.  J. 
Kewen  and  T.  J.  Henry,  for  the  state;  W.  T.  Wallace,  A.  B.  Dibble  and 
George  Pearse,  for  the  1st,  2d  and  3d  dists.  The  alternates  being  Francisco 
Pico  and  John  R.  Kittrell  for  the  state;  and  John  Buckhalter,  B.  F.  Myers 
and  J.  M.  Martin  for  the  1st,  2d,  and  3d  dist. 


CALIFORNIA'S  STEADFASTNES&  331 

Grant  and  Colfax.  The  New  York  convention  met 
in  July,  nominating  Seymour  and  Blair.  In  August 
California  republicans  nominated  Pixley  for  congress- 
man from  the  1st  district,  Sargent  from  the  2d  district, 
and  Hartson  from  the  3d  district,  and  chose  their 
presidential  electors."  The  democrats  chose  for  con- 
gressmen S.  B.  Axtell,  James  W.  Coffroth,  and  James 
A.  Johnson,"  in  the  order  named.  The  election  was 
close,  both  parties  exhausting  argument  and  resources. 
The  republicans  recovered  from  the  democrats  ground 
enough  to  give  the  state  to  Grant  by  a  majority  of 
506  out  of  a  total  vote  of  108,000,  and  to  elect  one 
congressman,  Sargent;"  Axtell  and  Johnson  being 
elected  in  the  1st  and  3d  districts. 

The  election  of  Grant  to  the  presidency  of  the 
union  established  the  republican  party  upon  a  sure 
footing,  and  made  it  the  great  party  for  good  and  evil 
of  the  age.  For  twenty  years  it  remained  in  power, 
and  during  that  time  California  steadily  cast  her  vote 
for  a  republican  president,  whatever  victories  the  de- 
mocracy accomplished  in  state  politics.  It  will  be  re- 
membered that  the  union-republican  majority  of  1864 

!1The  republican  electors  were  Hoffman  of  San  Diego,  Redington  of  Sac., 
and  Westmoreland  of  Humboldt  for  the  three  cong.  ousts,  and  for  the  two 
sen.  dists  J.  B.  Felton,  S.  F.,  and  La  Grange,  Alameda.  Alternates,  sena- 
torial, G.  W.  Tyler  and  Walter  Van  Dyke;  congressional,  Lewis  Schloss,  & 
F.,  C.  A.  Tweed,  Placer,  James  H.  McXabb,  Sonoma. 

B  Samuel  B.  Axtell  was  born  in  Ohio  in  1819,  educated  at  Western  Re- 
serve college,  and  studied  law.  James  A.  Johnson  was  a  native  of  Spartan- 
burg,  S.  C.,  born  in  1829,  received  a  common  school  education,  and  studied 
law  and  medicine.  In  1  $59-60  he  was  a  member  of  the  legislature  of  CaL 
Poore'g  Cong.  Dir.,  1868,  6. 

**  Sargent,  who  was  a  printer,  had  at  one  time  been  compelled  to  walk 
the  streets  of  PhiL,  being  unable  to  find  employment  and  having  no  money. 
He  was  born  in  Xewburyport,  Mass.,  in  1827,  and  came  to  CaL  in  1849, 
locating  himself  in  Nevada  co. ,  and  engaging  in  mining.  He  also  conducted 
a  whig  newspaper.  In  1854  he  was  admitted  to  practise  law,  and  the  follow- 
ing year  was  chosen  dist  atty.  He  took  an  active  part  in  the  formation  of 
the  republican  party,  but  was  defeated  in  1857  for  atty-gen*L  In  1861  he 
presided  over  the  republican  state  convention,  and  was  first  elected  to  con- 
gress; in  1863  he  was  a  member  of  the  republican  state  central  committee. 
In  1872  he  was  chosen  U.  S.  senator.  As  a  politician  he  became  powerful  as 
master  of  a  'ring,'  and  placing  or  displacing  men  according  to  the  will  of  a 
syndicate.  He  was  appointed  minister  to  Germany  in  1882.  See  Grow  Valley 
(/•Am,  May  23, 1874;  Waite,  in  Bowman's  Xeuxpaper  Matter,  51;  Solano  Pro*. 
in  Dowmeinlle  Mountain  Jfttsenqer,  May  13,  1865;  Watsomille  Pajaro  2vn«, 
May  13,  1865;  5.  F.  Chnnkle,  March  1*4,  1882,  and  Nov.  16,  1884. 


332  PARTY  CHANGES. 

was  over  18,000.  In  four  years  it  had  dwindled  to 
500  ;  but  national  politics  had  less  to  do  with  this  re- 
markable change  than  local  issues,  of  which  I  shall 
speak  presently.  The  election  of  1872  was  somewhat 
remarkable,  inasmuch  as  Greeley,  a  republican,  was  en- 
dorsed by  a  democratic  nominating  convention  for 
certain  favors  shown  toward  distinguished  confeder- 
ates," but  the  democratic  party  as  a  whole  rejected 
him,  failing  to  vote,  and  the  republican  majority  was 
13,302,  notwithstanding  that  even  more  republicans 
than  democrats  neglected  to  go  to  the  polls.  In  1872 
the  trial  of  strength  was  legitimate,  and  the  repub- 
lican majority  had  fallen  to  2,900.  The  party  was 
divided  on  railway  and  corporation  issues  soon  after- 
ward, the  democrats  electing  their  state  ticket,  but  in 
1876  it  gave  a  majority  for  Hayes.  In  1879  it 
was  again  divided  on  local  issues,  but  elected  the 
governor  by  a  plurality,  but  by  a  vote  of  23,849  less 
than  a  majority  over  all.  In  the  very  next  year,  how- 
ever, the  party  recovered  all  but  about  200  of  the 
majority  against  it  in  the  election  of  Garfield,  and 
succeeded  in  electing  half  the  congressmen,  and  a 
majority  of  the  assemblymen,  which  gave  them  the 
United  States  senator,  thus  grasping  the  substance  of 
a  republican  victory  while  their  opponents  secured 
the  shadow.  In  1884  the  party  had  so  far  recoveied 
itself  as  to  achieve  a  majority  of  nearly  8,000.  The 
fluctuations  during  non-presidential  years,  returning 
when  a  national  election  takes  place  to  the  supremacy, 
shows  how  the  state  has  been  swayed  by  municipal 
agitations,  while  the  true  sentiment  of  the  American- 
born  population,  at  least,  was  republican. 

The  local  causes  which  led  to  so  much  variation  in 
the  political  atmosphere  may  be  named  under  the 
general  heads  of  taxation,  corporate  monopolies,  Chi- 

n  1  he  Bailing  of  Jefferson  Davis,  an  article  in  the  Century  magazine  for 
Feb.  1887,  explains  Greeley 's  action  in  this  matter;  but  it  was,  after  all,  a 
mistake  excelled  only  by  the  greater  one  of  running  for  the  presidency, 


EXEMPTED  TAXATION.  333 

nese.  Imigration,  and  labor  demands.  The  extrava- 
gant habits  which  the  early  mining  period  engendered 
in  California  private  and  public  life  remained  after  the 
period  had  passed  in  which  they  originated,  and  more 
in  public  than  in  private.  The  state  debt  had  been 
allowed  to  go  on  increasing,  while  legislatures  ex- 
pended upon  themselves  and  a  numerous  retinue  of 
attaches  the  money  wrung  from  the  people,  or  voted 
it  in  appropriations,  either  wisely  or  unwisely,  creatintr 
additional  burdens.  The  complaints  of  the  people 
caused  the  legislators  to  attempt  pacification  by  pre- 
tending to  shift  the  burden  of  tax  from  borrower  to 
lender  by  exempting  $1,000  worth  of  property  of 
widows  and  orphans  from  taxation  ;  exempting  the 
land  claims  of  new  settlers  for  one  year ;  and  remit- 
ting the  tax  upon  growing  crops,  vines,  and  mining 
claims,  all  of  which  was  in  violation  of  the  constitu- 
tion, which  declared  that  taxation  should  be  equal 
and  uniform. 

In  1866  property  to  the  amount  of  $80,000,000 
was  thus  exempted  from  taxation,  and  yet  there  was 
a  cry  of  hard  times.  The  savings  banks  contained 
more  deposits  per  inhabitant  than  any  state  or  country 
on  the  globe  ;  but  the  prosperity  was  more  apparent 
than  real ;  for,  whereas  in  other  states  the  owners  of 
a  bank  account  were  of  the  class  who  had  some  sort 
of  permanent  homes  enabling  them  to  keep  and  in- 
crease their  capital,  in  California  the  money  was  often 
withdrawn  to  meet  painful  emergencies  arising  from 
the  unsettled  condition  of  society  and  the  greater  ex- 
pense of  living,  with  the  decrease  in  gold-production. 

As  early  as  1865,  owing  partly  to  the  influx  of  un- 
employed persons  after  the  war,  there  began  a  move- 
ment among  the  laboring  classes  looking  to  the 
improvement  of  their  condition.  Among  the  demands 
of  laborers  was  the  reduction  of  their  hours  of  em- 
ployment without  any  corresponding  reduction  of 
pay,  and  toward  this  purpose  numerous  trades-unions 
were  formed.  To  this  demand  was  soon  added  that 


334  PARTY  CHANCES. 

of  increased  wages.  As  soon  as  trades-unions  were 
organized  political  parties  began  to  seek  the  votes  of 
these  organizations,  and  the  eight-hour  law  was  a 
sop  thrown  out  by  a  democratic  legislature  to  secure 
the  adhesion  of  the  unions.  These  same  legislators, 
however,  in  making  contracts  for  public  works,  re- 
quired ten  hours  labor  to  be  performed  daily.26 

25  Caius  T.  Ryland,  the  speaker  Tof  the  assembly  in  1867-8,  was  born 
June  30,  1826,  in  Howard  co.,  Missouri,  working  on  a  farm  during  the  sum- 
mer, and  attended  school  during  the  winter.  In  1849  he  started  across  the 
plains  for  Cal.,  finally  settling  at  San  Jose,  where  he  began  the  practice  of 
law,  having  previously  been  admitted  to  the  bar  in  Missouri.  He  was  ap- 
pointed clerk  of  the  court  of  first  instance  in  S.  F.,  which  office  he  afterward 
resigned,  going  back  to  San  Jose.  When  the  first  legislature  met  he  was 
appointed  private  secretary  to  Gov.  Burnett,  and  in  1854  was  elected  to  the 
legislature  from  Santa  Clara  co.,  where  he  was  the  author  of  the  first  appro- 
priation bill  passed  in  the  state  for  a  wagon-road  over  the  Sierra  Nevada  into 
El  Dorado  co.  Mr  Ryland's  health  giving  way  in  1869,  he  gave  up  his  law 
practice,  and  engaged  in  banking.  He  married  Letitia  M.  Burnett,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Gov.  Burnett,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  1843. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

CHINESE,  THE  LABOR  AGITATION,  AXD  POLITICS. 
1868-1877. 

COJOXG  OF  THE  MoXGOLIAXS — NOT  WELCOME  TS  CALIFORXIA — AlTm  1>B  OF 

THE  MIXERS — DisGcsnxo  AXD  ALTOGETHER  DAMXABLE— LOXG  BCT 
POWERLESS  LEGISLATION  AGAIXST  THEM — TREATIES  AXD  COJTMJSSIOXS — 
OUR  MASTERS  or  THE  HOD  AXD  SHOVEL — KEARXETKM — Moxorousrs 
DEXOCXCED — SAXD-LOT  SPEECHES — RIOTS  AXD  ARRESTS — SAFETY  COM- 
MITTEE— LABOR  ORGAXTZATTOXS — THE  WORKIXGMEX'S  PARTT  BECOMES 
A  POWER — DECUXE  OF  COMMTTXISM — MORE  ELECTIOXS,  LEGISLATURES, 
AXD  REPRESEXTATTVES. 

SHIP-LOADS  of  paper  and  printer's  ink  had  been 
spoiled,  and  breath  enough  wasted  to  sail  those  ships 
in  reiterating  the  proposition  of  aliens  of  other 
lands  congregated  in  California  that  "the  Chinese 
must  go,"  although  according  to  some  authorities  the 
western  shore  of  the  continent  was  theirs  by  right  of 
discovery.1  They  were  frequent  visitors  to  and  resi- 
dents of  Mexico,*  and  were  employed  at  ship-building 
or  other  labor  in  Lower  California  within  historic 
times,  from  1571  to  1746,  and  even  in  Los  Angeles, 
Alta  California,  in  1781. 

See  VoL  ILL,  yafivt  Raeei,  chap.  ix..  this  series. 

*  Chevalier  fancied  he  saw  about  Acapuleo  the  evidences  of  many  inter* 
mixture*.  In  the  Hitfork  dmtieime  de  la  California  mention  is  made  of  a 
Chinois  ship-carpenter.  VLUa-Senor  y  Sanchez  in  his  Thtatro  Americana, 
1746,  relates  that  the  Chinese  were  numerous  in  and  around  Acapuleo.  The 
Japanese  in  16S1  were  ordered  out  of  Mexico,  and  were  forbidden  to  carry 
away  more  than  2,000  ducats  each,  from  which  it  appears  they  were  success- 
fa!  tradesmen.  The  Chinese  themselves  assert  in  their  year-book,  that  cer- 
tain Buddhist  priests  crossed  into  Afa«1"S  explored  the  coast  to  Mexico,  and 
penetrated  to  the  Aztec  empire,  1 ,000  years  before  Cortes.  President  Porter, 
of  Yale  college,  places  the  number  of  Chinese  arrivals  in  the  U.  S.  between 
1820  and  1840  at  11,  and  between  1840  and  1850  at  35.  This  refers  to  immi- 
grants to  eastern  ports.  For  facts  and  opinions  concerning  the  Chinese  I 
have  consulted  some  hundreds  of  volumes  and  thousands  of  newspapers,  as 
veil  as  the  official  report  ordered  by  the  state  senate  at  a  recent  period. 

(335) 


336      CHIXESE,  THE  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

The  first  immigrants  from  China  to  modern  Cali- 
fornia were  two  Chinese  men  and  one  woman,  who 
arrived  by  the  clipper  bark  Eagle  in  1848.  The  men 
went  to  the  mines,  and  the  woman  remained  as  a 
servant  in  the  family  of  Charles  V.  Gillespie,  who 
came  hither  from  Hong  Kong.  In  February,  1849, 
the  number  of  Chinese  men  in  California  had  increased 
to  54  ;  and  in  January,  1850,  to  787  men  and  2 
women.  A  year  later  there  were  4,018  men  and 
7  women  ;  and  in  January,  1852,  7,512  men  and  8 
women.  By  May  they  had  increased  to  11,787,  of 
whom  only  7  were  women.  Like  other  immigrants 
some  died  and  some  returned,  the  whole  number  of 
both  amounting  to  476.  By  August,  1852,  there 
were  not  less  than  18,026  men  and  14  women  added 
to  the  Chinese  population  of  California,  brought 
chiefly  from  Hong  Kong  in  British  ships.  Statistics 
show  that  at  the  time  the  labor  troubles  commenced 
in  California,  or  about  the  year  1876,  there  were 
116,000  Chinese  in  California,  and  probably  151,000 
in  the  United  States,  the  most  of  whom  were  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  Of  the  entire  number  6,000  may  have 
been  women. 

These  people  were  truly,  in  every  sense,  aliens. 
The  color  of  their  skins,  the  repulsiveness  of  theli 
features,  their  under-size  of  figure,  their  incompre- 
hensible lan<ma£e,  strange  customs,  and  heathen  re- 

•      • 

ligion, — containing  though  it  might  the  base  of  all 
true  godliness,  the  virtues  of  the  Christian  decalogue, 
— conspired  to  set  them  apart  had  they  not  themselves 
exhibited  a  disposition  to  hold  aloof  from  the  white 
race.  Their  camps  were  always  removed  to  a  com- 
fortable distance  from  the  camps  of  the  white  miners, 
as  much  from  choice  as  from  recognition  of  the  un- 
friendliness visible  in  the  looks  and  acts  of  their 
American  or  European  neighbors. 

This  unfriendliness  was  manifested  by  injustice,  by 
insolence,  and  by  oppression.  The  placers  the  white 
miners  had  abandoned  were  usually  occupied  by  Chi- 


IN  TOE  MIXES.  337 

nese  who  were  content  with  five  or  eight  dollars  a 
day,  while  a  white  man  wanted  sixteen  or  twenty. 
When  such  returns  failed,  the  Mongolians  were  often 
assailed  by  other  miners  with  no  better  rights,  and 
driven  away  from  the  diggings  heretofore  despised  bv 
these  men,  who  complained  to  the  legislature,  which 
at  every  session  endeavored  to  make  the  laws  so  op- 
pressive to  the  detested  race  that  they  should  cease 
to  immigrate.9 

It  was  proposed  in  1852  to  hold  Chinamen  as  ap- 
prentices; and  in  1853  a  senate  resolution  asked  the 
president  to  appoint  a  commissioner  to  China  in  the 
person  of  Edmund  Randolph  who  should  negotiate 
with  the  emperor  on  this  subject.  This  artifice  to  in- 
troduce the  coolie  system  in  place  of  slavery  failed, 
as  I  have  noticed  in  an  earlier  volume.  In  1854  a 
resolution  was  passed  urging  congress  to  authorize 
the  California  legislature  to  impose  a  capital  tax  on 
the  Chinese  and  Japanese,  to  be  paid  before  landing 
by  the  vessel  bringing  them.  It  was  enacted  by  the 
legislature  of  1855  that  masters,  owners,  or  con- 
signees of  vessels  bringing  to  this  coast  any  persons 
incompetent  to  become  citizens  under  our  laws  should 
pay  a  fine  of  $50  for  every  such  person  landed,  and 
commissioners  of  immigration  were  appointed  to  en- 
force this  statute  ;  but  a  suit  being  brought  under  it, 
the-  court  declared  the  act  unconstitutional.  The  for- 
eign miners'  license  was  raised  this  year  to  $6  a  month, 
from  October,  1855,  to  October,  1856,  and  an  act 
passed  increasing  the  tax  to  $8  per  month  for  1857, 
$10  for  1858,  and  so  on,  each  successive  year. 

'The  legislature  of  1850  enacted  a  law  against  afl  foreigners— Mexkami 
and  Indians  not  included — which  required  a  license  to  be  taken  out  at  |BD 
per  month.  Tim  tax,  together  with  the  uncertainties  of  mining  was  equiva- 
lent to  a  prohibition,  and  the  law  became  to  a  considerable  extent  inopera- 
tive, and  was  repealed  in  1851.  In  1832  the  cost  of  a  foreign  miner's  license 
was  fixed  at  $3  a  month,  but  the  act  was  repealed  in  1853,  when  it  was  raised 
to  fL  An  appropriation  of  $600  was  made  for  translating  the  law  into  Chi- 
nese and  and  printing  4,000  copies.  In  1855  the  law  excluding  from  the 
courts  negro  and  Indian  evidence,  was  amended  to  include  Chinese,  and  ob- 
structions were  thrown  in  the  way  of  procuring  bondsmen,  so  as  to  make  it 
difficult  for  Asiatics  charged  with  crime  to  procure  bail 
HIST.  CJLL,  VOL  VH.  a 


338      CHINESE,   THE  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

Driven  from  good  to  poor  or  exhausted  diggings, 
even  with  their  frugal  habits  the  Chinese  found  it 
difficult  to  pay  these  sums,  more  in  the  nature  of  a 
fine  than  a  tax,  and  the  collectors  were  unable  to  ex- 
tort from  them  the  amount  exacted  by  the  law,  the 
effect  of  which  was  to  impoverish  them,  while  the 
revenue  of  the  state  was  not  increased  ;  for  rather 
than  submit  to  the  extortion,  first  of  the  Chinese 
companies*  which  brought  them  out,  and  then  of 
the  government  of  California,  a  considerable  number 
returned  to  China  in  October  of  this  year. 

Already  the  cry  was  raised  against  them  that  their 
presence  in  the  country  tended  to  injure  the  interests 
of  the  working  classes  and  degrade  labor.  It  was 
argued  that  no  good  could  come  from  allowing  an  in- 
ferior race,  not  in  a  state  of  bondage  yet  not  citizens, 
to  compete  in  the  labor  markets.  They  simply,  by 
their  numbers  and  by  taking  less  wages  than  white 
men,  deprived  the  latter  of  the  money  they  should 
have  earned,  and  instead  of  investing  it  in  the  state 
carried  it  to  China.  In  a  word,  they  were  human 
leeches,  sucking  the  life-blood  of  the  country.  The 
only  voices  raised  in  their  defence  came  from  the  uni- 
versal philanthropist,  often  the  world's  greatest  blun- 
derer, the  merchant  who  had  something  to  sell  that 
Chinamen  would  buy,  and,  of  course,  the  employer  of 
cheap  labor. 

To  drive  them  from  the  mines  deprived  the  state 
of  the  revenue  derived  from  their  licenses,  amount- 
ing, even  at  $4,  to  about  $200,000  monthly.  Again, 
to  forbid  mining  would  force  them  in  great  numbers 
into  the  towns  and  agricultural  districts,  to  steal  or 
to  starve,  for  it  would  be  impossible  to  return  them 

*Cal.  Slat,  1855,  216-17;  Nevada  Journal,  Oct.  26,  1855.  The  Chinese 
six  companies  which  imported  laborers  under  contract  for  passage  money, 
and  a  certain  percentage  of  earnings,  were  known  severally  as  the  Ning 
Yung,  75,000;  Hop  Wo,  34,000;  Kong  Chow,  15,000;  Yung  Wo,  12,000;  Sam 
Yup,  11,000;  Tan  Wo,  4,300.  The  figures  here  represent  the  number  of 
coolies  belonging  to  the  several  companies  in  1876.  It  is  easy  to  see  how 
profitable  must  have  been  their  business. 


DISGRACEFUL  LEGISLATION.  338 

en  masse  to  China,  as  had  been  proposed,  or  to  convey 
them  in  less  than  200  vessels,  each  carrying  250  pas- 
sengers, or  five  vessels  a  month  for  four  years.  The 
marine  to  perform  this  service  not  being  at  hand,  the 
proposition  to  return  them  to  China  was  untenable. 

It  became  necessary  then  to  consider  the  Chinese 
question  from  some  point  of  view  having  a  wider 
range  than  that  belonging  to  the  mere  ground  of  race 
prejudice  Of  white  labor  there  was  not  enough  in 
California  to  develop  its  resources  as  was  desirable,  or 
furnish  house  servants  or  factory  operatives.  Neither 
could  improvements  be  carried  on  to  any  extent  with 
wages  at  the  standard  demanded  by  white  labor.  The 
monuments  of  civilization  were  hi  no  land  raised  ex- 
cept by  cheap  labor.  But  California  had  not  reached 
the  monumental  period  of  development.  Her  work- 
men had  first  to  dig  ditches,  build  roads,  sow  grain, 
plant  vines  and  orchards,  and  erect  manufactories. 
To  turn  the  wheels  of  progress  the  Chinaman,  quickly 
perceptive  and  willingly  industrious,  might  be  used 
to  advantage.  Thus  the  political  economists. 

The  opposition  to  Chinese  immigration  was  in  the 
first  place  almost  purely  southern,  and  arose  from  the 
antagonism  of  men  accustomed  to  regard  themselves 
as  masters  toward  races  to  which  there  attached  any 
suspicion  of  servitude.  To  work  at  all  was  a  sad 
coming  down  for  them,  but  to  work  beside  a  pig-tail, 
whom  even  a  wild  Indian  despised,  was  abasement 
intolerable.* 

Next  to  a  man  who  has  been  a  master,  one  who 
has  been  a  servant  is  the  most  exacting  and  super- 
cilious. Thus  it  happened  that  as  the  mines  attracted 
to  the  state  other  foreigners  of  low  extraction,  the 
Chinese  became  subject  to  the  hatred  of  another  class 
of  white  men,  who  without  being  in  any  sense  Amer- 

5The  legislature  in  1858  enacted  a  law  forbidding  Chinamen  to  land  upon 
this  coast,  except  driven  by  stress  of  weather;  and  any  captain  landing  snch 
should  pay  a  fine  of  from  $400  to  $600.  or  be  imprisoned  not  exceeding  one 
year;  said  law  to  be  made  known  in  China  and  California.  CaL  Slat.,  1858, 
295-6. 


340      CHINESE,   THE  LABOR  AGITATION,   AlvD  POLITICS. 

lean  in  spirit,  were  admitted  to  citizenship  and  enjoyed 
political  privileges  with  native-born  electors.  The}', 
from  the  novelty  of  their  position  as  'sovereigns,' 
were  unduly  anxious  to  exercise  their  prerogatives, 
and  sought  to  influence  legislatures  by  certain  noisy 
demonstrations,  which,  meaning  votes,  had  a  certain 
weight  with  politicians,  enough,  at  all  events,  to  pro- 
cure local  legislation6  inimical  to  the  Chinese,  and 
frequent  appeals  to  congress  to  remove  this  abomina- 
tion from  the  land. 

For  that  many  of  the  habits  and  practices  of  this 
people  were  abominable  could  not  be  denied.  They 
were  as  far  from  observing  the  maxims  of  Confucius 
as  nominal  Christians  are  from  imitating  Christ.  With 
that  air  of  perfect  docility  which  comes  from  centu- 
ries of  enforced  subserviency,  they  won  the  confidence 
of  employers  whom  they,  in  some  unguarded  moment, 
treacherously  murdered  for  gain.  Chinese  murders, 
however,  were  not  more  frequent  than  European  mur- 
ders, not  so  frequent  as  Mexican  or  native  Californian 
murders,  and  they  were  no  more  abhorrent,  though 
frequently  accompanied  by  a  breach  of  trust,  coolly 
planned  and  brutally  executed.  Their  opium  dens 
were  scenes  of  disgust  and  horror.  While  apparently 
not  much  given  to  concupiscence,  they  had  no  regard 
for  chastity,  and  subjected  their  women  to  a  revolting 
slavery  for  the  profit  to  be  derived  from  prostitution. 
But  then  did  not  our  own  people  do  these  things, 
the  difference  being  that  the  Chinamen  used  less 
disguise  ? 

Ineffectual  laws  were  enacted  against  this  vice,  and 
against  Chinese  gambling  games,  as  also  to  correct 

6  In  1862  a  law  was  enacted  which  provided  for  taxing  Mongolians  over 
18  years  of  age—except  those  who  paid  a  monthly  miners  tax — $2.50  as  a 
monthly  capitation  tax,  to  be  known  as  the  Chinese  police  tax.  But  the 
sup.  ct  declared  the  law  unconstitutional.  In  1863  the  sup.  ct  sustained 
the  law  excluding  Chinese  witnesses  in  suits  where  white  persons  were  par- 
ties. They  were  also  excluded  from  the  public  schools,  together  with  negroes 
and  Indians,  but  separate  schools  might  be  provided  for  either.  In  1866  this 
law  was  so  modified  that  they  might  be  admitted  to  schools  where  no  objection 
was  made  by  the  parents  of  white  children. 


DISGRACEFUL  LEGISLATION.  341 

the  uncleanliness  of  the  Chinese  quarter;  for  the 
Mongolian,  while  he  might  wear  immaculately  white 
clothing,  and  have  every  appearance  of  personal  neat- 
ness, had  no  prejudices  against  sleeping,  sardine-like, 
as  many  as  could  be  crowded  into  the  space,1  or  to 
living  surrounded  by  filth  that  smelt  to  heaven.  To 
matters  like  these  the  attention  of  congress  was  every 
now  and  then  directed  by  the  legislators  of  California, 
but  without  result. 

In  1867  emigration  schemes  were  organized  by 
means  of  which  Chinese  coolies  were  to  be  supplied 
by  the  six  companies  to  work  on  sugar  and  cotton 
plantations  in  the  gulf  states  ;  but  the  contractors 
failed  to  pay,  and  the  Mongolians  retired  from  the 
engagement.  In  1870  the  legislature  was  again  moved 
to  impose  a  penalty  of  not  less  than  §1,000  nor  more 
than  $5,000,  or  imprisonment,  upon  any  one  bringing 
to  these  shores  any  subject  of  China  or  Japan  with- 
out first  presenting  evidence  of  his  or  her  good  char- 
acter to  the  commissioner  of  immigration,  but  the 
supreme  court  decided  against  its  constitutionality. 
The  same  year  the  municipality  of  San  Francisco 
passed  an  ordinance  forbidding  the  employment  of 
Chinese  on  public  works  of  any  kind;  and  in  1876, 
in  an  act  to  create  an  irrigation  district  in  the  counties 
of  Alameda,  Contra  Costa,  San  Joaquin,  Stanislaus, 
Merced.  Fresno,  and  Tulare,  it  was  forbidden  to  em- 
ploy Chinese  labor  in  the  construction  of  any  canal  or 
ditch  provided  for  in  the  act.  In  1878  a  law  was  en- 
acted forbidding  aliens  debarred  from  citizenship  to 
acquire  title  to  real  estate  ;  and  another  withholding 
business  licenses  from  the  same  class.  Laws  of  this 
description  served  to  pacify  the  other  alien  element, 
and  gave  the  courts  some  labor  in  setting  aside  after- 
ward. The  supervisors  of  San  Francisco  even  ex- 

1  The  legislature  in  1876  made  it  a  misdemeanor,  punishable  by  a  fine  of 
from  $10  to  $50,  for  any  person  to  let  or  occupy  any  apartment  within  the 
limits  of  an  incorporated  city,  which  contained  less  than  500  feet  of  space 
in  the  clear  to  each  person.  This  law  was  sustained  by  the  sup.  ct. 


342      CHINESE,   THE  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

eluded  Chinese  granite  from  use  in  the  public  works ; 
and  passed  an  ordinance  which  required  that  the  hair 
of  any  convicted  male  prisoner  should  be  cut  within 
one  inch  of  the  head  in  order  to  sacrifice  the  queues 
of  the  Chinese  convicts — a  greater  indignity  than  if 
their  ears  had  been  cut  off.  This  was  celebrated  un- 
der the  name  of  the  Pig  Tail  Ordinance,  and  was  ve- 
toed by  the  mayor  as  barbarous  and  malicious.  In 
1876  the  supervisors  required  a  license  of  $2  per 
quarter  from  a  laundry  using  a  one-horse  vehicle,  and 
£4  per  quarter  for  a  two-horse  vehicle  ;  but  charged 
laundries  using  no  horses — meaning  those  of  the  Chi- 
nese— $15  per  quarter.  The  courts  again  interfered 
to  prevent  this  injustice. 

In  the  meantime  the  Chinese,  protected  by  the 
better  sentiment  of  the  intelligent  and  right-minded, 
and  the  decrees  of  the  supreme  court,  held  their 
ground,  and  were  constantly  employed.  Gardening, 
farming,  viticulture,  horticulture,  laundry  ing,  cooking, 
and  general  housework  were  monopolized  by  them  to 
a  great  extent.  Railroad  companies  employed  them 
to  build  their  roads ;  and  they  worked  in  mines,  in 
lumber  districts,  and  in  the  great  fisheries.  They 
came  at  last  to  engage  in  some  manufactures,  such  as 
shoemaking,  cigarmaking,  and  a  few  other  trades,  but 
remaining  in  every  sense  aliens.  In  1865  a  steam- 
ship line  to  China,  carrying  the  mails  monthly  be- 
tween San  Francisco  and  Chinese  ports,  was  author- 
ized by  congress,  and  established  in  1867,  thus  recog- 
nizing the  importance  of  the  trade  with  China  and 
Japan.8 

Anson  Burlingame,  the  American  minister  to  China 
from  1861  to  1867,  being  taken  into  the  confidence 
and  friendship  of  the  regent  of  the  empire,  Prince 
Kung,  was  authorized  by  that  potentate  to  frame 

"Gwin  as  early  as  1851  advocated  a  China  mail,  and  prided  himself  on 
being  the  projector  of  the  enterprise;  but  the  scheme  was  advocated  in  con- 
gress by  Benton  in  the  40's,  and  outlined  even  earlier  by  Jefferson.  They, 
however,  started  their  line  from  the  Columbia  river. 


THE  BUKLISGAME  TREATY.  343 

treaties  of  amity  with  European  nations  as  the  rep- 
resentative of  China,  and  also  to  amend  the  existing 
treaty  with  the  United  States.'  From  this  amended 
treaty  sprang  the  strong  hostility  to  the  Chinese 
which  marked  the  laws  and  ordinances  above  referred 
to;  for  the  clauses  added  by  Burlingame  agreed  to 
the  mutual  protection  of  the  citizens  of  China  or  the 
United  States  on  each  others'  soil ;  to  freedom  in  re- 
ligious opinions  and  exercises ;  to  the  right  to  reside 
in  either  country  at  will,  with  all  the  privileges  ac- 
corded to  the  most  favored  nations,  with  the  right  to 
enact  penal  laws  for  the  prevention  of  involuntary  im- 
migration, to  establish  an  international  system  of  cur- 
rency and  commerce ;  and  to  enjoy  the  privilege  of 
admission  to  the  public  schools  of  the  United  States, 
or  the  establishment  of  American  schools  in  China, 

Against  this  liberal  and  intrinsically  just  policy,  the 
anti-Chinese  party  hi  California  protested  ;  and  as  the 
years  passed,  rebelled  more  and  more  strenuously, 
the  outcry  being  increased  by  the  obscurity  of  the 
naturalization  laws,  the  act  of  1804  confining  the 
privilege  to  free  white  persons,  and  the  law  of  1870 
extending  it  to  persons  of  African  nativity  and  de- 
scent. The  Revised  Statutes  of  1873  dropped  the 
words,  "  being  free  white  persons,"  by  clerical  error 
as  it  was  alleged,  and  a  few  Asiatics  took  advantage 
of  the  wording  to  become  naturalized.  This  advance 
upon  the  privileges  of  white  and  black  men  roused 
renewed  hostility,  public  sentiment  generally  being 
against  incorporating  into  our  civilization  these  alien 
pagans,  and  in  1875  Mongolians  were  excluded  from 
naturalization  rights.  The  importation  of  Chinese 
women  for  illicit  purposes  was  made  punishable  by  a 

9  A  treaty  was  negotiated  with  China  in  1844  by  Minister  Gushing,  which 
was  modified  in  1850,  by  Minister  Reed  in  1858  ,and  further  modified  by  Bur- 
lingame in  1868.  The  U.  S.  law  of  1862  prohibited  the  importation  of 
coolies,  and  the  treaty  also.  In  1870  congress  declared  that  no  tax  should 
be  imposed  by  any  state  upon  persons  immigrating  thereto,  which  was  not 
enforced  upon  every  other  immigrant  to  such  state  from  any  other  foreign 
country.  Thus  California  was  properly  held  in  check  by  the  general  gov't. 


344      CHINESE,   THE  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS 

penalty  of  $5,000  and  five  years'  imprisonment,  by  act 
of  congress  ;  but  the  law  was  declared  unconstitu- 
tional, and  the  only  bar  to  this  species  of  immigra- 
tion was  a  fine  of  $2,000,  and  one  year's  imprisonment 
for  bringing  to  the  country  any  person  compulsorily. 
The  importation  of  laborers  under  contract,  was  also 
made  subject  to  a  penalty  of  $500,  and  a  year  in 
prison  for  each  person  so  brought  to  the  country.1' 

But  none  of  this  legislation  was  likely  to  eradicate 
the  evils  of  which  the  workingmen  of  California  com- 
plained, the  greatest  of  which  was  that  China  was 
absorbing  the  industries  of  California  as  fast  as  its 
busy  population  became  inducted  into  our  methods,  to 
the  exclusion  of  the  white  workmen.  This  exclusion 
was  of  two  kinds :  voluntary,  where  white  men  re- 
fused to  work  beside  Chinamen,  and  involuntary, 
where  employers  preferred  to  avail  themselves  of 
Chinese  cheap  labor. 

In  April  1876  the  state  senate  appointed  a  com- 
mittee to  take  testimony  upon  the  effect,  moral,  social, 
and  political,  of  Chinese  immigration,  and  $5,000  was 
authorized  by  the  legislature  to  be  expended  by  the 
city  of  San  Francisco,  in  sending  a  delegation  to 
Washington  to  procure  such  a  modification  of  the 
Burlingame  treaty  as  to  prevent  the  coming  of 
certain  classes  to  our  shores.  The  commission  sat 
from  October  18th  to  November  18th,  their  investi- 
gations filling  173  printed  pages,  but  practically  the 
subject  remained  where  it  had  been,  nothing  new  be- 
ing elicited.  Congress  in  1877-8  so  far  yielded  to 
the  pressure  as  to  lay  a  per  capita  tax  of  $2.50  on 
each  Asiatic  arriving  in  the  country,  officials  ex- 
cepted,  any  evasion  of  the  law  subjecting  the  offender 

18  The  Chinese  six  companies  were  really  contractors  and  importers, 
although  they  attempted  to  pass  themselves  off  as  benevolent  organizations. 
They  governed  and  controlled  with  an  iron  hand  all  the  Chinese  in  the 
country,  and  sustained  a  secret  organization  of  highbinders,  who  were 
not  only  a  detective  police,  but  secret  avengers  of  any  infraction  of  the  com- 
panies' rules.  So  swift  and  mysterious  were  their  blows  that  the  S.  F.  police 
seldom  succeeded  in  capturing  a  highbinder  who  had  exacted  '  blood  atone- 
ment '  in  the  Chinese  quarter. 


SPREAD  OF  THE  MAXIA.  345 

to  five  years'  labor  in  the  state  prison,  the  act  to  take 
effect  in  January  1879 

When  congress  came  to  take  hold  of  the  subject, 
although  not  sharing  in  the  prejudices  of  California 
workingmen,  or  the  California  delegation  in  congress, 
it  found  a  knotty  question  to  be  solved.  Alien  against 
alien,  one  as  bad  as  the  other,  the  national  traditions 
being  a  country  free,  open  to  all,  and  the  ignorant 
white  and  the  ignorant  black  having  been  accepted, 
hojr  could  the  ignorant  yellow  be  kept  away  at  the 
modest  request  of  the  ignorant  white?  In  1877-8  it 
was  proposed  to  limit  the  number  which  might  come 
by  any  single  vessel.  Another  proposition  was  to. 
punish  contracting  here  or  elsewhere  for  the  impor- 
tation of  Chinese ;  and  still  another  contemplated  col- 
onizing those  already  here  on  government  land.  Dur- 
ing the  spring  of  1878  a  special  agent  was  sent  to  Cali- 
fornia to  make  a  quiet  investigation  into  the  subject. 

It  had  been  said  by  Californians  in  congress  that 
revolution  would  result  from  a  longer  delay  in  com- 
plying with  the  demands  of  the  majority  in  the  state 
who  desired  the  expulsion  of  the  Chinese.  It  was 
no  new  thing,  indeed,  for  attacks  to  be  made  upon 
their  camps  in  mining  regions,  whether  the  mines 
were  in  placers,  quartz,  or  coal ;  but  after  the  futile 
efforts  to  change  the  Burlingame  treaty,  the  threats 
of  violence  increased  and  riots  occurred  in  various 
places,"  as  in  Los  Angeles,  Chico,  and  San  Francisco, 
where  an  attack  was  made  upon  the  Chinese  laun- 
dries, some  of  which  were  sacked  and  burned  in 
1877. 

The  California  delegation  in  congress  found  them- 
selves in  the  position  of  being  suspected  of  having  a 
hysterical  mania  on  the  Chinese  question.  Grave 
senators  of  New  England  insisted  upon  extending  to 
a  half-civilized  nation  the  constitutional  privileges 

"See  Los  Anyles  Star,  Aug.  1871,  and  April  7.  1877;  Truflee  Jf<T*ibSam, 
Dec.  1879;  8.  F.  Alto,  March  17,  and  April  2.  1877;  San  Ditgo  3'ews,  July 
27,  1877;  Boss  from  Win.  to  CaL,  95,  99,  101,  106-7,  127-3. 


346       CHINESE,  THE  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

which  the  authors  of  our  organic  law  provided  for 
the  people  of  enlightened  nations,12  and  they  insisted 
that  the  majority  of  people  in  this  state,  of  all  classes, 
were  as  much  governed  by  jealousy  and  prejudice  as 
was  a  disorderly  alien  element  whose  doings  had  been 
bruited  by  a  sensational  press  at  home,  and  freely 
criticised  by  the  press  abroad.  It  was  in  vain  that 
the  report  of  the  investigating  committee  was  spread 
before  them,  and  commented  on  by  such  men  as  Sar- 
gent, Page,  Miller,  Farley,  and  others — men  of  sound 
enough  minds  and  arguments  when  common-sense 
was  on  the  side  of  profit,  but  whose  professed  views 
had  to  be  taken  with  allowance  when  any  other  atti- 
tude was  to  them  political  death.  Arguments  were 
advanced  to  show  that  certain  manufactories  could 
not  be  operated  with  profit  except  by  Chinese  cheap 
labor;  that  railroads  could  not  be  built  without  it; 
and  that  house-servants  could  not  be  obtained  except 
from  among  this  people.  This  position  was  sustained, 
so  far  as  the  railroads  were  concerned. by  the  attitude 
of  the  Central  Pacific.  White  labor,  by  refusing  to 
descend  to  the  level  of  yellow  labor,  was  held  at  a 
higher  figure  in  California  than  many  employers 
could  well  afford.  This  was  peculiarly  true  of  do- 
mestic service.  A  Chinaman  would  do  more  and  bet- 
ter work  in  the  kitchen  than  the  female  cook.  On 
farms  he  was  almost  indispensable,  being  the  only 
available  help  for  the  hard-worked  housewife.13  At 
the  same  time,  with  this  peculiar  competition,  wages 
in  California  did  not  as  elsewhere  follow  the  general 

12  Senator  Hoar  maintained  that  '  the  function  of  the  American  people, 
the  duty  which  God  had  committed  to  them,  is  to  work  out  in  practical 
history  the  truth  that  whenever  God  has  placed  in  a  human  frame  a  human 
soul,  that  which  is  created  is  the  equal  of  every  other  like  creature  on  the 
face  of  the  earth — equal,  among  other  things,  in  the  right  to  go  everywhere 
on  this  globe,  and  to  seek  and  enjoy  the  blessings  of  life,  liberty,  and  the 
pursuit  of  happiness  at  his  own  will.' 

"The  amount  of  opium  which  paid  duty  at  S.  F.  from  1873  to  1877,  in- 
clusive, \vas  209,712  pounds;  and  the  amount  confiscated  for  smuggling  and 
sold  in  the  same  time,  realized  $120,175.  What  amount  escaped  detection, 
cannot  be  known.  £ept  Custom-house  C&mm'rs,  1877,  p.  6-8. 


JSKVV    TREATY.  347 

law  of  supply  and  demand,  but  adapted  themselves 
to  the  changing  condition  of  the  country." 

Meanwhile,  the  restriction  or  prohibition  of  Chinese 
immigration  continued  to  be  agitated.  In  1879 
President  Hayes  vetoed  an  act  passed  by  congress  on 
the  subject,  but  conflicting  with  the  terms  of  the  Bur- 
lingame  treaty.  The  following  year  the  president 
appointed  three  commissioners,  James  B.  Angell  of 
Michigan,  John  F.  Swift  of  California,  and  William 
Henry  Trescott  of  South  Carolina,  to  proceed  to 
China  for  the  purpose  of  forming  new  treaties.  The 
commissioners  were  eminently  successful,  finding  the 
Chinese  plenipotentiaries,  Pao  Chum  and  La  Hungtsao, 
willing  to  concede  to  the  United  States  the  control 
and  regulation  of  immigration,  the  emperor  never 
having  been  desirous  of  expatriating  any  of  his  nu- 
merous subjects ;  and  on  the  17th  of  Xovember,  1880, 
it  was  agreed  that  whenever,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
government  of  the  United  States,  the  interests  of  the 
country  were  endangered  by  the  coming  to  or  resi- 
dence in  it  of  the  Chinese,  such  coming  might  be 
suspended  for  a  time,  the  limitation  to  apply  only  to 
laborers,  and  not  to  other  classes.  The  Chinese  already 
in  the  country  were  accorded  **  all  the  rights,  priv- 
ileges, immunities,  and  exemptions  accorded  to  citi- 
zens of  the  most  favored  nation."  This  treaty  was 

11  As  an  example  of  a  pn»«»Tfc»^iHy».f3mm»  linmlij  niiiiin  i  I'n  i  IIIB 
one  of  its  roles  was  broken  by  one  of  their  countrymen,  who  established  a 
laundry  within  a  prohibited  distance  of  another  wash-house,  is  the  following, 
translated  by  Coodit,  a  Chinese  scholar:  'Because  here  a  country  has  laws 
and  fm±tm*  which  they  observed,  afterward  families  also  mutually  follow, 
how  lauch  more  have  come  down  to  us  for  a  long  iiinn  f  •>  1i  man  doing  his 
duty  dares  not  not  observe  them.  At  this  time  Wong  Tee  Xai.  on  Second, 
street,  Orleans  laondry,  secretly  has  opened  business,  so  broken  rules,  rest- 
ing  OB  his  own  force,  •••T"i  oppose  him,  therefore  assemble  in  halL  We 
men.  one  heart,  put  forth  exertion  mutually  to  aid,  must  dean  him  out  and 
avoid  after  trouble.  Therefore  deliberate  the  following  particular:  In  our 
rompaaw  number  of  friend  who  has  ability  first  to  kiD  Wong  San  Cbee, 
thankfully  give  him  2000  round  dollars.  Afterward  also  take  Wong  Yee 
Kui,  destroy  his  name,  thankfully  give  him  600  round  d.  .liars.  If  only 
wound  him,  not  kfll.  also  give  him  one  half  in  his  hand.  At  this  time  what 
trouble  cumtn  cannot  tefl.  If  be  cannot  get  away,  is  seized  by  foreigners, 
and  put  in  jafl,  then  our  company  manage  the  whole  affair.  Do  nol  swallow 
our  words;  this  poster  is  put  up  as  evidence.  Kwong  Sui,  first  year,  fifth 
month  Lucky  day  fixed.  Kwong  Hong  Tong,  put  forth.' 


348      CHINESE,   THE  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

ratified  by  the  senate  on  May  5th,  1881,  and  ratifica- 
tions exchanged  at  Peking,  July  19th  of  the  same 
year.  A  supplemental  treaty  concerning  commerce 
agreed  to  prohibit  the  importation  of  opium  by  Chi- 
nese subjects. 

Congress  was  now  at  liberty  to  enact  such  laws  as 
should  satisfy  the  better  sense  of  the  inhabitants  of 
the  Pacific  coast,  if  not  silence  the  clamor  of  the  for- 
eign residents  of  European  birth.  The  first  bill  which 
was  passed  was  voted  by  President  Arthur,  who  con- 
sidered twenty  years  too  long  a  time  to  suspend  im- 
migration from  China,  and  who  had,  besides,  some 
technical  objections.  Several  other  bills  were  intro- 
duced, and  finally,  on  the  6th  of  May,  1882,  the 
president  approved  of  an  act  which  had  passed  both 
houses  suspending  immigration  for  ten  years,  but  not 
interfering  with  the  Chinese  already  in  the  country. 
This  act  also  denied  that  people  the  right  to  become 
naturalized. 

So  far  from  being  displeased  by  the  prohibition  of 
immigration,  the  Chinese  already  here  were  fully  sat- 
isfied, being  quite  as  much  opposed  to  competitors  as 
the  Europeans,  and  raising  the  price  of  domestic  ser- 
vice immediately  thereafter.  During  the  ninety  days 
before  the  prohibition  went  into  effect  several  ship- 
loads of  Mongolians  were  landed,  showing  the  readi- 
ness of  this  people  to  grasp  any  opportunity.  Their 
cunning  in  evading  the  law  against  opium  importation 
continued  to  give  occasion  for  the  closest  scrutiny  ; 
but  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  infringement  of  the 
law  is  not  confined  to  the  Chinese. 

Closely  allied  to  the  Chinese  question,  and  in  a 
measure  proceeding  from  it,  was  the  labor  agitation 
of  1877-8,  when,  for  the  first  time  in  California,  labor 
arrayed  itself  against  capital.  Partly  it  was  a  nat- 
ural result  of  the  existing  condition  of  affairs,  and 
partly  it  was  forced  by  that  jealousy  of  classes  which 
the  naturalized  citizen  is  rapidly  engrafting  upon  Ainer- 


STBIKER3  AXD  TRADES  UNIONS.  .349 

ican  republicanism.  In  Europe  the  war  of  the  laborer 
is  upon  the  government ;  in  the  United  States  upon 
capital,  or  what  is  the  same  thing — power.  During  a 
certain  period  California  had  been  producing  money 
freely,  and  paying  liberal  wages.  During  and  follow- 
ing the  civil  war  the  inflation  of  currency  kept  wages 
up  to  a  value  hitherto  unknown  in  this  or  any  other 
country.  Later,  the  building  of  the  Pacific  railroad 
introduced  a  surplus  of  laborers,  until  some  new  en- 
terprises should  be  set  on  foot  to  furnish  employment. 
At  the  same  time  the  productiveness  of  the  mines 
had  decreased,  and  with  the  return  to  hard  money 
circulation  in  the  east  there  had  been  a  contraction 
in  expenditures  which  had  closed  manufactories  and 
thrown  operatives  out  of  employment.  The  reduc- 
tion of  wages  and  discharge  of  workmen  were  then 
followed  by  strikes  and  riots. 

In  California,  from  1865  to  1875,  and  especially  in 
San  Francisco,  there  was  a  large  number  of  foreign- 
born  laborers  and  artisans,  who  were  temporarily  un- 
employed, or  not  employed  satisfactorily  to  themselves; 
yet  there  was  no  great  reduction  in  the  price  of  labor. 
Even  the  influx  of  Chinese  laborers  made  no  percept- 
ible change  in  the  labor  market  for  a  period  of  from 
six  to  ten  years,  and  then  not  because  labor  was  too 
abundant,  but  because  money  was  more  scarce  The 
wages  of  mechanics  were  kept,  however,  at  higher 
figures  than  in  the  east. 

But  with  the  first  signs  of  a  change  in  the  condi- 
tion of  "the  foreigners  paradise,"  there  arose  a  pro- 
test against  the  decline.  Trades'  unions  began  to 
form,  and  strikes  to  occur.  In  May  1867  the  work- 
ingmen  of  San  Francisco  held  a  convention,  and  one 
of  the  concessions  required  from  employers  was  that 
eight  hours  should  constitute  a  day  of  labor.15  In 
June  there  was  a  grand  demonstration  hi  favor  of  the 

"Compared.  F.  Timt*,  Mar.  23  and  May  13,  1867;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Mar. 
11,  1867;  S.  F.  CaUfondan,  Mar.  2,  1867;  S.  F.  CaO,  May  23,  30,  and  June 
4,  1867;  CaL  Stat,,  1867-8,  63,  145-6,  543;  Col  Jour.  Sen.,  1867-8,  379-81. 


350      CHINESE,  THE  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

eight-hour  rule.  A  free  labor  exchange  was  estab- 
lished in  San  Francisco  in  1868.  The  legislature  also 
passed  an  act  making  eight  hours  a  legal  day's  work,18 
the  demand  being  made  not  only  to  secure  leisure  for 
so-called  improvement,  physical  and  mental,  but  in 
order  to  give  employment  to  a  greater  number  of 
persons.  It  would  have  seemed  reasonable  that  with 
fair  pay  "  and  reduced  labor  the  workingmen  should 
have  been  satisfied  to  adapt  themselves  to  the  exist- 
ing condition  of  affairs.  But  the  discontent  contin- 
ued to  grow  ;  there  were  occasional  strikes,  and  also 
occasional  new  enterprises  undertaken  with  encour- 

18  Among  the  occupations  enumerated,  the  employe  being  sometimes  found 
in  board,  amalgamators  received  $100  per  month,  apprentices  $'25  to  $28, 
apothecaries? W,  bakers  $30  to  $40,  barbers  $60 to  $100,  bar-tenders  $30  to 
$45,  bed-makers  $30  to  $35,  blacksmiths  $50  to  $100,  boiler-makers  §35  to  $60, 
book-keepers  $35  to  $100,  boot-makers  $35  to  $75,  bottlers  $35  to  $40,  brewers 
$50,  bridge-builders  $75,  brick-makers  $35  to  $60,  butchers  $35  to  $60,  butter- 
makers  $30  to  $10,  charcoal-burners  $35,  cheese-makers  $30  to  $40,  clerks 
$10  to  $100,  coachmen  $30  to  $50,  coat  passers  $30,  confectioners  $40  to  $60, 
cooks  $35  to  $80,  dairymen  $30  to  $35,  deck  hands  $40,  dishwashers  $'20  to 
$30,  druggists  $60,  dyers  $40  to  $50,  engineers  $60  to  $125,  farm-hands  $26 
to  $46,  filers  $45  to  $50,  firemen  $50  to  $60,  flour  packers  $30,  fruit-peddlers 
$30  to  $35,  fruit-packers  $25  to  $30,  gardeners  $30  to  $40,  general  helpers  $20 
to  $70,  gilders  $50,  glue-makers  $35  to  $50,  grave-diggers  $50,  grooms  $30  to 
$45,  harness- makers  $10  to  $75,  herders  $25,  hop-growers  $39,  housekeepers 
$30,  interpreters  $30,  laborers  $25  to  $50,  laundrymen  $30  to  $40,  local  re- 
porters $50,  lumbermen  $35  to  $70,  man  and  wife  $50  to  $80,  mattress-makers 
$50  to  $70,  milkers  $30  to  $40,  miners  $40  to  $60,  nurses  $25  to  $35,  ox- 
drivers  $35  to  $45,  pantrymen  $35,  ploughmen  $30,  porters  $30  to  $40, 
potato-diggers  $30  to  $35,  printers  $63.  Day  wages  were  in  proportion,  and 
monthly  wages  where  the  laborer  was  boarded  his  wages  of  course  were 
lea.  Quartz  miners  received  $40  to  $60  per  month,  quarry  men  $40  to  $50, 
salesmen  $35  to  $50,  sawyers  $40  to  $90,  shepherds  $25  to  $30,  shoemakers 
$35  to  $45  and  by  the  piece,  smelters  $60  to  $150  and  found,  stewards  $30  to 
$40,  stove  men  $30  to  $35,  sugar  packers  $80,  street  sweepers  $35,  tanners 
$35  to  $15,  teamsters  $30  to  $65,  track -layers  $2  per  day  and  found,  trunk- 
makers  $2.50  and  found,  undertakers  $80,  wagon-makers  §50  to  $80,  or  $3  to 
$5  per  day,  waiters  $20  to  $40  per  month,  warehousemen  $60  to  $70,  watch- 
men $50  to  $75,  wheelwrights  $60  to  $80,  woodchoppers  $40  to  $60.  Work- 
men paid  by  the  day  received  more:  blacksmiths  from  $2  to  $4,  boiler-makers 
$3  to  $4,  brick-layers  $5  to  $6,  cabinet-makers  $3  to  $4.50,  carpenters  $3  to 
$4,  ship  carpenters  $3  to  $5,  carriage-makers  and  painters,  $3  to  $4,  carriage- 
trimmers  $3  to  $4.50,  gun-smiths  $3  to  $5,  hod-carriers  $2.50,  iron-moulders 
$3.50  to  $4,  machinists  $3.50  to  $4.50,  marble-cutters  $4,  masons  $4  to  $5, 
tin -roofers  $4,  tinsmiths  $3  to  $4,  upholsterers  $3  to  $4,  whitewashers  $3,  etc. 

"The  printer's  strike  which  occurred  in  1880  was  in  the  nature  of  a  con- 
spiracy against  employers.  It  was  kept  a  profound  secret  until  within  seven 
hours  of  the  consummation.  Even  prominent  members  of  the  printers'  union 
were  kept  in  ignorance  of  the  movement  until  the  last  moment,  when  they 
were  given  the  alternative  of  breaking  faith  either  with  their  employers  or 
the  union.  While  complaining  of  the  hardship  and  injustice  of  being  thus 
compelled  to  stop  earning  wages  without  notice,  they  adhered  to  the  union. 


CAPITAL  AND  LABOR.  351 

aging  success.18  But  the  causes  which  I  have  already 
enumerated  began  gradually  to  tell  upon  the  labor 
market,  until  when  the  crash  in  mining  stocks  came, 
there  was  distress,  real  or  fancied,  among  the  unem- 
ployed workingmen  of  San  Francisco.  These  were, 
almost  to  a  man,  of  foreign  birth,  and  rarely  of  much 
intelligence.  Nice  questions  of  the  relation  of  labor 
to  capital  they  were  neither  able  nor  inclined  to  dis- 
cuss. They  could  understand  that  one  man  had  more 
than  he  needed  and  another  less,  and  toward  the 
former  they  entertained  nothing  but  envy  and  hatred. 
Among  them,  however,  were  some  shrewd  philoso- 
phers, who  directed  their  chief  efforts  againsfc  Chinese 
and  convict  competition,  who  restricted  apprentice- 
ships, and  who  insisted  on  the  observance  of  the 
eight-hour  law.  Finallv,  in  1877,  the  agitation  on 

V      ' 

the  subject  of  labor  and  the  duties  of  capital  reached 
to  an  alarming  height.  There  were  at  that  time 
twenty -five  trades  unions  in  the  city,  with  a  mem- 
bership of  3,500,  several  organizations  being  branches 
of  national  and  international  associations.  Later 
there  was  hardly  a  branch  of  labor  that  had  not  its 
union. 

It  would  be  idle  to  assert  that  the  workino;men  had 

o 

no  real  grievances.  Might  is  right  in  every  human 
society,  and  it  is  only  by  occasional  revolutions  in 
which  the  higher  law  is  asserted  that  society  ad- 
vances in  the  recognition  of  its  mutual  relations. 

^y 

There  was  truth  in  what  was  alleged,  that  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Chinese  in  California  reduced  the  chances 
and  earnings  of  citizen  laborers,  while  it  strengthened 
the  power  by  adding  to  the  wealth  of  capitalists.  It 
was  true,  as  alleged,  that  the  enormous  monopoliza- 
tion of  land  by  a  few  men,  who  refused  to  sell  at  a 
fair  value,  hindered  the  settlement  of  the  country, 
thereby  inflicting  the  double  injury  of  preventing  the 

18  Reference  is  here  made  to  the  Woman's  Co-operative  Printing  union, 
and  Shoemakers  Co-operative  union,  both  of  which  became  prosperous 
associations. 


352      CHINESE,  THE  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

poor  from  acquiring  cheap  homes,  and  checking  the 
employment  of  farm  and  other  laborers.  The  farms 
in  California  were  usually  large,  but  the  proprietors, 
owing  to  the  perfection  of  agricultural  implements, 
required  the  services  of  comparatively  few  men,  and 
those  only  at  certain  periods  of  the  year.  Owing  to 
the  mildness  of  the  climate,  farm-hands  were  not  pro- 
vided with  as  good  quarters  as  in  the  older  states,  but 
were  temporarily  lodged  in  barns,  and  fed  in  messes 
separate  from  the  families  they  served.  Tramps 
abounded,  ready  to  work  a  few  days  at  any  price,  and 
then  to  march  on.  Thus  country  life  was  robbed  of 
its  charms,  and  the  small  savings  of  a  season's  work 
were  squandered  in  idleness  in  some  town.  There 
was  cause  of  complaint,  also,  in  the  fraudulent  values 
put  upon  mining  stocks,  in  the  wild  gambling  opera- 
tions of  1875-6,  which  had  impoverished  thousands 
of  families,  emptying  into  the  coffers  of  men  already 
rich  the  lifelong  savings  of  honest  toil,  and  that  with- 
out making  any  return,  present  or  prospective,  for 
the  robbery.  They  had  a  just  cause  of  complaint  in 
that  the  men  who  had  made  the  greatest  amount  of 
money  by  monopolies,  and  treacherous  mining  opera- 
tions, took  a  large  part  of  it  out  of  the  state — ten 
times  as  much  as  the  Chinese  carried  away — and 
spent  their  time  in  New  York,  Washington,  London, 
and  Paris,  instead  of  investing  in  business  enterprises 
in  California,  which  would  help  the  people  to  recover 
from  their  losses. 

That  there  was  destitution  also  in  the  year  1876 
was  true,  7,000  being  relieved  by  the  San  Francisco 
Benevolent  association,  which,  from  May  to  Decem- 
ber disbursed  $19,000.  In  May  1877  over  1,000  per- 
sons were  relieved,  and  in  February  1878  the  associa- 
tion and  the  churches  fed  over  2,000  persons  daily. 
After  this  period,  when  the  number  of  idle  men  was 
estimated  at  15,000,  the  calls  for  help  decreased. 
The  majority  of  the  unemployed  attributed  their  dis- 
tress to  the  encroachment  upon  their  trades  of  Mon- 


SAXD-LOT  MEETINGS.  353 

golians,  particularly  in  shoe  and  cigar-making.  In 
the  former  trade  the  Chinamen  out-numbered  them 
four  to  one,  and  earnings  had  declined  from  an  average 
_!5  a  week  in  1870  to  $9  in  1878. 

For  these  grievances  no  remedy  had  been  provided, 
nor  any  effort  made  to  secure  a  better  condition  be- 
yond holding  meetings  on  the  Chinese  question,  and 
petitioning  the  state  and  national  legislatures  for 
redress.  The  failure  of  the  latter  means  exposed  to 
them  their  weakness  in  the  political  arena,  and  opened 
their  eyes  to  another  evil.  They  had  left  the  govern- 
ment to  men  who  made  a  business  of  politics,  and 
having  flattered  and  bribed  the  lately  naturalized 
citizen  into  voting  as  desired,  dismissed  him  from  their 
thoughts.  Those  bills  were  most  sure  to  be  passed 
which  were  lobbied  through  the  legislature ;  privileges 
were  to  be  purchased  at  the  expense  of  the  public, 
which  paid  a  large  per  cent  of  its  income  in  taxes  to 
support  a  government  recklessly  extravagant.  Cor- 
ruption and  favoritism  were  the  rule  and  honesty  the 
exception ;  at  least,  so  they  were  told  by  those  who 
pretended  to  be  their  friends,  and  I  am  not  able  to 
say  that  they  were  far  wrong  in  the  indictment. 

A  conference  of  workingmen  on  the  21st  of  July, 
1877,  resolved  to  call  a  mass  meeting  for  the  23d  on 
the  then  vacant  lot  on  the  Market  street  side  of  the 
city  hall.  Precautions  were  taken  by  the  police,  who 
feared  an  outbreak,  and  the  national  guard  assembled 
at  their  armories.  During  the  progress  of  the  meet- 
ing, which  was  presided  over  by  James  F.  D'Arcy, 
organizer  of  the  workingmen's  party  of  the  United 
States,  and  advocate  of  an  eight-hour  law,1'  an  anti- 

MThe  resolutions  passed  expressed  sympathy  for  those  who  had  been 
shot  in  the  late  riot  at  Pittsburg;  denounced  the  grasping  policy  of  the 
moneyed  and  governing  classes;  declared  that  no  further  subsidies  should  be 
granted  to  steamship  and  railroad  lines;  declared  that  the  military  should 
not  be  employed  against  strikers;  asserted  that  the  reduction  of  wages  was 
a  part  of  the  conspiracy  for  the  destruction  of  the  republic;  that  the  non-en- 
forcement of  the  eight-hour  law  had  over-crowded  the  labor  market:  an  evil 
which  the  gov't  should  take  immediate  steps  to  remedy;  and  that  all  railroad 
property  in  disaffected  districts  should  be  condemned  to  public  use,  allowing 
the  owners  a  just  compensation  therefor. 
HIST.  CAL,  VOL.  VII.  23 


354      CHINESE,  THE  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

coolie  club  formed  on  the  outskirts  of  the  assembly, 
and  incited  to  riot  a  portion  of  the  workingmen,  who, 
in  the  course  of  that  and  the  two  succeeding  evenings, 
destroyed  a  large  number  of  Chinese  laundries.  In 
the  struggle  between  the  rioters  and  the  police,  aided 
by  a  committee  of  safety  led  by  William  T.  Coleman, 
several  persons  were  killed.  These  acts  of  the  lower, 
communistic  element  of  the  workingman's  association, 
were  repudiated  by  the  more  intelligent,  who  in  large 
numbers  joined  the  committee.  Considerable  alarm 
was  felt  in  Oakland,  on  account  of  a  meeting  of  12,000 
of  the  malcontents,  threats  having  been  made  against 
the  property  of  the  railroad  company  in  that  city,  un- 
less the  Chinese  in  their  employ  should  be  discharged. 

It  now  became  apparent  that  some  political  power 
could  be  obtained  by  divorcing  that  section  of  the 
workingmen's  party  in  California  from  the  Chicago 
centre,  and  the  leading  spirits  determined  upon  effect- 
ing the  separation.  Among  these  was  an  Irish  dray- 
man, named  Dennis  Kearney,  who  had  made  his  first 
public  appearance  a  few  months  previous  at  a  lyceum 
for  self-culture,  and  subsequently  as  a  member  of  a 
committee  appointed  by  the  Draymen  and  Teamster's 
union,  to  lay  before  Senator  Sargent  certain  trade 
grievances.  Having  been  accorded  a  not  very  gra- 
cious reception,  Kearney  was  stirred  to  wonder  why 
he  could  not  become  as  great  a  man  as  Sargent,  and 
thereupon  set  about  making  himself  such  by  consti- 
tuting himself  orator  at  his  own  and  other  unions. 

On  the  18th  of  August,  at  a  meeting  of  working- 
men,  Kearney  took  preliminary  steps  to  organize  a 
party,  which  held  a  meeting  on  the  22d  under  the 
title  of  the  Workingmen's  Trade  and  Labor  union, 
J.  G.  Day  being  chosen  president,  and  Kearney  sec- 
retary, but  no  effective  organization  resulted.  In  the 
meantime  other  trades  unions  in  different  parts  of  the 
state  were  acting  in  sympathy  with  those  of  San 
Francisco.  At  Sacramento  they  advocated  the  abol- 
ishment of  all  national  banks,  and  the  withdrawal  of 


INCENDIARY   PROCEEDINGS.  355 

the  present  bank  currency  in  favor  of  full  legal  tenders 
issued  only  by  the  United  States;  the  exemption 
from  execution  and  taxation  of  $1,000  upon  every 
homestead ;  all  property  to  be  assessed  at  its  full  value, 
and  the  percentage  of  taxation  to  be  graduated  from 
one  to  ten ;  the  unconditional  abrogation  of  the  Burl- 
ingame  treaty ;  and  the  fees  of  office-holders  to  be  re- 
duced to  the  prices  paid  for  skilled  labor. 

Not  to  be  outdone  in  reforms,  the  San  Francisco 
Trade  and  Labor  Union  held  a  meeting  September 
12th,  at  which  it  was  resolved  to  sever  all  connection 
with  existing  political  parties,  and  organize  under  the 
name  of  the  Workingmen's  Party  of  California,  with 
the  following  objects :  The  abolition  of  all  assessments 
on  candidates  for  office — the  people  to  own  the  offices, 
not  the  incumbents;  holding  state  and  municipal  offi- 
cers to  a  strict  accountability  for  their  official  acts ; 
the  establishment  of  a  bureau  of  labor  and  statistics ; 
the  reduction,  and  periodical  regulation  thereafter,  of 
the  hours  of  labor ;  and  the  creation  by  the  legislature 
of  a  convention  on  labor,  with  headquarters  in  San 
Francisco. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  a  party  which  was  to 
overturn  the  government  of  the  state.  On  the  follow- 
ing Sunday,  the  first  of  the  regular  sand-lot  meetings 
was  held.  On  the  21st,  the  workingmen  assembled 
at  Union  hall,  on  Howard  street,  to  consider  means 
for  the  relief  of  the  unemployed.  State  senator  Roach 
addressed  the  meeting  upon  the  Chinese  trouble  and 
political  corruption,  calling  for  united  action  to  obtain 
legislation  for  the  poor,  to  which  Kearney  added  that 
every  workingman  should  procure  a  musket,  and  that 
a  little  judicious  hanging  of  capitalists  would  be  in 
order.  Subscriptions  for  the  destitute  were  ordered 
to  be  paid  to  the  mayor. 

Day  proved  too  temperate  a  president  to  please  the 
turbulent  element  of  the  party.  When  at  a  meeting 
on  the  sand-lot,  Kearney  broke  forth  with  the  decla- 
ration that  San  Francisco  would  meet  the  fate  of 


356      CHINESE,   THE  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

Moscow  should  the  condition  of  the  laboring  class  not 
be  soon  improved,  and  that  bullets  were  not  wanting 
to  enforce  their  demands,  Day  interrupted  him,  and 
declined  to  preside  at  a  meeting  where  such  senti- 
ments were  uttered.  Kearney  was  applauded  and 
Day  yelled  down,  whereupon  there  was  a  division. 
On  the  5th  of  October  a  permanent  organization  of 
the  workingmen's  party  was  effected,  with  Dennis 
Kearney  president,  J.  Gr.  Day  vice-president,  and  H. 
L.  Knight  secretary 

The  principles  adopted  proposed  to  elevate  the 
working  class  at  the  expense  of  every  other.2'  They 
found  ready  acceptance  among  a  class  who  envied  the 
aristocrat  rolling-  in  wealth  which  their  hands  had 

O 

gathered,  who  hated  the  encroaching  Chinamen,  and 
who  detested  the  politician  as  a  betrayer  and  parasite. 
They  were  dazzled  by  the  glittering  prospects  which 

29 The  following  were  the  principles  declared:  'The  object  of  this  asso- 
ciation is  to  unite  all  the  poor  and  working  men  and  their  friends  into  one 
political  party  for  the  purpose  of  defending  themselves  against  the  dangerous 
encroachments  of  capital  on  the  happiness  of  our  people,  and  the  liberties  of 
dur  country.  We  propose  to  wrest  the  gov't  from  the  hands  of  the  rich  and 
place  it  in  those  of  the  people  where  it  properly  belongs,  We  propose  to  rid 
the  country  of  cheap  Chinese  labor  as  soon  as  possible,  and  by  all  the  means 
in  our  power,  because  it  tends  still  more  to  degrade  labor  and  aggrandize 
capital.  We  propose  to  destroy  land  monopoly  in  our  state  by  such  laws  as 
will  make  it  impossible.  We  propose  to  destroy  the  great  money  power  of 
the  rich  by  a  system  of  taxation  that  will  make  great  wealth  impossible  in 
the  future.  We  propose  to  provide  decently  for  the  poor  and  unfortunate, 
the  weak,  the  helpless,  and  especially  the  young,  because  the  country  is  rich 
enough  to  do  so,  and  religion,  humanity,  and  patriotism  demand  we  should 
do  so.  We  propose  to  elect  none  but  competent  workingmen  and  their 
friend?  to  any  office  whatever.  The  rich  have  ruled  us  till  they  have  ruined 
us.  We  will  now  take  our  own  affairs  into  our  own  hands.  The  republic 
must  and  shall  be  preserved,  and  only  workingmen  will  do  it.  Our  shoddy 
aristocrats  want  an  emperor,  and  a  standing  army  to  shoot  down  the  people. 
For  these  purposes  we  propose  to  form  ourselves  into  the  Workingmen's 
Party  of  California,  and  to  pledge  and  enroll  therein  all  who  are  willing  to 
join  us  in  accomplishing  these  ends.  When  we  have  10,000  members  we 
shall  have  the  sympathy  and  support  of  20.000  other  workingmen.  The 
party  will  then  wait  upon  all  who  employ  Chinese,  and  ask  for  their  dis- 
charge; and  it  will  mark  as  public  enemies  those  who  refuse  to  comply  with 
their  request.  This  party  will  exhaust  all  peaceable  means  of  attaining  its 
ends;  but  it  will  not  be  denied  justice  when  it  has  the  power  to  enforce  it. 
It  will  encourage  no  riot  or  outrage,  but  it  will  not  volunteer  to  repress  or 
put  down,  or  arrest,  or  prosecute  the  hungry  and  impatient  who  manifest 
their  hatred  of  the  Chinaman  by  a  crusade  against  John  or  those  who  employ 
him.  Let  those  who  raise  the  storm  by  their  selfishness  suppress  it  them- 
selves. If  they  dare  raise  the  devil  let  them  meet  him  face  to  face.  We 
will  not  help  them.' 


ARREST  OF  KEARXEY.  357 

arose  like  a  mirage  before  them,  picturing  shady 
groves  and  cooling  fountains  to  the  exhausted  travel- 
ler in  the  desert.  The  infection  spread;  men  came 
to  listen  to  the  fiery  harangues,  and  went  away  more 
or  less  converts  to  the  seductive  theory.  Clubs  with 
active  leaders  were  formed  in  every  warjl.  Kearney 
spoke  every  night  at  one  or  more  of  them,  and  urged 
unity  of  purpose,  and  the  formation  of  military  com- 
panies. Nothing  more  warlike,  however,  was  indulged 
in  than  vituperative  bluster,"  to  which  his  followers 
were  well  pleased  to  listen. 

Kearney  now  devoted  himself  to  agitation.  Of 
some  of  his  mad  pranks  I  have  spoken  in  my  Popular 
Tribunals.  Such  was  the  alarm  created  by  his  incen- 
diary speeches  and  threats  that  on  November  3, 1877, 
he  was  arrested  and  confined  in  jail,  a  martyrdom  to 
which  he  aspired  as  a  means  of  spreading  his  fame. 
It  delighted  him  to  know  that  the  militia  and  com- 
mittee of  safety  thought  him  of  sufficient  consequence 
to  keep  under  guard.** 

fl  Some  of  Kearney's  sayings  -were  in  the  highest  degree  imflammatory,  and 
occasioned  much  uneasiness.  He  frequently  expressed  himself  able  to  effect 
anything  with  his  followers,  from  lynching  a  railroad  magnate  to  destroying 
a  city.  At  a  meeting  in  Dec.  1877,  he  promised  in  the  coarse  of  his  custom- 
ary tirade  against  'thieving  millionaire  and  scoundrelly  officials,'  'If  I 
don't  get  killed,  I  will  do  more  than  any  reformer  in  the  history  of  the 
world.  I  hope  I  will  be  assassinated,  for  the  success  of  the  morement  de- 
pends on  that.'  On  another  occasion  he  said,  'Judge  Lynch  is  the  judge 
wanted  by  the  workingmen  of  California.  I  advise  all  to  own  a  musket 
and  100  rounds  of  ammunition. ' 

**  Kearney  was  born  in  1847,  at  Oakmount,  County  Cork,  Ireland,  the  2«1 
in  a  family  of  7  boys.  At  the  age  of  1 1  he  went  to  sea  as  a  cabin  boy,  sail- 
ing principally  under  the  American  flag,  and  gaining  rapid  promotion,  so 
that  when  he  arrived  at  S.  F.  in  1868,  he  was  first  officer  of  the  clipper  ship 
83toata»g  Star,  a  position  which  he  continued  to  occupy  on  coast  steamers  for 
4  years.  It  was  here  he  acquired  the  air  of  domineering  command  which 
was  of  service  to  him  in  the  role  he  had  assumed.  He  was  temperate  and 
industrious,  saving  enough  to  purchase  a  draying  business  in  1872  which 
prospered  until  1877,  when  the  merchants  withdrew  their  patronage  on 
account  of  his  incendiary  speeches.  He  was  not  devoid  of  means,  while 
drawing  support  from  his  followers,  in  collections  taken  up  at  the  Sunday 
meetings  on  the  sand-lot.  He  married  in  1870,  and  had  several  children, 
whom  he  raised  in  the  catholic  faith.  He  was  not  naturalized  until  1S76. 
His  oratory  was  earnest  and  forcible,  partaking  of  the  epigrammatic,  and 
showing  a  smattering  of  historical  knowledge,  with  a  pronounced  brogue  in 
the  utterance,  and  shallowness  of  argument.  His  ideas  of  political  economy 
were  crude  and  illogical,  and  his  conceit  as  towering  as  his  amuition.  For 
example,  when  he  came  into  power  he  would  decree  a  minimum  pay  of  $3  or 


358      THE  CHINESE,   LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

The  course  pursued  by  the  agitators  was  not  one  to 
melt  the  hearts  of  the  city  fathers  toward  the  work- 
ingmen's  woes.  But  two  days  after  Kearney's  incar- 
ceration a  public  meeting  was  held  to  consider  the 
condition  of  the  distressed,  and  collection  agents  ap- 
pointed, who  gathered  from  the  citizens  $20,000,  of 
which  $12,000  was  set  aside  for  a  free  labor  exchange, 
and  the  remainder  distributed  among  charitable  insti- 
tutions for  the  benefit  of  the  needy.  To  check  incen- 
diary speech  the  supervisors  issued  an  ordinance 
against  it  known  as  the  '  Gibbs'  gag  law.'  Kearney 
remained  in  jail  about  two  weeks,  during  which  time 
he  addressed  a  letter  to  the  mayor,  stating  that  he 
had  been  unfairly  reported  by  the  press,  and  was  will- 
ing to  submit  to  any  proper  measures  to  allay  the 
agitation,  upon  which  the  charge  against  him  was 
dismissed.  He,  however,  immediately  availed  him- 
self of  his  liberty  to  repeat  his  outrageous  attacks 
upon  the  police,  the  judges,  and  the  supervisors.  At 
a  ward  meeting  a  resolution  was  passed  that  "  if  any 
officer  or  leader  in  the  workingmen's  movement  lagged 
behind,  or  proved  recreant  to  his  trust,  he  should  be 
hanged  to  the  nearest  lamp-post."  Kearney's  impris- 

f  4  per  day  for  any  kind  of  labor,  the  expenditure  of  which  sum  was  to 
create  extraordinary  development  in  the  country.  Every  man  should  own 
a  homestead.  Poverty  was  to  be  abolished,  but  great  wealth  was  to  be  pre- 
vented by  laws  under  which  manufacturers  and  traders  could  not  retain 
more  than  a  fixed  amount  of  profits,  the  surplus  to  go  to  the  erection  of 
public  works  and  institutions.  By  his  admirers  he  was  compared  to  the  first 
Napoleon,  to  Caesar,  and  to  Christ.  In  personal  appearance  he  was  below 
medium  height,  compactly  built,  with  a  broad  head,  slight  mustache,  quick 
but  lowering  blue  eyes,  and  nervous  temperament.  J.  G.  Day,  the  vice- 
pres't  had  seceded,  though  he  again  joined  Kearney's  following.  He  was  a 
Canadian  carpenter,  of  Irish  extraction,  6  feet  in  height,  with  a  reddish 
beard.  He  .was  industrious  and  temperate,  with  a  common-school  education. 
His  language  was  good,  and  his  ideas  thoughtful,  and  the  opposite  of  incen- 
diary. H.  L.  Knight  came  of  a  Yorkshire  family  in  England.  He  was 
short,  squat,  with  a  round  face,  twinkling  gray  eyes,  and  small  gray  mus- 
tache. He  had  a  strong  proclivity  for  reforms,  any  kind  being  better  than 
none.  In  1842  he  immigrated  to  the  U.  S.  and  settled  himself  in  Mo.  where 
he  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  He  served  through  the  Mexican  war,  coining 
to  Cal.  in  1852,  where  he  engaged  in  mining  for  three  years,  gave  some  at- 
tention to  law,  finally  becoming  a  social  parasite.  The  situation  of  secre- 
tary to  the  Kearney  organization  fitted  him  well.  Among  other-  leading 
members  of  the  association  was  another  Irishman,  T.  H.  Bates,  a  house- 
painter,  with  the  air  of  a  sporting  man;  and  Charles  C.  O'Donuell,  afterward 
city  coroner. 


SPREAD  OF  THE  ORGAXIZATJOX.  339 

on  men t  had  increased  his  following,  and  on  Thanks- 
giving day  7,000  workingmen,  representing  every 
ward  and  trade  in  the  city,  held  a  grand  parade. 
Nothing  disorderly  occurred,  and  it  terminated  at  the 
sand-lot  in  so-called  literary  exercises,  C.  C.  OT)onnell 
acting  as  president  of  the  meeting,  and  William  Wei- 
lock  **  vice-president.  After  resolving  to  wind  up  the 
national  banks  the  assembly  dispersed. 

An  attempt  had  been  made  to  form  a  central  body 
of  delegates  from  the  city  and  county  organizations. 
Failing  in  this,  Kearney  resolved  to  push  the  scheme 
in  the  interior,  and  set  out  with  Knight  to  stump  the 
southern  counties,  and  organize  clubs,  his  expenses  to 
be  paid  from  the  Sunday  collections  at  the  sand-lot. 
From  the  farmers  not  much  encouragement  was  re- 
ceived; but  in  the  principal  towns  were  large  numbers 
who  eagerly  listened  to  and  applauded  his  presumptu- 
ous talk,  made  up  largely  of  denunciation  of  and 
threats  against  the  wealthy  classes,  and  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  government,  and  boastings  of  his  dictator- 
ship.** 

» WnKam  WeUoek  was  a  Yorkshire  mam,  and  a  shoemaker  by  trade. 
He  was  likewise  an  evangelist  and  bible  expounder.  T-amiiMr  jn  the  U.  8. 
in  1S73,  he  worked  at  his  trade  in  various  places,  reaching  §.  F.  in  1877, 
where  he  was  naturalized.  He  was  tall,  with  a  long,  narrow  head,  mgh  fore- 
head, fuD,  short  beard,  and  nervous  temperament.  Having  married  a  widow 
with  some  means,  he  could  afford  that  luxury  of  low  foreigners,  American 
polities.  Xot  entirety,  devoid  of  culture,  and  possessing  considerable  dry 
humor,  he  was  not  altogether  unattractive  as  a  public  speaker,  although,  the 
frequent  use  made  of  bible  quotations  smacked  of  cant,  and  gave  him  the 
soubriquet  of  Parson  WeOock.  Indeed,  he  had  played  chaplain  to  the  party 


before  aanraring  the  vice-presidency,  and  discoursed  upon  bible  texts  at  the 
sand-lot.  lake  Kearney,  he  was  not  nnapprecsative  of  his  own  importance. 
At  a  IIIUM  nn<  ting  in  Dee.  he  promised  that  when  he  and  his  colimgnn  had 


cleared  GaL  of  demagogues,  they  would  do  the  same  for  the  other  states, 
until  the  whole  republic  should  be  purified,  after  which  they  would  go  to 
England  and  pull  down  fee  monarchy.  When  that  was  done  his  work  would 
be  ended.  Speaking  of  monopolists  he  would  say,  '  These  men  who  are  per- 
verting the  ways  of  truth  must  be  destroyed.  In  this  book,  called  die  bub, 
the  lord  is  aid  to  be  a  consuming  fire.  When  he  commands,  we  must  obey. 
What  are  we  to  do  with  these  people  that  are  starring  our  poor,  and  degrad- 
ing our  wives,  daughters,  and  sisters?  And  the  Wd  amid  unto  Moses,  *•  Take 
aD  the  heads  off  the  people  and  hang  them  before  the  lord.  •*  This  is  what 
fed  by  a  supteuae  being  to  do  with  all  that  dare  to  tread 


down  honesty,  virtue,  and  troth.*    Rather  hard  on  the  supreme  being. 

"It  was  proposed  at  a  ward  meeting  in  SL  F.  to  make  him  dictator,  when 
he  eagerly  accepted  the  office,  saying  that  he  was  the  voice  of  40,000  people, 


860      THE  CHINESE,  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

On  the  12th  of  December  the  workingmen  of  Oak- 
land sent  an  address  to  the  president  of  the  United 
States,  petitioning  for  the  abrogation  of  the  Burlin- 
game  treaty,  which  was  transmitted  to  the  senate,  but 
without  effect.  On  the  3d  of  January,  1878,  Kearney 
led  several  hundred  unemployed  men  to  the  city  hall 
to  demand  "work,  bread,  or  a  place  in  the  county 
jail."  On  the  march  the  column  swelled  to  1,500, 
and  halting  before  the  mayor's  office  created  no  little 
alarm  in  the  treasury  office.  The  men  demanded  that 
the  capitalists  of  the  city  should  establish  an  industrial 
colony,  or  take  other  means  for  relief.  To  compel 
such  a  measure  was,  of  course,  out  of  the  mayor's 
province.  A  bill  was  introduced  in  the  legislature 
authorizing  the  city  of  San  Francisco  to  employ  2,000 
laborers  for  three  months,  of  which,  however,  the  su- 
pervisors took  no  notice. 

Soon  afterward  Kearney,  Knight,  and  Wellock 
were  several  times  arrested  for  incendiary  language 
and  terrorism.25  Threats  to  blow  up  the  Pacific  Mail 
Steamship  company's  dock  and  steamers,  to  drop 
dynamite  from  balloons  into  the  Chinese  quarter,  to 
make  infernal  machines  with  which  men  might  be  se- 
cretly destroyed,  were  supplemented  by  advice  to 
bring  guns  and  bludgeons  to  the  sand-lot.  Military 
companies  were  formed,  but  only  those  of  the  10th 
and  1 1th  wards  were  able  to  procure  arms.  The  city 
authorities  took  note  of  these  proceedings,  and  on  the 
16th  of  January  the  incendiaries  were  again  locked 
up,  the  national  guard  called  out,  and  a  man-of-war 
sent  to  protect  the  mail  docks.  A  committee  was  ap- 
pointed to  visit  Sacramento,  to  lay  before  the  legis- 

and  would  remain  dictator  until  deposed  by  their  will.  One  ward  proposed 
to  crown  him  with  a  coronet  of  $20  pieces,  taken  from  the  rich  men  on  JSfob 
hill. 

25  Kearney  was  charged  with  saying  at  a  meeting  of  cooks  and  waiters, 
I  am  glad  to  see  you  making  preparations  for  the  fish-balls— that  is,  you 
make  the  balls  and  we  will  fire  them.  If  the  members  of  the  legislature 
overstep  the  limits  of  decency,  then  I  say.  hemp!  hemp!  hemp!  That  is  the 
battle  cry  of  freedom.'  He  defied  the  grand  jury,  and  said  if  imprisoned  he 
would  work  out  of  jail  and  '  annihilate  every  one  of  these  hell-hounds  in  the 
etate  of  California.' 


LEGISLATION.  361 

lators  there  assembled  the  condition  of  affairs.  That 
body  immediately  passed  an  act  authorizing  the  arrest 
of  incendiary  speakers,  and  the  dispersing  of  doubtful 
assemblages.  ** 

A  workingman's  convention  was  held  on  the  21st, 
which  continued  for  several  days.  On  the  second 
day  Kearney  and  Knight  were  acquitted  on  the 
indictment  of  inciting  a  riot,  and  released  on  bail 
pending  the  trial  of  other  charges.  The  same  day 
came  the  news  of  the  triumph  of  the  workingmen  at 
the  Alameda  election,  where  they  claimed  to  have  se- 
cured a  senator  from  that  county."  There  were  150 
delegates  in  attendance  upon  the  convention.  A  state 
central  committee  was  formed,  with  five  members 
from  each  senatorial  district,  and  one  representative 
from  each  trade  union.  The  storm  of  dissent  against 
the  riot  act  in  the  convention  caused  the  legislature 
to  appoint  an  investigating  committee,  which,  after 
attending  a  sand-lot  meeting,  whereat  the  usual  ti- 
rades were  softened  so  as  to  come  within  the  statute, 
and  taking  the  testimony  of  a  large  number  of  wit- 
nesses on  both  sides,  presented  a  report,  showing  that 
the  workmgmen's  party  had  not  been  engaged  in  the 
July  riots,  that  their  language  required  to  be  inter- 
preted with  regard  to  surrounding  circumstances,  that 
the  Chinese  were  a  curse  to  the  country;  and,  in 
short,  that  no  serious  charges  could  be  sustained 
against  the  workingmen.  It  now  became  evident  that 
the  workingmen*s  party  was  strong  enough  to  become 
a  powerful  factor  in  the  politics  of  the  state.  Their 

*  Ferial,  judge  of  the  S.  F.  police  court,  testified  at  a  later  period  that 
he  regarded  the  act  as  unjust  and  despotic,  the  existing  laws  being  sufficient 
to  provide  for  any  emergencies  specified  by  it. 

17  This  was  John  W.  Bones,  elected  to  fill  a  vacancy.  He  repudiated  the 
Kearneyites,  who,  he  said,  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  law-and-order  con- 
vention of  workingmen  which  nominated  him.  Nevertheless  Kearney  pro- 
ceeded to  Alameda  and  brought  the  senator — the  first  fruits  of  the  agitation 
— to  exhibit  him  at  the  convention.  At  the  Sept.  election,  out  of  7, 1 18  votes 
in  this  county,  118  were  polled  by  the  workingmen,  the  main  vote  being 
about  equally  divided  between  republicans  and  democrats.  At  the  Jan. 
election  the  whole  vote  was  4,340,  of  which  the  workingmen  carried  2,790, 
the  republicans  2,038,  and  the  democrats  572,  showing  from  which  party  the 
workingmen  had  been  drawn. 


362      THE  CHINESE,  LABOR  AGITATION,  AND  POLITICS. 

leaders  had  used  the  temporary  depression  in  business 
to  engage  the  public  attention,  and  they  had  alter- 
nately amused,  disgusted,  and  terrorized  the  city  of 
San  Francisco,  until  it  began  to  be  seen  that  there  was 
something  more  in  their  movements  than  blind  pas- 
sion or  brute  force.  They  began  in  February  to  visit 
the  different  counties  for  the  purpose  of  influencing 
municipal  elections.  In  Oakland  and  Sacramento  the 
workingmen  elected  several  of  their  candidates,  where- 
upon the  press  of  the  state  began  to  recognize  them 
as  not  only  a  party,  but  a  powerful  one ;  and  perhaps 
the  strongest  proof  of  the  influence  attained  in  politics 
was  contained  in  the  rumor  that  Kearney's  palm  was 
now  crossed  with  railroad  money,  and  that  the  bonan- 
za bank  flung  him  a  few  gold  pieces  occasionally. 
However  absurd  these  statements,  he  assumed  the  air 
of  a  potentate,  and  introduced  himself  where  he  had 
never  before  been  recognized.28  He  even  advanced 
the  idea  in  ward  clubs  that  he  was  opposed  to  Ameri- 
cans being  admitted  to  the  organization,  and  although 
nominally  a  catholic,  retorted  upon  Archbishop  Ale- 
many,  who  reproved  his  church  members  for  seditious 
language — that  the  constitution  of  the  United  States 
made  it  sedition  to  interfere  in  people's  religious  af- 
fairs. He  was  invited  east  in  the  spring  of  1878, 
where  he  was  not  received  as  a  hero,  and  where  I  will 
leave  him,  although  he  afterward  figured  as  an  in- 
mate of  the  house  of  correction  in  San  Francisco  , 

To  return  to  the  course  of  state  political  affairs  in 

28  An  attempt  by  the  legislature  to  pass  a  bill  for  the  sale  of  the  Spring 
Valley  water-works  to  the  city  of  S.  F.  for  §15,000,000  created  a  unanimous 
outcry,  and  on  the  IGth  of  March  a  meeting  of  property-holders  was  called 
to  denounce  the  scheme.  At  this  meeting  appeared  Kearney  with  a  large 
escort,  and  proceeded  to  take  a  place  on  the  platform,  When  reminded  that 
he  had  not  been  invited,  he  insisted  on  his  right,  as  the  representative  of  the 
workingmen,  to  share  in  its  deliberations,  calling  on  his  adherents  for  a  show 
of  hands,  and  declaring  himself  elected  chairman,  carried  matters  with  a 
high  hand,  entirely  routing  the  property-holders.  A  set  of  resolutions  was 
then  passed,  instructing  the  city  representatives  in  the  legislature  to  vote 
against  the  bill,  a  deputation  being  dispatched  to  Sac.,  to  present  them  to 
the  governor  and  legislature. 


OPPOSITION  TO  MONOPOLY.  363 

1868,  the  administration  of  Governor  Haight  was  ac- 
ceptable, although  he  gave  his  adhesion  to  President 
Johnson  and  not  to  congress.  Legislators  who  were 
not  satisfied  with  the  pay  received  from  the  people, 
but  who  looked  for  an  additional  income  from  the 
lobby,  received  the  check  of  frequent  vetoes,  and 
monopolies  were  not  encouraged.  In  1869-70  he  ob- 
jected to  the  fifteenth  amendment  to  the  constitution 
of  the  United  States,  with  the  same  hostility  to  the 
black  man  that  he  had  shown  hi  his  message  two 
years  before.  The  legislature  **  followed  his  lead, 

»CaL  Jour.  Assem.,  1867-S,  92-102.  CaL  Jaw.  Asgem.,  1869-70,  168-76, 
947-3.  The  legislature,  which  met  in  the  new  capitol  at  the  18th  session, 
consisted  of  26  democrats,  11  republicans,  and  three  independents;  the  as- 
sembly of  66  democrats,  1 1  republicans,  and  three  independents.  The  sena- 
tors elect  were  E.  M.  Banvard,  of  Placer;  John  S.  Hager,  R.  J.  Betze, 
Thomas  M.  Wand,  S.  F.;  William  Burnett,  Sonoma;  A.  Comte,  Jr,  Sac.; 
J.  T.  Farley,  Alpine  and  Amador;  Thomas  Fowler,  Fresno,  Kern  and  Tnlare; 
William  M.  Gwin,  Jr,  Calaveras;  S.  C.  Hutchings,  Yuba  and  Sutter:  Wil- 
liam Irwin,  Siskiyon:  Charles  Maclay,  Santa  Clara;  William  Minis,  Solano 
and  Yolo;  M.  P.  O'Connor,  Nevada;  N.  M.  Orr,  San  Joaquin;  George  C. 
Perkins,  Butte,  Lassen  and  Plumas;  Edward  Tompkins,  Alameda;  R.  T. 
Turner,  Sierra;  Stephen  Wing,  Tuolmne,  Inyo  and  Mono;  B.  D.  Wilson, 
Los  Angeles;  Romnaldo  Pacheco,  San  Luis  Obispo  and  Santa  Barbara;  E.  J. 
Lewis,  (hold-over)  was  chosen  pres't;  Joseph  Roberts,  sec. ;  B.  A.  Mardis, 
ass't  sec. ;  J.  B.  Stevens,  J.  J.  la  Guerra,  L.  Keplan,  E.  K.  Phipps,  Edward 
Curtis,  N.  S.  Cooper,  George  N.  Morton,  clerks;  Nat.  Boice.  J.  J.  Thomas, 
serg'ts-at-anns;  chaplain,  Rev.  W.  R.  Gober. 

The  assembly  consisted  of  E.  D.  Luelliug  and  Daniel  Inman.  Alameda;  J. 
M.  Johnson,  A.  C.  Brown,  Alpine  and  Amador;  J.  C.  Martin,  Marion  Biggs, 
Butte;  A.  R.  Young,  K  L.  Green,  W.  S.  Williams,  Calaveras;  L,  Scarce, 
Colusa  and  Tehaina;  J.  R.  Carothers,  Contra  Costa;  J.  E.  Murphy,  Del 
Norte  and  Klamath;  Charles  Gildes,  J.  H.  Miller,  J.  D.  If eM array,  K.  B. 
Newell,  El  Dorado;  P.  C.  Appling,  Fresno;  J.  J.  DeHaven,  Humlx>ldt;  J. 
C.  Crigler,  Lake  and  Napa;  John  Lambert,  Lassen  and  Plumas;  M.  F.  Coro- 
nel,  R.  C.  Fryer,  Los  Angeles;  W.  J.  Miller,  Marine;  D.  M.  Pool,  Mariposa; 
G.  W.  Henley,  Mendocino;  Miner  Walden,  Merced  and  Stanislaus;  J.  A. 
Blankenship,  Monterey;  W.  A.  King,  B.  F.  Hawley,  T.  A,  Slicer,  S.  T. 
Gates,  Nevada;  M.  H." Power.  M.  H.  Calderwood,  M.  Waldron.  Placer;  M. 
S.  Heran,  R.  D.  Stephens,  I.  F.  Freeman,  John  A.  Odell,  J.  Duffy,  Sac. ;  J. 
W.  Satterwhite,  San  Bernardino;  William  N.  Robinson,  San  Diego:  E.  A. 
Rockwell,  Joseph  Napthaly,  J.  C.  Griswold,  Thomas  P.  Ryan,  Michael 
Hayes,  George  R.  B.  Hayes,  George  H.  Rogers,  T.  J.  Mavnihan,  J.  L.  Romer, 
Charles  McMillan,  H.  W.  Fortuus,  W.  O'Connell,  S.  F  ;  C.  G.  Hubner,  J. 
S.  Thurston,  San  Joaquin:  A.  G.  Escandon,  San  Luis  Obispo  and  Sta  Bar- 
bara; S.  J.  Linney,  San  Mateo;  W.  B.  Shoemaker,  R  D.  Murphy,  T.  R. 
Thomas,  Sta  Clara;  F.  A.  Hahn,  Sta  Cruz;  A.  R.  Andrews,  Shasta:  B.  J. 
Sammons,  John  Kautz,  Sierra;  William  Shores,  R.  M.  Martin.  Siskiyou; 
R.  C.  Haile,  Solano;  B.  B.  Munday,  Thomas  Hudson,  Barclay  Henley,  So- 
noma; C.  P.  Berry,  Sutter;  John  McMnrray,  Trinity:  W.  E.  Doss,  Tulare 
and  Kern;  E.  W.  Eichelroth,  J.  S.  Mooney,  F.  York.  Tnolumne,  Inyo,  and 
Mono;  J.  M.  Kelly,  Yolo;  George  Merritt,  C.  McClaskey,  J.  E.  Brewer, 
Yuba,  George  H.  Rogers  was  chosen  speaker;  C.  Gildea,  speaker  pro  tern.; 


364      THE  CHINESE,  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

only  a  minority  of  the  federal  relations  committee  re- 
porting in  favor  of  the  amendment,  which  was  re- 
jected by  a  senate  joint  resolution. 

The  chief  idea  in  state  politics  at  this  period  was 
resistance  to  the  monopolies  of  land,  railroad,  water, 
gas,  and  other  companies.  The  republicans  lost 
ground  in  1867  by  being  the  party  which  favored 
railroad  construction  and  the  granting  of  subsidies ; 
but  they  recovered  it  in  time  to  elect  for  governor 
Newton  Booth,  anti-monopolist,  in  1871,  with  three 
congressmen,30  and  a  large  majority31  in  the  lower 
house  and  in  joint  convention  of  the  legislature.33 

Robert  Ferral,  Newton  Benedict,  D.  F.  Beveridge,  Fenwick  Fisher,  A.  L. 
Henshaw,  J.  C.  Edwards,  T  D.  Murphy,  clerks;  Dan'l  Perkins,  J.  M.  Shan- 
non, sergts-at-arms;  J.  G.  Johnson,  chaplain. 

30  The  congressmen  were  Hough  ton  1st  dist,  Sargent  2d  dist,  and  Coghlan 
3d  dist,  elected  on  the  republican  ticket  in  1871.     In  the  following  year  there 
was  another  split  in  the  republican  party,  which,  however,  had  a  majority 
over  the  democrats.     The  legislature,  by  act,  ordered  an  election  for  con- 
gressmen in  1872,  when  Page  was  choson  in  the  2d  dist,  Luttrell  in  the  3d, 
Houghtou  in  the  4th,  and  Clayton  in  the  1st;  all  republicans  but  Luttrell, 
who  was  elected  by  the  liberals. 

31  The  election  of  this  year  was  marked  by  invention  of  the  historic  '  tape- 
worm ticket,'  the  legend  of  which  runs  as  follows:  The  navy  yard  at  Mare 
island  had  remained  since  the  war  under  the  control  of  the  republican  party, 
and  the  large  number  of  employes  were  in  the  habit,  previous  to  a  general 
election,  of  enrolling  themselves  as  members  of  republican  clubs;  but  it  was 
observed  at  the  counting  of  ballots  that  an  extraordinary  number  were  demo- 
cratic.    To  prevent  scratching  and  pasting,  the  republican  county  committee 
had  a  peculiar  ticket  printed  for  Vallejo,  the  same  being  long  and  narrow, 
with  the  names  of  candidates  printed  without  spaces,  filling  the  paper  entirely, 
the  lines  running  from  end  to  end.     Ihese  tickets  were  printed  and  distrib- 
uted, but  it  was  found  on  counting  and  examining  them  that  128  of  these 
intricately  contrived  ballots  were  altered  by  democratic  voters.     Of  course 
the  object  of  the  tape-worm  ballot  was  intimidation,  and  the  disgrace  of  the 
attempt  to  make  all   government  employes  vote  the  republican  ticket  was 
commented  upon  even  in  the  U.  S.  senate. 

3iThe  senators  elected  in  1871,  were  David  Boucher,  Butte,  Plumas  and 
Lassen;  Barlow  Dyer,  Calaveras;  John  Boggs,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  David 
Goodale,  Contra  Costa  and  Marin;  J.  J.  DeHaven,  Del  Norte,  Humboldt 
and  Klamath;  H.  J.  McKusie,  El  Dorado;  W.  W.  Pendergast,  Lake,  Napa, 
and  Mendocino;  T.  J.  Keys,  Mariposa,  Merced  and  Stanislaus;  Thomas 
Beck,  Sta  Cruz  and  Monterey;  M.  P.  O'Conner,  Charles  Kent,  Nevada; 
Jacob  Neff,  Placer;  James  A.  Duffy,  Sac. ;  James  McCoy,  San  Bernardino 
and  San  Diego;  George  Oulten,  W.  T.  Garratt,  S.  F. ;  S.  J.  Trinity,  S.  F. 
and  San  Mateo;  George  S.  Evans,  San  Joaquin.  To  fill  vacancy:  James  P. 
Van"Ness,  Sta  Barbara  and  San  Luis  Obispo;  John  McMurray,  Shasta  and 
Trinity;  to  fill  vacancy,  B.  T.  Tuttle,  Sonoma;  M.  C.  Andross,  Tuolumne 
and  Mono;  L.  T.  Crane,  Yuba.  President  of  the  senate  pro  tern.,  J.  T. 
Farley;  sec.,  Robert  Farral;  asst  sec.,  T.  J.  Shackleford;  clerks,  J.  B. 
Stevens,  J.  J.  de  la  Guerra,  E.  L.  Crawford,  Ted  Robinson,  A.  Sites,  E. 


GRANGER   ORGANIZATIONS.  S65 

The  party,  however,  was  too  much  under  railroad  in- 
fluence, and  split  upon  that  test  in  1873,  pending  the 
election  of  a  legislature  which  was  to  choose  a  suc- 
cessor to  United  States  senator  Cole,  whose  term  ex- 
pired in  March.  The  seceders  called  themselves 
independents,  but  were  facetiously  named  Dolly  Yar- 
dens.  Their  avowed  principles  were  to  destroy  the 
power  of  monopolies,  regulate  railroad  fares  and 
freights,  and  devise  an  irrigation  system  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  whole  state.  The  independents  received 
much  of  their  strength  from  the  order  of  grangers 
which  was  extensively  organized  about  this  time,  and 
who,  as  patrons  of  husbandry,  were  naturally  inter- 
ested in  the  proposed  reforms.  The  party  proved 
strong  enough  to  control  the  election  of  1873,  secure 
a  majority  in  the  assembly,  and  with  the  other  branch 
of  the  republican  party,  the  control  of  the  legislature." 

Gallagher,  J.  P.  Cunningham;  sergts-at-arms,  J.  W.  Hawkins,  J.  M.  Shan- 
non; chaplain,  J.  H.  Bonte.  Democrats  21,  republicans  18,  independents  1. 
The  assembly  consisted  of  Cyrus  Coleman,  J.  A.  Eagan,  Alpine  and 
Amador;  E.  H.  Pardes,  E.  T.  Crane,  Alameda;  J.  N.  Turner,  W  X.  Detta- 
ven,  Butte;  C.  L.  Y.  Brown.  J.  L.  Gibson,  L.  M.  Schrack,  Calaveras; 
Loomis  Ward,  Colusa;  Joseph  W.  Gallaway,  Contra  Costa;  T.  H.  Rector, 
Del  Norte  and  Klamath;  J.  Burkhalter,  Kern  and  Tulare;  Samuel  H.  Center, 
William  Barklage,  Robert  Chalmers,  A.  J.  Bayley,  El  Dorado;  I.  N,  Walker, 
Fresno;  Joseph  Russ,  Humboldt;  N.  W.  Stillwagen,  Lake  and  Napa;  T.  D. 
Mott,  Asa  Ellis,  Los  Angeles;  J.  B.  Rice,  Marin;  John  W.  Wilcox,  Mari- 
posa;  George  B.  Mathers,  Mendocino;  J.  B.  Sensabaugh,  Merced;  H.  M. 
Hayes,  Monterey;  Henry  Everett,  Robert  Bell,  J.  M.  Days,  S.  Barker, 
Nevada;  Jacob  Welty,  O.  H.  Lee,  Henry  Long,  Placer;  B.  W.  Barnes, 
Plumas  and  Lassen;  C.  G.  W.  French,  E.  B.  Mott  jr.,  P.  J.  Hopper,  O. 
Harvey,  William  Johnson,  Sac.;  F.  M.  Slaughter,  San  Bernardino;  George 
W.  Daniels,  San  Diego;  Giles  H.  Gray,  T.  B.  Shannon,  W.  T.  James,  W. 

A.  Aldrich,  A.  D.    Splivalo,    Charles  Goodall,  David  Meeker,  Charles  Jost, 
William  R.  Wheaton,  John  Seibe,  Samuel  McCullough,  H.  R.  Reed,  S.  F.; 
R.  C.  Sargent,  F.  J.  Woodward,  San  Joaquin;  Milton  Mason,  Sta  Barbara; 
Curtis  Baird,  San  Mateo;  J.  P.  Sargent,  F.   E.  Spencer,    H.   C.   Frank,   Sta 
Clara;  G.  W.  Brockus,  Sta  Cruz;  A.  R.   Andrews,  Shasta;  D.  L.  Whitney, 

B.  J.  Sanders,  Sierra;  J.  K.  Luttrell,  W.  A.  Little,  Siskiyou;  M.  J.  Wright, 
Solano;  E.  C.   Henshaw,   William  Caldwell,  R.  B.  Munday,  Sonoma;  C.  P. 
Berry,  Sutter;  H.  J.  Tinnin,  Trinity;  P.  B.  Bacon,  George  A.  Whitney,  W. 

C.  Connolly,  Tuolumne,  Mono  and  Inyo;  J.  C.  Bradley,  T.  R.  Lofton,  Wil- 
liam Edgar,  Yuba;  F.  S.  Freeman,  Yolo.     Speaker  of  the  assembly,   T.  B. 
Shannon;  speaker  pro  tern.,  B.  J.   Hopper;  clerks,   M.  D.   Boruck,  G.   W. 
Dixon,  Martin  Rowan,  I.   R.  Wilber,   J.   H.  Reed,  Alfred  Thompson,  Isaac 
Ayer,  Frederick  Creque;  sergts-at-arms,  A.  J.  Rhoads,  G.  Meredith.     Re- 
publicans 55;  democrats  24;  independents  1. 

33  The  state  senators  elected  in  1873  were  C.  W.  Bush,  Los  Angeles;  W. 
J.  Graves,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Sta  Barbara,  and  Ventura;  Tipton  Lindsley, 
Fresno,  Kern,  and  Tulare;  T.  H.  Laine,  Sta  Clara;  Washington  Bartlett, 


3G6      THE  CHINESE,  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

On  the  28th  of  November,  Casserly  resigned  his 
seat  in  the  national  senate,  which  unexpected  action 
rendered  necessary  the  choice  of  another  senator  to 
complete  his  term.  The  place  was  filled  by  John  S. 
Hao-er,34  democrat,  and  anti-monopolist.  The  choice 

Philip  A.  Roach,  S.  P.  and  San  Mateo;  Edward  Gibbons,  Alameda;  R.  Hop- 
kins, Calaveras;  J.  T.  Farley,  Amador  and  Alpine;  Thomas  Fraser,  El  Do- 
rado; Henry  Edgerton,  Sac. ;  H.  E.  McCune,  Solano  and  Yolo;  B.  F.  Tuttle, 
Sonoma;  N.  Martin,  Placer;  M.  P.  O'Connor,  Nevada;  H.  K.  Turner,  Sierra; 
S.  Spencer,  Yuba  and  Sutter;  George  C.  Perkins,  W.  C.  Hendricks,  Butte, 
Lassen,  and  Plumas;  William  Irwin,  Siskiyon.  Irwin  was  chosen  pres't,  T. 
J.  Shackelford  sec.,  J.  B.  Chinn,  Ira  H.  Reed,  ass'tsecs;  Newton  Benedict, 
A.  F.  Thompson,  A.  H.  Estell,  Daniel  Fenton,  A.  J.  Starling,  Fred.  Creque, 
clerks;  J.  W.  Hawkins,  C.  J.  Burns,  sergts-at-arms;  George  F.  Beveridge, 
postmaster;  C.  E.  King,  Joseph  McBayle,  George  Ellery,  Ben.  W.  Day, 
pages;  George  W.  Hansbrow,  paper-folder;  H.  Clock,  Ed.  Duffy,  S.  J.  Eddy, 
porters.  The  senate  comprised  18  republicans,  14  democrats,  and  8  inde- 
pendents. 

The  assembly  consisted  of  Ammerman,  W.  J.  Gurnett,  Alameda;  W.  H. 
Steerer,  L.  Miller,  Alpine  and  Amador;  J.  B.  Clark,  J.  C.  Gray,  Butte;  W. 
P.  Peck,  George  Gilman,  M.  Fahey,  Calaveras;  John  Simpson,  Colusa  and 
Tehama;  A.  W.  Hammalt,  Contra  Costa;  J.  J.  Murphy,  Del  Norte  and 
Klamath;  G.  E.  Williams,  G.  W.  Sempers,  G.  H.  Ingham,  N.  Gilmore,  El 
Dorado;  J.  J.  Ferguson,  Fresno;  B.  S.  Hurlbut,  Humboldt;  W.  Canneld, 
Kern  and  Tulare;  S.  K.  Welch,  Lake  and  Napa;  J.  D.  Byers,  Lassen  and 
Plumas,  A.  Higley,  J.  S.  Venable,  Los  Angeles;  T.  J.  Abies,  Marin;  J.  W. 
Snyder,  Mariposa;  R.  S.  McCallum,  Mendocino;  H.  B.  Davis,  Merced  and 
Stanislaus;  C.  Tully,  Monterey,  A.  J.  Pelham,  G.  W.  Griffin,  D.  C.  North- 
rup,  W.  Hill,  Nevada;  W.  C.  Norton,  W.  Raush,  S.  B.  Burt,  Placer;  P. 
Coggins,  P.  H.  Russell,  R.  Kercheval,  J.  N.  Barton,  W.  E.  Bryan,  Sac. ;  N. 
C.  Pishon,  San  Bernardino;  W.  W.  Bowers,  San  Diego;  M.  M.  Estee,  D. 
Rogers,  J.  F.  Swift,  John  Hamill,  W.  A.  Aldrich,  C.  C.  Terrill,  James  Pat- 
terson, B.  C.  Vandell,  G.  C.  Wickware,  D.  Friedenrich,  J.  F.  Cowdery, 
Robert  Howe,  S.  F. ;  Samuel  Myers,  A.  C.  Paulsell,  San  Joaquin;  A.  G.  Es- 
candon,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Sta  Barbara,  and  Ventura;  James  Burns,  San 
Mateo;  Thomas  R.  Lea,  F.  C.  Frank,  Alexander  Hay,  Sta  Clara;  C.  L. 
Thomas,  Sta  Cruz;  R.  Klotz,  Shasta;  S.  Winchell,  W.  R.  Morgan,  Sierra; 
J.  McBride.  W.  C.  Cressler,  Siskiyou;  J.  L.  Heald,  Solano;  W.  S.  M.  Wright, 
J.  Dixon,  W.  H.  Northcutt,  Sonoma;  A.  L.  Chandler,  Sutter;  J.  W.  Tinnin, 
Trinity;  J.  WT.  Summers,  J.  E.  Parker,  A.  J.  Long,  Tuolumne,  Mono,  and 
Inyo;  F.  S.  Freeman,  Yolo;  J.  C.  Bradley,  J.  C.  Carter,  Martin  Knox, 
Yuba;  19  republicans,  28  democrats,  and  33  independents,  or  in  joint  con- 
vention rep.  37,  dem.  42,  ind.  41.  M.  M.  Estee  was  chosen  speaker;  Robert 
Howe,  speaker  pro  tern. ;  D.  T.  Laofbourrow,  John  Webber,  J.  A.  Brumsey, 
T.  S.  Harris,  B.  F.  Jeffries,  Mrs  J.  P.  Biggers,  Walter  Ferral,  Richard 
Brown,  C.  H.  King,  clerks;  William  M.  Cratcher,  J.  M.  Ingraham,  sergts- 
at-arms;  W.  H.  Copper,  Charles  Weltz,  J.  Nicholson,  John  S.  Wilkms, 
porters;  Samuel  Alexander,  Robert  Craig,  William  Dunlevy,  J.  O'Niel, 
pages;  C.  E.  Street,  postmaster;  Frank  Morse,  P.  0.  page;  W.  J.  Hawkett, 
paper-folder. 

34  John  S.  Hager  was  born  in  Morris  co.,  N.  J.,  in  1818,  and  educated  at 
Princeton  college.  He  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  and  after  mining  for  a  short 
period  commenced  the  practice  of  law  in  S.  F.  In  1852  he  was  elected  to 
the  state  senate,  serving  in  1853-4.  I  have  already  spoken  of  his  high  char- 
acter as  judge  of  the  fourth  dist  court  from  1855  to  1862.  Many  important 
Buits,  including  the  litigation  growing  out  of  the  failure  of  Adams  &  Co. 


COLLAPSE  OF  THE  REFORM  PARTY.  367 

for  the  long  term  fell  upon  Booth,3*  who  resigned  the 
executive  office  to  accept  the  greater  dignitv.  Pa- 
checo  filled  out  the  governor's  term,  ending  in  Decem- 
ber 1875. 

In  the  latter  year  there  were  four  candidates  in  the 
field  for  governor,  namely,  William  Irwin,*"  T.  G. 
Phelps,  John  BidweU,  and  William  E.  Lovett,  repre- 
senting the  democratic,  republican,  independent,  aiid 
tax-payers  parties.  As  the  independents  and  tax- 
payers were  mainly  offshoots  from  the  republican 
party,  the  democrats  carried  the  election  for  governor 
and  lieutenant-governor,  and  two  out  of  four  conoress- 
men.3'  Irwin  received  a  majority  over  Phelps  of 
29,587,  and  over  Bidwell  of  31,647.  Phelps  received 
a  majority  of  1.808  over  BidwelL  J.  A.  Johnson3* 
was  elected  lieutenant-governor  by  a  majority  of 
25.119  over  Pacheco,,  independent;  and  Pacheco 
7,273  over  J.  M.  Cavis,  republican.  Thus  the  reform 
party  collapsed  in  1875  "* 

and  Page,  Bacon  &  Co.  were  disposed  of  in  his  court.  In  1S71  he  was 
appointed  a  regent  of  the  university  of  CaL  He  died  March  19,  1>90. 

-»  Newton  Booth  was  born  in  Salem,  Ind.,  in  1825  and  educated  at  As- 
bnry  university,  after  which  he  studied  law  at  Terre  Haute  was  admitted  to 
the  bar,  and  removed  to  CaL  in  1850,  engaging  at  first  in  mercantile  par- 
suits  at  Sac.  He  returned  to  Ind.  m  1S57,  remaining  in  Terre  Haute  three 
jean,  when  he  once  more  yielded  to  the  attractions  of  the  west  coast,  and 
settled  at  Sac.  a  second  time,  where  he  resided  when  elected  governor.  To 
his  reputation  for  integrity  and  ability  he  added  a  fine  fortune,  and  may  be 
reckoned  «m««ig  California's  most  successful  men. 

xlrwin  was  a  native  of  Ohio,  had  been  a  professor  in  a  college,  and 
edited  the  Yrttn  Umom  previous  to  his  election.  He  was  a  man  of  no  great 
repute,  though  JiaH  been  a  member  of  the  assembly  and  state  senate  several 


K  Page  was  again  elected  by  1.400  maj.  over  Henry  Larkin.  dem.  and  C. 
A.  Tcttle  ind.,  in  the  2d  dist  W.  A.  Piper,  dem..  beat  Rankin  and  J.  F. 
Swift;  Pacheco  beat  D.  P.  Wigginton  dem.  bv  one  vote  in  the  4th  dist;  and 
J.  K.  Lnttrell,  dem.,  beat  C.  B.  Denio  and  C  F.  Reed  in  the  4d  disc  Lut- 
trefl  was  of  Santa  Rosa  and  carried  a  good  deal  of  weight.  He  was  I *orn  in 
Tenn.  in  1833,  coming  to  CaL  in  1S53.  He  educated  himself,  studied  and 
practised  law,  although  a  fanner,  was  elected  to  the  legislature  in  1S63, 
1S65-&.  and  1871-2.  He  was  twice  elected  to  congress. 

*  Johnson  was  born  in  Spartenberg,  &  C.,  in  1*29.  and  was  educated  at 
Jefferson  Medical  college.  Phfla.  He  came  to  CaL  in  1S53.  and  was  elected 
to  tike  assembly  in  1859,  and  again  in  1360.  After  serving  as  lieut  gov.  he 
was  twice  elected  to  congress. 

•The  state  officers  elected  in  1875  were  Thomas  Beck,  sec.  of  state;  J. 
W.  Mandevffle,  controller;  I.  G.  Ertudfflo.  treas.;  Jo.  Hamilton,  auy-gen.; 
William  Minis,  snrv.-gen.;  D.  B.  Woolf,  elk.  sup.  ct 


383      THE  CHINESE,  LABOR  AGITATION,   AND  POLITICS. 

The  agitation  arising  from  those  interests  which 
had  rendered  a  reform  desirable  had  reopened  the 
question  of  a  change  of  constitution, not  only  to  amend 
the  form  of  the  organic  law  in  some  respects,  but  to 
introduce  new  subjects  of  legislation  coining  from  a 
change  m  affairs  arising  from  the  development  ot  the 
state  by  railways,  agriculture,  the  necessity  for  differ- 
ent corporation  laws,  municipal  and  otherwise,  and  a 
judicial  system  which  should  secure  justice  with  less 
cost  and  delay. 

The  legislature  of  1873-4  recommended  to  the  elec- 
tors to  vote  at  the  next  general  election  for  or  against 
a  revision  of  the  constitution  by  convention,  but  the 
political  managers  not  having  thought  proper  to  put 
this  question  upon  their  tickets  at  the  election  of  1875, 
the  legislature  following 40  again  recommended  a  vote 

**The  members  of  the  senate  of  1875  newly  elected  were  James  Beazell, 
Alameda,  E.  J.  Lewis,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  Paul  Shirley,  Contra  Costa  and 
Marin;  John  Montgomery,  Mariposa,  Merced,  and  Stanislaus;  Robert  Mc- 
Garvey,  Mendocino,  Humboldt,  and  Del  Norte;  Creed  Haymond,  Sac.;  J. 
W.  Satter  white,  San  Diego  and  San  Bernardino;  T.  McCarthy,  J.  Craig, 
Edward  Nunan,  M.  J.  Donovan,  W.  M.  Pierson,  Robert  Howe,  Frank  Mc- 
Coppin,  S.  F.;  George  H.  Rogers,  San  Mateo  and  S.  F. ;  George  S.  Evans, 
San  Joaquin;  W.  Z.  Angney,  Sta  Clara;  Thomas  Flint,  Sta  Cruz,  Monterey, 
and  San  Benito;  W.  J.  Tinnin,  Trinity,  Modoc,  and  Siskiyou;  S.  G.  Hillborn, 
Solano;  William  McPherson  Hill,  Sonoma,  Napa,  and  Lake.  B.  F.  Tuttle 
(hold-over)  was  chosen  pres't  pro  tern.;  T.  L.  Shackelford,  sec.;  E.  L.  Craw- 
ford, ass't  sec. ;  Newton  Benedict,  George  B.  Cosby,  William  F.  Howell,  P. 
H.  Ryan,  George  W.  Canaway,  Edward  Gallagher,  clerks;  James  W.  Haw- 
kins, J.  B.  Snyder,  sergts-at-arms;  Hiram  Clock,  James  Watson,  Edward 
Duffy,  porters;  Hymaa  Jacobs,  H.  M.  Edwards,  W.  P.  Dolan,  J.  H.  Parsons, 
pages;  J.  C.  Bernstein,  postmaster;  John  M.  Kilgariff,  paper-folder;  James 
Saulty,  night  watchman. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of  T.  F.  Boggs,  D.  W.  Gelwicks,  M.  W. 
Dixon,  Alameda;  F.  H.  Carter,  Thomas  Dunlap,  Amador;  T.  J.  Jenkins,  E. 
S.  Ruggles,  Butte;  J.  B.  Reddick,  Calaveras;  L.  J.  Hart,  Colusa  and  Te- 
hama; Charles  Wood,  Contra  Costa;  James  E.  Murphy,  Del  Norte  and 
Klamath;  G.  J.  Carpenter,  El  Dorado;  S.  A.  Nott,  El  Dorado  and  Alpine; 
J.  D.  Collins,  Fresno;  Jonathan  Clark,  Humboldt;  M.  Griswold,  Inyo  and 
Mono;  J.  A.  Patterson,  Kern  and  Tulare;  R.  V.  S.  Quigley,  Lake;  J.  R. 
McConnell,  Frederick  Lambourn,  Los  Angeles;  George  M.  Burbank,  Marin; 
J.  W.  Wilcox,  Mariposa  and  Merced;  J.  M.  Covington,  Mendocino;  S.  C. 
Abbott,  Monterey;  George  N.  Cornwall,  Napa;  S.  L.  Blackwell,  Thomas  P. 
Blue,  G.  W.  Giffen,  Nevada;  W.  M.  Crutcher,  Placer;  John  S.  Chapman, 
Plumas  and  Lassen;  Marion  Biggs  jr,  T.  J.  Clunie,  A.  D.  Patterson,  Sac.; 
G.  M.  Roberts,  San  Benito;  Henry  Suverkrup,  San  Bernardino;  J.  M.  Pierce, 
San  Diego;  T.  N.  Barber,  William  Broderick,  R.  M.  darken,  James  V. 
Coffey,  James  G.  Carson,  J.  W.  Harding,  J.  W.  Jourden,  John  Kennedy,  J. 
C.  Murphy,  Thomas  Mclnemy,  William  McMann,  M.  McCarthy,  James  G. 
Maguire,  W.  O'Conuell,  H.  Rankin,  Frederick  Raisch,  D.  C,  Sullivan,  S.  E. 


STATE  DIVISION.  369 

upon  this  subject,  which  was  acted  upon  at  the  elec- 
tion of  1877-8,  as  I  shall  further  show  in  the  next 
chapter,  merely  remarking  here  that  while  the  propo- 
sition of  revising  the  constitution  was  being  canvassed, 
the  subject  of  a  division  of  the  southern  from  the 
northern  portion  of  the  state  was  again  brought  for- 
ward, and  endorsed  by  the  press  of  that  portion  of 
California. 

WetheriH,  George  A.  Young,  S.  F.;  John  Patterson,  N.  C.  Sargeiu,  Martin 
Laminers,  San  Joaqoin;  R.  M.  Preston,  San  Lais  Obispo;  John  Garrettson, 
San  Mateo;  W.  A.  Hayne,  Sta  Barbara  and  Ventura;  Cyras  Jones,  S.  L 
Jamison,  Lawrence  Archer,  Sta  Clara;  N.  Rice,  Sta  Cruz;  John  Kautz, 
Sierra;  G.  F.  Harris,  Siskiyou  and  Modoc;  T.  M.  Swan,  Joseph  McKenna, 
Solano;  Walter  Ferral,  James  Samuels,  E.  C.  Henshaw,  Sonoma;  J.  J. 
Serivner,  Stanislaus;  C.  P.  Berry,  Sutler;  J.  M.  Briceland,  Shasta  and 
Trinity;  T.  C.  Birney,  Tnolumne;  Jason  Watkins,  Ydo;  J.  C.  Bradley,  D. 
A.  Ostrom,  Yuba.  G.  J.  Carpenter  was  chosen  speaker,  and  J.  E.  Murphy 
speaker  pro  tern. ;  Robert  Ferral,  W.  M.  Ord,  C.  W.  O*XeO,  J.  W.  McCarthy, 
j!  A.  Martin,  J.  P.  Rodgers,  T.  a  Morris,  Matt  D.  Carr,  Charles  GUdea, 
clerks;  Dana  Perkins,  T.  O'Connor,  sergts-at-arms;  John  Kofod,  William 
Logg,  John  Hickey,  H.  Whitaker,  porters;  Joseph  O'Xefl,  Bertie  Worthing- 
ton,  Robert  Hood,  Willie  Beveridge,  E.  J.  Bodda,  pages;  S.  Dunlap,  post- 
master; Frank  Morse,  paper-folder;  Richard  Pratt,  J^r1"J"  Of  the  nmntn 
elect  there  were  16  dem.,  3  rep.,  2  ind.  Of  the  assembly,  G2  dem.,  15  rep., 
lind. 

For  eight  years,  beginning  with  Jan.  1868,  when  he  first  took  his  seat  in 
the  state  senate.  Chas  Maclay  was  one  of  its  acknowledged  leaders.  A  na- 
tive of  Concord,  Pa,  and  of  Irish  descent,  at  eighteen  he  began  his  career  in 
the  ministry.  In  1851  he  was  sent  as  a  missionary  to  CaL,  and  appointed 
to  the  Santa  Clara  methodist  circuit.  On  account  of  failing  health  he  re- 
signed his  position,  and  in  1861-2  served  in  the  state  legislature,  and  later 
in  the  state  central  committee.  While  in  the  upper  house  he  was  chairman 
of  several  committees,  and  introduced  a  number  of  important  measures, 
among  them  being  a  btfll  to  encourage  the  early  construction  of  the  South- 
ern Pacific,  and  one  to  establish  the  university  of  California. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  TIL  24 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  NEW   CONSTITUTION. 
1878-1879. 

PROPOSED  CONSTITUTIONAL  CONVENTION — DEFECTS  OF  THE  CONSTITUTION  or 

1849 SOMETHING  DIFFERENT  DESIRED  BY  THE  FREE-AND-EASY  RULING 

FOREIGNERS — LICENSE  VERSUS  LIBERTY — ATTITUDE  OF  KEARNEY  AND  HIS 
WORKINGMEN'S  PARTY — ACTS  OF  THE  CONVENTION — PROVISIONS  OF  THE 
NEW  CONSTITUTION — BILL  OF  RIGHTS— LEGISLATURE — APPROPRIATIONS 

DIVORCES — LOTTERIES — PUBLIC  DEBTS — BRIBERY — EXECUTIVE — J  UDI- 

CIARY — TAXATION — CORPORATIONS — RAILWAYS —  CHINESE  —  EDUCATION 
—LABOR — MUNICIPALITIES — ADOPTION  AND  WORKINGS  OF  THE  NEW 
CONSTITUTION — PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CONVENTION. 

MORE  than  once,  as  in  1857,  1859,  1860,  and  1873, 
the  legislature  had  recommended  to  the  people  to  vote 
upon  the  question  of  a  constitutional  convention,  and 
each  time  the  proposition  had  been  rejected.  But 
the  agitators  had  found  so  much,  amiss,  that  by  the 
help  of  a  popular  newspaper  in  San  Francisco,  and 
the  methods  known  to  politicians,  they  were  able  to 
unsettle  the  minds  of  the  people  regarding  the  organic 
law. 

It  was  discovered  that  all  the  regulations  concern- 
ing taxation,  contained  in  it,  "  did  not  occupy  four 
lines."  Any  legislature  might  impose  any  tax  which 
in  its  judgment,  or  want  of  regard  for  the  tax-payers, 
it  might  decide  to  require  of  the  people,  and  so  in- 
famously had  the  neglect  been  taken  advantage  of, 
that  hundreds  of  capitalists  had  left  the  state  to  in- 
vest their  money  elsewhere.  The  constitution  was 
dumb  on  the  subject  of  finance,  which  the  legislature 
might  regulate  at  pleasure,  borrowing  from  one  fund 
to  squander  in  another,  with  no  check  upon  its  acts. 

(370) 


GLABING  DEFECTS.  371 

With  regard  to  salaries,  no  limit  was  imposed  upon 
the  legislature,  which  might  allow  its  members  and 
officers  any  amount.  No  guard  had  been  established 
against  extravagant  fees,  which  the  laws,  in  conse- 
quence, allowed  for  the  most  ordinary  official  services. 
The  legislature  was  not  restrained  from  disposing  of  the 
entire  public  domain  and  property  of  the  state,  with- 
out obtaining  the  consent  of  the  people;  nor  did  the 
constitution  prohibit  that  body  from  funding  or  from 
otherwise  forcing  the  people  to  pay  illegal  demands 
against  the  state,  or  its  lesser  communities.  It  made 
no  provision  for  separate  senatorial  and  assembly  dis- 
tricts, whereby  the  people  might  be  specifically  rep- 
resented. The  members  elected  at  large  from  the 
more  populous  counties  controlled  the  legislature, 
while  there  was  no  exclusive  responsibility  resting 
upon  them.  The  number  of  assembly-men  was  lim- 
ited to  eighty  and  of  senators  to  forty.  The  assembly 
had  already  its  full  complement,  though  counties  ex- 
isted which  had  no  representation  in  the  house. 
Another  serious  fault  was  the  unrestricted  pardon- 
ing power  of  the  governor,  which  should  never  form 
any  appreciable  link  in  proceedings  in  criminal  pun- 
ishment. To  sum  up  in  one  all  the  counts  against 
the  constitution,  as  experience  revealed  its  defects, 
the  case  was  this:  that  the  whole  political  duty  and 
power  of  the  people  under  it  was  to  vote  into  place 
the  men  who  would  legislate  away  their  substance — 
the  constitution  gave  them  no  remedy. 

The  complainants  asserted  that  the  state  required 
a  constitution  peculiarly  her  own,  suited  to  its  geog- 
raphy, topography,  resources,  commercial  require- 
ments, and  the  character  of  its  population,  and  not  to 
the  wants  of  the  purely  agricultural  states  after  which 
the  constitution  of  1849  was  copied. 

Undoubtedly  there  was  some  truth  in  all  this, 
although  much  exaggerated.  At  the  bottom  of  the 
discontent  was  a  cause  more  pregnant  than  the  incon- 
gruity of  the  constitution  with  the  natural,  coniiner- 


372  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

cial,  and  political  condition  of  the  country.  Along 
with  the  rather  phenomenal  growth  of  the  state, 
there  had  run  a  reactive  tendency,  an  undertow  from 
the  tidal  wave  of  early  affluence  which  had  dizzied 
the  brain  and  bewildered  the  moral  sense  of  those 
who  for  a  time  had  been  borne  upon  its  crest. 
Many  of  those  who  had  esteemed  themselves  favorites 
of  fortune  when  the  tide  was  at  flood,  now  found 
themselves  stranded  on  barren  sands.  They  had  lost 
the  ability  to  return  to  the  monotonous  groove  of 
their  pre-California  lives;  and  having  also  lost  their 
place  in  the  ranks  of  progress  here,  were  falling  out 
by  the  wayside.  Their  youth  was  fled,  their  should- 
ers bent,  their  locks  thin  and  gray ;  they  could  no 
longer  dig,  had  gold  been  as  plenty  as  in  '49 ;  but  they 
still  had  the  restless,  aspiring,  projective  spirit,  and 
were  unwilling  to  go  down  to  oblivion.  These  men 
believed,  or  affected  to  believe,  in  the  efficacy  of  a 
new  constitution  to  cure  the  ills  from  which  they 
suffered. 

Another  numerous  class  was  made  up  of  later  ar- 
rivals of  foreign  birth,  who  were  disappointed  at  not 
finding  either  a  fortune  or  political  preferment  for  the 
asking.  To  these  were  added  the  labor  unions,  and  a 
large  proportion  of  the  agricultural  class,  who  looked 
to  a  new  constitution  to  lighten  taxation  and  modify 
the  mortgage  laws.  The  judicial  system  was  still 
unsatisfactory,  and  the  courts  overcrowded  with  busi- 
ness. Lastly,  the  hard  times  following  the  collapse 
of  mining  stocks  from  a  value  in  1875  of  $300^000,000 
to  $30,000,000  in  1887,  prepared  the  public  mind  to 
accept  any  change  which  promised  the  recovery  of 
the  state  from  the  depression  into  which  business  had 
been  thrown. 

The  opportunity  for  the  workingmen  and  their 
chiefs  was  too  good  to  be  lost.  It  was  pointed  out 
by  their  leading  journal  that  the  mines  and  farms  of 
the  state  together  had  yielded  in  five  years  $750,000,- 
000.  But  the  wealth  of  the  country  was  in  the  hands 


ITS  TRUE  SIGNIFICANCE,  373 

of  about  150,000  persons,  a  dozen  of  whom  were  mil- 
lionaires several  times  over,  while  700,000  other  indi- 
viduals were  struggling  for  existence,  Out  of  850,000 
population,  less  than  one  quarter  lived  upon  farms, 
and  not  over  one  half  were  supported  by  productive 
industries.  Much  of  the  earnings  of  that  half  had 
gone  to  build  up  the  colossal  fortunes  of  the  few,  and 
when  an  attempt  was  made  to  legislate  against  stock- 
gambling  they  opposed  the  reform  with  the  might  of 
their  capital.1  The  whole  amount  of  monev  in  the 
state  in  1878  was  $25,000,000.  The  value  of  credits 
amounted  to  $200,000,000,  of  which  $133,277,640  was 
banking  capital.  The  real  and  personal  property  of 
the  state,  less  the  money,  was  $580,000,000.  Aver- 
aging the  riches  of  the  state  by  the  number  of  inhab- 
itants, there  was  still  a  larger  amount  of  property 
value  to  the  individual  than  in  many  of  the  older 
commonwealths.  But  its  unequal  distribution,  art- 
fully dwelt  upon  by  the  agitators,  was  the  source 
of  the  discontent  and  turbulence  described  in  the 
foregoing  chapter,  the  result  of  all  of  which  was  to 
create  a  majority  vote  in  favor  of  a  constitutional  con- 
vention in  1878,  and  to  revolutionize  the  state  govern- 
ment, a  consummation  certainly  not  looked  for  by  the 
legislatures  of  1873—4  and  1875-6*  when  they  recom- 
mended a  convention.  An  appropriation  of  §150,000 
had  been  made  by  the  legislature  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses of  a  convention,  and  a  special  election  for  dele- 
gates, as  well  as  for  the  adoption  or  rejection  of  the 
new  instrument  was  ordered. 

Finding  the  issue  not  to  be  avoided,  an  attempt 

was  made,  in  April  1878,  to  fuse  the  best  elements  of 

the  democratic,  republican,  and  workingmen's  parties 

I     into  a  non-partisan  organization,*  which  at  first  was 

1  By  advancing  large  sums  of  money  to  stock-brokers  in  return  for  their 
political  influence,  though  of  course  charging  them  good  interest  on  the 
amount. 

»Cfci  Stat,  1873-1,  p.  732,  and  1877-S,  75»-65;  _Vo*  Jfcss.,  1S77-S,  pp. 
33-5. 

-.*  the  30  non-partisan  candidates  19  were  American  born,  10  Irish,  and 


374  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

not  successful;  but  in  May  a  fusion  was  effected  be- 
tween a  majority  of  republicans  and  democrats.  Nev- 
ertheless there  were  many  who  preferred  adhering  to 
their  own  organizations,  and  finally,  the  workingmen 
refusing,  there  were  three  parties  in  the  field  with 
their  delegates,  besides  the  three  tickets  of  the  differ- 
ent labor  organizations,  namely,  the  Kearneyites,  or 
workingmen's  party  of  California,  the  national  labor 
party,  and  the  anti- workingmen.  Before  election, 
however,  two  of  the  tickets  were  withdrawn,  the 
nationals  fusing  with  the  non-partisans.  Even  the 
offer  of  a  delegateship  to  Kearney,  Wellock,  and  one 
other,  was  not  a  bribe  sufficient  to  catch  the  working- 
men,  and  to  prevent  desertion  through  these  influences, 
the  rule  was  adopted  that  no  member  of  their  repre- 
sentative assembly  should  accept  a  nomination  as 
delegate. 

The  convention  of  152  delegates  was  to  meet-  on 
the  28th  of  September,  and  the  election  was  held  in 
June.  The  workingmen  carried  the  city  and  county 
of  San  Francisco,  with  50  delegates;  the  non-partisans 
the  state,  with  85  delegates;  the  republicans  had  nine 
and  the  democrats  eight  in  the  convention.4 

Under  the  circumstances,  one  might  have  looked 
for  the  expression  of  European  socialistic  ideas  in 
this  assemblage,  but  there  cropped  up  in  discussion 
the  less  advanced  American  one  of  state  rights  instead,5 

3  Germans;  19  had  been  on  the  register  ever  since  the  passage  of  the  registry 
law  in  18G8.  On  the  Kearney  ticket,  19  were  foreign  born;  15  out  of  30 
non-taxpayers;  and  only  4  had  been  on  the  register  since  1868. 

*8.  F.  Altn,  June  26,  27,  1879;  S.  F.  Chronicle,  June,  27,  1879. 

6  In  the  debate  on  adoption  of  the  3d  section  of  the  declaration  of  rights, 
the  majority  refused  the  usual  language  '  the  constitution  of  the  United 
States  is  the  charter  of  our  liberties,'  and  adopted  'the  state  of  California 
is  an  inseparable  part  of  the  American  union,  and  the  constitution  of  the 
United  States  is  the  supreme  law  of  the  land.'  Said  the  Sac.  Record  Union, 
of  June  29,  1879,  '  the  ignorant  communistic,  alien  section,  fraternized  with 
the  unconstructed  rebel  section,  and  Americans  who  love  their  country  were 
compelled  to  submit  to  the  bitter  humiliation  of  hearing  its  fundamental 
law  repudiated,  alike  by  foreign  demagogues  unable  to  speak  the  English 
language  correctly,  and  by  apostate  Americans  whose  only  claim  to  notoriety 
is  that  in  their  country's  hour  of  danger  they  were  on  the  side  of  her  ene- 
mies, and  aided  and  abetted  the  plot  for  her  destruction.'  The  phrase 
'  charter  of  our  liberties '  was  rejected  by  Volney  E.  Howard,  elected  on,  the 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  CONVENTION.  375 

for  the  reason,  perhaps,  that  the  advocates  of  socialism 
were  more  skilled  in  throwing  cobble-stones  than  "de- 
fining principles.  There  may  be  crises  in  the  world's 
affairs  when  the  art  of  hurling  paving- stones  is  not  to 
be  despised.  So  now,  the  doltish  determination  of  the 
workingrnen  was  not  without  value  in  giving  direction 
to  the  ideas  of  constitution-makers.  As  for  a  parlia- 
mentarian to  govern  the  proceedings,  an  accomplished 
presiding  officer  was  found  in  Joseph  P.  Hoge.6 

The  convention  sat  156  working  days,  and  pro- 
duced an  instrument  which  its  critics  objected  to  as  a 
code.  Such  in  truth  it  was  meant  to  be,  a  code  which 
could  not  be  altered  at  every  session  of  the  legisla- 
ture, formed  to  secure  labor  against  the  tyranny  of 
capital.  While  native  American  political  philoso- 

democratic  ticket.  He  was  born  in  Maine  in  1809,  bred  to  the  profession  of 
the  law,  and  went  to  Miss,  where  he  became  southernized,  was  elected  to 
the  constit.  conv.  and  sent  to  congress;  and  lastly  he  came  to  CaL  in  1853 
where  he  aspired  to  the  U.  S.  senate,  was  one  of  those  who  rejected  '  the 
charter  of  onr  liberties.'  S.  F.  Post,  April  14,  1879.  Another  delegate  who 
rejected  this  phrase  was  P.  B.  Tully,  born  in  Tenn.  in  1830,  and  bred  a 
farmer,  his  father  removing  with  him  to  Arkansas  during  his  boyhood. 
Afteward  he  went  to  Texas,  and  came  from  there  to  CaL  in  1853.  He  set- 
tled in  Mariposa,  but  removed  to  Gilroy  where  he  studied  law,  and  where 
he  married  Miss  Mary  Martin,  whose  father  immigrated  to  CaL  in  1S43 
from  Mo.  In  1863,  being  admitted  to  practice,  he  established  himself  in 
Saata  Clara  co.,  where  he  became  noted  in  his  profession.  He  was  elected 
on  the  non-partisan  ticket.  Still  another  was  Patrick  T.  Bowling,  born  in 
Tuam,  County  Galway,  Ireland,  in  1849.  He  migrated  to  the  U.  S.  in  1865 
and  to  Cal.  in  1866,  where  he  had  acquired  considerable  property.  He  was 
elected  on  the  workingmen's  ticket,  and  was  intelligent  enough  to  lead  his 
party  vote  which  prevailed,  and  the  language  used  in  the  section  named  was 
'the  supreme  law  of  the  land.'  Law  being  statutory,  unless  in  the  form  of 
a  charter,  it  was  of  course  subject  to  alteration  by  legislation. 

6  Joseph  P.  Hoge  was  born  in  Pa  in  1813,  educated  in  Ohio,  and  practised 
law  in  Galena  circuit,  111.,  being  three  times  elected  to  congress  from  his 
district.  He  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  and  resided  in  S.  F.  He  was  elected 
president  of  the  convention  by  a  vote  of  74  against  73  for  his  opponent,  W.  J. 
Tumiii  of  Trinity.  W.  J.  Tinnin  was  born  in  Miss,  in  1829,  came  to  Cal. 
by  sei  in  1849,  mined  in  several  counties,  and  finally  settled  as  a  merchant 
at  Weaverville,  Trinity  co.,  where  he  was  prosperous,  and  from  which  he  was 
elected  to  the  assembly  in  1871  and  1873,  and  to  the  senate  in  1875  to  till  an 
nnexpired  term.  He  was  a  democrat,  elected  on  the  non-partisan  ticket. 
V.  E.  Howard  and  Henry  Larkin  were  also  proposed  for  the  office  of  presi- 
dent of  the  convention.  Larkin  was  a  native  of  Madison  co.,  N.  Y.,  born 
in  1826.  He  came  to  Cal.  in  1847,  and  was  deputy  sheriff  of  El  Dorado  co. 
from  1852  to  1855,  when  he  was  appointed  census  marshal.  In  1869  he  was 
elected  to  the  stated  senate,  and  in  1875  was  a  candidate  for  congress.  By 
occupation  he  was  a  farmer.  He  was  elected  delegate  to  the  convention  on 
the  workingmen'a  ticket,  but  belonged  to  the  democratic  party. 


376  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

phers  were  discussing  the  propriety  of  a  property 
qualification  for  voters,  by  means  of  which  an  impe- 
cunious and  purchasable  rabble  could  not  at  their 
pleasure  vote  money  out  of  the  pockets  of  the  prudent 
and  thrifty,  the  cobble-stone  throwers  entered  in 
their  bill  of  rights  :  "  No  property  qualification  shall 
ever  be  required  for  any  person  to  vote  or  hold  office." 
It  summed  up  with  the  declaration  that,  "  The  pro- 
visions of  this  constitution  are  mandatory  and  pro- 
hibitory, unless  by  express  words  they  are  declared  to 
be  otherwise." 

The  legislative  department  of  the  government  was 
subjected  to  many  restrictions  in  the  matter  of  time,1 
pay,  place,8  rules  of  the  legislative  body,  and  other 
matters.  The  governor  might  veto  a  bill,  but  a  two- 
thirds  vote  of  each  house  should  pass  a  bill  over  the 
governor's  veto.  The  assembly  alone  should  have 
the  power  to  impeach,  but  all  impeachments  should 
be  tried  before  the  senate.  The  governor  and  all  the 
state  officers,  with  the  judges  of  the  superior,  and 
justices  of  the  supreme  courts,  being  liable  to  im- 
peachment, judgment  in  such  cases  extended  only  to 
removal  from  office  and  subsequent  disqualification  for 
office ;  but  the  person  so  tried  and  punished  was  lia- 
ble to  the  ordinary  process  of  law.  Embezzlement  by 
one  in  the  service  of  the  United  States  should  render 
the  guilty  person  ineligible  to  any  office  in  the  state, 
and  the  legislature  must  pass  laws  for  the  punishment 
of  this  crime  as  a  felony.  Appropriations  of  money 
from  the  state  treasury,  or  grants  of  property,  for  the 
use  of  corporations  or  institutions  not  under  the  ex 
elusive  control  of  the  state,  were  forbidden ;  except 
that  aid  might  be  granted  to  orphanages,'  or  homes 

7  Sessions  were  made  to  commence  the  first  Monday  after  the  first  day  of 
January,  to  avoid  the  holiday  week,  during  which  legislative  business  was 
neglected. 

8  No  more  changing  of  the  capital  during  sessions. 

•Most  of  the  orphanages,  especially  those  demanding  state  aid,  are  insti- 
tutions under  the  charge  of  the  catholic  church,  and  most  of  the  indigent 
requiring  public  aid  are  of  foreign  birth,  and  usually  of  the  catholic  faith; 
therefore  this  section  must  be  set  down  to  the  Kearney  workinginen  under 


POWERS  AND  PROVISIONS.  377 

fcr  the  indigent,  by  a  uniform  rule  proportioned  to 
the  number  of  inmates.  Special  legislation  was  for- 
bidden in  a  large  number  of  cases,  including  any  af- 
fecting the  action  of  courts  of  justice,  the  collection  of 
taxes,  granting  divorces,  changing  the  names  of  per- 
sons or  places,  declaring  a  minor  of  age,  or  enabling 
him  to  encumber  his  property,  chartering  ferries, 
roads,  or  bridges,  etc.  Lotteries  should  be  prohib- 
ited ;  laws  should  be  passed  to  regulate  or  prohibit 
the  buying  or  selling  of  shares  of  the  capital  stock  of 
corporations  in  any  stock  board,  exchange,  or  market 
under  the  control  of  any  association ;  and  all  sales  of 
stock  on  a  margin,  or  to  be  delivered  at  some  future 
day,  should  be  void.  Neither  the  legislature,  nor  any 
municipal  corporation,  county,  or  school  district, 
should  ever  make  an  appropriation  from  any  public 
fund,  or  grant  anything  to  or  in  aid  of  any  religious 
sect,  or  help  to  support  any  school,  or  college,  or  hos- 
pital controlled  by  any  religious  creed,  church  or  sec- 
tarian denomination,  but  as  before  excepted  in  aid  of 
orphanages  and  homes  for  the  indigent.  The  legisla- 
ture should  have  no  power  to  lend  or  authorize  the 
giving  or  lending  of  the  credit  of  the  state,  in  aid  of 
persons,  associations  or  corporations,  municipal  or 
otherwise ;  nor  to  make  gifts  of  any  public  money  or 
thing  of  value  to  individuals  or  corporations ;  nor  to 
authorize  the  state  or  any  sub-division  thereof  to  sub- 
scribe for  stock,  or  to  become  a  stockholder  in  any 
corporation  whatever.  The  legislature  should  enact 
laws  limiting  the  charges  of  telegraph  and  gas  com- 
panies, and  the  charges  for  storage  and  wharfage. 
Any  person  attempting  to  influence  the  legislature 
by  bribery,  intimidation,  or  other  dishonorable  means, 
should  be  guilty  of  lobbying,  which  was  declared  to 
be  a  felony,  for  which  the  legislature  should  provide 
a  punishment;  and  any  member  accepting  a  bribe 

the  guidance  of  the  Romish  church.  While  the  protestants  were  barred 
under  ihis  section,  the  way  to  the  public  treasury  was  left  open  to  the  cath- 


378  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

should  be  guilty  of  a  felony,  and  in  addition  to  his 
punishment  be  disfranchised,  and  disqualified  from 
holding  any  office  or  public  trust. 

The  changes  in  the  executive  department  were 
slight.  The  governor  might  convene  the  legislature 
on  extraordinary  occasions ;  but  it  should  have  no 
power  to  legislate  upon  any  subject  other  than  that 
specified  in  the  proclamation  of  the  executive.  The 
power  to  appoint  a  secretary  of  state  was  taken  away 
from  the  governor,  and  the  office  made  elective  by  the 
people.  The  legislature  might  abolish  the  surveyor- 
general's  office.  Pardons,  reprieves,  and  commuta- 
tions of  sentence  might  be  granted  by  the  governor, 
subject  to  certain  restrictions  to  be  provided  by  law; 
but  a  person  twice  convicted  of  a  felony  could  not  be 
pardoned  except  upon  the  written  recommendation  of 
a  majority  of  the  judges  of  the  supreme  court.  The 
governor  should  not,  during  his  incumbency,  be  elected 
a  senator  of  the  United  States. 

In  the  judiciary  department  there  were  more  im- 
portant changes.  In  the  first  place,  in  the  declaration 
of  rights  a  blow  was  administered  to  the  jury  system. 
The  right  of  trial  by  jury  was  secured,  but  in  civil 
actions  three-fourths  of  a  jury  might  render  a  ver- 
dict. Trial  by  jury  might  be  waived  in  criminal  cases 
not  amounting  to  felony,  both  parties  consenting  in 
open  court ;  or  in  civil  cases,  the  parties  consenting  in 
a  manner  to  be  prescribed  by  law.  In  civil  cases  the 
jury  might  consist  of  any  number  less  than  twelve, 
on  which  the  litigants  should  agree.  Offences  hereto- 
fore requiring  to  be  prosecuted  by  indictment  might 
be  prosecuted  by  information  and  commitment  by  a 
magistrate,  or  by  indictment.  A  grand  jury  should 
be  summoned  but  once  a  year  in  each  county.  The 
freedom  of  the  press  was  to  be  maintained  without 
any  fear  of  its  influence  on  a  jury.  The  judicial 
power  of  the  state  was  vested  in  the  senate  sitting  as 
a  court  of  impeachment,  in  a  supreme  court,  superior 
courts,  justices  of  the  peace,  and  such  inferior  courts 


JUDICIARY.  379 

-.     • 

as  the  legislature  should  establish  in  incorporated 
cities  or  towns,  or  city  and  county.  The  supreme 
court  should  consist  of  a  chief  justice  and  six  associ- 
ate justices.  The  court  might  sit  in  departments  or 
in  bank,  and  should  be  always  open  for  the  transac- 
tion of  business.  It  should  be  divided  into  two  de- 
partments, numbered  one  and  two,  tLe  chief  justice 
assigning  three  judges  to  each  and  changing  them 
from  time  to  time ;  but  they  might  interchange  with 
each  other  by  agreement.  Each  department  should 
have  power  to  hear  and  determine  causes  or  questions 
arising  therein,  subject  to  provisions  made  in  relation 
to  court  in  bank.  The  presence  of  three  justices  was 
necessary  to  the  transaction  of  any  business  in  either 
department,  except  such  as  might  be  done  at  cham- 
bers, and  the  concurrence  of  three  justices  was  neces- 
sary to  pronounce  a  judgment,  one  of  them  sitting  as 
presiding  judge.  The  chief  justice  should  apportion 
the  business  to  the  departments,  and  might  order  any 
cause  to  be  heard  and  decided  by  the  court  in  bank, 
and  the  order  might  be  made  before  or  after  judgment 
pronounced  by  a  department;  but  the  order  must  be 
made  within  thirty  days  after  such  judgment  be  con- 
curred in  by  two  associate  justices,  and  should  have 
the  effect  to  set  aside  the  judgment.  Any  four  justices 
might  order  a  case  to  be  heard  in  bank  before  or  after 
judgment  by  a  department ;  but  the  order  must  be 
made  within  the  prescribed  time,  after  which  a  judg- 
ment became  final,  and  could  not  become  final  in  less 
time  unless  approved  by  the  chief  justice  in  writing, 
with  the  concurrence  of  two  associate  justices.  The 
chief  justice  might  convene  the  court  in  bank  at  any 
time,  and  must  preside  over  it.  The  concurrence  of 
four  justices  present  at  the  argument  was  necessary 
to  pronounce  a  judgment ;  but  if  they  could  not  agree, 
then  all  the  justices  should  hear  the  argument,  and  at 
least  four  should  acree  to  a  decision.  All  decisions 

<3  ^     ^  __ 

of  the  supreme  court  should  be  rendered  in  writing, 

*The  sup.  ct  rendered  many  decisions  without  giving  any  reason,  written 


380  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

and  the  grounds  of  the  decision  stated.  In  the  event 
of  the  illness  or  absence  of  the  chief  justice  the  asso- 
ciate justices  might  choose  one  of  their  own  number 
to  exercise  the  powers  of  chief  during  such  period. 

The  chief  and  associate  justices  should  be  elected 
at  the  general  state  elections,  and  should  hold  office 
twelve  years;  but  the  six  associate  justices  should  at 
their  first  meeting  so  classify  themselves  by  lot  that 
two  of  them  should  go  out  of  office  at  the  end  of  four, 
two  at  the  end  of  eight,  and  two  at  the  end  of  twelve 
years.  Should  a  vacancy  occur,  the  governor  should 
appoint  a  person  to  the  office  until  it  was  filled  by 
election,  and  the  judge  then  elected  should  hold  for 
the  remainder  of  the  unexpired  term.  The  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  supreme  court  was  not  made  to  differ  es- 
sentially from  the  same  under  the  old  constitution; 
but  each  of  the  justices  should  have  power  to  issue 
writs  of  habeas  corpus  to  any  part  of  the  state  upon 
petition  by  or  on  behalf  of  any  person  held  in  actual 
custody,  and  could  make  such  writs  returnable  before 
himself,  or  the  supreme  court,  or  any  superior  judge 
or  court  in  the  state. 

The  superior  courts  took  the  place  of  county  and 
district  courts,  and  held  original  jurisdiction  in  all 
cases  civil  and  criminal  not  assigned  to  inferior  courts, 
and  possessed  the  power  of  naturalization  and  appel- 
late jurisdiction  in  cases  arising  in  justices'  and  other 
inferior  courts  in  their  respective  counties.  These 
courts,  like  the  supreme  court,  should  be  always  open 
for  business,  legal  holidays  and  non-judicial  days  ex- 
cepted,  and  their  process  should  extend  to  all  parts  of 
the  state;  but  cases  affecting  real  estate  should  be 
begun  in  the  counties  in  which  such  land  was  situ- 
ated. They  should  also  have  power  to  issue  writs  of 
every  kind,  including  habeas  corpus,  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  supreme  court,  and  might  issue  and 

or  verbal.  The  legislature,  to  remedy  this,  enacted  that  the  ct  should  give 
a  written  reason— sec.  657,  Practice  act— for  all  its  decisions,  but  the  ct  de- 
cided the  law  unconstitutional.  Heuaton  vs  Williams,  13  CaL,  p.  24. 


SUPERIOR  JUDGES.  381 

serve  injunctions  and  prohibitions  on  legal  holidays 
and  non-judicial  days. 

One  of  these  courts  should  be  organized  in  each  of 
the  organized  counties,  or  cities  and  counties,  of  the 
state,  for  each  of  which  at  least  one  judge  should  be 
elected  at  the  general  state  election ;  but  in  the  city 
and  county  of  San  Francisco  twelve  superior  judges 
should  be  elected,  any  one  or  more  of  whom  might 
hold  court.  There  might  be  as  many  sessions,  at  the 
same  time,  as  there  were  judges,  and  a  presiding 
judge  might  be  chosen  or  removed  by  the  remaining 
eleven  at  their  pleasure,  but  he  must  distribute  the 
business  of  the  court  among  the  judges,  and  prescribe 
its  order.  The  judgments,  orders,  and  proceedings  of 
any  session  of  the  superior  court,  held  by  any  one  or 
more  of  the  judges,  should  be  as  effectual  as  if  all  had 
been  present.  Several  of  the  more  important  coun- 
ties had  two  superior  judges,  while  Yuba  and  Sutter 
had  but  one  between  them.  The  term  of  office  of 
the  superior  judges  was  fixed  at  six  years,  except  in 
the  case  of  San  Francisco,  whose  judges  must  classify 
themselves  so  that  four  should  go  out  of  office  at  the 
end  of  two  years,  four  in  four  years,  and  four  in  six 
years.  Vacancies  should  be  filled  as  hi  the  case  of 
supreme  judges.  Whenever  there  was  more  than 
one  judge  of  the  superior  court  in  a  county,  other 
than  San  Francisco,  they  might  hold  as  many  ses- 
sions as  there  were  judges,  and  apportion  the  business 
among  themselves ;  and  a  judge  of  one  county  might, 
by  request,  hold  court  in  another,  or  the  governor 
might  direct  him  to  do  so.  A  cause  might  also  be 
tried  in  a  superior  court  by  a  judge  pro  tempore,  who 
must  have  been  a  member  of  the  bar,  and  agreed 
upon  by  the  litigants  or  their  attorneys,  and  sworn  to 
try  the  cause. 

The  legislature  was  denied  the  power  to  grant 
leave  of  absence  to  any  judicial  officer,  and  should  he 
absent  himself  for  more  than  sixty  consecutive  days 
he  would  be  deemed  to  have  forfeited  his  office ;  but 


382  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION". 

the  legislature  might  increase  or  dimmish  the  number 
of  judges  in  a  county,  or  city  and  county,  provided 
no  judge  already  in  office  was  dislodged.  The  man- 
ner prescribed  of  removing  justices  of  the  supreme 
and  judges  of  the  superior  courts  was  by  concurrent 
resolution  of  both  houses  of  the  legislature;11  but  the 
senate  might  remove  all  other  judicial  officers,  except 
justices  of  the  peace,  on  the  recommendation  of  the 
governor,  the  ayes  and  noes  being  entered  on  the 
journal.  The  number  of  justices  of  the  peace,  their 
powers  and  duties,  were  left  to  be  fixed  by  the  legis- 
lature, except  the  limiting  their  jurisdiction  to  cases 
involvii  g  amounts  under  $300. 

As  to  salaries,  the  state  should  pay  the  judges  of 
the  supreme  court  and  half  the  salaries  of  the  judges 
of  the  superior  courts,  the  remainder  being  paid  by 
the  counties  for  which  they  were  elected.  During 
the  first  term  under  the  new  constitution  the  supreme 
court  justices  should  receive  $6,000  each  per  annum. 
The  superior  court  judges  should  receive  $3,000  per 
annum,  except  in  San  Francisco  and  some  of  the  more 
populous  counties,  where  the  salary  was  $4,000,  but 
the  legislature  might  change  these  amounts.  Salaries 
were  made  payable  monthly,  and  no  judge  of  the  su- 
preme or  superior  courts  should  be  allowed  to  draw 
his  pay,  unless  he  should  subscribe  an  affidavit  before 
an  officer  entitled  to  administer  oaths,  that  no  cause 
in  his  court  remained  undecided  which  had  been  sub- 
mitted for  decision  for  a  period  of  ninety  days.  No 
person  was  eligible  to  the  office  of  justice  of  the  su- 
preme or  of  the  superior  court  who  had  not  first  been 
adnfitted  to  practice  before  the  supreme  court  of  the 
state. 

Thus  the  convention  labored  to  cure  the  evils  which 
California  had  suffered  through  its  various  courts ;  to 
secure  continuous  sessions,  speedy  trial,  and  early  de- 

11  This  was  a  weak  point  in  the  judiciary  article,  as  a  legislature  could 
remove  the  entire  bench,  and  substitute  creatures  of  its  own.  S.  F.  Call 
May  2,  1879. 


TAXATION.  383 

cisions,  with  the  reasons  therefor.  In  point  of  expen- 
diture it  was  a  more  costly  system  than  the  old  one, 
but  it  was  argued  that  penuriousness  in  this  depart- 
ment of  the  government  was  not  true  economy. 

The  subjects  of  taxation  and  corporations  received 
much  attention,  and  elicited  much  criticism.  The 
article  on  taxation,  as  adopted,  declared  that  all  prop- 
erty should  be  taxed  according  to  its  value,  to  be  as- 
certained as  provided  by  law,  and  property  was  declared 
to  include  "moneys,  credits,  bonds,  stocks,11  dues, 
franchises,  and  all  other  matters  and  things,  real,  per- 
sonal, and  mixed,  capable  of  private  ownership ; "  but 
growing  crops,"  public  school  property,  United  States 
and  state  property,  or  property  belonging  to  any  mu- 
nicipal corporation  in  the  state,  should  be  exempt. 
Land  and  the  improvements  thereon  should  be  assessd 
separately.  Land,  cultivated  or  uncultivated,  if  simi- 
larly situated  and  of  the  same  quality,  should  be  as- 
sessed at  the  same  value ; "  and  every  tract  of  over 
640  acres  which  had  been  sectionized  by  the  federal 
surveyors  should  be  assessed,  for  purposes  of  taxation, 

"The  legislature  of  1881  added  a  section  to  the  political  code  declaring 
that  shares  of  stock  possessed  no  intrinsic  value  over  and  above  the  actual 
value  of  the  property  of  the  corporation  which  was  assessable  and  assessed. 

u  To  assess  growing  crops,  it  was  argued,  would  be  to  discourage  planting 
and  sowing. 

14  This  section  was  aimed  at  railroad  companies,  and  other  large  land- 
holders, who  paid  but  a  small  amount  of  taxes  on  uncultivated  land.  The 
report  of  the  surveyor-general  for  1877  gave  the  whole  area  of  California  at 
100,500,000  acres,  of  which  50,000,000  acres  were  fit  for  cultivation.  Bat  in 
1876  only  6,319,864  acres  were  enclosed,  and  3,576,366  in  cultivation;  in 
1879  there  were  8,000,000  acres  enclosed,  and  5,000,000  cultivated.  In  1876 
there  were  24,058,349  acres  assessed  for  taxes;  in  1877,  24,706,162  acres 
assessed,  being  an  increase  in  one  year  of  2£  per  cent.  An  equal  rate  of 
increase  would  have  given  in  1S79  25,858,940  assessed  for  taxes — that  is  to 
say,  5,003,000  acres  in  cultivation,  and  20,858,940  uncultivated,  belonging 
and  assessed  to  large  land-owners.  The  owners  of  the  5,000,000  acres  were 
probably  taxed  8  or  10  times  as  much  as  the  owners  of  the  21,000,000.  The 
average  assessment  value  of  lands  held  in  tracts  ranging  from  5,000  to 
125,000  acres  was  not  much,  if  any,  above  $1.80,  while  their  market  value 
averaged  not  less  than  $15.  In  1877  the  real  estate  outside  of  San  Francisco 
was  assessed  at  $203.803.446,  of  which  $41,000,000  was  on  town  lots,  the  re- 
maining -*1 62, 803, 446  being  on  lands.  Of  this,  the  small  farmers  paid  at 
least  $125.090.000,  while  the  remaining  $37,803,446  was  paid  by  the  large 
owners,  who  produced  little,  and  held  the  land  for  speculation,  or  leased  a 
part  to  cultivators  at  three  times  as  much  per  year  as  it  was  valued  for 
taxes,  and  who,  it  was  alleged,  built  few  roads,  towns,  school -houses,  or 
churches. 


384  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

by  sections  or  fractions  of  sections,  and  the  legislature 
should  provide  by  law  for  assessing  in  small  tracts  un- 
sectionized  lands.15 

Mortgages,  deeds  of  trust,  contracts,  and  all  obli- 
gations whatever  by  which  debts  were  secured,  were 
treated  as  an  interest  in  the  property,  and  taxed  ac- 
cordingly; but  the  owner  of  the  property  mortgaged 
should  be  taxed  its  full  value,  less  the  mortgage,16  in 
the  city  or  county  in  which  the  property  was  situated. 
In  the  case  of  railroad  property,  the  franchise,  road- 
way, road-bed,  rails,  and  rolling  stock  should  be  as- 
sessed by  the  state  board  of  equalization,  and  the  tax 
apportioned  to  the  counties,  cities,  towns,  townships, 
and  districts  through  which  the  road  passed.  The 
state  board  of  equalization  should  consist  of  one  mem- 
ber from  each  congressional  district,  elected  at  the 
general  elections  for  a  term  of  four  years,  the  state 
controller  being  ex  officio  a  member  of  the  board.  The 
supervisors  of  the  several  counties  should  constitute 
county  boards  of  equalization;  and  these  boards,  state 
and  county,  were  empowered  to  increase  or  reduce 
the  entire  assessment  roll,  or  any  part  of  it,  to  make  it 
conform  to  the  money  value  of  the  property  taxed. 
Incomes  might  be  assessed  to  and  collected  from  indi- 
viduals, corporations,  joint-stock  associations,  or  com- 
panies resident,  or  doing  business  in  the  state,  in  a 

15  It  was  objected  to  this  provision  that  it  would  cost  $1,000,000  to  estab- 
lish the  surveys  so  as  to  render  the  assessment  in  small  tracts  practicable. 

16  The  sup.  court  had  decided  in  some  cases  in  favor  of  taxing  mortgages 
under  the  existing  constitution  and  code  of  California.    People  v.  McCrury, 

34  Cal.  Repts,  432;  and  People  v.  Eddy,  43  Cal.  Repts,  331;  People  v.  Gerke, 

35  Cal.  Repts,  677;  People  v.  Black  Diamond  C.  M.  Co.,  37  Cal.  Repts,  54; 
People  v.  Whartenby,  38  Cal.,  461.     These  decisions  were  rendered  previous 
to  1872.     In  1876  the  Hibernia  bank  appealed  from  a  similar  decision  by  the 
3d  district  court  of  S.  F.,  when  McKinstry,  judge,  reversed  the  decision, 
giving  as  his  reason  that  credits  were  not  property  in  the  sense  in  which  tha 
word  property  was  used  in  article  XI.  of  the  existing  constitution,  Wallace 
and  Crockett  concurring,  and  Rhodes  objecting,  all  of  whom  had  previously 
decided  that  credits  were  property.     The  Hibernia  bank  held  mortgages  to 
the  amount  of  $11,366,934.50,  the  tax  levied  on  these  credits  amounting  to 
$77,460.48.     The  persons  owning  the  real  estate  had  already  paid  taxes  upon 
the  actual  property  without  deducting  the  value  of  the  mortgages,  and  the 
judge  held  that  it  would  be  double  taxation  to  assess  the  evidences  of  these 
debts  of  the  owners.      It  was  natural  that,  under  the  circumstances,  the 


CORPORATIONS  AND  BANKS.  385 

manner  to  be  prescribed  by  law.17  An  annual  poll- 
tax  of  not  less  than  two  dollars  should  be  collected 
from  every  male  inhabitant  of  sound  mind,  except 
Indians,  between  the  ages  of  twenty-one  and  sixty 
years,  which  tax  should  be  paid  into  the  state  school 
fund.  The  legislature  might  provide  for  the  payment 
of  taxes  upon  real  estate  by  installments.  The  power 
of  taxation  should  never  be  surrendered  or  suspended 
by  any  grant  or  contract  to  which  the  state  should  be 
a  party. 

Corporations  could  be  formed  only  under  general 
laws,  and  not  by  special  act.  Each  stockholder  should 
be  individually  liable  for  such  proportion  of  all  debts 
and  liabilities,  incurred  while  he  was  a  stockholder, 
as  the  amount  owned  by  him  bore  to  the  whole  of 
the  capital  stock.  The  directors  or  trustees  were 
made  jointly  and  severally  liable  to  the  creditors 
and  stockholders  for  all  money  embezzled  or  misap- 
propriated by  officers  of  a  corporation  or  joint- stock 
association  during  their  term  of  office;  and  the  term 
corporation  included  all  associations  having  any  of  the 
powers  and  privileges  of  corporations  not  possessed  by 
individuals  or  partnerships;  and  they  had  the  right 
to  sue  and  be  sued  in  like  cases  as  natural  persons. 

The  legislature  could  not  grant  a  charter  for  bank- 
ing purposes,  but  companies  might  be  formed  for 
banking  under , general  laws.  No  corporation  could 
issue  or  put  in  circulation  any  but  lawful  money  of 
the  United  States. 

The  exercise  of  the  right  of  eminent  domain  should 
never  be  abridged  so  as  to  prevent  the  state  from 
subjecting  the  property  of  individuals  or  incorporated 

people  should  regard  this  decision  with  some  distrust,  as  being  made  to  favor 
capitalists.  But  after  much  discussion,  the  convention  settled  the  matter  by 
deducting  the  amount  of  mortgages  from  the  property  taxed,  and  assessing 
mortgagees  for  the  amount.  In  the  end  it  only  increases  the  rate  of  interest. 
17  The  general  sentiment  against  an  income  tax,  so  long  as  all  the  means 
by  which  it  was  obtained  were  taxed,  has  so  far  prevented  the  legislature 
from  levying  any  assessment  on  incomes.  When  the  U.  S.  was  collecting  an 
income  tax  as  a  means  of  meeting  the  unusual  expenses  of  the  rebellion,  it 
was  not  taxing  land. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL    25. 


386  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

companies  to  the  public  use ;  nor  should  the  police 
power  of  the  state  ever  be  so  abridged  as  to  permit 
corporations  to  infringe  the  rights  of  individuals  or 
the  well-being  of  the  state.  No  corporation  should 
entfaore  in  any  business  other  than  that  expressly  au- 
thorized in  its  charter,  or  hold  for  a  longer  period 
than  five  years  any  real  estate  not  necessary  to  carry- 
incr  on  its  business  ;18  the  legislature  should  not  pass 
any  laws  which  would  tend  to  relieve  the  property 
held  under  a  franchise  from  its  liabilities  ;  no  corpora- 
tion should  issue  any  stock  or  bonds  except  for  actual 
payment  in  money,  labor,  or  property;  all  fictitious 
increase  of  stock  or  indebtedness  should  be  void ;  no 
increase  could  be  made  without  the  consent  of  the 
holders  of  a  majority  of  the  shares,  at  a  meeting  called 
for  the  purpose  on  a  sixty  days'  public  notice,  at 
which  every  stockholder  should  have  the  right  to 
vote  in  person  or  by  proxy,  and  directors  could  only 
be  elected  in  the  same  manner — except  in  the  case  of 
cooperative  societies ;  but  every  stockholder  could 
vote  all  his  shares  to  one  candidate,  or  distribute 
them  among  as  many  as  he  should  think  fit ;  and  the 
books  of  the  corporation  should  be  open  for  inspection 
by  every  one  interested  therein,  and  by  legislative 
committees.  No  corporation,  organized  outside  of  the 
limits  of  the  state,  should  be  allowed  to  transact  busi- 

18  This  section  appears  to  have  been  intended  to  prevent  the  railroad  com- 
panies from  acquiring  town-sites  and  other  valuable  real  estate  for  specula- 
tive purposes.  As  for  instance,  the  state  granted  to  the  Western  Pacific, 
subsequently  absorbed  by  the  Central  Pacific,  and  to  the  Southern  Pacific 
30  acres  each  in  Mission  bay,  for  terminal  purposes,  upon  condition  that  a 
certain  amount  of  money  should  be  expended  upon  the  grant  within  a  speci- 
fied time,  in  the  erection  of  depots  and  warehouses.  Ihe  Central  Pacific 
obtained  control  of  the  property,  and  as  the  time  after  being  extended  by 
the  legislature  was  finally  allowed  to  expire  without  making  the  improve- 
ments agreed  upon,  the  land  reverted  to  the  state.  During  Gov.  Booth's 
administration  a  suit  was  instituted  against  the  railroad  corporations  to  de- 
clare the  land  forfeited.  The  companies  moved  to  dismiss  the  suit  because 
it  was  not  properly  brought,  and  the  motion  was  denied.  They  demurred  to 
the  complaint,  and  the  demurrer  was  overruled.  The  case  was  on  the  cal- 
endar for  trial  while  the  constitutional  convention  was  in  session.  The  pro- 
hibition in  reference  to  other  business  was  aimed  at  the  alleged  intent  of  the 
Central  Pacific  to  engage  in  warehousing  and  grain  business  on  the  land 
granted  for  terminal  purposes;  but  this  is  the  merest  surmise. 


RAILROAD&  :-7 

ness  within  the  state  on  more  favorable  conditions 
than  if  organized  under  the  laws  of  California.1' 

All  railroad  and  other  transportation  companies 
were  declared  to  be  common  carriers,  subject  to  legis- 
lative control.  They  should  have  a  right  to  connect 
at  the  state  line  with  the  railroads  of  other  states, 
and  every  railroad  should  have  the  right  to  intersect, 
connect  with,  or  cross,  any  other  railroad,  and  they 
should  receive  and  transport  each  others'  passengers, 
tonnage,  and  cars,  without  delay  or  discrimination. 
No  officer,  agent,  or  employe  of  any  railroad  or  canal 
company  should  be  interested  in  furnishing  material 
or  supplies  **  to  such  company,  nor  in  the  business  of 
transportation  over  the  road,  except  such  as  flowed 
from  the  ownership  of  stock  therein.  Xo  railroad  or 
other  transportation  company  should  grant  free 
passes,  or  tickets  at  a  discount,  to  any  person  holding 
any  office  of  honor,  trust,  or  profit  in  the  state ;  and 
the  acceptance  of  any  such  pass  or  ticket,  by  a  mem- 
ber of  the  legislature,  or  any  public  officer,  other  than 
railroad  commissioner,  should  work  a  forfeiture  of  his 
office. 

Railroad  companies  were  forbidden  to  combine  with 
navigation  companies  or  any  common  carrier,11  to  the 
end  that  the  earnings  of  the  one  doing  the  carrying 
were  to  be  shared  with  the  other  not  doing  the  carry- 
ing. And  whenever  a  railroad  corporation  should, 
for  the  purpose  of  competing  with  any  other  common 
carrier,  lower  its  rates  for  transportation  of  passengers 
or  freight,  such  reduced  rates  should  not  be  again  in- 
creased without  the  consent  of  the  authority  in  which 
the  government  vested  the  power  to  regulate  fares 
and  freights ;  and  no  discrimination  should  be  made 

M  This  prohibition  referred  to  foreign  insurance  and  other  companies  do- 
ing business  in  California  without  paying  taxes. 

*  This  was  probably  aimed  at  the  Western  Development  company,  or- 
ganized in  1874,  and  soon  after  the  framing  of  the  new  constitution  merged 
into  the  Pacific  Improvement  company.  To  the  former  were  transferred  the 
interests  of  the  Contract  and  Finance  company,  as  will  be  spoken  of  in  a  later 
chapter. 

fl  The  only  effect  of  this  prohibition  was  to  force  these  corporations  to 
purchase  steamer  lines. 


388  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

in  charges  or  facilities  for  transportation  of  passengers 
or  freight  within  the  state,  or  coming  from  or  going 
to  any  other  state ;  but  persons  and  property  should 
be  delivered  at  any  station,  landing,  or  port,  at  charges 
not  exceeding  the  rates  to  any  more  distant  station." 
The  state  was  to  be  divided  into  three  districts,  in 
each  of  which  one  railroad  commissioner  should  be 
elected  at  the  regular  gubernatorial  elections,  whose 
term  of  office  should  be  four  years,  and  whose  duty 
it  should  be  to  establish  rates  for  the  transportation 
of  passengers  and  freights  by  railroad  or  other  com- 
mon carriers,  and  publish  them  from  time  to  time, 
with  such  changes  as  they  might  make  ;  to  examine 
the  companies'  books,  records,  and  papers,  for  which 
purpose  they  should  have  power  to  issue  subpoenas 
and  all  necessary  process,  to  hear  and  determine  com- 
plaints against  railroad  and  other  transportation  com- 
panies, to  send  for  persons  and  papers,  to  administer 
oaths,  take  testimony,  and  punish  for  contempt  of 
their  orders  and  processes,  in  the  same  manner  and 
to  the  same  extent  as  courts  of  record,  and  enforce 
their  decisions  and  correct  abuses  through  the  medium 
of  the  courts.  A  uniform  system  of  accounts  to  be 
kept  by  all  such  corporations  should  be  prescribed  by 
them.  Any  transportation  company  which  should 
fail  or  refuse  to  conform  to  the  rates  established 23  by 

22  Here  we  have  one  of  the  weakest  points  in  the  new  constitution.     Al- 
though there  are  many  precedents  in  American  and  European  legislation  for 
regulating  in  detail  the  charges  of  railroads,  they  have  seldom  been  found  to 
work  to  advantage.     In  this  connection  the  following  remarks,  taken  from 
the  report  of  a  parliamentary  committee  held  in  London  in  1872,  may  be  of  in- 
terest, as  they  apply  equally  to  all  except  government  railroads:   '  Legal  maxi- 
mum rates  afford  little  real  protection  to  the  public,  since  they  are  always  fixed 
so  high  that  it  is,  or  becomes  sooner  or  later,  the  interest  of  the  companies  to 
carry  at  lower  rates.     The  attempt  to  limit  rates  and  fares  by  the  principle 
of  fixing  a  maximum  has  almost  always  failed  in  practice,  and  is  almost 
always  likely  to  fail,  for  the  simple  reason  that  the  parliamentary  committees 
and  authorities,  by  whom  such  limits  are  decided,  cannot  do  otherwise  than 
allow  some  margin  between  the  actual  probable  rate,  as  far  as  they  can  fore- 
cast it,  and  the  maximum  rate;  and  cannot  foresee  the  contingencies  of  com- 
petition, of  increase  in  quantities,  of  facilities  or  economy  in  working,  or  of 
alteration  of  commercial  conditions." 

23  The  Pacific  Coast  Steamship  company  refused  to  recognize  the  authority 
of  the  board,  and  commenced  suit  in  the  U.  S.  circuit  court  to  restrain  the 
board  from  in  any  way  interfering  with  the  business  of  the  company.  Rept 
of  R.  R.  Commissioners  in  App.  to  Jour.  Sen.  and  Assem.,  18S1,  No.  3. 


THREATS  OF  CAPITALISTS.  ;; 

the  commissioners,  or  charge  rates  in  excess  thereof,  or 
fail  to  keep  their  accounts  in  accordance  with  the  sys- 
tem prescribed  by  the  commission,  should  be  fined  not 
exceeding  $20,000  for  each  offence,  and  every  officer, 
agent,  or  employe  of  such  corporation  who  should  de- 
rnand  or  receive  rates  in  excess  of  those  prescribed 
by  the  commissioners  should  pajr  a  fine  of  not  more 
than  $5,000,  or  be  imprisoned  in  the  county  jail  not 
exceeding  one  vear.  The  rates  established  bv  the 

«  V 

commission  should  always  be  deemed  conclusively  just 
and  reasonable  ;  and  in  any  action  against  a  railroad 
company  for  damages  on  account  of  excessive  rates, 
the  plaintiff  might,  in  addition  to  actual  damage,  re- 
cover, in  the  discretion  of  the  judge  or  jury,  exem- 
plary damages.  The  legislature  might,  in  addition 
to  the  penalties  already  named,  enforce  this  article  of 
the  constitution  by  forfeiture  of  charter  or  otherwise, 
and  might  confer  further  power  on  the  commissioners 
if  necessary  to  the  performance  of  their  duties.  Va- 
cancies in  office  should  be  filled  in  the  same  manner 
as  in  the  case  of  other  state  officers.  Theconiniission 
should  make  an  annual  report  to  the  governor." 

The  railroad,  mining,  and  banking  corporations, 
through  the  press  and  their  agents,  strongly  opposed 
the  article  containing  so  many  restrictions  upon  their 
methods  of  doing  business,  and  the  convention  itself 
was  divided,  capitalists  holding  out  a  threat  of  aban- 
doning the  state  and  withdrawing  their  money.  "  Let 
them  go,"  said  the  advocates  of  restriction,  "they 
cannot  take  with  them  the  houses,  farms,  or  railroads 
which  they  have  acquired  with  our  money.  We  will, 
in  one  year,  dig  out  of  the  mines  as  much  gold  as  they 
will  take  away,  and  produce  in  two  years  ten  times 
the  amount;  and  the  sooner  the  bankers  go  the  bet- 


board  of  commissioners  elected  consisted  of  Joseph  S.  Core, 
1st  dist;  C.  J.  Beerstecker,  2nd  dist,  and  George  Stoneman,  3d  -list  Cove 
was  chosen  pres't.  The  secretary  of  the  com.  was  W.  R.  Andras;  bailiff, 
T.  V.  Steinman.  The  board  was  organized  in  May  1880.  In  December  an 
attempt  was  made  to  assassinate  Beerstecker,  the  supposed  cause  being  po- 
litical jealousy.  Both  B.  and  his  assailant  belonged  to  the  workingmen'a 
' 


390  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

ter.25  They  cannot  frighten  us  with  circulars"  declar- 
ing that  if  the  new  constitution  is  adopted  they  must 
materially  increase  the  interest  on  loans."  Thus  the 
restrictionists ;  but  the  alarm  was  nevertheless  quite 
real  and  wide-spread  lest  the  business  of  the  state 
should  be  seriously  affected  by  the  new  fundamental 
law,  if  adopted;  and,  indeed,  it  was  already  restricted 
to  a  considerable  extent  in  anticipation  of  a  revolu- 
tion which  as  yet  nobody  seemed  to  comprehend. 

In  the  matter  of  Chinese  labor  and  immigration 
the  constitution  declared  that  the  legislature  should 
prescribe  all  necessary  regulations  for  the  protection 
of  the  state,  and  every  part  of  it,  from  the  evils  aris- 
ing from  the  presence  of  aliens  who  were  or  might 
be  vagrants,  from  mendicants  or  criminals,  who  were 
infected  with  contagious  diseases,  or  who  were  in 
any  way  dangerous  or  detrimental  to  the  well-being 
or  peace  of  the  community;  also  to  impose  conditions 
upon  which  persons  might  reside  in  the  state,  and 
provide  the  mode  of,  and  means  for  their  removal  in 
£ase  of  their  failure  or  refusal  to  comply  with  such 
conditions.  The  presence  of  foreigners  ineligible  to 
become  citizens  of  the  United  States  was  declared  to 
be  dangerous  to  the  well-being  of  the  state ;  and  it 
should  be  the  duty  of  the  legislature  to  discourage 
their  immigration  by  every  means  in  its  power. 
Asiatic  coolyism  was  pronounced  a  form  of  human 
slavery,  which  was  forever  prohibited  in  the  state, 
and  all  contracts  for  coolie  labor  should  be  void.  All 
companies  for  the  importation  of  such  labor,  whether 
formed  in  California  "  or  in  a  foreign  country,  should 
be  subject  to  such  penalties  as  the  legislature  might 
prescribe,  which  should  also  delegate  to  incorporated 
cities  and  towns  power  to  remove  Chinese  without 
their  boundaries,  or  to  certain  prescribed  limits,  and 

25  8.  F.  Chronicle,  March  16,  1879,  and  April  3,  1879. 

26  The  Sacramento  savings  bank  published  such  a  circular,  for  which  see 
Sac.  Record  Union,  in  S.  F.  Chronicle,  March  14,  1879. 

47  A  prohibition  to  prevent  railroad  companies  particularly  from  making 
contracts  with  the  Chinese  companies. 


EDUCATION.  391 

should  provide  the  necessary  legislation  to  prohibit 
the  introduction  of  Chinese  into  California.  Xo  cor- 
poration existing  or  to  be  formed  under  the  laws  of 
the  state  should,  after  the  adoption  of  the  constitu- 
tion, employ  directly  or  indirectly,  in  any  capacity," 
any  Chinese  or  Mongolians ;  nor  should  any  Chinese 
be  employed  on  public  work,  except  in  punishment  for 
crime.19 

The  article  on  education  did  not  allow  of  quite 
such  revolutionary  changes  as  the  preceding  ones. 
The  school-money  was  placed  where  it  would  most 
benefit  the  working  classes;  that  is,  for  the  use  only  of 
the  primary  and  grammar  schools,  leaving  the  legis- 
lature to  provide  for  schools  of  a  higher  grade,  or  the 
municipalities  to  raise  a  revenue  for  this  purpose  from 
other  than  the  fund  arising  from  the  sale  of  the  school- 
lands  granted  to  the  state  by  congress.  The  state 
board  of  examiners  was  abolished,  the  local  board 
having  control  of  teachers'  examinations  and  grant- 
ing of  certificates.  Sectarian  doctrines  should  not  be 

3  Workingmen  hare  gone  about  in  S.  F.  warning  families  who  em- 
ployed Chinese  servants,  both  before  and  after  the  constitutional  conven- 
tion; and  even  since  the  restriction  of  immigration  by  congress,  a  bill  for 
which  was  at  that  time  before  congress,  and  which  finally  passed.  The 
legislature  had  no  power  to  prohibit  Chinese  immigration  while  the  treaty 
with  China  was  in  force;  nor  at  any  other  time  without  the  consent  of 
congress. 

a  Stuart,  of  Sonoma,  hits  hard  the  low  foreigner  in  his  speech  on  the  Chi- 
nese question:  '  Who  are  they  who  desecrate  the  sabbath  ? '  he  says;  '  who  form 
our  rioters  and  hoodlums?  Who  fill  our  almshouses?  Who  are  plotting  to 
overthrow  our  common  schools  ?  Who  stuff  our  ballot-boxes  ?  Who  are 
plotting  to  overthrow  our  government,  and  to  utterly  stamp  out  liberty, 
that  depotism  over  conscience,  mind  and  muscle  may  rise  upon  the  ruins  ? 
Who  constitute  the  Molly  Maguires  ?  Who  burn  our  railroad  depots  ?  Who 
threaten  the  lives  of  our  best  citizens  ?  Who  are  plotting  to  despoil  our 
wealthy  men  ?  Who  claim  two-thirds  of  our  public  offices ?  Xot  Chinamen.' 
Charles  V.  Stuart,  elected  on  the  non-partisan  ticket,  was  born  in  Pa.  in 
1819,  in  which  state  his  parents,  Charles  and  Mary  Stuart  were  also  born. 
He  was  bred  a  fanner,  and  educated  at  Owego  acadamy  X.  T.,  after  which 
he  wandered  over  the  state  west  and  south  until  1849,  when  he  came  to  CaL 
overland  in  command  of  a  company.  He  settled  himself  on  ten  acres  of 
land  at  Mission  Dolores,  and  was  elected  on  the  first  board  of  aldermen  of 
S.  F.  in  1850.  He  leased  the  New  Almaden  mine  for  21  years  from  the 
Barryessa  family,  supposing  them  to  be  the  true  owners,  but  after  years  of 
unproductive  labor  sold  it.  He  built  the  first  brick  house  in  S.  F.  in  1851, 
but  8  years  afterward  removed  to  Sonoma  valley  where  he  was  one  of  the 
first  vuuculrunsts. 


392  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

taught  directly  or  indirectly  in  any  of  the  common 
schools  of  the  state.3' 

The  university  of  California  was  to  be  a  public 
trust  which  should  continue  in  the  form  and  character 
prescribed  in  the  act  creating  it,31  subject  only  to  such 
control  by  the  legislature  as  secured  compliance  with 
the  terms  of  its  endowments  and  the  safety  of  its 
funds.  It  should  be  non-sectarian  in  the  administra- 
tion of  its  affairs.  The  interest  of  the  money  de- 
rived from  the  lands  donated  by  congress  should  be 
used  as  an  endowment  for  the  support  of  at  least  one 
agricultural  college ;  and  the  legislature  should  pro- 

30  This  was  meant  to  prohibit  bible-reading  in  the  schools,  to  which  cath- 
olics objected.     It  was  double-edged,  and  cut  both  ways. 

31  The  act  creating  the  university  of  Cal.  was  passed  March  23,  1868,  the 
constitution  of  1849  having  provided  for  a  university  in  anticipation  of  a 
grant  from  the  general  govt  for  such  a  purpose,  which  grant  was  made  ac- 
cording to  a  general  law  giving  to  each  state  a  certain  amount  of  land  for 
educational  purposes.     Cal.  received  in  1853,  besides  her   common-school 
lands,  72  sections  'for  seminary  purposes,'  and  in  1862  150,000  acres  for  the 
establishment  and  maintenance  of  an  agricultural  college.     The  state  law  of 
1868  creating  the  university  of  Cal.  combined  with  it  the  agricultural  college, 
and  made  that  the  first  to  be  erected  by  the  means  derived  from  the  state 
funds.     But  it  also  accepted  for  the  state  the  gift  of  the  college  of  Cal.,  which 
became  a  college  of  letters  in  the  university.     This  college  was  founded  at 
Oakland  as  a  college  school  by  Henry  Durant,  becoming  an  incorporated  col- 
lege in  1855.     It  acquired  property  and  prospered  under  the  management  of 
Durant  and  Bushuell,  who  selected  the  location  at  Berkeley,  which  became 
the  site  of  the  university  of  Cal.,  containing  200  acres  of  land,  a  part  of  which 
was  devoted  to  experimental  farming.     The  donation  to  the  university  of  the 
college  of  Cal.  was  a  great  help.     There  were  7  colleges  in  existence  in  1879, 
namely,  of  letters,  agriculture,  mechanics,  mining,  engineering,  chemistry, 
and  medicine.     To  the  last  a  donation  was  made  by  H.  H.  Toland  of  S.  F., 
whose  name  was  conferred  upon  that  college  by  act  of  legislature  in  March 
1881.     To  the  law  college  S.  C.  Hastings  donated  $100,000  in  1878,  arid  this 
college  was  named  after  him.     Military  instruction  was  required  by  the  con- 
gressional act  of  donation,  and  the  students  were  organized  into  a  body  of 
cadets.     The  resources  of  the  university  were  the  seminary  fund  and  public 
building  fund  granted  to  Cal.  by  congress;  the  property  received  from  the 
college  of  Cal.,  as  stated;  the  site  at  Berkeley;  the  fund  received  from  the 
congressional  land  grant    in  1862,   the  tide  land   fund,  appropriated  by 
the  state;  specific  appropriations  by  the  legislature  for  buildings,  current 
expenses,  etc.;  and  the  gifts  of  individuals.     The  care  of  the  university  and 
its  finances  was  entrusted  to  a  board  of  regents,  including  the  gov.,  lieut- 
gov.,  speaker  of  the  assembly,  supt  of  public  instruction,  pres't  of  the  state 
ag.  society,  pres't  of  the  Mechanics'  institute  of  San  Francisco,  the  pres't  of 
the  university,  and  16  others.     This  govt  was  continued  by  the  new  consti- 
tution.    Some  jealousy  was  exhibited  by  the  farmers  in  the  convention  lest 
the  agricultural  interest  should  be  injured  by  the  attractions  of  the  other 
colleges,  for  which  reason  they  insisted  on  the  inviolability  of  the  appropria- 
tion made  for  the  support  of  a  college  of  agriculture,  but  without  excluding 
other  scientific  and  classical  studies,  and  including  military  tactics. 


LAND  AXD  WATER.  393 

vide  that  if,  through  neglect  or  other  contingency,  any 
portion  of  the  fund  so  set  apart  should  be  lost,  the 
state  should  replace  it  so  that  the  principal  should 
forever  remain  undiminished.  No  person  should  be 
debarred  admission  to  any  of  the  collegiate  depart- 
ments of  the  university  on  account  of  sex." 

State  indebtedness  could  not  be  incurred  for  a 
greater  amount  than  $300,000,  unless  in  case  of  war, 
invasion,  or  insurrection,  except  for  a  single  object 
for  which  ways  and  means  had  been  provided,  exclu- 
sive of  loans,  the  debt  not  to  run  more  than  twenty 
years,  and  the  people  to  vote  upon  the  proposition  to 
incur  it. 

The  legislature  should  protect  by  law  from  forced 
sale  a  certain  portion  of  the  homestead  and  other 
property  of  the  heads  of  families.  The  holding  of 
large  tracts  of  land  should  be  discouraged  as  against 
the  public  interest.  Lands  belonging  to  the  state, 
suitable  for  cultivation,  should  be  granted  only  to 
actual  settlers,  and  in  quantities  not  exceeding  320 
acres  to  each  settler,  under  such  conditions  as  should 
be  prescribed  by  law.  All  property,  real  and  per- 
sonal, owned  by  either  husband  or  wife  before  mar- 
riage, and  that  acquired  by  either  of  them  afterward 
by  gift,  devise,  or  descent,  should  be  separate  prop- 
erty. No  contract  of  marriage,  if  otherwise  duly 
made,  should  be  invalidated  for  want  of  conformity 
to  the  requirements  of  any  religious  sect."  Eight 

M  There  was  in  1879  both  curiosity  and  interest  felt  in  the  application  of 
Mrs  Clara  S.  Folz,  who  had  studied  law  and  been  admitted  to  practise  in  the 
20th  district  court,  but  who  was  refused  admission  by  the  directors  of  the 
Hastings  law  college,  where  she  wished  to  pursue  her  studies  and  graduate. 
Laura  de  Force  Gordon  was  also  preparing  to  practise  before  the  courts,  and 
had  the  same  difficulty.  Mrs  Folz  petitioned  the  4th  district  court  to  com- 
pel the  directors  of  the  law  college  to  admit  her  as  a  student,  and  Morrison, 
judge,  issued  a  writ  of  mandate  to  that  effect.  Congress  had  just  passed  an 
act  authorizing  women  to  practise  law,  and  a  woman  had  been  admitted  to 
the  U.  S.  sup.  court.  Under  these  circumstances,  and  knowing  that  the 
new  constitution  declared  for  equal  educational  and  business  rights,  the  di- 
rectors submitted.  See  S.  F.  Post,  Jan.  28  and  Feb.  11,  1S79;  S.F.  Chronicle, 
Jan.  30  and  Feb.  11,  14,  1879,  and  March  6,  1879. 

33  This  same  declaration  was  in  the  constitution  of  1849,  and  in  the  CaL 
code.  In  the  Hill-Sharon  divorce  case,  commencing  in  18S3,  it  M-as  the 
foundation  of  the  application  for  divorce  and  alimony.  Sullivan,  of  the  su- 


394  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

hours  were  made  to  constitute  a  day's  work  on  all  pub- 
lic contracts.  Any  citizen  who  should  fight  or  assist 
at  a  duel  should  be  disfranchised.  The  right  of  em- 
inent domain  was  declared  to  exist  in  the  state  to  all 
frontages  on  the  navigable  waters  of  the  state  ;  and 
the  right  of  way  to  such  water,  should  not  be  excluded 
by  individuals  or  corporations  claiming  or  possessing 
the  tidal  lands  fronting  on  any  navigable  bay,  harbor, 
or  inlet.  All  the  tide  lands  within  two  miles  of  any 
incorporated  city  or  town  fronting  on  the  waters  of 
any  harbor,  estuary,  or  bay,  used  for  navigation,  should 
be  withheld  from  grant  or  sale. 

The  use  of  all  water  already  appropriated,  or  that 
might  thereafter  be  appropriated,  for  sale,"  rental,  or 
distribution,  was  declared  to  be  a  public  use,  and  sub- 
ject to  the  rule  and  regulation  of  the  state ;  but  the 
board  of  supervisors  of  city,  town,  or  city  and  county 
government  might  fix  the  rates  for  which  it  should 
be  furnished  to  the  inhabitants  under  pain  of  penal- 
ties for  neglect ;  and  any  company  collecting  any 
other  than  the  established  water-rates  should  forfeit 
its  franchise  and  water-works  to  the  city  and  county, 
or  city,  or  town  where  the  collection  was  made  for  the 
use  of  the  public. 

No  article  provoked  more  comment  than  that  re- 
lating to  cities,  counties,  and  towns ;  because  San 

perior  ct,  gave  judgment  for  the  plaintiff.  The  case  was  appealed  to  the 
sup.  ct,  when  the  plaintiff  made  a  motion  to  dismiss  the  appeal,  on  the 
ground  that,  as  to  the  judgment  itself  the  ct  had  no  jurisdiction  to  entertain 
appeals  in  action  for  divorce;  and  as  to  the  order  awarding  alimony  and 
counsel  fees,  that  such  orders  were  not  appealahle.  Ihe  ct  in  bank  decided 
in  favor  of  the  appellant,  the  justices  concurring,  except  Chief  Justice  Morri- 
son who  took  no  part  in  the  decision,  and  Justice  McKee,  who  dissented  from 
the  opinion.  On  a  rehearing  Morrison  joined  with  the  five  other  judges. 
Suit  was  then  brought  in  the  U.  S.  circ.  ct,  to  compel  Mrs  Kill-Sharon  to 
give  up  the  contract,  refusing  which  she  was  confined  a  day  or  two  in  jail 
for  contempt. 

MThe  question  of  riparian  rights  was  an  important  cne  in  Cal.,.  on  ac- 
count of  the  necessity  for  irrigation.  The  war  between  the  farmers  and  hy- 
draulic  and  other  miners,  had  been  long  carried  on  in  the  courts  and  the 
legislature.  The  attempt  of  corporate  companies  to  appropriate  all  the 
water  of  unnavigable  streams  was  another  source  of  trouble.  Gov.  Stone- 
man  called  an  extra  session  of  the  legislature  to  please  a  few  men  who  wished 
to  have  repealed  the  article  on  water  rights;  but  they  failed. 


COUNTIES  AND  TOWNS.  395 

Francisco,  from  which  the  workingmen's  delegates 
were  elected,  was  chiefly  affected  by  it.  No  county 
could  be  established  with  less  than  5,000  inhabitants, 
or  divided  when  the  population  was  less  than  8,000  ; 
nor  should  the  dividing  line  pass  within  five  miles  of 
the  county  seat.  Counties  were  to  be  classified  ac- 
cording to  population,  and  the  legislature  should  pro- 
vide a  uniform  system  of  county  governments  under 
general  laws  regulating  the  compensation  of  county 
and  municipal  officers,  who  were  to  be  held  to  a  strict 
accountability. 

Corporations  for  municipal  purposes  should  not  be 
created  under  special  laws,  but  should  be  organized 
under  general  laws  which  should  provide  for  their  in- 
corporation and  classification ;  and  cities  and  towns 
heretofore  organized  should  be  incorporated  under 
these  laws  whenever  a  majority  of  the  electors  voting 
at  a  general  election  should  so  determine. 

City  and  county  governments  might  be  consolidated 
— as  in  the  case  of  San  Francisco — into  one  munici- 
pal government  In  consolidated  city  and  county 
governments  of  more  than  100,000  population  there 
should  be  two  boards  of  supervisors  or  houses  of  legis- 
lation, one  of  which,  to  consist  of  twelve  persons, 
should  be  elected  from  the  city  and  county  at  large 
for  a  term  of  four  years,  so  classified  that  after  the 
first  election  only  six  should  be  elected  every  two 
years ;  the  other  to  consist  of  twelve  persons  elected 
every  two  years  for  a  two  years'  term ;  vacancies  oc- 
curring to  be  filled  by  the  mayor  or  other  chief  exec- 
utive officer  Any  city  of  more  than  100,000  population 
might  frame  a  charter  for  its  own  government  by 
choosing  fifteen  freeholders  at  any  general  election  to 
prepare  a  charter,  said  freeholders  to  have  been  qual- 
ified voters  for  five  years.  The  qualified  electors 
should  receive  thirty  days'  notice  of  the  submission 
of  the  charter  for  approval,  when,  if  approved,  it 
should  be  submitted  to  the  legislature  for  confirmation. 
Amendments  to  a  charter  should  not  be  made  oftener 


396  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

than  once  in  two  years.  Counties,  towns,  and  cities 
should  pay  proportional  taxes  to  the  state ;  but  the 
legislature  should  not  have  power  to  impose  taxes  for 
municipal  purposes ;  yet  it  might  vest  the  power  in 
the  corporate  authorities  to  assess  and  collect  taxes 
for  such  purposes.  The  legislature  should  not  dele- 
gate to  any  special  commission,  private  corporation,  or 
individual  any  power  to  control,  appropriate,  super- 
vise, or  in  any  way  interfere  with  any  county,  city, 
town,  or  municipal  improvement,  money,  property,  or 
effects,  whether  held  in  trust  or  otherwise. 

No  state  office  should  be  continued 35  or  created  in 
any  municipality  for  the  inspection,  measurement,  or 
gradation  of  any  merchandise,  manufacture,  or  com- 
modity ;  but  the  city  should  be  authorized  by  general 
law  to  appoint  such  officers.  Private  property  should 
not  be  taken  or  sold  for  the  payment  of  the  corporate 
debt  of  any  political  or  municipal  corporation.  All 
moneys  collected  for  the  use  of  any  such  corporation 
should  be  immediately  deposited  with  the  treasurer 
or  other  legal  depository.3"  The  making  of  profit  out 
of  public  money,  or  using  it  for  any  purpose  not  author- 
ized by  law  by  any  officer  having  possession  or  control 
of  it,  should  be  prosecuted  and  punished  as  a  felony. 
No  city,  county,  town,  township,  board  of  education, 
or  school  district  should  incur  any  liability  exceeding 
the  income  provided  for  each  year,37  without  the  assent 
of  two-thirds  of  the  qualified  electors  voting  at  a 
special  election,  or  without  providing  for  the  interest 
and  sinking  fund  to  extinguish  such  indebtedness 
within  a  limited  time.38  No  public  work  or  improve- 

85  This  prohibition  referred  to  the  practice  of  legislatures  in  creating  such 
offices  as  state  inspectors  of  flour.  Cal.  Stat.,  1852,  129,  and  1853,  272;  and  of 
beef  and  pork.  Cal.  Stat.,  1S56,  232;  M,  1860,  116;  gauger  of  wines  and  li- 
quors. CaL  Stat.,  1852,  131;  harbor  commissioners,  and  other  boards  of  com- 
missioners for  S.  F.  Cal.  Stut.,  1874,  910,  who  assessed  the  merchants  heavily, 
or  received  benefits  from  the  state. 

36  And  not  spirited  away  to  a  bank  in  collusion  with  a  dishonest  official, 
as  in  bygone  years. 

37  The  interdict  as  to  debt  was  inconveniently  exhibited  in  1882,  when  for 
two  or  three  months  the  city  was  in  darkness,  there  being  no  money  in  the 
treasury  to  pay  gas  bills,  and  the  city  prohibited  from  going  in  debt. 

38  This  prohibition  arrested  the  completion  of  the  new  city  hall,  on  which 


MUNICIPALITIES.  397 

ment  of  any  description  should  be  made  in  any  city, 
the  cost  of  which  should  be  made  chargeable  upon 
private  property  by  special  assessment,"  unless  after 
an  estimate  of  such  expense  had  been  made,  and  an 
assessment  levied  in  proportion  to  the  benefits  to  be 
effected  on  the  property  had  been  levied,  collected, 
and  paid  into  the  city  treasury. 

There  was  much  prophesying  of  evil  in  the  event 
of  the  city  of  San  Francisco  having  to  adopt  a  charter 
under  the  new  constitution.  While  it  could  not  be 
denied  that  there  was  evident  a  wise  intent  to  make 
fraud  and  extravagance  impossible,  and  to  restrict  the 
power  of  the  legislature  to  interfere  in  municipal  af- 
fairs, there  was  believed  to  be  too  complete  a  trans- 
fer of  the  responsibility  of  the  government  of  the  city 
from  the  legislature  to  the  popular  vote  of  the  citi- 
zens. "Municipalities,"  says  an  eminent  authority, 
"  are  merely  an  agency  of  government ; "  and  again, 
"There  ought  to  be  careful  and  effectual  restrictions 
by  the  state  upon  its  municipalities."  The  new  con- 
stitution removed  all  restrictions  and  left  the  city,  ex- 
cept as  to  the  payment  of  a  state  tax,  and  some 
obligations  in  the  matter  of  general  and  salary  laws, 
to  do  as  best  pleased  it  in  all  affairs.  And  what  it 
pleased  to  do  would  depend  upon  the  kind  of  charter 
which  fifteen  freeholders  of  certain  political  tenden- 
cies, at  the  date  of  some  election  at  which  thev  should 

•/ 

be  chosen,  might  be  able  hastily  to  create  ;  and  upon 
the  popular  vote  upon  it,  which  would  be  a  partisan 

about  §5,000,000  had  been  spent.  It  has  stood,  during  eight  years,  only 
partially  habitable,  a  ruin  in  appearance,  rather  than  a  handsome  edifice. 
There  will  probably  be  provided,  in  the  charter  about  to  be  created,  some 
plan  whereby  this  costly  structure  may  be  finished. 

**  Private  property  had  been  burdensomely  taxed  for  state  improvements, 
and  where  the  grades  were  heavy,  on  the  hills,  had  been  sold  for  assessments 
in  former  times,  but  no  such  abuses  existed  when  the  new  constitution  was 
formed.  On  the  contrary,  the  charter  under  which  San  Franciscans  were 
then  living,  made  it  necessary  that  property  owners  should  petition  to  have 
street  improvements  made,  before  it  was  undertaken,  and  when  the  contract 
was  let  they  had  the  privilege  of  taking  it  themselves  at  the  lowest  bid. 
The  property  being  assessed  and  the  assessment  paid,  the  payer  of  the  tax 
lost  all  control  over  his  money. 

«  Thomaa  M.  Cooley,  of  Michigan. 


398  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

demonstration,  followed  by  the  approval  of  a  partisan 
legislature. 

The  San  Franciscans  had  coine  to  love  their  muni- 
cipal government,  faulty  though  it  might  be,  under 
which  the  city  had  prospered  for  twenty-five  years. 
There  were  expressions  in  the  articles  on  counties  and 
cities  in  the  new  constitution,  which  looked  as  if  the 
city  of  San  Francisco  might  become  an  independent 
state,"  like  Venice,  Genoa,  Pisa,  Florence,  and  other 
free  cities  of  the  middle  ages,  whose  histories  are  in 
the  past.  The  city  was  to  have  "two  houses  of  leg- 
islation;" it  was  to  have  a  mayor,  or  "other  chief 
executive  officer."  Was  there  to  be  another  line  of 
doges,  or  was  King  Kearney  to  rule  ?  There  was  no 
power  in  the  legislature,  the  judiciary,  nor  any  of  the 
departments  of  state,  to  interfere  with  whatever  char- 
ter San  Francisco  might  adopt  under  general  laws. 
On  the  contrary,  the  electors  of  the  city  and  county 
decided  that  matter;  and  the  secretary  of  state,  the 
courts,  and  the  heads  of  every  department  were  re- 
quired to  keep  a  copy  of  this  charter  on  file  in  their 
offices,  and  to  govern  themselves  accordingly.  Was 
not  this  imperialism  ?  Every  advocate  of  the  measure 
complained  of  the  abuses  practised  by  boards  of  su- 
pervisors in  the  past;  yet  proposed  to  place  the  city 
entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  very  class  of  which  they 
complained,  and  cut  it  off  from  state  aid  in  correct- 
ing abuses.  Was  not  this  secession  ?  Would  not  the 
legislative  power  of  San  Francisco  over-top  every 
other,  and  the  city-hall  issue  its  edicts  to  300,000 
people,  and  more  or  less  to  the  state  ?  An  important 
question,  too,  was  whether  the  framers  of  the  consti- 
tution deliberately  proposed  thus  to  capture  the  city, 
with  ulterior  designs,  looking  to  the  future,  or  was 
this  simply  the  reaction  from  abuses  of  power  by  the 
state  legislature  in  the  past  ?  This  the  wisest  could  not 
answer,  although  both  theories  had  their  advocates. 

41  Sac.  Record  Union,  Jan.  23,  1879. 


OBJECTIONS.  399 

As  to  the  constitution  in  general,  the  objections 
offered  to  it  were,  that  it  hurried  the  state  business 
too  much  by  limiting  the  legislative  sessions ;  ham- 
pered legislation  with  too  many  restrictions;  intro- 
duced a  new  and  untried  plan  of  judiciary;  created  a 
triple-headed  and  dangerous  supreme  court,  a  court  of 
delays  and  expenses  which  would  defeat  the  poor 
appellant  and  give  the  case  to  the  rich  respondent," 
and  of  extraordinary  power  which  might  open  up  its 
decisions  on  its  own  motion;  prohibited  the  sale  of 
tide  lands  to  a  more  than  questionable  extent ; "  pro- 
vided for  removing  the  Chinese  contrary  to  the  re- 
strictions of  state  power  by  the  federal  constitution; 
provided  for  taxing  credits,  choses  in  action,  and 
stocks,  in  addition  to  tangible  property,  thus  favoring 
non-resident  holders;  took  from  the  legislature  the 
power  to  regulate  fares  and  freights  and  gave  it  to 
three  commissioners  who  would  become  an  easy  prey 
to  railroad  corporations,  whose  passes  and  hospitality 
they  were  permitted  to  accept;  made  void  even*  office 
in  the  state,  without  justice  or  discrimination,  requir- 
ing elections  for  which  the  people  had  no  time  to 
make  a  proper  choice  of  candidates;  it  legislated  and 
experimented  too  much;  was  too  long  and  loose;  was 
not  dignified;  showed  the  weapons  of  the  contending 
forces,  lampoon  and  broadsides  by  the  majority, 
stealth,  craft,  and  ambuscade  by  the  minority ;  and, 
in  short,  that  much  of  the  good  to  be  obtained  by  it 
could  be  accomplished  by  legislation,  but  none  of  the 
evils  proceeding  from  it  could  be  thus  remedied.  It 
was  only,  said  its  enemies,  a  democratic  platform 
elaborated. 

Child  of  the  workingmen's  party  though  it  was, 
such  was  the  agitation  and  doubt  upon  the  subject  of 
the  new  constitution,  that  when  it  came  to  the  vote, 

41  Rich  respondents,  if  anything  is  to  be  learned  by  reading  the  CaL  law 
reports,  generally  do  get  the  case.  Piciett,  Anti-Plunderers  Pampliltt. 

43  This  was  done  with  a  view  to  retain,  as  far  as  possible,  control  of  the 
water-front  of  cities. 


400  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

San  Francisco,  the  home  of  the  chief  instigators  of 
the  change,"  rejected  it  by  a  majority  of  1,592  out  of 
38,034.  The  state,  however,  through  the  support  of 
the  agricultural  class,  which  hoped  for  an  easing  of 
taxation,  gave  a  majority  for  it  of  10,820,  out  of 
145,088  votes,  and  it  went  into  effect  at  twelve  o'clock, 
meridian,  on  the  4th  day  of  July,  1879.  That  is  to 
say,  on  the  7th  of  May  one  provision  of  the  consti- 
tution— that  which  decreed  that  all  existing  charters, 
grants,  franchises,  special  or  exclusive  privileges, 
under  which  a  bona  fide  organization  had  not  been 
commenced,  should  thereafter  have  no  validity — went 
into  effect.  On  the  4th  of  July  it  became  effectual 
as  to  officers  and  their  terms.  On  the  first  day  of 
January  1880,  it  became  in  a  general  sense  the  or- 
ganic law  of  the  state,  all  laws  inconsistent  with  it 
being  repealed  at  noon  that  day.  On  the  first  Mon- 
day after  the  1st  of  January,  which  feh1  upon  the  5th, 
all  the  officers  elected  at  the  general  election  in  Sep- 
tember, 1879,  took  their  places,  except  the  governor, 

44  Only  one  public  journal  in  S.  F.,  the  Chronicle,  supported  the  new  con- 
stitution or  the  Workingmen's  party.     Out  of  the  whole  press  of  the  state 
the  opposition  had  a  majority  or  ten,  but  the  Chronicle  performed  yeoman's 
service  for  the  party  it  advocated,  and  to  its  influence  may  be  attributed  the 
success  of  the  movement.     It  abandoned  the  Kearneyites  when  this  matter 
was  accomplished,  and  through  political  quarrels  which  grew  to  be  personal 
feuds,  the  senior  proprietor,  Charles  De  Young  lost  his  life.     He  was  killed 
by  I.  M.  Kalloch,  the  son  of  I.   S.   Kalloch,  pastor  of  a  baptist  church,  a 
supporter  of  the  sand-lot  fraternity,  and  enemy  of  the  Chinese,  who  was 
elected  mayor  of  S.  F.  by  the  workingmen.     In  the  heat  and  turbulence  of 
political  strife,  I.  S.  Kalloch 's  former  life  was  freely  related  in  the  Chron- 
icle.    Kalloch,  the  elder,  replied  by  attacking  De  Young's  family  in  a  speech 
in  front  of  the  Metropolitan  Temple,  where  he  preached.     Next  morning  De 
Young  called  him  out  to  a  carriage  in  which  he  was  sitting,  and  shot  him, 
inflicting  a  wound  severe  but  not  dangerous.     A  few  months  afterward,  De 
Young  was  fatally  shot  in  his  business  office  by  Kalloch's  son,  also  a  minis- 
ter, who  was  tried  for  murder  and  acquitted.     The  episode,  however,  put  an 
end  to  the  public  career  of  father  and  son.     The  Chronicle,  by  its  persistent 
war  upon  oppressive  corporations,   incurred  the   enmity   of  the   capitalist 
Spreckels,  whose  son,  goaded   by   the  Chronicle's  imputations  against   his 
father,  attacked  M.  H.  De  Young  with  a  pistol.     He  also  escaped  punish- 
ment.    In  fact,  it  may  be  said  that  few  persons  of  wealth  or  position  were 
ever  punished  for  crime  in  the  courts  of  Cal.     No  change  of  constitution 
will  make  the  people  law-abiding  where  the  courts  cannot  be  depended 
upon  to  administer  justice  according  to  the  intention  of  the  statutes  of 
the  state. 


401 

who  could  not  be  inaugurated  until  a  speaker  of  the 
assembly  was  elected.  Between  the  1st  and  5th 
there  was  a  period  when  there  were  no  courts  in  Cali- 
fornia, except  the  inferior  local  courts.  On  the  4th 
of  July,  1880,  all  laws  inconsistent  with  the  provis- 
ions of  the  new  constitution,  and  not  altered  or 
repealed,  became  a  dead  letter.** 

And  with  all  this  revolution  hi  the  midst  of  an  or- 
ganized community  of  free  people,  the  sky  refused  to 
fall — refused  because  the  people  were  free — free,  if 
this  experiment  failed,  to  profit  by  the  failure.  The 
real  American,  aware  of  the  fact  that  the  half  Ameri- 
canized foreigner,  trying  his  skill  at  making  laws  for  a 
people  accustomed  to  the  utmost  liberty  consistent 
with  good  government,  infallibly  exhibits  a  desire  to 
bear  rather  more  heavily  upon  this  people  than  upon 
himself,  good-humoredly  assents  to  the  check  as  an 
incident  only  of  his  political  history,  from  which  pos- 
sibly he  may  derive  some  useful  lesson.  It  is  well 
known  to  him  that  the  uneducated  and  just  natural- 
ized immigrants  from  Europe  see  in  the  millionaires 
of  the  republic  only  another  aristocracy  which  they 
are  prompted  to  pull  down ;  and  that  these  throne- 
levellers  are  more  sensitive  to  the  alchemy  by  which 
ballots  are  changed  to  quarter  or  half  eagles  than  any 
other  class ;  therefore,  that  their  hostility  to  any  meas- 
ure may  be  softened  by  placing  in  their  palms  at 
election  these  shining  testimonials  to  their  power. 
Between  monopolists  and  socialists,  with  free  institu- 
tions, wit,  and  money,  he  hopes  to  hold  the  balance 
even,  and  if  ever  he  yields  to  a  doubt  on  the  subject, 
it  vanishes  before  a  conviction,  born  with  him,  that 
in  the  nation's  vocabulary  there  is  no  such  word  as 
failure.  Change,  amendment,  even  disaster,  there 
may  be,  but  total  miscarriage,  not  at  all 

**  There  was  another  period  set  to  the  old  laws — that  on  the  1st  of  Jan., 
1882,  the  practice  of  letting  oat  convict  labor  at  the  state  prison  must  cease. 
The  workmgmen  would  have  no  competition  of  that  kind,  but  the  prisoner* 
might  labor  for  the  state  only. 

HIST.  C  AX.,  You  vn.   26 


402  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

In  this  spirit  the  new  constitution  was  adopted.*' 
When  the  change  came,  the  state  had  been  for  two 
years  in  a  tumult  between  the  labor  agitation,  four 
general  elections,  and  other  exciting  issues,  the  people 

46  The  constitutional  delegates  were  J.  P.  Hoge,  S.F.  pres't;  B.  A.  Shurtleff, 
Napa,  born  in  1821,  in  Mass,  educated  at  Harvard,  physician,  came  to  Cal. 
in  1849;  S.  J.  Farrell,  S.  F.,  born  in  Boston  in  1853,  public  school  education, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1861,  lawyer;  A.  H.  Chapman,  Chico,  b  at  Niagara  Falls  in 
1827,  came  to  Cal.  in  18G1,  lumber  dealer;  W.  W.  Moreland,  Healdsburg,  b 
in  Johnson  co.,  Ark.,  in  1845,  came  to  Cal.  in  1859,  teacher;  C.  S.  Ringgold, 
S.  F.,  b  in  Cecil  co.,  Md,  in  1832,  came  to  Cal.  in  1852;  W.  F.  Heustis, 
Eureka,  b  in  Buckingham  co.,  Va,  in  1836,  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  lawyer; 
George  Ohleyer.  Yuba,  b  in  Alsace,  France,  in  1831,  came  to  U.  S.  while  an 
infant,  to  Cal.  in  1852,  farmer;  H.  Davis,  Truckee,  b  in  Nelson  co.,  Ky,  in 
1809,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  business  man;  Edward  Barry,  Downieville,  b  in 
Australia  in  1847,  came  to  Cal.  in  boyhood,  lawyer;  W.  J.  Sweasy,  Eureka, 
b  in  London  in  1805,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1840,  to  Cal.  in  1851,  farmer;  T.  B. 
McFarland,  Sac.,  b  in  Pa.  in  1828,  educated  at  Marshall  college,  came  to 
Cal.  in  1850,  lawyer;  Lucius  De  Witt  Morse,  San  Mateo,  b  in  E.  Poultney, 
Vt,  in  1822,  educated  at  the  N.  Y.  university,  physician;  S.  G.  Hilbora, 
Vallejo,  b  in  Mass  in  1835,  educated  at  Tufts  college,  Somewell,  came  to  Cal. 
in  1861,  lawyer;  J.  A.  Harvey,  Vallejo,  b  in  Herkimer  co.,  N.  Y.  in  1838, 
educated  at  Fairfield  academy,  came  to  Cal.  in  1859,  lawyer;  J.  A.  Eilcher, 
Auburn,  b  in  Burlington,  la,  in  1845,  came  to  Cal.  in  1858,  educated  at  Cal. 
Normal  school,  teacher  and  editor;  George  Steele,  San  Luis  Obispo,  b  in 
Delaware  cd.,  N.  Y.,  in  1825,  came  to  Cal.  from  Ohio  in  1856,  land  owner, 
cheese  maker,  and  county  judge;  G.  W.  Hunter,  El  Dorado,  b  in  111.  in  1829, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  farmer;  W.  J.  Tinnin,  Trinity;  A.  A.  Noel,  Lakeport, 
b  in  East  Tenn.  in  1832,  came  to  Cal.  in  1854,  lawyer;  W.  A.  Gregg, 
Bakersfield,  b  in  Burlington,  la,  in  1844,  educated  at  Iowa  Wesleyan  and 
Michigan  university,  came  to  Cal.  in  1867,  lawyer;  D.  C.  Stevenson,  Shasta, 
b  in  Ohio  in  1821,  came  to  Cal.  in  1852,  farmer,  lumber  manufacturer,  fur- 
niture dealer;  A.  C.  Freeman,  Sac.,  b  in  111.  in  1843,  came  to  Cal.  in  1861, 
lawyer;  John  Thomas  Weeks,  Grass  Valley,  b  in  Baltimore  in  1836,  came  to 
Cal.  in  1852,  teacher;  Presley  Dunlap,  Sac.,  b  in  Pa  in  1817,  came  to  Cal.  in 
1849,  lawyer;  Marion  Briggs,  Butte,  b  in  Mo.  in  1823,  came  to  Cal.  in  1850, 
and  again  in  1864,  agriculturalist,  and  pres't  of  State  Agric.  Soc.;  Hugh 
Walker,  Marin,  b  in  Nova  Scotia  in  1843,  came  to  Cal.  in  1864,  cooper  and 
merchant;  J.  F.  McNutt,  Yuba,  b  in  Tenn.,  in  1815,  came  to  Cal.  from  Mo. 
in  1850,  carpenter;  G.  V.  Smith,  Bakersfield,  b  in  Ky  in  1855,  lawyer;  Rush 
McComas,  Sta  Clara,  b  in  Va  in  1830,  came  to  Cal.  from  Mo.  in  1861,  farmer; 
Clitus  Barbour,  S.  F.,  b  in  111.  in  1838,  left  Knox  college  to  come  to  Cal.  in 
1854,  lawyer  and  editor;  C.  F.  Reed,  Yolo,  b  in  Mass  in  1826,  educated  at 
West  Point  for  civil  engineer,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849  through  Mexico,  pres't 
Agric.  Soc.  for  9  years,  farmer,  miner,  and  grain  dealer;  H.  C.  Rolfe,  San 
Bernardino,  came  to  Cal.  in  1851,  when  16  years  of  age,  lawyer  and  dist 
judge;  Charles  J.  Beerstecher,  S.  F.,  a  native  of  Germany  in  1851,  came  to 
U.  S.  in  1852,  educated  at  Lewisburg,  Pa,  came  to  Cal.  in  1877,  lawyer  and 
socialist;  Engene  Faucett,  Sta  Barbara,  b  in  Ohio  in  1845,  came  to  Cal.  in 
1871,  lawyer  and  dist  judge;  John  G.  McCallum,  Oakland,  b  in  Ind.  in  1830, 
educated  in  the  Ind.  university,  came  to  Cal  in  1854,  lawyer;  C.  C.  ODon- 
nell,  S.  F.,  b  in  Baltimore  in  1834,  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  physician;  A.  P. 
Vacqural,  S.  F.,  b  in  Paris  in  1841,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1858,  and  to  Cal.  in 
1866,  civil  engineer,  soldier,  sailor,  and  communist;  W.  H.  Prouty,  Amador, 
b  in  Ohio  in  1837;  came  to  Cal.  in  1852  from  la,  farmer;  James  Caples,  Sac., 
b  in  Ohio  in  1823  came  to  Cal.  in  1849  from  Mo.,  farmer;  John  A.  Eagan, 
Amador,  b  in  Va  in  1827,  came  to  Cal.  in  1851  from  Ohio,  lawyer;  Thervald 


PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CONVENTION.  403 

being  surfeited  with  politics,  if  not  nauseated  with 
the  quality  of  the  feast  so  long  forced  upon  unwilling 
stomachs.  So  far  as  its  practical  workings  are  con- 
cerned, it  has  achieved  nothing  which  a  few  amend- 

Klandins  Nelson,  S.  F.,  a  native  of  Norway  in  1849,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1852, 
to  Cal.  in  1873,  wood-turner,  and  carver  of  meerschaum  pipes;  G.  A.  John- 
son, Sta  Rosa,  b  in  Md  in  1829,  educated  at  Yale  college,  prof,  of  ancient 
languages  at  the  Western  Military  Institute  of  Ky  in  1853-^4,  came  to  CaL 
in  1873,  lawyer  and  mayor  of  Sta  Rosa;  W.  P.  Grace,  S.  F.,  b  in  East  Tenn. 
in  1837,  came  to  S.  F.  in  1868,  architectural  draughtsman;  P.  B.  Tully,  Gil- 
roy;  H.  M.  Lampson,  Tuolumne,  b  in  Vt  in  1852,  physician;  Henry  W. 
Smith,  S.  F.,  b  in  Me  in  1838,  came  to  Cal.  in  1863,  plumber;  P.  T.  Dow- 
ling,  S.  F.;  Henry  Lark  in,  El  Dorado;  John  D.  Condon.  S.  F.,  b  in  Ireland 
in  1846,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1858,  to  Cal.  in  1868,  cabinet-maker  and  car- 
builder;  C.  W.  Cross,  Nevada  city,  b  in  Syracuse,  N.  Y.  in  1848,  educated 
at  Northwestern  university,  came  to  CaL  in  1870,  lawyer.  Joseph  C.  Gor- 
man, S.  F.,  b  in  Ireland  in  1844,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1848,  to  Cal.  in  1868  as  a 
civil  engineer  on  the  N.  P.  R.  R,,  and  took  up  the  business  of  tinner;  A.  R. 
Andrews,  Shasta,  b  in  Ky  in  1829,  came  to  CaL  in  1849  from  the  battlefelds 
of  Mex.,  farmer;  Peter  Bell,  S.  F.,  b  in  Glasgow  in  1845,  came  to  U.  S.  in 
1862,  served  in  union  army,  came  to  CaL  in  1867,  house-puinter;  B.  F. 
Kenny,  S.  F.,  b  in  S.  F.  in  1854  of  Irish  parentage,  educated  at  the  Jesuit 
college  of  St  Ignatius,  telegraph  operator;  Justice  Schamp,  San  Joaquin,  b 
in  Ohio  in  1855,  farmer;  E.  P.  Soule,  Susanville,  b  in  Ohio  in  1828,  educated 
at  Marietta,  came  to  Cal.  in  1853,  mill-wright  and  wagon-maker;  W.  P. 
Hughey,  S.  F.,  b  in  Ky  in  1831,  confederate  captain  in  Longstreet's  corps, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1875,  house-painter;  Josiah  Boucher,  Chico  b  in  Pa  in  1819, 
came  to  CaL  in  1851,  stock-raiser  and  capitalist;  Charles  Swenson,  S.  F.,  b 
in  Denmark  in  1847;  came  to  CaL  in  1866,  sailor,  wood-chopper,  restaurant 
keeper;  T.  H.  Estey,  Marine,  b  in  Mass  in  1826,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849, 
dairyman;  B.  B.  Glascock,  Colusa,  b  in  Mo.  in  1843,  came  to  CaL  in  1855, 
farmer;  P.  M.  Wellin,  S.  F.,  b  in  Ireland  in  1836,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1852, 
studied  drawing  at  Cooper  Institute  and  Union,  came  to  Cal.  at  the  close  of 
the  war  in  which  he  served,  carpenter;  H.  C.  Boggs,  Lakeport,  b  in  Mo.  in 
1820,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  farmer;  James  O'Sullivan,  S.  F.,  b  in  Cork,  Ire- 
land in  1825,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1841,  joined  Stevenson's  reg't  in  1846  for  CaL, 
printer  and  editor;  A.  P.  Overton,  Sta  Rosa,  b  at  Independence,  Ms  in  1830, 
came  to  CaL  in  1850  from  Tex.  and  Mex.,  lawyer,  county  judge,  and  banker; 
L.  F.  Jones,  Mariposa,  b  in  N.  Y.  in  1821,  lawyer;  J.  R.  Freud,  b  in  N.  Y. 
of  Hungarian  parentage,  came  to  CaL  in  1864,  educated  in  the  public  schools 
and  CaL  university,  merchant;  John  Mansfield,  Los  Angeles,  b  in  N.  Y.  in  1822; 
J.  M.  Dudley,  Solano,  b  in  N.  Y.  in  1830,  came  to  Cal.  in  1852  from  Ind., 
teacher  and  farmer;  Thomas  Harrison,  S.  F.,  b  in  Eng.  in  1837  of  Irish  parents, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1858,  potter,  grain  broker,  sailor,  rigger;  G.  W.  SchelL.  Modesto, 
b.  in  N.  Y.  in  1837,  came  to  Cal.  in  1861,  dept.  col.  int.  revenue  1864-9,  county 
judge  1874^-6,  lawyer;  J.  C.  Steadman,  S.  F.,  b.  in  S.  F.  in  1851,  educated 
at  Sta  Clara  college,  conveyancer  and  searcher  of  records;  T.  D.  Heiskell, 
Stanislaus,  b.  in  Va  in  1823,  came  to  CaL  in  1849  from  Tenn.,  farmer  and 
stock-raiser;  Henry  Nennaber,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Oldenburg,  Germany  in  1838, 
came  to  U.  S.  in  1860,  to  CaL  in  1861,  grocer;  J.  S.  Reynolds,  S.  F.,  b.  in 
N.  Y.  in  1831,  came  to  Cal.  in  1854  from  Wis.,  established  tho  Idaho  States- 
man in  1864,  settled  in  Cal.  in  1872,  lawyer,  helped  Barbour  defend  the 
rioters  of  the  workingmen's  party;  Rufus  Shoemaker,  Grass  Valley,  b.  in 
Copiah,  Miss.,  in  1830,  came  to  CaL  about  1855,  editor  and  county  clerk;  F. 
Lindow,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Prussia,  came  to  U.  S.  from  Eng.  in  1861,  to  Cal.  in 
1864,  tailor;  Conrad  Herold,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Germany  in  1831,  came  to  U.  S.  in 
1857,  to  CaL  in  1859;  grocer;  Hugh  M.  La  Rue,  Sac.,  b.  in  Ky  in  1830,  came 


404  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

ments  would  not  have  done.  Those  objects  which  it 
particularly  aimed  at  it  failed  to  achieve.  The  effect 
upon  corporations  disappointed  its  authors  and  sup- 
porters. Many  of  them  were  strong  enough  still  to 
defy  state  power  and  evade  state  laws  in  protect- 
to  Cal.  in  1849,  sheriff  and  farmer;  M.  M.  Estee,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Pa  in  1833, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1853,  lawyer;  J.  J.  Ayres,  Los  Angeles,  b.  in  Scotland  in 
1830,  came  to  Cal.  from  St  Louis  in  1849,  started  with  others  the  Morning 
Call  in  1856,  which  was  sold  in  1866,  when  Ayres  went  to  Los  Angeles  to 
take  charge  of  the  Evening  Express,  printer;  Edmund  Nason,  San  Benito,  b. 
in  Stafford  co.,  N.  H.,  dairyman;  I.  S.  Belcher,  Marysville,  pres't  pro  tern, 
of  the  convention,  b.  in  Vt  in  1825,  educated  at  the  Vt  university,  came  to 
Cal.  in  1853,  dist  atty,  judge  of  dist,  and  sup.  judge;  H.  C.  Wilson,  Tehama, 
b.  in  Ky  in  1827,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849  from  Texaa,  farmer;  John  M.  Kelly, 
Woodland,  b.  in  Mo.  in  1825,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849  from  Mex.,  farmer;  W, 
H.  L.  Barnes,  S.  P.,  b.  in  Mass,  in  1832,  came  to  Cal.  in  18G2,  lawyer;  Pat- 
rick Reddy,  Inyo  and  Mono,  b.  in  N.  Y.  in  1839,  came  to  Cal.  in  1861, 
notary  public,  lawyer,  and  politician;  D.  H.  Cowden,  Marysville,  b.  in  Pa 
in  1839,  came  to  Cal.  in  1860,  lawyer  and  probate  judge;  Byron  Waters, 
San  Bernardino,  b.  in  Ga.  in  1849,  came  to  CaL  in  1869,  lawyer;  John  P. 
Weat,  Los  Angeles,  b.  in  Ireland  in  1825,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1828,  served  in 
14th  la  inf.  vols,  came  to  Cal.  in  1875,  farmer;  Alexander  Campbell,  Oakland, 
b.  in  Jamaica,  W.  I.,  in  1820,  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  lawyer;  J.  E.  Murphy, 
Crescent  City,  b.  in  Me  in  1846,  came  to  Cal.  from  Minn,  in  1860,  lawyer; 
J.  McM.  Shafter,  S.  P.,  b.  in  Vt  in  1816,  came  to  Cal.  from  Wis.,  lawyer; 
Daniel  Tuttle.  Sta  Cruz,  b.  in  Ohio  in  1823,  came  to  CaL  in  1852,  farmer;  C. 
R.  Kleine,  S.  P.,  b.  in  Prussia  in  1830,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1850,  to  Cal.  in  1854 
from  St  Louis,  shoemaker;  C.  V.  Stuart,  Sonoma;  Raymond  Lavigne,  S.  P., 
b.  in  Prance  in  1848,  came  to  CaL  1868,  lithographer;  Edward  O.  Smith,  San 
Jose,  b.  in  Montgomery  co.,  Md,  in  1817,  came  to  CaL  in  1853  from  111., 
farmer  and  trader;  H.  K.  Turner,  Sierra,  b.  in  Me  in  1828,  educated  at 
Bowdoin  college,  came  to  Cal.  in  1853,  farmer;  J.  E.  Hale,  Auburn,  b.  in 
Pa  in  1824,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  lawyer,  county  judge,  and  sup.  ct  reporter; 
C.  G.  Finney,  San  Buenaventura,  b.  in  N.  Y.  in  1830,  son  of  the  founder  of 
Oberlin  college,  where  he  was  educated,  came  to  Cal.  in  1874  from  Wis., 
lawyer,  editor,  and  horticulturalist;  R.  S.  Swing,  San  Bernardino,  b.  in  Ohio 
in  1845,  educated  at  Mich,  university,  came  to  Cal.  in  1872,  lawyer;  William 
Van  Voorhies,  Oakland,  b.  in  Tenn.  in  1820,  educated  at  Jackson  college, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1849  as  bearer  of  despatches  to  Gen.  Riley,  and  was  appointed 
postal  agent  for  the  coast,  law  partner  of  Edmund  Randolph,  sec.  of  state 
under  three  governors,  surveyor  of  the  port  of  S.  P.,  etc. ;  Eli  T.  Blackmer, 
San  Diego,  b.  in  Worcester,  Mass.,  in  1831,  came  to  Cal.  in  1873,  school 
supt;  Dennis  Willey  Herrington,  Sta  Clara,  b.  of  German  and  Irish  parents  in 
Ind.  in  1826,  educated  at  Asbury  university,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  lawyer; 
C.  Brown,  Tulare,  b.  in  Ky  in  1821,  educated  at  Louisville  college,  came  to 
Cal.  in  1850,  sheriff,  lawyer,  and  politician;  Edward  Evey,  Los  Angeles,  b. 
in  Md.  1813,  came  to  Cal.  in  1854,  owner  of  the  White  Sulphur  springs  of 
St  Helena;  Daniel  Inman,  Livermore,  b.  in  E.  Tenn.  in  1827,  came  to  CaL 
in  1849  from  111.,  hotel-keeper  and  farmer;  S.  A.  Holmes,  Fresno,  b.  in  Wil- 
mington, N.  C.,  in  1830,  came  to  CaL  from  Miss,  in  1868,  farmer;  N.  G. 
Wyatt,  Salinas,  b.  in  Mo.,  educated  at  St  Joseph  college  Bardstown  Ky, 
came  to  Cai.  in  1859  from  la  via  Denver,  Idaho  mines,  Salt  Lake  and  San 
Bernardino  trail,  farmer;  Joseph  R.  Weller,  Sta  Clara,  b.  in  N.  J.  in  1819, 
educated  in  the  N.  Y.  state  normal  school,  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  farmer  and 
stock -raiser;  Thomas  McConnell,  Sac.,  b.  in  Vt  in  1827,  came  to  Cal.  in 
1850,  editor,  banker,  sheep-raiser,  land-owner;  J,  M.  Charles,  Petalumn,  b. 


CAPITAL  AXD  LABOR.  405 

ing  their  interests,  and  this  they  did  without  scruple. 
The  relation  of  capital  and  labor  is  even  more  strained 
than  before  the  constitution  was  adopted.  Capital 
soon  recovered  from  a  temporary  intimidation,  and 

in  Pa  in  1809,  educated  at  Marietta,  O.,  came  to  CaL  from  Mo.  in  1854;  J. 
W.  Winans,  S.  F.,  b.  in  New  York  in  1820,  educated  at  Columbia  college, 
came  to  CaL  in  1849,  with  a  company  owning  their  vessel,  prominent  poli- 
tician and  lawyer;  Eugene  Caaserly,  S.  F.;  Thomas  H.  Lame,  Sta  Clara,  b. 
in  Mo.  in  1832,  came  to  CaL  in  1847,  finishing  his  education  at  the  univer- 
sity of  the  Pacific,  lawyer;  J.  R.  W.  Hitchcock.  San  Joaquin,  b.  in  Ya  in 
! !  educated  at  the  baptist  college  of  that  city,  came  to  CaL  in  1549, 
machinist  and  farmer;  F.  O.  Townsend,  Mendocino,  b.  in  N.  Y.  in  1845, 
came  to  CaL  in  1S51  from  Canada  West,  farmer;  D.  S.  Terry,  Stockton,  b. 
in  Miss,  in  1827,  came  to  CaL  in  1849  from  Texas,  politician,  lawyer,  judge, 
etc.;  S.  R  Bart,  Placer,  b.  in  Chemnngco.,  K.  Y.,  in  1828,  educated  at 
Alfred  college,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  teacher,  lumber-dealer,  quartz-miner; 
Henry  Edgerton,  Sac.,  b.  in  Yt,  came  to  CaL  in  1853,  orator  and  lawyer; 
J.  B.  Hall,  Stockton,  b.  in  Md  in  1819,  educated  at  St  Johns  and  Jefferson 
colleges,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  lawyer;  J.  H.  Keyes,  Yuba  and  Sutter,  b.  in 
Ct  in  1831,  educated  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  farmer, 
prime  mover  in  the  *  slickens '  suit  against  the  Little  York  Gold  Mining  and 
Water  co.  for  depositing  mining  debris  on  farming  lands;  John  Berry,  \  reka, 
b.  in  O.  in  1826,  educated  at  Wyandotte,  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  merchant, 
miner,  lawyer;  W.  J.  Graves,  San  Luis  Obispo,  b.  and  educated  in  Ya,  came 
to  CaL  in  1849  from  the  Mex.  war,  lawyer;  M.  R.  C.  Pulliam,  Butte,  b.  in 
Salinas  co.,  Mo.,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  lawyer  and  miner;  W.  F.  White, 
Watsonville,  b.  in  Ireland  in  1822,  came  to  U.  S.  in  1823,  came  to  CaL  in 
1849,  merchant,  farmer;  E.  Martin,  b.  in  Eng.  in  1833,  came  to  CaL  in  1S51, 
stationer,  post-master,  notary  public;  J.  N.  Barton,  Humboldt,  b.  in  Ohio  in 
1810,  educated  at  Cincinnati,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  merchant,  stock-raiser, 
miner;  David  Lewis,  San  Joaquin,  b.  in  Yt  in  1828,  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  as 
a  member  of  a  Boston  mining  company,  carpenter,  miner,  land-owner;  J.  V. 
Webster,  Alameda,  b.  in  Term,  in  1S30,  came  to  CaL  in  1853,  from  I1L,  with 
a  party  of  young  men  who  walked  from  Salt  Lake  to  Plaeervflle,  fruit- 
grower; J.  E.  Dean,  Placervflle,  b.  in  R.  I.  in  1837,  educated  at  Niantic, 
came  to  CaL  in  1859,  served  in  Co.  G,  4th  inf.  CaL  vols,  miner;  J.  B.  Gar- 
vey,  Calaveras,  b.  in  Pa  in  1843,  educated  at  St  Mary's  college,  Niagara, 
N.  Y.,  came  to  CaL  in  1865,  school  sup.,  under-sheriff;  W.  S.  Moffatt,  San 
Mateo,  b.  in  Roxbury,  N.  Y.,  in  1818,  came  to  CaL  in  1849,  miner  and 
farmer;  J.  F.  Miller,  S.  F. ;  John  Walker,  Tuolumne,  b.  in  Wilmington,  N. 
C.,  in  1825,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  physician;  John  McCoy,  Nevada,  b.  in 
Erie  co.,  Pa,  in  1837,  educated  at  Gaiesbury  college,  I1L,  came  to  CaL  in 
1853,  miner;  J.  M.  Strong,  Mariposa  and  Merced,  b.  in  Ga.  in  1831,  came  to 
CaL  in  1850  from  Miss.,  farmer  and  sheriff;  Peter  J.  Joyce,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Ire- 
land in  1839,  came  to  U.  S.  when  a  boy,  learned  shoe-making  and  cabinet- 
making,  served  in  the  civil  wrr,  went  to  Ireland  on  a  Fenian  mission,  par- 
ticipating in  the  demonstration  on  Chester,  Eng.,  and  heading  an  expedi- 
tion against  Wicklow  in  1867,  the  Eng.  gov't  Hffi'"''*g  a  reward  for  him  he 
returned  to  U.  S.  in  1868  and  came  to  Cat;  Yolney  K  Howard,  Los  Angeles; 
Hiram  Mills,  Contra  Costa,  b.  in  Hudson,  N.  Y.,  in  1830,  educated  at  Alle- 
ghany  college  Pa,  and  at  the  law  institute  of  Ballston  Spa,  X.  Y.,  came  to 
CaL  in  1851,  dist  att'y  for  20  years;  Robert  Crouch,  Napa,  b.  in  Ohio  in 
1823,  educated  at  Hopedale,  came  to  CaL  in  1850,  physician,  lawyer,  county 
clerk,  county  judge;  Walter  Van  Dyke,  Oakland,  b.  in  N.  Y.  in  1823,  edu- 
cated at  the  village  academy  of  Tyre,  read  law  in  Cleveland,  came  to  CaL 
in  1849.  dist  att'y  of  Klamath  co.,  editor  of  Hmrintdt  Times,  settled  himself 


406  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

returned  to  a  land  where  it  could  earn  high  interest. 
Labor,  still  uneasy,  was  also  still  subject  to  the  inex- 
orable laws  of  supply  and  demand.  Legislators  were 
still  to  be  approached  by  agents  of  railroads  and  other 
corporations,  as  might  be  seen  by  the  reports  of  inves- 
tigating committees.  Chinese  were  still  employed 
digging  and  grading.  The  state  board  of  railroad 
commissioners  was  a  useless  expense  to  the  common- 
wealth, being  as  wax  in  the  hands  of  the  companies  it 
was  set  to  watch.  The  new  constitution  was  framed 
to  make  the  rich  pay  their  share  of  taxation,  to  control 
corporations,  to  correct  the  revenue  system,  and  to 
equalize  the  rights  of  the  people  altogether.  In  each 
of  these  designs  it  failed.  But  it  also  failed  to  check 
the  advancement  of  the  state,  which,  purely  by  its 
resources,  climate,  and  generally  favorable  conditions 
for  comfort  and  wealth,  progressed  in  spite  of  political 
blunderings.  By  and  by  the  people  may  have  time 
to  consider  what  is  best  to  be  done  with  laws,  law- 
makers, and  law-breakers. 

at  Oakland  in  1868,  U.  S.  att'y;  Smith  B.  Thompson,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Dutchess 
co.,  N.  Y.,  in  1821,  educated  at  the  Quaker  school  of  Mechaiiicsville,  came 
to  Cal.  in  1860,  business  man,  school  director;  John  S.  Hager,  S.  F. ;  J. 
West  Martin,  Oakland,  b.  in  Washington  co.,  Md,  in  1822,  educated  at 
Prospect  Hill  academy,  came  to  Cal.  in  1853  from  Tenn.,  agriculturalist  and 
stock  raiser,  regent  of  the  Cal.  university,  pres't  Union  Savings  Bank  of 
Oakland;  S.  M.  Wilson,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Ohio  in  1824,  came  to  Cal.  in  1853, 
lawyer;  Luke  Doyle,  S.  F.,  b.  in  Ireland;  W.  L.  Dudley,  Stockton;  J.  M. 
Rhodes,  Woodland,  b.  in  Ohio  in  1817,  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  banker  with 
Sturges  and  Purdy  at  Sac.  until  1857,  when  he  purchased  the  rancho  Canada 
de  Capoy  in  Yolo  co.  and  became  a  farmer.  The  secretary  of  the  conven- 
tion was  Asbury  Johnson,  b.  in  Joliet,  111.,  in  1833,  educated  at  Beloit 
college,  came  to  Cal.  in  1864,  teacher  and  editor  of  Santa  Barbara  Press,  one 
of  the  judges  at  the  Phila  Cent.  Exposition  of  '  national  and  elected  state 
exhibits '  and  historian  of  the  exposition,  owner  of  the  Daily  Times  of  Oak- 
land. The  clerks  were  George  A.  Thornton  of  Santa  Rosa,  Edwin  Frederick 
Smith  of  Sac.,  George  McStay  of  Stockton,  Ellison  L.  Crawford  of  El 
Dorado;  sergts-at-arms,  Thomas  J.  Sherwood  of  Marysville,  Benjamin 
Chambers  of  Modesto;  post-master,  Michael  Barnes  of  Chico. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

POLITICAL  HISTORY. 
1879-1889. 

UNDER  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION — STATE   ELECTIOXS — SAX  FRANCISCO  CHAR- 
TER— MUNICIPAL    MATTERS — OCR    IMPORTED    RULERS — LEGISLATION 

UNDER    THE    NEW    REGIME — IRRIGATION    AND    RlPARIAN    RIGHTS — AS 

ELECTIVE  JUDICIARY — EXTRA  SESSION  OF  THE  LEGISLATURE — PARTY  IS- 
SUES— GRATE  QUESTIONS — CONTEST  FOR  THE  UNITED  STATES  SENATOR- 
SHIP — BRIEF  PERIOD  OF  QUIET — CALIFORNIA  AS  A  TYPE — DISTURBANCE 
OF  THE  PUBLIC  MIND — NAMES  OF  COUNTIES — FINANCES — FEDERAL  EX- 
PENDITURES— INDUSTRIAL  ENTERPRISE — IMMIGRATION — NEW  ERA  or 
DEVELOPMENT. 

SMARTING  under  the  sense  that  thirty-five  foreign- 
born  delegates  had  been  chosen  to  sit  in  the  constitu- 
tional convention  of  an  American  state,  and  that  almost 
one  half  of  San  Francisco's  delegation  had  also  been 
of  this  class,  the  republicans  made  an  effort  at  the 
general  election  in  September  to  redeem  the  state 
from  this  unnatural  domination.  The  result  was  hard 
to  prognosticate  with  four  municipal  tickets  in  the 
field,  and  a  bewildering  re-organization  of  parties;  for 
the  Kearney  workingmen  held  aloof  from  the  Work- 
ingmen's party  of  California,  the  new  constitution 
party  had  dropped  the  labor1  element,  which  was 

1The  workingmen  were  inclined  to  believe  that  the  adoption  of  the  new 
constitution  was  due  to  their  movement,  as  the  convention  had  been.  Bnt 
this  was  not  so.  A  revolution  had  taken  place  among  the  former  labor  or- 
ganizations, and  there  had  also  been  a  change  of  sentiment  brought  about  by 
the  debates  on  the  constitution  which  were  published  from  day  to  day.  The 
workingmen  carried  two  municipal  elections  in  Oakland,  and  in  the  special 
election  for  state  senator  in  1878  polled  52  per  cent  of  the  popular  vote;  yet 
Oakland  gave  1,496  majority  against  the  constitution  which  they  assumed  to 
be  theirs.  Santa  Clara  co.,  which  elected  the  workingmen's  candidate  for 
assemblyman  in  1878,  gave  a  majority  of  679  against  the  constitution-  San 
Jose  also,  which  had  elected  workingmen  to  the  municipal  offices,  gave  574 
votes  against  the  constitution.  Similar  changes  occurred  in  Gilroy  and  other 
places.  The  workingmen's  two  tickets  at  the  municipal  election  in  Sacra* 


408  POLITICAL  HISTORY 

divided  between  the  democrats  and  republicans,  and 
much  independence  was  exercised  in  the  indulgence 
of  individual  preferences. 

Upon  the  state  ticket  the  republicans  elected  for 
governor  George  C.  Perkins,  a  prosperous  business 
man,  a  native  of  the  state  of  Maine ;  for  lieutenant- 
governor  John  Mansfield  ;  for  secretary  of  state  D. 
M.  Burns  ;  for  treasurer  John  Weil ;  for  controller  D. 
M.  Kenfield ;  for  attorney-general  A.  L.  Hart ;  for 
superintendent  of  public  instruction  Frederick  W. 
Campbell ;  for  surveyor-general  James  W.  Shanklin ; 
and  for  clerk  of  the  supreme  court  Frank  W.  Gross. 
The  whole  congressional  delegation  was  republican, 
namely,  Horace  Davis,  Horace  F.  Page,  Joseph  Mc- 
Kenna,  and  Romualdo  Pacheco,3  of  the  first,  second, 
third,  and  fourth  districts,  in  the  order  named.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  chief  justice  and  the  whole  supreme 
bench  with  a  single  exception3  were  elected  by  the 
democratic  and  workingmen's  parties.  The  bench 

mento,  in  March  1878,  polled  49^  per  cent  of  the  total  vote,  the  Kearney 
wing  electing  nearly  all  the  officers.  The  same  strength  was  shown  in  vot- 
ing for  delegates  to  the  constitutional  convention,  yet  that  city  gave  1251 
majority  against  the  constitution.  At  Marysville  the  same  reversal  occurred, 
and  in  all  the  leading  cities,  showing  that  the  workingmen  had  changed.  On 
the  other  hand,  a  change  in  the  general  sentiment  toward  the  constitution 
had  carried  it  by  a  large  majority.  WorTdnqmen's  Party  in  Cal.,  Its  Rise  and 
Fall,  1876-8. 

Horace  F.  Page  was  born  in  Orleans  co:,  N.  Y.,  in  1833,  came  to  Cal.  at 
the  age  of  20,  worked  in  a  saw-mill,  then  in  a  livery  stable,  and  drove  stage. 
He  became  a  successful  business  man.  A  republican  in  politics,  he  was  nom- 
inated for  the  state  senate  when  the  defeat  of  his  party  was  certain,  but  did 
not  shrink  from  the  ordeal.  In  congress  he  was  a  working  member.  His 
principal  achievements  during  his  first  term  were  securing  the  passage  of  a 
bill  which  made  a  saving  of  $3,000,000  in  the  mail  service  without  decreasing 
its  efficiency. 

*  Romualdo  Pacheco  was  born  in  Cal.  in  1831.  His  father  came  from  Gua- 
najuato, Mexico,  in  1825,  with  Echandia,  military  governor  and  general  in 
command  of  Alta  California,  and  was  killed  in  a  skirmish  between  Echandia 
and  Victoria,  who  had  been  appointed  in  his  stead,  but  whom  he  refused  to 
recognize.  He  had  married  Ramona  Carrillo  of  San  Diego,  and  his  son  was 
born  at  Santa  Barbara.  Romualdo  was  sent  to  school  at  the  Sandwich 
islands  at  the  age  of  seven  years,  where  he  remained  until  1843,  forgetting 
his  native  tongue,  but  acquiring  English  and  French.  After  this  he  had  a 
private  tutor,  and  his  mother  having  married  John  Wilson  of  Dundee,  Scot- 
land, a  sea-captain,  he  was  sent  to  sea  with  his  tutor  to  learn  navigation. 
When  the  country  passed  into  American  hands  he  became  a  politician. 

8  Ross  was  republican.  The  new  constitution  party  had  nominated 
Nathaniel  Bennett  for  chief  justice,  and  the  republicans  A.  L.  Rhodes,  but 
the  workingmen  secured  all  but  Ross. 


NEW  OFFICERS.  409 

consisted  of  Chief-justice  Robert  F.  Morrison4  and  asso- 
ciates E.  W.  McKinstry,  J.  D.  Thornton,  Samuel  B. 
McKee,  M.  H.  Myrick,  E.  M.  Ross,  and  J.  R.  Sharp- 
stein.  Of  the  three  railroad  commissioners  Burstecher 
was  elected  by  the  workingmen,  Stoneman  by  the 
workingmen  and  the  new  constitution  party,  and  Cove 
by  the  republicans.  The  state  board  of  equalization, 
consisting  of  one  member  from  each  of  the  congres- 
sional districts,  was  composed  of  Warren  Dutton,  T. 
D.  Heiskell,  M.  M.  Drew,  and  James  L.  King,  with 
ex  officio  member,  the  state  controller,  two  of  whom, 
if  not  more,  were  republicans.  The  state  senate  con- 
sisting of  forty  members  had  a  majority  of  four  re- 
publicans, without  counting  the  fusionists  who  had 
belonged  to  the  party.*  The  assembly  of  eighty  mem- 

*Robert  F.  Morrison  wa.«  born  in  I1L  in  1826,  served  in  the  Mexican  war 
as  a  non-commissioned  officer  in  the  reg't  of  his  brother,  now  a  prominent 
lawyer  of  St  Louis,  and  with  whom  he  studied  law  before  and  after  the  war. 
In  1852  he  came  to  CaL  His  brother,  Murray  Morrison,  also  a  lawyer,  was 
practising  at  Sac.,  and  here  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  formed  a  part- 
nership with  J.  Neely  Johnson.  He  was  elected  dist  atty  of  Sac.  co.,  and 
afterward  removed  to  Virginia  city,  Nev.,  where  he  resided  two  years. 
Prom  there  he  removed  to  S.  F.  in  1862.  In  1859  Morrison  was  the  candi- 
date of  the  southern  wing  of  the  democratic  party  for  state  senator,  but  was 
defeated  by  the  know-nothing  candidate,  Robert  C.  Clark,  who  was  for 
many  years  county  judge  and  superior  judge  of  Sac.  co.,  and  who  died  on 
the  bench  in  1883.  In  1870  Morrison  was  elected  judge  of  the  4th  dist  court 
for  6  years,  was  reelected,  and  served  until  the  change  in  the  constitution, 
when  the  workingmen 's  convention  chose  him  for  chief  justice  for  a  twelve 
years'  term.  At  the  end  of  seven  years  his  labor  ended,  his  death  occurring 
March  2,  1887. 

6The  first  senate  under  the  new  constitution  was  composed  of  the  follow- 
ing republicans:  E.  H.  Pardee,  S.  G.  Nye,  Alameda;  W.  A.  Cheney,  Butte, 
Plumas,  and  Lassen;  W.  H.  Sears,  Contra  Costa  and  Marin;  W.  H.  Brown, 
El  Dorado  and  Alpine;  Chester  Rowell,  Fresno,  Tidare,  Kern,  Mono,  and 
Inyo;  William  George,  B.  J.  Watson,  Nevada  and  Sierra;  S.  B.  Burt,  Placer; 
Grove  L.  Johnson,  William  Johnston,  Sac. ;  A.  T.  Hudson,  San  Joaquin  and 
Amador;  George  F.  Baker,  James  C.  Zuck,  Santa  Clara;  J.  F.  Wendell, 
Solano  and  Yolo;  E.  A.  Davis,  Yuba  and  Sntter;  W.  W.  Traylor,  John  H. 
Dickinson,  Paul  Neuman,  Theodore  Hittell,  John  S.  Enos.  Democrats:  B. 
B.  Glasscock,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  W.  L.  Anderson,  Napa,  Lake,  and  So- 
noma; D.  M.  Pool,  Mariposa,  Merced,  and  Stanislaus;  W.  W.  Moreland, 
Sonoma.  Workingmen:  Joseph  C.  Gorman,  San  Francisco.  New  Constitu- 
tion party:  B.  F.  Langford,  San  Joaquin  and  Amador;  R.  M.  Lampson, 
Calaveras  and  Tuolnmne;  J.  P.  West,  Los  Angeles  (and  workingmeu);  W. 
J.  Hill,  Monterey,  San  Benito,  and  Santa  Cruz;  J.  W.  Satterwhite,  San 
Diego  and  San  Bernardino;  Warren  Chase,  Ventura,  Santa  Barbara,  and 
San  Luis  Cbispo;  Robert  Desty,  San  Francisco  and  San  Mateo;  J.  H.  Har- 
lan,  Solano  and  Yolo;  Martin  Kelly,  T.  K.  Nelson,  Thomas  Kane,  San  Fran- 
cisco;  Pierce  H.  Ryan,  Del  Norte,  Hnmboldt,  and  Mendocino. 

The  assembly  was  composed  of  republicans:    Charles  N.  Fox,  W.  W. 


410  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

bers  consisted  of  thirty-four  straight  republicans, 
twenty-three  democrats  and  workingmen,  and  twenty- 
one  fusionists  or  new-constitution  members.  Upon 
each  of  the  several  tickets  used  at  the  election  was 
printed  in  conspicuous  lettering  "  Against  Chinese." 
In  San  Francisco  out  of  40,259  votes  only  229  were 
for  allowing  the  Chinese  to  remain  in  the  country. 
The  plurality  of  Perkins 6  for  governor  was  nearly 

Camron,  G.  W.  Tyler,  Alameda;  R.  C.  Dawees,  L.  Brusie,  Amador;  Max 
Brooks,  W.  W.  Durham,  Butte;  T.  Fraser,  El  Dorado;  Cyrus  Goleman,  El 
Dorado  and  Alpine;  C.  D.  Estey,  Marine;  Charles  Mulholland,  Plumas  and 
Lassen;  J.  R.  Finlayson,  T.  H.  Murry,  W.  B.  May,  H.  A.  Gorley.  L.  J. 
Hardy,  Jr.,  J.  F.  Cowdrey,  San  Francisco;  H.  Y.  Stanley,  San  Luis  Obispo; 
Rush  McComas,  J.  L.  York,  D.  Frink,  Santa  Clara;  W.  R.  Leadbetter,  San 
Joaquin;  C.  N.  Felton,  San  Mateo;  F.  A.  Leach,  A.  Bennett,  Solano;  James 
Adams,  Sonoma;  A.  L.  Chandler,  Sutter;  Daniel  Dimond,  Tuolumne;  J.  P. 
Brown,  Yuba;  T.  L.  Chamberlain,  Placer;  Seymour  Carr,  J.  N.  Young,  El- 
wood  Bruner,  Sacramento;  H.  M.  Streeter,  San  Bernardino.  Democrats: 
H.  A.  Messenger,  Calaveras;  C.  G.  Sayle,  Fresno;  James  Hynes,  H.  K. 
Brown,  Sonoma;  J.  D.  Spencer,  Stanislaus;  R.  F.  Del  Valle,  Los  Angeles; 
W.  F.  Coffman,  Mariposa  and  Merced;  C.  J.  Sayle,  Fresno;  J.  B.  Cook, 
Siskiyou  and  Modoc.  Workingmen's  Party:  E.  S.  Josselyn,  Monterey;  W. 
J.  Sinon,  W.  W.  Cuthbert,  S.  J.  Garibaldi,  S.  R.  Finlayson,  G.  B.  Ward,  J. 
J.  McCarthy,  G.  Picket,  J.  J.  McCalian,  S.  Braunhart,  J.  J.  McDade, 
Michael  Lane,  John  Burns,  P.  T.  Gaffey,  S.  Maybell,  A.  B.  Maguire.  New 
Constitution  Party:  D.  N.  Sherburne,  Contra  Costa;  W.  P.  Matthews, 
Colusa  and  Tehama;  L.  F.  Cooper,  Del  Norte;  C.  L.  Stoddard,  Humboldt; 
A.  P.  McCarty,  Lake;  L.  G.  Morse,  Mendocino;  J.  Levee,  A.  M.  Walker, 
J.  O.  Sweetland,  Nevada;  C.  C.  Watson,  San  Diego,  Milton  Wason,  Santa 
Barbara  and  Ventura;  Elihu  Anthony,  Santa  Cruz;  J.  J.  Harris,  San 
Benito;  E.  J.  Mclntosh,  H.  J.  Corcoran,  San  Joaquin;  J.  S.  P.  Bass,  Trinity 
and  Shasta;  D.  N.  Hershy,  Yolo;  T.  H.  Carr,  Yuba;  A.  B.  Du  Brutz, 
Tulare.  There  appears  to  be  two  vacancies  or  only  78  members  elected. 

In  this  assembly  James  Adams,  member  for  Sonoma,  whose  decease  oc- 
curred in  1388,  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  men,  serving  on  many  impor- 
tant committees  with  rare  ability  and  zeal.  An  Irishman  by  birth,  he 
embarked  for  Quebec  in  1846,  removing  soon  afterward  to  Phil.,  and  in  1852 
to  Cal.  After  farming  for  some  years  in  Humboldt  co.,  he  engaged  in  the 
real  estate  business,  in  which  he  was  remarkably  successful.  In  1869  he  was 
elected  supervisor,  in  1871  sheriff,  and  on  being  relieved  from  the  shrievalty 
engaged  in  viticulture  and  stock-raising  in  the  Sonoma  valley.  In  1857  he 
was  married  to  Miss  Sarah  Elizabeth  Cameron,  a  nativ.e  of  Phil.,  who  died 
some  five  years  before  him.  Of  their  surviving  children,  James  E.,  the  eld- 
est, was  married  to  Frances  Isabel,  daughter  of  Governor  Perkins. 

6JThe  N.  C.  P.  candidate  was  Hugh  J.  Glenn,  of  Colusa,  who  received 
46,851  votes;  the  workingmen's  candidate,  William  F.  White,  received  44,- 
436  votes;  the  republican,  Perkins,  67,619.  S.  F.  Chronicle,  Sept.  15,  1879. 

A  native  of  Maine,  Gov.  Perkins  began  life  as  a  sailor  boy,  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  coming  to  Cal.,  where,  after  a  brief  mining  experience,  he  found 
employment  iu  a  store  at  Oroville.  By  close  economy  he  saved  enough  to 


THE  NEW  GOVERNOR.  411 

21,000,  and  this  extraordinary  reversal  of  the  vote  on 
the  adoption  of  the  new  constitution  was  with  diffi- 
culty accounted  for  except  by  supposing  that  power- 
ful agencies  had  been  at  work  to  bring  about  this 
result  in  order  to  modify  as  far  as  possible  the 
strenuous  interpretation  of  the  constitution  by  the  first 
legislature.  Moreover,  to  the  result  which  the  new 
constitution  party  deplored,  the  inexperience  of  many 
of  its  former  supporters  contributed  by  dividing  in- 
stead of  consolidating  their  forces.  All  attempted 
political  reforms,  where  the  unthinking  and  uneducated 
are  used  as  a  power,  as  in  the  adoption  of  the  consti- 
tution of  1879,  incur  the  danger  that  the  appeal  of 
any  demagogue,  and  especially  of  a  demagogue  whose 
palm  when  it  grasps  the  hand  of  a  voter  has  a  trick 
of  shedding  gold,  may  make  a  breach  in  its  ranks. 
Such  breaches  had  been  easily  and  quickly  effected  in 
the  new  party,  so  that  it  might  be  said  that  in  six 
months  after  the  adoption  of  the  constitution  the 
party  which  had  just  carried  the  state  was  practically 
defunct. 

In  San  Francisco  the  result  of  the  municipal  vote 
was  even  more  indicative  of  interference  than  else- 
where in  the  state,  the  republicans  and  workingmen 
carrying  the  city  against  the  new  constitution  in  the 
cradle  of  its  party.  Of  twelve  superior  judges  five 
were  republicans  and  seven  workingmen.1  Eight  of 
the  twelve  were  on  the  new  constitution  ticket,  also, 

purchase  the  business,  which  he  gradually  increased  until  his  sales  amounted 
to  $500,000  a  year.  La  1872  he  was  admitted  into  partnership  with  Goodall 
&:  XeLson.  Later  he  became  connected  with  a  number  of  prominent  enter- 
prises, among  others  the  Arctic  Oil  works,  of  which  he  is  president,  the  Pa- 
cific Steam  Whaling  company,  and  the  West  Coast  Land  company,  of  both 
of  which  he  is  vice-president.  In  1S89  he  was  chosen  state  senator  for  Butte 
co.t  and  in  1873  to  fill  the  unexpired  term  of  Sen.  Boucher  for  Butte,  Plumas, 
and  Lassen. 

7  The  judges  elected  to  the  superior  bench  in  S.  F.  were,  rep:  T.  K.  Wil- 
son, John  Hunt,  Jr,  J.  M.  Allen,  John  F.  Finn,  James  C.  Carey;  W.  D.  and 
N.  C. T.  W.  Freelon,  W.  P.  Daingerfield,  Robt  Ferral,  O.  P.  Evans,  Howard 
Smith,  M.  A.  Edmonds,  Jeremiah  F.  Sullivan. 


412  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

which  made  their  election  sure.  But  the  mayor,  I. 
S.  Kalloch,  a  baptist  preacher,  was  chosen  by  a  plu- 
rality 8  of  1,528  by  the  workingmen,  while  his  com- 
petitor on  the  new  constitution  ticket  was  upon  the 
democratic  ticket  also.  The  inference  was  plain  that 
republican  votes  had  assisted  to  place  at  the  head  of 
the  city  government  a  man  whose  presence  there  was 
regarded  by  the  public  and  press  a  reproach  to  the 
city,  no  less  than  to  the  church  which  he  rendered 
notorious  by  his  ministrations.9  So  far,  indeed,  from 
being  in  sympathy  with  the  class  whose  candidate  he 
was,  he  had  denounced  them  unsparingly  m  the  labor 
agitation  of  18 76-7. 10  But  now  he  was  Kearney's 
choice  for  mayor,  and  Kearney  himself  was  openly 
accused  of  having  been  purchased. 

It  will  be  observed  that  no  election  was  held  in 
1879  for  freeholders  to  form  a  charter  for  San  Fran- 
cisco to  supersede  the  consolidation  act.  When  the 
legislature  met  in  January,  1880,  at  the  request  of 
the  board  of  supervisors  of  San  Francisco,  which  had 
been  advised  that  the  force  of  the  consolidation  act 
would  expire  on  the  4th  of  July,11  it  passed  "  an  act.  to 

8  The  candidate  for  mayor  on  the  rep.  ticket  was  Brilsford  P.  Flint;  and 
on  the  N.  O.  and  Dem.,  Walcott  N.  Griswald. 

9 1  have  myself  heard  Kalloch  urge  violent  measures  against  the  Chinese  in 
his  Sunday  evening  service,  which  consisted  of  15  minutes  devoted  to  religion 
and  45  to  politics.  Admission  tickets  were  sold  at  an  office  in  the  vestibule, 
as  at  a  theatre,  hy  the  speaker's  colored  servant  and  confidant;  price  ten 
cents.  The  house  was  always  well  filled,  and  had  quite  the  air  of  a  theatre. 
This  sort  of  entertainment  seemed  extremely  well  adapted  to  the  taste  of  a 
certain  class,  who  enjoyed  hearing  that  the  '  Chinese  must  go,'  and  who  rev- 
elved  in  the  startling,  if  not  polite,  remarks  of  the  Rev.  mayor  upon  the 
views  of  the  non-conservative  classes. 

18  Kalloch  published  a  little  paper  called  the  Evangel,  in  which  appeared, 
June  8,  1876,  the  following:  'The  Chinese  furnish  cheap  and  efficient  labor 
as  house-servants,  both  in  town  and  country.  They  do  well  in  our  manu- 
factories and  our  railroads.  They  fill  an  important  niche  in  society  in  their 
wash-houses  and  huckstering.'  In  a  speech  he  said:  'These  howling  de- 
claimers  are  not  laborers.  They  are  incendiaries.  They  are  weatherkites. 
They  are  mercenaries.  They  ought  to  be  suppressed ....  The  best  argument 
for  them  is  the  bayonet  and  the  Gatling  gun.'  S.  F.  Call,  Nov.  12,  1877. 

"Such  was  the  opinion  of  some  of  the  best  jurists  in  S.  F.  See  S.  F. 
CJironick.  Nov.  16,  18G6. 


THE  CHARTER.  413 

provide  for  the  organization,  incorporation,  and  gov- 
ernment of  merged  and  consolidated  cities  and  coun- 
ties of  more  than  100,000  population,  pursuant  to  the 
provisions  of  section  seven,  article  eleven,  of  the  con- 
stitution of  this  state,"  "  under  which  it  was  thought 
the  city  might  be  governed  until  a  freeholders'  elec- 
tion could  be  held,  and  a  permanent  charter  adopted 
by  submission  to  the  people.  The  legality  of  this 
legislative  act  was  at  once  questioned,  being  construed 
to  be  in  the  nature  of  special  legislation  which  the 
constitution  expressly  forbade,  and  so  the  supreme 
court  inferentially  decided.  In  the  meantime,  a 
special  election  was  held  for  the  purpose  of  choosing 
freeholders  to  form  a  charter,  which  body  sat  from 
April  12th  to  June  28,  1880,  another  special  election 
being  held  September  8th  to  decide  upon  its  adoption. 
Although  a  good  instrument,  two  causes  operated 
against  it,  causing  its  rejection ;  first,  party  selfishness, 
the  new  instrument  greatly  lessening  the  opportuni- 
ties for  jobbery  and  corruption;  and  second,  the  oppo- 
sition of  the  catholic  clergy,  on  account  of  an  article 
prohibiting  cemeteries  within  the  city  limits.  The 
issuance  of  a  pastoral  letter  against  the  so-called  sac- 
rilege determined  the  vote  of  the  catholic  voters. 
They  threw  their  influence  against  the  charter,  and 
fully  half  of  the  electors,  neglecting  their  duty,  voted 
not  at  all,  on  account  of  which  combination  of  cir- 
cumstances San  Francisco  was  left  to  struggle  on 
without  any  legal  charter.  In  1882,  when  another 
election  of  freeholders  took  place,  and  another  charter 
was  framed,  which  in  its  general  features  was  much 
like  the  consolidation  act,  it  was  rejected  by  the 
people  at  an  election  held  March  3,  1883,  the  majority 
against  it  being  no  more  than  32.  No  further  effort 
to  secure  a  charter  for  San  Francisco  was  made  until 
1886,  when  at  a  general  election  in  November  fifteen 

»  CaL  StaL,  1880,  137-229.     This  was  called  the  McClure  charter. 


414  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

freeholders  were  elected  from  her  leading  citizens,13  to 
whom  was  delegated  the  important  duty  of  framing 
a  charter  which  might  be  more  acceptable  to  the  peo- 
ple than  the  consolidation  act,  which  had,  by  frequent 
amendments,  become  a  more-than-ever  consolidated 
instrument.  The  committee  completed  its  labors  in 
March  1887,  and  the  election  was  ordered  for  April 
12,  at  which  time  a  special  election  was  to  be  held  to 
allow  the  people  to  vote  upon  amendments  to  the 
constitution.  But  whether  weary  of  elections  or  in- 
different to  the  change,  few  votes  were  cast  on  the 
amendments,  which  were  defeated  ;  and  notwithstand- 
ing that  the  merchants  of  San  Francisco  published  an 
address  to  the  electors  of  the  city,  appealing  to  them 
to  accept  the  new  instrument,  which  they  very  much 
praised,  it  was  beaten  by  default,  and  San  Francisco 
was  again  left  to  the  untender  mercies  of  political 
freebooters.  Thus  on  several  occasions  have  the 
citizens  of  our  western  metropolis  declined  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  protection  afforded  by  a  charter. 

The  election  of  1879  was  the  last  held  in  odd-num- 
bered years,  the  new  constitution  ordering  that  the 
terms  of  the  first  officers  chosen  after  its  adoption 
should  be  one  year  shorter  than  those  fixed  by  law, 
in  order  to  bring  elections  in  the  even-numbered  years. 
But  this  change  necessitated  an  election  in  1880--- 
the  year  of  the  presidential  campaign  of  Garfield  and 
Hancock — for  the  choice  of  congressmen,  state  sen- 
ators, and  assemblymen,  as  well  as  presidential  electors. 
Judicial  officers  and  the  superintendent  of  public  in- 

13  Russell  J.  Wilson,  A.  H.  Loughborough,  George  R.  B.  Hayes,  E.  R. 
Taylor,  George  T.  Marye,  S.  G.  Murphy,  D.  A.  MacDonald,  Ralph  C.  Har- 
rison, A.  G.  Booth,  A.  S.  Hallidie,  John  McKee,  Thomas  Magee,  Charles 
Holbrook,  Jacob  Greenbaum,  D.  C.  McRuer  were  chosen.  The  instrument 
framed  by  them  furnished  a  concise  and  complete  form  of  government;  gave 
a  responsible  head  to  affairs;  provided  a  prudent  and  economical  administra- 
tion; permitted  the  city  to  vote  to  make,  when  occasion  demanded,  an  un- 
usual appropriation;  placed  the  city's  money  in  the  treasury  and  kept  it 
there;  increased  the  authority  of  the  auditor;  provided  a  system  of  drainage 
much  needed  in  the  city;  increased  the  efficacy  of  the  police,  fire,  and  school 
departments,  and  provided  an  election  system  removing  opportunities  for 
fraudulent  voting.  S.  F.  Chronkle,  April  10,  1887. 


ELECTIONS.  415 

struction  were  also  to  be  chosen  at  the  same  time  with 
state  officers. 

The  San  Franciscans  also  entertained  the  idea  of 
putting  municipal  tickets  in  the  field,  and  electing  a 
new  set  of  city  and  county  officers;  but  upon  a  ques- 
tion arising  as  to  the  construction  to  be  placed  upon 
the  new  organic  law,  the  supreme  court  decided  that 
no  municipal  election  was  called  for  or  legal  except  as 
to  five  superior  judges  of  San  Francisco  whose  terms 
would  expire,  according  to  their  classification,  in  Jan- 
uary, 1881."  This  opinion  united  the  two  branches 
of  the  democratic  party  in  the  city,  and  gave  to  the 
presidential  contest  something  of  the  enthusiasm  of 
long-past  political  battles.  The  result  was  a  meager 
majority  for  Hancock  of  198  votes.14  The  democrats 
secured  five  of  the  six  presidential  electors,1'  and  two 
congressmen,  but  the  republicans  elected  two  congress- 

uThis  decision,  sustained  by  the  working  of  the  organic  law,  was  by 
some  not  well  received  for  divers  reasons.  A  petition  for  a  review  of  the 
decision  was  filed  in  the  court  by  James  A.  Waymire  and  Walter  Van  Dyke, 
republicans,  upon  the  ground  that  the  people  who  voted  for  the  new  consti- 
tution had  not  so  construed  it,  and  had  therefore  not  approved  it.  '  The 
heavy  cost,  the  constant  annoyance,  the  turmoil  and  the  demoralization  of 
annual  elections '  was  what  they  had  wished  to  avoid,  and  for  which  they 
sought  remedy  in  the  new  constitution,  whose  framers  had  solemnly 
promised  to  give  them  that  relief,  and  whose  announcement  that  they  had 
done  so  had  been  accepted  as  final.  To  deny  the  city  the  right  to  elect  at 
the  general  election  would  be  to  compel  it  to  go  through  with  the  excitement 
and  incur  the  same  expense  in  1881  which  attended  all  elections,  etc.  What- 
ever truth  and  justice  there  was  in  this  appeal,  there  was  the  equally  strong 
motive  of  the  petitioners  to  relieve  the  city  of  the  official  presence  cf  its 
shameless  and  infamous  mayor.  It  was  equally  the  policy  of  the  working- 
men  and  democracy,  by  whom  the  majority  of  the  superior  judges  had  been 
elected  to  keep  him  in  office.  It  was  certainly  the  democrats  who  raised 
the  question. 

15  Through  five  presidential  elections  from  1860  to  1880,  California  had 
cast  her  vote  for  the  republican  candidates.  In  1857  the  democratic  plural- 
ity for  Buchanan  was  17,200;  the  opposition  majority  divided  between  Fill- 
more  and  Fremont  was  3,491.  The  state  was  not  then  democratic  by  a 
majority  of  all  the  votes.  It  became  so  4  years  later ;  yet  curiously,  the 
democrats,  although  having  a  large  majority  of  the  votes,  were  beaten  by 
Lincoln,  republican,  by  a  small  plurality.  After  that,  until  1880,  whatever 
the  combinations,  the  republican  presidential  candidate  had  a  majority.  In 
spite,  however,  of  the  presidential  loss  this  year,  there  was  a  republican 
gain  of  23,500  over  the  majority  against  the  year  before. 

"The  presidential  electors  chosen  were  William  T.  Wallace,  J.  C.  Shorb, 
W.  B.  C.  Brown,  Barclay  Henley,  R.  F.  Del  Valle.  David  S.  Terry  was  on 
the  democratic  ticket  for  the  6th  place,  but  ran  behind  his  ticket,  and  Henry 
Edgerton  rep.  was  elected.  Terry,  the  year  before  ran  for  the  office  of  state 
attorney.geD.eral  on  the  X.  C.  ticket,  and  was  defeated. 


416  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

men,"  and  secured  a  working  majority  in  the  assem- 
bly,18 with  a  decided  majority  in  the  joint  convention 
which  would  elect  a  senator  of  the  United  States. 
They  gained  also  the  re-districting  of  the  state  for 
senators  and  assemblymen  nnder  the  new  constitution, 
which  forbade  any  further  change  in  the  districts  for 
ten  years.  San  Francisco  republicans  lost  their 
choice  for  congressman,  Horace  Davis,  and  the  demo- 
crats elected  W.  S.  Rosecrans.19  Of  the  judges  of 

17  W.   S.   Rosecrans,    dem.,  was  elected   in  the   1st  dist;  Campbell  P. 
Berry,   dem.  in   the   3d   dist.;  H.    F.  Page,  rep.    in  the  2d  dist.,  and  R. 
Pacheco,  rep.  in  the  4th  dist. 

18  The  senate  of  1881  remained  the  same  as  in  1880.     The  assembly  was 
composed  of  the  following  members:  Valentine  Alviso,  L.  B.  Edwards,  Ala- 
meda  co.;  R.  E.  Arick,  Kern;  J.  E.  Baker,  W.  C.  Van  Fleet,  J.  N.  Young, 
Sacramento;  (died  in  May,  during  the  extra  session)  F.  E.  Baker,  Yolo;  T. 
C.  Birney,  Tuolumne;  J.  W.  Bost,  Merced;  C.  L.  Branch,  Stanislaus;  J.  P. 
Brown,  Yuba;  John  Burns,   P.   Garrity,  W.  G.  Gavigan,   D.  Geary,  J.  H. 
Gilmore,  J.  G.  Hoitt,  M.  B.  Howard,  H.  J.  Jackson,  Ed.  Keating,  M.  Lane. 
Oscar  Lewis,  W.  B.  May,  J.  J.  McCellion,  David  McClure,  J.  W.  McDonald, 
J.   G.  Noonan,  T.  O'Conner,  L.  J.   Pinder,   H.  G.    Platt,  J.  D.  Siebe,  San 
Francisco;  W.  W.  Camron,  Alameda;  A.  L.  Chandler,  Sutter;  C.  Coleman, 
Alpine;  J.  F.  Crank,  R.  F.  Del  Valle,  Los  Angeles;  H.  J.  Crumpton,  Lake; 
J.  F.  Cunningham,   Santa   Cruz;    John  Daggett,   Siskiyou;    G.   L.   Estey, 
Marin;  C.  N.  Felton,  San  Mateo;  Thomas  Fraser,  El  Dorado;  J.  C.  Werts- 
baugher,  L.  D.  Freer,  Butte;  H.  M.  Gay,  John  Reynolds,  C.  Wentz,  Santa, 
Clara;  E.  J.  Griffeth,  Fresno;  J.  E.  Hale,  Placer;  C.  Hartson,  Napa;  E.  W. 
Hendrick,  San  Diego;  E,  C.  Hinshaw,  James  Samuels,  E.  L.  Whipple,  So- 
noma;  William  Holden,   Mendocino;   J.   P.   Jones,  Contra  Costa;   W.  W. 
Kellogg,  Plumas;  P.  Kilburn,  Monterey;  F.  E.  Leach,  E.  E.  Leake,  Solano; 
W.    D.   Long,   Thomas  Mein,  J.  B.   Patterson,  Nevada;  W.  B.  Mason,  Del 
Norte;  W.  P.  Matthews,  Tehama;  J.  H.  Matthews,  San  Benito;  J.  N.  Mc- 
Murray,  Trinity;  G.  C.   Mudgett,   Humboldt;  P.   W.   Murphy,   San  Luis 
Obispo;  W.  H.  Parks,  Yuba;  John  Patterson,  R.  C.  Sargent,  C.  C.  Paulk, 
San  Joaquin;  J.  B.   Reddick,   Calaveras;  H.  M.  Streeter,  San  Bernardino; 
C.  B.   Swift,  C.  Warkins,  Amador;  M.  Wason,  Ventura;  Joseph  Wasson, 
Mono;  George  Wood,  Sierra.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1881,  43-4. 

19  Rosecrans  was  born  at  Kingston,  Ohio,  in  1819,  graduated  at  West 
Point  in  1842,  and  was  for  one  year  executive  officer  of  the  engineering  de- 
partment of  Fortress  Monroe.     In  1843  he  was  asst  prof,  of  civil  and  military 
engineering;  in  1844  asst  prof,  of  natural  and  experimental  philosophy,  in- 
cluding physics  and  astronomy;  in  1845-6  1st  asst  prof,  of  civil  and  military 
engineering;  nine  months  on  coast  duty,  acting  as  post  quarter-master  and 
commissary  at  West  Point,  and  engineer-in-charge  of  construction  of  cadet 
barracks.     In  1847-52  he  was  engineer-in-charge  of  fortifications,  lighthouse, 
etc.,  at  Fort  Adams,  Newport,  R.  L,  and  surveying  New  Bedford  and  Prov- 
idence harbors,  and  Taunton  river.     In  1854  he  resigned,  and  became  a  civil 
engineer  at  Cincinnati,  also  engaging  in  the  manufacture  of  kerosene  oil. 
At  the  breaking  out  of  the  civil  war  he  became  voluntary  aid-de-camp  to 
Gen.  McClellan,  remaining  in  the  volunteer  service  until  1866.     In  1865  he 
was  offered  the  nomination  of  the  union  party  for  governor  of  Ohio,  but  de- 
clined, and  came  to  Cal.  by  sea,  and  was  offered  the  nomination  for  governor 
in  1867.     Two  years  later  he  received  the  same  offer  from  the  democrats  of 
Ohio.     Also  declined  the  nomination  for  member  of  congress  from  Nevada  in 


DEMAGOGISM.  417 

several  superior  courts,  the  republicans  elected  all 
but  one." 

The  choice  of  the  legislature  for  United  States 
senatorto  succeed  Newton  Booth  was  John  F.  Miller," 
elected  by  a  large  majority  over  William  T.  Wallace 
and  Henry  George."  His  course  in  the  senate  against 
the  Chinese,  and  in  laboring  for  the  ratification  of  the 
modified  treaty  with  China,  which  gave  the  American 
congress  the  right  to  pass  laws  for  the  regulation  of 

1876.  He  accepted  the  nomination  to  congress  in  1880,  with  the  object  of 
reuniting  the  workingmen  and  democrats.  Letter  of  W.  S.  Rosecram  to  Author, 
1886.  "fiie  vote  on  his  reelection  to  congress  in  18S2  stood  22,733  against 
14,847  for  A.  Neumann  rep.,  67  for  H.  S.  Fitch,  and  33  scattering. 

"Three  judges  were  reflected  on  the  republican  ticket,  namely  T.  K. 
Wilson,  John  F.  Finn,  and  M.  A.  Edmonds.  On  the  opposition,  F.  W. 
Lawler,  and  Robert  Y.  Hayne,  elected  to  fill  an  nnexpired  term.  There  was 
a  greenback  ticket,  made  up  of  both  national  parties,  but  chiefly  of  demo- 
crats, who  were  anxious  to  have  the  interest  on  the  U.  S.  bonds  saved  to  the 
government.  This  party  in  California  nominated  for  congress,  S.  ilaybell; 
supported  the  republican  judiciary  nominees;  and  otherwise  ran  a  ticket  of 
their  own,  which  only  served  to  divide  the  others'  strength. 

Jl  John  F.  Miller  was  born  in  Ind.  in  1831,  educated  at  South  Bend,  came 
to  CaL  in  1853.  Returned  to  Ind.  in  1856,  and  was  elected  state  senator. 
He  served  in  the  union  army  from  1861  to  1865  as  brig. -gen.,  and  retired  a 
ma j. -gen.  by  brevet;  coming  to  CaL  the  same  year.  For  four  years  he  was 
collector  of  the  port  of  S.  F. ;  afterward  pres't  of  the  Alaska  Commercial  co., 
and  connected  with  other  enterprises  of  a  commercial  nature.  In  1872  and 
1876  he  was  chosen  elector  at  large  on  the  Grant  and  Hayes  ticket;  and  was 
elected  member  at  large  for  the  state  to  the  constitutional  convention.  He 
was  elected  by  the  legislature  of  1881,  U.  S.  senator,  and  died  in  Washington 
in  1886. 

**  Henry  George  was  born  in  Pa,  in  1839,  and  received  a  common  school 
education,  and  entered  counting  room  at  the  age  of  thirteen  years.  Having 
a  taste  for  sea-going,  he  shipped  before  the  mast  two  years  later,  on  a  voy- 
age to  Australia  and  India.  After  this  he  learned  the  printing  trade,  but 
again  went  to  sea,  and  finally,  in  1858,  visited  the  Fraser  River  mines  in 
B.  C.,  but  returned  to  S.  F.,  and  resumed  printing,  becoming  a  member  of 
the  Eureka  Typographical  union,  and  working  for  several  years  as  composi- 
tor on  the  daily  papers.  During  this  time  he  read  and  studied,  becoming 
occasional  reporter,  and  in  1867  was  promoted  to  be  the  chief  of  the  editorial 
staff  of  the  S.  F.  Times.  In  the  winter  of  1868  he  went  to  New  York  to  ar- 
range the  telegraphic  business  of  the  S.  F.  Herald.  Soon"  after  he  began 
writing  for  the  N.  T.  Times,  on  the  Chinese  question,  and  attracted  consid- 
erable attention  to  himself  by  his  manner  of  treating  the  subject.  R:turn- 
ing  to  Cal.  he  inaugurated  the  eight-hour  labor  movement.  Our  Land  Policy, 
Progress  and  Poveity,  and  other  writings,  were  published,  presenting  argu- 
ments in  the  interest  of  the  laboring  class.  He  started  the  5.  F.  Evening 
Post  in  1871,  which  he  edited  until  1876,  when  he  withdrew  from  it  to  rewrite 
in  a  more  extended  form  his  Progress  and  Poverty,  which  was  repu  Wished  in 
England,  where  he  made  speeches  on  the  questions  involving  the  rights^  of 
'enslaved  labor.'  His  course  has  been  steadily  forward,  and  at  the  election 
of  mayor  in  New  York  city  in  1886  he  received  65,000  votes  as  the  apostle  of 
labor.  His  doctrines  appear,  in  the  light  of  history,  to  be  impracticable. 

HIST.  CAL,  VOL.  VET.   27 


418  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

immigration  from  that  country,  was  applauded  by  the 
opponents  of  Chinese  labor. 

The  legislature  of  1881  was  the  first  elected  and 
held  under  the  entire  provisions  of  the  new  constitu- 
tion. As  I  have  pointed  out,  it  was  republican  by  a 
bare  majority  in  the  assembly  and  a  larger  one  in  the 
joint  convention.  But  in  the  early  part  of  the  session 
the  democrats  obtained,  by  political  trading,  the  con- 
trol of  the  assembly,  and  gave  the  state  a  reminder 
of  the  legislation  of  an  earlier  period  of  the  state's 
history."  It  contained,  as  every  large  body  elected 
by  the  people  must  contain,  a  few  men  zealous  for 
their  country's  good ;  but  a  much  greater  proportion 
were  demagogues,  or  worse,  were  bent  upon  defeating 
the  ends  and  aims  of  the  constitution  which  it  should 
have  been  their  object  to  render  acceptable  and  bene- 
ficial to  the  commonwealth. 

With  a  view  to  shorten  legislative  sessions  and  pre- 
vent extravagance,  the  constitution  had,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, prohibited  special  enactments.  Deeming  sixty 
days  sufficient  for  the  business  necessary  to  be  done, 
it  fixed  the  length  of  a  session  at  that  limit,  denying 
compensation  for  any  time  in  excess  of  that  to  which 
legislators  prolonged  their  proceedings.  But  the  con- 
stitution proved  neither  guide  to  the  duty  nor  obstacle 
to  the  official  criminality  of  this  body.  Lobbying, 
which  was  made  a  felony  by  the  organic  law,  was 
openly  encouraged.  It  wasted  its  time  in  bickerings 
over  matters  affecting  bargain  and  sale/4  and  in  pre- 

a  Concurrent  fies.,  passed  May  5th  by  the  legislature.  Cal.  Stat.,  1881, 
127-8.  Mass  meeting  Res.  in  S.  F.,  April  30.  1S81.  in  S.  F,  Chronicle,  May 
1,  1881. 

2*  The  legislature  of  1880  passed  a  drainage  act  making  an  unconstitu- 
tional levy  of  5  cents  on  every  $100  for  the  purposes  contemplated  in  the 
act,  and  the  payment  of  a  state  and  asst  engineer,  and  for  construction  of 
works  connected  with  the  control  of  water  used  in  mining,  and  of  the 
'  slickens  '  or  debris  from  hydraulic  mines.  In  order  to  save  this  act  from 
repeal  a  few  republicans  from  districts  interested  in  drainage  entered  into  a 
bargain  with  the  democrats  to  defeat  the  apportionment  bills;  and  did  so 
defeat  them,  at  the  expense  of  their  party,  and  in  violation  of  their  obliga- 
tion to  observe  the  constitution,  which  forbade  them  to  pass  any  special  law 
for  the  assessment  of  taxe«.  and  commanded  them  to  pass  an  apportionment 
act  based  on  the  then  population  of  the  state.  Cal.  Stat.,,  1880,  123-131 ;  8. 


ENEMIES  OF  THE  GOVERNMENT.  419 

venting  an  apportionment  by  the  republicans.  It 
adjourned  at  the  end  of  sixty  days  without  an  appor- 
tionment having  been  made,  although  such  an  act 
was  mandatory,  and  the  census  of  1880  was  made 
the  basis  for  fixing  and  adjusting  the  legislative  dis- 
tricts. It  failed  to  pass  a  general  appropriation  bill, 
to  levy  the  rates  of  .taxation,  or  authorize  the  state 
board  of  equalization  to  fix  an  ad  valorem  rate,  to  en- 
act a  general  road  law,  or  to  send  appointments  to  the 
senate  for  confirmation. 

For  the  purpose  of  completing  the  neglected  legis- 
lation and  allow  the  government  to  go  on,  Governor 
Perkins  called  a  special  session,  fixing  the  limit  at 
twenty  days  The  members  reassembled  April  4th, 
and  remained  in  session  39  days,  passing  appropriation 
bills  and  no  other,  except  to  authorize  the  state  board 
to  fix  such  an  ad  valorem  rate  of  taxation  as  should  fur- 
nish the  means  to  meet  these  demands,  among  which 
was  the  unconstitutional  pay  for  the  extra  session  of 
39  days.  In  such  ways,  and  by  increasing  rather 
than  diminishing  the  expenses  of  the  government,  its 
enemies  sought  to  bring  into  contempt  the  new  law, 
as  they  had  corrupted  and  disobeyed  all  law.  These 

F.  Chronicle,  May  7,  14,  1881.  The  supreme  court  decided  'in  bank,  that 
the  drainage  act  was  unconstitutional,  Judge  Sharpstein  only  dissenting. 
CaL  liepts,  58,  624-659.  The  legislature  also,  either  oy  design  or  otherwise, 
failed  to  specifically  levy  a  tax  upon  railroad  property,  but  simply  delegated 
the  power  to  do  so  to  the  state  board  of  equalization.  On  this  ground  the 
railroad  companies  contested  the  collection  of  taxes.  To  meet  the  objection 
the  legislature  of  1881  inserted  in  the  tax-levy  bill  the  words,  'and  the  same 
is  hereby  levied; '  yet  when  the  bill  was  engrossed  these  words  were  omitted, 
whether  accidently  or  not  it  was  impossible  to  know.  The  governor  signed 
the  bill  without  discovering  the  omission;  and  was  strongly-minded  when  it 
was  pointed  out  to  convene  the  legislature  for  the  third  time,  but  on  consul- 
tation with  the  attorney-general  and  supreme  judges  abandoned  the  idea. 
The  C.  P.  co.  brought  suit  against  the  board  of  equalization  upon  the  ground 
that  the  Cal.  law  was  in  conflict  with  the  14th  amendment  to  the  U.  S.  con- 
stitution, which  provides  that  no  state  shall  '  deny  to  any  person  within  its 
jurisdiction  the  equal  protection  of  the  laws. '  The  supreme  court  decided 
that  the  provisions  applied  only  to  natural  persons,  and  not  to  corporations 
or  artificial  persons;  that  'person  '  had  no  relation  to  the  assessment  of  the 
property  of  railroad  corporations;  that  the  franchise  of  the  C.  P.  R.  was 
property  subject  to  taxation,  and  not  exempt  by  reason  of  its  being  a  means 
employed  by  congress  to  carry  into  operation  the  powers  of  the  general  gov- 
ernment Cal,  Kept,  60,  35. 


420  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

acts,  as  well  as  points  in  the  constitution  itself,  kept 
employed  the  bar  and  courts  of  the  state. 

A  question  had  arisen  in  1880  concerning  the  dura- 
tion of  the  terms  of  service  of  officers  elected  in  a 
city,  or  city  and  county  under  the  constitution.  The 
term  of  a  mayor  in  San  Francisco  had  ever  been  two 
years.  The  republicans,  anxious  to  be  rid  of  Mayor 
Kalloch,  as  were  most  of  the  better  class  of  demo- 
crats, wished  to  apply  that  section  which  declared  that 
the  terms  of  all  officers  chosen  at  the  first  election 
should  be  shorter  by  one  year  than  those  fixed  by 
law  or  by  the  constitution,  the  object  being  to  bring 
all  the  elections  in  the  even-numbered  years.  Appli- 
cation was  made  for  a  writ  of  mandamus  to  Kalloch 
and  the  remainder  of  the  board  of  election  commis- 
sioners to  comply  with  the  law,  which  was  refused, 
and  the  case  cairve  before  the  supreme  court,  which 
decided  that  the  offices  referred  to  in  the  constitution 
were  not  county  and  municipal  offices,  and  that  San 
Francisco  was,  until  the  legislature  enacted  laws  upon 
the  subject,  governed  by  the  regulations  under  which 
its  officers  had  formerly  been  chosen.  To  this  decision 
the  people  bowed,  and  prepared  for  a  municipal  elec- 
tion in  1881;  but  the  legislature  in  March  of  that 
year  passed  an  amendment  to  the  existing  code  which 
was  construed  as  fixing  city  elections  on  the  even- 
numbered  years,  by  which  their  wishes  were  seemingly 
frustrated.  Again  the  courts  were  called  upon  to  in- 
terpret, and  decided  that  the  amendment  was  of  a 
general  nature,  and  that  the  act  under  which  San 
Francisco  had  held  municipal  elections  ever  since  1866 
had  not  been  repealed.  A  mandamus  was  granted 
compelling  the  commissioners  to  issue  an  order  for  an 
election,  which  was  held  in  September,  and  at  which 
the  republican  reform  ticket  was  triumphant,  Maurice 
C.  Blake  succeeding  Mayor  Kalloch,  and  every  office 
but  two  in  the  city  and  county  being  filled  by  repub- 
licans. 

But  as  the  law  just  mentioned,  while  it  permitted, 


VERT  COMMON  POLITICS.  421 

with  the  help  of  the  supreme  judges,  an  election  to 
be  held  in  1881,  required  one  to  be  held  in  1882,  and 
every  two  years  thereafter,  the  benefits  of  the  Septem- 
ber victory  were  shortlived.  By  one.of  those  sudden 
changes  in  the  wind  of  politics  which  overturn  so 
many  partisan  air-castles,  the  city  and  county  went 
solidly  democratic  in  1882,  from  the  governor  elect, 
George  Stonernan,**  down  to  ward  supervisors.**  The 
congressmen  elected  in  the  first,  second,  third,  and 
fourth  districts  respectively,  were  W.  S.  Ttosecrans, 
James  Budd,  Barclay  Henley,  and  Pleasant  B.  Tully.17 
Two  representatives  at  large  were  Charles  Allen 
Stunner  and  John  Ragland  Glascock.** 

*Stoneman  graduated  at  West  Point  in  1816,  and  served  in  the  Mexican 
war  under  Col,  afterward  Brig. -Gen.,  Kearney.  He  came  to  CaL  with  Gen. 
A.  J.  Smith's  command,  and  continuing  to  reside  in  this  state,  though  he 
fought  in  the  Ind.  war  of  Oregon,  as  I  have  related,  being  then  a  captain. 

""The  republicans  nominated  M.  M.  Krtee,  a  determined  opponent  of 
the  Central  Pacific,  while  the  greenback  party's  candidate  was  R.  H.  Mc- 
Donald, and  the  democrats  nominated  railroad  commissioner  Stoneman,  who 
was  believed  to  be  more  or  less  favorable  to  the  railroad  interest,  which 
elected  him.  For  the  rest  of  the  state  officers,  John  Dagget  was  fthaaaa 
lieut-gov.;  T.  I*.  Thompson,  sec.  of  state;  John  P.  Dunn,  controller;  W.  A. 
January,  treasurer;  EL  C.  Marshall,  atty-gen.  Marshall  came  to  California 
in  1850,  and  was  elected  to  congress  in  1852.  H.  T.  Wflley,  sur. -general; 
J.  W.  McCarthy,  clerk  sup.  ct;  Vf.  T.  Welcker,  supt  pub.  instruction;  R. 
M.  Ross,  J.  R.  Sharpstein,  associate  justices  sup.  ct;  W.  P.  Humphreys, 
W.  W.  Foote,  G.  J.  Carpenter  railroad  com  rs.  In  S.  F.,  Washington  Bart- 
lett,  city  politician  since  1849,  was  elected  mayor;  James  V.  Coney,  F.  M. 
dough,  James  G.  Magnire,  and  D.  J.  Toohy  were  chosen  superior  judges; 
over  James  A.  Wayward,  Columbus  Bartlett,  J.  M.  Troutt,  and  James  M. 
ATlf-n  Hale  Rix,  police  judge;  James  Lawler  judge  of  police  ct  no.  2. 
Rix  was  the  only  rep.  elected  to  the  bench  of  any  court.  He  had  served 
about  20  years. 

c  Rosecraas  ran  against  A.  Neuman;  Bndd  against  H.  F.  Page:  Henley 
against  J.  J.  De  Haven;  Tully  against  George  L.  Woods.  Bndd  was  born 
at  Janesville,  Wis.  in  1851,  and  educated  at  the  university  of  CaL,  law- 
yer, res.  Stockton;  received  20,229  votes  against  Horace  F.  Page,  rep. 
U.  8.  H.  Jomr.,  1884-5,  873.  Barclay  Henley,  born  in  Ind.  in  1842,  came  to 
CaL  in  1853,  returned  to  be  educated  at  Hanover  college,  lawyer,  res.  Santa 
Rosa,  was  dist  att'y  of  Sonoma  co. ,  member  of  the  state  assembly,  pieaidam- 
tial  elector  in  1880,  etc;  received  21,807  votes  against  19,473  for  J.  J.  De 
Haven,  rep. 

*Sumner  was  born  in  Great  Barrington,  Mass  in  1835,  and  educated  at 
Trinity  college,  Hartford,  lawyer,  S.  F.;  received  87,234  Totes  against  73,- 
749  for  W.  W.  Morrow,  rep  ,  and  2,786  for  YarneD.  Glascock.  of  Oakland. 
born  in  Miss,  in  1855,  educated  at  the  university  of  CaL ;  and  the  university 
of  Va;  lawyer,  and  dist  att'y  of  Alameda  co. ;  received  87,259  votes  against 
73.434  for  Henry  Edgerton,  rep.,  and  2,786  for  Hotchkiss,  U.  S.  H.  J<mr., 
1884-5,  892.  Sunnier  ran  against  W.  W.  Morrow;  Glascock  against  Henry 
Edgerton, 


422  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

The  constitution  provided  that  all  the  senators 
elected  in  1879  should  hold  office  three  years.  This 
regulation  rendered  necessary  the  choice  of  a  whole 
senate  in  1882,  half  of  whom  were  required  to  vacate 
their  seats  in  1884,  after  which  a  senatorial  term 
would  be  four  years.  This  circumstance  gave  an  op- 
portunity for  the  democrats  to  secure  an  almost  ex- 
clusivelv  one-party  legislature,  33  out  of  40  senators 
and  65*  out  of  79  assemblymen  being  democratic.29 

MThe  senate  consisted  of  John  Wolfskill,  San  Diego  and  San  Bernardino, 
R.  F.  Del  Valle,  Los  Angeles;  George  Steele,  Sta  Barbara  and  San  Luis 
Obispo;  Patrick  Reddy,  Fresno,  Tulare,  Kern,  Mono  and  Inyo;  J.  D.  Spen- 
ser, Mariposa,  Merced  and  Stanislaus;  Benjamin  Knight,  Monterey,  San 
Benito  and  Santa  Cruz;  C.  H.  Maddox,  Santa  Clara;  J.  Lynch,  S.  F.  and 
San  Mateo;  T.  McCarthy,  D.  McClure,  G.  H.  Perry,  E.  Keating,  T.  K. 
Nelson,  J.  T.  Dougherty,  Martin  Kelly,  P.  J.  Sullivan,  W.  Cronan,  S.  F.; 
H.  Vrooman,  Alameda;  W.  B.  English,  Contra  Costa  and  Marin;  B.  F. 
Langford,  F.  T.  Baldwin,  San  Joaquin  and  Amador;  C.  D.  Reynolds,  Cala- 
veras  and  Tuolumne;  J.  Routier,  Frederick  Cox,  Sac.;  J.  M.  Dudley  and  J. 
E.  Kelley,  Solano  and  Yolo;  D.  Spencer,  Napa  Lake  and  Sonoma;  G.  A. 
Johnson,  Sonoma;  J.  A.  Filcher,  Placer;  T.  Fraser,  El  Dorado  and  Alpine; 
C.  W.  Cross,  H.  W.  Wallis,  Nevada  and  Sierra;  A.  L.  Chandler,  Yuba  and 
Sutter;  W.  W.  Kellogg,  Butte,  Plumas  and  Lassen;  P.  H.  Ryan,  Del  Norte, 
Humboldt  and  Mendocino;  C.  \V.  Taylor,  Siskiyou,  Modoc,  Trinity,  and 
Shasta;  C.  F.  Foster,  Colusa  and  Tehama.  Pres't,  pro  tern,  Del  Valle;  sec. 
Edwin  F.  Smith;  ass't  see's,  J.  J.  McCarthy,  A.  T.  Voglesang;  serg't-at- 
arms,  J.  S.  Messee;  ass't  serg't-at-arms,  J.  B.  Snydor;  minute  clerk,  A.  A. 
Taylor;  journal  clerk,  W.  J.  McGee;  engrossing  clerk,  George  W.  Tuttle; 
post-master,  Mrs  J.  V.  David.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1882,  1-7. 

Members  of  assembly:  L.  H.  Carey,  W.  B.  Clement,  L.  H.  Brown,  Ala- 
meda; Robert  Stewart,  Amador;  L.  C.  Grange,  T.  R.  Fleming,  Butte; 
George  T.  Carter,  Contra  Costa;  A.  R.  Wheat,  Calaveras;  Reuben  Clark, 
Colusa  and  Tehama;  W.  A.  Hamilton,  Del  Norte;  C.  F.  Irwin,  Dl  Dorado; 
Thomas  B.  Rowland  El  Dorado  and  Alpine;  Frank  Wharton,  Fresno;  J.  H. 
G.  Weaver,  Humboldt;  J.  M.  Keeler,  Inyo  and  Mono;  A.  B.  Moffatt,  W. 
W.  Head,  Los  Angeles;  H.  J.  Crumpton,  Lake;  W.  L.  Smith,  Mariposa  and 
Merced;  S.  C.  Bowers,  Marin;  Archibald  Yell,  Mendocino;  Thomas  F.  Faw, 
Monterey;  F.  E.  Johnston,  Napa;  J.  L.  Lewison,  A.  Walrath,  J.  O.  Sweet- 
land,  Nevada;  P.  McHale,  Placer;  Calvin  McCloskey,  Plumas  and  Lassen; 
E.  A.  Gaussail,  William  J.  Sinon,  J.  J.  Callaghan,  Thomas  F.  Barry,  B.  F. 
McKinley,  A.  G.  Booth,  J.  H.  Culver,  C.  A.  Murdock,  B.  A.  Rawle,  Sidney 
Hall,  Peter  Wheelan,  Thomas  E.  Healy,  Patrick  Plover,  M.  R.  Leverson, 
T.  N.  McDonald,  James  J.  Flynn,  Charles  A.  Hughes,  D.  H.  Bibb,  Thomas 
M.  Murphy,  E.  J.  O'Conner,  S.  F. ;  F.  D.  Ryan,  H.  M.  Larue,  Gillis  Doty, 
Sac.;  Edwin  Parker,  San  Diego;  Truman  Reeves,  San  Bernardino;  J.  H. 
Hollister,  San  Luis  Obispo;  C.  A.  Storke,  Sta  Barbara  and  Ventura;  A.  B. 
Hunter,  J.  H.  M.  Townsend,  Adam  Rhiel,  Sta  Clara;  Lucien  Heath,  Santa 
Cruz;  J.  H.  Matthews,  San  Benito;  S.  L.  Terry,  C.  S.  Stevens,  J.  W.  Ker- 
rick,  San  Joaquin;  J.  V.  Coleman.  San  Mateo;  M.  Farley,  Sierra;  E.  B. 
Beard,  Stanislaus;  Joel  A.  Harvey,  D.  G.  Barnes,  Solano;  John  T.  Camp- 
bell, S.  M.  Martin,  John  Field,  Sonoma-  S.  R.  Fortua,  Sutter;  J.  M.  Brice- 
land,  Trinity  and  Shasta;  F.  D.  Nicolj  Tuolumne;  D.  N.  Hershey,  Yolo; 
W.  M.  Cutter,  N.  D.  Coombs,  Yuba.  Larue,  speaker;  Campbell,  speaker, 
pro  tern;  chief  clerk,  M.  C.  Haley;  serg't-at-arms,  James  M.  Farrelly; 


SELF-VALUATION  OF  A  LEGISLATURE.  423 

Strictly  construed,  their  election  was  not  constitutional 
by  reason  of  the  neglect  of  their  predecessors  to  ap- 
portion the  representation  of  the  two  houses ;  but  they 
proceeded  to  district  the  state,  and  remove  this  disa- 
bility for  the  future,  as  also  to  define  six  congressional 
districts,  beginning  with  the  northern  portion  of  the 
state  and  proceeding  south,  San  Francisco  comprising 
the  4th  and  a  portion  of  the  5th  congressional  di- 
visions. They  displayed  great  readiness  in  appropri- 
ating the  state's  revenue,  and  a  fair  amount  of  industry 
in  introducing  bills  in  one  house  which  were  rejected 
in  the  other,"  if  not  at  first  hand. 

In  March,  1884,  Governor  Stoneman  called  an  extra 
session,  unlimited,  the  extraordinary  occasion  for 
which  was  the  refusal  of  the  railroad  companies  of 
the  state  to  pay  taxes  which,  they  alleged,  had  been  ille- 
gally imposed.  Actions  had  been  instituted  against 
them  to  enforce  collection,  which  had  been  on  vari- 
ous grounds  delayed,  but  had  finally  been  terminated 
by  the  decision  of  the  court  that  while  nothing 
was  legally  collectible  from  these  corporations,  the 
state  might  accept  whatever  they  were  willing  to  ac- 
cord.31 But  the  people  were  loath  to  accept  this 
decision,  and  more  effective  measures  for  securing 
revenues  from  the  railroads  were  imperatively  de- 
manded. The  plan  of  electing  railroad  commissioners 
by  districts  had  not  proved  satisfactory,  for  the}7  had 
failed  to  agree  on  a  tariff  of  fares  and  freights,  and  a 
thorough  revision  of  the  constitution  and  laws  on  this 
subject  was  demanded;  hence  the  call  for  an  extra 
session.  It  was  recommended  to  propose  to  the 
people  to  amend  the  sections  of  article  XIII.  which 

ass't  serg't-at-arms,  James  P.  Martin;  ass't  clerks,  G.  W.  Herbert,  Julius 
Reimer;  minute  clerk,  Thomas  Cleary;  journal  clerk,  George  W.  Peckham, 
engrossing  clerk,  Charles  A.  Griffin;  enrolling  clerk,  G.  B.  Swift 

*  Among  the  more  important  measures  were  those  brought  forward  by 
Senator  Chandler,  to  provide  against  the  accumulation  of  mining  debris. 
Augustus  L.  Chandler,  a  native  of  Johnson,  Vt,  came  to  C'al.  in  1852,  and 
engaged  in  various  occupations,  mainly  agriculture  and  stock-raising.  He 
rendered  good  service  to  the  Ynba  city  grange,  the  Farmers'  union,  and  kin- 
dred associations.  In  1873  he  was  chosen  assemblyman  for  Sutler  co. 

51  Governor's  proclamation  in  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1884,  1-2. 


424  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

dealt  with  railroad  and  mortgage  assessments;  to 
abolish  the  railroad  commission  system,  for  which  the 
legislature  would  substitute  some  better  laws  ;  and  to 
amend  the  constitution  so  that  the  state  board  of 
equalization  should  assess  railroad  property,  including 
mortgages,  deeds  of  trust,  contracts,  and  other  securi- 
ties, in  the  same  manner  that  the  property  of  individ- 
uals was  assessed  by  local  assessors.  The  legislature 
should  enact  laws  providing  for  delinquent  sales  of 
railroad  property ;  for  the  prevention  of  any  writ  for 
hindering  or  preventing  the  collection  of  revenue  ;  for 
the  appointment  of  a  receiver  when  property  should 
be  sold  for  delinquent  taxes;  should  declare  by  law 
that  the  people  of  California  had  not  authorized  and 
did  not  ratify  any  compromise  nor  any  judgment 
theretofore  rendered  by  consent  in  any  action  for  the 
collection  of  revenues  by  which  a  less  amount  was 
recovered  than  the  sum  due  by  law;  should  enact 
laws  more  clearly  defining  the  powers  and  duties  of 
the  attorney-general,  district  attorneys,  and  boards  of 
supervisors  with  reference  to  the  collection  of  delin- 
quent taxes.  They  were  to  propose  to  the  people, 
also,  an  amendment  to  fix  a  maximum  rate  of  charges 
for  transportation  of  passengers  and  freight  on  all 
railroad  lines  in  the  state,  according  to  a  classification 
in  length,  gauge,  and  income;  and  laws  were  to  be 
passed  appointing  penalties  for  discrimination  by  the 
railroad  companies. 

The  legislature  met  March  24th,  and  adjourned 
May  13th.  It  spent  $83,000  of  the  people's  money, 
passed  four  bills,  two  appropriating  pay  to  themselves, 
one  amending  the  constitution,  touching  the  state 
board  of  equalization,  and  one  providing  for  funding 
the  indebtedness  of  counties  in  certain  cases.  This  was 
the  sole  outcome  of  the  governor's  proclamation 
against  the  so-called  recalcitrant  railroad  companies. 
Naturally,  the  people  were  somewhat  irritated  against 
the  legislature,  and  also,  though  without  apparent 
cause,  against  the  railroad,  taking  no  heed  of  the 
fact  that  the  latter  paid  into  the  state  treasury  more 


PROSTITUTION  OF  LIBERTY.  425 

than  $1,000,000,  for  which  they  were  held  by  no  legal 
obligation. 

In  the  autumn  of  1884  the  general  state  and  pres- 
idential elections  being  commingled,  there  was  more 
than  ordinary  disturbance  of  the  public  mind ;  for 
men  will  make  sacrifices  to  elect  a  chief  of  the  federal 
government,  who  sit  quietly  at  home  while  a  foreign 
rabble  make  and  unmake  the  officers  and  the  offices 
of  the  state  hi  which  they  live.  Good  men,  sick  of 
the  name  of  politics,  and  wearied  with  ever-recurring 
elections,  were  more  and  more  inclined  to  neglect 
registration  as  required  by  law,  and  to  abandon  with 
a  sigh  the  responsibilities  of  electors.  Of  what  avail, 
during  this  long  period  of  political  demoralization, 
and  the  ever-increasing  prostitution  of  American  free 
government,  of  what  avail  the  votes  of  the  few  lead- 
ing men  of  wealth  and  intelligence  on  whom  the  bur- 
dens of  government  fall,  as  against  the  imported 
European  rabble,  and  the  unthinking  masses  easily 
swayed  by  bribing  monopolists  and  designing  dema- 
gogues ?  Two  causes,  however,  united  to  bring  out 
a  full  vote  in  1884  ;  first  the  choice  of  a  chief  magis- 
trate of  the  republic,  and  second,  to  prevent  the  re- 
election of  the  last  state  legislature.  The  result  of 

^5 

the  contest  was  a  republican  majority  over  all  of  7,855, 
for  president,  the  election  of  five  out  of  six  congress- 
men," the  control  of  the  state  legislature,  and  in 
San  Francisco  a  gain  in  municipal  officers,"  although 

^The  exact  figures  were,  for  Elaine,  rep.,  102,406;  for  Cleveland,  dem., 
89,225;  2.960  for  St  John,  prohibition  (of  liquor-selling);  and  2,010  for  But- 
ler, greenbacker;  total  vote  of  the  state,  196,957.  Rep.  presidential  electors, 
Henry  Edgerton,  A.  R.  Conklin,  J.  D.  Byers,  J.  B.  Reddick,  Charles  F. 
Reed,  Horace  Davis,  Marcus  H.  Hecht,  Chester  RowelL  In  the  1st  cong. 
dist  a  democrat,  Barclay  Henley,  was  elected  over  Thomas  L.  Carol  hers,  rep. , 
by  145  maj.;  in  the  2d,  Lonttit,  rep.,  over  Snmner,  dem.,  by  119  maj.;  in 
the  3d,  McKenna,  rep.,  over  Glascock.  dem.,  by  3.643  maj.;  in  the  4th, 
Morrow,  rep.,  over  Hastings,  dem..  by  4,490  maj.  (plurality  over  all  4.461); 
in  the  5th,  Felton,  rep.,  over  Snllivan,  dem..  by  1,064  maj.;  in  the  6th, 
Markham,  rep.,  over  Del  Valle,  dem.,  by  409  maj.  The  state  l>oard  of 
equalization  elected  consisted  of  3  dem.,  Charles  Gildea,  C.  E.  Wilcoxon, 
and  John  Markley,  and  one  rep.,  L.  C.  Morehonse,  being  the  board  of  1S82. 
The  former  dem.  board  of  railway  commissioners  was  also  reelected,  viz.,  G. 
J.  Campbell,  W.  W.  Foote.  and  W.  P.  Humphreys. 

**Of  the  superior  judges  elected,  2  were  rep.,  John  Hunt  and  D.  J. 


426  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

Bartlett  was  reelected  mayor,  and  several  important 
places  were  filled  by  democrats. 

An  important  phase  of  this  election  was  the  adop- 
tion of  three  amendments  to  the  constitution  ;S4  not 
important  because  the  amendments  were  so,  but  as  an 
illustration  of  the  ease  with  which  this  manner  of 
making  legislation  binding  could  be  practised.  Only 
about  one-fifth  of  the  electors  voted  on  the  amend- 
ments, and  it  may  be  doubted  if  the  other  four-fifths 
knew  anything  of  their  nature ;  but  a  majority  only 
of  the  qualified  electors  voting  was  required  to  amend. 

The  legislature  elect,  which  assembled  in  January, 
1885,  35took  up  the  subject  of  railroad  taxation,  and 

Murphy;  and  2  dem.,  J.  F.  Sullivan  and  T.  H.  Reardon.     Hale  Rix  and  W. 
A.  S.  Nicholson,  rep.,  were  elected  police  judges. 

34  Two  were  proposed  by  the  legislature  of  1883,  and  concerned  privileges 
of  individuals  to  lay  water-pipes  in  cities;  and  provided  that  the  state  board 
of  education  should  compile,  or  cause  to  be  compiled  and  adopted,  a  uniform 
series  of  text-books  for  use  in  the  common  schools.     The  3d  was  the  proposal 
of  the  extra  legislature  to  amend  sec.  9  of  art.  xiii.,  not  as  Gov.  Stoneman 
had  recommended,  but  continuing  the  then  present  board  in  office  until  1886, 
dividing  the  state  into  4  districts  corresponding  with  the  former  congress- 
ional districts,  and  providing  that  no  board  should  raise  any  mortgage,  deed 
of  trust,  contract,  or  other  obligation  by  which  debt  is  secured,  money,  or 
solvent  credits,  above  its  face  value.     Weighty  and  ironical  legislation! 

35  The  senate  of  1855  was  composed  of  A.  P.  Johnson,  San  Bernardino; 
R.  F.  Del  Valle,  Los  Angeles;  George  Steele,  San  Luis  Obispo;  P.  Reddy, 
Mono;  J.  D.  Spenser,  Stanislaus;  Ben.  Knight,  Santa  Cruz;  James  R.  Lowe, 
A.  W.  Saxe,  Sta  Clara;  J.  Lynch,  George  C.  Parkinson,  Egisto  Palmieri,  D. 
McClure,  George  H.  Perry,  Daniel  J.  Creighton,  Edward  F.  Drum,  J.  T. 
Dougherty,  M.  Kelly,  John  M.  Days,  John  L.  Boone,  S.  F. ;  H.  Vrooman, 
G.   E.   Whitney,   Oakland;  F.   C.   De  Long,   Marin;  F.  T.  Baldwin,   B.  F. 
Langford,  Stockton;  A.  B.  Beauvais,  Tuolumne;  Fred.  Cox,  J.  Routier,  Sac. ; 
W.  B.  Parker,  Martin  J.  Wright,  Solano;  D.  Spenser,  Napa;  G.  A.  John- 
son, Sonoma;  J.  A.  Filcher,  Placer;  Henry  Mahler,  El  Dorado;  G.  W.  Cross, 
Nevada;  H.  W.  Wallace,  Sierra;  A.  L.  Chandler,  Sutter;  W.  W.  Kellogg, 
Plumas;  E.   G.   Hurlburt,  Humboldt,   C.  W.  Taylor,  Shasta;  C.  F.  Foster, 
Tehama.     John  Daggett,  pres't;  Edwin  T.  Smith,  sec. ;  J   J.  McCarthy,  F. 
J.  Saxe,  asst  sees;  I.  G.  Messec,  sergt-at-arms;  J.  Pinch,  asst  sergt-at-arms; 
Ray  J.  Falk,  minute  clerk;  Guy  H.  Salisbury,  asst  minute  clerk;  John  F. 
Meagher,  journal  clerk;  P.  M.  Sullivan,  enr.  clerk;  George  F.  Tuttle,  eng. 
clerk. 

Members  of  the  assembly:  J.  K.  Johnson,  Siskiyou;  J.  H.  G.  Weaver, 
Joseph  Russ,  Humboldt;  John  Yule,  Trinity;  Thomas  A.  Roseberry,  Modoc; 
George  Wood,  Sierra;  John  Ellison,  Tehama;  Allen  Henry,  J.  M.  Ward, 
Butte;  Robert  Barrett,  Colusa;  Whit.  Henley,  Mendocino;  E.  W.  Brit,  Lake; 
W.  H.  Parks,  Yuba;  Austin  Walrath,  C.  F.  McGlashan,  Nevada;  George 
H.  Colby,  Placer;  E.  H.  Watson,  El  Dorado;  W.  J.  Davis,  C.  T.  Jones, 
Dwight  Hollister,  Sac.;  C.  B.  Culver,  Yolo;  H.  A.  Pellett,  Napa;  W.  T. 
Mears,  S.  I.  Allen,  M.  E.  C.  Munday,  Sonoma;  D.  G.  Barnes,  R.  C.  Carter, 


LEGISLATURE  OF   1885.  427 

an  amendment  was  proposed,  Heath  of  Santa  Rosa 
being  the  author  of  the  bill  which  removed  several  of 
the  most  objectionable  features  of  the  constitution, 
touching  the  manner  of  taxing  the  railroad  corpora- 
tions of  the  state.  It  so  changed  article  XIII.  as  to 
include  growing  vines  and  fruit-trees  among  taxable 
property,  to  provide  for  taxing  ships  and  vessels  or 
their  net  earnings,  and  to  prohibit  double  taxation  in 
any  form.  It  excepted  railroad  owners  from  the  ob- 
ligation of  making  a  sworn  statement  of  all  their 
property,  real  and  personal ;  but  all  corporations  and 
persons  owning  or  operating  a  railroad  or  any  portion 
of  one  in  the  state  should  pay  to  the  state  treasurer 
on  or  before  the  first  day  of  July  of  each  year  two 
and  one-half  per  cent  upon  the  gross  earnings  of  the 
year  next  preceding,  ending  in  December,  which  tax 
should  be  in  lieu  of  all  other  state  and  county  taxes 
upon  the  material  and  property  of  such  roads,  in- 
cluding mortgages,  deeds,  contracts,  etc.  All  other 
property  owned  by  such  corporations  or  persons  should 
be  assessed  and  taxed  according  to  law.  The  gross 
annual  earnings  of  railroads  were  to  be  ascertained 
and  declared  by  the  state  board  of  equalization.  Any 
corporation  or  person  failing  or  refusing  to  pay  the 
tax  provided  by  the  amendment  should  be  deemed  to 

Solano;  Joseph  Almy,  Marin;  James  H.  Daly,  E.  C.  Kalben,  Peter  Deveny, 
Joseph  Franklin,  W.  B.  May,  F.  W.  Hussey,  N.  T.  Whitcomb,  John  Lafferty, 
M.  J.  Sullivan,  W.  B.  Hunt,  Charles  H.  Ward,  Julius  Buhlert,  H.  C.  Fire- 
baugh,  V.  C.  McMurray,  Eugene  F.  Loud,  Frederick  Lovell,  Hugh  K.  Mc- 
Jenkin,  Thomas  H.  McDonald,  Charles  D.  Douglas,  Frank  French,  S.  F.; 
James  V.  Coleman,  San  Mateo;  Lncien  Heath,  Santa  Cruz;  Joseph  F.  Black, 
Thomas  C.  Morris,  F.  J.  Moffitt,  W.  M.  Heywood,  W.  H.  Jordan,  G.  W. 
Watson,  Alameda;  G.  W.  T.  Carter,  Contra  Costa;  Hugh  J.Corcoran,  F.  J. 
Woodward,  San  Joaquin;  U.  S.  Gregory,  Amador;  Mark  S.  lorrey,  Cala- 
veras;  W.  G.  Long,  Tuolumne;  W.  F.  Patterson,  J.  W.  Cook,  D.  M.  Pyle, 
Santa  Clara;  E.  B.  Beard,  Stanislaus;  G.  G.  Goucher,  Mariposa;  Maurice  T. 
Dooling,  San  Benito,  S.  N.  Laughlin,  Monterey;  A.  M.  Clark,  Fresno;  E. 
De  Witt,  Tulare;  R.  J.  Van  Voorhies,  Mono;  Arza  Porter,  San  Luis  Obispo; 
Alex.  McLane,  Sta  Barbara;  R.  I.  Ashe,  Kern;  J.  Banbury,  H.  T.  Hazard, 
E.  E.  Edwards,  Los  Angeles;  Truman  Reeves,  San  Bernardino;  T.  J.  Swayne, 
San  Diego.  W.  H.  Parks,  speaker;  Frank  D.  Ryan,  chief  clerk;  C.  F.  Long, 
Aaron  Smith,  Ed.  J.  Smith,  asst  clerks;  Thomes  K  Atkinson,  R.  D.  Cannon, 
minute  clerks;  Frank  J.  Brandon,  Frank  W.  Marston,  journal  clerks;  Jacob 
Shaen,  eng.  clerk;  Jerome  Porter,  A.  F.  Chapman,  sergts-at-arms.  CaL  Slat., 
J8S5,  xviii-xx. 


428  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

have  waived  the  right  to  operate  their  railroads 
within  the  state  ;  and  the  taxes  should  be  a  lien  upon 
the  property,  which  might  be  enforced  by  law.  An 
ad  valorem  tax  for  school  purposes  should  also  be 
levied  upon  railroad  property  situated  within  any 
common-school  district.  Income  taxes  might  be  as- 
sessed and  collected  from  persons,  corporations,  com- 
panies, or  joint-stock  associations  doing  business  in 
the  state.  No  court  within  the  state  should  have 
power  by  injunction  or  otherwise  to  interfere  with, 
hinder,  or  delay  the  collection  of  any  tax  laid  under 
the  form  of  law,  unless  it  be  shown  that  the  same 
property  had  been  taxed  more  than  once  for  the  same 
purpose  in  the  same  year,  and  then  only  upon  the 
payment  to  the  collector  or  into  court  of  a  sum  equal 
to  the  amount  of  one  of  the  taxes  laid  upon  the 
property  in  question;  but  actions  might  be  main- 
tained against  a  tax  collector  to  recover  taxes  paid 
under  protest,  if  begun  within  thirty  days  after  pay- 
ment; and  it  should  be  the  duty  of  courts  to  give 
precedence  to  cases  of  this  kind.  Nothing  in  this 
amendment  was  to  be  permitted  to  affect  any  penalty 
theretofore  incurred,  or  any  action  or  right  of  action. 
The  first  levy  and  payment  of  railroad  taxes  under 
the  amendment  should  be  made  in  1886  upon  the 
gross  earnings  of  1885,  but  it  should  not  affect  the 
taxation  for  the  previous  year.  The  real  object  of 
this  amendment  was  to  permit  the  ruling  railroad 
corporation  to  settle  with  the  state  upon  its  own 
terms,  the  rates  fixed  being  about  one-sixth  of  that 
paid  by  the  average  tax-payer.  This  amendment 
was  rejected  in  1886. 

Another  question  of  paramount  importance  to  the 
agriculturalists  of  the  state — the  proper  distribution 
of  water  and  its  reasonable  cost — had  also  become  the 
subject  of  legislation.  The  movement  did  not  em- 
anate from  the  people,  but  was  projected  by  political 
conspirators,  who,  while  feigning  to  make  all  water 


IRRIGATION.  409 

which  had  been  or  might  be  appropriated  a  public 
use,  subject  to  the  control  of  the  state  in  a  manner  to 
be  prescribed  by  law,  provided  that  in  fixing  the  rates 
of  compensation  to  be  collected  by  any  person  or  cor- 
poration for  the  use  of  water  supplied  to  anv  city, 
town,  or  irrigation  district,  a  net  return  of  seven  per 
cent  per  annum  upon  the  cost  of  construction  and 
maintenance  of  the  necessary  works  should  be  secured 
to  the  owners.  While  declaring  every  neutral  stream 
the  property  of  the  public,  and  dedicated  to  the  use 
of  the  people,  subject  to  appropriation,  diversion, 
and  use  for  irrigation  and  other  beneficial  purposes, 
prior  appropriation36  was  allowed  the  better  right, 
and  should  be  exercised  under  legislative  regulations. 
As  in  the  Heath  amendment,  the  courts  were  forbid- 
den to  intermeddle  by  injunction,  and  all  suits  pend- 
ing against  the  diversion  of  water  from  any  natural 
stream  were  to  be  stayed  by  the  passage  of  the 
amendment  until  the  plaintiff's  right  had  been  estab- 
lished by  a  recovery  of  damages  in  an  action  at  law. 
These  innocent-sounding  sections  contained  the  germ 
of  a  mighty  monopoly,  and  were  conceived  for  the 
benefit  of  a  few  men*1  who  had  become,  or  meant  to 
become,  prior  appropriators  of  all  the  waters  in  the 
southern  portion  of  the  state,  for  the  use  of  which 
the  farmers  were  to  pay  them  at  the  rate  of  not  less 
than  seven  per  cent  upon  their  expenses  in  perpetu- 
ity, or  until  this  part  of  the  constitution  should  be 

16  According  to  CaL  Civil  Code,  1873,  p.  302-3.  As  between  appropriators, 
the  one  first  in  time  is  the  first  in  right.  '  The  rights  of  riparian  owners  are 
not  affected  by  the  provisions  of  this  title. '  The  supreme  court  followed  the 
old  Eaglish  law  in  deciding  upon  riparian  rights.  Vrooman,  MS.,  12. 

57  The  instigators  of  this  movement  were  denounced  in  the  public  press, 
persons  in  interest,  as  a  matter  of  course,  becoming  greatly  worked  up  about 
it.  Judge  McKinstry  had  decided  some  time  previously  that  a  riparian 
owner  was  entitled  to  the  full  flow  of  streams  traversing  his  property,  and 
could  not  be  compelled  to  divide  with  non-riparian  owners,  or  with  owners 
nearer  the  source  of  the  stream  (i.  e.,  prior  appropriators).  Most  people 
thought  this  bad  law — it  was  founded  on  English  common  law — for  Califor- 
nia, and  expected  a  reversal  of  the  decree  whenever  the  supreme  bench  should 
be  changed.  Meantime,  the  '  water-grabbers, '  as  they  were  called,  had  the 
law  on  their  side,  but  found  injunctions  and  law-suits  expensive  and  uncer- 
tain, and  devised  this  new  plan  of  gaining  control  of  the  coveted  water-supply. 


430  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

abolished.  Such  a  monopoly  would  be  far  more 
oppressive  than  that  of  railroads,  which  could  be 
checked  by  competition;  whereas  the  people  could 
not  create  new  water  supplies  when  all  the  springs, 
lakes,  and  rivers  of  the  state  had  been  pre-empted, 
and  converted  to  the  use  of  the  prior  appropriators. 
The  people  demanded  free  water,  not  water  belonging, 
according  to  the  court,  to  riparians,  or  as  monopolists 
intended,  to  themselves. 

For  the  purpose  of  defeating  the  unwelcome  judg- 
ment of  the  supreme  court,  the  appropriators  pre- 
vailed upon  Governor  Stoneman,  though  with  some 
difficulty,  to  call  an  extra  session  of  the  legislature 
in  July,  1886,  to  propose  amendments  to  the  consti- 
tution. They  failed  of  their  purpose,  the  senate  re- 
fusing to  be  brought  into  the  scheme  for  giving  away 
the  water  of  the  state,  and  taxing  the  people  heavily 
for  the  benefit  of  a  few  wealthy  and  interested  men. 
The  assembly,  after  becoming  aware  of  the  real  ani- 
mus of  the  call,  also  became  recalcitrant,  and  the 
scheme  fell  through. 

Another  object  was  to  abolish  or  at  least  to 
reorganize  the  supreme  court.  One  of  the  chief 
advocates  of  a  change  was  David  S.  Terry,  whose 
private,  no  less  than  his  professional  interests,  had 
suffered  through  the  interference  of  the  higher  court 
with  the  decision  of  the  superior  court.  He  brought 
charges  of  physical  and  mental  incompetency  against 
two  of  the  justices  whose  decisions  were  adverse  to 
his  interests,  and  procured  an  investigation  before  a 
committee,  which  ended  in  nothing  except  a  bill  of 
costs.  The  supreme  court  had  other  enemies,  and 
the  governor  in  his  proclamation  calling  the  extra 
session  had  declared  that  under  its  present  cumbrous 
system  it  had  failed  to  realize  the  aims  and  accomplish 
the  results  intended  by  the  framers  of  the  constitu- 
tion. To  meddling  with  the  judiciary,  the  body  of 
lawyers  in  the  state  opposed  their  united  influence, 
and  this  attempt  also  miscarried. 


EXTRA  LEGISLATIVE  SESSION.  431 

The  evils  of  an  elective  judiciary  were  made  strik- 
ingly apparent  in  the  political  maneuvers  of  this  year, 
strong  efforts  being  made  to  prevent  the  reelection  of 
the  most  capable  judges,  by  those  whose  several 
schemes  had  been,  or  were  likely  to  be,  frustrated 
by  their  decisions.  On  the  other  hand,  the  election 
of  at  least  one  justice  to  the  supreme  bench  was  un- 
doubtedly secured38  by  the  judgment  rendered  in  the 
case  above  referred  to,  by  a  judge  of  the  superior 
court.  The  lawyers  who,  with  Terry,  endeavored  to 
have  the  entire  supreme  bench  removed  were,  like 
Terry,  democrats,  and  spared  no  pains  to  accomplish 
their  purpose.  They  opened  political  headquarters 
during  the  state  conventions,  and  secured  votes  for 
their  favorite,  whom  they  were  to  elect  to  the  su- 
preme bench,  while  the  case  was  still  pending  upon 
motion  for  a  new  trial,  and  was  entirely  in  his  hands. 
I  do  not  know  whether  this  spectacle,  or  the  other, 
of  certain  clergymen  appearing  upon  the  floor  of  a 
political  convention  to  urge  the  choice  of  their  candi- 
date, should  be  regarded  as  most  reprehensible.  It 
is  at  least  impossible  to  defend  a  system  which,  in- 
stead of  placing  the  supreme  court  beyond  reach  of 
political  influence,  makes,  unmakes,  and  sometimes 
uses  judges  at  will.  I  can  see  in  it  only  the  lowering 
of  the  national  standard  of  right,  and  the  degradation 
of  American  pride  of  character. 

It  was  next  suggested  to  this  legislature  that  it 
not  only  could,  but  should,  elect  a  United  States 
senator  to  succeed  John  F.  Miller,  republican,  whose 
death  occurred  in  the  spring  of  1886,  and  whose  place 
had  been  temporarily  filled  by  the  appointment  of 
George  Hearst,  democrat.  This  republican  legislature 
had  elected  Leland  Stanford  senator  of  the  United 
States  in  1885,  to  succeed  James  T.  Farley,"  demo- 
crat, chosen  by  the  legislature  of  1877-8.  It  had 

18  One  whom,  in  common  with  most  men,  I  believe  to  have  been  per- 
fectly honest,  by  whatever  means  his  election  was  brought  about. 

**  Farley  was  born  in  Va  in  1829,  educated  in  the  common  schools  of 


432  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


long  been  Stanford's  wish  that  the  choice  should  fall 
on  A.  A.  Sargent,  and  this  selection  he  constantly 
urged  on  his  friends.  Only  after  frequent  protests 
and  remonstrances  did  he  agree  to  accept  the  appoint- 
ment, in  deference  to  the  consensus  of  his  party's 
opinion. 

In  the  meantime,  as  I  have  just  mentioned,  on  the 
death  of  Miller,  Governor  Stoneman"  had  appointed 
Hearst,  who  had  with  his  family  been  but  a  few 
months  in  Washington  when  he  found  himself  de- 
prived of  his  seat  by  senator-elect  A.  P.  Williams.41 
Thus  the  extra  session  had  accomplished  nothing  ex- 
cept to  unseat  the  appointee  of  the  governor,  and  by 
creating  a  prejudice  against  the  executive  in  both 
parties,  to  defeat  his  hopes  of  reelection.  The  expense 

Missouri,  and  migrated  to  Cal.  where  he  studied  law,  and  began  practise  in 
1854.  He  was  member  of  the  assembly  in  1855,  and  in  1856  was  speaker  of 
that  house.  He  served  8  years  as  state  senator,  and  was  pres.  pro  tern,  one 
session.  Residence,  Jackson,  Amador  co. 

**  George  Stoneman  was  born  in  Busti,  Chatauque  co.,  N.  Y.,  and  educated 
at  the  Jamestown  academy.  He  studied  surveying  with  an  idea  of  going 
west,  but  changed  his  views,  and  sought  an  appointment  to  the  military 
academy  at  West  Point,  graduating  thence  in  1846.  He  was  assigned  to  a 
2d  lieutenantcy  in  the  1st  U.  S.  dragoons,  company  C,  Capt.  Moore,  and 
proceeded  to  Fort  Kearny,  where  he  was  detailed  to  conduct  an  ammunition 
train  and  battery  of  heavy  artillery  to  Santa  Fe.  From  Santa  Fe  he 
marched  across  the  continent,  acting  as  asst  qrmaster  to  the  Mormon  bat- 
talion, arriving  at  San  Diego  in  Jan.  1847.  He  served  until  the  spring  of 
1853  on  the  Pacific  coast  in  Cal.,  Or.,  and  Ariz.,  when  he  was  assigned  to 
the  command  of  an  escort  which  accompanied  a  R.R.  surveying  party  from 
Benicia  to  San  Antonio,  Tex.  Following  this  duty,  he  was  appointed  aid- 
de-camp  to  Gen.  Wool,  com'd'g  the  dept  of  the  Pacific.  In  1855  he  was 
promoted  to  a  captaincy  in  the  2d  U.  S.  cavalry  regt,  serving  in  1  exas  until 
the  breaking  out  of  the  civil  war.  When  Gen.  Twiggs  surrendered  his  com- 
mand, Capt.  Stoneman  refused  to  obey  the  order,  and  seizing  a  steamer 
escaped  with  his  command,  and  was  recommended  for  promotion  by  brevet 
by  Gen.  Scott.  He  reached  New  York  in  April  1861,  and  was  ordered  to 
report  for  duty  at  Carlisle  barracks,  Pa,  where  he  remounted  his  company 
and  reported  to  Scott  in  Washington,  this  being  the  first  cavalry  co.  in  that 
city.  His  military  career  during  the  war  is  a  part  of  the  history  of  the  great 
rebellion.  St^mernan,  Datu,  MS.,  1-4. 

41  A.  P.  Williams  was  born  in  Me.  in  1832,  and  received  an  academic 
education,  after  which  he  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits.  In  1858  he  came 
to  Cal.,  and  after  mining  and  merchandising  for  4  years,  settled  in  S.  F., 
where  he  became  a  partner  in  the  firm  of  Livingston  and  Hickey,  after  serv- 
ing them  for  about  10  years.  He  began  his  political  life  by  advocating 
republican  doctrines  in  Tuolumne  co., where  they  were  exceedingly  unpopular. 
In  1880  he  was  placed  on  the  executive  com.  of  his  party,  and  again  in  1882. 
In  1884  he  was  chairman  of  the  republican  state  central  com.  In  1886  he 
was  chosen  senator  of  the  U.  S.  without  having  sought  the  nomination. 


ELECTION.  433 

to  the  state  of  this  extra  session,  which  was  called  for 
ten  days,  and  which  remained  in  session  thirty-seven, 
exclusive  of  a  recess  of  seventeen  days,  during  which 
the  state  conventions  of  the  political  parties  were 
making  up  their  tickets  for  the  November  election, 
was  $72,383. 

A  brief  interval  of  comparative  quiet  in  political 
circbs  followed  the  adjournment  of  the  extra  legisla- 
ture before  the  state  election  came  on,  with  its  absence 
of  any  vital  issues,  and  its  bewildering  multiplicity  of 
tickets  and  candidates."  It  resulted  in  a  loss  to  the 
republicans,  as  might  have  been  anticipated  from  the 
numerous  splittings  of  its  regular  ticket.  The  gov- 
ernor elected  was  Washington  Bartlett/3  first  American 

42 'Regular  Republican,'  a  vignette  at  top  representing  Industry  and 
Labor,  a  smith  standing  at  his  forge  and  a  water-wheel  and  mill.  '  Regu- 
lar Democratic '  was  headed  by  an  eagle  with  outstretched  talons  bearing  a 
streamer  inscribed  '  Economy  and  Reform,  and  Protection  to  Labor. '  'Anti- 
Monopoly,  Anti-Sargent  and  Independent  Republican,'  had  a  vignette  rep- 
resenting a  locomotive  impeded  by  Fort  Independence.  '  Independent  Re- 
publicans '  headed  with  a  vignette  of  a  broken  slate  held  aloft  by  Justice. 
'  Labor  Party, '  headed  by  a  sunburst,  crossed  flags,  and  on  either  side  a  pick 
and  sledge.  This  ticket  was  printed  in  two  forms  for  S.  F.,  one  with  the 
democratic  state  nominees  at  the  top,  and  the  other  with  the  republican 
nominees,  to  catch  voters  on  either  side.  '  United  Anti-Boss, '  bore  Hercules 
holding  aloft  a  sword,  and  about  to  strike  at  a  monster  representing  bossism. 
The  nominees  on  this  ticket  were  divided  between  all  the  other  parties. 
'  Regular  Irish- American  Democrat, '  was  headed  by  a  vignette  of  a  black- 
smith shoeing  a  horse  held  by  a  farmer,  and  the  motto,  'All  public  work 
must  be  done  by  days'  work. '  '  Citizens  Independent, '  had  figure  of  Labor 
standing  with  one  foot  on  the  throat  of  a  '  boss, '  and  in  deadly  combat  with 
another  'boss.'  'Regular  United  Labor,'  was  headed  by  a  likeness  of  C.  C. 
O'Donnell,  who  was  running  for  governor  on  the  Irish-American  ticket. 
Another  '  United  Labor '  ticket  had  a  vignette  of  Cox  and  Bell,  the  standard- 
bearers  of  the  party.  The  '  Independent  Producers,'  had  a  horse's  head  for 
a  vignette,  and  also  bore  the  name  of  O'Donnell,  though  it  was  issued  in  the 
interest  of  J.  S.  McCue  who  wished  to  be  sent  to  congress;  the  other  nomi- 
nees being  from  the  various  tickets.  'American  Home-Rule,'  had  simply 
two  U.  S.  flags  at  the  top,  and  was  a  state  ticket  only.  '  Committee  of  '200,' 
was  headed  by  the  American  flag,  and  beneath  '  Our  Platform;  Honesty  and 
Integrity. '  '  Independent  Colored  Citizens, '  headed  by  a  bee-hive  surrounded 
by  a  swarm  of  bees.  The  state  nominees  were  republican.  '  Prohibition, ' 
headed  by  three  stars.  A  German-American  spurious  ticket  was  the  16th 
in  the  field.  There  was  a  great  deal  of  borrowing  from  each  others'  lists. 
A  full  state  and  municipal  ticket  had  84  names  on  it,  and  the  confusion  was 
appalling  to  electors  and  those  who  counted  votes.  There  were  six  candi- 
dates for  the  position  of  governor.  Washington  Bartlett  (D. ),  John  F. 
Swift  (R.),  Jerome  B.  Cox  (L.),  P.  D.  Wigginton  (A.),  Joel  Russell  (P),  C.  C. 
O'Donnell  (I.). 

"Gov.  Bartlett,  a  well  known  pioneer,  was  born  in  Augusta,  Ga,  Feb. 

HIST.  CAL..  VOL.  VII.    28 


434  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

alcalde  of  San  Francisco,  and  mayor  of  the  city  when 
elected,  a  lifelong  democrat.  He  died  soon  after,  hav- 
ing been  in  ill  health  for  some  time.  Elected  on  the 
same  ticket  were  W.  C.  Hendricks  secretary  of  state, 
John  P.  Dunn  controller,  Adam  Herold44  treasurer  J. 
D.  Spencer  clerk  of  the  supreme  court,  and  Jackson 
Temple  associate  justice  of  the  supreme  court  for  the 
unexpired  term  of  Justice  Ross.  Elected  on  the  re- 
publican ticket  were  R.  W.  Waterman,  lieutenant- 
governor,  who  succeeded  Governor  Bartlett,  after 
his  death;  W.  H.  H.  Hart  attorney-general,  Theodore 
Reichert  surveyor- general,  Ira  G.  Hoitt  superintend- 
ent of  public  instruction,  and  two  justices  of  the  su- 
preme court  for  the  long  term,  A.  Van  R.  Patterson 
and  T.  B.  McFarland.  Out  of  six  congressmen 

29,  1824,  and  resided  in  Tallahassee,  Fla.  In  Dec.  1848  he  determined  to  go 
to  California,  and  failing  to  procure  a  passage  in  the  first  mail  steamer  from 
New  York,  shipped  at  Charleston  on  the  Othello,  Capt.  Galloway,  and  ar- 
rived at  San  Francisco  Jan.  31,  1849.  Here  he  published  the  Journal  of 
Commerce,  first  issued  in  Feb.  1850.  The  office  was  destroyed  by  fire  May  4th. 
With  the  material  saved  the  paper  was  re-issued,  but  on  the  14th  of  June 
another  fire  destroyed  it  entirely.  With  other  material  which  had  been 
purchased  at  great  cost,  the  Stockton  Journal  was  started,  and  the  state 

Printing  for  the  first  legislature  was  also  performed.  After  the  session  the 
an  Jose  office  was  removed  to  S.  F. ,  and  started  the  Evening  Journal,  which 
he  sold  out  and  started  the  Evening  JVews  with  his  brothers  Columbus  and 
Julian,  who  had  followed  him  to  Cal.  But  when  James  King  of  William 
started  the  Bulletin,  his  popularity  over-shadowed  every  other  journal.  The 
True  Califomian  was  Bartlett's  next  and  last  newspaper  enterprise,  which 
did  not  run  long.  In  the  city's  history  he  has  ever  been  more  or  less  con- 
spicuous. 

44  Adam  Herold  was  born  in  Bavaria,  Germany,  in  1842,  going  to  school 
until  he  was  15  years  of  age,  when  he  was  apprenticed  to  a  miller,  afterward 
entering  the  German  army.  In  1869  he  came  to  Cal.,  where  he  kept  a  hotel 
for  five  years  in  Santa  Clara  co. ;  selling  it  out,  he  went  to  Gilroy,  bought  a 
brewery,  and  operated  it  until  1886,  when  he  was  elected  state  treasurer. 
He  then  gave  up  his  business  and  removed  to  Sacramento,  and  afterward 
purchased  land  in  Placer  co. 

McFarland  was  born  in  Pa  in  1828,  of  Scotch  parents;  graduated  from 
Marshall  college,  studied  law  with  his  uncle,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
the  court  of  common  pleas  of  Bradford  co.  He  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  min- 
ing for  some  time,  but  returning  to  his  profession  in  Nevada  city,  where  he 
was  judge  of  the  14th  district  from  1861  to  1863.  He  removed  to  Sac.  and 
was  appointed  superior  judge  by  Gov.  Perkins  to  succeed  Denson  who  re- 
signed. He  was  a  member  of  the  constitutional  convention  of  1878,  and 
voted  against  the  constitution  on  the  final  ballot. 

A.  Van  Renssalaer  Patterson  was  but  37  years  of  age.  He  came  to  Cal. 
in  1869  from  N.  Y.  and  settled  in  Stockton.  He  served  as  district  attorney 
in  San  Joaquin  co.  and  was  twice  elected  superior  judge. 

Ira  G.  Hoitt  was  born  in  Lee,  N.  H.,  in  1833,  brought  up  on  a  farm,  and 
sent  to  the  district  schools,  entering  Dartmouth  college  in  1857,  and  grad- 


GRAVE  QUESTIONS.  435 

elected,  five  were  republicans."  But  the  legislature, 
which  was  to  elect  a  United  States  senator  to  succeed 
Williams,  had  a  democratic  majority. 

Owing  to  the  irregularity  ot  the  election  of  1884 — 
for  which  the  state  had  not  been  districted  according 
to  the  constitution — a  full  senate  was  elected  in  1886, 
half  of  whose  members  would  hold  over  the  session 
of  1889.  What  would  be  the  course  of  the  legislature 
in  1887,  it  was  hopeless  to  conjecture.  One  thing 
which  it  did  was  to  elect  Hearst  to  succeed  Williams. 
It  was  now  six  years  since  the  adoption  of  the  consti- 
tution, framed  under  such  conditions  as  I  have  de- 
scribed, yet  under  it  the  machinery  of  government 
had  not  been  brought  to  work  harmoniously.  Whether 
it  was  the  fault  of  the  people  or  of  the  constitution, 
let  those  judge  who  read.  One  thing  appeared  evi- 
dent to  many,  that  it  was  time  for  Americans,  and 
men  of  sense  and  education,  to  take  the  lead  in  politics 
— honest  men,  desirous  of  doing  something  for  their 

nating  in  1860.  He  removed  to  S.  F.  in  1861,  and  devoted  himself  to 
education. 

William  H.  H.  Hart  was  born  in  England  in  1848,  immigrated  to  111.  in 
1852,  and  to  Iowa  in  1854.  In  1862,  at  14  years  of  age,  he  joined  Hinkley's 
union  scouts,  serving  two  years,  and  returning  home  to  school  in  1864.  At 
17  he  again  enlisted  for  100  days  service,  after  which  he  again  returned  to 
school.  In  1865  he  again  reenlisted  and  was  mustered  out  in  1866.  He 
then  studied  law,  was  admitted  to  practise  in  1869.  Five  years  afterward 
he  came  to  Cal.  and  settled  in  San  Francisco. 

Theodore  Reichert,  born  in  Ohio  in  1839,  came  to  Cal.  in  1858,  settling  in 
Sac.  in  grain  and  commission  business,  although  but  19  years  of  age.  In 
1863  he  removed  to  S.  F.,  and  afterward  to  White  Pine,  Nevada.  In  1869 
he  became  clerk  in  the  U.  S.  sur.-gen.'s  office,  where  he  remained  until  1886. 

^The  congressmen  elected  were  Charles  A.  Garter,  Joseph  Clabaugh 
Campbell,  Joseph  McKenna,  W.  W.  Morrow,  Frank  J.  Sullivan,  and  Wil- 
liam Vandever,  their  districts  numbered  in  the  order  here  given.  Sullivan 
was  the  democrat.  W.  W.  Morrow  was  born  in  Wayne  co.,  Ind  in  1843, 
and  educated  in  HL  At  the  age  of  16  years  he  came  to  Cal.  by  sea,  residing 
in  Santa  Rosa  from  1859  to  1862,  when  he  went  to  the  mines  of  E.  Or.,  and 
entered  upon  the  practise  of  law  at  Canon  city.  When  the  civil  war  broke 
out  he  went  east  to  enlist.  After  serving  for  a  time  he  was  giren  a  place  in 
the  U.  S.  treasury,  and  in  1865  was  sent  to  Cal.  in  charge  of  $5,000.000  in 
money.  He  returned  to  the  study  and  practise  of  the  law,  and  in  1870  was 
appointed  ass't  U.  S.  attorney  for  Cal.,  which  position  he  held  for  many 
years.  McKenna  was  a  native  of  Pa,  born  in  1843.  He  came  to  Cal.  in 
1855,  and  at  the  age  of  22  was  elected  district  attorney  of  Solano  co.  He 
was  a  distinguished  member  of  the  state  assembly  in  1875-6;  and  was  elected 
to  congress  in  1879  and  1884.  Campbell  was  born  hi  Ind.  in  1851,  and  came 
to  Cal.  in  1876,  a  jwyer,  and  in  1883  was  district  attorney  for  San  Joaquin 
county. 


436  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

country,  and  not  thinking  solely  of  themselves.  It 
could  not  be  safe  to  longer  endure,  condone,  or  smile 
at  the  antics  of  foreign  demagogues,  who  understood 
democracy  to  be  a  synonym  for  anarchy,  who  sought 
to  pull  down  the  institutions  nobler  men  have  built 
up,  to  glut  their  greed  of  plunder  by  making  predatory 
warfare  upon  capital  which  they  never  could  have 
amassed  by  their  own  brain  or  muscle,  and  who  aspired 
even  to  assume  the  government  of  a  state  which  had 
afforded  them  an  asylum  from  the  poverty,  ignorance, 
and  debasement  of  less  favored  lands. 

If  one  could  wonder  at  anything  men  may  do,  the 
marvel  would  be  that  the  leaders  of  these  variously 
styled  factions  do  not  perceive  that  their  banner-cries 
are  for  the  most  part  dead  issues.  They  were,  many 
of  them,  never  native  to  the  soil,  but  were  imported 
with  fugitives  from  aristocratic  abuses,  from  Europe. 
Aristocracy  and  democracy  do  not  now  oppose  each 
other  as  in  the  beginning  of  our  government,  while 
republicanism  has  degenerated  to  a  degraded  rule  bor- 
dering on  anarchy.  The  contest  now  is  entirely  be- 
tween honesty  and  rascality.  The  foreigners  who 
insolently  seek  to  rule  these  American  states  are 
neither  republicans  nor  democrats.  Their  blood  is 
soured  by  ages  of  enforced  inferiority  and  discontent. 
Having  always  been  compelled,  they  desire  to  compel 
others,  nominally  their  equals,  but  visibly  their  su- 
periors. 

This  assumption  had  gone  to  such  lengths  in  Cali- 
fornia, as  in  some  other  states,  that  a  considerable 
number  of  independent  men,  particularly  young  men, 
"  sons  of  the  golden  west,"  and  others,  left  older  par- 
ties to  call  themselves  Americans.  Their  platform 
declared  that  all  law-abiding  citizens,  whether  native 
or  foreign-born,  were  entitled  to  the  protection  of  the 
laws ;  that  the  naturalization  laws  of  the  United 
States  should  be  repealed  ;  that  aliens  or  non-resi- 
dents should  not  be  permitted  to  own  real  estate  in 
the  United  States ;  that  persons  not  in  sympathy 


CALIFORNIA  AS  A  TYPE.  437 

with  the  principles  of  this  government,  should  be  re- 
fused domiciliation  in  the  territory  of  the  United 
States. 

This  platform,  crude  as  it  was,  contained  ideas 
which  had  long  been  brooding  in  the  American  brain." 
Possibly  the  day  is  not  far  distant  when  it  shall  take 
form  and  purpose,  at  least  so  far  as  relates  to  the  re- 
peal and  amendment  of  the  naturalization  laws,  and 
the  holding  of  offices  by  foreign  citizens.  Whenever 
this  is  resolved  upon  a  different  class  of  men  will  be 
found  demanding  the  suffrages  of  the  people,  and  the 
laws  will  be  regarded  as  binding. 

To  judge  California  by  the  history  of  the  state  and 
municipal  politics,  would  be  to  misjudge  her.  She  is 
altogether  of  a  noble  and  generous  type,  great  in  her 
virtues  as  in  her  faults  and  follies.  But  a  short  time 
ago  she  celebrated  the  thirty-seventh  anniversary  of 
her  birtli  as  a  state.  Her  population  is  roundly  1,- 
600,000.  She  has  one  city  of  nearly  400,000,  and  six 
others  of  from  20,000  to  75,000.  She  has  52  coun- 
ties,47 embracing  all  resources  of  soil,  productions,  and 

46  A  call  was  made  for  a  convention  of  Americans  to  be  held  at  Fresno,  on 
the   28th  of  September,    1886.     Fresno  was  in  the  midst  of  a  population 
largely  from  the  southern  states,  who  were  opposed  to  foreign  immigration 
of  all  kinds.     The  call  might  therefore  be  regarded  with  distrust,  as  not 
purely  patriotic.     But  it  touched  a  popular  chord,  and  under  favorable  con- 
ditions might  have  competed  for  a  majority  with  either  of  the  old  parties. 

47  It  appears  proper  here  to  make  mention  of  the  counties  in  their  consec- 
utive order  of  creation.     A  number  were  mentioned  in  the  previous  volume, 
but  for  the  sake  of  unity  they  are  included  in  the  list.     The  first  sub-division 
of  the  state  was  made  in  1850,  when  27  counties  were  set  off;  beginning  with 
the  southern  portion,  the  legislature  preserved  the  names  first  applied  by 
Junf  pero  Serra  and  his  brethren. 

San  Diego  county  was  named  after  the  mission  town  and  bay,  so  called  by 
the  fathers  in  1769. 

Los  Angeles,  that  is  to  say,  The  Angels,  or  more  near  the  original  appel- 
lation, The  town  of  the  Angels,  was  the  name  given  in  1781  to  the  settlement 
near  the  mission  of  San  Gabriel  founded  by  order  of  the  viceroy  of  Mew 
Spain,  Bailio  Frey  Antonio  Bncareli  y  Ursua,  and  the  county,  including  the 
valley  of  Porciuncula  river,  with  a  population  of  12,000  to  15,000,  was  allowed 
to  retain  the  name. 

Santa  Barbara  was  named  after  the  presidio  thus  styled  by  Father  Juni- 
pero  in  1782. 

San  Luis  Obispo  took  the  name  of  the  mission  founded  in  1772  by  Serra 
and  Jose  Cavalier  in  Bear's  glen.  The  father  of  M.  G  Vallejo,  then  a  young 
man,  was  present  as  '  tenedor, '  holder,  at  the  birth  of  the  first  white  child,  a 
girl,  whose  hand  he  demanded  in  marriage  immediately  he  had  helped  bring 


438  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

mineral  wealth  known  to  the  most  favored  parts  of 
the  earth.  The  value  of  her  assessable  property  in 
1880,  when  the  constitution  was  changed,  was  not  far 

her  into  the  world.  When  she  was  14  years  of  age  the  marriage  took  place, 
which  gave  to  California  a  valued  citizen. 

Monterey,  signifying  king  of  forests,  was  thought  too  beautiful  a  name 
to  be  discarded.  The  bay  was  first  named,  in  honor  of  Count  Monterey,  in 
1603.  The  town  of  the  same  name  became  the  county  seat.  It  had  been 
the  residence  of  14  Spanish  governors,  Pages,  Borica,  Arrillaga,  Arguello  1st, 
Sola,  Arguello  2d,  Echeandia,  Victoria,  Figueroa,  Chico,  Carrillo,  Alvarado, 
Micheltorena,  and  Pico. 

Santa  Cruz,  or  the  holy  cross,  was  first  named  by  the  legislature  Branci- 
f  orte,  but  the  name  of  the  mission  of  Santa  Cruz  was  restored  to  this  division. 
In  all  these  counties  the  seat  of  justice  was  fixed  at  the  towns  of  the  same 
name. 

Santa  Clara  county  was  named  from  the  mission  founded  in  1777,  and  the 
county  seat  was  at  San  Jose.  The  boundary  between  Santa  Cruz  co.  and 
Santa  Clara  co.  was  surveyed  in  1 855. 

San  Francisco  county  could  take  no  other  name  than  that  of  the  noble 
bay  which  bounds  it,  and  the  patron  saint  of  the  order  which  first  founded  a 
settlement  on  its  border  in  1776.  The  American  town  of  San  Francisco  be- 
came the  county  seat,  town  and  county  being  afterward  consolidated. 

Contra  Costa,  or  the  opposite  coast,  so  well  described  the  territory  to 
which  it  was  applied  that  it  was  chosen  for  the  name  of  that  county,  and 
Martinez  the  county  seat.  Monte  Diablo,  in  this  county,  was  an  object  of 
superstition  to  the  native  race,  but  white  men  do  not  disdain  picking  up  the 
coal  scattered  about  the  devil's  furnace-fire. 

Marin  was  the  name  of  a  chief  of  the  Licatiut  tribe,  the  word  licatiut  sig- 
nifying a  favorite  root  used  for  food.  It  grew  in  abundance  in  the  valley  of 
Petaluma.  An  expedition  into  the  country  by  the  Spanish  soldiery  in  1815 
or  1816  brought  on  a  battle  with  Marin,  who  was  captured  and  taken  to 
San  Francisco;  but  he  escaped,  and  carried  on  hostilities,  having  his  refuge 
in  the  Marin  islands,  at  the  mouth  of  the  inlet  of  San  Rafael.  He  was  again 
captured  in  1824,  and  his  spirit  being  broken,  he  retired  to  the  mission  of 
San  Rafael,  where  he  died  in  1834.  This  county  was  at  first  attached  for 
judicial  purposes  to  Sonoma  county,  Sonoma  signifying  in  the  Indian  tongue 
valley  of  the  moon.  It  was  formerly  inhabited  by  Chocuyens,  and  is  a  lovely 
vale,  fronting  on  San  Pablo  bay.  It  will  always  be  noted  as  the  spot  where 
American  filibusters  first  raised  the  bear  flag.  The  pueblo  of  Sonoma  was 
the  first  county  seat,  but  Santa  Rosa  became  the  seat  of  justice  in  1855.  The 
boundaries  of  Marin  and  Sonoma  were  altered  in  1852,  1854,  and  1856. 
The  commissioners  who  fixed  the  present  county  seat  were  Charles  Lopez, 
Gilbert  R.  Brush,  and  James  M.  Neal. 

Solano  was  the  second  name  of  the  missionary  Francisco  Solano.  The 
chief  of  the  Suisunes  adopted  it,  his  residence  being  in  the  Suisun  valley, 
bounded  by  the  heights  of  Suscol.  In  1817  a  military  expedition  crossed 
the  strait  of  Carquinez,  on  rafts  made  of  rushes,  after  the  fashion  of  the 
Indians,  with  the  double  purpose  of  exploring  the  country,  and  'reducing 
the  Indians  to  Christianity.'  Led  by  their  chief  Malaca,  they  fought  des- 
perately against  the  intruders,  inflicting  considerable  loss,  but  the  Spanish 
soldiery  rallied  and  pursued  them  to  their  rancheria,  which  they  set  on  fire, 
men,  women,  and  children  perishing  in  the  flames,  rather  than  fall  into  the 
hands  of  their  enemies.  Beuicia  was  made  the  county  seat  of  Solano.  Fair- 
field  is  the  present  seat  of  justice.  Boundary  settled  in  1852. 

Napa  was  the  name  of  a  tribe  which  occupied  the  valley  now  known  as 
Napa  valley,  in  the  county  of  Napa.  This  was  a  warlike  and  brave  tribe, 
and  harassed  the  frontier  posts  continually  until  1838,  when  small-pox  car- 


NAMES  OF  COUNTIES.  435 

from  $700,000,000.  In  1888  it  was  over  a  thousand 
million.  The  average  per  capita  in  the  different 
counties  was  $676.05.  The  bonded  indebtedness  of 

ried  them  off  in  great  numbers,  reducing  them  to  a  handful.  Napa  city 
has  always  been  the  county  seat.  Boundary  changed  in  1852  and  1855. 
The  highlands  at  the  north  end  of  the  co.  were  called  by  the  natives 
Mayacmas. 

Yolo  is  a  corruption  of  the  Indian  word  Yoloy,  signifying  a  place  abound, 
ing  with  rushes  (tular),  with  which  they  constructed  Yoloy  toy  or  'rush- 
town,'  (Pueblo  del  tule),  situated  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Sacramento. 
From  this  town  the  tribe  took  its  name.  The  chief  Motti  was  christianized 
— at  all  events  he  bore  the  name  of  Francisco  Solano,  after  Father  F.  Solano; 
but  in  1835  he  rebelled,  and  Father  Solano  reduced  him  to  submission.  He 
was  taken  to  Sonoma  and  retained  a  captive  until  his  people  were  subdued. 
The  county  seat  was  fixed  at  Fremont,  but  was  removed  to  Woodland. 

Mendocino  was  the  patronymic  of  Mendoza  the  1st  viceroy  of  New 
Spain,  who  ordered  the  survey  of  the  coast  whereby  Cape  Mendocino  waa 
discovered,  and  named  in  his  honor.  The  county  which  very  properly  per- 
petuates his  memory  was  at  first  attached  to  Sonoma  for  judicial  purposes. 
The  county  seat  was  subsequently  fixed  at  Ukiah. 

Colusa,  spelled  Colusi  in  the  act  of  1850,  and  Coluse  by  some,  was  the 
name  of  a  numerous  native  tribe  on  the  west  side  of  the  Sacramento  river. 
The  county  of  Colnsa  was  attached  to  Butte  for  judicial  purposes  in  the  be- 
ginning, but  the  county  seat  was  afterward  fixed  at  the  town  of  Colusa. 
Boundary  changed  in  1856. 

Butte,  a  purely  French  word,  came  into  use  through  the  French  trappers 
who  traversed  the  country,  and  who  named  many  detached  mountains  and 
knolls  this  and  that  butte.  Ihe  high  hills  in  that  part  of  the  Sacramento 
valley  denominated  Butte  co.  secured  it  this  name.  They  were  called  peaks 
(picachos)  by  Capt.  Luis  A.  Arguello,  who  led  an  expedition  to  the  Columbia 
river,  by  order  of  the  governor  of  California.  The  county  seat  was  first 
ordained  to  be  selected  between  Butte  or  Chico,  but  in  1851  was  fixed  at 
Hamilton,  whence  it  was  removed  to  Oroville  in  1857. 

Sutter  county  was  named  in  honor  of  John  A.  Sutter,  a  conspicuous 
figure  in  the  ante-American  history  of  California,  proprietor  of  a  Spanish 
grant  and  Fort  Sutter  and  a  member  of  the  constitutional  convention  of 
1849.  The  county  seat  was  established  at  Oro  in  1851,  changed  to  Vernon. 
and  subsequently  to  Yuba  city.  The  boundaries  of  the  county  were  changed 
in  1854  and  1856. 

Yuba  is  a  corruption  of  Uva,  uva  silvestres,  wild  grapes,  the  Spanish 
population  pronouncing  the  word  as  if  spelled  with  a  b.  The  county  was 
named  from  the  Yuba  or  Uva,  by  an  exploring  expedition  in  1824,  from  the 
abundance  of  wild  grapes  on  its  banks.  Some  have  erroneously  supposed 
that  the  county  took  its  name  from  Uber,  a  person  in  the  service  of  Sutter. 
The  county  seat  has  always  been  at  Marysville. 

Sacramento,  that  is  to  say  the  sacrament,  was  the  appellation  applied  to 
the  river  of  that  name  by  Lieut  Moraga,  at  an  early  date.  He  called  the 
branch  now  known  as  Feather  river,  Jesus  Marfa.  It  was  natural  the 
county  situated  upon  the  main  stream  should  be  called  by  its  musical  name. 
The  town  of  Sacramento,  which  was  made  the  county  seat,  had  already 
adopted  it.  The  county  boundary  was  changed  in  1857. 

El  Dorado  was  so  named  from  the  fancied  resemblance  of  its  history  to  the 
•wonderful  country  pretended  to  be  discovered  by  Pizarro,  and  celebrated  by 
his  chronicler,  Orellana.  It  was  in  this  country  that  gold  was  first  discov- 
ered, whence  the  application  of  the  name.  Coloma  was  made  the  county 
seat,  but  it  was  removed  to  Placerville  in  1856.  The  boundary  of  the 
county  was  changed  in  1855  and  1863. 


440  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

the  counties,  exclusive  of  San  Francisco,  was  $5,621,- 
212,  and  the  floating  indebtedness  $1,992,932.  Taxa- 
tion for  county  purposes  amounted  to  $3,486,818,  and 

Shasta  is  a  corruption  of  the  French  chaste,  pronounced  shas-t,  and  was 
first  applied  to  the  mountain  of  that  name,  spelled  Chesta  or  Chasta,  by  early 
American  travellers.  Mr  Walthell,  assemblyman,  of  the  delegation  from 
Sacramento  district,  proposed  the  name  to  the  legislature.  Its  boundary 
was  not  established  until  1852.  The  seat  of  justice  was  fixed  at  Reading's 
rancho  in  1850,  and  at  Shasta  city  in  1851,  where  it  has  remained. 

Trinity  was  named  from  the  bay,  which  received  its  appellation  from 
having  been  discovered  on  the  llth  of  June,  1775,  the  festival  of  the  trinity, 
trinidad,  by  a  Spanish  expedition  in  command  of  Bruno  Heceta  and  Juan 
de  la  Quadra  y  Bodega.  It  was  in  that  region  called  by  the  English  naviga- 
tors New  Albion.  Gold  was  discovered  there  in  1850.  The  county  was 
attached  to  Shasta  for  judicial  purposes,  but  in  1851  the  legislature  appointed 
commissioners  G.  O.  McMullin,  David  Buck,  W.  L.  Blanchard,  C.  S.  Ricks, 
and  B.  Kelsey,  who  ordered  an  election  for  county  seat  in  1852,  which  was 
established  at  Weaverville.  The  county  boundaries  were  changed  in  1856. 

Calaveras  signifies  skulls,  and  was  applied  to  the  region  embraced  in  this 
county  by  the  Spanish  captain  Moraga,  who  found  the  ground  covered  with 
them.  The  natives  related  to  him  that  the  tribes  who  formerly  lived  on  the 
Sacramento  and  San  Joaquin  rivers  made  war  on  the  tribes  of  the  sierra  that 
came  to  fish  in  these  waters.  In  a  great  battle  fought  on  Calaveras  creek, 
3,000  were  killed — hence  the  skulls  and  the  name.  The  first  county  seat 
was  Pleasant  Valley,  changed  in  1851  to  Double  Springs,  later  to  Mokelumne, 
and  finally  to  San  Andreas.  The  pop.  in  1850  was  15,000,  mostly  miners. 

San  Joaquin  was  a  name  given  by  Moraga  in  1813  to  a  rivulet  issuing 
from  the  Sierra  Nevada,  and  emptying  into  lake  Buena  Vista.  The  name 
was  carried  down  to  the  river,  and  finally  adopted  for  the  county  traversed 
by  it.  The  county  seat  has  been  from  the  first  at  Stockton,  which  as  early 
as  1850  had  2,500  inhabitants.  The  city  was  named  in  honor  of  Com. 
Stockton.  The  boundaries  of  the  county  have  several  times  been  changed 
by  the  creation  of  new  counties. 

Tuolumne  is  a  corruption  of  the  Indian  word  talmalamne,  signifying  a 
cluster  of  stone  wigwams.  It  was  suggested  as  a  name  for  this  county  by 
Benj.  S.  Lippincott,  senator  from  San  Joaquin  district.  The  seat  of  justice 
was  established  at  Sonorian  camp,  alias  Stewart.  In  1851  it  was  altered  to 
Sonora — probably  the  same  place — where  it  has  remained. 

Mariposa,  signifying  butterfly,  derived  its  name  from  the  abundance  of 
this  insect  in  the  country  at  the  head  of  the  San  Joaquin,  a  tributary  being 
thus  named  in  1807  by  a  hunting  party.  The  name  being  beautiful  in  sound 
and  significance,  was  adopted  for  this  famous  district.  Agua  Fria,  cold 
water,  was  first  named  as  the  county  seat,  but  in  1852  it  was  changed  by 
election  to  the  town  of  Mariposa,  adjoining  Agua  Fria. 

Three  counties  were  created  in  1851,  first,  Placer,  named  from  the 
gold  placers  on  the  American  river.  The  county  seat  was  established  at 
Auburn,  where  it  has  remained.  The  first  com'rs  were  Joseph  Walkup, 
William  Gwynn,  H.  M.  Hann,  and  Jonathan  Roberts.  Nevada,  named  from 
the  snowy  sierra  on  the  east,  county  seat  at  Nevada  City,  where  it  remains 
— first  com'rs  Henry  Miller,  J.  N.  Turner,  J.  R.  Crandall,  J.  S.  Allen,  and 
Amos  T.  Laird,  the  boundary  being  changed  in  1856;  and  Klamath,  named 
from  the  Klamath — formerly  spelled  Tlamath — river,  which  was  named  from 
the  tribe  inhabiting  its  headwaters.  Its  county  seat  was  first  Trinidad,  but 
was  changed  to  Crescent  City  in  1854.  The  first  com'rs  were  Robert  A. 
Parker,  W.  W.  Hawks,  Edward  Fletcher,  Smyth  Clark,  and  B.  W.  Bullitt 
There  is  now  no  co.  of  that  name. 
Three  counties  were  created  iix  1852,  namely;  Sierra,  mountain  range, 


FINANCES.  441 

for  state  purposes  other  than  schools,  $1,853,112. 
The  bonded  indebtedness  of  the  four  principal  cities 
of  California  was  together  only  $7,055,115,  of  San 
Francisco  alone,  $4,161,500. 

with  the  county  aeatt  at  Downieville,  whence  it  has  never  been  removed — 
first  comm'rs,  John  James,  Francis  Anderson,  John  Crayeroft,  C.  E.  Smith, 
and  J.  M.  RamsdelL  Tulare,  taken  from  the  southern  portion  of  Mariposa, 
county  seat  at  Woodville,  as  I  have  elsewhere  related — the  name  refers  to 
the  reedy  nature  of  the  bottom-lands — present  county  seat  is  at  Visalia. 
Siskiyou — the  origin  of  the  word  Siskyon  and  its  meaning  has  often  been 
given  on  questionable  authority,  Ihe  only  sensible,  and  reasonable  history 
of  its  derivation  was  given  to  the  legislature  by  J.  R.  Snyder,  who  explained 
that  when  Michael  La  Frambois  and  his  French  trappers  in  1832  made  an 
excursion  into  CaL,  they  crossed  a  stream  in  the  mountains  by  a  ford  com- 
posed of  six  large  stones — hence  the  name  six  ceUtotix  ford  or  mountain. 
The  sound  of  the  French  words  bears  out  the  statement.  Snyder  however 
located  the  ford  on  the  Umpqua  and  said  he  had  seen  Frambois'  map  of  his 
route.  But  he  might  easily  have  been  mistaken  among  the  half-a-dozen 
ranges  which  the  trail  crossed,  and  the  ford  may  have  been  on  the  K  la  math 
or  on  the  Rogue  river,  between  which  streams  lie  the  Siskiyou  mountains, 
but  probably  on  the  former.  The  first  comm'rs  of  Siskiyon  co.  were  H.  6. 
Furrls,  David  Fowry,  R.  F.  Rae,  Judge  Tutt,  and  Judge  Smith  The 
county  seat  was  established  at  Yreka,  where  it  remains. 

Three  counties  were  created  in  1853,  namely:  Hnmboldt,  taken  from  the 
western  portion  of  Trinity — first  comm'rs  A.  H.  Murdock,  H.  F.  James, 
James  Ryan,  John  Kingsbnry,  and  K.  Dobbins — county  seat  chosen  by  elec- 
tion, was  at  Union,  but  in  1856  the  legislature  changed  it  to  Eureka,  where 
it  remains.  San  Bernardino,  out  of  the  east  portion  of  Los  Angeles;  county 
aeat  at  the  town  of  San  Bernardino,  which  was  incorporated  in  1854 — first 
comm'rs  Isaac  Williams,  David  Seely,  EL  6.  Sherwood,  and  John  Brown.  Ala- 
meda,  the  name  signifying  a  shaded  promenade,  when  created  extended  'east 
'  to  the  junction  of  the  San  Joaquin  and  Tnolnmne  counties. '  Its  first  comm'rs 
were  James  R  Lame.  Michael  Marry,  J.  S.  Watkins,  J.  S.  Marston,  and 
Gustavus  Harper.  They  were  to  meet  in  the  town  of  Alvarado,  which 
should  be  '  known  as  the  seat  of  justice,'  but  the  same  act  says  that  New 
Haven  should  be  the  county  seat.  In  1856  it  was  removed  to  San  Leandro, 
and  is  now  at  Oakland. 

Three  counties  were  created  in  1854,  namely:  Stanislaus,  from  the  west 
part  of  Tnolnmne — first  comm'rs  John  D.  Patterson,  Eli  S.  \'arvin.  G.  D. 
Dickinson,  W.  Loud,  and  Richard  Homer — boundary  settled  in  1855  and 
county  aeat  established  at  Knights  Ferry,  since  removed  to  Modesto:  Ama- 
dor,  cut  off  from  Calaveras  by  election — comm'rs  appointed  were  William 
L.  McKim,  Alexander  Baileau,  Alonzo  Platt,  H.  G.  Sneath,  and  P.  W. 
Gemmill — county  seat  fixed  at  Jackson  by  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants,  where 
its  remains.  Plumas.  cut  off  from  Bntte,  first  county  seat  at  ElLzabethtown, 
American  valley,  now  at  Quincy — first  comm'rs  H.  J.  Bradley,  W.  S.  Dean, 
John  W.  Thompson. 

Two  counties  were  formed  in  1855,  namely:  Merced,  out  of  the  southern 
portion  of  Mariposa — first  comm'rs  A.  Stevenson,  William  Xeal,  W.  J. 
Barfield,  Charles  V.  Snelling,  John  McDermott,  Samuel  Loyejoy,  and  C.  F. 
Bloodworth —  county  seat  at  Snelling.  now  at  Merced.  Buena  Vista,  taken 
from  the  north  part  of  Tulare,  not  organized. 

Three  counties  were  organized  in  1856,  namely:  Fresno,  taken  from  parts 
of  Mariposa,  Merced,  and  Tnlare,  with  the  county  seat  at  Millerton,  re- 
moved to  Fresno  City— first  com'rs  Charles  Hart,  Ira  McRae,  James  Cruik- 
shanks,  O.  M-  Brown,  H.  M.  Lewis,  H.  A.  Canal  and  J.  W.  Gilson.  Tehama, 


442  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

The  state  imported  in  1889  goods  to  the  value  of 
$50,000,000,  arid  exported  to  the  value  of  $35,000,- 
000,  for  the  most  part  to  foreign  ports.  The  wheat 
export  alone  amounted  to  $20,000,000,  and  flour  to 
$4,650,000.  The  wool  product  of  the  state  was 
34,000,000  pounds.  The  hop  crop  was  35,000  bales. 
The  wine  product  received  at  San  Francisco  was  10,- 
150,000  gallons,  and  the  brandy  product  489,000  gal- 
taken  from  parts  of  Colusa,  Butte,  and  Shasta — first  com'rr)  A.  G.  Toomes, 
N.  Hall,  Dennis  Dunn,  county  seat  at  Tehama,  removed  to  Red  Bluff;  and 
San  Mateo,  formed  out  of  the  south  part  of  San  Francisco,  county  seat  es- 
tablished at  Redwood  City  in  1858.  First  com'rs  John  Johnson,  R.  O.  Tripp, 
and  Charles  Clark. 

In  1857  Del  Norte  county  was  organized  from  the  north  part  of  Klamath 
co. ,  with  the  county  seat  at  Crescent  City.  First  com'rs  W.  B.  Freaner,  J. 
T.  Basey,  Peter  Darby,  R.  B.  Marford,  P.  H.  Peveler,  who  were  to  give  no- 
tice of  proceedings  in  the  Crescent  City  Herald. 

Two  counties  were  created  in  1861,  namely:  Mono,  out  of  those  portions 
of  Calaveras,  Mariposa,  and  Fresno  lying  east  of  the  summit  of  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  with  the  county  seat  at  Aurora — first  com'rs  P.  J.  Hickey,  W.  M. 
Baring,  E.  W.  Casey,  C.  N.  Note  ware,  L.  A.  Brown,  G.  W.  Bailey,  and  T. 
A.  Lane — county  seat,  after  the  organization  of  Nevada  territory,  was  in 
dispute,  as  I  have  related  in  Hist.  Nevada,  it  is  now  at  Bodie;  and  Lake, 
lying  between  Mendocino,  Yolo,  Solano,  and  Napa.  Com'rs  William  Man- 
love,  Alexander  McLean,  Woods  Crawford.  For  the  selection  of  a  county 
seat  J.  N.  Pendergast  of  Yolo,  Charles  Ramsey  of  Solano,  and  Anthony  P. 
Buckner  of  Colusa  were  appointed  to  choose  two  sites,  one  of  which  should 
be  chosen  by  a  majority  of  the  electors  in  June  of  1861,  and  Lakeport  became 
the  capital. 

Two  counties  were  organized  in  1864,  namely:  Alpine,  from  parts  of  El 
Dorado,  Amador,  Calaveras,  and  Mono — it  was  attached  to  Amador  for 
judicial  purposes  for  one  year,  first  com'rs  Benjamin  Sears,  O.  F.  Thornton, 
and  Frank  Cooper,  county  seat  fixed  at  Markleeville,  which  was  in  corpora  ted 
in  1864;  and  I  assen,  named  after  Peter  Lassen,  formed  out  of  the  east  por- 
tions of  Shasta  and  Plumas.  The  first  com'rs  were  F.  Drake,  C.  Stockton, 
and  N.  Breed,  who  were  ordered  to  '  meet  at  Kingley  and  Miller's  store  in 
Susanville,'  to  be  sworn  in  by  a  qualified  officer.  They  were  to  appoint  three 
freeholders  of  the  county  to  select  two  sites  to  be  voted  upon  for  county 
seat,  the  result  being  the  choice  of  Susanville.  The  boundary  was  changed 
in  1866. 

Two  other  counties  were  created  in  1866,  namely:  Kern,  out  of  portions 
of  Tulare  and  Los  Angeles,  with  the  county  seat  at  iTaVilah — first  com'rs 
Michael  H.  Erskine,  Eli  Smith,  Daniel  W.  Walser,  Thomas  Baker,  and  John 
Bright — present  county  seat  Bakersfield;  and  Inyo,  out  of  portions  of  Tulare 
and  Mono,  with  the  county  seat  at  Independence.  The  first  com'rs  were 
Thomas  J.  Goodale,  Louis  F.  Cooper,  W.  A.  Greenly,  William  Baker,  and 
Lyman  Tuttle.  The  county  was  first  attached  to  Mono  for  representative 
purposes,  formed  a  part  of  the  12th  senatorial  district,  and  was  attached  for 
judicial  purposes  to  the  5th  judicial  district.  The  county  seat  remains 
unchanged. 

In  1 872  Ventura  county  was  created  out  of  a  portion  of  Santa  Barbara, 
with  the  county  seat  at  Buenaventura,  where  it  remains.  No  com'rs  were 
appointed,  being  elected  at  a  special  election,  and  I  have  not  their  names. 

In  1874  two  counties  were  created,  namely:  San  Benito,  out  of  the  east- 


FEDERAL  EXPENDITURES.  443 

Ions.48  Of  fruit,  fish,  and  twenty  other  merchantable 
productions  there  was  a  due  proportion.  Of  quick- 
silver the  product  was  about  26,000  flasks.  Of  treas- 
ure exported,  $21,000,000.  The  clearings  of  the 
banks  for  the  year  amounted  to  $844,000,000.49  The 
duties  collected  at  the  port  of  San  Francisco  aggre- 
gated $9,478,000,  and  the  internal  revenue  receipts 
were  on  a  commensurate  scale.  A  large  amount  of 
industry  and  labor,  considering  the  population,  is  rep- 
resented by  these  figures,  showing  the  character  of  the 
people — not  the  politicians.  In  their  enterprise  and 
energy  they  cannot  find  time  to  protest  against  the 
greed  of  those  they  permit  to  spend  the  public  money, 
but  the  time  will  come  when  they  or  their  children 
will  not  fail  to  do  so,  either  peaceably,  or  by  way  of 
terrible  retribution. 

As  we  stride  through  the  present,  we  build 
churches  and  pleasure  resorts,  school-houses  and  col- 
leges, along  with  our  factories,  steamships  and  rail- 
roads, sparing  nothing  that  can  help  the  development 
of  the  generations  destined  to  erect  a  wonderful 
superstructure  upon  the  foundations  of  which  we  are 
proud  to  be  styled  the  architects.  In  other  chapters 
devoted  to  material  progress,  the  vitality,  elasticity, 
and  strength  of  the  first  generation  of  American  Cal- 
ifornians  are  so  thoroughly  illustrated  as  to  need  no 
further  commentary  in  this  place. 

The  benefits  of  the  government  to  the  state  in  ap- 
propriations not  in  the  regular  annual  list  aggregated 
for  various  purposes  from  1851  to  1886  $15,398,377.- 
28;  as  follows:  public  buildings,  namely,  custom-house, 

em  part  of  Monterey,  with  the  county  seat  at  Hollister,  where  it  remains; 
and  Modoc,  named  after  the  tribe  that  lived  on  Pitt  river,  ont  of  the  east 
part  of  Siskiyou,  with  the  county  seat  at  Dorrisbridge.  Present  county  seat, 
Alturas. 

By  retaining  Spanish  names  in  most  instances,  poetic  justice  is  subserved. 
The  pleasantness  of  a  metrical  language  is  added  to  the  romance  of  associa- 
tion with  a  half  mysterious  and  ever  piquant  history. 

48  There  was  less  than  half  a  crop  of  grapes  in  1885,  and  about  the  same 
falling  off  in  other  crops. 

49  This  makes  San  Francisco  the  5th  city  of  the  union  in  its  volume  of  ex- 
changes. 


444  POLITICAL  HISTORY 

appraisers'  stores,  and  post-offices,  $2,239,555.91  ; 
river  and  harbor  improvements,  $2,038,000 ;  light- 
stations  on  the  coast,  $1,273,272;  United  States 
mint,  $2,629,192.37;  arsenals  and  forts,  $6,617,757. 
An  appropriation  was  made  in  the  session  of  1886-7 
of  $350,000  toward  a  new  post-office.  Los  Angeles  was 
also  granted  an  appropriation  for  a  public  building, 
and  to  San  Francisco  manufacturers  was  awarded  the 
contract  for  building  of  a  government  iron  cruiser 
at  a  cost  of  $500,000,  followed  by  others,  as  will  be 
mentioned  elsewhere  in  this  volume.  Other  de- 
fences will  soon  be  provided  for,  congress  having 
taken  up  the  matter  recently  in  a  determined  spirit. 
Congress  at  the  same  session  appropriated  $100,000 
for  the  establishment  of  a  branch  of  the  National 
home  for  disabled  volunteer  soldiers.5'  But  the 
money  appropriated  for  public  improvements  is  less 
than  that  paid  in  salaries  to  government  officials  re- 
siding in  California,  and  not  connected  with  the  army 
or  navy.  These  salaries  amounted  in  1872  to  $743,- 
992  per  annum;  to  the  post-office  $126,932  ;  to  the 
custom-house  $289,790;  to  the  mint  $196,926;  to 
the  internal  revenue  office  $44,100  ;  to  the  United 
States  courts  $19,250;  to  the  land-office  $26,900;  to 
the  light-keepers,  steamboat  inspectors,  naval  recruit- 
ing station,  military  surveys,  marine  hospital,  and 
Indian  affairs  $40,074.  The  post-offices  and  light- 
houses have  since  become  a  much  greater  expense  to 
the  government;  but  I  have  no  figures  at  hand  to 
show  the  actual  present  expenditure  or  income. 

At  no  period  of  the  state's  existence  has  the  immi- 
gration exceeded  that  of  1886—8.  The  arrivals  over- 
land averaged  5,000  a  month,  many  persons  of  wealth 
and  refinement  coming  to  remain.  When  the  state 
has  attained  to  the  age  of  fifty  years  it  will  be  more 
famed  for  its  agricultural,  horticultural,  and  manufac- 
tured productions  than  for  its  mining  product. 

58  The  people  of  California  had  already  established  a  soldiers'  home  in 
Napa  co. ,  and  congress  was  brought  to  consent  to  consolidate  with  it  the  plan 
for  a  branch  national  home. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

MILITARY. 

1848-1888. 

CALIFORNIA  UNDER  MILITARY  RULE — DESERTIONS—  QUARTERS  AND  RESER- 
VATIONS—LIGHTHOUSES— COMPANIES  FORMED — INDIAN  TROUBLES — 
POSTS  ESTABLISHED — DEPARTMENTS — VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE  MATTEES — 
WAR  FOR  THE  UNION— COAST  DEFNESES. 

I  HAVE  given  nothing  of  the  military  history  of 
California  since  the  establishment  of  the  United 
States  in  possession  under  the  rule  of  Governor  Mason. 
Influences  were  present  in  the  geographical  and  polit- 
ical position  of  the  country  at  this  period  which  ren- 
dered military  force  a  necessity;  and  the  disbanding 
of  the  New  York  volunteers  on  the  declaration  of 
peace  in  1848  seriously  embarrassed  the  temporary 
government,1  which  feared  an  uprising  among  the  na- 

1  From  the  orders  of  the  military  governors  I  transcribe  the  names  of 
their  appointees.  Fremont  made  few  appointments,  bot  reports  giving  the 
office  of  collector  of  port  of  San  Diego  to  Santiago  Arguillo,  and  of  San 
Pedro  to  Pedro  Carrillo.  Kearney  appointed  D.  W.  Alexander  collector  at 
San  Pedro,  William  A.  Richardson  at  Monterey,  Angel  Lebriga  at  La  Pax, 
and  Miguel  Chosa  at  San  Jose,  L.  C.  He  also  appointed,  Feb.  22,  1847, 
Edwin  Bryant  to  succeed  naval  Lieut  W.  A.  Bartlett — appointed  by  Capt. 
Montgomery  of  the  Portsmouth  in  1846 — and  May  28th,  George  Hyde  to 
succeed  Bryant.  He  appointed  Edward  Petty  Hartpell  to  be  translator  and 
interpreter  to  the  gov't,  March  10th;  Walter  Cotton  judge  of  admiralty, 
March  24th;  John  A.  Sntter  sub.  Indian  agent,  April  7th;  Lilburn  W. 
Boggs  to  be  alcalde  of  Sonoma  in  place  of  John  H.  Nash,  April  10th;  M.  6. 
Vallejo  sub.  Ind.  ag't,  April  14th;  Mariano  Bonilla  alcalde  of  San  Luis 
Obispo;  and  Pablo  de  la  Gnerra  alcalde  at  Sta  Barbara.  Mason  appointed 
Louis  Robideau  alcalde  of  San  Bernardino,  June  1st;  William  B.  Ide  land 
surveyor,  June  7th;  William  Blackburn  alcalde  of  Sta  Cruz,  June  21st; 
Jasper  O'Farrell  asst  surveyor,  July  6th;  J.  D.  Hunter  sub.  Indian  agent, 
San  Luis  Rey;  Miguel  de  Pedrosena  collector  at  San  Diego,  July  14th;  John 
Foster  alcalde  at  San  Juan,  July  14th;  Jacob  R.  Snyder  asst  surveyor,  July 
22d;  H.  W.  Halleck  sea  of  the  ter.  CaL,  Aug.  13th,  T.  Minor  Leavenworth 


446  MILITARY. 

tive  California ns.  There  remained  only  the  battalion 
of  2d  dragoons,  Major  L.  P.  Graham  in  command, 
in  the  southern  district;  Captain  A.  J.  Smith's  com- 
pany C  of  the  1st  dragoons  at  San  Francisco;  and 
Lieutenant-colonel  H.  S.  Burton's  company  F  of  the 
3d  artillery  at  Monterey.  From  these  so  many  de- 
sertions took  place  that  it  became  doubtful  if  one 
whole  company  would  be  left  in  the  service.  Early 
in  September  the  ship  Huntress  arrived  at  Monterey 
with  46  recruits;  but  as  soon  as  they  had  recovered 

alcalde  of  the  2d  district  of  S.  F.  Oct.  2d;  Julian  Urgua  alcalde  San  Juan 
Bautista,  Nov.  22d;  John  Shannon  alcalde  dist  of  San  Diego,  Nov.  24,  1847; 
Robert  Cliff,  alcalde  of  San  Diego,  Dec.  10th.  In  1848  he  made  the  follow- 
ing appointments:  Stephen  C.  Foster  alcalde  of  Los  Angeles,  Jan.  1st; 
Stephen  Cooper  alcalde  of  Benicia,  Jan.  3d;  William  R.  Langley  2d  alcalde 
of  Monterey,  Jan.  13th;  John  Price  alcalde  of  San  Luis  Obispo,  Jan.  25th; 
P.  C.  Carillo  alcalde  of  Sta  Barbara,  Feb.  8th;  Charles  White  alcalde  of 
Pueblo  San  Jose  vice  James  W.  Weeks,  resigned;  and  2d  alcalde  Dolores 
Pacheco,  Feb.  9th;  Juan  Bandini  1st  alcalde  dist  of  San  Diego,  April  15th; 

E.  L.  Brown  2d  alcalde  same  dist;  Isaac  Callaghan  sub-alcalde  Sta  Barbara; 
William  Byrne  1st  alcalde  at  San  Jose;  Miguel  Pedrorena  collector  and  har- 
bor-master at  San  Diego;  Edward  Gilbert  ditto  at  S.  F.,  N.  S.  Games  ditto 
at  Sta  Barbara;  Edward  H.  Harrison,  collector  at  S.  F.,  Sept.  3d;  Florencio 
Serrano  1st  alcalde  at  Monterey.     Riley's  appointments  in  1849  before  the 
adoption  of  the  constitution  were  as  follows:  Jabez  Halleck  of  Monterey 
and  Joshua  B.  Haven  of   S.  F.  notaries  public,  in  May;  W.  M.  Eddy  and 
Addison  H.  Flint  land  surveyors  in  June;  A.  C.  Peachy  notary  public  of  S. 

F.  in  June;  T.  M.  Leavenworth,  1st  alcalde  of  the  dist  of  S.  F.,  was  sus- 
pended, and  a  commission  appointed  to  investigate  charges  against  him; 
Horace  Hawes  was  appointed  prefect  of  the  dist  of  S.  F.,  Aug.  1st;  G.  D. 
Dickerson  prefect  of   San  Joaquin,  Jose  Antonio  Estudillo  prefect  of  San 
Diego,   Joaquin  Carillo  prefect  of  Sta  Barbara,  C.  P.  Wilkins   prefect   of 
Sonoma,  David  Spence  prefect  of  Monterey,   William  G.   Doud  prefect  of 
San  Luis  Obispo,  Antonio  M.  Pico  prefect  of  San  Jose,  in  Aug. ;  E.  Crosby 
prefect  of  Sac. ;  Stephen  C.  Foster  prefect  of  Los  Angeles,  in  Sept. ;  Lewis 
Dent,  J.  M.  Covarrubias,   Pacificus  Ord,  Peter  H.   Burnett  judges  of  the 
superior  tribunal,  in  Aug.;  Richard  A.  Maupin  vice  Dent,  in  Oct.;  J.  W. 
Geary,  judge  of  1st  instance,  with  crim.  jurisdiction,  at  S.  F.,  in  Aug.;  Win 
B.  Almond  ditto,  with  civil  jurisdiction,  in  Oct.;  R.  M.  May  judge  of  the 
1st  instance,  with  crim.  jurisdiction,  at  San  Jose,  in  Aug.;  J.  T.  Richardson 
ditto,  with  civil  jurisdiction,  in  Nov. ;  Ignacio  Esquer  alcalde  of  Monterey, 
April  and  Aug.,  Mariano  Malarin  judge  of  1st  instance  at  Monterey,  in 
Nov. ;  Stephen  C.  Massett  notary  public  for  New  York  of  the  Pacific,  San 
Joaquin  district;  Edward  M.  Howison,  notary  public  in  the  dist  of  San  Joa- 
quin, in  Oct.;  George  G.  Belt  justice  of  the  1st  instance  in  San  Joaquin  dist, 
in  Aug. ;  Raymundo  Carrillo  ditto  in  Sta  Barbara,  April  and  Aug. ;  Manuel 
Abrita  ditto  in  San  Luis   Obispo,  in  Aug.;  Augustin  Olivera  ditto  in  Los 
Angeles,  in  Sept.;  James  C.  Thomas  ditto,  with  civil  jurisdiction,  in  Sac.,  in 
Oct.;  Stephen  Cooper  ditto  in  Sonoma  dist,  in  Aug.;  H.  F.  Page,  Iheodore 
Griswold,  John  McVickar,  Hopeful  Toler,  Charles  C.  Moore,  Thomas  Filden 
notary  publics  in  S.  F. ;  John  McDougal  and  William  Shaw  ditto  in  Sac. ; 
Hall  McAllister  dist  atty  for  S.  F.,  in  Sept.;  E.  A.  King  harbor-master  at 
S.  F.,  June  19th;  N.  Wise  and  J.  Walsh  port-wardens,  in  June.    U.  S.  H. 

•Ex.  Doc.,  17,  31  cong.  1  sess.;  Cal.  Mess,  and  Corr.,  1850,  vol.  v. 


MILITARY  RULE.  447 

trom  the  scnrvy  with  which  most  of  them  were 
afflicted,  they,  too,  deserted  and  went  to  the  mines. 
Efforts  were  made  to  recruit  in  California  and  Oregon* 

^5 

without  success,  owing  to  the  greater  inducement 
held  out  by  miners,  who  paid  high  wages  to  men 
willing  to  be  hired  to  dig  for  others. 

^y  ^j 

In  November,  1848,  Colonel  Mason  asked  to  be  or- 
dered home,  and  was  succeeded  in  the  command  of 
his  department  by  General  Persifer  F.  Smith,  who 
arrived  by  the  first  mail  steamer,  the  California,,  which 
touched  at  Monterey  February  23,  1849,  and  pro- 
ceeded with  the  new  commander  of  the  department 
to  San  Francisco.8  He  had  upon  his  staff  E.  R.  S. 
Canby  as  adjutant,  Lieutenant  Alfred  Gibbs,  aid-de- 
camp, and  Major  Cornelius  Ogden  of  the  engineers. 
Leaving  Canby  at  Monterey,  he  took  W.  T.  Sher- 
man for  his  adjutant  on  account  of  his  knowledge  of 
affairs  gamed  by  a  two  years'  previous  residence. 

On  the  21st  of  March  the  government  steam 
propeller  Edith  reached  San  Francisco  with  military 
stores,  being  the  first  of  a  fleet  bringing  troops  for 
the  relief  of  California  and  Oregon.  There  followed 
in  April  the  ship  Iowa  having  on  board  the  new  gov- 
ernor, General  Bennett  Riley,  and  a  part  of  the  2d 
infantry  regiment.  In  May  the  Rome  arrived  with 

*L.  W.  Hastings  was  employed  by  Gov.  Mason  in  1848  to  endeavor  to 
raise  a  battalion  of  American  volunteers;  bat  as  those  had  not  been  paid 
who  served  under  Fremont,  they  declined.  S.  F.  CaKformmt,  March  8  and 
22,  1848.  PofymaiaM,  rr.  182.  Mmrray*  Xarr.  209-10.  Major  James  A. 
Bardie  was  sent  to  Oregon  with  instructions  to  enlist  800  men,  but  here  be 
found  the  fighting  men  still  in  the  Caynse  country  where  they  were  having 
an  Indian  war,  or  guarding  the  Willamette  settlements  from  threatened  in- 
vasion. The  object  of  these  attempts  at  recruiting  was  not  so  much  the  de- 
fence of  Upper  Cal  as  the  conquest  of  Lower  CaL  but  the  treaty  resigned 
the  peninsula  to  Mex.,  and  ended  that  anxiety. 

3  Mason  said:  'The  war  being  over,  the  soldiers  nearly  all  deserted,  and 
having  now  been  from  the  states  two  years,  I  respectfully  request  to  be  or- 
dered home.  I  feel  less  hesitancy  in  making  the  request  as  it  is  the  second 
only  that  I  recollect  ever  to  have  made,  in  more  than  thirty  years'  service, 
to  be  relieved  from  any  duty  upon  which  I  have  been  placed;  the  first  was 
mJring  to  be  relieved  from  the  recruiting  service  in  1S32,  Hmt  I  might  join 
my  company  in  the  Black  Hawk  war.'  U.  S.  H.  Er.  Doe.  17,  649:  31  cong., 
1  sess.  He  died  at  St  Louis,  of  cholera,  in  the  summer  of  1849.  See  WiOey '» 
Personal  Hmoramda,  32;  B*m**s  Six  J/brtfe,  115;  Comttnp.  Bio-j.,  L,  317; 
Bmmett  £ecoO.,  MS,,  ii.  60-1;  Cr&tys  Earty  Days,  MS.,  11-12. 


448  MILITARY. 

another  detachment,  and,  not  until  July,  the  Mary  and 
Adeline  with  the  remainder  of  the  regiment.  Riley's 
choice  of  a  staff  was  captains  H.  W.  Halleck  and  G. 
C.  Westcott,  Major  E.  R.  S.  Canby,  and  Lieutenant 
George  H.  Derby,  known  as  a  humorous  writer  under 
the  signature  of  John  Phoenix. 

The  general  depot  for  military  property  was  estab- 
lished at  Benicia/  the  selection  of  the  site  being  made 
by  a  commission  composed  of  majors  C.  A.  Ogden, 
J.  L.  Smith,  and  Danville  Leadbetter  of  the  army, 
and  captains  Louis  M.  Goldsborough,  J.  G.  Van 
Brunt,  and  Simon  F.  Blunt  of  the  navy.  The  same 
commissioners  selected  Mare  island  as  a  site  for  a 
navy-yard.  Military  headquarters  was  established 
temporarily  in  the  old  adobe  custom-house  in  San 
Francisco,  but  after  the  arrival  of  General  Biley,  who 
assumed  command  of  the  department,  General  Smith 
removed  division  headquarters  to  Sonoma,  and  with 
him  went  company  C,  1st  dragoons,  A.  J.  Smith, 
captain 

The  different  companies  were  distributed  as  follows: 
M,  3d  artillery,  Captain  E.  D.  Keyes,  to  the  presidio 
of  San  Francisco;  F,  3d  artillery,  Lieutenant-colonel 
H.  S.  Burton,  to  the  redoubt  at  Monterey;  C  and 
G,  2d  infantry,  Colonel  Silas  Casey,  to  the  main  depot 
at  Benicia;  D  and  I,  2d  infantry,  Major  S.  P.  Heint- 
zelman,  to  San  Diego;  A,  B,  and  K,  2d  infantry, 
and  one  company  of  the  1st  dragoons,  Major  A.  S. 
Miller,  to  the  main  crossing  of  the  San  Joaquin;  E 
and  F,  2d  infantry,  Major  J.  J.  B.  Kingsbury,  to  a 
post  near  Sutter's  fort;  two  companies  of  the  1st  and 
two  of  the  2d  cavalry,  majors  L.  P.  Graham  and  D. 
H.  Rucker,  at  Los  Angeles  and  San  Luis  Hey ;  the 
remainder  of  the  infantry,  including  about  70  recruits, 
being  divided  between  Monterey  and  a  camp  on  the 

*  Sherman  affirms  that  Gen.  Smith,  being  disinterested,  decided  on 
Benicia  as  the  proper  point  for  the  city,  and  where  the  army  head -quartern 
should  be.  See  also  Larlcin  Doc.,  vii.,  113.  The  general  purchased  a  mile 
square  of  land  at  Suisun,  of  M.  G.  Valleio,  for  $25,000.  Vail.  Doc.,  xiii.,  24. 


EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY.  449 

Stanislaus  river.     One  of  the  companies  at  San  Die<yo 

was  ordered  to  escort  the  boundary  commission  uuder 

Major  W.  H.  Emory  of  the  topographical  engineers. 

In    Mav   Los   Angeles   and  San  Luis  Rev  were 

*  «m«  • 

abandoned  as  military  stations  on  account  of  the 
wholesale  desertion  of  the  soldiery  who  were  carried 
away  by  the  attractions  of  gold-getting  in  the  mines. 
Los  Angeles  had  been  an  •  important  post,  but  the 
stores  were  now  sent  to  San  Diego,  and  the  guard- 
house turned  over  to  the  alcalde  to  be  used  as  a 
prison,  of  which  the  town  stood  in  need.*  Desertion 
had  reduced  the  four  companies  of  cavalry  until  little 
more  than  enough  to  form  one  remained  ;  while  at 
San  Diego  it  was  feared  the  boundary  commission 
would  be  without  an  escort.  The  depredations  com- 
mitted upon  the  inhabitants  by  the  soldiers,  who  were 
unable  to  carry  with  them  the  means  of  subsistence, 
were  the  subject  of  much  concern  to  the  military 
authorities.  Comparatively  few  arrests  were  made, 
though  twenty-five  or  thirty  persons  were  tried  at 
Monterey  and  sentenced  to  be  sent  east  to  serve  out  at 
hard  labor  in  confinement  the  remainder  of  their 
terms  of  service ;  and  until  a  government  vessel 
should  be  returning,  they  were  to  be  kept  at  hard 
labor  under  guard  in  California. 

The  severity  of  the  punishment  did  not  deter  the 
soldiers  from  breaking  away  from  their  engagements. 
An  expedition  under  Captain  W.  H.  Warner  of  the 
topographical  engineers,  ordered  to  make  an  examina- 
tion of  the  routes  from  the  Humboldt  valley  to  the 
Sacramento  river,  and  which  consisted  of  80  men  at 
the  offset,  had  34  desertions  in  less  than  a  month. 
Captain  Warner  prosecuted  his  reconnoissance  with 
his  reduced  force,  and  was  ambushed  and  killed  by 
the  Indians  near  Goose  lake,  from  which  circumstance 

*Lo»  Angdes  Arymit  Rec.,  77.  The  need  of  prisons  in  which  to  confine 
offenders  was  often  embarrassing.  Mason  in  1  &48  offered  to  contribute  fl»- 
000  toward  the  erection  of  secure  prisons  in  each  of  the  towns  of  Los  An- 
geles, Sta  Barbara,  San  Jose,  Sonoma,  and  Sutter'a  Fort;  but  it  does  not 
appear  that  the  offer  was  accepted. 
HIST.  CAI*  ,  VOL.  VII  29 


450  MILITARY. 

the  Warren  range  of  mountains  received  its  name. 
His  remains  were  not  recovered  until  the  following 
spring,  although  Lieutenant  Davidson  was  sent  in 
search  of  them. 

To  check  the  tendency  to  desertion  commanding 
officers  were  instructed  to  allow  furloughs  to  be 
granted  to  detachments,  with  other  reasonable  indul- 
gences which  might  tend  to  prevent  desertion.  Noth- 
ing, however,  could  restrain  men  under  the  temptation 
of  gold  and  freedom.  By  the  end  of  August  there 
were  no  more  than  650  officers6  and  men  in  the  de- 
partment. Under  these  circumstances  little  explora- 
tion could  be  carried  on,  and  few  expeditions  of  any 
kind7.  The  generals  contented  themselves  with  a 

"There  were  present  in  Cal.  in  1849,  the  following  officers,  exclusive  of 
those  already  mentioned,  some  of  whom  have  since  become  famous:  Lieut- 
col  Joseph  Hooker;  majors  Justus  McKinstry,  W.  Seawell,  (formerly  of  the 
N.  Y.  reg'  t),  D.  H.  Vinton,  R.  Allen,  quartermaster  S.  F.  and  civil  treas- 
urer; E.  H.  Fitzgerald,  quartermaster  at  S.  F.;  P.  B.  Reading,  former  pay- 
master of  Fremont's  battalion;  H.  Hill  and  H.  Leonard,  Captain  R.  Camp- 
bell, E.  R.  Kane,  W.  G.  Marcy,  N.  Lyon,  J.  Hayden,  N.  H.  Harris,  G.  P. 
Andrews,  C.  Q.  Tompkins,  and  R.  Ingalls;  Lieutenants,  C.  J.  Coutts,  C.  E. 
Jarvis,  F.  L.  Patterson,  W.  A.  Slaughter,  J.  W.  T.  Gardiner,  Sweeney,  J. 
Hamilton,  E.  O.  C.  Ord,  J.  W.  Davidson,  George  Stoneman,  H.  Wager 
Halleck,  James  A.  Hardee,  M.  R.  Stevenson,  (formerly  of  the  N.  Y.  reg  t), 
and  Evans.  Ihese  are  all  the  names  that  appear  in  the  military  correspon- 
dence of  that  year;  but  John  Nugent  mentions  as  being  at  San  Diego,  him- 
self, Major  Caperton,  and  Hays.  Only  two  surgeons  are  mentioned,  Murray 
A.  Perry  and  W.  S.  Booth.  On  the  1st  of  Jan.,  1850,  Sherman,  Ord,  and 
A.  J.  Smith  returned  to  the  states. 

7  One  of  the  principal  expeditions  was  made  by  Co.  E.,  1st  Lieut  Wilson, 
commanding,  in  search  of  some  Indians.  Murders  were  becoming  frequent. 
Early  in  the  year  a  fearful  tragedy  was  performed  at  San  Miguel  mission. 
Reed  was  an  Englishman,  who  lived  with  his  native  wife  and  family  at  the 
mission.  He  had  sold  a  band  of  sheep  in  the  southern  mines,  aud  was  fol- 
lowed to  his  home  by  a  Hessian  and  an  Irishman,  who,  after  killing  two 
sleeping  miners  by  the  way,  and  picking  up  three  deserters  from  the  Pacific 
squadron  at  La  Soledad,  called  at  Reed's  and  were  hospitably  entertained 
over  night.  The  next  morning  they  murdered  every  inmate  of  the  mission, 
twelve  in  all,  and  taking  the  gold  found  in  the  house  fled  to  a  secluded  cove 
on  the  sea  beach.  It  happened  that  two  travellers  were  passing  the  house 
at  the  very  hour  of  the  murder,  hailed  it,  and  getting  no  answer,  suspected 
a  crime,  and  gave  the  alarm  along  the  road  and  at  Sta  Barbara.  The  citi- 
zens pursued  and  discovered  the  retreat  of  the  murderers,  one  of  whom,  and 
one  citizen,  were  killed  in  the  conflict.  Another  swam  out  to  sea  and  was 
drowned,  and  the  other  three  were  captured,  tried  by  a  temporary  court, 
found  guilty,  and  sentenced  to  be  hanged.  But  there  being  some  hesitancy 
about  executing  the  sentence  of  this  court,  Gov.  Mason  ordered  them  shot, 
and  Lieut  Ord,  with  nine  soldiers  performed  the  duty.  Cotton  Three  Years  in 
Cal,  391-2.  Dally  Narr.,  MS.;  53-63.  8,  F.  AUa,  Jan.  25,  1849.  Foster, 
a  dealer  in  cattle,  was  killed  by  a  Mexican  dealer  named  Mariano,  whose 
guilt  was  proven  by  Foster's  property  in  his  possession.  He  escaped  from 


COAST  DEFENCES.  451 

sort  of  royal  progress  to  the  mines  and  a  brief  inspec- 
tion of  the  different  posts.  Commanders  of  posts 
nearest  to  the  routes  of  immigration  were  instructed 
to  furnish  assistance  and  relieve  suffering  when  re- 
quired." In  this  manner  the  military  government 
discharged,  as  in  its  judgment  seemed  best,  its  duty 
to  the  country. 

General  Smith  removed  his  headquarters  in  May 
or  June  to  Sonoma,  residing  in  a  house  erected  by 
Jacob  P.  Leese.  for  which  he  paid  a  rental  of  $400  a 
month.  On  his  staff  were  Hooker,  Gibbs,  and  Sher- 
man. In  September  he  went  to  Oregon  to  inspect 
that  portion  of  his  department,  and  remained  on  the 
Columbia  river  for  several  months,'  attending  to  the 
establishment  of  forts  Vancouver,  Steilacoom,  Dalles, 
and  a  post  at  Astoria. 

The  Pacific  squadron,  which  in  1846  had  consisted 
of  eight  armed  vessels,  carrying  300  guns,  was  dis- 
persed, the  line-of-battle-ship  Ohio  alone  being  at 
San  Francisco  in  1849.  She  lav  at  Sauzelito,  and 

tf 

was  of  use  in  preventing  the  entire  abandonment  of 
the  mail  service.1*  Of  defences  to  her  coast  or  com- 

the  sheriff,  bat  his  vaquero  and  associate  in  crime  were  hong.  San  Jo*c  Mer- 
cury, Jan.  1,  1882.  Arms  were  issued  to  the  inhabitants  in  exposed  locali- 
ties to  protect  themselves. 

•Major  Rucker  was  detailed  by  Gen.  Smith  to  condnct  the  relief  to  immi- 
grants; and  $160,000  was  supplied  out  of  civil  funds  to  purchase  provisions 
and  hire  men  and  teams  for  the  service.  Scurvy  had  attacked  the  immi- 
grants, who  were  now  perishing.  Rucker  remained  in  the  mountains  until 
the  last  of  the  immigration  hsd  passed  into  the  valley.  Sherman  Mem.,  80- 
1.  8.  F.  AUa,  Dec.  15,  1849.  I  find  « $70,000  transferred  to  Purser  Forest^ 
for  paying  the  expenses  of  bringing  immigrants  from  Lower  California,'  on 
a  government  vessel  of  course.  Lieut  Caulto,  of  the  boundary  escort,  estab- 
lished Camp  Calhoun  on  the  Cal.  side  of  the  Colorado,  where  he  remained 
for  two  months  assisting  the  immigration. 

'The  JfaggacktuftU,  a  gov't  propeller,  which  arrived  ont  in  the  spring, 
conveyed  two  companies  of  the  1st  artillery,  to  the  new  forts  of  Vancouver 
and  Steilacoom.  Col  Casey  was  stationed  at  Steilacoom  during  the  Ind. 
wars  in  Washington,  and  Lieut  Slaughter  was  killed  there 

"The  Warm,  which  was  at  S.  F.  when  the  gold  fever  set  In,  was  deserted, 
and  Cant.  A.  R.  Long  was  forced  to  import  a  crew  from  Mazatlan  to  go  to 
sea.  The  California  on  her  first  trip  lost  all  her  crew,  and  the  Oregon,  when 
she  arrived,  anchored  alongside  the  Ohio,  and  Capt.  Pearson  sent  his  crew 
aboard  as  prisoners  until  she  was  ready  to  saiL  On  her  second  trip  she 
brought  a  crew  for  the  CaSfornia,  guarded  in  the  same  way.  Ormufuao's  2farr.t 
12-13,  MS.;  Foieom  Tclegrapk,  Nov.  9,  1867. 


452  MILITARY. 

merce  California  had  at  this  period  none  that  would 
have  been  effectual  in  case  of  attack  from  a  foreign 
foe.  At  San  Francisco  Major  Hardie  of  the  New 
York  regiment  had  occupied  two  companies  during 
the  summer  of  1847  in  repairing  the  presidio  and  re- 
moving to  it  the  ordnance  and  military  stores  brought 
out  in  the  Lexington  and  landed  at  the  town  of  Yerba 
Buena ;  but  the  guns,  mortars,  and  carriages,  with 
the  heavy  shot  and  shell,  could  not  be  moved  across 
the  hills,  and  remained  near  the  landing.  There 
were  some  guns  mounted  at  San  Pedro,  and  a  field- 
battery  kept  at  the  fort  in  Los  Angeles.  At  Mon- 
terey Colonel  Mason  had  caused  to  be  constructed, 
under  the  superintendence  of  Lieutenant  Halleck,  a 
redoubt  in  the  form  of  a  bastion,  on  a  hill  command- 
ing the  anchorage  and  the  town,  mounting  upon  it  20 
guns  carrying  24-pound  shot,  and  four  8 -inch  mortar 
guns  on  platforms.  Quarters  for  the  artillery  com- 
panies, consisting  of  two  large  two-story  log  houses, 

There  was  great  need  of  lighthouses  and  buoys  on  the  coast,  and  the  gov- 
ernment, aware  of  this  necessity  to  a  rapidly  growing  commerce  as  well  as 
to  its  own  vessels,  authorized  Professor  Bache  in  1848  to  organize  two  parties 
for  a  coast  survey,  the  party  for  shore  duty  being  in  charge  of  Captain  James 
S.  Williams,  assistant,  and  Joseph  S.  Ruth,  sub-assistant.  The  hydro- 
graphical  party  was  in  charge  of  Lieut  "William  P.  McArthur  of  the  navy, 
in  command  of  the  schooner  Ewing.  The  Ewing  arrived  at  S.  F.  in  the  spring 
of  1849,  but  there  was  little  work  accomplished.  The  men  attached  to  the 
topographical  work  ran  away  to  the  mines,  and  those  on  board  the  Ewing 
had  to  be  placed  in  irons,  and  some  were  hanged  for  attempting  the  drown- 
ing of  Lieutenant  Gibson  in  order  to  desert.  The  Ewing  ran  over  to  the  Soc. 
isl.  in  winter  in  order  to  prevent  the  entire  failure  of  the  survey,  which  in  the 
spring  of  1850  was  removed  to  the  Columbia  bar  and  river.  In  June  of  that 
year  a  third  party  under  sub-assistant  George  Davidson,  whose  services  to 
California,  begun  in  those  uneasy  terms,  have  been  continued  through  a 
generation,  was  in  every  way  successful  after  its  first  hard  struggle  with 
the  difficulties  besetting  science  in  the  gold  period. 

About  the  1st  of  November  there  arrived  the  United  States  brig  C.  W. 
Lawrence,  Captain  Alexander  V.  Fraser,  all  of  whose  officers  and  seamen  re- 
signed or  deserted  within  a  month,  being  unable  to  live  upon  their  pay.  A 
naval  recruiting  station  was  opened  at  San  Francisco  in  December,  but  with- 
out much  relief  to  the  service.  In  November  also  there  arrived  a  collector 
for  the  port  of  San  Francisco,  James  Collier,  who  relieved  the  military 
authorities  of  the  care  of  the  customs.  He  was  escorted  by  a  dragoon  com- 
pany commanded  by  Captain  Thorn,  who  with  three  of  his  men  was  drowned 
at  the  crossing  of  the  Rio  Colorado.  Collector  Collier  found  some  things 
that  surprised  and  some  that  displeased  him.  The  surprise  was  occasioned 
by  the  amount  of  business,  and  the  displeasure  at  finding  the  goods  with 
which  he  had  to  do  stored  in  nineteen  dismantled  hulka  of  vessels  in  the 


BARRACKS  AND  STOREHOUSES. 


453 


were  erected,  and  in  the  rear  of  the  redoubt  a  stone 
magazine.  The  barracks  for  the  accommodation  of 
other  troops  were  erected  in  the  town.  In  the  sum- 
mer of  1849  Captain  Folsom  constructed  military 
store-houses  at  San  Francisco,  the  presidio  was  still 
further  repaired,  and  four  32-pound  guns  and  two 
8-inch  howitzers  were  mounted  on  the  old  fort  at  the 
entrance  to  the  harbor 


MILITARY  RESERVATIONS  AT  SAN  FRANCISCO,  1849. 

Thus  passed  the  year  of  transition,  while  California 
was  under  a  rule  nominally  civil,  but  really  military, 
yet  lacking  the  power  to  be  wholly  either.  The  local 

harbor.     Immediate  steps  were  taken  to  have  a  custom-house  erected,  with 
what  result  I  have  already  narrated  in  a  preceding   volume. 

Postal  communication  in  1847,  1848,  and  part  of  1849  had  been  by  mil- 
itary express  from  post  to  post,  citizens  being  permitted  to  avail  themselves 
of  this  service  without  charge,  the  private  expresses  patronized  in  the  mines 
making  exorbitant  profits.  The  arrival  of  William  Van  Voorhies,  special 
post  agent  of  the  United  States,  by  the  California  in  March,  seemed  to  prom- 
ise relief  to  the  military  service.  Van  Voorhies  was  superseded  in  a  month's 
time  by  R.  T.  P.  Allen,  who  received,  if  he  did  not  merit,  innumerable 
anathemas  from  longing  and  expectant  but  disappointed  miners  and  settlers, 
who  believed  they  were  entitled  to  have  delivered  to  them  letters  that  cost 
forty  cents  from  the  states,  and  twelve  and  a  half  cents  from  any  point  on 
the  Pacific  coast.  The  agent,  however,  hardly  found  time  during  the  sum- 
mer to  select  sites  for  post-offices,  and  the  military  and  private  expresses 
were  even  more  required  than  before  to  accommodate  the  thousands  to  whom 
the  monthly  steamers  brought  news  from  home. 


454  MILITARY. 

government  of  San  Francisco,  which  was  sanctioned 
because  it  could  not  be  abolished,  expressed  its  dissat- 
isfaction with  the  military  power,  which  retorted, 
"  prove  any  of  your  complaints  to  be  well  founded,  and 
the  guilty  officer  will  be  removed  or  punished."  Tak- 
ing into  the  account  all  the  novel  conditions  of  the 
period,  I  think  it  must  be  admitted  that  affairs  were 
conducted  with  becoming  prudence  on  the  military 
side. 

In  1849,  owing  to  the  inefficiency  of  the  army  in 
California,  and  the  condition  of  society  at  San  Fran- 
cisco from  the  importation  of  foreign  criminals  as  well 
as  the  unrestrained  freedom  of  deserting  sailors  and 
soldiers,  a  military  company  was  formed  in  that  place 
under  the  name  of  First  California  guard.  It  was 
an  artillery  company,  but  drilled  also  with  muskets, 
and  in  the  evolutions  of  infantiy.  It  consisted  of  41 
members  in  July,  and  was  increased  to  100  by  Sep- 
tember, on  the  8th  of  which  month  General  Riley 
commissioned  Henry  M.  Naglee  captain,  William  O. 
H.  Howard  and  Myron  Norton  1st  lieutenants  ;  Hall 
McAllister  and  David  F.  Bagley  second  lieutenants  ; 
Samuel  Gerry  surgeon,  and  R.  H.  Sinton  sergeant. 
This  company  continued  its  existence  under  the  state 
laws,  and  was  the  initial  military  organization  of  this 
commonwealth.  At  present  it  is  known  as  company 
A,  light  battery,  of  the  national  guard.  Together 
with  50  men  of  Protection  Fire  company,  No.  2,  the 
guards  repaired  to  Sacramento  to  quell  the  squat- 
ter's riot  of  1850.  During  their  sojourn  in  the  cap- 
ital two  military  companies  were  formed,  which  now 
belong  also  to  the  national  guard.  Twenty-one  com- 
panies11 were  organized  in  San  Francisco  previous 

11  These  companies  were  organized  as  follows:  Washington  Guard,  50 
men;  Empire  Guard,  125  men;  Marion  Rifles,  65  men;  National  Lancers,  45 
men;  Eureka  Light-horse  Guard,  50  men;  San  Francisco  Blues,  60  men; 
City  Guard,  55  men;  Washington  Continental  Guards,  40  men;  Independent 
National  Guard,  70  men;  Young  America  Guard,  35  men;  Wallace  Guard, 
50  men;  Independent  City  Guard,  100;  California  Fusileers,  60  men;  Black 
Hussars,  42  men;  First  Light  Dragoons,  59  men;  Mechanics  Guard,  50  men; 
Schuetzen  Yfcrein,  150  men;  California  Light  Guard,  66  men;  City  Guard, 


ORGANIZATION  OF  COMPANIES.  455 

to  the  period  of  the  civil  war,  which  greatly  stimulated 
the  military  spirit.  As  that  period  was  exceptional 
it  will  be  treated  of  by  itself. 

In  1851  Indian  disturbances  at  San  Diego  called 
for  troops,  and  two  companies  of  rangers  were  organ- 
ized from  the  California  Guard,  Washington  Guard, 
and  Empire  Guard,  the  only  existing  military  com- 
panies in  San  Francisco  at  that  time.  Before  trans- 
portation to  San  Diego  could  be  provided  the  trouble 
had  blown  over.  In  1854  six  companies  then  existing 
in  San  Francisco  were  formed  into  a  battalion  with  a 
colonel  and  other  officers.  No  military  services  were 
required  of  them  until  1856,  when  the  vigilance  com- 
mittee assumed  the  government  of  the  city,  and  the 
militia  were  ordered  to  report  for  duty  to  the  gov- 
ernor of  the  state;  nor  subsequently,  except  in  June, 
1871,  when  on  account  of  a  strike  among  the  miners 
of  Arnador  county  a  collision  between  the  Miners' 
League  and  the  mill-owners  was  feared,  and  one  com- 
pany each  of  the  national  guard  and  of  the  Suniner 
light  guard  were  ordered  to  the  scene  of  the  dis- 
turbance; and  still  later,  when  in  1877  the  three 
days'  labor  riots  caused  the  military  companies  to  be 
placed  on  duty  hi  San  Francisco  to  guard  the  armories 
and  prevent  the  destruction  of  valuable  property.  The 
service  rendered  on  these  occasions  amply  illustrated 
the  benefit  to  society  of  these  organizations. 

I  have  mentioned  in  its  proper  place  the  early  en- 
actment by  the  California  legislature  of  a  militia  law. 
The  state  was  partitioned  in  1850  into  four  divisions 
with  four  major-generals,  and  two  brigades  to  a  di- 
vision, with  a  brigadier-general  to  each,"  a  quarter- 

60  men;  French  Guard,  75  men;  McMahon  Guard,  43  men;  Montgomery 
Guard,  50  men. 

13  Major-generals  of  the  1st,  2d,  3d  and  4th  division  respectively,  were: 
Thomas  J.  Green,  John  E.  Brackett,  David  S.  Douglas  and  Joshua  H.  Bean. 
The  brigadier  generals  in  the  same  order  were,  J.  H.  Eastland,  William  M. 
Winn,  Robert  Semple,  Alex.  C.  McDonald,  John  E.  Addison,  D.  P.  Baldwin, 
Thomas  H.  Bowen  and  J.  M.  Covarrubias.  Adjutant- general,  Therou  JR. 
Per  Lee.  Quarter-master  general,  Joseph  C.  Moorehead.  CaL  Jour.,  1850, 
312-22.  Many  of  the  appointments  were  of  the  former  members  of  the 


456  MILITARY. 

master-general  and  an  adjutant-general  being  also 
elected  by  joint  convention  of  the  legislature.  The 
conflict  between  the  Indian  tribes  and  the  miners, 
and  attacks  by  the  natives  upon  immigrating  parties 
furnished  the  only  occasions  on  which  the  militia  were 
called  upon  to  perform  military  duty,  which  occasions 
continued  but  for  a  few  years,  costing  the  state,  how- 
ever, a  considerable  sum,  for  which  it  received  partial 
indemnity  from  the  general  government. 

In  February,  1851,  the  legislature  passed  an  act 
authorizing  a  loan  not  exceeding  $500,000,  payable  in 
ten  years,  and  bearing  interest  at  the  rate  of  twelve 
per  cent  per  annum,  payable  semi-annually,  to  meet 
the  expenses  of  expeditions  against  the  Indians. 
Another  act  was  passed  in  1852  authorizing  a  loan  of 
not  more  than  $600,000  with  interest  at  seven  per 
cent,  payable  annually  ;  and  the  law  bound  the  state 
to  pay  the  principal  if  at  the  end  of  ten  years  con- 
gress had  made  no  provision  for  its  liquidation.  Con- 
gress, in  1854,  made  an  appropriation  of  $924,295.65 
to  pay  the  bonds  issued  in  1851  and  1852  ;  but  the 
amount  ordered  to  be  granted  was  the  sum  actually 
paid  by  the  state  of  California  in  the  suppression 
of  Indian  hostilities  prior  to  January  1854,  which 
the  secretary  of  war  was  directed  at  once  to  ascer- 
tain. The  amount  of  the  appropriations,  had  it  been 
immediately  available,  would  have  discharged  the 
bonded  debt,  bnt  the  delay  consequent  upon  the  ap- 
pointment of  a  commission,  and  the  transfer  of  the 
business  to  Washington,  so  increased  the  interest  on 
the  bonds  that,  when  after  much  legislation  the  money 

New  York  volunteers.  In  1851  James  M.  Estill  -was  elected  ma j. -gen.  of  2d 
div.  in  place  of  Brackett,  and  S.  M.  Miles  and  S.  E.  Woodsworth  brig,  -gens 
of  1st  and  4th  div.  in  place  of  Eastland  and  Bowen.  In  1852  William 
C.  Kibbe  was  elected  qr-master-gen.,  also  governor's  aids,  with  the  rank 
of  colonel  of  cavalry,  as  follows:  Samuel  A.  Merritt,  Mariposa  co. ;  Alphonso 
Sutter,  Sutter  co.;  E.  C.  Cromwell,  El  Dorado  co.;  Edward  M.  Burrows, 
Butte  co.;  Andreas  Pico,  Los  Angeles  co. ;  John  Watson,  Shasta  co., 
1852;  Cave  C.  Couts,  San  Diego  co.;  and  J.  E.  Lawrence,  San  Francis- 
co., 1853.  In  1853  John  A.  Sutter  was  elected  maj.-gen.  at  large;  J.  M. 
Covarrubias  maj.-gen.  of  the  4th  div.,  and  D.  B.  Kurtz  brig. -gen  2d  brigade 
4th  div. 


CLAIMS  AND  APPROPRIATIONS.  457 

appropriated  was  applied,  the  state  still  owed  in  Sep- 
tember, 1856,  $173,322.66,  coupons  to  that  amount 
being  cut  from  the  bonds  and  returned  to  the  respect- 
ive holders  for  redemption.  The  interest  upon  these 
coupons  being  added,  the  whole  amount  remaining 
to  be  paid  when  a  committee  of  the  house  of  rep- 
resentatives reported  upon  the  matter  in  1883,  reached 
$241,625.82,  for  which  the  general  government  was 
justly  liable  to  the  state  for  expenses  incurred  in  its 
defence  in  1850-51. 

On  account  of  other  Indian  hostilities  the  leoisla- 

Q 

ture  in  1857  again  issued  bonds  amounting  to  $410,- 

000  to   be  paid  out    of  any   moneys   that  might  be 
appropriated  by  congress  to  the  state  to  defray  the 
expenses  incurred  in  the  suppression  of  Indian  hos- 
tilities specified  in  this  act,"  the  bondholders  in  this 
instance  relying  solely  upon  the  general  government. 

1  have  found  nothing  to  show  that  these  claims  were 
ever  paid.     The  state  was  reimbursed  for  its  participa- 
tion  in   the    Modoc  Indian  war   of  1872-3   to   the 
amount   of  $4,441.33,   appropriated   by   congress  in 
1883." 

u  This  act  is  a  history  of  volunteer  expeditions  and  losses  during  several 
years.  It  specifies  services  in  Sutter  co.  in  1850,  $5,000;  in  Nevada  co.  in 
1850  and  1851,  $20,000;  in  Yuba  co.  in  1850,  $20,000;  in  Klamath  co.  in  1852, 
$10,000;  in  Siskiyou  co.  in  1855,  $14,000;  the  same  co.  in  1856,  $200,000; 
Hnmboldt  and  Klamath  cos  in  1855,  $110,000;  Los  Angeles  co.  1852-5, 
$20,000;  San  Bernardino  in  1855,  $1,000;  Tulare  co.  in  1856,  $10,000.  Cal 
Sfat.,  1857,  262-4.  These  expensive  expeditions  were  undertaken  after  the 
failure  of  appeals  to  the  United  States  officers  in  the  department,  which  was 
ill  supplied  with  troops  for  the  protection  of  so  extensive  a  frontier;  and 
even  as  late  as  1872-3  it  was  necessary  to  call  out  volunteers  to  subdue  the 
Modocs  on  the  northern  border. 

uThe  whole  army  of  the  United  States  in  1849-50  comprised  two  regi- 
ments of  dragoons,  one  of  mounted  riflemen,  four  of  artillery,  and  eight  of 
infantry,  aggregating  with  the  engineer  corps  and  general  staff  12,927  mem- 
bers. All  the  mounted  troops  were  employed  in  Oregon,  California,  Texas, 
New  Mexico,  and  on  the  routes  leading  to  the  Pacific  coast.  From  the  extent 
of  country  to  be  traversed  in  the  event  of  an  outbreak,  and  which  could  not 
be  covered  by  infantry  in  time  to  overtake  the  enemy,  it  became  necessary 
to  increase  the  cavalry  by  recruiting  the  broken  companies  with  tried  and 
trusted  men  from  the  east,  whose  terms  of  service  were  nearing  the  end; 
and  also  by  increasing  the  size  of  the  companies  from  the  quota,  sometimes 
as  low  as  42,  to  a  number  not  exceeding  74  privates  per  company.  With 
such  troops  as  were  available  an  expedition  set  out  in  the  month  of  May  to 
punish  the  Indians  in  the  neighborhood  of  Clear  lake,  in  what  is  now  Lake 
county,  for  the  murder  of  citizens  in  1849.  It  consisted  of  C  troop  1st  dra- 


458  MILITARY. 

In  1849  and  1850  the  territory  on  the  Pacific  had 
constituted  the  third  division  of  Department  No.  11; 
but  on  the  17th  of  May,  1851,  the  command  of  de- 
partments 10  and  11  were  merged  in  that  of  the  Pa- 
goons,  commanded  by  Lieut  Davidson,  and  a  detachment  of  the  2d  infantry, 
the  whole  in  charge  of  Capt.  Nathaniel  Lyon.  Davidson  having  failed  of 
reaching  the  Indians  the  previous  year,  by  reason  of  their  taking  refuge  on 
an  island  in  Clear  lake,  wagons  accompanied  the  troops,  carrying  boats  to  be 
used  in  pursuit.  This  unexpected  movement  surprised  and  alarmed  the 
Indians,  who  from  being  defiant  became  terrified.  They  showered  their 
arrows  ineffectually  upon  the  troops,  who  first  drove  them  from  their  con- 
cealment with  a  howitzer,  and  afterward  shot  them  down  with  their  muskets, 
until  60  out  of  400  were  killed,  after  which  their  rancheria  was  destroyed. 
The  command  then  proceeded  to  Russian  river,  where  two  settlers,  Stone 
and  Kelley,  had  been  atrociously  murdered,  and  surrounding  the  Indians  in 
a  jungle,  slaughtered  'not  less  than  75  of  them.'  In  these  two  engagements 
the  only  damage  received  was  two  men  wounded.  Sending  the  horses  to 
Benicia  to  be  rested,  the  troop  then  inarched  to  the  Goose  lake  country  to 
search  for  Warner's  bones  and  punish  his  murderers. 

While  these  events  were  taking  place,  Gen.  Smith  was  making  a  tour  of 
inspection  in  the  south.  Finding  at  San  Diego  that  persons  arriving  from 
the  Gila  complained  that  a  gang  of  thirteen  lawless  men  had  established  a 
ferry  over  the  Colorado,  in  competition  with  the  young  Indians,  and  were 
extorting  enormous  prices  from  travellers,  besides  committing  robberies  and 
murders,  and  being  besought  to  send  a  command  to  drive  them  away,  he  of- 
fered, if  a  writ  could  be  issued  for  their  arrest,  to  assist  the  civil  officers  in 
the  execution  of  their  duty.  But  nothing  was  attempted  to  be  done  by  the 
authorities,  and  the  gang  continued  to  rob  and  kill,  charging  their  crimes 
upon  the  Yumas.  They  killed  an  Irishman  who  had  set  up  an  opposition 
ferry,  and  destroyed  the  boats  of  the  Indians.  The  Yumas  retaliated  by 
killing  eleven  of  the  men,  including  the  leaders,  for  which  nobody  was  sorry, 
although  Major-general  Bean  of  the  4th  Cal.  division  of  militia  endeavored 
to  raise  a  company  to  punish  the  Indians  for  the  murder  of  the  white  men, 
but  failed.  The  ferry  was  soon  reestablished,  and  in  order  to  prevent  the 
recurrence  of  such  trouble,  and  to  protect  the  immigration,  Gen.  Smith  or- 
dered Major  Heintzelman  to  proceed  as  soon  as  possible  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Gila  to  establish  there  a  military  post.  This  action  was  rendered  possible  by 
the  arrival  at  San  Diego  in  the  spring  of  a  body  of  troops  under  lieut  col. 
J.  B.  Magruder,  who  occupied  that  station  in  the  absence  of  Heintzelman. 
On  the  27th  of  November,  1850,  two  companies  of  the  2nd  infantry  estab- 
lished Camp  Independence  at  the  crossing  of  the  Colorado,  which  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  former  site  of  a  mission,  in  March  1851,  and  was  thenceforth 
called  Fort  Yuma.  So  little  were  the  Indians  in  the  vicinity  feared  that 
the  fort  was  soon  left  in  charge  of  Lieut  L.  W.  Sweeney  and  ten  men.  They 
soon,  however,  began  murdering  immigrants,  and  attacked  the  fort,  which 
on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  supplies  was  abandoned  in  Dec., 
after  being  reinforced  by  Lieut  Davidson.  It  was  not  again  occupied  until 
in  February  1852,  when  Heintzelman  returned  to  make  a  permanent  estab- 
lishment at  this  point,  which  for  many  years  retained  its  importance. 

The  adjournment  of  the  boundary  commission  on  the  Rio  Grande,  in 
February,  to  meet  at  El  Paso  in  November,  left  a  company  of  infantry  unde:- 
Lieut  Coults,  disposable  for  garrison  duty,  in  addition  to  which  was  a  com- 
pany organized  from  detachments  that  had  marched  across  the  country  on 
the  Gila  route,  under  Maj.  E.  Fitzgerald.  From  these  companies,  too  small 
to  take  distant  or  exposed  posts,  Gen.  Smith  organized  three  garrison:!,  op- 
tioning Fitzgerald  at  the  rancho  El  Chino,  in  San  Bernardino  valley,  the  re- 
mainder of  the  infantry  at  the  Cajon  pass,  and  the  dragoons  at  San  Luis  Rey. 


MOVEMENT  OF  TROOPS.  459 

ciSc  division,  Brevet  Brigadier  General  Ethan  A. 
Hitchcock  being  placed  in  command,  with  headquar- 
ters at  Sonoma.  The  departure  of  the  2d  dragroons 
about  this  time,  and  the  withdrawal  from  Oregon  of 

Lieut  Derby  was  sent  by  Gen.  Riley  to  open  a  wagon-road  from  mission 
San  Miguel  to  the  mines  on  the  Mariposa  river;  from  all  of  which  it  appears 
that  the  commanders  used  their  best  endeavors  to  make  the  military  of  use 
to  the  country.  Remarking  upon  the  extent  of  the  territory  and  the  nature 
of  the  service.  Gen.  Smith  in  his  report  says:  'To  comply  with  our  treaty 
obligations  with  Mexico  will  require  600  cavalry  and  400  infantry  on  the 
line  of  the  Gila,  and  eastward  to  the  Rio  Grande,  besides  those  now  on  the 
two  extremities  of  that  line.  The  cavalry  must  be  practised  dragoons,  not 
raw  recruits  that  cannot  ride.  This  country  is  the  best  connti  y  for  dragoons 
in  the  U.  S. '  He  might  well  say  that,  when  he  had  himself  just  ridden  840  miles 
from  San  Diego  to  Sonoma.  Few  changes  or  improvements  were  made  at 
any  of  the  posts  on  account  of  the  extraordinary  cost  of  labor  and  material. 
From  the  report  of  Maj.  D.  H.  Vinton,  quartermaster,  I  learn  that  at  the 
post  on  Bear  creek,  in  what  is  now  Yuba  county,  to  which  Maj.  Kingsbury 
was  transferred,  and  which  was  maintained  until  1852,  the  troops  were  re- 
quired to  '  cover  themselves  by  their  own  labor,  with  material  to  be  found 
in  their  vicinity,'  and  that  at  a  post  established  on  Clear  lake  the  same  was 
required.  For  the  station  on  the  San  Joaquin,  iron  houses  were  recom- 
mended, while  at  San  Diego  barracks,  officers  quarters,  guard-bouses,  and 
hospital  were  thought  necessary.  This  was  indeed  for  several  years  the 
most  important  depot  next  to  Benicia,  on  account  of  the  necessity  of  supply- 
ing Fort  Yuma  from  this  station.  But  the  work  first  undertaken  was  in 
the  vicinity  of  San  Francisco,  at  the  presidio,  and  at  Benicia,  to  which  place 
Gen.  Smith  designed  to  remove  his  headquarters  in  1850,  or  as  soon  as  quar- 
ters were  erected. 

The  improvements  made  at  Benicia  in  1849-50  consisted  of  3  buildings  for 
officers'  quarters,  a  barrack  for  soldiers,  2  military  store-houses,  3  cottage 
farm  buildings  for  quarters  for  employes,  stables,  blacksmith  shop;  cook- 
house, bake-house,  boat-house,  stone  corral,  steam  saw-mill;  and  house  for 
employes,  with  stables,  out-houses,  and  enclosures.  The  lumber  used  in 
their  construction  cost  §600  per  M.,  and  the  wages  of  mechanics  not  less  than 
$11  per  day. 

From  the  report  of  Gen.  Smith  of  March  1851  it  appears  that  the  ad- 
jutant general  of  the  army  had  desired  to  know  what  reduction  in  the  num- 
ber of  troops  could  be  made  in  CaL  and  Oregon,  with  safety  to  the  public  ser- 
vice. To  this  the  general  replied  that  it  depended  upon  the  choice  the  gov- 
ernment should  make,  between  the  regular  army  and  the  militia,  to  protect 
an  Indian  and  maritime  frontier,  each  over  1,000  miles  in  length,  adding 
some  further  remarks  intended  not  to  be  complimentary  to  the  mib'tia,  as  to 
conduct,  or  cost  of  service.  It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  civil  and  military 
views  of  the  same  subject.  On  the  page  following  the  rather  curt  reply  of 
Smith  to  the  adjutant-general,  is  a  communication  from  Gov.  McDougal  to 
Pres.  Filmore.  The  governor  asked  for  arms  for  the  militia,  which  was  not 
yet  enrolled,  but  was  estimated  at  100,000,  while  the  general  had  just  said 
that  '  whatever  arms  are  delivered  to  the  frontier  people  here  will  be  lost  to 
the  U.  S.,f  meaning  that  they  would  be  sold  to  anybody  who  would  buy 
them.  So  well  had  Senator  Gwin  pleaded  the  cause  of  the  new  state,  how- 
ever, that  the  secretary  of  war  had  anticipated  the  governor's  requisition 
for  California's  quota,  and  the  arms  arrived  soon  after  the  requisition  had 
been  made.  As  if  to  justify  the  opinion  of  the  general  just  quoted,  the 
quarter-master  general  of  the  state,  Joseph  C.  Moorehead,  on  the  20th  of 
April  1851,  absconded,  having  sold  or  taken  with  him  several  hundred  mus- 
kets without  authority  of  law.  But  notwithstanding  this  unfortunate  ful- 


460  MILITARY. 

the  mounted  rifle  regiment,  had  reduced  the  already 
inadequate  force  of  the  division  in  a  considerable  de- 
gree. In  addition  to  the  Indian  troubles  in  California, 
of  which  an  account  has  been  given  in  another  chap- 
ter, a  call  from  Oregon,  now  almost  defenceless,  for  a 
strono-  military  post  in  the  south,  occasioned  General 
Hitchcock  to  recommend  the  establishment  of  such  a 
station,  but  from  ignorance  of  the  country  he  selected 
Port  Orford  as  a  suitable  point  for  a  fort,  whereas,  it 
was  separated  from  that  portion  of  the  country  threat- 
ened by  the  Coast  range,  a  broken  and  heavily  tim- 
bered region,  nearly  impassable  and  wholly  unex- 
plored. Before  the  secretary  of  war  could  respond, 
a  party  of  men  arriving  at  Port  Orford  by  sea  with 
the  intention  of  settling  there,  were  attacked  and  half 
of  them  murdered  by  the  Indians.  The  incident  de- 
cided the  question  of  troops  at  this  point,  and  a  de- 
tachment of  135  men,  50  of  whom  were  to  be  mount- 
ed, the  whole  commanded  by  Colonel  Silas  Casey, 
proceeded  by  steamer  to  Port  Orford,  with  supplies 
and  horses.  Beyond  furnishing  protection  to  a  small 
and  isolated  settlement,  which  had  no  reason  at  that 
period  for  existing,  the  post  was  of  no  use  to  the 
country,  and  was  a  heavy  expense  to  the  government. 
To  fill  up  the  skeleton  companies  in  California,  500 
recruits  from  the  Atlantic  states  arrived  in  February 
1852,  of  whom  101  deserted  by  the  1st  of  July.  Sev- 
eral new  posts  were  established  this  year,  the  whole 
number  in  California  and  Oregon,  of  all  classes,  being 
17.  In  August  the  4th  infantry  regiment  arrived  by 
the  Isthmus  route.  It  had  suffered  severely  from 

filment  of  an  unfriendly  prophecy,  the  militia  took  an  active  part  in  the 
suppression  of  Indian  hostilities  in  1851.  'Certain  persons,  said  Gen. 
Smith,  'have  determined  that  there  shall  be  a  war.'  'The  state  of  Cal.,' 
said  Major  McKinstry,  acting  as  quarter-master  at  San  Diego,  '  has  been 
involved  in  a  heavy  debt,  for  the  payment  of  which  she  is  unprepared,  by 
our  failure  to  establish  a  few  military  posts,  the  maintenance  of  which 
would  have  been  expensive,  but  beneficial  beyond  calculation. '  Thus  opinions 
differed. 

Camp  Mojave,  the  oldest  post  in  Arizona,  was  established  in  1858  to  pro- 
tect the  immigration;  abandoned  in  May  1861,  and  reoccupied  in  May  1863 
by  2  comp.  of  the  4th  Cal.  vol.  The  next  posts  seem  to  have  been  those  just 


WESTERN  POSTS.  461 

disease  contracted  in  equatorial  heat  and  miasma,  and 
was  practically  incapacitated  for  immediate  service. 
This  regiment  was  distributed  to  the  northern  posts :  to 
Fort  Humboldt  on  Humboldt  bay  two  companies, 
Lieutenant-colonel  R.  C.  Buchanan ;  one  company, 
Captain  B.  R.  Alden,  to  Fort  Jones  in  Scott  valley ; 
one  company,  Colonel  George  Wright,  to  Fort  Read- 
ing on  the  upper  Sacramento  river ;  two  companies, 
Major  C.  H.  Larned,  to  Fort  Steilacoom,Puget  Sound; 
two  companies,  Major  E.  J.  Rains,  to  Fort  Dalles, 
Columbia  river;  and  two  companies  to  Fort  Van- 
couver, the  headquarters  of  the  regiment,  under  com- 
mand of  Lieutenant-colonel  B.  L.  E.  Bonneville.  In 
the  spring  of  1853  the  Indians  on  the  Colorado  com- 
pelled the  evacuation  of  Fort  Yuma.  While  captains 
Sweeney  and  Davidson  were  retreating  to  San  Diego, 
they  were  joined  by  Colonel  Craig's  expedition  com- 
ing overland,  which  escorted  them  to  that  place.  On 
his  return  the  following  February,  Craig  was  shot,  and 
killed  by  two  deserting  soldiers  whom  he  was  at- 
tempting to  persuade  to  return  to  their  duty. 

In  spite  of  the  presence  of  a  greater  number  of 
troops  hi  the  country,  Indian  hostilities  were  increased, 
and  a  number  of  valuable  citizens'  lives  lost,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  destruction  of  immigrant  life  and  property, 
a  state  of  affairs  which  continued  for  many  years 
thereafter,  as  has  been  shown  in  the  narrative  of 
Indian  wars  in  California  and  Oregon.  In  the  sum- 
mentioned.  Breckenridge  and  Buchanan,  established  about  1860.  Camp 
Verde  was  erected  by  Arizona  volunteers,  mostly  Mexican,  in  1861,  to  pro- 
tect Prescott  co.  It  was  occupied  by  regular  troops  in  1866,  and  site  changed 
in  1871.  Fort  Bowie  was  established  to  protect  the  road  between  Tucson 
and  Mesilla  valley,  in  1862,  by  comp.  G,  5th  Cal.  vol.  It  was  rebuilt  in 
1868.  Fort  Whipple,  24  miles  east  of  Prescott,  was  erected  in  1863,  but 
changed  to  its  present  site  in  1864,  and  became  headquarters  of  the  district. 
Camp  Lowell  was  established  during  the  rebellion,  7  miles  east  of  Tucson,  in 
the  San  Catarina  mts.  Site  changed  to  present  location.  Camp  McDowell  was 
established  in  1865  by  5  comp.  of  Cal.  vols.  Camp  Apache,  first  called 
Goodwin,  then  Ord,  then  Mogofion,  then  Thomas,  and  last  Apache,  was  es- 
tablished in  1870  by  Major  John  Green  with  2  comp.  1st  U.  S.  cavalry. 
Camp  Grant,  2  miles  from  Mount  Graham  in  the  Sierra  Bonita,  was  estab 
lished  in  1873.  Most  of  these  posts  were  occupied  until  within  the  last 
decade,  and  several  are  still  garrisoned. 


462  MILITARY. 

mer  of  1853  Fort  Lane  was  established  in  Rogue 
River  valley,  Oregon,  by  Major  G.  W.  Patten." 
On  the  9th  of  January  1854  Major-general  John 

E.  Wool  was  assigned  to  the  Pacific  department,  and 
relieved  General   Hitchcock  in   February  following. 
Previous  to  the  arrival  of  Wool  military  matters  in 
California  had    been    ably  conducted    in   the    main, 
thouo-h  with  something  of  the  dolce  far  niente  of  the 

O  O  v 

country,  but  if  no  great  amount  of  activity  had  been 
displayed,  there  had  been  few  collisions  between  the 
military  themselves,  or  between  them  and  civilians. 
But  when  General  Wool  took  the  command  a  differ- 
ent state  of  affairs  prevailed.  Before  he  left  the 
Atlantic  coast  he  had  made  several  suggestions  to 
the  secretary  of  war,  which  that  official  had  seen  fit 
to  ignore  without  comment;  but  when  Wool  pro- 
ceeded to  act  as  if  they  were  doubtless  to  be  adopted, 
the  secretary  ruthlessly  demolished  such  expectations 
in  toto.  Wool's  correspondence,  though  somewhat 
voluminous,  furnishes  very  entertaining  reading. 
His  quarrels  with  the  civil  authorities  on  the  Pa- 
cific coast  were  continuous,  and  often  on  both  sides 
acrimonious.  The  secretary  more  frequently  took 
sides  against  him  than  with  him.  As  to  his  inten- 
tions, I  have  no  doubt  of  their  honesty,  though  to 
some  his  measures  appeared  at  times  to  be  arbitrary 
and  ill-advised.16 

15  An  entire  reorganization   of  the  military   departments  of  the  United 
States  took  place  in  October  1853,  the  country  west  of  the  Rocky  mountains, 
excepting  Utah  and  the  department  of  New  Mexico  constituting  the  depait- 
ment  of  the  Pacific,  Gen.  Hitchcock  in  command,  with  headquarters  at  S. 

F.  This  year  the  2d  inf.  reg.  was  broken  up  and  assigned  to  different  com- 
panies,   the   officers   being  ordered   east   to  recruit.       Jefferson  Davis   had 
succeeded  C.  M.  Conrad  as  sec.  of  war.     To  him  Gen.  Scott  reported  that 
another  regiment  of  infantry  was  needed  on  the  Pacific  coast,  as  well  as  an 
additional  regiment  of  cavalry  in  the  department  of  the  west,  to  guard  the 
routes  of  travel  to  the  coast.     Accordingly  the  third  art.  reg.,  the  'gay  and 
gallant  third,'  as  it  was  called  in  the  Mexican   war,  commanded  by  Lieut- 
col  J.  M.  Washington  and  Maj  E.  S.  Merchant  was  placed  under  orders  to 
proceed  by  sea  to  Cal.     It  left  Gov.  I.,  N.  Y.  harbor,  in  Dec.  and  in  Jan. 
returned  in  a  distressed  condition  to  N.  Y.,  the  San  Francisco,  on  \vhich  it 
sailed  having  been  shipwrecked.     It  was  not  until  midsummer  that  the    sev- 
eral companies  of  the  regiment  arrived,  and  were  distributed  to  the  differ ett 
posts. 

16  At  the  time  of  this  appointment  to  the  command  of  the  department,  the 


FILIBUSTERING  EXPEDITIONS.  463 

At  the  period  of  the  commencement  of  hostilities 
by  the  south  the  only  fortifications  on  the  coast  of 
California  and  Oregon  were  Alcatraz  and  Fort  Point. 
At  the  former  there  were  130  troops  under  Captain 

filibustering  expedition  of  William  Walker  was  in  progress.  Wool  had 
asked  for  special  instructions  from  the  president,  empowering  him  to  inter- 
fere with  the  recruiting  of  such  expeditions,  as  violations  of  the  neutrality 
laws;  and  further,  to  enable  him  to  check  these  operations,  that  two  compa- 
nies then  at  Fort  Hamilton  might  be  ordered  to  accompany  him  to  S.  F. 
Neither  request  was  granted,  and  when  in  his  report  to  the  secretary  he  re- 
lated the  steps  taken  by  him  to  arrest  persons  recruiting  for  Lower  CaL  and 
Sonora,  and  his  efforts  to  place  the  harbor  of  S.  F.  in  a  defensible  condition, 
when  according  to  the  secretary  of  war  he  should  have  been  attending  to 
the  suppression  of  hostilities  in  his  department  as  his  first  duty,  he  was  told 
that  he  'manifested  a  want  of  definite  purpose,'  and  'devoted  an  undue 
portion  of  his  time  to  other  than  the  proper  duties  of  his  command. '  As  to 
the  harbor  defenses,  in  May  1854  Gen.  Wool  directed  Capt  Stone  of  the 
ordnance  department  of  the  service  to  mount  on  Alcatraz  island  six  8-inch 
guns,  and  six  32-pound  guns;  also  ten  32-pound  guns  near  Fort  point,  com- 
manding the  entrance  to  the  harbor;  and  that  10  24-pound  guns  should  bo 
brought  from  Monterey  to  be  mounted  on  Beige-carriages.  Ihe  reason  given 
for  this  order  was  stated  in  the  correspondence  of  the  commanding  general 
to  be  '  in  consequence  of  the  conviction  of  the  Mexican  consul,  the  threats 
of  the  French  consul,  he  having  lowered  the  French  flag,  and  the  expecta- 
tion of  several  French  ships-of-war  in  the  harbor  of  San  Francisco,  and 
other  causes.'  But  the  secretary  thought,  inasmuch  as  fortifications  were 
in  progress  at  the  place  named,  and  the  batteries  would  require  to  be  re- 
mounted, the  extra  expense  of  the  temporary  armament  was  unnecessary. 
'  The  propriety  of  erecting  the  temporary  batteries  to  which  you  refer, '  he 
•aid,  'depends  upon  the  necessity.' 

The  senior  engineer  in  charge  of  the  fortifications  at  Fort  Point  was  Lieut- 
col  Mason,  an  eminent  officer,  who  arrived  at  his  post  in  1853,  laboring 
under  disease  contracted  on  the  Isthmus.  Anxious  for  the  prosecution  of  the 
work  entrusted  to  him,  he  failed  to  take  sufficient  time  for  recovery,  and 
becoming  again  prostrated  soon  died.  The  officer  who  was  sent  to  succeed 
him  was  Maj.  J.  G.  Barnard.  The  old  Spanish  fort  at  the  Point  was  taken 
down,  and  some  of  the  material  used  in  the  new  works.  The  final  surveys 
of  Alcatraz  i.  were  not  made  until  1854,  when,  temporary  buildings  and  a 
wharf  having  been  erected,  the  work  upon  the  batteries  and  excavation  of 
the  ditches  was  completed.  The  remaining  works  were  forced  to  wait  for 
appropriations,  Fort  Alcatraz  not  being  completed  until  1858,  nor  Fort  Point 
until  a  year  later.  The  authorities  at  Washington,  believing  that  the  re- 
moval of  headquarters  to  Benicia  would  be  an  economical  measure,  ordered 
the  transfer;  but  so  far  from  acquiescing,  the  department  commander  gave 
irrefragable  reasons  for  remaining  at  S.  F.,  and,  moreover,  proposed  to  have 
constructed  a  plank  road  from  Fort  point  to  the  city  via  the  presidio.  To 
have  abandoned  the  military  reservation  at  that  period  would  have  been  to 
have  had  a  squatter  war  over  its  possession,  for  which  cause  if  no  other  it 
was  urged  by  the  officers  stationed  here  that  the  presidio  should  not  be  va- 
cated. And  so  the  official  war  continued,  Wool  grimly  effecting  his  purpose 
and  explaining  afterwards. 

In  the  summer  of  1855,  two  companies  of  the  3d  artillery  and  85  dragoon 
recruits  left  Fort  Leavenworth  under  the  command  ot  Brevet  Lieutenant- 
colonel  E.  J.  Steptoe,  for  the  Pacific  coast.  It  wintered  at  Salt  Lake,  and 
arrived  in  the  department  in  July  1856,  the  artillerymen  at  Benicia,  and  the 
dragoons  at  forts  Lane  and  Tejon.  Later  in  the  season  Steptoe  marched  for 
Fort  Vancouver  via  Fort  Lane,  arriving  in  Oregon  just  in  time  to  take  part 


464  MILITARY 

Stewart.  Fort  Point  was  not  occupied  until  February 
15,  1861,  when,  by  order  of  General  Scott,  it  was 
garrisoned  by  two  companies  of  the  3d  artillery,  num- 
bering 1GO  men,  officered  by  lieutenants  Kellogg, 

in  the  Yakima  Indian  war,  which  broke  out  in  October,  which  several  times 
called  Wool  to  Oregon,  and  was  the  cause  of  much  angry  correspondence 
between  high  officials,  as  I  have  related  in  my  histories  of  Oregon  and  Wash- 
ington. Wool  had  more  than  once  insisted  upon  the  need  of  increasing  the 
army  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  extended  frontier  to  be  defended,  and  in 
1855  two  regiments  of  infantry  were  added,  the  9th  and  10th,  the  former 
being  intended  for  the  Pacific  department,  and  particularly  for  service  in 
Oregon  and  Washington.  It  numbered  811  men,  drilled  in  Hardie's  -shang- 
hai tactics,  armed  with  minie  rifles,  and  trained  to  travel  all  day  at  the  rate 
of  five  miles  an  hour.  It  embarked  at  Fortress  Monroe  about  the  12th  of 
December,  1855,  and  arrived  at  San  Francisco  and  Fort  Vancouver  in  January, 
by  steamers  Great  Republic  and  Oregon.  The  commanding  officer  of  this  regi- 
ment was  Colonel  George  Wright,  afterwards  so  thoroughly  identified  with 
the  Pacific  coast.  The  other  commissioned  officers  were  Maj.  R.  S.  Garnett, 
captains  H.  M.  Black,  G.  E.  Pickett,  and  D.  Woodruff,  and  lieuts  D.  B. 
McKibbin,  Churchill,  Hodges,  and  Gentry.  They  served  in  the  Yakima  war, 
with  various  fortunes,  and  were  stationed  at  Vancouver,  Fort  Bellingham, 
Fort  Townsend  near  Port  Townsend,  on  the  Muckelshoot  prairie  near  Seattle, 
at  forts  Simcoe,  Walla  Walla,  and  Dalles.  They  acted  an  important  part  in 
the  development  of  the  country,  and  with  their  high-hearted  commander 
should  be  remembered  with  esteem  by  those  who  have  fallen  heirs  to  the 
benefits  conferred.  The  prosecution  of  Indian  wars  with  foot  troops  being 
found  generally  impracticable,  seven  companies  of  the  1st  dragoons  were 
ordered  from  Fort  Union,  on  the  Rio  Grande,  to  the  Pacific  division,  arriving 
late  in  1856  at  their  several  posts;  four  companies,  commanded  by  Maj.  J. 
H.  Carleton  and  captains  Davidson,  Northrop,  and  Ewell,  all  under  Maj.  E. 
Steen,  took  post  at  Tucson;  one  company,  Capt.  Radford  (detached),  under 
Lieut  Mercer,  was  posted  at  San  Diego;  and  two  companies,  Maj.  W.  H. 
Grier  and  Captain  Whittlesey,  under  Maj.  G.  A.  H.  Blake,  at  Fort  Tejon. 
To  this  command  were  attached  lieuts  Ogle,  adjutant,  Magruder,  quartermas- 
ter, and  Gregg,  Williams,  and  Pender. 

The  vigilance  committee  episode  in  California  history,  involved  in  an  un- 
expected manner  the  reputation  of  Wool  and  an  officer  then  off  the  U.  S. 
army  list  of  which  he  is  now  the  head,  W.  T.  Sherman.  Sherman  had  re- 
turned to  S.  F.,  after  an  absence  of  three  years,  and  having  resigned  and 
turned  civilian  and  banker,  had  accepted  a  few  days  previous  to  the  murder 
of  James  King  of  William,  the  position  of  maj.  gen.  of  the  2nd  division  of 
militia,  embracing  S.  F.  The  action  of  the  committee  being  in  a  legal  sense 
unlawful,  Gov.  Johnson  could  not  do  less  than  endeavor  to  prevent  the 
hanging  of  the  murderer  who  had  been  taken  from  the  hands  of  the  consti- 
tuted authorities.  He  therefore  issued  his  proclamation,  and  while  assum- 
ing to  be  performing  his  duty  as  a  defender  of  the  peace,  made  his  arrange- 
ments for  the  spilling  of  a  good  deal  of  blood,  Sherman  entering  hot-headedly 
into  the  plan,  and  Wool  seeming  to  encourage  it.  There  has  always  been  a 
controversy  over  Wool's  share  in  it,  Sherman  asseverating  that  he  gave  his 
promise  to  furnish  assistance,  and  Wool  denying  it.  My  own  •  opinion  is 
that  Wool's  first  impulse  was  toward  suppression  of  the  committee,  but  he 
knew  he  had  not  the  authority  to  issue  arms  and  ammunition  to  the  state 
without  the  order  of  the  pres't  of  the  U.  S.,  and  although  so  far  from  the 
seat  of  government  that  he  did  not  know  but  a  general  of  division  might 
venture  to  do  it,  he  could  not  but  remembei  the  manner  in  which  the  secre- 
tary of  war  had  rebuked  his  forwardness  in  the  matter  of  the  Walker  expe- 
dition, and  besides  the  Oregon  legislature  had  asked  for  his  removal.  There 


THE  VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE.  465 

Kip,  and  Shinn,  and  Gibson  quartermaster.  At  the 
same  time  10,000  stand  of  arms  and  150,000  car- 
tridges were  brought  down  from  Benicia  and  stored  at 
Alcatraz  At  the  presidio,  under  Colonel  C.  S.  Mer- 

is  no  doubt  but  that  he  misled  Sherman  and  the  governor  at  the  first,  by  an 
implied  readiness  to  furnish  arms  to  the  enrolled  militia,  from  which  posi- 
tion he  afterward  withdrew.  Sherman's  plan,  as  arranged  by  himself,  is 
given  in  his  Memoirs,  in  which  he  says:  '  I  had  agreed  that  if  Wool  would 
give  us  arms  and  ammunition  out  of  the  U.  S.  arsenal  at  Benicia,  and  if 
Com.  Farragut,  of  the  navy,  commanding  the  navy  yard  on  Mare  island, 
would  give  us  a  ship,  I  would  call  out  volunteers,  and  when  a  sufficient  num- 
ber haa  responded,  I  would  have  the  arms  come  down  from  Benicia  in  the 
ship,  arm  my  men,  take  possession  of  a  32-pound  gun  battery  at  the  marine 
hospital  on  Rincon  point,  thence  command  a  dispersion  of  the  unlawfully 
armed  force  of  vigilance  committee,  and  arrest  some  of  the  leaders.'  Appli- 
cation was  made  by  Sherman  to  Farragut,  who  very  sensibly  discouraged 
'  taking  part  in  civil  broils, '  and  consented  only  to  allow  the  sloop  John 
Adams  to  drop  down  abreast  of  the  city,  '  for  moral  effect.'  Sherman  then 
determined  to  seize  a  mail  steamer  to  bring  down  the  army;  state  Quar. 
Gen.  Kibbee  opened  an  office  in  the  city  to  enroll  companies,  and  the  sup- 
pression of  the  vig.  com.,  was  firmly  decided  upon.  In  vain  the  vigilante 
remonstrated,  assuring  him  there  would  be  a  collision,  with  terrible  results; 
his  reply  was:  '  Remove  your  fort;  cease  your  midnight  councils;  and  pre- 
vent your  armed  bodies  from  patrolling  the  streets.'  Practically  this  was 
an  order  to  restore  the  reign  of  the  roughs,  who  now  sided  Mith  the  governor 
and  Sherman,  and  gloried  in  the  name  and  style  of  the  '  law  and  order  party' 
— more  properly,  the  newspapers  said,  'law-and -murder  party.'  Committees 
of  the  best  citizens  expostulated  to  no  purpose;  Johnson,  Sherman,  and 
Chief- justice  Terry,  who  sat  with  his  hat  on,  drawn  over  his  eyes,  and  with 
his  feet  on  a  table,  while  the  '  damned  pork  merchants, '  made  a  prepared 
speech,  embracing  a  clear  and  fair  statement  of  the  condition  of  things  in 
S.  F.,  concluding  with  the  assertion  of  the  willingness  of  the  committee  to 
disband  and  submit  to  trial  after  a  certain  date  not  very  remote.  Finding 
that  Wool  had  entirely  withdrawn  from  his  real  or  supposed  first  intention, 
and  that  no  arms  would  be  furnished  by  him,  Sherman  resigned  his  commis- 
sion, and  Volney  E.  Howard  was  appointed  in  his  place.  The  history  of 
the  vigilance  committee  being  fully  given  elsewhere,  need  not  be  repeated 
here.  Wool's  caution  in  the  matter  caused  the  governor's  party  to  charge 
him  with  falsehood  aud  deceit,  and  there  ensued  one  of  those  controversies 
on  paper  for  which  he  was  famous.  That  the  president  sustained  his  policy 
of  non-interference  was  apparent  by  the  uninterrupted  success  of  the  com- 
mittee. 

But  there  was  a  rumor  of  his  recall  as  early  as  September,  although  it 
did  not  take  place  until  Feb.  1857.  On  the  20th  of  March  he  left  Cal.  to 
take  the  command  of  the  department  of  the  east,  and  the  command  of  the 
Pacific  department  devolved  upon  Col  Thomas  T.  Fauntleroy  until  the  ar- 
rival of  Gen.  Newman  S.  Clarke,  col  6th  inf.  Gen.  Clarke  found  himself 
embarrassed  not  only  by  the  insufficiency  of  force,  but  by  the  policy  of  his 
predecessor.  He  arrived  at  Fort  Vancouver,  the  military  headquarters  for 
the  Columbia  region,  about  the  last  of  June,  and  without  attempting  to  en- 
force a  peaceable  condition  of  the  Indians  in  the  upper  country,  contented 
himself  with  excluding  the  white  men  who  had  commenced  its  settlement, 
and  leaving  the  troops  in  garrison.  Under  these  conditions  there  was  no 
war,  but  neither  was  there  any  peace  deserving  the  name. 

In  May  1858,  Colonel  Steptoe,  feeling  that  there  should  be  something 
done  to  impress  the  Indians,  who  were  growing  insolent  and  troublesome 
about  the  fort,  with  the  power  of  the  U.  S.,  set  out  to  make  a  reconnaisanc* 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  30 


466  MILITARY. 

chant,  was  one  artillery  company,  Captain  Landman, 
and  Lieutenants  Chandler  and  Hamilton,  with  re- 
cruits, etc.,  in  all  115  men.  At  Benicia,  Colonel 
Andrews  commanding,  the  garrison  consisted  of  com- 
panies G.  and  K.,  6th  infantry,  162  men,  lieutenants 
Corley,  Sawtelle,  and  Moore.  The  arsenal  was  in 
charge  of  Lieutenant  McAllister  with  41  men  of  the 

of  the  country  to  Fort  Colville,  with  a  command  of  159  men  and  a  supply 
train.  He  was  attacked  soon  after  crossing  the  Snake  river  by  a  combined 
force  of  several  tribes,  and  forced  to  fall  back,  after  a  hard  battle,  in  which 
he  lost  two  dragoon  officers,  Capt.  H.  P.  Taylor  and  Lieut  William  Gaston, 
and  a  number  of  men.  This  affair  opened  the  eyes  of  General  Clarke  to  the 
disposition  of  these  tribes,  and  he  determined  to  subdue  them.  To  accom- 
plish this  he  was  forced  to  bring  together  troops  from  the  most  distant  posts, 
even  from  Yuma  and  San  Diego,  whence  were  drawn  3  companies  of  the  3d 
artillery,  under  Capt.  Keyes,  and  officered  by  1st  lieuts  Robert  O.  Tyler, 
James  L.  White,  Dunbar  R.  Ransom,  and  2d  lieuts  Hylase  B.  Lyon,  George 
B.  F.  Dandy,  and  Lawrence  Kip.  From  Umpqua  another  company  of  this 
regiment  was  taken,  commanded  by  Lieutenant  George  P.  Ihrie  and  James 
Howard,  making  with  those  at  the  Columbia  river  posts  six  companies,  a 
larger  number  of  this  company  than  had  been  together  since  it  was  wrecked 
on  the  San  Francisco  five  years  before.  General  Clarke  accompanied  the 
troops  to  Vancouver,  where  Steptoe  and  Wright  were  summoned  for  consul- 
tation. It  was  not  until  August  that  all  things  were  in  readiness,  when  a 
large  force,  consisting  of  dragoons,  artillery  (serving  as  infantry),  howitzer 
and  rifle  companies,  with  a  large  train  and  guards,  moved  north  of  Snake 
river  over  the  route  pursued  by  Steptoe  the  previous  year.  On  the  1st  of 
Sept.,  being  at  Four  Lakes  in  the  Spokane  country,  the  Indians  attacked, 
and  a  battle  ensued  in  which  they  suffered  severely  Proceeding  onward  to 
the  Cceur  de  A16ne  territory,  laying  waste  the  native  villages,  and  capturing 
and  killing  the  Indian  horses,  great  loss  was  inflicted,  the  several  tribes  en- 
gaged in  the  battle  of  Steptoe's  butte,  a  point  near  the  present  town  of  Col- 
Fax,  being  utterly  subjugated  and  compelled  to  sue  for  peace.  The  Yakimas 
also  were  punished,  and  a  number  of  the  chiefs  hanged.  The  operations  of 
this  summer,  known  as  '  Clarke  and  Wright's  campaign, '  were  in  direct 
opposition  to  the  policy  of  Gen.  Wool,  and  won  for  these  officers  the  applause 
of  the  inhabitants  of  Oregon  and  Washington.  But  before  the  intention  of 
Clarke  to  open  the  country  for  settlement  nad  been  made  known,  the  depart- 
ment of  the  Pacific  waa  divided  into  the  departments  of  Cal.  and  Oregon,  and 
Gen.  William  S.  Harney  placed  in  command  of  Oregon,  his  first  act  being  to 
issue  a  proclamation  removing  the  inhibition  against  the  settlement  of  the 
eastern  part  of  the  territories  of  Oregon  and  Washington.  For  this  he  re- 
ceived the  thanks  of  the  legislature  and  the  applause  due  to  Clarke's  design. 
The  department  of  Oregon  was  of  brief  duration.  Harney,  for  his  med- 
dling with  civil  affairs,  and  his  patriotic  zeal  in  the  San  Juan  imbroglio, 
creating  some  anxiety  at  Washington,  being  summoned  thither  in  1860  upon 
the  pretense  that  his  evidence  was  required  in  estimating  the  Oregon  war 
debt,  and  after  some  gentle  reproof  placed  in  command  of  the  department 
of  the  west,  relieving  Gen.  E.  V.  Sumner.  The  two  departments  on  the 
Pacific  were  soon  after  consolidated  under  Clark.  Meantime  the  6th  infan- 
try regiment  had  arrived  in  Cal.  from  Utah  in  1858  and  been  distributed  to 
the  different  posts.  It  was  strengthened  in  Dec.  1860,  together  with  the  1st 
dragoons  by  200  recruits  from  the  east  who  arrived  by  sea  under  the  com- 
mand of  Lieut-col  C.  S.  Merchant  of  the  3d  artillery,  commanding  at  the 
presidio  of  S.  F.  The  territory  of  Arizona,  unorganized,  belonged  to  the 


WAR  FOR  THE  UNION.  467 

ordnance  corps,  in  all  about  500  troops  in  the  vicinity. 
In  the  department  were  3,650,  of  whom  1,725  were 
stationed  in  California,  and  1,925  in  Oregon  and 
Washington.  ' 

On  the  19th  of  April,  General  Johnston  resigned 
his  command,  and  on  the  24th  arrived,  unannounced, 
to  succeed  him,  Brigadier-general  Edwin  V.  Sumner, 
of  Massachusetts  birth,  and  second  only  below  Gene- 
ral Scott  in  army  rank.  On  the  following  day  the 
sententious  order  was  issued:  "In  compliance  with 
special  order  No.  86,  war  department,  adjutant- 
general's  office,  Washington,  March  23, 1861, 1  hereby 
assume  command  of  this  department.  All  concerned 
will  govern  themselves  accordingly."  The  moral  effect 
of  this  brief  warning  was  to  lift  a  load  of  suspense  and 
apprehension  off  the  minds  of  loyal  citizens. 

Pacific  department,  and  on  account  of  the  ceaseless  hostilities  of  the  Apaches 
and  other  tribes,  stood  in  need  of  a  considerable  army;  bat  it  had,  in  fact, 
two  posts,  forte  Breckenridge  and  Buchanan,  each  about  60  miles  from 
Tucson,  in  different  directions,  and  a  third.  Camp  Mojave,  on  the  east 
bank  of  the  Colorado,  none  of  which  could  much  more  than  hold  their  own 
in  the  Indian  country.  Had  it  not  been  for  them  and  the  California  militia, 
immigration  must  have  ceased.  In  1858,  Edward  O.  Smith,  a  citizen, 
rescued  120  persons  from  starvation  at  the  Mojave  crossing  of  the  Colorado 
where  the  Indians  had  attacked  them  and  prevented  them  moving.  The 
Indian  war  in  this  quarter  in  1859  employed  volunteers  as  well  as  regulars. 
It  was  expected  that  sixteen  companies  from  Texas  would  occupy  Arizona 
under  Lieut-col  Pitcairn  Morrison,  and  Reeve;  but  only  four  arrived  in  the 
territory  before  events  so  shaped  themselves  that  the  remainder  were  called 
in  another  direction. 

Late  in  1S59  Major-gen.  Scott  arrived  in  California,  whence  after  a  brief 
stay  he  repaired  to  Puget  sound  to  assert  the  rights  of  the  United  States  in 
the  San  Joan  dispute  with  Great  Britain.  He  returned  home  in  November. 
In  October  1860  General  Clarke  died,  and  for  a  few  months  succeeding  Col 
George  Wright  commanded  the  dept  of  the  Pacific,  to  which  about  the  first 
of  the  following  year  Brevet  Brigadier  General  Albert  Sidney  Johnston  was 
assigned.  Johnston  was  an  accomplished  officer  and  gentleman,  about 
whose  otherwise  spotless  fame  there  must  ever  hang  the  suspicion,  amount- 
ing almost  to  certainty,  that  he  accepted  the  command  of  the  Pacific  depart- 
ment with  the  intent  to  deliver  the  forts  into  the  hands  of  rebel  conspirators. 
He  resigned  his  Utah  command  about  the  time  of  the  secession  of  South 
Carolina,  and  although  in  sympathy  with  the  rebellious  states,  which  should 
have  prevented  him  from  accepting  another  command  under  the  U.  S., 
allowed  himself  to  be  sent  where  he  knew  he  would  be  required  by  the  south. 
In  a  certain  case  to  act  as  a  traitor.  That  he  was  saved  from  the  completion 
of  the  scheme  was  due  to  the  watchfulness  of  both  sides,  one  discovering 
the  plot  and  appointing  his  successor,  and  the  other  warning  him  of  the  dis- 
covery, so  that  he  could  resign  before  he  was  superseded.  He  served  in  the 
confederate  army,  and  died  on  the  field  of  Shiloh.  Of  this  I  have  spoken 
elsewhere. 


468  MILITARY. 

It  was  understood  that  in  the  event  of  a  war,  the 
regular  troops  would  be  needed  at  the  east,  and  not 
only  they,  but  volunteers  also.  The  First  Regiment 
California  Infantry  was  a  spontaneous  organization, 
springing  into  life  upon  the  arrival  of  the  news  of  the 
fall  of  Fort  Sumpter.  It  was  however  drilled  by 
regular  tacticians,  and  its  field  officers  selected  from 
the  army.  Captain  H.  W.  Halleck,  being  appointed 
major  general  of  the  2d  division  of  state  militia,  in 
May  called  on  all  good  citizens  in  the  counties  of  this 
division  to  form  themselves  into  companies,  battalions, 
and  regiments,  promising  arms  should  there  be  call  for 
their  services.  Lieutenant  John  Hamilton,  3d  ar- 
tillery, was  made  the  military  instructor  of  the  2d 
division  of  California  militia,  and  the  military  spirit 
ran  high.  The  volunteers  hoped  to  be  allowed  to 
serve  in  the  east,  the  ambition  to  distinguish  them- 
selves upon  the  battlefield  being  the  great  incentive  to 
enlistment.  But  in  this  they  were  to  be  disappointed, 
and  the  1st  infantry  was  even  deprived  of  its  proper 
place  on  the  roster  by  the  professional  jealousy  of  its 
officers,  who  refused  to  be  superseded  by  a  regular 
officer.17 


17  Major  Carleton  of  the  army  being  ordered  to  march  with  this  regiment 
into  Arizona  and  New  Mexico,  and  finding  it  in  a  rebellious  temper,  estab- 
lished a  recruiting  camp  named  after  the  adjutant-general  of  Sumner's  staff 
Richard  C.  Dunn,  and  with  a  part  of  the  original  1st  infantry  and  such 
others  as  flocked  to  his  standard  had  an  expedition  in  the  field  in  the  autumn, 
of  which  the  1st  infantry,  as  raised  by  him,  was  an  important  part.  He 
was  promoted  in  April  1862  to  be  brig. -gen.  of  vol..  and  Joseph  R.  West 
was  promoted  to  the  colonelcy  first,  and  Edwin  A.  Rigg  second.  His  army 
consisted  besides  the  1st  of  the  5th  Cal.  inf.,  Col  George  W.  Bowie,  the  1st 
battalion,  Cal.  cav. ,  Lieut-col  E.  E.  Eyre,  one  company  of  the  2d  Cal.  cav. , 
Capt.  John  C.  Cremony,  and  one  battery  of  the  3d  U.  S.  artil ,  Lieut  John 
B.  Shinn — in  all  about  2, 500  men.  The  column  marched  from  San  Pedro  to 
the  Rio  Grande,  and  performed  well  the  part  assigned  to  it  of  fighting  In- 
dians, and  driving  back  rebels  from  the  frontiers  of  New  Mexico  and  Colo- 
rado. When  the  1st  and  5th  inf.  regiments  had  been  three  years  in  the 
field,  the  1st  veteran  inf.  regiment  was  formed  by  a  transfer  of  troops  from 
these  two,  in  the  department  of  New  Mexico,  and  was  commanded  by  Lieut- 
col  E.  A.  Rigg.  It  performed  important  service  on  the  line  operated  on  by 
the  Cal.  column. 

Perhaps  the  most  conspicuous  regiment  of  the  Cal.  vols  in  the  service  of 
the  U.  S.  on  the  Pacific  coast  was  the  2d  cav.,  commanded  at  first  by  the 
experienced  cavalry  officer  A.  J.  Smith,  with  whom  the  reader  is  familiar  aa 
captain,  but  who  became  a  brigadier-general  a  few  months  after  the  war  be- 


CHANGES  AND  ENGAGEMENTS.  469 

g&n,  when  Colnmtras  Sims  became  col  of  the  regiment,  holding  the  position 
for  little  over  one  year.  George  S.  Evans  was  then  promoted  to  the  colonelcy, 
bnt  resigned  in  May  1863  and  was  succeeded  first  by  William  Jones,  and 
second  by  Edward  McGarry.  Jones's  commission  was  revoked  in  1864.  The 
regiment  marched  thousands  of  miles,  and  skirmished  with  Indians  from 
New  Mexico  to  Oregon.  Col  Evans  fought  a  battle  near  Camp  Independence 
in  Owen  river  valley  in  the  spring  of  1802  for  which  he  received  particular 
commendation  from  his  superiors.  On  the  29th  of  Jan.  1863,  companies  A 
H,  K,  and  M.,  2d  cavalry,  under  Maj.  Edward  McGarry,  and  K  company 
of  the  3d  CaL  inf.,  all  under  command  of  Col  P.  E.  Conner,  fought  the 
Shoshones,  under  Chief  Pocatello,  who  had  killed  many  immigrants  on  the 
road  to  CaL,  Idaho,  and  Montana,  making  a  great  slaughter. 

The  3d  infantry  regiment  of  CaL  vol's,  numbering  1.634  members,  whose 
col  was  Patrick  E.  Connor,  renowned  for  his  fighting  qualities,  was  organized 
at  Stockton  and  Benicia,  and  was  employed  in  protecting  the  Central  over- 
land route  from  Nevada,  eastward,  having  a  rough,  ungrateful  service. 
Connor  was  promoted  brig.  gen.  March  29,  1863,  when  Robert  Pollock  be- 
came coL  On  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  the  original  members  of  the  regi- 
ment, organized  into  a  battalion  under  Lieut-col  William  M.  Johns,  and  fi- 
nally mustered  out  in  July  1866.  It  was  known  as  the  3d  bat.  of  inf.  The 
2d  inf.  reg-,  consisting  of  1,980  men,  which  should  have  been  the  1st,  was 
organized  at  Camp  Sumner  in  Sept.  1861,  and  employed  in  defending  the 
frontier  of  California,  Washington,  and  Idaho,  about  half  the  reg.  being  sent 
to  the  north,  and  marching  from  Puget  Sound  to  Fort  Boise,  which  they  es- 
tablished, and  from  Fort  Walla  Walla  to  Fort  Colville.  The  remainder 
served  in  the  Humboldt  country  against  the  Indians,  until  the  expiration  of 
the  term  of  enlistment  of  most  of  the  men,  when  in  1864  they  were  re-or- 
ganized by  col  T.  F.  Wright,  and  ordered  to  Arizona  by  McDowell  in  1865. 
The  other  volunteer  organizations  of  1861  were  the  1st  cav.,  and  3d,  4th  and 
5th  inf.  regiments.  The  1st  Cavalry  organization  was  effected  by  Lieut-col 
B.  F.  Davis  of  the  regular  army,  who  was  killed  at  Gravelly  Ford.  It  con- 
sisted until  1863  of  bnt  five  companies,  whose  first  rendezvous  was  at  Camp 
Merchant,  in  Oakland.  It  went  by  steamer  to  Los  Angeles,  and  marched 
thence  to  San  Bernardino,  where  it  was  mounted.  Davis  being  ordered  to 
join  his  regiment  in  the  east  in  Nov.,  the  command  devolved  upon  Maj.  E. 

E.  Ejrre.     In  Feb.  1862  the  battalion  was  ordered  to  Fort  Yuma,  on  its  way 
to  the  Rio  Grande  to  relieve  Canby,  and  to  join  the  column  from  CaL  in 
New  Mexico.     A  second  battalion  of  seven  companies  was  raised  in  1863 
and  sent  to  join  the  regiment,  of  which  David  Ferguson  was  commissioned 
col,  Eyre  having  resigned  in  Nov.  1862.     Ferguson  was  dismissed  for  leav- 
ing his  post,  and  Oscar  M.  Brown  succeeded  him.     The  regiment  took  part 
in  the  campaign  against  the  Navajoes,  who  were  subdued,  and  placed  on  the 
reservation  at  Fort  Sumner.     A  part  of  the  reg.  also  fought  the  Comanches, 
and  had  altogether  perhaps  one  hundred  engagements  with  Indians  during 
the  several  years  it  occupied  New  Mexico  and  Texas.     William  McCleave 
became  col  in  1866,  and  the  regiment  was  mustered  out  at  the  end  of  that 
year,  at  the  presidio  of  S.  F.     This  regiment  numbered  1,830  members.     The 
4th  infantry  regiment  was  organized  in  Sep.  1861  by  Col  Henry  M.  Judah,  of 
the  regular  army,  who  resigned  in  Nov.  and  was  succeeded  by  Ferris  Fore- 
man who  commanded  until  August  1862,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  James 

F.  Curtis.     The  reg.  served  in  southern  CaL  and  Arizona.     On  the  expira- 
tion of  the  term  of  service  of  the  earlier  members  it  was  re-organized  with 
five  companies  under  Lieut  Col  E,  W.  Hilliyer,  and  was  used  to  garrison 
posts  until  1866,  when  it  was  mustered  out.     The  men  of  this  reg.  volun- 
teered in  Placerville,  Shasta,  Auburn,  Sac.,  and  San  Diego,  and  numbered 
1,639  exclusive  of  one  company,  which  preserved  no  register.     The  5th  inf. 
reg.  was  also  drawn  from  the  northern  part  of  the  state,  and  composed  of 
young  and  vigorous  men.     It  was  organized  at  Camp  Union,  two  miles  be- 
low Sac.,  by  Col  John  Kellogg  of  the  regular  army,  who  resigned  to  go  east 
in  October,  where  George  NY,  Bowie  accepted  the  commission  tendered  him 


470  MILITARY. 

by  the  governor,  and  commanded  until  the  expiration  of  term.  The  regi- 
ment, numbering  nearly  1,000  men,  was  ordered  to  southern  Cal.  in  the 
spring  of  1862,  and  a  part  accompanied  Carleton's  column  to  Arizona.  Col 
Bowie  held  the  remainder  at  Fort  Yuma  until  ordered  by  Gen.  Wright  to 
return  to  take  the  command  at  Drum  Barracks,  to  prevent  threatened  trouble 
here.  In  1863  these  troops  marched  to  New  Mexico  and  El  Paso,  a  continuous 
march  of  1,050.  In  Nov.  18(34  all  the  men  of  Company  A,  whose  term  of  service 
had  not  expired,  were  transferred  to  the  1st  veteran  inf.,  and  the  regiment 
was  mustered  out  in  the  following  Jan.  The  6th  inf.  reg.,  numbering  1,243 
men,  was  organized  at  Benicia  in  1863  by  Col  Henry  M.  Black  of  the  regular 
army,  and  was  stationed  chiefly  at  that  place,  although  eeveral  companies 
engaged  in  Indian  fighting.  It  was  a  fine  regiment,  and  was  mustered  out 
in  Oct.,  1865.  The  7th  inf.  was  not  organized  until  1864  by  Col  Charles  H. 
Lewis.  It  served  in  Arizona,  and  participated  in  the  battle  of  Chiricahui 
mountains.  It  was  mustered  out  in  1866.  The  8th  inf.  was  the  last  Cal. 
regiment  raised  under  the  congressional  act  of  July,  1864,  and  consisted  of 
ten  companies  of  a  total  membership  of  960.  Company  A.  was  stationed  at 
Fort  Point  until  Feb.,  18G5,  when  it  was  transferred  to  Wash.  Ter.  until 
October.  Co.  B,  was  sent  to  Fort  Stevens,  Oregon,  about  the  same  time. 
The  other  companies  were  stationed  at  Fort  Point,  Alcatraz,  Angel  I.,  and 
Benicia  barracks.  The  col  of  the  regiment  was  A.  L.  Anderson.  It  was 
mustered  out  Oct.  24,  1865.  In  May,  1863,  Lieut-col  S.  G.  Whipple  organ- 
ized the  1st  bat.  of  Mountaineers  in  Humboldt  county,  its  purpose  baing  to 
fight  the  Indians  of  southern  Or.  and  northern  Cal.,  who  took  advantage  of 
the  civil  war  to  get  in  some  hard  blows  against  American  settlers.  The  bat. 
was  mounted,  and  consisted  of  six  companies  and  continued  in  the  service 
to  the  close  of  the  rebellion,  their  commander  having  been  brevetted  colonel. 
Another  organization  was  the  1st  bat.  of  native  cav.,  effected  in  1863  by 
Maj.  Salvador  Vallejo,  Andreas  Pico  having  declined  the  commission.  Val- 
lejo  resigned  in  1865,  and  was  succeeded  by  John  C.  Cremony.  The  bat. 
was  composed  chiefly  of  young  natives,  and  numbered  476  members,  uni- 
formed like  the  U.  S.  cavalry,  well  mounted,  and  good  riders. 

All  of  the  above  named  regiments  and  parts  of  regiments  served  out  their 
periods  of  enlistment  on  the  Pacific  coast,  or  at  least  west  of  the  rebel  frontier. 
Their  patriotism  was  of  that  superior  sort  which  enabled  them,  while  burn- 
ing with  ardor  to  fight  on  the  more  glorious,  if  fratricidal,  fields  of  the  civil 
war,  to  suppress  their  ambition  and  serve  on  the  outposts  of  civilization,  if 
the  government  required  such  service.  But  their  duty  was  by  no  means  in- 
significant. They  were  charged  with  the  safe-keeping  of  all  the  western 
slope  of  the  continent  within  United  States  limits,  and  with  keeping  closed 
the  highways  against  the  agents  of  secession  from  the  Texas  line  to  San 
Diego.  There  were,  however,  some  who  could  not  forego  the  gratification  of 
their  zeal,  but  who  must  fight  for  country  and  glory.  Of  these  was  the  Calif  or- 
nia  Hundred,  a  select  body  of  young  and  expert  equestrians,  organized  in  San 
Francisco  in  1862  by  Lieut-col  Ringgold  of  the  regular  army.  Their  captain 
was  J.  Sewell  Reed,  promoted  major,  and  succeeded  by  Lieut  Archibald 
McKendry,  also  promoted  major  and  colonel.  Reed  was  killed  in  action 
with  Moseby's  Guerillas  at  Drainsville,  Virginia,  in  1864.  The  Cal.  Hun- 
dred paid  its  expenses  from  the  date  of  the  organization  of  the  company  un- 
til accepted  into  service  in  the  east.  It  fought  in  23  general  engagements, 
and  lost  many  of  its  number  killed,  mortally  wounded,  and  missing.  It 
was  mustered  out  at  Fairfax  Court  House  July  20,  1865,  its  last  engagement 
being  at  Cedar  Creek  under  General  Sheridan.  The  banner  carried  l»y  the 
company  was  presented  by  Daniel  Norcross,  and  was  a  Bear  Flag.  Upon 
arriving  in  Massachusetts  the  American  flag  was  presented  to  the  company 
by  Miss  Abby  A.  Lord  of  Charlestown,  but  it  was  never  borne  in  the  field. 
Both  flags  are  preserved  in  the  state  archives.  Following  shortly  after  the 
hundred  was  the  Cal.  bat.  of  400  men  which  went  to  offer  its  services  to  the 
government  early  in  1863.  They  were  assigned  to  duty  in  the  2d  Massachu- 
setts cav.,  of  which  regiment  the  hundred  also  formed  apart  of  the  first  bat. 
The  Cal.  bat,  and  Cal.  Hundred  met  in  July,  1863,  at  Centreville,  V.,  and 


SERVICES  RENDERED.  471 

served  together  thereafter.  They  were  terribly  earnest  fighters,  and  won 
applause  from  the  enemy  who  made  havoc  in  their  ranks.  Of  the  500  Cali- 
fornians  of  the  Massachusetts  regiment  only  182  remained  to  be  mustered 
out  at  the  close  of  the  war.  The*  major  of  the  bat.  was  DeWitt  C.  Thomp- 
son, one  of  the  founders  of  the  California  guard  of  1849. 

The  whole  number  of  troops  raised  in  Cal.  during  the  war  was  16,231,  or 
more  than  the  whole  of  the  U.  S.  army  at  its  commencement,  and  far  in 
excess  of  the  state's  quota.  To  the  instructions  given  by  the  regular  officers 
by  whose  exertions  the  several  regiments  were  raised,  and  for  a  time  com- 
manded, the  excellence  of  the  service  was  largely  due.  From  it  the  militia 
of  the  state  caught  a  valuable  esprit  du  corps  which  has  descended  to  the 
present.  From  the  volunteer  army  list  in  Cal.  a  number  of  appointments 
were  made  to  the  regular  army,  notably  Stephen  G.  Whipple,  Thomas  F. 
Wright,  Robert  Pollock,  and  Ambrose  E.  Hooker  to  be  1st  lieuts;  Samuel 
Smith,  A.  Starr,  2d  lieuts. 

On  the  mustering  out  of  the  troops  in  the  service  of  the  general  govern- 
ment, 88  militia  companies  under  various  names  formed  to  serve,  if  required, 
in  their  respective  localities,  or  to  respond  to  a  call  from  the  governor,  were 
disbanded,  and  the  legislature  of  ISGti  passed  an  act  declaring  that  the  or- 
ganized uniformed  troops  of  the  state  should  be  designated  as  the  national 
guard  of  the  state  of  California,  not  to  exceed  in  all  80  companies,  64  being 
of  infantry,  12  of  cavalry,  and  4  of  artillery,  located  with  regard  to  the  mil- 
itary wants  of  the  state,  and  means  of  concentration.  The  national  guard 
was  divided  into  six  brigades,  and  the  tactics  prescribed  for  the  regular 
army  was  made  the  practise  of  the  Guard.  The  number  of  companies  was 
reduced  by  the  next  legislature  to  60,  and  a  few  changes  made,  but  the 
morale  of  the  militia  remains  excellent  to  this  time. 

1  hat  California  enjoyed  peace  when  men  were  conspiring  to  erect  a  Pacific 
empire  was  due,  if  not  first,  still  in  a  great  measure,  to  the  prudence  and 
firmness  of  generals  Sumner  and  Wright,  who  while  the  government  was 
withdrawing  the  regular  troops,  one  regiment  after  another,  raised  up  others 
from  the  people,  trained  them,  and  set  them  to  guard  half  of  the  public 
domain,  with  the  inhabitants  thereof.  Sumner  was  called  east  in  Oct.  1861, 
and  Wright  placed  temporarily  in  command  of  the  department,  with  the 
expectation  that  Gen.  J.  W.  Denver  would  be  ordered  to  Cal. ,  an  expecta- 
tion which  was  not  fulfilled,  owing  to  some  opposition  from  Californians. 
Instead,  Wright  was  commissioned  brig.  -gen. ,  and  placed  permanently  in 
command.  He  was  superseded  in  June  1864  by  Major-gen.  Irwin  McDowell, 
whose  soldierly  qualities  could  not  overcome  the  regret  with  which  Califor- 
nians suffered  the  exchange,  effected,  it  was  believed,  by  private  enmity.  In 
a  farewell  letter  addressed  to  the  people,  Wright  hinted  at  the  cause  of  the 
transfer:  'Had  I  for  a  moment  yielded  to  the  insane  demands  of  a  radical 
press  and  its  co-laborers,  I  should  have  filled  my  forts  with  political  prisoners 
to  gratify  personal  hatred,  causing  such  an  outburst  of  indignation  at  such  a 
course  as  to  render  it  almost  certain  that  civil  war  and  bloodshed  would  have 
followed. '  But  to  escape  the  condemnation  of  some  in  such  troublous  times 
was  probably  impossible.  He  was  assigned  to  the  command  of  the  depart- 
ment of  Oregon  in  1865,  and  perished  by  the  wreck  of  the  steamer  Brother 
Jonathan  on  his  way  to  his  post,  having  served  on  the  Pacific  coast  for  twelve 
years.  Gen.  McDowell  remained  in  Cal.  until  the  close  of  the  wTar,  com- 
mending himself  to  the  people,  as  Sumner  and  Wright  had  done,  by  the  purest 
patriotism. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  officers  commanding  the  department  of 
California  without  interruption  to  the  present:  On  the  23d  of  Feb.,  1849,  the 
third  or  Pacific  division  was  established  by  the  war  dept,  including  the  tenth 
and  eleventh  military  departments,  Brev.  Maj.-gen.  Persifer  F.  Smith,  col 
mounted  rifles,  assuming  command,  with  headquarters  at  S.  F.,  which  were 
transferred  to  Sonoma  in  June.  Gen.  Smith  was  relieved  by  Maj.  Washing- 
ton Seawell,  2d  infantry,  assuming  command  April  29,  1851,  which  command 
he  retained  until  July  9th,  when  Brev.  Brig. -gen.  Ethan  A.  Hitchcock,  2d 


472  MILITARY. 

inf.,  relieved  him,  and  transferred  headquarters  to  Benicia  in  the  following 
Oct.  The  name  of  the  command  was  changed  to  department  of  the  Pacific 
in  Oct.  1853,  and  on  the  17th  of  Feb.,  1854,^Maj.-gen.  John  E.  Wool  assumed 
command,  with  headquarters  at  Benicia.  He  commanded  until  the  19th  of 
Feb.,  1857,  when  he  was  relieved  by  Col  Thomas  T.  Fauntleroy,  1st  dragoons, 
who  was  relieved  April  29th  by  Brev.  Brig. -gen.  Newman  S.  Clarke,  6th  inf., 
who  established  headquarters  at  S.  F.,  where  they  have  since  remained.  The 
designation  of  the  command  was  changed  to  that  of  the  department  of  Cal. 
in  October  1858.  Gen.  Clarke  died  at  S.  F.  Oct.  17,  I860,  when  Lieut-col 
Benjamin  L.  Beall,  1st  dragoons,  succeeded  to  the  command  from  that  time 
until  Jan.  14,  1861,  when  he  was  relieved  by  Col  and  Brev.  Brig. -gen.  Albert 
S.  Johnston,  2d  cav. ,  who  announced  that  his  command  was  to  be  called  the 
department  of  the  Pacific.  On  the  25th  of  the  following  April  he  was  re- 
lieved by  Brig. -gen.  Edwin  V.  Sumner,  who  was  succeeded  Oct.  17th  by 
Brig. -gen.  of  volunteers  George  Wright,  who  commanded  until  July  1, 1864, 
when  he  was  relieved  by  Maj.-gen.  of  vols  Irwin  McDowell.  Again,  Maj.- 
Gen.  Henry  W.  Halleck  being  assigned  to  the  command  of  the  military  divi- 
sion of  the  Pacific  on  the  30th  of  August,  1865,  retained  it  until  June  1,  1869, 
when  it  was  taken  by  Maj.-gen.  George  H.  Thomas,  who  died  March  28, 
1870,  when  Maj.-gen.  George  M.  Schofield  was  assigned  to  the  command, 
which  he  held  until  July  1,  1876}  at  which  time  Gen.  McDowell  was  a  second 
time  assigned  to  the  command  of  this  division,  which  comprised  also  the  de- 
partment of  the  Columbia,  commanded  by  Brig.  -gen.  0.  O.  Howard,  and  the 
dept  of  Arizona,  commanded  by  Col  O.  B.  Willcox,  12th  inf.,  and  the  dept 
of  Alaska,  created  in  March  1868.  In  June  1875,  so  much  of  the  territory  of 
Idaho  as  lay  east  of  the  extension  of  the  western  boundary  of  Utah,  and 
embracing  Fort  Hall,  was  detached  from  the  dept  of  Cal.  and  added  to  the 
dept  of  the  Platte.  On  the  15th  of  Oct.,  1882,  Gen.  Schotield  relieved  Gen. 
McDowell,  and  was  himself  relieved  Nov.  30,  1883,  by  Maj.-gen.  John  Pope, 
who  retained  the  command  until  March  16,  1886,  when  he  retired,  and  Maj.- 
gen.  Howard  was  assigned  to  this  division. 

The  coast  defenses  of  the  state  are  not  numerous.  At  S.  F.  the  principal 
fortification  is  at  Fort  Point  projection  of  the  Presidio  reservation  which 
forms  one  side  of  the  entrance  to  the  harbor.  It  is  situated  upon  the  south- 
ern side  of  the  channel,  and  consists  of  large  casemated  works,  and  exten- 
sive exterior  earthen  batteries  en  barbette,  for  the  largest  size  of  guns  and 
mortars.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  channel  is  Lime  Point,  where  other 
detached  batteries  are  placed.  Lying  north  of  S.  F.,  and  almost  directly 
facing  Golden  Gate  is  Fort  Alcatraz,  on  a  small  rocky  island,  which  is  com- 
pletely covered  with  fortifications  of  open  barbette  batteries.  This  is  also 
the  military  prison.  Angel  island,  north  of  Alcatraz,  and  Point  San  Jose 
north  of  Point  Lamb,  were  fortified  in  a  temporary  manner  during  the  civil 
war,  but  were  allowed  to  decay,  and  have  now  to  be  reconstructed.  The 
great  improvement  in  ordnance  within  a  few  years  has  rendered  it  necessary 
for  the  government  to  make  an  appropriation  of  several  millions  for  strength- 
ening its  fortifications  and  providing  new  guns  of  more  modern  size  and 
capacity.  The  only  other  harbor  furnished  with  fortifications  is  that  of  San 
Diego,  where  a  small  amount  has  been  expended  by  the  gov.  for  earthworks. 

The  naval  arm  of  defence  has  been  similarly  neglected,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  Mare  Island  Navy  Yard  which  from  first  to  last  has  cost  the  govern- 
ment large  sums  of  money,  and  is,  perhaps,  the  most  commodious  work  of  its 
kind  in  the  world.  But  the  decline  of  the  merchant  marine  service,  and  the 
small  need  heretofore  of  an  armed  squadron  hi  the  Pacific,  has  made  it  of 
comparatively  little  use  in  proportion  to  its  cost.  Several  old  government 
vessels  lie  rotting  in  the  gradually  increasing  deposit  of  river  silt,  and  min- 
ing debris  which  is  lessening  the  depth  of  water  both  in  the  channel  and 
upon  the  side-flats.  There  has  been  some  thought  of  removing  the  navy 
yard  and  allowing  the  Central  Pacific  railroad  company  to  acquire  the  island 
for  the  establishment  of  foundries,  workshops,  depots,  and  ship-yards,  but 
no  such  transfer  of  a  magnificent  property  has  yet  taken  place,  and  the  gov- 
ernment surveyors  and  engineers  report  annually  very  slight  changes. 


COAST  DEFENCES.  473 

Much  is  said  of  the  defenceless  condition  of  the  city,  the  navy  yard,  and 
the  Benicia  arsenal.  Congress  withstood  all  such  criticisms  for  years,  but 
in  1888  an  appropriation  of  $5,000,000  was  agreed  to  by  the  senate  for  the 
repair  of  fortifications,  but  rejected  by  the  house,  which  left  the  state  in  its 
former  condition  of  practical  defencelessness.  Whether  the  predicted  mis- 
fortune will  follow  is  for  the  future  to  determine;  but  nothing  can  alter  the 
fact  that  vast  sums  have  been  saved  by  the  neglect,  for  such  has  been  the 
improvement  in  war  vessels  and  heavy  ordnance  that  expensive  changes 
must  have  been  made  every  few  years.  At  the  close  of  the  late  war  the  sea- 
coast  fortifications  of  the  United  States,  and  the  American  navy  were 
quite  equal  to  those  of  other  countries.  In  the  two  decades  last  past, 
while  Europe  has  made  great  progress,  this  country  has  apparently  remained 
indifferent.  Only  very  recently  was  California  permitted  to  have  a  steel 
cruiser,  the  contract  for  which  was  let  to  a  S.  F.  firm.  Floating  batteries 
will  hereafter  take  a  foremost  rank  in  the  defences  of  S.  F.,  the  long  range 
of  the  guns  now  in  use  on  ships  of  war  enabling  them  to  throw  shells  quite 
over  the  shore  batteries,  and  from  a  distance  which  would  place  them  out  of 
reach  of  the  latter.  In  the  meantime,  the  inventive  genius  of  the  country  is 
not  HitpiTii'aning,  and  our  neighbors  are  at  peace  with  us. 

The  United  States  naval  force  in  the  Pacific  is  insignificant,  there  being 
few  harbors,  no  detached  territory,  and  a  small  merchant  marine  to  be  pro- 
tected even  in  the  event  of  war.  In  1862  there  was  a  proposition  made  to 
establish  a  naval  academy  at  San  Francisco,  which,  however,  was  not  carried 
out.  In  1874  an  act  was  passed  by  the  legislature  establishing  and  maintain- 
ing a  training  ship  to  instruct  boys  in  seamanship  and  the  mechanic  arts 
connected  with  it,  an  appropriation  being  made  for  that  purpose  by  the  city 
and  county  of  San  Francisco,  and  a  vessel  furnished  by  the  navy  depart- 
ment. By  the  provisions  of  this  act  "any  male  person  under  eighteen  years 
of  age  who  shall  be  convicted  of  any  misdemeanor  "  might  be  sentenced  to 
serve  his  term  of  imprisonment  on  board  of  the  training  ship.  In  1876  the 
law  was  amended  to  exclude  convicts  from  serving  out  their  terms  on  this 
ship ;  and  was  still  further  amended  in  1878  by  receiving  boys  from  any 
counties  to  the  number  of  100,  the  state  paying  their  expenses.  The  boys 
trained  for  seamen  were  placed  on  board  merchant  vessels  when  fitted  for 
duty,  a  good  disposition  to  be  made  of  bad  boys.  But  the  change  of  consti- 
tution in  1879  rendered  it  illegal  for  the  state  to  appropriate  money  for  the 
purpose,  and  the  training  school  was  abandoned.  Military  tactics  and  drill 
are  taught  at  several  preparatory  schools  in  the  state.  The  history  of  our 
institutions,  however,  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  except  when  we  have  some 
great  object  in  view  we  think  little  about  fighting  and  the  glories  of  war. 


CHAPTEK  XVIII. 

EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 
1849-1887. 

BEATING  UP  THE  GAME — TREATMENT  BY  MEXICANS  AND  AMERICANS — SOME 
SO-CALLED  FIGHTING — CONGRESSIONAL  ATTITUDE  AND  ACTION — OUT- 
RAGES AND  RETALIATIONS — UNITED  STATES  LAW  OF  COMPENSATION  — 
END  OF  INDIAN  AFFAIRS  AND  END  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

THAT  part  of  the  early  intercourse  between  abo- 
riginal Americans  and  Europeans  which  properly  be- 
longs to  history  may  be  briefly  given.  For  short 
work  was  made  of  it  in  California.  The  savages 
were  in  the  way ;  the  miners  and  settlers  were  arro- 
gant and  impatient ;  there  were  no  missionaries  or 
others  present  with  even  the  poor  pretense  of  soul- 
saving  or  civilizing.  It  was  one  of  the  last  human 
hunts  of  civilizatioR,  and  the  basest  and  most  brutal 
of  them  all. 

We  do  not  know  why  the  Digger  Indians  of  Cali- 
fornia were  so  shabbily  treated  by  nature ;  why  with 
such  fair  surroundings  they  were  made  so  much  lower 
in  the  scale  of  intelligence  than  their  neighbors  ;  but  be- 
ing low,  and  unsophisticated,  in  a  measure  harmless 
until  trodden  upon,  surely  it  was  not  a  mark  of  high 
merit  on  the  part  of  the  new  comers  to  exterminate 
them  so  quickly.  They  were  without  houses  or  dress, 
with  hardly  any  knowledge  of  agriculture,  and 
almost  devoid  of  religious  ideas,  roaming  through 
forest  and  plain  in  search  of  roots  and  berries,  small 
game  and  fish,  improvident  and  dependent  wholly 

(474) 


THE  EARLY  MISSIONARIES.  475 

on  the  products  of  the  seasons.  Split  into  petty 
bands,  they  were  kept  apart  by  a  confusing  multipli- 
city of  tongues.1 

The  professed  aim  of  the  early  missionaries,  to 
spread  civilization,  would  appear  to  have  discovered  a 
prolific  field ;  but  indolent  in  mind  as  well  as  body, 
the  natives  offered  no  encouragement,  and  the  fathers 
soon  adopted  the  plan  of  extending  the  pupillage  sys- 
tem of  Mexico  into  actual  serfdom  on  this  remote 
frontier.  Gathered  partly  by  force  from  their  hunt- 
ing-fields and  haunts,  with  their  nomadic  allurements, 
the  Indians  were  set  to  toil  on  plantations ;  not  se- 
verely, for  friar  rule  was  tempered  by  religion  ;  but 
without  any  incentives  or  hopes  beyond  those  of  a 
slave,  and  maintained  in  a  politic  condition  of  ignorance 
and  abjection.  The  sale  and  decay  of  the  missions 
brought  further  hardships  to  the  fold  A  few  had  ac- 
quired sufficient  knowledge  of  settled  customs  to  re- 
main either  as  hangers-on  of  the  colonists  or  to 
manage  a  field  or  cattle  range  of  their  own.  The  rest 
drifted  back  among  their  roaming  kindred  to  revel  in 
savage  freedom,  with  many  a  fresh  vice  to  poison  the 
good  nature  of  an  abasing  indifference.  Imbued  with 
a  certain  taste  for  the  comforts  of  their  former  life, 
notably  for  meat,  they  found  additional  incentive  for 
horse  and  cattle  stealing,  partly  in  retaliation  for  the 
overbearing  manners  and  harsh  treatment  so  often  ex- 
perienced from  their  Mexican  masters.  This  feeling 
had  in  many  directions  grown  bitter,  and  during  the 
conquest  by  the  United  States  it  led  to  a  more  men- 
acing attitude,  marked  by  atrocities.* 

In  the  southern  half  of  the  state  the  wild  Indians 
were  practically  restricted  to  the  Coast  range  and 
valleys  eastward.  On  the  lower  San  Joaquin  and 

1  Tribal  distinctions  were  especially  numerous  among  the  degraded  centra* 
hordes,  known  as  diggers.  For  a  list  of  tribes,  with  boundaries,  etc.,  I  refer 
to  my  Native  Races,  i.,  iii.,  v.  passim, 

aSuch  as  the  massacie  of  a  number  of  Hispano-Californians.  See  my 
Hist.  Cal.,  v.  567,  etc. 


476  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

beyond,  the  influence  of  the  missions  faded  into  a  still 
fainter  impress  left  by  occasional  contact  with  settled 
outposts,  and  with  kidnappers  from  missions  and 
pueblos  The  gold  discovery  brought  them  a  share 
of  affluence,3  but  the  increased  intercourse  with  white 
adventurers  led  to  degrading  habits,  particularly 
drunkenness  and  prostitution,  which  acquired  further 
virulence  from  the  fostered  taste  for  finery,  and  the 
disposition  to  linger  round  mining  camps  to  pick  up 
cast-off  clothing  and  refuse.*  The  attendant  train  of 
disease  produced  sadder  havoc  in  their  ranks  than 
sword  or  famine. 

The  most  prominent  feature  of  their  contact  with 
the  gold-seekers  was  abuse  on  the  part  of  white  men, 
and  consequent  retaliation.  A  hatred  for  Indians 
was  acquired  on  the  plains,  from  which  the  milder 
tribes  of  California  had  to  suffer.  Then  followed  the 
rush  of  miners  into  regions  hitherto  claimed  as  tribal 
ranges,  with  consequent  encounters,  and  the  slaughter 
or  repulse  of  less  strong  intruders,5  many  of  whom 
found  to  their  cost  that  the  confidence  inspired  by  the 
milder  natives  of  the  lower  Sacramento  was  misplaced 
when  applied  to  the  fiercer  clans  of  the  north  and  of 
the  hills.  The  old  practice  of  kidnapping  continued 
in  force,  partly  owing  to  the  high  price  of  labor,  partly 
for  immoral  purposes. 

Race  antagonism,  for  much  of  which  the  Mexicans 
were  responsible,  brought  on  many  evil  complications; 
later  came  maletreatment  by  agents,  with  embezzle- 
ment of  presents  and  property  pertaining  to  the  wards, 

sPartly  in  working  for  the  white  men,  partly  for  themselves,  the  women 
being  generally  set  to  dig  for  the  men.  Barstows  Stat.,  MS.,  ii. 

4  They  never  learned  to  duly  appreciate  the  value  of  money.     Traders 
could  readily  cheat  them.     Beads  and  flaming  colors  took  their  fancy,  and 
liquor  their  brains.     Grimsliaw'a  Narr.,  MS.,  44-8;  Fays  Slot,.,  MS.,  15-17; 
Cesar,  Cosas,  MS.,  17.     Though  women  were  readily  sold,   yet   husbands 
proved  occasionally  strict.     Overland,  xii.  24;  Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  7;  Matthew- 
ems  Cal  A/.,  MS.,  4-7;  Connor's  Early  Days,  MS.,  3-4;  Delano  s  .Life,  309, 
etseq.-,  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  17,  23,  31,  1850,  Feb.  19-20,  March  29,  1851;  Pac. 
Nctcs.,  Aug.  23,  26,  Oct.  1. 

5  In  1848  the  Trinity  River  Indians  drove  back  prospectors,  roused  as  they 
were  against  early  trappers. 


INFAMOUS  AGENTS.  477 

and  disregarded  treaties  and  criminal  neglect  by  the 
government.8  The  indifference  and  errors  of  the  lat- 
ter were  a  main  cause  for  the  many  wanton  outrages. 

Thus  it  is  that  the  California  valley  cannot  grace 
her  annals  with  a  single  Indian  war  bordering  on  re- 
spectability. It  can  boast,  however,  a  hundred  or 
two  of  as  brutal  butcherings,  on  the  part  of  our  hon- 
est miners  and  brave  pioneers,  as  any  area  of  equal 
extent  in  our  republic.  The  poor  natives  of  Califor- 
nia had  neither  the  strength  nor  the  intelligence  to 
unite  in  any  formidable  numbers;  hence,  when  now 
and  then  one  of  them  plucked  up  courage  to  defend 
his  wife  and  little  ones,  or  to  retaliate  on  one  of  the 
many  outrages  that  were  constantly  being  perpe- 
trated upon  them  by  white  persons,  sufficient  excuse 
was  offered  for  the  miners  and  settlers  to  band  and 
shoot  down  any  Indians  they  met,  old  or  young,  in- 
nocent or  guilty,  friendly  or  hostile,  until  their  appe- 
tite for  blood  was  appeased. 

The  United  States  authorities  began  in  1847  to  in- 
terest themselves  in  behalf  of  their  wards  by  appoint- 
ing agents,1  and  recommended  the  people  to  aid  the 
priests  in  promoting  industry  among  the  Indians 
in  the  southern  coast  counties,  without  interfering  in 
their  internal  government  under  elected  alcaldes.* 
The  legislature  passed  a  special  law  April  22,  1850, 
for  their  government  and  care,  which  confirmed  them 
in  possession  of  their  villages,  although  owners  of  the 
land  were  at  liberty  to  arrange  with  them  for  occupying 

•Official  swindlers  hare  been  the  role  rather  than  the  exception.  Hayf*J 
Indian*,  \.  225;  i.  76-85.  Encroachments  on  reservations  formed  later  a  fre- 
quent cause  for  ill-feeling.  Alta  CaL,  Oct.  6,  1851;  U.S.  Goc.  Doe.,  cong.  34, 
sesa.  3,  H.  Ex.  Doc,  76,  p.  127-30. 

1  Vallejo.  as  sub-agent  for  the  Sonoma  region,  extending  to  Clear  lake; 
Sntter  for  Sac.  and  San  Joaquin,  each  with  $750  salary,  and  J.  D.  Hunter  as 
agent  for  the  south,  with  headquarters  at  San  Luis  Rey.  They  had  power 
merely  to  admonish  and  watch  over  their  charges.  Kearney  in  1849  placed 
the  sub-agents  to  act  till  the  regular  aopointees  should  arrive,  Riley  recom- 
mending three  for  San  Joaquin  and*  Sacramento  valleys.  Pmt  Message, 
cong.  38,  sess.  1-  L  171. 

•C.  S.  Gov.  Doe.,  cong.  31,  sess.  1,  H.  Ex,  Doe.,  17,  p.  701.  Haflecks 
circular  in  Ariia,  Doc.  6.  This  applied  particularly  to  mission  Indians. 
The  property  reserved  for  churches  and  priests  should  be  respected. 


478  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

some  special  section  of  it.  A  confined  tenancy  at  the 
most,  for  neither  landed  rights  nor  citizen  privileges 
were  accorded.  They  might  be  hired  to  work  under 
contract,  and  by  a  special  provision  this  was  made  to 
some  extent  compulsory  by  enabling  the  local  authori- 
ties to  arrest  all  whom  they  chose  to  denominate  as 
vagabonds  and  beggars,  and  turn  them  over  to  the  high- 
est bidder  for  not  exceeding  four  months.  Any  surplus 
wages,  after  providing  the  victim  with  clothes,  was  as- 
signed to  a  mysterious  Indian  fund,  unless  relatives 
claimed  the  money.  In  cases  of  crime  juries  might  be 
demanded  by  either  race,  but  white  men  could  not  be 
convicted  on  Indian  testimony.9  These  formal  re- 
strictions availed  little  for  the  intended  purpose,  since 
they  left  only  the  same  loop-holes  as  formerly  for 
hoodwinking  justice,  and  afforded  moreover  a  legal 
cover  for  enslaving  and  oppressing  the  natives.  It 
was  easy  to  charge  any  one  with  vagabondage,  es- 
pecially by  enlisting  the  potent  aid  of  liquor,  and 
obtain  his  condemnation  to  forced  labor.  The  im- 
pressment generally  occurred  toward  harvest  time; 
and  this  over,  the  poor  wretches  were  cast  adrift  to 
starve,  for  their  own  harvest  season  was  by  this  time 
lost  to  them.  Bondage  was  also  insured  or  prolonged 
by  inducing  the  workers  to  spend  their  small  allow- 
ance on  vile  drink,  in  open  violation  of  the  law,1'  and 
then-  locking  them  up  as  irresponsible. 

'The  justices  of  the  peace,  who  had  jurisdiction  in  Indian  cases,  were 
given  discretionary  power,  however.  Cat.  Statements,  1851,  and  Cal.  Laws, 
1850-3,  822-5.  For  later  projects  in  behalf  of  the  natives,  see  Cal.  Jour. 
Sen.,  1850,  p.  1299,  1851,  p.  1826,  1852,  p.  762;  Hayes  Indians,  i.  1-3. 

10Supt  Beale  reports  in  1852  that  Indians  were  caught  like  cattle  for  the 
work  season  near  the  large  towns.  Out  of  one  band  turned  adrift  after  the 
season  18  died  of  starvation.  It  was  also  common  to  kidnap  children  and 
enslave  them.  U.  8.  Govt  Doc.,  cong.  32,  sess.  2.,  Sen.  Doc.,  57,  vii.  8-9, 
cong.  31;  sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  5,  i.  166,  170.  Indian  peons  at  Los  Angeles 
would  spend  their  wages  in  a  debauch  on  Sunday  and  oe  driven  to  a  corral 
by  an  Indian  foreman.  On  Monday  they  were  exposed  for  sale  at  from  $1 
to  $3  for  the  week.  BeWs  Remin.,  MS.,  9-10.  Staple,  Stat.,  MS.,  20,  claims, 
like  Sutter,  to  have  employed  Indians  largely  without  trouble  or  force.  He 
treated  with  the  chiefs  and  held  them  responsible.  Hayes'  Indians,  v.  15. 
The  officials  used  freely  to  infringe  the  liquor  law.  Unltound  Doc.,  235-6. 
A  later  temperance  society  set  a  watch  upon  such  offenders.  Sac.  Union,  Ap. 
7,  1855.  A  humorous  article  in  Trinity  co.  Monitor,  Feb.  1,  1855,  on  the 


MASSACRE  OF  IXDIAXS.  479 

In  the  more  settled  or  occupied  districts,  the  strenoth 
of  the  white  men  tended  to  repress  murmurs  against 
injustice,  but  elsewhere  the  aspect  changed,  in  partic- 
ular along  the  slopes  of  the  Sierra,  where  a  more 
independent  mountain  spirit  prevailed,  and  where 
tribes  could  count  upon  numbers  further  swelled  by 
occasional  alliances.  Roused  by  personal  injuries 
from  the  encroaching  miners,  who  looked  upon  them  as 
fair  prey,  and  rendered  apprehensive  \yy  reports  of 
outrages  in  other  directions,  the  Indians  would  rise, 
primarily  to  repel  intruders,  not  infrequently  to  retal- 
iate, according  to  their  custom,  upon  individuals  and 
small  parties,  and  gradually  to  yield  to  their  desire 
for  blood  and  plunder.  In  the  spring  of  1848,  some 
thirty  murders  by  them  were  reported  in  differ- 
ent directions,  and  parties  set  out  in  pursuit,  notably 
one  of  three  score  men  toward  Coloma,  which  came 
up  with  flying  Indians,  killing  a  number  of  them,  and 
recovering  some  property.  Soon  after  several  who 
were  suspected  were  brought  in  to  Coloma,  and  tried, 
the  result  being  the  slaughter  of  thirty.11  A  pursuit 
toward  the  Cosumne  was  marked  by  the  indiscrimi- 
nate massacre  of  a  band  on  mere  suspicion." 

market  rate  and  demand  for  women  was  based  on  actual  traffic.  '  Good 
middling'  could  be  had  for  five  oxen,  seven  deer,  and  five  pair  of  blankets. 
Cox  An.  Trinity,  127.  Further  accounts  of  treatment  in  Kip's  CaL  Sketches, 
45;  Henshatcs  Events,  MS.,  2.  Indians  were  chastised  so  severely  as  to  cause 
death.  Sac.  Union,  July  28,  1855. 

U5oc.  Transcript,  June  29,  1850.  Ryan,  Pen.  Adv.,  ii.  300-1,  relates 
that  McKay's  party  attacked  a  rancheria  of  20  huts,  killing  about  30  of  the 
300  inmates,  and  capturing  7  men  and  40  women.  Buffum,  Six  JIos,  100, 
speaks  in  this  connection  of  Greenwood's  party  killing  20  men  at  a  Weaver 
creek  rancherf  a,  and  capturing  30,  of  whom  6  were  sentenced  to  be  shot. 
The  condemned  were  allowed  a  chance  to  run,  but  5  felL  On  Dry  creek 
three  murderers  were  captured  and  hanged.  Placer  Times,  May  12,  1849. 
The  notable  murders  embraced,  on  the  American  Fork  7  out  of  a  party  of  9, 
5  out  of  8,  and  2  out  of  3.  Id.,  Apr.  28,  1849.  Little,  Stat.,  MS.,  7,  had  a 
narrow  escape.  He  blames  the  men  of  Stevenson's  regiment  for  drunken 
outrages  and  cold-blooded  killing. 

u  The  lessons  already  given  proved  salutary,  however;  the  berry  harvest 
occupied  the  Indians,  and  gold-picking  the  white  men,  so  that  the  summer 
and  autumn  proved  quiet.  Then  came  a  renewal  of  trouble,  outrages  and 
murder  on  one  side,  and  robbery  and  murder  on  the  other.  They  were  fol- 
lowed by  expeditions  along  the  different  tributaries  of  the  Sacramento,  from 
the  American  fork  to  Feather  river,  and  especially  on  the  Yuba,  where 
seven  white  men  and  ten  times  that  number  of  redskins  had  fallen  by  the 


480  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

The  upper  valley  of  the  San  Joaquin  had  for  years 
been  noted  as  the  abode  of  Indians  whose  independent 
spirit  delighted  in  inroads  upon  the  adjoining  coast 
districts;13  and  when,  in  the  spring  of  1849  gold- 
seekers  began  to  enter  the  country,  those  of  King 
river  among  others  manifested  their  objection  by 
several  atrocities.14  Troops  were  dispatched  to  recon- 

middle  of  April  1850.  The  latter  exhibited  considerable  courage  and  tenacity, 
assuming  at  times  the  offensive  against  large  bodies,  even  laying  siege  to  en- 
trenchments, and  employing  tactics  which  led  to  the  belief  in  European 
counsellors.  The  efficient  movement  of  troops,  however,  assisted  by  the 
militia  under  General  Green,  and  by  numerous  volunteer  corps,  obliged  the 
leading  tribes  of  the  Yuba  region  to  accept  peace  on  May  25th,  after  which 
comparative  security  was  secured  for  the  summer.  But  order  could  not  long 
prevail  with  so  many  incentives  for  outrages  in  the  form  of  lazy,  vicious,  and 
drunken  vagabonds  at  the  camps,  who  took  pleasure  in  abusing  the  natives, 
especially  in  regard  to  women,  or  where  the  Indians  presumed  to  find  a  de- 
sirable gold  claim.  Appeals. for  redress  being  as  usual  disregarded,  there 
was  no  resource  save  retaliation,  in  murders  and  plunder.  Although  no 
regular  combination  among  the  tribes  was  probable,  yet  with  October  1850 
raids  and  attacks  became  general,  from  the  head  of  Sacramento  valley  down- 
ward. The  alarm  spread,  and  the  government,  while  believing  it  best  to  let 
each  district  defend  itself,  deemed  it  necessary  to  order  Sheriff  Rogers,  of  El 
Dorado,  to  call  out  200  men  for  suppressing  the  savages  along  the  leading 
immigrant  route.  The  force,  with  Rogers  as  elected  colonel,  divided  into 
several  parties  to  pursue  the  marauders.  The  Indians  generally  scattered 
before  them  into  retreats  difficult  of  access  to  the  less  active  white  men,  who 
were,  moreover,  hampered  by  baggage,  and  little  inclined  for  climbing  and 
other  exhausting  tasks.  The  ardor  of  the  latter  was  further  checked  by 
finding  that  when  gathered  in  force  the  Indians  fought  desperately,  and  de- 
fended themselves  against  rifles  with  glass-tipped  arrows,  which  were  so 
effectively  shot  as  to  cause  more  than  one  repulse  of  the  militia.  Indeed, 
their  exploits  were  far  from  brilliant,  and  were  mostly  restricted  to  destroy- 
ing abandoned  rancherlas,  with  their  stores  of  berries  and  other  provender, 
a  measure  which  could  only  drive  the  Indians  to  other  desperate  means  or 
starvation.  Reports  indicating  that  the  El  Dorado  region  had  been  cleared 
of  the  enemy,  the  governor  ordered  a  reduction,  and  soon  after  a  disband  - 
ment  of  the  troops.  At  once  rose  the  cry  of  renewed  raids,  started  by  in- 
terested traders  and  their  shiftless  customers,  whose  appetite  had  been 
whetted  for  the  state's  money.  The  legislature,  indeed,  was  so  impressed 
by  the  magnitude  of  the  danger  as  to  authorize  the  governor  to  raise  500 
men.  The  governor  fortunately  looked  more  closely  into  the  affair  before 
encroaching  further  upon  the  state's  war  fund  of  half  a  million,  and  the  war 
party  was  greatly  disappointed.  The  movements  here  during  the  spring  of 
1851  accordingly  fell  to  small  proportions,  to  be  overshadowed  by  more  im- 
portant events  elsewhere. 

13  Those  of  the  Merced  and  Tulare  were  expected  by  the  authorities  of 
1849  to  be  the  most  troublesome.     In  Jan.,  1849,   the  settlers  of  S.  Juan 
Bautista  petitioned  for  relief  against  them.     U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  cong.  31,  sess. 
1,  //.  Ex.  Doc.,  17  p.  688-9,  907.     Naglee  had  in  1849  pursued  stock  robbers 
into  Mariposa.      Wozencraft,  4. 

14  Such  as  flaying  victims  alive.     This  fate  is  applied  to  Garner  in  1849, 
and  to  Wood  in  Jan.,  1851.     Sac.  Tramcript,  Feb.  28,  1851  ;  S.  Jos6  /' 
Nov.   17,  1877.     In  May,  1849,   the  Pacheco  party  was  attacked  by  300  In- 
dians and  G  killed.     Unbound  Doc.,  308-10. 


IN  THE  SOUTH.  481 

noitre,  and  volunteers  scoured  over  the  country,  but 
with  so  little  effect  as  to  render  the  enemy  bolder  than 
ever.  James  Savage,  who  owned  two  trading  posts 
on  the  Fresno  and  Mariposa,  and  possessed  great  in- 
fluence over  the  tribes,  took  some  of  the  chiefs  to 
San  Francisco  to  receive  a  salutary  impression  of  pale- 
face strength,  but  without  avail.  The  plundering  of 
isolated  men  and  small  parties  was  too  tempting  to  be 
resisted.15 

The  southern  counties  had  been  exposed  not  alone  to 
raids  from  the  Tulare  region,  but  from  the  many  bands 
roaming  in  the  deserts  east  of  the  San  Bernardino 
range.  In  the  summer  of  1849  the  Yumas  began  to 
harass  immigrants  and  to  rob  settlers,  but  an  expedi- 
tion followed  by  a  treaty  brought  them  to  terms  for 
the  time.  In  the  following  April  they  were  roused 
by  the  outrageous  conduct  of  some  Americans  who 
owned  a  ferry  on  the  Colorado,  and  in  a  night  des- 
cent eleven  of  the  offenders  were  slain.  San  Diego 
and  Los  Angeles  took  alarm  and  the  governor  was 
induced  to  order  out  a  hundred  of  the  militia  to  exact 
punishment  and  protect  the  immigrant  route.  The 
expedition  reached  the  river  in  September,  under 
command  of  Morehead,  but  finding  everything  quiet 
disbanded  after  remaining  a  few  weeks  in  observa- 
tion.1' Soon  after  a  military  post  was  established 

15  With  the  avowed  intention  of  driving  ont  the  white  men  they  extended 
their  raids  so  far  as  to  destroy,  in  December,  1850,  also  the  Fresno  station  of 
the  friendly  Savage.  Their  action  seemed  preconcerted,  for  at  the  same  time 
tribes  were  ravaging  along  the  Stanislaus  and  Tuolnmne,  within  a  few  miles 
of  Stockton,  along  the  Merced  and  streams  southward,  driving  the  miners 
from  the  headwaters  of  the  San  Joaquin  and  slaughtering  a  large  party  at 
Rattlesnake  creek.  Further  down  settlements  and  cattle  stations  were  at- 
tacked and  demolished,  particularly  on  Kaweah  and  Kern  rivers  and  toward 
Owen's  Lake,  attended  by  massacre  and  pillage.  Again  a  number  of  volun- 
teer companies  took  the  field,  to  meet  with  occasional  advantages,  snch  as 
the  destruction  of  a  deserted  rancherfa  and  the  killing  of  a  few  warriors, 
which  were  magnified  into  victories ;  but  also  to  encounter  repulses  at  the 
hands  of  the  sturdy  tribes  in  ambuscade  or  in  good  position,  strengthened  by 
captured  or  purchased  arms  ;  or,  more  generally,  to  be  tired  out  by  fruitless 
pursuit.  The  regular  troops  did  not  distinguish  themselves  any  more  than 
the  bodies  called  ont  by  the  governor,  whereof  200  men  were  to  be  raised  by 
the  sheriff  of  Mariposa. 

16  The  order  for  raising  troops  was  issued  in  June,  to  Gen.  Bean  of 
the  4th  div.  of  militia,  who  entrusted  the  formation  and  command  of 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.   31 


482  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

here  by  the  federal  government.  The  Indian  war 
which  was  afflicting  the  great  valley  at  the  close  of 
1850,  made  itself  felt  also  in  this  direction,  at  first 
by  incursions  from  the  Tulares,  so  that  the  governor 
authorized  Bean  to  raise  a  company.17 

The  hostilities  of  1849  served  to  impress  upon 
congress  the  necessity  for  some  arrangement  by  which 
to  appease  the  aboriginal  holders  of  the  soil,  and  so 
render  more  secure  the  rising  settlements.  In  Octo- 
ber 1850,  accordingly,  the  president  appointed  Redick 
McKee,  G.  W.  Barbour,  and  O.  M.  Wozencraft  In- 
dian agents  to  figure  for  a  time  as  peace  commission- 
ers, with  ill-defined  instructions  to  act  for  the  best  in 

the  party  to  Morehead,  a  lawyer  formerly  lieut  in  Stevenson's  reg't, 
member  of  legislature  in  1850,  and  now  styled  quarter-master-general.  He 
was  preparing  in  July  and  August,  but  as  the  alarm  had  subsided,  the  citi- 
zens objected  to  furnish  supplies  for  his  scrip,  whereupon  he  seized  by  force 
what  was  required.  With  levies  from  emigrant  parties  he  obtained  125  men. 
Although  quiet  prevailed  he  managed  to  provoke  a  quarrel,  the  result  of 
which  was  a  skirmish  wherein  a  score  of  Indians  fell.  In  Sept.  the  govern- 
ment ordered  a  disbandment,  which  had  to  be  repeated  before  it  was  obeyed. 
Cal  Sen.  Jour.,  1851,  16-17,  607-9,  734,  1045-7,  etc.  Morehead's  bill 
amounted  to  $76,588.  Concerning  claims  of  citizens  for  seized  property,  see 
Hayes'  Angeles,  i.  42.  etc;  AUa  Cal  Jan.  14;  18,  1851.  Id.  Indians,  i.,  192- 
205. 

17  This  precaution  proved  of  value,  but  in  the  middle  of  the  following  year 
disaffection  spread  to  the  Yumas  and  San  Luis  Hey  Indians,  the  latter  in- 
censed at  the  enforcement  of  taxes  from  which  they  had  so  far  been  exempt. 
In  November  the  Yumas  signalized  themselves  by  attacking  a  party  of 
sheep  drovers,  and  obliging  the  troops  stationed  on  the  Colorado  to  with- 
draw. At  the  same  time  the  San  I.uis  Rey  chief,  Antonio  Garra,  a  turbulent 
and  treacherous  fellow,  declared  war,  boasting  that  some  3,000  warriors 
awaited  his  signal  to  descend  upon  the  settlements.  Consternation  spread; 
martial  law  was  proclaimed  at  San  Diego,  and  every  man  impressed;  volun- 
teers mustered  at  Los  Angeles,  and  appeals  for  aid  went  northward.  In  re- 
sponse a  company  of  troops  departed  from  Benicia,  Gen.  Bean  was  ordered 
to  raise  two  companies  in  the  south,  and  volunteers  started  from  San  Fran- 
cisco. These  movements  and  the  revelation  of  the  plot  served  to  frighten 
many  a  vacillating  tribe,  and  Juan  Antonio,  chief  of  the  powerful  Cahuillos, 
whose  attitude  at  one  time  appeared  suspicious,  hastened  to  proclaim  his 
loyalty  by  entrapping  Garra  and  several  of  his  adherents,  and  surrendering 
them  to  the  authorities.  The  chief  was  promptly  tried  and  executed,  to- 
gether with  several  accomplices,  including  an  American  and  a  Californian. 
A  portion  of  his  tribe  which  had  meanwhile  taken  the  field  was  promptly  de- 
feated at  Los  Coyotes,  and  so  ended  with  a  few  raids  an  uprising  which  for 
a  while  alarmed  the  entire  state.  Major  Heintzelman,  who  had  taken  a 
leading  share  in  these  operations,  now  marched  to  the  Colorado.  The  Yumas 
proved  more  stubborn,  allied  as  they  were  with  Arizona  tribes  and  well 
armed,  and  the  troops  were  kept  busy  throughout  the  spring  and  summer. 
In  August,  however,  a  decisive  advantage  was  gained,  followed  by  the  cap- 
ture and  execution  of  the  chief,  whereupon  comparative  order  was  re- 
stored. 


GOVERNMENT  COMMISSIONER  483 

conciliating  the  natives  and  bind  them  by  written 
treaties,  reporting  upon  their  customs  and  condition. 
They  arrived  in  California  in  January  1851,  and  as 
the  governor  had  ordered  out  200  men  to  operate 
against  the  Indians  of  Mariposa  region,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  United  States  troops,  under  Captain  Keyes, 
it  was  resolved  that  the  commissioners  should  proceed 
to  this  quarter  and  seek  to  effect  a  peaceful  arrange- 
ment, the  troops  awaiting  the  issue.  Their  conclu- 
sion was  that  the  aborigines  had  been  driven  by  the 
advancing  miners  and  settlers  from  the  fishing  and 
fruit  grounds  into  the  less  hospitable  mountain  dis- 
tricts, and  were  consequently  forced,  greatly  by  neces- 
sity, to  prey  upon  the  flocks  and  other  possessions  of 
the  white  men.  The  only  preventive  seemed  to  be 
their  restoration  to  certain  unoccupied  portions  of 
the  plain,  with  allowances  of  beef,  blankets,  and  other 
body  comforts  as  compensation  for  encroachments 
upon  their  hunting  ranges,  and  for  keeping  them  con- 
tented and  under  control. 

This  campaign  with  flour  in  lieu  of  powder  proved 
effective,  for  a  number  of  treaties  were  formed  with 
the  Indians  throughout  the  San  Joaquin  valley,  from 
the  Stanislaus  to  Tejon,18  setting  aside  a  limited  sec- 

18  On  March  19,  1851,  a  treaty  was  formed  with  six  tribes  from  the  head- 
waters of  the  Tuolumne,  Merced,  and  Mariposa.  On  April  29th  a  treaty 
with  16  tribes  between  the  Mariposa  and  King  rivers,  numbering  2,000  or 
3,000,  who  agreed  to  occupy  a  strip  along  the  lower  foothills  about  15  miles 
wide  by  50  in  length.  On  May  13th,  a  treaty  was  signed  with  12  of  the 
warlike  tribes  of  the  country  between  King  and  Kaweah  rivers,  though 
ranging  as  far  south  as  Kern  river,  and  numbering  4,120  souls,  to  occupy 
a  small  district  in  this  region;  May  30th,  the  treaty  with  7  tribes,  allies  of 
preceding,  between  the  Kaweah  and  TuLare  rivers;  June  3d,  with  4  tribes, 
1,700  strong,  on  the  Tulare,  which  were  allotted  a  section  of  the  range; 
June  10th  with  11  tribes,  in  the  southern  extreme  of  the  valley,  round  Kern 
lake.  The  Indians  southward,  in  Los  Angeles  and  San  Diego,  being  friendly, 
no  arrangements  were  then  made  with  them.  All  treaties  in  the  San  Joa- 
qnin  valley  after  April  were  arranged  by  Barbour  alone.  For  names  of 
above  tribes  and  other  data,  see  U.  8.  Oov.  Doc.,  spec.  sess.  1853;  Sen.  Doc., 
4,  p.  81,  93,  207-10,  252-8,  etc.;  Id.,  cong.  32,  sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  2,  ii.  pt 
iii  484,  507-12,  etc.;  AUa.  CaL,  May-July,  1851.  The  commissioners  as- 
cribed nineteen-twentieths  of  all  trouble  to  white  aggression  or  broken 
promises.  It  was  cheaper  to  feed  the  Indians  for  a  year  than  to  fight  them 
for  a  week.  Accounts  follow  of  similar  arrangements  with  the  Stanislaus, 
giving  them  a  section  8  miles  by  12;  in  El  Dorado  10  miles  by  25  were  set 
apart,  including  some  good  valleys,  but  mostly  poor  soil;  the  placer  gold  would 


484  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

tion  of  land  within  the  range  of  each  contracting 
group,  thus  forming  a  dozen  reservations,  with  sug- 
gestions for  more,  and  offering  to  all  who  would 
settle  therein  a  certain  amount  of  rations  and  pres- 
ents, for  1851-2,  till  more  definite  arrangements  could 
be  made.  A  large  proportion  of  the  tribes  recognized 
the  futility  of  resisting  terms  offered  at  the  point  of 
the  bayonet,  and  accepted  the  restricted  occupation 
with  the  sugar-coating  of  provisions. 

Only  the  first  treaties  were  arranged  by  the  com- 
missioners jointly.  By  April  they  tired  of  the  mutual 
supervision  prompted  by  a  natural  jealousy.  Each 

soon  be  washed  out;  between  Yuba  and  Bear  rivers  a  piece  12  miles  square 
was  selected;  in  Colusa  3  miles  by  15  along  the  east  bank  of  the  Sacramento, 
on  the  Sutter  claim;  by  the  Chico  treaty  a  reservation  in  the  foothills  north 
of  Feather  river,  6  miles  by  20;  by  the  Cottonwood  treaty,  35  miles  square 
at  the  head  of  the  Sacramento  valley,  between  Shasta,  Nevada,  and  Coast 
ranges.  The  Sacramento  valley  treaties  were  arranged  by  Wozencraft. 
By  June  1851,  Agent  Johnston  reported  about  1,000  Indians  on  the  reserva- 
tion between  the  Stanislaus  and  Tuolumne;  800  on  the  Tuolumne  and  Merced; 
1,800  or  2,000  on  the  Chowchilla-Kaweah.  Trading  licenses  were  granted 
within  these  reservations,  on  the  Stanislaus,  to  Dent  &  Co.  for  $1,000;  on 
the  Tuolumne,  to  G.  Belt  for  $1,000;  on  the  Chowchilla,  to  Savage  &  Co.  for 
$1,200.  On  the  Sacramento  reservation  three  were  issued  by  Wozencraft. 
See  Sen.  Doc.,  4,  230,  as  above.  Agent  Johnston  undertook  to  award  Stone 
and  Marks  $12,000  damages  for  dispossessing  them  of  their  hotel,  ferry, 
land,  and  trading  post  on  the  Merced;  but  the  chief  agent,  McKee,  who  was 
one  of  the  few  honest  agents  of  the  government,  reported  against  it.  Id..  109- 
11.  He  had  set  out  for  his  northern  allotment  in  Aug.,  escorted  by  some  36 
men  under  Wessells,  and  with  a  drove  of  cattle  for  vanquishing  Indian. appe- 
tite and  obstinacy.  Numerous  attendants  for  the  pack  trains,  etc.,  were  also 
engaged  at  heavy  wages.  Marching  through  Sonoma  he  reached  Clear  lake 
and  there  effected  a  treaty  Aug.  20th,  with  eight  tribes  of  about  1,000  souls, 
setting  aside  the  lake  valley  as  a  reservation.  To  the  same  reservation  were 
assigned  four  Russian  river  tribes,  numbering  somewhat  over  1.000  souls, 
with  whom  a  treaty  was  signed  Aug.  22d.  He  passed  through  the  Coast 
region,  which  from  Fort  Ross  to  Mud  river  was  estimated  to  contain  1,700 
souls,  whom  he  proposed  to  settle  at  the  mouth  of  Eel  river,  and  on  Oct.  6th 
and  12th,  made  a  treaty  with  the  Indians  of  lower  Klamath  and  Trinity 
rivers,  for  whom  a  reservation  was  proposed  near  the  junction  of  these 
rivers.  On  Nov.  4th,  the  Scott  valley  treaty  was  concluded  with  the  upper 
Klamath,  Shasta,  and  Scott  River  natives,  numbering  3,000  souls  in  24,  19 
and  7  rancherfas,  respectively;  to  these  were  added  1,000  Upper  Trinity 
River  Indians,  the  whole  4,000  to  be  assigned  to  Scott's  valley.  For  names 
of  tribes  and  chiefs,  varying  estimates  of  number  and  other  details,  see 
McKee's  reports  in  U.  8.  Oov.  Doc.,  spec.  sess.  1854,  Sen.  Doc.,  4,  136-228, 
239;  Id.,  cons.  34,  sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  2,  ii.  pt  iii.,  498  et  seq.;  Id.,  cong. 
34,  sess.  3,  doc.  76,  ii.  59-68;  S.  F.  Morning  Post,  Sep.  1,  1851.  Further 
record  of  commissioners'  movements  in  Wozencroft,  1  et  seq. ;  Hayes'  Indians, 
11.  118,  iv.  13-14,  v.  94-7;  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb. -Apr.,  1851;  Pac.  Neios,  Jan.- 
Ap.,  1851;  Cal.  Courier,  id.;  AltaCal,  Jan. -July,  Sep.  9,  13,  Dec.  29,  1851, 
etc.;  Placer  Times  and  Transcript,  Nov.  15,  1S51,  etc, 


DRIVEN  TO  DESPERATION.  485 

longed  to  figure  by  himself  as  arbitrator  over  the 
destiny  of  peoples,  attended  by  an  imposing  escort  of 
soldiers,  and  with  a  no  mean  power  among  settlers  in 
offering  protection,  disposing  of  lands  and  dispensing 
contracts.  In  the  latter  lay  a  golden  means  of  en- 
richment that  could  not  well  be  gained  in  company. 
And  so  on  the  1st  of  May  the  commissioners  agreed 
to  act  separately,  Barbour  retaining  by  lot  San  Joa- 
quin  valley,  with  southern  California  added,  Wozen- 
craft  taking  the  Sacramento  valley,  and  McKee  all 
north  of  this  and  west  of  the  Coast  range  above 
latitude  400.1' 

The  Indians  could  not  be  blamed  for  becoming  res- 
tive under  the  cumulative  injuries  now  openly  fostered 
by  the  government  itself  in  the  mismanagement  and 

19  No  sooner  had  they  turned  their  faces  to  the  respective  allotments  than 
each  entered  into  heavy  contracts  for  the  supply  of  provisions,  mostly  beef, 
in  which  different  collusions  were  made  for  dividing  equably  their  benefit 
between  the  government  and  the  Indians,  commissioners  and  distributing 
agents.  In  one  instance  it  was  proved  that  only  two  thirds  of  a  contract 
had  been  delivered;  in  another,  that  choice  lots  were  sold  at  high  rates  to 
the  miners.  Similar  prices  were  exacted  from  the  Indians  in  different  direc- 
tions, for  the  supposed  presents  and  rations  of  a  paternal  government;  spoiled 
flour  was  utilized,  and  as  thick  or  double  blankets  must  interfere  with  the 
free  movements  of  the  natives  when  sent  to  hunt  their  rations  in  the  forest, 
thinner  material  was  considerately  provided  for  them,  or  the  agent  applied 
his  shears  with  such  calculations  as  to  turn  most  of  the  fabric  to  better  ad- 
vantage in  other  quarters.  The  tact  and  skill  with  which  these  managers 
could  make  available  one  means  for  several  purposes  shone  equally  resplend- 
ent in  demonstrating  their  own  disinterestedness  in  these  transactions.  The 
government,  however,  could  not  be  made  to  reconcile  figures  with  purity  of 
motives;  and  in  accordance  with  an  act  creating  a  superintendent  of  Indian 
affairs  for  California,  E.  F.  Beale  was,  in  the  spring  of  1852,  entrusted  with 
the  management. 

He  endorsed  the  policy  so  far  pursued  with  assignment  of  reservations 
and  provisions,  but  condemned  the  wasteful  and  gross  mismanagement  under 
which  an  indebtedness  of  nearly  §800,000  had  been  formed  within  little  more 
than  a  year.  One  result  was  the  resignation  or  suspension  of  the  agents  and 
the  revision  of  their  contracts,  involving  reduced  and  deferred  payments. 
It  was  declared  unwise  to  reject  the  treaties,  for  this  would  undoubtedly 
lead  to  bloody  and  ruinous  wars.  Unfortunately  the  selection  of  reservations 
was  in  itself  injudicious,  scattered  as  they  were  in  so  many  localities,  fre- 
quently cutting  into  the  midst  of  mineral  belts,  and  occupying  much  valuable 
land  coveted  by  settlers.  Strong  objections  were  accordingly  made  before 
congress  under  legislative  auspices,  and  the  treaties  were  rejected,  chiefly  on 
the  ground  that  under  the  acquisition  of  California  from  Mexico  the  natives 
had  no  right  to  the  soil,  and  consequently  no  claims  upon  the  United  States 
government.  Nevertheless,  an  appropriation  of  §100,000  was  made  for  pre- 
serving peace  with  dispossessed  Indiana  till  other  permanent  arrangements 
could  be  made. 


486  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

neglect  of  agents,  and  in  broken  promises  and  disre- 
garded treaties,  with  consequent  threatening  spolia- 
tion. Even  the  usually  gentle  aboriginals  of  south-west 
California  appeared  unquiet,  and  Los  Angeles  county 
was  startled  by  raids  from  adjoining  districts.  These 
did  not  prove  serious,  however,  owing  to  the  presence 
of  several  military  companies  near  Bajou  pass,  San 
Luis  Hey,  Vallecitas,  linked  with  those  at  Four  creeks, 
King  river,  and  Fort  Yuma.  In  the  desert  region 
eastward,  with  its  less  forbearing  Yuinas  arid  Mojaves, 
the  Pintos  and  other  roaming  tribes  of  Nevada  were 
tempted  to  repeated  attacks  on  emigrant  trains,  checked 
only  occasionally  by  some  garrisoned  detachment  or 
passing  volunteer  corps.  The  opening  through  Ari- 
zona of  the  overland  road  in  1858-9  was  attended  by 
more  formidable  movements,  and  the  despatch  of  a 
special  body  of  troops  to  establish  a  crossing  on  the 
Colorado.  The  peace  now  forced  upon  the  Mojaves 
prevented  any  further  serious  trouble  in  this  quarter; 
but  northward  the  influx  of  miners  and  stock-raisers 
stirred  the  hitherto  quiet  Owen's  river  natives.  Driven 
into  the  mountains  or  more  sterile  tracts,  they  were 
compelled  by  hunger  to  raid  upon  the  vast  herds  of 
cattle,  and  to  commit  attendant  outrages,  until  in  1862 
the  settlers  opened  a  regular  campaign.  This  served 
only  as  a  momentary  check,  and  after  two  more 
seasons  of  endurance  the  exasperated  settlers  resolved 
upon  a  severe  retaliation.  They  marched  forth,  and 
in  January,  1865,  massacred  over  two  score  of  per- 
sons at  one  village,  and  a  month  later  over  100  were 
driven  into  the  corroding  waters  of  a  lake,  there  to 
meet  a  terrible  death.  The  lesson  proved  effective, 
especially  so  far  as  those  *,hat  were  killed  were  con- 
cerned, if  it  did  not  serve  to  thoroughly  restrain  na- 
tives to  whom  mountain  fastnesses  and  deserts  pre- 
sented so  inviting  an  impunity." 

21  The  efforts  of  the  tribes  in  the  lower  part  of  San  Joaquin  valley  to  assert 
their  rights  against  the  advancing  settlers  culminated  in  the  Kern  river  war 
of  1856.  Northward  in  the  valley  the  white  population  spread  too  rapidly 


NORTHERN  TRIBES.  487 

The  most  troublesome  Indians  of  California  were 
those  of  the  extreme  north,  from  the  headwaters  of 
the  Sacramento  to  the  Oregon  border,  and  toward 
the  coast.  They,  had  shown  their  hostility  to  the 
early  trappers  and  immigrants,  and  were  more  relent- 
less after  every  contact  with  the  inimical  Oregonians, 
who  traversed  their  country  en  route  for  the  gold 
fields.  Many  an  early  prospector  suffered  for  his 
temerity,  and  when  the  miners  subsequently  entered 
in  force  they  fought  their  way  with  little  scruple,  ex- 
acting terrible  vengeance  for  every  outrage.  Beyond 
Feather  river  the  Cottonwood  bands  were  among  the 

^5 

first  noted  hostile  savages  to  suffer,  and  westward 
those  of  Hurnboldt  county  became  exposed  to  a  dou- 
ble fire,  for  miners  were  entering  in  large  numbers 
also  by  sea.  The  coast  Indians  gave  just  cause  for 
anger  by  their  thievishness,  which  in  a  measure  justi- 
fied the  destruction  of  villages  and  lives  that  followed.11 

and  overwhelmingly  to  permit  the  less  spirited  natives  to  exhibit  any  marked 
discontent.  Cattle  stealing  and  pilfering  would  occur,  however,  in  obedience 
to  the  prevailing  Digger  instinct,  and  lead  at  intervals  to  armed  combinations 
of  the  farmers  and  miners.  The  last  notable  uprising  took  place  during  the 
winter  of  1857—8,  and  before  it  was  over  there  were  still  fewer  savages  to 
suffer  hunger  and  eke  out  existence  on  the  reduced  acorn  crop. 

u  Their  retaliative  attacks  led  to  the  Klamath  war  of  1851-2,  marked  by 
several  petty  expeditions,  and  by  the  participation  of  troops  which  estab- 
lished a  post  at  Hnmboldt.  Forts  had  already  been  erected  at  Reading 
and  Scott  valley  for  raids  upon  supply  trains,  and  small  parties  were  by 
this  time  frequent  throughout  the  northern  counties.  During  the  sum- 
mer of  1851  the  Oregon  border  region  was  ablaze  with  the  Shasta  war,  which 
despite  treaties, continued  to  break  out  in  occasional  hostilities  and  gave  oc- 
casion for  such  atrocities  as  the  massacre  by  Ben  Wright  of  two  score  Mo- 
docs  during  a  peace  conference. 

The  latter  were  undoubtedly  guilty  of  murderous  raids,  but  the  manner 
of  retaliation,  has  been  condemned.  In  1853  the  widespread  Shasta  tribes 
joined  anew  in  the  Rogue  river  war.  Their  operations  did  not  then  assume 
any  magnitude,  partly  from  the  recent  increase  of  military  posts;  but  the 
comparative  inaction  of  the  settlers  encouraged  the  natives  to  relieve  the 
wants  created  by  severe  winter  seasons.  The  consequent  depredations, 
chiefly  upon  cattle,  attended  by  a  few  murders,  provoked  brief  avenging 
spring  campaigns  in  1854  and  1855,  the  latter  directed  chiefly  against  the 
lower  Klamaths,  whose  rising  during  the  winter  created  general  alarm  in 
Humboldt  county.  Desultory  movements  continued  throughout  the  year 
along  the  Oregon  line,  in  connection  with  the  Rogue  river  war,  wherein  the 
Shastas  took  a  leading  part.  The  diversion  of  the  regular  troops  for  that 
campaign,  and  the  seeming  security  of  the  mountains,  tempted  to  fresh  out- 
breaks along  the  Klamath  to  the  border,  obliging  the  governor  to  send  assist- 
ance and  call  out  volunteers  first  for  Humboldt  county,  and  in  the  summer 
for  Siskiyou.  In  the  former  regions  two  companies  of  settlers  assisted  to  in* 


488  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

The  incidents  of  the  several  wars  lay  recorded  in 
different  sections  in  long  enduring  signs  of  devasta- 
tion, and  in  the  now  harrowing,  now  boastful,  narra- 
tives of  victims  and  participants,  refreshed  by  pro- 
tracted appeals  for  indemnity  from  the  government, 
and  for  reimbursement  by  the  federation  of  the  cam- 
paign expenses  of  the  state.  Even  more  impressive 
was  the  sad  spectacle  of  the  miserable  remnants  of 
the  abused  race,  fast  sinking  under  the  withering  in- 
fluence and  diseases  of  European  civilization,  under 
ever  diminishing  resources  and  changed  and  con- 
strained modes  of  life." 

flict  so  summary  a  chastisement  upon  the  lower  Elamaths  that  they  qnietly 
accepted  the  reservation  assigned  to  them,  and  gave  little  cause  for  further 
anxiety.  In  Siskiyou  the  campaign  extended  till  October,  before  peace 
could  be  arranged.  The  trouble  afflicting  San  Joaquin  valley  in  1857-9  ex- 
tended in  more  virulent  form  throughout  the  northern  counties,  notwith- 
standing the  conciliatory  establishment  of  reservations  with  attendant  offers 
of  rations  and  other  presents.  The  advance  of  settlement  was  everywhere 
marked  by  a  more  or  less  revolting  treatment  of  the  natives.  In  the  contact 
of  antagonistic  races,  one  side  was  incited  by  a  spirit  of  maintenance  of 
possessory  rights,  and  often  by  hunger,  as  was  well  instanced  in  the  occupa- 
tion of  Honey  Lake  valley;  the  other  side  was  impelled  by  the  demon  of  un- 
just and  arbitrary  domination.  Aggravating  circumstances  existed  in  the 
prospensity  of  the  natives  for  pilfering,  which  readily  expanded  into  robbery 
and  raids,  while  among  the  miners  especially  a  large  proportion  consisted  of 
reckless  ruffians,  stimulated  by  vicious  passion  and  innate  cruelty,  and  at 
times  by  a  desire  to  rake  up  cause  for  obtaining  government  aid  toward  a 
formal  expedition  against  marauders.  The  campaign  of  1858-9  in  the  north 
was  sustained  by  the  enrolled  state  forces  under  Gen.  Kibbe,  which  operated 
between  October  and  March  on  both  sides  of  the  Coast  Range,  killing  more 
than  a  hundred  natives  and  capturing  several  hundred  for  the  reservations. 
The  settlers  swelled  the  former  figure  by  spasmodic  descents  and  expeditions, 
and  fanned  the  incipient  movements  on  Mad  and  Eel  rivers  into  formidable 
ravages,  marked  on  one  side  by  slaying  of  cattle,  and  on  the  other  by  kid- 
napping of  women  and  children,  and  crowned  by  several  sickening  massa- 
cres, involving  fully  200  beings  of  both  sexes  and  all  ages,  which  called  forth 
formal  condemnation  of  the  grand  jury  of  the  county.  The  only  effective 
stand  in  this  quarter  was  made  by  the  Hoopas,  who,  after  a  five  years  desul- 
tory struggle,  had  in  August  1864  to  be  propitiated  by  a  treaty  whereby  the 
lower  Trinity  valley  was  assigned  to  them  as  a  special  reservation.  Simul- 
taneously the  settlers  in  and  round  Butte  swept  that  region  of  natives  for 
transmission  to  reservations.  Then  followed  a  comparative  lull,  until  the 
Pitt  river  savages  opened  the  campaign  of  1867.  In  this  Gen.  Crook  took 
the  lead,  and  enforced  peace  the  following  year.  The  Modoc  war  of  1873 
marks  the  end  of  serious  Indian  troubles  in  California;  and  this  desirable 
condition  of  affairs  has  been  fostered  by  an  improved  management  of  reser- 
vations, and  a  more  considerate  attitude  toward  outside  natives.  The 
growth  of  settlements  tends  naturally  to  awe  them  into  good  behavior,  while 
yielding  greater  jurisdiction  to  judicial  and  political  authorities,  sustained 
by  the  more  humane  sentiments  of  a  cultivated  public  opinion. 

M  Estimates  of  the  Indian  population  vary  from  10,000  to  30,000,  the 
latter,  as  a  rule,  by  Indian  agents,  who  had  obvious  reasons  for  not  placing 


ATTITUDE  OF  THE  GOVERNMENT.  Ml 

While  refusing  to  admit  any  claim  on  the  part  of 
the  California  Indians  for  their  land,  the  United 
States  government  recognized  that  in  dispossessing 
them  from  their  hunting  and  berrying  grounds  some 
compensation  must  be  made,  if  only  out  of  considera- 
tion for  the  safety  of  the  intruding  settlers.  Super- 
intendent Beale  received  instructions  accordingly. 
He  approved  the  reservation  plan  of  the  agents  and 
commissioners  of  1851-2,  yet  with  improvements. 
Impressed  by  the  success  of  the  early  missions,  he 
proposed  a  system  of  discipline  and  instruction  under 
resident  agents  and  the  protecting  care  of  military 
posts,  together  with  communal  farming  to  promote 
self-support  This  received  the  approval  of  congress, 
which  appropriated  $250,000  toward  the  formation  of 
five  military  reservations.  Beale  proceeded  energeti- 
cally to  his  task,  although  reporting  it  difficult  to 
persuade  the  Indians  to  leave  their  old  homes  and 
hunting  grounds  for  the  restraining  limits  of  an  un- 
congenial reservation  or  to  convince  the  citizens  of  the 
necessity  for  keeping  his  wards  within  the  state 

them  too  loir.  The  smaller  figures  are  due  to  early  travellers  and  residents, 
some  of  whom  evidently  went  to  an  extreme  in  the  other  direction.  The 
•ibiinii  padres  could  not  be  expected  to  lower  the  results  of  their  labors 
among  converts,  so  that  the  17,000  or  20,000  neophytes  reported  by  them 
during  the  first  decades  of  the  century  maybe  excessive,  and  include  a  large 
number  of  relapsed  fugitives.  Nevertheless  their  reports  indicate  that  in 
the  southern  half  of  California  alone  the  natives  must  have  numbered  more 
than  15,000,  perhaps  double,  while  a  still  larger  total  is  generally  allowed  for 
the  north.  But  it  is  also  known  that  a  large  proportion,  sometimes  entire 
tribes,  were  swept  away  by  small-pox  at  different  times.  Chest  diseases  and 
fevers  carried  off  thousands,  and  a  more  insidious  malady  undermined  in 
a  slower  but  equally  effectual  manner,  far  more  so  than  wars,  whiskey,  and 
other  less  defined  concomitants  of  foreign  civilization.  One  result  was  a 
startling  excess  of  deaths  over  births  in  Mexican  times.  It  is  not  surpris- 
ing, therefore,  that  the  census  of  1852  reported  only  about  32.000  'domes- 
ticated' Indians,  and  that  of  1860  reduces  the  number  to  less  than  18,000. 
But  these  figures  evidently  neglect  the  tribes  of  the  north,  and  those  roam- 
ing in  the  mountains,  not  to  mention  the  bands  driven  into  the  adjoining 
territories  before  the  advancing  and  aggressive  white  men.  The  census  of 
1870  raises  the  total  to  31,000;  yet  by  1880  it  is  again  lowered  to  a  little 
more  than  16,000,  and  this  with  a  detailed  enumeration  that  appears  conclu- 
sive. The  diminution  since  1848  is  due  not  alone  to  wars,  diseases  and 
famine,  but  to  the  retreat  of  bands  into  adjoining  territories  before  the  ad- 
Tance  of  the  aggressive  settlers.  The  more  humane  policy  lately  in  vogue, 
with  greater  medical  care  and  attention  to  bodily  comforts,  will  no  doubt 
prevent  any  rapid  decline,  and  the  growing  settled  condition,  with  gradual 
adaptation  to  new  circumstances,  favoring  the  rearing  of  female  as  well  aa 
male  children,  cannot  fail  to  have  a  beneficial  effect. 


490  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

or  to  obtain  the  necessary  extent  of  land  without  in- 
curring great  expense  in  purchasing  existing  claims. 
These   obstacles  must  have  sorely  perplexed  Beale, 
for  he   lost  sight  of  the  vast  northern  half  of  the 
state,  with  its  unclaimed  tracts  and  its  more  pressing 
need  for   departmental  interference  under  the  great 
influx  of  miners,  and  turned  his  entire  attention  and 
funds  toward  establishing  one  solitary  reservation  in 
the  southern  extreme  of  San  Joaquin  valley,  at  Tejon 
pass.     His  zeal  led  him,  moreover,  to  make  disburse- 
ments and  estimates  for  2,500  swarthy  wards,  although 
unable  to  encounter  more  than  about  700  fit  objects 
for  his  benevolence.     A  distant  government  failed  to 
understand   the    difficulties   with   which   he   had  to 
grapple,  and  sent  Colonel  T.  J.   Henley  to  replace 
liim.     He  took  a  different  course  in  manipulating  the 
liberal  allowances  of  the  treasury.     Instead  of  pour- 
ing the  entire  revenue  through  one  glaringly  conspic- 
uous channel,  he  diverted  it  into  several,  and  dazzled 
his  superiors  by  establishing,  in  addition  to  El  Tejon, 
three  reservations :  Nome  Lacke,  on  Stony  creek,  in 
Colusa,  which  for  its  central  position  and  fertility  as- 
sumed the  lead  for  a  time  ;  Mendocino,  on  the  ocean, 
below  the  cape  of  that  name,  which  became  the  home 
of  700  Indians,  sustained  by  fishing  and  potato  grow- 
ing ;  and  the  Klamath,  along  both  sides  of  this  stream, 
which  received  some  2,000  natives,  chiefly  devoted  to 
salmon  fishing  and  berrying,  for  the  scanty  soil  afforded 
little  range  for   cultivation.       Even  these    selections 
roused  condemnation  from  different  quarters  as  too 
good  for  Indians  ;  and  eager  to  please,  especially  men 
whose  watchful  eyes  were  upon  him,  Henley  early 
suggested  the  planting  of  a  large  reservation  east  of 
the   Sierra,   but  failed  to  gain  the  approval  of  his 
superiors. 

Henley  was  a  man  of  broad  views  and  varied  ex- 
pediences ;  and  not  intent  merely  on  personal  gains, 
he  devised  other  means  whereby  the  obnoxious  pres- 
ence of  his  wards  might  be  turned  to  some  benefit  for 


AGENTS  AXD  OFFICE-SEEKERS.  491 

their  white  masters.  There  was  a  number  of  office-seek- 
ers whose  persevering  patience  under  frequent  rebuff 
had  touched  his  sympathies.  The  position  of  agents 
and  employes  upon  the  reservations  was  not  brilliant, 
but  it  presented  the  allurements  of  a  quiet  life,  and 
opportunities  for  diverting  the  rations  provided  by 
government  into  better  channels  than  wasting  them 
upon  savages.  For  these  a  bountiful  nature  had  pro- 
vided acorns  and  roots  in  abundance.  It  was  also 
understood  that  as  the  agent  could  not  well  control 
more  than  a  portion  of  the  Indians  under  his  charge, 
the  employes  might  foster  discipline  and  industry 
among  the  rest  by  using  their  labor  for  private  under- 
takings. As  these  manifold  attractions  became  ap- 
parent the  demand  for  positions  grew  apace,  so  that 
Henley  found  additional  inducements  for  increasing 
the  number  of  reservations.  His  instructions  limited 
them  to  five,  but  any  number  could  be  established 
under  the  designation  of  farms  and  branches.  A 
short  distance  west  of  Nome  Lacke,  he  accordingly, 
in  1856,  selected  a  tributary  to  it  in  Nome  Cult,  or 
Round  valley,  on  the  upper  Eel  river,  which  in  due 
time  became  the  chief  reservation  in  the  state,  with 
about  1,000  occupants,  who,  at  times,  raised  crops 
exceeding  20,000  bushels.  In  San  Joaquin  valley 
he  opened  farms  successively  at  Fresno,  King  river, 
and  Tule  river,  for  his  humane  and  economic  in- 
stincts revolted  at  the  cruelty  and  cost  of  removing 
the  Indians  too  far  from  their  ancient  haunts.  These 
farms  were  leased,  so  that  here  a  double  benefit  was 
conferred  by  providing  deserving  citizens  with  a  hand- 
some rente!  from  comparatively  useless  property, 
while  improving  it  with  Indian  labor  and  govern- 
ment funds  hi  the  shape  of  fences,  buildings,  and  irri- 
gation ditches.  Others,  who  had  not  yet  obtained 
farms,  he  allowed  to  select  choice  slices  from  the 
different  reservations.  And  what  more  commendable 
aid  to  progress  than  to  permit  untilled  land  to  be  con- 
verted into  fields  and  gardens  ?  So  secure  a  foothold 


- 


492  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

did  these  squatters  obtain  as  to  speedily  convince  the 
government  that  it  would  be  advisable  to  relinquish 
possession  of  the  small  section  left  to  the  Indians." 

24  In  the  first  spasm  of  enterprise  Henley  had  planted  large  areas  in  grain, 
particularly  at  El  Tejon,  supplied  by  long  irrigation  ditches,  but  the  enerva- 
ting heat  prevented  his  agents  from  straining  their  attention  beyond  700 
acres,  and  even  the  crops  from  this  reduced  tract,  although  ever  promising 
well  far  into  the  summer,  usually  fell  to  little  or  nothing.  In  one  case  a 
flood  was  credited  with  the  disappearance,  but  usually  drouths  bore  the 
brunt,  although,  singularly  enough,  the  fields  cultivated  by  Indians  for  pri- 
vate account  yielded  welL  Similar  reverses  overtook  Fresno.  Another 
peculiarity  was  that  the  population  at  the  different  reservations  appeared 
much  larger  to  the  overtasked  agents  than  to  visitors.  Unable  to  compre- 
hend these  vagaries  of  a  strange  climate,  the  government  stooped  to  listen 
to  the  insinuations  of  army  officers  that  the  Indian  management  had  fallen 
into  the  hands  of  a  ring  which  manipulated  it  to  their  own  advantage.  One 
result  was  the  dispatch  of  G.  Bailey  as  special  agent  to  examine  into  the 
matter.  Disregarding  the  experience  of  agents  accustomed  to  the  country, 
and  unconvinced  by  their  demonstrations,  supported  by  long  array  of  figures, 
he  preferred  to  take  the  unsupported  evidence  of  his  own  eyes,  and  declared 
the  reservations  to  be  mere  almshouses,  wherein  a  small  proportion  of  the 
natives  were  scantily  fed  at  great  cost.  The  pay  and  rations  of  the  em- 
ployes consumed  about  $100,000,  a  sum  sufficient  to  sustain  more  than  all  the 
actual  reservation  Indians.  A  still  larger  sum  was  annually  granted  for 
clothing  and  provisions,  and  another  allowance  aimed  to  provide  the  several 
government  farms  with  live  stock,  implements,  and  other  improvements ; 
yet  this  large  expenditure,  which  so  far  exceeded  $1,170,000,  had  served  to 
produce  but  a  scanty  crop,  valued  at  less  than  one-fourth  of  the  salaries 
alone.  Such  was  the  net  result  of  these  proposed  self-sustaining  establish- 
ments, for  the  gain  in  civilization  lay  almost  wholly  in  forcing  distasteful 
lessons  in  agriculture  upon  a  handful,  and  this  was  fully  counterbalanced 
by  the  demoralizing  influence  of  soldiers,  servants,  and  settlers  iipon  bands, 
which,  if  left  to  their  own  wild  haunts,  would  have  long  remained  purer  and 
happier. 

The  commissioner  at  Washington  came  to  the  conclusion  that  there  were 
too  many  reservations,  partly  in  unsuitable  locations,  and  too  many  men  to 
work  for  the  Indians,  instead  of  training  them  to  work  for  themselves,  besides 
lack  of  system,  ability,  and  integrity  on  the  part  of  the  managers.  The  first 
step  was  to  appoint  a  new  superintendent,  James  Y.  McDuffie,  with  an 
appropriation  so  pitifully  reduced  as  in  itself  to  compel  a  sweeping  dismissal 
of  servants  and  the  consequent  neglect  of  the  reservations,  upon  which  the 
dismissed  staff  and  the  surrounding  settlers  combined  in  a  raid  of  seizure  and 
spoliation.  The  knowledge  that  further  changes  were  pending  in  congress 
did  not  encourage  the  new  officials  to  interpose  a  saving  hand.  Under  an 
act  of  June  19,  1860,  California  was  divided  into  two  Indian  districts,  the 
northern  and  southern,  each  under  a  supervising  agent,  assisted  at  each  res- 
ervation by  a  supervisor  and  four  laborers  to  teach  husbandry.  Indians  re- 
quiring supervision  were  either  to  be  brought  to  the  reservation  to  earn  their 
living  if  possible,  or  situations  were  to  be  sought  for  them  r.'nong  farmers. 

As  a  check  on  the  new  regime,  an  agent  was  sent  to  ascertain  the  number 
and  disposition  of  the  tribes  to  be  taken  under  guardianship. 

The  reservations  having  by  this  time  fallen  into  utter  dilapidation,  the 
new  officials  found  it  almost  a  matter  of  necessity  to  enter  into  the  new  eco- 
nomic spirit  by  recommending  the  abandonment  of  several,  and  to  concentrate 
their  wards.  But  while  the  northern  superintendent  gained  approval  of  his 
plan  for  selling  Nome  Lacke,  Mendocino,  and  Klamath,  as  either  unsuitable 
or  worthless,  he  was  not  content  with  the  spacious  fertile  and  secluded 
Round  valley,  but  undertook  upon  his  own  responsibility  to  remove  some 


MISSION  INDIANS.  493 

2,000  northern  Indians  to  Smith  river,  in  Del  Norte,  and  rent  farming 
land  at  the  exorbitant  rate  of  $5  an  acre,  while  strongly  urging  the  purchase 
of  the  entire  valley.  In  the  south,  Fresno  and  King  river  farms  were  aban- 
doned, and  in  1863  El  Tejon,  under  the  cumulative  disadvantages  of  droughts 
and  rentals.  Tule  farm  became  the  headquarters  for  a  small  proportion  of 
the  neglected  San  Joaquin  tribes.  The  fact  was  that  these  Indians  had  be- 
come sufficiently  quiet  and  well-behaved  to  inspire  no  further  fears,  and  so 
they  were  cast  adrift  to  starre.  They  might  have  taken  a  lesson  from  their 
brethren  of  the  Klamath  region,  who,  by  pursuing  the  different  course  of 
ravaging,  burning,  and  killing  among  the  settlers,  were  in  1864,  under  the 
Trinity  war  treaty,  rewarded  with  the  special  Hoopa  valley  reservation, 
bought  for  them  at  a  considerable  sum. 

The  absurdity  of  keeping  two  superintendencies  for  the  diminished  gov- 
ernment farms  of  the  state  led  in  1863  to  their  consolidation,  and  shortly 
after  the  commissioner  awoke  to  the  expediency  of  establishing  schools  for 
his  wards.  He  resolved,  moreover,  to  try  the  effects  of  missionary  labor  as 
an  economizing  factor,  and  in  teaching  the  Indians  the  soothing  virtues  of 
meekness  under  the  purifying  ordeal  of  land  spoliation  and  neglect  to  which 
their  Christian  fathers  at  Washington  were  submitting  them.  Notwith- 
standing all  efforts  to  curtail  expenses,  the  estimates  continued  to  grow,  as 
did  the  number  of  pensioners — in  the  reports — till  the  government,  in  despair 
over  the  general  dishonesty  and  inefficiency  among  its  agents,  in  1869  made 
a  sweeping  change,  and  intrusted  the  management  of  the  northern  and  cen- 
tral Indians  of  the  United  States  to  the  Society  of  Friends,  and  the  rest  to 
army  officers.  Gen.  Mclntosh  accordingly  took  control  in  California,  But 
congress  objecting  to  such  employment  for  army  men,  and  as  the  Friends 
had  proved  a  success,  the  president  in  the  following  year  invited  other  reli- 
gious denominations  to  assume  the  charge.  The  methodists  were  allowed  to 
recommend  agents  for  the  three  reservations  now  left  in  the  state,  Hoopa  and 
Round  valleys  and  Tule  river,  and  they  in  due  time  reported  direct  to  Wash- 
ington, the  superintendent  being  dispensed  with.  The  religious  domination 
was  not  entirely  a  success,  yet  since  then  the  administration  has  been  more 
satisfactory,  although  only  a  small  proportion  of  the  natives  enjoy  the  bene- 
fits of  the  reservations.  In  San  Joaquin  valley  the  Tule  farm  was  abandoned 
far  a  sterile  expanse  of  wooded  mountain  country  on  the  south  fork  of  the 
Tule,  with  not  over  250  arable  acres,  selected  in  1S73,  upon  which  less  than 
one  fourth  of  the  agency  population  could  manage  to  hold  out.  The  rest,  in 
this  and  other  parts  of  California,  had  to  support  themselves  elsewhere  as 
best  they  were  able,  with  occasional  aid  from  the  headquarters,  or  with  mere 
advice  from  special  agents,  who  undertook  to  procure  them  work  and  fair 
treatment  among  the  settlers.  The  most  glaring  of  the  general  injustice  and 
neglect  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  mission  Indians,  those  who  had  once  occupied 
the  missions,  and  assisted  with  their  labor  to  transform  the  southern  region 
from  a  wilderness  into  a  flourishing  colony,  with  fields  and  orchards  and 
stately  temples.  The  secularization  of  the  missions  in  the  thirties  was  a 
premature  act  which  opened  the  door  for  despoiling  these,  the  real  owners, 
of  their  interest  in  the  mission  hinds  and  improvements;  and  heedless  of  their 
rights,  the  Mexican  officials  transferred  all  in  vast  grants  to  strangers,  in- 
cluding the  very  ground  on  which  they  had  reared  their  humble  cabins.  The 
United  States  courts  confirmed  the  titles,  at  least  without  a  thought  for  the 
natives.  For  a  long  time  the  federal  government  regarded  them  vaguely  as 
citizens,  and  many  were  such  under  the  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  yet 
the  advantages  of  citizenship  were  withheld,  notably  at  the  land  and  regis- 
tration offices.  It  required  the  fear  of  a  bread  riot  in  1857  to  gain  attention 
for  them.  Soon  after  they  were  in  a  measure  recognized  as  wards  by  the 
appointment  of  agents  to  assist  them  with  seed,  implements,  and  a  weak  so- 
lution of  advice,  and  in  1870  were  assigned  to  them  the  valleys  of  Pala  and 
San  Pascnal  as  a  reservation.  This  tardy  act  of  partial  justice  roused  the 
hatred  of  the  surrounding  settlers.  A  rush  was  made  for  these  hitherto 
neglected  tracts;  the  natives  were  threatened  with  dire  calamities  if  they 


494  EXTERMINATION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

should  dare  to  accept  the  gift,  and  their  consequent  reluctance  assisted  so 
well  the  appeal  to  congress  that  the  grant  was  annulled.  Encouraged  by 
their  success,  land-grabbers  began  to  oust  the  Indians,  even  from  their  home- 
steads, occupied  by  them  for  generations,  but  for  which  they  had  failed,  as 
non-citizens,  or  through  ignorance,  to  obtain  preemption  or  other  title  deed. 
Grant-holders  also  joined  in  ejecting  them,  and  in  removing  ancient  ranche- 
rias  to  quiet  titles  and  sell  the  land.  Even  their  scanty  personal  property 
was  sold  to  cover  the  cost  of  such  iniquitous  judgments.  This  satire  on  jus- 
tice soothed  the  government  for  another  decade  before  it  was  roused  to  some 
sense  of  its  obligations,  and  consented  to  set  aside  for  them  a  portion  of  the 
comparatively  worthless  tracts  unoccupied  by  land-grabbers,  chiefly  in  San 
Diego,  and  to  give  aid  toward  establishing  schools.  Blushing  at  this  stigma 
upon  the  nation,  upon  humanity,  certain  fair-minded  men  undertook  to 
champion  the  cause  of  the  oppressed.  They  clamored  at  the  doors  of  justice 
for  three  decades  before  a  hearing  was  accorded  them,  and  then  came  a  small 
concession  to  the  mission  Indians,  some  refuse  land  on  the  outskirts  of  the 
valleys  which  their  fathers  had  transformed  into  gardens;  the  rest,  nothing. 
They  might  have  taken  lessons  from  more  savage  tribes,  which  gained 
prompt  and  favorable  attention  by  ravaging  the  homesteads  of  white  men, 
and  slaughtering  their  wives  and  children,  after  the  manner  of  the  white 
men  in  their  outrages  upon  Indians.  The  progress  lately  exhibited  by  differ- 
ent California  tribes,  once  among  the  lowest  in  the  scale  of  culture,  affords 
the  most  flattering  hopes  for  the  future,  and  our  duty  and  interest  to  assure 
their  realization  are  the  more  concerned  when  we  consider  the  influence  of 
soil  and  climate  toward  a  probable  final  predominance  of  the  aboriginal  type 
among  dwellers  in  America. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 
1832-1862. 

EARLY  TRANSCONTINENTAL  EXPEDITIONS — WAGON-ROAD  PROJECTS — FIRST 
RAILROADS  IN  AMERICA — AGITATIONS  AND  PROJECTS  FOR  AN  OVER- 
LAND RAILWAY— CARVER,  PLUMBE,  WHITNEY,  WILKES,  AND  OTHERS 
— THE  STATES  MOVING — MEETINGS  AND  CONVENTIONS — THE  QUESIION 
IN  CONGRESS — PACIFIC  RAILROAD  BILLS — THE  ACT  OF  1862. 

BEFORE  the  average  American  statesman  began 
seriously  to  consider  that  proposition  in  our  politics 
called  the  Monroe  doctrine,  there  were  a  few  saga- 
cious men  who  foresaw  the  Americanization  of  the 
continent,  and  discussed  it,  chief  among  whom  was 
Thomas  Jefferson.  The  question  which  presented 
itself  to  his  mind  most  strongly  after  obtaining  an 
acceptable  treaty  with  England  giving  us  a  boundary 
to  the  Pacific,  was  how  to  bind  the  west  coast  of 
America  to  the  territories  stretching  to  the  Atlantic 
on  the  east.  Such  a  navy  as  ours  could  not  hold  it 
against  the  other  navies  of  the  world  ;  nor  could  iso- 
lated military  stations,  such  as  Spain  had  used  to 
frighten  away  sea-rovers,  prevent  other  nations  from 
erecting  forts  and  disputing  with  us  our  claim.  If 
we  were  to  be  a  homogeneous  people  from  the  Pacific 
to  the  Atlantic,  we  must  have  free  communication; 
but  how  ? 

This  question  led  to  the  explorations  of  Lewis  and 
Clarke  in  1804-6,  proving  that  nature  had  interposed 
no  insurmountable  obstacles  to  the  establishment  of 
a  road  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  river,  whence 
the  enthusiastic  traveller  could  almost  scent  the 
breezes  of  far-famed  Cathay. 

(495) 


496  INCEPTION  OP  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

To  the  establishment  of  a  highway  of  such  length 
and  importance  much  thought  must  be  given,  and 
the  best  routes  sought  out.  This  led  to  other  expe- 
ditions 1  to  and  through  the  mountain  ranges  which 
ran  tranversely  to  the  general  direction  of  such  a 
road.  The  early  surveys  of  Lewis  and  Clark,  Pike, 
and  Long  did  not  contemplate  a  scheme  for  a  conti- 
nent-span ning  railroad;  for  railroads,  it  is  unneces- 
sary to  remark,  did  not  come  into  use  until  many 
years  after  these  surveys  were  in  progress.2  When 
Jefferson  thought  of  a  route  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Columbia  he  contemplated  a  wagon-road  only,  and 
the  route  to  be  selected  had  reference  to  climate, 
grass,  water,  fuel,  and  safety  from  Indian  hostilities. 

It  is  one  of  the  peculiarities  of  our  institutions  that 
while  congress  debates  upon  the  propriety  of  an  un- 
dertaking, the  people  get  so  far  along  in  the  prosecu- 
tion of  it  that  the  government  feels  forced  to  lend  its 
aid.  The  wagon-road  to  the  Columbia,  which  was  to 
give  us  "the  most  direct  route  to  the  Indies,"  was 
established  by  the  people.  American  fur  companies 
not  only  opened  a  track  to  and  beyond  the  South 
pass,  but  by  their  reports  to  the  government,  they 

The  early  expeditions  ordered  by  congress  have  all  been  treated  of  in 
other  volumes,  and  the  whole  subject  of  congressional  action  in  connection 
with  the  Oregon  question  and  a  route  to  the  Columbia  has  been  considered 
in  my  Oregon  I,  and  Northwest  Coast  II.  Some  other  surveys  will  be  referred 
to  in  their  proper  places. 

2 The  first  railroad  in  America  was  the  Quincy,  Mass.,  railroad  built  in 
1825-6,  4  miles  in  length,  used  for  carrying  quarried  stone.  The  second  was 
the  Mauch  Chunk  and  Lehigh,  13  miles  long.  The  first  locomotives  were 
imported  from  England  where  Stephenson  was  experimenting,  and  used  by 
the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Canal  company  in  running  from  Housedale  to  the 
terminus  of  their  canal.  In  1827  the  Maryland  legislature  chartered  the 
first  railroad  company  in  America,  with  a  capital  stock  of  $500,000.  The 
use  of  locomotives  was  not  contemplated,  but  horse  power  was  used,  relays 
of  horses  being  kept  at  the  stations  on  the  road.  Hence  the  name  of  Relay 
House  at  the  junction  of  the  main  line  with  the  Washington  branch, 
which  is  still  retained.  In  1830  Peter  Cooper,  since  of  New  York,  built  at 
Baltimore  a  locomotive  weighing  one  ton  or  thereabouts,  with  which  he 
drew  an  open  car  filled  with  the  directors  of  the  road  and  their  friends,  at 
the  rate  of  18  miles  an  hour.  This  was  the  first  locomotive  for  railroad  pur- 
poses ever  built  in  the  U.  S.  From  this  time  improvements  in  railroad  con- 
struction were  rapid,  and  passenger  transportation  was  carried  on  in  several 
of  the  states  previous  to  1840.  In  1844  there  were  2,278  miles  of  railroads 
in  the  U.  S. 


EARLY  SURVEYS.  497 

served  as  explorers  and  surveyors.  The  agitation  of 
the  Oregon  question  in  congress  for  years  produced 
no  other  result  than  that  of  prompting  the  people  of 
the  western  and  south-western  states  to  emigrate ; 
and  they  finished  out  the  road  to  the  Columbia  and 
the  Sacramento  valley,  begun  by  the  fur-traders. 
Their  road,  and  the  emigration  over  it,  settled  the 
question  of  how  to  make  manifest  the  claim  of  the 
United  States  to  a  frontage  on  the  Pacific.  The 
government  had  not  a  mile  of  road  west  of  Fort 
Leavenworth  in  1849,  at  which  date  there  were 
150,000  Americans  in  California  and  Oregon. 

Previous  to  the  conquest  of  California  and  the  set- 
tlement of  the  Oregon  boundary,  the  war  department 
kept  some  small  expeditions  traversing  the  country 
west  of  the  Mississippi  and  along  the  flanks  of  the 
Rocky  mountains  and  beyond;  but  for  manifest 
reasons  proceeded  economically  and  quietly  with  these 
explorations.  Following  the  conquest  and  the  gold 
discovery  considerable  activity  was  displayed,  the  ex- 
ploration of  the  western  half  of  the  continent  afford- 
ing employment  for  the  army,  whose  forts  furnished 
points  of  rendezvous  or  departure  at  convenient  dis- 
tances, besides  offering  protection  to  engineers  in  the 
field. 

The  gold-hunters  of  1849  again  relieved  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  obligation  of  constructing  a  road  and 
discovering  a  route  to  the  Pacific,  by  finding  passes 
for  themselves,  as  good  as  any  which  have  ever  been 
discovered.3  Having  no  further  call  to  consider  the 
subject  of  wagon-roads,  the  war  department  began 
about  this  time  to  order  surveys  of  sections  of  routes 
toward  the  Pacific,  reports  of  which  were  laid  before 
congress  to  be  studied  by  the  advocates  of  a  conti- 

s  Lassen's  and  the  Trnckee  routes  were  opened  by  immigrant  companies 
in  1846  and  1848.  Companies  also  came  into  Cal.  by  the  San  Bernardino  and 
Warner  passes  and  Fort  Yuma.  The  railroads  can  do  no  better  to-day. 
Truckee  is  also  a  very  important  point  on  the  Central  Pacific  on  account  of 
the  lumber  and  timber  supplies  to  the  construction  of  the  road. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    32 


493  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES.' 

nental  railway.4  The  greater  part  of  the  surveys 
were  upon  lines  west  from  the  rice  and  cotton  states. 

The  first  person  to  propose  a  railway  for  any  por- 
tion of  the  Pacific  coast  was  Hart  well  Carver  of 
Rochester,  New  York,  who  advocated  the  construc- 
tion of  a  track  across  the  continent,  whose  western 
terminus  should  be  on  the  Columbia  river,  California 
not  having  come  into  our  possession  at  this  period. 
Considering  that  the  first  passenger  railway  in  the 
United  States  had  been  put  in  operation  only  two 
years  previous,  it  was  remarkable  that  Carver,  who, 
by  the  way,  was  a  grandson  of  the  explorer,  Jonathan 
Carver,  should  have  thought  of  this  means  of  grasp- 
ing the  commerce  of  Asia  and  the  eastern  isles.  He 
published  articles  in  the  New  York  Courier  and  In- 
quirer in  1832,  and  memorialized  congress  on  the  sub- 
ject from  1835  to  1839.  For  a  while  Asa  Whitney 
gave  him  support,  but  finding  much  opposition  in  cer- 
tain quarters,  abandoned  him,  and  Carver  continued 
to  petition  for  a  charter  for  fifteen  years  more,  spend- 
ing forty  years  of  his  life  and  $23,000  of  his  own 
money  in  endeavoring  to  float  the  project.  He  had 
for  his  reward  in  1869  a  free  pass  over  a  railway  to 
the  Pacific  I 

Carver's  plan  was  that  congress  should  give  him 
and  his  associates  an  exclusive  and  perpetual  charter 
for  a  railroad  and  telegraph  line  from  Lake  Michigan 
to  the  South  pass,  with  branches  to  San  Francisco 
bay  and  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  river,  with  a  belt 
of  land  the  whole  distance,  and  stone,  iron,  and  lead 
from  the  public  quarries  and  mines,  and  the  privilege 
of  purchasing  8,000,000  acres  of  selected  lands  at  a 
dollar  and  a  quarter  an  acre,  which  was  to  be  paid 
for  with  the  stock  of  the  company  as  the  road  became 

*  U.  S.  Sen. Ex.  Doc.  64,  31  cong.,  1  sess.,  Id.,  56-7;  U.  S.  Sen.  Ex.  Doc.  3, 
Spec.  Sesft.,  March,  1851;  Oregon,  ii.  81-3;  U.  S.  H.  Ex.  Doc.  1,  31  cong.,  2  sess.; 
Brackets  Cavalry,  126-7;  if.  8.  H.  Ex.  Doc.  5,  pt  i.,  182,  185-6,  188;  U.  S.H. 
Ex.  Doc.  51,  31  cong.,  1  sess.;  U.  S.  Sen.  Doc.  81,  31  cong.,  1  sess.;  Carson's 
Early  Recoil.,  MS  50;  U.  8.  Sen.  Doc.  54  32  cong.,  1  sess.;  Pac.  £.  B. 
Hept,  si 


PLUMBE'S  IDEAS.  499 

finished.  The  answer  of  the  people  in  conventions  to 
this  proposition  was  that  congress  had  no  constitu- 
tional right  to  enter  into  any  stock  jobbing  operations 
with  their  means.  Carver  had  good  ideas  of  railroad 
building  and  equipment  for  those  times.  His  road 
was  to  be  laid  upon  stone  foundations ;  the  time  from 
San  Francisco  to  New  York  was  to  be  five  days ;  pal- 
ace sleeping  cars  sixteen  feet  long,  with  saloon  and 
dining  cars,  were  to  be  attached.  Certainly  we  have 
only  succeeded  in  elaborating  his  plans. 

Carver   was   not   without    rivals.     John  Plumbe, 
afterward  a  resident  of  Sacramento  countv.  Califor- 

V      * 

nia,  but  at  the  period  referred  to  residing  in  Dubu- 
que,  Iowa,  advocated  the  construction  of  a  railroad 
from  Lake  Michigan  to  Oregon,  as  early  as  1836,  and 
a  public  meeting  was  held  in  Dubuque  March  26,  1838, 
for  the  purpose  of  considering  how  this  object  was  to 
be  accomplished.  On  the  anniversary  of  that  meeting, 
nine  years  afterward,  another  railroad  meeting  was 
held  at  Dubuque,  which  Plumbe  addressed,  and  at 
which  it  was  resolved,  "  That  this  meeting  regard 
John  Plumbe,  Esq.,  our  fellow-townsman,  as  the  orig- 
inal projector,  (about  ten  years  ago,)  of  the  great 
Oregon  railroad."1  And  such  he  publicly  claimed  to 
be,  while  stating  that  the  project  was  regarded  by 
most  persons  as  "visionary  and  absurd."  At  the 
Dubuque  convention  of  1838  a  memorial  to  congress 
was  drafted,  Plumbe  being  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee, "  praying  for  an  appropriation  to  defray  the 
expense  of  the  survey  and  location  of  the  first  link  in 
the  great  Atlantic  and  Pacific  railroad,  namely  from 
the  lakes  to  the  Mississippi."  Their  application  was 
favorably  received,  an  appropriation  being  made  the 
same  year,  which  was  expended  under  the  direction 
of  the  secretary  of  war,  the  report  being  of  a  very 
favorable  character. 

5  Pbtmbt's  Memorial  Against  Mr  AM  WJutney's  Railroad  Scheme.     Pamph- 
let, 47  pp.,  19;  Iowa  News,  March  24,  1838. 


500  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

At  the  session  of  the  Wisconsin  legislature  of 
1839-40  Plumbe  was  present,  and  drafted  a  memorial 
to  congress  urging  the  importance  of  continuing  the 
work,  which  he  carried  to  Washington,  where  he 
used  his  best  endeavors  to  secure  attention  to  its  pe- 
tition; but  the  government  being  absorbed  in  other 
subjects,  especially  the  condition  of  the  treasury,  did 
not  again  respond.  He  next  visited  New  England, 
circulating  memorials  to  congress  praying  for  a  fur- 
ther appropriation,  all  of  which  was  of  no  effect. 

Plumbe's  plan  for  securing  means  to  construct  the 
road,  was  that  a  sufficient  appropriation  of  the  public 
lands  should  be  made,  in  alternate  sections,  on  each 
side  of  the  line  of  route;  that  the  company  to  be 
chartered  should  consist  of  all  who  chose  to  partici- 
pate; that  the  stock  should  be  divided  into  twenty  mil- 
lion shares,  valued  at  five  dollars  a  share  ;  that  twenty- 
five  cents  a  share  be  paid  in  as  the  first  installment, 
producing  five  millions  with  which  to  commence  the 
work ;  that  when  this  was  expended  the  sale  of  the 
lands  should  produce  the  next  five  millions,  and  so  on 
to  the  end.  The  local  business  of  the  road  would,  it 
was  said,  support  it  as  fast  as  completed.  But  this 
plan  contemplated  the  building  of  not  more  than  a 
hundred  miles  of  road  per  annum,  taking  ten  years  to 
complete  the  first  thousand  miles,  or  twenty  years 
from  the  Missouri  to  the  Pacific.  This  memorial  was 
accompanied  by  a  bill,  which  was  defeated  in  congress 
by  the  southern  members,  who  liked  not  that  the 
road  should  go  so  far  north.6 

These  were  not  the  only  pretenders  to  the  distinc- 
tion of  having  projected  a  transcontinental  railroad.1 

8 Or.  Archives,  MS.,  p.  197. 

7  Lewis  Gay  lord  Clarke,  in  the  Knickerbocker  Magazine,  in  1836,  claimed  to 
have  originated  the  idea.  Lilburn  W.  Boggs,  once  governor  of  Missouri, 
since  a  resident  of  Napa,  Cal.,  wrote  an  article  in  1843  on  the  subject  of 
a  Pacific  railroad  estimating  the  cost  intended,  for  the  St  Louis  Republican, 
but  which,  for  some  reason,  was  never  published.  It  is  in  the  possession  of 
his  son,  W.  M.  Boggs,  of  Napa.  Benton  also  predicted  in  a  speech  in  St 
Louis  in  1844,  that  men  full  grown  at  that  time  would  yet  see  Asiatic  com- 
merce crossing  the  Rocky  mountains  by  rail. 


s  ASA  WHITNEY'S  PLAN.  501 

The  most  conspicuous  for  a  time  was  Asa  Whitney  x 
of  New  York.  He  had  passed  many  years  in  China, 
and  was  thoroughly  imbued  with  a  conviction  of  the 
advantages  to  accrue  to  the  United  States  by  becom- 
ing the  carriers  of  the  great  oriental  traffic  with  Eu- 
rope. Whitney's  plan  was  to  connect  Lake  Michigan 
by  rail,  with  Puget  Sound  or  the  Columbia  river,  or 
both.  He  made  an  extensive  exploration  in  1845,  of 
the  region  between  the  Mississippi  and  Missouri 
rivers,  finding  no  obstacle  to  railroad  building  in  500 
miles  of  the  route  west.  But  he  demanded  of  con- 
gress a  strip  of  land  sixty  miles  wide,  along  the  whole 
length  of  the  road,  or  92,160,000  acres,  with  their 
agricultural,  mineral,  and  lumber  products.  With  no 
other  capital  he  offered  to  build  a  road,  selling  the 
land  to  raise  the  means,  but  retaining  for  himself  and 
his  heirs  all  that  remained  unsold  after  its  completion. 
As  to  a  tariff,  he  offered,  if  the  government  would 
allow  him  to  charge  one-half  cent  per  ton  per  mile  on 
ordinary  freight  for  all  distances  over  200  miles ,  to 
carry  the  same  any  shorter  distances  for  one-half 
the  price  charged  on  the  principal  railroads  in  the 
United  States,  to  transport  Indian  corn  across  the 
continent  for  twenty  cents  a  bushel,  flour  for  $1.25 
per  barrel,  and  passengers  for  half  the  usual  price, 
during  the  first  twenty  years  after  its  completion. 
He  also  offered  to  carry  the  public  mails,  troops,  and 
munitions  of  war  free  of  charge  for  the  same  period, 
and  after  that  date  congress  might  make  any  altera- 
tion in  the  tolls  which  was  deemed  expedient. 

Whitney's  project  occasioned  much  discussion  and 
partisanship,  there  being  able  writers  among  its 
friends  and  foes.8  Some  argued  against  it  as  threat- 
ening a  monopoly  imperial  in  wealth  and  resources, 
and  a  standing  menace  to  the  government,  with 
power  at  least  to  influence  congress  in  the  election  of 
representatives,  if  not  to  divide  the  country  into  sec- 

*American  Review,  i.  424-32;  Niks'  Beg.,  box.  105;  Or.  Spectator,  Feb.  18, 
1847, 


502  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

tioris  by  a  principality  through  its  centre.  Others 
argued  in  favor  of  a  national  railroad,  controlled  by 
the  government ;  while  others  still  declared  it  would 
impoverish  the  public  treasury  to  build  the  road. 

Meanwhile  another  project  was  started  in  1845  by 
George  Wilkes,  which  differed  from  Whitney's  in  dis- 
pensing with  a  land  grant,  and  requiring  the  govern- 
ment to  construct  the  road.  He  held  that  the  mere 
fact  of  an  official  survey  would  so  enhance  the  value 
of  the  public  lands  that  capitalists  would  hasten  to  in- 
vest money  in  the  enterprise,  supplying  the  means  for 
working  expenses.  The  friends  of  a  national  railroad 
supported  Wilkes'  scheme.  Whitney's  memorial  was 
presented  to  the  house  of  representatives  in  January 
1845,  and  Wilkes'  in  December  of  the  same  year. 
The  public  journals  of  the  country  discussed  the  sub- 
ject in  all  its  bearings,  and  according  to  their  lights. 
There  was  mentioned  in  the  New  York  Sun  in  1846,  a 
project  by  a  Canadian  company  to  build  a  line  of  rail- 
road  from  Halifax  to  Quebec,  with  a  view  to  its  ulti- 
mate extension  to  the  Columbia  river.  The  Canadian 
plan  contemplated  a  free  grant  of  all  unlocated  crown 
lands  through  which  the  road  should  pass,  together  with 
the  privilege  of  using  timber  and  other  material  neces- 
sary to  the  construction  of  the  work ;  a  preemptive  right 
to  the  shareholders  to  purchase  lands  in  certain  situa- 
tions upon  certain  favorable  terms  ;  and  a  pledge  from 
the  provincial  government,  guaranteeing  five  per  cent 
interest  on  all  moneys  invested/ 

Soon  after  the  presentation  of  Whitney's  memo- 
rial to  congress,  public  meetings  began  to  be  held  in 
different  parts  of  the  union,  to  approve  or  condemn 
the  various  methods  proposed.1'  Congress  was  dis- 
posed to  consider  the  proposition  of  Whitney;  at 

9  Or.  Spectator,  Sept.  3,  1846.  After  the  conclusion  of  the  boundary  treaty 
of  June  15,  1846,  nothing  further  was  heard  of  the  Canadian  project,  though 
a  book  was  published  in  London,  at  a  later  date,  advocating  a  Pacific  R.  R. 
Sac.  Transcript,  (Extr.  Ed.)  March  14,  1851. 

19  See  account  of  a  large  public  meeting  at  Canton,  Ohio,  Feb.  4,  1846. 
O/UQ  Jtepository,  (Canton),  Feb.  12,  1846. 


THE  INCUBUS  SLAVERY.  503 

least  it  found  favor  with  the  senate  committee  of 
1846,  which  brought  in  a  bill;  but  the  friends  of  a 
national  road  met  it  at  every  point  and  prevented  its 
passage.  The  opening  of  the  following  year  witnessed 
a  still  greater  agitation  on  the  subject,  as  evidenced 
by  the  railroad  conventions  in  the  large  cities  and 
smaller  towns.11  The  acquisition  of  a  vast  amount  of 
land  stretching  to,  and  along,  the  Pacific  to  the  49th 
parallel,  much  of  which  lay  in  a  line  with  the  slave 
states,  and  was  adapted  to  slave  labor,  gave  to  the 
question  a  new  significance,  and  aroused  the  caution 
of  southern  politicians.  It  was  not  so  much  now, 
whether  the  road  should  be  built  with  the  people's 
lands,"  to  enrich  private  corporations,  or  how  much 
time  would  be  consumed  in  building  it,ls  as  it  would 

"Railroad  meetings  were  held  at  Galena,  111.,  April  2;  at  Bloomington, 
Ind.,  April  7;  and  at  Burlington,  Iowa,  April  9,  lt>47.  Plumbes  Memorial 
Against  Asa  Whitney's  Railroad  Scheme,  28. 

12  Wilkes,  in  a  letter  to  a  chairman  of  a  committee  of  congress,  enumera- 
ted the  main  points  of  his  proposal  as  follows:     1st,  that  the  road  be  built 
and  owned  by  the  government;  2nd,  that  its  construction  and  control  be 
confided  to  sworn  commissioners  to  be  appointed  by  the  state  legislatures,  or 
elected  by  the  people  of  the  various  states;  3d,  that  it  start  from  the  line  of 
the  Missouri  in  the  vicinity  of  the  parallel  which  strikes  the  South  pass,  and 
thence  run  westwardly  over  territories  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  general 
government;  4th,  that  its  revenues  be  confined  strictly  to  the  measure  of 
its  expenses  of  attendance  and  repairs,  and  that  it  be  open  to  foreigners  and 
their  merchandise  on  the  same  terms  as  to  our  own  citizens — the  latter  to  be 
secured  by  regulations  of  debenture,  returning  all  customs  charges  on  such 
merchandise  on  its  reshipment.     Lastly,  that  it  be  built  out  of  the  public 
treasury,  without  any  allotment  of  the  public  lands  for  sale  for  that  purpose. 
'  I  believe  that  any  measure  that  would  subject  the  public  lands  to  the  reach 
and  appropriation  of  speculators,  or  indeed  that  would  dispose  of  them  to 
any  but  actual  settlers,  would  be  highly  unpopular,  and  would  excite  a  wide 
and  determined  opposition  throughout  the  country.     I  think,  therefore,  that 
the  most  just  as  well  as  most  satisfactory  disposal  of  these  lands  would  be 
to  insert  in  the  bill  recommending  the  road — if  such  should  be  the  decision  of 
the  committee — securing  to  each  laborer  or  mechanic  who  shall  have  worked 
upon  it  for  one  year,  100  acres  of  land  along,  or  contiguous  to  the  line.    This 
regulation,  instead  of  making  a  few  rich  men  richer,  would  make  prosperous 
land-holders  of  the  most  deserving  poor,  and  while  it  conferred  a  priceless 
population  on  the  west,  would  perform  the  highest  achievement  of  republi- 
can philanthrophy,  by  elevating  labor  to  its  true  importance  in  the  social 
scale.'  Speech  of  William  M.  Hall,  ofN.  Y.,  in  favor  of  the  National  Railroad 
to  the  Pacific,  at  the  Great  Chicago  Convention  of  July  7,  1847. 

13  A  committee  of  Boston  men,    consisting  of  William  Ingalls,   E.    H. 
Derby,  I.  C.  Dunn,  P.  P.  F.  Degrand,  and  O.  D.  Ashley,  in  1849.  propounded 
this  question  to  the  N.  Y.  chamber  of  commerce:     Assuming  that  Whitney 
would  build  ten  miles  of  road  this  year,  take  another  3rear  to  sell  the  land, 
and  three  years  more  to  get  the  money,  being  thus  at  the  end  of  five  years 
prepared  to  build  the  next  ten  miles,  and  so  on,  would  it  not  take  him  850 


504  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

be  laid  out  on  a  route  far  enough  south  to  enhance 
the  value  of  lands  south  of  the  Missouri  compromise 
line,  and  prevent  the  preponderance  of  settlement 
north  of  it. 

Through  this  anxiety  of  the  south  it  was  that  the 
army  engineers  were  so  industriously  employed  in 
exploring  the  territory  between  the  Arkansas  and  the 
Colorado  rivers  during  the  administration  of  President 
Polk.  Meanwhile,  discussion1*  revealed  the  difficul- 
ties as  well  as  the  advantages  attending  the  construc- 
tion of  a  Pacific  railroad,  chief  among  the  former 
being  the  obtainment  of  capital 15  and  labor.  To  pro- 
cure the  latter,  it  was  proposed  to  organize  a  vast 
system  of  immigration  from  the  eastern  states  and 
Europe,  the  workmen  to  be  part  paid  in  land,  and  a 
corps  to  be  detailed  to  prepare  a  part  of  each  farm  for 
cultivation,  so  that  when  the  laborers  of  the  second 
year  should  go  forward,  they  would  leave  behind  them 
those  of  the  first  as  farmers  and  guardsmen  of  the 
road.  By  this  process  "  many  millions"  of  poor  and 
oppressed  people  would  be  raised  to  the  dignity  of  free- 
holding  American  citizens.  This  charitable  scheme 
in  all  its  simplicity  fell  through  along  with  the  rest. 
The  discovery  of  gold  following  the  conquest  of  Cali- 

years  to  make  1700  miles  of  road?  or  if  'by  a  stretch  of  imagination, '  he 
should  build  ten  miles  of  road,  sell  his  land,  and  get  his  pay  all  in  one  year, 
would  it  not  even  then  take  him  170  years  to  build  1700  miles  !  This  objec- 
tion, remarks  Plumbe,  should  be  sufficient  to  condemn  Mr  Whitney's  scheme. 
Plumhe's  Memorial,  3 

14  In  an  article  in  the  Merclmntf  Magazine  fo>-  Oct.  1 847,  vol.  xvii. ,  p.  385, 
the  editor  presents  a  letter  of  Zadock  Pratt,  of  Prattsville,  endorsing  Whit- 
ney's plan,  and  remarks  that  he — the  editor — in  the  latter  part  of  1844  pre- 
dicted that  'those  persons  are  now  living  who  will  see  a  railroad  connecting 
New  York  with  the  Pacific.'  Here  is  another  person  who  claims  to  have 
nttered  this  prophecy  in  nearly  the  identical  words  of  Benton  in  his  St  Louis 
speech  on  the  railroad  to  the  Pacific. 

15 An  article  in  De  Sow's  Indust.  Res. ,  499-500.  makes  an  estimate,  placing 
the  cost  of  grading,  bridging,  etc.,  west  from  Lake  Michigan  at  $5,000  per  mile 
for  2,630  miles,  $13,150,000;  abridge  across  the  Mississippi,  $800,000;  super- 
structure, single  track,  depots,  turn-out,  etc.,  for  2,730,  at  $10,500  per  mile, 
$28,665,000;  locomotives,  cars,  etc.,  $10,276,600;  contingencies,  $2,000,000; 
repairs  upon  road  until  completion,  and  before  earning  its  own  support, 
$15,000,000,  or  a  total  of  $69,891,600.  The  figures  in  De  Bow's  article  are 
not  quite  the  same  as  mine,  an  error  in  computing  making  his  figures  foot  up 
$69,226,600.  Less  sanguine  calculators  estimated  the  entire  cost  at 
$100,000,000. 


BEFORE  CONGRESS.  505 

foraia  imparted  fresh  interest  to  the  subject.  In 
1848,  resolutions  began  to  pour  in  to  congress  from 
the  legislatures  of  the  different  states,"  approving  of 
Whitney's  plan,  and  the  grant  of  nearly  100,000,000 
acres  of  the  public  lands  for  the  purpose  of  carryincr 
it  out.  Mr  McClelland,  from  the  select  committee 
of  the  house  of  representatives  appointed  to  consider 
the  various  memorials  concerning  the  proposed  rail- 
road, reported  a  bill,  May  3d,  to  set  apart  and  sell  to 
Whitney  a  portion  of  the  public  lands  to  enable  him 
to  commence  the  construction  of  it,  which  was  referred 
to  the  committee  of  the  whole  on  0the  state  of  the 
union,  and  ordered  printed.  On  the  23d  of  June,  Mr 
Pollock  from  the  same  committee  made  a  report  to 
accompany  the  bill,  which  was  laid  on  the  table.  This 
bill  was  the  first  favorable  official  act  by  this  branch 
of  the  government. 

In  the  senate,  June  26th,  Mr  Borland,  from  the 
committee  on  public  lands,  on  the  memorial  of  Whit- 
ney relative  to  a  railroad  to  the  Pacific,  reported  a 
joint  resolution,  providing  for  a  survey  and  explora- 
tion of  one  or  more  routes  from  the  Mississippi  river, 
below  the  falls  of  St  Anthony,  to  the  Pacific,  under 
the  direction  of  the  secretary  of  war."  From  this 

16  Tennessee  and  New  Jersey  set  the  example  in  1848  of  sustaining  Whit- 
ney, which  was  followed  by  Indiana,  Illinois,  New  York,  Connecticut,  Maine, 
New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  Rhode  Island,  Georgia,  Maryland,  Alabama, 
Ohio,  Kentucky,  Pennsylvania,  and  the  senate  of  Michigan;  in  11  of  the 
states  almost  unanimously. 

11  On  the  27th  of  June,  Mr  Niles  obtained  the  unanimous  consent  of  the 
senate  to  introduce  a  bill  to  set  apart  and  sell  to  Whitney  a  portion  of  the 
public  lands  to  enable  him  to  build  a  railroad  from  Lake  Michigan  to  the  Pa- 
cific. The  bill  was  referred  to  a  select  committee  consisting  of  senators 
Niles,  Corwin,  Lewis,  Dix,  and  Felch.  Cong.  Globe,  1847-8,  903.  On  the  29th 
of  July,  Niles  moved  to  take  up  the  bill  granting  Whitney  a  tract  of  the 
public  land,  when  senators  Hale  and  Benton  spoke  strongly  against  the  mo- 
tion, the  latter  moving  to  lay  Niles'  motion  on  the  table,  which  motion  was 
carried  by  a  vote  of  27  to  21.  On  the 8th  of  Aug.,  Niles  made  an  attempt  to 
bring  forward  the  Whitney  bill  by  inserting  it  as  an  amendment  to  a  bill 
granting  right  of  way  and  a  donation  of  land  for  building  a  railroad  from 
Mobile  to  the  month  of  the  Ohio  river,  but  was  sul>sequently  induced  to 
withdraw  his  amendment  Cong.  Globe,  1847-8,  pp.  1011,  1051.  On  the  29th 
of  Jan.,  1849,  Xiles  again  moved  to  take  up  Jthe  Whitney  bill,  urging  the 
peculiar  interests  existing  in  CaL  at  that  time,  and  the  need  there  was  of 
quick  communication  through  territory  of  our  own.  Borland  opposed  Niles' 
motion,  and  stated  that  he  was  directed  by  the  committee  on  public  lands  to 
urge  a  joint  resolution  adverse  to  Whitney,  and  merely  authorizing  the  sec. 


508  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

time  forward  the  subject  was  continually  before  con- 
gress. 

Benton,  who  had  formerly  been  so  strong  an  advo- 
cate of  the  route  to  the  Columbia  via  the  South  pass, 
had  changed  his  views,  according  to  reports  from  his 
son-in-law,  Fremont,  and  on  the  7th  of  February, 
1849,  introduced  a  bill  to  provide  for  a  central 
national  road,  from  St  Louis  to  the  Pacific  ocean  at 
San  Francisco,  with  a  branch  to  the  Columbia.  He 
advocated  a  national  road  because  it  was  impolitic  and 
illegal  for  private  citizens  to  treat  with  the  Indians 
for  the  extinguishment  of  their  title,  and  impossible 
for  them  to  protect  the  road  after  it  should  be  built; 
and  because  he  questioned  the  propriety  of  allowing 
individuals  to  become  proprietors  of  such  a  road;  and 
denounced  all  the  schemes  presented  as  stock-jobbing 
machines  for  the  markets  of  Europe  and  America.18 

of  war  to  direct  surveys  to  be  made  to  the  Pacific  to  determine  the  better 
route,  which  could  never  be  known  except  by  the  comparison  of  several. 
Finally,  however,  Niles'  motion  was  agreed  to,  and  the  bill  taken  up,  when 
Senator  Foote  offered  to  amend  as  follows:  That  after  the  crossing  of  the 
Missouri  the  road  should  be  built  in  a  southwest  direction  as  far  as  the  feat- 
ures of  the  country  would  permit,  and  pass  the  Rocky  mountains  at  some 
point  south  of  the  South  pass,  the  terminus  being  at  Monterey;  but  if  no 
practicable  route  should  be  found  in  that  direction,  then  the  road  should  run 
to  the  Paso  del  Norte,  and  thence  to  San  Diego,  keeping  within  U.  S.  terri- 
tory. After  this  road  was  completed,  Whitney  should  have  power  to  build 
a  branch  to  the  Columbia,  or  north  of  it,  and  should  have  the  same  grant  of 
thirty  miles  on  each  side  of  the  road  that  lie  would  have  for  the  main  line. 
Borland  followed  by  a  second  amendment  to  strike  out  all  of  the  original  bill 
after  the  enacting  clauses,  and  insert  a  direction  to  the  secretary  of  war  to 
employ  the  topographical  corps  to  explore  such  routes  from  the  lakes,  or 
from  the  Mississippi  below  the  falls  of  St  Anthony,  to  the  Pacific  as  might 
be  deemed  fitting,  and  to  report  to  congress  the  result  of  their  explorations 
at  an  early  date.  Cong.  Globe,  1848-9,  vol.  20,  p.  381-2. 

18  His  bill  appropriated  a  sum  of  money  to  enable  the  president  to  concil- 
iate the  Indians,  and  extinguish  title  to  as  much  land  as  might  be  required 
for  the  purposes  of  the  road;  and  proposed  that  75  per  cent  of  the  proceeds 
of  all  public  lands  in  Oregon  and  Cal.,  and  50  per  cent  of  the  proceeds  of  the 
sale  of  public  lands  in  the  states,  should  be  set  apart  to  defray  the  expenses 
of  the  contemplated  railroad.  The  bill  reserved  a  strip  of  land  one  mile  in 
breadth  for  the  whole  length  of  the  railway,  for  the  purpose  of  maintaining 
all  manner  of  roads.  '  I  propose  to  reserve  ground  for  all  sorts  of  roads — 
railway,  plank,  macadamized;  more  than  that,  room  for  a  track  by  magnetic 
power,  according  to  the  idea  started,  I  believe,  by  Prof.  Henry,  and,  to  me, 
plausibly  pursued  by  Prof.  Page,  of  the  patent  office,  if  that  idea  ripens  into 
practicability — and  who  can  undertake  to  say  that  any  idea  will  not  become 
practicable  in  the  present  age?  But,  Mr  President,  the  bill  contains  another 
provision,  that  there  shall  be  a  margin  reserved  out  of  this  breadth  for  a  plain 
old  English  road,  such  as  we  have  been  accustomed  to  all  our  lives — a  road 


POLITICAL  ASPECTS.  507 

On  the  17th  of  February,  1849,  Borland  presented 
a  petition  to  the  senate  from  citizens  of  Arkansas, 
asking  for  aid  for  the  construction  of  a  railroad  frcni 
Memphis  to  the  Pacific,  which  was  laid  on  the  table ; 
and  on  the  same  day  Houston  asked  and  obtained 
leave  to  introduce  a  bill  authorizing  the  Galveston 
and  Red  river  railroad  company  to  construct  a  rail- 
way to  the  Pacific  ocean  in  California,  which  was  re- 
ferred to  the  committee  on  territories. 

In  May,  Whitney  published,  in  pamphlet  form,  an 
elaborate  argument  against  all  the  other  various 
schemes,  and  in  support  of  his  own,  among  which  he 
included  the  improbability  of  an  appropriation  of 
money  for  such  a  work,  the  time  it  would  take  to 
complete  surveys  under  the  government,  and  the  diffi- 
culty, if  not  impossibility,  of  fixing  upon  a  route, 
because  it  would  be  made  a  sectional  question  between 
the  north  and  south,  which  years  of  legislation  could 
not  adjust ;  but  allowing  that  this  question  should  be 
settled,  and  the  work  commenced,  it  would  soon  be- 
come a  powerful  party  engine  to  agitate  the  whole 
country ;  in  fact,  it  could  only  be  commenced  by  a 
party  vote,  and  if  commenced  at  all,  would  draw  the 
means  from  one  section  of  the  union  to  be  squandered 
• 

on  which  the  farmer  in  his  wagon  or  carriage,  on  horse  or  on  foot,  may 
travel,  without  fear  and  without  tax,  with  none  to  run  over  him  or  make 
him  jump  out  of  the  way.  I  look  forward  to  the  time  when  this  whole  con- 
tinent is  to  be  settled  from  one  end  to  the  other,  when  there  are  towns  and 
villages  upon  it,  when  neighbors  will  want  a  convenient  road.  They  may 
there  find  a  space  for  them  in  which  they  shall  not  give  way  to  the  cars  or 
anything  else—a  road  not  to  be  interfered  with,'  Cong.  Globe,  1848-9,  470-4; 
De  Sow's  Indust.  Jtes.,  ii.  498.  What  romantic  dreams,  what  freaks  of  fancy, 
what  bubbles  of  imagination  our  great  men  indulged  in  only  forty  years  ago! 
The  brain  of  the  world  was  teeming  with  ill-digested  ideas.  New  discoveries 
in  science,  new  fields  of  enterprise  and  thought  marked  the  period  as  an  ex- 
traordinary one,  and  men,  while  half  understanding  whither  they  were  being 
carried,  were  nnappalled  by  the  most  giant  undertakings.  In  the  midst  of 
these,  Senator  Benton  could  stop  to  rhapsodize  over  the  grant  of  a  wagon 
road  which  could  be  of  use  only  to  those  following  the  line  of  the  railroad 
from  east  to  west,  while  the  continent  on  either  side  of  it  was  as  trackless  as 
ever.  One  thousand  feet  of  ground  in  breadth  should  be  reserved  in  like 
manner  along  the  line  of  the  branch  to  the  Columbia;  military  posts  were  to 
be  erected  at  certain  intervals,  and  a  telegraph  line  stretched  from  ocean 
to  ocean.  It  was  easy  to  see  that  Benton  was  still  largely  under  the  influ- 
ence of  his  early  Oregon  sympathies,  somewhat  warped  and  turned  aside  by 
southern  views,  and  perhaps  looking  to  the  future  of  his  daughter  a  iiuaband. 


508  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

in  another  upon  the  hirelings  of  aspirants  to  office, 
becoming  fifty  times  more  potent  and  obnoxious  than 
a  United  States  bank,  or  any  other  question  that  had 
ever  excited  the  people.  The  business  of  a  thorough- 
fare so  immense  would  absorb  and  control  the  entire 
legislation  of  the  country.  This,  and  more,  said  Mr 
Whitney  against  a  national  road,  and  he  clinched  his 
arguments  with  estimates  of  cost  and  comparison  of 
routes  which  were  to  the  majority  of  northern  readers 
conclusive.1'  He  was  sustained,  too,  by  such  author- 
ity as  Captain  Charles  Wilkes,  whose  opinion  had 
weight  from  the  knowledge  possessed  by  him  of  west 
coast  topography,  although  that  had  little  to  do  with 
the  political  view  of  the  subject."  Another  naval 
officer,  Lieutenant  M.  F.  Maury,  took  a  different 
view.  While  conceding  that  an  interoceanic  railroad 
was  of  the  highest  importance,  he  took  the  position 
that  geographically  Monterey  was  the  point  in  Cali- 
fornia most  central  to  the  commerce  of  the  world,  and 
therefore  the  proper  point  for  the  eastern  terminus 
was  at  Memphis.21 

The  people  of  St  Louis  held  a  preliminary  meeting 
in  the  spring  of  1849,  at  which  it  was  resolved  that 
a  national  convention,  consisting  of  delegates  from 
every  state  in  the  union,  should  be  iiftdted  to  assemble 
in  that  city  on  the  16th  of  October,  to  give  expres- 
sion to  the  will  of  the  American  people.  Only  four- 
teen states  accepted  the  invitation,  the  only  southern 
delegates  present  being  from  Louisiana,  unless  Vir- 
ginia, Kentucky,  and  Tennessee  be  classed  as  south- 
ern. It  will  be  noticed  that  in  none  of  the  public 
discussions  of  Pacific  railroad  matters  did  the  Caro- 
linas  take  any  part,  and  seldom  the  New  England 
states.  This  was  partly  from  sectional  apathy,  and 
partly,  also,  from  political  prejudices.  The  835  dele- 
gates present  at  St  Louis  in  October  were  chiefly 

19  A  Project  for  a  Railroad  to  the  Pacific,  by  Asa  Whitney,  New  York,  1849; 
Hunt's  MercJiants"  Magazine,  xxi.  72-9. 

™  Western  America,  by  Charles  Wilkea,  Phil.,  1849. 
tlHu)it's  Merch.  Mag.,  xviii.  592-601. 


ST.  LOUIS  CONVENTION.  509 

from  the  central  and  western  states.  As  might  have 
been  anticipated,  Senator  Benton  was  a  prominent 
figure  at  this  convention.  He  attempted  to  describe 
a  route  across  the  Rocky  mountains  for  which  Fre- 
mont had  been  looking  when  he  became  lost  in  the 
snow,  but  which  he  had  never  seen,  and  only  took  for 
granted  because  Fremont's  guide  had  told  him  of  the 
existence  of  a  pass  between  the  parallels  of  38°  and 
39°.  A  railroad  does  now  indeed  traverse  a  pass  in 
this  latitude,  but  the  route  through  the  canon  of  the 
Arkansas  river  was  not  one  to  be  recommended  for  a 
great  national  highway,  especially  if  a  wagon-road 
were  to  accompany  it,  as  Benton  proposed.  Unfor- 
tunately for  his  prepossessions,  a  committee  appointed 
at  the  mass-meeting  in  the  spring  to  collect  facts  had 
brought  in  a  report  of  fifty  or  more  printed  pages,  in 
favor  of  the  South  pass,"  which  he  was  compelled  to 
present  to  the  convention.  "  The  South  pass,"  said 
the  senator,  "though  good  in  itself,  has  never  met 
the  approbation  of  Mr  Fremont  for  the  road  to  Cali- 
fornia. It  is  too  far  north.  He  wanted  a  road  three 
or  four  degrees  further  south,  and  has  found  it,  and 
gives  the  country  the  benefit  of  it."  But  John 
Laughborough,  of  Missouri,  would  not  accept  it,  and 
presented  his  views  so  convincingly  that  he  carried 
the  convention  with  him,  and  was  thanked  by  resolu- 
tion. The  meeting  was  adjourned  to  convene  at 
Philadelphia  in  April  1850." 

**  Printed  in  the  St  Louis  Western  Journal,  a  periodical  of  that  city. 

13  With  regard  to  the  Fremont-Benton  route,  known  as  the  central,  Fr6- 
mont  was  deceived  by  the  representations  of  Maxwell,  St  Train,  Beaubien, 
and  Wootten,  all  of  whom  had  large  grants  of  land  on  the  eastern  slope  of 
the  great  range,  in  the  latitude  to  which  Fremont,  upon  their  description, 
gave  his  endorsement.  The  Santa  Fi  Gazette,  Oct.  8,  1853,  remarks  upon 
this  subject,  that  Benton's  route  was  not  practicable,  and  a  railroad  through 
the  passes  indicated  by  him  not  possible.  'Among  the  gentlemen  from  whom 
we  obtained  this  information  was  Capt.  St  Vrain.  lie  stated  to  us  and 
others  during  last  spring,  that  the  idea  of  locating  a  railroad  through  the 
country  mentioned  in  Leroux's  letter  to  Col  Benton  was  ridiculous  and 
absurd,'  etc.  Yet  St  Vrain  had  been  president  of  a  public  meeting  in  Taos, 
at  which  James  H.  Quinn  had  said  of  Fremont's  route,  '  Our  fellow  citizen, 
Bichings  L.  Wootten,  has  just  returned  from  an  expedition  to  California,  on 
the  continuation  of  the  route  that  Fremont  was  following.  He  declares 
that  the  rcrte  is  most  excellent,  etc.  Robidoux,  he  said,  left  the  Arkansas 


510  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

The  next  convention  occurred  at  Memphis  in  Octo- 
ber 1849,  at  which  the  flowery  and  fiery  advocates  of 
the  southern  route  presented  their  arguments."  New 
Orleans  and  Boston  had  also  their  railroad  mass- 
meetings  and  conventions  in  1849. 

The  Boston  plan  was  to  secure  means  by  a  gov- 
ernment loan,  and  to  entrust  the  construction  to  a 
company.  The  author  of  this  plan  was  P.  P.  T. 
Degrand,  who  offered  to  build  from  St  Louis  to  San 
Francisco 25  in  four  years,  by  employing  two  sets  of 
laborers  relieving  each  other  day  and  night,  and  at 
the  most  difficult  points  a  third  party. 

with  wagons  in  1840,  for  Cal.,  but  left  them  at  the  Caochetopa  pass,  on 
account  of  the  difficulty  of  cutting  out  the  timber,  which  would  be  of  great 
advantage  to  the  railroad.  Hayes'  Scraps,  San  Diego,  ii.  122. 

24  The  delegates  of  western  Texas  presented  an  address  in  behalf  of  a 
route  through  the  San  Saba  valley  from  Memphis  to  San  Diego.  After  pre- 
senting the  facts  of  distance,  climate  and  topography,  they  say,  "  Within 
half  a  century  we  will  have  a  population  of  25,000,000  on  the  Pacific  slope. 
That  slope  is  now  separated  from  us  by  the  almost  impassable  barriers  of  a 
mountain  and  a  desert.  This  mountain  must  be  made  smooth — this  desert 
must  be  made  to  blossom  as  the  rose.  This  people,  blood  of  our  blood,  flesh 
of  our  flesh,  must  be  brought  to  our  doors.  Social  reasons  urge  it,  political 
reasons  require  it,  commercial  reasons  imperatively  demand  it.  The  east, 
the  gorgeous  east,  will  be  opened  to  our  commerce  without  a  rival,  a  com- 
petitor. The  east,  not  more  celebrated  in  song  for  its  perfume-bearing 
breezes  and  balmy  clime,  for  its  sacred  legends  and  mystic  lore,  than  in 
more  staid  and  sober  history  for  the  splendor  of  its  empires,  the  gorgeous 
magnificence  of  its  palaces  and  temples,  the  magnitude  of  its  rivers,  the 
grandeur  of  its  mountains,  the  fertility  of  its  plains,  the  abundance  of  ita 
gold  and  silver,  and  its  precious  stones,  its  gums,  its  teas,  and  its  spices,  the 
beauty  and  costliness  of  its  manufactures,  the  untold  variety  of  its  produc- 
tions, and  for  the  extent  and  richness  of  its  commerce — a  commerce  which 
has  been  sought  by  all  nations  who  have  risen  to  commercial  greatness  as  far 
back  as  history  reaches  into  the  past,  and  which  has  always  rewarded  the 
search  with  countless  wealth  and  unrivalled  splendor.  A  commerce  which 
in  ancient  times  caused  the  cities  of  Tyre  and  Sidon,  and  Balbec  and  Palmyra, 
and  Alexandria,  each  in  succession,  to  rise  to  such  a  height  of  general  pros- 
perity, commercial  greatness,  and  refinement  in  the  arts  as  to  excite,  even 
to  this  day,  the  wonder  and  admiration  of  the  world.  A  commerce  which 
in  more  modern  times  caused  Constantinople,  and  Venice,  and  Genoa,  and 
Lisbon,  and  Amsterdam,  each  in  their  turn  to  attain  tthe  very  pinnacle  of 
commercial  greatness,  and  caused  them,  single  as  they  were,  each  to  excel 
in  the  splendor  of  its  achievements  in  arts  and  in  arms,  all  the  kingdoms 
and  empires  then  upon  the  earth.  A  commerce  which  has  caused  Britain 
to  '  wrest  the  very  trident  from  Neptune  himself, '  and  enabled  her  to  utter 
the  proud  boast  of  'mistress  of  the  seas.'  This  commerce  with  all,  all  its 
untold  wealth,  and  its  limitless  future  increase,  may  be  ours — will  be  ours 
without  the  fear  of  a  competitor,  if  we  only  reach  forth  our  hands  and 
clutch  it."  Signed  by  James  W.  Allen,  T.  J.  Hardeman,  M.  Erskine,  T. 
Connelly,  Wm  E.  Jones,  and  E.  Bellenger,  in  behalf  of  the  Gonzalez  con- 
vention, Oct.  10,  1849,  in  Railroad  and  Steamships,  doc.  viii. 

25 '  I  propose  that  a  company,  composed  of  men  in  whose  integrity  and 
steadiness  of  purpose  confidence  can  be  reposed  by  the  nation,  be  chartered 


PLANS  AND  PROPOSALS.  511 

The  proposition  to  take  a  government  loan  removed 
a  difficulty  as  to  the  constitutional  power  of  congress 
to  furnish  funds  for  the  construction  of  a  national 
road ;  there  could  be  no  doubt  of  its  right  to  loan  the 
public  credit  for  the  purposes  of  providing  for  the  na- 
tional defences,  transporting  the  public  mail,  etc.  There 
seemed,  indeed,  in  a  business  point  of  view,  more 
common  sense  in  the  Boston  plan  than  any  of  those 
proposed ;  but,  alas  !  Degrand  adopted  Ben  ton's  and 
Fremont's  still  undiscovered  route,  which  could  not 
compete  for  public  favor  with  the  South  pass  or  a 
more  southern  line.1* 

After  so  much  discussion  of  routes  it  appeared  that 
three  roads  at  least  would  sometime  be  demanded. 
Of  the  most  prominent  were  the  Memphis  and  San 
Diego,  the  St.  Louis  road  proposed  by  Benton,  and 
the  South  pass  and  Columbia  river  road  proposed  by 
Whitney.  In  the  midst  of  all  this  talk,  the  people 
rushing  to  the  gold  mines  in  1849  pointed  out  the 
way  from  the  Missouri  river  to  the  bay  of  San  Fran- 
cisco. I  find  it  called  the  "new  route"  in  Lough- 
borough's  monograph  on  the  Pacific  telegraph  and 
railwav  of  December,  1849.  It  started  from  St. 

j 

Louis  and  followed  the  route  to  Independence,  nearly 
in  the  track  of  the  early  emigration  to  Oregon,  thence 
north  westwardly  to  Big  and  Little  Blue  rivers  and 

by  congress  to  construct  a  railroad  from  St  Louis  to  S.  F.,  with  a  capital  of 
$100,000,000,  and  that  this  company,  after  baring  paid  in  $2,000,000,  shall 
have  the  right  to  borrow  United  States  6  per  cent  stock  to  such  an  amount, 
not  exceeding  $98,000,000,  as  may  be  sufficient  to  finish  the  road  and  carry 
it  into  full  operation  with  a  double  track.  I  propose  that  congress  give  to 
this  company  a  strip  of  the  public  lands,  10  miles  wide  on  the  north  side  of 
the  road,  and  the  land  for  the  bed  of  the  road,  and  for  depots,  and  the  right 
to  take  from  the  public  lands  wood,  gravel,  stone,  iron,  and  other  materials 
necessary  to  construct  the  road.'  Address  to  the  People  of  the  United  States  in 
Jtailroads  and  Steamships,  doc.  xiiL 

*  The  associates  of  Degrand  were  William  Ingalls,  E.  H.  Derby,  S.  S. 
Littlehale,  James  C.  Dunn,  Robert  F.  Fisk,  O.  D.  Ashley.  Bayard  &  Co. 
also  proposed  to  congress  to  build  a  railway  from  St.  Louis  to  S.  F.  in  8 
years,  along  the  38th  parallel  or  near  it  They  offered  to  deposit  $5.000,000 
in  the  U.  S.  treasury  as  security  for  their  fidelity  to  their  engagements  ;  but 
the  objections  to  this  were  the  lack  of  authority  in  congress  to  create  cor- 
porations ;  the  cost  of  a  railway  through  the  mountains  south  of  the  South 
pass,  and  the  necessity  involved  in  this  plan  of  making  the  road  earn  divi- 
dends for  its  stockholders.  Haihroada  a*d  Steamships,  Doc.  ix.,  p.  20.  - 


512  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES 

the  Platte  ;  keeping  on  the  south  side  of  the  latter 
stream  to  the  South  fork,  which  it  crossed,  and  again 
followed  the  emigrant  route  to  Laramie  and  the  South 
pass.  From  the  South  pass  it  still  kept  on  the  line 
of  the  travelled  road,  via  Sublette's  cut-off  to  Bear 
river,  thence  to  the  Humboldt  valley,  and  through 
the  Truckee  pass  into  the  valley  of  the  Sacramento.27 
Two  other  passes  through  the  Sierra  Nevada  were 
mentioned ;  one  leading  into  the  Sacramento  valley 
by  following  Carson  river  to  its  source,  and  descend- 
incr  the  American  fork  of  the  Sacramento  river ;  and 

O 

another  proceeding  from  the  sink  of  the  Humboldt 
south  into  the  valley  of  the  San  Joaquin.  Among 
30,000  men  there  were  enough  with  clear  vision  and 
strong  will-albeit  they  required  also  toughened  muscles 
— to  spy  out  and  lay  open  passes  to  the  gold  mines. 
After  pointing  out  the  advantages  of  the  Platte 
and  Humboldt  route,  the  pamphleteer  makes  this  refer- 
ence to  a  difficulty 28  lying  in  the  way  of  any  road  at 

27  W.  R.  Singleton,  who  had  travelled  the  Humboldt  route  to  Cal.,  fur- 
nished the  itinerary  of  the  route  to  Loughborough  in  1849.     Before  giving  it, 
he  says,  '  I  shall  propose  a  route,   the  last  portion  of  which,  from  the  Salt 
Lake  to  the  bay,  was  discovered  by  Mr  Peter  Ogden,  a  fur  trader  in  the  em- 
ploy of  the  Hudson's  Bay  company,  as  far  back  as  1811 — which  has  been  re- 
peatedly followed  since  by  intelligent  bodies  of  traders — by  which  a  party 
of  men    under  the  orders  of    Capt.    Bonneville  proceeded  to    S.    F.  bay, 
which  has   been  traversed  by  and  described  by  Bryant,  Bidwell,  and  other 
travellers  ;  which  has  been  surveyed  by  Col  Fremont,  and  over   which  emi- 
grants with  families  and  wagons  have  repeatedly  passed,  and  more  than  30,000 
men  with  6,000  wagons  and  100,000  head  of  stock  are  now  passing.'    Pacific 
Telegraph  jand  Railway,  22.     The  author  is  a  little  out  in  his  dates  when  he 
places  the  discovery  of  the  Humboldt  by  Ogden  in  1811.     Maj.  Carleton   in 
1849  presented  the  Intelligencer  and  the  American  Quart.  Reg.  of  July,  1850, 
with  a  tabular  account  of  distances,   streams,  and  resources  in  the  way  of 
wood  and  grass  on  the  two  great  routes  leading  from  Fort  Leavenworth  west- 
ward, viz. :  from  Leavenworth  to  El  Paso,  via  Santa  Fe,   and  from  Leaven- 
worth  to  Fort  Laramie,  via  Fort  Kearney  ;  to  El  Paso  1104  miles;  to  Lar- 
amie 604  miles  ;  from  Fort  Pierre  on  the  Missouri  to  Laramie  326  miles. 

28  '  It  is  the  opinion  that  congress  has  no  constitutional  authority  to  con- 
struct works  of  this  character  within  the  bounds  of  sovereign  states.     [To 
overcome  this  objection  the  legislature  of  Mo.  passed  an  act  March  12,  1849, 
to  incorporate  the  Pacific  railroad,  and  a  company  was  organized  under  the 
act  in  Jan.,  1850,  which  petitioned  congress  for  a  grant  of  land  to  build  it.] 
Whether  the  opinion  be  right  or  wrong,  just  or  fallacious,  well  or  illy  forti- 
fied by  authority,  can  make  no  difference  so  far  as  we  are  concerned.     It  is 
a  fixed  fact  that  it  has  always  existed,  (the  right  ? )  and  has  been  acted  upon 
by  a  large  number  of  our  public  men  in  their  official  capacity,  and  that  a 
very  large  portion  of  the  American  people,  perhaps  even  a  majority,  sanction 
its  validity.     If  the  friends  of  a  Pacific  railway  are  wise  and  discreet  they 


PHILADELPHIA  CONVENTION.  513 

all  and  remarks :  "  We  are  willing  to  take  advan- 
tage of  the  existence  of  the  constitutional  difficulty 
already  alluded  to,  to  make  a  suggestion,  which,  if 
acceded  to,  will  unite  every  friend  of  a  Pacific  rail- 
way upon  one  distinct  and  clear  system,  and  enable 
them  to  compel  congress  to  consummate  the  work  at 
once.  This  suggestion  is  that  the  general  govern- 
ment be  memorialized  to  undertake  the  constriction 
of  a  railway  from  a  point  at  or  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Kansas  river  on  our  western  border  to  the  bay  of  San 
Francisco,  with  a  branch  to  the  Columbia  river  or 
Puget  sound  ;  and  that  congress  be  further  memorial- 
ized to  donate  to  the  states  so  much  of  the  public 
lands  within  their  borders  as  may  be  needful  to  aid 
them  in  the  construction  of  three  branches  of  the 
Pacific  railway  from  the  mouth  of  the  Kansas  river 
to  the  Mississippi  river;  the  first  branch  to  be  taken 
to  St.  Louis,  the  second  to  Memphis,  and  the  third 
to  such  point  on  the  upper  Mississippi  as  will  most 
favorably  connect  with  the  great  lakes  and  the  lines 
of  railway  along  their  southern  shores  to  eastern 
cities." 

Loughborough's  pamphlet,  with  other  propositions, 
had  been  placed  before  the  St.  Louis  and  Memphis 
conventions,  and  had  been  digested  by  the  country 
before  the  meeting  of  the  convention  of  April  1, 1850, 
at  Philadelphia,  which  was  presided  over  temporarily 
by  Joseph  R.  Ingersoll,  member  of  congress  from 
Pennsylvania ;  and  which  elected  William  B.  Ogden 
of  Illinois  president.  Among  the  letters  received 
from  public  men  not  present  was  one  from  Thomas  J. 
Rusk  of  Texas,  Said  he;  "  Let  this  road  be  con- 
structed, and  there  will  be  no  north  and  no  south,  no 

will  take  advantage  of  the  existence  of  this  opinion  to  come  to  a  fair  under- 
standing instead  of  permitting  it  to  hang  as  a  millstone  about  the  neck  of 
the  project ;  and  we  say  to  them  that  nothing  is  easier  to  do  than  this,  if 
they  will  only  divest  themselves  of  sectional  and  personal  motives,  and  re- 
solve to  act  in  good  faith  for  the  advancement  of  the  cause.  Three  important 
objects  should  be  kept  steadily  in  view  in  fixing  upon  the  route  and  the  de- 
tails of  the  work.  The  first  object  is  that  of  empire  ;  the  second  that  of 
nationality;  and  the  third  a  revolution  in  the  commerce  of  the  civilized 
world.' 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    33 


514  INCEPTION   OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

east  and  no  west,  but  our  country  will  be  everywhere, 
and  every  spot  of  earth  on  which  our  hardy  yeomen 
tread  will  be  their  home  and  the  home  of  their  breth- 
ren. All  the  angry  passions  which  have  of  late  agi- 
tated the  public  mind,  breathing  forth  the  unhallowed 
name  of  disunion,  threatening  the  very  existence  of 
our  free  institutions,  and  causing  the  heart  of  every 
patriot  to  beat  quick  with  dread  when  he  reflects  on 
the  bare  possibility  of  such  a  result,  will  pass  away." 

Letters  were  received  from  Benton,  Orin  Fowler, 
John  Robbins  Jr,  Job  Manri,  Samuel  R.  Thurston, 
Joseph  R.  Chandler,  Thomas  Ewing,  Charles  E. 
Clarke,  Jamss  M.  Porter,  John  Cessna  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania legislature,  and  W.  Milnor  Roberts.  Fre- 
mont also  sent  a  letter  to  the  convention,  accompa- 
nied by  a  map  which  was  a  delineation  of  the  Benton- 
Fremant  route,  running  from  Si)  Louis  to  Independ- 
ence, alone?  the  Kansas  river  to  Bent  Fort  on  the 

O 

Arkansas,  thence  through  the  great  mountain  chain, 

not  by  the  grand  canon  of  the  Arkansas,  but  south 

of  it  where  no  pass  exists,  and  in  a  general  northwest 

course  to  White  river,  up  the  Uintah  river,  arid  over 

the  dividing  ridge  separating  the  waters  of  the  Pacific 

from  those   of  the   great  basin,  to  the  foot  of  Great 

Salt  Lake;  thence  in  a  northwest   course   to  Pilot 

knob  at  the  head  of  Humboldt  valley,  and  down  it, 

through  the  Truckee  pass  into  the  Sacramento  valley. 

As  compared  with  the  South  pass  route,  it  was  one 

full  of  difficulties,  and,  as  the  map  presented  to  the 

convention  shows,  was  one  with  which  its  author  was 

not  personally  acquainted,  and  for  which  he  had  no 

other  authority  than  hearsay.     It  was  an   effort  to 

establish  a  line  as  nearly  direct  as  possible  between 

St   Louis    and    San   Francisco;    and,    perchance,    to 

make  political  capital  thereby. 

All  the  plans    ever   broached    were    reconsidered. 
Stevens,  delegate  from  that  state,  presented  the  plan 

w  Proceedings  of  the  Convention  in  favor  of  a  National  Railroad  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean  through  the  Territories  of  the  United  States,    Phtia,  1850,  9, 


PHILADELPHIA  CONTENTION.  515 

of  Rhode  Island  as  agreed  upon  at  a  meeting  held 
March  20th  at  Providence.  Jacob  Dewees,  of  Penn- 
sylvania, offered  a  project  which  included  a  system  of 
railroads  from  the  several  Atlantic  ports  to  converge 
at  St  Louis  as  the  eastern  terminus  of  Pacific  rail- 
way. Delegate  Robinson  of  Indiana  spoke  in  favor 
of  Whitney's  proposition.  Joel  B.  Sutherland  argued 
in  favor  of  a  national  road.  "No  man  living,"  said 
he  "ought  to  have  the  power  of  building  this  road 
vested  in  him  and  his  heirs — nor  should  any  company 
have  that  grant  made  to  it ;"  and  he  gave  his  reasons, 
which  do  not  particularly  concern  us  at  this  day. 

The  committee  on  resolutions  resolved  that  it  was 
the  duty  of  congress  "  in  some  way  to  apply  the  ener- 
gies of  our  country,"  so  as  to  secure  the  earliest  pos- 
sible completion  of  a  Pacific  railroad  ;  that  the  work 
was  national  and  should  be  constructed  by  national 
means ;  but  to  avoid  state  and  local  prejudices,  the 
government  should  confine  its  operations  to  the  coun- 
try beyond  the  limits  of  the  organized  states,  leaving 
the  branches  to  be  constructed  by  those  states;  that 
liberal  appropriations  of  the  public  lands  should  be 
made  to  aid  said  states  ;  and  that  congress  be  memo- 
riialized  on  the  subject  of  a  survey  by  competent 
engineers  of  all  the  routes  considered  practicable. 

Morrison  of  Pennsylvania  spoke  against  the  reso- 
lutions. He  favored  Whitney's  plan,  as  it  interested 
the  working  classes.  John  Biddle,  of  Michigan,  and 
S.  R.  Curtis,  of  Iowa,  sustained  the  resolutions,  fa- 
voring a  national  road,  and  its  immediate  commence- 
ment. The  resolutions  were  finally  adopted.  Elder 
of  Pennsylvania  offered  a  resolution,  which  was  lost, 
that  the  president  of  the  convention  appoint  one 
delegate  from  each  of  the  states  present,  to  present  a 
report  on  the  most  feasible  route.  Solomon  W. 
Roberts  moved  that  the  committee  recommend  to  the 
American  people,  in  every  part  of  the  country,  to 
urge  upon  congress,  by  numerous  petitions,  to  make 
an  early  and  ample  appropriation  for  surveys  of  the 


516  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

most  feasible  routes  for  the  construction  of  a  railroad 
to  California  and  Oregon,  from  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi ;  which  was  adopted. 

Camp,  of  New  York,  offered  a  resolution  that  the 
electors  of  the  United  States  should  be  recommended 
to  vote  for  no  man  at  the  ensuing  election  for  mem- 
bers of  congress  who  opposed  the  construction  of  a 
Pacific  railroad.  This  motion  proving  inadmissible, 
even  when  amended  by  T.  B.  Florence  to  the  effect 
that  "  the  people  in  their  primary  assemblies"  should 
pass  resolutions  in  favor  of  the  railroad,  it  was  tabled. 
There  was  danger  enough  of  the  matter  getting  into 
politics  without  resolving  it  there.  President  Ogden, 
in  an  interesting  speech,  gave  his  views  of  the  nation's 
ability  to  build  the  road.30 

A  memorial  to  congress  was  adopted,  presenting 
the  proceedings  of  the  convention,  and  calling  atten- 
tion to  the  subject,  but,  leaving  all  definite  plans  to 
the  wisdom  of  that  body. 

The  subject  of  an  inter  oceanic  railroad  might  be 
now  said  to  be  before  the  people  and  congress  in  all 
its  bearings.  So  far  as  the  public  were  concerned,  its 
individual  writers  and  speakers  exhibited  a  commend- 
able degree  of  interest;31  but  the  inertia  of  great  bod- 
ies has  passed  into  a  problem. 

Explorations  had  been  ordered  for  military  posts 
and  routes,  with  the  incidental  view  of  learning  more 
about  the  country  belonging  to  us,  through  which  we 
might  sometime  desire  to  travel  in  comfort  in  railway 

38  Our  war  with  Mexico  and  the  purchase  of  California  had  cost  us 
$70,000,000.  We  owed  more  than  that  from  1790  to  1800,  when  we  were,  as 
a  nation,  very  poor,  and  numbered  in  population  no  more  than  four  or  five 
millions.  In  1816  our  national  debt  was  $127,000,000,  and  our  population 
less  than  9,000,000;  but  in  1836  this  debt  was  extinguished  and  we  had 
$40,000,000  surplus  in  the  treasury  soon  after,  which  congress  distributed 
among  the  states  for  want  of  some  object  to  apply  it  to.  How  trifling  then 
would  be  a  debt  of  ^$170,000,000  now,  when  we  had  a  population  of 
23,000,000  in  an  unexampled  state  of  prosperity,  even  if  the  outlay  were  to 
return  us  nothing.  But  judging  by  the  business  of  the  Erie  canal,  which 
had  been  scoffed  at  in  its  inception,  it  would  greatly  increase  the  wealth  of 
the  country,  and  that  very  rapidly. 

81  Hunt's  Merck.  Mag.,  xxiii.  123-4;  Id.,  xxii.  149;  Amer.  Quart.  Reg.,  iv. 
590-6;  Rev.  Calvin  Cotter  8  Lecture  on  the  Railroad  to  the  Pacific,  Aug.  12,  1850; 
New  York,  1850,  Cal.  Past  and  Present,  192. 


NORTH  AND  SOUTH.  517 

coaches.  What  more,  indeed,  could  have  been  rea- 
sonably expected  before  the  gold  discoveries  caused 
the  unprecedented  migration  of  1849.  In  his  messages 
of  1849  and  1850,  the  president  made  some  sugges- 
tions to  congress  concerning  overland  communication ; 
and  in  the  debates  of  that  body  upon  the  several  pro- 
jects before  it,  tha  majority  leaned  toward  Whitney's 
plan,  although  Plumbe  still  urged  his  scheme,  and 
Benton  his  route."  Several  bills  were  introduced 
which  did  not  change  the  outlook  for  any.  De  Bow's 
Southern  Review  for  December  1849,  commenting  on 
the  reports  of  the  committees  of  both  houses  of  con- 
gress, said:  "Although  we  have  always  been  disposed 
to  press  a  more  southern  route  than  that  proposed  by 
Mr  Whitney,  for  a  railroad  to  the  Pacific  ocean,  we 
have  never  once  doubted  of  the  practicability  and 
great  commercial  value  of  his,  and  that  in  its  plan  and 
details  it  embraces  the  only  constitutional  mode  of  ef- 
fecting the  great  work,  whether  through  the  agency 
of  that  gentleman  or  through  any  one  else."  The 
writer,  after  presenting  a  favorable  argument,  consid- 
ered nationally,  for  Whitney's  scheme  presented  the 
southern  view  of  the  case  upon  two  propositions : 
1st,  the  route  proposed  was  all  on  free  soil ;  2nd,  the 
building  of  the  road  would l  greatly  accelerate  the 
settlement  of  the  entire  line  to  the  Pacific,  and  it 
was  feared  such  a  result  would  be  prejudicial  to  the 
south  by  increasing  a  population  hostile  to  its  insti- 
tutions. The  question,  it  was  declared,  must  be  set- 
tled at  the  coming  session  of  congress,  as  after  that 
period  the  land  reformers  of  the  north  who  were 
giving  away  the  public  lands  to  make  capital  against 


K  Review  of  the  reports  of  congress  committee  on  R.  R.,  with  remark  from  De 
Bow  s  Southern  Review,  Dec.  1850,  in  Railroads  and  Steams/tips,  Doc.  i;  Speech  of 
James  B.  Bowlin,  ofJIo.,  Wash.,  1850;  No.  4  »'«  Speeches  Cong.;  Review  of 
route,  advantages,  resources,  cost,  etc.,  in  U.  S.  House  Rep.,  437,  iii.  36  pp., 
31  cong.,  1  sess.,  U.  S.  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  L,  p.  30,  31  cong.,  2sess;  Frf-monfs 
Letter  to  Gerhard  and  others  of  the  Mississippi  R.  R.  convention,  on  the 
features  and  advantages  of  his  route;  Amer.  Quar.  Reg.,  iv.  558-64. 


518  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  EOUTES. 

the  south  for  the  presidency,  would  have  left  nothing 
with  which  to  satisfy  Whitney's  proposed  contract.35 
The  press  of  California  was  urgent  for  quicker  com- 
munication with  the  east.  Fremont,  the  first  senator 
elected  by  the  legislature  of  the  independent,  self-con- 
stituted first  state  on  the  Pacific  coast,  presented  in 
one  day  eighteen  bills  for  the  benefit  of  California, 
but  among  them  was  no  bill  for  a  transcontinental 
railroad,  although  he  was  charged  with  the  joint  reso- 
lutions of  the  legislature,  urging  congress  to  construct 
a  national  road,34  at  the  earliest  possible  moment. 
Gwin  in  his  Memoirs  more  than  hints  that  he  was  the 
author  of  the  eighteen  bills  presented  by  Fremont  on 
the  1 3th  of  September,  in  which  case  he  was  also  re- 
sponsible for  the  absence  of  a  railroad  bill,  and  for  the 
failure  to  present  the  joint  resolution  of  the  legisla- 
ture, which  was  not  brought  to  the  attention  of  con- 
gress until  the  last  of  December,  when,  Fremont  be- 
ing absent  during  the  entire  session,  Gwin  apologized 
for  the  delay  in  presenting  them,  by  saying  that,  his 
colleague  must  have  forgotten  them.  It  would  seern 
difficult,  in  the  midst  of  all  the  railroad  discussion  of 
that  year  to  forget  that  California  had  instructed  him 
to  urge  immediate  action  on  this  subject.  Not  that 
her  demand  would  be  complied  with  in  preference  to 
others,'  but  that  the  apparent  neglect  to  make  the  de- 
mand made  weight  for  the  enemies  of  the  road.  Gwin's 
sympathies  being  always  with  the  south,  he  could  not 

33  This  referred,  of  course,  to  that  portion  of  the  route  between  Lake 
Michigan  and  Missouri;  and  the  allusion  to  the  disposal  of  the  public  lands 
by  congress  was  made  in  reference  to  soldiers'  bounty  land  laws. 

34  The  resolution  reads:     '  1st,  Be  it  resolved  by  the  senate  and  assembly 
of  the  state  of  California,  that  our  senators  be  instructed,  and  our  represen- 
tatives requested,  to  urge  upon  congress  the  importance  of  authorizing  as 
soon  as  possible,  the  construction  of  a  national  railroad  from  the  Pacific  to 
the  Mississippi  river.     2nd,  Resolved,  that  they  be  further  instructed  and 
requested  to  urge  upon  the  national  government,  with  a  view  to  facilitate 
the  accomplishment  of  the  great  work  contemplated  in  the  first  resolution, 
the  immediate  organization  of  an  efficient  engineer  corps,  to  make  complete 
surveys  and  explorations  of  the  several  routes  which  have  been  recommended 
to  public  notice  as  practicable  for  the  line  of  said  road.     3d,  Resolved,  that 
his  excellency  the  governor,  be  requested  to  forward  to  each  of  our  senators 
and  representatives  in  congress,  a  certified  copy  of  the  foregoing  joint  reso- 
lutions.' Cal  Statutes  1850,  p.  465,   U.  S  Sen.  Misc.,  Doc.  4.  31  cong,  2  sess. 
Cat.  Jour.  Ley.,  1850,  p.  202,  208;  Cong.  G^obe  1850-1,  vol.  23,  132. 


EFFECT  OF  CONGRESSIONAL  AGITATION  519 

cordially  urge  the  construction  of  a  central  or  north- 
ern Pacific  railway  out  of  the  national  treasury  ;  but 
having  had  time  to  grasp  the  subject,  as  it  was  under- 
stood by  politicians  in  Washington,  he  perceived  that 
the  second  resolution  which  asked  for  a  survey  of  the 
different  routes,  nullified,  for  the  time  being,  the  first, 
and  thus  made  the  whole  innocuous  to  the  south.  He 
particularly  urged  the  survey.  As  the  artful  senator 
himself  explains,  when  giving  an  account  of  his  instru- 
mentality in  la}~ing  the  foundation  of  the  magnificent 
system  of  surveys  across  the  continent  of  America, 
that  "it  brought  about  the  exact  result  which  Mr 
GwTin  had  predicted — that  no  one  route  could  be 
agreed  upon." 

The  history  of  the  Pacific  railroad  in  congress  for 
several  years  is  a  repetition  and  an  elaboration  of  the 
arguments,  estimates,  opinions,  and  plans  which  had 
been  put  forth  by  individuals  and  conventions  ever 
since  1832,  and  especially  since  1847,  and  would  fill 
volumes."  It  had  the  effect  to  stimulate  railroad 
building  in  all  the  states,  and  to  cause  a  demand  for 
congressional  aid S6  by  public  land  grants ;  to  increase 
public  intelligence  on  the  subject  of  railroads  to  the 
Pacific,37  and  to  make  more  hopeless  than  ever  the 

^Cong.  Globe,  1850-1,  6,  56;  Senate  Jour.,  377;  31st  cong.,  2d  sess.;  U.  S. 
H.  Jour.,  602,  662,  1471,  31st  cong..  2d  sess.  Report  of  U.  S.  House  Com. 
on  "Whitney's  project,  urging  the  attention  of  congress  to  it.  U.  S.  H.  Com. 
Sept,  101,  32d  cong.,  1st  sess.;  Cong.  Globe,  1851-2,  p,  941.  Bill  to  set  apart 
and  sell  to  Asa  \Vhitneyof  New  York  a  portion  of  the  public  lands,  to  enable 
him  to  construct  a  railroad  from  Lake  Michigan  or  the  Mississippi  to  the 
Pacific ;  bill  to  provide  for  the  location  and  construction  of  a  central  national 
railroad,  from  the  Mississippi  river  to  the  Pacific;  bill  granting  the  right  of 
way,  and  making  a  grant  of  land  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad  from 
Lake  Michigan  to  the  Mississippi.  Id.,  2466.  Propositions  for  two  railroads 
to  connect  the  Mississippi  with  the  Pacific. 

36  Cong.  Globe,  1851-2.  Bill  and  amendments  thereto,  making  grants  of 
land  to  several  states,  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  railroads  and  for  other 
purposes,  pp.  1536,  1562,  1579,  1595,  1602,  1612,  1616,  1624,  1626.  Bill* 
granting  land  to  construct  railroads,  viz.,  for  the  construction  of  the  Virginia 
and  Tennessee  railroad;  from  the  copper  mines  on  the  shore  of  Lake  Superior 
to  Chicago;  from  St  Louis  to  St  Paul ;  from  Manetowoc  to  the  Mississippi; 
from  the  Wabash  to  the  Missouri;  to  the  Sunbury  and  Erie  railroad  company 
of  Pa  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  their  works;  proposition  for  a  grant  of 
land  to  the  South  Carolina  and  Tennessee  railroad;  oills  granting  lands  to 
the  states  of  Me,  Mass,  Pa,  Ohio,  Ind.,  Mo.,  la,  I1L,  Miss.,  La,  Tenn.,  TV  is., 
Ark.,  Ala,  Minn.,  Fla,  Mich.,  Ky. 

"See  Whrpples  Rept,  in  Pat.  R.  R.  Kept,  xi  76;  Id.,  vols  iii ,  iv.;  Fre- 
mont's Reft,  in  U.  S.  Sen,  Misc.  Doc.,  67,  33d  cong.,  1st  sess.;  Pope's  Rept,  in 


520  INCEPTION  OP  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

prospect  of  any  single  road.  At  the  session  of  1852-3 
it  was  proposed  by  Senator  Brodhead  of  Pennsylvania 
to  amend  the  appropriation  bill  so  as  to  authorize  the 
secretary  of  war,  under  the  direction  of  the  president, 
to  employ  such  portion  of  the  corps  of  topographical 
engineers  and  others  as  might  be  advisable  to  ascer- 
tain the  most  economical  and  practicable  route  for  a 
railroad  to  the  Pacific  from  the  Mississippi,  and  that 
$150,000  be  appropriated  to  defray  the  expenses  of 
such  explorations.  The  engineers  employed  were  to 
be  organized  into  as  many  distinct  corps  as  there  were 
routes  to  be  surveyed,  and  their  several  reports  laid 
before  congress  on  or  before  the  first  Monday  in  Jan- 
uary 1854.  To  this  motion  Gwin  added:  "And  be  it 
further  enacted,  that  in  making  such  explorations  and 
surveys  the  engineers  and  other  persons  employed 
may  be  directed  to  act  in  concert  with  any  engineers 
or  other  persons  employed  by  any  individual  or  indi- 
viduals, association  or  associations,  for  the  same 
general  object,  and  the  secretary  of  war  is  hereby 
authorized  and  required  to  receive  proposals  from  in- 
dividuals or  associations  for  the  construction  of  a  rail- 
road between  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Pacific  ocean,  and  to  lay  the  same  before  congress  at 
the  next  session,"  and  presented  the  whole  to  the 
senate.38  Congress  adopted  the  amendment  March 
3d,  and  the  surveys  were  begun  in  the  spring  of  1853. 

U.  S.  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  129,  xviii.,  pt  2,  33d  cong.,  1st  sess.;  Pac  R.  R.  Rept,  ii.; 
Parke's  Rept  Do.,  Gunnison  and  Beckioith's  Repts,  and  in  vol.  xi.,  73-G;  Wil- 
liamson's Rept,  in  U.  8.  Sen.  Doc.,  52,  vol.  viii.,  33d  cong.,  1st  sess.;  U.  S.  H. 
Ex.  Doc.,  46,  p.  99-118,  vol.  viii.,  33d  cong.,  1st  sess.;  Id.  Doc.,  129,  vol. 
xviii.;  Silliman's  Am.fr.  Jour.  Science,  1858,  vol.  25,  317;  Stevens'  Rept,  in 
Smithsonian  Rept,  1854,  80-2;  Id.,  80-7. 

38  '  I  feel  myself  constrained, '  says  this  diplomatist,  '  to  bring  forward  this 
proposition,  and  I  do  it  with  great  distrust,  under  the  belief  that  injury  may 
result  from  it.  I  am  not  at  all  satisfied  that  we  ever  can  get  a  national  rail- 
road, or  any  particular  route  to  be  designated  by  congress,  because  those 
sections  of  the  country  that  are  rejected  in  the  report  that  may  be  made  to 
congress  will,  by  combining,  prevent  the  establishment  of  any. '  Ghmn,  Me- 
moirs, MS.,  101-3;  Cong.  Globe,  1852-3,  815-40;  Debate  by  Adams,  Bell, 
Borland,  Bright,  Butler,  Cass,  Chase,  Douglas,  Gwin,  Hale,  Hunter,  Mason, 
Pratt,  Rusk,  Underwood,  and  Walker.  Arguments  of  the  Hrm.  William  M. 
QvAn  on  the  subject  of  a  Pacific  railroad  in  1854  and  185S;  Speech  of  Gen.  H.  Wai- 
bridfje  of  New  York  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  June  13,  1854. 


SURVEYS  ORDERED.  521 

The  surveys  occupied  a  number  of  years,  and  were 
continued  under  acts  of  congress  of  May  3 1  and  Au- 
gust 5,  1854."  "They  had,"  says  Gwin,  "the  exact 
result  which  I  predicted,  that  no  one  route  could  be 
agreed  upon."  He  avoids  saying  that  the  south 
would  not  permit  the  north  to  have  a  road,  lest  a 
northern  population  should  flow  out  and  absorb  the 
public  lands;  and  the  north  would  not  permit  the 
south  to  have  it  for  fear  the  iron  rails  would  bind 
the  territory  acquired  from  Mexico,  includincr  Cali- 
fornia, to  the  slave -holding  states. 

**  The  northern  ronte  along  the  Missouri  was  explored  by  Gov.  I.  I. 
Stevens  of  Wash.  Ter.,  and  Capt.  George  B.  McClellan  of  the  engineer  corps. 
The  route  near  the  41st  and  4£nd  parallels  was  explored  by  Capt.  J.  C.  Fre- 
mont, Capt.  H.  Stansbury,  top.  eng'rs,  and  l^eut  E.  G.  Beckwith,  3d  reg't 
artillery.  The  route  near  the  38th  and  39ih  parallels  was  explored  by  Capt. 
J.  Vv".  Gunnison,  top.  eng'rs,  report  by  Lieut  E.  G.  Beckwith.  The  route 
near  the  35th  parallel  was  explored  by  Lieut  A.  W.  Whipple,  top.  •ng'rs. 
The  route  near  the  32d  parallel  was  explored  by  Capt.  John  Pope,  Lieut 
John  G.  Par'ie,  and  Major  William  H.  Emory,  top.  eng'rs.  Examination  of 
extension  of  this  route  from  the  mouth  of  the  Gila  to  San  Francisco  was 
made  by  Lieut  R.  S.  Williamson,  top.  eng'rs.  The  reports,  which  fill — with 
those  of  subsequent  explorations  in  California,  Oregon,  New  Mexico,  and  the 
Pacific  coast  generally,  and  which  include  observations  upon  the  mineralogy, 
botany,  forestry,  and  fauna  of  this  coast  and  Indian  characteristics  and  cus- 
tom:;— seven  quarto  volumes,  are  among  the  most  interesting  documents  ever 
Eiblished  by  the  government.  VoL  I.  is  devoted  to  a  report  of  Jefferson 
avis,  sec.  of  war,  condensed  from  the  several  reports  of  the  different  expe- 
ditions, with  a  tabulated  statement  of  the  distances,  altitudes,  estimated 
cost,  etc.,  of  the  various  lines  surveyed.  I  take  from  this  elaborate  table  a 
few  figures.  The  northern  route,  from  St  Paul  to  Vancouver,  was  estimated 
to  be  in  a  straight  line  1,445  miles,  by  the  proposed  railroad  route  1,8 64 
miles,  sum  of  ascents  and  descents  18,100  feet,  cost  $130,781,000;  route 
near  the  41st  and  42(1  parallel?,  from  Council  Bluffs  to  Benicia,  distance  in  a 
straight  line  1,410  miles,  by  the  proposed  route  2,032  miles,  sum  of  ascents 
and  descents  29,120  feet,  cost  $116,095,000;  route  near  the  38th  and  3Cth 
parallels,  from  Westport  to  S.  F.  by  the  Cochetopa  and  Taheachaypah  passes, 
distance  in  a  straight  line  1,740  miles,  by  the  proposed  route  2,080  miles, 
sum  of  ascents  and  descents  49,986  feet,  cost  '  so  great  that  the  road  is  im- 
practicable; '  route  from  and  to  the  same  points  by  the  Cochetopa  and  Mad- 
eline passes,  distance  10  miles  greater,  and  sum  of  ascents  and  descents 
56,514  feet,  cost  same  as  above;  route  near  the  35th  parallel,  from  Fort 
Smith  to  San  Pedro,  distance  in  a  straight  lino  1,360  miles,  by  the  proposed 
line  1,892  miles,  sum  of  ascents  and  descents  48,812  feet,  cost  $169,216,265; 
branch  road  from  the  Mojave  river  to  S.  F.,  distance  400  miles,  sum  of  as- 
cents and  descents  7,500  feet,  cost  $19,935,000;  route  near  the  32d  parallel, 
from  Fulton  to  San  Pedro,  distance  1,400  miles  in  a  straight  line,  by  the 
proposed  route  1,618  miles,  sum  of  ascents  and  descents  32,784  feet,  cost 
§68,970,000;  extension  to  S.  F.,  distance  440  miles,  sum  of  ascents  and  do- 
scents  10,150  feet,  cost  $25,100,000.  On  none  of  these  routes  were  there 
more  than  670  miles  of  cultivable  land  reported;  on  some  not  more  than  374. 
Pac  B.  R.  Rcpt,  i.  31;  Seecfty,  ia  Jioyal  Geog.  Soc.  Proceedings,  1SG6,  165. 


522  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

In  the  meantime  a  long  projected  railroad  from 
ocean  to  ocean  at  the  isthmus  of  Panamd  was  being 
constructed.  It  was  undertaken  by  the  New  York 
company,  consisting  of  William  H.  Aspinwall,  John 
L.  Stephens,  and  Henry  Chauncey,  who  had  the  gov- 
ernment contract  for  carrying  the  United  States 
mail  in  steamships  from  New  York  to  the  Pacific 
coast.  By  a  fortunate  coincidence  this  service  began 
at  the  very  time  when  gold  was  discovered  in  Cali- 
fornia, the  first  mail  steamers  carrying  all  the  pas- 
sengers that  could  be  accommodated,  and  who  were 
compelled  to  cross  the  Isthmus  by  boats  up  the  Charges 
river,  and  by  mules  across  the  mountains,  a  trying 
and  even  perilous  journey. 

Immediately  upon  assuming  the  obligations  of  their 
contract  the  Pacific  Mail  company  recognized  the 
imperative  necessity,  in  their  own  interest,  of  improv- 
ing the  route  across  the  Isthmus.  The  government, 
too,  after  the  acquisition  of  California,  comprehending 
the  importance  of  a  free  and  uninterrupted  passage  at 
all  times  and  forever  across  the  Isthmus  of  Panamd, 
had  negotiated  a  treaty  with  the  government  of  New 
Granada,  by  which  the  United  States  undertook,  in 
consideration  of  such  a  free  and  uninterrupted  right 
of  way,  to  guarantee  to  the  public  the  neutrality  of 
the  Isthmus,  the  authority  of  Granada  over  it,  and 
its  protection  from  invasion  by  foreign  powers.4' 

40  As  early  as  the  1 7th  century  a  company  was  formed  in  Scotland,  pro- 
jected by  William  Patterson,  to  improve  the  advantages  offered  by  the 
isthmus  of  Darien  and  Panama  for  trade  in  the  Pacilic;  but  the  East  India 
company  remonstrating,  the  project  was  discountenanced,  and  the  enterprise 
suspended.  Patterson,  however,  having  raised  £700,000  and  1,200  men 
sailed  to  New  Granada  to  found  a  colony;  but  the  local  government  de- 
nounced him,  and  the  Spanish  soldiery  attacked  him,  while  disease  deci- 
mated his  colony,  so  that  the  enterprise  had  to  be  abandoned.  In  1814 
Spain  revived  the  project  of  Isthmus  communication  with  the  Pacific,  but 
foreign  and  domestic  troubles  rendered  her  incapable  of  carrying  out  the  de- 
sign. Bolivar  in  1827  appointed  a  commissioner  to  ascertain  by  actual  sur- 
vey the  best  line,  either  by  railroad  or  canal,  between  the  two  seas.  The 
report  was  in  favor  of  the  latter,  but  the  death  of  Bolivar  put  an  end  to  the 
prosecution  of  the  scheme.  In  1842  the  Mexican  government  under  Santa 
Ana  conferred  upon  Jose  de  Garay  a  grant  empowering  him  to  open  a  com- 
munication by  steam  across  the  isthmus  of  Tehuantepec.  This  grant  pledged 
the  honor  and  faith  of  the  nation  to  maintain  the  projector,  Garay,  as  well 


PANAMA"  RAILROAD.  523 

The  report  of  the  secretary  of  war  on  the  several 
surveys  made  under  his  direction,  having  been  laid 
before  congress  in  February  1855,  the  interest  in  a 
Pacific  railroad  was  if  possible  augmented,  though 
nothing  definite  was  to  be  learned  from  it ;  nor  was 
there  anything  in  it  to  allay  sectional  jealousies  or 
quiet  free-soil  agitation. 

The  subject  of  overland  communication  in  the 
senate  was  referred  to  a  select  committee,  which  re- 
ported a  bill  providing  that  there  should  be  granted 

as  any  private  individual  or  company  succeeding  him,  either  native  or  for- 
eign, in  the  undisturbed  enjoyment  of  all  the  concessions  granted,  a  part  of 
which  was  all  the  vacant  land  on  each  side  of  the  line  of  communication  be- 
tween the  two  seas.  In  1843  Garay  was  placed  in  possession  of  these  lands 
by  Nicholas  Bravo,  then  president  of  the  republic,  who  declared  all  lands 
previously  granted  to  natives  or  foreigners,  but  which  remained  unimproved, 
included  in  the  concession  to  Garay.  The  survey  was  concluded  in  October, 
1843,  and  the  provincial  governors  were  ordered  to  furnish  convicts  to  be 
employed  upon  the  work.  The  time  allotted  for  constructing  the  road  was 
extended  in  1844  and  other  privileges  added.  Revolution  at  this  juncture 
overthrew  the  government,  which  was  changed  from  a  central  to  a  federated 
one  under  Salas,  who  again  extended  the  time  of  completing  the  work  to 
1848.  By  the  terms  of  the  contract  Garay  was  authorized  to  sell  his  right. 
This  he  did  in  1846  and  1847  to  Manning  and  Mackintosh,  English  subjects 
residing  in  Mexico,  which  transfer  was  approved  by  the  Mexican  govern- 
ment. In  1847  President  Polk,  when  negotiating,  through  Mr  Frist,  the 
treaty  of  Guadaloupe  Hidalgo,  tendered  $15,000,000  to  Mexico  for  the  right 
of  way  in  favor  of  the  U.  S.  across  the  isthmus  of  Tehauntepec ;  but  was 
a?3urel  that  no  treaty  could  be  had  on  that  subject  because  the  right  was 
already  transferred.  In  the  meantime  P.  A.  Hargoies  of  Pa.  had  purchased 
the  grant  of  Manning  and  Mackintosh,  and  formed  a  company  in  New  Or- 
leans to  carry  on  the  work;  but  before  commencing  it,  and  while  surveying 
the  route  in  1851,  the  Mexican  congress  declared  void  the  decree  under 
which  Garay  obtained  an  extension  of  time.  This  piece  of  punic  faith  was 
attributed  to  jealousy  of  the  U.  S.;  but  the  U.  S.  government  while  insist- 
ing on  the  right  of  Garay  and  his  successors  was  met  by  the  answer  that  it 
was  entirely  a  matter  of  Mexican  law;  which  was  the  truth,  the  Mexican 
gov.  reser  Ting  to  itself  the  right  to  abrogate  as  well  as  to  grant  privileges. 
This  gov.  in  1853  accepted  proposals  from  a  'mixed  company,  all  being 
Mexicans  except  the  principal,  A.  G.  Sloo,  to  construct  a  plank-road  and 
railroad  across  the  Isthmus.  It  proposed,  also,  to  the  U.  S.  to  enter  into  a 
treaty  to  protect  this  highway,  similar  to  the  treaty  with  New  Granada. 
Nothing  came,  however,  of  the  Tehnantepec  project.  The  Nicaragua  route 
was  surveyed  by  Bailey  in  1837-8,  under  authority  of  the  Nicaraguan  gov. 
He  estimated  the  cost  of  a  canal  connecting  lake  Nicaragua  with  the  Pa- 
cific at  $30,000,000.  The  canal  was  never  attempted.  Steamers  have 
ascended  the  San  Juan  river  from  the  gulf  of  Mexico,  and  navigated  the 
lake;  but  the  land  travel  was  unpopular,  and  the  route  not  much  patronized. 
The  Panama  railroad  was  commenced  in  1850  and  ran  its  first  train  between 
Aspinwall  and  Panama  in  1853.  It  is  47  J  miles  long,  and  cost  $7,500.000. 
Railroads  and  Steamships.  Id.  Doc.  xv. ;  Hatts  speech  in  favor  of  a  Ntitional 
Railroad,  and  Review  of  the  Tehuanttpec  route;  Huntfs  Merc/taut*  Jlay.,  1849. 
VoL  xx.,  269-278. 


524  INCEPTION  OF   RAILWAY   ROUTES. 

to  any  individual  or  company,  or  corporation  chartered 
for  the  purpose  by  any  state,  which  might  contract 
with  the  United  States  for  the  work,  every  alternate 
section  of  land  designated  by  odd  numbers  within 
twenty  miles  of  each  side  of  the  route,  and  appropri- 
ating a  sum  not  exceeding  $600  a  mile  for  carrying 
the  mail  daily  on  the  road  for  a  period  of  not  more 
than  thirty  years ;  the  road  to  be  commenced  within 
three  years  from  the  date  of  the  contract,  and  com- 
pleted within  seven  years,  one  seventh  to  be  finished 
each  year.  The  party  bidding  lowest  for  carrying 
the  mail  and  complying  with  the  other  stipulations 
would  be  awarded  the  contract. 

On  the  15th  of  February  Gwin  offered  a  substitute 
for  this  bill.  It  called  for  three  roads  to  California, 
one  commencing  on  the  western  border  of  Texas, 
another  on  the  border  of  Missouri  or  Iowa,  and  a 
third  at  Wisconsin,  to  be  called  the  Southern,  Cen- 
tral, and  Northern  Pacific  railroads.  A  telegraph 
line  was  to  accompany  each  road.  There  should  be 
set  apart  for  the  construction  of  these  roads  a  quan- 
tity of  the  public  land  equal  to  the  odd-numbered 
sections  for  the  space  of  twelve  miles  on  each  side  of 
the  roads  for  their  whole  length,  and  where  the  lands 
were  occupied  a  selection  of  lien  lands  might  be  made 
from  any  unappropriated  lands  within  thirty  miles  of 
the  road,  except  in  California,  wrhere  the  selection 
might  be  made  within  fifty  miles,  mineral  lands  ex- 
cepted.  Immediately  on  the  enactment  of  the  bill, 
the  secretary  of  war,  the  secretary  of  the  interior, 
and  the  postmaster-general  were  to  cause  advertise- 
ments to  be  published  inviting  proposals  for  the  con- 
struction of  a  railroad  and  telegraph  line,  each  propo- 
sition to  state  the  general  route  selected,  the  time  to 
be  consumed  in  the  completion  of  the  work,  the  terms 
on  which  the  United  States  mail  would  be  carried 
daily  each  way,  and  the  charge  that  would  be  made 
for  carrying  troops,  military  and  naval  stores,  muni- 
tions of  war  and  government  freight  of  every  kind. 


BEFORE  CONGRESS.  525 

The  contractor  whose  proposal  should  be  accepted, 
should  deposit  $500,000  with  the  secretary  of  the 
treasury,  either  in  money  or  United  States  or  state 
bonds,  which  could  be  drawn  out  $5,000  at  a  time 
only  on  showing  this  amount  had  been  expended. 
The  road  was  to  be  divided  into  sections  of  100  miles, 
and  no  land  should  be  conveyed  until  one  of  the  sec- 
tions should  be  completed  and  hi  operation,  when 
there  would  be  conveyed  by  patent  of  the  United 
States  three-fourths  of  the  land  pertaining  to  that 
section,  and  so  on  to  the  end,  when  the  residue  of 
the  whole  subsidy  would  be  conveyed  to  the  con- 
tractors. On  the  completion  of  the  first  hundred 
miles  of  road,  and  when  it  should  be  in  full  operation 
in  the  territories  of  the  United  States,  the  contractors 
should  be  entitled  to  receive  an  advance  of  $2,500,000 
in  government  bonds,  redeemable  at  a  certain  period, 
and  bearing  interest  at  six  per  centum  per  annum, 
payable  semi-annually;  and  the  same  for  every  hun- 
dred miles  of  road  completed.  The  bonds  so  ad- 
vanced were  to  be  repaid  to  the  United  States  within 
fifteen  years  after  the  completion  of  the  road,  the 
government  to  have  Hen  on  the  road  and  its  equip- 
ments until  the  loan  should  be  fully  repaid,  which 
should  not  exceed  $1 5,000,000.  Should  the  first  con- 
tractors fail  the  work  might  be  relet.  As  soon  as 
the  general  route  should  have  been  selected  the  public 
lands  on  either  side  for  forty  miles  should  be  surveyed, 
the  Indian  title  extinguished,  and  the  preemption 
laws  extended  to  the  even-numbered  sections;  but 
the  lands  reserved  to  the  government  within  ten  miles 
of  the  road  should  not  be  sold  for  less  than  double 
the  minimum  price  of  the  public  lands ;  and  those  re- 
ceiving grants  under  the  bill  were  to  sell  and  convey 
unconditionally,  within  five  years  after  receiving  their 
patents,  one  half  of  their  grant ;  all  that  was  left  un- 
sold at  the  end  of  ten  years  to  revert  to  the  United 
States.  The  road  when  fully  completed  was  to  be 
surrendered  to  the  government,  free  of  cost,  for  the 


526  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

purpose  of  being  again  surrendered  to  the  several 
states  then  organized,  or  to  be  organized,  within 
whose  limits  it  should  be  located,  when  it  became 
with  their  assent,  the  property  of  such  states,  subject 
to  the  use  of  the  United  States  for  postal,  military, 
and  all  other  government  service,  and  subject  also  to 
such  regulations  as  congress  might  prescribe  restrict- 
ing the  charges  for  such  service. 

The  absurdity  of  Gwin's  proposition  was  evident, 
yet  the  freinds  of  a  Pacific  railroad  who  had  committed 
themselves  to  its  support  could  do  no  less  than  vote 
for  it.  Even  Seward,  for  whose  bill  it  was  substi- 
tuted, was  compelled  to  do  so."  It  was  this  or  noth- 
ing, and  he  meant  that  a  bill  should  pass.  Perhaps 
he  knew,  also,  that  the  bill  of  the  California  senator 
was  but  an  artifice  to  draw  attention  away  from  his 
purpose  to  defeat  any  scheme  for  a  northern  road ; 
but  he  was  at  least  as  good  a  diplomatist  as  Gwin, 
and  concealed  his  cognizance  of  the  intention.  The 
substitute  passed  the  senate  by  a  vote  of  24  to  21,  on 
the  19th  of  February.  It  went  to  the  lower  house, 
which  took  no  notice  of  it.  A  bill  altogether  similar 
was  before  that  body,  but  failed  to  pass. 

At  the  next  session  a  number  of  Pacific  railroad 
bills  were  introduced,  which  were  referred  to  the  same 
committee,"  a  committee  a  majority  of  whom  were 
opposed  to  the  passage  of  any  of  those  introduced," 
but  which  allowed  Weller  of  California  to  report  a 
bill  similar  to  that  of  the  last  session,  except  that  it 
called  for  but  one  road,  and  left  the  selection  of  the 
route  to  the  contractors.  This  bill  was  laid  on  the 
table.  In  the  lower  house,  the  hostility  of  the  south- 
ern members  to  any  Pacific  railroad  legislation  was 
undisguised  and  aggressive.  For  several  successive 
sessions, and  through  all  the  political  excitement  which 

41  See  Seward's  remarks  in  Cong.  Globe,  1854-5,  808-9. 

42 The  following  senators  constituted  the  committee:  Rusk  of  Tex.,  chair- 
man, Douglas  of  111.,  Bell  of  Tenn.,  Seward  of  N.  Y.,  Geyer  of  Mo.,  Evans 
of  S.  C.,  Reid  of  N.  C.,  Foot  of  Vt,  and  Weller  of  Gal. 

43  S^e  debate  in  Cong.  Globe,  1855-6,  ptii.,  p.  1720, 


STIMULUS  OF  SECESSION.  527 

preceded  the  civil  war,  the  Pacific  railroad  question 
was  presented  over  and  over,  in  every  form  and  with 
one  result,  until  the  session  of  1860-1,  when  the  house 
passed  a  bill  providing  for  two  roads,  since  it  could 
not  get  one,  but  the  senate  amending  it  so  as  to  re- 
quire three,  in  which  form  it  passed.  To  this  the 
house  would  not  consent,  and  it  again  failed." 

The  secession  about  this  time  of  the  southern  dele- 
gations, with  the  events  which  followed,  gave  a  new 
character  to  legislation.  Opposition  to  one  road  was 
withdrawn,  and  its  immediate  construction  was  im- 
peratively demanded,  not  only  as  a  commercial  but  a 
defensive  measure.  During  all  the  years  wasted  in 
fruitless  discussion  of  a  transcontinental  railroad,  the 
public  lands  had  been  developing  into  territories  and 
states.  California,  Oregon,  Minnesota,  and-  Kansas 
had  assumed  statehood ;  Utah,  New  Mexico,  Colo- 
rado, Montana,  and  Dakota  were  yet  in  leading 
strings,  but  would  soon  come  to  maturitv.  Congress 

t/ 

having  long  since  granted  the  right  of  way  over  the 
public  lands,  capitalists  had  availed  themselves  of  the 
privilege  to  build  roads  in  all  directions  where  the  pop- 
ulation would  sustain  them,  soon  discovering  that 
population  always  followed  a  railroad,  and  that  it  was 
safe  to  build  anywhere,  provided  the  country  would 
support  a  settlement.45 

**Gwin  says,  in  his  Memoirs,  MS.,  104,  that  there  was  a  large  majority 
in  the  senate  in  favor,  and  that  'there  was  an  equally  large  majority  in  its 
favor  in  the  house,  but  the  majority  of  that  body  determined  to  defeat  its 
passage  then  in  order  to  give  the  credit  of  inaugurating  this  great  system  of 
transcontinental  railroads  to  the  incoming  administration  of  Mr  Lincoln. ' 

45  The  system  of  land  grants  to  aid  in  the«construction  of  railroads  began 
in  Illinois  by  a  grant  from  congress  of  an  area  equal  to  4,055  sq.  miles,  or 
2,595,000  acres.  This  was  the  corner  stone  of  the  great  system  of  internal 
trade  and  travel.  The  grant  was  made  to  the  state  of  every  alternate  sec- 
tion for  six  miles  on  each  side  of  the  road  with  its  branches,  with  indemnity 
where  the  sections  were  not  found  of  other  land  within  15  miles  of  the  route. 
The  whole  line  of  over  450  miles  was  under  contract  in  1852,  from  Galena  on 
the  north  to  Cairo  on  the  south,  with  a  branch  to  Chicago,  and  10,000  men 
were  employed  upon  it,  at  an  annual  cost  of  $3,700,000.  It  was  fully  equipped 
in  1861,  with  over  100  locomotives,  100  passenger,  baggage,  and  express  cars, 
and  over  2,000  freight  cars.  The  company  had  sold  §16,250,000  worth  of 
their  land,  the  larger  moiety  remaining  unsold,  so  that  the  grant  was  esti- 
mated as  amounting  to  $10,000,000.  Lathams  Speech,  in  Cong.  Globe.  1861-2 
p.  2676, 


528  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

In  May  1862,  a  bill  passed  the  house  of  represen- 
tatives "  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad  and 
telegraph  line  from  the  Missouri  river  to  the  Pacific 
ocean,  and  to  secure  to  the  government  the  use  of  the 
same  for  postal,  military,  and  other  purposes."  It 
passed  the  senate  June  20th  by  a  vote  of  35  to  5, 
and  became  a  law  July  1st  of  that  year.  It  chartered 
a  company  consisting  of  men  of  every  northern  state, 
and  of  Maryland,  Kentucky,  Kansas,  Oregon,  Cali- 
fornia, and  the  territories  of  Nebraska,  Colorado,  and 
Nevada,  associated  with  five  commissioners,  to  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  secretary  of  the  interior. 

The  chief  points  in  the  act  to  which  I  shall  hereafter 
call  attention  were  first,  the  name  of  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  Company,  given,  not  as  might  be  conjectured, 
on  account  of  the  union  sentiment  of  the  loyal  states 
at  that  period,  but  because  it  was  intended  to  unite 
several  roads  in  forming  a  transcontinental  line, 
namely,  the  Pawnee  and  Western  railroad  company 
of  Kansas,  which  was  authorized  to  construct  a  rail- 
road and  telegraph  line  from  the  mouth  of  the  Kansas 
river  to  the  100th  meridian  of  longitude  west  from 
Greenwich  in  the  territory  of  Nebraska.  At  this 
point,  which  is  about  at  Elen  creek,  the  Union  Pa- 
cific proper  began,  and  continued  to  the  eastern  boun- 
dary of  California,  where  it  would  connect  with  the 
Central  Pacific  of  that  state. 

The  terms  and  conditions  upon  which  these  com- 
panies were  chartered  were  that  the  capital  stock  of 
the  Union  Pacific  should  consist  of  100,000  shares 
of  $1,000  each,  of  which  not  more  than  200  shares 
should  be  held  by  any  one  person.  No  person  should 
be  a  director  who  was  not  a  bona  fide  owner  of  at 
least  five  shares  of  stock.  The  right  of  way  through 
the  public  lands  was  granted,  with  the  right  to  take 
from  them  earth,  stone,  and  timber,  or  other  material 
for  the  construction  of  the  road  and  telegraph.  The 
United  States  should  extinguish  as  rapidly  as  possible 
the  Indian  title  along  the  line ;  and  there  was  granted 


PASSAGE  OF  BILL.  509 

to  the  company  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  the  road 
and  telegraph,  "and  to  secure  the  safe  and  speedy 
transportation  of  the  mails,  troops,  munitions  of  war, 
and  public  stores  thereon,  every  alternate  section  of 
public  land  designated  by  odd  numbers,  to  the  amount 
of  five  alternate  sections  per  mile  on  each  side  of  the 
railroad  on  the  line  thereof,  and  within  the  limits  of 
ten  miles  on  each  side  of  the  road  not  sold,  reserved, 
or  otherwise  disposed  of  by  the  United  States,  and  to 
which  a  preemption  or  homestead  claim  may  not  have 
attached  at  the  time  the  line  of  said  road  is  definitely 
fixed;  provided,  that  all  mineral  lands  shall  be  excepted 
from  the  operations  of  this  act ;  but  where  the  same 
shall  contain  timber,  the  timber  therein  is  hereby 
granted  to  said  company.  All  such  lands,  so  granted 
by  this  section,  which  shall  not  be  sold  or  disposed  of 
by  said  company  within  three  years  after  the  entire 
road  shall  have  been  completed,  shall  be  subject  to 
settlement  and  preemption  like  other  lands,  at  a  price 
not  exceeding  $1.25  per  acre,  to  be  paid  to  said 
company." 

When  forty  consecutive  miles  of  road  and  telegraph 
should  be  completed  and  ready  for  service,  no  other 
than  American  iron  being  used  in  the  rails,  or  in  the 
construction  and  equipment  of  the  road,  and  when 
three  commissioners  appointed  by  the  president  should 
have  examined  and  accepted  it,  the  secretary  of  the 
treasury  should  issue  to  the  company  bonds  of  the 
United  States  of  $1,000  each,  payable  thirty  years 
after  date,  bearing  interest  at  six  per  centum,  which 
interest  should  be  paid  semi-aonually  in  lawful  money 
of  the  United  States,  to  the  amount  of  sixteen  of 
these  bonds  per  mile  for  every  mile  of  the  completed 
section;  the  delivery  of  said  bonds,  twenty-five  per 
cent  of  which  were  retained  until  the  road  should  be 
completed,  to  constitute,  ipso  facto,  a  first  mortgage  on 
the  whole  line  and  telegraph,  together  with  the  roll- 
ing stock  and  property  of  every  kind  appertaining ; 
and  on  the  refusal  or  failure  of  the  company  to  re- 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    34 


530  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

deem  its  bonds,  or  any  part  of  them,  when  required 
by  the  secretary  of  the  treasury  to  do  so,  its  road  and 
property  might  be  taken  for  the  use  and  benefit  of 
the  government ;  the  grants  being  made  upon  the 
condition  that  the  company  should  pay  its  bonds  at 
maturity,  should  keep  its  road  and  telegraph  in  repair 
and  use,  and  at  all  times  ready  for  the  service  of  the 
government,  which  should  pay  a  fair  and  reasonable 
compensation  for  such  service,  but  not  more  than 
private  individuals  were  charged,  and  this  indebted- 
ness of  the  United  States  might  be  applied  upon  the 
bond  and  interest  debt  of  the  company  to  the  gov- 
ernment, and  after  the  completion  of  the  road,  at 
least  five  per  centum  of  the  net  earnings  should  be 
annually  applied  to  the  payment  thereof.  The  com- 
pany should  file  its  assent  within  one  year  from  the 
passage  of  the  act,  should  designate  its  route  within 
two  years,  and  should  complete  its  railroad  and  tele- 
graph within  twelve  years.  On  filing  a  map  of  its 
route,  the  lands  along  its  line  would  be  withdrawn 
from  market  and  surveyed  as  fast  as  necessary  for  tho 
purposes  entertained.  The  Kansas  company  should 
complete  100  miles  of  its  road  within  two  years  after 
filing  its  assent ;  the  Central  Pacific  company  of 
California  should  complete  50  miles  within  two  years; 
each  road  to  construct  an  equal  distance  each  year 
thereafter  until  the  whole  was  completed;  and  after- 
wards might  unite  upon  equal  terms  with  the  Union 
Pacific  company  to  complete  what  remained  of  that 
road.  So  also  the  Hannibal  and  St  Joseph  railroad, 
or  the  Pacific  of  Missouri,  might  unite  with  the  Kan- 
sas company,  and  in  case  the  latter  should  reach  the 
California  boundary  before  the  Central  Pacific,  it 
might,  with  the  consent  of  the  state  continue  on  to  a 
connection  with  that  road;  or  should  the  Central 
Pacific  first  reach  the  boundary  of  the  state,  it  might 
continue  on  to  a  meeting  with  the  line  from  the  east. 
For  150  miles  westwardly  from  the  eastern  base  of 
the  Rocky  mountains,  and  for  the  same  distance  east- 


SPECIFICATIONS  AND  CONDITIONS.  531 

wardly  from  the  western  base  of  the  Sierra  Nevada, 
the  number  of  bonds  per  mile  which  might  be  issued 
was  treble  the  amount  granted  for  the  level  sections, 
and  should  be  due  upon  the  completion  of  each  twenty 
miles;  and  between  these  two  mountain  divisions  the 
number  of  bonds  per  mile  to  be  issued  should  be 
double  the  amount  for  the  level  sections,  and  should 
issue  every  twenty  miles;  but  no  more  than  50,000 
bonds  should  be  issued  in  aid  of  the  whole  main  line 
of  the  road. 

The  Union  Pacific  company  was  authorized  and  re- 
quired to  construct  a  railroad  and  telegraph  line  from 
a  point  on  the  western  boundary  of  Iowa  to  the  100th 
meridian,  to  connect  with  the  roads  converging  to  a 
point  to  be  selected  by  the  president  on  that  line  of 
longitude;  and  was  required  to  build  100  miles  of  this 
road  within  two  years,  and  100  miles  each  year  there- 
after until  completed.  Whenever  a  railroad  should 
be  constructed  through  Minnesota  or  Iowa  to  Sioux 
city,  the  Union  company  was  required  to  construct  a 
line  to  connect  with  it  at  that  place.  The  penalty 
for  not  complying  with  the  terms  assented  to  was 
that  congress  should  take  possession  and  adopt  meas- 
ures to  have  the  road  completed.  The  government 
also  reserved  the  right  to  regulate  fares  after  the  re- 
ceipts of  the  road  should  exceed  ten  per  centum  upon 
its  cost,  exclusive  of  the  five  per  centum  to  be  paid 
to  the  United  States. 

Although  the  directors  of  the  Central  Pacific  did 
not  hesitate  to  accept  the  grant,  they  were  fully 
aware  that  it  was  entirely  insufficient,  and  that,  with- 
out further  action  on  the  part  of  congress,  to  complete 
even  the  first  forty  miles  might  be  a  task  beyond  their 
resources.  First  of  all  was  the  depreciation  in  gov- 
ernment bonds  and  currency  attending  the  civil  war, 
the  result  of  which  was  then  by  no  means  assured. 
But  a  more  serious  drawback  was  the  provision  of  the 
act  which  made  the  subsidy  in  bonds  a  first  mortgage 
on  the  road,  for  under  such  conditions  no  second  mort- 


532  INCEPTION  OF  RAILWAY  ROUTES. 

gage  would  be  accepted  by  capitalists,  without  whose 
aid  the  first  lot  of  subsidy  bonds  could  never  be  ob- 
tained. Moreover,  the  land  grant  in  California  was 
of  little  value,  for  under  the  terms  of  the  act  less  than 
200,000  acres  of  arable  land  could  be  obtained  be- 
tween Sacramento  and  the  state  line.  On  these 
and  other  representations,  on  the  2d  of  July,  1864, 
congress  passed  a  supplementary  act  enlarging  the 
subsidy  granted  two  years  before,  and  withdrawing 
the  more  objectionable  features;  but  of  this  mention 
will  be  made  in  the  following  chapter. 

The  main  causes  which  led  to  the  granting  of  gov- 
ernment aid  for  the  construction  of  a  transcontinental 
railroad  may  thus  be  briefly  summarized:  First,  it 
was  a  political  necessity,  partly  to  prevent  the 
threatened  withdrawal  from  the  union  of  the  Pa- 
cific states.  Second,  it  was  a  military  necessity,  one 
needed  to  provide  against  invasion  by  a  foreign 
power,  through  the  more  rapid  movement  of  troops 
and  munitions  of  war.  Third,  it  would  put  an  end  to 
Indian  wars.  Fourth,  it  wrould  furnish  cheaper  and 
quicker  means  of  transportation  for  mails  and  gov- 
ernment supplies.  Fifth,  it  would  aid  to  develop  the 
vast  and  then  almost  unpeopled  region  between  the 
Missouri  river  and  the  Pacific  ocean,  a  region  cover- 
ing more  than  one  half  the  area  of  the  United  States.46 

46  Before  proceeding  further  with  the  history  of  railroads  in  California,  I 
will  here  give  some  account  of  the  former  career  of  those  by  whom  were  or- 
ganized and  pushed  to  completion  the  Central  and  Southern  Pacific  systems. 
Although  frequent  mention  of  them  will  be  made  in  these  pages  in  connec- 
tion with  railroad  matters,  it  is  also  fitting  that  a  brief  record  should  be 
given  of  their  earlier  life  and  of  their  family  antecedents. 

Leland  Stanford  was  born  near  Albany,  N.  Y.,  on  the  9th  of  March, 
1824,  the  fourth  of  a  family  of  seven.  His  father,  who  was  a  farmer  by  oc- 
cupation, and  whose  land  adjoined  the  line  of  the  Albany  and  Schenectady, 
the  first  railroad  built  in  the  United  States,  took  an  active  interest  in  the 
work  going  on  around  him,  as  did  also  his  son  Leland,  some  of  whose 
leisure  time  was  passed  in  watching  its  progress.  At  the  age  of  20  the 
latter  began  the  study  of  law,  his  boyhood  having  been  passed  in  working  on 
his  father's  farm  in  summer  and  attending  school  in  winter.  In  1845, 
being  then  admitted  to  the  bar,  he  began  to  practise  his  profession  at  Port 
Washington,  Wisconsin,  where,  but  for  an  accident,  he  might  have  remained 
for  his  lifetime,  that  accident  being  the  destruction  by  fire  in  1852  of  his  law 
library  and  most  of  his  other  property.  Thereupon  he  determined  to  remove 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  533 

to  California,  where  he  arrived  in  July  of  that  year,  soon  afterward  starting 
in  basin  ess  at  Michigan  Bluff,  in  Placer  county,  and  in  1856  becoming  an  ac- 
tive member  in  the  firm  of  Stanford  Brothers,  one  of  the  most  prominent  in 
Sacramento.  The  later  career  of  Mr  Stanford  forms  a  part  of  the  history  of 
the  state,  and  here  it  remains  only  to  be  said  that  in  that  state  no  man  is 
more  highly  respected,  not  only  as  a  railroad  artificer,  but  as  a  statesman,  a 
citizen,  and  as  a  philanthropist. 

Charles  Crocker,  whose  services  as  superintendent  of  construction  were 
invaluable,  was  a  native  of  Troy,  N.  Y.,  his  birthday  being  September  1(3, 
1822.  When  only  ten  years  of  age  he  began  to  earn  the  money  with  which, 
a  few  years  later,  he  helped  his  father,  then  in  straightened  circumstances, 
to  purchase  a  farm  in  Indiana,  to  which  state,  in  1836,  the  family  removed. 
Here,  after  assisting  for  two  years  to  clear  and  cultivate  the  land,  he  found 
employment  in  a  saw-mill,  and  afterward  in  a  forge,  where  he  worked  for 
$1 1  a  month,  with  his  board,  and  permission  to  attend  the  district  school  in 
winter.  Soon  he  became  a  thorough  and  efficient  workman,  whereupon  he 
started  a  forge  of  his  own,  which  he  conducted  with  fair  success.  Li  1850 
he  crossed  the  plains  to  California,  and  some  two  years  later,  after  a  brief 
mining  experience,  established  what  soon  became  the  Jeading  dry -goods  house 
in  Sacramento.  In  1860  be  was  elected  to  the  state  legislature  on  the  repub- 
lican ticket,  and  in  1862  gave  up  the  management  of  his  business  to  devote 
his  fortune,  time,  and  abilities  to  the  Pacific  railroad  enterprise.  His  de- 
cease occurred  at  Monterey,  on  the  14th  of  August,  1888. 

Collis  P.  Huntington,  who  was  for  years  the  financial  agent  of  the  com- 
pany in  New  York,  was  born  Oct.  22, 1821.  at  Harwinton,  Connecticut,  where 
his  father  was  a  wool  manufacturer,  and  one  of  the  most  prominent  citizens. 
At  the  age  of  22  Mr  Huntington  began  business  as  a  general  merchant,  in 
conjunction  with  his  eldest  brother,  at  Oueonta,  N.  Y.,  where  he  remained 
until  1849,  when  he  removed  to  California,  and  opened  a  mercantile  house  at 
Sacramento  in  the  line  of  bard  ware  and  miners'  supplies.  In  1855  he  entere-i 
into  partnership  with  Mark  Hopkins,  with  whose  aid  be  built  up  the  well- 
known  firm  of  Huntington,  Hopkins  &  Co.  At  their  store  on  K  street  were 
held  some  of  the  meetings  at  which  the  railroad  associates  discussed  their 
plans,  with  the  ways  and  means  of  carrying  them  out.  In  1863  he  went  east 
with  a  full  power  of  attorney  to  employ  all  the  means  and  credit  of  his  col- 
leagues in  furtherance  of  the  great  enterprise.  It  was  largely  due  to  his 
skilful  management  that  all  their  obligations  were  promptly  met,  and  that 
their  bonds  took  rank  among  the  best  securities  in  the  moneyed  centres  in 
Europe. 

Mark  Hopkins,  the  treasurer  of  the  Central  Pacific,  was  the  eldest  of  the 
railroad  quartette,  bis  natal  day  being  Sept.  1,  1813,  and  his  native  place 
Henderson,  N.  Y.,  whence,  in  1825,  the  family  removed  to  St  Clair,  Mich. 
At  the  age  of  16,  his  father  being  then  deceased,  Mr  Hopkins  began  his 
career  as  a  clerk  in  a  mercantile  firm,  first  in  Niagara  co.,  N.  Y.,  and  after- 
ward at  Lockport,  where  he  became  the  leading  partner  in  the  firm  of  Hop- 
kins &  Hughes.  In  1837  he  began  the  study  of  law  with  his  brother  Henry, 
one  of  the  leading  practitioners  of  Lockport,  not  with  a  view  to  practise,  but 
for  the  training  which  it  afforded.  After  some  further  changes  he  removed 
to  California,  landing  in  San  Francisco  Aug.  5,  1849,  and  a  few  months  later 
opened  a  store  at  Placerville,  bringing  his  own  goods  by  ox-team  from  Sac- 
ramento. In  the  following  year  he  established  a  wholesale  grocery  business, 
in  conjunction  with  his  friend  and  fellow-passenger,  E.  H.  Miller,  Jr,  after- 
ward secretary  of  the  Central  Pacific  Co.  The  partnership  which  he  formed 
with  C.  P.  Huntington  in  1855  continued  until  the  time  of  his  death  in  March 
1878.  Mr  Hopkins  has  been  aptly  termed  the  Mentor  of  the  railroad  as- 
sociates, for  whenever  difficult  problems  arose,  he  was  consulted  as  one  who 
held  a  comprehensive  grasp  of  the  business  situation,  and  whose  decisions 
were  seldom  at  fault. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

1852-1888. 

ORGANIZATION  AND  LEGISLATION — ROUTES  AND  SURVEYS — ACTION  OF  CON- 
GRESS— FINANCES  AND  CONSTRUCTION — CENTRAL  PACIFIC  AND  UNION 
PACIFIC — STOCK  SUBSCRIPTIONS  AND  SUBSIDIES — OTHER  ROADS. 

THE  pioneers  of  the  American  state  of  California 
were  not  men  who  had  to  learn  that  upon  facilities  of 
rapid  transit  and  transportation  depended  the  devel- 
opment of  resources,  material,  political,  and  social. 
They  brought  that  knowledge  with  them,  and  while 
enduring  heroically  the  privations  of  a  country  naked 
from  the  creation,  planned  an  early  deliverance  from 
the  inconveniences  of  the  magnificent  distances  in 
\vhich  the  new  state  abounded. 

Among  the  first  legislative  proceedings  were  acts 
and  resolutions  in  favor  of  railroads  ;  a  joint  resolu- 
tion being  passed  at  the  first  session  instructing  the 
United  States  senators  thereto  elected  to  urge  upon 
congress  the  importance  of  proceeding  at  once  to  the 
construction  of  a  national  railroad  from  the  Pacific 
ocean  to  the  Mississippi  river,  by  ordering  surveys  of 
the  routes  under  discussion  in  congress.  The  same 
legislative  body  enacted  a  general  incorporation  law, 
with  a  chapter  on  railroads ;  and  the  second  legisla- 
ture passed  an  act  to  provide  for  the  incorporation  of 
railroad  companies,  which  was  amended  from  }rear  to 
year  to  meet  the  requirements  or  serve  the  interests 
of  the  companies  chartered.  In  1852  an  act  was 
passed  granting  the  right  of  way  to  the  United 

(534) 


LOCAL  EFFORTS.  535 

States  "for  the  purpose  of  constructing  a  railroad 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  ocean ;"  and  also  a 
joint  resolution  urging  the  California  delegation  in 
congress  to  give  their  attention  to  the  subject. 

The  legislature  of  1854  repeated  this  request,  and 
resolved  to  appoint  a  committee  of  three  from  each 
house  to  collect  information  in  relation  to  routes. 
The  southern  democrats  in  the  legislature  were  united 
in  insisting  upon  a  national  road,  by  which  was  meant 
one  constructed  with  money  out  of  the  public  treas- 
ury, and  that  the  route  should  be  a  southern  one.  I 
have  already  shown  how  these  demands  were  met  in 
congress.1 

As  might  be  supposed,  much  interest  was  early  ex- 
hibited, not  only  in  the  ideal  great  thoroughfare  which 
was  to  make  a  pathway  for  all  nations  across  the  con- 
tinent ;  but  in  local  railways  as  well.  In  1850  the 
practicability  of  a  railway  from  Sacramento  to  Co- 
lorna  was  discussed  in  the  public  press,  with  the  ad- 
vantage to  accrue  to  the  state.  Various  plans  were 
proposed,  and  several  companies  were  formed,  result- 
ing in  nothing  but  surveys  and  reports/  until  the 
time  had  expired  to  which  the  law  limited  the  pre- 
liminaries. Every  traveller,  and  particularly  every 
one  crossing  the  continent,  felt  called  upon  to  make  a 
statement  of  his  observations  for  the  benefit  of  future 
railroad  builders.3  So  every  local  expedition  to  aid 

1McDougall  of  CaL  made  a  good  speech  in  congress  on  the  need  and 
practicability  of  a  Pacific  railroad,  May  29,  1854;  pp.  16. 

2  Jtep't  of  Route  explored  from  Yreka  to  Huniholdt  river,  and  to  the.  Coast  in 
CaL  Jour.  Sen.  1853.  App.,  no.  3,  p.  41-2.  A  petition  by  D.  W.  Murphy 
and  others,  praying  for  right  of  way  for  a  railroad  from  Benicia  to  Shasta 
city.  U.  8.  Sen.  Jour.,  358,  440;  32  cong,  1  sess. 

^Froebel  in  1852  travelled  by  the  way  of  the  Arkansas  valley,  and  the 
Cimarron  to  La  Joya,  thence  down  the  Rio  Grande,  via  El  Paso,  to  Chihua- 
hua, returning  thence  to  the  U.  S.  in  1853.  In  1854  he  repeated  the  journey 
to  El  Paso,  travelling  thence  down  to  Gila,  and  over  the  Colorado  desert  to 
Los  Angeles,  in  Cal.  whence  he  came  to  San  Francisco.  Froehel,  Cent. 
America,  242-85.  G.  Harris  Heap,  one  of  the  party  accompanying  E.  F. 
Beale,  first  snp't  of  Ind.  Aff.  in  Cal.  wrote  an  account  of  the  daily  marches 
of  the  company.  They  travelled  by  what  was  then  known  as  the  central 
route,  terminating  at  Los  Angeles,  Heap,  Central  Route, 


536  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM 

immigrants  or  chastise  Indians  was  made  the  subject 
of  a  geographical  and  topographical  report  in  the  in- 
terest of  railroads. 

The  first  of  the  several  local  projects  to  be  at- 
tempted, and  which  finally  succeeded,  was  a  line  of 
road  from  San  Francisco  to  San  Jose,  and  thence 
east,  its  projectors  hoped,  to  the  Mississippi  river.  The 
scheme  was  agitated  in  1849-50,  and  subscriptions 
solicited  in  1850-51.  In  February,  1851,  there  had 
been  raised  $100,000.*  On  the  6th  of  September  a 
company  was  organized  under  the  name  of  the  Pa- 
cific and  Atlantic  Railroad  company,  and  soon  after 
surveying  was  commenced.  The  engineer's  report 
was  published  about  the  close  of  the  year,  when  an 
effort  was  made  to  get  the  company's  stock  on  the 
market  in  the  two  cities,  but  without  success.  At- 
tempts were  also  made  to  negotiate  for  subscriptions 
through  the  agents  of  banking-houses  in  New  York 
and  England,  but  as  no  portion  of  the  road  had  been 
constructed  the  effort  failed.  Congress  was  then  ap- 
plied to  for  aid  in  the  way  of  land  and  bonds,  but 
although  a  bill  was  passed  through  one  branch  of  the 
national  legislature,  it  went  no  further. 

The  affairs  of  the  company  remained  in  this  un- 
promising state  until  October  29,  1853,  when  it  was 
reorganized  under  a  new  incorporation  law.  The  cap- 
ital stock  was  then  fixed  at  $2,000,000,  and  for  a 
brief  period  the  prospects  of  the  road  seemed  good ; 
but  the  financial  reverses  of  1854-5  involving  its 
friends  in  the  disaster,  no  more  was  heard  of  it  for  a 
period  during  which  all  railroad  enterprises  languished.5 
The  misfortunes  attending  the  first  two  organizations 
deterred  others  from  reviving  the  Pacific  and  Atlantic 
railroad  until  1859,  when  a  third  company  was 
formed  and  incorporated  under  the  name  of  San 

*Sac  Transcript,  (Str.  Ed.)  Feb.  14, 1851.  Address  of  Committee  appointed 
at  a  public  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  San  Jose  in  relation  to  the  feasibility  of 
a  railroad  between  San  Francisco  and  San  Jose,  adopted  June  29,  1851. 

5  The  legislature  of  1855  extended  the  time  of  the  P.  and  A.  R.  R.,  and 
also  of  the  Marysville  and  Beuicia  National  R.  R.  Cal  Stat,  1855,  144. 


LOCAL  EFFORTS.  537 

Francisco  and  San  Jose  Railroad  company,  which, 
profiting  by  the  experience  of  the  pioneer  companies, 
sought  to  construct  at  least  a  portion  of  its  road  be- 
fore offering  its  stock  abroad.  The  legislature  was 
persuaded  to  enact  a  law  submitting  to  the  people  of 
the  counties  through  which  the  road  would  run  a 
proposition  to  vote  a  stock  subscription  of  $900,000. 
But  the  San  Francisco  press  opposed  the  subsidy  as 
a  fraud  upon  tax-payers,  and  so  discouraged  the  di- 
rectors that  they  dissolved  their  corporation  in  June, 
1860  Their  place  was  filled  by  a  fourth  organization 
in  July,  with  a  capital  stock  of  $2,000,000  divided 
into  20,000  shares  of  $100  each. 

The  new  company  had  the  same  obstacles  to  en- 
counter. It,  however,  put  the  road  under  construc- 
tion in  October,  the  contract  being  let  to  Charles  Mc- 
Laughlin  and  Alexander  H.  Houston,  to  complete 
according  to  specifications  within  three  years  for  the 
sum  of  $2,000,000,  of  which  $500,000  was  to  be  in 
cash,  $500,000  in  bonds  of  the  counties  through 
which  the  road  should  pass,  the  legislature  having 
again  come  to  their  aid;  $500,000  in  mortgage  bonds 
of  the  company  payable  in  ten  years,  drawing  eight 
per  cent  interest,  and  $500,000  in  the  capital  stock  of 
the  company.  The  amount  of  individual  subscrip- 
tions obtained  was  $285,300,  of  which  only  $100,000 
was  paid,  the  remainder  being  taken  by  directors  and 
contractors  to  prevent  the  stock  going  on  the  market 
to  be  at  the  mercy  of  brokers  and  speculators.  The 
road  was  opened  to  Mayfield,  thirty-five  miles  from 
San  Francisco,  in  October,  1863,  and  completed  to 
San  Jose  January  16,  1864,  to  the  great  joy  of  the 
three  counties.  It  was  extended  southward  to  Gil- 
roy  in  1869. 

The  Sacramento  Valley  Railroad  company,  which 
was  able  to  complete  its  road  at  an  earlier  date  than 
the  San  Francisco  and  San  Jose  company,  began  opera- 
tions about  the  same  time,  and  was  the  first  company  to 


538  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

make  a  railroad  in  California  an  accomplished  fact.8 
It  was  proposed  to  run  the  road  from  Sacramento 
alon"1  the  foothills  east  of  the  American  river,  and  to 

O 

branch  north  and  south,  passing  through  Placer  and 
Sutter  counties  to  Mountain  city  in  the  county  ot" 
Yuba,  a  distance  of  about  40  miles.  Ten  per  cent  of 
the  subscriptions  was  paid  in,  amounting  to  $5,000, 
when  the  company  reorganized  under  the  railroad  act 
of  1853.1  The  president  proceeded  to  Boston  and 
New  York,  where  he  arranged  with  capitalists  to  fur- 
nish material  for  constructing  the  road,  and  procured 
a  competent  engineer  to  survey  it — Theodore  D.  Ju- 
dah,  who  afterwards  projected  the  Central  Pacific. 
Grading  was  commenced  in  February,  1855,  and  in 
June  a  vessel  arrived  from  Boston  with  iron  and 
other  material,  so  that  track-laying  began  in  August. 
On  the  17th  of  that  month  the  first  platform-cars 
were  placed  upon  the  rails,  and  on  the  10th  of  No- 
vember a  party  of  excursionists  was  carried  ten 
miles  from  Sacramento  at  one  dollar  the  round  trip. 
The  formal  opening  of  the  road  to  Folsorn,  22  miles, 
took  place  February  22,  185G.  The  cost  of  the  road 
was  but  little  less  than  $60,000  a  mile,  at  which  rate 
it  was  not  possible  to  build  many  or  long  roads  in  a 
new  country.8  As  the  capital  stock  of  the  company 

6  The  directors  under  the  first  organization  were  C.  J.  Hutchinson,  Wil- 
liam McNulty,  James  L.  L.  F.  Warren,  J.  B.  Patch,  Julius  Wetzler,  E.  J. 
Willis,  John  Bigler,  William  H.  Watson,  J.  C.  Zabriskie,  Lewis  B.  Harris, 
Thomas  P.  Robb,  and  T.  M.  Freeman.  Sac.    Val.  R.  R.  Co.  Articles  o/A&so. 
and  By-Laws. 

7  On  the  reorganization,  the  directors  elected  were  C.  L.  Wilson,  Henry 
E.  Robinson,  R.  P.  Johnson,  John  Forsher,  C.  J.  Hutchinson,  Ferris  For- 
man,  W.   H.  Watson,  of  Sacramento;  C.  K.  Garrison,  H.  M.   Gray,   Levi 
Parsons,  James  A.  Me  Dougall,  of  San  Francisco;  A.  P.  Catlin,  of  Mormon 
island,  and  Hamlet  Davis,  of  Nevada.     The  treasurer  was  T.  W.  Page;  sec- 
retary, W.  H.  Watson;  engineer,  W.  B.  Foster;  committee  of  construction. 
Henry  E.  Robinson  and  Ferris  Forman. 

8  Robinson,  Seymour  &  Co.  were  the  contractors,  L.  L.   Robinson  being 
the  principal.     They  were  to  take  $45,000  per  mile,  £  in  cash,  J  in  bonds, 
and  £  in  stock  of  the  company.     Says  one  of  the  directors,  '  The  whole  thing 
was  sunk.  I  had  10,000  in  it,  and  sold  it  for  $1,900.  Burr's  Early  Commercial 
Ventures.  MS.  5.     The  statement  of  the  company  in  the  Sac.  Union  of  Dec. 
19,  1854,  was  that  the  contractors  were  to  build  40  miles  of  road,  and  to  take 
in  payment  $800,000  in  stock,  $500,000  in  bonds,  and  $500,000  in  cash  and 
notes,  as  the  work  progressed. 


LOCAL  ORGANIZATIONS.  539 

would  cover  no  more  distance  at  this  rate,  the  road 
stopped  at  Folsom,  and  its  earnings  went  to  pay 
its  debts.  No  blame  attached  to  the  directors',  whose 
sole  reward  was  the  glory  of  having  furnished  Cali- 
fornia with  her  first  railroad.  The  business  of  the 
road  was  good.  The  tonnage  of  vessels  of  every  de- 
scription arriving  at  the  wharves  of  Sacramento  in 
October,  1855,  was  38,327  tons,  the  largest  part  of 
which  was  for  the  mines,  and  made  a  respectable  in- 
come for  this  short  railway.  It  drew  to  itself  in 
time  twenty-one  different  stage  lines  at  Folsom.  It 
declared  in  1864  a  profit  of  $500,000.  The  following 
year  it  was  sold  to  George  F.  Bragg,  agent  of  the 
Central  Pacific  railroad  of  California,  by  L.  L.  Rob- 
bison  and  two  other  stockholders,  Pioche  and  Bay- 
erque. 

A  number  of  railroad  companies  were  organized  be- 
tween 1853  and  1863,  some  of  which  never  arrived  at 
the  dignity  of  an  actual  and  useful  existence,  while  a 
fair  proportion  were  constructed  either  wholly  or  in 
part.1*  In  March  1863  the  Freeport  Railroad  com- 
pamT,  with  a  capital  of  §150,000,  was  organized  to 
construct  a  branch  from  the  Sacramento  valley  road, 
at  or  near  Brighton,  ten  miles,  to  a  point  on  the  Sac- 
ramento river  at  or  near  the  Russian  embarcadero, 
the  object  being  to  make  a  new  landing  below  Sacra- 
mento, and  take  the  business  of  the  older  road  away 
from  that  city,  with  which  it  had  some  quarrel,  in 
which  case  it  was  expected  to  form  a  combination 
with  some  other  lines,  and  to  make  Freeport  the 

•The  officers  elected  in  the  autumn  of  1855  were  C.  K.  Garrison,  pres't; 
W.  P.  Sherman,  vice-pres't;  H.  R,  Payson,  sec'ty;  J.  P.  Robinson,  sup't; 
H.  Havens,  cashier;  C.  K.  Garrison,  K  Jones,  W.  P.  Robinson,  Levi  Par- 
sons, H.  E.  Robinson,  Theodore  F.  Mays,  J.  R.  Robinson,  E.  W.  Burr,  C. 
R.  Goodwin,  and  Edward  Flint,  directors. 

"Right  of  way  granted  to  the  Petalnma  R.  R.  CaL  Stat.,  1860,  p.  265. 
R.  R.  franchise  granted  to  a  company  to  construct  a  railroad  to  the  coal 
mines  in  Contra  Costa  co.  via  Kirker's  pass,  to  a  point  on  the  San  Joaquin 
river,  or  Suisun  bay.  Col  Stat.,  1862,  97.  A  franchise  granted  to  J.  S.  Kohn 
and  associates  to  construct  and  maintain  a  railroad  from  Corral  hollow  in 
Alameda  co.  to  a  point  on  the  San  Joaquin  river.  CaL  Stat.,  1S61,  309. 


540  RAILROADS -CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

shipping  point  of  the  upper  country.  The  track  was 
leased  to  the  Sacramento  valley  company,  which 
soon  after  sold  out  as  just  stated,11  together  with  the 
leased  road. 

The  first  point  to  which  the  mining  population 
flowed  after  Colonia,  was  to  Placerville,  at  the  con- 
fluence of  several  rich  ravines.  The  Mormons  of 
Carson  valley  found  a  way  across  the  Sierra  to  these 
mines  by  the  pass  of  the  Carson  river,  which  wras 
afterward  explored  by  agents  of  the  government,  and 
pronounced  superior  to  that  by  the  Truckee  river. 
It  was  adopted  by  the  immigration  of  1849,  and  every 
year  thereafter  many  persons  passed  over  it.12  On 
the  discovery  of  the  Comstock  lode  it  became  the 
highway  of  travel  to  Virginia  city. 

As  early  as  1854  a  railroad  meeting  was  called  in 
Placerville,  for  the  purpose  of  connecting  that  place 
with  the  Sacramento  valley  road,  but  the  business 
proceeded  no  further  at  that  time.  Soon  afterward 
there  was  a  decline  in  the  mining  interest  which 
threatened,  and  indeed  destroyed  much  of  the  trade 
enjoyed  by  the  Placerville  merchants,  and  a  discour- 
aging dullness  prevailed  until  the  Washoe  excitement 
revived  the  spirit  of  the  town.  Wagon  roads  were 
opened  through  the  mountains  by  other  passes 1S 

11  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  200.  The  first  directors  of  the  Freeport  company  were 
George  F.  Bragg,  J.  B.  Bayerque,  George  W.  Mowe,  J.  P.  Robinson,  aud 
J.  Mora  Moss.  £.  R.  Scraps,  20. 

12 The  Cal.  newspapers  call  this  the  Beckwourth  pass;  but  it  was  discov- 
ered by  Lieut  E.  G.  Beckwith,  who  belonged  to  the  expedition  ordered  to 
explore  the  route  near  the  38th  and  39th  parallels.  Says  the  report:  '  the 
survey  of  the  western  portion  of  this  route  by  Lieut.  Beckwith  has  resulted 
in  the  discovery  of  a  more  direct  and  practicable  route  than  was  believed  to 
exist,  from  the  Great  Salt  Lake  to  the  valley  of  the  Sacramento.  Since  his 
report  was  made,  a  brief  communication  from  Brevet  Lieut-col  Steptoe,  com- 
manding the  troops  in  Utah,  has  announced  the  discovery  of  a  still  more  di- 
roct  line  from  Great  Salt  Lake  to  San  Francisco.  The  new  portion  of  this 
route  passes  to  the  south  of  Humboldt  or  Mary's  river,  and  entirely  avoid- 
ing the  difficulties  experienced  by  travellers  along  that  stream,  proceeds  to 
the  valley  of  the  Carson  river,  being  well  supplied  with  water  and  grass. 
From  Carson  river  it  crosses  the  Sierra  Nevada  oy  the  passes  at  the  head  of 
that  river,  and  descends  to  the  valley  of  the  Sacramento,  being  practicable 
throughout  for  wagons.'  Pac.  R.  R.  Rep't,  i.  p.  16. 

1  •  The  first  one  of  those  was  known  as  Johnson  pass,  which  was  2, 000 
feet  lower  than  the  old  Carson  road.  The  trail  followed  the  exposed  south- 
ern slopes  of  the  valley  of  the  south  fork  of  the  American  river,  and  entered 


MOUNTAIN  PASSES  AXD  ROADS.  541 

branching  off  from,  the  Beckwith  pass,  one  or  more 
of  which  were  2,000  feet  lower,  and  consequently 
more  free  from  snow.  Competition  grew  up  between 
the  wagon  routes  where  tolls  were  collected,  to  the  ad- 
vantage of  the  travelling  public. 

A  tri-weekly  line  of  stages  was  established  from 
Placerville  to  Genoa  in  Carson  valley  in  1857,  via, 
Johnson  pass;  and  in  1858  the  overland  mail  from 
Salt  Lake  to  Sacramento  began  to  be  carried  over  this 
route.  The  following  year  came  the  Washoe  migra- 
tion, giving  the  Pioneer  stage  line  enough  to  do,  in 
fact  too  much,  and  a  company  was  organized,  which 
spent  $50,000  in  constructing  a  new  road  via  Straw- 
berry valley,  having  a  wide  solid  bed,  easy  grades, 
but  short  curves.  It  was  the  best  equipped  stage 
road  in  the  United  States ;  kept  sprinkled  in  summer, 
and  free  from  snow  in  the  winter.  The  coaches  were  of 
the  best,  the  horses  of  the  fleetest,  and  the  whole  out- 
fit, including  the  foppish  knight  of  the  whip,  a  delight 
to  the  eye.  The  hotels  at  Placerville  were  crowded 
in  those  days,  while  the  streets  were  filled  with  mon- 
ster freight  wagons  making  ready  to  cross  the  moun- 
tains with  their  great  loads  of  merchandise  or  machin- 

^y 

ery.  In  1863  the  tolls  on  the  new  roads  amounted 
to  $300,000,  and  the  freight  bills  on  mills  and  mer- 
chandise summed  up  $13,000,000.  All  this  pointed 
to  a  railroad  to  connect  at  Placerville  with  wagon 
transportation.  The  subject  was  agitated  in  1859, 
and  on  the  30th  of  January,  1860,  a  meeting  was 
called,  at  which  resolutions  were  passed,  but  nothing 
accomplished  in  forwarding  the  enterprise. 

For  the  seeming  apathy  of  Placerville  there  were 


shoes, 

way  lay  between  the  Carson  and  Johnson  passes,  called  the  Lather  pass. 
Placerville  was  1,755  feet  above  sea  level.  Old  Carson  road,  on  the  highest 
summit,  was  9,036  feet  above  the  sea,  and  on  two  other  summits  over  7,000 
feet.  Johnson's  trail  was  6,824  feet  above  the  sea  on  the  highest  summit, 
and  less  than  6,000  in  the  Lake  Tahoe  valley.  Lather's  pass  was  7,165  feet 
above  the  sea. 


542  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC   SYSTEM. 

reasons  which  will  appear  as  I  proceed.  Already  I 
must  have  said  enough  upon  the  subject  to  'impress 
upon  the  reader's  mind  the  status  of  railway  enter- 
prises in  California  during  the  first  twenty  years  of 
the  commonwealth.  Perhaps  I  should  have  more 
prominently  brought  forward  the  fact  that  each  cor- 
poration held  itself  to  be  a  link  in  that  coming  belt  of 
steel  which  was  to  span  the  continent  at  some  period 
as  yet  unknown,  but  foreordained.  The  sunburnt  im- 
migrant, walking  with  his  wife  and  little  ones  beside 
his  gaunt  and  weary  oxen  in  mid-continent ;  the  sea- 
traveller  pining  on  ship-board,  tortured  with  mal  de 
mer;  the  homesick  bride,  whose  wedding  trip  had  in- 
cluded a  passage  of  the  Isthmus  ;  the  merchant  whose 
stock  needed  replenishing;  and  the  miner  fortunate 
enough  to  be  able  to  return  home — every  one,  except, 
of  course,  the  men  of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship 
company,  prayed  for  a  Pacific  railroad.  And  they 
did  nothing  else  but  pray,  when  it  is  a  well-known 
maxim  that  the  gods  wait  for  a  beginning  before  they 
lend  their  aid. 

At  length,  in  September  1859,  a  Pacific  railroad 
convention  was  held  in  San  Francisco,  in  Assembly 
hall,  on  the  corner  of  Kearney  and  Post  streets,  ac- 
cording to  a  resolution  of  the  legislature  passed  April 
5th  of  that  year.14  There  were  present  at  this  con- 

14  Resolved,  by  the  assembly,  the  senate  concurring,  that  to  promote  the 
interest,  and  insure  the  protection  and  security  of  the  people  of  the  states  of 
California  and  Oregon,  and  the  territories  of  Washington  and  Arizona,  and 
especially  to  consider  the  refusal  of  congress  to  take  efficient  measures  for 
the  construction  of  a  railroad  from  the  Atlantic  states  to  the  Pacific,  and  to 
adopt  measures  whereby  the  building  of  the  said  railroad  can  be  accom- 
plished, it  is  expedient  that  a  convention  be  held  on  the  20th  day  of  Septem- 
ber, 1 859,  at  the  city  of  San  Francisco,  in  the  state  of  California,  composed 
of  delegates  from  the  said  states  and  territories.  Resolved,  that  the  people 
of  the  several  counties  of  the  said  states  and  territories  are  hereby  espec- 
ially requested  to  send  to  said  convention  delegates  equal  to  the  number  pf 
the  members  of  the  legislature  of  the  said  states  and  territories  to  which  they 
are  entitled  to  represent  them  in  said  convention.  Resolved,  that  his  ex- 
cellency, the  governor  of  this  state,  be  requested  to  send  copies  of  the  fore- 
going resolutions  to  the  governors  of  the  state  of  Oregon,  and  territories  of 
Washington  and  Arizona  respectively.  Cal.  Stat.,  1858,  391;  Pacific  R.  R. 
Memorial  to  the  President  of  the,  U.  S.,  Heads  of  Devartments,  Senate  and 
House  of  Representatives, 


SAN  FRANCISCO  CONVENTION.  543 

vention  delegates  from  every  county  in  the  state,  and 
from  Oregon  and  Washington.  Its  president  was 
John  Bidwell ;  its  vice  presidents  were  Edward  Lan- 
der, of  Washington  territory ;  Alexander  P.  Aukenv, 
of  Oregon  ;  E.  S.  Holden  and  George  W.  Crane,  of 
California ;  its  secretaries,  W.  Rabe,  O.  H.  Thomas, 
and  Henry  S.  Wells.  Thomas  H.  Pearne,  a  delegate 
from  Oregon,  offered  a  resolution  that  the  committee 
appointed  to  prepare  a  memorial  to  congress,  asking 
government  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  road 
through  the  territories,  to  connect  at  the  east  bound- 
ary of  the  state  with  such  road  as  might  be  con- 
structed in  California,  should  be  instructed  to  set 
forth  the  preference  of  the  convention  for  the  central 
route.  A  resolution  was  finally  passed  declaring  the 
preference  of  the  convention  for  the  central  route,  the 
feasibility  of  which  had  been  demonstrated  by  the 
maintenance  upon  it,  summer  and  winter,  of  a  stage  line. 

As  to  the  means  by  which  the  California  portion  of 
the  Pacific  railway  was  to  be  constructed,  it  was  pro- 
posed that  the  states  of  California  and  Oregon  should 
create  a  debt  of  $15,000,000  and  85,000,000  respect- 
ively, to  aid  in  the  enterprise ;  also,  that  a  railroad  fund 
should  be  created  by  setting  aside  funds  derived  from 
the  swamp  and  overflowed  lands  for  internal  improve- 
ments. A  preference  was  expressed  for  a  line  from 
San  Francisco  via  Stockton,  to  some  intersection  of 
the  central  route  between  the  42d  and  38th  degrees 
of  latitude,  thus  making  a  selection  which  congress 
had  never  yet  ventured  to  make,  or  endorse. 

At  this  convention  T.  D.  Judah,  the  engineer  of  the 
Sacramento  valley  and  other  local  railroads,  was 
present  as  a  delegate  from  Sacramento  city.  He 
was,  in  fact,  the  chief  promoter  of  the  meeting,  being 
deeply  impressed  with  a  belief  in  the  practicability  of 
a  Pacific  railroad,  and  possessed  of  a  desire  to  see  the 
enterprise  inaugurated  in  California;  perhaps  also, 
with  an  ambition  to  have  his  name  connected  with 
it.  For  months  he  pondered  over  the  problem,  taking 


544  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

into  his  confidence  a  few  business  men  of  Sacramento, 
and  urging  the  formation  of  a  company  to  venture  upon 
undertaking  the  California  division  of  a  transconti- 
nental railroad.  The  men  who  listened  most  approv- 
ingly were  Lei  and  Stanford,  Collis  Potter  Hunting- 
ton,  Mark  Hopkins,  and  Charles  Crocker. 

At  length  in  the  spring  of  1861,  Judah  called  a 
railroad  meeting  at  St  Charles  hotel  in  Sacramento, 
at  which  he  made  an  appeal  for  assistance  in  perfect- 
ing his  surveys  of  the  different  passes  of  the  Sierra, 
which  had  already  been  crossed  by  him  twenty-three 
times  in  different  reconnoissances.  He  reminded  the 
people  of  Sacramento  that  if  they  desired  to  have  the 
great  highway  end  with  them,  they  must  show  some 
faith  in  its  probability.  In  response  a  fund  was  raised 
to  keep  surveyors  in  the  field,  and  for  contingencies ; 
but  there  was  yet  no  organization. 

On  the  28th  of  June,  the  Central  Pacific  railroad 
company  of  California  was  organized,  under  the  gen- 
eral incorporation  law  of  the  state.  Leland  Stanford 
was  chosen  president,  C.  P.  Huntington  vice-president, 
Mark  Hopkins  treasurer,  James  Bailey  secretary,  and 
T.  D.  Judah  chief  engineer.  The  directors  were 
those  just  named,  and  E.  B.  Crocker,  John  F.  Morse, 
D.  W.  Strong,  and  Charles  Marsh.  The  capital 
stock  of  the  company  was  $8,500,000,  divided  into 
85,000  shares  of  $100  each.  The  shares  taken  by  in- 
dividuals were  few,  Stanford,  Huntington,  Hopkins, 
Judah,  and  Charles  Crocker  subscribing  for  150  each; 
Glidden  &  Williams,  125  shares;  Charles  A.  Lombard 
and  Orville  D.  Lombard,  320  shares  ;  Samuel  Hooper, 
Benjamin  J.  Reed,  Samuel  P.  Shaw,  50  shares  each; 
K.  O.  Ives,  25  shares;  Edwin  B.  Crocker,  10  shares; 
Samuel  Brannan,  200  shares;  cash  subscriptions,  of 
which  ten  per  cent  was  required  by  law  to  be  paid 
down,  realizing  but  a  few  thousand  dollars  with  which 
to  begin  so  important  a  work  as  a  railroad  across  the 
Sierra  Nevada. 

Indeed,  when  it  is  remembered  that  neither  con- 


ORGANIZATION.  545 

gress,  individual  states,  nor  syndicates  of  capitalists 
had  yet  been  found  willing  to  lay  hold  of  so  stupendous 
and  hazardous  an  enterprise  as  that  of  constructing  a 
Pacific  railway  at  that  time,  the  audacity  of  the  Sac- 
ramento corporation  in  attempting  the  most  difficult 
portion  of  it  appears  an  act  of  madness  or  of  inspira- 
tion. Few  were  found  to  give  material  encouragement 
to  the  project,  and  many  said  that  those  Sacramento 
merchants  who  had  ventured  upon  it  would  sink  their 
personal  fortunes  in  the  canons  of  the  Sierra. 

Of  those  men,  four,  at  least,  have  been  much  before 
the  country.  The  combination  was  a  fortunate  one 
for  its  purposes.  None  of  them  were  rich; 15  all  had 
been  accustomed  to  struggle  with  hardships  in  their 
youth.  Stanford  was  a /reader  in  the  republican  party 
just  coming  to  the  front  in  California,  and  was  gov- 
ernor of  the  state  through  the  most  critical  period  of 
the  formation  and  launching  of  the  Central  Pacific 
railroad  company  upon  the  sea  of  experiment.  He 
had  some  practical  knowledge  of  railroad  construction, 
having  been  in  the  service  of  his  father,  a  contractor 
on  canals  and  railroads.  He  had  also  the  reading  of 
a  lawyer,  and  had  practised  in  the  courts  of  Wisconsin 
previous  to  coming  to  California.  Personally  he  was 
strong  and  enduring,  exhibiting  great  tenacity  of  pur- 
pose and  power  to  execute  it,  with  a  certain  reserve 
which  indicated  unknown  qualities  behind  his  massive 
brows. 

Huntington,  a  native  of  Connecticut,  was  one  who, 
as  a  business  man,  had  few  equals  in  the  land  of  his 
nativity  or  adoption.  Energetic,  quick-sighted,  but 
cool  in  execution,  despising  nothing  that  had  a  dollar 
in  it,  nor  any  fair  means  of  making  a  profit,  he  had 
saved  and  gained  thirty  or  forty  thousand  dollars 

15 1  quote  from  a  memorial  to  congress  the  sworn  statement  of  Leland 
Stanford  and  brother  that  the  value  of  pfajjerty  owned  by  the  firm  in  1862 
was  §32,950;  of  Charles  Crocker  that  he  was  worth  $25,000  at  the  same 
period;  of  Mark  Hopkins  that^he  was  worth  $9,700;  of  C.  P.  Huntington 
that  he  had  property  amounting  to  $7,222;  and  of  Huntington  &  Hopkins 
that  they  owned  §34,115  in  18C2.  Petition  of  the  StocUialders  of  the  Centred 
Padjic  R.  R. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    35 


546  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

since  his  advent  in  California.  To  him  were  largely 
intrusted  the  financial  management  of  the  company's 
aft'airs,  the  negotiation  of  loans,  and  the  purchase  and 
forwarding  of  supplies,  all  of  which  duties  he  success- 
fully performed.  For  such  purposes  no  better  selec- 
tion could  have  been  made.  Judah  was  a  native  of 
Bridgeport,  Connecticut,  who  was  educated  at  Rens- 
selaer  Polytechic  Institute  of  Troy,  New  York,  and 
still  a  young  man,  having  been  born  in  1826.  He  pos- 
sessed enthusiasm,  and  the  courage  of  his  convictions. 

Charles  Crocker  loved  work  for  work's  sake.  En- 
tirely a  self-made  man,  a  man  of  remarkable  energy, 
of  strong  physique  and  power  of  will,  he  had  already 
become  one  of  the  most  successful  merchants  in  Sacra- 
mento. He  knew  how  to  manage  men  in  gangs,  hav- 
ing developed  some  coal  mines  in  the  west  before 
coming  to  California.  He  knew  the  value  of  money, 
and  to  quote  himself,  was  always  trying  to  "make  a 
dollar  buy  a  dollar  and  five  cents'  worth  of  material." 
No  danger  of  wastefulness  with  him.  E.  B.  Crocker, 
who  held  ten  shares  in  the  company,  was  an  engineer 
by  education,  and  afterward  a  lawyer  by  profession, 
a  man  of  good  ability,  and  one  of  the  most  industri- 
ous members  of  the  bar.  He  was  appointed  by  Gov- 
ernor Stanford  to  the  supreme  bench  in  1863,  to  fill 
an  unexpired  term,  after  which  he  became  counsellor 
to  the  company. 

Hopkins'  most  marked  traits  were  less  of  the  posi- 
tive sort  than  those  of  his  associates,  by  whom  he  is 
described  as  4<one  of  the  truest  and  best  men  that  ever 
lived,"  and  as  a  balance-wheel  in  the  company.  "I 
never  thought  anything  finished  until  Hopkins  looked 
at  it,"  says  the  vice-president,  wl  ich  is  praise  enough. 
Like  Stanford  and  Crocker,  his  earlier  career  had 
been  passed  in  New  York. 

Bailey,  the  secretary,  was  a  jeweller  of  Sacra- 
mento, and  a  friend  of  Judah's,  who  was  intro- 
duced by  him  to  Stanford,  Hopkins,  Huntington, 
and  Crocker.  He  was  succeeded  at  one  of  the  early 


ROUTE  CHOSEN.  547 

elections  by  Edward  H.  Miller,  a  partner  of  Hopkins, 
and  now  a  director  of  the  Southern  Pacific.  Together, 
the  railroad  associates  possessed  the  combination  of 
business  qualities  that  was  required  for  their  gigantic 
enterprise. 

The  result  of  the  surveys  in  progress  at  the  time 
of  organization  was,  that  of  the  three  several  routes 
surveyed,  one  through  El  Dorado  county,  which 
avoided  Placerville  ;  another  through  Nevada  county 
via  Nevada  city;  and  another  through  Placer  and 
Nevada  counties  via  Dutch  Flat,  that  by  Dutch  Flat 
was  chosen,  the  line  running  from  Lincoln  via  Clipper 
gap,  Illinoistown,  Dutch  Flat,  and  Donner  lake  pass 
to  the  Truckee  river.  The  months  of  August  and 
September  were  devoted  to  mapping  the  surveys, 
making  profiles  of  the  mountains,  and  gathering  in- 
formation to  be  laid  before  congress.  In  October 
Judah  went  with  these  to  Washington  to  endeavor  to 
secure  the  passage  of  a  Pacific  railroad  bill. 

If  from  a  financial  point  of  view  a  better  time 
could  have  been  selected  for  the  great  enterprise  than 
1861,  from  a  political  and  military  standpoint  none 
could  have  been  more  favorable.  Congress  could  no 
longer  wrangle  over  routes,  since  the  south  had  with- 
drawn from  the  contest,  and  a  rebel  army  held  the 
35th  and  32d  parallels.  It  needed  no  great  forecast 
to  perceive  that,  cut  off  from  the  Atlantic  states,  un- 
defended, and  divided  in  sentiment,  California  and 
Oregon  offered  tempting  opportunities  for  foreign  in- 
tervention, as  well  as  domestic  disunion,  or  that  the 
remedy  for  this  peril  was  railroad  communication. 
It  was  therefore,  as  I  have  said,  a  fortunate  time  to 
come  before  congress  with  a  bill  to  supply  this  need. 

The  California  delegation  at  this  time  consisted  of 
Latham  and  McDougall  in  the  senate,  and  Sargent, 
Phelps  and  Law  in  the  house.  Latham  had  made  a 
speech  in  favor  of  a  Pacific  railroad  in  January- ;  but 
it  is  one  thing  to  show  the  need  of  it,  and  another  to 
point  out  how  to  obtain  it.  Sargent,  who  was  newly 
elected,  travelled  in  company  with  Judah,  who  was 


548  RAILROADS-  CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

thus  afforded  the  best  of  opportunities  during  the  sea 
voyage  of  more  than  three  weeks,  shut  out  from  the 
world,  with  nothing  to  divert  his  attention,  while 
maps  of  routes  were  examined  by  day,  and  the  whole 
subject  talked  over  in  the  warm  still  nights,  when  the 
glory  of  the  heavens  was  rivalled  by  the  phosphores- 
cent fire  of  the  sea  through  which  the  steamer  cleft 
her  course.  When  the  people  of  California  get  ready 
to  remember  their  benefactors  in  statues  of  marble 
and  bronze,  I  trust  that  among  them  will  be  found  a 
monument  to  Theodore  D.  Judah. 

Fortunately,  Sargent  was  assigned  to  the  Pacific 
railroad  committee.  No  opportunity  offered  to  get  a 
bill  before  the  house  for  two  months,  but  when  he  at 
last  forced  its  attention  he  made  a  decided  impression. 
Then  began  the  labor  of  shaping  a  bill  so  that  it 
should  not  only  meet  the  views  of  Californians,  but 
secure  the  assent  of  the  Atlantic  states.  Up  to  this 
time  all  bills  but  one  had  been  framed  creating  but 
one  company  to  construct  the  whole  road. 

This  one,  called  the  Rollins  bill,  was  adopted  for  a 
base  on  which  the  superstructure  was  patiently  erected. 
It  proposed  in  the  first  place  to  recognize  the  Leaven- 
worth,  Pawnee,  and  Western  railroad  company  of 
Kansas,  the  Hannibal  and  St  Joseph  railroad  of  Mis- 
souri, and  the  Pacific  railroad  company  of  Missouri, 
as  competing  companies  for  the  eastern  end;  while 
the  Central  Pacific  of  California,  and  the  Nevada 
company  of  Nevada  were  authorized  to  construct  the 
western  end  of  the  Union  Pacific  railroad.  The  Per- 
ham  company  of  Maine,  which  had  its  bills  before 
congress  for  several  sessions  proposing  to  build  the 
Peoples'  Pacific  railroad,  was  first  put  in  the  house 
bill,  but  finally  expunged,  leaving  the  middle  space 
open  to  corporators,  as  previously  shown.  The  bill, 
as  it  finally  passed,  was  chiefly  moulded  by  Sargent, 
with  the  aid  of  Judah,  before  the  committees  of  both 
branches  of  congress.  Of  such  value  were  the  efforts 
of  the  latter  that  he  received  a  written  testimonial 


CONSTRUCTION  BEGUN.  549 

signed  by  the  friends  of  a  Pacific  railroad  in  both 
houses  of  congress,  a  great  burden  being  lifted  off 
the  congressional  mind  by  the  passage  of  this  bill, 
July  1,  1862,  the  chief  features  of  which  were  given 
in  the  preceding  chapter. 

In  July  1862  Judah  returned  to  California,  gladden- 
ing the  hearts  of  all  classes  with  the  news.  He 
made  his  report,  and  his  company  gave  notice  to  the 
government  of  the  acceptance  of  the  propositions 
contained  in  the  bill.  It  was  filed  in  the  office  of  the 
secretary  of  the  interior  December  1,  1862.  From 
this  tune  two  years  were  allowed  for  the  completion 
of  the  first  division  of  fifty  miles.  Forty  miles  must 
be  constructed  and  equipped,  and  the  telegraph  com- 
pleted before  the  issuance  of  the  government  bonds — 
$16,000per  mile  to  the  foot  of  the  mountains;  $48,000 
per  mile  through  the  mountainous  portion. 

To  procure  the  means  to  construct  the  first  forty 
miles  without  injury  to  their  several  private  interests 
was  the  problem  that  now  presented  itself,  and  com- 
pelled each  officer  to  assume  a  specific  duty.  Hunt- 
ington  became  the  agent  in  the  east,  where  he  was 
enabled  to  procure  material  for  fifty  miles  of  road; l* 
Stanford  looked  after  legislation  and  other  interests  hi 
California ;  and  Crocker  and  Hopkins  applied  them- 
selves to  the  business  details  necessary  to  be  attended 
to. 

On  the  22d  of  February  1863  the  ceremony  of 
breaking  ground  at  Sacramento  took  place,  Governor 
Stanford  throwing  the  first  shovelful  of  earth,  in  the 
presence  of  the  legislature  and  other  spectators. 

18  The  reader  most  not  expect  to  find  every  transaction  of  the  Central 
Pacific  railroad  explained,  nor  would  it  indeed  be  possible  to  make  soch  expla- 
nation. Bat  sach  things  as  have  at  different  times  come  out  in  suits  at  law, 
and  by  voluntary  admissions,  are  of  course  available  and  proper  historical 
matter.  It  was  represented  that  the  company  had  been  able  to  dispose  of 
900  of  its  bonds  *  at  rates  more  favorable  than  could  have  been  expected.' 
Sac.  Union,  July  14,  1863.  Huntington  himself  says  that  one  of  the  ways 
adopted  to  raise  the  credit  of  the  company  was  to  make  its  members  indi- 
vidually and  personally  responsible  for  a  debt  of  $250.000.  However  that 
may  be,  it  is  certain  that  he  shipped  home  the  iron  and  other  material  for 
the  50  miles  required. 


550  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

Addresses  were  made  by  the  governor,  and  by  J.  A. 
Benton,  A.  M.  Crane,  J.  H.  Warwick,  W.  H.  Sears, 
Newton  Booth,  J.  T.  Morse,  and  Charles  Crocker. 

Having  determined  upon  its  route,  a  contract  was 
let  for  the  first  eighteen  miles,  the  track  to  be  laid  by 
the  middle  of  August  1863  ;  but  it  was  not  so  com- 
pleted until  about  January  1864.  Thirty-one  miles 
were  completed  by  the  16th  of  September. 

Meantime  the  Union  Pacific  had  not  commenced 
construction  at  its  end  of  the  line,  nor  did  it  commence 
until  congress  had  been  prevailed  upon  to  double  the 
amount  of  aid  granted.  The  bill  passed  by  congress 
in  July  1864  benefited  as  much  the  California  com- 
pany as  the  Union  Pacific,  although  the  former  appears 
but  incidentally  in  it.  In  October  1863,  Judah  set 
out  a  second  time  for  Washington,  to  ask  for  further 
benefits,  but  was  stricken  with  fever,  and  died  in  New 
York,  when  Huntington  succeeded  to  his  work  before 
congressional  committees.  He  had  already  been  del- 
egated to  proceed  to  Washington  to  prevent  the  bill 
then  before  congress  from  requiring  the  payment  of 
any  interest  on  government  bonds  for  a  term  of  not 
less  than  ten  years. 

The  amended  act  increased  the  land  grant  from 
6,400  acres  per  mile  to  12,800.  The  reservation  of 
mineral  lands  was  removed,  as  far  as  concerned  coal 
and  iron ;  the  time  for  designating  the  general  route 
was  extended  one  year,  while  the  amount  to  be  annu- 
ally constructed  was  reduced  from  fifty  to  twenty-five 
miles.  The  reservation  by  the  government  of  a  por- 
tion of  its  lands  to  be  issued  to  the  companies  was 
repealed,  and  if  the  chief  engineer  of  either  corpora- 
tion should  certify  that  a  certain  portion  of  the  work 
required  it,  to  prepare  the  road  for  the  superstructure 
for  any  section  of  twenty  miles,  the  secretary  of  the 
treasury  was  authorized  to  issue  a  proportion  of  the 
bonds  which  would  have  been  due  on  completion 
amounting  to  two  thirds.  Either  company  might,  on 
completion  of  each  section,  issue  first  mortgage  bonds 


THE  ACT  AMENDED  551 

on  its  road  and  telegraph  line  to  the  amount  of  the 
bonds  of  the  United  States  to  be  issued  to  them  on 
an  even  date;  and  the  lien  of  the  government  should 
be  subordinate  to  that  of  the  bonds  of  the  companies 
issued  on  their  roads  and  equipments ;  besides  which, 
the  government  would  issue  its  bonds  to  the  companies 
every  twenty  instead  of  forty  miles,  as  in  the  original 
act.  Further  than  this,  the  amount  to  be  advanced 
by  the  government  to  the  Central  Pacific  was  largely 
increased,  owing  to  the  nature  of  the  country  through 
which  the  railroad  must  pass,  $48,000  per  mile  being 
allotted  to  150  miles  of  the  mountainous  portion, 
which,  as  was  afterward  conceded,  began  within 
seven  miles  of  Sacramento,  though  there  were  no 
steep  grades  to  be  overcome  for  several  times  that 
distance.  Should  the  company  elect  to  build  east  of 
the  state  line,  it  would  be  allowed  bonds  of  the  govern- 
ment at  the  rate  of  thirty-two  of  $1,000  each  per  mile, 
the  understanding  being  that  the  whole  country  be- 
tween the  Rocky  range  and  the  Sierra  Nevada  was 
more  or  less  mountainous,  although  there  are  portions 
of  the  distance  between  Carson  valley  and  Salt  lake 
nearly  as  level  as  the  Platte  valley,  where  the  Union 
Pacific  received  only  $16,000  per  mile  aid  in  bonds  of 
the  United  States.  The  contract,  which  was  filed  in 
the  office  of  the  secretary  of  the  interior,  was  that  the 
government  should  pay  six  per  cent  interest  on  these 
bonds  in  semi-annual  payments,  but  that  the  whole 
amount  of  the  loan,  principal  and  interest,  should  be 
repaid  in  thirty  years,  less  the  sum  of  the  value  of  the 
services  performed  for  the  government  during  that 
time  in  carrying  mails,  transporting  troops,  and  gov- 
ernment stores,  etc.  The  only  limitation  to  the  equal 
privileges  of  the  Central  with  the  Union  Pacific  in 
the  bill  was  that  authority  was  given  only  to  construct 
150  miles  of  road  east  of  the  boundary  line  of  Califor- 
nia." The  two  companies  might  consolidate  upon  any 

n  Says  Huntington:  '  150  miles  ought  not  to  have  gone  into  the  bill;  but 
I  said  to  Mr  Union  Pacific,  when  I  saw  it,  I  would  take  that  out  as  soon  as  I 


552  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

terms  they  might  agree  upon,  with  a  capital  stock 
not  to  exceed  the  actual  cost  of  the  roads  so  consoli- 
dated. The  only  guard  set  up  for  the  protection  of 
the  government's  interest  in  the  roads  was  by  the 
appointment  of  government  directors,  increased  from 
three  to  five  in  the  amended  act.  The  office  was  a 
mere  sinecure,  these  extraordinary  officials  knowing 
no  more  about  the  roads  they  *  directed '  than  the 
real  directors  might  choose  to  tell  them.18 

The  Union  Pacific  made  no  movement  towards 
construction  until  after  the  passage  of  the  amended 
act,  whereas  the  Central  Pacific  of  California  had  been 
more  than  a  year  at  work,  and  had  become  entitled 
to  receive  $1,264,000  in  United  States  bonds  by  so 
doing.  Up  to  this  point  the  Central  had  not  felt 
secure  in  its  undertaking,  and  had  met  with  much  op- 
position, both  from  rival  corporations  and  from  the 
San  Francisco  press,  the  latter  contending  from  1862 
to  1864  that  the  company's  means  were  inadequate  to 
the  business  in  hand,  and  laughing  at  a  railroad  com- 
pany for  building  a  wagon-road  from  Carson  valley 
to  Dutch  Flat  on  their  line,  as  a  feeder  to  their  road. 
They  built  this  road  in  1863-4,  to  divert  the  Placer- 
ville  traffic,  as  well  as  to  draw  travel  to  their  railroad; 
and  because  the  El  Dorado  county  people  had  organ- 
ized a  company  to  connect  with  the  Sacramento  val- 
ley railroad,  which  was  to  be  brought  to  Placerville 
and  continued  on  through  Johnson  pass  to  Virginia  city 
before  the  Central  could  reach  there  and  secure  the 
trade  of  that  prosperous  mining  region.  This  com- 

.wanted  it  put  In  1866  I  went  to  Washington.  I  got  a  large  majority  of 
them  without  the  use  of  one  dollar.  We  still  had  our  means,  and  wanted 
to  get  every  vote,  so  I  went  into  the  gallery  for  votes — one  head  after  an- 
other. I  sat  right  there.  I  examined  the  face  of  every  man,  and  I  am  a 
good  judge  of  faces.  I  examined  them  carefully  through  my  glass.  I  didn't 
see  but  one  man  I  thought  would  sell  his  vote.  MS.,  79. 

18  This,  at  least,  is  the  company's  view  of  their  usefulness  after  20  years' 
experience.  'The  U.  S.  directors  of  the  Union  Pacific,'  he  says,  '  go  .1 
ing  once  or  twice  a  year — they  take  a  car  and  go'a  fishing.  It  costs  the 
company  probably  $5,000  a  year  to  take  them  around.  They  are  not  worth 
an  iota  to  the  government.  Of  course  there  have  been  one  or  two  exceptions 
*.  ..When  they  get  tired  of  it  they  come  back.'  Huntinyton,  MS.,  73-ti. 


SACRAMENTO  VALLEY  COMPANY.  553 

pany  was  formed  in  January  1863,  but  no  work  upon 
the  line  was  undertaken  until  the  spring  of  1863, 
when  proposals  were  invited.  The  estimate  was 
placed  too  low,  but  the  road  was  constructed  twenty- 
seven  miles  to  Shingle  springs  by  the  middle  of  June 
1865.  The  company  owned  no  rolling  stock,  but  used 
that  of  the  Sacramento  valley  company.  In  short, 
after  a  hard  struggle,  it  came  to  an  end  at,  nowhere  I 
assisted  by  the  Central  Pacific  in  arriving  at  that  un- 
desirable goal.1' 

"There  is  quite  a  pathetic  history  attached  to  this  railroad  enterprise — 
pathetic  when  it  is  remembered  that  upon  its  success  depended  the  welfare 
of  a  once  thriving  and  enterprising  community,  and  that  it  failed.  The  first 
pres't  of  the  company  was  S.  W.  Sanderson;  chief  engineer,  Francis  A. 
Bishop.  In  1834  Charles  E.  Mcl.ane  was  chosen  pres't;  Ogden  Squires,  vice- 
pres't;  J.  M.  Douglas,  treas.;  N.  A.  Hamilton,  sec.  El  Dorado  co.  sub- 
scribed  $203,000,  and  paid  up  its  first  installment  of  ten  per  cent.  Placer* 
Tille  was  also  a  subscriber  to  a  considerable  amount.  In  March  1864,  the 
S,  V.  R  R  co.,  being  a  partner  with  the  Placerville  Co.,  and  wishing  to 
assist  in  the  rapid  construction  of  its  road,  issued  to  Louis  McLane  and 
Danforth  N.  Barney,  a  trust  mortgage  providing  for  the  issuance  of  750 
bonds  of  $1,000  each,  payable  in  60  years,  at  ten  per  cent  interest,  but  issu- 
ing only  448  of  the  bonds,  which  were  used  in  the  construction  of  the  Placer- 
ville R.  R  from  Folsom  to  Latrobe.  The  interest  on  the  issued  bond*  was 
paid,  but  not  on  the  non-issued  bonds.  In  1869  the  Placerville  co.  became 
indebted  to  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  $150,000,  which  was  a  second  mortgage  trust 
conveyance.  In  1871  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  obtained  judgment  in  El  Dorado  co. 
against  the  company,  and  its  property  was  sold  on  execution  to  William 
Alvord,  subject  to  the  trust  mortgage.  Subsequently  to  the  title  being  ac- 
quired by  Alvord,  Leland  Stanford,  Mark  Hopkins,  and  C.  P.  Huntington 
acquired  three-fourths  of  the  capital  stock  of  the  company,  as  well  as  the 
Alvord  interest,  entering  into  possession  of  the  property;  after  which  time 
the  Placerville  company  was  an  insolvent  corporation,  transacting  no  bus- 
iness, and  having  only  a  nominal  existence.  In  1876  Stanford  &  Co.  conveyed 
the  road  to  the  Placerville  company,  which  operated  it  for  account  of  the 
Central  Pacific,  under  the  name  of  the  Folsom  and  Placerville  Co.  On 
the  13th  of  April,  1877,  the  S.  V.  R.  R.  and  the  F.  and  P.  R.  R  companies 
entered  into  an  amalgamation.  In  the  meantime  Barney  died,  and  Mc- 
Lane, the  surviving  trustee,  asked  to  be  put  in  possession  of  the  road,  which 
the  Sac.  and  Placerville  R  R  co.  refused  to  surrender,  when  the  court  was 
asked  to  appoint  a  receiver,  which  was  done.  The  S.  and  P.  R.  R.  then 
brought  suit  to  determine  whether  the  district  court  had  jurisdiction  to 
appoint  a  receiver,  and  the  sup.  ct  sustained  the  lower  ct.  These  were 
but  two  of  the  many  suits  growing  out  of  the  affairs  of  this  company. 
A  majority  of  the  stock  of  the  company  was  in  the  hands  of  Louis  McLane, 
in  trust  for  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  as  security  for  a  loan.  At  the  next  election 
he  voted  the  shares  he  held  to  elect  a  board  of  trustees,  who  conveyed  to  him 
the  whole  road  in  trust  for  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  All  construction  was  at  an 
end,  and  Placerville  was  left  to  bewail  her  misfortunes  amid  the  ashes  of  her 
hopes.  The  Placerville  stockholders  however  brought  suit  to  declare  the 
election  of  McLane's  trustees  void,  on  the  ground  that  a  trustee  has  no  right 
to  vote.  Judge  Brockway  sustained  McLane.  but  the  sup.  court  reversed 
the  decision,  and  declared  that  a  board  could  not  perpetuate  its  power  by 


554  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

The  Placerville  and  Sacramento  valley  railroad 
company  was  one  of  the  first,  after  the  Central  Pa- 
cific company,  to  receive  congressional  aid.  A  grant 
of  land  was  made  in  1866,  conditioned  upon  the  road 
being  completed  to  Virginia  city  within  a  given  time. 
The  grant  gave  the  road  ten  alternate  sections  of  land, 
not  mineral,  per  mile,  which  if  not  found  in  the  imme- 
diate vicinity  of  the  road  could  be  taken  wherever 
found  within  a  twenty-mile  belt,  or  if  not  found  there, 
beyond  that.  It  was,  in  fact,  a  floating  grant  of  ten 
sections  per  mile  for  the  whole  distance.  The  road 
not  being  built  to  Placerville,  and  extending  but 
eighteen  miles  within  the  county,  the  people  of  this 
region  protested  against  the  grant  being  allowed,  and 
the  matter  was  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  legis- 
lature, which  in  1872,  and  again  in  1874,  requested 


giving  stock  in  trust  to  its  friends.  In  Jan.  1881,  the  judge  of  the  superior 
court  of  S.  F.  ordered  the  Central  Pacific  company  to  deposit  in  court,  to 
abide  the  event  of  actions  pending  therein,  $377,500,  within  thirty  days,  or 
surrender  the  possession  of  the  Placerville  railroad  to  Louis  McLane,  whom 
Judge  Dwindle  had  appointed  receiver  in  the  case  of  McLane  v.  The  Rail- 
road Company.  What  the  company  did,  under  this  order,  was  to  remove 
its  rolling  stock,  and  leave  the  possession  of  the  road  to  McLane.  This  ac- 
tion impelled  the  supervisors  of  El  Dorado  county  to  employ  eminent  counsel 
to  procure  a  modification  of  the  order  of  the  superior  judge,  so  as  to  permit 
the  company  to  reopen  the  road,  or  compel  the  receiver  to  do  so.  In  this 
attempt  they  were  successful,  and  McLane  had  already  contracted  for  a 
locomotive,  when  judgment  was  given  against  the  company  for  $26,000,  on 
account  of  bonds  held  by  one  Kittle,  and  over  $20, 000  for  costs  and  expenses, 
wlureupon  the  company  took  an  appeal  and  gave  a  bond  for  $70,000,  and 
the  receiver  was  discharged,  liberating  the  road,  which  resumed  its  regular 
business  in  July  1882.  'ihe  taxes  assessed  to  El  Dorado  co.  on  bonds  of  the 
railroad  nearly  caused  its  ruin.  The  unpaid  interest  in  1873  amounted 
to  $75,000,  which  added  to  the  tax  levied  for  ordinary  expenses  made  a  total 
of  $7.25  on  every  $100  worth  of  property  in  the  co.,  the  taxable  property  of 
which  had  been  gradually  declining  for  several  years  with  the  failure  of  the 
mining  interest.  The  Central  Pacific  procured  a  mandate  of  the  supreme 
court  ordering  the  supervisors  of  El  Dorado  co.  to  levy  the  railroad  interest 
tax;  but  the  supervisors,  anticipating  this  movement,  filed  their  resignation 
with  the  county  clerk  to  take  effect  a  few  days  previous  to  the  arrival  of  the 
mandamus  at  Placerville;  and  as  there  were  then  no  supervisors  in  the 
county  it  could  not  take  effect.  The  Placerville  Democrat  intimated  that 
the  tax  would  be  resisted  to  a  bloody  issue.  Sac.  U-nzon,  Oct.  29,  1873.  These 
troubles  were  finally  settled,  and  Placerville  was  connected  with  Sac.  by 
rail  in  Dec.  1877;  the  Sac.  valley  R.  R.  co.  and  the  Folsom  and  Placerville 
R.  R.  co.  being  consolidated  in  April  1877.  In  the  meantime  her  business 
men  had  long  before  migrated  to  escape  from  the  blight  imposed  upon  the 
county  by  railroad  mismanagement,  and  she  must  begin  at  the  very  founda- 
tion to  build  up  a  decayed  city. 


555 


congress  to  revoke  it,  and  it  was  restored  to  the  pub- 
lic domain  in  April  of  the  latter  year. 

Hardly  a  railroad  in  California — and  there  were 
many  companies  organized  about  this  time,  but  re- 
ceived more  encouragement  from  the  press  of  the 
state  than  the  Central  Pacific,  whose  directors  were 
mercilessly  assailed  in  many  a  bitter  paragraph. 
Whatever  of  local  jealousy  there  may  have  been  in 
these  newspaper  hostilities,  there  was  also  the  pardon- 
able fear  that  the  Central  company,  not  having  the 
means  to  prosecute  so  great  an  undertaking  to  the 
end,  would  content  itself  with  making  connection  at 
Dutch  Flat  with  its  wagon-road  to  Virginia  city,  and 
become  an  impediment  in  the  way  of  other  and  perhaps 
wealthier  companies.  Such,  indeed,  it  might  have 
been  had  not  the  amended  Pacific  railroad  act  lifted 
them  above  the  fear  of  failure.  From  the  moment 
of  receiving  the  additional  land  grant,  and  permis- 
sion to  mortgage  their  road  as  fast  as  dbmpleted,  thus 
in  effect  doubling  the  amount  of  government  bonds 
loaned  to  them,  all  doubt  of  their  ability  to  perform 
what  they  had  undertaken  vanished.  Up  to  that 
time  they  had  been  upon  pretty  much  the  same  foot- 
ing with  other  California  roads,  compelled  to  seek 
county  subsidies  and  subscriptions  to  caoital  stock, 
and  to  solicit  state  aid. 

No  less  than  seven  several  acts  favoring  the  Cen- 
tral Pacific  company  were  passed  by  the  legislature 
and  approved  by  Governor  Stanford  in  1863.  The 
first  granted  the  right  of  way  in  the  city  of  Sacra- 
mento, and  all  the  overflowed  land  within  the  city 
limits  which  had  been  previously  granted  to  it  by  the 
state ;  the  second  authorized  the  relocation  of  the 
road  if  found  to  be  expedient ;  the  third  gave  the  San 
Francisco  board  of  supervisors  lea v  3  to  subscribe,  sub- 
ject to  the  will  of  the  people,  $1,000,000  to  the  capi- 
tal stock  of  the  Western  and  Central  Pacific  compa- 
nies ;  the  fourth  authorized  the  supervisors  of  Placer 
county  to  subscribe  $250,000  in  stock ;  the  fifth  au- 


556  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

thorized  Sacramento  county  to  subscribe  $300,000  in 
stock ;  the  sixth  authorized  the  Sacramento,  Placer, 
and  Nevada  Railroad  company  to  sell  and  convey 
to  the  Central  Pacific  company  its  road,  prop- 
erty, franchises,  rights  and  privileges;  the  seventh 
declared  that  whenever  the  company  should  have 
fully  completed  twenty  consecutive  miles  of  any  por- 
tion of  their  road,  it  should  be  entitled  to  warrants 
upon  the  state  treasury  to  the  amount  of  $10,000  per 
mile ;  but  it  provided  that  only  the  first  twenty-mile 
section  should  be  allowed  to  draw  before  it  could  be 
shown  that  $300,000  had  been  expended  upon  the 
construction  of  the  road  between  Sacramento  and  a 
point  fifty  miles  east  of  the  point  of  beginning ;  and 
further,  that  for  the  first  two  years  only  $100,000, 
with  interest  at  seven  per  cent,  should  be  paid  annu- 
ally, and  $200,000,  with  interest,  each  fiscal  year 
thereafter.  The  conditions  upon  which  the  company 
received  this  subsidy  were,  that  at  all  times  when  it 
should  be  required,  it  should  transport  over  its  road 
public  messengers,  convicts  going  to  the  state  prison, 
materials  for  the  construction  of  the  state  capital, 
articles  for  exhibition  at  the  state  fairs,  and  in  case  of 
war,  invasion,  or  insurrection,  troops  and  munitions  of 
war  free  of  charge.  Placer  and  Sacramento  counties 
subscribed  as  authorized  by  the  legislature  and  the 
vote  of  the  people  willingly  enough,  but  San  Fran- 
cisco gave  a  world  of  trouble,  chiefly  owing  to  the 
adverse  counsel  of  the  local  press.  Here  was  a  com- 
pany, they  said,  of  a  few  almost  unknown  individuals 
of  an  interior  town,  possessed  of  insufficient  means 
to  commence  with,  yet  who  had  spent  $200,000  in 
killing  the  Placerville  railroad  by  diverting  travel  to 
the  Dutch  Flat  route ;  who  had  purchased  another 
possible  rival ; 2*  and  had  converted  a  third  to  its  own 

"•Reference  was  here  intended  to  the  Sac.,  Placer,  and  Nevada  R.  R.,  to 
run  through  these  three  counties,  and  to  be  carried  eventually  across  the 
mountains.  It  had  made  considerable  progress  before  selling  out,  having 
been  organized  in  July  1859.  James  E.  Hale  was  first  pres't  of  the  company; 


THE  WESTERN  PACIFIC.  557 

purposes  by  assigning  to  it  the  grant  and  privileges 
derived  from  the  Pacific  Railroad  act  of  1862,  and 
adopting  it  into  its  line  to  San  Francisco. 

This  latter  corporation  was  the  Western  Pacific, 
which  was  organized  in  December  1862,"  with  the 
purpose  of  constructing  a  railroad  from  San  Jose  to 
Sacramento  via  Stockton,  passing  through  the  coun- 
ties of  Alauieda,  Contra  Costa,  and  San  Joaquin. 
Congress  confirmed  the  assignment  in  1865,  "with  all 
the  privileges  and  benefits  of  the  several  acts  of  con- 
gress relating  thereto,  and  subject  to  the  conditions 

John  O.  Jackson,  treas. ;  and  F.  B.  Higgins,  sec. ;  S.  G.  Elliott  made  the 
preliminary  surveys,  assisted  by  M.  M.  Stangroom,  and  succeeded  by  Sher- 
man Day.  The  route  of  this  road  was  from  a  point  on  the  California  Central 
— miming  from  Folsom  to  Marysburg- — to  Auburn,  Grass  Valley,  and  Nevada 
city.  The  legislature  of  1860  passed  an  act  authorizing  the  people  of  Auburn 
to  vote  on  the  proposition  to  subscribe  to  $50,000  of  the  S.  P.  &  N.  R.  R. , 
which  they  did  by  a  unanimous  '  yea. '  The  same  legislature  authorized 
elections  on  the  following  propositions  :  The  people  of  Placer  county  to  vote 
for  or  against  subscribing  for  $100,000  of  the  stock  of  the  S.  P.  &  N.  R.  R. ; 
$25,000  of  the  stock  of  the  Eastern  Extension  R.  R, ;  §12,000  toward  the  con- 
struction of  a  wagon  road  from  Secret  springs,  in  Placer  county,  to  Carson 
valley;  and  §12,000  towards  the  construction  of  a  wagon-road  from  Dutch 
Flat,  in  the  same  county,  to  Carson  valley.  But  the  people  refused  to  place 
their  necks  under  these  manifold  yokes,  and  voted  '  Iso '  on  each  proposition. 
The  directors  then  carried  their  subscription  books  to  San  Francisco,  where 
$60,000  was  subscribed,  which  with  the  §60,000  voted  by  Auburn  sufficed  to 
grade  13  miles,  and  the  contract  was  let  to  Jackson  R.  Myers.  The  work 
was  greatly  impeded  by  the  severe  storms  and  Hoods  of  the  winter  of  1 861 -2, 
but  with  the  aid  of  the  Sac.  Valley  R.  R.  in  furnishing  iron  and  rolling 
stock,  the  road,  was  opened  for  business  to  Wildwood  station,  seven  miles 
from  Folsom,  in  April  1862.  Nothing  less  was  expected  by  the  people 
than  that  this  road,  which  connected  with  the  S.  V.  R.  R,  and  Sacramento 
city,  would  form  a  section  of  the  transcontinental  railroad.  But  the  C.  P.  co. 
being  named  in  the  Pacific  Railroad  act  of  1862,  with  the  choice  made  of  by 
that  company  of  a  route,  destroyed  their  hopes,  and  provoked  their  hostility. 
The  legislature  of  1862  had  again  authorized  the  county  to  vote  on  subscribing 
$100,000  to  the  road,  but  they  refused  to  consider  it,  and  no  election  was  held. 
The  road  continued  business" until  June  1864,  when,  the  Central  Pacific  being 
completed  to  Newcastle,  that  place  became  the  depot  for  traffic  instead  of 
Auburn,  and  the  usefulness  of  the  S.  P.  &  N.  R.  K.  was  at  an  end.  The 
S.  V.  R.  R.,  which  held  a  mortgage  upon  it  for  the  iron  supplied,  foreclosed, 
and  commenced  taking  up  its  rails,  for  the  purpose  of  relaying  them  on  the 
Sacramento  and  Placerville  R.  R.,  at  that  time  a  rival  of  the  Central  Pacific 
for  the  trade  of  Washoe.  The  latter  co.  procured  an  injunction  against  the 
removal  of  the  rails,  and  Placer  county  was  involved  in  a  railroad  war, 
some  of  the  legal  features  of  which  have  been  alluded  to  in  a  previous  note 
on  the  Placerville  R.  R.,  and  many  arrests  and  trials  resulted,  together  with 
the  calling  out  of  troops  to  protect  the  officers  of  the  law  against  hired  fight- 
ers from  San  Francisco,  and  heavy  bills  of  costs  against  the  county;  but  at 
last  the  rails  were  removed  and  the  S.  P.  &  N.  R.  R.  was  no  more. 

"The  officers  of  the  W.  P.  R.  R.  were  T.  Dame,  pres't;  E.  S.  Holden, 
vice-pres't;  K  T.  Pease,  sec.;  R.  Chenery,  treas'r;  W.  J.  Lewis,  chief -engr. 


558  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

thereof;"22  the  time  within  which  it  must  construct 
its  first  twenty  miles  being  one  year  from  July  1, 
1865,  and  the  whole  road  within  four  years  there- 
after; but  congress  extended  the  time  two  years  for 
both.  The  aid  in  bonds  extended  to  the  Western 
Pacific  was  $1,975,560. 

The  $1,000,000  which  San  Francisco  was  asked  to 
subscribe  was  apportioned  in  the  legislative  act,  $400,- 
000  for  the  Western  Pacific,  and  $600,000  for  the 
Central  Pacific;  and  so  eager  were  the  people  for  rail- 
road communication  that  they  voted  it,  notwithstand- 
ing the  opposition  of  the  San  Francisco  newspapers. 
But  when  it  came  to  the  supervisors  they  refused  to 
take  action.  By  permission  of  the  legislature,  a  com- 
promise was  entered  into  between  the  city  and  the 
companies,  whereby,  instead  of  subscribing  $1,000,- 
000  to  the  stock  of  the  roads,  the  Central  Pacific 
company  accepted  a  proposition  to  take  an  outright 
gift  of  $400,000  in  bonds  of  the  city  and  county.  The 
main  reason  for  this  change  was  that,  under  the  provis- 
ions of  the  state  constitution,  the  city  treasury  might 
be  held  responsible  in  case  of  the  company's  failure. 
Injunctions  were  obtained,  however,  restraining  the 
issuance  of  the  city  and  county  bonds,  and  legal  pro- 
ceedings delayed  the  action  of  the  supervisors  for  more 
than  a  year.  The  court  then  dissolved  the  injunction 
and  ordered  the  delivery  of  the  bonds,  which  were 
finally  handed  over  to  the  companies — $400,000  to  the 
Central  and  $200,000  to  the  Western  Pacific.  Similar 
proceedings  were  held  in  Sacramento,  and  law  suits 
were  multiplied.  San  Joaquin  county  subscribed 
$250,000  to  the  stock  of  the  Western  Pacific,  and 
Santa  Clara  $150,000. 

In  1864  the  legislature  repealed  the  $10,000  a  mile 
act,  and  substituted  another  empowering  the  com- 

92  A  portion  of  the  supposed  land  grant  of  the  W.  P.  R.  R.  was  included 
within  a  Spanish  grant  over  which  congress  had  no  right,  and  the  laud,  on 
complaint  of  settlers,  was  restored. 


SUBSIDIZATION.  659 

pany  to  execute  and  issue  July  1,  1864,  and  any  time 
thereafter,  bonds  in  sums  of  §1,000  bearing  seven 
per  cent  interest,  pa}rable  half  yearly ;  the  interest  to 
be  paid  at  the  state  treasury  for  the  first  1500,  and 
the  remainder  where  the  company  should  prefer ;  the 
whole  amount  issued  not  to  exceed  $12,000,000,  and 
the  bonds  to  run  twenty  years,  secured  by  mortgages 
on  the  railroad,  its  rolling  stock,  fixtures,  and  fran- 
chises; but  upon  the  express  condition  that  the  city 
and  county  of  San  Francisco  and  the  counties  of 
Placer  and  Sacramento  should  be  exempt  as  stock- 
holders from  liability  for  the  pa}7ment  of  the  com- 
pany's bonds,  interest,  or  principal  over  and  above 
the  amount  previously  subscribed  by  them.  A  tax 
of  eight  cents  on  each  §100  of  the  taxable  property  of 
the  state  was  to  be  levied,  to  be  paid  in  gold  and  sil- 
ver coin  of  the  United  States,  to  constitute  a  fund  to 
be  known  as  the  Pacific  railroad  fund,  out  of  which 
the  coupons  for  the  interest  on  the  1500  bonds  should 
be  paid  as  they  fell  due  from  time  to  time  during  the 
twenty  years.  If  the  special  fund  should  not  prove 
sufficient,  the  interest  should  be  paid  from  the  gen- 
eral fund.  The  conditions  of  this  grant  were  the 
same  as  in  the  former  act,  with  the  additional  one  of 
a  deed  from  the  company  of  a  granite  quarry  in 
Placer  county  situated  on  railroad  land.  In  return 
the  company  was  to  transport  without  charge  troops, 
supplies,  munitions  of  war,  and  all  convicts  and  luna- 
tics in  charge  of  state  officials.  The  act  was  assailed 
as  unconstitutional,  for  only  in  the  case  of  insurrec- 
tion, war,  or  invasion  could  the  state  create  a  debt  of 
more  than  §300,000;  but  the  bill  was  so  drawn  that 
the  civil  war  was  made  the  motive. 

Not  only  had  legislation  in  California  to  be  looked 
after,  but  also  in  Nevada.  At  the  constitutional  con- 
vention held  in  1863  Stanford  was  present  to  prevent 
the  incorporation  in  the  organic  law  of  a  clause  per- 
mitting the  legislature  to  donate  to  the  first  railroad 
company  which  should  connect  Nevada  with  navigable 


560  RAILROADS-CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

waters  $3,000,000  in  bonds.  He  pleaded  for  the  dona- 
tion direct  to  his  company,  and  argued  so  well  that  the 
obnoxious  clause  was  stricken  out.  The  convention, 
however,  voted  against  the  subsidy  without  conditions, 
and  it  was  lost  altogether.  The  company  afterward 
took  reprisals.  There  was  a  little  flurry  of  competi- 
tion in  this  quarter  in  1864,  when  a  series  of  resolu- 
tions was  introduced  in  the  Nevada  legislature,  the 
tenor  of  which  being  that  the  Central  Pacific  had 
completed  but  thirty  miles  of  the  road,  while  its 
principal  effort  seemed  to  have  been  to  reduce  the 
number  of  miles  ordered  to  be  constructed  each  year ; 
that  there  was  a  railroad  thirty-eight  miles  long," 
commencing  at  Freeport,  at  the  head  of  navigation 
on  the  Sacramento,  and  extending  in  a  nearly  direct 
line  with  the  capital  of  Nevada,  which,  with  reason- 
able encouragement,  would  push  forward  to  that  point ; 
therefore  congress  was  asked  to  grant  in  United  States 
bonds  $10,000,000  to  the  first  corporation  which 
should  complete  an  unbroken  line  of  railway,  in  per- 
fect running  order,  from  the  navigable  waters  of  the 
Sacramento  to  the  eastern  base  of  the  Sierra.  Had 
this  subsidy  been  granted,  the  warfare  which  would 
have  ensued  would  have  retarded  the  completion  of 
either  road  ;  but  the  resolutions  were  a  strong  incen- 
tive to  action 

The  Central  Pacific  had  certainly  an  unpromising 
commencement  of  its  career  in  respect  to  suits  at  law 
and  legal  proceedings  generally.  Even  Placer  county, 
which  was  to  be  greatly  benefited  by  the  railroad,  if 
honestly  constructed  and  conducted,  and  which  had 
subscribed  $250,000  to  the  company's  stock,  issued  an 
order  by  the  board  of  supervisors  to  a  committee  con- 

s'The  company  here  referred  to  was  called  the  San  Francisco  and  Washoe 
R.  R.  co,  and  contemplated  making  Reese  river  its  eastern  terminus.  It  re- 
quired not  much  argument  to  show  that  congress  was  not  likely  to  make  a 
further  donation  to  Pacific  railroads  in  that  latitude;  or  if  it  should,  the  ef- 
fect would  be  to  delay  rather  than  hasten  the  completion  of  a  transconti- 
nental road.  Speech  of  C.  W.  Tmer,  Feb.  6,  1865,  pp.  14.  Speecft  of  D.  H. 
Haskelloo.  the  same  subject,  1865,  pp.  16. 


GIFTS  OF  LAND.  66! 

sisting  of  A.  B.  Scott  and  D.  W.  Madden  to  examine 
the  books  of  the  corporation,  to  ascertain  what  truth 
there  was  in  the  charges  brought  against  it  of  having 
assumed  that  the  grants  made  by  congress  to  the 
Central  Pacific  company  were  made  to  the  individuals 
named  in  the  act  as  incorporators ;  and  that  they  had 
assumed  to  sell  these  rights  to  the  company  incorpo- 
rated under  California  laws,  receiving  therefor  paid 
up  capital  stock  amounting  to  several  million  dollars, 
such  transaction  being  fraudulent  toward  the  county 
as  a  stockholder  of  the  corporation.  The  committee 
returned  a  satisfactory  explanation  to  the  charge,  ab- 
surd in  a  legal  point  of  view,  but  showing  the  suspi- 
cion which,  however  unjustly,  attached  to  the  manage- 
ment of  this  corporation  from  the  beginning.  That 
it  should  be  so  was  not  unnatural,  considering  the 
vastness  of  the  interests  at  stake. 

There  was  also  expressed  a  great  anxiety  for  the 
public  lands.  It  was  frequently  asserted  that  the 
government  having  removed  its  reservation  of  a  cer- 
tain class  of  mineral  lands,  the  Central  Pacific  com- 
pany would  take  possession  of  mining  land,  and  even 
of  town-sites  in  the  mineral  regions  ;  and  when  it  be- 
came known  hi  1866  that  its  company's  agents  at 
Washington  were  asking  for  patents  in  Sacramento, 
Nevada,  and  Placer  counties,  which  were,  in  the  un- 
derstanding of  the  people,  mineral  lands,  it  was  de- 
termined to  take  action  in  the  matter ;  and  Sargent 
appeared  before  the  judiciary  committee  of  the  Cali- 
fornia senate  to  demonstrate  that  a  miner  would  have 
no  standing  in  the  courts  against  the  holder  of  a 
United  States  patent  to  the  land  on  which  he  might 
be  mining;  and  that,  therefore,  something  must  be 
done  to  prevent  the  issuance  of  such  patents  to  the 
railroad  company.  Before  the  same  committee  ap- 
peared, in  December  1865,  Stanford,  B.  B.  Redding, 
secretary  of  state,  and  the  company's  land  agent, 
with  E.  B.  Crocker,  attorney  for  the  Central  Pacific. 
The  result  of  the  examination  into  this  subject  was 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    36 


562  RAILROADS-CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

that  the  committee  reported  in  favor  of  resolutions 
requesting  the  president  to  withhold  his  signature 
from  any  patents  to  lands  until  a  segregation  of  the 
mineral  from  the  agricultural  had  been  made.  These 
resolutions  were  jointly  passed  by  both  houses  of  the 
legislature,  and  telegraphed  by  Governor  Low  to  the 
California  delegation  in  Washington  on  the  31st  of 
December.  The  dispatch  was  not  delivered  until 
January  8th,  between  which  dates  patents  had  been 
issued  for  450,000  acres  in  Placer  and  Nevada  coun- 
ties. It  was  subsequently  shown  that  the  rights  of 
miners  were  secured  by  the  law  which  made  the  grant 
to  the  Central  Pacific  company  ;  and  as  to  the  delayed 
dispatch,  why,  no  harm  was  done  I 

The  county  of  Placer  paid  an  annual  interest  on 
its  bonds  issued  to  the  company  for  stock  of  $20,000 ; 
and  might  be  required  in  and  after  1868,  if  necessary 
to  raise  the  amount,  to  pay  twenty -five  cents  on  each 
$100  worth  of  taxable  property  in  the  county  to  pro- 
vide a  fund  for  the  liquidation  of  its  bonds,  which 
were  to  be  redeemed  as  often  as  the  fund  contained 
$3,000  or  more  until  all  were  liquidated.  Again  in 
1868  the  county  as  a  stockholder  applied  for  some 
knowledge  of  the  condition  of  the  company,  and  its 
manner  of  conducting  business;  but  it  does  not  ap- 
pear that  in  either  instance  the  inquiry  served  any 
good  purpose. 

There  were  suits-at-law  arising  from  the  refusal  of 
the  company  to  pay  what  the  county  conceived  to  be 
a  just  tax.  The  first  assessment  was  made  in  1864, 
when  only  a  part  of  the  road  was  completed,  and  was 
based  upon  the  company's  statement  of  the  length 
and  valuation  of  it,  which  latter  estimate  was  placed 
at  $6,000  per  mile.  The  district  attorney  complained 
that  this  was  much  too  low  ;  and  proof  being  brought, 
the  assessment  was  raised  to  $20,000  a  mile ;  but 
when  the  matter  came  before  the  board  of  equaliza- 
tion the  value  was  placed  at  $12,160  a  mile,  and  at 
that  rate  the  tax  was  finally  paid, 


TAXES  AXD  SUITS.  563 

The  following  year,  through  some  blundering  of  the 
authorities,  the  assessment  was  allowed  to  go  upon 
the  company's  basis  of  $6,000  a  mile ;  but  in  1866  it 
was  raised  to  $15,000,  which  being  refused,  suit  was 
brought  and  judgment  obtained  in  .the  district  court 
for  the  full  amount.  There  was  left,  however,  a  loop- 
hole of  escape,  it  being  discovered  that  the  revenue 
law  of  1864  was  in  conflict  with  the  constitution  of 
the  state,  in  some  minor  requirements,  whereupon  a 
compromise  was  effected,  and  the  county  accepted  for 
the  years  1866—7  a  payment  upon  the  company's 
terms  of  $6,000  a  mile,  "  because  it  seemed  clear  that 
there  was  no  reasonable  probability  of  compelling  the 
company,  by  law,  to  pay  any  tax  whatever  upon  its 
property."  Such,  indeed,  was  the  fact,  and  such,  as 
we  have  seen,  was  the  decision  of  the  supreme  court, 
although  when  the  road  was  only  one  hundred  miles 
in  length  its  earnings  were  already  on  a  very  consid- 
erable scale. 

In  1868  the  contest  was  renewed  between  Placer 
county  and  the  Central  Pacific  company.  The  case 
was  in  court  until  1872,  when  it  was  finally  adjudi- 
cated in  favor  of  the  county.  In  the  interim  the 
company  caused  the  passage  of  an  act  by  the  legisla- 
ture, authorizing  and  requiring  the  county  of  "Placer 
to  sell  to  the  Central  Pacific  company  of  California  any 
and  all  of  its  stock  owned  by  the  county.  It  was 
accordingly  sold  to  the  company  for  $250,000  in  gold 
coin,  which  was  used  to  redeem  the  outstanding 
bonds  of  the  county.  The  stock  held  by  the  county 
of  Sacramento  was  also  recovered  in  the  same  man- 
ner. The  foresight  of  the  company  in  taking  in  its 
stock,  which  had  served  the  purpose  of  launching  it 
upon  its  successful  career,  was  apparent  a  dozen  years 
later,  when,  after  the  consolidation  of  the  Western 
Pacific,  and  other  roads  with  the  Central  Pacific,  the 
county  of  San  Joaquin  sued  the  latter  company  for 
its  proportion  of  the  dividends  earned  by  the  combi- 


564  RAILROADS-CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

nation,  the  amount  claimed  being  about  $50,000,000. 
The  county  lost  its  case  in  the  superior  court  of  San 
Francisco,  and  appealed  to  the  supreme  court;  but 
was  finally  compelled  to  accept  $300,000  and  yield 
up  its  stock.  As  its  subscription  had  only  been  to 
the  amount  of  $250,000,  it  does  not  appear  that 
after  all  there  were  any  very  serious  grounds  of  com- 
plaint. 

From  the  evils  of  subsidy-giving  the  country  suffered 
for  many  years.  The  population  was  shifting,  the 
available  resources  of  the  state  few ;  but  notwithstand- 
ing there  was  hardly  a  county  in  it  that  by  1870  had 
not  burdened  itself  with  a  debt  of  from  $100,000  to 
$300,000,  at  a  high  rate  of  interest,  to  run  in  some 
instances  for  sixty  years.  Companies  incorporated 
under  a  general  law  besieged  the  legislature  annually 
to  pass  acts  authorizing  the  people  to  vote  on  incur- 
ring this  indebtedness;  newspapers  paraded  the  bene- 
fits to  be  received  from  every  new  railroad  scheme, 
often  without  knowing  whether  it  had  any  merit. 
Thus  urged  by  the  legislature  and  the  press,  the 
people  passed  under  the  rod  with  the  greatest  unanim- 
ity. Some  counties  have  not  to  this  day  recovered 
from  the  disastrous  effects  of  railroad  enterprises. 
Not  only  did  they  incur  debt  and  involve  themselves 
in  law-suits,  but  the  franchises  granted  to  the  insol- 
vent companies  left  them  nothing  with  which  to 
encourage  a  solvent  successor.  Such  was  the  history 
of  El  Dorado,  Placer,  San  Joaquin,  and  some  of  the 
southern  counties."  Yet  as, 

1 '  The  attempt 

Is  all  the  wedge  that  splits  its  knotty  way 
Between  the  possible  and  the  impossible." 

24  The  new  constitution  says:  '  The  legislature  shall  have  no  power  to  give 
or  to  lend,  or  to  authorize  the  giving  or  lending  of  the  credit  of  the  state,  or 
of  any  county,  city  and  county,  city,  township,  or  other  political  corporation 
or  subdivision  of  the  state  now  existing,  or  that  may  oe  hereafter  estab- 
lished, in  aid  of  or  to  any  person,  association,  or  corporation,  whether  muni- 
cipal or  otherwise,  or  to  pledge  the  credit  thereof  in  any  manner  whatever 
for  the  payment  of  the  liabilities  of  any  individual  association,  municipal  or 
other  corporation  whatever;  nor  shall  it  have  the  power  to  make  any  gift,  or 
authorize  the  making  of  any  gift  of  any  public  money  or  thing  of  value  to 
any  individual,  municipal,  or  other  corporation  whatever.' 


FINANCIAL  PROBLEM  SOLVED.  555 

it  cannot  be  said  that  these  efforts  were  of  no  ad- 
vantage to  the  state.  They  were  the  pioneer  enter- 
prises, and  shared  the  common  fate  of  pioneers,  the 
foremost  of  whom  go  down  to  make  way  for  men  of 
happier  fortunes  who  avail  themselves  of  their  unre- 
quited services. 

The  amended  Pacific  Railroad  act  of  1864  brought 
the  relief  of  abundant  means  to  the  Central  Pacific 
company.  Up  to  this  period  of  its  history  it  had  felt 
its  way  with  great  care.  To  meet  the  cost  of  the 
first  forty  miles,  required  by  congress  as  a  guarantee 
of  the  purpose  and  capability  of  the  company,  had 
compelled  its  financiers  to  resort  to  borrowing  on  their 
personal  security.*4  On  that  alone,  since  bonds  of 
an  unconstructed  road  were  worthless  in  the  market, 
the  money  was  procured  which  was  expended  on  the 
first  thirty-one  miles,  but  as  that  indebtedness  was 
probably  liquidated  by  the  money  received  from  state 
and  county  subsidies,  it  may  fairly  be  said  that  pre- 
vious to  1864  California  had  been  paying  for  the 
Pacific  Railroad.  As  fast  as  the  line  was  opened  for 
business  it  produced  a  revenue  which  could  be  applied 
upon  the  company's  indebtedness  of  any  kind. 

The  status  of  the  company  was  greatly  improved 
by  the  passage  of  the  act  which  made  the  United 
States  "  virtually  an  endorser  of  the  company's  bonds 
for  the  fall  amount  of  its  own  subsidy  "  of  $48,000  per 
mile,  making  $96,000  the  available  sum  to  be  drawn 
upon  for  each  mile  of  the  road.  "  The  financial  prob- 
lem has  been  solved,"  said  Stanford  in  July  1865,  "  and 
the  result  is  abundant  financial  means  to  press  forward 
the  work  to  its  utmost  development."  " 

This  new  condition  of  affairs  made  a  distinct  change 

*Says  Hontington,  in  this  connection,  "We  had  endorsed  paper  to  one 
party  (Oakes  Ames)  of  $1,250,000,  personal  security.     They  said,    '  Here, 
we  know  you,  and  while  we  don't  know  what  you  are  worth,  we  are  satisfied 
you  would  not  have  endorsed  the  paper  if  you  were  not  worth  the  money.' 
On  this  credit  he  procured  the  aid  required. 

16  That  is,  enough  had  been  secured  in  money  and  land  to  build  the  rail- 
road. 


566 


EAILRO ADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 


in  the  policy  of  the  company."  Through  the  means 
placed  in  their  hands  by  the  state,  and  by  the  general 
government,  they  were  rendered  independent.  In- 
stead of  selling  stock  they  gathered  it  in.  They  dis- 
missed sub-contractors,  and  under  the  firm  name  of 
Crocker  &  Company  secured  for  themselves  the  prof- 
its arisin^  from  the  construction  of  the  road.  One  of 
the  strongest  points  in  their  favor  was  the  fall  in  the 
price  of  gold  and  the  rise  in  the  price  of  bonds  which 
followed  the  overthrow  of  the  rebellion,  before  which 
event  comparatively  little  work  had  been  done,  and 

The  following  showing  was  made  Sept.  16,  1864: 

Authorized  capital $8,500,000 

Cash  subscribed  and  issued  for  work  and  material. ...  $723,800 

Placer  co.  subscription 250,000 

Sacramento  co  " 300,000 

For  iron,  cars,  etc., 188,000 

Total 81,462,500 

The  debts  of  the   company  were  its  first  mortgage 

bonds  issued $1,250,000 

Individual  accounts,  etc 205,700 

Pay  rolls  for  August 25,000 

Total $1,480,700 

Assets  of  the  company — Due  from  stockholders. ...  $    203,886 

150  Placer  co.  bonds 75,000 

327  Sacramento  co.  bonds 163,500 

San  Francisco  co.  bonds 400,000 

Due  from  the  U.  S.  on  completed  road 1,264,000 

Grant  by  the  state— $105, 000  annually— 2, 100, 000 

Survey  to  the  eastern  boundary  of  Cal 66,740 

31  miles  of  first-class  railroad 

Uncompleted  line  above  Newcastle 50,000 

Shops,  tools,  etc.,  etc., 25,000 

On  hand  and  to  arrive  iron  for  32  miles,  and  enough 
purchased  for  20  additional  miles,  besides  chairs 
and  spikes  for  53  miles,  and  ties  for  22  miles,  pas- 
senger cars,  and  freight  and  construction  cars. 
The  levee  front  in  Sacramento  city,  from  K  street 
north,  and  30  acres  north  of  I  street,  granted  by 
the  city. 

The  value  of  every  alternate  section  of  public  land 
for  20  miles  on  each  side  of  the  road  for  31  miles 
completed. 

The  earnings  cf  the  road  from  June  6,  1864,  when 
it  was  opened  to  Newcastle,  to  Sept.  14,  less 
expenses 38,917.74 

Total  known  values $4,386,943.74 

27  Huntington,  in  a  dictation  given  to  one  of  my  stenographers,  and  known 
in  my  library  as  the  Huntinyton  Manuscript-,  relates  oa  pp.  9-12  some  not  un- 


ABILITY  OF  THE  DIRECTORS.  567 

thus  few  of  their  bonds  had  been  sacrificed  at  the  low 
values  ruling  during  the  years  of  the  war.  Fortune 
indeed  appeared  to  favor  them  at  every  turn,  but  if 
they  were  fortunate,  they  possessed  also  the  ability  to 
grasp  opportunity  firmly  and  skilfully  and  at  the  right 
moment.  That  the  directors  were  far-sighted  men, 
possessing,  moreover,  the  tact  and  adroitness  needed 
for  the  accomplishment  of  their  task,  their  acts  abun- 
dantly prove,  as  does  also  their  success,  in  the  face  of 
all  difficulties  and  discouragements.  In  July  1864, 
within  a  year  and  a  half  after  breaking  ground,  their 
assets  already  amounted  to  nearly  a  million  and  a 
half;  then"  debts  were  merely  nominal,  and  they  were 
already  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  good  income  from  the 
completed  portion  of  their  road. 

From  Newcastle  to  the  state  line  Crocker  &  Com- 
pany built  the  Central  Pacific  railroad  of  California. 
It  was  not  easy  to  obtain  white  labor  for  railroad  work 
in  the  state,  500  men  being  all  that  were  employed  in 
the  winter  of  1864-5.  To  these  were  added  during 
the  summer  2,000  Chinamen.  At  a  later  date  sev- 
eral thousand  Asiatics  were  imported  expressly  for 
this  labor,  and  during  the  last  months  of  the  con- 
struction period,  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men  was 
in  the  field.  Crocker  proved  an  excellent  superin- 
tendent and  a  thorough  organizer.  The  engineering 

important  facts  concerning  the  early  management.  He  says  that  at  the 
start  a  construction  company  was  formed  consisting  of  Stanford,  Hopkins, 
Booth,  Marsh,  Peel,  Judah,  and  himself.  Each  man  was  to  furnish  one- 
seventh  of  the  means  to  build  the  road  to  Newcastle,  which  they  were  to 
own  equally.  But  Peel  reseded  from  his  agreement  after  the  work  had  been 
commenced,  being  afraid  to  risk  his  share,  $34,000  in  gold,  worth  30  per  cent 
premium.  Huntington  then  said  that  Peel  must  buy  him  out,  or  sell  out  to 
him;  but  Peel  refused  to  do  either.  Huntington  had  another  alternative, 
which  was  to  stop  work,  which  he  did,  going  along  the  line  and  ordering  9 
sub-contractors  to  cease,  and  pay  oft  the  men  These  sub-contractors, 
thinking  there  was  some  real  cause  for  this  arbitrary  action,  offered  to  bay 
out  the  company,  and  build  the  road  for  themselves.  'All  right,'  said  Hunt- 
ington, 'I  give  you  two  weeks  to  do  it  in.'  But  the  only  man  they  found 
who  was  likely  to  become  their  capitalist,  Charles  McLanghlin,  when  he 
learned  that  Huntington  was  to  sell  out,  declined  to  furnish  the  money,  as 
Huntmgton  very  well  knew  he  would  do.  The  9  sub-contractors  returned, 
Peel  having  sold  out,  and  the  road  was  finished  to  Newcastle. 


568  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

was  performed  by  S.  S.  Montague,  chief,  and  L.  M. 
Clement,  assistant,  the  work  being  inspected  by  George 
E.  Gray,  who  has  since  remained  in  the  company's 
employ.  Some  alterations  were  made  in  Judah's  sur- 
vey, and  the  gradient  of  116  feet  to  the  mile  was  the 
maximum  in  the  whole  line,  which  followed  an  un- 
broken ridge  from  base  to  summit  of  the  Sierra, 
crossing  but  one  river  three  miles  above  Dutch  Flat, 
and  attaining  an  altitude  of  7,042  feet,  but  avoiding 
the  second  summit.  It  was  slow  work,  cutting  down, 
filling  up,  building  trestles,  tunnels,  and  culverts,  and 
making  a  solid  roadway  for  the  passage  of  the  heavy 
locomotives  required  on  the  mountains.  But  taking 
into  account  the  difficulties,  it  was  rapidly  done. 
"Why,"  says  Crocker,  "I  used  to  go  up  and  down 
that  road  in  rny  car  like  a  mad  bull,  stopping  along 
wherever  there  was  anything  amiss,  and  raising  Old 
Nick  with  the  boys  that  were  not  up  to  time." : '  Twenty 
miles  a  year  was  all  that  wras  completed  in  1863,  1864, 
and  1865  respectively ;  in  1866  thirty  miles ;  and  in 
1867  forty-six  miles.  A  telegraph  line,  snow-sheds,  de- 
pots, water-tanks,  and  all  else  constituting  the  perfect 
equinment  of  a  first-class  road,  were  constructed  as 
the  road  progressed ;  and  as  the  army  of  graders, 
masons,  track-layers,  and  mechanics,  passed  by,  they 
left  not  destruction,  but  civilization  behind  them. 

In  1867  the  state  line  was  reached,  but  ever  since 
the  enactment  of  the  amended  Pacific  Railroad  act, 
the  company  had  been  resolved  not  to  stop  there,  but 
push  on  through  Nevada,  and  meet  the  Union  Pacific 
as  far  east  as  practicable — if  possible,  at  Salt  Lake.  The 
150  mile  limit,  leaving  them  in  mid-desert,  was  not  to 
be  thought  of.  If  they  came  east  of  Carson  valley 
they  must  make  for  the  trade  of  Salt  Lake  valley. 
Nevada  in  1866  granted  them  the  right  of  way,  al- 
though she  never  consented  otherwise  to  aid  the 
corporation. 

2(1  This  vigorous  description  of  his  energetic  course  is  from  a  dictation  in 
my  library  entitled  Croakers  Railroad  Building  MS. 


UNION  PACIFIC  COMPANY.  569 

The  Union  Pacific  company  made  no  commence- 
ment of  construction  before  1865,  whereas,  in  July  of 
that  year,  the  Central  had  made  44  miles,  and  was  at 
Clipper  gap,  2,448  feet  above  sea-level.  Taking  into 
consideration  the  nature  of  the  work  to  be  done  by 
the  California  company,  and  that  the  Union  Pacific 
had  several  hundred  miles  of  level  country  to  build 
in,  the  advantage  would  seem  to  be  in  favor  of  the  lat- 
ter. This  advantage,  however,  was  more  apparent 
than  real;  for  while  the  Central  was  compelled  to  do  a 
great  amount  of  work  to  gain  a  little  distance,  it  was 
well  organized,  which  the  other  never  was;  it  had 
rapid  communication  with  the  ships 'which  brought 
its  manufactured  material  from  the  east,  had  stone, 
timber,  and  gravel  distributed  by  nature  along  its 
line,  could  easily  obtain  subsistence,  could  command 
cheap  Chinese  labor,  and  was  ',  receiving  an  income 
from  the  completed  portion  of  its  road  in  addition  to 
the  means  furnished  by  government.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  Union  Pacific  company  had  to  transport  all 
its  material  overland,  or  by  means  of  the  Missouri 
river,  at  a  heavy  expense,  no  eastern  railroad  connection 
existing  by  the  aid  of  which  the  vast  amount  of  iron, 
tools,  provisions,  locomotives,  cars,  and  all  else,  even  in- 
cluding wood  for  ties  and  stone  for  masonry,  of  which 
the  country  was  destitute,  could  be  carried  to  their 
disembarkation  on  the  Missouri,  or  beyond  it.  Thus, 
leaving  out  of  the  comparison  the  financial  status  of 
the  two  companies,  which  was  in  favor  of  the  Cali- 
fornia corporation,  the  difficulties  to  be  overcome  were 
of  about  equal  magnitude.  The  eastern  company 
could  lay  down  more  rails  per  day  over  the  Platte 
valley  than  the  western  company  could  in  the 
Sierra ;  but  the  lofty  Rocky  range  was  to  be  over- 
come thereafter,  while  the  Central  emerged  from  the 
Sierra  upon  the  valley  of  the  'Humboldt,  where  it 
could  also  make  time  in  grading  and  track-laying. 

It  was  at  th  is  point  in  its  career  that  the  officers  of  the 
Central  Pacific  organized  among  themselves  the  Con- 


570  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

tract  and  Finance  company  for  the  further  prosecution 
of  their  enterprises,  and  under  this  fresh  organization 
set  out  to  meet  the  Credit  Mobilier  of  America,  which 
was  constructing  the  Union  Pacific.  Congress  in 
1866  had  again  authorized  the  Central  Pacific  com- 
pany to  ''locate,  construct,  and  continue  their  road 
eastward  in  a  continuous  line"  until  it  should  meet 
the  Union  Pacific's  continuous  line.  In  the  autumn 
of  1867  it  emerged  from  its  windings  among  the  eter- 
nal hills,  and  entered  upon  a  race  for  the  trade  entre- 
pot of  Utah,  as  well  as  for  bonds  and  lands.  It  was 
the  grandest  race  that  ever  was  run — to  which  the 
Olympics  were  a  petty  play — to  complete  the  most  stu- 
pendous work  that  men  had  ever  conceived,  and  one  the 
most  far-reaching  in  its  results.  When  Shakespeare's 
Puck  promised  a  girdle  round  the  earth  in  forty  min- 
utes, it  might  have  been  a  prophecy  verified  by  elec- 
tricity ;  but  even  the  inspired  bard  of  Avon  never  had 
a  prophetic  vision  of  two  thousand  miles  of  railroad 
built  in  five  years,  bearing  not  thought  only,  but  the 
thinkers,  swift  as  the  flight  of  birds,  from  ocean  to 
ocean. 

" You  will  see,"  said  Asa  Whitney  in  1845,  '.'that 
it  will  change  the  whole  world.  ...  It  will  bring  the 
world  together  as  one  nation;  allow  us  to  traverse 
the  globe  in  thirty  days,  civilize  and  christianize  man- 
kind, and  place  us  in  the  centre  of  the  world,  compel- 
ling Europe  on  one  side  and  Asia  and  Africa  on  the 
other  to  pass  through  us." 

The  Union  Pacific  on  the  plains  had  forged  ahead. 
In  1867,  when  the  Central  began  the  strife  for  the 
goal,  it  had  constructed  550  miles.  In  1868  it  built 
425,  and  the  Central  363  miles.  Huntington,  in  the 
east,  was  well  informed  of  the  financial  condition  of 
his  rival,  Oakes  Ames,  and  this  knowledge  he  did  not 
fail  to  turn  to  account.29  Thus  when  his  associates 

w  Crawford's  Credit  Molillkr  and  Hollister's  Life  q/  Coif  ax  take  exactly 
opposite  views  of  Oakes  Ames'  character  in  connection  with  the  Union  Pa- 
cific's affairs.  It  is  certain,  however,  that  the  Credit  Mobillier  ruined  and. 
killed  Ames. 


RIVALRY.  571 

wrote  to  him  stating  that  the  Union  graders  were 
at  work  in  the  Humboldt  valley,  he  bade  them  not  to 
be  alarmed,  but  to  go  right  along  as  fast  as  possible, 
and  to  leave  a  good  road  behind  them. 

The  Central's  advantages  were  that  it  had  done 
with  the  mountains,  whereas  the  Union  had  still  some 
expensive  work  to  do  east  of  Ogden.  The  means  of 
the  former  were  ample,  and  it  had  a  force  of  quiet, 
orderly  Chinese,  easily  managed,  while  the  other 
company  employed  white  laborers,  who,  when  not 
promptly  paid,  were  refractory,  and  even  hostile." 

Straining  every  nerve,  the  Union  Pacific  threw  out 
graders  as  far  west  as  Humboldt  wells,  500  miles 
from  Ogden,  80  miles  of  which  were  laid  with  track ; 
but  the  gap  between  that  portion  of  its  work  and  the 
continuous  track  east  of  it  was  never  filled,  and 
$1,000,000  was  wasted.  But  the  Central  company 
took  reprisals,  and  sent  its  graders  east  of  Ogden;  at 
the  same  time  it  filed  a  map  of  its  route  to  Echo  sum- 
mit with  the  secretary  of  the  interior,  by  whom  it  was 
approved,  upon  which  a  demand  was  made  for  the 
two  thirds  of  the  bonds  due  on  completion,  according 
to  a  clause  in  section  viu  of  the  amended  Pacific  rail- 
road act,  which  allowed  such  an  advance  when  the  ex- 
igencies of  the  case  required  it.  By  that  remarkable 
power  of  will  and  ingenuity  in  presenting  an  argument, 
which  has  ever  distinguished  the  attorney  of  the  Cen- 
tral Pacific  company,  the  president,  the  secretary  of  the 
interior,  the  attorney -general,  and  the  railroad  com- 
missioners were  persuaded  that  it  was  requisite  to 
issue  $2,400,000  in  United  States  bonds  to  the  Cen- 
tral company  for  this  late  extension  of  its  road.  Some 
congressmen,  however,  ha4  become  aware  of  the  de- 
mand, and  had  exacted  a  pledge  from  the  secretary 
of.  the  treasury  that  he  would  not  issue  the  bonds 

M  It  was  a  matter  well  known  at  the  time  that  when  the  U.  P.  had  made 
connection  with  the  C.  P.  it  was  unable  to  pay  its  gangs  of  men,  and  that 
Durant  was  held  a  captive  by  them  for  three  days,  and  able  only  to  make  a 
partial  settlement  in  time  to  take  part  in  the  ceremonies  at  the  uniting  of  the 
roads. 


672  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

before  an  investigation  could  be  made.  The  investi- 
gation was  made,  but  not  until  after  the  bonds  had 
been  issued  and  half  of  them  delivered. 

Here  was  indeed  a  surprise  for  the  Union  Pacific, 
whose  engineers  had  reported  only  the  year  before 
that  they  would  reach  the  Sierra  Nevada  before 
the  Central  company  could  cross  the  range.  Had 
this  been  accomplished,  the  latter  would  have  been 
left  with  only  a  short  and  difficult  piece  of  road  to 
operate,31  and  would  always  have  been  subject  to  the 

81  Huntington  prepared  an  able  pamphlet,  addressed  to  the  senate  com- 
mittee, giving  reasons  why  the  managers  of  the  C.  P.  R.  R.  thought  the 
point  of  junction  should  be  at  Ogden,  on  account  of  the  trade  of  Salt  Lake 
valley,  and  the  coal  in  the  Wasatch  valley.  As  they  had  a  hard  task  getting 
through  the  Sierra,  they  ought  to  have  a  larger  share  of  the  easier  road;  and 
as  they  had  filed  their  map,  and  received  a  partial  issue  of  bonds  upon  the 
sections  reaching  to  Ogden,  they  had  acquired  the  legal  right  to  go  there. 
Meantime  the  house  committee  was  investigating  all  the  circumstances 
attending  the  issue  of  the  bonds  on  March  3,  1869.  If  the  C.  P.  co.  had  all 
the  rights  claimed,  why,  asked  the  opponents  of  the  C.  P.,  issue  the 
$2,400,003  of  bonds  during  the  dying  hours  of  Johnson's  administration, 
against  the  objections  of  one  member  of  the  cabinet,  and  in  contradiction  of 
the  repeated  pledges  of  Secretary  McCullough?  Why  had  it  passed  50  miles 
beyond  its  completed  track,  and  applied  for  and  secured  a  partial  issue  of 
bonds  over  180  miles  of  road  beyond,  unless  to  gain  an  unfair  advantage  of 
some  kind?  How  could  the  partially  completed  grading  of  the  C.  P.  R.  R. 
have  cost  $20,000  per  mile,  as  certified  to  by  the  commissioners,  when  the 
estimates  of  the  U.  P.  R.  R.  co.  for  fully  completed  grading  were  less  than 
§10,000  per  mile?  The  law  and  the  policy  of  the  government  being  to  allow 
the  two  companies  to  build  track  until  they  met,  why  should  the  U.  P.  R.  R. 
be  stopped  to  wait  for  the  arrival  of  the  C.  P.  ?  Why  should  the  point  of 
junction  be  crowded  back  to  Ogden,  and  the  U.  P.  be  compelled  to  pull  up 
its  rails  and  wait  for  the  C.  P.  to  build  to  Ogden  ?  Conld  any  reasonable 
explanation  be  made  of  the  facts  that  when  the  C.  P.  was  434  miles  from 
Echo  summit,  it  procured  from  Secretary  Browning  the  acceptance  of  a  map 
to  that  point,  though  one  that  was  not  as  yet  even  authenticated,  and  thus 
reach  forward  and  secure  a  partial  issue  of  bonds  over  80  miles  of  road,  reach- 
ing to  a  point  within  50  miles  of  the  track  of  the  U.  P.  and  230  miles  from 
its  own  track — and  all  this  in  the  dying  hours  of  a  dissolving  administration? 
Railroad  Scraps,  703.  The  testimony  before  the  senate  committee  showed 
that  there  had  been  no  over-issue  of  government  bonds,  but  that  they  had 
been  issued  in  accordance  with  the  law  and  the  facts,  and  on  the  opinion  of 
the  attorney -general.  N.  Y.  Times,  March  21,  1869.  In  view  of  these  pro- 
ceedings, it  becomes  of  interest  to  hear  Huntington's  own  version  of  the 
matter,  given  to  my  stenographer  in  interlocutory  style.  Perhaps  nothing 
could  better  illustrate  the  quick,  incisive  manner  of  the  man:  'I  went  to  Mc- 
Cullough . . .  .and  said  I,  "Here's  a  report  I  want  you  to  have."  He  had  heard 
we  were  working  there — meaning  among  the  departments — and  he  had  a  talk 
with  Ames.  I  knew  he  had  agreed  not  to  show  me  the  bonds;  but  I  was  de- 
termined to  have  them  if  I  could.  I  got  a  report  from  the  attorney-general 
that  I  was  entitled  under  the  law  to  those  bonds.  I  got  one  from  the  solicitor 
of  the  treasury;  he  asked  for  that;  I  was  legally  entitled  to  them.  I  got 
two  cabinet  meetings  in  one  week  outside  of  the  regular  day.  The  majority 
of  them  voted  that  I  should  have  the  bonds.  Then  he  would  not  let  me  have 


JUNCTION  FORMED.  573 

dictation  of  their  rival.  In  such  an  event,  all  the 
benefit  of  their  work  would  have  been  lost,  and  our 
carrying  trade  would  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  men 
whose  interests  were  not  in  harmony  with  those  of  the 
Pacific  coast.  But  for  the  rapid  progress  made  by 
the  Central  Pacific  during  the  later  period  of  con- 
struction, this  is  precisely  what  would  have  happened. 
It  was  now  the  object  of  the  Central  Pacific 
to  obtain  a  legal  right  to  make  the  junction  at 
Ogden,  but  to  that  congress  would  not  assent,  it 
being  in  evidence  that  the  completed  track  of  the 
Union  company  was  twenty-five  miles  west  of 
Ogden  at  the  time  the  Central  company  was  sev- 
enty miles  west.  The  two  companies  finally  met 
with  their  completed  tracks  at  Promontory  point,  53 
miles  from  the  coveted  point  of  junction,  April  28, 
1869.  On  that  day  the  Central  performed  the  re- 
markable feat  of  laying  in  one  day  ten  miles  of  road. 
The  disagreement  between  the  two  companies  contin- 
ued for  some  time  longer.  Huntington  offered  the 
Union  Pacific  company  $4,000,000  for  that  part  of 
their  road  from  Promontory  to  Ogden.  But  to  this 

them.  I  went  there  nearly  a  week.  I  wanted  to  get  them  the  day  the  ad- 
ministration closed ....  I  called  at  McCullough's  office;  I  sent  in  my  card. 

McCullough  would  let  me  know  the  next  morning I  said,  never  mind,  I 

will  go  and  see  him.  I  did  not  know  McCullough.  I  wanted  those  §2,400,000 
bonds.  "Well,"  said  he,  "yon  seem  entitled  to  them,  but  I  can't  let  you 
have  them."  I  answered,  "That  is  all  right;  give  me  the  reasons,  Mr  Secre- 
tary, why  you  won't  let  me  have  them."  "Well,"  he  said,  "you  seem  en- 
titled to  them  under  the  law."  Said  I,  "That  is  all  right;  give  me  the 
bonds."  "Well,"  he  replied,  "no,  I  can't  do  it."  "Well, "I  said,  "I  want 
your  reasons.  I  have  men  in  New  York  who  are  interested  with  me;  when 
I  go  back,  if  I  don't  have  the  bonds,  I  want  the  reason  why.  You  can  see 
for  yourself."  Finally  he  remarked,  "You  do  seem  entitled  to  them." 

'  Well,  I  was  nearly  a  week.  I  went  in  there  every  day,  and  asked  him 
to  give  me  the  bonds,  and  asked  for  the  reasons.  One  day  there  was  a  score 
of  men  right  behind  me.  "Now,"  said  he,  "if  you  do  not  let  those  gentle- 
men see  me,  I  will  decide  this  thing  against  yon."  "  Now,"  I  replied,  "  Mr 
Secretary,  rather  than  have  the  sec.  of  the  U.  S.  do  as  foolish  a  thing  as  that, 
I  will  sit  here  for  a  fortnight. "  For  half  an  hour  or  so  I  sat  down.  "  Now, " 
said  he,  "  Mr  Jordan  [he  came  up  just  then],  Mr  Huntington  is  worrying 
me  to  death.  He  says  he  wants  those  bonds;  what  do  you  think  of  it  ? 
Jordan  said,  "  I  have  given  you  a  written  opinion,  Mr  Secretary,  that  he  is 
entitled  to  the  bonds  under  the  law."  "Well,"  said  he,  "he  shall  have  the 
bonds. " ....  A  little  after  8  o'clock  I  went  out,  and  found  the  bonds  in  my 
room.'  Huntington,  MS.,  53-4.  The  exact  amount  delivered  was  $1,335,000. 
U.  S.  Ex,  Doc.,  28,  voL  is.,  44th  cong.,  2d  sess. 


574  RAILROADS-CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

they  objected,  and  after  some  fruitless  negotiation  the 
matter  was  finally  settled  by  the  national  legislature, 
where  was  introduced  into  a  joint  resolution  of  con- 
gress for  the  "protection  of  the  interests  of  the 
United  States  in  the  Union  Pacific  railroad  com- 
pany, the  Central  Pacific  railroad  company,  and  for 
other  purposes,"  a  proviso  that  the  common  terminus 
of  the  two  companies  should  be  at  Ogden,  or  near  it, 
and  that  the  Union  Pacific  should  build,  but  the 
Central  Pacific  should  pay  for  and  own,  the  road 
from  Ogden  to  Promontory,  where  the  two  roads 
should  connect.  This  proviso  settled  the  matter,  and 
the  Central  obtained  the  equal  command  of  the  Salt 
Lake  traffic,  with  access  to  coal  mines,  securing  at 
cost  price  that  part  of  the  Union  road  from  Promon- 
tory to  within  five  miles  of  Ogden,  which  five  miles  it 
subsequently  acquired  under  a  lease. 

The  extra  expense  to  the  Central  Pacific  of  this 
speedy  completion  of  the  road  was  very  great.  Sup- 
plies were  conveyed  for  hundreds  of  miles  in  advance 
of  the  finished  sections.  Materials,  railroad  iron,  and 
even  locomotives  were  hauled  by  teams  in  winter 
through  the  deep  snows  of  the  Sierra  for  the  build- 
ing of  the  road  beyond,  since  at  that  season  of  the 
year  little  but  tunnelling  work  could  be  accomplished 
in  the  mountain  regions. 

At  length  all  was  in  readiness,  and  on  the  10th  of 
May,  1869,  took  place  the  ceremony  of  joining  the 
roads  at  Promontory.  About  1,000  people  were  in 
attendance,  comprising  the  officers,  directors,  and  em- 
ployes of  the  two  companies,  with  their  invited  guests, 
a  delegation  from  Salt  Lake,  several  companies  of  the 
21st  infanty,  with  a  band,  from  Camp  Douglas,  and  a 
number  of  military  men  of  note  from  the  same  place. 
The  spot  where  the  joining  of  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific  took  place  was  a  grassy  plain,  sunken  between 
green  hills.  The  horizon  was  bounded  on  the  east 
by  the  silver-rimmed  summits  of  the  Wasatch,  whose 
rosy-violet  atmosphere  was  in  harmony  with  the 


COMPLETION  OF  THE  WORK.  575 

iridescent  hues  of  Great  Salt  Lake  on  which  they 
looked.  Overhead  the  speckless  blue  beamed  warm 
and  gracious.  In  the  immediate  vicinity  were  a  few 
canvas  tents.  Moving  about  the  ground,  mingled  in 

•CJ  ^j  *  O 

a  picturesque  confusion,  were  people  from  the  Occi- 
dent and  the  Orient — Mongolian,  Celt,  full-blooded 
aborigine,  and  half-caste  Mexican,  garbed  in  national 
costumes,  or  innocent  of  any,  mixing  freely  with 
American  citizens  and  soldiers,  each  regarding  only 
the  significant  preparations.  At  11  o'clock  a  train 
from  the  west  drawn  by  a  decorated  engine  ap- 
proached the  gap  left  between  the  rails.  Soon  an- 
other train  from  the  east,  with  no  less  elegant  ap- 
pointments, drew  up  on  that  side  of  the  breach, 
each  debouching  some  principal  actors  on  the  scene. 
The  "last  tie,"  of  California  laurel,  handsomely 
finished,  and  having  hi  the  center  a  silver  plate,  bear- 
ing the  names  of  the  officers  of  both  companies,  was 
placed  beneath  the  connecting  ends  of  the  rails,  and 
a  spike  of  gold  placed  in  a  cavity  made  to  receive  it, 
was  driven  home  by  a  silver  hammer  in  the  hands  of 
President  Stanford  of  the  Central  Pacific.  Other 
significant  and  precious  articles  were  displayed,  the 
gifts  of  neighboring  territories.  There  followed  ad- 
dresses of  which  everyone  will  be  able  to  conjecture 
the  import.  Congratulatory  telegrams  were  read 
from  cities  east  and  west.  The  Union  company's 
train,  with  Durant  and  friends,  passed  over  the  con- 
necting rail  and  backed  upon  its  own  track.  The 
Central  company's  train  ran  over  it,  and  also  returned, 
with  its  face  to  the  front.  Cheers,  music,  and  banquet- 
ing followed,  and  the  royal  marriage  was  consummated. 
Next  morning  there  arrived  from  New  York  a  half- 
dozen  passenger  coaches  for  the  Central  company, 
part  of  which  were  attached  to  the  president's  car  on 
its  return  to  Sacramento,  this  being  the  first  train  to 
pass  over  the  entire  distance  from  shore  to  shore. 
Thus  ended  in  fulfilment  the  long  dream  of  nearly 
forty  years,  a  fulfilment  that  was  celebrated  in  every 


576  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

city  of  the  north  and  many  of  the  souta  with  en- 
thusiasm. Especially  at  Sacramento  and  San  Fran- 
cisco were  the  rejoicings  loud  and  earnest.  But  how 
soon  do  we  rise  to  the  greatest  event,  making  it  seem 
commonplace!  Finished  and  yet  not  complete,  for 
the  commissioners  appointed  to  examine  the  road  re- 
ported that  a  further  expenditure  of  $4,493,380  would 
be  required  to  put  in  a  completed  state  the  551  miles 
east  of  Sacramento,  and  especially  that  part  of  the 
road  east  of  Truckee  and  in  the  Humboldt  valley. 
A  clause  in  section  6th  of  the  original  Pacific  rail- 
road act  declared  that  ''after  the  said  road  is  completed, 
until  said  bonds  and  interest  are  paid,  at  least  five 
per  centum  of  the  net  earnings  of  said  road  shall  also 
be  annually  applied  to  the  payment  thereof."  Upon 
the  report  of  the  commissioners  the  president  ordered 
deposited  with  the  secretary  of  the  treasury,  in  first 
mortgage  bonds,  the  four  millions  and  over  in  which 
the  road  was  deficient,  and  that  patents  to  land  should 
be  withheld  where  not  already  issued  until  the  road 
should  be  completed  according  to  law. 

In  September  1869  the  railroad  company  made 
application  to  withdraw  the  four  millions  of  bonds, 
which  was  denied.  But  it  appearing  a  few  months 
later  that  the  deficiencies  had  been  supplied  to  a  con- 
siderable extent,  the  secretary  of  the  interior  allowed 
patents  for  half  the  lands  to  issue,  and  soon  after  the 
withdrawal  of  the  bonds.  In  March  1871  the  secre- 
tary again  refused  to  issue  patents  to  the  land  held 
for  security,  the  road  still  being  incomplete  in  the  eye 
of  the  law.  In  1874  a  bill  was  pending  in  congress 
providing  for  giving  the  company  a  title  to  the  granted 
lands  in  order  that  they  might  be  taxed  by  the  states 
through  which  they  passed.  While  the  matter  was 
being  taken  under  advisement  by  the  secretary,  a 
new  commission  reported  that  the  road  had  been  fully 
completed  at  a  cost  of  $5,121,037.23.  Of  this  sum 
$1,014,681.34  was  for  wharves  and  depot  buildings  at 
Oakland  and  San  Francisco;  $241,490,87  for  im- 


ROAD  TO  SAN  FRANCISCO.  577 

provements  of  depot  grounds  at  Mission  bay,  San 
Francisco,  and  $105,906.60  for  the  steamer  Thorough- 
fare, built  for  ferrying  cars  across  the  bay  to  and  from 
Oakland.      Now   in   1875  the   courts  were  occupied 
with  the  question  as  to   the  meaning  of  the  act,  and 
at  what  point    of  completion   it    became   obligatory 
upon  the  company  to  commence  paying  the  five  per 
cent  of  its  earnings  on  the  extinguishment  of  its  in- 
debtedness.     The  government   claimed   that  on  the 
15th  of  July,  1869,  when  it  was  opened   for  business 
it  was  "completed"  for  this  purpose,  and  the  Central 
Pacific  that  the  date  of  its  completion  was  October 
1,  1874.     The  government,  it  was  said,   had  barred 
its  claim  by  its  admissions  in  taking  security  from  the 
unfinished  road;  or,  if  the  road  was  really  what  was 
required  in  1869,  it  had  been  unjustly  and  unlawfully 
treated  by  the  government,  which   had  withheld  its 
land  patents  for  five  years.      But  if  the  government's 
claim  did  not  commence  to  run  until  October   1874, 
then  nothing  was  yet  due  when  the  action  was  com- 
menced.    Such  was  the  decision  by  which,  in   1877, 
the  United  States  government  lost  its  case  in  the 
United  States  circuit  court  for  the  district  of  Cali- 
fornia, Judge  Sawyer  giving  the  decree.     By  this  de- 
cision the  Central  Pacific  would  have  gained  $1,836,- 
635.10,  a  small  amount,  they  claimed,  when  was  con- 
sidered the  extra  cost  incurred  by  completing  the  road 
seven  years  in  advance  of  the  stipulated  time.     The 
court  of  claims  in  1878,  however,  decided  in  the  case 
of  the  Union  Pacific  that  the  road  was  "  completed  " 
in  the  sense  which  the  act  contemplated  in   1869, 
which  decision  affects  both  roads  equally. 

The  trunk  line  being  now  in  operation,  the  directors 
could  give  redoubled  attention  to  their  interests  in 
California,  and  first  of  all  came  the  question  of  a  Pa- 
cific coast  terminus.  It  was  at  first  supposed  that  if 
the  cars  of  the  Central  Pacific  should  enter  San 
Francisco,  they  would  do  so  by  way  of  San  Jose; 
but  another  company  had  already  built  a  road  on  the 

BIST.  CAi.,  VOL.  VLL    37 


578  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

most  available  route  between  those  cities.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  policy,  however,  something  should  be  done  to 
conciliate  the  metropolis,  as  the  act  of  congress 
granted  them  exclusive  control  of  a  line  to  be  located 
from  the  Sacramento  river  to  the  Golden  Gate.  As 
already  stated,  therefore,  this  part  of  the  route,  with 
its  share  of  the  subsidies  in  bonds  and  lands,  had  been 
assigned  to  the  Western  Pacific  company,  whose  direc- 
tors were  residents  of  the  several  counties  through 
which  the  road  was  to  run.  Thus  while  disposing 
of  a  portion  of  the  line  to  which  they  attached  but 
little  value,  they  had  retained  the  exclusive  control  of 
all  that  lay  east  of  Sacramento.  By  this  measure, 
they  had  prevented  the  capitalists  of  San  Francisco 
from  obtaining  voice  in  the  control  of  the  company. 

The  legislature  of  1867-8  passed  two  acts  bearing 
upon  the  question  of  a  terminus  on  San  Francisco  bay. 
The  first,  "for  the  purpose  of  providing  the  Terminal 
Central  Pacific  Railway  company  with  proper  depot 
and  commercial  facilities,"  granted  the  company  the 
submerged  and  tide  lands  situated  in  the  bay,  begin- 
ning at  a  point  400  feet  northwest  of  the  northwest 
point  of  Yerba  Buena  island,  and  extending  northwest- 
erly one  mile,  comprising  150  acres,  with  the  right  of 
way,  200  feet  in  width,  from  this  grant  to  the  Oakland, 
Alameda  or  Contra  Costa  shore,  for  the  purpose  of 
building  a  bridge  or  bridges ;  the  conditions  of  the 
grant  being  that  the  Terminal  company  should  estab- 
lish its  depot  upon  it  and  use  it  for  the  terminus  of 
the  Central  Pacific  railroad,  or  railroads,  and  should 
commence  improvements  within  one  year  from  the 
date  of  filing  an  acceptance  of  the  conditions,  which 
further  required  a  payment  of  not  less  than  three 
dollars  an  acre,  and  an  expenditure  of  not  less  than 
$100,000,  not  including  bridges,  the  first  year;  and 
that  a  first-class  railroad,  with  ferry  communication, 
should  be  established  between  San  Francisco,  Oakland 
and  Vallejo  within  four  years ;  the  avowed  object  of 
the  Terminal  company  being  to  construct  a  railroad 


TERMINAL  FACILITIES.  579 

from  Vallejo  to  Yerba  Buena  or  Goat  island,  to 
bridge  the  strait  of  Carquinez,  construct  a  tunnel 
under  it,  and  to  construct  a  bridge  to  Yerba  Buena 
from  the  Oakland  shore. 

The  second  act  mentioned  above  gave  the  governor 
authority  to  appoint  a  board  of  tide-land  commis- 
sioners, who  should  take  possession  of  the  salt,  the 
marsh,  and  tide  lands  lying  under  water  belonging  to 
the  state  in  the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco, 
and  have  them  surveyed  and  mapped  to  a  point  where 
the  depth  of  water  was  of  a  depth  of  twenty-four 
feet  at  low  tide  ;  and  provided  that  the  Southern  Pa- 
cific and  the  Western  Pacific  companies  should  have 
granted  to  each  of  them  for  a  terminus  thirty  acres, 
without  price — the  grant  lying  in  the  water  front  of 
Mission  bay,  together  with  the  right  of  way  over  the 
state  lands  to  their  termini  200  feet  in  width,  the 
companies  to  make  their  own  locations.  The  condi- 
tions of  this  grant  were  that  the  governor  should 
issue  patents  when  §100,000  had  been  expended  in 
improvements,  any  time  within  thirty  months,  after 
which  period,  if  the  improvements  had  not  been 
made,  the  grant  should  lapse  ;  and  in  the  event  of  the 
donation  being  accepted,  it  should  be  in  lieu  of  all 
other  grants  made  or  to  be  made  to  the  company  ac- 
cepting in  the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco  at 
that  session  of  the  legislature.  The  time  allowed  for 
making  their  termini  upon  the  Mission  bay  lands  was 
extended  two  years  in  1869-70,  as  was  also  that  of 
the  Terminal  Central  Pacific  company ;  and  it  was 
declared  by  the  act  of  the  legislature  that  the  con- 
struction and  completion  of  a  railroad  from  the  strait 
of  Carquinez,  opposite  Vallejo,  to  the  Yerba  Buena 
land  grant  should  be  construed  as  fulfilling  the  con- 
ditions of  the  original  act. 

Another  terminal  organization  was  the  Oakland 
Water  Front  company,  incorporated  in  April,  1868, 
with  a  capital  stock  of  $5,000,000.  It  was  really  a 
branch  of  the  Western  Pacific  company,  and  had  for 


580  RAILROADS— CENTRAL   PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

its  object  to  construct,  own,  hold,  control,  and  use 
wharves,  docks,  basins,  dry-docks,  piers,  and  ware- 
houses in  Oakland  or  elsewhere  ;  and  to  lease  or  sell; 
borrow  or  lend  money ;  carry  on  commerce,  foreign 
or  domestic  ;  in  short,  transact  any  business  in  any 
way,  and  to  lease,  sell,  or  convey  the  submerged  and 
overflowed  lands  in  front  of  Oakland.32  The  first 
trustees  of  this  company  were  E.  K.  Carpentier,  Lloyd 
Tevis,  H.  W.  Carpentier,  John  B.  Felton,  Leland 
Stanford,  and  Samuel  Merritt.  H.  W.  Carpentier 
was  president,  and  executed  a  conveyance  March  31, 
1868,  to  the  Oakland  Water  Front  company  of  "all 
the  water  front  of  the  city  of  Oakland,"  as  described 
in  the  incorporation  act  of  1852,  being  all  the  lands 
in  that  city  lying  beween  high  tide  and  ship  channel, 
with  the  rights  mentioned  above.  On  the  following 
day  the  Water  Front  company  agreed  to  convey  to 
the  Western  Pacific  railroad  company  500  acres  of 
tide  land,  in  one  or  two  parcels.  Some  concessions 
were  made  in  the  matter  of  streets  to  the  city  of  Oak- 
land; 25,000  shares  in  the  Water  Front  company 
were  promised  to  H.  W.  Carpentier;  5,000  shares  to 
John  B.  Felton ;  and  to  Leland  Stanford  the  remain- 

32 The  town  of  Oakland  was  the  result  of  the  '  squatting  '  of  three  Ameri- 
cans on  the  Peralta  grant,  viz. :  W.  Carpentier,  Edson  Adams,  and  A.  J. 
Moore,  near  the  foot  of  Broadway.  A  writ  of  ejectment  being  served  upon 
them,  a  compromise  was  effected  by  a  lease.  A  town  was  laid  out,  and  in 
1852  incorporated.  To  provide  for  the  erection  of  wharves,  etc.,  the  lands 
lying  between  high  tide  and  ship  channel  were  granted  and  released  to  said 
town,  provided  they  were  used  for  these  purposes,  the  board  of  town  trust- 
ees having  the  disposal  of  the  entire  water  front.  Among  the  first  ordi- 
nances passed  by  the  board  was  one  giving  a  grant  of  the  use  of  it  for  thirty- 
seven  years,  with  the  privilege  of  collecting  wharfage  to  Carpentier,  who 
erected  wharves  and  docks  for  that  purpose.  In  1853  a  clamor  began  to  1  e 
raised  concerning  this  robbery  of  the  city;  suits  and  counter-suits  followed, 
but  the  ordinance  was  confirmed  by  a  special  act  of  incorporation  in  1862. 
In  1867  the  W.  P.  R.  R.,  wanting  a  terminus  at  Oakland,  the  objection  waa 
advanced  that  Oakland  had  nothing  to  offer.  The  city  then  commenced  suit 
M  recover  title,  when  a  compromise  was  effected,  and  the  legislature  passed 
in  act  to  enable  the  city  to  carry  it  into  effect,  giving  the  mayor  authority  to 
:ompromise.  In  1 880  suit  was  again  brought  to  grant  title  to  the  500  acres 
leeded  to  the  railroad  company.  At  the  same  time  the  government,  in  order 
;o  complete  certain  improvements  to  the  harbor,  required  a  certain  quantity 
of  land  on  the  line  of  the  channel  to  Oakland  creek,  which  the  company 
transferred  for  that  purpose  while  this  suit  was  pending.  The  City  of  Oak- 
land may  regret,  but  never  can  recall  her  early  action  in  giving  away  her 
water  front. 


YEKBA  BUEXA  ISLAND.  581 

ing  20,000  shares.  On  the  part  of  the  Western  Pa- 
cific, that  company  agreed  to  construct  or  purchase 
and  complete  a  railroad  to  its  land  grant  at  Oakland 
within  eighteen  months,  and  within  three  years  ex- 
pend not  less  than  $500,000  in  gold  coin  in  improve- 
ments thereon,  or  forfeit  its  rights  to  the  city  of 
Oakland.  These  benefits  were  secured  before  the 
completion  of  the  Central  Pacific. 

In  1869-70  a  bill  was  before  congress  the  object  of 
which  was  to  secure  certain  rights  to  the  Western 
Pacific  railroad  company,  which  was  but  another 
name  for  the  Central  Pacific,  on  Yerba  Bueua  island. 
This  attempt  greatly  alarmed  San  Francisco,  the  be- 
lief being  current  that  the  railroad  power  designed  to 
seat  itself  on  the  island,  and  by  leveling  it  and  con- 
structing a  causeway  to  the  Oakland  water  front  pre- 
pare the  foundations  of  a  commercial  city  whose 
business  would  be  entirely  controlled  by  this  corpo- 
ration. Such  a  scheme,  if  carried  out,  would  be  a 
fatal  blight  upon  San  Francisco,  which  already  felt 
the  influence  on  her  shipping  business  of  the  opening 
of  a  railroad  with  its  terminus  at  Vallejo. 

This  Vallejo  railroad  was  incorporated  in  1867  un- 
der the  name  of  the  California  Pacific  railroad  com- 
pany, which  forthwith  commenced  to  construct  its  line 
to  Sacramento,  with  a  branch  to  Davisrille  and 
Marysville.  It  was  the  successor  of  the  San  Fran- 
cisco and  Marysville  railroad  company,  which  was 
itself  the  successor  of  the  Marysville  and  Benicia 
railroad  company,  organized  under  the  general  incor- 
poration act  of  1851." 

**  This  road  was  disincorporated,  Hie  grand  jury  of  Yoba  co.  reporting  its 
affairs  in  an  unsatisfactory  condition,  although  the  legislature  of  1855  ex- 
tended its  time.  In  1857  the  legislature  passed  an  act  authorizing  the  county 
of  Ynba  to  subscribe  $200,000  to  the  capital  stock"  of  any  railroad  company 
which  should  be  formed  for  the  purpose  of  constructing  a  railroad  between 
Marysville  and  Benicia  or  any  point  on  the  Sacramento  river,  at  or  neai 
Knights  Ferry.  CaL  Stit.,  1851,  596-300;  MarytviOe  R.  R.,  a  pamphlet  re- 
port of  the  engineers,  W.  J.  Lewis  and  F.  Catherwood,  1853.  The  S.  F.  and 
Marysville  R.  R.  co.  was  organized  as  a  successor  to  the  M.  and  B.  N.  R.  R., 
the  legislature  of  1858  granting  it  the  privilege  of  keeping  railroad  bridges 
across  the  Sacramento  river  and  Green  valley  creek.  CaL  Stat.,  1858,  265-7. 
It  also  granted  as  an  inducement  to  prosecute  the  enterprise,  one-half  mile 
of  the  water  frost  on  the  north-east  side  of  Napa  bay,  together  with  one-half 


582  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

The  Central  Pacific  had  spared  no  effort  to  pre- 
vent the  California  company  from  entering  Sacra- 
mento with  their  road,  the  dispute  causing  great 
expense  and  trouble,  which  sometimes  threatened 
bloodshed.  The  case  was  brought  before  the  courts, 
and  during  this  armistice,  on  the  29th  of  January, 
1870,  the  latter  landed  a  load  of  passengers  in  the  city, 
amidst  cheers  and  rejoicings.  But  for  this  privilege 
the  commissioners  appointed  by  the  court  awarded 
the  Central  company  damages  to  the  amount  of  $360,- 
680,  the  award  being  thrown  out  by  the  court  as  ex- 
cessive. 

The  California  Pacific's  route  being  shorter  than 
that  of  the  Western  Pacific,  through  a  beautiful 

• 

country  withal,  and  its  passengers  being  transferred 
to  elegant  steamers  for  a  charming  hour  upon  the  bay, 

of  all  the  over-flowed  and  swamp  lands,  in  alternate  sections,  lying  within 
the  counties  of  Yolo  and  Colusa,  upon  condition  that  within  two  years  these 
lands  should  be  reclaimed  over  a  certain  district,  the  road  completed  to  Napa 
bay  within  four  years,  and  the  remainder  of  the  swamp  land  reclaimed.  The 
first  part  of  the  proposition,  which  was  accepted,  not  being  fulfilled  in  1860, 
the  time  was  extended  to  1862,  when  it  was  still  unfulfilled.  The  company 
had,  however,  graded  sixty  miles  of  road-bed,  which  was  seriously  washed 
and  damaged  by  the  flood  of  1861-2,  and  the  contractors  assigned  as  a  reason 
for  the  delay,  the  breaking  out  of  the  civil  war,  and  the  difficulty  of  obtain- 
ing iron.  Another  extension  of  time  was  obtained  from  the  legislature,  but 
the  company  relinquished  the  swamp  and  over-flowed  land  grant,  retaining 
only  the  half  mile  of  water  front,  and  agreeing  to  complete  its  road  in  \  864. 
At  the  same  session  (1861)  another  bill  was  passed,  authorizing  the  people  to 
vote  upon  a  proposition  to  issue  $100,000  in  bonds  of  the  county  of  Yuba, 
devoted  to  aiding  railroad  construction,  in  aid  of  a  rival  company,  but  the 
supervisors  refused  to  break  faith  with  the  S.  F.  and  M.  co.  In  1863  the 
Isgislature  again  extended  the  time  to  1865,  and  restored  the  land  grant. 
The  management  was  unfortunate  throughout,  and  the  company  was  finally 
dissolved. 

Its  successor,  the  Cal.  Pacific,  had  for  its  first  pres't  De  Witt  Clinton  Rice, 
a  pioneer  of  1840,  and  a  native  of  Canandaigua,  N.  Y.  He  resided  at  Marys- 
ville  for  many  years,  removing  to  San  Francisco  finally,  where  he  died  in 
1870.  The  vice-pres't  was  John  B.  Frisbie,  and  the  other  directors  C.  G. 
Bockins,  A.  D.  Starr,  L.  C.  Fowler,  and  W.  K.  Hudson.  The  contractors 
were  W.  F.  Roelofson,  D.  C.  Haskin,  and  J.  M.  Ryder. 

The  Cal.  Paciffc  R.  R.  Extension  co.  was  incorporated  April  14,  1869, 
with  the  ostensible  purpose  of  constructing  a  railroad  from  Napa  Junction  on 
the  Cal.  Pacific  to  Calistoga,  thence  to  Healdsburg,  and  through  Sonoma  co., 
Santa  Rosa,  and  Russian  river  valleys  to  Cloverdale.  Its  intention  was  not 
carried  out,  and  it  was  accused  of  securing  the  credit  of  the  Cal.  Pacific  co. 
by  false  representations,  which  were  connived  at  by  a  contractor  and  stock- 
holder in  that  co.,  whereby  it  was  induced  to  guarantee  bonds  of  the  Exten- 
sion co.  to  the  amount  of  $3,500,000,  which  guarantee  caused  many  persons 
to  subscribe  to  the  stock. 


CALIFORNIA  PACIFIC.  583 

was  a  very  popular  one,  and  the  road  should  have 
been  profitable  to  the  stockholders,  as  with  proper 
management  it  would  have  been.  In  July,  1871,  this 
corporation,  bv  its  president,  Milton  S.  Latham, 
agreed  to  sell  to  C.  P.  Huntington,  Leland  Stanford, 
and  Mark  Hopkins  76,101  shares  of  the  120,000 
shares  of  $100  each  which  constituted  its  capital 
stock,  and  three-fourths  of  the  subscribed  capital 
stock  of  the  California  Pacific  Extension  company,  in 
consideration  of  the  sum  of  $1,579,000  to  be  paid  to 
Latham  in  1600  bonds  of  the  company  of  $1,000 
each,  with  twenty  years  to  run,  at  six  per  cent,  secured 
by  mortgage  on  the  road  and  property,  payment  to 
be  made  on  the  1st  of  October,  when,  the  control  of 
the  company  having  passed  into  the  hands  of  the 
Central  Pacific,  a  new  board  of  directors  should  have 
been  elected,  when,  also,  all  the  property  of  the  com- 
pany, including  steamers  and  barges,  should  be  trans- 
ferred to  the  Central. 

The  California  Pacific,  previous  to  this  transaction, 
owned,  besides  its  $12,000,000  of  capital  stock,  all 
the  stock  of  the  San  Francisco  and  North  Pacific,  and 
the  San  Francisco  and  Huinboldt  bay  railroads,  to 
the  amount  of  $8,600,000  each,  and  the  California 
Eastern  Extension  stock,  which  had  never  been  issued. 
All  these  roads  passed,  with  the  California  Pacific, 
into  the  control  of  the  Central  company." 

**  A  company  was  incorporated  in  186S  under  the  name  of  the  San  Fran- 
cisco and  Humboldt  Bay  R.  R.  co.,  which  proposed  to  construct  a  railroad 
from  Saosalito  to  Humboldt  bay,  through  the  counties  of  Marin,  Sonoma, 
Mendocino,  and  Humboldt.  After  grading  ten  miles,  work  was  suspended. 
The  Vattejo  Recorder  of  June  19,  1S69,  explained  the  failure  by  saying  that:  1st, 
S.  F.  capitalists  were  opposed  to  making  improvements  on  a  rival  harbor; 
2nd,  the  CaL  Navigation  co.  were  opposed  to  losing  the  lucrative  trade  of 
Sonoma  and  Mendocino  counties;  3d,  Petalnma  proper  did  not  desire  the 
road,  which  would  kill  that  aspiring  little  city;  and  4th,  the  road  would  not 
pay. 

However  that  may  have  been,  the  San  Francisco  and  Humboldt  railroad 
passed  out  of  sight.  Its  successor  was  the  S.  F.  and  North  Pacific  R.  R.  co., 
in  which  Peter  Donahue  owned  a  controlling  interest,  having  purchased  a 
majority  of  the  stock  of  the  old  company  in  Aug.  1870.  On  the  29th  the  first 
•  spike  was  driven,  with  a  hammer  wielded  by  Simon  Conrad,  pres't  of  the 
board  of  trustees;  and  in  Oct.  the  road  was  completed  to  Santa  Rosa,  when 
the  county  supervisors  accepted  ten  miles,  and  paid  over  the  subsidy,  amount- 


584  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

Previous  to  the  transfer  the  Central  Pacific  pur- 
chasers obtained  another  contract  with  the  California 
Pacific,  whereby  it  was  agreed,  instead  of  the  delivery 
of  the  bonds,  that  the  Central  should  build  for  the 
California  Pacific  an  additional  track  from  Davisville 
to  Sacramento,  also  strengthening  and  widening  the 
existing  road.  But  the  contract  was  not  performed, 
and  in  the  winter  of  1871-2  that  portion  of  the  road 
was  washed  away,  after  which  the  Central  secured  a 
contract  for  the  Contract  and  Finance  company  to 
repair  the  road,  charging  $1,600,000  for  the  job. 
This  sum  more  than  covered  the  price  of  the  bonds 
paid  to  the  California  Pacific.  About  the  same  time 
the  Central  Pacific  directors  sold  to  Peter  Donahue 
the  San  Francisco  and  North  Pacific  railroad,  pur- 
chased from  him  by  the  California  company,  for  the 
sum  of  $1,050,000,  less  a  large  amount  which  they 
owed  to  Donahue,  which  debt  was  thereby  discharged. 
Soon  afterward,  in  conjunction  with  other  parties,  they 
caused  suit  to  be  brought  against  the  California  Pa- 
cific company,  based  upon  certain  advances  of  the 
Qentral  company,  to  meet  $500,000  of  principal  and 
$300,000  of  interest  upon  the  income  bonds  of  the 
first-named  company,  and  other  matters,  and  obtained 
a  confession  of  judgment  for  $1,394,000,  which  became 
a  lien  upon  the  road,  in  preference  to  the  claim  of  the 
other  bond-holders. 

With  its  two  hundred  miles  of  road,  its  control  of 
the  shortest  route  between  San  Francisco  and  Sacra- 
mento, and  of  the  finest  steamers  running  on  the  bay, 
with  the  support  of  foreign  capitalists  and  its  some- 
what aggressive  policy,  the  California  Pacific  had 
indeed  been  one  of  the  most  formidable  rivals35  of 

ing  to  $50,000.  The  town  of  Donahue  was  laid  out  at  the  creek's  mouth, 
wharves  erected,  and  on  the  31st  of  Dec.  the  line  from  deep  water  to 
Santa  Rosa  was  opened.  This  road  now  extends  southward  to  San  Rafael, 
in  Marin  co. ;  and  on  the  north  sends  off  from  the  main  road  a  branch  to 
Guerneville.  In  1875  Donahue  offered,  for  a  subsidy  of  $60,000,  to  extend 
the  North  Pacific  R.  R.  from  Cloverdale  to  Ukiah,  in  Mendocino  co.,  which 
road  is  now  in  operation. 

30  They  had  purchased  the  boats  of  the  California  Stjam  Navigation  com- 
pany; bought  up  the  Napa  valley  railroad  and  the  Petaluma  valley  road, 


THE  CALIFORNIA  PACIFIC.  585 

the  Central  company,  until  the  latter,  by  its  purchase 
of  the  stock  and  its  skilful  manipulations,  became  vir- 
tually master  of  its  movements,  and  put  an  end  to  all 
competition  in  that  direction.38  In  doing  this,  how- 
ever, it  is  probable  that  they  may  have  somewhat 
damaged  the  value  in  foreign  markets  of  their  bonds 
of  the  California  Pacific  Extension  company. 

Finally,  in  1876,  the  Central  Pacific  leased  the  Cali- 
fornia Pacific  for  a  term  of  twenty -nine  years,  at  an 
annual  rental  of  $550,000,  and  three-fourths  of  the 
amount  of  its  net  earnings;  all  expenses,  taxes,  and  re- 
pairs to  be  paid  by  the  lessees,  and  the  one-fourth  of 
the  earnings  belonging  to  them  to  constitute  a  sinking 
and  contingent  fund,  to  pay  the  interest  on  its  bonds, 
and  meet  extraordinary  outlay.  Having  thus  obtained 
entire  possession  of  the  California  Pacific,  the  Central 
proceeded  to  make  it  a  part  of  the  continental  railroad 
by  constructing  a  branch  to  Benicia,  and  controlling 
all  the  traffic  moving  to  or  from  San  Francisco.37 

*j 

Such,  up  to  this  date,  were  the  main  extensions  and 

begun  work  on  a  line  from  Suscol  to  Santa  Rosa,  and  announced  their  inten- 
tion of  building  a  track  from  the  Sacramento  valley  to  Ogden,  thus  making 
connection  with  the  Union  Pacific. 

36  The  Cal.  Pacific  Eastern  Extension  co.  entertained  a  grand  scheme, 
which  was  no  less  than  a  railroad  commencing  at  Davisville,  on  the  Cal. 
Pacific  R.  R.,  proceeding  thence  northerly  through  the  Sac.  valley,  thence 
in  a  s.  E.  direction,  crossing  the  boundary  of  the  state  near  Goose  lake,  going 
north  to  Christmas  lake  in  Or.,  thence  easterly  through  Or.,  Idaho,  and 
Utah,  to  Ogden.  Also  from  Pitt  river  about  the  41st  parallel,  branching 
northwesterly  to  a  junction  with  the  Or.  and  CaL  R.  R. ;  also  from  Christmas 
lake  westerly  to  a  junction  with  the  Or.  and  CaL  R.  R.  at  Klamath  lake;  in 
all  943  miles  of  railroad.  The  capital  stock  of  this  company  was  $50,000,000, 
in  50,000  shares  of  §1,000  each-  W.  F.  Kulofson  held  250,000  shares,  Mil- 
ton S.  Latham,  J.  Friedlander,  E.  P.  Hammond,  A.  Gansel,  E.  L.  Sullivan, 
F.  D.  Atherton,  J.  P.  Jackson,  J.  R  Frisbie,  Alex.  De  Faski  of  London, 
Eng.,  W.  H.  Tillinghast,  E.  H.  Greene,  London,  each  18,000  shares;  Rudolf 
Snlzbach  of  Frankfort-on-the-main,  24,000;  Julius  May,  18,000  shares.  Ten 
per  cent  of  the  subscriptions  was  paid-up  capital.  By  the  sale  which  Latham 
made  to  Stanford,  Hnntington,  and  Hopkins,  the  Cal.  Pacific's  shares  in  this 
company  went  into  their  hands. 

"  The  Napa  valley  R,  R.,  from  Vallejo  to  Calistoga,  was  united  with,  and 
became  a  branch  of,  the  CaL  Pac.  R.  R.  in  Dec.  1868.  Ihe  road  was  built 
chiefly  by  county  subscriptions  of  $10,000  per  mile,  the  organization  being  in 
1864.  C.  Hartson  was  the  first  pres't,  and  A.  A.  Cohen  sec.  When  it  was 
finished  to  Napa,  Hartson  obtained  the  free  gift  of  the  county's  $10,000  per 
mile,  which,  with  private  subscriptions,  completed  the  road  to  Calistoga  in 
Oct.  1868.  On  the  27th  of  May,  1869,  the  N.  V.  R.  R.  was  sold  to  Rulofson 
and  Ryder  for  §500,000,  which  "placed  it  in  due  time  unde.  the  Central  Pacific 
management. 


586  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC   SYSTEM. 

acquisitions  of  the  company  in  central  and  northern 
California,28  and  when  we  consider  the  comparative 
obscurity  of  its  origin,  and  the  opposition  or  indiffer- 
ence which  it  encountered  at  the  outset,  it  is  indeed 
remarkable  that  the  railroad  quartette  should  not 
only  have  accomplished  their  original  task,  but  al- 
ready have  secured  for  themselves  almost  the  entire 
carrying  trade  of  the  Pacific  coast.  Though  men 
may  differ  in  opinion  as  to  the  policy  of  the  directors, 
it  must  at  least  be  conceded  that  they  displayed  a 
similar  combination  of  business  ability,  together  with 
a  remarkable  aptitude  for  harmonious  cooperation. 

In  1866  Congress  granted  to  the  California  and 
Oregon  Railroad  company,  organized  in  1863,  and  re- 
organized in  1865,  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  rail- 
road and  telegraph  line  from  the  Central  Pacific  to 
Portland,  the  same  amount  of  land  per  mile  that  was 
granted  to  the  interoceanic  roads.  The  condition  to 
secure  this  subsidy  was  that  twenty  miles  of  the  road 
should  be  constructed  and  equipped  in  1868,  but  fail- 
ing of  that,  congress  extended  the  time  of  the  com- 
pletion of  the  first  section  to  1870,  and  of  the  whole 
road  as  far  as  it  lay  in  California,  to  1880.  The  capi- 
tal stock  of  this  company,  divided  into  150,000  shares, 
was  $15,000,000.  In  December  1869  it  became  con- 
solidated with  the  Yuba  Railroad  company,39  organ- 
ized in  1862  to  extend  the  California  Central  railroad40 

38  They  also  controlled  a  fleet  of  the  best  steamboats  plying  on  the  harbor 
of  San  Francisco. 

39  The  first  officers  of  the  Yuba  company  were  Samuel  Brannan  pres't, 
James  P.  Flint  vice-pres't,  J.  M.  Shotwell  sec.  and  treas'r,  Charles  Dana,  H. 
B.  Williams,  the  other  directors.     The  company  was  composed  of  the  bond- 
holders of  the  defunct  Cal.  Central  R.  R.,  who,  to  make  the  bonds  of  the 
old  road  available,  found  it  necessary  to  push  the  new  road  through  to  the 
Yuba  river. 

wThe  Cal.  Central  R.  R.  was  commenced  in  1858,  to  run  from  Folsom  to 
Marysville,  but  it  was  completed  no  further  than  Lincoln.  Its  first  officers 
were  J.  C.  Fall  pres't,  William  Hawley  vice  pres't,  Ira  A.  Eaton  sec.,  John 
A.  Paxton  treas  r,  T.  D.  Judah  chief  eng'r,  John  H.  Kinkead,  H.  P.  Catlin, 
S.  T.  Watts,  the  other  directors.  The  Central  Pacific  in  1863  purchased  tho 
Cal.  Central  at  sheriff's  sale,  and  that  portion  between  Roseville  and  Folsom 
was  abandoned.  The  Cal.  Northern,  or  Northern  Central,  as  it  was  some- 
times called,  was  incorporated  in  1SGO,  with  a  capital  of  $J,000,OGO,  for  the 


CALIFORNIA  AND  OREGON.  587 

from  Lincoln  to  a  point  at  or  near  Marysville,  and  in 
which  the  Central  Pacific  had  a  controlling  interest. 
In  1870  the  California  and  Oregon  and  the  Central 
Pacific  were  consolidated,  the  Contract  and  Finance 
company  constructing  the  road  to  Redding.  It  was 
not  carried  further  north  than  Tehama  county  until 
1886-7,  when  it  was  completed  to  a  junction  with  the 
Oregon  line  at  Ashland  in  Oregon. 

Other  consolidations  with  the  Central  Pacific  took 
place  in  1870,  as  the  Western  Pacific,  the  San  Fran- 
cisco, Oakland,  and  Alameda  railroad,41  and  the  San 
Joaquin  valley  railroad 4J  companies,  which  were  con- 
joined under  the  name  of  the  "Central  Pacific  railroad  " 
— the  words  "of  California"  being  omitted  after  this 

purpose  of  constructing  a  railroad  to  Oroville  from  Marysville,  with  the  in- 
tent to  extend  it  eventually  to  Red  Bluff.  It  was  completed  to  Oroville  in 
1864.  The  Yuba  company  connected  with  it,  making  an  unbroken  line  of 
railway  communication  90  miles  in  length,  skirting  the  oak  forests,  granite 
quarries,  gardens  and  vineyards  of  the  foothills,  and  crossing  the  Central 
Pacific  18  miles  N.  E.  of  Sac.  The  officers  of  the  Northern  Central  in  1861 
were  M.  H.  Darrach  pres't,  J.  W.  Buffum  vice-pres't,  D.  D.  Harris  sec.,  S. 
Van  Orden  treas'r,  U.  S.  Watson  chief  eng'r,  Charles  De  Po,  H.  M.  Smedes, 
H.  B.  Lathrop,  J.  M.  Clark,  the  other  directors;  Chenery,  Burney  &  Co., 
contractors. 

41  In  1861  an  act  of  the  legislature  authorized  certain  persons  to  construct 
a  railroad  from  the  westerly  end  of  the  bridge  leading  from  the  city  of  Oak- 
land to  the  town  of  Clinton,  through  the  streets  of  Oakland  to  a  point  on  the 
bay  of  S.  F.,  where  the  shore  approached  nearest  to  Yerba  Buena  island,  'or 
at  such  a  point  as  a  railroad  may  be  built  from  to  said  island, '  under  or  by 
virtue  of  an  act  granting  to  certain  other  persons  the  right  to  establish  and 
run  a  ferry  between  the  island  of  Yerba  Buena  and  the  city  of  S.  F.,  and  to 
construct  a  railroad  from  the  island  to  the  Alameda  co.  shore.  Cal.  Stat., 
May  20,  1861.     This  latter  corporation  was  known  as  the  S.  F.  and  Oakland 
R.  R.  co.     In  1863  the  legislature  authorized  the  supervisors  of  Alameda  co. 
to  subscribe  §220,000  to  the  capital  stock  of  the  Alameda  valley  R.  R.  co. 
The  object  of  this  corporation  was  the  construction  of  a  railroad  from  the 
easterly  terminus  of  the  S.  F.  and  Oakland  R.  R.  in  Oakland  through  Ala- 
meda co.  to  a  point  near  Vallejo  mills,  with  a  view  to  connecting  with  the 
Western  Pacific  R.  R. ,  then  incorporated.     This  company  was  authorized  to 
keep  a  wharf  at  the  encinal  of  San  Antonio.     It  crossed  San  Antonio  creek 
by  a  drawbridge,  and  connected  with  the  S.  F.  and  Oakland  railway,  consti- 
tuting together  the  S.  F.,  Oakland  and  Alameda  R.  R.     It  ran  to  Hayward 
in  1865,  and  was  extended  to  Niles  and  San  Jose  under  the  C.  P.  manage- 
ment.    The  first  board   of  directors  was  composed  of  B.  C.  Horn  pres't, 
Timothy  Dame  treas'r,  George  C.  Potter  sec.,  William  Hayward,  J.  A.  May- 
hew,  J.  B.  Feltou,  and  Ed.  M.  Derby. 

42  The  San  Joaquin  valley  R.  R   co.  was  organized  in  1868,  with  the  in- 
tention of  bringing  the  trade  of  the  valley  to  Stockton.     Its  consolidation 
with  the  C.  P.  diverted  the  traffic  to  San  Francisco  by  deflecting  at  Lathrop. 
It  was  constructed  by  one  of  the  Central  Pacific's  contract  companies,  and 
extended  south  to  the  Colorado  river  and  beyond.     Its  subsidies  were  said, 
to  be  valued  at  §3,000,000. 


588  RAILROADS- CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

change  in  the  organization.  The  Stockton  and  Visa- 
lia  railroad,  commenced  in  1870,43also  came  under  the 
control  of  the  Central  Pacific,  and  now  constitutes  a 
part  of  its  line  to  Goshen.  Its  purpose  on  organizing 
was  to  compete  with  the  trunk  line  of  the  Central 
Pacific,  but  soon  afterward  it  joined  the  great  consol- 
idation in  which  were  eventually  united  nearly  all  of 
the  short  California  roads.  By  still  another  consoli- 
dation in  1877  the  Stockton  and  Copperopolis  railroad 
was  joined  with  the  Stockton  and  Visalia,  and  thus 
with  the  Central. 

43  As  early  as  1852  a  railroad  was  projected  from  Stockton  to  Sonora  in 
Tuolumne  co.  by  the  San  Joaquin  R.  R.  co.,  which,  after  organizing  and  dis- 
posing of  stock,  abandoned  the  enterprise.  No  other  railroad  company  was 
organized  in  this  co.  for  10  years  thereafter,  when  the  Stockton  and  Copper- 
opolis R.  R.  co.  was  incorporated.  The  legislature  of  1863  authorized  the 
counties  of  San  Joaquin,  Stanislaus,  Calaveras,  and  Tuolumne  to  suhscril  e 
$100,000,  $25,000,  and  $50,000  respectively  in  aid  of  this  road.  Cal.  Slat., 
1863,  102,  310.  Copperopolis  was,  at  this  period,  the  centre  of  a  rapidly 
growing  mining  industry,  but  the  richest  deposits  were  exhausted  in  two 
years,  and  the  prosperity  of  the  region  declined.  However,  in  1865,  the 
Copperopolis  company  reorganized,  and  applied  to  congress  for  aid.  A  grant 
was  obtained  of  231,000  acres  in  March  1867,  conditioned  upon  a  subscription 
of  $200,000,  upon  which  5  per  cent  should  be  paid  in,  and  the  work  com- 
menced before  March  1869,  ten  miles  to  be  completed  annually  until  the  road 
should  be  finished.  The  officers  of  this  company  were  E.  S.  Holden  pres't, 
R.  B.  Parker  vice-pres't,  George  Gray  treas'r,  John  Sedgewick  sec.,  W.  L. 
Dudley,  John  H.  Redington,  Willard  Sperry,  E.  R.  Stockwell,  and  J.  K. 
Doak  directors.  The  failure  of  the  mining  industries  forced  the  company,  in 
order  to  save  the  franchise  and  land  grant,  to  transfer  their  rights  to  the 
Cal.  Pac  R.  R.  co.,  which  constructed  the  road  as  far  as  Milton.  In  the 
mean  time  the  Stockton  and  Visalia  co.  was,  in  1869,  incorporated,  and 
the  Cal.  Pac  took  the  contract  to  construct  its  road.  Instead,  however,  it 
constructed  a  branch  line  from  a  point  on  the  Copperopolis  R.  R.,  12  miles 
east  of  Stockton,  to  the  Stanislaus  river,  calling  it  the  Stockton  and  Visalia 
R.  R.  By  this  means  it  was  hoped  to  save  the  subsidies,  but  the  legislature 
requested  congress  to  revoke  the  land  grant,  which  was  done.  U.  S.  Sen.  3/wc. 
Doc.,  67,  i.,  43d  cong.,  1st  sess. ;  Acts  and  lies.,  43d  cong.,  1st  sess.,  pp.  88-9. 
The  city  of  Stockton  had  subscribed  $300,000,  and  the  county  of  San  Joaquin 
$200,000,  in  aid  of  the  Visalia  road.  The  bonds  were  issued,  and  placed  in 
the  hands  of  trustees  to  be  delivered  to  the  company  on  the  completion  of 
the  first  section  of  the  road.  The  corporation,  without  building  any  part  of 
their  road,  tendered  the  short  line  running  from  the  Stockton  and  Copper- 
opolis road  to  the  Stanislaus  river,  built  by  the  California  Pacific  company, 
as  a  compliance  with  the  terms  of  its  agreement,  but  the  trustees  refused  to 
deliver  the  bonds,  and  protracted  litigation  followed,  the  district  court  de- 
ciding for  the  city  and  county,  and  the  supreme  court  reversing  the  decision. 
The  case  was  compromised  by  the  city  and  county  paying  $300,000.  Shortly 
after  the  completion  of  the  branch  above  spoken  of,  all  of  the  Cal.  Pacific  s 
work  was  turned  over  to  the  Central  Pacific.  San  Joaquin  county  has  been 
unfortunate  in  the  matter  of  its  railroads,  whether  from  a  want  of  energy  in 
its  people  or  other  causes.  In  1874  a  charter  was  obtained  by  the  Stockton 
and  lone  railroad  company  to  construct  a  narrow-gauge  road  from  tide-water 


ABOUND  THE  BAY.  589 

Of  the  railroads  in  the  northern  counties44  but  little 
remains  to  be  said.  They  have  greatly  multiplied 
and  extended.  The  construction  of  several  short 
roads  about  the  bay  of  San  Francisco  has,  by  con- 

at  Stockton  to  the  coal-fields  in  Amador  co.  The  line  was  surveyed,  and  its 
construction  commenced,  the  principal  person  connected  with  it  being  Henry 
Platt,  the  projector  of  the  Pacific  coast  narrow  gauge.  Several  miles  of 
grading  were  done,  about  one  mile  of  track  was  laid,  car-shops  and  depot 
buildings  were  erected,  and  locomotives  purchased,  when  matters  came  to  a 
standstill.  The  contractor,  it  was  said,  had  misrepresented  and  mis  managed, 
entangling  the  enterprise  in  debt,  and  finally  selling  out  '  to  the  enemies  of 
the  road  and  of  Stockton  by  disposing  of  the  bonds  extorted  from  the  road. ' 
Construction  ceased,  and  litigation  followed.  All  that  remains  of  the  well- 
planned  enterprise  is  the  useless  depot  and  the  more  useless  mile  of  road. 
The  Stanislaus  and  Mariposa  R.  R.  co.  organized  in  June  1866,  with  a  capital 
stock  of  $1,500,000,  was  intended  to  connect  with  the  Copperopolis  road  10 
miles  from  Stockton,  running  thence  to  Knight's  ferry  and  La  Grange,  a 
distance  of  50  miles,  and  to  l>e  extended  finally  to  Fort  Tejon;  but  it  was 
never  even  commenced,  owing  to  the  opposition  of  better  organized  compa- 
nies. The  San  Joaquin  and  Tulare  R.  R.,  incorporated  in  1873,  is  another 
of  these  failures. 

44  In  1865  Sonoma  co.  began  to  stir  in  the  matter  of  railroads,  and  the 
following  companies  were  formed:  In  October,  1865,  the  Petaluma  and 
Healdsburg  R.  R.  co.,  which  failed  to  do  more  than  raise  a  few  thousand 
dollars.  In  1867  the  Vallejo  and  Sonoma  Valley  R.  R.  was  proposed  as  a  sub- 
stitute, which  offered  to  construct  a  road  from  Suscol  to  Cloverdale  and 
Healdsburg;  and  in  1869  the  Petaluma  and  Cloverdale  R.  R.  co. ,  with  a  branch 
to  Bloomfield,  made  a  proposition  to  the  county,  but  none  of  these  came  to 
fruition.  Ihe  Sonoma  Valley  R.  R.  was  commenced  about  1880,  is  com- 
pleted from  Sonoma  Landing  to  Glen  Ellen,  and  is  the  only  one  in  the  co. 
except  the  S.  F.  and  North  Pacific,  already  mentioned.  The  first  railroad  in 
Mendocino  co.  was  built  by  the  Mendocino  R.  R.  co.  in  1875,  from  Cuffey'a 
Cove  3J  miles  into  the  forest  along  Greenwood  creek.  It  was  a  narrow 
gauge,  and  its  rolling  stock  consisted  of  2  locomotives  and  29  flat  cars.  Its 
principal  stockholder  was  A.  W.  Hall.  The  North  Pacific  Coast  R.  R.,  it 
would  seem,  should  have  been  extended  to  Eureka,  on  Humboldt  bay,  which 
lacked  an  outlet  to  the  valleys  of  Cal.,  and  connection  with  the  railroad  sys- 
tem of  the  state.  But,  instead,  the  people  of  Eureka,  the  town  having 
about  6,000  inhabitants,  projected  the  construction  of  a  railroad  called  the 
Eureka  and  Eel  River  R.  R.,  to  give  the  people  of  that  valley,  southeast 
from  Humboldt  bay  15  miles,  easy  communication  with  the  chief  town  of 
Mendocino  co.  Money  was  raised  among  the  citizens  to  pay  for  the  survey 
of  a  route,  each  contributor  to  have  the  privilege  of  subscribing  to  the  cap- 
ital stock  of  the  corporation,  and  receiving  credit  to  the  amount  of  said  sub- 
scription to  the  preliminary  survey.  They  petitioned  the  legislature  in  1878 
to  permit  the  town  to  subscribe  §75,000  in  aid  of  this  road,  and  an  act  was 
passed  in  consonance  with  their  wishes.  C.  S.  Ricks  was  sent  to  Sacra- 
mento to  urge  this  bill;  the  representative  from  Humboldt,  Mr  Russ,  and 
the  senator  from  that  district.  Rol>ert  McGarvey,  were  instructed  to  insist 
upon  the  right  of  the  Eureka  people  to  vote  money  to  subsidize  a  much 
needed  improvement;  the  democrats  voted  for  it,  although  no-subsidy  was 
one  of  their  party  watch- words.  This  road  now  extends  26  miles  southeast, 
and  will  probably  be  brought  to  connect  with  the  North  Pacific  or  with  the 
Sacramento  valley  system.  The  Vaca  Valley  and  Clear  Lake  railroad  was 
incorporated  in  1869,  and  constructed  from  Elmira  in  Solano  co.  to  Vacaville 
in  the  same  co.  for  the  convenience  of  shippers  of  fruit  and  vegetables  to 
San  Francisco.  In  1876  it  was  extended  to  Winters  in  Yolo  co.  In  1877  it 


590  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

ncction  and  combinations,  made  travel  in  all  directions 
from  the  metropolis  easy,  agreeable,  and  popular. 
Most  of  these  are  under  the  Central  Pacific  manage- 
ment. The  causeway  connecting  the  Oakland  shore 

was  re-incorporated,  and  extended  to  Madison,  a  distance  of  30  miles  from 
Elmira.  Its  officers  in  1879  were  A.  M.  Stevenson  pres't;  T.  Mansfield 
treas'r;  E.  Allison  sec't'y;  G.  B.  Stevenson  supt. 

In  Jan.,  1871,  the  people  of  Antioch,  near  the  mouth  of  the  San  Joaquin 
river,  conceived  the  idea  of  a  railroad  to  Visalia  in  Tulare  co. ,  and  organized 
a  company  to  construct  it.  The  project  never  came  to  fruition;  but  the  two 
towns  have  railroad  connection  through  the  lines  of  the  Central  Pacific 
company. 

The  railroad  from  San  Rafael  to  San  Quentin  was  undertaken  by  the  cit- 
izens of  San  Rafael  in  1869.  At  the  first  meeting,  Feb.  19th,  A.  Mailliard, 
J.  Short,  S.  V.  Smith,  (sen.)  P.  K.  Austin,  L.  A.  Hinman,  James  D.  Walker, 
and  James  Ross  were  chosen  directors.  Mailliard  was  elected  pres't  of  the 
company,  Charles  Stevens  sec'ty,  and  J.  D.  Walker  treas'r.  The  length  of 
the  road  was  3^  miles;  capital  stock  $50,000.  As  was  so  frequently  the  case, 
their  ambition  outran  their  means,  and  the  project  rested  until  Mr  Donahue 
took  hold  of  the  railroad  affairs  of  Marin  co.  In  1865  a  railroad  was  con- 
structed from  a  point  on  the  Central  Pacific  to  the  Mt  Diablo  coal  mines  in 
Contra  Costa  co. 

In  1870  the  project  of  connecting  Nevada  city  and  Grass  Valley  in  Nevada 
co.  with  the  Central  Pacific  at  Colfax  was  first  agitated.  Nothing  was  ac- 
complished until  1873,  when  a  survey  was  made  for  a  narrow  gauge  railroad 
over  this  route,  and  in  1874  congress  granted  the  right  of  way.  Zalnisltiea 
Land  Laws,  Sup.  1877,  64.  The  company  was  incorporated  under  the  name 
of  Nevada  County  Narrow  Gauge  R.  R.,  and  received  no  subsidies,  but  was 
permitted  to  charge  lOc  per  mile  for  passengers  and  20c  per  ton  for  freight, 
with  additions  for  hazardous  freight.  The  officers  of  the  company  were 
John  C.  Coleman  pres't;  John  W.  Sigourney  vice-pres't;  George  Fletcher 
secretary;  J.  H.  Bates  chief  engineer;  William  Watt,  Edward  Coleman,  J. 
M.  Lakenan,  Niles  Searles,  and  R.  W.  Tully  directors.  Turton  and  Knox, 
contractors,  constructed  the  road,  commencing  in  Feb.,  1875,  and  completing 
it  to  Nevada  city,  22  miles,,  May  20,  1876. 

The  Northern  Railway  company,  chartered  Jiily  19,  1871,  extends  from 
West  Oakland  to  Martinez,  31  miles,  and  from  Woodland  to  Tehama,  100 
miles,  forming  important  links  in  the  railroad  system  of  the  state.  It  con- 
trols branches  between  Suisun  and  Benicia,  16  miles;  and  Martinez  to  Tracy, 
46  miles;  all  these  lines  being  leased  to  the  Central  Pacific. 

The  California  and  Nevada  R.  R.  has  been  constructed  from  Oakland  to 
a  point  above  San  Pablo.  It  was  originally  intended  to  be  carried  to  the 
Nevada  state  line  near  Bodie,  but  later  made  for  Walnut  creek,  Contra  Costa 
co.  It  is  a  narrow  gauge.  The  Bodie  and  Benton  R.  R.  is  also  a  narrow- 
gauge  road,  32  miles  long,  now  running  between  Bodie,  in  Mono  co.,  and  the 
town  of  Mono.  It  was  chartered  in  Feb.  1881,  and  was  in  operation,  with 
its  branches,  in  1882.  The  Carson  and  Colorado  R.  R.  runs  from  Keeler,  in 
Inyoco.,  to  Mound  House,  Nev.,  299  miles.  It  is  a  narrow  gauge.  The 
company  was  organized  in  May  1880,  and  the  road  completed  before  1885. 
The  Nevada  and  Cal.  R.  R.  was  first  called  the  Nevada  and  Oregon  R.  R. 
It  runs  from  Aurora,  Nev.,  to  Goose  lake,  Cal.,  300  miles,  entering  Cal.  at 
the  lower  end  of  Plumas  co.  It  is  a  narrow  gauge,  and  was  chartered  April 
25,  1881.  In  April  1884  it  was  sold  under  foreclosure  of  a  mortgage  at  U.S. 
marshal's  sale,  and  purchased  for  the  account  of  the  bond-holders  for 
$372,534.21,  when  it  was  reorganized  under  its  present  name.  Only  31 
miles  are  in  operation,  from  Reno,  Nev.,  to  a  point  in  Cal.  a  few  miles  west 
of  the  boundary. 


FERRY-BOATS  AND  CABLE-ROADS.  591 

•with  the  mole  at  deep  water,  has  been  gradually  wid- 
ened and  strengthened  until  it  forms  a  solid  peninsula, 
supporting  several  tracks,  and  a  very  extensive  and 
commodious  depot,  which  replaced  the  old  one  in  1881. 
Elegant  double-deck  steamers  are  used  for  ferry-boats 
on  all  the  lines  terminating  at  San  Francisco,  and 
cable  and  other  lines  of  street  cars,  several  of  which 
belong  to  the  Central  Pacific  company,  convey  pas- 
sengers to  every  part  of  the  city  with  ease  and  ex- 
pedition, the  cable-road  system  of  our  metropolis  being 
acknowledged  as  one  of  the  most  complete  and  com- 
modious in  the  world. 

Colusa  co.  R.  R.  is  a  narrow  gauge  extending  from  Colnsa  to  Williams, 
on  the  Central  Pacific.  The  San^Joaquin  and  Sierra  Nevada  R.  R.  runs 
between  Bracks,  on  the  Mokelumne  river,  and  Valley  spring,  in  Calaveras 
eo.,  41  miles.  It  is  a  narrow  gauge,  chartered  in  March  1882,  and  opened 
in  March  1885.  The  Sierra  Valley  and  Mohawk  R.  R.  co.  incorporated  in 
Oct.  1885.  It  is  a  narrow-gauge  branch  of  the  Nevada  and  Cal.  R.  R.,  being 
intended  to  ran  from  its  junction  with  that  road  through  Long  valley,  in 
Lassen  co.,  through  Beckwith  pass,  through  Sierra  valley,  and  thence  along 
the  Middle  fork  of  Feather  river  to  Mohawk  valley,  in  Plumas  co.,  35  miles, 
its  object  being  to  open  up  a  timber  region.  Lake  Tahoe  R.  R.  is  a  short 
line  running  between  Tahoe  and  Truckee,  constructed  in  1876. 

The  Banta  branch  of  the  Central  Pacific  R.  R.,  extending  from  Banta  on 
the  then  Western  Pacific  to  Antioch,  with  a  branch  to  Stewartville,  projected 
in  1871,  has  since  been  continued  to  Martinez,  and  is  a  part  of  the  Central 
Pacific  line  from  Goshen  to  Oakland  and  S.  F.  The  two  most  important  of 
the  narrow-gauge  railroads  have  their  termini  at  Sauzelito  and  Oakland. 
The  North  Pacific  Coast  R.  R.  was  chartered  in  Dec.  1871,  and  opened  for 
traffic  Jan.  11,  1875,  when  it  also  leased  the  San  Rafael  and  San  Quentin 
road.  It  extends  from  Sanzelito  to  Duncan's  Mills,  in  Sonoma  co.,  passing 
through  many  suburban  towns,  the  San  Geronimo  valley,  and  the  redwoods 
to  Point  Reyes,  skirting  the  shores  of  Tomales  bay  for  16  miles.  The  whole 
route  is  full  of  picturesque  beauty  and  remarkable  engineering.  Until  re- 
cently its  terminus  was  at  Duncan's  Mills,  in  the  Russian  river  country,  in 
the  heart  of  a  redwood  forest,  and  its  length  is  82  miles.  The  road  is  a  very 
profitable  one,  and  connects  with  San  Francisco  bv  a  fine  ferry. 

The  South  Pacific  Coast  R.  R.,  chartered  March  1876,  was  completed  May 
15r1880,  fromXewark,  in  Alamedaco.,  to  Santa  Cruz,  51  miles.  From  Newark 
to  Alameda  point,  25  miles,  it  was  built  by  the  Bay  and  Coast  railway  co., 
and  leased  to  the  South  Pacific  Coast  co.  A  portion  of  it  is  through  the 
Alameda  and  Santa  Clara  valleys,  but  it  also  crosses  the  Santa  Cruz  moun- 
tains, where  much  fine  engineering  was  required.  Six  tunnels  on  this  road 
aggregate  12,000  feet  in  length.  The  road  was  owned  principally  by  James 
G.  Fair,  James  L.  Flood,  and  A.  E.  Davis,  the  two  latter  owners  selling  out 
to  Fair,  who  extended  the  line  to  Oakland,  with  a  view  to  competing  for  the 
street-car  travel  of  that  city,  but  after  expending  considerable  money,  he 
sold  ont  all  his  interests  to  the  Southern  Pacific  R,  R,  co..  which  now  owns 
and  operates  it.  A  fine  ferry-house  at  Alameda  point,  with  a  half-hourly 
line  of  steamers,  and  other  attractions  on  the  Point  make  this  a  profitable 
line.  The  Santa  Cruz  and  Felton  R,  R.  is  a  branch  of  the  S  P.  C.  R.  R., 
running  from  Felton  to  Boulder  creek. 


592  RAILROADS— CENTRAL  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

Thus  the  Central  Pacific  company,  in  extending  its 
branches  and  popularizing  its  roads,  has  thereby  fur- 
nished a  transportation  system  which  has  left  little  to 
be  desired.45  Something  further  of  its  history  will  be 
contained  in  the  following  chapter,  which  could  not 
well  be  arrived  at  in  this. 

45  In  June  1876  a  lightning  express  train  made  the  trip  from  New  York 
to  San  Francisco  in  81  hours.  It  left  Jersey  City  June  1st  at  1  o'clock  and 
3  minutes  A.  M.,  and  arrived  at  the  foot  of  Market  street  on  the  4th  at  9 
o'clock  43  minutes  and  18  seconds  A.  M.  The  excursionists  were  received  by 
Mayor  Bryant  with  ceremonies  befitting  the  occasion.  H.  C.  Jarrett  and 
Henr.y  D.  Palmer  were  the  managers  of  the  party. 

Of  the  career  of  Peter  Donahue,  the  pioneer  manufacturer  on  the  Pacific 
coast  in  the  line  of  machine-shops  and  iron-works,  a  prominent  railroad 
builder,  and  one  of  the  worthiest  and  most  public-spirited  citizens  in  his 
adopted  state,  mention  has  already  been  made  in  this  volume.  On  the  3d 
of  March,  1890,  occurred  the  decease  of  his  son,  J.  Mervyn  Donahue,  who 
was  no  less  widely  respected,  and  who,  -on  the  death  of  his  fathej  in  1885, 
took  charge  of  the  railroad  system  which  bears  his  name,  and  under  his 
management  became  one  of  the  most  profitable  and  best  conducted  on  the 
coast.  A  native  California!!,  he  received  his  education  at  the  St  Ignatius 
and  Santa  Clara  colleges,  and  later  at  Stonyhurst,  England,  whence  he  was 
recalled  by  his  father's  sickness.  In  addition  to  his  railroad  interests  he  was 
identified  with  a  number  of  enterprises,  among  others  the  First  National 
bank  and  the  State  Investment  company,  in  both  of  which  he  was  a  director. 
In  the  circles  of  society,  and  among  military  and  fraternal  associations,  he 
was  widely  esteemed,  being  colonel  of  the  5th  infantry,  a  leading  member  of 
the  Young  Men's  institute,  and  a  trustee  of  the  Native  Sons  of  the  Golden 
West.  In  January  1884,  he  married  Miss  Belle  Wallace,  the  daughter  of 
Judge  Wallace  of  the  superior  court.  Two  children,  the  result  of  this 
union,  are  deceased.  Mervyn's  untimely  death,  which  occurred  at  the  age 
of  thirty,  and  was  caused  by  a  severe  cold,  contracted  while  inspecting  a 
line  for  a  proposed  railroad,  was  deeply  and  widely  regretted  by  all  classes  of 
the  community. 


CHAPTER  XXT. 

RAILROADS— SOUTHERN   PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 
1865-1888. 

IXOORPORATIOK  AHD  CHARTER — RELATIONS  TO  THK  CENTRAL  PACIFIC — 
LEGISLATION — YERBA  BCENA  ISLAND  AS  A  TEEJOSCS — CONSOLIDATION 
or  RAILROAD  INTERESTS  rs  CALIFORNIA — RELATIONS  WITH  THB  Gov- 
KRHMENT — EFFECT  UPON  BUSINESS  AND  POLITICS. 

THE  Central  Pacific  very  soon  after  the  completion 
of  its  trunk  line  began  to  plan  the  extension  of  its 
system  to  the  southern  coast  counties  which,  impa- 
tient of  their  isolation,  were  attempting  by  means  of 
local  roads  to  establish  communication  with  the  ulte- 
rior, and  with  each  other. 

In  December  1865  the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad 
company  of  California  was  incorporated,  and  was  au- 
thorized by  the  legislature  in  April  1866  to  receive 
aid  from  any  of  the  counties  south  of  Santa  Clara; 
with  which  roving  commission  it  set  out  to  construct 
its  road  from  Gilroy  south.  The  articles  of  incor- 
poration of  the  Southern  Pacific  company  declared 
that  the  company  was  formed  for  the  purpose  of  con- 
structing a  railroad  from  some  point  on  the  bay  of 
San  Francisco,  and  to  pass  through  the  counties  of 
Santa  Clara,  Monterey,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Tulare, 
Los  Angeles,  to  San  Diego,  and  thence  easterly 
through  San  Diego  county,  to  the  eastern  boundary  of 
the  state,  there  to  connect  with  a  railroad  from  the 
Mississippi  river. 

In  July  1866  congress  granted  to  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  Railroad  company,  to  aid  in  the  construction 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL    38  1593) 


594  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

of  its  road  and  telegraph  line,  from  Springfield,  Mis- 
souri, by  the  most  eligible  route  to  Alberquerque,  in 
New  Mexico,  and  thence  by  the  35th  parallel  route 
to  the  Pacific,  an  amount  of  land  equal  to  that  granted 
to  the  Central  Pacific.  By  this  act  the  Southern 
Pacific  railroad  was  authorized  to  connect  with  the 
Atlantic  and  Pacific,  near  the  boundary  line  of  Cali- 
fornia, at  such  point  as  should  be  deemed  most  suita- 
ble by  the  companies,  and  should  have  therefore  the 
same  amount  of  land  per  mile  as  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific. 

The  charter  of  the  Southern  Pacific  being  for  a  line 
through  the  coast  counties,  where  also  it  had  taken 
its  land  grant,  the  people  of  those  counties  were  will- 
ing and  anxious  to  aid  in  its  construction.1  But  in 

xThe  legislature  in  1863  passed  a  bill  (it  had  failed  in  1861)  authorizing 
the  board  of  supervisors  to  subscribe  §100,000  to  the  capital  stock  of  a  rail- 
road from  Los  Angeles  to  San  Pedro,  or  Wilmington,  on  the  coast.  This 
scheme  miscarried,  owing  to  objections  against  the  terminus,  which  was  4 
miles  distant  from  the  steamer  landing.  At  length,  in  1868,  another  bill 
was  passed  authorizing  a  subscription  by  the  county  of  $150,000  toward  the 
capital  stock  of  a  railroad  between  Los  Angeles  and  Wilmington,  and  the 
city  to  subscribe  $75,000  further.  Upon  this  the  work  wras  commenced 
Sept.  19th,  and  rapidly  prosecuted.  The  cars  of  the  company  were  built  at 
Wilmington,  a  shipyard  established  there,  and  a  tug-boat  provided  for  ser- 
vice in  the  harbor.  On  the  26th  of  October,  1869,  the  road  was  completed. 
Banning  s  Settlement  of  Wilmington  MS.  in  Cal.  MSS.  E.  139,  pp.  7  etseq.; 
George,  TJte  Sufjsidy  Question,  pp.  7-8;  No.  12,  Railroad  Pamphlets.  In  1872 
the  citizens  of  Los  Angeles  accepted  a  proposition  from  the  Southern  Pacific 
company  to  connect  them  with  their  line  through  the  interior  to  Fort 
Yuma  to  connect  with  the  Texas  Pacific  for  a  subsidy  consisting  of  5  per 
cent  upon  the  entire  taxable  property  of  the  county,  as  follows:  Ths  county 
and  city  stock  in  the  Los  Angeles  and  San  Pedro  R.  R. ;  bonds  of  the  county 
at  20  years,  bearing  7  per  cent  interest,  §377,000,  and  60  acres  of  land  in  the 
city,  amounting  altogether  to  £61 0,000.  A  branch  road  to  Anaheim  was 
also  to  be  constructed,  and  both  were  to  be  completed  within  two  years. 
Early  in  1 874  trains  were  run  northerly  to  San  Francisco  and  easterly  to 
Spadra.  The  Anaheim  branch  was  completed  in  Jan.  1875;  and  subse- 
quently extended  to  Santa  Ana.  On  the  6th  of  Sept.,  1876,  connection  was 
made  between  Los  Angeles  and  the  main  line  of  the  Soiithern  Pacific. 

As  early  as  1 868  a  Santa  Barbara  company  was  organized  to  build  a  coast 
railroad,  and  applied  to  congress  for  a  charter  and  also  a  land  grant  similar 
to  that  enjoyed  by  other  California  roads.  The  grant  was  obtained,  and  a 
subscription  of  $50,000  in  gold  coin  to  be  paid  with  bonds  bearing  7  per  cent 
per  annum,  to  run  for  20  years,  with  a  donation  of  the  right  of  way  through 
private  property  along  the  line.  About  this  time  the  Central  Pacific  com- 
pleted its  transcontinental  line,  and  commenced  the  construction  of  the  San 
Joaquin  Valley  R.  R.,  running  through  the  middle  tier  of  southern  counties 
to  G-oshen  in  Tulare.  Soon  after  there  arose  a  contest,  to  be  referred  to 
hereafter,  between  the  Southern  Pacific  and  its  rivals  from  the  east,  all  of 
which  desired  the  support  of  Santa  Barbara.  The  Southern  Pacific  pro- 


CHAGRIN  OF  THE  COAST  COUNTIES.  595 

1867  it  filed  a  map  with  the  secretary  of  the  interior, 
showing  its  route  to  be  not  through  the  coast  coun- 
ties, but  out  through  the  Pacheco  pass,  east  of  Gil- 
roy,  into  and  through  the  ulterior  counties  of  Fresno, 

posed  to  run  a  line  N.  E.  through  Bakersfield  to  connect  with  the  Central 
Pacific's  southern  extension.  The  Atlantic  and  Pacific  desired  to  run  a  line 
through  the  coast  counties  from  S.  F.  to  San  Diego,  and  thence  to  St  Louis; 
but  could  only  do  so  in  the  event  of  receiving  a  $10,000,000  subscription  to 
its  stock.  The  Texas  Pacific,  which  had  its  terminus  at  San  Diego,  would 
like  to  have  a  subsidy  from  the  upper  counties.  Between  the  solicitations 
and  representations  of  the  rivals,  Santa  Barbara  became  doubtful  of  the 
proper  course  to  be  pursued,  and  placed  the  matter  in  the  hands  of  a  com- 
mittee of  twenty-six.  The  proposition  to  donate  the  county  subsidy  before 
named  to  any  company  which  should  connect  Santa  Barbara  with  either 
S.  F.  or  St  Louis  being  left  to  a  vote  of  the  people,  was  rejected  almost  unan- 
imously, because  it  was  generally  understood  that  the  Texas  Pacific,  with  its 
terminus  at  Sau  Diego,  would  be  the  road  benefited.  After  the  Southern 
Pacific  had  extended  its  line  to  Newhall,  Santa  Barbara  co.  asked  to  be 
authorized  to  issue  bonds  to  the  amount  of  $500,000  in  aid  of  any  company 
which  would  build  a  railroad  connecting  it  with  S.  F.,  or  any  transconti- 
nental line.  This,  however,  the  legislature  refused;  since  which  time  until 
the  present,  the  city  of  Saint  Barbara,  her  face  to  the  sea,  has  remained 
sadly  dreaming  over  the  uncertainty  of  railroad  affairs,  far  from  the  busy 
commerce  of  her  more  fortunate  neighbors,  disturbed  for  a  moment  now  and 
then  by  a  rumor  that  the  Southern  Pacific  contemplated  filling  the  gap  which 
has  so  long  existed  between  sections  of  its  line  in  the  coast  counties. 

San  Luis  Obispo  also  shared  in  the  neglect  which  condemned  Santa  Bar- 
bara to  seclusion,  except  as  to  local  enterprise.  When  the  S.  P.  R.  R.  in 
1872  incorporated  its  branch  road,  abandoning  the  line  between  Tres  Pinos 
in  San  Benito  county  and  Huron  in  Fresno  county,  and  adopting  a  route 
from  Soledad  via  San  Miguel  and  the  Palonio  pass  hi  San  Luis  Obispo 
county  to  Lerdo  in  Kern  county;  with  an  additional  branch  from  a  point 
near  San  Miguel  southerly  to  an  intersection  with  its  line  running  from  Te- 
hachapi  pass  to  Los  Angeles  and  Fort  Yuma,  it  was  expected  that  the 
sleepy  old  mission  town,  the  adjoining  vales  and  sunny  hillsides,  would  soon 
echo  to  the  thunder  of  trains  rushing  down  rocky  canons,  or  start  at  the 
sudden  shrieks  of  locomotives  announcing  a  safe  passage  and  arrival;  but  in 
that  the  waiting  people  were  disappointed,  as  already  demonstrated.  How- 
ever, they  agitated  a  narrow  gauge  railroad  from  the  town  to  deep  water  in 
the  harbor  in  1873,  which  culminated  in  the  organization  of  the  San  Luis 
Obispo  railroad  operated  by  horse  power.  Wharves  were  built  at  Port  Har- 
ford,  the  end  of  the  road,  and  business  upon  them  became  active.  But  this 
was  only  a  suggestion  of  what  should  be  done,  and  was  followed  by  the 
San  Luis  Obispo  and  Santa  Maria  Valley  railroad  company,  chartered  in 
1874  by  capitalists  of  S.  F.,  who  purchased  the  improvements  of  the  former 
road  from  John  Harford,  its  principal  owner,  and  consolidating  with  it,  ab- 
sorbed it  entirely.  No  more  of  the  road  was  built  until  1881,  when  it  was 
extended  to  Arroyo  Grande.  In  Oct.,  1882,  it  was  completed  to  Los  Alamos 
in  Santa  Barbara  county  by  the  Pacific  Coast  railway  co.,  with  which  it  was 
consolidated.  The  total  length  is  64  miles.  A  narrow  gauge  road  through 
Santa  Barbara  co.  is  in  contemplation,  with  a  branch  up  the  Santa  Maria  and 
Cuyama  rivers,  through  Emigades  and  Kern  Lake  valleys,  to  Bakersfield, 
and  a  branch  north  to  San  MigueL 

As  for  San  Diego,  it  was  left  nearly  as  long  gazing  regretfully  upon  its 
pretty  but  empty  harbor  as  its  neighbors  further  north  upon  theirs.  Its 
first  attempt  at  railroad  construction  was  as  early  as  1854,  too  early,  of 
course,  to  be  successful.  A  company  calling  itself  the  San  Diego  and  Gila 


596  RAILROADS-SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

Tulare,  Kern,  and  San  Bernardino,  to  the  Colorado 
river  near  Fort  Mojave.  Upon  this  representation 
the  commissioner  of  the  general  land  office  withdrew 
from  market  the  odd-numbered  sections  within  twenty 
miles  of  each  side  of  the  road,  covering  about  7,500,- 
000  acres. 

Upon  this  transaction  being  made  known  in  Call-, 
fornia,  Franklin  Steele,  a  citizen,  made  application  to 
the  secretary  of  the  interior,  O.  H.  Browning,  to 
have  the  lands  restored  to  the  public  domain,  the 
withdrawal  not  being  according  to  law;  and  an  order 
was  so  issued  in  July  1868.  The  railroad  company 
then  asked  leave  to  present  evidence  of  the  legality 
of  their  proceedings,  thereby  gaining  a  suspension  of 
the  order  for  restoration.  On  the  22d  of  November, 
1869,  the  new  secretary,  J.  D.  Cox,  after  examin- 
ing the  evidence,  declared  the  action  of  the  com- 
pany in  changing  its  route  illegal,  and  again  or- 
dered the  land  restored.  Although  during  the  same 
month  a  rehearing  of  the  case  was  had,  it  failed 
to  change  the  secretary^  opinion  ;  but  on  the  15th 
of  December  the  decision  was  again  suspended  until 
a  joint  resolution  then  before  congress  should  have 
been  acted  upon.  This  joint  resolution,  which  was 
passed  June  28,  1870,  gave  leave  to  the  Southern 
Pacific  company  to  construct  its  road  and  telegraph 
line  "  as  near  as  may  be  on  the  route  indicated  by  the 
map  filed  in  1867;"  and  made  the  land  grant  con- 

Southern  Pacific  and  Atlantic  R.  R.  co.  was  organized,  and  its  route  sur- 
veyed. The  project  slumbered  for  the  next  few  years,  and  was  terminated 
by  the  civil  war.  About  1867  it  was  revived,  with  the  expectation  of  form- 
ing a  combination  with  the  Memphis  and  El  Paso  transcontinental  scheme 
of  John  C.  Fremont.  In  1868,  M.  C.  Hunter  visited  San  Diego  as  an  agent 
of  this  eastern  company,  and  agreed  to  construct  the  road  for  the  franchises 
of  the  Gila  company;  but  before  the  surveys  and  maps  were  completed,  the 
company  dissolved.  The  contract,  however,  was  not  rescinded  until  1872, 
when  the  same  property  was  purchased  and  presented  to  the  Texas  and  Pa- 
cific R.  R.  co.,  with  the  result  elsewhere  recorded. 

In  1881  or  1882,  the  Bee  Line  railroad  was  projected,  to  run  from  San 
Diego  through  the  peninsula  of  Lower  California,  crossing  the  Colorado  near 
its  mouth,  and,  proceeding  through  the  state  of  Sonora  to  the  town  of  Cala- 
bazas  in  Arizona,  connect  with  the  Atchison,  Topeka,  and  Santa  Fe.  That 
design^carried  out  would  give  San  Diego  an  outlet,  but  in  the  mean  time  it 
found  it  by  another  route. 


AIMS  AND  INDUCEMENTS.  597 

formable  to  that  line,  "expressly  saving  and  reserv- 
ing all  the  rights  of  actual  settlers."  The  legislature 
of  California,  also,  in  April  1870,  passed  an  act  grant- 
ing the  company  the  privilege  of  changing  its  line  of 
road,  and  also  of  filing  new  and  amendatory  articles 
of  association. 

Among  the  principal  inducements  for  granting  to 
the  Southern  Pacific  its  charter  and  privileges  were 
that  it  would  open  up  some  of  the  richest  agricul- 
tural districts  in  the  state;  that  it  would  furnish  the 
means  of  rapid  transportation  for  the  semi-tropical 
fruits  of  southern  California,  and  that  it  would  help 
to  render  available  the  mineral  wealth  of  Arizona 
and  New  Mexico,  and  thus  add  largely  to  the  pro- 
duction of  the  precious  metals.  There  were  also 
many  other  public  interests,  both  commercial  and 
political,  to  be  subserved  by  the  construction  of  a 
railroad  through  these  territories  and  through  Texas, 
and  especially  to  the  people  of  California,  to  whose 
merchants  new  outlets  would  be  opened,  with  new 
markets  for  her  products. 

To  the  Central  company,  the  Southern  Pacific,  if 
working  in  harmony  with  it,  would  be  rather  a 
benefit  than  a  drawback,  by  maintaining  rates,  by 
increasing  rather  than  diminishing  its  earning  ca- 
pacity, and  above  all  by  keeping  eastern  competi- 
tors out  of  the  field.  It  was  about  this  time,  say 
early  in  1870,  that  the  consolidation  of  the  two  lines 
first  began  to  be  rumored;  but  this  was  officially 
denied.2 

2  Among  the  officials  of  the  Southern  Pacific  should  be  mentioned  A.  N. 
Towne,  for  many  years  the  general  manager  and  one  of  the  directors  of  the 
company.  A  native  of  Charlton,  Massachusetts,  where  he  was  born  May  '25, 
1829,  at  seventeen  he  entered  the  service  of  his  uncle,  a  sign  and  carriage 
painter,  and  a  large  employer  of  labor  in  the  neighboring  town  of  Webster. 
After  engaging  in  various  pursuits,  as  a  farmer,  a  clerk,  a  merchant,  a 
brakeman,  a  train-master,  we  find  him,  while  still  a  young  man,  occupying 
the  responsible  position  of  general  superintendent  of  the  Chicago  and  Great 
Eastern  railroad,  and  later  of  the  Chicago,  Burlington,  and  Quincy,  from 
which,  in  September  1869,  he  was  appointed  to  the  same  position  in  the 
Central  Pacific.  A  few  years  afterward  the  entire  system  of  the  Southern 
Pacific  was  placed  under  his  management. 


598  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

Meantime  the  Southern  company  was  negotiating,  in 
1868,  for  the  purchase  of  the  San  Francisco  and  San 
Jose  railroad,  which  had  been  extended  to  Gilroy, 
and  had  proposed  to  San  Francisco  to  make  a  gift  to 
it  of  3,000  shares,  of  $100  each,  in  the  San  Jose  road, 
which  the  city  owned,  worth  at  that  time  $120,000. 
The  city  had  taken  this  stock  a  few  years  previous  in 
exchange  for  $300,000  worth  of  city  bonds  sold  by 
the  company  for  $195,000.  Feeling  that  railroads 
were  essential  to  its  prosperity,  the  city  gave  up  its 
stock,  but  upon  condition  that  the  San  Jose  railroad 
should  be  purchased  and  made  a  part  of  the  South- 
ern Pacific  line  to  the  southeastern  boundary  of 
the  state.  In  1869  a  proposition  was  made  to  the 
supervisors  of  San  Francisco  to  donate  $1,000,000 
in  bonds  of  the  city  to  the  Southern  Pacific,  in 
consideration  of  the  construction  of  200  miles  of 
road  southward  from  Gilroy,  the  bonds  to  be  de- 
livered upon  the  completion  and  stocking  of  each 
fifty  miles  ;  and  such  was  the  eagerness  for  communi- 
cation in  that  direction  that  the  proposition  was  ac- 
cepted by  a  popular  vote.  In  all  some  $4,000,000 
was  asked  for  from  the  southern  counties  to  insure 
the  construction  of  the  road  to  Los  Angeles,  but  the 
newspapers,  except  in  San  Francisco,  objected  to  fur- 
ther subsidies,  and  the  legislature  passed  an  act  for- 
bidding the  supervisors  of  any  county  to  issue  bonds 
until  at  least  five  miles  of  any  aided  road  should  be 
completed,  and  then  only  in  such  proportionate  amount 
as  the  distance  constructed  bore  to  the  amount  of  aid 
granted.  As  late  as  February  10,  1869,  the  San 
Francisco  Evening  Bulletin  asserted  that  the  Southern 
Pacific  would  in  all  probability  locate  its  road  through 
all  the  coast  counties  as  far  as  Los  Angeles,  and  from 
thence  go  to  the  Colorado  river;  and  urged  that  "a 
moderate  amount  of  local  assistance  be  given."  It 
was  difficult,  seeing  the  result  to  northern  counties 
of  granting  aid  to  railroad  companies,  to  get  the 


CONSOLIDATION.  599 

consent  of  the  southern  counties;  and  even  more  so 
to  procure  favorable  legislation. 

When  all  had  been  done  that  could  be  to  bring  the 
people  to  a  more  complacent  temper,  the  railroads  re- 
vealed their  plaas.  In  January  1870  the  Sari  Fran- 
cisco and  San  Jose,  the  Santa  Clara  and  Pajaro  valley, 
and  the  California  Southern  railroads 3  were  consoli- 
dated with  the  Southern  Pacific,  and  it  was  soon  after- 
ward rumored  abroad  that  the  whole  were  owned  by 
the  Central  Pacific. 

On  the  1st  of  May,  1871,  the  Contract  and  Finance 
company  agreed  with  the  Southern  Pacific  company 
to  construct  its  road,  beginning  at  Gilroy  and  continu- 
ing thence  to  the  boundary  of  the  state  near  Fort 
Mojave,  and  to  furnish  it  complete  with  rolling-stock 
buildings,  and  every  manner  of  thing  necessary  to  a 
first-class  railroad,  including  a  telegraph  line,  and  to 
do  this  at  the  rate  of  twenty  miles  a  year,  or  if  re- 
quired forty  miles ;  the  first  section  to  be  completed 
by  July  1871,  and  the  whole  within  the  time  to  which 
it  was  limited  by  congress.  The  original  line  was 
carried  no  further  south  than  Soledad,  in  Monterey 
county,  70  miles;  and  Tres  Pinos  in  San  Benito 
county,  20  miles.  In  1874  construction  ceased  on 
this  line. 

In  1872  a  new  company,  called  the  Southern  Pacific 
Branch  railroad  company  *  was  incorporated,  with  the 
purpose  of  constructing  a  road  from  the  Southern 
Pacific  near  Salinas  in  Monterey  county,  to  run  to  a 
point  in  Kern  county  intersecting  the  San  Joaquin 
valley  division  of  the  Central  Pacific  south  of  Tulare 

s  Santa  Clara  and  Pajaro  valley  R.  R.  co.  organized  Jan.  2,  1868,  to  build 
a  railroad  from  a  point  on  the  Southern  Pacific  in  Santa  Clara  county  to 
Pajaro  in  Monterey  county.  The  Cal.  Southern  R.  R.  co.  organized  Jan.  22, 
1870,  and  being  consolidated  with  the  S.  P.  R.  R.  a  few  months  later,  had 
no  history  of  its  own. 

4  The  incorporators  and  stockholders  were  E.  H.  Miller,  Albert  Gallatin, 
E.  I.  Robinson,  E.  W.  Hopkins,  B.  B.  Redding,  W.  R.  S.  Foye,  C.  H.  Cum- 
ming,  5  shares  each;  Mark  Hopkins  2,085,  and  Leland  Stanford  5,085  shares 
each.  San  Luis  Obispo  Co.  Hist.,  318.  This  branch  was  consolidated  with  the 
S.  P.  R.  R.  co.  in  Aug.  1873.  Of  the  new  Southern  Pacific  Branch  railway 
mention  will  be  made  elsewhere  in  this  chapter. 


600  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

lake.  It  was  also  to  build  an  additional  line  from  this 
branch,  commencing  near  San  Miguel  in  San  Luis 
Obispo  county,  and  running  southerly  to  an  intersec- 
tion with  the  line  of  the  South  Pacific  near  Tehachipi 
pass.  It  had  already  changed  its  original  line  from 
San  Benito  county,  to  the  Salinas  valley,  in  Mon- 
terey county,  for  the  purpose,  as  its  opponents  as- 
serted, of  thereby  stopping  out  any  company  desir- 
ing to  run  this  way  to  San  Francisco.  People  upon 
the  line  of  the  Southern  Pacific  railroad  as  previously 
located  in  1867,  believing  they  were  in  danger  of  be- 
ing deprived  of  their  lands,6  petitioned  congress  to 
declare  the  land  grant  to  the  Southern  Pacific  for- 
feited;6 and  the  secretary  of  the  interior  having 
ordered  the  commissioner  of  the  general  land  office  to 
withdraw  from  market  12,000,000  acres,  congress  in 
1876  ordered  an  investigation.  The  Southern  Pa- 
cific Branch  railroad  has  not  yet  been  constructed; 
but  the  land  troubles  which  followed  were  of  a  seri- 
ous nature,  as  will  be  related  elsewhere  in  the  pres- 
ent chapter. 

Already  the  Central  Pacific,  by  the  San  Joaquin 
valley  railroad,  held  that  valley  as  far  south  as  Tulare 
lake.  The  successor  of  the  latter,  the  Southern  Pa- 
cific, held  the  whole  tier  of  coast  counties,  and  two  lines 

8  The  land  grant  of  the  Southern  Pacific  covered  a  large  area  in  San  Ber- 
nardino, Los  Angeles,  Kern,  Tulare,  Fresno,  and  Stanislaus  counties,  much 
of  it  requiring  only  irrigation  to  produce  excellent  crops  of  grain,  alfalfa,  and 
tropical  and  sub-tropical  fruits.  By  men  who  have  travelled  almost  through- 
out the  habitable  globe,  it  has  been  stated  that  nowhere  did  they  observe 
land  better  suited  for  such  purposes  than  for  a  distance  of  100  miles  along 
the  line  of  the  road  between  San  Gorgonio  and  San  Fernando.  On  this  land 
may  now  be  seen  some  of  the  most  thriving  vineyards  and  orchards,  and  some 
of  the  most  thriving  settlements  to  be  found  in  southern  California. 

6U.  8.  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.,  74,  i.,  44th  cong.,  1st  sess.;  Id.  Doc.,  87.  The 
petition  in  this  case  represents  that  notwithstanding  the  long  time  which  had 
elapsed  since  the  state  had  granted  the  charter  of  the  S.  P.  R.  R. ,  no  road 
had  been  built,  or  was  being  built,  in  1876,  upon  its  line;  but  that  instead, 
the  company  was  endeavoring  to  change  the  line  in  such  a  manner  as  to  re- 
lease it  from  any  obligation  to  build  over  that  portion  of  the  route  between 
Hollister,  in  Monterey  co.,  and  Goshen,  in  Tulare  co.,  140  miles.  They 
complained  that  it  was  a  hardship  that  the  R.  R.  co.  should  have  the  lands, 
for  which  they  could  ask  any  price  they  might  choose,  Mrhen  their  value 
depended  upon  the  improvements  already  made  at  their  own  cost  by  the 
settlers. 


YERBA  BUEXA  ISLAND.  601 

out  into  the  interior  counties.  It  had  the  right  from 
congress  to  build  its  road  to  meet  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  at  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  state  near  Fort 
Mojave;  and  the  right,  also  from  congress,  to  con- 
struct a  line  from  near  Tehachipi  pass,  via  Los 
Angeles,7  to  Fort  Yuina  on  the  Colorado  river,  to 
meet  the  Texas  and  Pacific,  provided,  of  course,  that 
the  latter  did  not  get  its  track  down  first.  But  after 
the  training  they  had  received  in  constructing  the 
Central  road,  and  relying  upon  the  ability  of  their 
president,  C.  P.  Huntington,  to  accomplish  whatever 
was  desired  in  Washington,  the  Southern  Pacific 
directors  had  little  doubt  of  being  able  to  prevent  any 
eastern  company  coming  into  California. 

It  is  necessary  before  proceeding  further  to  refer  to 
the  part  taken  by  San  Francisco  in  the  railroad  his- 
tory of  the  state.  Its  position  upon  the  point  of  a 
peninsula  west  of  the  mainland,  from  which  it  was 
separated  several  miles  by  the  waters  of  the  bay, 
made  it  impossible  that  it  should  be  a  railway  center, 
like  Chicago  or  St  Louis.  The  only  railroad  having 
its  terminus  in  the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco 
was,  and  still  is,  that  part  of  the  Southern  Pacific 
which  was  formerly  the  San  Francisco  and  San  Jose 
road.  Yet  the  selection  of  a  terminal  point  for  the 
transcontinental  roads  was  a  matter  of  much  import- 
ance to  the  city.  While  the  California  Pacific  was 
independent,  with  its  terminus  at  Vallejo,  and  its 
eastern  extension  branch  promising  a  new  system,  it 
was  feared  that  Vallejo  would  become  the  terminal 
point  for  the  northern  roads.  Afterward  this  anxiety 
was  transferred  to  Oakland,  and  then  to  Yerba  Buena 
or  Goat  island,  concerning  which  latter  something 
should  here  be  said.  At  Sacramento,  at  the  session  of 
1871-2,  a  dispatch,  signed  by  twenty -two  state  sena- 

7  Huntington  to  D.  D.  Colton:  'We  ought  to  get  a  large  amount  of  land 
from  parties  along  the  line  between  Spadra  and  San  Gorgonio  pass,  if  we 
build  them  a  line  to  get  out  on.' 


602  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

tors,  was  forwarded  to  the  California  congressmen, 
approving  the  pending  bill  for  the  use  of  Yerba 
Buena  island,  requesting  California  senators  and  rep- 
resentatives to  use  all  honorable  means  to  secure  the 
passage  of  the  bill,  and  declaring  that  the  island  was 
the  natural  western  terminus  of  the  Pacific  railroad. 

The  Yerba  Buena  island  project  had  been  very 
cautiously  brought  forward,  and,  when  discovered, 
aroused  a  strong  and  combined  opposition  in  San 
Francisco.  Protests  were  addressed  to  congress; 
government  engineers  were  required  to  report  upon 
the  consequences  of  closing  up  the  channel  between 
Oakland  shore  and  the  island,  and  military  officers 
upon  the  importance  of  retaining  it  for  the  defence  of 
San  Francisco.  Over  and  above  all  these  reasons  for 
refusing  a  lease  to  the  Central  Pacific  company  was 
the  declaration  that  the  company  had  no  good  reason 
for  insisting  upon  a  present  from  the  government  of  a 
property  commercially  worth  at  least  $6,000,000,  and 
that  a  lease  would  be  equivalent  to  a  gift,  for  once 
established  on  the  island,  with  all  its  connections  with 
the  mainland  made,  it  would  be  impossible  to  dislodge 
it.  The  bill  failed  at  that  session  of  congress,  although 
the  effort  to  secure  the  island  was  not  relinquished  for 
some  time,8  but  the  battle  was  transferred  to  San 
Francisco,  where,  for  a  period  of  twelve  months,  it 
raged  with  a  determination  proportioned  to  the  inter- 
ests at  stake. 

On  the  7th  of  March,  1872,  the  chamber  of  com- 
merce took  up  the  matter,  and  passed  a  series  of 
resolutions  against  the  proposed  cession  of  Yerba 
Buena  island,  or  a  portion  of  it,  to  the  Central  Pacific 
railroad  company.  In  these  resolutions  the  company 
was  handled  without  ceremony,  and  especially  its 
friend,  Senator  Sargent,  an  able  and  popular  states- 
man. A  memorial  was  prepared,  addressed  to  the 

8  Huntington  was  reported  as  saying  that  'Goat  island  was  the  proper 
and  only  place  for  the  railroad  terminus  of  the  Overland  and  Sacramento 
valley  lines.' 


ATTITUDE  OF  SAX  FRANCISCO.  60S 

president  and  vice-president  of  the  United  States, 
the  senate  and  the  house  of  representatives,  set- 
ting forth  the  injury  to  San  Francisco,  its  harbor, 
and  its  commerce,  which  would  result  from  the 
grant  of  Yerba  Buena  island,  or  a  part  of  it, 
to  the  railroad;  and  the  telegraph  was  called  into 
requisition  to  convey  the  substance  of  the  memorial 
in  advance  of  the  mail.  These  proceedings  called  out 
a  letter  from  Mr  Stanford,  addressed  to  the  board  of 
supervisors  of  San  Francisco,  who  had  appointed  a 
meeting  for  the  consideration  of  a  resolution  regarding 
the  cession  of  the  island,  in  which  he  declared  that 
the  railroad  company  had  at  heart  the  interests  of 
San  Francisco,  and  would  in  nowise  injure  it,  or  its 
harbor  or  business;  but  that  the  occupancy  of  the 
island  simply  meant  the  transfer  of  the  business  of 
the  Oakland  wharves  to  the  island,  and  better  facili- 
ties for  the  transaction  of  San  Francisco's  business. 
This  letter  had  little  weight,  the  public  mind  being 
stubborn  in  its  convictions  concerning  the  policy  of  the 
Central  Pacific  managers;  and  on  the  17th  of  the 
same  month  a  citizens'  meeting  was  held  at  Platt's 
hall,  James  Otis  presiding.  In  his  remarks  upon  tte 
destructive  effect  of  encouraging  monopolies,  Mr  Otis 
said :  "If  they  will  not  come  to  San  Francisco,  let 
them  stay  there  [in  Oakland].  Other  companies  will 
come  to  us,  and  are  already  knocking  at  our  doors." 
Resolutions  were  passed  in  which  it  was  declared  that 
the  representations  made  to  congress  by  the  railroad 
company,  that  accommodations  had  not  been  afforded 
by  San  Francises  such  as  were  requisite,  were  false, 
for  on  the  contrary  a  generous  donation  of  land  on  the 
water-front  had  been  made,  with  a  strip  of  land  two 
hundred  feet  in  width  and  five  miles  long  for  right  of 
way.  The  statement  made  in  the  bill  before  congress, 
said  the  resolutions,  that  the  grant  of  Yerba  Buena 
island  would  bring  the  western  terminus  as  near  as 
possible  to  San  Francisco,  was  open  to  question,  for 
that  island  was  onlv  one  and  a  half  miles  from  Oak- 
land water-front,  and  a  bridge  to  it  would  increase 


604  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN   PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

rather  than  lessen  the  time  of  crossing  the  bay,  as  a 
train  would  take  more  time  upon  a  bridge  than  a  ferry- 
boat would  require  for  the  same  distance. 

A  committee  of  five  was  appointed  to  visit  the  legis- 
lature in  session  to  procure  amendments  to  a  bill,  then 
pending,  making  the  port  of  San  Francisco  free  of 
port  charges  for  the  commerce  of  the  world,  whereby 
an  existing  reproach,  and  an  argument  of  the  railroad 
company,  would  be  silenced ;  and  also  to  ask  the  legis- 
lature to  join  in  San  Francisco's  protest  against  grant- 
ing Yerba  Buena  island  to  any  railroad  company  for 
any  purpose  whatever.9  A  modification  of  the  port 
charges  bill  was  secured,  but  no  resolution  was  adopted 
disapproving  the  measures  of  the  Central  Pacific  com- 
pany. The  following  extract  from  a  public  speech, 
howrever,  will  serve  to  show  the  animus  of  the  com- 
pany's opponents:  "No  measure  of  a  public  char- 
acter, founded  upon  the  interests  of  the  people  of 
this  city,  could  obtain  a  decent  hearing,  and  they  were 
constrained  to  address  themselves  to  the  officers  of 
the  railroad  monopoly,  and  ask  them  if  a  bargain 
could  be  made  with  them  as  to  the  laws  the  legislature 
should  make ;  and  the  president  of  the  companies 
signs  the  paper  to  accept  the  compromise,  and  the  law 
is  passed  in  accordance  with  it." 

The  committee  of  six  entrusted  with  the  errand  to 
the  legislature  were  also  authorized  to  act  as  an  exec- 
utive committee  in  all  matters  pertaining  to  the  public 
interests  in  resisting  arid  defeating  the  further  advance 
of  the  railroad  power. 

Another  committee  was  appointed,  consisting  of 
three  influential  citizens,  to  proceed  to  Washington 
city  as  rapidly  as  possible,  to  oppose  the  passage  of 
the  obnoxious  Yerba  Buena  island  bill,  with  instruc- 
tions, should  the  senate  have  passed  it,  as  the  house 
had  done,  to  earnestly  request  the  president  to  veto 
it.  The  assemblage  which  authorized  these  two  com- 

9  The  committee  was  composed  of  six  members — A.  B.  Forbes,  S.  0. 
Hastings,  T.  B.  Lewis,  J.  C.  Merrill,  E.  B.  Perrin,  and  James  Otis. 


INDIGNATION  OF  THE  PEOPLE.  60S 

mittees  was  called  an  "indignation  meeting  against 
the  promoters  of  the  grant,"  and  those  public  journals 
which  had  hitherto  been  lukewarm  in  reproving  the 
railroads  were  included  in  the  indignation. 

A  fresh  source  of  disquiet  was  the  demand  made  by 
the  Central  Pacific  company  that  the  streets  running 
through  the  sixty  acres  granted  to  the  Southern  Pa- 
cific and  Western  Pacific  companies  for  terminal 
grounds  should  be  closed,  and  that  portion  of  the 
water  front  known  as  the  China  and  Central  basins 
should  be  given  to  the  railroad  corporations.  With 
this  proposition  the  city  supervisors  were  occupied  for 
some  months.  As  the  city  did  not  own  the  streets, 
nor  certain  market  and  school  blocks  in  the  Mission 
tract,  nor  the  China  and  Central  basins,  it  required 
an  act  of  the  legislature  to  donate  these  reserved  por- 
tions to  the  city  before  the  supervisors  were  in  a  situ- 
ation to  refuse  or  accede  to  the  demands  of  the  railroad 
corporation.  The  Central  Pacific  influence  might  de- 
feat the  passage  of  a  bill  giving  the  city  control  of 
these  reservations ;  therefore  the  executive  committee 
resolved  on  a  compromise  with  that  company.10 

The  proposition  entertained  was  that  the  Central 
Pacific,  in  return  for  the  concessions  demanded  of 
the  city,  should  abandon  all  claim  to  Yerba  Buena 
island,  and  should  make  San  Francisco  its  terminal 
point.  Two  railroad  bridges  were  to  be  constructed 
by  the  city  across  the  bay,  from  a  point  about  twenty 
miles  south  of  the  city,  one  temporary,  the  other  per- 
manent, to  be  free  to  all  railroads;  the  city  should 
also  erect  a  bulkhead  in  front  of,  and  fill  in,  China  and 
Central  basins,  giving  to  all  railroads  not  less  than 
one  hundred  miles  long  occupancy  free  of  charge ;  and 
should  construct  a  railroad  along  the  city  front  north- 

"The  grant  of  the  reserved  blocks,  the  streets,  and  the  basins,  was  made 
to  S.  F.,  with  the  understanding  that  the  city  would  come  to  some  ngjlW 
ment  with  the  railroad  corporations  for  the  occupancy  of  the  same.  It  was, 
however,  expressly  mentioned  in  the  act,  that  in  case  the  companies  should 
cease  to  use  the  land  donated  for  terminal  purposes,  it  should  revert  to  the 
state.  CaL  StaL,  1871-2,  722. 


606  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC   SYSTEM. 

ward,  having  switches  into  warehouses  wherever  the 
public  convenience  should  require,  to  be  free  to  all 
railroads  for  the  discharge  of  freight.  In  considera- 
tion of  all  these  free  gifts,  the  Central  Pacific  would 
agree  to  fix  its  terminus  at  Mission  bay.  Although 
the  arrangement  appears  to  have  been  in  many  respects 
desirable,  no  final  agreement  was  entered  into. 

Early  in  April  there  was  a  meeting  of  about  twenty 
men  of  influence,  who  appointed  a  sub-committee  of 
seven  to  choose  a  committee  of  one  hundred,  whose 
purpose  it  should  be  to  protect  the  interests  of  the 
city  in  its  relations  with  the  Central  Pacific.  This 
committee  took  under  advisement  the  bargain  be- 
tween the  supervisors  and  the  railroad  power,  and  all 
matters  connected  therewith.  Between  the  com- 
mittee of  one  hundred  and  the  directors  there  was  a 
wide  difference  of  opinion  concerning  the  mutual  ob- 
ligations of  San  Francisco  and  the  Central  Pacific, 
the  latter  contending  that  the  city  had  been  niggardly 
in  its  aid  to  the  railroad,  and  the  committee  asserting 
that  it  had  been  liberal  and  recounting  its  several  sub- 
sidies; $650,000  in  city  bonds  given  outright,  with 
the  interest  for  thirty  years  at  seven  per  cent,  amount- 
ing, with  the  principal,  to  $2,015,000;  the  interest 
which  it  would  have  to  pay  on  the  state  subsidy 
amounting  to  $800,000  ;  San  Francisco  and  San  Jose 
railroad  stock  $350,000;  sixty  acres  on  the  tide  lands 
of  Mission  bay — in  all  at  least  $4,000,000  absolutely 
given.  And  again  the  committee  claimed  that  the 
company  had  not  kept  the  promises,  actual  or  implied, 
under  which  these  favors  had  been  granted.  Thus 
popular  prejudice  was  aroused  against  the  directors, 
and  the  newspapers  bitterly  and  ceaselessly  denounced 
them  for  disregarding  the  rights  of  the  people. 

On  the  26th  of  April  there  arrived  in  San  Fran- 
cisco a  deputation  from  St  Louis  to  consult  with  the 
business  men  of  the  city  upon  the  encouragement  to 


COMMITTEE  OF  ONE  HUNDRED.  607 

be  tfiven  to  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  railroad,"  and  to 
arrange  for  its  connection  with  San  Francisco.  There 
were  °those  in  the  committee  of  one  hundred  who 
were  ready  to  strike  hands  with  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  people  upon  their  promise  to  come  to  San 
Francisco  with  their  road  ;  others  who  favored  an  in- 
dependent railroad  built  by  the  people,  to  connect, 
with  some  road  coming  from  the  southeast ;  and  still 
others  who  talked  of  purchasing  the  Southern  Pacific 
and  usin"  it  for  a  commencement  of  a  transcontinental 
road.  It  was  not  considered  difficult  to  raise  money 
for  any  one  of  these  projects. 

There  was  in  all  this  agitation  cause  for  uneasiness 
to  the  Central  Pacific  and  Southern  Pacific  companies ; 
and  while  they  emphatically  denied  that  they  had 
been  guilty  of  breach  of  faith,  they  were  perfectly 
willino-  to  make  the  proposed  improvements  upon  the 
Mission  bay  lands.     A  memorandum  was  presented 
to  the  committee,  August  17th,  of  an  understanding 
arrived  at  between  Stanford  and  the  city,  the  terms 
of  which  were  as  follows  :  That  the  railroad  company 
should   withdraw   all    pretensions   to   Yerba    Buena 
island,  at  the  same  time  placing  no  obstacle  in  the 
way  of  a  grant  of  the  same,  or  a  part  of  the  same,  to 
the  city  for  hospital  purposes ;  that  the  Central  and 
Southern  Pacific  companies  should  construct,  within 
one  and  one-half  years,  a  shore-line  road  from  Mis- 
sion bay  to  Niles,via  a  bridge  across  the  bay  of 
Francisco;   that   the     60-acre    tract  in  Mission  bay 
should  have  the  streets  closed  except  in  certain  places 
where  the   public  convenience  required  them  to  be 
kept  open,  and  China  basin  should  in  part  be  granted 
to  the  railroad  for  commercial  purposes ;  that  the  city 
should  donate  to  the  Central  and  Southern   compa- 
nies $2,500,000  in  bonds,  payable  in  twenty  years, 

»  This  delegation  consisted  of  Joseph  Brown,  mayor  of  St Louis;  Andrew 
Pierce  managing  director  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  R.  R,;  Clinton  B  Yi*h, 
Ozias  Bailey  and  J.  R.  Robinson,  of  Springfield,  Mo  directors;  George 
£  n  K  a  Chipman,  Hudson  E.  Bridge  E.  a  Stannard,  Francis  R  Hays, 
prea't  of  the  A.  £nd  P.  R.  R.;  and  Columbus  Delano,  sec.  of  the  ulterior. 


608  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

drawing  six  per  cent  interest;  provided  the  citizens  of 
San  Francisco,  by  vote  at  the  November  election, 
should  approve  of  the  gift;  that  in  consideration  of 
this  subsidy  the  city  should  have  the  right  to  confer 
upon  any  other  company  having  its  terminus  in  Mis- 
sion bay,  the  privilege  of  laying  its  track  along  that 
portion  of  the  land  donated  to  the  Western  and 
Southern  Pacific  companies  for  right  of  way,  and  to 
use  the  tracks  upon  the  bridge  by  paying  a  pro  rata 
charge  for  their  maintenance ;  that  the  Central  and 
Southern  Pacific  companies  should  make  their  per- 
manent termini  on  the  Mission  bay  lands,  and  the 
latter  road  should  transact  its  main  business  over  the 
shore-line  road;  the  main  business  of  the  Central, 
except  such  as  might  be  done  via  Vallejo  and  Sausa- 
lito,  and  of  the  San  Joaquin  valley  road,  should  also 
be  transacted  over  the  bridge  route ;  that  the  railroad 
companies  did  not  waive  the  right,  should  the  growth 
of  business  demand  some  different  or  better  route,  of 
adopting  it;  that  whenever  the  city  bulkhead  should 
be  completed  continuously  from  Mission  bay  to  Black 
point,  the  railroad  companies  would  lay  down  a  rail- 
way thereon,  with  depot  and  freight-house  facilities, 
which  tracks  were  to  be  free  to  any  railroad  company 
operating  100  miles  of  road.  Two  of  the  executive 
committee,  while  approving  of  the  agreement  in  gen- 
eral, declined  to  sign  the  report,  because,  in  their 
opinion,  the  concessions  made  by  the  railroad  compa- 
nies were  not  commensurate  with  the  amount  of 
subsidy  proposed  to  be  given.  At  the  November 
election  the  people  rejected  the  proposition  which  the 
committee,  in  their  judgment,  should  not  have  enter- 
tained. By  the  terms  of  the  agreement  the  option 
was  left  with  the  Central  company  to  change  its  route 
and  its  terminus,  and  the  effect  of  such  a  subsidy 
would  have  been  to  impair  the  city's  ability  to  secure 
a  railroad  of  its  own. 

The  results  of  negotiations  with  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  company  were,  in  some  ways,  more  promising. 


ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC  NEGOTIATIONS.  609 

On  the  6th  of  May  a  public  conference  had  been  held 
between  the  St  Louis  delegation  and  the  committee 
of  one  hundred,  at  which  it  was  resolved  to  accept  a 
proposition  from  that  company  to  take  §15,000,000  of 
stock  in  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific,  which  would  give 
San  Francisco  several  of  the  directors.  But  before 
any  definite  arrangement  could  be  made  it  was  thought 
necessary  to  send  a  commission  to  St  Louis  with  the 
returning  delegation  to  investigate  the  affairs  of  that 
company,  and  Richard  G.  Sneath,  John  S.  Hager, 
and  C.  T.  Hopkins  were  appointed  to  this  duty.  A 
contract  was  entered  into  between  these  delegates  and 
the  St  Louis  company,  which  had  six  months  to  run 
before  being  finally  accepted  or  rejected  by  San  Fran- 
cisco. The  condition  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific 
company's  land  grant  proved  not  to  be  entirely  satis- 
factory to  the  committee,  a  portion  of  the  route  fall- 
ing in  the  Indian  territory,  and  for  this  and  other 
reasons  there  was  a  portion  of  the  one  hundred  in 
favor  of  building  a  road  to  connect  with  the  Texas 
Pacific,"  whose  enterprising  president,  Thomas  A. 

M  A  second  act  in  1872  changed  somewhat  the  charter  act,  and  also 
changed  the  name  from  Texas  Pacific,  to  lexas  and  Pacific.  In  the  summer 
of  1872  Scott  was  in  San  Diego,  and  received  substantial  encouragement 
from  the  citizens,  in  the  shape  of  nearly  10,000  acres  of  valuable  lands  with- 
in the  city  limits.  Large  sums  of  money  were  expended  by  them  in  purchas- 
ing right  of  way  and  depot  grounds,  as  well  as  in  assisting  to  procure  con- 
gressional aid — but  without  success — upon  the  promise  of  the  company  to 
complete  the  road  by  July  5,  1876.  Ground  was  broken  in  1873,  and  ten 
miles  of  grading  done.  In  1876  Scott  offered  to  relinquish  the  San  Diego 
subsidy,  as  he  was  in  mnch  doubt  of  securing  the  necessary  aid,  without 
which  the  road  could  not  be  constructed.  But  the  San  Diegans  did  not  ac- 
cept the  offer,  being  still  hopeful  for  the  T.  and  P.  co.  In  1879,  however, 
the  pres't  of  the  board  of  city  trustees,  D.  O.  McCarthy,  wrote  to  Scott, 
asking  for  a  return  of  the  deed  to  San  Diego  lands,  that  much  litigation  ex- 
isting, and  in  prospect,  might  be  prevented.  For  answer,  Scott  returned 
that,  'No  effort  had  been  spared,  since  the  failure  of  1873,  to  secure  govern- 
ment aid,  but  that  his  bill  had  failed  for  want  of  the  active  support  he  had 
hoped  for,  and  that  he  still  expected  to  build  the  road,  but  pending  further 
proceedings,  and  having  no  desire  to  prevent  the  city  from  securing  oth^ 
railroad  connection?,  whenever  any  responsilile  company  had  constructed 
100  continuous  miles  of  railway  eastward  from  the  city,  he  would  re-convey 
one-half  of  the  lands,  but  not  so  as  to  embarrass  the  location  of  the  T.  and  P. 
line,  or  its  terminal  facilities  in  San  Diego.  San  Diego  Union,  in  S.  F.  Bvl- 
fctfn,  Dec.  11,  1879.  The  route  chosen  by  the  T.  and  P.  co.,  after  surveying 
four  several  lines,  was  that  by  the  San  Gorgonio  pass.  It  followed  the 
coast  north  to  the  mouth  of  the  San  Luis  Key  river,  and  up  the  Santa  Mar- 
HIST.  CAL..VOL.  VII-  S9 


610  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

Scott,  was  in  California  looking  after  terminal  facili- 
ties in  San  Diego.13  Only  about  one  third  of  the 
committee  advocated  the  Texas  Pacific  connection  ; 
the  majority  favoring  a  road  to  be  owned  entirely  by 
California  capitalists. 

About  the  12th  of  July  the  San  Francisco  and 
Colorado  River  Railway  company  organized,  with  a 
capital  stock  of  $50,000,000  divided  into  500,000 
shares  of  $100  each.  Subscriptions  were  obtained  to 
the  amount  of  $3,900,000,  and  several  millions  more 
promised.  A  subsidy  of  $10,000,000  was  asked  for 
from  San  Francisco,  after  obtaining  which  the  southern 
counties  could  be  relied  upon  for  further  contributions. 
The  subsidy  was  to  be  voted  upon  at  the  election  in 
November,  but  the  people  in  the  mean  time  had  been 
informed  that  their  $10,000,000  would  go  to  purchase 
the  Southern  Pacific  which  had  been  largely  con- 
structed by  subsidies,  and  they  declined  to  buy  a  road 
their  own  money  had  helped  to  build.  Thus,  indi- 
rectly the  Central  Pacific  management  defeated  the 
San  Francisco  scheme,  as,  perhaps,  it  was  intended 
should  be  done.  It  was  the  end  of  railroad  projects, 
none  of  which  have  been  indulged  in  from  that  time 
to  the  present.  Yet  it  was,  at  least  on  the  surface,  a 
good  and  feasible  plan. 

In  1874  the  Contract  and  Finance  company  was 
dissolved,  and  in  December  of  that  year  was  organ- 
ized the  Western  Development  company,  to  which 
the  contracts  of  the  former  were  transferred,  the 
stockholders  being  Stanford,  Huntington,  Crocker, 
Hopkins,  and  Colton,uthe  last  an  able  and  enterpris- 

garita  valley,  through  Don  Juan  Forster's  rancho,  to  Temecula,  and  thence 
to  San  Gorgonio.   Id.,  April  20,  and  May  19  and  29,  1873. 

The  directors  of  the  Colorado  company  were  John  Parrott,  Peter  Dona- 
hue, Henry  M.  Newhall,  W.  T.  Coleman,  Michael  Reese,  William  C. 
Ralston,  J.  Mora  Moss,  John  0.  Earl,  Henry  D.  Bacon,  A.  Gause,  George 
H.  Howard,  Josiah  Belden. 

"  In  the  proportion  of  two  ninths  of  the  stock  each  to  Stanford,  Hunting- 
ton,  Crocker,  and  Hopkins,  and  one  ninth  to  Colton. 


TEXAS  PACIFIC.  611 

ing  business  men.15  With  the  Central  Pacific  the 
business  of  the  new  organization  was  restricted 
mainly  to  the  execution  of  repairs,16  but  with  the 
Southern  Pacific  contracts  were  entered  into  for  the 
construction  of  about  405  miles  of  road,  including 
the  sections  between  Sumner  and  San  Fernando,  and 
between  Spadra  and  Yuma, 

After  the  failure  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  to 
secure  funds  and  cooperation  in  San  Francisco,  which 
was  followed  by  the  panic  of  1873,  the  Southern 
Pacific  temporarily  abandoned  the  route  to  Fort 
Mojave,  and  concentrated  its  means  on  a  road  to 
Yuma  to  prevent  the  entrance  into  California  of  the 
Texas  Pacific,  which  had  already  gone  so  far  as  to 
have  graded  ten  miles  out  of  San  Diego,  and  to  have 
shipped  there  iron,  ties,  and  timber  for  this  section  of 
its  road,  when  the  reverses  of  1873  crippled  it  finan- 
cially, and  brought  it  to  the  doors  of  Congress  to  ask 
for  a  subsidy  in  addition  to  its  land  grant.17 

From  this  period  for  years  the  Central  Pacific, 
through  its  indefatigable  vice-president,  who  was  also 
president  of  the  Southern  Pacific,  fought  the  Texas 
Pacific,  represented  by  Thomas  A.  Scott,  before  rail- 
road committees  of  both  branches  of  the  national 

'*  David  D.  Colton,  a  native  of  Monson,  Maine,  where  he  was  born  July 
17,  1832,  came  to  CaL  in  1879,  and  was  made  sheriff  at  Yreka,  Later  he  re- 
turned to  the  eastern  states,  and  after  a  coarse  of  study  at  Albany,  N.  Y., 
opened  a  law  office  in  San  Francisco,  in  partnership  with  R.  C.  Harrison. 
Later  he  took  part  in  several  railroad  enterprises  in  company  with  the  men 
with  whom  he  had  become  associated.  Writing  to  him,  Nov.  18,  1874,  Hunt- 
ington  remarks:  'There  is  a  large  field  to  be  worked  over  in  California,  to 
bring  about  good  feeling  between  ourselves  and  oar  enemies,  and  I  think 
you  are  the  man  to  do  it.' 

:*  On  the  basis  of  cost,  with  ten  per  cent  added  for  superintendence  and 
the  use  of  tools.  Evidence  of  F.  S.  Douty  in  testimony  before  the  U.  S.  Pac. 
railroad  commission  in  Sen.  Ex.  Doc.,  51,  ptvi,  50th  cong.,  1st  sess.,  p.  2673. 

17  Before  the  crash  came,  the  T.  P.  co.  had  organized  and  incorporated  the 
Texas  and  Cal.  Construction  co.,  which  was  chartered  by  the  legislature,  for 
the  purpose  of  building  the  T.  P.  R.  R.  The  success  of  the  Credit  Mobilier 
and  the  Contract  and  Finance  companies  led  to  this  later  attempt.  Bat  the 
charter  of  the  T.  P.  R.  R.  prohibited  any  officer  of  the  railroad  company  from 
being  a  member  of  any  construction  company;  and  while  Scott  was  not  a 
member,  he  loaned  his  name  and  credit  in  aid  of  the  construction  company. 
When  the  panic  arrested  operations,  the  Tex.  and  Cal.  Construction  co.  had 
liabilities  to  the  amount  of  $7,000,000,  while  its  assets  were  claimed  to  be 
$18,000,000. 


612  RAILROADS-SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

legiskture.  In  conjunction  with  Colton,18  he  defeated 
Scott's  bill,  arid  opposed  him  on  the  ground  of  sub- 
sidies; nay,  more  than  that,  he  offered  to  build  a  rail- 
road east  of  the  Colorado  without  even  a  land  grant; 
and  by  these  methods  held  in  check  the  Texas  Pacific 
until  his  object  was  accomplished.19 

The  history  of  the  Texas  Pacific,  unlike  that  of  the 
Atlantic  and  Pacific,  forms  no  part  of  the  railroad 
history  of  California,  except  as  showing  how  and  in 
what  degree  eastern  competition  in  transportation  has 
been  kept  out  of  the  state.20  It  remains  only  to  be 

18  Says  Huntington:  'I  think  the  Texas  P.,  or  some  of  their  friends,  will 
be  likely  to  take  the  ground  that  the  S.  P.  is  controlled  by  the  same  parties 
that  control  the  Central,  and  that  there  must  be  two  separate  corporations 
that  run  roads  into  S.  F.,  and  it  will   be  very  hard  for  us  to  make  head 
against  that  argument,  and  I  am  disposed  to  think  that  Colton  had  better 
come  over  and  spend  a  few  weeks,  at  least,  in  Washington. '     Colton  vs  Stan- 
ford et  al.,  xiii.  7480.     Relating  to  his  associates  what  he  has  said  to  coin- 
mitteemen,  he  quotes  from  himself:    '  My  interest  is,  of   course,  with   the 
Central  Pacific,  which  will  not  be  benefited  by  the  construction  of  this  road; 
but  the  parties  who  control  the  Southern  Pacific  are  very  anxious  to  have 
this  southern  line  completed  at  an  early  day.     And  as  long  as  I  am  acting 
as  president  of  the  company,  I  shall  do  all  that  I  can  to  carry  out   their 
wishes.'     Huntington  was  entirely  right  in  his  convictions.     The  only  argu- 
ment entitled  to  weight,  said  the  minority  of  the  house  committee  on  rail- 
roads, in  1878,  was  that  the  Southern  Pacific  connecting  with  the  ocean  at 
S.  F.,  and  having  intimate  relations  with  the  Central  Pacific  railroad,  might 
enter  into  combination  with  that  corporation  against  the  public  interest,  and 
that  the  advantages  of  competition  and  of  an  ocean  connection  at  San  Diego 
would  then  be  lost.     Com.  Repts,  238,  pt  vi.,  45th  cong.,  2d  sess.,  vol.  i. 

19  In  the  Huntington  letters,  at  p.  9,  he  writes  to  Crocker:   'I  propose  to 
say  to  congress,  "  We  will  build  east  of  the  Colorado  to  meet  the  Texas  P. 
without  aid,"  and  then  see  how  members  will  dare  give  him  aid  to  do  what 
we  offered  to  do  without.' 

20  <  \Vould  it  not  be  well, '  wrote  Huntington,  '  for  you  to  send  some  party 
down  to  Arizona  to  get  a  bill  passed  in  the  territorial  legislature  granting 
the  right  to  build  a  R.  R.  east  from  the  Colorado  river,  leaving  the  river 
near  Fort  Mojave;  have  the  franchise  free  from  taxation,  or  its  property, 
and  so  that  the  rates  of  fares  and  freights  cannot  be  interfered  with  until  the 
dividends  on  the  common  stock  shall  exceed  10  per  cent.     I  think  that  would 
be  about  as  good  as  a  land  grant.     If  such  a  bill  was  passed,  I  think  there 
could  at  least  be  got  from  congress  a  wide  strip  for  right  of  way,  machine- 
shops,'  etc.     Sept.  16,  1875,  he  wrote:  'I  shall  do  all  I  can  to  get  the  Texas 
Pacific  act  amended  so  as  to  allow  the  S.  P.  to  build  east  of  the  Colorado  river, 
but  I  much  doubt  being  able  to  do  anything,  for  if  Scott  cannot  pass  his 
Texas  Pacific  bill,  he  can  do  much  to  hinder  us  from  passing  ours.     Then  the 
A.  and  P.  will  oppose  it  with  what  power  they  have.     Then,  of  course,  the 
U.  P.  would  oppose,  under  cover,  if  not  otherwise;  at  least  I  know  we  should, 
if  we  were  in  their  place.     Then  the  politicians  would  naturally  be  against 
it,  as  they  would  think  it  would  do  them  good  to  prevent  this  grant  going  to 
the  S.  P.,  as  if  not,  it  would  be  likely  to  come  back  to  the  people.     I  shall 
do  what  I  can,  but  you  had  better  make  your  calculations  to  build  the  road 
east  of  the  Colorado  river  on  what  you  can  get  out  of  the  territories  and  the 


ATCHISOX,  TOPEKA,  AND  SANTA  Ffc  613 

said  that  on  the  1st  of  December,  1881,  the  Southern 
Pacific  met  the  Texas  Pacific  at  Sierra  Blanca,  near 

I  Paso,  and  opened  its  line  to  New  Orleans  in  Jan- 
uary 1883,  through  its  connection  with  the  Texas  and 
New  Orleans  railroad  at  Houston,  Texas.21 

As  to  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific,  it  suffered  in  com- 
mon with  other  similar  enterprises  from  the  financial 
crash  of  1873,  and  subsequently  entered  into  a  combi- 
nation with  the  Atchison,  Topeka,  and  Santa  Fe,  and 
the  St  Louis  and  San  Francisco  railroad  companies, 
which  gave  the  Atchison  road  a  half  interest  in  the 
charter  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific,  owned  by  the  St 
Louis  company,  to  which  a  valuable  land  grant  at- 
tached. The  two  companies  constructed,  jointly,  from 
the  main  line  of  the  Atchison  road  at  Albuquerque 
west  to  the  Colorado  at  the  Xeedles,  between  1879 
and  1883,  with  the  intention  of  carrying  their  road 
thence  to  Los  Angeles  and  San  Francisco.  But  at 


iA^tJOU  CXpe<?  to  Set  asking  in  Aritena  and  New  Mexico,  I 
nld  suggest  that  you  do  not  do  as  we  did  in  Utah,  wait  until  the  enemy 
a  in  possession.     Of  course,  yon  notice  the  vote  of  the  house  yesterday  on 
8ubsidies_223  against,  33  for."     April  27th  Huntington  wrote  to  Colton: 
bcott  has  given  up  all  hopes  of  getting  any  subsidy  this  session,  and  is  ask- 
ing for  eight  years  more  time,  and  I  think  he  will  get  it  against  all  we  can  do. 
His  new  bill  calls  for  building  20  miles  each  year  from  San  Diego  this  way 
and  oO  miles  west  from  this  encLof  the  road.' 

The  Texas  Pacific   in    187fr  endeavored  to  secure  the  crossing  of  the 

Colorado  at  \urna—  the  only  possible  site  for  a  railroad  bridge,  and  the  mili- 

tary authorities  granted  the  company,  or  the  CaL  and  Arizona  division  of  it, 

le  right  to  break  ground  on  the  Fort  Ynma  reservation;  but  the  permission 

rras  revoked  by  Gen.  McDowell,  division  commander.     The  T.  P.  obeved 

the  order.     But  both  the  T.  P.  and  the  S.  P.,  uoon  application,  procured  the 

permission  of  the  sec.  of  war  to  carry  their  roads,  provisional^,  through  a 

orner  of  the  reservation,  in  Aug.  1877.     The  T.  P.,  in  view  of  the  former 

'vocation,  desired  to  have  the  matter  settled  in  congress  before  going  on 

with  construction,  and  oa  Sept.  1st  the  permission  was  withdrawn  fromboth 

ompanies  peiutng  a.  decision  concerning  the  respective  rights  of  the  com- 

panies.    Again  the  b.  P.  secured  a  modification  of  this  onler,  so  far  as  to 

gam  a  permit  to  continue  work  to  the  extent  only  of  preventing  waste  and 

njury  to  its  property.     Having  secured  this,  it  found  means  to  cemplete  the 

ULng  of  its  bridge,  laid  its  track  on  the  bridge  in  the  night,  and  ran  a 

am  of  cars  over  the  river.     The  official  correspondence  growing  out  of  this    ,:  -: 

transaction  is  to  be  found  in  U.  5.  H.  Ex.  Doe,,  2£  45th  eon*.  IML;  U.  8.    V> 

Aen.Com.  Kept,  491,  iL,  45  cong.,  2  sess.;  ConkW*  Arizona,  46-i 

Hnntington  in  his  Letter*,  185,  relates  how  he  changed  the  mind  of  the 
lec.  of  war,  and  'got  him  out  of  that  idea  in  about  twenty  minutes.  I  then 
saw  three  other  members  of  the  cabinet;  then  went  and  saw  the  president 
lie  was  a  bttle  cross  at  first;  said  we  had  defied  the  gov.,  etc.;  but  I  soon 
got  him  out  of  that  belief.' 


614  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

this  juncture  the  Southern  Pacific  again  stopped  the 
way. 

The  California  Southern  railroad  was  chartered  Oc- 
tober 12,  1880,  to  construct  a  line  from  San  Diego  to 
San  Bernardino,  and  the  California  Southern  Exten- 
sion company  was  chartered  May  23,  1881,  to  extend 
this  road  to  a  connection  with  the  Atlantic  and  Pa- 
cific in  California,  at  a  point  about  eighty  miles  north- 
east of  San  Bernardino.  The  t\vo  companies  consoli- 
dated under  the  name  of  the  first  above  mentioned, 
and  the  road  was  completed  to  Colton  in  August 
1882,  and  opened  from  San  Diego  to  San  Bernardino 
September  13,  1883. 

Soon  afterward  the  Southern  Pacific,  obtaining 
through  the  purchase  of  stock  a  share  in  the  man- 
agement, secured  the  extension  of  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  to  the  Colorado  at  the  Needles,  which  com- 
pelled it  to  connect  there  with  the  former.  This  had 
nearly  been  a  death-blow  to  the  California  Southern, 
which  had  suffered  much,  not  only  by  opposition,  but 
by  floods  in  the  Temecula  canon,  which  rendered  im- 
passable thirty  miles  of  its  track,  carrying  bridges 
and  ties  entirely  away,  some  being  seen  a  hundred 
miles  at  sea.  It  must  not  only  rebuild  this  thirty 
miles,  but  in  order  to  reach  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific, 
must  construct  300  miles  of  new  road  over  mountain 
and  desert,  instead  of  the  80  miles  as  first  intended. 
For  several  months  the  directors  hesitated.  But 
finally  the  Southern  Pacific  determined  to  sell  to  the 
California  Southern  the  road  from  the  Needles  to 
Mojave,  built  by  the  Pacific  Improvement  company,22 
the  successor  of  the  Western  Development  company. 
The  transfer  took  place  in  October  1884,  and  the 
California  Southern  at  once  recommenced  construction 
and  repairs,  and  in  November  1885  opened  its  line 

22  Organized  in  Nov.  1878,  with  A.  J.  H.  Strobridge  as  president,  and 
F.  S.  Douty  secretary  and  treasurer,  the  board  of  directors  including,  be- 
sides these  two,  Arthur  Brown,  W.  E.  Brown,  and  B.  R.  Crocker.  Its  cap- 
ital stock  was  $5,000,000.  Testimony  before  the  U.  S.  Pac.  R.  R.  commission 
in  Sen.  Ex.  Doc.,  51,  pt  vj.,  50th  cong.,  1st  sess.,  p.  2672. 


CUYAMACA  COMPANY.  615 

from  San  Diego  to  Barstow.  In  October  1886,  it 
formally  passed  under  the  control  of  the  Atchison, 
Topeka,  and  Santa  Fe  company,  and  was  operated  as  a 
division  of  that  road.  Thus  after  ten  years  of  strug- 
gle, two  of  the  eastern  roads  effected  an  entrance  into 
California.23 

The  Atlantic  and  Pacific  has  also  another  and  more 
circuitous  route  from  the  east,  made  by  running  a 
branch  from  Rincon  to  Deming,  in  New  Mexico, 
where  it  connects  with  the  Southern  Pacific.  In 
March  1888  the  Cuyamaca  and  Eastern  railroad 
company  was  organized  at  San  Diego  to  construct  a 
railroad  to  the  Needles,  intending  to  connect  with 
the  Atlantic  and  Pacific.  The  route  chosen  was 
nearly  a  straight  line,  saving  two  hundred  miles  in 
distance,  and  opening  up  the  country  back  of  San 
Diego. 

The  gap  in  the  original  line  of  the  Southern  Pa- 
cific, left  uncompleted  in  1872,  was  still  unfilled  in 
1887,  but  surveys  were  then  in  progress  for  a  new 
Southern  Pacific  branch  railway  to  supply  this  defect. 
The  only  coast  town  reached  below  Monterey  was 
Los  Angeles,  which,  although  twenty  miles  inland, 
had  been  made  an  exception,  for  substantial  reasons. 
This  was  one  of  the  first  towns  in  the  state  to  move 
in  the  matter  of  railroads,  and  built  two,24  which 

0  Thomas  Nickerson  of  Boston  was  first  pres't  of  the  Cal.  Southern  as 
consolidated.  The  road  was  surveyed,  J.  O.  Osgood,  chief  eng'r,  through 
the  Temecula  canon.  The  distance  to  Colton  by  the  route  is  126  miles.  J. 
X.  Victor  took  charge  of  the  road  as  sup't  in  Aug.  1882,  and  continued  in 
charge  until  April  1888,  during  which  time  it  met  and  overcame  the  obsta- 
cles mentioned  above.  The  road  grew  into  a  large  business.  F.  F.  Ferris, 
the  eng'r  appointed  by  the  sup't,  located  the  line  of  the  extension  through 
the  Cajon  pass.  The  two  canons  through  which  the  CaL  Southern  is  con- 
structed are  among  the  wildest  and  most  difficult  for  railroad  building  on  the 
coast.  The  Cuyamaca  and  Eastern  R.  R.  was  expected  to  avoid  such  passes, 
which,  while  dreaded  by  railroad  builders,  are  a  pleasure  to  the  tourist. 

**  In  1875,  the  Los  Angeles  people  incorporated  a  company  to  construct  a 
railway  which  should  unite  their  town  with  Santa  Monica  on  one  hand,  and 
proceed  on  the  other  to  San  Bernardino,  and  thence  to  Independence,  in  In yo 
co.  The  route  to  be  followed  was  through  the  Cajon  pass,  since  used  by  the 
CaL  Southern  branch  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific;  and  the  capital  stock  was 
placed  at  $4,000,000,  in  shares  of  $100  each,  over  half  of  which  was  paid  up. 
The  first  train  between  Los  Angeles  and  Santa  Monica  was  run  in  Dec.  1  ?75. 
Grading  was  done  east  of  Los  Angeles  and  in  the  Cajoa  pass.  Whether  the 


616  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

passed  under  the  control  of  the  Southern  Pacific. 
In  April  1887  the  tracks  of  two  other  roads,  namely, 
the  Los  Angeles  and  San  Bernardino  and  the  San 
Gabriel  Valley  railways,  were  joined,  forming  a  line 
from  San  Bernardino  to  Los  Angeles,  and  taking  the 
name  of  the  California  Central.  It  is  really  a  con- 
solidation of  the  Atchison,  Topeka,  and  Santa  Fe  and 
the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  purchased  roads,  and  ad- 
mitted that  eastern  combination  to  Los  Angeles.25 
This  combination,  exercising  the  right  of  eminent 
domain  to  obtain  right  of  way  through  the  San 
Joaquin  rancho,  a  valuable  property  of  108,000  acres, 
lying  across  the  line  of  any  road  down  the  coast,  en- 
countered the  opposition  of  the  Southern  Pacific, 
which  was  also  looking  out  a  route  for  its  coast  line 
to  San  Diego. 

The  Southern  Pacific,  like  its  older  brother,  the 
Central,  was  a  good  railroad  builder.  By  its  endless 

Company  would  have  been  able  to  complete  their  road,  owing  to  its  cost,  is 
doubtful;  but  the  main  reason  of  its  failure  was  the  opposition  of  the  South- 
ern Pacific,  which  finally,  in  1878,  purchased  the  road  to  Santa  Monica  at  a 
low  figure,  it  being  in  difficulties,  and  put  an  end  to  the  hopes  of  its  princi- 
pal projector  and  president,  U.  S.  Senator  John  P.  Jones,  who  had  large 
interests  in  that  quarter.  Says  Huntington  in  his  Letters,  p.  166,  'Some  of 
my  associates  in  Cal.  seem  to  think  it  is  no  interest  to  us  to  control  this  road. 
In  that  I  am  not  agreed,  as  I  believe  the  difference  between  making  that 
road  for  or  against  us  will  be  every  year  half  what  it  has  cost  us.'  On  p. 
172  he  says:  'I  have  paid  Jones  $100,000,  as  Crocker  telegraphed  me  it 
would  be  safe  to  do  so;  and  on  p.  181,  'We  owe  Senator  Jones  on  his  road 
$25,000,  and  the  $70,000  S.  P.  bonds,'  from  which  it  appears  that  Jones  re- 
ceived $195,000  for  the  Santa  Monica  road;  but  he  lost  his  investments  in 
that  town,  which  was  ruined. 

25  On  the  21st  of  Sept.  1885  was  incorporated  the  Riverside,  Santa  Ana 
R.  R.  co.,  to  run  a  line  from  San  Bernardino  via  Riverside  to  Los  Angeles, 
75  miles.  Also,  during  1886  was  incorporated  the  San  Bernardino  and  Los 
Angeles  R.  R.,  40  miles  to  a  connection  with  the  L.  A.  and  San  Gabriel 
valley  R.  R.  going  east  from  Los  Angeles.  Also  was  incorporated  the  San 
Bernardino  valley  R.  R.,  10  miles  to  Redlands  and  east.  Also  was  incorpo- 
rated the  San  Jacinto  valley  R.  R.,  from  Perris,  on  the  Cal.  Southern  to  San 
Jacinto,  25  miles.  Also  was  incorporated  the  Los  Angeles  and  Santa  Monica 
R.  R.,  17  miles  from  L.  A.  to  Ballona.  Also  was  incorporated  the  San  Ber- 
nardino and  San  Diego  R.  R.,  from  Oceanside  on  the  Cal.  Southern  to  Santa 
Ana,  50  miles.  Also  was  incorporated  the  San  Diego  Central  R.  R.,  from 
San  Diego  to  Cajon  valley,  25  miles.  All  these  roads  were  organized  in  the 
Boston  interest,  and  on  the  1st  of  Jan.  1887  the  L.  A.  and  San  Gabriel  val- 
ley R.  R.  came  under  the  same  control,  being  consolidated  with  these  differ- 
ent organizations  April  23,  1887,  under  the  name  of  Cal.  Central  R.  R, 
which  gives  the  Atchison  system  461  miles  of  road,  actual  or  early  prospec- 
tive operation.  Victors  Atchison  System,  p.  8. 


BUILDING   AND  EXTENSION.  617 

digging  and  blasting,  its  tunnelling,28  trestling,  bridg- 
ing, and  track-laying,  it  has  brought  into  communica- 
tion the  extreme  northern  and  southern  portions  of 
the  state,  without  encountering  serious  antagonism27 

**  One  of  the  greatest  railroad  tunnels  on  the  continent  is  at  San  Fernando, 
on  the  line  of  the  Southern  Pacific.  The  work  was  commenced  in  July  1875, 
and  continued  for  more  than  a  year,  with  gangs  of  men  numbering  1,500  ad- 
vancing from  each  end  toward  the  centre.  The  length  is  6,964  feet,  and  the 
cost  of  the  work  was  about  $2,000,000.  One  feature  of  the  tunnel  is  that  it 
is  approached  at  either  end  by  a  heavy  up  grade,  and  has  a  considerable 
stream  of  water  running  constantly  out  of  its  southern  end.  It  runs  under 
ridges  and  canons,  the  greatest  depth  being  600  feet. 

17  One  instance  of  bloodshed  only  can  be  recorded,  and  in  that  no  blame 
seems  to  attach  to  the  company.  About  1876  the  settlers,  600  in  number, 
petitioned  congress  to  restore  a  portion  of  the  land  grant  to  the  public,  no 
railroad  having  been  constructed  on  the  route  between  Holloa  ter,  in  San 
Benito  county,  and  Gosh  en,  in  Tulare  co.,  a  distance  of  140  miles.  They 
represented  that  for  a  distance  of  50  miles  the  route  lay  over  a  level,  sandy 
waste  of  little  value,  until  by  irrigating  ranala^  constructed  at  their  own  ex- 
pense, it  had  been  reclaimed  and  made  fruitful;  that  subsequent  to  these 
improvements  the  railroad  company  surveyed  its  line,  and  asked  for  patents 
to  the  odd  sections,  some  of  which  were  already  occupied.  Congressional 
committees  reported  some  for  and  some  against  a  forfeiture  of  the  lands,  and 
the  matter  remained  undetermined  until  1878,  eleven  years  after  the  land  was 
granted.  In  April  of  that  year  a  mass  meeting  was  called  at  Han  ford,  in  this 
region,  where  a  settler's  league  was  organized.  The  league  expressed  itself 
as  willing  to  pay  the  price  fixed  by  the  government  for  railroad  lands,  namely 
$2.50  per  acre;  but  declared  the  railroad  company  had  no  right  to  their  homes 
and  improvements,  nor  any  right  to  require  payment  for  the  same  from 
those  who  had  made  the  improvements.  On  a  demand  from  the  league  to 
have  their  land-grader  removed,  the  railroad  company  brought  suits  of  eject- 
ment against  settlers  on  its  patented  lands,  and  obtained  judgment  in  the 
U.  S.  circuit  court  in  December.  Previous  to  this  decision,  however,  80  or 
100  men,  with  masks  to  conceal  their  identity,  repaired  to  the  house  of  Ira 
Hodge,  a  purchaser  of  railroad  land,  five  miles  from  Hanford,  and  ordering 
out  the  family,  burned  down  the  dwelling.  Another  purchaser,  Perry  C. 
Phillips,  was  treated  in  the  same  manner,  and  a  settler  placed  in  possession. 
Soon  after  these  acts  a  military  company  was  formed.  In  July  1879  a  party 
of  men,  mounted  and  disguised,  made  a  midnight  visit  to  a  house  where  it  was 
suspected  that  certain  obnoxious  persons  were  lodged.  Their  visit  was  taken 
as  a  menace.  In  May  1880,  no  compromise  having  been  affected,  U.  S. 
Marshal  Poole  in  undertaking  to  place  purchasers  of  railroad  lands  in  pos- 
session, was  resisted  by  an  armed  force,  and  a  battle  resulted,  in  which  eight 
persons  were  killed  or  wounded,  namely  James  Harris,  Iver  Knutson,  J.  W. 
Henderson,  Archibald  McGregory,  Daniel  Kelly,  and  E.  Haymaker,  settlers, 
wounded;  Walter  J.  Crow  and  M.  D.  Hartt,  purchasers  of  railroad  land, 
killed.  It  was  shown  at  the  inquest  that  at  the  time  of  the  collision  Marshal 
Poole,  in  company  with  land-grader  Clark,  and  Crow  and  Hartt,  purchasers 
of  railroad  lands,  had  set  out  in  the  street  the  household  goods  of  W.  B. 
Braden,  and  were  proceeding  to  evict  other  families.  The  coroner's  jury 
resolved  that  'the  responsibility  of  the  shedding  of  innocent  blood  rests  upon 
the  Southern  Pacific  railroad  company,'  and  the  feeling  throughout  the  state 
was  strongly  adverse  to  the  company's  course.  It  was  shown,  however,  upon 
the  trial  of  those  persons  engaged  in  resisting  the  marshal,  that  the  settlers 
had  set  themselves  up  as  the  rightful  owners,  regardless  of  the  patents  held 
by  the  railroad  company,  and  had  organized  a  military  force  which  patrolled 
the  streets  on  horseback,  with  masks  over  their  faces;  that  they  warned 


618  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

from  the  people.  It  has  indeed  outgrown  its  older 
brother,  in  1885  assuming  the  control  of  both  systems 

away  one  purchaser  of  railroad  land,  turning  the  occupant  out  of  doors;  that 
it  was  not  known  who  was  the  attacking  party  on  the  fateful  10th  of  May; 
but  that  the  settlers  deliberately  murdered  Crow  after  the  first  fury  of  the 
fight  was  over.  But  such  was  the  sentiment  regarding  the  right  of  the 
Southern  Pacific  company  to  hold  the  land  grant,  that  the  only  crime  charged 
against  the  men  who  participated  in  the  tragedy  of  Brewer's  rancho  was  that 
of  resisting  the  U.  S.  marshal.  For  this  J.  J.  Doyle,  James  N.  Patterson, 
J.  D.  Purcell,  W.  L.  Pryor,  and  William  Braden  were  sent  to  prison  in  San 
Jose,  January  24,  1881,  where  they  remained  several  months,  during  which 
time  they  were  the  recipients  of  much  kindness  and  attention  from  the  citi- 
zens of  that  place.  On  returning  to  their  houses  they  were  met  by  3,000 
people  assembled  at  Hanford  park  to  tender  their  sympathy  and  approval. 
Upon  the  platform  erected  for  the  orators  of  the  day  sat  the  released  prisoners 
and  their  families  with  the  families  of  those  killed  in  the  defence  of  their 
homes.  Letters  were  read  from  congressmen  Berry  and  Ferrel  and  Senator 
Tiunin  of  the  California  delegation  in  Washington;  speeches  were  made,  and 
resolutions  offered. 

Previous  to  this  demonstration  the  railroad  company  offered  to  reduce  the 
price  of  land  12^  per  cent.  Most  of  the  settlers  made  application  to  rent, 
hoping  that  the  government  would  come  to  their  rescue;  but  the  leases  when 
sent  to  them  contained  an  agreement  to  apply  the  rent  of  1880  on  the  pur- 
chase of  the  land,  at  the  reduction  offered,  and  were  rejected  by  the  settlers, 
who  still  warned  away  the  agents  of  the  company.  In  April,  previous  to  the 
culminating  event  above  described,  the  legislature  passed  a  joint  resolution 
asking  '  congressional  aid  in  behalf  of  a  large  number  of  settlers  upon  gov- 
ernment land,  in  what  is  known  as  the  Mussel  Slough  district,  in  Tulare 
county,  Cal.'  The  preamble  averred  that  'nearly  2,000  settlers,  acting  in 
good  faith  with  the  said  government,  and  trusting  to  its  full  protection,  did 
settle  upon  what,  at  the  time  of  settlement,  was  supposed  to  be,  and  what 
they  claim  was  of  right,  vacant,  unclaimed,  unoccupied,  and  unreserved  gov- 
ernment land;. ..  .and  whereas  the  Southern  Pacific  railroad  company,  or  a 
branch  of  the  same,  having  obtained  a  charter  to  construct  a  road  on  a  route 
entirely  different  from  the  one  now  running  through  said  Mussel  Slough  dis- 
trict, and  having  obtained  a  grant  of  land  from  the  federal  government  to 
aid  in  the  construction  of  the  same,  which  said  grant  could  not  have  been 
included  in  any  of  the  lands  of  the  Mussel  Slough  country,  had  the  railroad 
company  adhered  to  the  route  first  located,  did,  after  the  private  settlements 
referred  to  above,  get  a  modification  of  its  charter,  change  its  route  to  the 
present  one,  running  through  the  heart  of  the  Mussel  Slough  country,  so  as 
to  include  the  lands  then  and  now  occupied  by  these  settlers  in  opposition 
to  the  said  railroad  company;  and  whereas  the  United  States  court,  Sawyer 
presiding,  has  recently  decided  that  the  said  grant  to  the  railroad  company 
was  in  presente,an<\.  not  conditional  upon  location  of  route  and  filing  map  of 
same,  in  face  of  the  uniform  decision  of  the  commissioners  of  the  general 
land-office  for  a  number  of  years;  and  whereas,  as  the  result  of  said  decision, 
about  1,800  innocent  settlers,  many  of  whom  are  poor  men,  with  their  wives 
and  children,  are  in  danger  of  being  turned  out  of  their  homes,  which  they 
have  built  up  around  them  by  their  indomitable  industry  and  perseverance, 
and  which  have  become  valuable,  not  by  the  building  of  the  said  railroad 
alone,  but  principally  by  the  construction  of  several  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars' worth  of  canals  and  ditches,  which  have  been  commenced  and  completed 
by  the  individual  efforts  of  these  settlers,  unaided  from  any  quarter;  be  it 
resolved  by  the  senate  and  assembly  of  the  state  of  California,  that  our  sen- 
ators be  instructed  and  our  representatives  be  requested,  to  use  their  best 
endeavors  to  widen  the  scope  of  the  bill  introduced  in  congress  by  S.  S. 
Cox  of  New  York,  February  3d,  in  relation  to  railroads,  so  as  to  afford  the 


FINANCES.  619 

under  its  one  name,  besides  extending  its  operations 
to  the  Atlantic  states. 

The  uniformly  successful  enterprises  of  the  direc- 
tors show  not  only  that  they  had  money  to  operate 
with,  but  that  they  were  notable  financiers.  The 
length  of  their  whole  system  of  roads  aggregates 
nearly  7,500  miles.  They  control  or  own,  wholly  or 
in  part,  more  than  forty  railroad  corporations  in  Cali- 
fornia, besides  coal  mines,  express  companies,  steam- 
ship companies,  street  railways,  hotels,  and  town-sites, 
all  in  their  corporate  capacity.  More  than  §95,000,- 
000  were  expended  for  construction  in  1880-1884, 
upwards  of  $30,000,000  being  paid  for  labor  alone.28 

The  railroad  associates  have,  of  course,  found  it  less 
profitable  to  construct  long  roads  through  unimproved 
sections  of  the  state  and  adjoining  territories,  than 
was  the  case  earlier  in  their  career.  Previous  to 
the  consolidation  of  the  Western  and  Central  Pacific 
and  other  roads  in  1870  the  Central  had  earned  §20,- 
238,918.13.  Its  consolidations  brought  it  §5,000,000. 
Between  1870  and  1882  it  earned  §113,464,579.13, 
about  forty  per  cent  being  expended  in  operating  the 
roads.  Out  of  the  residue  there  was  paid  the  interest 
on  the  first  mortgage  and  other  bonds.  About  §4,- 
000,000  went  to  the  purchase  of  the  road  from  San 
Francisco  to  Gilrov  and  the  Los  Angeles  and  San 

• 

Pedro  roads,  and  an  unknown  amount  into  other 
undertakings.  The  Pacific  Improvement  company 
received  for  constructing  the  road  from  Mojave  to  the 
Needles  payment  in  bonds  to  the  amount  of  §6,062,- 
000,  at  the  rate  of  $25,000  a  mile,  and  stock  to  the 
amount  of  §7,275,200,  at  the  rate  of  §30,000  a  mile, 
for  242  miles,  or  at  an  average  cost  of  something  over 
§24,000  per  mile.  The  Southern  Pacific  of  Arizona 

relief  indicated  above,  and  if  this  be  impracticable,  that  oar  congressmen  be 
requested,  if  possible,  to  procure  national  aid  through  the  attorney-general 
in  having  the  question  of  the  ownership  of  these  lands,  as  between  the  settlers 
and  the  railroad  company,  finally  determined  in  the  supreme  court  of  the 
United  States.'  CaL  Stat.,  1880,  250-1. 

*  A.  y,  Towne,  Railroad  Tran*poi-taiion  and  Construction,  MS.,  pp.  25,  p. 
23. 


620  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

paid  to  this  company  $25,000  per  mile  in  bonds,  and 
$199,950  in  capital  stock — par  value  of  stocks  and 
bonds  being  $19,995,000.29 

According  to  the  statement  furnished  the  -United 
States  railway  commissioners30  by  the  president  of  the 
Central  Pacific,  the  total  receipts  of  that  company 
from  1864  to  1884  amounted  to  $277,347,789.67,  and 
the  total  expenditure  to  $239,612,278.24,  the  re- 
mainder being  a  surplus  of  profits.  This  estimate 
includes  land  sales  and  all  transactions  on  account  of 
the  road,  except  sales  of  stock.  The  capital  stock  of 
the  Central  Pacific  was  increased  from  $20,000,000 
in  1865  to  $100,000,000  in  1878.  The  first  stock 
sold  after  the  consolidation  of  1870  was  20,000  shares 
to  D.  D.  Col  ton  in  1874.  The  first  sale  in  the  New 
York  market  was  in  1880,  when  50,000  shares  were 
sold  to  an  eastern  syndicate. 

The  capital  stock  of  the  Southern  Pacific,  which 
in  1870  was  $40,000,000,  was  increased  to  $90,000,000 
before  the  branch  to  the  Needles  was  constructed,  and 
is  now  $150,000,000.  Its  earnings  in  1879  amounted 
to  $2,878,356.60,  which  went  to  pay  interest  on  its 
bonds  and  taxes,31  the  bonded  debt  of  the  road  being 
then  $29,000,000. 

The  weak  point  in  the  whole  magnificent  scheme 
is  the  accumulation  of  indebtedness.  But  the  great 
railroad  builders  will  be  in  an  excellent  financial  con- 
dition should  they  succeed  in  inducing  the  government 
to  accept  their  terms  in  the  pending  final  settlement 
of  their  indebtedness  to  the  country.  The  first  real 
effort  of  the  government  to  secure  payment  was  by  an 
amendment  to  the  Pacific  Railroad  acts  of  1862  and 
1864,  made  May  7,  1878,  establishing  a  sinking  fund 
into  which  should  be  paid  half  the  amount  due  annu- 

29  Col  ton  v»  Stanford  et  al.    Plaintiff's  Ev.,  368-75. 

3*  Anxwer  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  Company,  submitted  by  Leland  Stan- 
ford, President,  July  1887,  pp.  129-33. 

a)  This  is  Crocker's  evidence.  Id.,  DefCs  Ev.,  p.  9074.  He  says  that 
neither  the  Western  Development  co.,  the  Amador  R.  R.,  the  Berkeley 
Branch  R.  R.,  the  Cal.  Pacific  R.  R.,  nor  the  Colorado  Steam  Navigation  co. 
paid  any  dividends,  unless  the  last  a  small  one. 


INDEBTEDNESS.  621 

ally  from  the  United  States  for  mail  and  other  ser- 
vices, while  the  other  half  should  be  applied  to  the 
liquidation  of  the  interest  paid  by  the  government  on 
its  bonds.  In  addition,  twenty -five  per  centum  of  the 
net  earnings  of  the  company  were  required  to  be  paid 
into  the  treasury,  in  default  of  which  no  dividend 
could  be  voted  or  received,  forfeiture  of  its  franchise 
being  the  penalty  of  a  failure  to  observe  the  require- 
ments of  the  law. 

In  regard  to  the  question  of  the  Central  Pacific 
company's  indebtedness  to  the  government,  and  for 
several  years  before  the  people,  it  is  asked,  on  the  one 
hand :  Whence  came  the  means  by  which  four  men, 
with  only  moderate  private  fortunes,  were  enabled  to 
build,  buy,  own,  and  operate  all  the  roads  belonging 
to  the  Central  and  Southern  systems?  In  1869,  be- 
fore the  last  spike  had  been  driven  at  Promontory, 
the  railroad  quartet,  besides  owning  the  road,  had  re- 
ceived as  a  loan  $24,000,000  of  government  bonds, 
forming  a  second  mortgage  on  the  road,  together  with 
$400,000  of  San  Francisco  bonds  as  an  unconditional 
gift,  $550,000  of  county  bonds,  and  $2,100,000,  paid, 
or  to  be  paid,  by  the  state  of  California,  in  the  way  of 
interest,  in  return  for  services  to  be  rendered  by  the 
company.  All  this  ia  addition  to  the  land  subsidy  of 
more  than  9,000,000  acres.  Granted  that  more  than 
eighty  per  cent  of  the  laud  subsidy  was  worthless,  as 
consisting  either  of  mountain  or  desert;  granted  that 
when  the  bonds  were  issued  they  could  only  be  con- 
verted into  gold  at  a  heavy  sacrifice;  nevertheless  the 
Sacramento  syndicate,  after  receiving  these  subsidies, 
together  with  the  income  on  their  road,  should  at  least 
have  fulfilled  their  obligations  to  the  government. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  directors  point,  first  of  all, 
to  the  saving  effected  to  the  government  in  transpor- 
tation charges.  From  the  completion  of  the  Central 
and  Union  Pacific  to  the  31st  of  December,  1885, 
the  total  sum  paid  to  both  roads  for  United  States 
freight,  supplies,  mails,  munitions  of  war,  troops,  and 


622  RAILROADS- SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

passengers  amounted  to  $20,963,313,  while  for  the 
same  period  of  only  less  than  17  years,  the  charges  at 
ante-railroad  rates  would  have  been  $160,311,054, 
thus  making  a  total  saving  of  $139,347,741.  The 
bonds  issued,  with  accrued  interest  to  date,  less  what 
has  been  repaid  by  the  two  companies,  would  repre- 
sent, at  the  latter  date,  a  total  of  $86,685,907,  still 
leaving  in  their  favor  a  balance  of  $52,661,834  in  ex- 
cess of  both  bonds  and  interest.  Moreover,  for  trans- 
portation services  rendered  by  the  railroads  nothing 
is  paid  by  the  government,  the  entire  sum  being  re- 
tained in  payment  of  bonds  and  interest.  Nor  in  this 
estimate  has  any  allowance  been  made  for  the  enor- 
mous increase  in  the  weight  of  mail  matter,  from 
1,000  pounds  daily,  just  before  the  completion  of  the 
railroad,  to  30,000  pounds  in  1885.32 

As  to  the  present  relations  between  the  Central 
Pacific  and  the  government,  it  is  claimed  by  the  former 
that,  according  to  the  reports  of  government  officials, 
appointed  annually,  since  1878,  to  inquire  into  the 
affairs  of  the  company,  including  that  of  the  Pacific 
Railway  commission,  all  the  legal  obligations  to  the 
government,  arising  from  the  issue  of  bonds  or  other- 
wise, have  been  faithfully  discharged.  "  But,"  as  the 
president  of  the  company  remarks,  "  beyond  these  ob- 
ligations on  either  side,  which  were  named  in  the  con- 
tract acts  and  in  the  laws  relating  thereto,  there  were 
certain  implied  promises  of  benefits  on  either  side,  on 
which  the  terms  of  the  contract  as  to  the  loan  of 
bonds,  as  well  as  the  manner  and  time  of  their  pay- 
ment were  based.  The  facts  as  to  these  promises  and 
the  way  they  have  been  fulfilled  must  receive  full 
consideration  in  any  fair  plan  that  may  be  proposed, 
looking  to  the  settlement  of  the  affairs  between  the 
company  and  the  United  States."33 

But  for  the  passage  of  the  Thurman  act,  in  1878, 

32  Relations  between  the  Central  Pacific.  Railroad  Company  and  the  United 
States  Government.     Summary  of  Facts.     1889. 

33  Id.,  p.  6. 


INDEBTEDNESS.  623 

whereby  the  government  assumed  control  of  the  com- 
pany's debt,  tha  directors  assert  that  the  bonds  and 
interest  would  have  been  fully  paid  at  maturity  from 
the  proceeds  of  a  sinking  fund  established  for  that 
purpose.  But  through  injudicious  investments  of  the 
sinking-fund  money  in  the  hands  of  the  secretary  of 
the  treasury,  a  loss  has  already  ensued  to  the  com- 
pany of  more  than  $2,000,000,  and  this  without  any 
advantage  to  the  government. 

Until  the  maturity  of  the  debt,  it  was  at  least  im- 
plied that  the  government  would  refrain  from  granting 
subsidies  to  competitive  lines,  and  by  doing  so  they 
have  largely  decreased  the  earnings  of  the  Central 
Pacific.  Moreover,  these  earnings  have  been  further 
reduced  by  the  competition  of  the  Canadian  Pacific,  a 
line  heavily  subsidized  by  the  dominion  government, 
and  not  under  the  restrictions  of  the  interstate  com- 
merce law.  Under  such  competition  the  average  net 
earnings  of  the  road  have  fallen  of  late  considerably 
below  $1,000,000  a  year,  and  thus  the  value  of  the 
government's  lien  has  been  seriously  impaired. 

Such  are  a  few  of  the  statements  alleged  on  either 
side  as  to  this  difficult  and  long-vexed  question.  On 
the  one  hand,  it  is  asserted  that  the  Central  Pacific  has 
disregarded  it  contracts:  that  it  has  denied  and  still 

o  * 

denies  its  obligations  to  the  government,  assuming 
that  in  equity  it  owes  nothing,  because  the  country 
has  been  so  largely  benefited  by  the  completion  of  the 
first  overland  railroad.  On  the  other,  it  is  claimed 
that  all  the  company's  obligations  and  contracts  have 
been  duly  fulfilled;  that  the  subsidies  were  granted  on 
the  understanding  that  they  should  build  a  road  to 
be  managed  and  owned  by  themselves,  for  the  indi- 
vidual profit  of  the  stockholders,  and  that  there  is 
nothing  in  the  language  of  the  statutes  that  will 
fairly  admit  of  any  other  construction.  While  it  is 
riot  disputed  that  the  several  acts  of  congress  might 
have  been  draughted  more  judiciously,  it  should  be  re- 
membered that  at  the  time  they  were  enacted  it  was 


624  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN   PACIFIC   SYSTEM. 

the  general  opinion,  not  only  of  congress,  but  of  the 
people  of  the  United  States,  that  a  transcontinental 
railroad  was  a  national  necessity,  and  that  unusual  in- 
ducements should  be  offered  to  insure  its  construction. 
In  conclusion,  let  us  hear  the  opinion  of  the  Pacific 
railway  commission,  appointed  in  April  1887,  to  in- 
quire into  the  affairs  of  the  Pacific  railroads,  and  to 
report  to  congress  a  plan  whereby  a  settlement  might 
be  made  between  the  companies  and  the  government. 
"By  the  act  of  1864,"  say  the  commissioners,  "all  of 
the  bond-aided  companies  were  required  to  apply  five 
per  cent  of  their  net  earnings  to  the  payment  of  the 
interest  accrued  on  their  debts  to  the  United  States. 
By  the  act  of  May  7,  1878,  the  requirement  was  in- 
creased as  to  the  Union  and  Central  Pacific  companies 
to  twenty-five  per  cent  of  the  net  earnings.  In  the 
opinion  of  the  commission,  these  requirements  have 
been  fully  satisfied."  And,  says  its  chief  accountant, 
after  a  careful  examination  of  the  Central's  books: 
"The  company  have  up  to  the  present  time  complied 
with  all  the  requirements  of  the  laws  prescribing  pay- 
ments to  the  United  States,  and  all  demands  of  the 
government  have  been  promptly  met."34 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  shortcomings  of  the 
railroad  associates,  now  that  the  dust  of  controversy 
is  clearing  away,  and  malice  and  prejudice  are  losing 
their  influence,  it  will  at  least  be  admitted  that  they 
have  been  men  of  remarkable  enterprise  and  adminis- 
trative talent.  In  the  eastern,  no  less  than  in  the 
southern  states,  the  Southern  Pacific  has  already 
secured  a  foothold,  appearing  even  in  Connecticut 

04  Id.,  p.  15.  The  labors  of  the  commission  extended  over  some  nineteen 
months,  their  report  being  transmitted  to  the  president  Dec.  1,  1888.  The 
examination  of  witnesses  and  documents  touching  the  Central  Pacific 
was  conducted  mainly  in  New  York  and  San  Francisco;  but  as  the  com- 
missioners state,  '  they  also  examined  witnesses  at  a  vast  number  of  local 
points,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  relations  existing  between  the  dif- 
ferent railroads  and  the  local  communities,  and  of  giving  full  and  abundant 
opportunity  to  all  persons  who  had  business  relations  with  these  roads  to 
state  their  views  and  make  known  their  complaints.' 


LEGISLATION.  625 

and  Kentucky  charters.  By  leasing  and  construct- 
ing railroads  it  controls  1,030  miles  between  Newport 
News  and  Memphis  Mr  Huntington  has  constructed 
a  bridge  over  the  Ohio  river  costing  $3,000,000,  and 
tunnel  ed  through  seven  miles  of  rock  on  this  line-a 
most  difficult  piece  of  engineering.  The  Occidental 
id  Oriental  Steamship  company  running  its  vessels 
..hina,  and  the  Colorado  Steam  Navigation  com- 
pany on  the  gulf  of  California  and  lower  Colorado 
river,  were  among  the  navigation  properties  controlled 
by  the  Central  and  Southern  Pacific.  There  is  now 
a  line  of  steamers  to  Liverpool  or  Queenstown  from 
ban  Francisco,  the  Huntington  line,  controlled  by  the 
same  companies,  and  a  line  of  steamers  to  Brazil  from 

Ch  PayS  a  haildsome 


in,  wiicn  pays  a  Handsome  dividend  on  the 

stock.0 

In  previous  chapters  allusion  has  been  made  to  the 
relations  between  the  railroad  and  the  state  lecrHa 
ture.     About  1866  the  public  prints  assailed  the"  pas- 
senger and  freight  tariffs  as  too  high,  ten-  cents  a 
>emg  charged  for  passage,  and    proportionally 
high  rates  for  freight.     The  legislature  was  besought 
to  interfere  and  to  regulate  these  charges.      In   1868 
1  was  introduced  m  the  state  senate  for  the  pur- 
pose of  establishing  certain  rates  by  law,  and  regu- 
lating other  matters.     The  railroad  company  argued- 
You  have  your  goods  and  yourselves  carried  at  all 
seasons   of    the   year  without    delay  in   one    fourth 
the  time  formerly  consumed,  and  at  about  one  fourth 
the  expense.     Your  property  is  greatly  enhanced 
value,    and   your   homes   brought    practically    to 

K  Huntington,  MS.,  46. 

*6  St.  Louis  Republican,  June  2,  1869.     8  F  Bulletii    Of    1    ISRO      r»n, 

!pHSSjSSr«Sii 

HIST.  CAU,  VOL.  VII.    40 


626  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

San  Francisco,  the  great  outlet  and  inlet  of  com- 
merce for  the  state.  Yet,  despite  these  advantages 
already  reaped,  and  which  are  but  a  foretaste  of  those 
greater  ones  to  be  enjoyed  on  the  completion  of  the 
transcontinental  road,  you  complain  loudly  of  charges 
only  reasonable,  when  the  cost  of  the  road  and  its 
equipments,  with  all  other  expenses,  are  taken  into 
account.  If  the  legislature  reduces  the  present  rates 
one  third,  as  it  is  asked  to  do,  the  company  must  cease 
to  build  eastward,  and  derive  no  profit  from  the  oper- 
ation of  the  road  already  completed." 

Others  asserted  that  the  legislature  had  no  right 
to  meddle  with  the  management  of  this  railroad,  be- 
cause it  was  a  national  work,  congress  being  the  body, 
if  any,  which  would  be  justified  in  restraining  or  con- 
trolling its  action;  and  the  question  was  raised  as  to 
how  California  was  to  legislate,  and  not  Nevada  or 
other  states ;  and  how  conflicting  legislation  by  differ- 
ent states  was  to  be  reconciled,  thus  raising  the  ques- 
tion which  many  years  afterward  was  settled  by  the 
interstate  commission  law  of  congress.  Gradually 
fares  and  freights  came  to  be  reduced  to  a  schedule 
more  near  that  which  the  public  demanded,  but  dis- 
crimination in  freights  was  complained  of  at  all  points 
intermediate  between  San  Francisco  and  Ogden,  and 
on  the  Southern  Pacific.  In  1876  the  legislature 
passed  an  act  providing  for  commissioners  of  trans- 
portation, to  be  appointed  by  the  governor,  to  hold 
office  for  two  years,  whose  duty  it  should  be  to 
•examine  roads  and  bridges  and  report  negligence  in 
repairs;  and  to  notify  the  company  to  attend  to  peti- 
tions for  the  establishment  of  new  side-tracks  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  people,  or  to  bring  an  action  in 
case  of  refusal.  By  this  law  corporations  were  re- 
quired to  file  statements  under  oath  of  their  tariffs 
-and  rates  of  freight,  passage  money,  and  all  manner 
of  charges,  with  copies  of  their  rules  and  regulations 
and  instructions  to  employes;  and  it  was  declared  un- 
lawful for  corporations  to  increase  any  rates  above 


FREIGHTS  AND  FARES.  627 

those  in  use  on  the  1st  of  January,  1876.  They  were 
required  to  furnish  information  of  the  condition  of 
their  roads  and  their  management,  with  copies  of 
leases,  contracts,  and  agreements  with  express  or 
other  transportion  companies,  all  of  which  were  to  be 
laid  before  the  legislature.  In  this  act  extortion  was 
defined  as  demanding  or  receiving  between  any  two 
stations  more  than  for  the  same  service  was  specified 
in  the  tariff  of  fares  and  freight  on  file  with  the  board 
of  transportion  commissioners;  and  unjust  discrim- 
ination as  demanding  or  receiving  less  than  the  tariff 
on  file  with  the  commissioners.37  It  was  also  made 
unlawful  for  railroad  companies  to  grant  free  passes 
over  their  roads  except  to  persons  in  their  employ, 
destitute  persons,  public  messengers,  troops,  and  other 
persons  entitled  under  the  existing  laws  to  be  trans- 
ported free  of  charge,  and  to  the  transportation  com- 
missioners. The  penalties  attached  to  violations  of 
the  law  were,  for  extortion,  three  times  the  amount 
of  the  damages  sustained,  with  the  costs  of  suit;  for 
discrimination,  to  pay  $1,000  for  each  offence;  for 
issuing  passes,  a  forfeit  of  $100  for  each  offence,  one 
half  to  go  go  the  state  treasury,  the  other  half  to  the 
informer;  and  it  was  the  duty  of  the  commissioners 
to  prosecute  these  suits.33  The  act  was  amended  in 
1877-8. 

The  chief  effect  of  the  several  statutes  was  to  bring 

57  Colton,  in  1877,  wrote  to  Huntington:  'I  do  not  know  what  the  coun- 
try is  coming  to.  Last  week  they  passed  a  bill  through  both  houses  of  the 
legislature — which  the  governor  will  sign — reducing  street  railroad  fares  to 
five  cents.'  But  he  added,  as  if  to  console  his  correspondent,  'I  do  not  think 
this  legislature  will  hurt  us  very  much,  for  we  looked  at  that  matter  in  ad- 
vance; but  if  we  had  not  looked  after  the  senate,  they  would  try  to  steal  all 
we  had  before  their  adjournment.'  Colton  cs  Stanford  et  al.,  7546. 

38  The  material  for  this  chapter  was  gathered  not  only  from  the  newspaper 
files  of  a  quarter  of  a  century,  innumerable  pamphlets,  the  government 
documents,  and  the  state  archives,  but  equally  from  the  testimony  of  per- 
sons employed  in  confidential  relations  by  the  company,  and  by  statements 
and  explanations  voluntarily  made  by  the  members  of  the  company.  I  have 
been  greatly  assisted  by  an  epitome  of  the  business  history  of  the  Southern 
Pacific  company  furnished  by  Mr  A.  N.  Towne,  general  manager  of  the 
Pacific  system,  and  by  notes  furnished  by  E.  H.  Miller,  secretary  of  the 
Southern  Pacific.  Ths  constant  difficulty  lias  been  an  excess  of  matter, 
rather  than  a  lack  of  material 


628  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

out  more  prominently  the  existence  of  alleged  abuses 
through  the  reports  of  the  commissioners. 

It  is  a  fact  in  California  commercial  history  that 
hardly  could  the  reader  of  a  city  daily,  or  a  country 
weekly,  open  his  newspaper,  without  finding  therein 
some  complaint  against  railroad  management,  espe- 
cially applying  to  freight  charges.  It  was  not  always 
that  this  tariff  was  too  high,  especially  to  the  owner 
of  through  freight,  but  it  was  the  system  that  was 
rebelled  against.  In  order  to  increase  its  business,  at 
was  alleged,  rates  were  lower  to  the  eastern  shipper, 
who  had  more  goods  to  be  carried,  than  to  the  Cali- 
fornia shipper,  who  had  less.  One  effect  of  this 
discrimination  was  to  strangle  at  its  birth  any  manu- 
facturing enterprise  which  aimed  at  business  outside 
of  the  state.  Again,  a  manufactured  article  might 
have  been  imported  at  a  certain  rate,  and  the  raw  ma- 
terial at  half  that  price;  and  when  some  enterprising 
man  thought  he  saw  an  opportunity  to  start  a  profit- 
able manufacture,  and  ordered  a  car-load  of  the  raw 
material,  he  found  himself  charged  as  much  freight  as 
he  had  formerly  paid  for  the  imported  manufactured 
article.  It  was  also  a  common  ground  of  complaint 
that  much  higher  rates  were  charged  for  short  than  for 
long  distances,  for  small  than  for  large  quantities,  and 
especially  that  discrimination  was  made  between  com- 
petitive and  non-competitive  points.  Not  that  the 
company  had  any  design  to  crush  out  enterprise,  for 
such  a  policy  would  have  been  suicidal ;  but  that, 
with  too  little  regard  for  the  merchant  or  producer, 
they  were  apt  to  fix  the  rates  on  a  given  article  at 
"all  it  would  bear." 

On  the  other  hand,39  the  directors  answered  that 
they  were  only  doing  what  for  years  the  merchants 

39  'We  are  informed,'  said  the  commissioners,  'that  the  minority  com- 
missioner has  reported,  as  proved,  an  interminable  succession  of  alleged 
discriminations,  preferences,  and  advantages,  granted  for  corrupt  or  im- 
proper purposes,  and  violations  of  duty  of  a  similar  character.  We  must 
respectfully  protest  against  such  conclusion,  because  it  is  based  on  no  evidence 
worthy  the  name.' 


LONG  AND  SHORT  DISTANCES.  629 

and  producers  themselves  had  done,  and  that  in 
their  dealings  with  the  public  they  were  guided  by 
the  same  motives  and  considerations  as  those  who 
denounced  them.  Just  as  the  merchant  sells  his 
goods  dearer  by  the  pound  than  by  the  ton;  asks 
more  when  the  market  is  barely  supplied  than  when 
it  is  glutted ;  asks  more  when  he  is  aware  that  his 
customer  must  buy  of  him;  so  the  railroad  charges 
higher  freights  on  small  than  on  large  shipments; 
charges  more  in  proportion  for  short  than  for  long 
distances,  and  where  goods  are  conveyed  between 
small,  isolated  stations,  demands  a  higher  rate  than 
between  terminal  points.  Here,  it  might  be  said,  are 
simple  business  propositions,  in  perfect  harmony  with 
business  laws  and  business  ethics ;  and  to  the  railroad 
man,  no  less  than  to  the  merchant,  the  producer,  or 
the  manufacturer,  should  be  conceded  the  right  to 
exercise  a  discriminative  judgment. 

Such  matters,  in  the  opinion  of  most  railroad  men, 
are  best  left  to  competition;  or  at  least  they  form 
no  proper  subject  for  legislation;  for  legislation  of 
this  character  is  apt  to  be  extremely  dangerous,  forc- 
ing corporations  in  self-protection  into  the  lobbies  of 
the  legislature  or  the  rooms  of  committees.  More- 
over, as  it  has  been  well  remarked,  the  adjustment  of 
legal  fares  or  freights  seldom  acts  as  a  remedy  for  the 
evils  against  which  such  measures  are  directed,  be- 
cause the  maximum  is  usually  fixed  so  high  that  it  is 
to  the  company's  interest  to  establish  lower  rates. 
Such  attempts,  however  excellent  in  theory,  are 
rarely  successful  in  practice,  since  few  can  foresee  the 
effect  of  competition,  of  increase  in  production,  of 
facilities  in  operating,  or  of  the  constant  changes  in 
commercial  conditions.  As  a  rule,  it  is  the  conviction 
of  those  who  have  most  carefully  studied  this  matter, 
that  the  expansion  and  requirements  of  trade  will 
always  nullify  the  provisions  of  special  enactments,  no 
matter  how  skilfully  prepared. 


630  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

He  who  would  endeavor  to  present  the  railroad 
question  impartially  cannot  ignore  the  benefits  which 
have  resulted  to  the  state  from  railroad  development. 
To  those  who  have  built  up  our  railroad  system  must 
be  ascribed  much  of  the  prosperity  which  is  now  en- 
joyed, since  by  making  a  public  use  of  a  portion  of 
their  gains  they  have  given  to  the  people  a  share  in 
the  proceeds  of  their  enterprises.  Not  to  admire  the 
result  would  be  churlish.  It  is  a  boon  to  the  state 
that,  even  in  self-preservation,  the  Southern  Pacific, 
after  choosing  a  route  through  the  richest  unsettled 
lands  in  the  southern  counties,  should  seek  to  promote 
immigration  to  those  sections,  and  should  construct 
tributary  roads  to  develop  their  resources  and  create 
business  for  itself. 

The  older  settlers  in  southern  California  remember 
the  time — not  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago 
—when  a  single  train  would  have  carried  every  hu- 
man being  that  lived  within  a  score  of  miles  of  the 
present  line  of  the  Southern  Pacific  between  Fort 
Yuma  and  San  Bernardino.  Several  trains  a  day  are 
now  required  to  accommodate  the  traffic  of  this  re- 
gion. Many  portions  of  the  San  Joaquin  valley  were 
then  considered  worthless,  while  anything  more  than 
a  dollar  an  acre  was  considered  an  extravagant  price, 
even  for  the  choicest  tracts.  Thousands  of  square 
miles,  before  occupied  as  sheep  and  cattle  ranges,  are 
now  valued  at  from  $20  to  $200  an  acre,  and  produc- 
ing goodly  crops  of  grain  and  fruit,  with  facilities  for 
cheap  and  rapid  transportation  to  market.  A  space 
of  ten  miles  on  either  side  of  the  line  would  contain 
about  3,000,000  acres,  and  since  the  opening  of  the 
railroad  its  value  has  been  enhanced  by  at  least 
$50,000,000.  Such  towns  as  Fresno  and  Visalia, 
which  formerly  existed  only  on  paper,  number  their 
thousands  of  inhabitants,  and  already  take  rank  as 
agricultural  and  commercial  centres. 

Said  General  Sherman,  in  his  report  to  the  secre- 


CHANGES  AND  BENEFITS.  631 

tary  of  war,  in  1883:  "No  person  who  has  not  been 
across  the  continent  by  the  several  routes  can  possibly 
comprehend  the  change  now  in  progress  there. 
Nearly  two  thirds  of  the  domain  of  the  United 
States  lies  west  of  the  Mississippi,  and  at  the  close 
of  the  civil  war  the  greater  part  of  it  was  occupied  by 
wild  beasts,  buffalo,  elk,  antelope,  and  deer,  and  by 
wilder  Indians.  Now,  by  the  indomitable  courage, 
industry,  and  thrift  of  our  people,  this  vast  region  has 
been  reduced  to  a  condition  of  comparative  civilization. 
Three  great  railroads  now  traverse  the  continent,  with 
branches  innumerable,  and  a  fourth  is  making  rapid 
progress.  States,  territories,  cities,  and  towns  have 
grown  up;  neat  cattle  have  already  displaced  the 
buffalo  ;  horses  and  sheep  have  displaced  the  elk,  deer, 
and  antelope;  and  crops  of  wheat,  rye,  barley,  and 
oats  are  now  grown  in  regions  believed  hitherto  to  be 
desert  or  inaccessible.  This  is  the  real  cause  of  the 
great  prosperity  which  now  blesses  our  country  and 
swells  the  coffers  of  our  national  treasury." 

Whatever  may  be  the  judgment  of  posterity  as  to 
the  character  and  policy  of  the  railroad  associates,  we 
who  are  living  to-day  cannot  deny  that  to  their  bold- 
ness of  enterprise  is  due,  in  no  small  measure,  the  great- 
ness and  prosperity  of  this  our  western  commonwealth. 
If  they  cannot  as  yet  afford  to  establish  such  rates  as 
obtain  in  the  more  densely  peopled  sections  of  the 
union,  the  tendency  of  these  rates  is  steadily  down- 
ward. 

The  time  has  gone  by  when  any  single  line  can 
entirely  crush  out  competition.  The  Southern  road 
is  already  forced  to  compete  for  transcontinental  travel 
and  transportation,  and  for  a  part  of  the  state  traffic, 
which  necessity  will  only  increase  its  efficiency.  As 
railroad  builders  no  company  has  ever  surpassed  the 
Central  Pacific  under  whatever  name  it  chooses  to  be 
known.  Their  works  are  monumental  as  well  as 


632  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN   PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

colossal,  the  peculiar  circumstances  attending  their 
beginning  giving  them  a  place  in  history  which  can- 
not be  ignored. 

Within  the  last  few  years,  and  more  in  1889  than 
in  any  other  year,  the  Southern  and  Central  lines 
have  felt  somewhat  severely  the  competition  of  the 
Canadian  Pacific.  Further  competition  is  also  in 
store  through  the  building  into  this  state  of  the 
Union  Pacific,40  which  has  consolidated  its  Utah  lines 
under  a  single  management,  has  secured  the  control 
of  what  was  formerly  known  as  the  Oregon  Railway 
and  Navigation,  or  as  more  commonly  termed,  the 
Oregon  short  line,  and  by  an  agreement  with  the 
Chicago  and  Northwestern,  secured  a  continuous  route 

O  " 

from  Portland  to  Chicago.  At  a  meeting  of  the 
transcontinental  association,  the  Southern  company 
succeeded  in  having  the  differentials  of  its  northern 
competitor  reduced;  but  in  the  Union  Pacific,  which 
was  expected  to  reach  San  Francisco  before  the  close 
of  1890,  it  will  have  a  competing  line,  asking  no  differ- 
entials, but  simply  demanding  to  share  in  the  traffic 
of  the  coast.  With  its  vast  resources  and  its  enter- 
prising management,  the  Southern  Pacific  has  thus 
far  held  the  field  against  all  rivals,  except  for  the 
dominion  line;  but  this,  of  course,  it  could  not  hope 
to  retain  indefinitely. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Southern  Pacific 
company,  on  the  9th  of  April,  1890,  Senator  Leland 
Stanford  resigned  the  presidency,  and  was  elected 
chairman  of  the  newly  organized  executive  committee, 
thus  being  relieved  of  much  detail  work,  while  retain- 
ing a  general  supervision  of  the  affairs  of  the  road. 
His  successor  was  C.  P.  Huntington,  with  Charles  F. 
Crocker,  A.  N.  Towne,  and  J.  C.  Stubbs,  respectively 
first,  second,  and  third  vice-presidents,  C.  N.  Lansing 
secretary  and  controller,  T.  Hopkins  treasurer,  N.  T. 

40  The  contract  for  building  the  first  section  was  let  in  November  1889. 
£  F.  Chrotiicle,  Dec.  29,  1889. 


MORE  ROADS.  633 

Smith  assistant  treasurer,  and  C.  T.  Krebs  assistant 
secretary.*1 

At  Los  Angeles  four  and  in  San  Diego  three  dif- 
ferent companies  were  formed  in  1889  for  railroad 
building  to  various  points.  And  yet  two  of  the  roads 
already  in  operation,  the  Southern  California — a  con- 
solidation of  the  California  Central,  California  South- 
ern, and  Redondo  Beach  roads — and  the  Los  Angeles 
and  Pacific  were  losing  money,  the  latter  passing  into 
the  hands  of  a  receiver. 

Of  the  San  Diego,  Cuyamaca,  &  Eastern  railroad, 
intended  to  intercept  the  Sunset  line  at  Los  Palmos, 
and  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  at  the  Needles,  thirty 
miles  had  been  completed  in  March  1889,  and  a  loan 
of  over  $6,000,000  obtained  to  proceed  with  the  work. 
During  the  same  year  the  Los  Angeles,  San  Diego, 
&  Yuma  Railway  company  was  organized,  and  work 
begun  at  San  Diego  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Yuma,  a 
second  line  being  built  to  Escondido,  and  a  third  to 
Del  Mar.  From  Los  Angeles  a  road  was  bein^  built 

» 

to  Port  Hueneme,  and  a  second  to  San  Bernardino. 
But  the  event  of  the  year  was  the  entrance  of  the 
Union  Pacific  into  California.  What  will  be  the  effect 
of  another  overland  line  it  is  as  yet  impossible  to  fore- 
see; but  if  it  should  reduce  the  rates  of  fare  and  freight, 

41  Stanford  still  remained  president  of  the  Central  Pacific,  with  C.  P. 
Hnntingtou,  C.  F.  Crocker,  and  A.  N.  Towne,  first,  second,  and  third  vice- 
presidents,  T.  Hopkins  treasurer,  and  E.  H.  Miller,  Jr,  secretary  and  con- 
troller. The  following  were  the  officials  elected  for  the  various  branches  of 
the  Southern  Pacific:  Southern  Pacific  R.  R.  co.  (as  distinct  from  the  South- 
ern Pacific  co.),  C.  F.  Crocker  prest,  T.  Hopkins  v.ce-prest,  N.  T.  Smith 
treas.,  and  J.  L.  Willcutt  sec.;  Geary  st.,  Park,  &.  Ocean  R.  R.  co.,  C.  F. 
Crocker  prest,  Adam  Grant  vice-prest,  N.  T.  Smith  treas.,  J.  L.  \Villcutt 
sec.;  Central  R.  R.  co.,  C.  F.  Crocker  prest,  T.  Hopkins  vice-prest,  N.  T. 
Smith  treas.,  J.  L.  Willcutt  sec.;  Market  st.  R.  R.  co.,  L.  Stanford  prest, 
C.  F.  Crocker  vice-prest,  N.  T.  Smith  treae.,  and  J.  L.  Willcutt  sec.;  City 
R.  R.  co.,  C.  F.  Crocker  prest,  T.  Hopkins  vice-prest,  N.  T.  Smith  treas., 
J.  L.  Willcutt  sec.;  Cal.  Pac.  R.  R.  co.,  R.  P.  Hammond  prest,  N.  T.  Smith 
vice-prest,  T.  Hopkins  treas.,  W.  V.  Huntington  sec.;  Northern  Railway  co., 
C.  F.  Crocker  prest.,  T.  Hopkins  vice-prest,  N.  T.  Smith  treas.,  W.  V.  Hunt- 
ington sec.;  Terminal  Railway  co.,  L.  Stanford  prest,  C.  F.  Crocker,  vice- 
prest,  T.  Hopkins  treas.,  W.  V.  Huntiugton  sec.  S.  F.  AUa,  April  10,  189ft 


634  RAILROADS— SOUTHERN  PACIFIC  SYSTEM. 

especially  for  the  carriage  of  fruit,  it  will,  indeed,  be 
a  consummation  most  devoutly  to  be  wished  for.42 

*2  The  material  for  this  chapter  was  gathered  not  only  from  the  newspaper 
files  of  a  quarter  of  a  ceiitury,  innumerable  pamphlets,  the  government  docu- 
ments, and  the  state  archives,  but  equally  from  the  testimony  of  persons 
employed  in  confidential  relations  by  the  company,  and  by  statements 
aiicl  explanations  voluntarily  made  by  two  members  at  least  of  the  company 
itself.  I  have  been  greatly  assisted  by  an  epitome  of  the  business  history  of 
the  Southern  Pacific  company  furnished  by  Mr  A.  N.  Towne,  general  mana- 
ger of  the  Pacific  s>ystem,  and  by  notes  furnished  by  E.  H.  Miller,  secretary 
of  the  Southern  Pacific.  The  constant  difficulty  has  been  an  excess  of 
matter  rather  than  a  lack  of  material.  I  have  purposely  avoided  the  discus- 
sion of  the  government  claims,  first,  because  it  would  require  an  amount  of 
space  which  cannot  be  afforded;  and  again,  because  it  is  a  national  rather 
than  a  California  question.  At  present  the  country  is  flooded  with  argu- 
ments on  the  side  of  the  company  prepared  by  Huntington  and  his  able 
counsellor,  Creed  Raymond.  I  am  prepared  to  admit  that  there  are  some 
'equities'  on  the  side  of  the  railroad;  but  also  to  deny  that  if  the  company 
had  kept  to  its  agreement  from  the  first,  and  not  expended  money  and  talent 
to  prevent  the  payment  of  its  debt,  its  case  would  have  required  the  consid- 
eration of  these  equities.  The  neglect  to  provide  for  refunding  the  U.  S. 
railroad  bonds  at  a  lower  than  six  per  cent  has  worked  a  loss  to  the  company 
of  a  large  amount;  and  it  must  also  be  evident  that  the  sinking  fund  estab- 
lished by  congress  in  1878  has  not  been  so  invested  by  the  secretary  of  the 
treasury  as  to  help  reduce  the  indebtedness  of  the  railroad  company. 

Among  others  connected  with  railroad,  cable-road,  and  telegraph  lines  in 
Cal.,  the  following  are  worthy  of  mention: 

T.  L.  Nesmith,  formerly  a  director  in  the  Texas  Pacific,  is  a  native  of 
Derry,  N.  H.,  and  came  to  San  Diego  in  1870,  being  soon  afterward  appointed 
president  of  the  bank  of  S.  D.  and  acting  in  many  public  capacities.  His 
eon-in-law  is  known  to  fame  as  Lt  Greeley,  the  explorer. 

The  railway  question  has  been  a  vital  one  to  San  Diego,  and  Chas  S. 
Hamilton  stands  prominently  connected  with  it  as  the  agent  through  whom 
the  city  reclaimed  its  lapsed  grant  to  the  Texas  R.  R.  He  was  born  at 
Milan,  Ohio,  Dec.  12,  1847,  and  came  to  new  S.  Diego  in  1869,  to  be  con- 
nected with  its  first  general  store,  of  which  he  soon  afterward  became  the 
owner,  latterly  in  partnership  with  his  brothers. 

By  the  Towle  brothers  was  constructed  a  road  20  miles  long  from  the 
town  of  Towles,  founded  by  them  in  1862,  to  connect  with  the  C.  P.  system, 
for  which  they  furnished  the  lumber  for  a  portion  of  the  road-bed.  Allan 
Towle  was  born  at  Corinth,  Vt,  July  26,  1833,  and  coming  to  Cal.  in  1856, 
after  three  years  of  mining,  engaged  in  the  lumber  business,  the  output  of 
the  mills  owned  by  his  firm  being  from  10,000,000  to  25,000,000  ft  of  lumber 
a  year. 

One  of  the  leading  spirits  in  the  efforts  of  Los  Angeles  for  railroad  com- 
munication was  Thomas  D.  Mott,  a  native  of  Saratoga  co.,  N.  Y.,  who  came 
to  Cal.  in  1849,  and  in  1852  to  Los  Angeles,  where,  identifying  himself  with 
the  democratic  party,  he  became  one  of  the  party  leaders  in  southern  Cal. 
In  1871  he  was  elected  to  the  state  assembly,  and  in  1876  was  a  delegate  to 
the  national  convention  which  nominated  Tilden  for  president. 

Among  those  who  assisted  to  build  the  Market  st  railway,  the  first  one  in 
S.  F.,  is  John  Hayes,  who  was  born  in  Ireland  in  1824,  was  educated  in  New 
York,  and  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  soon  afterward  beginning  a  prosperous  busi- 
ness career  at  Sacramento. 

In  1S88-9  an  excellent  cable-rond  system,  21  miles  in  length,  was  built  up 
by  the  Los  Angeles  Cable  Railway  company,  under  the  management  of  James 


BUILDERS  AND  MANAGERS.  635 

C.  Robinson,  its  vice-president.  Mr  Robinson  is  a  native  of  Birkenhead, 
England,  in  which  country,  and  in  Ireland  and  the  United  States,  he  has 
built  a  large  number  of  street  railways.  During  the  disastrous  floods  of  1889 
-90,  he  succeeded  in  keeping  his  roads  in  Los  Angeles  n  running  order  with 
but  slight  interruption. 

The  Second  st  cable-road  at  Los  Angeles  was  built  by  E.  C.  Burlingame, 
a  native  of  Minneapolis,  who  came  with  his  parents  to  Cal.  when  10  years  of 
age,  soon  afterward  working  on  a  farm  near  Compton,  in  Los  Angeles  co  , 
and  attending  school  as  opportunity  permitted.  At  19,  he  began  farming  on 
his  own  account,  but  a  few  years  later  removed  to  the  southern  metropolis, 
where  he  is  highly  appreciated  for  his  sterling  business  qualities. 

One  of  the  organizers  of  the  Alta  Cal.  Tel.  co.  and  other  lines  was  Henry 
T.  Holmes,  a  native  of  Lansingburg,  N.  Y.,  and  among  our  Cal.  pioneers. 
After  a  successful  business  career  at  Auburn  and  Sacramento,  he  established 
in  San  Francisco  the  H.  T.  Holmes  Lime  co.,  with  works  in  Santa  Cruz  and 
El  Dorado  counties. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

MINING  AND   MINING  STOCKS. 
1851-1889. 

ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT  OF  QUARTZ  MINING  —  HYDRAULIC  MINING  —  EF- 
FECTS ARISING  FROM  HYDRAULIC  DEBRIS  —  RIVER-BED  MINING  —  SILVER 
MINING  —  YIELD  OF  GOLD  AND  SILVER  —  COST  AND  RETURNS  —  OTHER 
METALS  AND  MINERALS  —  MINERAL  SPRINGS  —  STOCK  BOARDS  AND  STOCK 
GAMBLING. 

IN  the  preceding  volume  I  have  given  a  general 
view  of  gold  mining  down  to  1856.  The  eight  years 
previously  covered  include  the  period  of  greatest 
productiveness  in  the  royal  metal,  after  which  mining 
became  a  more  settled  occupation,  with  the  slower  re- 
turns of  ordinary  industries.  Believing  that  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  geology  of  the  country  was  essential  to 
promote  mining,  in  the  base  metals  as  well  as  in  gold, 
the  legislature  of  the  state  early  made  appropriations 
for  this  object  j1  but  it  was  ultimately  learned  that 


!The  legislature  of  1853  appropriated  $2,030  to  pay  Dr  John  B.  Trask  for 
a  geologicil  report  furnishel  by  him,  and  to  enable  him  to  prosecute  further 
investigitioai  ou  this  subject.  Col.  Stit.  1853,  p.  144.  Ihe  succeeding  leg- 

to 

and 

,   ,  [appropriation 

expanse  *  of  the  survey.  Whitney's  reports  were  printed 
m  1862  at  a  cost  of  $3,033.  In  1863  another  $20,000  was'  appropriated  for 
£?  $S?  f°g  SUrVCy  °f  the  state-  The  legislature  of  1864  appropriated 
»l,«Wfor  survey  anl  printing.  Whitney  was  reappointed  by  the  legisla- 


$30,003  was  again  appropriated  in  1866  for  expenses  of 
>-J,OUJ  m  1870.   with  $02.000  per  month  to  continue  it  to  completion; 
POD      t  d  «-a"  °f  1872-3-  $2'°.00  per  month.     The  legislature  of  1874  ap- 
5™*  W0  f°r  preservation  of  the  material   collected.     The  cost  to 

e    of  the   survey  and  salaries  of  geologists  from  1853  to  1874  was 
w».     The  first  volume  of    Whitney1*  Geohcjical  Survey  of  California  was 
id  m  1865.      It  is  a  quarto  vol.  of  498  pp.,   illustrated.     Whitney  is 
™e  author  of  several  publications  on  Cal.:  A  Lecture  nn  Genhrjy.  1862,  27pp.; 
Yopmto!  Soot,  published  by  authority  of  the  legislature,' 116  pp..  N.  Y., 
Yosemite  Guide  Boole,  155  pp.,  1870;  and  Auriferous  Gravels  of  the  Sierra 
A/evaaa, 

(636) 


ORIGINAL  METHODS.  637 

the  exceptions  to  the  rule  were  the  rule  itself  in  this 
science,1  and  that  there  was  no  infallible  key  to  the 
language  of  the  rocks,  nor  any  true  record  of  their 
origin  and  history.3 

Following  the  general  order  of  things,  quartz-crush- 
ing followed  placer-digging  in  California.  The  first 
method  of  extracting  gold  from  quartz  in  California 
was  the  simple  one  of  pounding  it  into  fragments  and 
pulverizing  it  in  large  iron  mortars  with  heavy  pestles 
fastened  by  a  pole  to  branches  of  trees,  the  spring  of 
which  assisted  in  raising  them.  The  pulverized  quartz 
was  then  treated  with  quicksilver ;  and  by  this  imper- 
fect means — invented  by  one  Ferguson  of  Brown 

*  Take  for  instance  the  finding  of  gold  in  sandstone,  in  clay,  and  in  or 
under  basaltic  rocks,  as  in  different  localities  of  the  Pacific  coast.  Or,  as 
has  been  contended,  if  not  demonstrated,  in  a  state  of  solution  in  water 
charged  with  alkalies.  See  Baldis  Mines  and  Mining,  223-7.  The  famous 
blue  lead  was  a  discovery  in  geology  of  wonderful  interest,  as  it  was  of  won- 
derful wealth,  a  revelation  of  the  world  as  it  was  millions  of  years  ago.  The 
ungathered  riches  of  a  mighty  river  bearing  the  golden  wash  of  the  moun- 
tains downward  to  the  sea  were  suddenly  fixed  in  their  place  by  an  immen^>e 
outpour  of  lava  which  filled  up  the  river  channel,  whose  waters  disappeared 
or  were  diverted  to  other  courses.  Ages  upon  ages  were  required  for  thetao- 
tion  of  the  elements  to  wear  away  the  superincumbent  mass  and  reveal  the 
former  channel  of  a  dead  river,  with  its  long  concealed  treasure.  Its  cource 
has  been  traced  by  miners  for  a  long  distance  by  signs  which  they  have 
learned  to  understand  even  upon  the  surface. 

3  There  have  been  rumors  of  gold  mines  worked  by  the  padres  of  the 
early  missions,  but  proofs  of  such  mining  are  not  now  apparent,  although 
they  are  confirmed  by  credible  authority.  A  work  published  in  London  in 
1818  by  Mr  Phillips,  entitled  Lectures  on  Mineralogy,  mentioned  the  existence 
of  gold  'a  few  inches  from  the  surface'  in  California.  In  1822  Mr  Ellis  of 
Boston  obtained  from  here  '  a  mass  of  gold  and  quartz '  of  considerable 
amount.  Alfred  Robinson  of  Boston  in  1830  received  $10,000  worth  of  gold 
in  lumps.  In  1832  Capt.  John  Bradshaw  took  home  to  Boston  for  his  em- 
ployer, Joseph  Peabody  of  Salem,  Mass,  $18,000  in  native  gold  from  the 
Pacific  coast.  This  gold  was  taken  from  the  coast  counties  south  of  Santa 
Cruz.  San  Lvis  QUupy  Co.  Hist.,  246-7.  It  is  said,  also,  that  in  1S47  gold 
was  taken  from  rock  near  San  Diego.  It  is  unfortunate  that  these  tales  are 
not  verified  by  competent  proofs.  A  quartz  ledge  was  discovered  at  Brown 
valley  in  1850,  which  was  located  by  one  Johnston  of  Long  bar,  who  gave  it 
no  further  attention.  In  the  spring  of  1851  a  quartz  excitement  prevailed, 
and  Brown  valley  furnished  claims  to  many  locators,  60  feet  being  allowed 
to  each  member  of  a  company.  JtfarysviHe  Appeal,  May  12,  1864.  Quartz 
mines  were  worked  in  Siskiyon  co.  in  1851.  Sistryou  C^.  Affairs,  MS.,  22; 
Hayes'  Scrap*  Mininrj,  iv.,  120-43.  The  Eureka  mine  in  Sierra  co.  was  dis- 
covered in  1851,  and  worked  in  a  feeble  manner  with  an  arastra.  The  orig- 
inal owners  sold  it  in  1858  to  a  capitalist,  who  erected  2  mills,  one  operated 
by  steam,  the  other  by  water-power,  together  running  24  stamps.  He  sunk 
a  shaft  600  feet,  taking  out  up  to  June  1866  ?1 .400,000.  One  run  of  60  days 
yielded  $56,000,  and  another  of  40  days  $29,000.  The  annual  expense  was 
175,000. 


638  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

valley,  Yuba  county, — the  miner  made  the  not  incon- 
siderable wages  of  ten  dollars  a  day.  Webb  &  Com- 
pany, who  owned  a  claim  in  this  valley,  erected  the 
first  mill  for  crushing  quartz  in  1851.  It  was  run  by 
a  small  engine,  working  a  single  stamp  each  in  several 
large  mortars.  During  the  following  year  Reed  and 
others  erected  a  water-power  mill,  which  was  carried 
away  in  the  flood  of  the  next  winter.  Quimby  & 
Company  in  1853  erected  a  water-power  mill  in  the 
valley,  which  never  accomplished  much  for  its  owners, 
although  it  changed  hands  several  times.  By  these 
efforts  and  failures  several  persons  were  stripped  of 
their  earthly  possessions. 

During  the  latter  year  the  Anglo-Saxon  Mining 
company,  Sir  Henry  Hartley  general  manager,  com- 
menced the  erection  of  a  quartz  mill  in  Brown  valley, 
importing  the  machinery  from  England.  The  ore  was 
amalgamated  at  this  mill  by  large  iron  balls  revolving 
in  a  set  of  pans.  The  works  were  not  satisfactory, 
and  for  one  cause  and  another  the  owners  fell  into 
debt,  their  mill  being  sold  by  the  sheriff,  and  the  ma- 
chinery carried  to  San  Francisco  to  be  used  in  a  flour- 
mill.  The  failure  of  the  English  company  discour- 
aged quartz  mining  for  the  time,  although  it  was  re- 
sumed in  1855  by  hopeful  experimenters,4  who,  year 
by  year,  learned  how  the  precious  metals  could  be  ex- 
tracted from  their  native  gangue.8 

*  John  Rule  in  1855  built  a  6-stamp  steam  quartz  mill  on  Little  Dry  gulch 
in  Yuba  co. ,  which  was  enlarged  to  9  stamps,  and  made  a  fair  profit  for  its 
owner  until  it  was  destroyed  by  fire  after  several  years'  work. 

6  In  1855  there  was  a  revival  of  interest  in  gold  quartz  mining.  The 
Kate  Hayes  mine,  half  a  mile  from  Grass  Valley,  was  famed  for  its  richness, 
some  of  the  rock  paying  $1,800  to  the  ton.  The  owner  was  unable  to  erect 
machinery  on  it,  and  it  was  sold  for  debt.  The  new  owners  had  their  mill 
destroyed  by  fire.  It  subsequently  proved  very  rich.  '  Lumps  of  pure  gold  hung 
in  clusters  all  over  various  parts  of  the  rock.'  Grass  Valley  Union,  June 
28,  1865.  Another  well  known  mine  of  Grass  Valley  in  1857  was  the  Alli- 
son ranch  lead  owned  by  Michael  Colbert,  James  Stanton,  John  Fay,  John 
Daniels,  James  Donahue,  and  Timothy  Fields.  The  mill  was  started  up  in 
July  1856.  Its  weekly  yield  was  $40,000,  to  be  divided  among  5  owners. 
The  average  yield  was  about  &200  per  ton. 

Sierra  co.  became  famous  for  the  number  of  its  gold  mines  in  1857,  and 
mining  was  carried  on  at  Chip's  Flat,  a  small  town  on  a  bench  of  the  moun- 
tain overhanging  Kanaka  creek,  by  tunnels,  nine  of  which  were  in  from 


AVERAGE  YIELDS.  639 

When  Horace  Greeley,  the  man  of  intuitions,  paid 
a  flying  visit  to  the  Pacific  coast  in  1859,  he  remarked 
that  the  time  had  not  yet  arrived  for  profitable  mining 
in  quartz,  and  that  three  out  of  four  mines  were  fail- 
ures. He  placed  the  average  yield  of  quartz  at 
twenty  dollars  per  ton,  or  one  cent  per  pound,  which 

1,500  to  2,303  feet,  and  paid  well.  The  Independence,  Whiskey,  Downieville, 
Louisiana,  Iowa,  Union,  Hazel  Green,  and  Gas  co.  were  paying  mines  in 
1857,  some  of  which  divided  as  much  as  $150  per  week  per  share.  From  re- 
port it  would  appear  that  the  tunnels  were  excavated  in  rotten  quartz  and 
graveL  '  In  the  American  tunnel  the  pay  dirt  varies  from  18  to  3  feet  in 
thickness.'  In  this  mine  there  were  17  shares  worth  §4, 000  each;  the  weekly 
dividends  being  from  .$115  to  $129  per  share.  A  rich  lead  of  solid  quartz  was 
discoverel  iu  tunnelling.  In  the  Union  mine  a  vein  of  quartz  was  fonnd 
containing  gal J,  silver,  and  copper.  Nothing  was  attempted  at  that  period 
by  way  of  reducing  the  quartz  of  any  of  these  discoveries.  At  Coulterville 
in  Maripovi  co.  there  was  a  quartz  fever  about  this  period.  The  deepest 
mining  shift  in  Cal.  was  oa  the  Hayward  and  Robinson  mine  at  Sutter  creek, 
MaripD^a  co. — 315  feat,  with  the  quality  of  the  rock  improving.  Nevada 
Jottrnil,  April  21,  1853.  El  Dorado  co.  had  a  number  of  quartz  mines  in 
1857.  Tuolumne  co.,  Marin  co.,  Amador  co.,  Butte  co.,  all  had  their  quartz 
exeits-neats.  CaJavsris  Chronklt,  May  31,  1873. 

La  1S53  improvements  had  been  made  to  reduce  the  expense  of  quartz 
mining  and  increase  the  returns.  Wages  were  also  lowered.  In  1852  drift- 
ers were  paid  $3  a  day;  in  1857  $3.50  a  day;  in  1858  $3.  In  1S52  engineers 
receive.!  .$183  a  month;  in  1857  $103.  In  1852  castings  laid  down  in  Grass 
Valley  cost  lOc  per  pound;  in  1858  8c.  The  consumption  of  castings  aver- 
age I  8  tons  a  yoar,  the  reduction  of  2c  par  pound  aggregated  §5,280  an- 
nually. A  mine  employing  49  men  would  now  save  in  labor  and  castings 
$153,039  a  year.  All  the  ore  raised  during  the  first  5.\  years  in  Grass  Valley 
was  haulel  2^  miles  at  an  expense  of  §2  p2r  ton,  which  \vas  saved  in  1858  by 
the  erection  of  a  battery  at  the  mine.  There  were  in  1858  six  quartz  mills, 
one  with  16  stamps  in  Yuba  co.  The  continued  improvement  in  quartz 
mining  may  be  inferred  from  the  frequent  mention  in  the  newspapers  of  suc- 
cessful undartakings.  A  letter  in  the  Tu-)lumn"  Courier,  May  1858,  describ- 
ing the  mines  at  Cherokee,  a  mountain  town  of  Tuolumne  co.,  mentions  the 
Turnback  and  Solsbury  quartz  mills.  The  latter  mine  was  owned  by  8  men, 
6  of  whom  were  of  one  family — the  SoLsburys — and  each  interest  was  valued 
at  $30,009.  Another  mine  in  this  vicinity  only  being  prospected  was  thought 
to  be  equal  to  the  Solsbury  in  richness,  and  was  a  much  larger  vein.  '  The 
quartz  has  a  bluish  color,  is  porous,  full  of  cavities,  in  each  of  which  is 
crowded  fine  flour  gold. '  In  the  solid  quartz  gold  was  found  in  sulphurets. 
A  large  number  of  claims  were  worked  in  this  district.  The  average  yield 
of  a  6-stamp  mill  — Street  and  Soulby's — was  $100  an  hour.  On  the  1st  of 
May,  1858,  they  retorted  the  crushing  of  5  days,  obtaining  41  pounds  of  gold. 
The  previous  week  52  pounds  was  obtained.  The  geology  of  this  region  was 
igneous.  At  Sbnora  the  formation  was  mctamorphic,  the  stratified  slate  su- 
perimposing to  a  great  depth  the  plutonic  formation.  Sbnora  Democrat  in  S. 
F.  Alto,  Jan.  9,  1869.  The  Monte  Sona  quartz  district  in  Nevada  co.,  dis- 
covered in  1857,  had  a  high  reputation.  The  Oriental  mine  and  mill,  under 
management  of  Almarin  B.  Paul,  was  the  leading  property  in  1SC9.  Yuba 
co.  quartz  mining  revived  about  this  time,  and  mills  costing  -$15,003  and 
§20,033  were  erected  on  the  Donebroge  ledge.  It  was  not  until  1SG3,  however, 
that  the  mines  began  paying  largely.  Marysvi'Je  Appeal,  May  17,  1SG1.  The 
first  mill  erected  in  Kern  co.  was  in  1859  at  Keysville.  BaiersvUle  Syuihtrn 
CaL,  June  8,  1878;  U.  S.  IL  EJC.  DJC.,  2G7,  471-730,  x.  41  ccng.,  2  sess. 


640  MIXING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

return  would  not  pay  the  expense  of  mining.  To  this 
the  indignant  Calitbrnians  retorted  :  "  In  what  country 
on  earth,  save  California,  do  mining  adventurers  ex- 
pect to  reap  any  returns  under  from  two  to  live  years? 
In  Europe  people  venture  in  mines  for  the  benefit  of 
their  children,  not  so  much  for  themselves.  In  Cali- 
fornia, no  sooner  are  works  started  than  they  must 
pay."  That  there  was  much  justice  in  this  reply  is 
evident.  Two,  three,  or  five  years  were  a  short  time 
in  which  to  overcome  the  difficulties  arising  from  new 
conditions,  an  unknown  geology,  immense  cost  of 
transportation,  the  absence  of  practical  miners,  and 
the  high  price  of  labor.  It  was  a  current  saying  in 
those  days  that  it  took  the  production  of  one  mine  to 
work  another.  The  wonderful  pluck  of  the  California 
pioneers  was  nowhere  better  exhibited  than  in  their 
early  quartz-mining  ventures,  although  the  richness 
of  the  rock  in  most  cases  justified  the  testing  of  it.6 

6  The  Woodside  mine  at  Georgetown,  discovered  in  1860,  was  the  richest 
in  Cal.  down  to  1866.     Over  §50,000  was  taken  out  in  two  days.     So  nearly 

Sire  gold  was  the  ore  that  it  was  chiselled  out  in  a  solid  mass  3  feet  in  length, 
ne  piece  weighed  over  100  pounds.  The  discoverers  were  poor  men,  and 
the  claim  was  not  thoroughly  worked.  It  was  down  120  feet  when  this  rich 
ore  was  found,  which  'set  the  country  wild.'  Grass  Valley  Union,  Nov.  17 
and  20,  18(56.  The  Hamp  Williams,  discovered  in  1861  in  Kern  co.  by  a 
prospecting  party  consisting  of  H.  Williams,  Robert  Palmer,  Blackburn  Wy- 
att.and  Ticknor  Bromwell,  6  miles  west  of  the  south  fork  of  Kern  river,  yielded 
$200  per  ton  by  arastras,  but  was  badly  managed.  It  was  sold  in  1865  to  a 
Rhode  Island  company,  which  spent  $40,000  in  experimenting  with  a  'four- 
ball  quartz  crusher,'  and  finally  abandoned.  Over  100  locations  were  made 
in  a  month  after  the  discovery  of  this  mine.  From  this  '  mining  rush  '  came 
the  town  of  Havilah.  Havilah  Conner,  Sept.  26,  1866;  Havilah  Miner,  Aug. 
17,  1872.  San  Bernardino  co.  had  some  good  mines  in  operation  in  1864- 
1872.  Hydraulic  mining  was  first  successfully  carried  out  at  Lytle  creek,  9 
miles  from  the  town  of  San  Bernardino,  water  being  introduced  in  dit  ^hes 
in  1867  by  Captain  Winder  of  San  Diego,  agent  for  Harpending  of  New 
York.  Ihe  ditches  were  5  miles  in  length,  which  being  damaged  by  heavy 
rains,  the  claims  were  sold  to  Cleveland  with  the  improvements,  who  sold 
them  to  a  French  company  which  made  them  return  $2,000  per  week.  In 
Holcom  valley,  40  miles  from  San  Bernardino,  there  was  a  quartz  mill  in 
1872.  The  rock  in  that  district  averaged  $15  to  the  ton.  Hydraulic  mining 
was  also  followed  here.  Other  quartz  mines  were  situated  33  miles  from 
San  Bernardino,  belonging  to  George  E.  Moore;  which  averaged  $40  per  ton 
in  arastras.  Los  Amjdes  Express,  June  17,  1872.  In  1865  Nevada  co.  had  a 
quartz  mania  arising  from  the  discovery  of  immensely  rich  mines  near  the 
town  of  Yuba  Dam.  The  ledges  were  composed  of  black  rock,  giving  evi- 
donceT  of  the  action  of  fire,  and  so  filled  with  gold  as  to  appear  as  if  bronzed. 
Grass  Valley  Union,  June  27,  1865;  Ntvmla  Gazette.  Jan.  24,  186").  Placer 
co.  also  enjoyed  an  excitement  ia  1867  from  the  yield  of  a  mine  belonging  to 


PROFITABLE  MIXES.  641 

A  little  experience  showed  that  a  mine  of  extraor- 
dinary apparent  richness,  that  is,  where  the  action  of 
the  elements  had  already  disintegrated  the  rock,  leav- 
ing the  gold  free,  was  seldom  more  than  the  blossom 

Peter  TValdenar,  3  miles  from  Auburn.  He  had  owned  the  mine  for  several 
years,  during  which  it  had  made  irregular  showings  of  great  richness.  Cn 
the  4th  of  July  of  this  year  it  exhibited  a  streak  of  almost  pure  gold,  $18,- 
000  being  taken  out  in  3  days.  Marygmlle  Appeal,  July  20,  1867.  The  Con- 
fidence mine  in  Tnolnmne  co.  produced  in  9  months  of  1869-70,  with  30- 
stamp  mill,  $175,000.  The  vein  was  in  granite,  and  the  average  yield  was  $25 
per  ton.  But  by  good  management  and  plenty  of  stamps  for  crushing  the 
rock,  it  was  made  to  pay  handsomely.  The  Eclipse  mine  on  the  north  fork 
of  the  Merced  prospected  over  $100  to  the  ton.  Mariposa  Gazette,  Sept.  23, 
1870.  The  Pine  Tree  mine,  Mariposa,  was  at  this  period  the  most  important 
in  the  state.  It  had  a  tunnel  driven  into  mount  Bullion  1,450  feet,  and  be- 
low the  tunnel  3  working  levels  at  intervals  of  80  feet,  carrying  the  workings 
down  240  feet.  The  rock  exhibited  free  gold  all  through  it.  San  Diego 
co.  furnished  the  great  quartz  excitement  of  1870.  About  the  22d  of  Feb. 
I.  T.  Gower  and  others  discovered,  50  miles  from  San  Diego,  a  lead  of  reddish 
gray  quartz  filled  with  specks  of  gold  throughout,  which  was  estimated  to 
contain  from  §3,000  to  $7,000  per  ton.  The  lode  took  the  name  of  the  Julian 
Discovery.  About  10  miles  from  the  Julian  the  Stonewall  was  discovered 
soon  afte'r,  which  proved  one  of  the  richest  of  modern  tinges,  paying  for  its 
development  without  a  dollar  of  outside  money,  and  making  hand^cme  re- 
turns. Three  quartz  mills  were  created  in  this  district,  and  with  the  money 
produced  in  the  mines  the  town  of  Julian  was  built,  ffayei  Jtligf.,  98,  139, 
141.  About  three  miles  from  the  center  of  the  Julian  district  was  the  Ban- 
ner deposit  of  San  Felipo  creek,  discovered  by  Louis  Redman  in  1870.  It 
was  worked  first  in  the  most  primitive  manner  by  mortar  and  pestle,  then 
by  an  arastra.  It  was  sold  to  capitalists,  and  a  fine  mill  erected  upon  it. 
The  Golden  Chariot  mine,  discovered  in  1871  by  King,  Coyne,  Connors,  Long, 
and  McLellan,  was  in  1872  the  richest  in  this  district,  paying  on  an  average 
$180  to  the  ton.  Overland  Monthly,  v. ,  424-7.  The  Montezuma  mine,  dis- 
covered in  1872  by  Matthew  Palen  in  the  Ivanpoh  region  in  San  Bernardino 
co.,  was  called  a  rediscovery  of  an  ancient  mine,  the  vein  having  an  old 
shaft  upon  it;  but  no  trace  of  machinery  or  tools  of  any  kind  was  found. 
At  a  depth  of  53  feet  it  was  filled  with  rubbish,  and  its  owners  resorted  to 
tunnelling  in  order  to  reach  the  rock  below  the  old  workings.  San  I.ui* 
Obispo  Tribune,  Oct.  19,  1872.  San  Bernardino  Giturdian,  Oct.  5,  1872.  Plu- 
mas  co.  in  1873  had  its  quartz  fever  following  the  discovery  of  '  a  ledge  of 
pure  gold,'  as  it  was  called,  near  the  summit  of  the  mountain  south  of  Tay- 
lorsville,  by  A.  S.  Light.  The  vein  lay  in  a  bed  of  decomposed  gneiss,  aud 
was  from  2  to  6  inches  in  thickness.  A  rotten  granite  rim  jutted  up  en 
either  side  of  the  sedimentary  bed  in  which  the  ledge  reposed.  The  gold 
was  distributed  mainly  in  pockets,  where  the  quartz  '  pinched  out '  and 
yielded  from  §500  to  $700  to  mortar  crushing  by  one  hand.  Plwn,as  (Quincy) 
Jfatiortal,  Sept.  13,  1873.  Another  mine  promising  great  ricl.es,  in  the  near 
neighborhood,  was  sold  to  an  English  company,  which,  after  erecting  expen- 
sive works,  failed.  Such  were  and  are  the  vagaries  of  fortune  in  mining 
countries,  or  such  are  the  mistakes  of  inexperienced  miners.  In  Grass  Val- 
ley the  main  street  was  macadamized  with  refuse  quartz  from  the  mines, 
among  which  several  fine  specimens  were  discovered,  and  it  was  jestingly 
said  that  the  pavement  was  in  danger  of  being  '  located  '  by  the  small  boys 
of  the  town.  Stockton  Independent,  Jan.  31,  1874.  The  North  Star  mine  at 
this  place  yielded  $35  to  the  ton  at  a  depth  of  750  feet.  The  Hayward  mine 
in  Amador  co.,  which  was  down  1,250  feet  in  1871,  was  increasing  in  rich- 
ness. Claude?*  Gold,  p.  9. 

HIST  CAL..  VOL..  VTL   41 


642  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

of  the  century  plant  to  the  florist — long  looked  for 
and  gone  in  a  night.  All  of  the  top  yield  would  be 
wasted  in  the  eager  search  for  more,  where  no  more 
existed,  or  where,  if  it  existed,  it  required  dollar  for 
dollar  to  obtain  it. 

A  quartz  miners'  convention  was  held  at  Sacramento 
in  1857  as  a  means  of  gaining  information  by  mutual 
conference,7  and  as  a  means  of  keeping  at  home  for 
investment  in  mining  the  two  or  three  millions  of 
money  which  was  shipped  monthly  to  the  east.  There 
were  then  in  the  state  152  quartz  mills,  built  at  an  ex- 
pense of  not  less  than  $2,000,000,  and  the  total 
amount  of  capital  invested  in  quartz  mining  did  not 
fall  short  of  $5,000,000,  while  the  amount  of  gold 
realized  from  this  branch  of  mining  at  that  date  was 
not  short  of  $7,000,000,  without  taking  into  account 
the  product  of  arastras,  and  the  more  primitive  meth- 
ods of  reducing  quartz,  nor  of  those  small  rich  mines 
owned  by  individuals  whose  names  never  appeared  in 
the  list  of  companies.  Gold-quartz  mining  had  begun 
to  be  something  more  than  an  experiment 8  when  the 

I  might  go  on  multiplying  individual  discoveries  and  their  results.  All 
over  the  state,  but  principally  in  the  foothill  counties,  gold  mining  in  quartz 
was  carried  on  with  increasing  knowledge  and  consequent  improved  returns, 
rising  from  a  venture  to  a  scientific  industry.  In  Hittelfs  Resources  of  Cali- 
fornia, 276,  published  in  1867,  it  is  stated  that  the  three  principal  mines  in 
the  state  were  then  the  Fremont  in  Mariposaco.,  the  Allison,  in  Nevada  co., 
and  the  Sierra  Butte  in  Sierra  co.  The  first  had  produced  $75,000  in  one 
month;  the  second  $60,000;  the  third  $20,000;  but  the  average  production  of 
the  Fremont  mine  was  $14  per  ton;  of  the  Sierra  Butte  $18;  and  of  the  Al- 
lison $100.  The  cost  of  quarrying,  crushing,  and  amalgamating  quartz  rock 
in  the  best  mills  was  from  $5  to  $10  per  ton. 

7  The  quartz  miners'  association  was  organised  at  this  convention.     There 
were  many  questions  to  be  settled  by  such  associations,  such  as  the  extent 
of  quartz  claims,  rules  for  the  regulation  of  companies,  etc.     The.experience 
of  miners  became  thus  gradually  formulated  into  statistics  by  the  legislature. 
At  first  a  quartz  mining  claim  was  no  more  than  10  or  20  feet  square,  accord- 
ing to  the  miners'  laws  regulating  placer  diggings.    It  soon  became  apparent 
that  more  ground  was  required  to  allow  for  dips,  angles,  and  variations  as  well 
as  for  machinery.     In  order  to  secure  ground  enough  for  mining  operations 
a  number  of  claimants  joined  together  making  a  claim  of  500  or  5,000  feet 
in  length.     This  seems  to  have  been  the  origin  of  '  companies. ' 

8  From  the  Mexican  arastra  and  Chili  mill  of  the  early  days  of  quartz 
mining  Cal.,  soon  advanced  to  the  stamp  mill.     An  avalanche   of  quartz 
crushers  descended  upon  the  state,  heterogeneous  masses   of   iron    'heavy 
enough,'  says  one  writer,   'to  sink  our  navy;  at  any  rate,  heavy  enough  to 


PRACTICAL  EXPERIENCES.  G43 

Washoe  silver  discovery  of  1859  introduced  new  pro- 
blems, the  successful  solution  of  which  again  required 
the  expenditure — and  far  more  than  in  the  case  of 
gold — of  money,  brain-power,  courage,  and  patience ; 
but  when  solved  the  results  applied  with  equal  bene- 
fit to  the  science  of  deep  mining  in  California  and 
Nevada.  A  great  step  forward  was  taken  between 
1859  and  1863,  since  which  period  there  have  been 
few  changes  made  in  the  modes  of  obtaining  gold  from 
its  matrix. 

One  curious  result  of  six  or  eight  years  of  experi- 
ments in  quartz-mining — for  all  was  no  more  than  ex- 
periment— was  the  conviction  forced  upon  those 
interested  of  the  little  value  of  expert  knowledge. 
No  science  could  be  applied  to  the  thousand  varia- 
tions to  be  found  in  ores  in  different  districts,  each  of 
which  had  its  peculiarity,  and  some  of  which  exhib- 
ited distinct  features  in  different  lodes.  As  for  assays, 
they  were  worthless  to  show  the  actual  value  of  rocks. 
The  practical  miner  obtained  a  knowledge  far  above 
the  theories  of  the  scientist,  and  this  knowledge,  the 
fruit  of  experience,  and  dearly  bought  with  millions 
of  money,  is  being  now  imparted,  as  in  a  great  school 
of  mining,  to  the  actual  workers  in  this  most  special 
industry  of  the  state.9  There  are  at  present  about 
400  quartz  mills,  each  costing  from  $6,000  to  $60,000. 

sink  the  quartz  business. '  Among  them  were  ponderous  wheels  running  in 
troughs;  corrugated  rollers;  immense  iron  balls,  some  running  in  inclined 
beds,  others  made  to  whirl  with  great  rapidity;  and  an  odd  invention  called 
the  toggle-joint.  The  same  crudity  of  invention  was  applied  to  amalgama- 
tors, of  which  there  was  no  end.  The  expense  of  trying  all  this  machinery 
was  ruinous  to  mining  as  a  business  until  the  quartz  men  finally  settled 
down  to  stamping,  either  by  the  straight  battery  or  the  rotary.  In  amalga- 
mating, the  simple  riffle,  blankets,  and  copper-plates,  the  Chili  mill,  and  Mex- 
ican arastra  proved  satisfactory. 

9  It  was  not  thought  worth  while,  notwithstanding,  to  dispense  with  sci- 
entific knowledge  altogether;  hence  a  school  of  mining  was  provided  for  by 
law  in  1 866  in  an  act  '  to  establish  an  agricultural,  mining,  and  mechanical 
arts  college '  in  accordance  with  sec.  2,  article  ix. ,  of  the  constitution  of  this 
state,  and  the  provisions  of  an  act  of  congress  of  1862,  granting  to  the  state 
lands  for  maintaining  an  agricultural  and  mechanical  arts  college.  The 
course  of  instruction  was  to  embrace  '  English  language  and  literature, 
mathematics,  civil,  military,  and  mining  engineering,  agricultural  chemistry, 
mineralogy,  metallurgy,  animal  and  vegetable  anatomy  and  physiology,  the 
veterinary  art,  etymology,  geology,  technology,  political,  moral,  and  house- 


644  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

Of  the  52  counties  of  the  state  35  make  returns  to 
the  mint  bureau  of  their  gold  production,  and  in  18 
of  them  mining  is  the  chief  industry.  It  is  not  al- 
ways, however,  quartz  mining  or  placer  mining.  The 

hold  economy,  horticulture,  moral  and  natural  philosophy,  history,  book- 
keeping, and  especially  the  application  of  science  and  the  mechanical  arts  to 
practical  agriculture  in  the  field  and  mining. '  This  institution  was  to  be 
supported  by  the  interest  accruing  from  the  lands  donated  by  congress  for  a 
seminary  of  learning.  Nothing  was  done  toward  founding  a  school  such  as 
contemplated  by  the  act,  and  in  1868  the  legislature  established  the  Univer- 
sity of  Cal.,  which  comprises  a  college  of  mining.  Cal.  Slot.,  1866,  p.  504-9. 
The  U.  S.  geological  survey  has  done  much  to  promote  intelligence  among 
the  people  upon  subjects  connected  with  mineralogy.  It  is  now  thought 
necessary  to  include  mining  in  the  scientific  course  of  all  universities,  while 
technical  schools  devoted  to  this  subject  have  been  established  in  several 
parts  of  the  United  States.  Senator  Cole  of  Cal.  in  1865  proposed  a  plan  for 
a  national  mining  bureau,  which,  if  not  carried  out  according  to  his  sugges- 
tions, has  been  practically  realized  in  the  American  Institute  of  Mining  En- 
gineers, established  in  1871,  and  the  system  of  reports  required  to  be  made 
through  the  office  of  the  secretary  of  the  Interior.  Most  of  this  advance  is 
directly  due  to  California  first,  and  to  Colorado  and  the  neighboring  terri- 
tories second.  The  Cal.  state  geological  society  was  organized  in  January 
1877,  and  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  state,  the  object  of  which  was 
to  make  a  Pacific  coast  geological  collection  to  be  offered  to  the  state  gratis, 
upon  such  terms  as  the  society  should  determine,  and  should  be  agreed  to  by 
the  state.  A  state  museum  was  instituted,  which  took  charge  of  the  collec- 
tion, which  in  1882  comprised  1,327  specimens  from  all  parts  of  the  coast, 
and  a  library  of  78  volumes  and  25  pamphlets  bearing  upon  geology,  miner- 
alogy, mining,  and  even  mining  litigation.  A  state  bureau  of  mining  was 
created  by  the  legislature  in  1880,  to  be  established  in  S.  F.,  on  the  motion 
of  Joseph  Wasson  of  Inyo  and  Mono  counties.  This  law  requires  the  gov- 
ernor to  appoint  a  person  of  '  practical  and  scientific  knowledge  of  mining 
mineralogy  to  the  office  of  state  mineralogist,'  with  a  salary  of  $3,000  per 
annum.  His  duties  are  to  collect  and  preserve  specimens;  to  make  analyti- 
cal assays  as  required;  to  procure  and  preserve  drawings  and  models  of 
mining  and  milling  machinery;  to  correspond  with  established  schools  of 
metallurgy;  to  visit  the  different  mining  districts  of  the  state;  and  to  col- 
lect a  library  on  mineralogy  and  kindred  subjects,  with  other  co-ordinate 
duties.  Cal.  Slot.,  1880,  115-17.  Harry  G.  Hanks  was  the  first  state  min- 
eralogist, appointed  in  May  1880.  The  legislature  of  1883  appropriated 
$5,000  per  annum  for  the  care  and  maintenance  of  the  mining  bureau.  Among 
other  requirements  of  the  law  are  the  study  of  ethnology  and  the  analysis 
of  the  mineral  waters  of  the  state — the  latter  feature  being  in  the  interest 
of  invalids  visiting  or  to  be  attracted  to  the  state.  So  widespread  is  the  influ- 
ence of  the  ever-widening  circles  of  the  science  wave  first  set  in  motion  by 
the  pebbles  rolled  into  the  pool  of  investigation  by  the  early  miners  of 
quartz  in  Cal.  The  California.  Mining  Journal,  published  at  Grass  Valley  in 
1856,  was  the  first  distinctively  mining  publication  on  the  Pacific  coast. 
There  was  a  magazine  called  The  Miner  in  1866,  which  had  a  brief  existence. 
The  Mining  ami  Scientific  Press  of  S.  F.,  first  published  in  1862,  became  the 
leading  journal  on  all  matters  connected  with  mining.  Besides  the  writings 
already  referred  to  of  Trask  and  Whitney,  and  of  the  early  travellers  men- 
tioned in  other  parts  of  this  work,  there  have  been  valuable  contributions  to 
the  geological  and  mineralogical  history  of  Cal.  by  W.  P.  Blake,  Clarence 
King,  and  others.  Blake  was  commissioner  of  Cal.  to  the  Paris  exposition 
of  1868.  References  for  this  note  beside  those  quoted — Hayks'  Scraps,  Min- 


HYDRAULIC  MIXING.  615 

latter,  except  where  it  is  followed  by  Chinamen,  who 
work  over  the  abandoned  diggings,  saving  thereby  a 
considerable  amount  of  gold,  has  been  discontinued. 
Fully  two  thirds  of  the  production  of  the  state  from 
1871  to  1879  was  from  gravel  mines  in  the  channels 
of  ancient  rivers,  now  elevated  above  the  present  level 
of  the  country,  and  showing  evidences  of  post-glacial 
denudation.  Into  these  beds  of  water-worn  stones 
and  clay  the  miner  penetrates  by  a  drift,  or  he  washes 
down  the  bank  by  a  heavy  stream  of  water  from  the 
nozzle  of  a  strong  canvas  or  rubber  hose  several  inches 
in  diameter. 

Hydraulic  mining  began  in  1855,"  with  nozzles  not 
more  than  an  inch  in  diameter ;  but  those  now  in  use 
vary  from  four  to  nine  inches.  An  eight-inch  nozzle 
can  throw  185,000  cubic  feet  in  an  hour  with  a  ve- 
locity of  150  feet  per  second-  The  disintegrating 
force  of  water  under  these  conditions  is  easily  seen. 
In  the  case  of  large  bowlders,  blasting  powder  is  used 
to  remove  them.  But  in  general  water  is  the  agent 
relied  upon,  excavating,  washing  down  the  detritus, 

mj,  L,  ii_;  17.  8.  H.  Ex.  J>x.  211,  p.  460-86,  voL  x.,  42  eong.,  2  seas.; 
.ftrwrwrV  Raomrre*,  656-65;  CaL  Farmer,  April  23,  1S71;  Baldk't  Jlaet  and 
Mimmg. 

u  Every  kind  of  mining  depends  upon  water  for  its  success;  placer  and 
gravel  mining  particularly.  In  1867  there  were  6.000  miles  of  artificial  wa- 
ter courses,  including  their  branches,  constructed  in  CaL  It  is  stated  in 
Hittttt*  ScaoKKa,  1879,  p.  306,  that  owing  to  the  had  engineering  and  inex- 
perience of  the  early  ditch-builders,  to  the  exhaustion  of  the  placers  and 
other  causes,  the  mining  ditches  which  cost  as  much  as  £30,000.000  are  now 
not  worth  more  than  $2,000,000.  The  total  number  of  mining  ditches,  ac- 
cording to  the  report  of  the  state  surveyor-general  in  1871,  was  516;  their 
aggregate  length  4,800  miles,  and  their  daily  supply  of  water  17 1,000  inches. 
Where  a.  sufficient  head  cannot  be  obtained  by  height  and  distance,  or  a 
sufficient  supply  for  the  whole  season,  it  is  necessary  to  build  reservoirs  for 
•taring  water.  The  flnm*^  which  conduct  tK^  water  down  the  mountains 
where  ditching  cannot  be  resorted  to,  being  constructed  of  wood,  do  not  last 
•ore  than  from  6  to  10  years.  But  the  extent  and  position  of  the  aque- 
ducts fill  the  mind  with  wonder  and  admiration  at  the  achievements  of  man. 

A  company  using  2,000  inches  or  40,000  gallons  for  100  days,  and  washing 
down  1,000,000  cubic  yards  of  gravel  containing  less  than  J  of  a  pennyweight 
to  the  foot,  obtained  932,000,  of  which  $12,000  was  profit.  The  cube  of 
earth  washed  down  was  1,100  feet  long,  300  feet  wide,  and  80  feet  deep.  In 
1S79  the  mmtgAff  of  mining  ditches  is  640,  their  aggregate  length  being 
miles,  and  the  dally  supply  of  water  260,000  inches.  As  on  the  aver- 
age the  working  time  of  the  mines  is  equal  only  to  about  seven  months,  the 
actual  consumption  of  water  is  712,940,000  gallons  annually,  or  1,956,OJO 
gillnaa  for  every  day  in  the  year. 


646  MINING  AND  MINING   STOCKS. 

and  with  the  aid  of  quicksilver  collecting  the  gold. 
Hence  this  is  a  cheap  method  of  mining,  doing  away 
with  human  labor  to  a  great  degree  ;  and  the  extent 
of  the  deposits  to  be  worked  over  would  take  a  cen- 
tury to  exhaust,  at  the  rate  of  the  production  of  1879. 

Every  method  of  mining  is  more  or  less  destructive 
to  the  other  natural  resources,  and  especially  to  agri- 
culture. During  the  most  active  period  of  placer- 
mining,  the  face  of  the  earth  everywhere  in  the  other- 
wise beautiful  foothills,  river  bottoms,  arid  canadas, 
and  even  in  the  border  valleys,  was  scarred  by  the 
miner's  pick,  leaving  unsightly  excavations,  with  cor- 
responding heaps  of  earth  and  stones.  The  enchant- 
ing groves  that  adorned  the  sunny  slopes  were  ruth- 
lessly and  wastefully  sacrificed  to  the  immediate 
requirements  of  a  houseless  population,  while  the 
whip-saw  was  brought  into  requisition  to  convert  trees 
into  rockers,  sluice-boxes,  and  flumes.  When  the 
claim  was  abandoned  these  unlovely  relics  were  left 
upon  the  ground,  adding  to  the  general  disfigurement 
of  the  scene. 

Quartz-mining,  although  confined  to  certain  local- 
ities, had  also  its  unsightly  features  in  the  waste  rock 
and  the  washings  after  milling,  besides  the  many 
prospectors'  shafts  and  the  tell-tale  heap  of  earth  and 
stone.  The  effect,  too,  upon  the  soil  of  whole  dis- 
tricts, of  burying  it  beneath  rock  and  clay,  was  to 
render  it  unfit  for  cultivation. 

But  if  placer  and  quartz  mining  had  these  destruc- 
tive local  tendencies,  hydraulic  mining  was  more  fatal 
to  the  whole  country.  The  vast  amount  of  debris 
washed  into  the  streams  which  feed  the  greater 
rivers,  and  carried  along  even  to  the  Pacific,  has  raised 
their  beds  and  caused  the  annual  floods  to  deposit 
unfertilized  sand  and  clay  over  immense  tracts  of  the 
best  grass  and  farming  lands.  Such  was  the  loss  sus- 
tained "  and  threatened  that  the  courts  were  called 


"The  plane  of  low  water  in  the  Sac.  river  had  been  raised  about  G.\  feet 
since  1849.     In  1863  the  elevation  of  thu  plane  above  that   of  1849  was  two 


THE  DEBRIS  QUESTION.  647 

upon  to  decide  the  rights  of  miners  to  jeopardize  the 
agricultural  interests  of  the  counties  through  the 
danger  from  mining  debris.  After  prolonged  litiga- 
tion and  much  effort  to  control  legislation  by  the 

feet,  the  more  rapid  filling  having  taken  place  since  that  year.  The  tide, 
which  formerly  rose  two  feet  at  Sacramento,  is  now  unfelt  above  Haycock 
shoals,  9  miles  below  the  city.  Shoals  have  been  formed  in  Suisun  bay,  and 
large  deposits  in  the  straits  of  Carquinez.  In  1879  Prof.  Pettee  found  the 
bed  of  Bear  river  at  the  crossing  between  Dutch  Flat  and  Little  York  97  feet 
higher  than  in  1870,  while  in  the  same  interval  Steep  Hollow,  between  Little 
York  and  You  Bet,  had  risen  136  feet.  Whitney '»  Auriferous  Grarels,  iL,  425. 
In  1880  Bear  river  was  filled  to  a  depth  of  150  feet,  Steep  Hollow  250,  and 
the  Greenhorn  at  the  crossing  of  the  Nevada  and  Dutch  Flat  road  200  feet. 
With  the  exception  of  about  11  miles,  where  the  grade  is  from  80  to  140  feet 
to  the  mile,  Bear  river  is  filled  from  Dutch  Flat  to  the  month.  Experts  es- 
timate the  deposits  in  Bear  river  at  86,000,000  cubic  yards  above  the  plains; 
and  at  36,000,000  cubic  yards  below  the  foothills  to  the  mouth.  Naturally 
the  heavy  bowlders  or  cobble  stones  remain  higher  up,  while  the  sand  and 
earthy  matter  are  carried  below.  A  similar  condition  exists  in  the  Yul  a 
river,  where  the  deposits  in  1879  above  the  foothills,  were  estimated  by  the 
state  engineer  at  48,462,100  cubic  yards,  principally  in  a  distance  of  8  or  10 
miles,  and  below  this  at  23,284,000,  although  from  more  recent  information 
this  estimate  appears  too  low.  Every  winter  flood  spreads  abroad  the  sol- 
uble and  movable  debris.  The  Ynba  spreads  out  its  sand  and  gravel  over 
15,000  to  16,000  acres,  rising  above  the  level  of  the  adjoining  country.  On 
north  branch  of  the  American  the  maximum  depth  of  the  detritus  is  100  feet, 
and  is  thought  to  measure  20,000,000  cubic  yards,  Now  to  the  results.  The 
state  engineer  estimated  from  actual  surveys  made  in  1878  that  18,000  acres 
of  valley  land  on  the  Yuba,  once  the  choicest  in  the  state,  had  been  buried 
beneath  mining  debris.  Witnesses  before  the  U.  S.  land  com.  in  1879  gave 
the  following  statements:  'Although  these  lands  have  been  exposed  to  son- 
shine  and  rain  for  years  they  produce  not  a  blade  of  grass,  nothing  but  wil- 
lows and  semi-aquatic  plants  that  derive  their  nourishment  chiefly  from  the 
strata  of  water  percolating  underneath  the  surface,  not  frcm  the  soil 
itself.  A  settler  of  1857,  who  purchased  a  farm  on  the  Yuba  bottom,  stated 
that  at  that  time  the  banks  of  the  river  were  20  or  22  feet  high  at  low  water. 
His  farm  was  two  miles  away  from  Bear  river,  and  had  no  water  upon  it  be- 
fore 1862,  when  it  was  under  6  feet  of  water,  which  left  large  banks  of  sand 
and  sediment.  The  amount  has  increased  from  that  time  until  now,  when 
his  1,030  acres  are  buried  25  feet  deep  under  sand,  which  reaches  to  the  tops 
of  the  telegraph  poles.  He  succeeded  in  protecting  90  acres  of  his  land 
with  levees  until  1875,  when  the  water  rose  over  them  and  covered  his  90 
acres  also  with  sand.  His  garden  fence  is  now  5  feet  under  the  surface.  The 
house  where  formerly  he  lived  was  completely  filled  with  water  in  the  winter 
of  1878-9.  The  country  which  was  once  filled  with  farms  is  now  a  wilder- 
ness; and  no  man  can  tell  where  was  the  original  channel  of  the  river. 
Other  witnesses  testified  to  similar  devastation  from  mining  debris.  The 
bed  of  Feather  river  was  raised  8  feet.  The  loss  in  Yuba  co.  was  estimated 
by  a  resident  to  be  not  less  than  §9,724,000,  and  in  Sutter  co.  $3, 152,000.  The 
water  of  the  Sac.  overflowed  the  high  banks  to  a  depth  of  6  inches  in  1849-50; 
12  inches  in  1852-3;  2  feet  in  1861-2;  3J  feet  in  1867^8;  and  5  feet  in  1877-8. 
I  have  not  space  here  to  multiply  evidences  of  the  ruinous  effects  of  running 
mining  debris  into  the  rivers.  But  it  should  be  stated  that  the  detritus  from 
the  gravel  mines  is  not  as  injurious  as  the  tailings  from  the  quartz  mills, 
which  do  not  decompose,  and  which,  under  the  name  of  '  slackens, '  was 
fought  in  the  courts  for  several  years.  Undoubtedly  there  are  other  causes 
operating  to  raise  the  beds  of  the  larger  streams,  among  which  is  ploughing 


648  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS, 

ditch  and  mine  owners,  as  mentioned  in  another  chap- 
ter, the  practice  of  dumping  waste  matter  into  the 
rivers  has  been  discontinued,  and  already  there  is  a 
marked  improvement  in  the  navigability  of  the  natural 
water  courses  as  well  as  in  their  purity ;  but  the  ruin 
wrought  in  considerable  portions  of  the  foothill  re- 
gion is  irremediable. 

To  cause  hydraulic  mining  to  be  abandoned  would 
seriously  cripple  the  mining  interest  in  the  state.  The 
amount  of  capital  invested  in  mining  in  California  in 
1882  was  estimated  to  be  $150,000,000,  of  which 
$100,000,000  was  in  hydraulic  mines.  As  ancient 
gravel  channels  exist  for  at  least  200  miles,  from  Sis- 
kiyou  county  to  Mariposa,  having  a  depth  sometimes 
of  several  hundred  feet,  and  a  breadth  of  from  200  to 
2,000  feet,  throughout  which  gold  is  pretty  evenly 
distributed,  it  is  not  probable  that  the  effort  to  extract 
the  precious  metal  will  cease,  although  to  spread  such 
an  amount  of  debris  over  the  adjacent  7alleys  and  in 
the  channels  of  our  rivers  would  entail  incalculable 
injury,  not  to  say  utter  ruin  upon  important  agricul- 
tural portions  of  the  state.  In  1884,  after  several 
years  of  discussion  and  careful  investigation,  Judge 
Sawyer  decided  the  case  of  the  state  against  the 
North  Bloomfield  Mining  company  by  a  perpetual 
injunction.  This  being  a  test  case,  determined  the 
status  of  hydraulic  mining  thereafter.  The  law  now 
confines  hydraulic  mining  to  certain  narrow  limits, 
and  impounds  the  debris.  Klamath,  Del  Norte,  and 
Siskiyou  counties  do  not  yet  object,  but  probably  will 
in  time.  In  the  lower  counties,  especially  Sutter  and 
Yuba,  the  citizens  have  formed  a  committee  of  ne- 
cessity to  enforce  the  law  against  washing  down  gravel 
banks,  although  drifting  is  still  profitably  carried  on 

the  earth  and  destroying  the  grass  roots  which  formerly  held  together  the 
soil  particles  which  the  rains  now  wash  off.  As  to  the  influence  of  river 
silt  in  shoaling  the  straits  at  the  entrance  to  Suisun  bay,  and  affecting  the 
harbor  channel,  the  deposit  here  is  slight,  and  there  are  other  causes  at  work 
in  the  harbor  of  San  Francisco,  such  as  the  sewerage  of  the  city  and  the  op- 
erations of  the  railroad  company  in  building  a  causeway  and  depot  ground 
far  out  from  snore,  diminishing  the  tidal  area  to  a  considerable  extent. 


RIVER-BED  MIXING.  649 

in  Placer,  Nevada,  and  Sierra  counties.  As  the  hy- 
draulic process  was  an  invention  of  the  California 
miner,  so,  perhaps,  will  be  some  future  feasible  method 
of  saving  the  riches  which,  in  the  changes  of  the 
earth's  surface,  have  lain  hidden  for  thousands  of  years. 
River-bed  mining  consists  in  turning  rivers  wholly 
or  in  part  from  their  channels,  and  washing  their  beds 
for  the  gold  they  contain.  It  was  formerly  extensively 
practised,  the  richer  portions  being  worked  out ;  but 
a  revival  of  this  business  has  taken  place,  particularly 
on  Scott  and  Klamath  rivers,  and  also  on  some  of  the 
streams  before  regarded  as  exhausted  of  their  treasure. 
For  diverting  water  from  its  channels  large  tunnels 

^j  CJ 

were  driven  at  eligible  sites.  One  of  the  longest  of 
these  adits  was  at  the  big  bend  of  Feather  river,  the 
total  length  being  11,200  feet,  and  draining  12  miles 
of  the  river  bed.  The  Chinese  swarm  to  these  claims, 
purchasing  those  which  are  abandoned  by  white  miners, 
and  making  good  wages,  as  a  Chinaman  estimates 
mining  results. 

Silver-mining  in  California  has  not  been  followed  to 
any  great  extent,  although  silver  was  known  to  exist 
from  the  earliest  settlement  by  the  gold  hunters.1* 
The  first  notice  of  a  silver  mining  company  that  I 
find  is  in  January  1851,  when  a  company  was  organ- 
ized in  Stockton  to  work  a  silver  mine  near  Los  An- 
geles. Silver  was  discovered  near  Carson,  then 
supposed  to  be  in  California,  in  1850;  but  little  atten- 
tion was  given  to  such  discoveries  for  reasons  readily 
suggested  by  the  early  difficulties  in  working  gold 
mines — gold  being  a  metal  which  only  required  freeing 
from  the  rock,  while  silver  was  an  ore  that  could  only 
be  extracted  by  laborious  processes  after  the  rock  was 

11 A  salver  mine  had  been  in  operation  some  time  near  Monterey,  said  to 
be  quite  rich.  Another  silver  discovery  near  town.  S.  F.  CaKfornian,  April 
19  and  Ju'y  15,  1848.  Silver  mine  discovered  near  San  Jose.  Cal.  StJtr, 
March  18  and  April  1,  1848.  S.  F.  Stock  Kept,  May  25,  1876.  'Silver  and 
iron  in  abundance.'  Slitter's  Diary,  April  1848.  In  Carson's  Early  Jttcollec- 
thns,  58-9,  is  mention  of  an  expedition  to  Moore's  creek,  CaL,  in  search  of 
silver. 


650  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

crushed.  There  were  some  Mexican  miners  in  the 
country  who,  after  a  rude  fashion,  crushed  and  amal- 
gamated silver  ores.  From  these  the  American 
miners  learned  all  that  they  knew  or  practiced  of  sil- 
ver reduction  previous  to  the  Washoe  discoveries.13 

Reports  of  silver  discoveries  continued  to  be  made, 
Monterey,14  Kern,  San  Joaquin,  San  Diego,  and  San 
Bernardino  counties  being  mentioned  as  silver  pro- 
ducing. Even  smiling  Napa,  with  its  flowery  meads 
and  oak-shadowed  hillsides,  was  turned  into  a  pande- 
monium of  silver-mad  wealth-seekers  in  the  winter  of 
1858-9.  The  cause  of  the  sudden  mania  was  the 
discovery  in  a  canon  of  mount  St  Helena  of  a  ledge 
of  pure  silver  1  It  was  the  business  of  the  assay  of- 
fices to  furnish  certificates  of  the  value  of  mines  at 
$15  a  piece.  The  owner  of  this  wonderful  ledge  re- 
ceived the  usual  credential,  but  upon  being  convinced 
subsequently  that  his  mine  produced  iron  pyrites  in 
great  abundance,  and  of  silver  hardly  a  trace,  the  ex- 
citement he  had  occasioned  quickly  subsided. 

Cotemporary  with  the  Washoe  discoveries  there 
was  a  sympathetic  enthusiasm  for  silver  in  California. 
The  first  discovery  in  Alpine  county  was  made  in  the 
autumn  of  1860  by  three  prospectors,  Johnson,  Har- 
ris, and  Perry.  In  the  following  June  several  claims 
were  located  on  the  same  lode.15  The  mines  in  this 
rugged  region,  lying  from  5,000  to  11,000  feet  above 
the  sea,  have  been  found  to  carry  about  equal  amounts 
of  silver  and  gold,  and  have  never  yielded  largely  of 

13  It  is  said  that  in  1852  and  previously  considerable  crude  silver  bullion 
was  disposed  of  at  Stockton.     In  1870  an  abandoned  silver  mine  was  discov- 
ered about  a  day's  ride  from  Antioch.     All  the  old  workings  were  covered 
with  a  growth  of  underbrush.     A  dilapidated  house  and    chimney,  appar- 
ently used  for  smelting,  stood  near;  and  a  stone  plat  which  had  served  as  a 
patio.     A  considerable  amount  of  good  ore  was  covered  up  with  soil,  and  in 
the  house  were  found  600  or  700  .pounds  of  crude  bullion.     The  shaft  and 
dump  were  overgrown  with  large  trees. 

14  Coast  Survey,  1855,  182;  Hayes'  Scraps,  Monterey,  157-60. 

15  Monitor  Gazette,  Jan.  14,  1865.  The  claims  were  named  the  Mountain 
No.  ],  the  Mammoth,  Silver  Creek,  Jefferson,  Washington,  and  Astor.     The 
Napoleon  ledge  was  discovered  in  1 863  in  Slinkard's  valley,  6  miles  east  of 
Monitor.     It  was  worked  by  the  Mount  Vernon  co.,  and  yielded  native  silver 
by  roasting  in  an  ordinary  fire, 


INYO  COUNTY  MINES.  651 

either,  partly  on  account  of  their  altitude  and  the 
short  working  season.  They  had,  besides,  to  wait  for 
the  discoveries  in  amalgamation  to  become  profitable. 
The  Inyo  county  mines  were  discovered  in  1865, 
and  although  the  region  is  one  of  the  most  elevated 
in  the  state  or  on  the  coast,  it  is  rich  in  gold,  silver, 
and  other  minerals.  Within  its  borders  are  mounts 
Whitney,  Tindall,  and  Brewer,  on  whose  lofty  brows 
the  snow  of  eternal  winter  shines  with  a  white  radi- 
ance. The  principal  mine  in  the  county  is  the  Union. 
Consolidated  company  of  the  Cerro  Gordo  mining  dis- 
trict, lying  in  the  mountains  which  form  the  eastern 
wall  of  Owen  valley.  The  ore  is  reduced  by  smelt- 
ing, and  has  yielded  many  millions  of  dollars.  In  the 
same  district  the  Ygnacio  and  San  Lucas  are  rich  in 
silver,  and  the  Palmer  in  gold.  The  Kearsarge  mines 
and  the  Rex  Moates  are  situated  in  the  Kearsarore 

O 

peak,  which  is  13,700  feet  above  sea  level,  and  12 
miles  east  of  Independence.  The  Kearsarge  has  been 
worked  ever  since  1865.  Much  of  the  ore  from  this 
district  is  of  so  high  a  grade  that  it  must  be  shipped 
to  San  Francisco  to  be  smelted.  The  country  de- 
pendent upon  these  mines  is  the  Owen  and  Panamint 
valleys. 

All  along  the  western  flank  of  the  Sierra  are  dis- 
tricts where  silver  predominates,  but  in  all  the  mines 
gold  is  to  be  found  in  some  proportion,  as  it  is  in  the 
silver  mines  on  the  eastern  slope.16  Discoveries  are 
still  being  made,  and  will  be  made  far  into  the  future, 
but  while  gold  remains  more  easily  mined  than  silver 
it  will  be  more  sought  after,  by  prospectors  at  least. 
A  table  of  the  production  of  the  state  by  counties  in 
1881  will  give  a  better  understanding  of  the  compar- 
ative mineral  wealth  of  different  parts  of  the  state 
than  any  description,  although  changes  in  these  rela- 

16  The  Rattlesnake  ledge  discovered  in  1863  by  Jacob  Moulter  and  John 
Fnl-veiler, three  quarters  of  a  mile  s.  E.  of  Meadow  lake,  assayed  ?54  silver 
and  §9  gold  to  the  ton.  The  Arizona  ledge,  near  the  former,  assayed  §47.37 
iu  silver  and  §27.50  in  gold.  Meadow  Lake  Sun,  June  9,  I860. 


652 


MINING-  AND   MINING  STOCKS. 


tive  values  are  liable  to  take  place,  either  by  fresh  dis- 
coveries or  by  the  introduction  of  more  capital.17 

The  production  of  1886  was  nearly  the  same,  some- 
thingover  $18,000,000.  It  will  be  observed  that  next  to 
Nevada,  Mono  county  produced  more  of  both  silver 
and  gold  than  any  other.  This  county  has  had  a 
peculiar  history.  It  was  organized  in  1861,  with 
Aurora  as  the  county  seat ;  but  when  the  eastern 
boundary  line  of  the  state  cauie  to  be  surveyed  it 
was  discovered  that  Aurora,  then  a  thriving  placer 
mining  center,  belonged  to  Nevada.  After  the  loss 
of  the  county  seat  and  surrounding  mines,  and  the 
exhaustion  of  placers  generally,  the  county  lost  most 


tf         COUNTY. 

GOLD. 
$1,450,000 

SILVER. 
$1,500 

TOTAL. 
$1,451,500 

2,000 

2,100 

4,100 

Butte          

650,000 

1,000 

651,000 

800,000 

1,200 

801,200 

3,500 

3  500 

DelNorte  

60,000 

60000 

El  Dorado  

550,000 

900 

550  000 

Fresno      

90,000 

90  000 

Humboldt  

75,000 

300 

75,300 

Inyo  

170,000 

140,000 

310,000 

Kern    

190,000 

14,000 

204  000 

Lassen  

71,000 

1,000 

72,000 

Los  Angeles.     . 

13  000 

39,000 

52000 

Mariposa  

200000 

1,200 

201  200 

1  000 

1  000 

Merced    

1  500 

1  500 

Modoc  

20,000 

1,500 

21,500 

Mono  

3,385,000 

300,000 

3,  685,  00  J 

Nevada  

3,700  000 

9,500 

3,709  500 

Placer  

850,  000 

6,500 

856  503 

1,350,000 

2,000 

1,352,000 

Sacramento  

425000 

1,000 

426,000 

San  Bernardino  .  .  . 
San  Diego  

9,000 
60  000 

100,000 

109,000 
60,000 

Santa  Barbara  .... 

2000 

2,000 

Shasta  

350  000 

85000 

435  000 

Sierra  

950000 

6000 

956,000 

Siskiyou  .  '.  

850  000 

1  500 

851  500 

Stanislaus  

63  000 

31  000 

94,000 

Tehama  

500 

500 

Trinity  

550  000 

1  500 

551  000 

Tulare  

8,000 

8,000 

Tuolumne  

500  000 

1  000 

501  000 

Ventura  

500 

500 

Yuba  

800000 

1,300 

801,300 

Total  

$18,200,000 

$750,000 

$18.9oO.OOO 

MEsIXG  STOCKS.  653 

of  its  population,  but  in  1877  the  Standard  mine  was 
discovered,  attracting  again  a  mining  population,  and 
the  investment  of  capital.  Many  silver  mines  were 
afterward  developed.  Like  Inyo,  this  county  lies 
among  the  highest  peaks  of  the  Sierra,  in  the  shadows 
of  mounts  Dana  and  Lyell,  each  over  13,000  feet  in 
altitude. 

There  is  no  way  of  determining  with  certainty  the 
expense  and  profit  of  mining.  The  output  of  many 
mines  is  swallowed  up  in  their  development  for  a  long 
time,  if  not  altogether.  It  is  impossible  to  deter- 
mine whether  the  assessments  levied  upon  stockhold- 
ers of  incorporated  mines  are  or  are  not  necessary;  or 
whether,  if  the  product  of  the  mines  were  fairly  di- 
vided, there  would  not  be  something  coming  to  the 
stockholders.  During  the  year  1889  there  was  $390,- 
500  levied  in  assessments  by  27  mines,  more  than 
half  of  which  was  paid  to  Mono  county  mines.  As 
to  the  dividends,  few  mines  were  paying  any  pub- 
licly. Prior  to  1889,  however,  there  arose  a  better 
feeling  among  mining  companies.  Mining  shares, 
which  are  taken  as  an  indication  of  the  value  of  the 
mines  they  represent,  became  lower  in  the  market 
than  at  any  time  previous  to  the  great  rise  and  fall  in 
Comstocks  from  1875  to  1878;  but  a  part  of  this  de- 
pression was  thought  by  some  to  have  been  the  re- 
sult of  the  feeling  of  insecurity  caused  by  the  heavy 
losses  during  the  wild  speculation  of  those  years. 
Others  charged  the  low  market  upon  the  mine  owners 
themselves,  who,  they  said,  were  endeavoring  to  buy 
in  all  the  most  valuable  stock  at  their  own  figures. 
Xo  one  can  prognosticate  what  a  few  hours  may  bring 
forth  in  the  stock  market.  With  all  the  disadvanta- 
ges, the  cost,  and  the  uncertainty  of  mining,  there 
stands  forth  the  grand  fact  that  California,  between 
1848  and  1881,  added  to  the  precious  metals  of  the 
world  to  the  value  of  $1,178,000,000, 18  of  which  $14,- 
914,452  was  in  silver. 

"It  is  interesting  to  know  of  the  remarkable  gold  nuggets  which  hare 


654  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

There  were  several  causes  to  account  for  the  ap- 
parent decline  in  the  mining  interests  of  the  state, 
prominent  among  which  was  the  increase  in  the  agri- 
cultural interest,  showing  wealth  in  the  soil  whose 

occasionally  been  discovered  in  Cal.  In  1854  Samnel  N.  West  took  a  lump 
from  a  placer  mine  near  Columbia  in  Nevada  co.  weighing  65  pounds,  which 
he  sold  for  $6,675.  Another  piece  found  in  the  same  neighborhood  was  val- 
ued at  $8,500.  San  Jose~  Pioneer,  Feb.  16,  1878.  A  nugget  worth  over  $4,000 
found  in  1857.  A  'specimen'  worth  $1,003  found  near  Shasta.  Another 
piece  found  by  a  Chinaman  near  Yreka  worth  $225.  Quincy  Union,  Feb.  20, 
1864.  A  piece  found  weighing  20^  ounces.  San  Andreas  Register,  Jan.  14, 
1864.  A  lump  of  gold  mined  weighing  80  pounds.  A  solid  chunk  of  gold 
weighing  16J  pounds  taken  out  of  a  claim  on  American  river.  A  nugget 
found  among  tailings  of  the  Hope  and  Despair  co.  in  Sierra  co.  worth  $1,770. 
The  Fellow  brothers  took  to  the  east  with  them  a  nugget  shaped  like  a  flat- 
iron,  and  about  two  thirds  the  size  of  an  ordinary  smoothing  iron,  weighing 
67  ounces.  Trinity  Journal,  Aug.  13,  1864.  James  Wilson  found  a  piece  of 
gold  weighing  over  24  pounds  in  his  claim  at  Spanish  Dry  Diggings  on  the 
middle  fork  of  American  river.  Independent,  Aug.  17,  1865.  A  ten-ounce 
piece  found  at  Orleans  Bar,  Klamath  co.  Clear  Lake  Journal,  Sept.  28,  1865. 
The  Oregon  claim  in  Forest  city  yielded  a  nugget  worth  $508.  Grass  Valley 
Union,  June  6,  1865.  A  handsome  specimen  taken  from  a  hydraulic  claim 
below  Moore's  Flat,  Nevada  co.,  was  worth  nearly  $1,000.  Nevada  D. 
Transcript,  June  12  ,  1866.  Another  on  Greenhorn  creek  was  valued  at 
$182.  A  nugget  taken  from  a  ground  sluice  at  French  ravine,  Yuba  co., 
weighed  56  ounces,  and  was  valued  at  $1,000.  Marysville  North  Californian, 
June  10,  1867.  Also  on  Dry  creek,  Tehama  co  ,  a  piece  worth  $1,000  A 
10-ounce  piece  taken  from  a  claim  on  Douglas  hill  near  San  Andreas.  San  An- 
dreas Register,  Jan.  12,  1867.  A  slug  of  gold  weighing  $110  was  picked  up  at 
Black  Hawk.  Quincy  Plumns  National,  Aug.  24,  1867.  A  nugget  weighing 
36  ounces  found  between  the  north  and  south  fork  of  the  Weber  creek. 
•Placervills  Courier,  April  27,  1867.  A  nugget  worth  $800  or  $900  was  found 
by  David  Robinson  near  Volcano  in  1866.  The  same  man,  in  ploughing  his 
farm,  turned  up  a  package  of  gold  containing  $900  in  1867.  Folsom  Telegraph, 
May  25,  1867.  A  nugget  taken  from  the  old  Spanish  diggings  in  Plumas 
co.  was  valued  at  $500.  The  owner  of  the  Hines  claim  at  Columbia  picked 
up  a  piece  of  gold  valued  at  §5,500.  Sonora  Democrat,  Jnly  11,  1868.  A  lump 
of  gold  weighing  240  pounds,  and  worth  $20,000,  was  found  in  a  claim  on 
Remington  hill  in  Nevada  co.,  which  was  thought  to  be  the  largest  lump  of 
gold  ever  discovered.  Woodland  Democrat,  June  29,  18G8.  A  nugget  was 
found  in  1859  in  the  Monumental  claim  on  the  Sierra  Buttes,  13  miles  from 
Downieville  in  Sierra  co.,  which  weighed  103  pounds.  After  being  cleaned 
in  acid,  and  all  the  loose  particles  removed,  it  weighed  97  pounds  Troy;  but 
neither  of  these  was  as  large  as  some  Australian  nuggets.  At  Shingle  Springs 
two  pieces  of  gold  were  picked  up  weighing  64  and  136  ounces.  Nevada  Ga- 
zette, April  17,  1869.  Out  of  a  claim  on  Squirrel  creek,  near  Rough  and 
Ready,  was  taken  a  lump  of  pure  gold  worth  $297.  Nevada  Transcript, 
April  2,  1869.  At  Chalk  Bluff  a  nugget  weighing  39  ounces  and  valued  at 
$754  was  found  in  Timmons'  diggings.  Nevada  Gazette,  May  15,  1869.  A 
nugget  valued  at  $2,000  was  found  in  the  New  Orleans  co.  's  claim  at  Little 
Grizzly.  A  gold  bowlder  worth  $3,200  was  found  in  a  claim  in  Shasta  co. 
A  claim  at  Grass  Valley  in  Nevada  co.  yielded  a  piece  of  gold  worth  $429. 
Grass  Valley  National  Gazette,  March  15,  1870.  At  Baltimore  ravine,  near 
Auburn,  some  Austrians  found  a  nugget  weighing  106  pounds,  containing  9? 
pounds  of  pure  gold  valued  at  $19,000.  Nevada  National  Gazette,  Aug.  13, 
1870.  _  An  8-pound  piece  of  gold,  and  18  ounces  in  smaller  pieces,  were 
found  in  one  claim,  and  an  11 -pound  nugget  in  a  neighboring  claim.  Near 


MINING  INTERESTS.  655 

returns  were  more  certain  and  easily  obtained  than 
the  gold  and  silver  of  the  rocks.  Another  was  the 
gradual  disappearance  of  the  prospector  of  the  earlier 
period,  who  lived  in  the  mountains,  and  spent  his  life 
in  hunting  for  gold  and  silver.  To  the  too  often  un- 
rewarded toils  of  these  men  we  owe  most  of  our  pres- 
ent knowledge  of  the  minerals  of  California.  Capital 
does  not  go  in  search  of  mines.  It  waits  for  a  dis- 
covery, and  takes  it  at  the  lowest  price  at  which  it 
can  afterward  be  obtained.  Formerly  there  were 
some  dishonorable  transactions  in  mining-claim  sales, 
where  foreign  capital  was  grievously  misled.  But  all 
this  business  was  later  placed  upon  a  safer  footing. 
The  output  was  not  as  great,  but  neither  was  the  cost  of 
living  the  same  ;  and  as  money  is  only  an  exchange 
for  what  we  require,  one  dollar  is  as  good  as  ten,  if  it 
buys  the  same  amount  of  life's  comforts  and  pleas- 
ures.1' 

Downieville  a  $1,000  nugget  was  fonnd  in  1870,  and  in  the  same  ground  the 
following  year  another  weighing  175  ounces.  Grass  Valley  Union,  Feb.  25, 

1871.  Some  Chinamen  finding  a  40-pound  nugget  on  the  middle  fork   of 
Feather  river,  to  avoid  excitement,  chiselled  it  up  into  small  pieces  and  sold 
it  at  different  times  mixed  with  other  dust.     A  nugget  weighing  over  a  ton 
was  found  in  Plumas  co.     It  yielded    ore    worth    £3,000.  National  Gazette, 
Nov.  16,  1872.     A  claim  near  Placerville  yielded  several  nuggets  worth  from 
§1,000  to  $2,000.     A  Chinaman  found  a  piece  of  pure  gold  worth  $170,  which 
he  sold  to  C.  W.  Brewster  of  Placerville,  and  soon  after  unearthed  another 
nugget  worth  $700  in  the  same  locality.  El  Dorado  Co.   Republican,  Feb.  29, 

1872.  In  March  1872  Reese  and  Depew  found  at  Randolph  Flat  a  stratum  of 
decomposed   quartz  resembling  red  and  white  Castile  soap  in  consistency. 
From  a  pit  8  feet  long  and  3  feet  wide  they  took  out  $5,000  with  a  pick, 
shovel,   and  pan.     From  the  ground  in  the  vicinity  a  piece  was  picked  up 
worth  $800.  Nevada  Transcript,  March  20,  1872.     A  Frenchman  at  Mormon 
Bar  found  in  the  earth  of  the  road  a  nugget  weighing  68  ounces.  Colusa  Sun, 
March  2,  1871.     A  chunk  of  gold  weighing  240  pounds  and  worth  $50,000 
was  found  in  the  claim  of  a   Chinese  company  at  Moore's  Flat.  Cloverdale 
Bee,  Feb.  8,  1873;  Plumas  Gazette,  Feb.  1,  1873.     A  5-pound  gold  nugget  was 
taken  out  of  Boulder  creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Sac.   above  Shasta,  in  1874. 

Wilmington  Enterprise,  Oct.  22,  1874.  Big  nuggets  are  still  being  found  in 
various  quarters. 

19 References  consulted  for  mining:  TurrilCs  CaL  Notes,  180-1;  Steivarfs 
Min.  Res,  14;  Mer.  troz.  and  Prices  Current,  Jan.  4,  1860;  Raymond  Min.  Res 
Ann.  Rept,  for  several  years — 1869-75 — in  U.  S.  H.  Ex.  Doc.;  Wheelers  Sur- 
veys, 1876,  47-69;  Hopkins' Common  Sense,  7-16;  CaL  Agric.  Soc.  Trans.,  1860, 
80-8;  CaL  Land  Off.  Rept,  1869,  191-2,  359-60;  Miner  i.  6-8,  18-23,  28-^5, 
52,  58-60;  Coast  Review,  1872-9;  CaL  Ann.  Min.  Review,  1878,  139-43;  Bur- 
chard  Min.  Produc.,  1881,  11;  1882,  15;  1883,  705;  U.  S.  H.  Ex.  DJC.,  vol.  9, 
pt  5,  p.  505-6,  47  cong.,  1  sess.,  Com,  Herald  and  Market  Review,  July  10, 
1867;  McCleUan,  Golden  State,  312;  Cokmans  Ann.  Circ.  and  Market  Review, 


656  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

As  a  product  indispensable  both  to  gold  and  silver 
mining,  quicksilver  may  be  deemed  of  the  greatest 
value  to  the  mining  interest  after  the  precious  metals. 
Fortunately  for  that  interest  it  was  discovered  before 
gold.2'  It  is  found  in  various  kinds  of  rock,  namely, 

Jan.  12,  1864;  Simonin  Vic  Sauterraine,  386-93;  Mines,  Min.,  Money,  1878-9, 
12o-~3;  Bowie's  Hydraulic  Mining,  78-86,  244—51. 

28  Cinnabar  was  used  by  the  natives  to  paint  their  bodies,  both  in  Cal.  and 
Oregon.  In  1824  one  of  the  Robles  family,  having  been  informed  of  the  ex- 
istence of  the  ore  by  the  Indians,  revealed  it  to  Antonio  Sunol,  who  worked 
it  for  a  short  time  under  the  impression  that  it  contained  silver.  In  1845  a 
Mexican  officer  named  Andres  Castillero  was  shown  some  pieces  of  the  ore 
at  the  Mission  of  Santa  Clara.  Having  some  knowledge  of  minerals  he  de- 
tectod  quicksilver,  and  remarked  to  those  present,  Father  Reed  and  Jacob 
P.  Leace,  that  if  the  mine  could  be  proved  as  rich  as  those  of  Spain  §100,000 
would  be  paid  by  the  Mexican  government  for  the  discovery.  In  order  to 
secure  the  title  to  himself  Castillero  proceeded  at  once  to  take  the  steps  re- 
quired by  Mexican  law  for  that  purpose.  Possession  was  given  by  the  al- 
calde of  the  district,  with  a  grant  of  3,000  yards  (varas)  of  land  in  all 
directions  from  the  mine.  Castillero  divided  the  mine  into  24  shares,  4  of 
which  he  gave  to  Jose  Castro,  4  to  the  brothers  Secundino  and  Leodero 
Robles,  keeping  the  remainder  for  himself,  and  employing  an  American  from 
Columbia  co.,  N.  Y.,  to  open  the  mine.  This  man,  William  G.  Chard,  seems 
to  have  been  a  genius  from  his  manner  of  mining.  Taking  severel  gun-bar- 
reb.ihe  filled  them  with  bits  of  the  broken  ore,  stopped  the  vents  with  clay, 
placed  the  muzzles  in  a  vessel  of  water,  and  built  a  fire  around  the  other 
end.  The  heat  vaporized  the  mercury,  which,  passing  into  the  water,  was 
condensed,  and  precipitated  in  the  form  of  metal.  Chard  next  tried  a  fur- 
nace, which  proved  a  failure.  His  third  experiment  was  with  six  try -pots 
used  by  whalers,  capable  of  holding  3  or  4  tons  of  ore.  By  inverting  one 

Cover  the  other  he  formed  a  furnace,  and  by  the  application  of  heat,  and  con- 
ducting the  vapor  into  water,  succeeded  in  saving  about  2,000  pounds  of 
quicksilver.  This  method  continued  until  August  1846,  the  Mexican  gov- 
ernment being  informed  of  the  facts.  Then  Chard  and  his  Indian  abandoned 
the  mine.  The  same  year  T.  0.  Larkin  forwarded  information  of  it  to  the 
U.  S.  During  the  winter  of  1846-7  Castillero  sold  a  part  of  his  shares  to 
the  English  house  of  Barren,  Forbes,  &  Co.  of  Tepie,  Mex. ,  who  dispatched 
an  agent,  Robert  Walkinshaw,  to  hold  the  property,  who,  with  a  man  named 
Alden,  took  possession  in  May  1847.  In  Nov.  came  Alexander  Forbes  with 
a  corps  of  miners  and  appliances  for  mining.  Retorts  were  used  until  1850, 
when  furnaces  were  constructed  under  the  superintendence  of  H.  W.  Hal- 
leck.  It  was  not  until  July  1850—1  that  the  production  of  quicksilver  for 
the  market  was  commenced,  since  which  time  to  1880  the  New  Almaden 
mine  had  furnished,  with  the  Euriguita  on  the  same  property,  54,378,418^ 
pounds  of  the  metal.  The  mine  was  closed  from  1858  to  1861  by  injunction, 
the  legality  of  the  title  being  disputed.  It  was,  however,  confirmed  to  the 
English  company,  who  sold  it  in  1864  to  a  company  chartered  under  the  laws 

~of  N.  Y.  and  Pa.  as  the  Quicksilver  Minmgcp.,  with  a  capital  of  $10,000,000, 
"  divided  into  $100  shares.  Niles'  Rey. ^jxxvp  140;  •&-#  El  Heraldo,  Oct.  25, 
1818;  S.  F.  News,  ii.,  166;  Hayes'  Scraps~Mui.,  ix.,  10-13;  Whitney's  Metallic 
Wealth,  186-93,  195-7;  Miscellany,  iv.,  v.,  vi. ;  Reviews  of  Com.  and  Finance, 
1876,  p.  71;  Taylor 's  El  Dorado,  ii.  12;  S.F.  Cal.  .Courier,  Sept.  27  and  Nov.  18, 
1850;  New  Almaden,  U.  S.  vs.  Castillero',  Sac.  Transcript^  Feb.  1,  1851;  North 
P^ci^c  Review,  Dec.  1862;  Castillo  Mem.,  Azoque,  57-8;  Harper's  Mag.,  June 
1863,  25-41;  Peto  Res.  of  America,  1CT;  Farayr  Explor.  Mm.,  23-25;  Coijm't, 
R'lfrpyrt,  sur  les  Mines  de  N.  Almaden;}  Ann.  Scientific  Disc.,  1852,  298-9; 
Hunt's  Mcrch.  May.,  xx.,  557-8.  / 

»T 


QUICKSILVER.  657 

sandstone,  decomposed  serpentine  or  talc,  porous  ba- 
salt, rotten  slate,  and  some  harder  rocks.  The  prin- 
cipal quicksilver  mine  of  California  is  at  New  Almaden 
in  Santa  Clara  county,  and  produces  somewhat  less 
than  the  amount  produced  by  the  Almaden  quicksilver 
mine  in  Spain,  after  which  it  was  named.  The  total 
production  of  the  world  in  1881  was  115,600  flasks 
of  a  little  over  76  pounds  each,  of  which  California 
furnished  60,851  flasks,  or  more  than  half,  and  of  this 
amount  the  New  Almaden  yielded  26,060. 21  From  the 
maximum  output  of  79,396  flasks  in  1877,  the  yield 

21  Among  the  other  quicksilver  mines  are  the  Phoenix,  situated  in  the 
Mayacamas  system  of  mountains  x.  w.  of  Calls  toga,  in  Xapa  co.,  discovered 
in  1860  by  A.  J.  Bailey  and  J.  Cyrus.  An  excitement  followed  the  discovery, 
and  many  locations  were  made.  The  Phcenix  was  worked  until  1878,  when, 
owing  to  the  low  price  of  quicksilver,  it  was  shut  down.  The  Redington,  in 
the  same  co.,  is  situated  in  Sulphur  canon,  x.  of  Berry essa  valley.  It  was 
incorporated  in  1861,  and  worked  continuously.  In  1881  it  had  produced 
4,953,315  pounds  of  quicksilver.  The  Washington  mine  in  Pope  valley  ad- 
joins the  Phoenix.  It  is  a  good  mine,  but  suspended  on  account  of  low  prices 
in  1878.  The  -Etna,  in  the  same  valley,  was  successfully  worked  for  a  time, 
and  given  up.  The  Summit  mine,  opened  in  1872  upon  the  top  of  the  May- 
acamas range  (the  boundary  between  Sonoma  and  Xapa  counties),  was  in 
operation  in  1881,  the  furnace  having  a  capacity  of  24  tons  of  ore  per  diem. 
The  Oakville,  on  the  west  side  of  Xapa  valley,  incorporated  in  1868,  had 
furnaces  capable  of  reducing  25  tons  daily,  bat  is  now  lying  idle.  The  Man- 
hattan has  a  similar  history.  The  Xapa  Consolidated,  situated  at  the  head 
of  Pope  canon,  was  discovered  in  1872.  From  1876  to  1881  it  produced 
1,227,978  pounds  of  quicksilver.  The  Ivanhoe,  Hamilton,  Xew  Burlington, 
Red  Hill,  Silver  Bow,  Overland,  Mutual,  and  Mammoth,  are  all  in  Xapa  co. 
The  Oakland,  Cloverdale,  Great  Eastern,  and  Mount  Jackson  are  in  Sonoma 
co.  The  last  was  continuously  worked  from  1873  to  1881.  Several  other 
discoveries  remain  nnworked  in  this  co.  The  county  of  Lake  also  furnishes 
several  quicksilver  mines,  of  which  the  Sulphur  Bank  is  the  foremost.  It 
was  opened  in  Oct.  1874,  with  limited  means,  but  produced  from  that  date 
to  Sept  1876,  when  prices  were  good,  12,341  flasks,  worth  §600,000.  The 
Great  Western,  in  Sonoma,  is  situated  in  the  range  between  St  Helena  and 
Cobb  mountain,  on  the  west  side  of  Loconoma  valley,  and  yields  well.  Yolo 
co.  has  also  its  quicksilver  mine,  situated  in  the  s.  w.  corner,  49  miles  from 
Woodland.  The  works  employ  150  men.  Sta  Barbara  revealed  to  the  pros- 
pector in  1860  and  1874  the  ore  of  cinnabar  in  Sta  Ynez  valley,  but  no  re- 
duction works  exist.  Colnsa,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Monterey,  San  Diego,  San 
Benito,  Plumas,  and  San  Bernardino  have  laid  claim  to  discoveries.  In 
Fresno  co.  is  the  Xew  Idria  quicksilver  mine,  whose  fame  has  been  wafted 
abroad  not  more  on  its  own  metallic  vapor  than  on  the  wings  of  rumor,  the 
property  having  been  in  litigation  for  13  years.  It  was  located  on  a  pre- 
tended Spanish  grant,  which  in  the  course  of  its  history  was  fraudulently 
bought  and  sold  several  times.  The  mine  was  at  last  sold  to  Montgomery 
Blair  of  S.  F.  for $1,000,000.  S.  F.  CltrorMe, March  19,  1876;  BalcJis  Mines  and 
Miner*,  540;  McGarrahan,  Memorial,  82;  McGarrahans  Quicksilver  Mines  of 
Panoche  Grande;  U.  S.  Sen.  Misc.  Doc.,  15,  42d  cong.,  1st  sess.;  U.  S.  Com. 
RepL,  33,  i.,  40th  cong.,  2d  sess.;  MisctUany,  iii..  No.  7,  249  pp.;  Hayes 
Scraps  Mining,  L  93;  Fresno  Expositor,  Dec.  11,  1872;  Castillo  Mem.  Azoyue, 
59-64. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL   42 


658  MINLNJ  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

of  the  California  mines  decreased  to  26,000  flasks 
in  1888,  of  which  latter  amount  fully  one  half  was 
exported.  Even  with  so  few  mines  of  this  metal  in  the 
world — the  Idria  mine  of  Austria  being  the  third 
great  producer — the  prodution  of  quicksilver  ex- 
ceeds the  demand  in  Europe  and  America,  and  only 
by  allowing  China  to  purchase  the  surplus  can  the 
price  be  kept  up  to  remunerative  figures.  Its  use  in 
this  country,  except  in  mining,  is  limited,  but  the  Chi- 
nese employ  it  in  the  preparation  of  paints  and  in 
other  ways.  A  high  tariff  is  required  to  keep  Euro- 
pean quicksilver  out  of  the  New  York  market  and 
enable  California  producers  to  pay  the  heavy  freight 
charged  by  the  transcontinental  roads. 

Iron  ore  exists  in  many  parts  of  the  state,"  but 
owing  to  the  large  amount  of  capital  required  in  work- 
ing it,  as  well  as  its  cheapness,  and  the  greater  fas- 
cination of  the  precious  metals,  it  has  been  neglected. 
California  must,  in  the  near  future,  produce  the  pig 
iron  consumed  in  her  manufactures,  and  in  supplying 
rails  for  her  many  railroads.  Ore  was  first  discovered 
on  or  near  American  river  in  1848,  and  later  in  Placer 
county,  where  it  was  of  such  purity  that  tools  were 
made  from  it  in  blacksmiths'  forges.  It  was  not  until 
1880  that  smelting  works  were  put  in  operation  for 
turning  out  pig-iron."  These  works  belong  to  the 
California  Iron  company,  whose  location  is  three  miles 
from  Clipper  gap  in  Placer  county,  and  which  owns 
13,000  acres  of  iron  and  timber  lands.  The  capacity 
of  the  works  is  15,000  tons  per  annum,  which  amount 
was  produced  in  1886. 

Copper  was  one  of  the  mining  manias  of  California, 
like  gold,  quicksilver,  and  silver.  It  was  known  to 

22  Iron  ore  is  found  in  Nevada,  Placer,  Sierra,  Calaveras,  Santa  Clara, 
Shasta,  Los  Angeles,  Napa,  Humboldt,  Alpine,  and  San  Luis  Obispo  coun- 
ties. In  Sierra  co.  it  is  chiefly  magnetic  ore.  The  ore  of  Placer  is  also 
magnetic.  Chrome  iron  is  found  in  San  Luis  Obispo  and  Sonoma  counties. 

*3As  early  as  1856  the  Gold  Hill  Mining  co.  smelted  some  iron  ore  which 
yielded  60  per  cent,  apparently  as  an  experiment,  as  no  iron  appeared  in  the 
market.  The  Clipper  Gap  mines  were  located  and  owned  by  Applegate  and 
Myrea. 


COPPER.  659 

exist  as  early  as  1840,  having  been  discovered  in 
Soledad  pass,  90  miles  north  of  Los  Angeles.  It  is 
mentioned  in  the  Califomian  in  1848  as  having  been 
discovered  "north  of  the  bay."  J.  B.  Trask,  who 
acted  as  state  geologist  from  1851  to  1854,  found  it 
in  nearlv  every  county,  his  first  observation  of  it  being 
made  in  Nevada  county,  near  a  place  called  Round 
Tent.  From  1855,  when  some  copper  ruining  was 
done  in  the  Sierra  Nevada,  on  the  old  Carson  road,  to 
1860 24  little  attention  was  given  it.  Then  came  on  a 
copper  excitement.  Men  spent  their  all  and  risked 
their  lives  in  searching  the  mountains  for  green  and 
blue  carbonates,  red  oxides,  and  shining  yellow  sul- 
phurets.  The  fever  originated  in  Calaveras  county, 
at  Salt  Spring  valley,  where  the  town  of  Copperop- 
olis  is  situated,  on  the  Union  copper  vein,  and  was 
communicated  to  every  part  of  the  state.  It  culmina- 
ted about  1863,  by  which  time  it  was  found  that  Cal- 
ifornia had  copper  enough  to  supply  the  world,  but 
that  there  was  not  capital  enough  in  the  country  to 
entice  it  from  its  native  gangue ;  or  where,  as  some- 
times happened,  it  was  nearly  pure,  to  extract  it  in 
merchantable  blocks.  Copper  is  worked  in  a  small 
way  at  one  or  two  localities,  but  the  value  of  the  an- 

*/ 

nual  output  is  not  more  than  $100,000. 

Borax  fields  exist  in  Inyo,  San  Bernardino,  and 
Lake  counties.  The  annual  yield  is  5,000,000  pounds 
from  a  tract  of  10,000  acres  in  San  Bernardino  and  Inyo. 

Salt  is  produced  from  the  waters  of  the  bay  in  Ala- 
meda  county,25  from  springs  at  the  head  of  the  Salinas 

14  The  Union  mine  at  Copperopolis  was  discovered  in  July  1860,  by  Reed. 
The  ore  was  rich,  and  was  sent  east  for  reduction,  but  the  vein  was  not  per- 
manent. About  1887  the  Copperopolis  works  were  shut  down.  CaL  Moun- 
taineer, i.  366-8;  Brown's  Res.,  207-19;  New  York  Sun  in  Panama  Star  and 
Herald,  1876.  I  find  mention  of  copper  works  in  Plumas  co. ,  in  1865,  on  Queen 
of  Uuion  mine — also  in  Mariposa  co.  in  1866. 

*•  By  John  Barton,  a  native  of  Leicester,  Mass,  were  built  the  first  and 
largest  salt-works  in  California.  Coming  to  this  state  in  1849,  nearly  twenty 
years  later,  he  began  the  manufacture  of  salt,  soon  merging  his  interests  in 
the  Union  Pacific  Salt  company,  of  which  he  is  president.  On  his  recom- 
mendation the  site  selected  was  Rock  Island,  at  the  mouth  of  Eden  creek, 
Alameda  co.  The  output  for  1888  was  14,000  tons,  distributed  all  over  the 
coast,  and  forming  nearly  one  half  of  its  total  product. 


660  MINING   AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

river  in  San  Luis  Obispo  county,  and  from  a  salt  lake 
in  Los  Angeles  county.  The  amount  marketed  is 
about  30,000  tons  annually. 

Sulphur  is  obtained  from  the  sulphur  bank  on  the 
eastern  shore  of  Clear  lake  in  Lake  county.28  It  is 
freed  from  earthy  matter  by  heat  alone,  being  finally 
purified  before  passing  into  the  molds  by  melting  in 
pots.  It  was  first  manufactured  in  1861.  Hydraulic 
cement  is  manufactured  at  Benicia,  where  the  lime- 
stone necessary  for  its  production  is  found.  About 
1,500  barrels  are  manufactured  monthly. 

Tin  was  discovered  at  Temescal  in  San  Bernardino 
county  in  1856  by  a  Mr  Sexton,  and  subsequently  re- 
ported to  be  found  also  in  Los  Angeles,  San  Diego, 
and  Siskiyou  counties.  But  it  is  a  pretty  well  estab- 
lished fact  that  this  rare  metal  is  in  such  abundance 
in  the  first  named  county  as  to  make  the  possession 
of  the  mine  a  prize  worth  contending  for.  This  im- 
portance has  been  the  occasion  of  litigation,  which 
has  been  prolonged  from  the  discovery  to  the  present 
time.  Ore  of  the  Temescal  mine  is  said  to  yield  60 
per  cent  of  tin.  The  assay  gave  97.9  metallic  tin, 
with  traces  of  antimony,  arsenic,  sulphur,  and  iron, 
and  a  residue  of  tungsten.  The  bar  so  assayed  was 
made  in  1870,  and  is  the  first  and  only  bar  of  tin  pro- 
duced in  the  United  States  from  native  ore.  That 
a  tin  mine,  for  the  discovery  of  which  congress  had 
offered  a  bounty  of  $200,000,  should  so  long  remain 
undeveloped  is  somewhat  of  a  reproach,  no  less  than 
a  drawback,  to  the  community.27 

26  An  immense  deposit  is  said  to  exist  in  Ventura  co. 

27 The  history  of  the  Temescal  tin  mine  is  as  follows:  Leonardo  Serrano, 
a  native,  claimed  a  grant  of  five  leagues  of  land  known  as  the  Temescal 
rancho,  which  claim  was  rejected  by  the  U.  S.  land  commissioners.  In 
1859,  tin  being  discovered  and  Serrano  having  died,  Abel  Stearns  purchased 
of  the  widow  whatever  right  she  had  to  the  land  occupied  by  Serrano  as  a 
settler.  The  house  of  the  widow  was  three  miles  from  the  mine,  and  Stearns 
appealed  from  the  decision  of  the  commissioners,  getting  a  reversal  of  it  in 
the  U.  S.  dist  court.  The  locators  of  the  mine  then  appealed  to  the  U.  S. 
Supreme  court,  which  restored  the  five  league  grant  to  the  public  lands  in 
1867.  Pioche  &  co.  of  S  F.  desired  to  purchase  the  mine,  but  failing,  bought 
the  San  Jacinto  rancho,  twenty-six  miles  from  the  mine,  and  endeavored  to 
float  their  purchase  to  make  it  cover  it.  Litigation  that  seems  endless  has 


COAL  AND  PETROLEUM.  661 

Coal  has  been  found  in  most  of  the  counties  near 
the  sea,  and  in  several  near  the  Sierra.  It  was  dis- 
covered in  1850  in  San  Diego,  in  1852  in  Contra 
Costa,  and  in  1854  in  Huinboldt.  The  Contra  Costa 
mines  were  slightly  worked  in  1855,  and  in  1859  had 
begun  to  produce  a  fair  proportion  of  the  domestic 
coal  used  in  the  market  of  San  Francisco.  Their  out- 
put in  1865  was  120,000  tons;  in  1881,  144,000  tons. 
Other  mines  may  have  brought  the  yearly  amount  up 
to  the  estimate  of  239,927  tons;  but  mines  hardly 
known  in  the  market  are  not  likely  to  have  added  so 
largely  to  the  output  of  the  state.  The  coal-fields  of 
Contra  Costa  have  their  principal  veins  showing  on 
the  north-east  side  of  Mount  Diablo.  Like  the  Ore- 
gon and  Puget  sound  coals,  this  is  of  recent  geologic 
origin,  but  is  superior  to  them  in  being  a  steaming 
coal  of  a  half  bituminous  character.  The  Black  Dia- 
mond, Empire,  and  Bruce  are  the  principal  mines. 

Petroleum  has  been  known  to  exist  in  some  of  the 
southern  counties  from  the  earliest  American  occupa- 
tion of  the  country.  During  the  great  oil  specula- 
tions of  Pennsylvania  this  knowledge  was  revived, 
and  a  petroleum  fever  seized  the  community,  which 
resulted  in  finding  it,  or  some  evidence  of  it,  in  almost 
all  parts  of  the  state.28  Numerous  experiments  with 
the  crude  material  have  been  made,  proving  in  general 
too  expensive  for  profit  in  a  market  where  the  eastern 
oils  are  plentiful  and  cheap.  The  most  successful  works 
are  in  Ventura  county,  where  there  is  a  steady  pro- 
followed.  In  1880  a  company  took  possession  to  work  the  mine,  but  was 
soon  driven  away,  and  no  one  yet  knows  -what  the  end  will  be. 

28  The  counties  which  have  laid  claim  to  oil  wells,  or  to  what  should  be 
oil  wells,  are  Humboldt,  where  it  was  discovered  in  1859,  and  a  flowing  well 
in  1865;  Placer,  disc'd  1859;  Sierra,  disc'd  1861;  Santa  Clara,  disc'd  1861; 
Napa,  disc'd  1865;  San  Joaquin  made  a  shipment  in  1865;  Fresno,  Siskiyou, 
Contra  Costa,  Kern;  Santa  Cruz,  disc'd  1863,  and  worked  to  some  extent 
from  1864  to  the  present;  Los  Angeles,  disc'd  on  the  first  settlement  of  the 
country,  and  worked  in  1865;  Santa,  Barbara,  disc'd  in  1862;  San  Luis  Obispo 
and  Ventura,  disc'd  about  the  same  time.  Upon  the  report  of  Prof.  Silliman 
some  eastern  parties  were  induced  to  purchase  the  Ojai  rancho  in  Ventura, 
and  several  other  properties  were  sold  for  good  prices  on  account  of  prospec- 
tive wealth  never  realized.  There  is  a  spring  under  the  sea  off  the  Santa 
Barbara  coast  from  which  the  oil  floats  on  the  water,  and  can  be  detected  by 
the  odor  iii  the  air. 


662  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

duction,  and  the  crude  oil  is  conveyed  for  63  miles  in 
iron  pipes  to  a  shipping  point  on  the  coast,  whence  it 
is  taken  to  Alameda  to  be  refined.  There  were  8,000,- 
000  gallons  manufactured  in  1884  and  a  larger  amount 
since. 

Asphaltum,  formed  by  the  evaporation  of  the  vola- 
tile part  of  petroleum,  is  very  plentiful  in  Santa  Cruz, 
Los  Angeles,  Monterey,  Santa  Bdrbara,  and  San 
Luis  Obispo  counties.  It  is  called  bitumen  and  tar 
when  found  in  a  half  fluid  condition,  and  is  used,  mixed 
with  sand,  in  making  asphalt  pavements  in  San  Fran- 
cisco. As  might  be  expected,  from  the  presence  of 
the  substances  above  named,  natural  gas  is  sometimes 
discovered  in  boring  artesian  wells,  but  it  has  not  yet 
been  much  used  for  lighting  or  heating  purposes. 

Mineral  soap — for  which  no  better  name  has  been 
suggested,  possessing,  as  it  does,  the  cleansing  quali- 
ties of  manufactured  soaps — was  discovered  as  early 
as  1849,  and  re-discovered  in  1855  at  Table  mountain, 
two  miles  from  Grass  valley  in  Nevada  county,  the 
vein  being  fifteen  feet  thick.  It  is  of  a  grayish  color, 
somewhat  rough  to  the  touch,  as  if  composed  of  sand 
compacted  with  some  oil,  is  easily  mined,  and  a  really 
good  article  of  soap,  so  far  as  its  cleansing  qualities 
are  concerned.  It  has  been  found  also  in  Sonoma, 
Santa  Bdrbara,  and  Ventura  counties.  Mineral  paint 
is  found  in  Contra  Costa  and  Sonoma  counties,  and  is 
an  article  of  commerce.  Limestone  is  not  abundant 
on  the  Pacific  coast,  but  is  found  in  Contra  Costa, 
Santa  Cruz,  and  San  Luis  Obispo  counties.  A  coarse 
marble  belt  extends  along  the  west  side  of  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  from  Mariposa  to  Butte,  a  distance  of  160 
miles.  Gypsum  is  found  in  San  Benito,  San  Luis 
Obispo,  and  Alameda  counties;  alabaster  in  San  Luis 
Obispo  county  ;  lead  in  Monterey  county  ;  manganese- 
black  oxide — in  Napa,  Marin,  and  Alameda  counties ; 
plumbago  in  Tuolumne  and  Sonoma  counties.  The  last 
named  was  discovered  in  Tuolumne  county  in  1853  by 
F,  Sc  and  H.  S.  Macomber,  who  left  it  undeveloped 


OTHER  MINERALS.  663 

until  1866,  when  by  accident  discovering  that  the  fine 
particles  cf  the  black  lead  were  more  buoyant  than 
the  earthy  matter  when  in  water,  they  were  furnished 
with  the  solution  of  the  problem  of  separating  them. 
The  Sonoma  mine  was  discovered  in  1878. 

Saltpetre  was  discovered  in  1848  in  Sonoma  county; 
asbestos  in  Plumas  county  in  1873  ;  antimony  in  San 
Bernardino  in  1856;  and  platinum,  a  scarce  metal,  I 
find  mentioned  in  1848,  and  more  recently  in  1879 ; 
also  magnesia  (sulphate)  in  1855;  and  chromium  in 
San  Luis  Obispo  in  1877,  besides  emery  in  1863;  and 
at  different  times  and  places,  mica,  alum,  (in  Alpine 
county)  chalk,  (on  the  Mokelumne  river)  silicon,  bis- 
muth, zinc,  iridium,  osmium,  obsidian,  soda,  copperas, 
chalcedony,  jasper,  agate,  topaz,  and  diamonds.29  Lith- 
ographic stone  was  found  on  the  Merced  river  in 
Mariposa  county  in  1867;  and  at  other  points  porce- 
lain clay,  soapstone,  slate,  sandstone,30  marble,31  onyx,32 

39  None  of  the  precious  stones  of  CaL  are  of  great  fineness.  A  good  many 
opals  have  been  found  which  are  marketable.  The  opal  mine  on  Mokelumne 
hill  was  worked  in  1S65,  and  the  stones  sent  to  Europe,  where  they  were 
sold  for  about  $20  a  piece.  A  diamond  excitement  was  started  in  1872,  the 
field  bein?  located  in  Wyoming  or  Colorado,  for  fraudulent  purposes.  But 
such  diam>nds  as  CaL  has  are  real  and  brilliant,  althongh  not  of  a  great 
value.  They  are  included  in  the  catalogue  of  CaL  minerals  at  the  Paris  ex- 
position of  1S73,  and  are  frequently  mentioned  in  the  C'al.  newspapers,  and 
are  spoken  of  in  the  Sdent&s  Prc&  of  March  26,  1870,  and  March  4,  1871. 
They  were  found  in  placer  mining  claims  at  Cherokee  Flat,  10  miles  from 
Oroville.  and  at  Shaw  Flat,  in  Nevada  co. 

*•  It  was  for  some  time  believed  that  building  stone  was  not  abundant  in 
CaL,  but  a  better  knowledge  of  this  class  of  resources  reveals  an  ever- 
increasing  list  of  valuable  material.  On  Angel  island  there  is  a  freestone 
quarry  of  fine  color,  homogeneous,  and  easily  worked,  which  belongs  to  the 
govt.  At  Haywards,  in  Alameda  co.,  is  another  quarry,  of  which  the  bank 
of  Cal.  and  Young  Mea's  Christian  Association  buildings  are  constructed. 
These  quarries  were  the  earliest  in  use.  Stone  quarries  are  found  at  Knight's 
Ferry,  in  Stanislaus,  and  near  Placerville,  in  El  Dorado  counties.  In  1873, 
an  immense  sandstone  deposit  was  discovered  near  San  Diego. 

31  The  first  marble  worked  in  the  state  was  by  E.  R.  Roberts  of  Stockton, 
who  established  a  marble  yard  at  Columbia,  in  Tuolnmne  co  ,  in  1857.     A 
block  of  this  stone  was  taken  out  and  dressed  for  the  Washington  monument 
in  that  year.     The  material  for  Broderick's  monument  came  from  Columbia. 
These  works,  probably  on  account  of  the  cost   of   transportation   at  that 
period,  were  closed;  but  there  was  a  rediscovery  of  marble  in  the  same  locality 
in  1863,  and  again  in  1868.     At  Iowa  Hill,  Placer  co.,  a  quarry  of  finely 
rariegated  marble  was  discovered -in  1855,  and  the  same  year  a  vein  of  gray 
marble  in  Sierra  co. ;  also  about  the  same  time  near  Suisun  bay.     Calaveras, 
Ynba,  El  Dorado,  Araador,  Monterey,  Los  Angeles,  and  Tulare  counties  all 
have  their  marble  beds. 

32  Onyx  in  bowlders  was  found  first  near  Suisnn  bay,  where  it  was  worked 


664  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

granite,33  fire-clay,  and  fire-proof  stone.  Califor- 
nia, in  common  with  the  whole  Pacific  coast,  is 
rich  in  mineral  waters  of  various  healing  qualities. 
Those  best  known  are  the  Geysers34  and  Skaggs  hot 
springs35  in  Sonoma  county,  the  Bartlett  springs36  in 
Lake  county,  the  White  sulphur  springs  of  St  He- 
out,  and  later  in  San  Luis  Obispo,  where  it  is  more  abundant.  J.  F.  Kessler 
&  Co.  of  S.  F.  own  the  mine,  which  is  in  a  slate  formation.  At  a  still  later 
period  the  quarrying  of  onyx  has  been  carried  on  in  Solano  co.,  five  miles 
north  of  Fairfield. 

33  The  granite  quarries  of  Cal.  are  several,  but  that  of  Sac.  co.  was  the 
oldest.     It  was  opened  in  1S53  by  G.  Griffith,  who  furnished  this  material 
for  the  fortifications  at  Alcatraz  and  Fort  Point,  and  for  important  buildings 
of  the  period.     In  1864,  Griffith  located  the  Penryn  quarry,  situated  three 
miles  from  Auburn  in  Placer  co.     The  quality  of  this  granite  is  equal,  if  not 
superior,  to  any  in  the  world,  being  free  from  iron,  and  never  changing  color. 
There  are  polishing  works  in  connection  with  this  quarry,  at  which  a  solid 
block  of  10  tons  can  be  polished  with  ease.     There  are  three  varieties  in  this 
place,  blue  or  dark,  white,  and  black.     The  granite  quarries  at  Folsom  were 
opened  in  1856-7,  and  worked  by  convicts  of  the  branch  state  prison.     Santa 
Cruz,  Yuba.  and  Monterey  counties.     The  miners  of  Tuolumne  co.  sent  a 
block  of  granite  as  their  contribution  to  the  Washington  monument.     In 
1864  the  legistature  agreed  with  the  Central  Pacific  R.  R.  to  grant  a  certain 
subsidy,  one  of  the  conditions  being  a  deed  of  a  tract  of  granite  land  in  Placer 
co.,  but  the  state  never  derived  any  benefit  from  the  acquisition.     There  are 
quarries  of  building  stone  in  Solano  co.,  of  slate  in  Calaveras  and  San  Luis 
Obispo,  and  of  fire-proof  stone  in  Tehama  and  Sierra  counties. 

34  Ihere  are  two  geyser  localities,  both  situated  in  a  deep  gorge  in  Sonoma 
co.  known  as  Pluton  canon,  about  1,700  feet  above  the  sea.     They  cover  an 
area  of  several  acres,  and  number  over  300.     The  temperature  of  the  water 
varies  from  200°  to  210°  Fahrenheit.     Four  miles  up  the  canon  are  the  Little 
Geysers.     Here  the  \vater  is  purer,  and  the  temperature  from  190°  to  200°. 
The  springs  hold  in  solution  a  great  variety  of  salts,  the  sulphates  of  iron, 
lime,  and  magnesia  predominating.     Sulphate  of  magnesia,  tartaric   acid, 
alum,  magnesia,  and  sulphur  are  found  in  abundance,  and  give  the  rocks  a 
peculiarly  vivid  coloring.     These  waters  are  sought  to  cure  rheumatism  and 
skin  diseases. 

35  Skaggs  Hot  springs  are  three  in  number.     The  first  is  impregnated 
with  sulphur,'  iron,   and  borax,  with  a  temperature  of  128°  to  130°.     The 
second  spring  contains  manganese,  iron,  sulphur,  and  soda,  with  a  tempera- 
ture of  138°  to  140°.     The  third  is  an  iron  spring. 

36  The  Bartlett  springs  contain  sulphur,  magnesia,  manganese,  potassium, 
and  calcium.     In  the  same  locality  is  one  nearly  ice-cold,  highly  charged  with 
carbonic  acid.     Another  called  the  Soap  spring,  is  25  feet  long,  12  wide,  and 
6  deep,  with  a  natural  wall  of  bowlders  all  around  it.     Its  tepid  waters  con- 
tain borax,  soda,  salt,  and  sulphur.     A  few  feet  distant  another  spring  con- 
tains iron,  soda,  and  chloride  of  sodium  at  a  temperature  of  85.     A  quarter 
of  a   mile   away  is  a  cold  spring,  always  bubbling  with  the  gas  escaping 
from  it. 

Lake  co.  has  also  Hot  Borax  springs  or  Borax  lake,  lying  east  of  Clear 
lake  and  separated  from  it  by  a  low  ridge.  About  a  mile  beyond  the  ridge 
are  the  sulphur  banks  before  named,  a  feature  of  great  interest  as  showing 
the  geological  formation  of  the  region  where  solfatara  is  still  going  on.  The 
banks  cover  an  area  of  about  40,000  square  yards,  and  from  beneath  them 
appear  to  flow  the  hot  borate  springs.  Id. 


MIXER.VL  SPRINGS.  665 

lena,  and  the  Calistoga  hot  springs 37  in  Napa  county, 
the  California  Seltzer  springs  in  Mendocino  county, 
the  Pacific  Congress,  and  New  Alamaden  Vichy 
springs  in  Santa  Clara  county,  El  Paso  de  Robles  in 
San  Luis  Obispo  county,*8  Montecito  hot  sulphur  in 
Santa  Bdrbara  county,39  Agua  Caliente  in  San  Diego, 
and  the  San  Bernardino  hot  springs,  although  this 
does  not  exhaust  the  li£t  of  well  known  mineral  and 
hot  springs.  Tassajara  springs,  four  miles  from  Mon- 
terey, the  Chalybeate  springs,  near  the  mouth  of 
Carmel  river,  and  Paraiso  springs, near  Soledad,are 
all  in  Monterey  county.  The  mineral  springs  at  Te- 
hachapi  and  Mojave  in  Los  Angeles  and  Kern,  the 
Tolenas  springs  in  Solano  county,  the  sulphur  and 
other  medical  waters  in  Colusa  and  Placer,  and  the 
soda  springs  in  Siskiyou  are  only  a  part  of  those  which 
really  exist  in  the  mountain  regions.  They  are  very 
suggestive  of  the  near  neighborhood  of  the  great  lab- 
oratories of  nature,  where  are  pent  up  the  forces 
which  occasionally  exhibit  themselves  in  volcanic 
eruptions  and  earthquakes. 


57  Calistoga  hot  springs,  at  the  town  of  Calistoga,  are  situated  in  the  level 
valley,  500  feet  above  sea-level,  and  surrounded  on  three  sides  by  high 
mountains.  Ihe  waters  contain  sulphuretted  hydrogen  gas,  chloride  of  so- 
dium, chloride  of  calcium,  carbonate  of  soda,  sulphate  of  soda,  sulphate  of 
magnesia,  silica,  and  alumina.  There  are  similar  springs  at  St  Helena  in  the 
same  county. 

18  El  Paso  de  Robles  (meaning  White  Oak  Pass,)  hot  springs,  are  situated 
in  a  flat  valley,  without  any  attractive  features;  The  waters  are  closely 
allied  to  the  thermal  waters  of  Aix-la-Chapelle  in  Rhenish  Prussia,  possess- 
ing the  unusual  combination  of  heat,  chloride  of  sodium,  sulphuretted  hy- 
drogen, carbonic  acid  gas,  and  an  active  amount  of  alkaline  carbonates.  It 
is  beneficial  in  gout,  chronic  rheumatism,  and  dartrous  skin  diseases,  in  con- 
traction of  the  joints,  and  old  gun-shot  wounds.  Newcom  white  sulphur 
springs,  fourteen  miles  from  San  Luis  Obispo,  and  Pecho's  springs,  fifteen 
miles  from  S.  L.  0.  and  two  from  the  coast,  are  all  in  San  Luis  Obispo  co. 

"These  springs  are  situated  at  the  head  of  a  canon  four  or  five  miles 
northeast  of  the  town  of  Santa  Barbara,  1450  feet  above  the  sea.  They  are 
seven  in  number;  four  of  which  are  nearest  the  head  of  the  canon,  having  the 
same  properties  of  free  snlphur  and  sulphuretted  hydrogen,  with  a  tempera- 
ture of  1 14°  Fahrenheit.  Another,  100  yards  west,  has  a  temperature  of  117°, 
and  its  principal  constituent  is  sulphate  of  ammonia,  sulphate  of  iron,  soda, 
potash,  and  a  trace  of  arsenic.  The  other  two  have  not  been  analyzed,  but 
have  a  lower  temperature  than  the  first  named.  These  springs  are  visited 
for  rheumatism,  skin  diseases,  contraction  of  the  joints,  paralysis,  and,  as 
an  auxilliary  in  the  treatment  of  secondary  and  tertiary  syphilis. 


666  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

California  went  through  the  excitement  of  her 
golden  era  without  a  stock  exchange.  In  1851,  when 
Fremont's  Mariposa  mine  was  placed  upon  the  Euro- 
pean market,  there  prevailed  a  mania  for  joint-stock 
mining  associations  abroad,  and  numerous  companies 
were  formed  in  London  and  Paris  with  princes  as 
presidents,  counts  and  barons  as  vice-presidents,  and 
names  followed  by  many  abbreviations  as  directors, 
which  caused  the  stock  to  be  purchased  with  avidity. 
Four  mammoth  companies  were  advertised  in  the 
London  Times,  in  one  of  which  100,000  shares  were 
quickly  taken  at  a  pound  a  share.  The  Nouveau 
Monde  mining  company,  with  a  Paris  council  of  su- 
pervision, of  which  Prince  Louis  Lucien  Bonaparte 
was  president,  Count  de  Lantivy  and  others  vice- 
presidents,  was  organized  in  France,  with  the  object 
of  working  the  Mariposa  mines  under  a  lease  from 
Fremont,  the  capital  being  5,000,000  francs  in  shares 
of  25  francs  each.  But  in  the  United  States  and 
California  this  form  of  mine  manipulation  did  not 
come  into  favor  until  the  Comstock  lode  of  Nevada 
had  been  sufficiently  prospected  to  show  its  character 
as  a  true  fissure  vein,  carrying  silver  and  gold  in 
probably  vast  amount.  Nor  did  the  need  of  an  ex- 
change then  impress  itself  on  the  public  J0  for  a  couple 
of  years,  during  which  time  shares,  which  were  then 
called  "  feet" — a  foot  representing  a  share — were 
transferred  in  the  same  manner  that  other  property 
was  bought  and  sold.  When  companies  multiplied  " 

48  The  first  mining  and  milling  company  organized  in  San  Francisco  to 
develop  a  claim  on  the  Comstock  was  the  Washoe  G.  and  S,  Mining  co.  It 
was  the  result  of  a  visit  of  Almarin  B.  Paul  to  that  region  in  March  1860. 
He  agreed  with  the  Succor  co.  for  35,000  tons  of  ore,  returned  to  S.  F.,  or- 
ganized his  company,  was  appointed  sup't,  and  set  about  constructing  a 
steam  mill.  His  example  was  imitated,  and  soon  there  were  several  mills  on 
the  Comstock,  while  the  list  of  mines  incorporated  in  Cal.  swelled  rapidly. 

41  The  li«t  of  mining  companies  located  in  the  Washoe  district  in  1860, 
were:  'Washoe  G.  and  S.  Mining  co.,' capital  stock  $500,000  in  1,000  of 
$500  each;  term  of  existence  live  years.  'Chollar  Silver  Mining  co,'  capital 
stock  $(580,003,  in  5,600  shares  of  $300  each;  term  of  existence  50  years. 
'Sierra  Nevada  Silver  Mining  co.,'  capital  stock  $1,500,000,  in  3,000 
shares  of  $500  each;  term  50  years.  '  Ophir  Silver  Mining  co.,' capital 
stock  §5,040,000,  ia  16,800  shares  of  §300  each;  term  50  years. 


THE  SAN  FRANCISCO  STOCK-BOARD. 


667 


greatly,  as  they  did  in  1861,  and  sales  were  attended 
with  a  corresponding  excitement,  feet  and  inches  were 
sometimes  sold  at  auction,  or  by  the  board  of  brokers, 
whose  business  it  was  to  dispose  of  gas  and  water 
stocks,  bonds,  notes,  and  other  securities. 

The  rapid  increase  of  mining  properties,  and  the  op- 
portunity afforded  for  deception,  with  the  growing  de- 
sire of  the  public  to  invest  in  mining  shares,  suggested 
the  establishment  of  a  stock  exchange,  where  fair 
and  legitimate  investments  might  be  made,  while  the 
market  could  not  be  governed  by  prices  created  by  the 
pretended  sales  of  one  broker  to  another,  as  had  been 
done.  Franklin  Lawton,  secretary  of  the  board  al- 
ready referred  to,  made  the  suggestion  to  some  of  his 
associates  to  form  themselves  into  a  board  similar  to  the 
New  York  Stock  Exchange,  though  he  at  first  met  with 
opposition  from  dealers  who  had  found  other  methods 

'Buckeye  G.  and  S.  Mining  co.,'  capital  stock  $280,000  in  2,800  shares  of 
$100  each;  term  50  years.  'Gould  and  Curry  Silver  Mining  co.,' capital 
stock  $2,400,000,  in  4,800  shares  of  $500  each;  term  50  years.  'Scorpion 
Silver  Mining  co.,'  capital  stock  §35,000,  in  350  shares  $100  each;  term  50 
years.  'Yankee  Silver  Mining  co.,'  capital  stock  $500,000  in  5,000  shares 
of  $100  each;  term  50  years.  These  were  all  the  companies  whose  incor- 
poration papers  were  on  file  in  July  13,  1860.  as  I  learn  by  the  S.  F.  Alia,  of 
that  date.  Their  aggregate  capital  was  §10,935,000. 

There  was  a  trading  place  for  stocks  in  1860-1  called  Olney  &  Co's 
Washoe  Stock  exchange,  where  James  N.  Olney  had  his  first  regular  auction 
sale  Jan.  14,  1861,  although  stock  had  been  sold  there  in  I860.  I  find  a  no- 
tice of  a  report  made  in  December  of  that  year  as  follows:  '  Dec.  29,  1860. 
Mining  stocks  of  all  descriptions  have  been  for  ten  days  past  quite  inactive. 
The  interruption  by  storms  of  communication,  both  by  express  and  telegraph, 
with  the  mining  locations  on  the  eastern  slope,  has  had  much  effect  in  sus- 
pending operations  in  this  market.  The  following  may  be  considered  as  the 
present  ruling  rates  for  the  prominent  stocks: 

Ophir ."$825  to  $850  per  foot. 

California. 550  to    600 

Gould  &  Curry 325 

Chollar 70  to  75 

Lucerne 85to90 

St  Louis 50 

Boston .    20 

Hope 20 

Sucker 14  to  16 

Rogers 8  to  10 

Lady  Bryan. 6to    8 

At  the  first  regular  sale  in  Januarv.  1S61,  'a  very  large  company  was 
present,  and  a  considerable  amount  of  Washoe  and  E;ineralda  interests  were 
disposed  of  at  fair  prices. '  None  of  the  principal  Comstock  stocks  were  of- 
fered, except  Gould  i  Curry  at  §282  per  share  of  three  inches. 


Sales  limited. 
Little  offered. 
Assess 'ts  unpaid. 

"        paid. 
Dull  sales. 


668  MINING  AND   MINING  STOCKS, 

profitable,  and  also  from  owners  of  mining  property, 
who  feared  that  speculation  would  be  increased  by  it. 

The  first  meeting  was  held  on  the  8th  of  September 
at  428  Montgomery  street,  when  a  committee  was 
chosen  to  draft  a  constitution  and  by-laws,  namely: 
John  Perry,  Jr,  T.  C.  Sanborn,  Henry  Critcher,  Rob- 
ert C.  Page,  David  Henriques,  and  Wm  W.  Law- 
ton."  On  the  12th  the  by-laws  were  reported,  and, 
with  some  modifications,  adopted.  This  was  the  be- 
ginning of  an  association  which  has  witnessed  the 
making  of  many  fortunes  and  the  undoing  of  more ; 
which  is  revered  as  the  pantheon  of  the  gods,  or 
reviled  as  an  assembly  of  demons,  according  as  the 
prices  of  stocks  ascend  or  descend  the  ever  sliding 
scale.  This  is  the  San  Francisco  Stock  and  Exchange 
board. 

In  1872  business  had  so  increased  that  the  eighty 
members,  to  which  the  first  exchange  was  limited,  were 
not  considered  sufficient  to  properly  conduct  all  the 
daily  transfers  of  stock,  and  a  second  board  was  or- 

47  The  members  of  this  board  were  charged  a  fee  of  $100,  but  paid  only 
$50  at  first,  as  they  confined  their  operations  to  a  small  room  in  Montgomery 
block,  furnished  with  a  plain  table  in  horse-shoe  form,  with  desks  for  the 
president  and  secretary.  The  first  members  were:  J.  Perry,  Jr,  F.  C.  San- 
born,  S.  Heydenfedt,  Geo.  R.  Barclay,  H.  C.  Logan,  Robert  C.  Page,  C.  H. 
Wakelee,  Joseph  Grant,  J.  B.  E.  Cavallier,  S.  C.  Bruce,  P.  C.  Hyman, 
Henry  Critcher,  P.  B.  Cornwall,  N.  A.  Watson,  Wm  L.  Higgins,  E.  J.  de 
Santa  Marina,  Simon  Mayer,  Franklin  Lawton,  D.  C.  Williams,  Henry 
Schmiedell,  H.  P.  Wakelee,  D.  W.  Teacle,  O.  Abbott,  R.  E.  Brewster,  A. 
Marius  Chapelle,  E.  Dupre,  A.  J.  Shipley,  R.  K.  Sinton,  T.  A.  Talbert, 
Wm  Willson  Lawton,  Frank  M.  Pixley,  David  Henriques,  Wm  H.  Parker, 
Wm  R.  Garrison,  J.  Downe  Wilson,  A.  Van  Lokeren,  Charles  K.  Smith. 
As  business  increased  new  applications  for  membership  were  received,  and 
it  was  resolved  to  limit  the  number  to  80,  and  to  increase  the  fee  to  f 250 — 
then  to  $500 — and  finally  to  $1,000.  Finding  themselves  restricted  for  want 
of  space,  after  several  removes  they  finally  secured  a  room  in  the  new  Mer- 
chant's Exchange  building  on  California  street  between  Montgomery  and 
Sansome,  taking  stock  in  the  building  to  the  amount  of  $20,000.  But  even 
here  they  were  crowded,  and  again  changed  their  quarters  to  Duncan's 
building,  4114  California  street,  where  they  remained  until  Oct.  1877,  when 
they  took  possession  of  their  present  elegant  Exchange  building  on  Pine 
street.  The  Board  room  here  is  70  feet  6  inches  squace  with  the  ceiling  55 
feet  high.  It  has  100  seats,  and  a  gallery  for  spectators,  and  a  special  one 
for  ladies.  In  1876  a  siirplus  of  $65,000  was  divided  among  the  members. 
The  price  of  seats  previous  to  1872  had  risen  to  $3,000;  since  then  it  has 
been  as  high  as  $40,000.  In  the  early  practices  of  an  inexperienced  board  no 
charge  was  made  for  entering  a  mine  upon  their  list,  and  calling  it  during  a 
session;  but  now  a  fee  of  $6,000  is  required.  The  style  of  recording  tran- 


OTHER  STOCK-BOARDS. 


669 


ganized,  called  the  California  Stock  and  Exchange 
board.43  In  1875  a  third,  the  Pacific  Stock  Exchange,44 
was  formed,  the  former,  now  defunct,  being  called  "the 
little  board,"  to  distinguish  it  from  the  San  Francisco 

sactions  is  shown  by  the  following  extract  from  the  books  of  the  board  in  the 
beginning: 

Friday,  September  26th,  1862. 


SELLER 


BUYER 


QUALITY 


STOCK 


PRICE 


TIME 


Perry              Logan            §500.00      Starr  $387.50 

Marina            Sanborn         10  feet       Chollar  185.00 

Perry               Pixley            50  shares   Mt.  Davidson  8.00 

Saturday,  September  27th, 

Perry               Logan            5  shares      Cal.  Navig'n  $39.50 
Monday,  September  29tli,  1832. 

Perry              Logan             $3,000       S.  F.  Bonds  $70.50 

Wilson            Perry               6  feet         Esmeralda  50.00 

Tuesday,  September  30th,  186t. 

Logan              Cavallier         50  feet         Dessert  $  12.50 

Sanborn           Cavallier         10  feet         Potosi  187.00 

Wednesday,  October  1st,  1862. 

Marina                Cavallier         15  feet      Chollar  $175.00 

E.H.Wakelee      Mayer              10  feet      Sierra  Nev.  140.00 

Perry                   Shipley          20  shares  Mt.  Davidson  6.50 

Logan                  Perry               10  feet      Merideth  20.00 

Logan                  Hyman        362^  feet      Merideth  20.00 

Perry                   Sauborn          7  shares   Bousley  Wa-  35.00 

terCo. 


43  The  California  Stock  and  Exchange  Board  was  organized  in  Jan.  1872, 
soon  after  the  development  of  the  Crown  Point  and  Belcher  mines,  which 
caused  a  lively  market,  by  an  association  of  40  men,  many  of  whom  were 
experienced  brokers.     The  membership  was  limited  to  70,  which  number  of 
seats  was  quickly  taken,  but  reduced  afterwards  to  62.     The  sales  during 
the  first  year  amounted  to  $16,000,000.     The  total  sales  down  to  July  1876 
were  $80,000,000.     The  constitution  and  by-laws  were  nearly  identical  with 
the   older  association.     Seats  in  this  board  were  valued  at  from  $1,000  to 
$2,000.   Id.,  33.     It  suspended  operations  in  1880.  Mining,  520-1. 

44  The  Pacific  Stock  Exchange  consists  of  80  members,  each  of  which  paid 
in  at  the  start  $5,000,  making  a  cash  capital  of  $400,000.     As  much  as 


670  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

Stock  and  Exchange,  or  "old  board."  The  Pacific 
board  endeavored  to  associate  the  most  active  opera- 
tors on  the  coast,  and  embraced  a  scheme  for  loaning 
money  on  mining  securities.  Half  the  members  were 
selected  from  the  California  board,  then  in  the  height 
of  its  prosperity.  The  members  of  these  boards  are 
honorable  men,  and  the  stock-brokers  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, whether  members  of  boards  or  not,  are  gener- 
ally honest,  although,  as  in  every  other  business,  some 
men  have  been  sucked  into  the  maelstrom  of  excite- 
ment and  gone  down,  sinking  their  own  and  their  cli- 
ents' means  in  hopeless  depths  of  ruin.  It  is  the 
privilege  of  the  broker  to  make  a  commission,  whether 
he  buys  or  sells,  and  when  he  keeps  to  his  commis- 
sions he  is  ordinarily  sure  to  make  a  fair  income.46 
Often  he  knows  no  more  of  the  value  of  a  mine  than 
the  least  informed  of  his  clients ;  and  equally  as  little 
of  the  impending  rise  or  fall  of  any  stock  on  the  list 
of  the  boards.  In  the  great  gamble  *6  going  on  he  is 

$10,000  was  offered  for  a  seat  in  this  board.  It  held  its  first  meeting  for  the 
purchase  and  sale  of  stocks  in  the  Halleck  building,  on  the  corner  of  Sansome 
and  Halleck  streets,  June  7,  1875.  It  had  already  purchased  for  $325,000 
the  property  now  owned  by  the  association,  on  which  has  been  erected  a 
handsome  edifice  fronting  on  Leidesdorff  street,  extending  back  to  Montgom- 
ery, and  communicating  with  an  exquisitely  ornamented  rotunda,  and  that 
with  a  spacious  vestibule,  elaborately  decorated,  opening  on  Montgomery 
street.  It  was  opened  May  15,  1876,  and  the  day's  sales  amounted  to 
$288,000.  The  charges  for  placing  a  mine  on  the  list  of  the  Pacific  Stock 
Exchange  are  §500,  with  a  renewal  fee  of  $100,  to  be  paid  annually.  The 
constitution  and  by-laws  are  the  same  in  effect  as  those  of  the  San  Francisco 
Stock  and  Exchange  board. 

*  Sc/imeidetfs  Statement,  MS.,  5. 

46 There  is  a  perfectly  bewildering,  and,  to  the  uninitiated,  unintelligible 
scene  enacted  every  day  at  the  stock -boards,  something  like  this:  The  signal 
to  commence  the  day's  operations  is  a  metallic  bang!  clang!  bang!  '  Call  the 
roll,'  says  the  chief  magician  from  his  curtained  dais.  Another  metallic 
banging,  then  '  Ophir '  is  shouted  by  the  caller.  Instantly  there  is  a  rush 
of  brokers  to  the  pit  in  front  of  the  dais.  Shouts,  yells,  gesticulation,  and 
bellowing  go  on,  for  a  moment  only.  What  they  cry  is  the  number  of  shares 
they  will  sell  or  buy,  and  '  sell  'em  cash,' '  sell  'em  reg'lar, ' ' sell  'em  seller  30. ' 
To  sell  for  cash  means  that  the  stock  must  be  delivered  and  paid  for  before 
2  P.  M.  the  same  day.  To  sell  'regular '  means  delivery  on  the  following  day. 
To  'buy  or  sell  30'  means  that  the  buyer  or  seller  has  30  days  to  deliver  or 
demand  the  stock.  Most  brokers  buy  stocks  regular,  and  hold  them  as 
required,  charging  a  heavy  interest,  the  customer  paying  such  'margin'  as 
the  broker  demands,  from  20  to  50  per  cent  of  the  price  of  the  stock.  Should 
it  fall,  the  buyer  must  put  up  more  money  (mud,  it  is  termed)  to  keep  up  the 
margin,  or  the  stock  is  sold  at  his  risk.  Should  the  stock  of  a  '  buyer  30' 
rise  the  day  after  purchase,  he  has  a  right  to  demand  it,  or  the  difference  in 


STOCK-GAMBLING.  671 

merely  the  irresponsible  agent,  unless,  as  is  frequently 
the  case,  he  borrows  from  the  banks  to  carry  the 
stocks  of  his  customers  on  a  margin,  when,  if  they 
have  a  rapid  decline,  he  may  become  involved  with 
his  principal. 

There  have  been  many  individual  fraudulent  trans- 
actions in  mines,  chargeable  to  the  greed  and  rascality 
of  mining  impostors,  who  have  even  gone  abroad  for 
their  victims;  but  this  is  a  matter  separate  and  apait 
from  the  "gambling  deals"  in  the  stock  market. 
Knowing  the  wealth  hidden  in  the  mineral  veins  of 
the  coast,  the  people  were  always  looking  for  some 
great  development,  and  were  only  too  willing  to  be 
deceived  by  their  hopefulness.  The  silver  mines  on 
the  Comstock  were  at  first  a  great  mystery  and  a 
great  promise.  When  their  managers — manipulators, 
they  are  called — caught  the  hint  given  by  the  faith 
of  the  people,  they  conceived  the  scheme  of  trading 
upon  it.  In  1863*  Gould  and  Curry  sold  for  §6,300  a 
foot ;  Ophir  $2,700  ;  Savage  $4,000  ;  Hale  and  Nor- 
cross  $2,100;  Chollar  $1,000,  and  so  on.  These 
prices  were  dependent  on  the  reported  yield  of  a  rich 
ore-body  in  Gould  and  Curry,  and  when  it  was  showing 
signs  of  exhaustion  the  better  informed  threw  their 
stock  on  the  market,  creating  a  panic.  This  was  the 
cause  of  loss  to  thousands  who  had  followed  the  lead 
of  the  rich  stockholders  in  buying,  but  could  not  fol- 
low it  in  selling  because  the  market  was  broken. 
Losses  of  this  nature  usually  inspire  a  desire  for  re- 
trieval through  the  same  medium,  and  the  lesson  of 
1863  had  little  effect  in  discouraging  stock  specula- 
tion. Again  shares  were  multiplied,  until,  instead  of 
representing  a  foot  on  a  vein,  a  share  might  only  rep- 

the  price  at  which  he  bought  it,  and  the  quotation  at  the  board  that  day. 
When  one  stock  has  been  called,  the  brokers  retire,  and  another  is  shouted 
out.  Perhaps  it  is  'Consolidated  Virginia.'  In  an  instant  Babel  is  let  loose 
again,  and  the  pit  is  fall  of  stamping,  pushing,  pulling,  yelling,  roaring 
stock  fiends.  Bat  only  for  a  moment,  and  so  on,  to  the  end  of  the  list.  An 
hoar  or  less  has  passed,  bat  millions  have  changed  hands,  and  the  telegraph 
has  flashed  the  intelligence  across  the  continent,  and  through  the  Atlantic  to 
Europe, 


672  MIXING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

resent  the  thickness  of  a  sheet  of  paper.  But  people 
purchased  them  nevertheless,  paying  the  prices  fixed  by 
the  manipulators,  and  the  real  gambling  spirit  showed 
itself.  In  June  1871  Crown  Point  sold  for  $6,000  a 
foot.  In  the  previous  November  it  was  selling  at  $3 
a  share.  The  discovery  was  made  of  a  body  of  ore  of 
fine  quality  which  was  afterward  found  to  extend  into 
Belcher,  the  adjoining  mine,  but  was  not  announced  to 
the  share-holders,  until  one  capitalist  had  quietly  pur- 
chased 5,000  shares,  and  1,000  shares  had  been  secured 
by  another.  Then  the  news  was  suffered  to  be  made 
known,  and  the  price  advanced  rapidly.  The  princi- 
pal buyer,  with  the  object  of  controlling  the  board  of 
directors,  kept  on  purchasing  all  the  shares  within 
reach  until  with  the  last  4,100  shares  at  $300  he  had 
paid  $1,230,000  for  his  interest  in  the  mine.  There 
were  but  600  feet  in  the  mine,  divided  into  12,000 
shares,  and  the  price  paid  was  at  the  rate  of  $6,000  a 
foot.  There  was  but  a  fraction  of  an  inch  in  these 
shares ;  whereas,  by  and  by,  there  was  but  a  line,  if 
that.  Being  so  very  attenuated,  what  did  it  matter 
whether  there  were  any  mine  at  all  except  the  name 
on  the  stock  list  ?  Soon  afterward  a  small  body  of 
ore  was  uncovered  in  the  Savage  mine,  which  is  lo- 
cated almost  in  the  centre  of  the  Com  stock  lode. 
And  now  ensued  one  of  the  most  frantic  stock  excite- 
ments ever  witnessed  on  the  Pacific  coast.  It  was 
believed  that,  when  depth  was  attained,  the  ore-body 
in  the  Crown  Point  would  be  found  to  extend  the 
entire  length  of  the  lode,  and  the  prices  of  shares 
advanced  accordingly,  often  rising  $20,  $30,  or  even 
$50  in  a  day,  Crown  Point  selling  for  over  $1,800  a 
share,  Belcher  over  $1,500,  with  others,  as  Savage  at 
over  $700,  in  proportion.  The  stock -gambling  mania 
extended  throughout  every  portion  of  the  coast,  and 
pervaded  all  classes  of  society,  the  merchant,  the 
farmer,  the  mechanic,  the  laborer,  and  the  professional 
man  all  taking  part  in  the  frenzied  rush  for  sudden  and 
easily  acquired  riches.  The  prices  of  these  lines  were 


STOCK-GAMBLING. 


673 


very  well  sustained  "  until  April  1872,  and  then  came 
a  crash  in  which  the  value  of  silver  stocks  declined 
$60,000,000  in  ten  days.  The  capitalist  above  re- 


a  Here  is  a  table  of  prices,  bullion,  assessments,  and  dividends  for  the 
month  of  October  1869,  with  comparative  totals  for  the  years  1866,  1867, 
1868,  and  1869  for  the  same  month. 


Highest 
Price 

Lowest 
Price 

Bullion 

Assess- 
ments 

Divi- 
dends 

Sales  of 
Stock 

Alpha  

$  15.00 

§  10.00 

Belcher  

16.00 

11  00 

$  26,000 

Bullion  

15.00 

15.00 

Crown  Point..  .  . 
Confidence  

17.00 
25.00 

11.50 
20.00 

90,000 

Chollar-Potosi.. 
Daney.  ....... 

17.00 
1.00 

13.50 
1.00 

$108,070 

8,000 

$  28,000 

Exchequer  

7.50 

3.50 

Empire  

36.00 

15.00 

7,523 

Gould  &  Curry  . 
Gold  Hill  Quartz 
Hale  &  Norcross 
Imperial  

77.50 
30.00 
141.00 
37.00 

66.50 
27.00 
116.00 
28.00 

28,933 
2,629 
110,116 

Ken  tuck. 

180.00 

112.50 

143,381 

Lady  Byron  .... 
Occidental  
Ophir... 

13.00 
13.50 
22.00 

8.00 
9.50 
13.00 

33,600 

Overman  

125.00 

77.50 

12,820 

S^g'ated  Belcher 
Savage  .  . 

8.50 
51  00 

5.00 
37.50 

31,271 

6,400 

Sierra  Xevada.  . 
Yellow  Jacket  . 

18.50 
43.00 

7.00 
35.00 

16,100 
150,000 

7,500 

Total  in  1869.  .  . 

$610,843 

$164,000 

§  35,500 

£69,089,731 

Total  in  1868.  .  . 

535,164 

106,000 

120,000 

115,943,119 

Total  in  1867... 

1,079,799 

205,000 

240,000 

66,274,577 

Total  in  1866.. 

1,032,713 

164,620 

167,000 

32.835,893 

Commercial  Herald  and  Market  Jteview,  Jan.  14th,  1870. 

In  another  table  I  find  the  statement  of  the  annual  product,  assessments 
and  dividends  for  the  above  years  as  follows: 


Years 

Bullion  Product 

Dividends 

Assessments 

1869 
1868 
1867 
1866 

$  7,265,378 
8,499,769 
13,626,062 
11,732,100 

$1,  175,000 
2,415,000 
3,991,000 
1,754,000 

§1,419,000 
1,825,000 
1.296,000 
1,194,820 

Of  the  mines  which  produced  over  one  million  in  1869  there  were  only 
four,  Chollar-Potosi,  Hale  &  Norcross,  Savage,  and  Yellow  Jacket.  It  will 
be  observed  that  the  assessments  in  this  year  more  than  equalled  the  divi- 
dends, notwithstanding  the  production  should  have  covered  all  expenses. 
The  discrepancies  are  not  less  marked  in  the  other  years. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  43 


674  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

ferred  to48  was  credited  with  a  gain  of  $25,000,000, 
and  a  few  others  with  enormous  profits." 

In  this  case  the  rise  was  due  to  the  actual  discovery 
of  a  new  ore-body  in  Belcher  and  Crown  Point  simul- 
taneously with  rich  discoveries  in  the  Pioche  district, 
but  the  fact  of  these  developments  could  not  have 
affected  the  market  'to  such  a  degree  had  it  not  been 
for  the  manipulation  of  the  great  dealers,  in  collusion 
with  the  banks.  Every  preparation  was  made  to  lead 
the  credulous  public  to  their  fatal  plunge.  In  this  the 
speculators  were  assisted  by  certain  newspapers,  af- 
fecting to  give  authentic  reports  of  the  condition  and 
prospects  of  the  mines.50  But  these  journals  were 
not  in  the  secrets  of  the  manipulators  any  more  than 
those  to  whom  they  gave  false  advice. 

Early  in  the  history  of  the  Comstock,  the  bank  of 
California,  under  the  management  of  W.  C.  Ralston, 
sent  its  confidential  agent,  William  Sharon,  to  Nevada. 
The  result  of  the  policy  pursued  was  that  mining  was 
made  possible  that  otherwise  would  have  been  impos- 
sible. Money  was  advanced,  and  stock  taken  as  se- 
curity. Before  1872  the  bank  of  California  held 
shares  enough  to  control  most  of  the  prominent  mines, 
and  by  means  of  this  control  could  govern  the  opera- 
tions of  the  mills,  even,  it  w*as  alleged,  loaning  money 
to  mill-men,  and  afterwards  refusing  to  give  them  the 
custom  of  the  mines,  until  they  fell  into  bankruptcy 
for  want  of  employment.  In  1875,  Sharon  was  pres- 
ident of  the  Union  Mill  and  Mining  company,  which 
owned  16  quartz-mills,  of  a  value  of  from  $15,000  to 
$300,000  each,  aggregating  $1,200,000.  The  water- 
works at  Virginia  City,  valued  at  $7,000,000,  and  the 

48  Alvinsa  Hayward. 

49 Sharon,  of  the  bank  of  California,  was  said  to  have  mads  $20,000,000, 
C.  A.  Low  $10,000,000,  and  J.  P.  Jones  the  same. 

5(3  The  Daily  Stock  Report  was  established  in  18G3,  being  the  oldest  daily 
paper  of  its  class  on  the  entire  Pacific  coast.  It  was  small  at  first,  but  was 
a  financial  success  from  the  start,  and  is  now  a  large  quarto  sheet,  filled  with 
official  lists  of  the  stock  sales  at  all  the  boards,  \he  latest  intelligence  from 
the  mines  (which  may  be  true  or  false),  and  the  freshest  rumors  about  stocks. 
It  purports  to  be  conservative.  The  proprietors  in  1887  were  Win  M.  Bunker 
and  A.  C.  Hiester. 


THE  BANK  OF  CALIFORNIA.  675 

Virginia  and  Truckee  railroad,  worth  $3,000,000,  were 
under  the  control  of  the  president  of  a  bank  whose 
nominal  capital  was  only  $5,000,000.  What  wonder 
that  he  fell  into  the  pit  he  himself  had  dug  for 
others.  The  property  held  as  security  by  the  Cali- 
fornia bank  amounted  to  $25,000,000.  The  milling 
business  was  almost  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the 
Union  Mill  and  Mining  company;  the  railroad  con- 
trolled the  timber  and  wood  necessary  for  the  mines 
and  mills;  and  there  was  little  connected  with  the  Corn- 
stock  that  was  not  owned  by  the  institution  presided 
over  by  Ralston  except  the  Sutro  tunnel.  To  believe 
that  a  stock  mania  ever  came  on  without  being  pre- 
determined by  the  holder  of  so  much  mining  estate 
was  to  be  blind  and  credulous  to  the  point  of  resign- 
ing the  reasoning  capacity. 

But  a  day  of  reckoning  was  at  hand  for  the  bank 
of  California;  it  was  to  be  beaten  at  its  own  tactics. 
In  1873,  notwithstanding  the  tumble  of  1872,  while 
Crown  Point  and  Belcher  were  paying  large  dividends, 
the  Virginia  Consolidated  commenced  dividing 

O  O 

$300,000  monthly  among  its  share-holders.  In  the 
following  year  a  drift  run  from  the  1,200-foot  level  of 
the  Gould  &  Curry  disclosed  a  large  body  of  rich  ore, 
which  further  exploration  showed  to  be  from  300  to  400 
feet  in  width.  In  December  1874  a  professional  ex- 
pert,51 and  one  well  acquainted  with  the  Comstock,  said: 
"  I  assert  that  there  is  already  shown  in  the  two  mines, 
California  and  Consolidated  Virginia,  $1,500,000,000 
of  ore.  I  make  the  assertion,  and  am  willing  to  stand 
by  it.  I  think  it  will  be  perfectly  safe  to  say  that 
the  ore  will  average  $200  per  ton;  I  have  examined 
drifts  150  feet  in  ore  that  averaged,  ton  per  ton,  as  it 
was  taken  out,  $500.  I  should  say  the  Consolidated 
Virginia  and  California  are  worth  at  least  $5,000  per 
share ;  that  is,  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  amount  of 
money  will  be  paid  out  in  dividends.  I  have  been 

61  Philip  Deidesheimer. 


676  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

mining  twenty-four  years,  or  most  of  rny  lifetime.  I 
am  very  careful  about  my  statements."  It  is  proba- 
ble that  while  thus  so  vastly  overestimating  the  ex- 
tent and  richness  of  the  bonanza,  the  expert  stated  only 
what  he  believed  to  be  the  truth.  Superintendent  Fair 
reported  at  the  close  of  1874:  "The  quality  of  the  ore 
is  of  very  high  grade,  and  far  exceeds  in  value  any  ever 
removed  from  the  Comstock.  The  quantity  now  ex- 
posed to  view  is  almost  fabulous.  .  .  .  The  quality 
and  quantity  of  ore  developed  in  the  mine  the  past 
year  far  exceeds  in  value  that  of  any  mine  which  has 
ever  come  under  my  knowledge  or  observation." 

Seeing  endless  dividends  in  prospect,  all  classes 
were  eager  to  possess  shares  in  the  great  bonanza, 
which  rose  in  value  $10,  $20,  and  $30  a  day,  and  on 
one  occasion  as  much  as  $100  at  a  single  session  of  the 
board.52  The  oldest  operators  were  deceived,  because 
the  amount  of  bullion  so  far  produced  had  really  ex- 
ceeded that  of  any  of  the  Comstocks,  and  no  one 
doubted  the  integrity  of  the  men  who  controlled  it. 
As  the  event  proved,  they  were  themselves  greatly 
deceived  as  to  the  value  of  the  mine.  The  scenes 
at  the  stock  exchanges  at  this  period  and  for 
the  first  weeks  of  1875  were  weird  in  their  excite- 
ment, the  brokers  crying  one  to  another,  like  the  un- 
seemly harpies  of  Dante's  hell,  every  cry  carrying  the 
Comstock  higher.  Not  only  at  the  exchanges,  but 
on  the  street,53  the  wild  bidding  for  fortune's  favors 

52  The   Consolidated  Virginia  mine  was  divided  into  10,700  shares,  its 
length  being  1,310  feet.     The  firm  of  Flood  &  O'Brien,  Mackay,  and  Fair 
bought  up  a  majority  of  the  shares  at  $4  to  $9.     (For  a  history  of  the  rela- 
tions of  these  men,  see  my  Hist.  Nevada. )     The  property  was  divided  into 
two  mines,  Consolidated  Virginia  and  California,  with  108,000  shares  each. 
Subsequently  the  mines  were  divided  into  540,000  shares  each.     Nobody 
cared  now  about  the  ground  conveyed — it  was  the  object  to  share  in  the 
division  of  what  the  mine  contained. 

53  One  of  the  means  of  stock  gambling  pursued  in  S.  F.  in  1876  was  by 
puts  and  calls.     A  '  put '  is  a  contract  with  a  firm  of  brokers  whereby  the 
purchaser  of  the  privilege  agrees  to  pay  a  dollar  a  share  for  all  that  the  stock 
may  fall  in  the  market  during  the  next  15  days,  the  price  started  from  being 
from  one  to  ten  per  cent  below  the  market  price  on  the  day  of  purchase.     A 
'  call '  is  the  reverse  of  this;  it  is  the  privilege  of  a  rise  that  is  given.     But 
as  the  price  fixed  in  either  case  is  so  much  above  or  below  the  market  rate 
that  the  buyer  has  little  hope  of  reaching  a  higher  or  lower  point,  he  gener- 


THE  BONANZA   MINES.  677 

went  on,  and  at  almost  every  dining-table  in  the  city 
the  day's  advances  in  stock  were  canvassed  anew. 

In  January  1875  the  receipts  from  Consolidated 
Virginia  were  $1,001,400;  in  February  §1,200,000; 
in  March  $1,705,600;  in  April  $1,509,000;  in  May 
$1,521,000;  in  June  $1,502,000;  in  July  $1,604,000, 
or  over  $15,000,000  in  seven  months.  The  prices  of 
all  shares  on  the  Comstock  were  carried  far  beyond 
their  real  value,  and  although  fluctuating,  were  for  a 
time  sustained  by  the  developments  in  the  bonanza 
mines.  At  the  highest,  in  January,  California  brought 
$780  per  share,  the  stock  then  being  divided  into 
108,000  shares.  Consolidated  Virginia  brought  over 
$700.  In  February  California  was  divided  into  540.- 
000  shares,  fluctuating  for  some  weeks  between  $G9 
and  $46.  This  was  a  falling  off  in  value  from  $84,- 
240,000  to  $37,260,000,  and  then  to  $24,840,000. 
Meanwhile  Comstock  values  had  declined  more  than 
$100,000,000,  shrinking  $42,600,800  in  a  single  week. 

The  decline  resulted  from  a  variety  of  causes,  chief 
among  which  was  the  natural  reaction  which  inevita- 
bly follows  undue  inflation.  A  few  months  later  the 
depression  was  further  intensified  by  the  failure  of  the 
bank  of  California,  whose  president  had  long  been  in 
the  unsuspected  agonies  of  approaching  ruin,  brought 
on  by  his  too  generous  treatment  of  others  and  his 
own  unauthorized  speculation  with  the  funds  of  the 
bank.  On  the  26th  of  August,  1875,  the  bank  closed 
its  doors,  and  on  the  following  day  Ralston's  dead 
body  was  taken  from  the  water  at  North  Beach.  The 
whole  city — indeed,  the  whole  state,  and  Nevada  as 
well — mourned  the  dead  king  of  the  Comstock. 
Whatever  the  faults  of  Ralston,  they  felt  that  he 
had  intended  to  befriend  the  community  in  which  he 
lived;54  but  being  only  mortal,  he  had  not  been  able 

ally  loses  his  investment.  However,  two  S.  F.  firms  were  compelled  to  sus- 
pend on  account  of  the  extreme  fluctuations  of  this  year,  which  sunk  all 
their  capital. 

M  Besides  the  numerous  projects  in  Nevada  in  which  Ralston  was  inter- 
ested, he  was  instrumental  in  building  the  dry-dock  at  Hunter's  Point,  Mis- 


678  MINING  AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

to  keep  out  of  the  strong  current  of  speculation,  which, 
like  a  tidal  wave,  had  swept  the  fair  land  of  California. 

Largely  through  the  efforts  of  Sharon,  the  affairs 
of  the  bank  were  rehabilitated,  and  within  a  few  days 
the  directors  had  decided  to  resume  business.  Mean- 
while the  stock-boards  suspended  operations  for  a 
period  of  two  months.  In  October  the  bonanza  firm 
opened  the  bank  of  Nevada  in  San  Francisco,  with  a 
capital  of  $10,000,000 — afterward  reduced  to  $3,000,- 
000 — and  with  Flood  for  president.  The  Nevada 
bank  then  became  the  support  of  the  stock  market, 
and  for  a  time  confidence  was  maintained,  at  least  in 
the  Consolidated  Virginia  and  California  mines. 

While  since  1874-5  there  have  been  periodical 
stock  excitements,  as  that  of  1878,  when,  under  pre- 
tended developments,  Sierra  Nevada  rose  to  $280  a 
share,  and  Union  Consolidated  to  $170,  with  others 
in  proportion,  the  former  almost  without  a  ton  of  pay 
ore  in  sight,  of  late  such  excitements  have  grown  less 
frequent  and  less  pronounced.  Nor  could  this  well 
be  otherwise  when  it  is  considered  that,  with  two  or 
three  trifling  exceptions,  no  Comstock  mine,  apart 
from  Consolidated  Virginia  and  California,  has  de- 
clared a  single  dividend  in  all  the  long  interval  between 
1874  and  1890.  Of  the  two  bonanza  mines  the  out- 
put of  the  former,  between  1873  and  1880,  in  which 
latter  year  it  ceased  to  be  largely  productive,  was 
$64,974,816,  of  which  $42,930,000  was  disbursed  in 
dividends.  Of  California,  the  yield  from  1 876  to  1 8 80 
—the  extraction  of  ore  on  a  large  scale  beginning  in 
the  former  year— was  $46,742,256,  with  $31,320,000 
in  dividends.  Thus  out  of  a  total  product  of  $111,- 
717,072  for  the  two  mines,  $74,250,000,  or  about  two- 
thirds  of  the  entire  amount,  was  distributed  among 
the  stockholders,  a  larger  proportion  than  has  fallen 
to  their  share  from  any  mine  on  the  Cornstock,  if  not 
on  the  Pacific  coast 

sion  woollen  mills,  S.  F.  sugar  refinery,  West  coast  furniture  factory,  Cornell 
watch  factory,  California  theatre,  Grand  and  Palace  hotels,  and  iu  reclaim- 
ing Sherman  island,  with  many  minor  works  of  benefit  to  the  public. 


A  NEW  BONANZA.  679 

A  few  years  after  the  exhaustion  of  the  great 
bonanza,  the  two  mines  were  consolidated,  and  the 
number  of  shares  reduced  from  1,080,000  to  216,000, 
as  before  the  subdivision  in  1875.  Meanwhile,  from 
over  $700  in  January  of  that  year  the  stock  declined 
to  twenty-five  cents  in  1885.  And  now  came  still 
another  of  those  transitions  which  have  marked  the 
history  of  the  Comstock  lode.  Early  in  1886  deep 
mining  was  for  the  time  abandoned,  and  the  lower 

^j  ' 

levels,  some  of  them  being  then  at  a  depth  of  3,000 
feet,  were  allowed  to  fill  up  with  water,  for  the  pub- 
lic would  no  longer  pay  assessments,  nearly  every 
stock  on  the  list  selling  below  a  dollar  a  share.  But 
a  few  months  later,  at  the  very  time  when  every  one 
had  lost  faith  in  the  future  of  the  great  lode,  another 
bonanza  was  unearthed,  and  again  in  the  ground  of 
Consolidated  Virginia,  whose  stock  rose  to  over  $60 
a  share,  with  others  in  proportion,  though  followed 
soon  afterward  by  the  usual  collapse.  From  this 
new  ore  body  several  millions  had  been  extracted, 
and  nearly  $3,400,000  disbursed  in  dividends  up  to 
the  spring  of  1890,  when  the  ore  body  showed  signs 
of  exhaustion,  or  was  at  least  deteriorating  in  quality. 
In  other  mines,  as  Confidence,  and  Hale  and  Norcross, 
smaller  bodies  of  pay  ore  were  disclosed,  and  in  nearly 
all  was  low-grade  quartz,  long  known  to  exist,  yield- 
ing from  $10  to  $20  a  ton. 

From  1860  to  1890  the  total  yield  of  the  Comstock, 
most  of  its  shares  being  held  in  California,  may  be 
estimated  at  some  $350,000,000,  from  which  has  been 
paid  in  dividends  a  total  of  about  $130,000,000,  offset 
by  assessments  of  nearly  half  that  amount.56 

"The  legislature  of  1877-3  referred  a  bill  'to  encourage  mining  in- 
dustry, and  to  suppress  stock-gambling,'  to  a  committee,  which  reported  on 
these  subjects  at  length.  It  proposed,  among  other  things,  to  suppress  stock- 
gambling  by  breaking  up  the  practice,  on  the  part  of  mining  officials,  of 
keeping  secret  information  about  the  mines  for  stock -jobbing  purposes,  and 
by  requiring  dealers  in  stocks  to  pay  a  license  \ipon  all  purchases  and  sales 
of  stock,  which,  it  was  believed,  would  operate  as  a  check  upon  fictitious 
purchases  and  sales,  '  by  which  mainly  the  disastrous  stock  operations  are 
carried  out.'  This  report  says:  'These  corporations  have  become  so  pow- 
erful that  they  have  disregarded  their  obligations,  and  seein  to  act  upon 


680  MINING   AND  MINING  STOCKS. 

The  exhaustion  of  the  old  ore  bodies  and  the  dis- 
covery of  others  have,  of  course,  been  attended  with 
extreme  changes  in  the  price  of  stocks.  It  may  be 
stated  approximately  that  from  a  total  value  of  more 
than  $300,000,000  in  January  1875,  the  market  price 
of  shares  in  the  Comstock  mines,  over  6,000,000  in 
number,  sank  to  $2,000,000  or  less  in  the  spring  of 
1885,  rose  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  to  $60,- 
000,000  or  $70,000,000,  and  in  April  1890  had  de- 
clined to  $6,000,000  or  $7,000,000.  There  are  still 
those  who  hold  shares  in  mines  which  they  believe  to 
be  in  bonanza,  but  which  neither  pay  dividends  nor  do 
anything  to  put  money  into  the  hands  of  stockholders. 
This  class  of  traders  are  anxious  for  a  lively  market, 
no  matter  how  produced,  in  order  to  sell  above  what 
their  shares  have  cost  them.  We  have  only  to  glance 
over  the  columns  of  the  daily  journals,  where  whole 
pages  are  filled  with  notices  of  mining  meetings,  as- 
sessments, and  sales  of  forfeited  shares,  to  obtain  some 
estimate  of  the  amount  of  capital  furnished  by  the 
community  for  the  support  of  mining  companies,  few 
of  which  make  any  return.56 

the  theory  that  they  have  gained  a  right  by  prescription  to  do  wrong. 
Almost  every  mining  corporation  has  a  credit  mobilier  for  milling  ores  or  fur- 
nishing supplies  at  prices  fixed  at  little  regard  to  the  interests  of  stock- 
holders. It  is  within  the  experience  of  almost  every  citizen  of  this  state, 
that  in  the  purchase  of  mining  shares  he  takes  a  greater  risk  upon  the  hon- 
esty and  efficiency  of  the  management  of  the  corporations  than  he  does  upon 
the  product  and  profit  of  the  mines.  Indeed,  it  is  notorious  that  most  of 
them  are  manipulated  more  with  a  view  to  making  money  out  of  the  public 
than  out  of  the  mines.  Mines  that  were  reasonably  worth  a  few  hundred 
thousand  dollars  have  been  sold  at  the  stock-boards  for  millions.  After 
the  stock  has  been  thus  floated,  assessments  have  been  levied,  month  after 
mouth,  and  year  after  year,  ostensibly  to  develop  the  mines.  In  this  way 
the  mining  corporations  formed  under  the  laws  of  this  state  have  collected 
within  the  last  three  years  assessments  as  follows:  1875,  $11,880,000;  1876, 
$11,608,000;  1877,  $11, 598, 000  =  $35,086,000, '—nearly  a  million  a  month,  or 
more  than  all  the  taxes  raised  in  the  state  during  the  same  time  for  state, 
county,  and  city  governments. 

66  In  my  Hlstoi-y  of  Nevada  will  be  found  brief  biographies  of  the  bonanza 
quartet— J.  C.  Flood,  W.  S.  O'Brien,  J.  G.  Fair,  and  J.  W.  Mackay— also  of 
W.  Sharon,  J.  P.  Jones,  P.  Deidesheimer,  and  others,  whose  career  is  more 
or  less  associated  with  the  history  of  the  Comstock  lode.  The  following  are 
a  few  of  the  more  prominent  men  who  are  or  have  been  connected  with  min- 
ing, mining  companies,  and  mining  stock-boards,  though  from  want  of  space 
the  names  of  many,  such  as  W.  M.  Lent,  R.  Sherwood,  and  the  late  VV.  B. 
Bourne,  have  been  omitted  from  this  chapter: 


MINING  MAGNATES.  681 

The  well-known  mining  magnate,  John  D.  Fry,  or,  as  his  friends  preferred 
to  call  him,  Colonel  Fry,  in  allusion  to  his  early  exploits,  was  born  at  Ghent, 
Ky,  July  15,  18i9,  and  thrown  early  upon  his  own  resources.  Recognizing 
his  dash  and  firmness,  an  uncle,  Gen.  Fry,  sheriff  of  Green  co.,  111.,  appointed 
him  deputy  at  the  early  age  of  16.  Four  years  later  he  was  elected  to  suc- 
ceed him,  and  then  served  as  recorder,  and  was  twice  chosen  for  the  legisla- 
ture. In  1849  he  arrived  in  Cal.  in  the  company  of  Sharon,  with  whom  he 
formed  a  lasting  friendship,  acting  as  his  business  partner.  He  held  the  posi- 
tion of  special  agent  for  the  post-office  dept  of  the  Pacific  coast  from  1853  to 
1860,  when  he  resigned  to  devote  himself  to  mining  enterprises,  to  which  he 
brought  both  theoretic  and  practical  knowledge.  In  1868  he  was  chosen 
president  of  the  Crown  Pt  and  Belcher  mines,  which  under  his  supervision 
yielded  their  famous  'bonanzas.'  In  later  years  he  turned  his  attention  to 
Alaskan  mines. 

Among  others  who  became  wealthy  by  timely  purchases  of  Crown  Point, 
Belcher,  the  bonanza,  and  other  mining  shares,  is  E.  J.  Baldwin,  the  pro* 
prietor  of  the  hotel  which  bears  his  name.  A  native  of  Ohio,  he  came  to 
CaL  in  1853,  and  after  a  varied  experience  turned  his  attention  to  real  estate 
and  mining-stock  operations,  finding  the  latter  more  to  his  taste.  Mr  Bald- 
win is,  however,  a  large  real  estate  owner,  his  Santa  Anita  ranch  in  Los 
Angeles  co.,  where  is  his  country-seat,  being  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in  the 
state.  That  which  men  have  termed  his  good  luck  is,  in  fact,  the  result  of 
the  rare  judgment,  foresight,  and  enterprise  with  which  he  is  gifted. 

To  the  members  of  the  San  Francisco  stock-board  and  to  the  leading  men 
in  financial  circles,  the  name  of  J.  W.  C'oleman  is  familiar  as  that  of  one  who, 
to  use  his  own  phrase,  'has  prospered  by  attending  strictly  to  his  own  busi- 
ness.' A  Kentnckian  by  birth,  he  came  to  this  coast  in  1854,  and  after 
working  for  three  years  at  the  mines  in  Amador  co.,  was  appointed  manager 
of  the  Alta  California  Telegraph  co.  In  1870  or  1871  he  formed  a  partner- 
ship with  James  R.  Keene,  with  whom  he  entered  largely  into  mining-stock 
operations.  In  1876  he  was  elected  president  of  the  'old  board,'  and  under 
his  supervision  was  erected  the  building  on  Pine  st,  already  referred  to.  In 
1885  he  was  chosen  president  of  the  North  Pacific  Coast  R.  R.,  and  in  the 
same  year  president  of  the  Union  club. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  Comstock  excitement,  one  of  the  first  to  arrive  on 
the  ground  was  George  Hearst,  a  practical  miner  from  Mo.,  his  native  state. 
Coming  to  CaL  in  1850,  he  worked  at  the  Placerville  mines  with  indifferent 
success,  but  afterward  became  wealthy  through  timely  purchases  on  the 
Comstock.  After  losing  his  fortune  a  few  years  later,  mainly  through  the 
dishonesty  of  his  associates,  he  gradually  became  a  large  owner  in  some  of 
the  richest  mines  in  Cal.,  Utah,  and  Dakota,  among  others  in  the  Ontario. 
On  the  death  of  Senator  Miller  he  was  chosen  to  fill  the  vacant  seat,  and 
afterward  elected  for  the  full  term  ending  in  1S93. 

Among  the  most  prominent  mining  men  in  northern  CaL  is  A.  C.  Busoh, 
a  Hanoverian  by  birth,  who  came  to  this  state  in  1855,  and  soon  afterward 
purchased  an  interest  in  and  developed  the  Gold  Bluff  quartz  mine.  In 
1870-1  he  opened  the  Rising  Sun  gravel  mine,  at  Logan ville,  and  in  1883,  in 
conjunction  with  G.  H.  O.  Sunderhaus,  located  and  began  to  develop  the  Young 
America  mine. 

G.  H.  O.  Sunderhaus,  who  is  a  native  of  Sierra  co.,  Cal.,  and  of  German 
extraction,  his  parents  being  Prussians  by  birth,  has  been  engaged  in  mining 
and  milling  since  the  days  of  his  boyhood.  From  the  Young  America  mine, 
which  he  helped  to  locate  and  develop,  nearly  $500,000  had  been  extracted 
up  to  the  close  of  1885,  the  ore  averaging  about  $24  per  ton. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

PROGRESS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 
1857-1889. 

CITY  AND  COUNTY — FRASER  RIVER  EXCITEMENT — TRAFFIC  AND  IMPROVE- 
MENTS— STREET  RAILWAYS— EFFECT  OF  FLOODS,  EARTHQUAKES,  AND 
OVERLAND  RAILWAY — EVIL  INFLUENCE  OF  POLITICIANS— STOCK  AND 
LABOR  EXCITEMENTS — INFLATIONS  AND  DEPRESSIONS — FUTURE  OF  THE 
METROPOLIS. 

I  HAVE  space  only  for  a  brief  review  of  the  leading 
events  in  San  Francisco  since  bringing  the  city's 
annals  down  to  1856  in  the  previous  volume.  As  a 
rule,  the  city  more  than  keeps  pace  with  the  country 
in  material  progress,  but  for  some  time  prior  to  1889 
there  was  evidently  an  inclination  to  rest,  and  let  the 
country  display  its  capabilities,  which  was  done  in  a 
remarkable  degree. 

As  the  chief  seat  of  manufacturing  industries,  and 
as  the  commercial  and  social  capital,  not  alone  of 
California,  but  of  the  Pacific  coast,  the  city  pulsates 
in  sympathy  with  the  fluctuations  around,  while  ex- 
hibiting in  particular  the  effects  of  changing  trade 
currents.  Thus,  the  growing  production  of  food  arti- 
cles, by  diminishing  imports  and  traffic  with  the  great 
entrepot,  combined  with  the  decline  in  placer  mining 
to  bring  about  the  crisis  of  1854-5.  The  wane  of 
flush  times  had  given  an  incentive  to  the  disorders 
which  called  into  existence  the  vigilance  movement  of 
1856,  and  all  these  served  to  check  the  hitherto  rapid 
advance  in  population  and  prosperity. 

In  1858  occurred  the  Eraser  river  mining  excite- 

(C82) 


THE  ERASER  RIVER  EXCITEMENT.  G83 

ment,1  which  within  four  months  carried  away  over 
15,000  hardy  men,  the  forerunners  of  thousands  more 
prepared  to  follow.  As  it  was,  many  interior  towns 
lost  half  their  population,  some  faded  utterly  away, 
and  at  San  Francisco  real  estate  declined  fully  one 
half.2  Even  the  staunchest  quailed  under  the  predic- 
tion that  California  would  pale  before  the  new  El  Do- 
rado, where  Victoria  was  rising  as  the  new  metropolis 
of  the  coast.  In  August  began  the  return  of  the  de- 
luded host  of  gold-seekers,8  and  the  city,  which,  en 
the  whole,  had  been  a  gainer  by  the  traffic,  rapidly 
came  forward  under  the  reaction  in  favor  of  California, 
encouraged  also  by  the  settlement  of  land  titles  within 
the  city. 

The  tide  of  prosperity  received  another  impulse 
from  the  Union  war,  which  brought  a  large  influx  of 
people  from  the  troubled  east,  stayed  the  usual  out- 
flow, and  decided  many  wavering  spirits  to  make  their 
home  here.  Further,  by  cutting  off  many  sources  fcr 
supplies,*  it  gave  the  greatest  encouragement  to  estab- 
lishing and  expanding  manufacturing  industries,  whk  h 
mostly  concentrated  at  San  Francisco,  as  possessing 
the  cheapest  and  largest  amount  of  available  labor, 
mechanical  talent,  machinery,  coal,  and  other  ad- 
juncts.5 

The  flood  of  1862  induced  a  large  number  of  wealthy 
people  to  settle  in  this  city,  and  the  perfected  com- 
munication with  Oakland,  and  with  San  Jose  by  rail- 


1The  fever  raged  during  April- Aug.;  15,088  left  S.  F.  in  112  vessels,  ac- 
cording to  Cust.  Ho.  Hepts,  while  Price*  Current  places  the  number  at  over 
23,000. 

-In  many  parts  it  was  offered  'for  a  song.'  Gamiss'  S.  F.,  MS.,  20.  In 
the  interim  an  abatement  of  80  per  cent  was  common.  Many  merchants  and 
professionals  prepared  to  transfer  their  business  to  Victoria. 

3  Who   must  have   lost  fully  89,000,000  in  direct  sacrifices  of  time  and 
money,  not  counting  depreciation  in  estate. 

4  Partly  by  war  prices,  and  the  increased  freight  and  risk  for   shipments 
under  the  pursuit  of  cruisers;  partly  by  higher  tariff  on  foreign   goods,  for 
revemie. 

5  Not  the  least  being  Chinese  labor,  without  which  certain  manufactures 
could  never  have  l>een  sustained.     This  gave  the  great  expansion  to  China- 
town.    The  manufacturing  interests  of  S.  F.  rose  by  1880  to  an  assessed 
value  of  more  than  §67,000,000. 


684  PROGRESS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

way,  proved  fresh  avenues  for  profit,6  so  that  building 
operations  and  improvements  of  all  kinds  were  rapidly 
advanced,  notably  the  water- works,7  the  first  street 
railway,8  and  soon  after  a  paid  fire  department,  which 
has  acquired  a  reputation  for  efficiency.' 

After  the  war  came  a  slight  reaction,  to  which  con- 
tributed the  earthquake  of  1865,19  the  imposition  of  a 
considerable  debt  through  official  neglect  in  water-lot 
sales  of  1853,11  and  the  several  efforts  to  despoil  the 
city  of  its  land  and  water-fronts,  upon  the  expiration 
of  the  wharf  leases.12  But  the  lull  speedily  ended, 

6  While   improved   overland   communication  lessened  the  isolation  and 
remoteness. 

7  For  which  charter  and  permits  were  granted  in  1857-  8.   Cal.  Statutes,  1858, 
254;  S.  F.   Water -works,  Charter;  Id.,  Rates;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1875-6,  app.  61. 
From  the  so-called  Spring  valley  the  sources  were  extended  to  Pilarcitos, 
San  Andreas,  etc.     By  1876  the  official  map  recognized  7  distributing  reser- 
voirs, the  chief  being  Lake  Honda  at  the  almshouse,  capacity  32,900,000  gal- 
lons; and  the  College  hill,  of  15,000,000;  total  61,150,000  gallons.     The  high 
rates  of  the  company  led  in  1872,  etc.,  to  several  rival  projects,  notably  to 
bring  water   from    Calaveras  valley,  which  was  offered  by  speculators  for 
$10,OJD,000,  but  nothing  came  of  it.  S.  F.  Munidp.  Rept,  1874-5.  613;  Aitu 
OJ,L,  Feb.  1-6,  1872;  Bowman's  Water  Co. 

8  The  omnibuses  to  the  mission,  along  the  Mission  and  lower  parallel 
streets,   Wllliinvf  Stat.,  MS.,  14,  were  overshadowed  in  July  1860  by  a  steam- 
car  along  Market,   which  street  had  just  been  opened.  Altu  Cal.,  Jan.  26, 
July  6,   18i>0;  S.  F.   Bull,  July  2,  1860.     The  first  horse  railway  was  the 
Omnibus  line,  founded  in  1861  by  P.  Donohue.  Stat.,  MS.;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen., 
1833-4,  app.  3t.     Oiher  lines  followed  rapidly,  one  to  Potrero,  across  the 
bri.lge  in   1867.  S.  F.  Times,  May  6,  1867.     The  Clay  street  cable-road  was 
the  first  of  its  kind,  in  1873.  S.  F.  Chron.,  Aug.  3,  Nov.  1,  1873.     The  Market 
street  cable-line,  with  its  numerous  branches  to  the  park  and  to  28th  st,  is 
now  the  most  extensive.     Railroad  to  the  ocean  opened  in  1883.   S.  b\  Post, 
Nov.  26,  1883;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Sept.  29,  1885. 

9  Serving  to  ensure  confidence  in  the  predominating  wooden  structures. 
The  volunteer  dept  was  abolished  in  Dec.  1866,  greatly  to  the  relief  of  the 
city,  which  had  long  chafed  under  the  corrupt  admixture  of  vagabonds  and 
political  tools  introduced  therein  of  late.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Apr.  27,  1865;  Dec.  3, 
1866;  Alt:i  Cal.,  Jan.  7,  1864;  Jan.  2,  1884.     Telegraphic  alarms  were  planned 
in    1853.  S.    F.   CM,    EJec.   3,    1863.     Fire   patrols   are   added.     The   S.  F. 
Munidp.  Rept  of  1884-5  enumerates  15  engines,  9  hose  and  4  truck  companies, 
witii  330  men,  receiving  $217,500  in  pay.     Since  then  has  been  an  increase. 
S.  F.  Fire  Dept  Scraps,  14  et  seq. ;  Coast  Review,  passim. 

"  Oct.  8th.  It  merely  cracked  a  few  weak  walls,  yet  the  shock  frightened 
away  many  people,  and  depressed  real  estate. 

11  Sea  chapter  on  S.  F.,  preceding  vol. 

^They  began  to  expire  early  in  the  sixties,  though  partly  prolonged 
against  10  per  cent  of  gross  receipts.  For  disputes  and  revenue,  see  S.  F. 
Munidp.  Repts,  1859-60,  167-8,  1861-2,  259  et  seq.  By  1866  the  city  had 
control  of  the  water  front.  The  subsequent  management  is  noticed  in  Cal. 
Jmr.  Sen.,  1869-70,  app.  10,  38;  1877-8,  app.  20,  74:  S.  F.  Chamber  Com. 
Rjpt,  1870,  15-28,  etc.;  Hayes  Cal.  Notes,  iii.,  pt  140;  Moore's  Vix.,  MS.,  7- 
8.  Prior  to  this  the  wharf  companies  had  combined  to  plan  a  stone  bulkhead, 


RAILROAD  TERMINI  6S5 

under  the  large  immigration,13  the  rapid  unfolding  of 
San  Joaquin  valley  as  a  wheat  region,  and  the  hopes 
buoyed  upon  the  progress  of  the  transcontinental  rail- 
way, so  much  so  that  the  earthquake  of  1868,  the 
most  serious  ever  felt  at  San  Francisco,  left  only  a 
momentary  impression.14 

The  expectations  based  on  the  railway  proved  illu- 
sive, however.  The  city  had  neglected  to  manifest 
any  substantial  interest  in  such  enterprises  because  of 
her  isolated  peninsular  position,1'  leaving  the  Central 
Pacific,  completed  in  May  1869,  to  make  its  terminus 
at  Sacramento,  with  the  evident  prospect  of  seeking  a 
bay  port,  either  at  Oakland,  through  the  Western 
Pacific,  or  at  "Vallejo,  through  the  California  Pacific. 
The  recognition  of  these  facts  led  to  a  panic  in  San 
Francisco  real  estate,  which  had  been  rising  since 
1858  to  inflated  prices.1'  Vallejo,  on  the  other  hand, 
rose  exultantly,  boasting  of  its  superior  natural  har- 

requesting  in  aid  a  grant  of  the  water  front  for  50  years.  The  legislature 
assented,  despite  the  popular  outcry,  bnt  Gov.  Downey  fortunately  vetoed 
the  bilL  CaL  Jour.  Sen.  and  Ass.,  1859-60;  S.  F.  BuUdieml  Bill,  etc.,  a  series 
of  pro  and  contra  arguments,  petitions,  and  reviews;  Parson's  Bulkhead,  1— 
93;  S.  F.  JfisceL,  ii.  6-67,  1-60;  S.  F.  Bull,  Feb.  21,  Mar.  5-11,  1859;  Apr. 
18,  1860.  One  result  was  several  wharf  improvements,  particularly  by  the 
Pacific  Mail  S.  S.  co.  In  1867  a  stone  wall  for  a  part  of  the  water  front  was 
contracted  for,  and  of  late  years  the  sea-walls  have  been  constructed  near 
the  mission  cove  and  at  North  Beach.  S.  F.  Mwiidp.  Rept,  1866-7,  506  et 
seq. ;  S.  F.  Seawall,  l-3b;  Robin-ion  8  Kept,  7;  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1867-8,  app.  14, 
18;  1871-2,  app.  12,  etc.;  Crane's  Rept,  1-16.  The  harbor  has  been  improved 
bv  the  removal  of  Blossom  rock,  in  1870,  the  Rincon  rock,  etc.  U.  S.  6? jr.  Dx., 
51st  cong.,  2d  sess.;  U.  S.  Sen.  Misc.  Doe.,  146;  Id.,  41,  43d  cong.,  1st  sess.; 
Id.,  Rept  CJiiefEny.,  1868,  383,  etc.;  Alia  CaL,  Apr.  24,  1870;  Overland,  xv., 
401-7;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Oct.  11,  1885. 

13  The  largest  since  flush  times,  1868  showing  a  gain  of  35,000,  of  which 
S.  F.  had  its  share. 

14  A  dozen  weak  buildings  were  rendered  untenable,  5  lives  were  lost  by 
falling  bricks,  and  some  injuries  were  received  through  exaggerated  fears. 
The  shock  occurred  Oct.  21.     See  S.  F.  BulL,  Call,  etc.;  Great  Birthqitalx, 
1-16,  with  synopsis  of  damages.     The  earliest  recorded  quake  here  was  a 
severe  shock  in  1839,  as  described  by  C.  Brown,  in  S.  F.  Call,  Dec.  21,  1877. 
Shocks  in   1851,  1854,  and    1856.  S.  F.   Herald,  May  16.  Dec.  27-8,  1S51; 
Oct.  22,  1854;  Jan.    3,   Feb.    16,   1856;  BulL,  Feb.  15,  Oct.  11,  1856;  Golden 
Era,  Jan.  6,  Sept.   1,  1855,  May  11,  1856.     Slight  tremors  have  been  fre- 
quent.    A  full  list  of  all  notable  quakes  is  given  in  Hayes'  Nat.  PJienom.,  iii. 
66-83;  Id.,  Etna.  Note,  678-723. 

15  Yet  in  1864  it  was  decided  to  subscribe  for  $1,000,000  P.  R.  stock;  this 
was  compromised  for  a  gift  of  $450,000  to  the  Central  and  §250,000  to  the 
Western  Pacific,  without  any  stock. 

16  Especially  in  the  suburbs,  much  of  whLh  has  not  yet  recovered.     The 
panic  itself  survived  still  m  1872. 


686  PROGRESS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

bor,17  at  the  outlet  of  the  great  valley  rivers,  of  its 
fine  level  site,  its  fertile  surroundings,  and  proximity 
to  the  rich  interior.  These  advantages  had  attracted 
the  attention  even  of  foreign  capitalists,  who  in  1868 
opened  the  road  between  Sacramento  and  Vallejo, 
extended  it  to  Marysville,  bought  the  Napa  and  Pet- 
aluma  lines  as  adjuncts,  and  also  the  boats  of  the 
California  Steam  Navigation  company,  establishing 
communication  with  San  Francisco  of  so  fast  and  su- 
perior a  character  as  to  absorb  and  retain  nearly  all 
its  Sacramento  traffic.  Vessels  began  to  come  here 
in  large  numbers,  and  the  population  increased  so 
rapidly  that  Vallejo  in  1871  had  reached  the  third 
position  in  the  state,  with  the  prospect  of  further  ad- 
vances under  proclaimed  plans  for  extending  railway 
traffic  in  all  directions.18  Now,  the  Central  Pacific 
railway  company,  taking  alarm,  purchased  a  control- 
ling interest  in  the  California  Pacific,  reduced  it  to 
subordinate  appendage,  gave  the  preference  to  the 
Western  Pacific,  which  in  1869  had  been  merged  in 
the  Central  and  completed  to  Oakland,  and  left  Va- 
llejo to  stagnation.19 

The  suppression  of  this  rival  served  only  to  em- 
bolden the  other,  Oakland.  A  long  pier  facilitated 
connection  across  the  bay,  but  the  railway  company 
proposed  to  extend  it  to  Yerba  Buena  island,  making 
this  their  terminus.20  The  metropolis  succeeded  in 
defeating  the  scheme,  which  undoubtedly  would  have 
been  of  value  to  the  state  and  to  trade,  saving  to  both 

17  Where  ships  of  any  size  could  unload  at  the  very  shore  almost. 

18  Even  to  Salt  Lake,  to  rival  the  Central  Pacific. 

19  When  the  flood  washed  away  its  connection  with  Marysville  this  was 
abandoned  in  favor  of  the  Central  Pac  main  line. 

20  Congress  appeared  favorable,  and  S.  F.  was  roused  to  strenuous  efforts 
against  the  bill,  supported  fortunately  by  military  and  coast  survey  engineers, 
who  exaggeratingly  declared  the  island  necessary  for  military  purposes,  and 
a  bridge  connection  a  dangerous  obstruction  to  bay  currents  and  tidal  area, 
and  consequently,  in  time,  to  the  bay  entrance  itself.     The  Atlantic  and  Pac 
co.  sought  to  avail  itself  of  the  prevailing  fear  to  obtain  a  $10,000.000  sub- 
sidy from  S.  F.,  promising  to  open  a  main  line  to  it;  but  the  danger  passed. 
Another  counter  movement  was  suggested  in  a  railway  bridge  across  the 
bay,  either  from  Hunter's  Po.,  to  cost  $15,000,000,   or  preferably  from  Ra- 
venswood,  to  cost  $3,000,000, 


OAKLAND  v.  SAN  FRANCISCO.  637 

» 

much  inconvenience  and  cost,  although  at  the  expense 
of  the  city  at  the  Gates. 

Although  Oakland  gained  one  point,  in  the  im- 
provement of  her  creek  harbor,"  and  also  in  her  ex- 
traordinary growth  as  a  residence  suburb  for  San 
Francisco,  the  latter  became  practically  the  terminus, 
with  the  aid  of  superior  ferry  traffic,  which  embraced  the 
transport  of  freight-cars  by  special  boats.  The  Cen- 
tral Pacific,  moreover,  planted  its  offices  here.  All 
this  was  certainly  no  equivalent  for  the  absorption  of 
residents  by  neighboring  towns,  and  of  trade  by  the 
railway,  which  henceforth  carried  most  of  the  passen- 
gers and  finer  goods  that  used  to  come  and  leave  by 
steamer,  and  gave  a  large  part  of  their  distribution  to 
interior  points.  Several  bay  harbors  joined  besides 
with  Vallejo  in  securing  the  larger  share  of  the  wheat 
shipments.  Nevertheless,  the  city  received  its  quota 
of  the  increasing  unfoldrnent  of  resources  and  of  an 

O 

immigration,  which,  within  three  years,  added  50  per 
cent  to  the  cultivated  acreage  of  the  state."  The 
opening  in  1876  of  the  railway  to  Los  Angeles  brought 
increased  tribute  to  the  metropolis,  and  assisted  to 
check  the  rival  aspirations  of  San  Diego,  the  only 
port  to  the  south. 

A  considerable  current  of  wealth  had  been  flowing 
since  the  early  sixties  from  the  silver  mines  of  Ne- 
vada, the  returns  of  which,  being  mostly  owned  by 
San  Franciscans,  were  applied  here  to  the  erection  of 
fine  buildings  and  to  the  support  of  trade  and  art." 

zl  Appropriations  began  in  1874,  and  amounted  by  1881  to  over  §300,000. 
So  far  little  use  baa  been  made  of  the  harbor,  but  hope  is  still  entertained, 
stimulated  by  the  rapid  growth  in  population  of  all  the  district  adjoining 
the  harbor.  See  the  chapter  on  Birth  of  Towns. 

^  In  1S75  there  was  a  net  gain  of  64,000  out  of  107,000  arrivals  in  Cali- 
fornia, the  largest  since  1852,  when  the  gain  was  44,000.  In  1865  and  1866 
it  had  fallen  to  4,000,  and  in  1871  to  10,000.  By  1877  it  again  abated  to 
18,000. 

23  The  comparative  fiasco  in  the  White  Pine  deposits  found  compensation 
in  Crown  Pt  and  Belcher  bonanza,  which  advanced  the  market  price  of  the 
silver  stock  in  1S72  from  §17,000.000  to  881,000,000  within  5  months.  Yet 
this  was  eclipsed  by  the  Consolidated  Virginia  bonanza,  including  the  Cali- 
fornia, which  rose  from  little  over  §100,000  in  1871  to  §150,000,000  in  1874. 
The  Comstock  paid  during  the  20  year3  ending  1830  more  than  §120,000,000 


688  PROGRESS  OP  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

On  the  other  hand,  they  fostered  a  gambling  mania 
which  led  to  the  impoverishment  of  a  large  proportion 
of  the  inhabitants,  while  keeping  them  on  the  verge 
of  hopeful  excitement.  This  contributed  greatly  to 
impart  a  glowing  inaugural  to  the  centennial  year  of 
the  Union,  which  was  also  that  of  San  Francisco, 
cradled  in  the  mission.24 

Building  operations  and  other  signs  of  prosperity 
received  a  rude  check  from  the  drought  of  1877,2a  as- 
sociated with  a  diminished  number  of  visitors,  a  col- 
lapse in  the  silver  mines,  and  an  attendant  financial 
crisis.36  This  tended  to  inflame  the  spark  transmitted 
by  the  contemporaneous  labor  riots  in  eastern  states, 
and  to  rouse  the  large  class  of  sufferers  from  the  de- 
pression to  a  threatening  attitude.  Their  animosity 
turned  against  the  competing  Chinese,  and  burst  forth 
on  July  23,  1877,  into  lawless  proceedings,  which  re- 
sulted in  the  burning  of  one  Mongolian  laundry  and 
the  sacking  of  several  others,  amid  the  threats  of  agita- 
tors to  drive  out  all  such  cheap  workers.  Composed  as 

in  dividends,  of  which  over  $70,000,000  from  Cons.  Virginia  and  Cal.,  and 
§25,000,000  from  Crown  Pt  and  Belcher.  The  gross  yield  was  far  greater, 
reaching  $90,000,000  for  the  latter  in  1874.  But  large  amounts  were  levied  in 
assessments,  chiefly  for  comparatively  worthless  mines,  although  much-of  it 
was  retained  in  S.  F.  for  rents,  salaries,  and  machinery  to  swell  the  tribute 
derived  from  interior  stock  gamblers. 

24  The  centennial  celebration  of  which  was  celebrated  on  Oct.   8th  with 
orations  and  procession.    S.  F.  Centennial.  Several  conspicuous  improvements 
marked  this  period,  as  the  Palace  hotel,  one  of  the  largest  structures  of  this 
kind  in  the  world,  and  the  foremost  of  the  27,000  buildings  then  existing  in 
S.  F.,  of  which  4,390  of  brick;  1,600  houses  were  erected  in  1876.     Mont- 
gomery avenue  was  opened  to  connect  North  Beach  with  the  central  parts, 
a  measure  which  should  have  entered  into  the  original  plan  of  the  city,   to 
modify  materially  her  subsequent  expansion.  In  1877Dupout  st  was  widened 
to  relieve  Kearny  st,  and  open  several  cross  streets  to  trade.     The  new  city 
hall  was  also  partly  occupied.     Details  on  improvements  in  S.  F.  Munitip. 
Kepts,  1872-3,  488,  1876-7,  1025  et  seq;  Palace  Hotel,    1-16.     The  new  mint 
had  recently  added  its  embellishment.     Real  estate  sales  reached  in  1875  the 
high  figure  of  $36,000,000  against  $27,000,000  and  $30,000,000  for  1868-9. 
the  former  highest.     By  1877  they  fell  to  $19,000,000.     Concerning  some  of 
the  homestead  associations  which  promoted  expansion,   see  Cal  Jour.   Sen., 
1875-6,  app.  28. 

25  Which  affected  most  severely  the  southern  counties,  with  their  inflated 
land  valuation. 

'26  Affecting  several  savings  banks.  Confidence  had  been  shaken  in  1875 
by  the  suspension  of  the  bank  of  Cal.,  followed  by  the  partial  destruction  by 
fire  of  Virginia  city,  which  caused  a  loss  of  $5,000,000,  and  lowered  stocks 
by  $35,000,000.  Nearly  all  fell  upon  S.  F. 


BUSINESS  DEPRESSION.  689 

the  city  was  of  very  combustible  structures,  with  some 
300  Chinese  laundries  interspersed,  the  alarm  became 
general,  so  much  so  that  the  vigilance  committee  of 
1856  was  revived,  with  6,000  members,  whose  appear- 
ance and  patrolling  sufficed  to  restrain  the  turbulent  fac- 
tion. Little  additional  damage  was  done,  but  the 
indirect  injury  to  both  state  and  city  amounted  to 
huge  proportions,  in  keeping  back  immigration,  re- 
ducing the  value  of  real  estate,  checking  improve- 
ments, and  driving  away  capital.  The  depression 
lasted  for  several  years.  In  1881,  however,  came  a 
sudden  trade  revival,  which  contributed  to  impart  a 
healthy  tone  to  the  returning  prosperity. 

The  depression  of  1877-80  had  roused  the  working- 
men  of  San  Francisco  to  form  a  party  of  their  own, 
aiming  at  the  restriction  of  competing  Chinese  and 
of  the  power  of  capital,  to  which  they  ascribed  most 
of  the  existing  poverty  and  corruption,  the  latter 
marked  by  evasion  of  fair  tax  rates,  venal  official 
representation,  and  wasteful  concession  of  land,  money, 
and  privileges  to  corporations.  Their  intention  was 
commendable  in  the  main,  but  it  lacked  the  high  prin- 
ciples and  influential  leadership  of  the  previous  reform 
movement  of  1856,  which  had  transformed  the  city 
to  a  model  place  for  order  and  economic  administra- 
tion. The  people's  party  then  brought  forward  was 
of  so  admirable  a  character  that  it  maintained  itself 
for  nearly  two  decades,  although  its  nominations  were 
devoid  of  popular  participation." 

The  city  took  the  lead  also  in  proclaiming  the  loy- 
alty of  the  state  during  the  Union  war,  by  suddenly 
replacing  the  suspicious  politicians  by  a  citizens'  ma- 
jority, and  quenching  the  smouldering  scheme  of  a 
Pacific  republic.  She  also  surprised  all  other  parts  of 
the  Union  in  her  contributions  to  the  sanitary  fund.28 

27  The  turbulent  were  kept  in  check,  and  exiled  criminals  at  a  distance. 

28  In  the  latter  half  of  1862  she  sent  $300,000  out  of  the  $480,000  from  the 
coast.     Jn  1864  she  started  a  monthly  subscription  of  $25,000.     She  gave 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.    44 


690  PROGRESS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

In  1865  the  news  came  of  Lincoln's  assassination, 
which  provoked  such  an  ebullition  among  a  mob  that 
several  newspaper  offices  were  sacked.29 

Nevertheless,  the  politicians  obtained  the  upper 
hand  in  state  and  city  in  1867,39  and  the  wedge  had 
been  gradually  introduced  for  a  certain  proportion  of 
corrupt  admixtures.  The  rings  and  jobbery  thus  fos- 
tered are  illustrated  by  the  new  city  hall  structure, 
and  the  gradual  increase  in  the  tax  rate,31  besides 
small  additions  to  the  bonded  debt,  which  has,  how- 
ever, been  reduced  under  the  sinking-fund  process  to 
about  a  million  and  a  half."  Reform  was,  therefore, 

about  half  of  the  $1,200,000  sent  by  Cal.  toward  the  total  $4,800,000  collected 
in  the  U.  S. 

29  For  this,  the  first  actual  mob  outrage  on  the  city,  the  municipality  had 
to  pay.  The  liberality  of  her  people  was  even  more  strongly  exhibited  dur- 
ing the  Franco-German  war,  when  the  French  contributed  about  $300,000, 
and  the  Germans  $138,000,  to  their  respective  sufferers  at  home. 

MCoon,  Annals,  MS.,  26-7,  enters  into  the  causes  for  the  change.  S.  F. 
Sept  Com.  Tax-payers'  Union, 

31  The  rise  from  $1.60  in  1856-7  to  $2.56  A  in  1859-60  was  mainly  under 
pressure  from  the  people  who  objected  to  the  curtailment  of  schools,  gas, 
and  other  essentials.  Under  the  rise  of  estate  valuation  from  $42,000,000  in 
1861-2  to  $78,000,000  in  1863-4,  the  rate  was  reduced  to  $1.20,  though  rising 
again  to  $2.10^  in  1871-2.  Now  the  forced-sale  valuation  was  replaced  by 
a  cash  valuation,  under  which  the  assessment  advanced  from  $105,000,000  to 
$288,600,000  in  1872-3,  with  a  rate  consequently  lowered  to  $1.  The  assess- 
ment fell  to  $217,500,000  by  1879-80,  while  the  tax  rate  was  lifted  to  $1.69 
in  1878-9.  In  1880-1  the  rate  was  maintained  at  $1.57,  although  assessments 
advanced  under  increase  on  personal  property  to  $444,000,000,  so  extraordi- 
nary an  amount  as  to  leave  half  the  tax  delinquent.  Under  a  new  system  with 
pledges,  the  rate  was  maintained  between  $1.12  and  $1.20,  and  after  1885  at 
$1,  although  the  latter  amount  is  hardly  sufficient.  The  valuation  stood  in 
1885-6  at  $227,600,000,  of  which  $56,200,000  on  personal  property.  The 
state  tax  rose  to  $1.25  in  1864-5,  declining  with  some  variation  to  45  cents 
in  1884-5.  The  total  tax  levy  mounted  from  $1,200,000  in  1861-2  to 
$4,300,000  in  1872-3,  after  which  it  fluctuated,  with  one  exception,  between 
4£  and  5£  millions  till  1880.  In  1884-5  it  fell  to  $3,600,000,  yet  demands 
were  audited  for  $4,580,000.  Since  1856  the  property-owners  concerned  pay 
two  thirds  of  the  street  work.  In  1884-5  the  street  dept  obtained  from  the 
city  $261,900.  The  expense  of  the  school  dept,  which  fell  below  $93,000  in 
1857,  rose  to  $179,000  in  1863,  and  then  more  rapidly  to  $508,000  in  1867; 
after  this  it  fluctuated  to  $989,000  in  1878,  and  to  $317,000  in  1875.  The 
city  hall,  still  unfinished  for  lack  of  appropriations,  was  erected  under  an  act 
of  1870.  The  corner-stone  was  laid  1872.  AUa  Cal,  Feb.  23,  1872;  S.  F. 
Courier,  Dec.  30,  1871;  S.  F.  City  Hall,  1-13;  progress  described  in  S.  F. 
Municip.  Septs,  1869etseq.,  and  Gal  Jour.  Sen.,  1871-2,  app.  52-3;  1873-4, 
app.  27-8. 

32 -The  amount  stood  in  Jan.  1885  at  $2,455,000,  interest  6  and  7  per  cent; 
1  ut  the  sinking  fund  on  hand  reached  $799,000,  with  an  annual  addition  of 
about  $193,000.  Of  the  total,  the  park  stood  debited  for  $475,000,  the  Cen- 
tral and  Western  Pac  R.  R.  for  $307,000,  the  judgment  of  1867  for  $246,000, 
city  hall  $445,500,  old  claims  of  1858  only  $136,500,  the  rest  for  schools,  hos- 
pitals, and  house  of  correction. 


LAND  TITLES.  691 

desirable,  although  not  exactly  with  the  socialistic 
tints  imparted  by  the  workingmen's  party  to  the  new 
state  constitution,  and  to  some  of  their  selections  for 
offices." 

One  result  was  the  reduction  of  the  city  tax  to  one 
dollar,  and  efforts  were  made  to  obtain  anew  charter  ** 
under  which  to  better  enforce  an  economic  as  well  as 
just  administration. 

The  cloud  overhanging  the  title  of  city  lands  south 
of  Pine  street  had  tended  in  early  days  to  turn  pop- 
ulation toward  North  Beach,  and  the  need  for  wharves 
to  reach  the  shipping  led  the  business  commnnity  to 
fill  up  the  shallow  cove,"  and  build  out  to  the  deep 
water  front,  while  the  steep  hill  ranges  of  Clay  street 
and  Russian  hills  restrained  settlement  in  that  direc- 
tion. But  with  the  adjustment  in  1860  of  Mexican 
claims"  southward  arose  so  marked  a  confidence  in 
this  section  that  a  perfect  rush  of  settlers  ensued,  at- 
tended by  the  rapid  construction  of  both  residences 
and  factories,  stimulated  by  the  Union  war,  and 
aided  by  the  opening  of  several  railway  lines,  and  the 
swifb  operations  of  the  steam- paddy,  which,  in  the 
course  of  14  years,  assisted  to  con  vert  some  450  acres 
of  mission  cove  tide  and  marsh  land  into  solid  land." 

31  Instance  Mayor  Kalloch  and  Coroner  OTHnmelL  Concerning  the 
Kalloch-De  Yonng  disclosures  and  homicide,  see  S.  F.  Post,  Aug.  25,  1879; 
S.  F.  BulL,  Apr.  24,  1880;  Sac.  Jtee.,  Mch  25,  1881,  and  other  dates. 

**  Several  efforts  have  been  made  to  revise  or  create  a  new  charter,  nota- 
bly in  1874,  1883,  and  lastly  in  1887.  S.  F.  Charier  Scrap*,  1^0,  and  journals. 

34  To  the  extent  of  more  than  320  acres,  between  Folsom  and  Broadway. 
Round  Telegraph  hill  and  North  Beach  the  filling  has  of  late  assumed  large 
proportions.  Concerning  the  sale  of  tide  land  and  water  lots,  see  CaL  Jour. 
Sea.,  1865-6,  app.  27-9;  1867-8,  app.  29;  1869-70,  51-3,  app.  56,  etc.  Stat- 
utes, 1858,  139,  223;  Id.,  Ass.,  1865-6,  850-3;  U.  S.  Oov.  DJC.,  39  Cong.,  1 
ges3.;Sen,  Doe., 24.  The  two  latter  relate  to  state  and  govt  land.  Petty 
squatter  riots  continued  to  stir  certain  quarters,  as  instanced  in  S.  F.  Caff, 
Oct.  12,  1867. 

38  As  Santillan's  and  Sherreback's,  south  of  California  st,  practically 
overthrown  in  1860;  P.  Smith's,  west  of  Larkin  st,  and  Limantour's,  rejected 
two  years  before,  Dr  Haro's  Potrero  claim  being  defeated  in  1867.  See  the 
chapter  on  land  titles. 

*  The  Ullage  continues.  The  expansion  of  factories  gave  expansion  to 
the  Chinese  quarter,  which  continuously  radiated  from  the  original  settle- 
ment in  Sacramento  st,  west  of  Kearny,  until  it,  by  1885,  covered  some  ten 
blocks,  closely  packed  with  some  25,000  souls,  nearly  all  males,  with  a 


692  PROGRESS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

In  the  early  seventies,  titles  west  of  Larkin  became 
assured,38  and  now  this  quarter  became  the  choice  for 
residences,  assisted  by  cable-car  lines,  which  trans- 
formed the  hills  into  the  most  desirable  locations.  The 
widening  of  Kearny  street  in  1866  served  to  make 
this  the  leading  avenue  for  retail  shops  and  prom- 
enading, both  of  which  are  now  shifting  into  Market 
street,  the  evident  main  channel  of  the  city,39  leaving 
Montgomery  street  to  mark  the  limits  for  financial 
and  mercantile  business.49  Latterly  the  construction 
of  a  fine  sea-wall  round  Telegraph  hill  is  bringing  a 
business  revival  to  the  long  stagnant  North  Beach.41 

San  Francisco  has  clearly  a  great  future  before  her, 
possessing  as  she  does  the  only  good  harbor  north  of 
San  Diego  for  a  coast  line  of  more  than  thirteen  de- 
grees of  latitude,  at  the  outlet  of  the  richest  valleys  on 
the  slope,  and  as  the  center  of  a  railway  system  ex- 

sprinkling  of  loose  females.  Their  expansion  hastened  the  flight  of  fashion 
from  the  Stockton  st  region  to  South  Park,  whence  the  factories  forced  it  up 
Rincon  hill,  which  again  was  ruined  by  the  Second  st  cut.  The  long  bridge 
over  Mission  cove  was  finished  in  1865,  and  in  1867  it  was  extended  across 
Islais  cove,  permitting  a  street  railway  to  connect  with  Hunter's  Pt  dry 
dock.  Butchertown  was  soon  after  forced  by  settlements  to  remove  from 
Brannan  st  to  the  Potrero.  A  steam  railway  had  opened  in  1860  along  Mar- 
ket st  to  the  Mission,  and  the  Omnibus  R.  R.  assisted  it  to  build  up  this 
quarter. 

38  The  city  claim  here  to  some  4,000  acres  was  confirmed  in  1866,  and  by 
ordinance  in  1870,  although  the  actual  issue  of  titles  was  protracted,   and 
then  mostly  conferred  with  prodigal  looseness  upon  a  number  of  large  land- 
grabbers,  thus  losing  millions  for  the  city,  which  retained  little  more  than 
the  park  tract.     Fashion  assisted  to  give  prominence  to  the  west  by  cluster- 
ing round  Van  Ness  avenue,  and  latterly  on  California  st,  or  Nob  hill.     £o 
rapid  was  the  increase  of  settlement  that  assessments  on  property  west  of 
Larkin  and  Ninth  sts,  and  south  of  Mission  creek,  rose  from  $1,200,000  in 
1860  to  over  $50,000,000  by  1876.     The  southeast  became  less  act.ve,  >o 
much  so  that  the  prolongation  of  Montgomery    st  in   New   Montgomery 
proved  a  failure,  and  likewise  the  cutting  of  Rincon  hill  to  open  Second  st; 

mt  the  southwest  has  been  steadily  gaining. 

39  By   width  and  length,    and  as  the  converging   line  for  all  tributary 
treets  from  the  south  and  north,  and  from  the  east  and  west  in  its  Valencia 
'-.  prolongation.     The  theatres  and  other  attractions   are  mostly  south  of 
'ine  st. 

«•  After  the  completion  of  the  Merchants'  Exchange  and  the  bank  of  C 

uilding  in  1867,  California  st  became  the  recognized  money  center,   with 

.ots  worth  $3,000  a  front  foot;  stock  brokers  drifted  gradually  into  Pine  st. 

and  jobbers  and  importers  are  pressing  from  Front  st  into  Market  round 

T-Jansome  st. 

11  Assisted  by  the  opening  in  1S75  of  Montgomery  avenue. 


THE  CITY'S  FUTURE.  693 

tending,  with  numerous  ramifications,  to  the  Atlantic. 
This  confirms  her  as  the  entrep6t  and  distributing 
point,  not  alone  for  the  state  and  for  several  tributary 
territories,  but  for  an  increasing  trade  with  the  Orient 
and  Australasia,  with  Spanish  and  northwest  Amer- 
ica. She  is  also  the  chief  seat  of  fast-unfolding  man- 
ufacturing industries,  and  stands  secured  by  millions 
of  invested  capital,  and  as  the  great  social  centre  for 
the  entire  Pacific  slope,  with  its  train  of  institutions 
philanthropic  and  literary,  for  sciences  and  fine  arts." 
A  favoring  cause  exists  in  the  bracing  climate,  which 
permits  work  and  exercise  to  an  exceptional  degree. 
While  inviting  to  the  open  air,  to  parks"  and  prome- 
nades, it  also  encourages  the  formation  of  pleasant 
homes,  marked  by  a  varied  architecture,  yet  with  a 
predominance  of  bay  windows." 

Although  marred  by  improper  planning,  and  a  neg- 
lect of  public  impovements,  the  aspect  of  the  city 
itself  is  striking,*'  rising  on  one  side  from  out  the 

42  To  be  spoken  of  later.     There  are  more  millionaires  in  S.  F.  than  in 
any  other  city   in  proportion  to  the  population,  to  support  such  institutions. 
During  the  early  sixties  more  than  1,000  houses  rose  annually;  after  this  the 
number  decreased  to  600  in  1872.     In  1874-6  there  was  a  sudden  increase  to 
1,300  and  1,600,  then  a  slight  relapse,  and  lately  a  great  increase  again.    In 
1885  there  were  over  5,000  gas-lamps,  and  electric  lights  were  multiplying. 
For  companies  and  rates,  see  S.  f.  ifunidp.  Reports,  1884—5,    168-75.     The 
police  force  had  been  gradually  increased  to  172  by  1877,  then  suddenly  to 
329  in  1878-9,  with  subsequent  additions  to  400  and  beyond.     The  U.  S. 
Census  places  the  population  at  56,800  in  1860,  149,500  in  1870,  and  234,000 
in  1880,  since  when  the  growth  has  been  large.     The  Chinese  figure  for 
22,000  in  1880,  but  have  since  received  additions,  under  the  anti-Chinese 
feeling  in  the  interior.     See,  also,  chapters  on  society,  trade,  manufactures, 
education,  and  arts. 

43  The  extensive  Golden  Gate  park,  reaching  to  the  ocean,  is  supplemented 
by  the  govt  presidio  grounds  along  the  bay  inlet,  by  public  squares,  hardly 
sufficient  in  number,  and  by  garden  resorts,  as  Woodward's,  the  predecessors 
of  which  were  Hayes'  park,  the  Willows,  and  Russ'  gardens,  the  earliest. 
The  beautiful  cemeteries  near  the  park  attract  many  saunterers.     The  Me- 
chanics' Institute  holds  an  annual  fair  since  1857.  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  11, 
1857,  et  seq.;  Sac.   Union,  May  14,  1857;  CaL  St.  Fair  Scraps,  75-81.     Then 
there  are  bench  shows,  races,  art  exhibitions,  and  museums.     The  city  is 
indebted  for  statuary,  baths,  and  other  institutions  to  the  philanthropy  of 
James  Lick,  to  whom  I  refer  elsewhere  more  fully. 

44  Due  greatly  to  the  prevailing  winds  and  sudden  changes  in  temperature, 
which  render  open  balconies  less  enjoyable.     The  Chicago  frame  building  is 
the  favorite. 

45  As  explained  in  the  former  chapter  on  S.  F.     The  paucity  of  garden 
squares  is  to  be  regretted,  and  the  neglect  to  plant  trees. 


694  PROGRESS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

waters  of  the  bay,  and  overlooking  on  the  other  the 
ocean/6 

46  For  a  study  of  the  condition  of  S.  F.  at  different  periods  since  1856  the 
following  authorities  may  be  consulted:  Williams'  Stnt.,  MS.,  14,  etc.; 
Woodioard's  Stat.,  MS.,  47etseq.;  Hardy's  Through  Cities,  141-2;  Player- 
Frond's  Gal,  22-34;  Seward's  Trav.,  28-70;  Avery'*  Cal.  Pict.,  239-60;  Nord- 
htfsCal.,  61-67;  Marshall's  Amer.,  260-85;  Lloyd's  Lights  of  8.  F.,  wholly 
descriptive  of  the  city,  while  Hittelfs  S.  F.  is  a  history  of  it,  the  only  ex- 
haustive one  since  The  A  nnak  of  S.  F.  of  1855;  Hoitt's  Guide,  41-79;  Scrib- 
ner's  Mag.,  July  1875;  Putnam's  May,,  i.  (U.S.)  558-60;  Mollhausen's  Journey, 
ii.,  353;  Russlwsj's  Amer.,  276;  Prieto  Viaije,  i.  30-503;  Cronise's  Cal,  6*4; 
Leslie's  Cal.,  115-200;  Taylor's  Gates,  71-128,  244;  Jackson's  Bits  of  Travel, 
77-86;  TurrilFs  Notes,  38-66;  Hughes'  Padre*.  6-7;  Curtis'  Dottings,  29-52; 
Cal.  Fares,  3-10;  Solano's  Future;  S.  F.  Municipal  Reports,  1859  et  seq.,  and 
its  attendant  sub-reports  from  different  depts;  S.  F.  Orders. 

Among  the  real  estate  operators  who  have  attained  prominence  on  the 
Pacific  slope  the  name  of  Wendell  Eastou  stands  as  one  of  the  foremost. 
Born  in  Mass  in  1848,  he  came  to  S.  F.  in  1854,  where  he  attended  school. 
At  sixteen  he  obtained  work  in  a  real  estate  office,  afterward  accepting  a 
position  as  secretary  of  the  Crown  Point  Mining  co. ;  finally  he  opened  a 
small  real  estate  office,  advertising  it  extensively,  afterward  taking  Eldridge 
as  a  partner,  and  adding  auctioneering  to  the  business.  In  1882  a  stock  co. 
was  formed  to  do  business  in  all  parts  of  the  state,  Easton  being  its  presi- 
dent; 52  agencies  were  formed,  and  $385,000  worth  of  property  sold  the  first 
month. 

Among  others  who  have  grown  rich  by  real  estate  investments,  is  Orville 
D.  Baldwin,  a  native  of  Rensselaerville,  N.  Y. ,  who  landed  in  San  Francisco 
in  1 860,  with  fifty  cents  in  his  pocket.  After  a  long  and  bitter  struggle  with 
poverty  he  was  admitted  into  partnership  in  a  fruit  business,  and  this  he 
built  up  until  his  profits  soon  amounted  to  nearly  $1,000  a  month.  After 
accumulating  some  $10,000  he  opened  a  restaurant,  first  on  Montgomery  and 
then  on  Geary  street,  and  from  the  latter  quickly  acquired  a  handsome  for- 
tune, which  between  1886  and  1889  he  doubled  in  the  real  estate  business. 
Associated  with  some  of  our  most  enterprising  men  in  building  up  the  Potrero 
and  in  other  enterprises,  he  is  himself  acknowledged  as  one  of  the  most  en- 
terprising and  liberal  men  in  the  metropolis. 

Adolph  Gustav  Russ,  the  proprietor  of  the  hotel  in  San  Francisco  which 
bears  his  name,  was  born  at  Hildburghausen,  Saxony,  Jan.  19,  1826.  He 
came  with  his  family  to  this  state  in  1846,  as  a  member  of  the  7th  N.  Y.  vol- 
unteers, organized  for  service  in  Cal.  On  the  day  after  their  arrival,  Adolph 
and  his  father  each  secured  at  the  alcalde's  office,  S.  F.,  the  title  to  a  50-vara 
lot,  and  on  one  of  them  built  a  small  cabin  with  lumber  taken  from  the  sol- 
diers' berths.  On  this  site  now  stands  the  Russ  house. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 
1849-1889. 

EARLY  ARRIVALS — INTER-COMMUNICATION — DECLINE  AND  ADVANCE — NA- 
TIONALITIES— HEALTH  AND  DISEASES — BENEVOLENT  INSTITUTIONS — 
WOMAN — DOMESTIC  LIFE — AMUSEMENTS — DRINKING  AND  GAMBLING — 
MINING-STOCK  MANIA — DISTINCTIVE  TBATTS — EDUCATION — ART — Lrr- 
EBATURE — RELIGION. 

THE  conglomerate  humanity  which  wended  its  way 
to  Coloma,  the  Mecca  of  progressive  adventures  and 
unsordid  money-lovers,  was  much  akin  to  the  gold  in 
its  casing  sometimes  of  common  clay  and  sometimes 
of  hard  and  scintillating  quartz.  This  pilgrimage  was 
the  romance  of  utilitarianism,  and  presented  striking 
instances  of  human  efforts  under  strong  impulses,  both 
bad  and  good,  hi  its  disorder  and  extravagance  no  less 
than  in  its  grand  and  enduring  achievements.  The 
levelling  of  mountains  and  the  turning  of  rivers  from 
their  course,  were  but  two  features  of  the  process 
which  opened  a  new  era  in  mining.  The  spanning  of 
the  continent  with  great  railways  was  a  means  toward 
transforming  a  wilderness  into  cultivated  fields  and 
gardens.  Never  before  was  republicanism  so  lifted 
by  self-reliant  performance  to  guide  the  rapid  and 
substantial  advancement  of  a  community,  a  shining 

V      * 

example  to  the  world.  The  most  striking  peculiari- 
ties of  this  society  have  been  delineated  elsewhere  in 
this  series,  and  we  have  now  only  to  glance  at  their 
later  modifications. 

The  gold  fever  abroad  continued  long  after  the 
eventful  year  of  1849,  and  the  influx  during  1850 

(6°5) 


696  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

proved  larger  than  before.1  After  a  relapse  in  1851 
it  reached  the  climax  in  1852,  assisted  by  the  sudden 
expansion  of  the  Chinese  immigration  to  20,000  out 
of  the  total  arrivals  by  sea  of  67,000.  The  declining 
attractions  of  the  gold  fields  now  became  marked,  al- 
though partly  offset  by  the  prevailing  high  wages  and 
the  unfolding  agricultural  resources.  The  crisis  of 
1854-5,  the  popular  uprising  of  1856,  and  the  Fraser 
river  excitement  of  1858,  had  all  a  depressing  effect; 
but  the  Union  war  of  1861-5  brought  an  increased 
immigration,  particularly  from  the  western  border 
states,  while  checking  the  usual  large  reflux.  After 
1865  both  of  these  currents  were  reversed  awhile,  un- 
til the  construction  of  the  overland  railway,  which 
greatly  raised  the  prospects  of  California  in  eastern 
estimation,  partly  by  reducing  distance,  and  by  offer- 
ing an  easier  means  of  access.  Henceforth,  after 

O 

April  1869,  a  fairly  correct  estimate  can  be  made  of 
the  migration,  which  by  1875  attained  the  so  far  un- 
equalled number  of  107,000  arrivals,  against  43,000 

1  The  climax  was  reached  in  1852,  with  an  arrival  of  67,000  by  sea,  against 
36,000  for  1850,  and  27,000  for  1851.  The  overland  current  can  be  only 
vaguely  estimated,  owing  to  the  number  of  routes  followed,  from  Oregon  and 
Mexico,  and  by  the  central  and  southern  highways  from  the  U.  S.,  which 
again  branched  into  several  roads  to  cross  the  Sierra  Nevada.  At  Laramie 
alone  a  certain  record  was  kept.  See  Soc.  Transc.,  Sept.  30,  Oct.  14,  1850; 

8.  F.  Picayune,  Sept.  6,  Oct.  10,  1850;  8.  F.  Herald,  July  27,  1850;  N.  Y. 
Herald,  Apr.  15,  1850;  Pac  News,  Aug.  21,  Sept.  7,  Oct.  29,  Nov.  22,  1850. 
Probably  not  over  40,000  came  by  the  central  route  in  1850,  leaving  15,000 
to  enter  through  Arizona  and  from  Mexico,  the  former  bringing  the  most 
animals.     The   Mexican   influx   declined  under   the  maltreatment   in  Cal. 
The  marked  general  decline  in  1851  was  due  to  a  lack  of  vessels,  under  their 
discouraging  desertion  at  S.  F.,  to  reports  of  dread  hardships  during  the  trip 
and  at  the  mines,  and  to  conflicting  accounts  of  the  gold-field,  sustained  by 
the  natural  reaction  upon  the  excitement,  and  by  disastrous  commercial 
speculations,  duly  magnified  by  an  interested  foreign  press.     In  1852  came 
the  rebound,  and  then  the  second  reaction,  which  reduced  the  arrivals  to 
more  even  proportions.     Between  1853-67  the  number  coming  by  sea  ranged 
between  23,000  and  41,000,  except  in  1854,  when  it  stands  at  48,000.     In 
1852  and  1854  the  Chinese  form  a  large  proportion  of  the  figures  20,000  and 
16,000,  respectively,  after  which  they  range  between  2,000  and  8,000,  till 
1868,  when  they  rise  with  white  totals.  Cal.  Popul.  Scraps;  Atia  Cal.,  Dec. 

9,  1851;  Aug.  17,  1852;  Nov.  2,  26,  1853;  Dec.  10,  19,  1854;  Oct.  4,  1856,  et 
Beq.;  Jour.  Com.,  quarterly  and  annual  reports;  Chinese  Immig.,  171;  U.  S. 
Com.  Rel.,  Flagg's,  i.  532;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  cong.  31,  sess.  2,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  16, 
iv.   43-£ ;    CaL    Gov.  Message,   1855;   S.  F.  Herald,  Oct.  26-9,  1852,  Dec.  4, 
1854,  June  7,  1858,  etc.;  8.  F.  Bull,  Oct.  6-8,  29,  1856;  Hunt's  Hag.,  xxxii. 
449;  Lbey's  Jour.,  MS.,  iii.  58;  Hayes'  Notes,  S.  Dk'jo,  i.  35,  etc, 


IMMIGRATION.  637 

departures.*  The  disorders  of  1877  proved  detrimen- 
tal, but  with  the  opening  of  the  present  decade  the 
expanding  resources  of  the  state,  notably  in  horticul- 
ture, began  to  swell  the  influx  once  more,  assisted  by 
increasing  railway  competition,  by  immigration  socie- 
ties, and  by  a  benign  climate,  which  draws  not  only 
tourists  and  invalids  but  a  superior  class  of  settlers.* 
The  railways  naturally  absorbed  nearly  all  the  pas- 
senger traffic  with  the  eastern  states  and  Europe, 
leaving  only  a  small  percentage  to  the  Panamd  steam, 
ship  line,  which  prior  to  1869  received  the  most  of  it, 
sharing  the  profits  for  a  time  with  the  Nicaragua 
line.* 

•The  hopes  raised  by  the  railway  had  in  1868  brought  the  arrivals  by  sea 
to  60, 000,  and,  and  after  a  fluctuation  between  38,000  and  52,000,  to  70,000 
in  1873,  and  to  85,000  in  1874.  This  rise  was  greatly  due  to  business  de- 
pression in  the  east.  The  Chinese  proportion  had  ranged  between  10,000 
and  18,000  arrivals  since  1867,  and  departures  between  3,000  and  8,000. 
The  arrivals  by  rail  during  1870-6  stood  at  32,000,  30,000,  34,000,  44,000, 
56,000,  75,000  and  61,000,  and  the  departures  at  23.000,  22,000,  22,000  33,- 
000,  25,000,  30,000,  and  38,000,  which  leaves  little  more  than  one-eighth 
to  come  by  sea,  excluding  the  Chinese  route.  In  1884  the  Central  Pacific 
railway  alone  brought  over  50,000,  and  since  then  the  unfolding  resources  of 
the  state  have  drawn  larger  numbers.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  cong.  45,  sess.  2,  H. 
Ex.  Doc.  70,  p.  745-61;  cong.  46,  sess.  3,  xvi.  701-5:  Siskiyou  Affairs,  MS., 
16;  U.S.  Bureau  Statistics,  1879-SO,  187,  etc.;  Hopkins'  Sense,  1-64;  S.  F. 
Chron.,  New  Year  numbers;  CaL  PopuL  Scraps. 

*The  stagnation  following  the  reaction  of  1854  created  serious  alarm 
among  persons  interested  in  the  state,  and  in  1855  a  society  was  formed  to 
promote  immigration,  assisted  by  an  effusive  local  press.  A  subscription 
opened  with  $49,000.  Golclen  Era,  Aug.  12,  1855;  Sac.  Union,  Sept.  11,  1855. 
Since  then  similar  associations  were  started  by  foreigners,  by  counties,  by 
land-holders,  by  railway  companies,  and  also  under  state  auspices.  CaL 
Jour.  Sen.,  1871-2,  app.  25-6;  Bureau  of  Inform,  and  Colontz.;  Alto.  Col.,  Apr. 
19,  1857,  Oct.  27,  1858,  Sept.  1,  1878,  Nov.  27,  1883;  Courrier,  S.  F.,  Mch. 
31,  1871;  Hopkins'  Sense,  p.  i-xii.;  S.  F.  Chron.,  Nov.  22,  1881;  Immig.  As- 
soc.,  Art.;  Hayes'  Notes,  MS.,  iii.  118;  8.  F.  Post,  May  18,  1883. 

4  The  demand  of  California  led  to  the  building  cf  palatial  steamers,  espe- 
cially on  the  smooth  waters  of  the  Pacific.  The  2,390  miles  between  N.  Y. 
and  Aspinwall  required  10^  days.  The  isthmus  railway  reduced  the  transit 
to  one  day.  The  3,770  miles  from  Panama  to  S.  F.,  calling  at  Acapulco, 
and  occasionally  other  places,  took  Hi  days,  at  11§  miles  per  hour,  against 
9J  on  the  Atlantic.  The  Nicaragua  route  was  fully  700  miles  shorter,  but 
the  less  commodious  transit  consumed  from  3  to  7  days.  The  Tehuantepec 
route  might  have  greatly  reduced  the  time.  Crane's  Report  in  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc., 
cong.  34,  sess.  3,  Sen.  Doc.,  51;  Capron's  CaL,  284-345;  Johnson's  Far  West, 
9-29;  Coleman's  Vig.,  MS.,  175-83;  Borthvrick's  Col.,  8-32,  concerning  expenses, 
ecenery,  and  life  during  the  voyage.  Complaints  against  the  Nic.  line,  in 
AUa  CaL,  July  15,  Aug.  8-11,  1852,  July  30,  Dec.  27,  1856.  The  latter  of- 
fered the  attraction  of  finer  scenery,  but  the  delay  and  climatic  danger  were 
stronger  offsets.  Its  beginning  and  end  are  described  elsewhere,  under  trade 
and  voyages. 


698  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

The  establishment  of  steamer  competition  had  had 
a  similar  effect  in  diminishing  the  overland  current.  Yet 
poorer  people,  hardy  western  men  and  intending  set- 
tlers, hampered  with  families,  live  stock,  and  bulky 
commodities,  continued  to  maintain  a  respectable 
migration,  braving  hardships  and  dangers,  treacherous 
savages  and  arid  wildernesses,  from  which  they  es- 
caped at  times  only  with  the  aid  of  relief  expeditions.5 

Such  was  the  influx  which  increased  the  population 
of  the  state  from  barely  100,000  at  the  close  of  1849 
to  255,000  in  the  middle  of  1852,6  to  380,000  by  I860, 
to  560,200  by  1870,  and  to  864,700  by  1880.7  The 
two  remarkable  features  of  early  days,  youthfulness 

6  To  assist  them  in  crossing  the  Sierra  and  desert  at  its  eastern  base.  CaL 
Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  761,  1853,  app.  8;  Ass.,  1853,  703,  1861,  app.  8,  19;  CaL 
Relief  Exp.,  1852,  1-5;  S.  F.  Herald,  July  27-9,  1850,  Aug.  21,  1851;  CaL 
Ccmr,  Aug.  26,  1850;  AltaCal,  Oct.  4,  1852,  June  30,  1853;  Hollister's  Slot., 
MS.,  1;  Carvalho's  Insid. ,  21-250;  Hickmans  Destr.  Angels,  70-80;  Barlow's 
Stat.,  MS.,  12-13;  Delano's  Life,  234-42.  The  state  aided.  Waldo  was  a 
prominent  relief  leader.  Concerning  quick  trips  and  return  journey,  on 
Soc.  Transcr.,  June  1,  1851;  AltaCal.,  Aug.  23,  1854.  Heap's  Central  Route, 
1-136.  Carson  valley  remained  the  chief  thoroughfare.  Reports  on  the 
best  routes  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1855,  app.  22;  Ross'  Wise,  to  Cal,  MS.,  86,132; 
and  my  chapter  on  railways.  After  1855  the  current  declined  to  less  than 
half  of  that  coming  by  sea.  In  the  sixties  it  spread  into  intermediate  terri- 
tories, especially  Colorado  and  Nevada,  so  that  less  penetrated  to  Cal. 
Mormons  were  accused  of  waylaying  emigrants.  See  Hist.  Utah,  this  series. 

6  The  federal  census  of  1850  has  92,597  for  all  but  three  leading  counties. 
The  fair  estimate  for  these  raises  the  figure  to  112,000,  yet  a  semi-official 
figure  assumes  117,300,  excluding  Indians.  A  legislative  committee 
claimed  300,000,  and  congress  allowed  165,000.  U.  S.  Oov.  Doc.,  cong. 
32,  sess.  1,  Sen.  Rept  113.  Census  obstacles  are  noted  in  Soc.  Transcr., 
Sept.  30,  Nov.  14,  1850.  The  state  census  of  1852  raised  the  total  to  264,400, 
which  properly  added  makes  only  255,122;  including  an  estimate  for  El 
Dorado  of  40,000,  based  on  the  votes,  which  by  due  comparison  with  adjoin- 
ing counties  falls  to  not  over  28,000.  The  difference  may,  however,  be  added 
to  the  low  figure  for  wild  Indians.  The  total  arrivals  between  the  middle  of 
1850  and  1852  may  be  put  at  not  over  230,000,  and  the  departures  at  fully 
one-half.  Indeed,  during  the  decade  nearly  two-thirds  of  the  number  re- 
corded by  sea  departed,  and  no  doubt  one-third  of  the  number  by  land, 
many  going  to  adjoining  territories.  The  inducements  to  stay  increased  only 
with  the  unfolding  of  industries.  Browne,  Min.  Re-s.,  15-16,  justly  assumes 
the  increase  for  the  first  six  years  at  50,000  per  annum.  Kiwi's  Rep't,  15; 
Crosliy's  Events,  MS.,  52-3.  See  also  the  chapter  on  Indians.  The  great  de- 
crease among  these  may  balance  the  increase  in  births. 

7Of  this  number  S.  F.  stands  credited  with  234,000,  Alameda  follows 
with  62,000,  Sta  Clara  35,000,  Sacramento  34,400,  Los  Angeles  33,400, 
Sonoma,  San  Joaquin  and  Nevada  range  from  25,000  to  20,000,  16  other 
counties  exceed  10; 000,  and  the  rest  of  the  52  counties  range  from  3,340, 
for  Lassen,  upward,  Alpine  alone  standing  at  the  low  figure  of  539.  During 
1861-70  the  excess  of  arrivals  by  sea  over  departures  was  157,000.  The 
departures  assisted  largely  to  form  the  36,000  population  of  Nevada, 
and  partly  of  Arizona,  British  Columbia,  Oregon,  etc. 


CHARACTER  OF  POPULATION.  699 

and  paucity  of  women,  which  stamped  it  as  a  com- 
munity of  young  men,  have  gradually  disappeared 
under  changing  conditions,  as  mining,  with  its  roam- 
ing life,  gave  way  to  agriculture  and  other  industries, 
with  settlements  and  family  ties.  According  to  the 
census  of  1850  more  than  half  the  white  males  ranged 
between  20  and  30  years  of  age,8  and  still  in  1860 
two-thirds  were  between  20  and  50,  but  by  1880  this 
class  had  fallen  below  one-half  of  the  total  population, 
while  children,  under  20,  formed  considerably  more 
than  one-third.  The  number  of  females  increased 
from  less  than  eight  per  cent  of  the  population  in 
1850,' to  one-third  by  1880.  The  disproportion  in 
sex  as  well  as  age  will  require  considerable  time  for 
adjustment  under  the  continued  large  immigration  of 
young  men,  notwithstanding  the  fecundity  of  certain 
portions  among  the  inhabitants. 

Citizens  of  the  United  States  quickly  established 

8  Of  the  total  male  population,  85,600,  including  872  colored,  44,770  were 
between  20  and  30  years,  21,460  between  30  and  40,  7,500  between  40  and 
50,  7,800  below  20,  leaving  little  over  2,000  for  the  other  ages.  By  1860  the 
total  273,000  of  males,  showed  39,900  between  20  and  30,  13,200  between  30 
and  40,  28, 900  between  40  and  50,  leaving  only  one-third  for  the  other  ages, 
chiefly  between  1  and  15.  By  1880  the  total  864,700  of  both  sexes  revealed 
a  more  normal  proportion — 344,700  under  20,  164,500  between  20  and  30, 
143,400  between  30  and  40,  111,200  between  40  and  50,  65,400  between  50 
and  60,  26,600  between  60  and  70,  and  8,700  above  this  age,  including  67 
centenarians.  The  excess  of  persons  in  the  prime  of  life  was  maintained 
as  yet  by  the  constant  immigration. 

'Of  which  barely  two  per  cent  in  the  mining  counties.  In  1852  it  had 
reached  a  little  over  ten  per  cent,  or  nearly  23,000  in  a  total  of  somewhat 
over  200,000  whites.  Among  Indians  the  sexes  were  more  equally  enum- 
erated. The  foreign  females  numbered  4,360.  In  remote  counties,  as  Sierra 
and  Trinity,  the  percentage  fell  to  less  than  two.  By  1860  the  females 
numbered  106,700,  against  273,300  males,  96,400  being  whites,  7,200  Indian 
against  10,600  Indian  males,  and  1,800  Chinese  out  of  a  total  34,900  of  Mon- 
gols. By  1880  the  female  proportion  had  risen  to  346, 500  against  518,200 
males,  the  whites  embracing  332,100  females  and  435,100  males  and  the  col- 
ored, Indians  and  Chinese,  14,400  females  and  83,100  males,  the  dispropor- 
tion being  among  Chinese.  Up  to  the  fifteenth  year  the  sexes  are  normally 
equal,  but  after  this  the  males  advance  till  they  form  double  the  female 
number,  between  the  age  of  30  and  45,  and  the  disproportion  continues  into 
the  sixties,  when  the  males  figure  at  13,300  against  5,000  females.  Now  the 
latter  creep  upward  once  more  till  they  equal  the  males  in  the  nineties. 
The  native  population  with  Spanish  blood  continued  very  prolific,  and  Irish 
and  Germans  exceeded  in  this  respect  the  Americans.  See  previous  notes; 
Col.  Popul.  Scraps;  reports  of  assessors  in  Col  Jour.  Sen.,  app. ;  Id.,  1859, 
app.  7,  and  Col.  Board  Health,  1870-1,  app.  102-12  contains  remarks  on  regis- 
tration laws. 


700  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

their  predominance,  numerically  as  well  as  in  influence. 
The  first  large  influx  of  foreigners  was  offset  by  the 
expansion  of  land  and  ocean  currents  from  the  Atlan- 
tic states,  and  checked  to  some  extent  in  the  only  ob- 
jectionable quarters,  Spanish- America  and  China,  by 
a  repelling  hostility.1'  Nevertheless,  the  proportion 
of  foreign-born  immigrants  increased  since  1850  from 
one-third  of  the  number  coming  from  the  United 
States,11  until  in  1880  it  surpassed  the  latter  by  nearly 
one-fifth.  Yet  the  persons  born  in  the  state  out-num- 
ber either,  so  that  the  foreign  percentage  of  the  total 
remains  almost  the  same  as  in  1850. 

The  aborigines  during  this  period  dwindled  to  less 
than  one-half  their  strength,  under  the  withering 
contact  with  white  civilization,  and  the  native  Spanish 
inhabitants  have  undoubtedly  suffered  a  certain  check 
in  their  remarkable  fecundity  from  their  anomalous  po- 
sition. They  possessed  an  admixture  of  Indian  blood, 
for  which  Americans  entertained  an  undisguised  and 
irritating  contempt  that  was  inconsiderately  extended 
to  almost  any  sun-burned  complexion.  Add  to  this 
the  feeling  engendered  by  the  war  of  conquest  and 
the  intrusion,  usurpation,  and  other  injustice  to  which 

le  See  under  politics  and  mining.  The  maltreatment  offered  in  Cal.  led 
to  restrictive  measures  by  the  governments  in  those  countries.  Yet  the 
Burlingame  treaty  opened  once  more,  in  1868,  the  celestial  portals.  Europeans 
were  hampered  by  distance  and  expense,  and  intercepted  by  Atlantic  states. 

11  The  Census  of  1850  has  21,800  foreign-born  persons  against  62,600  from 
the  U.  S.,  and  8,000  natives,  excluding  Indians.  According  to  the  Census  of 
1852  the  foreign  residents  numbered  less  than  60,000,  and  the  Indians  over 
30,000  in  a  total  of  255,000.  That  of  1860  places  the  foreign-born  at  146,- 
500  in  a  total  of  380,000,  those  bora  in  the  state  at  77,700.  The  Chinese  lead 
with  34,900,  Irish  33,100,  Germans,  21,600,  English  12,200,  Mexicans  9,200, 
French  8,500.  The  Census  of  1880  gives  the  foreign-bora  at  292,900  against 
571,800  born  in  the  U.  S.  Of  the  latter,  326,000  were  born  in  the  state,  16,- 
300  biing  Indians,  about  1,700  Mongolians,  and  1,400  other  colored  races. 
This  leaves  245,800  born  in  other  states  of  the  Union,  including  nearly  3,000 
colored,  43,700  from  N.  Y.,  20,700  from  Missouri,  19,000  from  Massachu- 
setts, 17,800  from  Ohio,  17,300  from  111.,  15,400  from  Pennsylvania,  14,500 
from  Maine;  also  a  sprinkling  from  Pacific  territories.  The  foreign-born  are 
still  headed  by  73,500  Chinese,  plus  1,700  Mongols  born  on  the  coast,  and 
followed  by  63,000  Irish,  33,100  English  and  Scotch,  42,500  Germans,  plus 
3,000  from  Austria,  etc.;  9.700  Scandinavians,  inoludinir  Banes,  9,600 
French,  7,500  Italians,  5,300  Swiss,  4,700  Portnrrue  e,  and  only  6>tO  Spaniards, 
8.600  Mexicans,  1,800  South  American*,  2.003  Russians  and  Poles,  18,900 
from  British  America,  and  2,000  Australians. 


RACE  ELEMENTS.  701 

they  were  subjected  by  unscruplous  new-comers  who 
enviously  beheld  the  broad  possessions  acquired  by 
long  colonization.  They  were  besides  allied  to  the 
Latin  races  in  America  and  Europe,  and  consequently 
exposed  to  the  hostility  directed  against  them,  and 
encouraged  by  the  government  itself  in  a  discriminat- 
ing mining  tax,  with  the  result  of  greatly  checking 
the  Latin  influx,15  including  the  highly  desirable  con- 
tribution from  France.1* 

The  largest  foreign  immigration  consists  of  Chi- 
nese, whose  adverse  influence  on  white  labor  led  to 
restrictive  measures  against  them."  Next  in  numeri- 
cal order  come  the  hardy,  versatile  Irish  ; 14  the  sedate 
and  plodding  Germans,16  whose  traits  apply  also  to 
the  cognate  Scandinavians ;  the  grumbling  English, 
aptly  complemented  by  the  prudent  Scotch;  the 
British- American,  in  whom  the  inherited  stubborn 
egotism  has  been  effaced  by  a  manly  independence 
tinged  with  the  sparkling  Gallic  temperament.  Add 
to  these  a  sprinkling  of  Mediterranean  Latins,  Slavs, 
and  other  races,  not  forgetting  the  ubiquitous  He- 
brew, ever  to  be  found  in  the  train  of  commercial  en- 
terprise, and  we  have  a  material  unequalled  for  cos- 
mopolitan association  wherewith  to  modify  the  pre- 

12  See  note  nine.     But  for  this  the  immigration  from  western  and  south- 
ern Europe,  and  especially  from  Mexico,  would  have  been  far  larger.      Dis- 
orders in  Mexico  and  high  wages,  security  and  comfort  in  Cal.  were  strong 
causes  for  migration.  Pico  Doc.,   i.   330;  Sonorense,   March    18,   1853,    etc.; 
Hayes'  Anyeks  ArcJi.,  ii.  279  et  seq.     Increasing  poverty,  and  the  intermar- 
riage of  the  fairest  Spanish  daughters  with  Anglo-Saxons,  were  strong  fac- 
tors in  the  growth.     My  Cal.  Pastoral  treats  fully  of  their  life  and  traits, 
with  anecdotal  and  romantic  episodes. 

13  Especially  for  horticultural  interests  and  valuable  for  its  vivacity  and 
politeness  as  a  race  admixture.     They  were  largely  driven  from  the  mines 
in  early  days  to  towns  and  viticultural  districts.     Few  sought  naturalization 
or  assimilation.     Lottery  schemes,  etc.,  gave  an  impulse  to  their  migration 
to   Cal.    in   1850-1.      VaUejo,  Doc.,  xxxv.  318;  Alta  Cal,  Feb.  13,  Apr.  29, 
1851,  Feb.  10,  May  5,  Aug.  28,  1852;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Sept.  20,  1851,  etc.     A 
special  history  of  their  condition  exists  in  Ltvy,  Les  Francois  en  Cal. 

u  The  proportion  of  women  among  them  is  exceedingly  small  and  mostly 
of  the  low  class. 

15  Who  display  a  bent  for  political  agitation,  and  for  crowding  into  city 
suburbs.     They  have  a  special  coast  historian  in  De  Quigley,  who  m  his  Irish 
Racf  in  Cal.,  548  pp.,  paints  their  wealth  and  influence  in  flaring  colors. 

16  Their  stronger  adherence  to  national  customs  and  language,  as  compared 
with  the  Celts,  is  balanced  by  a  quieter  dipositiou, 


702  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

dominant  American  element."  This  is  assured  by  its 
own  growth,  which  for  over  a  decade  has  surpassed 
foreign  accessions,  and  by  a  strong  national  sentiment, 
demonstrated  by  loyal  adhesion  to  the  Union  in 
1861-5,  and  since  bound  by  closer  bonds  of  communi- 
cation. The  restriction  of  Chinese  alone  suffices  to 
give  to  American  influx  a  preponderance  which  is  in- 
creasing with  the  approximation  of  the  western  fron- 
tier settlements  that  have  so  largely  intercepted  the 
westward  migration.  The  appreciation  of  the  climatic 
and  horticultural  advantages  of  California  is  again 
drawing  onward  this  current.18 

The  character  of  the  immigration  has  been  greatly 
affect3d  by  the  changing  nature  of  its  magnet,  from 
gold-placers  to  grain-fields  and  to  vineyards.  This  is 
strikingly  illustrated  in  the  shifting  centre  of  popula- 
tion, which  retroceded  after  1851-2  from  the  all-ab- 
sorbing mineral  belt  of  the  Sierra.19  The  largest 
movement  was  toward  the  bay  of  San  Francisco,  as 
affording  the  readiest  outlet  to  the  best  markets  for 

O 

dairy,  field  and  forest  products,  and  subsequently  pro- 
viding, especially  at  the  metropolis,  superior  advan- 

17  The  Jews  have  attained  a  position  of  unequalled  influence.     The  pre- 
ponderance of  the  immigration  from  New  York  has  been  marked  in  politics. 
ffyckman's    Vig.,   MS.,    20.     The  larger  proportion  from  the  Atlantic  coast 
states  is  due  to  their  more  dense  population,   which   is   ever  sending  forth 
pioneers,  and  to  the  ready  ocean  route.     After  the  first  gold  excitement  the 
inhabitants  of  the  western  interior  states   found  less  inducements  in  Cal.  to 
outweigh  those  around  them.    The  Mormon  project  of  1848  to  colonizing  Cal., 
dwindled  to  a  few  petty  settlements  and  to  the  more  important  one  of  San 
Bernardino,  estimated  by  Los  Ang.  Star,  Feb.  7,  Sept.  1852,  at  700  strong, 
with  mills,  etc.     Hayes"  Notes,  MS.,  76,  204-5;  Id.  S.  Bern.,  i.  2  et  seq;  Id., 
Aw}.,  i.  26-7;  with  feeling  concerning  them.     A  large  tract  was  bought  in 
1851  for  $75,000.     Alta  Gal,    May  28,  June  17,  1851,  June  15.  1852,  Dec.  2, 
1853.     Sac.  Uniin  of  May- 1,  1856,  estimates  the  colony  at  2, 000  souls,  owning 
a  tract  of  about  35  miles  by  12.     Olshatisen's  Mormonen,  163;  Mormon  Poli- 
tics, 1-8. 

18  Counter  attractions  exist  in  intermediate  and  adjoining  territories,  in 
even  Australia,  which  in  the  early  fifties  drew  many  gold-seekers.     Draw- 
backs have  been  interposed  by  the  disorders  of  flush  times,  of  1856  and  1877, 
the  occasional  droughts  and  earthquakes,  and  in  Chinese  competition,  but 
nearly  all  have  disappeared  or  faded  to  insignificant  proportions,  droughts 
being  greatly  modified  by  irrigation,  for  instance. 

19  Compare  census  figures  for  agricultural  and  mineral  counties  in  1850, 
1860,  and  1880,  showing  the  great  gain  of  the  former,  while  many  of  the 
latter  lost  or  became  stationary.     The  mining  counties  held  three-fifths  of  the 
popuL  in  1852  and  only  one  fifth  in  1880. 


COUNTERACTING  INFLUENCES.  703 

tages  for  fast  expanding  manufacturing  interests.  The 
great  valleys  adjoining  the  gold  belt,  and  partly  set- 
tled from  it,  received  a  large  influx  in  the  sixties, 
when  the  value  of  the  San  Joaquin  lands  for  wheat 

culture  was  recognized.     Of  late  vears  the  southern 

•  •  /• 

part  of  the  state  has  been  gaining  on  the  strength  of 

its  horticultural  features,  and  similar  advantages  are 
also  causing  a  reflux  to  the  Sierra  slopes  and  filling 
many  other  neglected  sections  with  flourishing 
colonies.** 

Among  counter-actions  to  the  increase  of  popula- 
tion stands  foremost  the  return  migration,  by  men 
who  had  come  merely  to  gather  wealth,  and  who, 
for  a  long  time,  remained  blind  to  the  advantages 
for  settling.  The  hardships  of  life  in  the  mines  and 
in  a  new  country,  sickness,  fluctuations  in  business, 
and  family  ties  abroad  were  additional  promptings. 
Thus  in  early  years  departures  largely  exceeded  ar- 
rivals, and  subsequently  adjacent  territories  combined 
to  draw  away  thousands.11 

The  gloomy  tales  of  disappointed  and  suffering 
miners  created  at  one  time  the  impression  that  Cali- 
fornia was  not  a  healthy  region,"  and  the  hardships 
of  a  digger's  life  certainly  told  heavily  upon  the  inex- 
perienced though  hardy  gold-seekers,  in  the  shape  of 
fevers,  intermittent  and  remittent,  rheumatism, 
catarrh,  syphilis,  scurvy,  and  notably  diarrhoea  and 

*  As  in  Fresno  and  San  Bernardino.  See  chapters  on  agric.,  mines,  birth 
of  towns,  and  manuf.  Horticulture  is  promoting  centralization  into  cities 
and  villages,  in  addition  to  railways,  machinery,  and  other  adjuncts  of  civi- 
lization. 

-l  Australia  drew  many  in  1851-2,  British  Columbia  in  1858,  Nevada  after 
1860,  Arizona,  etc.  In  1855-7  the  arrivals  by  sea  were  80,000  and  the  de- 
partures 63,000.  The  reflux  of  the  land  current  was  less  heavy,  however. 
See  Helper  g  Land,  20-1;  entry's  Slat.,  MS.,  1;  CaL  PapuL  Scraps,  121;  daily, 
weekly,  and  monthly  records  in  Atia  Col.,  and  other  journals.  After  the 
opening  of  the  railway,  tourists  and  business  men  swell  the  departures,  so  as 
to  make  the  figures  deceptive.  Comparatively  few  fortune-seekers  now 
return. 

M  In  early  days  diseases  found  freer  play  under  the  effects  of  a  changed 
climate  and  life  upon  systems  strained  by  the  hardships  of  a  trying  land 
trip,  or  of  a  sea  voyage  in  badly  provided  vessels.  Then  followed  hard  and 
exciting  pursuits,  labor  in  damp  soil  or  water,  under  a  broiling  sun,  bad 
water,  poor  food  and  shelter,  lack  of  vegetables  and  remedies. 


704  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

dysentery.  But  circumstances  changed  rapidly,  with 
increased  experience,  improved  methods  and  appli- 
ances, and  the  extension  of  traffic,  bringing  with  it 
better  supplies  and  remedies.23  Subsequently  the 
regular  habits  attending  agricultural  and  other 
settled  modes  of  life  tended  to  counteract  the  weakness 
introduced  into  our  exceptionally  youthful  and  hardy 
community  by  an  increasing  proportion  of  delicate 
women  and  children,  so  that  the  death-rate  remains 
much  lower  than  in  the  eastern  cities  and  Europe/* 
Indeed,  the  dry,  warm  atmosphere  of  the  interior,  the 
bracing  sea  winds,  and  the  equable  yet  invigorating 
temperature,  form  a  rarely  equalled  combination,  which 
has  made  California  famous  as  a  health-resort.  The 

23  In  1849  fully  500  graves  were  dug  at  S.  F.  in  one  month.  Johnson's  Cal. 
and  Or.,  241-2;  for  S.  F.  and  state,  see  S.  F.  Picayune,  Sept  12  1850;  Cal. 
Courier,  Sept.  12,  17-18,  Nov.  1-2,  1850;  Feb.  27,  Mar.  3,  17,  1851;Por.  News., 
AUa  Cal.,  etc.,  monthly,  quarterly,  and  at  close  of  year.     The  rate  fell  fast 
in  the  interior,  until  it  could  be  safely  placed  within  one  per  cent,  a  low 
figure  due  to  the  youth  and  hardiness  of  the  community.     See  military  reports 
in  U.  S.  Gfov.  Doc.,  34th  cong.,  1st  sess.,  Sen.  Doc.,  96,  xvin.  442  etseq.    The 
Stockton  hospital  report  for  1852  shows  1064  patients,  with  176  cases  of  inter- 
mittent fever,  73  remittent,  42  typhoid,  and  32  Panama  fever;  diarrhoea  35, 
dysentery  54,  rheumatism  32,  pneumonia  25,  syphylitic  cases  over  80,  delir- 
ium tremens  24.     At  S.  F.  co.  hospital  fevers  and  digestive  troubles  ruled 
higher.  Cal.   Jour.   Ass.,   1853,  app.  18,  21;  Sawyers  Mortuary  Tails,  1-18; 
Stillrnan's  Observ.  Medic.,  Sacramento,  289  et  seq. ;  also  chapter  on  society  of 
1849. 

24  In  the  seventies  the  average  may  be  placed  at  about  14  per  inille. 
Taking  the  Report  of  the  Board  of  Health  for  1876  and  for  1879-80,  we  find 
the  rate  at  Marysville  17.9  and  21.9,  Sac.  14.5  and  19.7,  Placerville  7.2  and 
12.3,    Stockton  9.7  and  12,  S.  F.  19  and  18.6,  Sta  Barbara  17.8  and  17.5. 
Vallejo  in  1879-80  stood  at  10,  Downieville  at  9,  and  San  Diego  at  about  14. 
The  southern  San  Joaquin  figures  near  20.     These  rates  do  not  serve  as 
very  reliable    guidance,  owing  to  the   preponderance  of    families   in   some 
places  and  of  hardy  men  in  others,  and  to  the  concourse  of  invalids  into 
certain  places,  at  Marysville  from  the  mines,  at  S.  F.  from  all  parts,  at  Los 
Angeles  and  other  southern  towns  from  the  east,  the  last  being  chiefly  sought 
by  consumptives.     Of  the  5,800  deaths  recorded  in  above  report  for  1879- 
80  consumption  carried  off  954,  largely  eastern  health  seekers,  and  at  S.  F. 
where  the  climate  is  severe  on  the  chest  and  throat,  pneumonia  505,  bron- 
chitis  and   other  respiratory  troubles  234,  diphtheria  101,  diseases  of  the 
stomach   and   bowels  253,  of  the  liver  126,    cholera  infantum  100,  fevers, 
typhoid,  142,  others  95;  diseases  of  the  brain  and  nervous  system  stand  at 
the  high  figure  of  519,  of  the  heart  at  217,  alcoholism  a$  63,  and  suicide 
109;  all  explained  by  the  habits  of  life,  excitable  temperament,  and  stimu- 
lating  climate   referred  to  elsewhere.     Fevers,    dysentery,    diarrhoea,   and 
rheumatism,  so  prevalent  in  early  years,  have  declined  to  small  proportions. 
See  also  reports  from  hospitals  inCal.  Jour  Sen  ,  app.  annually;  S.  F.  Munic. 
R»ports,  id.;  Nordhoff's  Cal.,  247-55;  Disturnclfs  Cli:nate,  154  etseq.;  Logans 
Medic.   Topofj.,  5-53;  Pac.  Medic.  Jour.,  passim;  Cal.  Min.  Springs;  Census 
tables.     Table  of  suicides  hi  S.  F.  Munlcip.  Rept,  1S59-GO,  57-9,  etc. 


CHARITIES.  705 

peculiar  topography  gives,  moreover,  to  the  climate 
a  variety  of  grades,  ranging  from  the  temperate  to  the 
semi-tropic."  Medicinal  springs  abound,  and  produc- 
tions are  rich  and  varied.  The  above  conditions  ex- 
plain why  epidemics  have  found  a  comparatively  feeble 
foothold/6  and  why  nervous  diseases  present  the  only 
unfavorable  exception,  fostered  by  the  prevailing 
speculative  spirit  and  stimulating  environment." 

The  generous  impulses  of  Californians,  so  marked 
in  benevolence,  and  so  strongly  exhibited,  for  instance, 
in  the  relief  of  early  immigrant  parties,  and  in  un- 
equalled contributions  to  the  sanitary  fund  during 
the  Union  war,  stand  recorded  also  in  numerous  char- 
itable and  other  institutions,  among  them  being  two 

^Leaving  only  a  few  exceptional  districts  near  the  heated  deserts. 
Marshy  tracts  are  neutralized  in  their  action  by  the  peculiar  dryness  of  the 
air.  S.  F.  is  not  to  be  recommended  for  weak-chested  people;  otherwise  it 
is  very  bracing  and  healthy. 

2ti  Small-pox  carried  off  large  numbers  of  Indians  in  colonial  times  and  in 
1862-3,  but  has  since  been  very  restricted,  and  so  with  cholera,  which 
created  the  only  real  alarm  in  1850  and  1852-3.  Dodson's  Bioy.,  MS.,  3; 
Kunkkr,  Etude,  1-24;  Hayes  Notes,  MS.,  90-1;  Cal.  Springs,  32-9;  Alia.  Cal, 
Jan.  4,  1851,  Sept.  19,  1852,  July  16,  Sep.  17,  1855;  Hayes'  Angeles  Arch., 
vii.  86. 

27  After  the  decline  of  mining  the  gambling  spirit  sought  a  vent  in  stock 
speculation,  rash  enterprise,  and  high  pressure  of  work  and  life,  with  attend- 
ant startling  changes  in  fortune,  so  that  the  percentage  of  insane  people 
stands  far  above  the  average  for  the  U.  S.,  or  I  in  346  inhabitants  against  1 
in  544  for  the  union,  according  to  the  Census  of  1880.     That  of  1860  shows 
1  in  834  against  1  in  1,300  for  the  U.  S.     Poverty  and  marked  religious  ex- 
citement form  here  an  insignificant  cause  as  compared  with  the  east.     The 
percentage  of  idiots,  blind,  and  deaf-mutes  is  below  the  average.     Concerning 
the  formation  of  board  of  health  and  medical  societies,  see  Cal.  Poht.  Code,  433 
etseq.;  S.  F.  Co.  Medic.  Soc.,  annual;  CaL  Pharm.  Soc.  Proceed.,  and  other 
reports  by  such  bodies. 

28  The  special  dept  in  the  Stockton  hospital  was  in  1853  expanded  into  a 
separate  asylum,  to  which  several  additions  have  been  made.     The  more  im- 
posing edifice  at  Napa  was  opened  in  1875,  and  has  cost  over  $1,500,000. 
HMelTs  Code,  ii.  1751-2;  and  reports  in  CaL  Jour.  Ass.  and  Sen.,  especially 
Sen.,  1877-8,  app.  9;  Statutes,   1853,  et  seq.;  S.  Joaq.  Co.  Hist.,  73-5;  Pint- 
ham's  Stockton,  273-81;  Cal.  Charit.  Scraps;  Napa  Co.  Hist.,  290-2;   Wood's 
Ph.,  49-51. 

The  first  resident  physician  of  the  Stockton  asylum  was  Dr  R.  K.  Reid, 
a  native  of  Erie,  Penn.,  a  graduate  of  the  university  of  Penn.,  and  a  pioneer 
of  1849.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  civil  war  he  accepted  an  appointment  as 
surgeon  in  the  regular  army,  and  after  its  close  retired  from  professional  life. 
Of  special  value  are  his  contributions  to  medical  science,  including  his  reports 
between  1851  and  1856  on  the  state  hospital  and  state  insane  asylum.  In 
1879  he  was  elected  president  of  the  Stockton  bank,  in  which  he  was  then  a 
director  and  one  of  the  largest  stockholders. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  45 


706  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

insane  asylums,28  a  deaf,  dumb,  and  blind  asylum,29  and 
a  large  number  of  orphan  asylums,  homes,  and  hos- 
pitals, sustained  by  cities,  counties,  and  private  associa- 
tions, and  partly  aided  by  state  subscriptions.3'  In  these 
acts  of  charity  a  prompt  and  conspicuous  part  was  taken 
by  fraternal  societies,  notably  the  Odd  Fellows  and 
Masons,  which  was  organized  in  1849.31  They  were 

29  In  Berkeley.  See  reports  in  Col.  Jour.  Sen.,  app.  and  Reports  of  Sup. 
Pub.  Jnstruc. 

80  The  state  made  appropriations  in  1851,  Statutes,  pp.  384,  500-21,  also 
act  May  3,  1852  and  May  19,  1853,  for  three  hospitals  at  S.  F.,  Stockton, 
and  Sac. ;  the  last  never  acquired  a  footing,  that  at  Stockton  was  surrendered 
two  years  later,  and  the  S.  F.  abolished  in  1855.  Id.,  1855,  p.  47,  67;  An- 
nals S.  F.,  450-2;  S.  F.  Manual,  184-96.  The  state  hospital  fund,  derived 
from  passengers,  was  henceforth  distributed  among  county  sick  funds. 
Cal.  Revenue  Law,  74-6.  By  1856  over  §1,000,000  had  been  expended  on 
the  sick  by  the  state.  For  aid  to  asylums,  etc.,  see  committee  reports  in 
Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  app.  The  federal  gov't  erected  in  1853  a  U.  S.  marine  hos- 
pital at  S.  F.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  cong.  32,  sess.  1,  H.  Doc.,  133,  xiii.  It  was 
so  severely  shaken  by  the  earthquake  of  1868  as  to  be  surrendered  for  a 
sailors'  home.  Ihe  first  orphan  asylum  was  the  San  Francisco,  organized  by 
protestants  at  S.  F.  on  Jan.  31,  1851.  Roman  catholics  followed  the  ex- 
ample in  March.  Sac.  Transcr.,  Mar.  14,  1851;  Cal.  Courier,  Mar.  6,  1851; 
S.  F.  Ordin.,  1853-4,  51;  Asylum  Reports,  passim;  Cal  Charit.  Scraps,  92  et 
seq.  Munitip.  Reports,  county  histories,  directories,  special  pamphlets,  and 
periodical  reviews  in  journals  give  accounts  of  orphan  asylums,  foundling  and 
lying-ia  hospitals,  and  homes.  S.  F.  has  institutions  sustained  by  more  than 
half  a  dozen  nationalities.  The  Magdalen  asylum  is  partly  aided  by  state 
and  city;  a  veterans'  home  exists,  a  society  for  prevention  of  cruelty  to 
animals,  etc.  Instances  of  charitable  subscriptions  are  given  in  Hittcll's  S. 
F.,  384-5,  446-7.  See  also  in  Id.,  bequests  by  Lick,  Hawes,  etc. 

31  The  Odd  Fellows  met  informally  in  the  autumn  of  1847  at  Portsmouth 
house,  S.  F.,  and  the  journals  of  1848  record  regular  Tuesday  gatherings. 
Lodge  1  \ra,s  formally  instituted  on  Sept.  9,  1849,  at  S.  F.  Lodge  2  gathered 
at  Sac.  Aug.  20,  1849,  and  was  formally  instituted  Jan.  28,  1851.  By  1853 
there  were  eleven  and  the  grand  lodge  organized  May  17,  1853.  For  benevo- 
lence and  progress  see  S.  F.  Reports;  Upham  Notes,  299;  S.  F.  New  Age, 
1866  et  seq.;  Directories,  etc.  The  Masonic  order  found  its  first  lodge  in 
Oct.  1849  and  its  grand  lodge  in  April  1850.  By  1856  over  100  lodges  stood 
inscribed  in  the  state.  Progress  depicted  in  F.  and  A.  Masons'  Reports; 
Williams'  Rec.,  MS.,  13,  by  one  of  the  first  Masons  in  Cal.;  county  histories, 
etc.  Still  faster  grew  the  Sons  of  Temperance,  organized  in  1849,  revived 
soon  after,  forming  on  Sept.  9,  1851,  the  grand  division  and  temple  of  honor 
in  1854,  and  numbering  by  1856  some  7,000  members,  largely  represented 
in  the  volunteer  companies  of  the  fire  dept?,  which  at  S.  F.  then  embraced 
1,000  members.  Nationality  exercised  a  powerful  influence  in  drawing  men 
together.  The  Hebrews  set  the  brightest  example  in  establishing  five  socie- 
ties by  1855,  the  first  dating  1849.  The  Swiss  Benevolent  Soc.  formed  in 
1849;  a  St  Andrew's  in  Nov.  1850;  the  French  Dec.  28,  1851;  the  Hibernian 
Feb.  3,  1852;  Sons  of  Emerald  Isle,  Mar.  17,  1852;  an  English  gov't  hospital 
1852,  followed  later  by  the  British  Ben.  Soc.;  the  German  Jan.  7,  1854;  a 
Chinese  in  1854;  Scandinavians,  Latins,  Slavs,  etc.,  followed;  a  Ladies 
Relief  Soc.  Aug.  1853,  the  Seamen's  Friend  Mar.  26,  1856.  Soldiers  of  the 
Mexican  war  associated  in  1854,  a  N.  England  Soc.  met  in  1850,  the  (iri/- 
zlies  and  others;  also  protective  trade  unions,  aj  the  chamber  of  commerce, 


THE  FLUSH  TIMES.  707 

quickly  followed  by  a  large  number  of  other  associa- 
tions, benevolent,  national,  military,  protective,  social, 
literary,  and  religious,  the  precedence  among  which 
was  accorded  to  the  different  pioneer  organizations  to 
be  found  in  all  counties  and  large  towns.31 

Next  to  San  Francisco,  of  whose  institutions  men- 
tion is  made  in  a  preceding  note,  Los  Angeles  proba- 
bly holds  the  first  place  in  fraternal  and  charitable 
associations.  Prominent  among  them  are  the  odd 
fellows  and  kindred  organizations,  branches  of  the 
ancient  order  of  united  workmen  and  of  the  Amer- 
ican legion  of  honor,  the  young  men's  Christian 
association,  the  orphans'  home,  the  girls'  home,  the 
boys'  and  girls'  aid  society,  and  the  secular  corpo- 
ration of  the  trinity  methodist  episcopal  church. 
The  president  of  the  three  last  and  a  liberal  contrib- 
utor to  all  of  them  is  Moses  L.  Wicks,  whose  judi- 
cious and  free-handed  benefactions  have  aided  no  less 
in  the  social  development  of  the  city  than  his  enter- 
prises have  contributed  to  its  material  greatness. 

The  generous  and  fraternal  feeling  so  early  and 
widely  manifested  points  in  itself  to  the  healthy  tone 
pervading  the  flush  times,  notwithstanding  the  bois- 
terous and  reckless  spirit  therein  engendered.  There 
was  withal  comparatively  little  of  the  selfish  and 
sordid.  The  vicious  and  criminal  were  practically 
confined  to  certain  lawless  elements ;  but  their  sup- 
pression by  the  vigilance  committees,  notably  in  1851 

typographical  union,  riggers  and  stevedores' assoc.,  several  medical,  literary, 
military,  and  religious  associations.  See  reports  by  the  different  lodges  and 
societies  on  my  shelves;  county  histories,  directories,  periodical  accounts  in 
journals.  Libraries  and  other  commendable  institutions  are  attached  to  these 
societies  to  expand  their  usefulness. 

**  At  the  head  of  all  stands  the  society  of  CaL  Pioneers,  organized  Aug. 
1850,  and  reorganized  on  July  6,  1853,  to  embrace  all  residents  and  arrivals 
prior  to  Jan.  1,  1849,  with  a  second  class  for  U.  S.  citizens  extending  to  Jan. 
1,  1850.  See  their  Report*  and  Constitution*;  Pioneer  Arch.,  Vallejo  Doc., 
TXXV.  249;  Annals  S.  F.,  283-4.  For  the  first  year  meetings  were  irregular. 
By  1858  there  were  nearly  700  members.  Levy,  Francois,  alludes  to  French 
pioneers  In  1863  a  fine  pioneer  hall  was  inaugurated,  and  in  1866  a  still 
more  pretentious  building.  The  limitation  of  date  led  to  the  association  of 
Territorial  Pioneers,  Constit.,  1874,  and  First  Annual,  to  embrace  white  males 
residing  in  Cal.  prior  to  Sept.  9,  1850,  when  the  state  was  created.  Kindred 
assocs.  were  formed  by  descendants,  as  Native  Sons,  also  in  adjoining  states 
and  at  Xew  York,  where  a  permanent  assoc.  formed  1875.  Assoc.  Ter.  Pio., 
N.  Y.,  3  et  seq.;  Uphams  Notes,  566,  575-94;  Haye*  Note*,  iii.  56,  129. 


708  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

and  in  1856,  while  purifying  the  country  and  im- 
parting a  feeling  of  security,  served  to  intensify  the 
bad  reputation  cast  upon  California."  With  more  set- 
tled conditions  and  better  official  supervision  this 
blemish  was  almost  effaced,  when  the  outburst  in 
1877  of  the  long  smouldering  anti-Chinese  riot  brought 
out  the  stain  once  more,  for  a  time  only. 

The  long  and  costly  journey,  the  ruling  high  wages, 
and  the  slight  cost  of  subsistence  have  thus  far  proved 
a  check  to  mendicancy.  On  the  other  hand,  the  roam- 
incr  instinct  that  brought  men  to  this  coast,  the 
wandering  life  connected  with  placer  mining,  and  a 
mild  climate,  fostered  a  tendency  to  idleness  and  vaga- 
bondage, and  bred  in  the  country  the  tramp,  in  the 
town  the  hoodlum,  the  latter  a  genus  per  se.3t 

The  democratic  equality  fostered  by  mining  life,  and 
by  the  ready  acquisition  of  independence  and  wealth, 
is  still  marked,  but  class  distinctions  are  growing  in  the 
cities,  and  spreading  throughout  the  state,  under  the 
gradual  equalization  of  wages  with  eastern  rates,  the 
dearness  of  land,  and  the  expansion  of  monopolies. 
Nevertheless,  the  influence  of  workingmen  was  strong 
enough,  a  few  years  ago,  to  pass  a  state  constitution  of 
somewhat  socialistic  stamp,  whereby  much  capital  was 
driven  from  the  country.30 

33  Impressed  by  the  exaggerated  stories  by  favorite  writers  like  Bret  Harte, 
Mark  Twain,  B.  Taylor.     See  former  chapters  on  S.  F.  society  and  crime, 
and  my  volumes  on  Popular  Tribunals.     It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that 
shooting  at  sight  was  not  infrequent,  and  that  the  law  against  duelling  long 
remained  a  dead  letter. 

34  Applied  to  the  vicious  and  low  youth.     Some   derive  the  term  from 
'huddle.'     A   former   member  of  the  fraternity  says  that  it  was  once  more 
respectable,  and  that. one  gang  of  boys  adopted  the  designation  Hoodoo,  the 
supposed  correct  form  of  negro  voodooism,  with  a  language  marked  by  lum 
endings — hence   hoodoolums.     A   connection   may   also  be  traced  with  the 
hounds,    houndlings,    of   1849.     In  the   chapter   on   manufactures   I   have 
pointed  to  seasons,  machinery,  and  Chinese  as  additional  causes  for  idleness. 
Turk,  Sonoma,  MS.,   15-19,  describes  the  tramp  evil  in  the  country;  also 
Col.  Crimes  Scraps,  138,  et  seq.     A  sparse  population  and  the  transport  of 
treasure  still  tempt  highwaymen. 

35  But  there  was  plenty  left.     The  state  contains  more  millionaires  in 
proportion  to  its  population  than  perhaps  any  country  in  the  world.     The 
state  passed  a  ten-hour  law  on  May  17,  1853,  and  an  eight-hour  law  on  Feb. 
21,  1868.     Labor  unions  are  very  strong,  yet  too  exclusive  for  the  benefit  of 
the  rising  youth.     A  labor  exchange   received   state  appropriation.     CaL 


CALIFORNIA  WOMEN.  709 

The  influence  of  woman  is  strikingly  exhibited  in 
California  during  the  transition  from  the  camp  era  to 
the  present  settled  condition.  As  a  hush  then  fell 
upon  the  revelling  miners  at  the  appearance  of  a 
woman  in  their  secluded  haunts,  so  a  chivalrous  re- 
spect surrounds  her  still  wherever  she  moves.36  The 
divine  halo  which  encircled  her  is  not  yet  faded, 
and  shields  even  the  fallen  class,  which,  once  so 
conspicuous,  has  been  forced  back  into  shadows  and 
by-ways.37  Husbands,  becoming  reconciled  to  the 
country,  sent  for  wives  and  daughters,  and  under 
their  protection  came  others.38  Yet  the  gentler  sex 
had  by  1880  risen  only  to  one  third  of  the  entire 
population. 

There  are  as  yet  no  indications  that  the  moral  tone 
of  women  will,  in  the  near  future,  attain  to  puritan 
rigidity.  For  this  reasons  are  to  be  sought  in 
climatic  conditions  and  habits  which  incline  toward 
gambling,  extravagance,  and  excitements.  The  lav- 
ishness  and  display  sustained  by  affluence  assisted  to 
lessen  the  attraction  of  household  duties,  to  loosen 
the  family  bond,  and  invite  outside  adulation.3' 
This  was  promoted  by  the  inferior  quality  of  the 

Statutes,  1869-70,  145-6,  543.  A  bureau  of  labor  statistics  made  its  first  re- 
port for  1883^1, 

36  She  may  travel  alone  throughout  the  land,  assured  of  respect  and  pro- 
tection; in  street  cars  men  frequently  rise  to  offer  her  a  seat;  many  enter- 
tainments are  made  free  to  her  in  order  to  attract  more  male  patronage;  in 
the  courts  judges  as  well  as  juries  appear  under  her  influence. 

31  They  were  imported  in  batches  from  Spanish- America,  France,  etc., 
and  most  females  from  China  are  still  of  that  class.  CaL  Cour.,  Oct.  17, 
Nov.  25,  1850;  CaL  Popul.  Scraps,  121-5.  Efforts  have  been  made  to  restrict 
this  sisterhood.  Memorials,  etc.,  in  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1877-8,  app.  38;  CaL 
Board  Health,  Kept.,  1870-1,  app.  44-53.  At  S.  F.  the  police  have  more  than 
once  blockaded  and  raided  their  dens. 

38  By  1852  nearly  23,000  Americans  of  the  gentle  sex  had  come,  and  over 
4,300  foreigners.     Express  companies  arranged  to  bring  families.     Pac.  News, 
Oct.  18,  1850;  Sac.  Union,  July  26,  1855;  Alta  CaL,  Dec.   19,   1854;  Helpers 
Land,  21-2. 

39  Hence  the  frequency  of  divorce.     An  early  instance  of  desertion  by  the 
wife  is  given  in  CaL,  Apr.  12,  1848.     Out  of  106  applications  for  diyorce_in 
1857  only  23  were  presented  by  men.     The  divorce  bill  created  a  stir  in  1851. 
Sac.  Transcr.,  Feb.  14,  1851.     Comments  on  frequency.     CaL  Crimes  Scraps, 
67-8.     The  first  breach  of  promise  before  CaL  courts  was  instituted  by  Mary 
Gates   vs.    C.   A.   Buckingham  in  1854.     The  married  women's  rights  bill 
passed  in   1852.     Roach's  Stat.,   MS.,  9-10;  Hayes'  Notes,  iii.  89-94,  with 
account  of  Dr  Cole's  rating  of  CaL  women. 


710.  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY 

women  who  sought  California,  as  compared  with  its 
men,  and  the  consequently  large  number  of  incongru- 
ous marriages.  Loudness  and  fastness  kept  apace, 
and  left  their  impress  on  the  rising  generation.  This 
remark  applies  especially  to  the  large  towns,  where 
domestic  aspirations  are  largely  sacrificed  to  the  pref- 
erence for  hotel  and  boarding-house  life,"  which, 
thongh  detrimental  in  many  respects,  is  yet  unavoid- 
able in  view  of  modern  centralization.41 

Houses  need  not  be  costly  or  over-substantial 
in  climates  which  invite  to  out-door  life  and  to 
the  enjoyment  of  shady  gardens.  In  San  Fran- 
cisco the  simple  and  light,  yet  strong,  Chicago 
frame  structures  predominate,  with  a  pleasing  va- 
riety of  style,  yet  with  a  marked  prevalence  of  bay 
windows,  for  which  the  strong  breezes  are  responsible, 
in  rendering  the  use  of  balconies  less  comfortable. 
Interiors  are  furnished  with  a  richness  commensurate 
with  the  general  affluence,  and  the  wide-spread  taste 
for  music  and  decorative  arts  is  rapidly  developing  a 
tasteful  surrounding.  A  pleasing  feature  is  the  love 
for  flowers,  and  the  ever-blooming  garden  patches 
with  which  most  houses  are  adorned.  In  the  country 
the  increase  in  horticultural  colonies  and  homes  of 
wealthy  people,  and  the  expanding  current  of  tourists, 
are  incentives  for  making  homes  more  attractive." 
Dress  partakes  somewhat  of  the  composite  character 
of  the  people,"  and  exhibits  in  a  still  stronger  light 

49  Due  partly  to  the  expense  of  houses  and  servants,  and  to  speculative 
and  unsettled  conditions,  but  also  to  female  distaste  for  house-keeping. 
Cal.  was  called  the  hotel  state.  Description  of  Palace  Hotel,  1-16,  one  of 
the  finest  in  the  world;  hotel  life,  in  Overland,  v.  176-81;  Macgreyor's  Hotels, 
1-45.  The  proportion  of  families  to  the  population  is  fully  equal  to  the 
average  for  U.  S.,  but  the  children  per  family  are  only  4.87  against  more  than 
5  for  young  states. 

41  This  finds  a  favorable  direction  in  Cal.  in  the  increase  of  horticultural 
colonies. 

42  Than  they  were  in  colonial  times  and  during  the  long  prevailing  period 
of  speculative  farming. 

43  French  and  English  goods  and  fashions  are  general,  with  a  certain  addi- 
tional mixture.     Shop-girls  and  wives  of  laborers  sport  silks  and  imitation 
jewelry  to  a  striking  degree.     The  explanation  lies  in  preceding  male  and 
female  characteristics,  in  the  easy  acquisition  of  money,  and  in  the  benign 
climate,  which  favors  a  snug  yet  light  costume. 


AMUSEMENTS.  711 

the  bent  for  display,  among  the  lowly  as  well  as 
wealthy.  Indulgence  extends  also  to  the  inner  man, 
and  although  the  palate  is  not  sufficiently  studied 
under  the  pressure  of  speculation  and  excitement,  no 
restraint  is  placed  upon  choice  and  varied  pandering. 
Thus,  California  consumes  more  sugar,  coffee,  and 
choice  wines  and  fruits  per  capita  than  the  eastern 
states  or  Europe. 

Extravagance  and  frivolity  in  dress  combine  with 
an  innate  craving  for  excitement  to  foster  the  taste 
for  amusements.  In  this  respect  San  Francisco, 
with  its  hotel  life,  and  its  position  as  the  great  social 
centre  of  the  coast,  surpasses  probably  any  city  of  its 
size.  Zest  is  imparted  by  the  medley  of  nationalities, 
with  their  alluring  variety  of  entertainments,  notably 
the  concert  and  beer  halls  of  the  Teuton,  the  modified 
form  of  French  cafe  chantant,  and  the  Italian  mas- 
querade. To  these  may  be  added  celebrations  in 
honor  of  St  Patrick  by  the  Irish,  of  Columbus  by  the 
Genoese,  of  May  day  by  Germans,  and  of  king  carni- 
val by  the  peoples  of  the  Latin  race." 

At  mcst  larger  reunions  dancing  is  a  leading  fea- 
ture, favored  by  the  chilly  evenings,  which  incite  to 
exercise.  The  proclivity  for  drinking  and  gambling 
remains  strong  under  the  different  social  and  climatic 
influences.  The  former  is  sustained  also  by  the  gen- 
eral practice  of 'treating,'  a  liberality  to  which  bar- 
keepers respond  by  offering  the  unrestricted  use  of 
the  bottle,  and  by  spreading  free  lunches  of  no  mean 
order.**  Nevertheless,  temperance  societies  present 
an  imposing  array.  Gambling  has  been  checked  in  a 
measure  by  laws  of  increasing  stringency,48  although 
lurking  in  corner  groceries  and  more  respectable 

44  With  less  public  celebrations  of  national  anniversaries,  as  by  Spanish- 
Americans. 

45  S.  F.  has  probably  more  drinking  bars  to  the  population  than  any 
other  large  city.     Fancy  drinks  are  discussed  in  Harper" a  May.,  xlviii.  42; 
McDonald's  B.  Col.,  378-80. 

«See  Statutes  for  1852,  1855,  1857,  etc. 


712  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

places,  despite  spasmodic  efforts  to  abolish  it.47 
Mining  stocks  provided  a  legalized  vent  for  the  pro- 
pensity, and  thousands  yielded  to  it,  from  servant 
girls  and  clerks  to  wealthy  women  and  merchants, 
to  the  improverishment  of  large  classes.43  The 
collapse  of  the  Comstock  mines  proved  a  severe, 
yet  salutary  lesson,  although  since  then  lotteries 
have  been  largely  patronized.  Among  admissible 
games,  billiards  take  an  exceptionally  prominent  rank 
throughout  the  state. 

The  interposition  of  wholesome  regulations  gave, 
in  some  quarters,  a  healthier  direction  to  pastimes, 
particularly  toward  the  drama.  The  opening  of  the 
transcontinental  railway  tended  to  elevate  the  drama 
by  inviting  artists  of  ability,  hitherto  restrained  by 
the  cost  of  the  journey ;  but  of  late  years  the  taste 
of  the  masses  is  deteriorating  under  the  competition 
of  free  variety  and  dime  theatres,  which  also  enforce 
a  reduction  in  rates  at  other  places.  The  taste  for 
music"  promises  well  for  the  presentation  of  operas 
and  concerts;  yet  cheaper  performances  of  this 
character  depend  chiefly  on  German  and  Hebrew 
audiences. 

The  several  efforts  made  since  the  early  fifties  to 
secure  the  religious  observance  of  the  sabbath  50  have 
not  been  very  successful  in  the  large  towns,  and  Sun- 
day is  practically  Germanized.  Multitudes  then  pour 
out  to  bask  in  the  sunlit  valleys  of  the  surrounding 
bay  shore,  or  to  promenade  to  the  music  at  the  park, 
watching  at  the  same  time  the  throng  of  carriages  on 
the  way  to  the  ocean  beach.51 

47  The  Chinese  are  the  "most  inveterate  culprits,  practising  under  guards 
and  intricate  approaches  and  bribery  of  the  police. 

48  By  losses  and  assessments.     See  chapter  on  trade  and  mining. 

49  S.  F.  has  probably  more  pianos  and  music  teachers  proportionately 
than  any  other  city  in  U.  S.     One  cheap  place  of  amusement  has  sustained 
itself  purely  with  operatic  pieces  for  over  half  a  dozen  years. 

60 Cal.  Jour.  Ass.,  1852,  p.  870,  1853,  p.  721;  Statutes,  1861,  p.  655,  1869- 
70,  p.  52;  law  sustained  by  the  court  in  1 882.  S.  F.  Call,  Mar.  1 1 , 1882.  '  The 
Sabbath  is  universally  desecrated.'  Willey's  Sermons,  29^0. 

81  Many  families  give  a  preference  to  the  pleasure  gardens  like  Wood- 
wards and  Ocean  View.  Cal  Amusement  Scraps,  76-436,  enters  fully  into 
this  topic. 


AMUSEMENTS.  713 

Outdoor  life  is  naturally  attractive  under  this  rain- 
less summer  sky,  and  even  in  breezy  San  Francisco 
the  main  streets  are  crowded,  especially  in  the  even- 
ing. For  camping  trips,  few  regions  present  so  many 
favorable  conditions.  Streams  and  lakes  abound  at 
different  altitudes  for  boating,  fishing,  and  swimming; 
game  is  abundant,  and  the  air  invigorating. 

The  bent  for  sports  unfolds  naturally  in  this  com- 
munion with  nature,  as  manifested  in  the  number 
of  associations  for  that  purpose.  Special  trains  con- 
duct sportsmen,  especially  on  Sundays,  to  adjacent 
fields  and  ranges;  boats  skim  the  waters;  baseball 
players  mingle  with  picnic  parties.  Americans  are 
less  addicted  to  riding  than  the  Spanish  race.  They 
prefer  driving,  and  trotting  has  therefore  attracted 
most  attention  at  the  races,  which,  owing  to  the  com- 
mon possession  of  horses,  are  here  more  frequent  than 
in  the  eastern  states.  Latterly,  however,  the  excel- 
lence of  the  climate  for  breeding  race-horses  has  been 
recognized,  and  led  to  the  formation  of  numerous 
stables."  Bull-fights  have  long  since  been  banned 
by  the  law;  but  cock-pits  flourish  surreptitiously.5* 
Pugilism  is  sustained  by  a  wide  circle  of  admirers 
from  all  ranks,  and  in  the  large  towns  sparring 
matches  are  an  attractive  feature  among  their  enter- 
tainments. 

The  preceding  observations  point  to  a  number 
of  influences,  medley  of  nationalities,  a  quickening 
clime  and  environment,  and  the  peculiar  migratory 
habits,  which  stamped  the  Californian  with  distinctive 
traits.  Distances  and  other  obstacles  restricted  the 
inflowing  population  to  picked  men,  who,  in  their 
struggles  under  strange  conditions,  naturally  developed 
a  self-reliance  and  energy  which  verged  on  audacity, 

57 On  earlier  races  see  Green's  Life,  MS.,  27-8;  Lloyd's  Liyhte,  478-S2; 
Hayes'  Angeles  Arch.,  vii.  74.  Long  distance  races  are  favored  by  Spanish 
settlers. 

53  Dog  and  poultry  shows  occur  annually  at  S.  F.,  and  in  connection  with 
agric.  fairs.  Baby  shows  have  been  tried.  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  15,  1878. 


714  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

though  always  of  a  practical  nature.  Instance  the 
advance  in  mining  methods,  here  revolutionized,  with 
mountains  demolished,  and  streams  turned  from  their 
course;  in  agriculture,  in  the  reclamation  of  deserts, 
in  girding  the  continent  with  railroads,  and  in  other 
undertakings,  which  have  transformed  a  wilderness 
into  a  prosperous  state. 

It  was  the  work  of  utilitarian  enterprise,  and  of 
men  with  decided  adaptability  ;  men,  who,  careless  of 
form  and  appearance,  measured  intrinsic  value,  and 
kept  in  view  aim  rather  than  means.  Casting 
aside  the  hampering  conservatism  of  old  communities, 
they  sought  with  flexible  originality  and  subtle  per- 
ception new  and  independent  channels.  The  life-time 
of  a  year  was  here  compressed  into  a  month ;  the 
life  of  a  month  into  a  day.  Wit  and  muscle  reigned 
supreme,  and  democratic  equality  levelled  class  aspira- 
tions. With  this,  however,  came  a  regard  for  wealth 
above  culture,  moral  peace,  and  all  other  considera- 
tions.5* The  entry  into  social  circles  was  effected 
with  a  golden  key,  and  sustained  with  gild- 
ing, The  rapidity  with  which  millionaires  were  made 
gave  no  time  for  covering  the  crudities  of  their  hum- 
ble origin.55  Yet  the  change  was  attended  by  little 
vulgar  conceit,  for  the  caprice  of  fortune  continued 
to  show  itself  in  the  making  and  unmaking  of  men 
within  the  day.  Class  distinctions  gradually  acquired 
some  influence,  but  they  have  not  yet  reached  the  ab- 
surdities common  in  the  east.  Character  and  enter- 
prise take  a  leading  rank,  but  they  must  be  practical 
and  promising.  Education  and  intelligence  stand,  on 
the  average,  higher  among  the  masses  than  probably 
in  any  other  country,  owing  to  the  select  immigra- 
tion; but  the  race  for  wealth  has  for  the  time  subor- 

54  Thus,  in  farming,  speculative  operations  overshadowed  the  desire  for 
home-building  and  comfort. 

55  The  contact  of  different  nationalities  had  left  its  trace,  however,  in  soft- 
ening much  roughness,  and  it  has  been  observed  that  returning  gold-seekers 
were  fa*  more  considerate  and  orderly  than  those  going  to  Cal.     Borthwck'a 
Cal.,  149.     Contented  aspirations  had  their  effect. 


CHARACTERISTICS.  715 

dinated  the  desire  for  wider  and  deeper  mental  at- 
tainments.06 

Nevertheless,  the  quest  for  gold  is  not  altogether 
sordid.  It  is  sought  rather  as  a  means  for  power  and 
enjoyment,  and  as  freely  used  as  acquired.  The  cause 
lies  in  the  prodigality  of  early  mining  times,  in  the 
long  continuance  of  rich  developments  and  large  profits 
and  earnings,  and  in  a  soil  and  climate  at  once  so 
stimulating  and  benign  as  to  preclude  poverty.  Money- 
makers rely  on  easy  recuperation,  and  regard  empty 
pockets  with  little  apprehension  or  discomposure.  If 
extravagance  is  becoming  more  showy  and  calculating, 
it  yet  retains  much  of  the  generous  element  of  1849, 
which  lingers  also  in  the  deep-drinking  sets  of  the  bar- 
room, shorn  somewhat  of  early  profanity.  It  is  like- 
wise to  be  seen  in  the  demonstrative  patriotism  of 
national  feast-days,  and  the  sustained  interest  in  the 
affairs  of  the  eastern  states,  and  above  all,  in  the  local 
pride,  which  magnifies  California  as  the  finest  and 
most  progressive  of  countries." 

The  comparative  superiority  of  the  men  over  the 
women  is  explained  by  the  nature  of  the  attraction 
which  drew  them  hither,  for  gold  and  adventure,  com- 
bined with  hardships,  were  not  likely  to  tear  away  from 
civilized  comforts  the  same  select  grades  of  both  sexes. 
Nor  have  the  prevailing  habits  of  life  produced  the 
same  admirable  development  in  women  as  in  men.58 
Yet  both  were  hardy  and  adaptive,  and  these  qual- 
ities have  left  their  impress  upon  the  new  generation. 
Children  born  even  of  puny  parents  are  healthy  and 
rosy-cheeked,  and  spring  up  large  and  lusty,  with 
mind  and  nerve  no  less  precocious  than  physique.  All 
features  partake,  more  or  less,  of  the  southern  volup- 

^  In  certain  circles  aspirants  of  shallow  education  shrink  l>efore  the  com- 
parison that  would  be  invited  by  a  more  liberal  admission  of  literary  and 
scientific  men.  The  professions  here  stand  relatively  lower. 

57  Indeed,  the  industrial  achievements  of  Californians  justify  greatly  their 
vanity. 

58  The  earliest  influence  of  women  was  beneficial,  in  the  greater  order, 
decorum,   respect,   and  chivalry  she  imparted,  and  in  the  elevating  family 
life.      Subsequently  she  has  been  prominent  in  fostering  extravagance  and 
vanity. 


716  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

tuousness  and  sprightliness,53  ^  displaying  also  the 
strong  telluric  influence,  and  raising  the  question  as 
to  its  ultimate  effect  upon  the  race.60  California  is 
certainly  an  exceptional  country,  arid  the  size  and  beauty 
of  its  productions,  the  fame  of  its  health-resorts, 
and  above  all,  its  varied  topography  and  stimulating 
coast  climate,  seem  to  favor  the  development  of  the 
highest  progressive  type  in  man.61 

The  education  of  the  Mexican  half-caste  population 
of  California  previous  to  the  conquest  was  furnished 
entirely  by  their  spiritual  teachers,  who  seldom  cared 
to  do  more  than  impart  a  knowledge  of  the  religious 
observances  required  of  them.  Among  the  higher 
Spanish  families,  the  sons  were  sent  to  Mexico  or  the 
Hawaiian  islands,  and  the  daughters  were  instructed, 
very  inadequately,  by  the  neighboring  or  visiting 
priest.  Hence  illiteracy  was  the  rule  rather  than  the 
exception.62 

The  first  public  school  after  the  American  occupa- 
tion was  established  at  San  Francisco  ;  the  number 
of  persons  in  June  1847  under  20  years  being  107,  of 
whom  56  were  of  school  age.  On  the  24th  of 
September  of  that  year  the  town  council  appointed 
a  committee  consisting  of  William  A.  Leidesdorff, 

MThe  physical  resemblance  has  been  termed  English,  and  the  mental  as 
inclining  to  the  French  type,  but  a  comparison  with  the  Spanish  race  as 
developed  in  Cal.  and  southward,  refers  both  to  a  cognate  influence.  Fruit  is 
here  also  large  and  bright.  Girls  unfold  rapidly  and  mothers  are  plump  and 
healthy  at  40  years.  As  in  the  east  the  stolid  features  of  the  German  are 
becoming  sharpened,  and  the  coarse  skin  and  lank  hair  of  the  English  grow- 
ing more  delicate  and  dry,  so  may  even  more  striking  variations  be  ex- 
pected here. 

60 The  nervous,  untiring  activity  in  S.  P.,  imparted  by  the  bracing  sea 
winds,  differs  greatly  from  the  modified  energy  enforced  by  the  warmer  tem- 
perature of  the  interior  and  the  south,  and  which  approaches  that  of  the 
spasmodic  Spanish- American. 

61  Concise  and  interesting  accounts  of  California  society  may  be  found  in 
Overland,  v.  77,  etc.;  Nordhofs  Cal,  137,  et  seq.;  Taylors  Yates,  88,  276; 
Lloyd's  Lirjhte  and  Shades  of  S.  F.;  McCaWs  Pick.,  1-46;  Cortambert,  Peuples; 
Hutchings'  Mag.;  Likino's  Six  Years;  Beadle's  West,  290-311;  Caprcm's  Cal.', 
Pilgrim;  Borthwick's  Cal.;  Powers'  Afoot;  314-26;  Helper's  Land  (cynical); 
Fisher's  Cal.,  a  study  of  characteristics;  Dixon's  Conquest;  Saxon's  Five  Years. 

62 The  census  of  1850  placed  the  illiterate  population  of  Cal.  at  2,318  white 
natives,  and  2,917  foreigners,  chiefly  Mexicans  and  Chilians,  in  a  total  of 
110,000.  At  Monterey  existed  in  1836  a  so-called  normal  school,  when  a 
few  primary  branches  were  taught  as  indicated  by  the  petty  Catecisms  de 
Ortologia  printed  for  it. 


EDUCATION.  717 

William  S.  Clark,  and  William  Glover  to  take  meas- 
ures for  the  establishment  of  a  public  school.  A 
school-house  was  erected  on  Portsmouth  square,  dig- 
nified by  the  name  of  Public  Institute,  and  on  the  3d 
of  April,  1848,  a  school  was  opened  by  Thomas 
Douglas,  a  Yale  graduate,  who  received  a  salary  of 
$1,000  per  year.  From  this  beginning  has  grown, 
with  some  interruptions,  the  public  school  system  of 
California.63 

68  To  be  historically  accurate,  it  should  be  stated  that  a  private  school  had 
been  kept  since  the  preceding  April  by  one  Marston,  a  poorly  educated  Mor- 
mon, who  had  about  20  pupils  in  a  shanty  west  of  Dupout  st,  between 
Broadway  and  Pacific.  As  early  as  1847  it  is  said  that  one  Tyler  taught  a 
class  at  Cache  creek,  and  Wheaton  soon  after  taught  at  Washington. 
Miss  McCord  also  taught  at  Tremont.  The  gold  excitement  carried  all  off  to 
the  mines,  and  when  next  a  school  was  opened  in  S.  F.,  it  was  by  Albert 
Williams  in  April  1849  with  25  pupils.  About  the  last  of  Dec.,  J.  C.  Pelton 
established  a  free  school,  which  in  April  1850  was  taken  under  the  patronage 
and  control  of  the  city.  An  assistant  being  required,  Mrs  Pelton  was  nom- 
inated. The  salaries  of  both  together  were  fixed  at  $500  a  month.  A  school 
ordinance  was  passed  April  8th,  1850,  prescribing  rules  and  regulations  for 
the  public  school.  One  hundred  and  forty -eight  pupils  between  the  ages  of 
4  and  16  years  were  admitted  the  first  term,  as  follows:  Americans  77;  for- 
eigners 71.  The  number  had  increased  by  Jan.  1851  to  174  pupils,  of  whom 
102  were  foreign  and  75  were  girls,  most  of  the  pupils  being  only  above  in- 
fancy. Frequent  fires  and  other  causes  occasioned  tne  removal  of  the  school 
to  the  various  churches  which  had  escaped  their  ravages.  By  June  1851  there 
were  300  children  on  the  school  list,  requiring  two  additional  teachers.  Owing 
to  a  misunderstanding  concerning  salary,  Mr  Pelton  closed  his  school  in  Sept. 
1851,  having  given  instruction  during  his  term  to  over  1,100  children.  Pel- 
tons  Kept.;  in  S.  F.  Herald,  Auy.  9,  1850,  2d  March,  1851.  The  Pac.  Neva 
of  Nov.  1,  1850,  refers  to  a  children's  parade  with  a  banner  inscribed  "The 
First  Public  School  of  California."  Wood's  Pioneer  Wort,  MS.,  9;  S.  F.  Alia, 
Feb.  7  and  March  1,  14,  1851;  CaL  Courier,  Sept.  17,  1850;  S.  F.  Picayune, 
Sept.  3,  13,  1850;  8.  F.  BulHin,  May  27,  1875;  Sac.  Transcript,  March  14, 
1851;  WOlttfa  Thirty  Ye-ir*,  43-4;  /?*»'  Statement,  MS.,  13.  A  public  school 
was  taught  in  Monterey  in  1849  by  Rev.  Willey,  in  Colton  Hall,  Vallejo 
Doc.,  xiii.  9.  In  Sacramento  also  a  school-house  was  built  on  I  street  by 
Prof.  Shepherd  in  1849,  and  occupied  in  Aug.  by  C.  H.  T.  Palmer,  who  gath- 
ered up  a  dozen  out  of  the  30  children  in  the  place.  J.  A.  Benton  next  es- 
sayed a  school  in  Sac.  in  Nov.  with  even  less  success.  In  the  spring  of  1850 
Ferguion  taught  a  school  in  the  7th  Methodist  church  in  Sac.,  but  also  failed. 
Rev.  J.  Rogers  followed  and  kept  a  school  for  two  years.  Miss  Hart  began 
teaching  in  the  autumn  of  1850,  and  Mrs  Spear  opened  a  girls'  school  in  the 
summer  of  1851.  Larlxn's  Doc.,  vii.  336.  See  other  authorities  under  'Sac- 
ramento '  in  the  chapter  on  birth  of  towns,  this  vol.  The  matter  of  schools 
was  agitated  in  Stockton  in  May  1850,  C.  M.  Blake  teaching  in  a  building 
furnished  by  Weber,  but  failing.  Pac.  Neics,  May  10,  1850.  In  the  autumn 
Mrs  Woods  opened  a  select  school,  and  early  in  1851  W.  P.  Hazelton  started 
a  free  school,  after  which  progress  became  rapid.  Hist.  Stockton,  281-2. 

The  first  school  on  the  Mokelumne  was  opened  in  a  tent  fitted  up  on  the 
Staples'  rancho  in  1854,  by  Mr  and  Mrs  D.  J.  Staples,  and  taught  by  A.  A. 
Wheelock.  A  singing  school  and  Sunday  school  was  taught  there  under  the 
iuspices  of  Mrs  Staples  and  Mrs  G.  C.  Halinan.  Staples'  Statement,  MS.,  15. 


718  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

The  state  constitution  of  1849  provided  liberally 
for  public  instruction,  but  owing  to  the  great  expense 
of  the  government,  the  legislature  omitted  to  frame  a 
school  law  until  its  second  and  third  sessions.  In 
1853"  and  1855  this  law  was  revised,  and  with  many 

At  Los  Angeles  the  first  English  school  was  taught  in  1851  by  Rev.  Wicks 
and  J.  G.  Nichols.  Santa  Barbara  in  1850  established  a  public  school  with 
12  pupils,  and  one  private  establishment. 

Benicia  in  1851  had  a  public  school,  and  Sonoma  also  one  of  37  pupils. 
Even  mining  camps  had  schools  in  1851.  At  Grass  Valley  Miss  R.  Farring- 
ton  taught.  Grass  Valley  Directory,  1865,  13;  or  Mrs  J.  P.  Stone,  according 
to  the  National  of  March  28,  1868.  Other  particulars  are  embodied  in  report 
of  state  supt.  of  schools  for  1852.  Although  the  census  of  1850,  p.  374-5, 
enumerates  but  8  schools  outside  of  the  3  leading  counties,  with  an  income  of 
over  $14,000  and  about  200  pupils,  yet  four  or  five  times  that  number  claimed 
to  attend  school. 

In  1850  Col.  T.  J.  Nevins  organized  a  free  class  in  Happy  Valley,  near 
Mission  and  Second,  which  the  town  council  aided  and  made  a  public  school 
It  closed  in  the  spring  of  1851,  though  having  200  pupils,  to  re-open  later  un- 
der the  free-school  ordinance.  Later  Nevins  erected  a  large  building  at 
Spring  Valley  on  the  Presidio  road  and  opened  a  school  at  which  a  small  fee 
was  charged.  Pac.  News,  Jan.  7,  1851.  Besides  these,  select  schools  taught 
by  the  clergy  of  the  several  denominations  were  numerous.  Ooborne's  select 
school  under  Presbyterian  auspices;  Dr  Ver  Mehr's  Grace  Episcopal  parish 
school;  Rev.  Preveaux,  S.  F.  Academy  under  Baptist  patronage;  Congrega- 
tional church  school  opened  in  Sept.;  Trinity  school  advertised  to  open  Jan. 
14,  1850,  for  boys  only,  terms  $100,  taught  by  F.  S.  Mines  and  A.  Fitch. 
Soon  after,  Miss  J.  B.  Winlack  opened  a  seminary  for  girls  near  Clark's 
Point  (Vallejo  st).  Placer  Times,  May  22,  1850;  Pac.  News,  Jan.  5,  1850; 
S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  4,  1850.  An  English  lady  also  advertised  for  pupils. 
There  were  two  Catholic  schools  and  several  primaries  in  the  city  in  1850. 

64  The  first  school  law  was  drawn  mainly  by  G.  B.  Lingley,  assisted  by 
J.  C.  Pelton  and  J.  G.  Marvin,  supt  of  public  instruction,  whose  report 
appears  in  CaL  Jour.  Legis.,  1851,  p.  1562.  See  also  Cal.  Stat.,  1851,  491- 
500.  The  revision  of  1852  was  done  by  F.  Soule,  Marvin,  Pelton,  and  P. 
K.  Hubbs.  The  statutes  of  that  year,  and  of  1853  and  1855  show  the  im- 
provement made  in  the  law.  The  state  school  fund  at  this  time  depended  on 
the  sale  and  rental  of  500,000  acres  of  state  land,  and  on  escheated  estates, 
to  which  were  added  the  poll-tax  and  a  state  tax  of  5  cents  on  each  $100  of 
assessed  property.  The  local  fund  was  derived  from  a  percentage  on  prop- 
erty, gradually  increased  from  3  to  10  cents,  and  in  cities  to  25  cents.  In 
1853  congress  made  the  same  grant  to  California  of  the  16th  and  36th  sec- 
tions of  land  for  school  purposes,  which  had  been  granted  to  the  states 
carved  out  of  the  public  territory  previously  derived  from  the  gifts  of  the 
original  states  to  the  general  government,  or  purchased  from  the  aborigines. 
The  sum  total  of  the  grants  of  the  act  of  1853  was  6, 765, 504  acres,  46,080  of 
which  was  to  be  deducted  for  a  state  seminary  of  learning,  and  6,400  acres 
for  public  buildings,  but  adding  to  the  amount  left  the  500,000  before  de- 
voted to  school  purposes,  gave  7,212,924  acres  appropriated  for  the  support 
of  public  education;  231,680  acres  had  already  been  sold  at  $2  per  acre;  and 
at  the  minimum  of  $1.25  per  acre  the  fund  arising  from  the  remainder  would 
amount  to  $8,726,555,  which  at  7  per  cent  would  yield  $610,858.85,  or  with 
the  sum  already  realized  added  to  $643,345.22,  annual  income  for  the  sup- 
port of  free  schools.  The  value  of  escheated  estates  in  1855  was  placed  at 
$1,063,375,  which  was  another  source  of  revenue.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1855,  37- 
40;  Cal.  Educ.  Scraps,  18-20;  ZaMslae,  Land  Lam,  44,  47-8.  The  reports 


EDUCATION. 


719 


modifications  and  improvements,  is  now  tha  basis  of 
the  school  law  of  California. 

of  the  state  school  superintendent  contain  statistics  showing  the  condition 
of  the  country  to  be  very  unsettled  in  regard  to  schools,  but  that  was  no 
more  than  was  to  be  expected  from  1850  to  1860.  during  the  period  of  the 
greatest  restlessness  in  the  population.  The  deficiency  of  public  schools 
was  partly  supplied  by  private  ones,  teachers  being  numerous.  P.  K. 
Hubbs  was  state  supt  from  1853  to  1856.  He  was  succeeded  by  A.  J. 
Moulder,  graduate  of  the  Virginia  military  institute.  The  report  of  1F56 
shows  children  of  school  age  in  Cal.  to  number  30,039;  enrolled  on  public 
school  register  15,000;  daily  attendance  8,495;  schools  321;  teachers  392. 
A  large  number  of  the  children  were  under  private  instruction.  San  Fran- 
cisco took  and  maintained  the  lead  by  passing  the  first  local  ordinance  un- 
der the  school  law  Sept.  25,  1851,  dividing  the  city  into  7  districts,  and  pro- 
viding for  a  free  school  in  each,  and  for  a  board  of  education.  Ihis  was 
chiefly  due  to  city  supt  Nevins,  who  organized  the  department,  an  appropria- 
tion of  §35,000  having  been  secured,  and  in  1852  another  of  §30,000,  and  a 
school  tax  of  one-fifth  of  one  per  cent  levied  for  school  purposes.  Ihe  first 
3  schools  opened  in  1851  under  the  ordinance  were  the  Happy  Valley,  under 
J.  Denman;  the  Powell  st  or  North  Beach,  under  J.  Tracy  in  Nov.;  and  the 
Washington  st  grammar  school  under  E.  Jones  Dec.  22d.  In  1852  the  Rin- 
con  under  J.  Western,  8th  Jan. ;  the  Spring  Valley  under  A.  W.  Cole,  9th 
Feb.;  Mission  grammar  under  A.  Rix,  in  May;  Union  grammar  at  Clark's 
point  under  A.  Holmes,  June  7th.  The  Spring  Valley  school  was  leased  to 
the  city  by  Nevins  for  99  years  for  the  nominal  sum  of  §700  for  the  entire 
period.  There  was  a  constant  increase,  until  in  1856  the  S.  F.  schools  num- 
bered 24,  viz:  7  grammar,  2  mixed,  6  intermediate,  and  9  primary,  the  daily 
average  attendance  being  2,516  out  of  3,370  enrolled.  Much  trouble  was 
had  concerning  school  lots  owing  to  squatters.  S.  F.  Annals,  684-5.  Until 
1854  the  city  owned  but  one  of  the  school  buildings,  but  after  this  a  number^ 
were  erected.  State  Snpt  Rept,  1864—5,  342  et  seq.  In  order  to  furnish  school 
houses  the  city  contracted  a  debt  of  §60,000  in  1854,  and  increased  the  tax 
rate  from  28  cents  for  city  and  county  to  43  cents.  The  bad  and  dishonest 
financial  management  of  the  state  officers  and  legislators  affected  the  public 
school  fund  during  a  period  of  years. 

The  first  apportionment  from  the  state  fund  was  made  in  1854,  and  its 
inadequacy  is  apparent  by  the  following  table. 


1854 
1855 
1856 

State  Fund 

County  and 
City  Tax 

Subscript'ns 
and  rate  bills 

Salaries 

Expenditure 

§52,961 
63,662 
69,961 

§157,702 
119,128 
121,639 

§42,557 
39,395 
28,619 

§  85.860 
181,906 
200,941 

§275,606 
334,638 
305,221 

It  was  not  until  1856  that  a  high  school  was  organized  in  S.  F.,  the  lack 
of  it  compelling  parents  to  send  children  away,  and  to  patronize  sectarian 
schools  against  their  judgment;  but  the  first  heavy  expense  of  erecting 
school-houses  had  first  to  be  borne.  The  present  public  school  fund  is  de- 
rived from  three  sources;  the  state  fund,  the  county  fund,  and  the  district 
or  local  fund.  The  state  fund  is  derived  mainly  from  a  property  tax,  sup- 
plemented by  a  poll-tax,  and  by  interest  on  certain  bonds  held  in  trust  by 
the  state  for  the  benefit  of  public  schools,  and  also  by  interest  on  balances 
yet  due  on  school  lands  purchased  from  the  state.  The  amount  of  the  state 
fund  apportioned  in  1885  was  §1,845, 883. 03;  and  in!886  it  was  82,01 2, 235.01. 
The  county  and  local  funds  made  up  the  remainder  the  total  expenses  of 
the  public  schools,  being  for  each  year  over  §3,000,000.  Rcptf]f  Strife  Snpt  of 
Schools  for  1887  in  Ley.  Jour.,  app.  no.  7.  According  to  the  school  census  of 


720  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY." 

California  has  her  state  university  at  Berkeley,65  a 
normal  school  at  San  Jose,  with  a  branch  at  Los 
Angeles,68  the  university  of  Southern  California  with 
seven  affiliated  colleges,67  and  will  soon  have  in 
operation,  in  the  Leland  Stanford  Junior  university, 
an  institution  combining  the  best  features  of 
existing  colleges  with  more  practical  methods  and 
branches  of  education.68  For  a  state  so  young, 
California  has  received  some  magnificent  gifts  in  aid 
of  learning.  Among  them  are  the  Toland  medical 
college,  now  transferred  to  the  state  university;63  the 

1888  the  number  of  white  children  in  S.  F.  of  school  age  (5  to  17)  was  81,592, 
while  17,001)  infants  were  soon  to  augment  this  figure.  Of  this  81,000  and 
over,  4'2,077  were  boys,  39,515  girls.  Of  colored  children  there  were  152 
boys  and  J16  girls  of  school  age — total  82,693.  Native-bom  Chinese,  515 
boys,  320  girls.  Foreign-born  children,  962. 

66  See  p.  392,  this  vol.     In  the  buildings  are  excellent  apparatus,  labor- 
atories, museum,  machinery,  library,  and  art  gallery.     In  San  Francisco  are 
located  the  colleges  of  pharmacy,  dentistry,  Toland  college  of  medicine,  and 
Hastings  law  college.     The  many  endowments  of  the  university  aggregate 
$1,891.952.75.     Other  gifts  to  the  institution  are  valued  at  $3,861,952.75. 
The  expenditure  of  1882  was  $95,000  and  the  income  $98,000.     The  chief 
benefactors  have  been  E.  Tompkins,  Dr  Hugh  H.  Toland,  S.  C.  Hastings, 
James  Lick,  the  college  of  California,  William  and  Eugenie  Hillegasa,  George 
M.  Blake,  A.   K.  P.  Harmon,  H.  D.  Bacon,  Michael  Reese,  D.  O.  Mills,  F. 
L.  A.  Pioche,  Dr  Hitchcock,  and  Dr  Cogswell. 

6U  The  legislature  of  1862  ordained  the  establishment  of  a  state  normal 
Bchool  at  San  Francisco,  '  or  at  such  other  place  as  the  legislature  may  here- 
after direct.'  It  was  the  outgrowth  of  a  normal  school  already  established 
in  this  city  by  A.  J.  Moulder,  John  Swett,  and  city  supt  Henry  B.  James, 
who  in  1857,  assisted  by  George  W.  Minns,  Ellis  H.  Holmes,  and  Thomas  S. 
Myrick,  opened  such  a  school,  Minns  being  made  principal.  The  branch  at 
Los  Angeles  was  established  in  1881  by  act  of  legislature.  Cal.  Stat.,  1881, 
p.  89;  Id.,  1883,  281. 

67  The  president  of  the  university  of  Southern  California  is  Dr  Marion  M. 
Bovard,  a  native  of  Ind.  and  of  French-Huguenot  descent.     Beginning  life  as 
a  physician,   he  became  impressed  with  the  idea  that  his  vocation  was  to 
preach  the  gospel,  and  first  receiving  a  thorough  college  training,  came  to 
Cal.  in  1873  as  a  methodist  missionary.     After  laboring  for  some  years  at 
Riverside,  Compton,  San  Diego,  and  Los  Angeles,  he  organized  the  univer- 
sity in  conjunction  with   Judge  Widney  and  others.     In    1889  it  had  500 
students  in  attendance,  and  its  property  was  valued  at  $3,000,000. 

68  For  this  institution,  founded  in  memory  of  his  only  son,  whose  decease 
occurred  March  14,    1884,  Mr  Stanford  donated  valuable  tracts  of  land  in 
Butte,  Tehama,  Santa  Clara,  and  San  Mateo  counties,  with  other  gifts,  rep- 
resenting in  all  several  millions  of  dollars.     It  was  the  intention  to  make  it 
an  educational  centre  adapted  to  all  classes,  the  course  of  instruction  em- 
bracing many  departments,  from  mechanical  trades  to  the  higher  branches  of 
art,  science,  aud  literature,  with  colleges  of  law  and  medicine,  a  school  of 
agriculture,  a  conservatory  of  music,  a  museum,  library,  etc.,  and  with  pre- 
paratory schools  for  elementary  training. 

69  Dr  Hugh  Huger  Toland,  a  native  of  South  Carolina,  where  he  was  born 
April  17,  1809,  came  to  this  coast  in  1852,  after  practising  successfully  for  a 
number  of  years  in  his  native  state.     He  at  once  took  rank  among  the  lead- 


MUNIFICENT  BEQUESTS.  721 

Lick  observatory;  and  the  Cogswell  Polytechnic 
school  of  San  Francisco,  each  accessible  to  all  classes 
upon  easy  terms.70  Private  schools  of  a  high  order, 

ing  practitioners  of  San  Francisco,  and  was  appointed  physician  and  surgeon 
to  the  county  hospital,  and  a  member  of  the  board  of  health,  which  latter 
position  he  held  until  his  death,  Feb.  26,  1880.  The  Toland  medical  college 
was  built  in  1862  and  largely  supported  at  this  own  expense.  The  doctor 
was  twice  married,  his  second  wife,  Mrs  B.  M.  G-ridley,  nee  Morrison,  being 
known  to  the  world  of  letters  as  the  authoress  of  several  beautiful  poems  of 
a  romantic  and  legendary  character. 

'•James  Lick,  in  disposing  of  his  estate  hi  his  lifetime,  gave  $700,000  for 
an  observatory  which  should  surpass  any  in  existence.  The  trustees  secured 
the  manufacture  of  a  lens  36  inches  in  diameter,  with  a  magnifying  power 
of  3,360  diameters,  mounted  as  an  equatorial  telescope.  The  observatory  has 
also  a  6-inch  and  a  12-inch  telescope,  and  is  in  all  respects  the  most  thor- 
oughly equipped  in  the  world.  The  trustees  in  1888  transferred  the  estab- 
lishment at  Mount  Hamilton  to  the  state  university.  Visitors  are  permitted 
the  use  of  the  instruments  on  certain  days  of  the  week.  Deed  of  Trust  of 
James  Lick,  1875;  Burnhams  Sept  on  the  Observatory,  1880;  Century,  May 
1886. 

Lick  also  gave  $540,000  for  the  establishment  of  an  institute  of  mechanic 
arts  at  San  Francisco.  This  also  will  be  turned  over  to  the  university  when 
the  trust  shall  be  executed.  It  is  proper  to  mention  in  this  place  that  the 
observatories  for  astronomical  studies  are  numerous  in  Cal.  Prof.  Davidson 
of  San  Francisco  has  a  6.4  inch  object-glass,  equatorially  mounted,  and  placed 
in  a  portable  observatory  at  the  cor  of  Clay  and  Octavia  sts,  and  devoted  by 
act  of  the  supervisors  in  1880  to  the  use  of  the  coast  and  geodetic  survey  as 
the  standard  telegraphic  longitude  of  the  Pacific  coast.  The  Chabot  ob- 
servatory, with  an  8-inch  glass,  was  donated  to  the  city  of  Oakland  by 
Anthony  Chabot  in  1882,  with  an  endowment  of  $10,000.  It  is  situated  in 
Lafayette  square  bet  10th  and  llth  and  Jefferson  and  Grove  sts.  The  Buck- 
halter  observatory,  with  a  10£  inch  glass  is  the  property  of  Charl«s  Buck- 
halter  of  West  Oakland,  situated  on  Chester  st,  and  is  the  work  of  his 
hands.  The  Blinn  observatory  at  Highland  Park,  East  Oakland,  is  another 
private  establishment,  and  contains  a  5-inch  Clark  chromatic,  equatorially 
mounted,  and  a  If  inch  Latimer-Clark  transit,  with  a  mean-time  and  side- 
real-time clock. 

At  the  university  of  the  Pacific,  San  Jose,  a  Methodist  institution,  is  a 
6-inch  telescope  and  working  observatory  with  several  instruments,  the  gift 
of  Captain  Charles  Goodall  of  San  Francisco  and  David  Jacks  of 
Monterey.  Mills  College,  Brooklyn,  is  also  provided  with  an  observatory 
and  a  5-inch  telescope.  The  university  of  California  was  provided  by  the 
legislature  of  1886  with  a  students'  observatory,  equipped  with  a  6-inch 
equatorial  refractor,  and  other  glasses  and  clocks  necessary  to  complete  the 
facilities  for  astronomical  observatories;  situated  at  Berkeley.  The  eleva- 
tion of  Lick  observatory  is  4,209;  Davidson,  378;  university,  320;  Blinn,  159. 

To  the  university  of  the  Pacific  Mr  Jacks  also  presented  a  handsome 
donation  for  the  erection  of  new  buildings.  A  Scotchman  by  birth,  and  after 
the  gold  discovery  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  at  Monterey,  where  he  landed 
Jan.  1,  1850,  Mr  Jacks  was  formerly  one  of  the  largest  farmers  and  stock- 
raisers  in  this  section,  his  estate  covering  an  area  of  60,000  acres.  To  col- 
leges, churches,  and  charities  he  has  always  been  a  liberal  contributor,  among 
his  gifts  being  one  of  $29,000  to  the  methodists,  wherewith  to  establish  to 
the  Pacific  grove  retreat. 

Dr  Henry  D.  Cogswell,  besides  the  aid  given  to  the  university  of  Cal., 
erected  a  drinking  fountain  in  San  Francisco,  and  latterly  a  handsome 
polytechnic  school  on  26th  and  Folsom. 

Among  private  schools,  Mills  seminary,  now  Mills  college,  an  instittt- 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VII.  46 


722  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

and  sectarian  colleges  and  universities  "  are  numerous. 
The  means  of  education  are  furnished  at  the  institu- 
tion for  the  deaf,  dumb,  and  blind,  the  orphanages, 
and  the  Industrial  school72  near  San  Francisco.  The 
state  is  also  ambitious  to  supplement  practical  educa- 
tion with  special  and  general  forms  of  culture.  It  is 
but  natural  that  art 73  should  follow  science,74  and  but 
reasonable  that  a  higher  development  should  be  looked 
for  in  both.  No  better  field  for  the  scientist 
could  be  found ;  nor  a  more  inviting  one  for 
the  artist,  although  the  extraordinary  heights  and 
depths  of  mountain  scenery  militate  against  the 
production  of  small  and  unpretending  pictures,  and 
tend  to  the  bizarre  effects  of  great  single  objects. 
Sculpture  in  California  is  not  represented  by 
American  artists,  and  but  slightly  at  all,  although 

tion  for  the  education  of  yonng  women,  has  maintained  a  high  reputation. 
It  was  incorporated  as  Mills  college  iu  1886. 

71  University  college  of  San  Francisco  was  founded  under  the  auspices  of 
Calvary  church  in  1800.  It  opened  in  the  basement  of  that  edifice  under 
the  direction  of  Dr  Burrows.  A  lot  was  purchased  at  the  cor  of  Geary  and 
Stockton  sts,  upon  which  a  suitable  edifice  was  erected,  with  the  intention  of 
removing  in  time  to  a  tract  of  land  4  miles  from  the  city  on  the  San  Bruno 
road.  It  is  however  at  present  located  on  Haight  st,  bet.  Octavia  and 
Laguna  sts.  The  plan  of  this  institution  is  to  give  an  education  equal  to 
any  of  the  eastern  colleges|  It  is  now  in  the  hands  of  a  board  of  unsecta- 
rian  trustees.  S.  F.  Theological  seminary  located  on  Haight  st  was  opened 
in  1871  for  students  of  all  denominations.  The  Jesuit  college  of  St  Ignatius 
in  S.  F.,  opened  in  1855,  is  a  wealthy  and  well-equipped  institution,  and 
the  same  might  be  said  of  the  colleges  of  other  catholic  orders,  whose  sec- 
tarianism is  the  means  of  power.  Sacred  Heart  college  had  in  1887  700  stu- 
dents. Sacred  Heart  Presentation  convent,  opened  in  1869,  had  600.  St 
Mary's  college,  opened  in  1863,  had  250  students. 

"In  April  1859  the  legislature  passed  an  act  for  the  establishment  of  a 
state  reform  school,  and  an  appropriation  was  made  of  $30,000  to  erect 
buildings  on  a  tract  5  miles  from  Marysville,  which  in  1861  was  increased 
by  the  further  appropriation  of  $25,000.  The  institution  was  broken  up  in 
1868,  and  the  property  turned  over  to  the  city  of  Marysville.  Cal  Stat., 
1860,  200-5.  In  April  1858  the  legislature  established  the  Industrial  Scb.ool 
department  of  the  city  and  county  of  San  Francisco,  still  in  existence.  Itj 
aims  are  reformatory  and  punitive. 

7:i  San  Francisco  has  an  academy  of  design  doing  very  creditable  work. 
It  has  not  hitherto  attracted  the  attention  of  men  who  had  money  to  be- 
stow on  educational  objects,  and  has  struggled  along  with  such  support  as 
pupils  and  artists  have  given  it.  For  many  years  it  was  under  the  care  of 
Virgil  Williams,  a  landscape  painter  of  note,  and  a  conscientious  teacher. 

74  The  California  academy  of  sciences  in  S.  F.  organized  April  4,  1 8f,3, 
first  occupied  hired  rooms,  but  subsequently  moved  into  the  old  church  at 
the  cor  of  California  and  Dupont  sts.  There  was  given  to  the  society  by 
James  Lick  a  valuable  lot  on  Market  st,  on  which  the  future  home  of  the 
academy  will  be  erected.  The  membership  is  at  present  350. 


EDUCATIONAL  ADVANTAGES.  723 

here  and  there  a  monument  rises  on  public  grounds 
to  the  memory  of  national  genius  or  worth.73 

The  subject  of  California  literature  has  been 
treated  elsewhere  in  this  series;  hence  I  give  it 
little  space  here.  It  would  be  folly  to  look  for 
any  peculiarly  local  type,  such  as  one  might  say, 
"ft  is  English,"  or  " It  is  French,"  or  " It  isGerman" 
in  thought  or  style.  English,  French,  German,  and 
American  writers  have  furnished  the  books  which 
treat  of  Californian  subjects,  and  there  is  no  really 
homogeneous  Californian  literature.  That  every  trav- 
eller to  this  coast  in  the  gold-period  and  before  felt  it 
almost  as  a  duty  to  give  his  impressions  was  but 
the  effect  of  the  general  demand  for  descriptions  of  the 
country.  Those  who  came  and  went  wrote  books 
about  the  coast ;  those  who  finally  settled  down  to 
residence  here  had  incidents  and  recollections  to  re- 
late attractive  enough  to  gain  readers,  although  the 
rhetoric  and  grammar  may  have  been  open  to  criti- 
cism, as  was  also  the  matter,  too  frequently.  The 
eagerness  of  the  public  in  the  eastern  states,  and  even 
in  England,  to  consume  these  narratives  led  to  the 
exaggeration  which  became  a  feature  of,  if  not  a  fac- 
tor, in  California  writings. 

Perhaps  nothing  more  cultivates  pathetic  humor 
than  hardship  endured  with  bravery  lay  ordinarily  in- 
telligent men.76  The  resistance  of  their  courage  to 
the  assaults  of  physical  pain  or  suffering  causes  them 
to  seek  amusement  in  absurd  flights  of  fancy  and  odd 
combinations  of  imagery  ;  until  he  who  draws  the 
long  bow  most  successfully  in  a  company  or  commu- 

75  James  Lick  left  a  fund  in  trust  to  be  applied  to  erecting  a  monument  to 
Francis  Scott  Key,  author  of  the  'Star  Spangled  Banner.'     It  was  unveiled 
July  4,  1888.     The  artist  was  W.  W.  Story.     Statuary  for  the  city  hall  was 
also  provided  for  in  the  Lick  bequests.     The  state  capitol  at  Sacramento  is 
adorned  with  figures  by  P.  Mezzara  of  S.  F. 

76  Instance  the  remark  of  the  famous  mountain  stage-driver,  Hank  Monk, 
when  dying:  'I'm  on  the  down  grade,  and  can't  reach  the  brake  ! '     A  more 
expressive  image  of  certain  doom  could  not  have  been  presented,  yet  it  was 
smilingly  uttered. 


724  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

nity  is  admired  as  a  man  of  genius.  Hence  tales  of 
adventure,  which  simply  related,  might  have  been 
reckoned  no  more  thrilling  than  others  of  common 
occurrence,  when  dressed  in  quaint  language,  with 
happy  hits  of  pathos  or  fine  points  of  climax,  rise 
above  the  commonplace,  and  charm  even  a  critical 
audience. 

Mining  life  in  California  furnished  inexhaustible 
material  for  the  exercise  of  this  talent ;  and  almost 
every  book  produced  in  the  golden  era  gave  specimens 
more  or  less  entertaining  of  the  wit  and  humor  devel- 
oped by  the  struggle  withhomelessness,  physical  suffer- 
ing, and  mental  gloom.  And  when,  perchance,  a 
writer  had  never  heard  original  tales  of  the  kind  he 
felt  himself  expected  to  relate,  he  took  them  at  sec- 
ond-hand,77 or  invented  them  for  the  occasion.  In 
order  to  make  them  more  improbable  still,  he  had  a 
dialect  of  slang,  bad  grammar,  and  blasphemy  in- 
vented, which,  by  frequent  use,  became  standard,  and 
was  taken  by  the  outside  world  as  the  actual  utter- 
ances of  the  men  engaged  in  mining ;  while  the  truth 
was  that  men  in  the  mines  spoke  as  they  were  used 
to  speak  in  the  state  or  country  from  which  they 
came — no  better,  no  worse.  Some  were  common  la- 
borers, some  artisans,  some  farmers,  some  professional 
men,  and  being  from  every  part  of  Christendom, 
could  have  no  dialect  such  as  was  imputed  to  them. 
Yet  this,  if  any,  constitutes  in  popular  belief  the 
special  characteristic  of  California  literature — a  belief 
fostered  by  writers  of  a  later  period,  who  have  pre- 
ferred pandering  to  it  rather  than  to  sustain  the  dig- 
nity of  the  society  of  which  they  were  a  part. 

But  it  cannot  be  assumed  that  there  has  ever  been 

77  Even  the  most  powerful  of  Bret  Harte's  stories  borrowed  their  incidents 
from  the  letters  of  Mrs  Laura  A.  K.  Clapp,  who  under  the  nom  de  plume  of 
'Shirley,'  wrote  a  series  of  letters  published  in  the  Pioneer Mayazine,  1851-2. 
The  '  Luck  of  Roaring  Camp  '  was  suggested  by  incidents  related  in  Letter 
II.,  p.  174-6  of  vol.  i.  of  the  Pirmeer.  In  Letter  XIX.,  p.  103-10  of  vol.  iv., 
is  the  suggestion  of  the  'Outcasts  of  Poker  Flat.'  Mrs  Clapp's  simple  epis- 
tolary style  narrates  the  facts,  and  Harte'a  exquisite  style  imparts  to  them 
the  glamour  of  imagination. 


CALIFORNIA  AUTHORS.  725 

a  California  literature,  good  or  baa.  For  the  books 
of  travellers,  residents  are  not  responsible.  Most  of 
the  books  produced  by  resident  writers  have  been 
called  forth  by  a  demand  for  information  upon  some 
local  topic.  A  few  lovers  of  science  have  furnished 
monographs  on  these  favorite  studies.  Books  of 
rather  commonplace  biography  have  been  produced. 
Few  works  calling  for  an  exercise  of  creative  talent, 
or  purely  philosophic  essays  have  been  attempted ; 
the  reason  for  this  being  two-fold — the  impracticability 
of  endeavoring  to  compete  with  the  established 
coteries  of  eastern  magazines  in  their  own  field,  and 
the  poverty  of  publishers  in  a  sparsely  settled  and 
isolated  region,  which  renders  them  unable  to  en- 
courage pure  literature,  for  writers  of  merit,  like  other 
professional  people,  must  be  paid  for  their  work. 
This  reduces  the  authorship  of  almost  any  state,  when 
taken  by  itself,  to  a  minimum,  the  two  or  three  pub- 
lishing centres  of  the  United  States  hardly  redeem- 
ing the  individual  states  in  which  they  exist  from  the 
same  reproach  of  having  no  literature  of  their  own. 

Add  to  these  conditions  for  California  the  further 
fact  that  the  comparatively  few  persons  born  in  this 
state,  who  have  arrived  at  maturity,  have  furnished  it 
with  no  marked  literary  ability,  and  it  is  evident  that 
nothing  which  might  be  called  characteristic  has  yet 
appeared  to  distinguish  this  from  any  other  commu- 
nity of  equal  numbers.  Those  who  edit  the  news- 
papers and  conduct  the  various  periodicals  of  the 
state  are,  from  every  part  of  the  union,  besides  com- 
ing from  Mexico  and  Europe. 

What  will  be  the  ultimate  result  of  this  admixture 
of  race  prejudices,  talent,  and  culture  upon  the  future 
literature  of  the  Pacific  coast  can  only  be  conjectured. 
That  a  generation  or  two  should  be  allowed  in  which 
to  erect  some  local  standards  is  consistent  with  rea- 
son. From  the  desultory  efforts  of  the  present,  little 
can  be  judged,  although  they  are  not  without  promise 
should  the  native-born  and  home-educated  writers  of 


726  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

the  future  prove  even  as  industrious  and  full  of  re- 
sources as  those  of  to-day ;  for  although  I  have  said 
there  is  not  yet  a  California  literature,  I  have  not  de- 
nied that  there  is  an  extraordinary  number  of  books, 
magazines,  and  newspapers  for  the  population,  or  that 
a  fair  proportion  of  them  are  written  and  conducted 
with  as  much  ability  as  the  same  class  of  publications 
in  other  countries,  or  that  the  material  is  absent 
which  should  inspire  a  local  literature  of  a  high  order. 
For  remarks  upon  particular  works  the  writer  is 
referred  to  my  Essays  and  Miscellanies. 

The  advent  of  Americans,  and  the  gold  discovery, 
had  the  effect  of  saving  from  final  and  entire  abandon- 
ment the  Roman  catholic  missionary  field  in  Califor- 
nia. Their  religious  establishments  were  secularized, 
their  pious  fund  diverted,78  their  converts  scattered, 
and  the  priests  who  remained  faithful  to  their  charge 
were  poor,  if  not  sometimes  starving.  The  mines 
opened  to  them  a  treasure-house.  Their  cloth  chapels 
arose  in  all  the  chief  mining  camps,  their  blessings 
ware  bestowed  impartially  when  golden  chispas  were 
given,  and  the  church  became  rehabilitated.  St 
Francis'  church  of  San  Francisco  was  organized  in 
1849  by  Anthony  Langlois,  and  a  wooden  edifice  was 
consecrated  to  its  uses  in  December  of  the  same  year 
by  John  McGinnis.  In  1850  Joseph  S.  Alemany 
was  appointed  bishop  of  Monterey,  but  tranferred  to 
San  Francisco  in  1851,  and  made  archbishop  in  1853, 
while  the  lower  bishopric  was  given  to  Tadeo  Amat. 
There  were  fifteen  catholic  priests  in  California  in 
1850-1,  the  r3sidue  of  the  Franciscan  missions,  who 
claimed  15,000  communicants,  24  churches,  and  one 
college  ;  also  the  remainder  of  the  former  mission  sys- 
tem, with  the  exception  of  St  Francis,  and  the  cloth 
chapels  before  mentioned.  Twenty -five  years  after- 

78 The  recovery  of  the  lands  which  the  Cath.  ch.  had  possessed  under  the 
Mexican  domination,  hut  ha.l  been  deprived  of,  wa?  ordered,  or  indemnified 
by  lieu  lands  to  the  extent  of  33,000  acre3  by  the  U.  S.  Govt.  Jiossi,  214. 


RELIGIOUS  ESTABLISHMENTS.  727 

wards  there  were  three  bishops,  93  churches,  16 
chapels,  121  priests,  13  convents  and  academies,  four 
colleges,  seven  orphanages,  five  hospitals,  and  four 
asylums,  supported  by  200,000  communicants. 

Protestantism  was  introduced  into  California  from 
the  inethodist  missions  in  Oregon  in  1846  by  William 
Roberts,  and  was  kept  alive  by  the  continued  if  slight 
immigration  from  the  border  states,  and  occasional 
religious  services  by  clergymen  of  various  denomina- 
tions, temporarily  sojourning  in  the  country,  and  in 
their  absence  by  the  volunteer  effort  of  serious-minded 
laymen.7'  In  the  spring  of  1849  there  was  amid  the 
sudden  influx  of  population  a  fair  proportion  of  pro- 
fessional preachers,8'  few  of  whom,  indeed,  lived  by 

79  Elihu  Anthony  was  announced  to  preach  in  the  Public  Institute  (school 
house)  on  Portsmouth  square,  Sept.  3,  1848.  S.  F.  Californian,  Sept  2,  1848. 
Capt.  Thomas,  of  the  Laura  Ann,  being  solicited,  'ably  officiated'  at  the 
Institute  for  several  Sundays  in  October  1848.  On  the  1st  of  Nov  ,  T.  Dwighb 
Hunt,  of  Honolulu,  at  a  meeting  presided  over  by  E.  H.  Harrison,  James 
Creighton,  sec.,  was  chosen  protestant  chaplain  to  the  citizens,  with  an  an- 
nual salary  of  $2,500  to  be  raised  by  subscription.  A  beautiful  bible  was 
presented  for  the  chaplain's  use  by  W.  F.  Swasey.  Id.,  NOT.  4,  1848:  8.  I. 
Friend,  vi.  93;  Polynesian  V.,  iii.;  8.  F.  Direct-try,  1852-3,  p.  9;  Willey'*  Per- 
sonal Memoranda,  88.  Sam  Braunan  sometimes  preached  to  the  Mormons. 
Fiwllay's  Statement,  MS.,  4.  On  the  1st  of  Jan.,  1849,  the  sacrament  of  the 
Lord's  supper  was  administered  for  the  first  time  to  12  communicants  of  6  dif- 
ferent denominations.  Overland  Monthly,  June  1873,  p.  549.  Hunt,  in  July 
1849,  organized  the  First  Congregational  church  of  S.  F.,  the  3d  church  in 
point  of  date  in  the  city.  Its  first  place  of  meeting  was  at  the  cor.  of  Jack- 
son and  Virginia  sts,  but  soon  a  church  was  erected  on  the  cor.  of  Dupont 
and  California  sts.  Later  the  edifice  was  placed  on  the  S.  E.  cor.  of  Post 
and  Mason. 

**By  the  steamship  California,  in  Feb.  1849,  there  arrived  4  clergymen : 
O.  C.  Wheeler,  baptist;  Sylvester  Woodbridge,  John  W.  Douglas  and  S.  H. 
Willey,  presbyterians.  Wood's  Pioneer  Wort,  84,  89.  Woodbridge  and 
Willey  landed  at  Monterey  where  for  some  time  the  latter  remained.  On 
the  15th  of  Sept..  1850,  he  organized  the  Howard  M.  E.  church,  with  4  mem- 
bers, the  church  being  erected  on  Xatoma  st,  upon  lind  donated  by  W.  D. 
M.  Howard.  Willey  remained  pastor  for  12  years.  Woodbridge,  coming  to 
S  F.,  preached  once  in  Hunt's  place,  and  then  repaired  to  Benicia  where  he 
organized  a  presbyterian  church  on  the  10th  of  April,  probably  the  first  reg- 
ular church  organization  among  the  Americans,  and  certainly  the  first  pres- 
byterian church.  This  church  flourished  for  many  years;  but  in  1861  it 
dissolved  on  account  of  political  dissensions.  Woodbridge  paid  a  visit  to 
Sacramento  in  April  1849,  and  preached  there  the  first  sermon  which  its 
people  had  heard  since  the  settlement.  Douglas  went  to  San  Jose,  where  he 
organized  a  church,  but  afterwards  returned  east. 

In  the  meantime,  All>ert  Williams,  another  presbyterian  had  arrived,  and 
on  the  20th  of  May  organized  the  First  Presbyterian  church  of  San  Francisco, 
holding  services  in  a  tent  erected  for  the  purpose  on  Dupont  st.  The  society 
afterward  used  a  store-room  in  the  custom  house,  and  later,  the  Superior 


728  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

their  calling  alone,  but  most  of  whom  contributed  by 
teaching,  and  otherwise,  to  the  advancement  and 
refinement  of  society  in  the  towns,  San  Francisco 
and  Sacramento  receiving  a  large  proportion  of  their 

court  room  in  the  city  hall  by  authority  of  the  provisional  legislature  of  the 
district.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Dec.  25,  1850.  In  1851,  a  church  edifice  framed  in 
the  east,  and  shipped  round  the  Horn  on  the  bark  George  Henry,  was  erected 
on  Stockton  st  near  Broadway;  but  it  was  destroyed  in  the  great  fire  of  that 
year.  Another  edifice,  costing  $75,000,  was  erected  in  1857  by  this  society. 
S.  F.  A  UCL,  Jan.  25,  1850;  8.  F.  Herald,  Feb.  3,  1851;  Williams'  Pioneer  Pas- 
torate, 18-23;  Bartons  Statement,  MS.,  4;  KimbalFs  S.  F.  Directory,  1850,  127. 
On  the  24th  of  June,  1849,  O.  C.  Wheeler  organized  the  First  Baptist  church 
of  S.  F.,  and  in  July  this  society  erected  a  commodious  building  on  Wash- 
ington st  bet.  Dupont  and  Stockton.  Wheeler  was  the  only  minister  not 
sent  out  by  the  missionary  societies.  His  congregation,  in  October,  offered 
him  $10,000  for  his  services,  which  was  accepted.  In  1850  he  visited  Sacra- 
mento and  Marysville  organizing  churches,  assisted  by  Rev.  Preveaux  of  the 
Boston  Missionary  society.  S.  F.  CaL  Courier,  Sept.  14,  1850.  Rev.  Capen 
took  charge  of  the  Sacramento  church. 

In  July  1849,  J.  A.  Beuton  arrived  at  S.  F.  and  proceeded  to  Sacramento, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  14th,  and  found  W.  Roberts  and  Dr  Deal  attending 
to  the  religious  affairs  of  the  community.  On  the  16th  of  Sept.  he  organized 
the  First  Congregational  church  of  Sacramento.  Its  first  church  edifice  was 
erected  in  1850,  costing  $9,000,  and  was  consumed  in  the  fire  of  1854.  On  its 
ashes  arose  immediately  a  handsome  church  costing  $42,000.  This  also  was 
much  injured  by  the  flood  of  1862,  and  repaired  at  considerable  expense  in 
1863,  in  which  year  Ben  ton  was  dismissed  at  his  own  request  from  the  pas- 
torate, and  I.  E.  Dwinell  of  Salem,  Mass.,  was  installed  in  his  place. 

Roberts  announced  to  'a  large  and  respectable'  congregation  at  the  cor 
of  K  and  Third  sts,  in  July  1849,  that  he  had  2  churches  under  way  for  Cal. 
— one  to  be  set  up  in  S.  F.  and  the  other  in  Sac.  In  August,  Rev.  Cook,  a 
baptist,  arrived  in  Sac.  and  preached  there.  A  Sunday-school  was  begun  by 
Prof.  Shepherd  and  taken  up  by  Benton,  with  the  help  of  two  women  who 
formed  a  library.  In  October,  Isaac  Owens  took  charge  of  the  M.  E.  society 
of  Sac.  and  a  small  church  building  was  sent  out  by  the  Baltimore  confer- 
ence, and  occupied  in  Nov.  Morse's  Sac.  Directory,  1853-4,  p.  8;  S.  F.  Pic- 
ayune, Sept.  4,  1850. 

Another  minister  arrived  in  July,  in  the  person  of  Flavel  S".  Mines, 
from  the  diocese  of  N.  Y.,  who  first  preached  on  the  8th  of  that  month  in  S. 
F.  On  the  22d  the  church  of  the  Holy  Trinity  was  formed  with  22  members. 
On  the  29th  wardens  and  vestrymen  were  elected,  who  invited  Mines  to  be 
their  rector.  He  was  duly  elected  Aug.  6th.  The  following  month  a  con- 
tract was  let  to  erect  a  church,  but  the  agreement  was  for  some  reason  not 
carried  out,  and  Mines  was  absent  in  N.  Y.  some  months.  On  his  return  an 
iron  building  was  erected  on  Pine  st  bet.  Montgomery  and  Kearney,  which 
was  opened  about  Easter  1852.  Mines  died  in  Aug.  of  that  year,  and  was 
buried  beneath  the  church.  He  was  succeeded  by  C.  B.  Wyatt,  of  N.  Y., 
who  arrived  in  Feb.  1853.  The  church  building  was  enlarged  this  year. 
Wyatt  was  succeeded  in  1856  by  S.  Thrall,  of  N.  Y.  diocese,  who  continued 
in  charge  until  Aug.  1861,  Wyatt  returning  at  that  time.  The  iron  church 
was  abandoned  in  Dec.  1866,  when  the  congregation  removed  to  a  new  church 
on  Post  and  Powell  sts.  The  lot  on  Pine  st  brought  $70,500  and  the  lot  on 
Post  st  cost  $30,000.  The  corner-stone  of  the  new  church  was  laid  by 
Bishop  Kip. 

During  the  summer  of  1849,  Mines  visited  Sacramento  and  organized  an 
episcopal  society,  which  Rev.  Burnham,  in  Nov.,  went  to  preside  over,  dying 
in  April  1850. 


CHURCHES.  729 

labors  "from  1849  ot  1853.      Perfect  tolerance  was 

In  Sept.  1849  arrived  Ver  Mehr,  missionary  of  the  episcopal  church,  who 
first  preached  at  the  American  hotel,  afterward  at  the  state  marine  hospital 
on  Stockton  st,  and  later  at  private  residences.  On  the  30th  of  Dec.  a  plain 
building  costing  §8,000,  was  erected  on  the  cor.  of  Powell  and  John  sts.,  and 
called  Grace  chapel;  and  in  1850  a  parish  was  regularly  organized,  E.  Bryant 
and  E.  D.  Turner  being  first  wardens,  Ver  Mehr  being  called  to  the  rector- 
ship. The  congregation  increasing,  a  larger  building  was  erected  in  1851, 
paid  for  in  parb  by  the  proceeds  of  musical  entertainments  given  by  the 
Sanger-bund  and  by  Signora  Elisa  Biscacciauti,  who  sang  the  Stahat  Mater 
of  Rossini.  Bishop  Kip  took  charge  in  1854.  Christ  church  of  the  same  de- 
nomination was  organized  in  1853  and  occupied  a  room  over  the  post-office; 
John  Morgan,  pastor.  St  John's  church,  'episcopal,' was  organized  in  Stock- 
ton, Aug.  25,  1850,  O.  Harriman  holding  the  first  service.  In  May  1850, 
James  \Voods,  who  arrived  by  sea  around  the  Horn  at  the  close  of  1849, 
preached  the  dedication  sermon  of  the  first  church  erected  in  Stockton — 
presbyterian — which  cost  §14,000. 

Among  the  arrivals  of  1849  was  Wm.  Taylor,  methodist,  who  established 
the  First  M.  E.  church  of  S.  F.  on  Powell  st,  of  which  he  was  pastor,  and  in 
addition  preached  Sunday  afternoons  in  the  open  air  on  Portsmouth  square. 
His  preaching  was  well  attended,  and  his  life  was  devoted  to  doing  good. 
The  first  meeting  of  the  S.  F.  Bible  Society  was  held  in  1849  in  the  M.  E. 
church,  Taylor,  Ver  Mehr,  and  Williams  being  elected  vice-presidents. 
Methodist  services  were  also  held  in  1851  in  the  recorder's  court-room,  city 
hall,  by  J.  Biring  of  the  methodist  church  south.  D.  W.  Pollock  of  this 
church  was  preaching  at  Sacramento.  A  M.  E.  church  was  organized  in 
Stockton  in  1851,  and  a  church  building  erected,  and  dedicated  in  July. 
The  Gal.  annual  conference  of  that  year  instructed  Taylor  to  form  a  M.  E. 
society  in  the  south  part  of  the  city,  and  a  congregation  was  organized  un- 
der the  name  of  the  Market  st  charge  of  the  M.  E.  church,  M.C  .  Briggs, 
pastor,  which  met  in  the  school-house  on  Market  st,  and  in  Music  hall  on 
Bush  st,  until  their  church  was  erected  on  Folsom  st  in  1853,  where  they  re- 
mained until  1862.  In  1862-3  the  present  edifice  was  erected  on  Howard  st 
bet  2d  and  3d  sts. 

In  1850  a  society  of  Unitarians  held  services  in  Robinson's  and  Edward's 
dramatic  museum  on  California  st.  Joseph  Harrington  arrived  in  1852  but 
died  of  Panami  fever.  T.  F.  Gray  succeeded  him,  but  returned  to  Boston, 
and  died  in  1855.  R.  P.  Cutler  arrived  in  1854  and  remained  until  1859. 
He  was  succeeded  in  1860  by  T.  Starr  King.  On  the  17th  of  July,  1853,  a 
handsome  church  was  erected  on  Stockton  st  bet  Clay  and  Sacramento. 
This  building  was  sold  to  the  Zion  M.  E.  church,  colored,  and  a  still  hand- 
somer one  erected  on  Geary  and  Stockton  1862-3.  That  was  also  sold,  and 
the  church  removed  farther  from  the  business  portion  of  the  city. 

The  Hebrew  Congregation  Emanu  El  was  organized  in  1851.  Its  present 
handsome  synagogue  was  erected  in  1866  at  a  cost  of  Si  85, 000.  •  There  are 
two  other  congregations  with  fine  edifices  on  Mason  and  Post  streets. 

Calvary  Presbyterian  church  belongs  to  the  early  period,  having  been 
organized  with  60  members  in  1854.  A  church  building  was  completed  in 
1865  on  Bush  st  costing  §70,000.  The  first  pastor  was  William  A.  Scott. 

81  The  first  church  organized  at  Nevada  city  was  the  M.  E.  society,  in 
1850,  by  Rev.  Isaac  Owen.  A  rude  meeting-house  was  erected,  and  Rev. 
A.  Bland  settled  to  preach  in  it.  In  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  the  M. 
E.  church  south  was  organized  by  the  Revs  Boring  and  Ballock.  In  1851  a 
church  edifice  was  erected  for  Rev.  J.  H.  Warren.  In  the  same  year  a 
catholic  church  was  formed;  and  in  1855  an  episcopal  church  by  Rev.  HilL 
$35,000  contributed  for  religious  purposes  in  1855.  Placerville's  first  church 
was  constructed  of  poles,  roofed  with  canvas.  It  was  erected  for  Rev. 
Kalloch,  baptist,  father  of  the  afterwards  notorious  I.  S.  Kalloch.  The  first 


730  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

practised.  In  1852  there  were  37  churches  or  chap- 
els in  San  Francisco.  That  a  community  in  which 
being  a  religious  man  was  considered  "not  exactly  a 
crime,  but  only  a  misfortune,"  should  freely  lend  its  aid 
to  the  support  of  religion  is  not  so  paradoxical  as  it 
seems,  since  the  fundamental  idea  of  Christianity  itself 
is  that  of  vicarious  suffering  for  sin.  The  average  San 
Franciscan  was  quite  willing  to  pray  by  proxy,  having 
his  good  dollars  instead  of  his  good  deeds  recorded  in 
heaven.  Hebrew,  Greek,  Chileno,  Chinaman,  Mor- 
mon, presbyterian,  methodist,  or  universalist  had  equal 
liberty  to  find  a  road  to  heaven  for  himself.  Taking 
everything  into  account,  there  were  as  many  keeping 
in  the  straight  and  narrow  way  as  could  have  been 
looked  for,  and  after  only  forty  years  of  growth  the 
number  and  condition  of  religious  societies  throughout 
the  state,  and  especially  in  the  towns,  will  compare 
favorably  with  other  parts  of  the  United  States.  The 
pulpits  of  San  Francisco  have  been  filled,  since  the 
days  of  the  argonauts,82  when  heroic  men  preached 
without  pulpits,  with  the  best  talent  of  the  country. 
Such  men  as  W.  Ingraham  Kip,  William  A.  Scott, 
T.  Starr  King,  Joseph  S.  Alemany,  Andrew  L.  Stone, 
Horatio  Stebbins,  and  a  long  list  of  eloquent,  schol- 
arly, and  zealous  preachers  have  left  their  impress 
upon  the  thought  of  the  community.  There  are  to- 
day over  a  hundred  places  of  regular  worship  in  the 
city,  and  two  hundred  professional  clergymen.  The 
value  of  church  property  in  1850  was  "$267, 800  for 

permanent  edifice  for  worship  was  erected  in  1851  as  a  'union  church.'  J. 
S.  Deihl,  methodist,  preached  most  frequently.  Ihis  not  being  large  enough 
to  accommodate  the  congregation  on  the  occasion  of  the  visit  of  Bishop 
Soule  in  1852,  services  were  held  in  a  gambling  saloon. 

82  California  received  six  missionaries  in  1853  by  the  ship  Trade,  Wind, 
Weber  master.  They  were  S.  B.  Bell,  J.  G.  Hall,  E.  B.  VValworth,  S.  S. 
Harmon.  James  Pierpont  and  W.  C.  Pond.  They  preached  and  taught  in 
interior  towns,  except  Pond  who  was  pastor  of  Bethany  congregational 
church,  Bartlett  st,  S.  F.  Harmon  established  a  seminary  at  Washington 
Corners,  Alameda  co.,  and  afterwards  in  Berkeley,  where  he  died.  Bell, 
presbyterian,  was  the  first  public  preacher  in  Oakland — March  2(5,  1853 — 
using  the  school-house  on  4th  and  Clay  for  a  church.  Episcopal  service 
had  been  held  in  private  houses  in  1852.  The  1st  Baptist  church  of  Oak- 
land was  organized  in  1854  by  E.  J.  Willis,  who  became  pastor. 


RELIGION.  731 

the  whole  state;  in  1860  it  was  $1,853,340;  and  in 
1870  was  $7,404,235.  The  increase  in  the  last  eigh- 
teen years  is  unknown,  but  must  have  been  consider- 
able each  decade  to.  keep  pace  with  the  growth  of  the 
state.  Owing  to  the  hold  which  the  catholic  church 
had  in  the  beginning  upon  the  resident  population, 
and  the  influx  of  foreigners  from  catholic  countries, 
this  denomination  for  a  long  time  was  in  the  ascen- 
dency, a  difference  which  the  recent  immigration  from 
the  eastern  states  is  probably  diminishing.  But  reli- 
gious bigotry  cannot  flourish  in  a  city  or  state  where 
no  church  monopolizes  the  wealth  or  the  intelligence 
of  either,  and  where  in  all  public  affairs  the  coin — the 
true  test — of  one  is  as  good  as  that  of  another.83 

83  One  of  the  most  popular  and  justly  esteemed  of  divines  was  the  late 
Thomas  Starr  King,  a  native  of  N.  Y.  city,  where  he  was  Lorn  Dec.  17,  18'J4. 
After  receiving  his  education  at  various  schools,  among  others  the  Bunker 
Hill  grammar  school  at  C'harlestowu,  Mass,  and  the  Winthrop  school,  he 
became  himself  a  teacher,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty  entered  upon  his  minis- 
try, being  called  in  1846  to  the  pastorate  of  the  first  universalist  society  at 
Charlestown,  and  in  1848  to  that  of  the  Hollis  st  society  in  Boston.  Re- 
moving in  1860  to  S.  F.,  where  he  had  accepted  a  call  to  the  Unitarian  church, 
the  good  work  he  did  in  upholding  the  union  cause,  at  a  time  when  the  ele- 
ments of  secession  were  vigorously  at  work,  cannot  be  overestimated.  To 
the  excessive  strain  on  his  system,  mainly  caused  by  this  work,  was  due  his 
decease  on  the  4th  of  March,  1864. 

Foremost  among  those  who  have  rendered  good  service  to  the  cause  of 
education  should  be  mentioned  the  two  Le  Contes,  of  whom  John,  the  elder, 
was  born  on  their  father's  plantation  in  Liberty  co.,  Ga,  Dec.  4,  1818. 
Completing  his  education  at  the  university  of  Ga,  and  the  college  of  physi- 
cians and  surgeons,  N.  Y.,  in  1842  he  began  to  practise  his  profession  in 
Savannah,  though  devoting  more  of  his  time  to  the  preparation  of  medical 
and  other  scientific  treatises,  reviews,  and  lectures.  After  holding  professor- 
ships in  eastern  colleges,  being  meanwhile  appointed  a  member  of  several 
scientific  associations,  in  1868  he  accepted  the  chair  of  physics  and  industrial 
mechanics  in  the  university  of  Cal.,  of  which  in  1876  he  was  elected  presi- 
dent. Joseph,  whose  birthplace  was  also  the  Ga  plantation,  and  whose  birth- 
day was  Feb.  26,  1823,  after  attending  the  same  institutions  as  his  brother, 
studied  under  Agassiz,  and  graduated  at  the  Lawrence  scientific  school.  In 
1852  he  was  appointed  to  the  chair  of  natural  science  in  Oglethorpe  univer- 
sity; in  1853  to  that  of  geology  and  natural  history  in  the  university  of  Ga; 
in  1857  to  the  professorship  of  geology  and  chemistry  in  the  S.  C.  college; 
and  in  1868  to  that  of  geology  and  natural  philosophy  in  the  university  of 
Cal.  He  is  also  the  author  of  many  scientific  and  philosophical  treatises, 
and  a  member  of  most  of  the  societies  in  which  his  brother's  name  is  en- 
rolled. 

Among  those  who  according  to  their  means  have  contributed  most  liber- 
ally to  the  cause  of  religion,  education,  and  charity  was  the  late  Nathaniel 
Gray,  a  native  of  Pelhain,  Mass,  who  in  1850  established  in  San  Francisco  a 
branch  house  in  connection  with  an  eastern  firm  of  undertakers.  To  the  S.  F. 
theological  seminary,  the  Mills  seminary,  the  hospital  for  children  and  train- 
ing school  for  nurses,  and  to  other  institutions,  he  contributed  largely  of  his 
means,  while  his  private  benefactions  were  no  less  munificent. 


732  POPULATION  AND  SOCIETY. 

Dr  William  Fletcher  McNutt,  long  recognized  as  one  of  the  foremost  of 
the  medical  profession,  is  a  native  of  iruro,  Nova  Scotia,  where  he  was  born 
March  29,  1839.  Receiving  a  thorough  medical  education,  he  was  appointed 
assistant  surgeon  in  the  U.  S.  navy,  and  served  through  a  portion  of  tne  war. 
Then  after  further  study  and  practice  he  came  to  San  Francisco  in  the  spring 
of  1808,  and  there  after  a  hard  struggle  gradually  won  his  way,  being  admitted 
in  1870  a  partner  of  R.  T.  Maxwell.  The  connection  lasted  four  years,  after 
which  he  built  up  for  himself  a  large  and  lucrative  practice.  He  has  been 
a  frequent  contributor  to  medical  literature,  and  of  special  value  are  his 
reports  to  the  California  state  medical  society. 

Dr  Beverley  Cole,  born  at  Manchester,  Va,  Aug.  12,  1829,  after  gradu- 
ating at  the  Delaware  college,  and  the  Jefferson  medical  college,  Pa,  came  to 
San  Francisco  in  1852,  by  way  of  Panama,  suffering  many  hardships  m  his 
journey  across  the  Isthmus.  For  many  years  he  has  been  acknowledged  as 
one  of  the  leading  physicians  in  the  Pacific  coast  metropolis. 

Among  our  leading  medical  practitioners  was  also  the  late  Dr  Washing- 
ton Michael  Ryer,  a  native  of  N.  Y.  city,  where  he  was  born  July  24,  1881. 
After  studying  medicine  at  St  Louis  and  New  York,  he  began  to  practise  in 
the  latter  city,  and  afterward  served  as  a  staff  surgeon  in  the  Mexican  war. 
On  reaching  Cal.  he  practised  his  profession  in  Stockton  and  its  neighbor- 
hood for  a  number  of  years.  By  judicious  investments  in  laud,  rather  than 
by  the  gains  of  his  profession,  he  grew  wealthy,  among  his  possessions  being 
Ryer  island  in  the  Sacramento  river,  which  he  reclaimed  with  infinite  labor 
and  expense. 

One  of  the  leading  physicians  of  Los  Angeles  was  Dr  William  F.  Edgar,  a 
Kentuckiau  by  birth,  who  in  1849  was  appointed  assistant  surgeon  in  the 
U.  S.  army.  After  serving  until  1871,  he  settled  in  that  city,  where  for  live 
years  he  practised  his  profession,  and  of  which  since  1882  he  has  been  a  per- 
manent resident.  He  is  one  of  those  who  helped  to  organize  the  first  medical 
society  of  Los  Angeles,  and  is  or  has  been  connected  with  several  of  its  lead- 
ing enterprises  and  associations. 

Among  the  foremost  medical  practitioners  and  statesmen  of  northern  Cali- 
fornia is  Daniel  Ream,  who  was  born  near  Hagerstown,  Md,  in  1830,  re- 
moving with  his  family  in  early  boyhood  to  111.,  and  later  to  Iowa,  where  at 
the  age  of  eighteen  he  began  to  practise.  In  1852  he  came  to  Cal.,  and  in 
I860  settled  at  Yreka,  where  he  has  ever  since  resided.  After  serving  as 
coroner  and  sheriff  of  Siskiyou  co.,  in  1877  he  was  elected  state  senator,  and 
rendered  good  service  during  his  term,  especially  as  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee on  hospitals. 

Prominent  among  the  members  of  the  legal  profession,  and  at  its  head  in 
his  special  department  as  a  patent  lawyer,  is  Milton  A.  Wheaton,  a  native 
of  N.  Y.  state,  but  of  New  England  ancestry.  At  twelve  years  of  age,  hav- 
ing meanwhile  attended  the  district  school  in  winter  and  worked  in  the  har- 
vest fields  in  summer,  he  found  occupation  with  a  farmer,  receiving  for  his 
six  months'  work  $10  and  his  board.  From  his  own  earnings  on  farm  and 
in  factory  he  paid  for  his  education  in  after  years,  and  in  1 853  came  to  Cal. 
to  earn  the  means  to  complete  it.  Two  years  later  he  entered  the  law-office 
of  Carter  &  Hartley  of  Sacramento,  and  early  in  1857,  being  then  admitted 
to  the  bar,  began  to  practise  at  Suisun.  In  1866  he  removed  to  S.  F.,  and 
eoon  afterward  turned  his  attention  to  patent  law,  his  ability  and  zeal  quickly 
winning  so  wide  a  reputation  that  he  was  employed  in  all  the  leading  patent 
cases  on  this  coast  and  in  not  a  few  in  the  eastern  states.  Mr  Wheaton  is 
an  odd-fellow,  a  master  mason,  and  a  knight  of  the  Cal.  commandry.  He 
has  been  twice  married  and  has  three  children,  his  present  wife  being  a  native 
Californian,  and  of  musical  and  artistic  tastes. 

Among  our  literary  men,  though  for  the  time  being  a  resident  of  N.  Y.,  is 
Clay  M.  Greene,  a  native  of  S.  F.,  where  he  was  born  March  12,  1850.  After 
receiving  his  education  at  the  City  college,  S.  F.,  the  Santa  Clara  college, 
and  the  university  of  Cal.,  he  became  a  member  of  the  old  board  of  brokers, 
in  which  business  he  remained  until  1879,  when  he  adopted  literature  as  a 
profession,  and  especially  dramatic  literature,  among  his  plays  being  'Struck 


PROMINENT  ARCHITECTS.  733 

Oil,'  'Chispa, '  'Hans  the  Boatman,'  and  others  that  have  been  most  favor- 
ably received. 

As  one  of  our  most  prominent  architects  should  be  mentioned  Peter  J. 
Barber,  who  settling  at  Santa  Barbara  in  1869,  has  planned  most  of  the  hand- 
some buildings  that  have  been  erected  there  within  recent  years.  A  native 
of  Nelson,  Oiiio,  Mr  Barber  came  to  this  coast  in  1852,  three  years  later 
starting  in  business  in  San  Francisco  as  a  contractor  and  builder.  In  1880 
he  was  elected  mayor  of  Santa  Barbara,  in  which  capacity  he  rendered  ex- 
cellent service. 

Another  architect  and  builder  worthy  of  note  is  Richard  Robert  Ruben- 
stein,  who  was  born  in  1850  at  Stetten,  Prussia,  and  coming  to  this  country 
at  an  early  age  has  ever  since  followed  this  calling,  building  in  1888  26  resi- 
dences in  the  city  of  Stockton.  In  1878  he  was  elected  public  administrator, 
in  18S5,  and  again  in  1887,  a  member  of  the  city  council,  and  in  1888  to  the 
mayoralty  of  Stockton. 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

RECENT   EVENTS. 
1889-1890. 

LEGISLATION— THE  JUDICIARY — POLICE  AND  CRIME— GOVERNOR  WATER- 
MAN'S ADMINISTRATION — PUBLIC  IMPROVEMENTS — STATE  TEXT-BOOKS— 
FARMING —IRRIGATION — FRUIT-RAISING  AND  FRUIT  SHIPMENTS — WINK- 
MAKING — RAISINS  -STOCK-RAISING — THE  IRON-MOULDERS' STRIKE — SHIP- 
BUILDING— RAILROAD  INDEBTEDNESS — MINING— COMMERCE  AND  BANK- 
ING— REAL  ESTATE — PROGRESS  AND  PROSPECTS. 

IT  has  been  remarked  that  a  nation  or  state  is 
never  so  well  governed  as  when  there  is  little  that  is 
worthy  of  record  in  its  political  annals.  If  such  be 
the  case,  then  for  the  last  year  or  two,  at  least,  should 
California  have  been  one  of  the  best  governed  coun- 
tries on  earth.  In  the  thirty-eighth  session  of  the 
legislature l  numerous  measures  were  enacted.  Among 

o  o 

1  Members  of  the  senate  during  that  session:  F.  McGowan,  Humboldt  and 
Del  Norte  counties;  J.  M.  Briceland,  Trinity,  Siskiyou,  and  Shasta;  M.  H. 
Mead,  Modoc,  Lasseu,  Plumas,  and  Sierra;  A.  F.  Jones,  Butte;  E.  M.  Pres- 
ton, Nevada;  A.  Yell,  Mendocino  and  Lake;  T.  Fraser,  Placer  and  El 
Dorado;  J.  Boggs,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  F.  S.  Sprague,  Yolo  and  Napa;  E.  C. 
Hinshaw,  Sonoma;  G.  J.  Campbell,  Solano;  F.  H.  Greely,  Yuba  and  Sutter; 
F.  R.  Dray,  Sacramento;  A.  Caminetti,  Amador  and  Calaveras;  F.  C.  De 
Long,  Marin  and  Contra  Costa;  F.  J.  Moffit,  W.  E.  Dargie,  and  M.  W.  Dixon, 
Alameda;  J.  W.  Welch,  T.  J.  Pinder,  W.  O.  Banks,  J.  N.  E.  Wilson,  W.  H. 
Williams,  P.  J.  Murphy,  J.  E.  Britt,  T.  H.  McDonald,  J.  E.  Hamill,  and 
J.  R.  Spellacy,  San  Francisco;  A.  J.  Meany,  Merced,  Stanislaus,  and  Tuol- 
umne;  A.  W.  Crandall  and  E.  B.  Conklin,  Santa  Clara;  J.  D.  Byrnes,  San 
Mateo  and  Santa  Cruz;  G.  G.  Goucher,  Alpine,  Mariposa,  Mono,  and  FVesno; 
T.  Flint,  Jr,  Monterey  and  San  Benito;  J.  Roth,  Inj'o,  Tulare,  and  Kern; 
E.  H.  Heacock,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Santa  Barbara,  and  Ventura;  S.  M.  White 
and  J.  E.  McComas,  Los  Angeles;  and  W.  W.  Bowers.  San  Bernardino  and 
San  Diego.  President  pro  tern.,  S.  M.  White;  sec.,  G.  W.  Peckham;  asst 
sees,  J.  J.  McCarthy  and  J.  H.  Corcoran;  sergt-at-arms,  G.  W.  Faylor;  asst 
sergt-at-arms,  H.  M.  Levy;  minute  clerk,  W.  E.  Bidwell;  journal  clerk,  J. 
A.  Galland;  enrolling  clerk,  T.  W.  O'Niel;  engrossing  clerk,  H.  I.  Ward. 

Members  of  the  assembly:  J.  McVay,  Del  Norte  and  Siskiyoii:  J.  G. 
Murray  and  G.  Williams,  Humboldt;  T.  W.  H.  Shanahan,  Trinity  and  Shasta; 

[7341 


JUDICIARY.  735 

the  more  important  were  acts  amending  and  supple- 
menting the  irrigation  act  of  1887 ;  one  establishing  a 
school  of  industry;  one  establishing  a  reform  school; 
certain  amendments  to  the  civil  code  of  procedure ;  and 
the  usual  appropriations  for  public  improvements,  in- 
stitutions, and  deficiencies,  not  forgetting  the  appro- 
priations for  the  pay  and  expenses  of  the  legislature. 
Among  the  members  of  the  judiciary  some  changes 
had  taken  place,  W.  H.  Beatty  being  chief  justice, 
with  J.  D.  Thornton,  J.  D.  Works,2  J.  R.  Sharpstein, 

J.  J.  Reavis,  Modoc  and  Lassen;  H.  K.  Turner,  Plumas  and  Sierra;  W.  P. 
Mathews,  Tehama;  C.  H.  Porter  and  L.  Burwell,  Butte;  J.  C.  Campbell, 
Colusa;  J.  H.  Seawell,  Meudocino;  C.  M.  Crawford,  Lake;  D.  A.  Ostrom, 
Sutler  and  Yuba;  J.  Sims  and  J.  I.  Sykes,  Nevada;  J.  Davis,  Placer;  H. 
Mahler,  El  Dorado;  W.  M.  Petrie,  E.  C.  Hart,  and  L.  H.  Fassett,  Sacra- 
mento; L.  B.  Adams,  Yolo;  F.  L.  Coombs,  Napa;  F.  B.  Xlulgrew,  J.  W. 
Ragsdale,  and  R.  Howe,  Sonoma;  J.  A.  Mallaney  and  J.  F.  Brown,  Solano; 
J.  \V.  Atherton,  Marin;  T.  Mulvev,  J.  D.  Long,  T.  J.  Brannan,  J.  Stande, 
W.  E.  Dinan,  E.  J.  Reynolds,  H.  H.  Dobbin,  C.  H.  Kiernan,  T.  Searey,  D. 
S.  Regan,  J.  McCarthy,  E.  Murray,  H.  C.  Dibble,  E.  S.  Salomon,  L.  L. 
Ewing,  H.  XI.  Black,  H.  XI.  Brickwedel,  J.  Reavey,  G.  W.  Burnett,  and  T. 
C.  Maher,  San  Francisco;  L.  J.  Franks,  San  Mateo;  J.  A.  Hall,  Santa  Cruz; 
J.  XIcKeown,  W.  Simpson,  XI.  D.  Hyde,  E.  S.  Culver,  XI.  C.  Chapman,  and 
C.  O.  Alexander,  Alameda;  H.  Hook,  Contra  Costa;  R.  S.  Johnson  and  J. 
XlcXIullin,  San  Joaquin;  C.  T.  La  Grave,  Amador;  J.  Gardner.  Calaveras; 
L.  R.  Tulloch,  Tuolumne;  P.  Hersey,  J.  R.  Lowe,  and  L.  A.  Whitehurst, 
Santa  Clara;  V.  E.  Bangs,  Stanislaus;  W.  M.  Rundell,  Xlerced  and  Mari- 
posa;  E.  C.  Tully,  San  Benito;  T.  Renison.  Xlonterey;  E.  H.  Tucker,  Fresno; 
G.  S.  Berry,  Tulare;  C.  Coleuian,  Alpine,  Xlono,  and  Inyo;  D.  W.  James, 
San  Luis  Obispo;  C.  A.  Storke,  Santa  Barbara;  G.  W.  Wear,  Kern  and  Ven- 
tura; J.  R.  Brierly,  J.  XI.  Damron,  and  E.  E.  Edwards,  Los  Angeles;  E.  W. 
Holmes,  San  Bernardino;  and  N.  A.  Young,  San  Diego.  Speaker,  R.  Howe; 
chief  clerk,  E.  E.  Leake;  asst  clerks,  M.  Yager  and  H.  Hart;  sergt-at-arms, 
J.  J.  Driscoll;  asst  sergt-at-arms,  F.  Anaya;  minute  clerk,  B.  Pendegast; 
journal  clerk,  C.  Spelling;  engrossing  clerk,  G.  Sheehy.  Stat.  of  Cal.  1889, 
xxvi.-xxviii. 

Among  statesmen  and  politicians  of  whom  only  passing  mention  has  yet 
been  made  is  Timothy  Guy  Phelps,  a  native  of  N.  Y.  state,  where  he  was 
born  Dec.  20,  1824,  and  a  pioneer  of  1849,  lauding  in  S.  F.  in  Dec.  of  that* 
year.  After  a  brief  but  successful  business  career,  in  1 853  he  disposed  of  his 
interests  and  invested  his  funds  in  real  estate.  In  1856  he  was  elected  to  the 
state  legislature  on  the  first  republican  ticket  issued  in  Cal.,  and  was  twice 
afterward  chosen  for  the  state  senate.  In  1869  he  was  appointed  collector  of 
customs  for  the  port  of  S.  F.,  which  position  he  held  for  several  years,  with 
credit  to  himself  and  satisfaction  to  the  public. 

*  John  Downey  Works,  in  1886  elected  judge  of  the  superior  court  for 
San  Diego  co.,  is  a  native  of  Ind.,  his  youth  being  passed  on  a  farm  until 
the  outbreak  of  the  war.  when  at  17  he  joined  a  cavalry  regiment,  in  whicli 
he  served  for  two  years,  being  present  at  Nashville  and  at  the  capture  o; 
Mobile.  In  1S6S  he  succeeded  to  his  father's  practice,  in  his  native  state, 
removing  to  San  Diego  in  1883  on  account  of  failing  health.  His  work  on 
Indiana  practice,  pleadings,  and  forms  and  his  treatise  on  the  removal  of 
causes  from  state  to  federal  courts  are  among  our  standard  law-books. 


730  RECENT  EVENTS. 

J.  Temple,  Van  R.  Paterson,  and  T.  B.  McFarland 
as  associate  judges.  One  of  the  more  prominent 
cases  that  occupied  the  attention  of  the  courts  was 
the  suit  of  the  Spring  Valley  company3  against  the 
city  of  San  Francisco,  caused  by  an  ordinance  which 
passed  the  board  of  supervisors  in  February  1889, 
reducing  the  established  water  rates,  which  reduction 
the  company  refused  to  accept.  By  the  supreme  court 
the  ordinance  was  declared  invalid.  In  our  superior 
courts,  either  through  pressure  of  business  or  for  other 
reasons,  the  wheels  of  justice  dragged  somewhat 
slowly,  cases  taken  on  appeal  being  delayed  for  a  year 
or  more  before  a  decision  was  pronounced. 

Attention  has  often  been  called  to  the  smallness 
and  inefficiency  of  our  police  system,  declared  by  the 

James  A.  Waymire,  who  was  born  on  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  St 
Joseph,  Mo.,  Dec.  9,  1842,  came  to  this  coast  when  ten  years  of  age,  living 
with  his  grandfather  and  attending  school  near  Koseburg,  in  the  Umpqua 
valley,  Or.  Beginning  life  as  a  school-teacher,  in  1861  he  enlisted  in  the  1st 
Or.  cavalry,  and  serving  with  distinction  in  the  Indian  campaigns  of  1863-4, 
was  appointed  lieutenant.  Some  four  years  later  he  accepted  a  commission 
in  the  regular  army,  but  in  1870  was  admitted  to  the  Or.  bar  and  began  to 
practise  law,  first  at  Salem  and  later  in  San  Francisco,  meanwhile  acting  aa 
phonographic  reporter  for  the  supreme  court  of  Cal.  He  rose  rapidly  in  his 
profession,  was  employed  in  many  important  cases,  and  in  1881  became  a 
judge  of  the  superior  court.  Resuming  practice  at  the  close  of  his  term,  he 
has  been  for  may  years  acknowleged  as  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  bar. 

Another  member  of  the  Cal.  judiciary  was  Charles  Fayette  Lott,  whose 
second  term  as  judge  of  the  second,  formerly  the  ninth,  judicial  district 
ended  in  1876,  and  whose  strict  impartiality  and  sound  and  lucid  interpreta- 
tion of  the  law  gained  for  him  universal  respect.  Of  English  ancestry,  and  a 
native  of  Pemberton,  N.  J.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  1st  of  July,  1824. 
after  completing  his  education  at  the  St  Louis  university  and  studying  law 
at  Quincy,  111.,  Mr  Lott  was  called  to  the  bar  of  that  state  in  1848,  crossing 
the  plains  to  Cal.  in  the  following  year.  In  1851  he  was  elected  to  the  state 
( senate,  and  declining  a  renomination,  practised  his  profession,  in  partnership 
with  W.  T.  Sexton,  first  at  Hamilton,  then  at  Bidwell  bar,  and  later  at 
Oroville,  Butte  co.  In  1859  he  was  elected  chairman  of  the  democratic  county 
committee,  which  position,  though  a  thoroughly  union  democrat,  he  held 
throughout  the  civil  war.  Still  one  of  the  leading  practitioners  in  his  sec- 
tion of  the  state,  he  is  also  largely  interested  in  lands  and  mines  in  Butte 
and  PI  u  mas  cos. 

3  The  superintendent  of  the  co.  is  Charles  Elliott,  who  was  also  supt  of  the 
Bensley  co.,  incorporated  in  1857,  and  in  1865  merged  in  the  Spring  Valley 
co.  A  native  of  Bath,  Me,  he  came  to  Cal.  in  1851,  and  after  passing  three 
years  in  Or.,  settled  in  the  former  state,  of  which  he  has  ever  since  been  a 
resident. 

In  connection  with  the  co.  should  also  be  mentioned  its  former  supt,  W. 
H.  Lawrence,  who  was  born  in  New  York  in  1840,  and  after  graduating  at 
the  Fail-field  seminary,  came  to  Cal.  in  1859,  and  was  employed  in  making 
surveys  for  the  co.  From  1880  to  1887  he  was  a  supervisor  of  San  Mateo  co. 


WATERMAN'S  ADMINISTRATION.  737 

chief  of  police  himself  to  be  in  San  Francisco,  in  pro- 
portion to  its  size,  the  smallest  and  most  inefficient  of 
any  city  in  the  world.  The  result  is  that  crime  and 
'hoodluuiism'  are  still  rampant  in  the  metropolis,  and 
almost  daily  is  heard  in  her  streets  the  sickening 
iteration  of  the  newsboy's  cry:  "All  about  the  mur- 
der and  suicide/'  In  the  country  the  so-called  tramp 
nuisance  is  no  less  severely  felt,  and  from  all  portions 
of  the  state  come  urgent  requests  that  measures  be 
taken  for  its  abolition.  Every  year  great  damage  has 
been  done  by  this  element  through  the  destruction  of 
property  by  incendiarism,  and  already  it  has  increased 
so  largely  as  to  be  almost  beyond  control.  No  action 
was  taken  in  the  matter  by  the  legislature,  though  in 
his  biennial  message  for  1889  the  governor  urged 
upon  that  body  the  adoption  of  effective  remedies. 

Though  not  marked  by  any  special  feature,  the 
administration  of  Governor  Waterman  gave  general 
satisfaction  to  the  public,  and  in  his  message  are 
many  excellent  suggestions  and  remarks.  On  the 
question  of  appropriations  he  says,  for  instance:  "Leg- 
islatures are  too  apt  to  be  radical  and  inconsistent 
rather  than  firm  and  conservative.  They  are  too  prone 
to  neglect  the  vital  interests  of  the  state  and  raise  the 
cry  of  retrenchment  and  economy.  This  is  no  argu- 
ment; it  is  simply  demagogy."  While  recommend- 
ing that  provision  be  made  for  necessary  improve- 
ments with  unsparing  hand,  he  also  recommends  the 
abolition  of  all  needless  bureaus  and  offices,  and  es- 
pecially of  such  as  have  outlived  their  usefulness. 

Among  other  public  improvements  it  may  be  men- 
tioned that  in  Santa  Clara  county  an  asylum  for  the 
chronic  insane  was  partially  completed  and  opened 
for  the  reception  of  patients.*  At  the  state  prison  at 
San  Quentin  an  appropriation  was  made  for  the  pur- 
chase of  additional  machinery,  together  with  an  extra 

*  At  the  Napa  asylum  the  patients  are  encouraged  to  work,  with  excel- 
lent results  to  themselves  and  the  institution.     For  the  year  ending  June  30, 
1888,  there  were  produced  130  tons  of  vegetables,  222  of  hay,  and  28  of  fruit. 
Biennial  Messaqe  of  Gov.  R.  W,  Waterman,  1889,  18. 
HIST.  CAL,  VOL.  VIL    47 


738  RECENT   EVENTS. 

building  for  the  manufacture  of  grain-bags  and  other 
jute  fabrics;  but  this  expense  was  obviated  by  run- 
ning the  present  machinery  with  relays  of  prisoners 
every  hour  in  the  twenty-four.  While  it  does  not 
appear  by  what  right  the  state  thus  tampers  with  the 
health  of  prisoners,  the  making  of  jute  goods  is  about 
the  least  objectionable  of  penal  occupations,  since 
there  is  but  one  jute  factory  in  the  state,  and  in  that 
one  Chinamen  are  almost  exclusively  employed. 

A  feature  in  educational  matters  within  recent 
years  was  the  act  of  1885  providing  for  the  prepara- 
tion of  a  series  of  state  text-books,  of  which  some  four 
years  later  nearly  half  a  million  had  been  sold.  It 
was  claimed  that  the  state  would  be  benefited  by 
having  a  stable  and  uniform  system  of  school-books, 
avoiding  the  constant  changes  that  occured  in  pre- 
vious years  through  the  caprice  or  interest  of  boards 
and  teachers.  By  a  statute  of  1889  a  tax  was  levied 
of  one  cent  on  each  one  hundred  dollars  of  taxable 
property  for  the  support  of  the  university  of  Cali- 
fornia. The  transfer  to  this  institution  of  the  Lick 
observatory  in  1888  has  given  to  it  the  most  powerful 
telescope  in  the  world,  with  some  of  the  best  appli- 
ances for  observing  and  recording  the  movements  of 
the  heavenly  bodies.  In  connection  with  schools  it 
may  here  be  remarked  that  the  school-lands  of  Cali- 
fornia are  sold  at  the  unreasonably  low  price  of  $1.25 
an  acre.  In  few  other  sections  of  the  union  is  the 
value  of  such  lands  thus  rated,  the  price  in  Minnesota 
being  $5  to  $6,  in  Nebraska  $7,  and  in  Colorado  $3 
to  $50  an  acre.  Of  our  school-lands  there  were  sold 
during  the  six  years  ending  with  August  1,  1888, 
nearly  1,000,000  acres,  realizing  probably  but  a  small 
portion  of  their  intrinsic  value. 

In  industrial  and  commercial  circles  the  year  1889 
was  in  the  main  a  prosperous  season.  To  the  farmers 
and  fruit-growers  of  California,  it  was  one  of  unusual 
prosperity,  the  product  in  many  departments  being 


INDUSTRIAL.  739 

the  largest  yet  recorded,  while  never  before  were  the 
shipments  east  of  fresh  and  canned  fruits  and  vegeta- 
bles on  so  large  a  scale.  While  it  cannot  be  denied 
that  California  first  attained  to  prominence  by  reason 
of  her  mineral  wealth,  it  is  no  less  certain  that  the 
position  which  she  holds  to-day  is  due  to  her  agricul- 
tural resources,  and  that  except  for  the  potentialities  of 
her  soil,  the  state  would  never  have  progressed  very 
far  beyond  the  position  occupied  during  the  first  decade 
of  her  existence.  True,  there  have  been  many  vicis- 
situdes, with  occasional  seasons  of  positive  disaster; 
but  since  the  first  timid  and  tentative  efforts,  well- 
nigh  forty  years  ago.  progress  has  been  steadily 
onward,  until  in  1889  California  ranked  second  among 
the  wheat-growing  states,  the  product  only  of  Minne- 
sota being  slightly  in  excess.  To  produce  her  enor- 
mous crop,  variously  estimated  at  from  44,000,000  to 
50,000,000  bushels,5  required,  as  I  have  said,  about 
3,250,000  acres,  and  if  for  that  crop,  delivered  at  tide- 
water, our  farmers  received  only  $30,000,000,  it  must, 
with  improved  and  cheaper  methods  of  working,  have 
been  fairly  remunerative,  even  at  the  low  prices  then 
prevailing  of  $1.20  to  $1.30  a  cental.  To  any  large 
product  of  other  cereals,  California  makes  no  preten- 
tions  as  compared  with  the  older  sections  of  the  union; 
but  in  the  yield  of  fresh  and  dried  fruits,  and  especially 
of  oranges,  grapes,  and  raisins,  in  the  production  of 
wine  and  honey,  she  stands  without  a  rival  among  all 
the  sisterhood  of  states. 

For  the  year  1890  the  outlook  was  less  promising, 
on  account  of  excessive  rains,  and  in  the  northern  coun- 
ties of  snow-storms  and  the  severity  of  the  winter 
weather.  For  the  season  of  1889-90  there  fell  in 
San  Francisco  up  to  the  18th  of  April,  1890,  nearly 
43  inches  of  rain.  At  some  other  points  there  was  a 

*  In  The  Annual  Statistician  and  Economist,  1890,  p.  196,  the  yield  of  CaL 
for  1889,  as  given  in  the  Kept  of  the  Dept  of  Agric.,  is  stated  at  43,781,000 
bushels,  against  45,456,000  for  Minnesota.  Other  estimates,  as  mentioned 
elsewhere,  place  the  product  of  the  former  state  at  50,000,000,  which  would 
make  CaL  first  on  the  list. 


740  RECENT  EVENTS. 

still  greater  precipitation,  the  heaviest  being  at  Bowl- 
der creek,  where  were  122  inches,  and  next  came  Delta 
with  115  inches.  Bridges  and  roads  were  washed  away, 
railroads  blockaded  for  days  or  weeks  at  a  time,  and 
in  places  the  floods  were  hardly  less  disastrous  than 
those  of  1861-2,  though  in  the  recent  winter  Sacra- 
mento was  not,  as  before,  the  principal  sufferer.  While 
in  some  portions  of  the  state,  on  account  of  excessive 
moisture,  the  ground  could  not  be  ploughed  in  time 
to  plant  a  crop,  in  others  an  abundant  harvest  was 
insured,  and  if  the  floods  of  the  past  year  should  be 
succeeded,  as  is  often  the  case,  by  a  year  of  drought, 
the  surface  has  become  so  thoroughly  soaked  that  a 
very  few  inches  of  rain  would  suffice. 

It  connection  with  agriculture  it  may  here  be 
remarked  that  while  less  than  ten  per  cent  of  our 
population  are  engaged  in  that  pursuit,  and  less  than 
five  per  cent  are  owners  of  farms,  the  percentage  of 
large  farms,  say  of  from  500  to  1,000  acres,  is  greater 
than  in  any  section  of  the  union,  with  nearly  3,000 
farms  of  larger  area.6 

6  One  of  our  most  prominent  agriculturists  is  John  Bidwell,  who  owns  one 
of  the  largest  tracts  in  Butte  co.,  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Sacramento 
river.  Here  he  raises  several  thousand  tons  a  year  of  wheat,  with  vast  bands 
of  cattle,  horses,  and  sheep.  On  his  property  is  an  orchard  and  vineyard, 
and  great  care  has  been  taken  to  beautify  the  grounds  about  his  residence. 
To  him  the  town  of  Chico  is  largely  indebted  for  its  homelike  and  prosperous 
appearance.  Mr  Bidwell  came  to  Cal.  in  1841,  and  was  one  of  the  first  to 
cross  the  plains  from  the  Missouri  river. 

Among  other  prominent  agriculturists  of  whom  no  special  mention  has 
yet  been  made  is  Martin  Murphy,  who  was  born  in  1807  at  Balnamough, 
Wexford  co.,  Ireland,  his  ancestry  being  traced  back  to  the  kings  of  Leinster. 
In  1820  he  took  ship  for  Canada,  where  his  father  and  other  members  of  the 
family  had  for  some  years  resided,  at  Frampton,  near  Quebec.  In  1842  he 
removed  to  English  grove,  near  St  Joseph,  Mo.  In  1844  he  crossed  the 
plains  to  California,  in  company  with  his  father's  family  and  others,  includ- 
ing his  wife,  nee  Mary  Bulger,  and  their  four  surviving  children.  In  the 
following  year  he  purchased  two  square  leagues  of  land  on  the  Mocosumne, 
now  the  Cosumnes  river,  and  at  his  homestead  was  inaugurated  the  Bear 
Flag  revolution.  In  1849  he  disposed  of  this  tract  and  purchased  another, 
now  known  as  the  Bay  View  farm,  in  Santa  Clara  co.,  buying  additional 
tracts,  together  with  city  property  in  San  Jose,  as  means  and  opportunity 
offered.  A  most  hospitable  and  charitable  man,  giving  freely  to  the  cause 
of  education  and  of  the  church,  he  is  one  of  the  most  respected  citizens  of 
his  adopted  co.  and  state.  On  the  20th  of  October,  1884,  he  passed  away 
peacefully  and  almost  painlessly  4n  the  "eventy-eighth  year  of  his  age. 

No  less  respected  are  his  sons,  Bernard  I),  and  James  T.  Murphy,  his 
Brother,  General  Patrick  W.  M  urphy,  thrice  a  member  of  the  legislature,  and 


IRRIGATION.  741 

Of  irrigation  mention  has  several  times  been  made 
in  this  and  the  preceding  volumes  of  my  work;  for 

other  members  of  the  family.  Bernard  is  a  graduate  of  Santa  Clara  college, 
and  after  studying  law  and  being  admitted  to  practise  at  the  bar,  was  re- 
quired, on  the  decease  of  his  brother,  to  take  charge  of  his  father's  estate. 
In  1870  he  was  chosen  mayor  of  San  Jose,  and  in  1877,  and  again  in  1883,  was 
elected  to  the  state  senate.  In  1869  he  married  Miss  L.  McGeoghenan,  a 
a  native  of  N.  Y.,  who  is  most  highly  esteemed  in  the  social  circles  of  San 
Jose. 

Worthy  of  mention  also  among  our  leading  agriculturists  is  John 
Theophil  Strentzel,  a  native  of  Poland,  where  he  was  born  Nov.  29,  1813. 
He  came  to  New  Orleans  in  1840,  and  after  some  changes  of  residence  and 
business,  to  CaL  by  way  of  the  plains  in  1849-^50,  and  established  a  ferry, 
hotel,  and  general  merchandise  store  at  La  Grange.  Later  be  engaged  in 
farming  and  stock-raising  on  the  Merced  river,  near  Snelling's,  afterward 
settling  on  his  present  homestead,  near  Martinez,  where  he  is  president  of 
the  Grangers'  Business  association  and  of  the  Gas  and  Electric  Light  co. 

To  the  commerce  of  San  Francisco  it  is  said  that  J.  P.  Hale  has  contrib- 
uted more  than  $1,000,000  by  drawing  from  that  city  all  the  supplies  for  his 
orchilla  fields  and  other  enterprises.  Coming  to  this  coast  in  1852,  after  fol- 
lowing various  occupations  he  engaged  in  the  orchilla  business  in  Lower  CaL, 
and  became  the  owner  of  6,500  sq.  miles  fronting  on  the  Pacific,  much  of  it 
being  used  for  stock-raising.  He  made  his  home  in  S.  F.,  where,  as  else- 
where in  CaL,  he  is  also  a  large  owner  of  real  estate. 

A  leading  agriculturist  and  stock-raiser  in  Siskiyon  co.,  and  also  one  of 
our  pioneers,  was  the  late  John  B.  Rohrer,  a  native  of  Alsace,  where  he  was 
born  in  1830,  and  who  crossed  the  plains  to  CaL  in  1850,  and  three  years 
later  took  up  land  and  built  the  first  house  in  little  Shasta  valley.  In 
1872  he  married  Miss  Elizabeth  Jane  de  Long,  five  children,  all  of  them 
living,  being  the  result  of  this  union.  His  decease  occurred  Sept.  10, 
1886. 

In  the  Salinas  valley  one  of  the  largest  agriculturists  and  stock-raisers  is 
Jesse  D.  C'arr,  who  was  born  in  Gallatiu,  Tenn.,  June  10,  1814,  his  education 
being  obtained  in  a  country  schooL  At  the  age  of  16  he  commenced  work 
in  a  business  house  at  Nashville,  going  from  there  to  Memphis,  and  thence 
in  1843  to  N.  O.,  spending  also  a  couple  of  years  in  north  Mexico.  In  1849 
he  came  to  Cal.  by  way  of  the  Isthmus,  and  entered  the  custom-house,  where 
he  remained  until  1850.  In  1853  he  engaged  in  farming  and  stock-raising, 
removing  to  the  Salinas  valley  in  1859,  which  has  ever  since  been  his  home. 
Mr  Carr  engaged  in  staging  in  1866,  carrying  the  mails  for  $190,000  a  year, 
afterward  increased  to  $218,000,  carrying  on  this  business  successfully  for  a 
number  of  years,  besides  speculating  in  land.  In  1873  he  established  a  bank 
at  Salinas,  becoming  its  president;  also  being  connected  with  the  bank  of 
Hollister.  Mr  Carr  was  elected  to  the  legislature  in  1850,  and  was  also  a 
supervisor  of  Santa  Cruz  co. 

Hugh  M.  La  Rue,  born  in  Ky  Aug.  12,  1830,  was  of  French  ancestors, 
came  to  CaL  in  1849,  and  began  mining;  afterward  he  engaged  in  farming, 
which  he  has  followed  ever  since.  La  Rue  was  elected  sheriff  in  1873,  and 
was  also  elected  to  the  legislature  from  Yolo  co.,  and  chosen  a  member  of  the 
state  board  of  agriculture  in  1868,  and  again  in  1878. 

Worthy  of  note,  not  only  as  a  pioneer,  but  as  one  of  the  largest  agricul- 
turists and  stock-raisers  in  Tehama  co.,  is  Henry  Clay  Wilson,  a  native  of 
Floyd  co.,  Ky,  where  he  was  born  Aug.  19,  1827.  His  youth  was  passed  in 
HL,  and  removing  thence  in  1842  to  Tex.,  where  he  was  one  of  the  Texan 
rangers,  in  Apl  1849  he  came  to  CaL  with  $37  in  his  pocket.  On  his  farm 
of  12,000  acres  near  the  town  of  Corning,  he  raised  wheat,  cattle,  sheep,  and 
other  live-stock,  and  many  kinds  of  fruit.  In  Grant  co.,  Or.,  he  also  became 
owner  of  some  40,000  acres,  but  his  home,  since  1849,  has  always  been  in  this 
state. 


742  RECENT  EVENTS. 

the  history  of  irrigation  in  this  state  begins  with  the 
history  of  the  state  itseJf.  Much  as  had  been  already 
accomplished,  it  is  probable  that  in  1889  more  progress 
was  made  than  in  any  previous  year,  and  it  was  even 
claimed  that  when  the  projects  inaugurated  in  that 
year  shall  have  been  carried  to  completion,  the  irri- 
gable area  of  California  will  have  been  doubled.  Un- 
til the  passage  of  the  Wright  law,  our  larger  irriga- 
tion enterprises  were  in  the  hands  of  capitalists,  who, 
owning  vast  areas  of  unoccupied  lands,  thus  hoped  to 
dispose  of  them  to  advantage.  By  the  provisions  of 
this  act,  the  lands  to  be  watered  from  a  given  source 
might  be  included  in  an  irrigation  district,  when  so 
determined  by  a  majority  of  the  freeholders,  the  cost 
to  be  borne  in  equal  proportions  by  those  who  were 
benefited.  The  district  formed  and  the  cost  deter- 
mined, an  election  could  be  held  to  decide  as  to  the 
issue  of  bonds  to  cover  the  proposed  indebtedness,  the 
principal  and  interest  to  be  paid  from  an  assessment 
on  the  real  property  of  the  district,  which  assessment 
should  form  a  lien  on  the  property  assessed.  After 
some  opposition  and  several  lawsuits  on  the  part  of 
those  who  would  neither  irrigate  their  own  lands  nor 
assist  their  neighbors  to  do  so,  the  courts  sustained 
the  legality  of  the  law  and  of  the  proceedings  taken 
under  it  in  the  several  districts.  As  the  result,  26 
districts  had  been  formed  up  to  the  close  of  1889,  in- 
cluding more  than  2,500,000  acres  of  land,7  and  thus 
the  long-vexed  question  of  irrigation  was  at  length  in 
a  fair  way  to  be  solved. 

The  damage  caused  to  our  agricultural  interests  by 
the  floods  of  1889-90  would,  it  was  hoped,  be  partially 
offset  by  an  abundant  fruit-crop,  for  which  fairly  re- 

Columbus  Kurd,  a  native  of  Helena,  Ark.,  where  he  was  born  Jan.  21, 
1835,  became  a  permanent  resident  of  this  state  in  1879,  after  two  previous 
visits  caused  by  the  failing  health  of  his  wife.  In  1880  he  settled  in  tha 
neighborhood  of  Stockton,  purchased  land,  and  engaged  in  wheat-growing  on 
a  large  scale.  He  became  director  in  the  Stockton  Savings  bank,  and  con- 
nected with  other  prominent  institutions;  he  is  acknowledged  as  one  of  the 
most  public-spirited  men  in  that  section  of  the  state. 

7  For  names  of  districts,  with  locations  and  areas,  see  S.  F.  Chron.,  Dec. 
29,  1889. 


FRUIT  CULTURE.  743 

munerative  prices  were  anticipated  in  eastern  markets. 
It  was  not  until  shipments  by  rail  became  possible  that 
fruit-growing  in  California  assumed  any  great  impor- 
tance. Within  recent  years  the  progress  made  in  this 
department  is  on  an  enormous  scale,  shipments  of  fresh 
fruits  to  eastern  points  increasing  from  1,832,310 
pounds  in  1871  to  53,741,670*  pounds  in  1888;  of 
canned  fruits  from  182,090  pounds  in  1872  to  39,281,- 
340  pounds  in  1888;  of  dried  fruits  from  548,227  in 
1 875  to  19,759,140  pounds  in  1888  ;  and  of  raisins  from 
220  pounds  in  1874  to  16,884,570  pounds  in  1888. 
Meanwhile  freights  had  been  reduced  from  3.38  to 
1.37  cents  per  pound  on  fresh  fruits,  from  3.51  to  .94 
on  canned  fruits,  from  2.50  to  1.20  on  dried  fruits,  and 
from  2.81  to  about  1.25  cents  on  raisins.  To  these  re- 
ductions is  mainly  due  the  phenomenal  increase  in  this 
branch  of  industry,  and  with  the  further  reductions  that 
must  follow  the  advent  of  competing  lines,  still  greater 
development  may  be  reasonably  expected.  In  1889  the 
net  returns  of  green  fruits  shipped  to  the  east  were 
about  2.25  cents  per  pound,  with  about  the  same  aver- 
age for  the  three  preceding  years,  thus  showing  that 
eastern  markets  have  not  as  yet  been  overstocked. 
Says  the  New  York  Sun  of  September  22, 1889:  "The 
California  fruit  trade  in  this  city  has  increased  over 
tenfold  in  three  years,  and  the  product  of  the  Pacific 
slope  orchards  and  vineyards  is  now  competing  with 
the  domestic  fruit  product  and  beating  it  out  of  its 
boots,  so  to  speak,  in  spite  of  the  3,000  miles  of  dis- 
advantage under  which  Californians  labor  in  compari- 
son with  local  growers.  There  is  every  indication 
besides  that  the  California  fruit  business  here  is  com- 
paratively but  in  its  infancy,  and  that  its  future 
growth,  so  far  as  bulk  of  importations  is  concerned, 
will  be  as  startling  as  that  of  the  last  three  years." 
This  would  appear  the  more  probable  when  it  is  con- 
sidered that  the  yield  of  grain-lands  averages  less  than 
$20  an  acre,  while  that  of  fruit-lands  is  more  than 
§100,  even  allowing  for  trees  not  yet  in  bearing. 


744  RECENT  EVENTS. 

Of  viticulture  and  the  making  of  wine  a  description 
has  been  given  in  a  previous  chapter  of  this  volume. 
It  remains  only  to  be  said  that  with  greater  attention 
to  treatment,  clarification,  blending,  storage,  and  bot- 
tling, the  quality,  if  not  the  price,  of  California  wines 
is  being  constantly  improved.  According  to  the  tables 
furnished  by  A.  Haraszthy,  in  1888  the  president  of 
the  board  of  state  viticultural  commissioners,  the 
average  price  of  California  wines  between  1875  and 
1887  was  55.7  cents  per  gallon,  the  highest  being  62 
cents  in  1876,  and  the  lowest  45  cents  in  1887,  the 
low  valuation  of  the  latter  year  being  due  to  over- 
production and  to  the  fact  that  the  wine  trade  was 
largely  controlled  by  middlemen.  In  the  earlier  years 
of  this  industry,  all  that  was  thought  necessary  was 
to  plant  and  harvest  a  vineyard  without  regard  to 
location  or  constituents  of  soil,  to  press  out  the 
grapes,  and  allow  the  juice  to  remain  in  a  barrel, 
without  regard  to  fermentation  or  other  methods. 
But  that  day  has  long  gone  by,  and  well  that  it  is  so 
for  the  reputation  of  our  western  vintages,  since  there 
is  perhaps  no  branch  of  industry  that  requires  such 
technical  knowledge,  such  care  and  delicacy  in  han- 
dling, as  the  production  of  a  sound  and  palatable  wine. 
In  1869  there  was  a  large  increase  in  the  eastern 
demand  for  California  wines,  while  several  hundred 
thousand  gallons  of  wine  and  brandy  were  shipped  to 
England,  to  which  country,  some  two  years  before,  a 
few  small  shipments  had  been  forwarded  by  way  of 
experiment.  While,  during  the  earlier  weeks  of  the 
season  of  1889,  the  prices  paid  for  wine  grapes  were 
exceedingly  low,  later  a  series  of  storms,  destroying  a 
large  portion  of  the  crops,  caused  an  advance  of  more 
than  fifty  per  cent,  and  at  the  close  of  the  season  left 
our  grape-growers  masters  of  the  situation.  A  grati- 
fying feature  was  the  medals  and  encomiums  bestowed 
at  the  Paris  exposition  of  that  year,8  fully  attesting 

8  Including  four  gold,  eleven  silver,  and  twelve  bronze  medals,  with  a 
number  of  honorable  mentions. 


RAISINS.  745 

the  recognition  which  our  vintages  have  earned  amono- 
the  most  experienced  of  connoisseurs.9 

9  One  of  our  leading  viticulturists  was  the  late  Henry  M.  Naglee,  who  was 
born  in  1815,  in  Tenu.,  was  cadet  at  West  Point,  served  in  the  Mexican  war 
and  in  several  Indian  skirmishes,  after  which  he  engaged  in  banking  in  S.  F. 
He  served  in  the  civil  war.  In  1852  Gen.  Naglee  had  purchased  150  acres  of 
land,  and  afterward  much  larger  tracts  near  San  Jose  and  elsewhere,  and  in 
1865  he  made  that  city  his  home.  Two  daughters  were  the  result  of  a  mar- 
riage made  in  1865.  Visiting  Europe,  he  became  interested  in  the  study  of 
choice  wines  and  brandies,  and  on  his  return  planted  a  vineyard,  and  entered 
upon  the  manufacture  of  brandy,  which  was  continued  till  his  death.  Gen. 
Naglee  took  great  pleasure  in  his  two  daughters,  and  withheld  no  effort  or 
means  to  give  them  that  culture  which  they  so  eminently  possess. 

At  the  head  of  our  producers  in  the  line  of  sparkling  wines  is  Arpad 
Haraszthy,  a  son  of  the  late  Col  Agoston  Haraszthy,  who  aided  largely  in  hte 
development  of  California  viticulture.  Born  in  southern  Hungary  June  28, 
1840,  he  came  with  his  family  to  this  state  in  1S51,  but  in  the  same  year 
went  east  to  receive  his  education,  returning  in  1862,  after  studying  carefully 
in  France  the  manufacture  and  treatment  of  champagnes.  Taking  charge  of 
his  father's  cellars  at  Sonoma,  he  gradually  extended  the  business,  purchas- 
ing in  1879  that  of  Landsberger  &  Co.,  and  establishing  the  present  firm  of 
Haraszthy  &  Co.  Between  1878  and  1886  he  was  president  of  the  State  Vini- 
cultural  society,  and  supported  by  our  leading  wine-makers  defeated  the  pro- 
posed free-trade  treaty  with  France.  In  1880  be  was  elected  president  of 
the  board  of  State  Viticultural  commissioners,  composed  of  practical  viticul- 
turists from  all  portions  of  the  state. 

Deserving  of  mention  also  is  A.  T.  Hatch,  a  native  of  Ind.,  where  he  was 
born  Jan.  31,  1837.  In  1857  he  came  to  Cal.  After  following  a  variety  of 
occupations,  he  planted  a  small  vineyard  and  almond  grove  near  Suisun,  after- 
ward purchasing  land  in  other  localities,  as  means  and  opportunity  offered, 
and  gradually  extending  his  operations  until  in  his  own  line  of  business  he  ia 
to-day  one  of  the  richest  and  most  successful  men  in  the  state. 

E.  Bouton,  a  native  of  New  York,  was  a  son  of  Russel  Bouton,  who  served 
in  the  U.  S.  army  during  the  war  of  1812,  and  a  grandson  of  Daniel  Bouton 
of  the  revolutionary  army.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  civil  was  he  was  engaged 
in  a  commission  business  at  Chicago,  111.  In  the  latter  part  of  1861,  under 
the  direction  of  Gov.  Yates  of  Illinois,  he  organized  a  battery  of  light  artil- 
lery and  was  promoted  for  gallant  service  at  Harrisonburg,  Guntowu,  and 
Shiloh.  In  1868  he  came  to  Los  Angeles,  and  until  1880  was  engaged  in 
sheep-raising,  afterward  becoming  largely  interested  in  the  Nadeau  vineyard 
tract,  containing  3,250  acres.  He  also  purchased  the  Seritas  rancho  of  7,136 
acres.  General  Bouton  married  in  1859  Miss  Margaret  Fox. 

To  no  one  is  San  Diego  more  indebted  for  her  marvellous  development 
than  to  A.  E.  Horton,  who  has  done  perhaps  more  than  any  other  man  u> 
make  that  city  what  it  is  to  day,  one  of  the  most  prosperous  on  the  Pacific 
coast.  A  native  of  Conn.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  24th  of  October,  1813, 
when  two  years  of  age  he  went  with  his  family  to  New.  York,  where  he  re- 
mained until  reaching  his  majority.  The  years  between  1834  and  1851  were 
passed  in  Wis.,  where  he  built  up  the  town  of  Hortonville,  and  at  the  latter 
date  he  paid  his  first  visit  to  Cal.,  returning  east  in  1856.  In  1861  we  find 
him  in  San  Francisco,  where,  after  an  absence  of  two  years  in  Brit.  Col. ,  he 
opened  a  store  on  Market  st.  In  1867  he  removed  to  San  Diego  and  pur- 
chased from  800  to  900  acres  in  what  was  afterward  known  as  New  Town,  at 
the  low  rate  of  26  cents  an  acre.  Then  he  went  to  work  to  build  a  city. 
First  of  all  he  returned  to  S.  F.,  and  opening  an  office  on  Montgomery  st, 
began  to  make  known  the  merits  of  his  prospective  metropolis.  He  then  be- 
gan the  building  of  a  wharf,  which  was  completed  in  three  months,  at  a  cost 
of  §45,000.  In  1868-9  he  erected  several  large  buildings,  including  the  city 


746  RECENT  EVENTS. 

From  6,000  boxes  in  1873  the  raisin  pack  of  Cali- 
fornia increased  to  900,000  boxes  in  1889,  the  largest 
yet  recorded,  except  for  the  preceding  year,  although 
a  loss  of  at  least  250,000  boxes  was  caused  by  heavy 
autumnal  rains.  Prices  were  satisfactory,  and  for 
certain  choice  brands  the  demand  in  eastern  markets 
was  greater  than  the  supply.  Of  prunes  about  15,- 
000,000  pounds  were  produced,  the  fruit  being  large, 
of  excellent  quality,  and  even  at  the  low  prices  pre- 
vailing netting  a  fair  profit  to  producers.  Of  honey 
the  product  was  estimated  at  2,200,000  pounds,  of 
walnuts  1,500,000,  and  of  almonds  500,000.  During 
the  year  1889  nearly  1,800  car-loads  of  dried  fruits, 
900  of  raisins,  and  60  of  honey 10  were  shipped  to 
eastern  markets,  growers  and  dealers  being  fairly  sat- 
isfied, and  with  excellent  prospects  for  the  following 
season. 

To  stock-raisers  the  floods  and  snow-storms  of  the 
past  winter  were  even  more  disastrous  than  to  agricul- 
turists, the  loss  of  cattle  and  sheep  being  in  some  of 
the  northern  counties  from  one-third  to  one-half,  and 
in  some  localities  more  than  three-fourths  of  the  total. 
Nevertheless  at  the  beginning  of  1890  California 
ranked  high  among  the  states  as  to  the  numbers  and 
value  of  her  live-stock,  with  over  4,000,000  of  sheep, 
worth  $8,400,000,  in  this  department  being  second 
only  to  Texas,  with  nearly  1,000,000  oxen,  milch  cows, 
and  other  cattle,  valued  at  more  than  $19,000,000, 

hall,  Horton  hall,  and  the  hotel  called  the  Horton  house,  the  last  being 
completed  and  furnished  in  nine  months,  at  a  cost  of  $150,000.  In  1870  New 
Town  had  a  population  of  about  1,000;  but  it  was  not  until  some  years  later 
that  it  began  to  progress  rapidly,  under  Mr  Horton 's  energetic  management. 
He  secured  for  it  };he  transfer  of  the  post-office,  of  Wells  Fargo's  agency, 
and  of  the  court-house,  all  by  judicious  donations  of  land,  and  to  churches  of 
several  denominations  presented  building  lots  and  subscribed  toward  a  build- 
ing fund.  In  all,  he  expanded  more  than  $700,000  in  aiding  to  build  up  the 
city,  in  which  he  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  most  successful  and  enterprising 
citizens.  In  1861  Mr  Horton  married  Miss  Sarah  Babe,  a  native  of  New  Jer- 
sey. Though  never  an  office-seeker,  he  has  taken  his  full  share  in  political 
as  in  business  affairs,  and  after  retiring  from  active  life,  passed  in  well- 
earned  repose  the  declining  years  of  a  useful  and  beneficent  career. 

1B  For  raisins,  prunes,  dried  fruit,  walnuts,  almonds,  and  honey,  it  is  esti- 
mated that  in  1889  at  least  $(5,000,003  passed  into  the  hands  of  dealers  and 
producers. 


MANUFACTURES.  747 

and  with  over  400,000  horses  and  mules,  worth  $27,- 
000,000,  or  a  total  value  of  at  least  §54,400,000  for 
all  farm  and  domestic  animals.11 

u  Annual  Statiitidan  and  Economist,  1890,  pp.  178-80.  In  the  S.  F. 
Chron.,  Dec.  29,  1889,  the  value  of  all  live-stock  is  given  at  $63,526,000,  the 
difference  being  in  the  higher  estimate  of  value,  for  the  number  of  animals 
varies  but  slightly  from  the  above  figures. 

Among  other  prominent  stock-raisers  of  whom  no  special  mention  has  yet 
been  made  should  be  mentioned  the  late  Charles  Lux,  of  the  cattle  firm  of 
Miller  &  Lax.  An  Alsatian  by  birth,  after  working  at  his  father's  trade  as  a 
wheelwright,  he  emigrated  at  the  age  of  16  to  N.  Y.,  where  he  fonnd  em- 
ployment as  a  butcher's  apprentice  at  $6  a  month.  Coming  to  S.  F.  in  1849, 
in  the  following  year  he  started  in  business,  and  in  1856  formed  a  partner- 
ship with  Henry  Miller.  In  1880  this  firm  owned  at  least  700,000  acres  in 
Cal.,  Or.,  and  Nev.,  including  nearly  all  the  land  for  50  miles  on  both  sides 
of  the  San  Joaquin  river.  At  that  date  their  live-stock  consisted  of  about 
60,000  head  of  cattle,  100,000  sheep,  5,000  hogs,  and  2,000  horses.  Since 
the  death  of  Mr  Lux  the  possessions  of  his  partner  have  been  largely  in- 
creased. » 

Among  the  cattle  farmers  of  the  San  Joaquin  valley  should  also  be  men- 
tioned George  Washington  Trahern,  a  native  of  Miss.,  where  he  was  born  in 
1825,  the  youngest  of  five  children.  His  youth  was  passed  in  Tex.,  on  the 
homestead  of  his  "brother-in-law,  and  in  1842-4  he  passed  two  years  of  cap- 
tivity in  Mex.,  being  one  of  the  prisoners  taken  by  Ampudia.  After  serving 
with  distinction  throughout  the  Mex.  war,  in  1849  he  came  to  Cal.  and  has 
ever  since  been  engaged  in  stock-raising,  first  on  the  Calaveras  river  and 
afterward  in  the  San  Joaquin  valley. 

One  of  the  largest  stock-raisers,  agriculturalists,  and  orchardists  in  Marin 
co.  was  Francis  De  Long,  a  native  of  Vt,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  and  after 
engaging  in  business  in  S.  F.,  in  1856  purchased,  in  conjunction  with  J.  B. 
Sweetser,  the  Novato  ranch,  adding  to  it  from  time  to  time  until  it  contained 
15,000  acres,  and  in  1879  buying  his  partner's  interest.  Here  is  also  one  of 
the  finest  dairy-farms  in  the  state.  In  1882  he  was  one  of  those  who  estab- 
lished the  Petaluma  Fruit  Packing  co.,  whose  output  is  about  100,000  cases 
a  year.  Since  his  death  in  1885  the  estate  has  been  managed  by  his  son,  F. 
C.  De  Long. 

Another  large  land-owner  and  dairy-farmer  in  Marin  co.  is  Jas  Miller,  & 
native  of  Ireland,  who  came  to  Canada  with  his  parents  in  1826,  and  in  1844 
crossed  the  plains  to  CaL  The  first  portion  of  his  farm  of  3,000  acres  was 
purchased  in  1846,  and  since  1864  he  has  been  engaged  in  the  dairy  business. 
His  home  in  San  Rafael  is  one  of  the  most  tasteful  residences  in  that  thriving 
and  beautiful  town. 

John  Boggs  is  one  of  the  largest  sheep-farmers  in  Colusa  and  Tehama 
cos,  where  on  his  ranches,  in  all  gome  40,000  acres,  are  depastured  about 
20,000  sheep,  with  a  number  of  blood-horses  and  of  choice  Jersey  cattle 
for  dairy  purposes.  Mr  Boggs  is  a  native  of  Mo.,  a  CaL  pioneer,  and  was 
elected  state  senator  for  these  counties  in  1870,  and  again  in  18S6. 

Among  the  leading  stock-raisers  of  Santa  Barbara  co.  was  Thomas  F. 
Hope,  an  Irishman  by  birth,  who  came  to  the  U.  S.  in  1840,  and  to  CaL  in 
1849.  After  a  brief  experience  as  a  miner,  and  afterward  as  Indian  agent, 
he  settled,  on  the  Los  Posotas  rancho,  which  be  purchased  for  $8,000.  Its 
present  value  is  at  least  $500,000.  In  1856  he  married  Miss  Delia  Fox,  and 
all  their  six  children,  the  result  of  this  union,  have  survived  him.  Mr  Hope 
was  known  to  the  community  as  a  man  possessing  the  highest  qualities  of 
mind  and  heart. 

Still  another  prominent  stock-raiser,  and  also  one  of  the  most  prominent 
citizens  of  Woodland,  Yolo  co.,  is  John  D.  Longenour,  who  was  born  at 


748  RECENT  EVENTS. 

In  manufacturing  circles  the  feature  of  the  year 
1889  was  the  closing  down  of  the  Pioneer  woollen- 
mills  in  San  Francisco,  an  establishment  which  em- 
ployed nearly  1,000  hands,  producing  goods  to  the 
annual  value  of  more  than  $1,500,000.  The  cause 
assigned  was  the  excessive  importation  of  eastern 
goods,  the  low  price  of  which  made  competition  im- 
possible, with  the  prevailing  rates  of  labor,  fuel,  and 
capital.  In  the  spring  of  1890  occurred  a  strike 
among  the  iron-moulders,  from  800  to  1,000  men, 
including  also  the  laborers  and  case-makers,  thus 
taking  the  bread  from  their  own  mouths.  The  cause 
was  mainly  due  to  the  moulders  passing  a  law  limiting 
the  number  of  hours  in  their  daily  work,  and  the  amount 
of  work  to  be  done  in  those  hours,  together  with  their 
insistence  on  certain  regulations  as  to  the  apprentice 
system.12 

Salem,  N.  C.,  Nov.  23,  1823,  and  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  for  the  purpose,  as 
he  relates,  of  making  $1,000  and  then  returning  home.  Reaching  Hangtown, 
El  Dorado  co.,  with  his  three  brothers,  their  joint  capital  being  25  cents  and 
a  small  stock  of  provisions,  they  began  digging  for  gold  with  their  butcher- 
knives  on  the  south  fork  of  American  river.  After  saving  a  few  hundred 
dollars  they  opened  a  trading  post  at  Yankee  Jim.  In  1853  John  engaged 
in  the  cattle  trade,  and  in  that  and  later  years  acquired  large  tracts  of  land 
in  Yolo  and  Colusa  cos. 

la  Fourteen  foundries  were  involved  in  the  trouble.  For  list  see  S.  F. 
Bulletin,  March  3,  1890. 

In  connection  with  the  Union  iron  works  should  be  mentioned  Irving 
Murray  Scott,  since  1863  its  general  superintendent,  and  to  whose  careful 
management  is  largely  due  the  success  of  that  establishment.  A  native  of 
Md,  where  he  was  born  on  Christmas  day  of  1837,  after  thoroughly  learning 
his  trade  as  a  machinist,  and  studying  mechanical  drawing  in  the  eastern 
states,  he  was  engaged  by  Peter  Donahue,  tirst  as  draughtsman  to  the  Union 
works  and  then  as  superintendent. 

William  T.  Garratt,  a  native  of  Conn.,  and  one  of  California's  pioneers  and 
pioneer  manufacturers,  came  to  Cal.  in  1850,  when  twenty  years  of  age,  first 
learning  his  trade  at  his  father's  brass  foundry  in  Cincinnati.  After  engaging 
in  various  occupations,  and  suffering  many  reverses,  as  in  the  conflagrations 
which  thrice  destroyed  his  property,  he  built  his  brass  and  bell  foundry 
and  his  machine  and  hydraulic  works  on  Natoma  and  Fremont  streets,  and 
soon  afterward  his  works  on  Brannan  and  Fifth  streets,  S.  F.  In  his  special 
line  he  is  now  acknowledged  as  the  leading  manufacturer  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

Another  prominent  manufacturer  and  inventor  is  Joseph  Moore,  a  Scotch- 
man by  birth,  an  engineer  by  profession,  and  a  pioneer  of  1849.  After  work- 
ing at  various  occupations,  in  1855  he  was  appointed  foreman  of  the  Vulcan 
iron  works,  and  a  few  years  later  to  the  same  position  in  the  Risdon  works, 
of  which  he  afterward  became  superintendent.  Under  his  direction  was  made 
the  large  wrought-iron  piping  supplied  for  the  Comstock  and  other  mining 
districts,  together  with  the  huge  pumps  capable  of  raising  2,000  gallons  per 
minute  to  a  height  of  800  feet,  whereby  deep  mining  was  rendered  possible. 


SHIP  AND  RAIL.  749 

In  ship-building  the  year  1889  formed  a  special  era 
in  San  Francisco,  for  during  that  year  the  completion 

The  hydraulic  elevators  at  the  Palace  hotel,  S.  F.,  were  also  mainly  of  his 
design. 

Due  of  the  principal  manufacturers  of  galvanized  iron  in  San  Francisco  is 
Joseph  F.  Forderer,  a  German  by  birth,  who  came  to  the  U.  S.  when  only 
sjven  years  of  age,  and  after  serving  an  apprenticeship  to  his  trade  began 
business  for  himself  in  Cincinnati.  In  1874,  when  bids  were  invited  for  the 
construction  of  the  insane  asylum  at  Napa,  he  secured  the  contract  for  the 
galvanized  iron  work,  and  as  it  was  a  very  large  one,  he  determined  to 
remove  to  this  coast.  His  handiwork  may  be  seen  on  some  of  the  most 
prominent  buildings  in  San  Francisco,  and  elsewhere  in  California,  as  well  as 
in  Nevada,  Oregon,  and  the  Hawaiian  Islands. 

Among  the  leading  manufacturers  and  merchants  of  San  Francisco  is 
George  K.  Porter,  a  native  of  Duxbury.  Mass,  where  he  was  born  Feb.  9, 
1833.  After  working  on  his  uncle's  farm  for  three  years,  and  meanwhile  at- 
tending the  district  school,  he  finished  his  education  at  the  Partridge  academy 
at  Lhixbnry,  and  on  Feb.  1,  1849,  took  ship  at  Boston  for  San  Francisco,  where 
he  lauded  nearly  9  months  later,  being  weatherbound  for  70  days  in  the  straits 
of  Magellan.  After  a  brief  mining  experience,  in  1854  he  started  at  Soquel  one 
of  the  first  tanneries  in  California,  which,  in  conjunction  with  his  cousin,  and 
at  times  with  others,  he  conducted  until  1873,  when  the  two  cousins  estab- 
lished the  wholesale  manufacturing  and  commercial  firm  of  Porter,  Blumm 
&  Slessinger,  now  Porter,  Slessinger  &  Co.  He  is  also  the  owner  of  large 
and  valuable  tracts  of  land  in  several  counties  of  the  state.  Among  his 
other  interests  are  those  in  the  California  Lumber  co.,  of  which  he  is  presi- 
dent. In  1860  he  was  elected  to  the  state  senate  for  Santa  Cruz  and  Monte- 
rey counties,  the  first  republican  returned  by  that  district.  Among  other 
measures  which  he  introduced  was  an  act  to  encourage  agriculture  and  manu- 
factures. 

Benjamin  F.,  the  cousin  of  George  K.  Porter,  is  a  native  of  Northfield, 
Vt,  and  also  belongs  to  one  of  the  oldest  of  New  England  families,  his  grand- 
father being  a  chaplain  in  the  war  of  1812.  At  fourteen  he  was  placed  in 
charge  of  one  of  his  father's  farms,  meanwhile  working  in  summer  and  at- 
tending the  district  school  in  winter,  completing  his  education  at  the  acade- 
mies of  Plainheld  and  Northfield.  In  1853,  on  his  twentieth  birthday,  he 
lauded  in  San  Francisco  with  §80  in  his  pocket,  which  he  loaned  at  three  per 
cent  per  month,  and  went  to  work  at  cutting  and  chopping  redwood  trees, 
soon  afterward  obtaining  a  contract  for  making  pickets  and  shakes.  After 
engaging  in  various  occupations,  in  1858  he  bought  a  third  interest  in  the 
tannery  of  his  cousin.  A  few  years  later  the  two  cousins  l>egan  the  manu- 
facture of  boots  and  shoes,  establishing  in  1873  the  firm  mentioned  in  his 
cousin's  biography,  in  which  Benjamin  Porter  disposed  of  his  share  in  1879, 
being  then  the  owner,  in  conjunction  with  his  cousin  and  Senator  McClay,  of 
a  tract  of  56,000  acres  near  San  Fernando.  His  wheat  crop  for  1886  covered 
some  12,000  acres,  costing  47  ^  cents  and  realizing  $1.10  per  bushel.  He 
also  engaged  largely  in  farming  and  stock-raising  in  Monterey  co.,  where  he 
owuel  over  15,000  acres,  with  other  farming  lands  in  various  portions  of  the 
state.  He  bacame  a  large  share -holder  and  a  member  of  the  finance  committee 
in  four  prominent  banks.  His  present  home  is  at  Los  Angeles,  though  he  has 
still  large  interests  in  San  Francisco  and  Santa  Cruz,  in  all  of  which  cities  he 
enjoys  the  respect  and  good-will  of  the  community. 

One  cf  our  first  brewers  was  Matthew  Nnnau,  who  was  born  in  Ireland, 
caine  to  Cal.  in  1855,  and  engaged  in  mining.  Visiting  the  east  after  1859, 
he  married  Miss  Delia  Horan,  and  took  up  his  residence  in  S.  F.  Here  he 
established  a  brewery,  which  developed  into  a  large  business.  In  1875  he 
was  elected  sheriff  of  S.  F.,  and  again  in  1877.  Mr  Nunan  is  a  man  of  abil- 
ity au  I  the  strictest  integrity.  One  son,  Frank,  and  four  daughters  comprised 
the  children,  who  may  well  be  proud  of  their  father. 


750  RECENT  EVENTS. 

of  the  United  States  cruiser  Charleston,  at  the  Union 
iron  works,  proved  beyond  doubt  the  ability  of  our 
metropolis  to  compete  with  eastern  cities  in  the  con- 
struction of  steel  vessels  of  the  larger  class.  After 
one  or  two  failures,  caused  by  some  slight  defect  in 
the  working  of  the  machinery,  the  Charleston  more 
than  satisfied  the  test  by  steaming  under  a  forced 
draught,  over  eighteen  miles  an  hour.  At  the  same 
works  another  war-ship,  the  San  Francisco,  was  all 
but  completed  in  May  1890.  In  July  of  the  preced- 
ing year  was  finished  the  iron  steamer  Pomona,  a 
merchant  vessel,  and  for  this  branch  of  industry  the 
outlook  was  full  of  promise,  some  of  the  ship-yards 
having  more  orders  on  hand  than  could  be  executed 
within  at  least  a  twelvemonth. 

To  railroad  matters  sufficient  space  has  already  been 
devoted  in  preceding  chapters  of  this  volume.  It  re- 
mains only  to  be  said  that  in  the  spring  of  1890  there 
appeared  some  probability  that  the  long-vexed  ques- 
tion of  the  Central  Pacific  company's  indebtedness  to 
the  government  might  reach  a  settlement,  a  house 
committee  reporting  in  favor  of  a  bill  to  fund  such 
indebtedness  for  a  term  of  seventy-five  years  at  two 
per  cent,  and  in  the  case  of  the  Union  Pacific,  for  50 
years  at  three  per  cent.  As  already  stated,  state  sub- 
sidies, so  far  as  California  is  concerned,  are  now  among 
the  issues  of  the  past.13 

Of  mining  u  and  mining  stocks  full  mention  has  al- 

13  One  of  the  strongest  opponents  of  railroad  subsidies  was  the  late  Gov- 
ernor Henry  H.  Haight,  whose  decease  occurred  Sept.  2,  1878.  A  native  of 
Rochester,  N.  Y.,  and  a  graduate  of  Yale,  ho  studied  law  with  his  father,  and 
in  1847  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  In  Jan.  1850  he  landed  in  S.  F.,  where  his 
ability  soon  placed  him  in  the  front  rank  of  his  profession.  He  married 
Miss  Anna  E.  Bissell,  the  daughter  of  Capt.  Bissell  of  Mo.,  and  of  their 
five  children  two  boys  and  two  girls  are  still  living.  Of  his  political  career 
mention  has  already  been  made  in  these  pages. 

u  To  Adolph  Sutro  the  Pacific  coast  is  indebted  for  the  construction  of 
the  largest  and  most  costly  drain  tunnel  in  the  world,  12  ft  wide,  10  in 
height,  more  than  five  miles  in  length,  including  lateral  branches,  and  costing 
nearly  $5,000.000,  its  object  being  to  drain  and  cool  the  levels  of  the  Corn- 
stock  lode.  Born  at  Aix  la  Chapelle  April  29,  1830,  after  completing  his 
education  he  was  made  superintendent  of  his  father's  factory.  In  1850  he 


THE  SILVER  QUESTION.  751 

ready  been  made  in  these  pages.  Of  coal  the  output 
for  1889  was  estimated  at  111,718  tons;15  of  gold, 
silver,  copper,  and  lead,  the  value  may  be  approxi- 
mately stated  at  $15,000,000  for  California,  and  §110,- 
000,000  for  the  Pacific  coast,  Montana  taking  the 
lead  with  over  $30,000,000,  followed  by  Colorado 
with  about  $26,000,000,  and  Nevada  with  $13,000,- 
000.  A  favorable  feature  in  connection  with  this 
industry  was  the  appreciation  in  the  price  of  silver, 
which,  from  42^  pence  an  ounce  in  April  1888,  rose 
in  the  London  market  to  48  pence  in  April  1889,  an 
increase  of  more  than  14  per  cent.  This  was  mainly 
due,  as  was  claimed,  to  the  anticipated  action  of  con- 
gress on  the  silver  bill  introduced  by  Senator  Jones, 
whereby  the  free  coinage  of  silver  would  be  permitted, 
and  the  sphere  of  silver  currency  greatly  enlarged. 
Whatever  be  the  outcome  of  congressional  action,  the 
rise  is  of  the  utmost  benefit  to  the  mining  industry, 
and  if  it  should  go  further  may  lead  to  a  marked  re- 
vival in  that  direction.  As  matters  stood  in  former 
years,  it  is  said  that  the  discount  on  silver  caused  a 
greater  loss  in  the  Comstock  mines  than  their  entire 
operating  expenses.  There  is,  however,  little  hope 
that  in  the  markets  of  the  world  the  price  of  silver 
will  be  permanently  enhanced  by  legislation  on  the 

. 

came  to  this  state  and  engaged  in  business  in  San  Francisco  and  Stockton, 
erecting,  soon  after  the  discovery  of  the  Comstock  lode,  a  small  mill  at  Day- 
ton for  the  reduction  of  ores  by  an  improved  process  of  amalgamation.  In 
1871,  after  years  of  fruitless  endeavor,  he  secured  the  means  to  build  his 
tunnel,  and  in  Jnly  1878  it  made  connection  with  the  Savage  mine.  Mr 
Sutro  is  the  possessor  of  the  largest  private  library  on  the  coast,  including 
many  rare  volumes  and  manuscripts.  On  his  grounds  at  Sntro  Heights  he 
proposes  to  erect  a  granite  building  for  their  reception,  and  to  donate  both 
library  and  grounds  to  the  people  of  San  Francisco. 

Among  our  town-builders  should  be  mentioned  the  late  D.  J.  Locke,  who 
was  born  at  Langdon.  N.  H.,  Apl  16,  1823,  and  coming  to  this  state  in  1849 
as  physician  of  the  Boston  and  Newton  company  of  mechanics,  founded,  in 
1862,  the  town  of  Lockeford  in  San  Joaquin  co.  He  was  known  as  one  of 
the  most  public-spirited  men  in  this  section  of  the  state,  donating  lots  for 
public  buildings,  and  spending  on  improvements  most  of  the  fortune  which 
he  had  amassed  by  hard  work  and  self-denial. 

J5  Including  38,000  and  33,718  tons  respectively  from  the  Empire  and 
Pittsburg  mines  in  Contra  Costa  co.,  30,000  from  the  lone  valley  mines  in 
Amador  co.,  and  10,000  from  other  sources.  Sept  qf  State  Mineralogist,  1889, 
p.  323. 


752  RECENT  EVENTS. 

part  of  the  United  States,  for  silver  is  merely  a  com- 
modity, and,  like  other  commodities,  its  value  depends 
on  the  inexorable  law  of  supply  and  demand.  If  by 
legislation  a  silver  dollar  be  declared  worth  more,  and 
here  pass  current  for  more  than  its  value  in  the  com- 
mercial world,  the  effect  would  merely  be  to  make 
this  country  a  dumping-ground  for  the  spare  silver  of 
all  the  nations. 

In  business  circles,  no  less  than  to  farmers  and  fruit- 
raisers,  1889  was  a  favorable  year,  and  the  more  so 
because  it  was  free  from  excitement  from  such  real 
estate  or  stock  inflations  as  at  times  send  prices  sky- 
ward, only  to  be  followed  by  the  inevitable  collapse. 
Prices  of  most  commodities  were  satisfactory,  some- 
what higher  than  those  of  the  previous  year,  although 
there  was  here  as  elsewhere  the  usual  number  of 
financial  wrecks.  Prominent  among  the  business 
failures  were  those  of  Belloc  Freres  and  of  W.  T. 
Coleman  &  Company,  both  of  them  firms  of  long 
standing  and  excellent  repute.  For  the  latter  various 
reasons  were  assigned,  and  of  the  former  the  cause 
was  their  heavy  advances  to  Paris  houses.  On  the 
1st  of  July,  1889,  the  total  banking  capital  of  the 
state  was  $52,854,070,  a  decrease  of  $3,129,803  on 
the  preceding  year;  the  total  of  assets  and  liabilities 
was  $236,297,224,  an  increase  of  $10,224,746,  and  of 
deposits  $160,451,775,  an  increase  of  $9,300,248. 
For  the  first  four  months  of  1890  the  bank  clearances 
in  San  Francisco  were  $240,684,822  against  $259,- 
819,858  in  the  preceding  year. 

Throughout  the  state,  except  where  values  had 
been  carried  to  extravagant  figures,  real  estate  was  in 
good  demand  at  advancing  prices,  though  without  un- 
healthy excitement.  In  San  Francisco  the  number 
of  sales  for  1889  was  6,700,  with  a  valuation  of 
$33,000,000,  against  5,000  and  $24,500,000  in  1888, 
an  increase  of  about  one  third  both  as  to  number  and 
value.  In  the  former  year  1,230  buildings  were 
erected  at  a  cost  of  more  than  $11,000,000,  against 


BUILDING.  753 

974  costing  $6,700,000  in  1888.  Among  those  com- 
pleted or  in  course  of  completion  were  the  First 
National  bank,  the  Rosenthal  building,  the  Hun- 
tington-Hopkins  company's  building,  the  Chronicle 
building,  the  Catholic  cathedral,  the  Odd  Fellows' 
hall,  the  Academy  of  Sciences,  the  Lick  free  baths, 
the  Old  People's  home,  the  Concordia  club,  the 
Cooper  Medical  college,  the  Hibernia  bank,  and  the 
Superior  court  building.18  For  the  site  of  a  new  post- 

16  For  others  see  S.  F.  Chronicle,  Dec.  29,  1889. 

One  of  the  largest  land-owners  on  this  coast  is  Dr  EL  B.  Perrin,  who  came 
to  this  state  in  1868  with  a  view  to  practise  medicine.  Visiting  the  Alabama 
settlement  in  Fresno  co.,  he  became  interested  in  the  irrigation  question,  and 
soon  afterward,  with  the  aid  of  the  bank  of  Cal.,  began  the  construction  of 
the  upper  San  Joaqnin  canal,  acquiring  other  valuable  water  rights,  including 
those  of  the  Fresno  canal  co.  In  conjunction  with  others  he  also  acquired 
large  tracts  of  land  in  various  portions  of  the  state  and  in  southern  Arizona. 
Among  them  is  the  Mammoth  ranch  of  60,000  acres  in  Fresno  co.,  all  of  it 
suitable  for  vineyards. 

Another  successful  real  estate  operator  is  Mark  Sheldon,  a  native  of  N.  Y. 
state,  where  he  was  born  on  what  was  known  as  the  Dry  Hill  farm,  near 
Watertown,  Nov.  21,  1829.  Coming  to  this  state  in  1851,  after  the  usual 
mining  experience,  he  established  himself  in  business,  first  in  Plumas  co.  and 
then  in  S.  F.  In  the  summer  of  1861  he  went  to  Virginia  City,  where  his 
mining  ventures  were  remarkably  successful.  After  passing  a  few  years  in 
the  eastern  states,  he  returned  to  this  coast  and  engaged  largely  in  real  estate 
operations,  making  such  costly  improvements  as  the  well-known  Sheldon 
block,  on  Market  and  First  streets,  one  of  the  most  commodious  and  substan- 
tial in  the  city. 

A  prominent  real  estate  owner  of  Los  Angeles,  and  in  business  matters 
one  of  the  most  successful,  is  Mark  G.  Jones,  a  native  of  San  Francisco, 
where  he  was  born  in  1858,  removing  with  his  family  to  Los  Angeles  when 
twelve  or  thirteen  years  of  age.  The  estate  intrusted  to  him  by  his  father 
he  has  largely  increased  by  investments  in  city  property,  building  recently 
on  Main  street  a  five-story  edifice  with  500  rooms. 

Among  those  to  whom  is  largely  due  the  prosperity  of  southern  Cal.  was 
Phineas  Banning,  born  near  Wilmington,  Del.,  Aug.  19,  1S30,  and  who  came 
to  this  state  in  1852.  A  few  years  afterward  he  founded  the  town  of  Wil- 
mington, CaL,  erected  warehouses,  opened  a  lumber-yard,  and  built  lighters 
and  steamboats  to  facilitate  its  commerce,  later  establishing  a  stage  line  be- 
tween that  town,  Los  Angeles,  and  San  Bernardino.  In  1865  he  was  elected 
state  senator,  and  through  his  exertions  the  city  and  co.  of  Los  Angeles  were 
authorized  to  vote  $225,0190  for  a  railroad  from  that  city  to  Wilmington.  He 
was  an  able  and  progressive  man. 

Another  prominent  citizen  of  southern  Cal.  is  Henry  Harrison  Markham,  a 
native  of  Essex  co.,  N.  H.,  where  he  was  born  Nov.  14,  1840.  After  serving 
with  distinction  almost  throughout  the  civil  war,  at  the  close  of  which  he 
held  the  rank  of  colonel,  and  then  becoming  prominent  as  an  admiralty  law- 
yer in  Milwaukee  and  other  cities,  he  came  to  Cal.  for  his  health  in  1879, 
settling  himself  at  Pasadena.  The  fortune  which  he  brought  with  him  to  this 
state  he  increased  largely  by  mining  and  real  estate  investments.  He  became 
a  director  of  the  Los  Angeles  National  bank,  and  was  one  of  those  who  or- 
ganized the  Los  Angeles  Furniture  co.  In  1884  he  was  elected  congressman 
on  the  republican  ticket,  and  largely  through  his  efforts  liberal  appropriations 
were  secured  for  the  harbors  of  the  Pacific  coast. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL  48 


754  RECENT   EVENTS. 

office,  so  long  and  urgently  needed,  $800,000  was 
appropriated  by  congress,  a  selection  being  made  by 
a  committee  appointed  for  the  purpose. 

One  effect  of  the  excessive  rains  was  to  deprive  of 
employment  a  very  large  number  of  mechanics  and 
laborers,  owing  to  the  cessation  of  building  and  other 
operations.  For  a  week  or  two  about  one  thousand 
were  employed  at  the  Golden  Gate  park,  subscriptions 
to  the  amount  of  over  $30,000  being  raised  for  that 
purpose  by  the  citizens  of  San  Francisco,  and  a 
further  amount  forwarded  from  Seattle  being  refused 
from  a  feeling  of  pride,  though  perhaps  of  false  pride, 

Other  prominent  men  not  yet  noticed  are  L.  Babcock,  born  in  N.  Y. 
state  in  1825,  and  a  Cal.  pioneer;  T.  R.  Bard,  a  banker  of  Hueneme,  and  a 
Pennsylvanian  by  birth,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  1864;  Dr  L.  Burwell,  a  farmer 
of  Oroville,  and  a  native  of  Va,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  1853;  M.  J.  Burke,  a 
native  of  Galway,  Ireland,  and  a  leading  real  estate  man  of  S.  F.,  where  he 
landed  in  1853;  F.  Adams  of  San  Luis  Obispo,  a  native  of  Penn.,  and  a  pioneer 
of  1850;  J.  Baiibury,  an  Englishman,  and  a  fruit-grower  of  Pasadena;  E.  A. 
Beardsley,  who  was  born  in  N.  Y.  state,  came  here  in  1859,  and  is  now  a 
merchant  and  real  estate  man  of  Los  Angeles;  H.  K.  Bradbury,  a  lawyer  of 
Santa  Barbara,  and  a  native  of  Me;  D.  Burbank,  a  native  of  N.  H.,  and  a 
leading  citizen  of  Los  Angeles;  B.  F.  Branham  and  his  son,  Isaac,  the  former 
ex-sheriff  of  Santa  Clara  co. ;  G.  G.  Bradt,  born  in  N.  Y.  state,  and  a  pioneer 
resident  of  San  Diego;  C.  Carpy,  a  wine  merchant  of  S.  F.,  and  a  native  of 
France;  W.  A.  Clinton,  born  in  Philadelphia,  and  a  real  estate  man  of  Los 
Angeles;  N.  Cadwallader,  a  native  of  Ohio,  and  a  banker  of  San  Jose;  R.  E. 
Crittenden  of  S.  F.,  a  native  of  S.  C.,  aud  formerly  state  senator;  G.  W. 
Coffin,  born  in  N.  Y.  state,  a  banker  and  ex-mayor  of  Santa  Barbara;  B.  Cohn, 
a  Prussian,  a  merchant  and  ex-mayor  of  Los  Angeles;  J.  W.  Cooper,  a  Ken- 
tuckian,  a  pioneer,  and  a  banker  and  merchant  of  Santa  Barbara;  H.  B.  Crit- 
tenden, a  lawyer  of  San  Diego,  and  a  native  of  Ind. ;  O.  S.  Chapin  of  Poway, 
a  native  of  N.  Y.  state;  W.  E.  Carlson,  a  native  San  Franciscan,  and  a  real 
estate  man  of  San  Diego;  F.  E.  Brown,  an  engineer  of  Redlands,  and  a  native 
of  West  Haven,  Conn. ;  H.  J.  Crow,  a  Pennsylvanian,  engaged  in  the  nursery 
business  at  Los  Angeles;  R.  Cathcart,  a  Los  Angeles  farmer,  and  a  native  of 
St  Louis;  J.  W.  Calkins,  a  Santa  Barbara  banker,  and  a  native  of  Conn. ;  H.  L. 
Drew,  a  San  Bernardino  banker,  and  a  native  of  Mich. ;  W.  M.  Eddy,  a  native  of 
N.  Y.  state,  a  resident  of  Santa  Barbara,  a  pioneer,  and  one  of  our  most  promi- 
nent bankers  and  merchants;  G.  H.  Eggers,  a  German,  and  a  viticulturist,  resid- 
ing in  S.  F.;  C.  Forman,  a  famous  Indian  tighter,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  1853;  C. 
Fernald,  a  pioneer,  and  ex-mayor  of  Santa  Bdrbara;  C.  Holbrook,  a  native  of 
Me,  and  a  leading  hardware  merchant  of  S.  F.,  where  he  arrived  in  1850;  R. 
Heath,  a  pioneer,  and  one  of  the  most  prominent  citizens  of  Santa  Barbara;  D. 
Hunter,  a  Scotchman,  also  a  pioneer,  and  one  of  the  most  enterprising  citizens 
of  the  metropolis;  A.  Leonard,  still  another  pioneer,  a  native  of  Mass,  and  aresi- 
dent  of  Sacramento;  J.  De  la  Montanya,  who  came  to  this  coast  in  1850,  and 
was  one  of  the  first  to  engage  in  the  hardware  business  in  S.  F. ;  W.  L.  Merry, 
a  native  of  N.  Y.,  and  one  of  the  leading  members  of  the  S.  F.  board  of  trade; 
A.  E.  Maxey,  a  native  of  Mass,  a  pioneer,  and  a  farmer  and  stock-rai-er  of 
San  Diego  co. ;  D.  J.  Oliver,  an  Irishman,  and  until  his  death,  in  18S6,  one 
of  the  leading  real  estate  men  in  S.  F. ;  C.  J.  Richards,  a  prominent  real 
estate  man  of  Los  Angeles;  and  A.  L.  Tubbs,  a  native  of  N.  H.,  aud  the  pro- 
prietor of  the  rope  and  cordage  works  in  South  San  Francisco. 


LABOR  INTERESTS.  755 

for  in  Seattle's  hour  of  distress,  after  the  fire  of  1889, 
the  metropolis  was,  as  usual,  most  prompt  and  liberal 
in  aiding  the  stricken  city. 

In  the  so-called  eight-hour  movement,  from  which 
serious  troubles  were  apprehended,  but  happily  not 
realized,  in  eastern  and  European  cities,  San  Francisco 
took  no  active  part,  the  demands  of  most  of  the  trades 
interested  being  already  conceded  by  employers. 

Notwithstanding  some  drawbacks,  few  who  have 
become  accustomed  to  the  stir  and  excitement  of  Cali- 
fornia life,  to  the  glories  of  her  scenery  and  climate, 
to  her  boundless  opportunities,  her  wonderful  pros- 
perity, would  care  to  exchange  for  any  other  the  land 
of  their  nativity  or  adoption.  It  is  now  little  more 
than  four  decades  since  the  discovery  of  gold  attracted 
to  this  coast  the  attention  of  the  civilized  world,  and 
during  that  period,  little  more  than  the  span  of  a 
single  generation,  how  marvellous  the  transformation 
that  many  yet  living  have  witnessed!  As  at  the 
touch  of  a  fairy's  wand,  the  land  has  been  converted 
from  one  vast  pasture-ground  into  a  region  smiling 
with  grain-fields,  orchards,  and  vineyards,  from  the 
southern  boundary  of  the  state  to  the  valleys  over- 
shadowed by  the  snow-capped  peaks  of  Shasta,  and 
from  the  shores  of  ocean  to  the  foothills  of  the  Sierra. 

He  who  would  know  the  utmost  that  can  be  ac- 
complished by  the  energy  and  intelligence  of  man 
should  study  the  history  of  this  state,  for  nowhere 
else  can  be  found  such  comprehensiveness  of  plan, 

One  of  the  oldest  and  most  respected  citizens  in  San  Bernardino  is  John 
Brown,  Sen.,  a  native  of  Worcester,  Mass,  where  he  was  born  in  1817.  After 
engaging  in  various  occupations,  as  rafting  on  the  Mississippi,  and  trapping 
along  the  mountain  streams  from  the  headwaters  of  the  Columbia  to  northern 
Texas,  meanwhile  suffering  shipwreck  off  the  coast  of  Louisiana,  and  being 
present  at  the  battle  of  San  Jacinto,  he  reached  California  among  the  pioneers 
of  1849.  In  1852  he  settled  at  San  Bernardino,  and  was  one  of  those  who 
brought  about  the  separation  of  that  county  from  Los  Angeles,  afterward 
rendering  valuable  services  to  the  city  of  his  adoption. 

Probably  our  most  successful  hotel-keeper  in  S.  F.  is  S.  H.  Seymour,  for 
more  than  20  years  the  manager  of  the  Russ  house,  from  which  it  is  said  his 

Erofits  have  averaged  from  §30,000  to  $40,000  a  year.     A  German   by  birth, 
e  came  to  Cal.  in  1853,  and  found  employment  at  the  American  Exchange, 
then  the  leading  hotel  in  S.  F.,  of  which  in  18(50  he  became  the  landlord. 


756  RECENT   EVENTS. 

such  boldness  of  emprise,  such  skill  and  daring  in  exe- 
cution. If  as  yet  we  lack  the  minuteness  and  thor- 
oughness of  eastern  and  European  communities,  here 
are  to  be  found  in  some  departments  the  most  remark- 
able achievements  that  have  ever  been  witnessed  in  the 
world's  industrial  career.  Here  are  the  largest  wheat 
and  dairy  farms,  the  largest  stock-farms,  the  largest 
vineyards,  orchards,  and  orange-groves,  the  largest 
hydraulic-mines,  the  largest  mining-ditches,  the  most 
powerful  mining-pumps  and  mining  machinery,  the 
highest  aqueduct,  the  largest  lumber-flume,  and  one 
at  least  of  the  largest  saw-mills  in  the  United  States, 
or  in  any  country  on  earth.  And  yet  what  has  al- 
ready come  to  pass,  how  wonderful  soever  in  our  sight, 
is  but  an  earnest  of  what  may  be  expected  when  there 
are  hands  enough  for  the  work  to  be  done,  and  con- 
sumers enough  for  its  products. 

And  to  what  is  California  indebted  for  the  position 
which  she  holds  to-day  as  the  first  state  in  the  union 
in  her  product  of  gold  and  wine  and  fruit,  as  the  first 
in  variety  of  agricultural  products,  as  the  first  in 
wealth  per  capita,  changing  the  financial  conditions 
of  the  world  by  her  enormous  yield  of  the  precious 
metals,  changing  the  conditions  of  labor,  and  giving 
to  commerce  stimulus  and  direction?  To  the  genius 
and  enterprise  of  her  inhabitants  must  these  results 
be  ascribed,  for  whatever  has  been  found  most  excel- 
lent in  other  lands  has  been  adopted  in  this  state. 
Nowhere  else  has  been  displayed  such  aptitude  in 
studying  and  applying  the  lessons  of  experience;  no- 
where has  such  progress  been  made  in  new  directions ; 
nowhere  have  so  many  appliances  been  successfully 
brought  to  bear  on  the  development  of  agriculture 
and  mining;  nowhere  is  there  so  much  of  pride,  and 
of  excusable  pride,  among  her  adopted  no  less  than 
her  native-born  citizens. 

It  seems  but  as  yesterday  since  the  Pacific  coast 
metropolis  was  but  a  collection  of  cabins  and  tents 


THE  FUTURE.  757 

clustering  among  the  few  level  acres  of  ground  that 
skirted  the  waters  of  the  bay,  the  mud-Hals  and  sand- 
dunes,  the  steep,  rocky  hills,  and  the  swamp- covered 
ravines.  Never,  perhaps,  was  a  more  unpromising 
site  selected,  and  never  did  skill  and  enterprise 
achieve  so  quick  and  complete  a  mastery  over  the 
obstacles  of  nature.  To-day  those  hills  and  ravines 
are  covered  with  a  city  of  over  300,000  inhabitants, 
stretching  forth  east  and  north  to  the  shores  of  the 
harbor,  westward  almost  to  the  Pacific,  and  south- 
ward beyond  the  Mission  hills,  where  in  pioneer  times 
the  only  wagon-road  passed  through  miles  of  loose 
and  shifting  sand.  Here  have  been  erected  some  of 
the  finest  public  and  business  buildings,  some  of  the 
most  tasteful  and  commodious  residences  in  the 
United  States;  here  is  one,  at  least,  of  the  largest, 
and  more  than  one  of  the  best-appointed  hotels  and 
restaurants;  here  are  theatres,  churches,  schools, 
and  libraries  such  as  are  seldom  found  in  cities  of 
equal  size;  here  are  facilities  for  commerce,  for  travel, 
and  communication  such  as  are  excelled  by  few  east- 
ern or  old-world  centres. 

And  what  will  be  the  condition  of  this  state  a  few 
generations  hence,  when  the  moral  and  political 
status  of  the  community  shall  be  on  a  par  with  her 
material  greatness;  when  trickery  and  demagogism 
shall  give  place  to  honest  and  enlightened  statesman- 
ship; when  manly  worth  and  intellectual  culture  shall 
be  recognized;  and  when  from  the  heterogeneous  ele- 
ments of  which  our  western  commonwealth  is  composed 
shall  be  eliminated  their  impurities  and  debasing  in- 
fluences ?  Here,  let  us  hope,  will  be  the  favored  land, 
where  social  science  will  find  its  most  fitting  sphere; 
here  the  accumulations  gathered  in  the  vast  store- 
house of  human  experience;  here  the  abode  of  all  that 
is  best  worth  preserving  in  the  art,  the  science,  the 
literature  of  the  world;  and  here,  if  California  be  true 
to  herself  and  her  higher  destiny,  may  be  'found  one 


758  RECENT  EVENTS. 

of  the  highest  forms  of  development  of  which  human- 
ity is  capable.17 

17  I  give  herewith  a  few  additional  biographies,  in  the  briefest  form,  al- 
though many  who  are  here  mentioned  are  no  less  prominent  than  those  who 
have  been  noticed  at  greater  length. 

Foremost  among  the  military  officers  who  have  done  service  in  the  Indian 
wars  of  the  west,  both  for  popularity  and  gallant  service,  stands  the  name 
of  N.  A.  Miles.  A  native  of  Mass,  he  received  an  academic  education,  and 
followed  a  mercantile  life  until  the  outbreak  of  the  civil  war,  when,  in  1861, 
he  entered  the  service,  out  of  which  he  came  a  major-general.  He  was  then 
assigned  to  duty  in  North  Carolina  during  the  reconstruction  of  the  states, 
and  in  1869  he  was  ordered  west  to  serve  on  the  frontier.  In  1875  the  Chey- 
ennes,  Kiowas,  and  Comanches,  who  had  been  for  years  committing  depre- 
dations, were  subjugated.  He  also  took  part  in  other  Indian  difficulties. 
He  married  in  18(58  Miss  Mary  Sherman,  a  daughter  of  C.  T.  Sherman  of 
Cleveland,  Ohio. 

Among  other  military  men  well  known  on  this  coast  was  the  late  Alanson 
Merwin  Randol,  a  colonel  in  the  first  artillery,  and  during  the  civil  war  in 
command  of  the  second  N.  Y.  cavalry.  A  native  of  Newburgh,  N.  Y.,  he  grad- 
uated at  West  Point  in  1 860,  and  the  same  year  was  appointed  to  the  ordnance 
corps  at  Benicia,  with  the  rank  of  second  lieutenant.  At  the  outbreak  of 
the  rebellion  he  was  transferred  at  his  own  request  to  a  battery  in  active 
service,  and  from  that  time  until  the  close  of  the  war  was  constantly  in  the 
field,  taking  part  in  32  pitched  battles  and  engagements,  in  addition  to  num- 
berless skirmishes.  In  1881  he  was  ordered  to  California,  and  in  the  follow- 
ing year  was  inspector-general  on  the  staff  of  McDowell.  After  the  retire- 
ment of  that  officer  he  was  successively  in  command  at  forts  Winfield  Scott 
and  Alcatraz,  Sail  Francisco,  and  at  Fort  Canby,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Colum- 
bia river. 

Edmond  D.  Shirlaiid  was  born  in  Washington  co.,  N.  Y.,  in  1831,  coming 
with  the  N.  Y.  reg.  to  Cal.  in  1847.  He  served  till  Sept.  18,  1848,  when  the 
co.  was  disbanded.  After  various  changes  he  went  to  Placerville,  where  he 
contracted;  his  health  failed  him,  and  he  went  to  S.  F.  From  1850  to  1856 
he  was  engaged  in  the  cattle  business,  and  on  the  outbreak  of  the  civil  war 
entered  the  army,  serving  until  1863  with  the  rank  of  captain.  He  has  since 
been  operating  in  real  estate  and  mining.  He  was  married  in  1859,  and  had 
two  daughters  and  a  son. 

Irvin  Ayres  was  for  twenty  years  resident  at  Fort  Bidwell,  where  he  be- 
came familiar  with  the  workings  of  Indian  affairs.  He  was  born  in  1832  in 
N.  Y.,  and  came  to  this  coast  in  1853,  where  he  engaged  in  various  pursuits. 
He  married  in  1872  Miss  Annie  L.  Poor  of  Belfast,  Maine;  four  boys  being 
born  to  them.  The  distinguished  soldier,  Gen.  Rotneyn  B.  Ayres,  who  came 
to  this  coast  in  1854,  was  an  elder  brother  of  Irvin  Ayres. 

Joseph  G.  Eastland  was  born  in  Nashville,  Tenn.,  in  1831,  and  came  to 
Cal.  in  1849  with  his  father,  who  entered  business  in  S.  F.  under  the  name 
of  Thomas  B.  Eastland  and  son.  They  founded  the  town  of  Oro  on  Bear 
river,  and  took  part  in  the  Gold  lake  excitement.  In  1851  young  Eastland 
entered  the  Union  foundry,  under  the  auspices  of  James  Donahue,  and  in 
1856  became  sec.  of  the  S.  F.  Gas  co.,  with  interests  in  the  gas  companies  of 
neighboring  cities.  In  1870  Mr  Eastland  married  Miss  Alice  Lander,  and  in 
the  same  year  was  appointed  one  of  the  commissioners  of  the  new  S.  F.  city 
hall. 

John  Mallon  was  born  in  Ireland  March  10,  1828,  of  French  and  Celtic 
ancestors,  emigrating  in  1832  with  his  parents  to  New  York,  where  he  ob- 
tained his  education.  In  1843  he  was  apprenticed  to  a  glass-cutter,  and  after- 
ward began  business  for  himself.  In  1858  he  came  to  S.  F.,  and  opened 
an  establishment,  from  time  to  time  adding  new  branches  until  the  highest 
styles  known  to  the  art  were  introduced.  In  1847  he  married  Miss  Elizabeth 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  759 

Hanson,  the  fruit  of  the  union  being  eight  children,  the  eldest,  Peter  L. 
Mullon,  having  charge  of  the  business. 

Among  other  prominent  citizens  of  Los  Angeles  should  be  mentioned  I. 
N.  Van  Nuys,  who  was  born  in  New  York  in  1835,  and  in  1865  came  to 
Napa,  Cal.,  where  he  embarked  in  the  mercantile  business.  In  1870  he  went 
to  Los  Angeles  county,  and  with  the  Lankershims  organized  the  San  Fernando 
Farm  and  Homestead  association,  later  the- Los  Angeles  Farm  and  Mill  co. 
In  1880  he  was  married  to  Miss  Savannah  Lankershim. 

Among  the  most  successful  men  of  Los  Angeles  should  also  be  mentioned 
Hervey  Lindley,  a  native  of  Indiana,  where  he  was  born  in  1854,  accompany- 
ing his  parents  in  early  youth  to  Minneapolis,  and  completing  his  education 
at  the  high  school  in  that  city.  Removing  thence  in  1853  to  Waterloo,  Iowa, 
he  engaged  in  the  lumber  trade  until  1S55,  when  he  removed  to  Los  Angeles. 
Here  he  first  loaned  on  real  estate,  and  established  himself  as  a  broker,  but 
finding  that  his  patrons  often  doubled  the  amount  of  their  investments,  pur- 
chased some  valuable  properties  in  that  city  and  its  vicinity,  and  became 
largely  interested  in  the  quaker  settlement  of  Whittier,  located  in  1887  by 
A.  H.  Pickering,  and  of  which  he  is  manager.  In  1888  he  had  realized 
$300,000  from  the  latter  venture,  and  had  the  utmost  confidence  in  its  future 
prosperity. 

Another  leading  citizen  is  Henry  T.  Hazard,  who  was  born  in  Illinois  on 
the  31st  of  July,  1844,  and  came  across  the  plains  to  Cal.,  arriving  in  1852, 
his  father  having  preceded  him  in  1849,  and  accumulated  the  means  with 
which  to  bring  out  his  family  and  settle  them  on  a  farm  near  Los  Angeles. 
Young  Hazard  received  his  early  education  at  Visalia  and  San  Jose,  proceed- 
ing thence  to  Harvard,  and  finally  being  admitted  to  the  bar  in  Michigan  in 
1808,  when  he  returned  to  Cal.  and  began  to  practise  law.  In  1881  he  was 
elected  Los  Angeles  city  attorney,  serving  two  years,  and  in  1884  was  elected 
to  the  legislature.  Later  he  became  largely  identified  with  the  interests  of 
Los  Angeles.  In  1873  he  married  Carrie  Geller  of  Marysville. 

Charles  Victor  Hall  was  born  in  San  Francisco  in  1852,  and  commenced 
his  education  by  studying  at  home  and  reciting  to  a  friend.  Afterward  he 
attended  the  university  of  Cal.,  paying  his  own  way  while  there;  then  in 
1875  he  engaged  in  the  real  estate  business  at  Los  Angeles,  which  he  has 
followed  ever  since,  publishing  Hall's  Land  Journal  from  1876  to  1880.  Ihe 
journal  was  originated  in  Los  Angeles  and  was  afterward  removed  to  San 
Francibco. 

Few  have  done  more  for  southern  California  than  E.  S.  Babcock,  Jr,  who 
came  to  San  Diego  in  the  winter  of  1883-4,  and  at  Coronado  breach  built  a 
hotel  which  for  size,  architecture,  and  arrangement,  and  as  a  seaside  resort, 
considering  furthermore  the  climate  and  other  conditions,  has  not  its  superior 
in  the  world.  With  Mr  Babcock  were  associated  in  this  enterprise  H.  L. 
Story  of  Chicago,  Jacob  Gruendike  of  San  Diego,  and  Joseph  Collett  of  Terre 
Haute,  Ind. 

Wm  R.  Rowland  was  born  at  Puente  rancho,  near  Los  Angeles;  his  father, 
John  Rowland,  was  a  cattle  dealer,  and  a  pioneer  of  1842,  and  afterward  the 
first  wine  manufacturer  of  the  state.  Young  Rowland  went  to  the  Santa 
Clara  college  for  three  years,  and  afterward  had  a  private  teacher.  He  had 
been  managing  his  father's  business  up  to  1871,  when  he  started  in  business 
for  himself.  He  has  a  rancho  of  2,600  acres,  on  which  a  32°  gravity  oil  well 
has  been  found,  and  a  pipe  line  from  it  to  the  R.  R.  was  built.  He  was 
twice  elected  sheriff,  and  was  the  prime  mover  in  the  capture  of  Tiburcio 
Vasquez,  for  which  he  received  a  large  regard.  He  married  in  1874  Manuela 
Williams,  a  daughter  of  Gen.  Williams. 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Aba«l,  Serra's  suggestions  submitted 
to,  i.  209. 

Abbott,  O.,  member  S.  F.  stock 
board,  1861,  vii.  668. 

Aclntoy,  Ind.  tribe,  treaty  with,  1836, 
iv.  71. 

'  Active, '  ship,  at  Mont.,  1810,  ii.  96. 

'  Active, '  transport,  ii.  83. 

Adams,  F.,  biog.,  viL  754. 

Adams,  J. ,  biog.,  vii.  410. 

Adams  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vii.  149-50, 
161;  failure  of,  vii.  174. 

Adamsville,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 

Agricultural  implements,  imports, 
etc.,  of,  vii.  96. 

Agriculture,  progress  in,  1773,  i.  204- 
206;  condition  1774,  i.  239;  Sta 
Clara  vail.,  i.  305;  condition,  1780, 
L  331;  pueblos,  1783-90,  i.  388; 
1800,  i.  601;  at  missions,  1783-90, 
L  388,  457,  459,  466,  469,  473,  477, 
478,  556;  1791-1800,  i.  577,  656-7, 
672,  676,  686,  688,  690,  713,  723; 
1801-10,  i.  132,  137-8,  148-9,  153-4; 
ii.  104-106,  108,  110,  115,  116,  121, 
122,  123;  1811-20,  ii.  346,  347,  349, 
350,  355,  358,  364,  366,  368,  374, 
375,  377,  383,  384,  385,  386,  387, 
390;  1821-30,  ii.  552,  554,  556; 
statistics  of,  1791-1800,  i.  619-20; 
1801-10,  i.  176-81;  1821-30,  ii.  567, 
578,  580-2,  595-6,  599,  601-2,  616, 
619-20,  622,  624,  635-8;  1831-40, 
iii.  357,  619,  622,  626,  643,  646, 
656,  660,  662.  664,  680-1,  684,  686, 
690-1,  693,  714,  7J6,  719,  724,  727; 
Sta  Cruz,  1792-1800,  i  495-496; 
Soledad,  1972-1803,  i.  500;  drought, 
1809,  ii.  89;  yield  of  products, 
1801-10,  ii.  161;  products,  1811-20, 
ii.  395-6;  pests,  ii.  417;  efforts  to 
extend,  1831,  iv.  159-160;  develop- 
ment of,  vii.  2-4;  farms,  1880,  vii. 
5-7;  soil,  vii.  6-7,  21-23;  rainfall, 
vii.  8,  14-15,  18-20;  irrigation,  vii. 
S-ll;  riparian  rights,  vii.  11-14; 


droughts,  1850-77,  vii.  15-16;  floods, 

1849-81,  vii.  16-17;  pests,  vii.  17- 

18;  climate,  vii.   18-20;  barley,  vii. 

24-5;  oats,  vii.  25;  maize,  vii.  25; 

wheat,   vii.  26-8,   739;   vegetables, 

vii.   27-30;  cotton,  vii.  30-1;  flax, 

vii.  30-1;   silk,   vii.   31-4;  tobacco, 

vii.  34-5;    hops,  vii.   35-6;    sugar, 

vii.  36-7;  fruit-growing,  vii.  38-50; 

agric.   exhibs,  vii.   63-4;  societies, 

vii.  63-4;  mining  debris,  vii.  646-8. 
Agna     Caliente,     arrival      of     Gen. 

Kearny  at,  1846,  v.  339. 
'  Aquiles,'  war  ship,  iii.  27. 
'  Alabama,'  ship,  iii.  139. 
Alaman,  sec.  of  state  in  Mex.  1823, 

ii.    485;    report  on   Cal.   miss.,    ii. 

488;  orders  jet'e  politico  to  report, 

iii.  7;   approves  Echeaudea's  plan, 

iii.  3'25. 
Alaineda    county,     exploration      of, 

1772,  i.  184-7;  1794,  i.  550-2;  hist 

of,  vi.  526-7;  creation,  etc.,  of,  1853, 

vii.  441. 
Alaireda  creek,  Fages'  expedt.  camps 

at,  i.  185. 

Alameda,  town,  hist,  of,  vi.  478-9. 
Alaska,   Russia  explores   coast  of,   i. 

113;  Martinez  voy.  to,  1788,  i.  444; 

annals  of,  1741-1810,  ii.  58-66,  78- 

82. 

Alarcon,  expedt.,  1540,  i.  9. 
Albany,  recruiting  for  Stev.  regt  at, 

v.  592. 
'Albatross,'    ship,    hunting     expedt. 

1810-11,    ii.    82,    93-5;    seizure   of, 

1816,  ii.  275-8. 
Alden,   Capt.    B.    R,,   at   Ft    Jones, 

1852,  vii.  461. 
Alder  creek,  Donner  party  encamp. 

at,  v.  533. 
Alemany,  J.  S.,  Archbishop,  vii.  726, 

730. 
'Alert,'  ship,  iii.  367;  iv.  68,  95,  135, 

14-_>,  320,  340. 

Aleuts,  hunting  in  S.  F.  bay,  1808,  ii. 
(761) 


762 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


81.    296;    otter   hunting,    1816,    ii. 

284;   capture  of,    1815,   ii.   308;   at 

Ross,  ii.  632. 
'Alexander,'     ship,     adventures     of, 

1803,  ii.  14-17. 

Alexander,  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  21. 
Alisal  Rancho,  ii.  615,  v.  7. 
Allison,  E.,  vii.  590. 
Allison  Ranch  Lead,  mention  of,  vii. 

638;  product  of,  vii.  642. 
Almanza,    J.    M.,    of    Cal.    junta  in 

Mex.,  1825-7,  iii.  3;  report  on  Cal. 

miss.,  iii.  109. 
Almonte,    Gen.    (Mex.    minister),    in 

Jones'  affair,  1842,  iv.  325-7;  warns 

Cal.  immigrants,  iv.  379-380. 
Aloquiomi,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Alpine  County,  organized,  etc.,  1864, 

vii.  442;  silver  discovs  in,  vii.  650. 
Altgeier,  N.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  16. 
Alsop  &  Co.,  Adams  &  Co.'s  failure, 

vii.  177. 

Alturas,  co.  seat  of  Modoc,  vii.  495-6. 
Alvarado,   Gov.,  manuscript  of,  i.  55; 

rule  of,  1836-40,  iii.  478-514,  579- 

607;  1840-2,  iv.  1-41. 
Alvarado,    J.    B.,   member   of  legisl. 

council,  1847,  vi.  260. 
Alvarado,  P.  de,  expedt.,  1540,  i.  9; 

defeat  and  death,  i.  10. 
Alvarado,  co   seat  of  Alameda,  1853, 

vi.  526. 

Alviso,  mention  of,  vi.  525. 
Alvord,  W.,  biog.  of,  vii.  183. 
Amador,  J.  M.,  raiicho  of,   1848,  vi. 

10. 

Amador  county,  name,  ii.  585;  min- 
ing in,  1848-56,  vi.  371-3;  creation, 

etc.,  of,  1854,  vii.  441;  disturbance 

in,  1871,  vii.  455. 
Amador  creek,  quartz  veins  found  on, 

1851,  vi.  372. 

Amador,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  512. 
Amador  valley,  Fages'  expedt.  in,  i. 

186. 
Amajabes,  luds,  reception  of  trappers, 

iii.  154. 
Amajavas,  Ind.   tribe,    ii.   334-5,   iv. 

338. 

Amat,  T.,  Bishop,  vii.  726. 
Ambuscade  creek,  Fremont  and  Gil- 

lespie  at,  1846,  v.  24. 
American  river,  Fremont  at,  1846,  v. 

22;  name,  vi.  15;  gold  discov'd  on, 

1848,  vi.  28-34;  mining  on,  1848-9, 

vi.  73,  352-6. 
American    tunnel,    quartz   mine.   vii. 

639. 
Ames,  O.,  vii.  570. 


'Amethyst.'   ship,    hunting    expedt., 

1811,  ii.  96. 

Anaheim,  hist,  of,  vi.  522. 
Anaya,  Gen.,  pres.  of  colony  scheme, 

iii.  263. 
Anderson,  Judge  A.,  election,  etc.,  of, 

1852,  vii.  220. 

Anderson,  Col  A.  L.,  vii.  470. 
Anderson,  W.,  vi.  17,  509. 
Andison,  J.  E.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850, 

vi.  319. 

Angel  camp,  vi.  374. 
Angel  Island,  named,  i.  246. 
Anglo-Saxon  Mining  Co.,  operations, 

etc.,  of,  vii.  638. 
Ansactoy,   Ind.    tribe,    treaty    with, 

1836,  iv.  71. 

Ansaimes,  Ind.  tribe,  i.  558. 
Anson,  map  of,  i.  94. 
Anteparaluceta,  P.  A.  de,  legacy  of, 

i.  595. 

Anthony,  Rev.  E.,  vii.  727. 
Antioch,  mention  of,  vi.  527-8;  R.  R. 

projected  at,  vii.  590. 
Apodaca,    viceroy,    offl     actions    of, 

1817-20,  ii.  250,  252,  256,  257,  264, 

265,  284. 
'Apollo,'  Russ.   man-of-war,   ii.  643, 

644,  645. 

Applegate,  mines  of,  vii.  658. 
Apples,  cultivation  of,  vii.  40—41. 
Arboriculture,  vii.  50-1,  78. 
Arcata,  town  (see  also  Union),  men« 

tion  of,  vi.  504. 
Arce,  manuscript,  i.  55. 
Arce,  Jose  M.,  i.  441. 
Archbald,  name  of  Cal.,  i.  67. 
Architecture,   pre-pastoral,   i.   203-4. 
Archives,  private,  i.  48-50;  public,  i. 

45-6. 

Areche,  mention  of,  i.  209,  214. 
Arevalo,  M.,  named  for  duty  in  Cal., 

1780,  i.  379. 

Argenti,  F.  and  Co.,  vii.  161. 
'  Argentina, '  Bouchard's  ship,  ii.  225. 
'Argosy,'  ship,  ii.  648. 
Arguello,    Gov.,    rule    of,     1814,    ii. 

207-8. 

Arguello,  S.,  member  of  legisl.  coun- 
cil, 1847,  vi.  260. 
Arieta,   J.   V.,  Habil.  Gen.  for  Cal., 

1805,  ii.  188. 

Arizona  Ledge,  assays  of,  vii.  651. 
Ariztequi,    P.    I.,   supplies   for   Cal., 

1791,  i.  630. 

Armona,  Gov.,  i.  124,  171-2. 
Arrellanes,    I.,   chaplain    to    constit. 

convention,  1849,  vi.  290. 
Arrillaga,    Gov.,    rule   of,    1792-4,   i. 


INDEX. 


763 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


501-529;    1804-14,    ii.   20-43,    194- 

206. 
Arricivita,  J.  D.  de,  bibliog.,  etc.,  i. 

222,  321,  355. 

Arroyo  Seco,  mining  at,  1848,  vi.  77. 
'  Artemiae,'  Fr.  frigate,  iv.  93,  152. 
Artisans,  from  Mex.,  list,   1792-5,  i. 

615,  616. 
Ashley,  state   treasurer,  mention  of, 

vii.  297. 

'Asia,'  ship,  surrender  of,  iii.  25-26. 
Asiatica-Mexicana  Co.,  proposed   by 

junta,  iii.  5-6. 
Aspinwall,  W.  H.,  the  Pac  Mail  S.  S. 

Co.,   1847-8,  vi.  128-9;  Panama  R. 

R.,  vii.  522. 
Assembly,  first  meeting  of,   1849,  vi. 

308-9;  members,  vi.  310. 
'Astrolabe,'   ship   of  La  Perouse,    i. 

428-9. 

'Atala,'  ship,  ii.  213. 
Atenomac,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Atherton,  F.  D.,  vii.  585. 
Atlantic  and  Pacific  R.  R.,  land  grants  ' 

to,  vii.  593-5;  negotiations  of,  vii. 

608-9;    combination,    etc.,    of,    vii 

614-16. 
Auburn,   diggings   around,    1848,   vi. 

355;   co.    seat   of   Placer,    etc.,    vi. 

483. 

Aukney,  A.  P.,  the  S.  F.  R.  R.  con- 
vention, 1859,  vii.  543. 
Aurora,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  519;  a 

mining  centre,  vii.  652. 
Austin,  Major,  mention  of,  vii.  282. 
Austin,  P.  K.,  vii.  590. 
Australia,  effect  of  Cal.  gold  discov. 

in,  vi.  125;  effect  of  its  gold  discov., 

vii.  109;  trade  with,  vii.  121-3. 
Authorities  quoted,  i.  xxv.-lxxxviii 
Authors  in  Cal.,  vii.  722-3. 
Avila,  Jose,  Cal.  supplies,  i.  630. 
Axtell,  S.  B.,  congressman,  vii.  331. 
'Ayacucho.'ship,  iii.  143,  365;  iv.  210. 
Ayala,  T.  O.  de,  report  on  Cal.,  1821, 

ii.  443-4. 

Ayres,  Irvin,  biog.  of,  vii.  758. 
Ayuntamientos,    ii.   461,   560-1,   604, 

611-12,  676;  iii.  182,  187,  226,  245-  ; 

6,  283,  299,  307,  380,  395,  417,  481, 

484,  500,   509,  517,  519,  521,  539, 

557,  564-5,  586,  589,  613-16,  630-2, 

634-6,   672-6,   696,    703-5,   729-31; 

iv.  68,  360,  475,  493;  v.  41,  49-51, 

618,  625-31,  636,  649,  662. 
Azanza,  M.  J.  de,  sect'y  to  Galvez,  i. 

115,  129;  viceroy,  offl  com.  to  king, 

1798-1800,    i.    544,    546;    proposed 

opening  Cal.  trade,  i.  628;  instruc- 


tions  to  successor,    i.    730;   favors 

naval  force  for  Cal.,  ii.  61. 
Azcarate,  J.  F.,  of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex., 

1825-7,  iii.  3. 
Azuar,  Antonio,  named  for  Cal.,  1780, 

i.  379. 


Babcock,    E.    S.,    jr,    biog.    of,    vii 

759. 

Babcock,  L.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Babcock,  W.  F.,  biog.  of,  vii.  186. 
Bacon,  H.  D.,  director  Col.  River  R. 

R.,  vii.  610;  gifts  of,  vii.  720. 
Bagley,  D.  F.,  lieut,  1849,  vii.  454. 
Bailey,  A.  J.,  mine  discov 'd  by,  1860, 

vii.  657. 
Bailey,    J.,  sect'y   Cent.  Pac  R,  R.. 

1861,  vii.  544;  biog.,  vii.  546-7. 
Bailey,  O.,  vii.  607. 
Bain,  G.,  vii.  607. 
Baird,  J.  H.,  biog.,  vi.  656. 
Baja  California,  see  'Lower  Cal.' 
'  Baikal/ ship,  ii.  648,  649-51;  iv.  159, 

171. 
Baker,  senator,  speech  of,  1860,  vii 

276;  death  of,  1861,  vii.  293. 
Baker,    Maj.,    of    court   at    Fremont 

trial,  v.  456. 
Baker,  E.  D.,  vi.  679. 
Baker,  E.  O.,  nominee  for  congress, 

1859,  vi.  723. 

Bakersfield,  mention  of,  vi.  518. 
Baldridge,  manuscript,  i.  56. 
Baldwin,  D.  P.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850, 

vi.  319. 

Baldwin,  E.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  681. 
Baldwin,  Judge  J.  C.,  election,  etc., 

of,  vii.  221-2. 
Baldwin,  Judge  J.  G.,  biog.,  etc.,  of, 

vii.  233-4. 

Baldwin,  O.  D.,  biog.,  vii.  694. 
Bailee k,   Rev.,   church  organized  by, 

vii.  729. 

Banbury,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Bancroft,    G.,    instructions    to   Com. 

Sloat,  v.  195-199. 
Band  in  i,    J.,    manuscript    of,    i.     55; 

member  of  legisl.  council,  1847,  vi. 

260. 

Bandmann,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  187. 
Bank  of  Cal.,  affairs  of,  vii.  674-5. 
Bankhead,  Col,  trouble  with   N.   Y. 

vols,  v.  507. 

Banking,  hist,  of,  1849-86,  vii.  160-4. 
Banning,  P.,  biog.,  vii.  753. 
Baptism,  first  in  Cal,  i.  145,  201. 
Baptists,  mention  of,  vii.  728. 


764 


INDEX. 


For  information  conctjning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Baranof,  chief  manager  of  Russ.  Amer. 

Co.,   1803,  ii.   25,  63;  contract  for 

Cal.    skins,    ii.    39,    64,   78-80,    93; 

instructed  to  open  Cal.  trade,  ii.  82; 

actions,  see  settlement  in  Cal.,  ii. 

295-315;  bibliog.,  ii.  641. 
Barber,  H.  P.,  code  commissioner,  vii. 

249. 

Barber,  P.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  731. 
Barbour,  G.  W.,  Ind.  agent,  1850-2, 

vii.  482-5. 
Barclay,  G.  R.,  member  stock  board, 

vii.  608. 

Bard,  T.  R.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Barger,  J.,  at  Suiter's  mill,  1848,  vi. 

46-7. 

Baring,  Rev.  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  729. 
Bark,  consumption,  etc.,  of,  vii.  91. 
Barley,  yield  of,  1852-80,  vii.  24-5. 
'Barnstable,'  ship,  iv.  340. 
Barri,  gov.  B.  Cal.  1772-i,  i.  195,  210; 

actions    to    Franciscans,    i.    235-7; 

succeeded  by  Neve,  i.  237,  238,  447; 

crosses  peninsula,  i.  457. 
Barroeta,  Serra's  suggestions  submit- 
ted to,  i.  209. 
Barron,  E.,  Eng.  consul  at  Tepic,  1826, 

iii.   176;   actions  in  Graham  affair, 

1840-2,  iv.  30,  32-3. 
Barron,  Forbes  &  Co.,  vii.  656. 
Bartleson,    John,    journey    of    party 

under,  iv.  267-76. 
Bartlett,  W.,  renames  S.  F.,  vi.  165; 

elected    mayor    S.    F.,    1884,    vii. 

425-6;  gov.,  1887,  vii.  433-4;  biog., 

vii.  433-4;  death  of,  vii.  434. 
Bartlett  springs,  descript.  of,  vii.  664. 
Barton,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  659. 
'Bastany,'  ship,  ii.  283. 
Batallon    Fijo   de    Cal.,    1843-4,    iv. 

289-90;  conduct  of,  iv.  36:3-7;  feel- 
ing against,  iv.  457-8. 
Bates,    Treasurer    H.,    rascality    of, 

1856-7,  vi.  617-19. 
Bates,  J.  H.,  vii.  590. 
Bath,  recruiting  for  Stev.  reg't  at,  v. 

502. 
Beale,  Ind.  superintendent,  measures, 

etc.,  of,  vii.  489-90;  superseded,  vii. 

490. 

Bsale,  Lieut,  mention  of,  vi.  114. 
Beall,   Lieut-col  B.  L.,  in  command, 

ISb'O,  vii.  472. 
Bean,  J.  H.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850,  vi. 

319. 
Bear  Flag,  making  of,  1846,  v.  146-9; 

date  of  raisini;,  v.  149-50. 
Bear  Flag  revolt,  taking  of  Sonoma, 

1846,  v.  101-21;  of  the  bay,  v.  122- 


44;    affairs   at   Sonoma,   v.    145-68; 

Fremont's  campaign,  v.  109-87;  bib. 

of,  v.  186-90. 

Bear  river,  mining  on,  vi.  355,  357. 
Beardsley,  E.  A.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Bears,  hunting  by  Portola's  exped.,  i. 

149;  Pages'  hunting  exped.,  i.  ]S7- 

8;    in    Mont,    dist,     damages    by, 

1801-5;  ii.   142-3;  damages  by,  ii. 

418. 
Beatty,  W.   H.,   chief  justice,   1889, 

vii.  735. 

Beaudry,  Prudent,  biog.  of,  vii.  159. 
Beavide,  M.,  named  for  duty,  i.  379. 
Becerra,  exped.,  1533,  i.  5. 
Beck,  D.  L.,  biog.,  vii.  188. 
Bedding,  manufact.  of,  vii.  90-1. 
Bee  Line  R.  R.,  vii.  596. 
Beer,  manufact.  of,  vii.  85-6. 
Beerstecher,    R.    R.    commiss.,    1880, 

vii.  409. 
Bees,  vii.  62. 
Begg  &  Co.,  trade  with  Cal.,  1822-4, 

ii.  475,  519. 
Belaunzaran,  M.,  charge  of  pious  fund 

estates,  iv.  67;   agent  in  Mex.   for 

Cal.  bishop,  iv.  335. 
Belcher,    Judge    I.     S. ,    'Narrative,' 

1836-42,  iv.  143;  election  of, vii.  236. 
Belcher  mine,  ore  body  of,  vii.  674-5. 
Belmont,  mention  of,  vi.  526. 
Belden,    Josiah,    'manuscript,'  i.   56; 

director  Col.  River  R.  R.,  vii.  610. 
Bell,   Rev.  S.  B.,  missionary  to  Cal., 

1853,  vii.  730. 

Bellows,  manufact.  of,  vii.  92-3. 
Belting,  manufact.  of,  vii.  92. 
Beltran,    prepared   V.    R.   report   on 

Cal.  pueblo,   1795,  i.  565;  plan  for 

colonizing,    i.    603;    on    separating 

two  Cals,  i.  637. 
Benham,    C.,    nominee   for  congress, 

etc.,  1854,  vi.  690. 
Benicia,  founding  of,  1848,  v.  670-4; 

seat  of  gov't  at,  1853-4,  vi.  322-3; 

dem.  convent,  at,  1851,  vi.  648-9; 

legisl.  meets  at,  1853,  vi.  675;  rivalry 

with    San    Francisco,     1848-9,    vi. 

165-6;  hist,  of,  vi.  472-5;  garrison, 

etc.,  of,  1861,  vii.  466-7;  school  at, 

1851,  vii.  718. 

Benitz,  W.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  20-1. 
Benjamin,    J.  P.,  the  New  Almaden 

suit,  vi.  558. 
Bennett,  C.,  reveals  gold  discov.,  1848, 

vi.  43-4. 
Bennett,  N.,  assoc.    judge,   1849,  vi. 

314;  election,  etc.,  of,  1850,  vii.  220; 

argument  of,  vii.  244. 


INDEX. 


763 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Bensley,  J.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  10. 
Benton,  Senator,  defends  Fremont,  v. 

456,  461-2;  animosity  to  Mormons, 

v.  473,  475;  efforts  in  cong.,  1850-1, 

vi.  537-9;  opposes  Gwin's  bill,  vi. 

634-5;  bill  of,  1849,  vii.  503;  in  the 

St  Louis   R.  R.   convention,   1849, 

vii.  509. 
Benton,  Rev.  J.  A.,  speech  of,  1863, 

vii.  55 J;  mention  of,  vii.  717,  728. 
Bering,  first  Russ.  discov.  of  Amer. 

coa^t,  1741,  ii.  59. 
Berkeley,    Fages    exped.    at,    i.    185; 

hist,  of,  vi.  479. 
Bernal,  J.  &  A.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi. 

10. 
Bernardo,  del  Espiritu  Santo,  bishop 

of  Cal.,  death  of,  1-825,  ii.  658. 
B^rreyesa  bros,  mention  of,  vi.  19. 
Bsrreyesa  &  Haro  bros,  murder  of,  v. 

171-4. 
Berry,    Congressman,    letter    of,    vii. 

6L>2. 

Bestard,    J.    B.,    instruction   to   Cal. 

friars,  ii.  403-4,  410. 
Bestville,  mention  of,  vi.  495. 
'Betsy,'  Amer.  ship,  i.  545,  654. 
Bibliography  of  Cal.  hist.,  i.  34-63. 
Biddle,  J. ,  the  Phil.  R.  R.  convention, 

1850,  vii.  515. 
Bidwell,  J.,  'Cal.  1841 -8,' iv.  266;  'A 

Journey  to  Cal.,'  v.  346-7;  mention 

of,  vi.  16;  rancho,  etc.,  of,  1846,  vi. 

18;   reveals  gold  discov.,   1848,  vi. 

45;  mining  operations,  1848,  vi.  69; 

declines  nom.  for  gov.,  vii.  323^4; 

defeat  of,   1875,  vii.  367;  pres't  of 

R.    R.    convention,  1859,  viL  543; 

biog.,  vii.  740. 

Bidwell  bar,  mention  of,  vi.  361,  490. 
Bigelow,  W.  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  279. 
Bigler,  Gov.  H.  W.,  at  Sutler's  mill, 

1847,  vi.  31.  46-8;  diary  of,  vi.  34; 

mention   of,  vi.    612;   gov.  of  Cal. 

1852;   vi.  657;   character,   etc.,  vi. 

657-9;  the  water-lot  bill,  vi.  676-7, 

680-1;   reflected,    etc.,  vi.  679-80; 

adminis.,  vi.  696. 

Billiard-tables,   manufact.   of,  vii.  81. 
Billings,  F.,  vii.  322. 
Birchville,  vi.  486. 

Bischoff,  baptizes  Rivera's  son,  i.  364. 
Bishop,  app't'd  for  Cal.,  1840,  iv.  65; 

arrival  of,  1841,  iv.  332. 
Black,     Attorney-general,    rep't     on 

Cal.  land-claims,  I860,  vi.  573. 
Black,   Col   H.    M.,    mention  of,  vii. 

470. 
Black  Diamond,  see  'Pittsburgh 


!  '  Blagonamerinie, '  ship,  ii.  293. 
|  Blake,  C.  M..  mention  of,  vii.  717. 
!  Blake,  Geo.  M.,  gifts  to  univ.  of  Cal., 

vii.  720. 

Blake,  W.  P.,  vii.  644. 
Blan,  Rev.  A.,  vii.  729. 
Blinn  Observatory,  descript.  of,  vii. 

721. 

'Blossom,'  Beechey's  ship,  iii.  120. 
Blossom  rock,  named  by  Beechey,  ii. 

588. 

Blue  Lead,  mention  of,  vi.  356,  360. 
Bocanegra,  J.  M.  de,  com.  on  Jouea 

affair,  1842,  ii.  323. 
Bodega,  attemp'd  occupation,  i.  516; 
CMorages'  exped.  at,  ii.  57;  exped. 

to,   1810,   ii.  92;   Russ.    settlement 

at,  ii.  199;  Kuskof 's  visit,  1811-12, 

ii.  296-7;  map  of,  ii.  300;  affairs  of 

the   Lausanne  at,   1840,  iv.   171-4; 

S.  Smith  at,  1846-8,  vi.  20. 
Bodega   bay,    named,    i.    243;    Russ. 

exploration  of,  1809,  ii.  80-2;  map 

of,    1775,  ii.    81;   Russians  at,    vi. 

506-7. 

Bodie,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  519. 
Bodie  &  Benton  R.  R.,  descript.  of, 

vii.  590. 

Boggs,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  747. 
Boggs,  Gov.  L.  W.,  alcalde  of  Sonoma, 

1848,  vi.  20;  r.  r.  article,  etc.,  of, 

vii.  500. 

Boilers,  manufact.  of,  vii.  95. 
'Bolina,'  ship,  iv,  33,  37. 
!  Bull uas,  mention  of,  vi.  512. 
!  'Bolival,'  ship,  iii.  365;   iv.  95,  250, 

405. 

Bolsa  Nneva  rancho,  ii.  615. 
Bolton  claim,  mention  of,  vi.  561. 
Bolts,  C.  T.,  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, etc.,  1849,  vi.  'J87,  293,  296. 
Bonanza  Firm,  operations  of,  vii.  675— 

80;  suit  against,  vii.  680. 
Bonds,  state,    1850-75,  vi.  604-19;  of 

San  Francisco,  1850-6,  vi.  772-4. 
Bonebrake,  G.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  185. 
Bonneville,  map  of,  1837,  iv.  150. 
'Bonnevilles'    Trappers,    adventures 

of,  1835,  iii.  389-92. 
Bonneville,  Lieut-col,  mention  of,  vii. 

461. 
Booker,    S.    A.,    nominee   for   cong., 

1859,  vi.  723. 
Boom,  C.  de,  town  laid  out  by,  1849, 

vi.  194. 

Booth,  J.  F. ,  mention  of,  vi.  608. 
Booth,  N.,  gov.,  1871,  vii.  364;  U.  S. 

senator,    1S74,  vii.  367;   biog.,  vii. 

367;  speech  of,  1863,  vii.  550. 


766 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Boots  and  shoes,  manufact.,  etc.,  of, 
vii.  92. 

Borax,  yield,  etc.,  of,  vii.  659. 

'Bordelais,'  Fr.  ship,  visits  of,  1817- 
18;  ii.  287-90,  373. 

Borica,  Grv..  rule  of  1791-1800,  i. 
530-74,  726-32. 

Boring,  Rev.,  church  organized  by, 
vii.  729. 

Borland,  Senator,  mention  of,  vii. 
503-7. 

'Borodino,'  ship,  ii.  642. 

Boston,  Cal.  trade  with,  1822,  ii.  475; 
value  of  trade,  1843,  iv.  37(5;  R.  R. 
convention  at,  1849,  vii.  510-11. 

Botello,  'manuscript,'!.  55. 

Bouchard  affair,  1818,  ii.  220-49. 

Bourne,  W.  B.,  vii.  680. 

'Boussole,'  ship  of,  i.  428-9. 

Bouton,  E.,  biog.  of,  vii.  745. 

Bovard,  Dr  M.  M.,  biog.,  vii.  720. 

Bowen,  T.  H.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850, 
vi.  319. 

Bowie,  Col  G.  W.,  nominee  for  con- 
gress, 1854,  vi.  690;  mention  of, 
vii.  469-70. 

Box-making,  vii.  80. 

Brackett,  Capt.,  at  Sonoma,  1848,  vi. 
20. 

Brackett,  J.  E.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850, 
vi.  319. 

Bradbury,  H.  K.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Braden,  W.,  mention  of,  vii.  617-18. 

Bradley,  the  gold  discov.,  1848,  vi. 
53. 

Bradley,  H.  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  492. 

Bradt,  G.  G.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Bragg,  G.  F.,  mention  of,  vii.  539. 

Branciforte,  Viceroy,  offl  acts  on 
Cal.  affairs;  1784-7,  i.  525-6,  531, 
543,  550-74. 

Branciforte,  mission,  see  also  Santa 
Cruz,  founding  of,  i.  565-70;  pro- 
gress at,  1800,  i.  571 ;  events  at,  1801- 
10,  ii.  155-7;  character  of  set- 
tlers, ii.  155;  events  at,  1811-20,  ii. 
390-1;  events  at,  1821-30,  ii.  626- 
7;  list  of  settlers  at,  ii.  627;  trouble 
at,  iii.  588;  events  at,  1831-40,  iii. 
696-7;  annals  of,  v.  641-2. 

Brandy,  Sutter's  manufacture  of,  iv. 
135. 

Branham,  B.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Brannan,  S.,  the  gold  discov.,  1848, 
vi.  56;  pres.  Yuba  R.  R.  Co.,  1862, 
vii.  586. 

Brass  foundries,  vii.  97. 

Brazil,  Stev.  reg't  at  Rio  Janeiro,  v. 
512. 


Breckenridge  party,  attitude  of,  1861, 
vii.  290-1. 

Breen,  Patrick,  'Diary  of,'  v.  535. 

Brenham,  C.  H.,  mayor  of  San 
Francisco,  1851-2,  vi.  761-4;  biog., 
vi.  761. 

Brewster,  C.  W.,  mention  of,  vii.  655. 

Brewster,  R.  E.,  member  S.  F.  stock- 
board,  vii.  668. 

Bricks,  manufact.,  etc.,  of,  vii.  97-8. 

Bridge,  H.  E  ,  mention  of,  vii.  607. 

Bridgeport,  mention  of,  vi.  519. 

Bridges,  building  of,  1816,  ii.  416. 

Briggs,  Rev.  M.  C.,  mention  of,  vii. 
729. 

Brodhead,  Senator,  motion  of,  vii. 
520. 

Broderick,  D.  C.,  biog.,  vi.  659-62; 
state  senator,  1852,  vi.  664-6,  677; 
quarrel  with  Estill,  vi.  669-70; 
election  bill  of,  1854,  vi.  681-6; 
further  polit.  career,  vi.  691-730; 
character,  vi.  709-10,  733-5;  chal- 
lenged by  Perley,  1859,  vi.  725; 
duel  with  Terry,  1859,  vi.  731-2; 
death  of,  vi.  732-3;  obsequies,  vi. 
736-7. 

Bromwell,  T.,  mine  discov'd  by,  1861, 
vii.  640. 

Brooke,  Brig.-gen.  G.  M.,  of  court  at 
Fremont  trial,  v.  456. 

'Brooklyn,'  ship,  iii.  73,  82,  137,  v. 
469,  545. 

Brooklyn,  town,  hist,  of,  vi.  477-8. 

Brooks,  J.  T.,  mention  of,  vi.  72; 
'Four  months  among  the  gold  find- 
ers, '  vi.  97-8. 

Brown,  B.,  biog.  of,  vii.  307. 

Brown,  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 

Brown,  E.,  mention  of,  vi.  10. 

Brown,  F.  E.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Brown,  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  607. 

Brown,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  755. 

Brown,  Col  O.  M.,  mention  of,  vii. 
469. 

Brown  valley,  mining  excitement  at, 
vii.  637. 

Brownsville,  mention  of,  vi.  487. 

Browne,  J.  R. ,  bibliog.,  ii.  176;  re- 
porter to  constit.  convention,  biog., 
etc.,  1849,  vi.  286-9. 

Bruce,  S.  C.,  member  S.  F.  stock- 
board,  vii.  668. 

Brushes,  manufact.  of,  vii.  94. 

'Brubus,'  transport,  v.  511. 

Bryan,  Judge  C.  N.,  election  of,  1855, 
vii  220. 

Bryant,  Mayor,  courtesy  of,  vii.  592; 
biog.  of,  vii.  186. 


INDEX. 


767 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Bryant,  E,  church-warden,   vii.  729. 

Bryant,  Sturgis  &  Co.,  in  Cal.  trade, 
1822,  ii.  475;  1841,  iv.  218;  ship 
consigned  to,  1825,  iii.  24. 

Bucareli,  Viceroy,  orders  to  explore  S. 
F.  co.,  1771,  i.  183,  192;  favorably 
disposed  to  Serra,  i.  207-18;  offl 
actions  in  Cal.  affairs,  1771-8, 
i.  221,  227,  231,  237,  238,  240,  244, 
248,  258,  272,  279,  286,  300-12, 
319,  355,  447,  608;  death  of,  i.  325, 
329. 

Buchanan,  sec't'y,  Larkin's  commu. 
to,  on  British  schemes,  iv.  590-591, 
596-8;  instructions  to  Larkin,  1845, 
v.  195-6. 

Buchanan,  Lieut-col  R.  C.,  at  Ft 
Humboldt,  1852,  vii.  461. 

Buck,  D.  A.,  exped.,  etc.,  of,  1849, 
vi.  501-2. 

Buckeye  Mining  Co.,  capital,  etc.,  of, 
vii.  667. 

Buckhalter  observatory,  descript.  of, 
vii.  721. 

Buckingham  &  Hecht,  vii.  92. 

Buckley,  W.  A.,  mention  of,  vii.  62. 

Bucksport,  mention  of,  vi.  504. 

Buena  Vista  rancho,  ii.  615. 

Buffum,  E.  G.,  'Six  months  in  the 
gold  mines,'  vi.  98;  mention  of,  vi. 
279. 

Buffum.  J.  W.,  vice  prest  N.  C.  R.  R., 
vii.  587. 

Buldakof,  Michael,  signer  of  Russ. 
proclamation  to  Cal.,  1810,  ii.  296. 

'Buldakof,'  ship,  i.  293,  640,  642-5. 

Bumstead  &  Sons,  ii.  475. 

Bunker,  Wm  M.,  mention  of,  vii. 
674. 

Burbank,  D.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Burch.  J.  C.,  nominee  for  cong., 
1859,  vi.  723. 

Bureau  of  mining,  state,  vii.  644. 

Burgoyne  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vii.  160. 

Buri-buri  rancho,  ii.  592. 

Burke,  J.  H.,  suit  of,  vii.  680. 

Burke,  M.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Burlingame,  E.   C.,  biog.   of,  vii.  635. 

Burlingame  treaty,  passage  of  the, 
vii.  342-3;  provisions,  etc.,  of,  vii. 
343;  objections  to,  vii.  343-5. 

Burnett,  P.  H.,  mention  of,  vi.  277, 
279.  447-9;  gov.  of  Cal.,  1849,  vi. 
305-6;  message  to  legisl.,  1849,  vi. 
312;  policy  of,  vi.  312-13;  charac- 
ter, etc.,  vi.  643-4;  resigns,  1851, 
vi.  644;  biog.,  vi.  644;  message  of, 
vii.  193-4;  election  of,  1857,  vii. 
220-1;  the  Stovall  case,  vii.  224. 


Burney,  on  Drake's  anchorage,  i.  69, 

90. 

Burnham,  Rev.,  vii.  728. 
Burns,  D.  M.,  sec.  of  state,  1880,  vii. 

408. 

Burris,  D.,  biog.,  vii.  185. 
Burrows,  Dr,  mention  of,  vii.  722. 
Burton,  Lieut-col  H.  S.,  at  Monterey, 

1848-9,  vii.  446,  448. 
Burwell,  Dr  L.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Busch,  A.  C.,  biog.,  vii.  681. 
Bustamante,    Gen.,    reported   exped. 

from  Mex.,  1847,  v.  449. 
Bustamante,  C.  M.,  of  Cal.  junta  in 

Mex.,  1825-7,  iii.  3;  report  on  CaL 

miss.,  iii.  109. 
Butte  county,  mining  in,  1850-6,  vi. 

361-3;    hist,    of,    vi.    490-2;    name, 
•    etc.,  vii.  439. 
Bynum,    S.,    senator,    1856,   vi.   698; 

biog.,  vi.  699. 


c 


Cabrera  Bueno,  bibliog.,  i.  86;  sail- 
ing directions,  i.  106;  description 
of  Mont,  and  S.  F.,  i.  150-59,  169, 
187. 

Cabrillo,  exped.,  i.  13. 

Cacheville,  mention  of.  vi.  498. 

Cadwallader,  N.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Cahuenga,  battle  of,  1845,  iv.  503-^; 
treaty  of,  1846,  v.  404-7;  1847,  vi. 
256. 

Cahuenga  rancho,  occupied,  1810.  ii. 
353. 

Cahuillas,  Inds,  v.  567. 

Cainameros,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  71. 

Calderon-Miguel  Gonzalez,  sindico  at 
S.  Bias  for  Cal.  miss.,  1801-2,  ii 
166. 

Calderon,  Tomas,  sfndico  at  S.  Bias 
for  Cal.  miss.,  1802-6,  ii.  166.  _ 

Calaveras  county,  mining  in,  1850-6, 
vi.  373-5;  hist,  of,  vi.  512-13;  name, 
etc.,  vii.  440. 

Calaveras  river,  exped.  at,  1806,  ii. 
46. 

California,  mapa  of,  i.  1,  508;  yi.  5, 
597;  discovery  of,  1542-1768,  i.  64- 
109;  origin  of  name,  i.  64-8;  expeds 
by  sea  and  land,  i.  1 26-39,  240-97; 
reglamento  for  gov't,  1778,  i.  317- 
19;  financial  troubles,  i.  397;  La 
Perouse's  observations  on,  i.  433-5; 
coast  defences,  i.  515-16,  533-5,  ii. 
21 1 ;  war  alarms,  vi.  542;  efforts  for 
colonization,  1795-1800,  i.  564-74; 


768 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


viceroy's  report,  1693,  i.  579;  papal 
bulls  for,  i.  598;  hemp  culture,  i. 
717;  list  of  inhabitants,  1769-1800, 
i.  732-44;  separation  completed, 

1804,  ii.   20;  defenceless  condition, 

1805,  ii.  29;  plans  for  protection,  ii. 
30-1;   Arrillaga's   report,    1806,    ii. 
36-7;  limit  of  Spanish  occupation, 
ii.  43;   Rezanof's  miss,  to,   1805-6, 
ii.   64-76;   Baranof's   proclamation, 
1810,  ii.  82;  loyalty  to  Spain,  1808, 
ii.  87-8;  effects  in,  of  Mex.  revolu- 
tion, ii.   105-7;  stock-raising,  1801- 

10,  ii.  161;  1769-1888,  vii.   1-2,  52- 
62;   agriculture,  ii.    161;   vii.  2-50; 
land  grants  and  private  rauchos,  ii. 
170-3;    institutions  and  industries, 
1801-10,    ii.    174-93;   Sola's   report 
on,  1817,  ii.  214-15;  Bouchard's  in- 
vasion,  1818,  ii.  220-49;  Russ.  in, 
1811-20,    ii.    294-320;    as    a    Mex. 
province,   1822,  ii.    460-81;   Kotze- 
bue's  report  on,  1824,  ii.  524;  Van- 
couver's observations  on,  ii.  526-9; 
first  constitution,  1824,  ii.  511;  pop., 

11.  653-4;  iii.  699;  vi.  2-4;  indebt- 
edness of,  iv.  561;  vi.  605—22;  vii. 
439-41;  conquest  by  U.  S.,  v.  191- 
254,  385-412;   ranchos   and   settle- 
ments in,  1848,  vi.  4-21;  climate  of, 
vi.  23-4;  vii.  8-20;  the  gold  discov. 
and  effect,   1848,  vi.  32-41,  52-66, 
110-25;  further  gold  discovs,  1848, 
vi.  67-80;  prospecting  in,  vi.  67-81, 
110-25,  385-6;  mining  in,  vi.  85-91, 
351-80;  vii.  636-65;  society  in,  1848 
-50,  vi.  82-5,  221-48;  mining  in,  vi. 
84-91,    351-80;   vii.    636-65;   trade 
in,  1848;  vi.  90-3;   immigration  to, 
1848-50,  vi.   121-5;  the  voyage  to, 
1848-9,    vi.    129-42;    the    overland 
journey  to,  1849,  vi.   143-60;  polit. 
hist,  of,  1846-50,  vi.  250-350;  1850- 
60,  vi.  643-739;  the  constitutional 
convention,  vi.    273-301;    constitu- 
tion of,  1849,  vi.  294-300;  1879,  vii. 
370-406;   state   seal,    vi.    307;   first 
legisl.    of,  vi.    308-36;   the   slavery 
question,  vi.  312-14,  665-6;  judicial 
districts,  1850,  vi.  316-17;  counties 
of,  vi.  317-18;  vii.  437-43;  militia, 
vi.    318-20;  land  tenure,   etc.,  vi. 
326-35,  529-81;    proceedings,   etc., 
in  congress  concerning,  vi.  336—45; 
admitted  as  a  state,  1850,  vi.  343-9; 
geol.    formations,  vi.  381-5;    camp 
life  in,  vi.  386-91;    mining  regula- 
tions,   vi.    396-402;    mining    taxes, 
vi.  404-6;  mining  methods,  vi.  40&- 


26;  miner's  law  in,  vi.  431-3;  mining 
camps,   vi.   434-5;    towns,  vi.   435- 
528;  counties,  vi.  481-528;  filibust. 
expeds    from,   1851-9,  vi.    588-603; 
loans,  1850,  vi.  604-7;  bonds,  1850- 
7,  vi.  604-19;  taxation,  1850-75,  vi. 
604-22;  revenue,   1850-75,  vi.  605- 
22;  official  rascality  in,   1856-7,  vi. 
615-19;   repudiation  disclaimed  by, 
1857,    vi.    619-20;     enterprise     re- 
stricted in,  1849-57,  vi.  623-6;  ap- 
propriations for,  1850-4,  vi.  626-37; 
public  lands,  vi.  638-41;  mails,  vi. 
726-7;    vii.    143-8,    281;    vigilance 
committees  in,   1851-6,  vi.  742-54; 
rainfall,  vii.  8,  14-15,  18-20;  irriga- 
tion, etc.,  ii.  106;  vii.  8-14,  428-30; 
741-2;    agric.,    vii.     1-37,    739-40; 
droughts,     1850-77,     vii.     15,     16; 
floods,   1849-81,  vii.   16-17;    1889- 
90;  vii.  739-40;   fruit-growing,  vii. 
38-50,   742-6;   manufact.,   1848-88, 
vii.  68-101;  commerce,  vii.  102-29, 
157-9,   170-8;  shipping,  vii.   123-9; 
vii.  121-35;  coast  surveys,  etc.,  vii. 
136-7;    custom-house,    vii.    139-40; 
roads,    vii.    142-3,    496-7;    express 
cos,    vii.    149-51;    stage   lines,    vii. 
151-2;  pack  trains,  vii.   152-4;  tel- 
egraph lines,  vii.  154—6;  insurance, 
vii.    159-60;    banking,    vii.    160-4; 
speculation  in,  vii.   168-70,   177-8; 
courts  of,  vii.  191-2,  237-40,  378- 
82;    crime   in,   vii.    192-219;    judi- 
ciary of,  vii.  220-50,  378-82,  735-6; 
constit.  of,  amended,  1862,  vii.  233- 
4,    296,    302;    codes    of    laws,    vii. 
249-50;  legisl.  of,  vii.  251-79,  293- 
307,    319-22,    327-9,    363-71,    376- 
93,  409-36,  534-5;   proposed  divis- 
ion of,  vii.  254-5;  disloyalty  in,  vii. 
258-65,  309-10;  the  civil  war,  vii. 
276-314;   primary  elections  in,  vii. 
315-17;   party  changes  in,   1865-8, 
vii.  315-32;   the   Chinese  question, 
vii.  335-48,  390-1 ;  labor  agitations, 
vii.    348-62;    wealth   of,    1878,   vii. 
372-3;  1880-8,  vii.  438-9;  railroads, 
vii.  383,   386-9,   498-635;   corpora- 
tions, vii.  385-9,  395;  foreigners  in, 
vii.    436-7;    counties,    vii.    437-43; 
imp'ts  and  exp'ts,  1889,  vii.  442-3; 
products,    1889,    vii.    442-3;    gov't 
appropriat.,  etc.,  for,   1851-86,  vii. 
443-4;    milit.    affairs    in,    1848-88, 
yii.  445-73;    Indians,    vii.    474-94; 
literature   of,    vii.    723-6;    religion 
and    education    in,     vii.     716-31, 
738 


INDEX. 


769 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vote.  II  to  V. 

Cal.  Academy  of  Sciences,  mention  of,    Cambre,  M.,  app't  admin,  of  customs, 

vii.  722.  iv.  96. 

California  battalion,  organized,  1846,  ;  Camp,    the   Phil.  R.  R.    convention, 

v.  184;  actions  of,  1846,  v.  357-61;  |      1850,  viL  516. 


list  of  officers,  v.  360-1;   march  of, 

v.  372-7. 
Cal.  Central  R.  R.,  mention  of,  vii. 

586,  616. 
California  claims,  hist,   of,  1846-8,  v. 

462-8. 

' California  Gold  Regions,'  vi  118. 
California  mine,  estimated  value,  viL 

675;  fluctuation  of,  vii.  677. 
California,  business  failures  in,  1855- 

6,  vii.  178-84. 
Cal.  Navigation  co.,  mention  of,  vii. 

583. 
Cal.   Northern  R.    R.,    incorporated, 

vii.  586-7. 

California  Pioneer  Soc.,  bear  flag  pre- 
served by,  v.  148;  mention  of,  vii. 

707. 

Cal.  Pacific  R.  R.,  affairs  of,  vii.  581-6. 
Cal.  Pacific  R.  R.  Extension  co.,  vii. 

582,  585. 
'California,'  ship,   iii.   531,  551,  569, 

574,  580,  590,  593;  iv.  93.  281,  285, 

312,  :t40,  558. 


Campbell,  Judge,  mention  of,  vii.  209; 
Smith  case,  vii.  212-14. 

Campbell,  F.  W.,  sup't  of  public  in- 
struct., 1880,  vii.  408. 

Campbell,  J.  C.,  congressman,  1887, 
vii.  435;  biog.,  vii.  435. 

Canada  de  los  Alisos,  Californians  en- 
camped at,  v.  395. 

Canby,  E.  R.  S.,  arrival  of,  vii.  447. 

Canoiua,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Canon  creek,  diggings  at,  vi.  361. 

Canon  Perdido,  affair  of,  v.  586-7. 

Cape  Mendocino,  first  mention  of,  L 
95;  Ind.  fight  at,  1843,  iv.  362. 

Capen,  Rev.,  mention  of,  viL  728. 

Capital,  change  of,  i.  307. 

Carcaba,  M.,  habilitado-gen.  of  Cal., 
i.  503,  630-1;  on  compensation  to 
soldiers,  i.  534;  in  Mex.,  1794, 
1801,  ii.  98,  187. 

Cardenas,  P.,  of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex., 
1825-7,  iii.  3. 

Cardona,  declared  Cal.  an  island, 
1617,  i.  108. 


Cal.    Southern    Extension    co.,    char-  !  Carilio,  del.    to  constit.    convention, 
tered,  vii.  616.  1848,  vi.  285;  speech  of,  vi.  285-6. 


Cal.  Southern  R.  R.,  affairs  of,  vii 
599,  614. 

California  Stage  co.,  mention  of,  vii. 
151-2. 

Cal.  state  geological  society,  organ- 
ized, vii.  644. 

California  Steam  Navigation  co.,  in- 
corporation, etc.,  of,  1854,  viL 
133-4. 

'  California '  steamer,  voy.  of,  1848-9, 
vi.  129-30,  133-8. 

Cal.  Stock  and  Exchange  board,  or- 
ganized, viL  669. 

Cal.  &  Nevada  Railway  co.,  mention 
of,  vii.  590. 

Cal.  &  Oregon  R.  R.  co.,  organization 
of,  vii.  586. 

Calistoga,  origin  of  name,  i.  67;  men- 
tion of,  vi.  510. 

Calistoga  hot  springs,  mention  of,  viL 
665. 

Calkins,  J.  W.,  biog.,  viL  754. 

Call,  bill  of,  on  Cal.  claims,  v.  464-^5. 

Calleja,  Viceroy,  offl  acts  in  Cal. 
affairs,  1814-16,  iL  208,  311. 

Galloway,  D.,  mention  of,  vi.  608. 


Carleton,  Gen.,  forces,  etc.,  of,  1861, 
viL  468. 

Carlos   III.,  death  of,  1789,  i.  446. 

Carlos  r\7.,  call  for  contributions, 
1793,  1795,  i.  536-7;  abdication  of, 
1808,  ii.  87. 

Carlson,  W.  E.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Carmelite  monastery,  proposed  estab- 
lishing, i.  580. 

Carmelite  convent,  proposal  to  es- 
tablish, 1797,  i.  706. 

Carmelo  bay,  camp  at,  1770,  L  169; 
S.  Carlos  mis.  transfer  to,  i.  177-8. 

'Caroline,'  ship,  iii.  461. 

Carpentier,  E.  R.,  mention  of,  viL 
580. 

Carpentier,  H.  W.,  may  or  of  Oakland, 
etc.,  1854,  vL  476-7;  mention  of, 
vii.  580. 

Carpets,  manufact.  of,  vii.  91. 

Carpy,  C.,  biog.,  viL  754. 

Carquin,  Ind.  tribe,  iL  506. 

Carquines  strait,  Fages  discovers,  L 
185;  Ind.  fight,  1807,  iL  85;  settle- 
ment founded  on,  1847-8,  vL_18-19. 

I  Carr,  Billy,  mention  of,  vii.  615. 
t  r*_         T    T\.     1.2 ~c    .»;;    *? A  i 


Calzada,     Juan,    guardian  in    Mex.,  I  Carr,  J.  D.,  biog.  of,  viL  741. 


offl   acts, 
657. 


1815,  1827-8,  ii.   397-8, 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  vn.    49 


Carrey.    J.,    nominee    for    gov.,   vi. 
723. 


770 


INDEX. 


For  Information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Carson,    J.    H.,    mention  of,    vi.    77; 

'  Early  Recollections  of  the  Mines, ' 

vi.  96. 

Carson  creek,  mining  on,  1848,  vi.  77. 
Carson  hill,  mining  dist.,  vi.  374. 
Carson   valley,  miners   in,    1850,    vi. 

353. 
Carson  &  Colorado  R.  R.,  location  of, 

vii.  590. 
Carver,    H.,    R.    R.    scheme   of,    vii. 

498-9. 
Casey,    J.,    murders  James    King  of 

William,    1856,   vi.    746;  trial   and 

execution  of,  vi.  749-50. 
Casey,  Col  S.,  at   Benicia.  1849,    vii. 

448;  at  Port  Orford,  1851,  vii.  460. 
Casserly,    E.,    U.    S.   sen.,  1867,  vii. 

327-8;  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  328-9;  resig- 
nation of,  1873,  vii.  366. 
Castillero,  A.,  the  new  Almaden  suit, 

vi.  554-5;  vii.  656. 
Castillo,  F.,  slave-trading  of,  1858,  vi. 

716-17. 

Castor ia,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
Castro,  J.  I.,  rancho  of,   1848,  vi.  10. 
Castro,  manuscript,  i.  55. 
Castro,  F.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  10. 
Castro,  G.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  10. 
Castro,  Jose,  mention  of,  vii.  656. 
Castroville,  mention  of,  vi.  524. 
'Catalina,'  ship,    iii.    238,    240,    293, 

365,  572;  iv.  37,  95,  224. 
Catheart,  R.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
'Catherine,'    ship,    hunting    exped., 

1811,  ii.  96. 

Catherwood,  F.,  mention  of,  vii.  581. 
Catholics,  Roman,   progress,   etc.,  of, 

vii.  726-7. 

Catlin,  H.   P.,  mention  of,  vii.  586. 
Cattle,   at   miss.,    1884-5,    iii.  348-9; 

Spanish,  vii.  53;  industry,  1850-89, 

vii.  53r6. 
Cavallier"    J.    B.    E.,   member   stock 

board,  vii.  668. 

Cavis,  J.  M.,  defeat  of,  1875,  vii.  367. 
Caymus,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
'  Cazadora, '  ship,  ii.  215,  283,  291. 
Ceballos,  J.  B.,  pres.  of  Sau  Fernan- 
do, 1812,  ii.  396. 
Cement,   consumption,    etc.,     of,  vii. 

98,  660. 
Central  Pacific  R.  R.,  schemes  of,  vii. 

323;  land   grants  to,  vii.    329,  550, 

530-1,  573-6;  charter,  etc.,  of,  vii. 

528-31;    bonds,    vii.    531-2,    550-1; 

571-3;     organized,    etc.,    1861,  vii. 

544,    surveys,  vii.   547;    legisl.,  vii. 

548-9,      555-7,      559-60;      ground 

b.roken,  vii     549-50;   grant   to  W. 


P.  R.  R,  vii.  557;  aid  to,  vii.  558, 
560;  books  of,  vii.  561;  taxes  of, 
vii.  562;  suit  San  Joaquin  co.,  vii. 
563-^4;  finances  of,  vii.  565-6,  577, 
621-4,  626-7;  construction  and  cost, 
vii.  565-8,  576-7,  624;  completion, 
574-6;  debt  of,  vii.  577,  621-4, 
626-7,  631;  lease,  etc.,  of  Cal. 
Pacific  R.  R.,  vii.  582-6;  roads  con- 
trolled, vii.  583;  opposition  to,  vii. 
597;  Yerba  Buena  Island,  vii.  601- 
6;  troubles  with  S.  F.,  vii.  601-8; 
earnings,  debt,  etc.,  vii.  619  et  seq. 

'Ceres,'  ship,  ii.  642. 

Cerro  Gordo  mining  district,  vii.  651. 

Chabolla,  A.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.   12. 

Chabot,  Anthony,  gift  of  Chabot  ob- 
servatory, vii.  721. 

Chaguanosos,  Ind.  tribe,  troubles 
with,  1840,  iv.  76. 

Chambers  of  Commerce,  organized, 
etc.,  1850,  vii.  172. 

Chamberlain,  E.  K.,  presd't  pro  tern, 
of  senate,  1849,  vi.  309-10. 

Chandler,  A.  L.,  biog.,  vii.  423. 

Chandler,  Lieut,  mention  of,  vii.  466. 

Channel  establishments,  Neves'  plan 
for,  i.  310. 

Chapelle,  A.,  mention  of,  vii.  668. 

Chapin,  0.  S.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Chord,  Wm  G.,  mention  of,  vii.  656, 

Charities  in  Cal.,  vii.  705-7. 

'Chatham,' Vancouver  ship,  i.  510- 
12,  518. 

'C'hato,'  ship,  iv.  350. 

Chauncey,  H.,  the  Panama  R.  R., 
vii.  522. 

Chemoco,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Chenery,  R.,  mention  of,  vii.  557. 

Chenery,  Buruey  &  Co.,  R.  R.  con- 
tractors, vii.  ,587. 

Chicory,  cultivation  of,  vii.  37. 

Chichoyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Chico,  hist,  of,  vi.  491. 

Chihuahua,  annals  of,  1701-69,  i. 
28. 

Childs,  0.  W.,  biog.,  vii.  51. 

Chili,  effect  of  gold  discov.  in  Cal.,  vi. 
125. 

Chiles,  manuscript,  i.  56. 

Chiles,  J.  B.,  mention  of,  vi.  19. 

Chiles,  Jos.,  company  to  Cal.,  1843, 
iv.  392-5. 

Chiliyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  363. 

China,  plans  for  trade  with,  i.  439-41; 
effect  of  gold  discov.  in  Cal.,  1849, 
vi.  124. 

China  basin,  S.  P.  R.  R.  designs  on, 
vii.  607. 


INDKX. 


771 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Chinese,  effect  of  labor  on  industries, 
vii.  71-3,  683;  arrivals  of,  vii.  335-6; 
dislike  of,  vii.  336-40;  persecution 
of,  vii.  337-8,  354;  legislation 
against,  1855-76,  vii.  337-44;  taxa- 
tion, etc.,  of.  vii.  337-45;  competi- 
tion of,  vii.  338-^6,  351-3;  vices, 
etc.,  of,  vii.  340-1;  treaties  with, 
vii.  342-3,  347-8;  the  new  constit. , 
1879,  vii.  390-1;  in  R.  R.  employ, 
1865,  vii.  567;  population  in  S.  F., 
vii.  691-2. 

Chinese  camp,  mention  of,  vi.  374. 

Chino  rancho,  fight  at,  1846,  v.  312- 
14. 

Chipman,  N.  C.,  mention  of,  vii.  607. 

Chipps  Flat,  mining  at,  vii.  638. 
'Chirikof,'    ship,    li.    210,  216,  283, 
306. 

Chocuyem,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Chollar  Silver  Mining  Co.,  capital 
stock,  vii.  666;  stocks  of,  vii.  671; 
output,  vii.  673. 

Church,  protestant  service  in  S.  F., 
1848,  v.  657;  land  claims  of  the, 
1845-58,  vi.  563-5;  at  S.  F.,  vi. 
784,  vii.  726-30;  at  Sacramento,  vii. 
728;  at  Nevada  City,  vii.  729;  at 
Placerville,  vii.  729-30;  value  of 
property,  vii.  730-1. 

Church,  M.  J.,  biog..  vii.  10. 

Churchill,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  185. 

Churchill,  Col  S.,  of  court  at  Fre- 
mont trial,  v.  456. 

Churchman,  J.,  nominee  for  congress, 
1854,  vi.  690. 

Churuptoy  Ind.  tribe,  treaty  with, 
iv.  71. 

Cieneguita,   oattle  at,  1829,  iii.  80-1. 

Cigars,  manufact.,  etc.,  of,  vii.  87-8. 

Citrus  fruits,  cultivation  of,  vii.  42. 

Civil  government,  plans  for,  1846,  v. 
284-6. 

Civil  war,  attitude  of  Cal.  in  the,  vii. 
276-314. 

Claiborne,  Lt  M.  G.  L.,  in  Wilkes' 
expedt.,  iv.  241. 

'Clarion,'  brings  news  of  Bouchard 
coming,  1818,  ii.  222. 

'Clarita,'ship,  iv.  312,  340,  540. 

Clark,  F.  D.,  the  First  Regt  of  N.  Y. 
Vols,  v.  503. 

Clark,  J.  M.,  mention  of,  vii.  587. 

Clark,  L.  G.,  argument  favoring  Pac 
R.  R.,  1838,  iv.  223. 

Clarke,  Gen.  N.  S.,  in  command, 
1857,  vii.  472. 

Clayes,  O.  M.,  state  printer,  1863, 
vii.  304. 


Clark,  Wm  S. ,  com.  ou  public  school, 

vii  716-17. 

Clay,  manufact.  of,  vii.  98-9. 
Clear  lake,  massacre  at,  1843,  iv.  363. 
Clement,  L.  M.,  mention  of,  vii.  568. 
'Clementine, 'ship,  iii.  464,491,569; 

iv.  82,  93,  127. 
'Cleopatra,'  ship,  ii.  263,  293. 

Clergymen,  pioneer,  vii.  726-31. 

Climate,  weather  reports,  1811-20, 
ii.  417;  1820-21,  ii.  443;  drought, 
ii.  481;  rainy  season,  1824-5,  iii. 
29-30. 

Clinton,  W.  A.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Clothing,  manufact.  of,  vii.  89-90. 

Cloverdale,  mention  of,  vi.  408. 

Clusthiomayomi,  lud.  tribe,  iv.  363. 

Coal  mines,  vii.  661. 

Coast  surveys,  see  surveys,  coast. 

Coasting  trade,  suspended  and  re- 
stored, 1841,  iv.  207-8. 

Cochrane,  ravages  in  Cal.,  ii.  246. 

Cochran,  T.,  mention  of,  vi.  498. 

Coffee-plant,  attempt  to  cultivate  the, 
vii.  37. 

Coffin,  G.  W.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Coffroth,  J.  \V.,  iiomin.  for  congr., 
1868,  vii.  331. 

Cogswell,  Dr  H.  D.,  gifts  of,  viL 
720-1. 

Cogswell  polytechnic  school,  vii.  721. 

Cohen,  A.  A.,  mention  of,  vi.  478; 
sec.  Cal.  Pac  R.  R.,  vii.  586;  re- 
ceiver for  Adams  &  Co.,  etc.,  viL 
175-8,  biog.,  vii.  178-9. 

Cohn,  B.,  biog.,  754. 

Coinage,  private,  vii.  165-6;  mint, 
vii.  167-8. 

Colbert,  Michael,  mention  of,  viL 
638. 

Cole,  A.  W.,  vii.  719. 

Cole,  C.,  congressman,  1863,  vii.  304; 
U.  S.  sen.,  vii.  322;  biog.,  322; 
mention  of,  vii.  644. 

Coleman,  Edward,  mention  of,  vii. 
590. 

Coleman,  John  C.,  pres.  Nevada  co. 
N.  G.  R.  R.,  vii.  590. 

Coleman,  J.  W.,  biog..  vii.  681. 

Coleman,  W.  T.,  president  of  vigi- 
lance comm.,  1856,  vL  794;  candi- 
date for  U.  S.  sen.,  vii.  322;  the 
labor  riot,  1877,  viL  354;  mention 
of,  vii.  610. 

College  of  Cal.,  mention  of,  vii.  720. 

Collier,  J.,  collector  of  customs,  1849, 

vii.  140. 

Collingwood, '  Bug.  man-of-war,  v. 
207. 


772 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Coloma,  settlement  founded  at,  1847, 
vi.  28-9;  miuiiig  near,  1848,  vi. 
67-71;  a  county  seat,  etc.,  vi.  352, 
482;  Indians  massacred  near,  1847, 
vii.  479. 

'Colonel,'  ship,  ii.  211. 

'Colonel  Young,'  ship,  ii.  475;  ii. 
478. 

Colonization  system,  i.  336-7;  agi- 
tation in  Mex.,  1796,  i.  603;  con- 
vict settlers,  i.  605-6;  foundlings 
from  Mex.,  i.  606;  plan  of  Mex. 
junta,  iii.  5;  McNamara's  scheme, 

1845,  v.  215-23. 

Colony,  proposal  of  Prez  <le  Sagle,  ii. 
4;  Padres  and  Hijars,  organization, 
reception  in  Cal.,  iii.  259-69;  Hi  jar 
and  Padres,  failure,  iii.  277. 

Colorado  missions,  map  of,  i.  359. 

Colorado  river,  pueblo  mission,  1780- 
82,  i.  353-72;  Garces'  exploration 
on,  i.  274-5;  Jedediah  Smith  at, 
iii.  153-4;  forded  by  Gen.  Kearny, 

1846,  v.  339. 

Colorado  River  Railway  co.,  vii.  610. 

Colton,  Mrs,  suit  of,  vii.  618. 

Colton,  D.  D.,  biog.  of,  vii.  611. 

Colton,  W.,  alcalde  at  Monterey, 
1846,  vi.  258-9;  diary,  v.  289;  vi. 
98. 

'Columbia,'  ship,  i.  445;  ii.  210-11, 
213,  273,  278,  382;  iv.  126,  207,  211. 

Columbia,  camp,  mention  of,  vi.  515. 

Columbia  river,  'Lelia  Byrd 'off,  1804, 
ii.  21;  attempt  to  found  settlement, 
1810,  ii.  93:  Capt.  Black's  visit,  ii. 
272;  Arguello's  expedt.  to,  1821,  ii. 
446-449. 

'Columbus,'  U.'S.  ship,  v.  430,  520. 

Colusa  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  497-8; 
name,  etc.,  vii.  439. 

Colusa  Co.  R.  R.,  mention  of,  vii.  591. 

Colusa,  town,  hist,  of,  vi.  497. 

Commerce.  1786,  i.  438;  fur  trade, 
i.  440-1;  trade  with  transports, 
1791-1800,  i.  624-216;  commercial 
projects,  i.  627-8;  contraband 
trade,  ii.  183-6;  trade  with  Russ.,  ii. 
183;  trade  regulations,  ii.  185;  gov't 
trade,  1811-20,  ii.  419-20;  retail 
trade,  ii.  420;  duties  on  imports 
and  exports,  ii.  438-9;  removal  of 
restrictions  on  foreign  trade,  ii. 
473;  trade  with  Boston,  1822,  ii. 
475;  duties,  1823,  ii.  492-3;  1821- 
30,  ii.  670;  prices,  ii.  671;  vii. 
103-12;  revenue,  iii.  29;  revenue 
rules,  1826,  iii.  117;  financial  trou- 
bles, 1827-9,  iii.  127-8;  Figueroa's 


report  on,  iii.  373-4;  1838-40, 
iv.  79-88;  value  of.  1841,  iv.  210; 
Boston  trade,  1843.  iv.  376;  retail 
trade,  1844,  iv.  4'28;  protection  of 
the  Boston  merchants,  iv.  428;  whal- 
ers allowed  to  trade,  iv.  429-30;  sta- 
tistics, 1847-8,  v.  569-70;  effect  of 
gold  discov.,  vii.  102-7;  supply  and 
demand,  vii.  105-10;  shipments, 
vii.  105-11;  panics,  vii.  107-8,  172- 
80;  imports  and  exports,  vii.  ll'J- 
23;  channels  of,  vii.  157-9;  meth- 
ods, etc.,  vii.  17C-1;  risks  attend- 
ing, vii.  171-2;  revival  of,  vii.  175- 
7;  effect  of  Fraser  river  excite- 
ment, vii.  181;  of  R.  R.  communi- 
cation, vii.  181. 

'Comete,'  ship,  iii.  130. 

Comisario,  appointment  of,  1825,  iii. 
59. 

Comisionados,  iii.  307,  331. 

Commissioners  of  transportation,  ap- 
pointed, vii.  630. 

Committee  of  100,  dissolved,  vii.  610. 

Compania  Extraiigera,  iii.  221,  406. 

Concepcion,  founded,  i.  359;  massa- 
cre at,  i.  363;  death  of  Rivera,  i.  363. 

'Concepcion,'  as  coast  guard  ship, 
1797,  i.  542,  706. 

Cone,  J.  S.,  biog.,  vii.  37. 

Cone  jo  ranch  o,  ii.  566. 

Confidence  mine,  vii.  641. 

Confirmation  conferred  on  Inds,  i. 
321. 

Congregational  church,  first  of  S.  F., 
vii.  727. 

Congress,  dilatory  action  of,  vi.  330- 
6;  proceedings,  etc.,  in,  1849-50, 
vi.  338-45;  admission  of  Cal.,  1850, 
vi.  343-5;  Mex.  land  titles,  vi. 
537-42,  575-81;  commission  ap- 
pointed by,  1851,  vi.  540-2;  meas- 
ures of,  1850-62;  vi.  626-39;  ap- 
proprs  for  Cal.,  1850-87,  vi.  626- 
39;  vii.  443^,  456-7;  the  Chinese 
question  in,  vii.  344-8;  the  Pac. 
railroads,  vii.  519-33,  547-52. 

'Congress,'  U.  S.  ship,  v.  199-200; 
251,  253-^,  267,  283,  287,  295-6, 
322,  326-7,  356. 

Conijolmano,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Connor,  Col  P.  E.,  vote  of  thanks  to, 
vii.  298;  mention  of,  vii.  469. 

Conness,  J.,  nominee  for  lieut-gov., 
1859,  vl  723;  senator,  1863,  vii. 
301-2;  ticket  of,  vii.  303-4;  manip- 
ulations of,  vii.  323. 

Connors,  Golden  Chariot  mine,  vii. 
641. 


INDEX. 


773 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vola.  H  to  V. 
Conrad,     Simon,     mention     of,     viL    Cooper,    J.    B.    R.,  rancho,   etc.,  of, 


Conquest    of  Cal.,    preliminaries  of, 


1848,  vL  20. 
Cooper,  J.  W.,  biog.,  viL  754. 


1846,   v.    191-223;    by   the   U.    S.,  j  Cooperage,  viL  80. 
224-54;  completed,   1847,  385-410.  j  Cope,  W.  W.,  nominated  supr.  judge, 
Consejo,    General,    at     Sta    Barbara,  !      1859,  vL  723;  election  of,  vii.  2^2. 


1846,  v.  45-7;  actions  of,  v.  65-71. 
Consolidated     Virginia,      mine,    viL 

675-9. 
Consolidation  act,  provisions,  etc.,  of 

the,  vii.  240-2. 
'Constante,'  ship,    surrender  of,    iiL 

25-6. 
Constitution,  first  in   Cal.,    1824,  ii. 

511-12;     proposed.     1827,    iii.    35; 

adopted     in     1849.     vi.     296-306; 

amendments    to    the,    1862-3,    vii. 

233-4,   296,  302;  proposed  amend- 


Copper  mining,  viL  658-9. 
Copperhead  party,    mention   of,  vii. 

302-4,  308. 
Copperopolis,  mention  of,  vL  512-13; 

viL  588. 

Coppinger,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 
Cora,  trial  and  execution  of,  vi.  749- 

50. 

Cordage,  manufact.  of,  vii.  91. 
Cordna,  T.,  mention  of,  vL  H>,  463. 
Cornwall,  chairman  com.  on  counties, 

1850,  vi.  317. 


ments,    1869-70,   vii.    237;    defects    Cornwall,  P.  B.,  member  stock  board, 
in   the,  viL   370-1,   399;   the  new,        vii.  668. 
1879,  vii.  375-97. 


Constitutional  convention,  bill  in- 
trod  for,  1853,  vi.  675-6;  proposed, 
viL  368-70;  incentives  for,  viL 
370-3;  parties,  viL  373-4;  election, 
vii.  374;  meeting,  vii.  374—5;  in- 
strument framed  by,  1878,  viL 
376-97;  personnel,  viL  402-6. 

Consulates,  viL  121-2. 

Couthony,  J.  P.,  in  Wilkes'  exped., 
iv.  241. 

Contra  Costa  county,  exploration  of, 
1772,  i.  184-7;  descript.  of,  vi.  527- 
8;  name,  etc.,  vii.  438;  mines  in, 
vii.  661. 

/Contra    Costa    valley,    descript.    of, 
1848,  vL  10-11. 

Contract  and  Finance  co.  (see  also 
'Western  Development  co.'  and 
'Pacific  Improvement  co.');  affairs 
of,  viL  569—70,  584;  dissolves,  viL 
610. 


Coronado,    gov.    exped.,    1540-2,    i. 

7-9. 
Coronel,    A.    F.,    mining  operations, 

etc.,    1848,    vL    78-81;    'Cosas  de 

California,'  vL  98-9. 
Corporations,     the     new    constitut., 

1879,  vii.  385-9,  395. 
'Corsair,'  ship,  iv.  210. 
Cortes,   Hernan.,  his  plans,  L  2;  ob- 
stacles, i.  3;  in  Cal.,  L  6. 
Cortes,    Juan,    procurador    for  Cal., 

1818-20;  iL  398,  406,  657. 
Cortina,  F.,  of  CaL  junta  in  Mex., 

1825-7,  iiL  3. 
Cosemenes,     Inds,     exped.     against, 

1826,  iiL  109. 
Costanso's  'Diario,'  L  S8. 
Cosumne  river,  Ind.  fight  at,  1840,  iv. 

137;  mining  on,  1849,  vi.  353. 
Cottou   cultivation,  etc.,  of,  iL    177; 

viL  30-1;  manufact.  of,  yu,  88-9. 
Coulterville,  mention  of,  vi.  516. 


Convention,  at  Sta  Barbara,  1846,  v.  j  Council  Bluffs,    Mormon  bat.  raised 
45-7.  at,  v.  474. 

Convention,    constitutional,    election  .  Coulter's 'Adventures,' i.  40;  in.  411. 
for,  1849,  vi.  276,  284;  meeting  of,  'Counties  establ'd,  etc.,  1850,  vi.  317- 
vL    284;    delegates   to,    vi.    284-8;]      18;   the  new  constitut.,    1879,   viL 
officials,   vi.   289-300;  proceedings,  |      395;  names,  etc.,  of,  vii.  437—43. 
vL    286-303;    constitution    framed  I 'Courier,' ship,  iiL  128. 


by,  vi.  296-303;  payment  of  mem- 
bers, vL  300,  303;  vote  on,  1857, 
vL  717. 

Convicts  sent  as  troops  to  Cal.,  1842, 
iv.  287. 

Cook,  C'apt.,  orders  against,  1777,  L 
309,  438. 

Coon,  Mayor,  H.  P.,  biog.  of.  viL 
241 ;  the  city  slip  cases,  vii.  245. 

Cooper,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 


Courtmartial  of  Fremont,  455-62, 

Courts,  descript.  of,  viL  191-2,  237- 
40;  inefficiency  of,  viL  206-8;  su- 
preme, viL  233^0,  378-82,  430-1; 
circuit,  viL  237;  district,  vii.  238- 
40;  consolidation  act.  1856,  viL 
240-2;  superior,  viL  239-41.  380-2. 

Covarrubias,  J.  M.,  gen.  of  militia, 
1850.  vi.  319. 

Cove,  R.  R.  commiss.,  1880,  vii.  409. 


774 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Covilland  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vi.  463. 

Cowie  &  Fowler,  murder  of,  1846,  v. 
160-2;  see  Pioneer  Register. 

'Cowlitz,'  ship,  iv.  217,  250. 

Cox,  J.  D.,  R.  R.  land  grant,  vii.  596. 

Coyayomi,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Coyne,  Golden  Chariot  mine,  vii.  641. 

Crabb,  A.  J.,  filibust.  exped.  of,  1857, 
vi.  601-2. 

Crabb,  H.  A.,  mention  of,  vi.  669; 
whig  leader,  etc.,  vi.  686;  candi- 
date for  senate,  1856,  vi.  697. 

Craig,  Col  H.  K.,  at  Fremont  trial,  v. 
456;  death  of,  1853,  vii.  461. 

Crane,  A.  M.,  speech  of,  1863,  vii. 
550. 

Crane,  0-.  W.,  the  S.  F.  R.  R.  con- 
vention, 1859,  vii.  543. 

Crane,  Col  J.  B.,  at  Fremont  trial,  v. 
456. 

Crawford's  'Credit  Mobilier, '  vii.  570. 

Credit  Mobilier  of  America,  mention 
of,  vii.  570. 

Creighton,  James,  mention  of,  1848, 
vii.  727. 

'Creizer.'Russ.  frigate,  ii.  644-5,  648. 

Cremony,  Col  J.  C.,  mention  of,  vii. 
470. 

Crenshaw,  Senator  J.,  bill  introd.  by, 
1854,  vi.  684-5. 

Crescent  City,  settlement  of,  vi.  364; 
hist,  of,  vi.  504-5. 

Crespi,  Juan,  biog.,  ii.  771. 

Crime,  1791-1800,  i.  638-40;  preva- 
lence of,  vii.  192-219;  punishment 
of,  vii.  194-219. 

Critcher,  Henry,  member  stock  board, 
vii.  668. 

Crittenden,  B.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Crittenden,  R.  E.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Crocker,  C.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  533,  546; 
R.  R.  affairs,  vii.  544,  549-50,  567-8; 
speech  of,  1863,  vii.  550. 

Crocker,  C.  F.,  vice  prest  S.  P.  R.  R. 
etc.,  vii.  632-33. 

Crocker,  Judge  E.  B.,  election  of, 
1863,  vii.  234;  director  Cent.  Pac 
R.  R.,  1861,  vii.  544;  mention  of, 
vii.  561. 

Crocker  &  Co.,  R.  R.  Construction  co., 
vii.  566. 

Crockett,  Judge  J.  B.,  election,  etc., 
of,  vii.  236. 

Croix,  viceroy,  offl  actions  in  Cal. 
affairs,  1768-82,  i.  114,  167,  173, 
177,  183,  192,  207,  307  30,  333-51, 
355-71,  373-83,  426,  443. 

Cronise,  bibliog.,  ii.  298. 

Crosby,  the  land  question,  vi.  580. 


Crosby,  E.  O.,  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, 1849.  vi.  286;  chairman  of 
judic.  com.,  1850,  vi.  319. 

Crow,  H.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Crow,  Walter  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  617. 

Crown  Point  mine,  stocks  of,  vii. 
672^4;  dividends  of,  vii.  675. 

Cruces,  gold-seekers,  etc.,  at,  1849, 
vi.  130-1. 

Cruillas,  viceroy,  removal  of,  i.  114. 

Cruz,  Gen.  Jose  de  la,  offl  acts  in 
Cal.  affairs,  1811-19,  ii.  197,  208, 
256,  270. 

Cubas,  Ignacio,  of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex., 
1825-7,  iii.  3. 

Cuchillones,  Inds,  exped.  against, 
1797,  i.  548. 

Cueros  de  Venado,  rancho,  IncL 
attack  on,  1836,  iv.  67. 

Cuesta,  E.  de  la,  sindico  in  Mex.  for 
Cal.  miss.,  1807-19,  ii.  166,  398. 

Cuesta  de  Santa  lues,  crossed  by  Fre- 
mont's bat.,  v.  376;  criticism  on, 
v.  377. 

Cuevas,  minister,  report  on  Cal.  af- 
fairs, iv.  525-6. 

Gulp,  J.  D.,  tobacco- curing  process 
of,  vii.  34-5. 

Cumming,  C.  H.,  mention  of,  vii. 
599. 

Cumuchi,  Ind.  chief,  executed,  1837, 
iv.  73. 

'Curacoa,'  Eng.  man-of-war,  iv.  38, 
260. 

Currey,  Judge  J.,  biog.,  election,  etc., 
of,  vii.  235;  code  commissioner,  vii. 
249;  supreme  judge,  1863,  vii.  304. 

Curtis,  Col  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  469. 

Curtner,  H.,  biog.,  vii.  67. 

Custom-house,  affairs  of  the,  1849-56, 
vii.  139-40. 

Cuyamaca  '&  Eastern  R.  R.  co.,  or- 
ganized, vii.  618-19. 

Cuyler's  harbor,  probable  bnrying- 
place  of  Cabrillo,  i.  77. 

'Cyane,'  U.  S.  man-of-war,  iv.  302-3, 
313,  322;  v.  27,  199-200,  203,  224, 
253,  267,  284,  356,  428. 

Cyrus,  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  657 


D'Arcy,  J.  F.,  mention  of,  vii.  353. 
'  Daedalus, '  Vancouver's  store-ship,  i, 

511,  512. 

Dairy-farming,  mention  of,  vii.  55-7. 
Dale,   J.   B.,   in   Wilkes'  exped.,   iv. 

241. 


INDEX. 


775 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 
•Dale/  U.  S.  man-of-war,  iv.  302-3;    Democrats,  first  gathering   of,   1849, 

vL  304;  first  state  convent,  of' 
1851,  vi  648-50;  attitude  of,  vi. 
672;  victory  of,  1852,  vi.  672-3; 
state  convention  of,  1860,  vii.  258; 
convention  of,  1868,  vii.  330;  elec- 
tion of,  1879,  vii.  408-11;  1881,  vii. 
415-16;  1882,  vii.  421-2;  1884,  vii. 


v.  429. 
Dairy  tuple,   A.,   pub.    trausl.  of  Cos- 

taiiso's  Diario,  i.  139. 
Dame,  T.,  vii.  557,  587. 
Dana,  Chas,  vii.  586. 
Dana's  '  Two  Years  Before  the  Mast, ' 

iii.  412-13;  iv.  139-10. 
'Danaide/   Fr.   ship  of   war,   iv.  35, 

95-6,  120. 

Daniels,  John,  vii.  638. 
'  Danube,'  ship,  wrecked,  ii  564. 
Darrach,  M.  H.,  vii.  587. 
Davenport,  F.  L.,  in  \Vilkes'  expedt., 

iv.  241. 

Davidson,  B.,  mention  of,  vii.  160. 
Davidson,  Geo.,  on    Drake's  anchor- 
age,  i.   90;    surveys   of,    1850,   vii. 

131;  observatory  of,  vii.  721. 
Davis,  A.  C.,  1836,  iv.  141. 
Davis,  A.  E.,  vii.  591. 
Davis,   Lieut-col  B.   F.,   mention  of, 

vii.  469. 
Davis,  H.,  congress,  delegate,    1880, 

vii.  408. 

Davis,  H.  L.,  sheriff,  1864,  vii.  308. 
Davis,  J.  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  20. 
Davis,    M.    C.,   mayor  of   Santa   Fe, 

1882,  vii.  420;  manuscript  of,  i.  56. 
Dawsou,  J.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  20; 


426;  1886,  vii.  433-5. 
Denman,   J.,    school   in   S.   F.,  1851, 

viL  719. 

Dennis,  G.,  mention  of,  vii.  95. 
Denny,  A.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  67. 
Dent,  L.,  del.  to  cons  tit.  convention, 

1849,  vi  285. 
Denver,  J.  W.,  mention  of,  1853,  vi. 

687;    congressman,   etc.,    1854.  vi. 

690. 

De  Po,  Charles,  vii.  587. 
De  Young,  vii.  611. 
Depew,  vii.  655. 
Derby,  Ed  M.,  vii.  587. 
Derby,  Lieut  G.  H.,  on  Riley's  staff, 

1849,  vii.  448. 
'Derby,'  ship,  hunting  expedt.,  1807, 

ii.  78;  visit  of,  ii.  84. 
Derussey,  Lt  Col  R.  E.,  of  court  at 

Fremont  trial,  v.  456. 
Deseret,  state,  1850,  vi.  325. 
Dewees,  J.,  R.  R.  project   of,   1850, 


mention  of,  vii  76.  vii.  515. 

Day,  J.  G.,  career,  etc.,  of,  vii  354-8.  J  'Diamond,'  ship,  iv.  346. 


Day,  S.,  vii.  557. 

Day  lor,  W.,  mention  of,  vi.  12. 

Deal,  Dr,  clergyman,  vii.  728. 

Dean,  Hon.  P.,  biog.,  vi.  408. 

Deane,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  187. 

Debt,  state,  1850-75.  vi.  605-22;  1863, 

vii.  306;  of  San  Francisco,  1850-6, 

vi.  772-4. 
Dedmond,  J.  P.,   rancho  of,  1848,  vi. 

15. 

De  Faski,  Alex.,  vii.  585. 
Degrand,   P.  P.  T.,  R.  R.  scheme  of, 

vii.  510-11. 
Del  Norte  county,  mining  in,  vi.  365; 

hist,  of,  vi.  504—5;  organized,  etc., 

1857,  vii.  442. 
Del  Valle,  consul,  trial,  etc.,  of,  vi 

590. 

Delafield,  Maj.  R.,  of  court  at  Fre- 
mont trial,  v.  456. 
Delano,  A.,  biog.,  vi  156;  works  of, 

vi.  156-7. 

Delano,  Columbus,  vii.  607. 
Delger,  E.  F.,  biog.  of,  vii  738. 
Delger,  F.,  vii.  738. 
Delia  Torre,  distr.  attorney,  vi.  711. 
De  Long,  F.,  biog.,  vii.  747. 


Diamond  springs,  mining  at,  1849, 
vi.  353;  conflagration  at,  1856,  vi 
482. 

Diaz,  Bernal,  on  name  Cal.,  i  65. 

Diaz,  Melchor,  expedt.  1540,  i  9. 

Diehl,  J.,  clergyman,  vii  730. 

Dillon,  consul  P.,  trial,  etc.,  of,  vi 
590. 

Diiiimiek,  K.  H.,  del.  to  constit.  con- 
vention, 1849,  vi.  286,  299. 

Diputaeion,  at  Mont.,  1822,  ii.  451; 
at  Mont.,  1824,  actions  of,  ii  510- 
511;  fears  of  Russia,  ii.  648;  at  S. 
Diego,  1828,  iii.  41;  at  Sta  Bar- 
bara, 1830,  iii.  99;  1837,  iii.  506; 
session,  1834-5,  iii  248-52,  291-2; 
1836,  iii.  469-71;  1839-40,  iii 
584-6,  602-6;  1842,  iv.  295-6; 
1843,  iv.  360;  1844,  iv.  409-12; 
1845,  iv.  521-2.  531-1;  1846,  v.  36- 
41,  263-4;  reglameuto  of,  iii.  252- 
5;  report  on  colony,  1834,  iii 
274-5;  actions  on  miss,  affairs, 
1832-1,  iii.  313-14,  340-41;  elec- 
tion of  members,  iii.  425;  iv.  360-1; 
controversy  with  Gutrerrez,  1836, 
iii.  452-7;  reorganized  by  Flores, 


776 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


\    1846,  v.  321;   actions  of,   1845,  iv. 

497-9;    McNamara    scheme,    1845, 

v.  218  (for  later  periods  see  'Legis- 
lature '). 
'Discovery,'  Vancouver's  ship,  i.  510. 

512,  517,  522,  524. 
'Discovery,' whaler,  ii.  293. 
Doak,  T.  W.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 
Doak,  J.  K.,  vii.  588. 
Dodge,  C.  F.,  mayor  of  Sonora,  etc., 

1849,  vi.  470. 

Dodge,  H.  L.t  biog.,  vii.  168. 
Dogtown,  mention  of,  vi.  493. 
Dolger,  F.,  biog.,  vii.  188. 
Dolores,  see  S.  F.  miss. 
Dominguez,  — ,  unsuccessful  expedt., 

1776,  i.  278. 
Dominguez,  M.,  of  Cal.  junta,  1825-7, 

iii.  3;  report  on  Cal.  miss.,  iii.  109. 
Dominicans,    cession    of    Lower   Cal. 

miss,  to,  i.  192-3. 
Donahue,  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  95;  biog. 

of,  vii.  101. 
Donahue,   P.,  biog.   etc.,  of,  vii.  95, 

583,  590,  592,  610. 
Donahue,  town,  vii.  584. 
Douiphan,  Gen.,  at  Sta  Fe,  \.  482. 
Donner  party,  journey  and  sufferings, 

1846-7,  v.  527-44. 
'Don  Quixote,' ship,  iii.  461,  569;  iv. 

25,  82,  95,  224,  512;  v.  33. 
Dorr,  H.  C.,  an    acc't    of  Capt.  E. 

Dorr  landing  convicts,  1796,  i.  539- 

540. 

Dos  Pueblos,  battle  of,  iii.  79-81. 
Douglas,  D.  F.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850, 

vi.  319. 

Douglas,  Rev.  J.  W.,  vii.  727. 
Douglas,  Thomas,  school  of,  vii.  717. 
Dowling,  P.  T.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.,  375. 
Downieville,  a  mining  centre,  vi.  361; 

hist,  of,  vi.  489-90. 
Downey,    J.    G.,    nominee   for  lieut- 

gov.,   1859,   vi.    723;    vetoes   bulk- 
head bill,  vii.  685;  biog.  of,  vii.  279. 
Downing,  W.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  37. 
Doyle,  J.  J.,  vii.  618. 
Doyle,  J.  T.,  character,  etc.,  of,  vii. 

177. 
Drake   bay,    probable    anchorage    of 

Drake,  i.  88. 
Drake's    anchorage,    indentity   of,    i. 

85-88. 

Drama,  vii.  712. 
Drew,  H.  L.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Drexel,  gather  &  Church,  mention  of, 

vii.  161. 
'Dromo,'    Amer.     ship,     contraband 

trade,  ii.  86. 


Dry  creek   (Amador  co.),  mining  on» 

vi.  371. 
'  Dry  Diggings '  (see  also  Placerville), 

discov.  of,  1848,  vi.  74-5;  yield,  vi. 

75. 
Dry-dock,  appropriations  for,  etc.,  vi. 

629-30. 

Dry  town,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
Dudley,    assemblyman,    bill    of,    vii. 

300-1. 

Dudley,  W.  L.,  vii.  588. 
Dunbar,    denounces    settlers'    revolt, 

June  Romance,  v.  100. 
Dunn,  J.   P.,  state   controller,    1887, 

vii.  434. 

Dunphy,  W.,  biog.,  vii.  55. 
Dupre,  E.,  vii.  668. 
Duraut,  mention  of,  vii.  571. 
Durant,  H.,  mention  of,  vi.  476. 
Dutch    Flat,    mining    at,    vi.    355-6; 

trading  centre,  etc.,  vi.  483. 
Dwinelle,    J.    W.,    works    of,    i.    42; 

views   on   Drake's  voy.,  i.  89,  90; 

pueblo  title  case,  iii.  708;  address, 

v.  60;  Broderick's  fun.  oration,  vi. 

736-7;  chairman  conven.,  vii.  316. 
Dye,  J.  F.,  mention   of,  vi.   17;  min- 
ing operations,  1848,  vi.  71. 


E 


'Eagle,'  ship,  capture  of,  ii.  477. 

Earl,  John  0.,  vii.  610. 

Earthquake  in  L.  Angeles  region,  i. 
146;  at  San  Juan  Bautista,  1799,  i. 
559;  at  S.  Diego,  1800,  i.  654;  1803, 
ii.  106;  damages  by,  1804,  ii.  29;  S. 
Francisco,  1807-8,  ii.  87,  129;  at 
Sta  Barbara,  1806,  ii.  42,  118; 
damages  by,  1812,  ii.  200-1,  344, 
347-8,  356,  358,  363.  365,  367,  368; 
at  L.  Angeles,  1827,  ii.  563;  at  S. 
Buenaventura,  1821,  ii.  580;  1827, 
iii.  129,  130;  1836,  iii.  670;  1836, 
iv.  77-8;  1868,  vii.  mm' 

East  Oakland,  Fages'  exped.  at,  i.  185. 

Eastern  Extension  R.  R.,  subsidy  to, 
defeated,  vii.  557. 

Eastland,  J.  G.,  biog.  of,  vii.  758. 

Eastland,  J.  H.,  gen.  of  militia, 
1850,  vi.  319. 

Easton,  Wendell,  biog.  of,  vii.  694. 

Eaton,  Ira  A.,  vii.  586. 

Eaton,  R.  S.,  iv.  671. 

Echeandia,  Gov.,  rule  of,  1826-30, 
iii.  31-55,  116-149. 

Echevesta,  J.  J.,  regulations  for  Cal., 
1773,  i.  211-15,  317,  333,  400. 


INDEX. 


777 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Eddy,  W.  M.,  survey  made  by,  1849, 

vi.  194;  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Edgar,  Dr  W.  P.,  biog.,  vii.  731. 
Education,  state  of,  1791-1800,  i. 
642-4;  1801-10,  ii.  192-3;  school 
at  S.  Diego,  1813,  ii.  345;  1821-30, 
ii.  548-9;  school  at  L.  Angeles, 
1817-18,  ii.  353;  at  Monterey,  ii. 
381-2,  613;  schools  founded,  1811- 
20,  ii.  425,  429;  school  at  S.  Jose, 
1821-30,  ii.  603;  1821-30,  ii.  678- 
80;  efforts  of  Michel torena,  1844, 
iv.  402-3;  ecclesiastical  seminary 
at  Sta  Ines,  1844,  iv.  425-6;  in  S. 
R,  1847-8,  v.  656;  1855-6,  vi.  784; 
provision  made  for.  etc.,  1849,  vi. 
298-9;  appropriations,  1853-459,  vi. 
638-41;  the  new  constit.,  1879, 
vii.  391-3;  progress  of,  1847-89, 
vii.  716-23;  of  Mexicans,  vii.  716; 
first  public  school,  716-17;  laws, 
vii.  718;  funds,  etc.,  718-19;  liter- 
ature, 723-6;  text  books,  vii.  738. 

Edwards,  P.  L..  mention  of,  vi.  323, 
671. 

Eggers,  C.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

El  Dorado  (see  '  Mud  springs '). 

El  Dorado  county,  Indian  troubles  in, 
1850,  vi.  319;  mining  ditches  in, 
1855,  vi.  355;  hist,  of,  vi.  482-3; 
name,  etc.,  vii.  439. 

El  Pilar  rancho,  granted,  1797,  L  717. 

El  Pinole  rancho,  ii.  504. 

El  Refugio  rancho,  granted,  1795,  L 
663;  holders  of,  1809,  ii.  112. 

El  Tucho  rancho,  ii.  615. 

Elder,  the  Phil.  R  R.  convention. 
1850,  vii.  515. 

Elder,  T.,  mention  of,  vi.  12. 

Elections,  primary,  vii.  315-17. 

4  Elena,1  ship,  iv.  159,  170. 

4  Eliza, '  Amer.  ship,  i.  545,  706;  iii.  118. 

'  Elizabeth,'  ship,  v.  586. 

Elizabeth  town,  mention  of,  vi.  492. 

Elizondo,  Col,  to  send  troops  to  Cal., 
i.  117;  Ind.  exped.,  1767,  i.  486. 

Elk,  herds  seen  by  An/.a,  i.  285. 

Ellice,  E.,  exhibits  in  Eng.  Cal.  gold 
of  1820,  ii.  417. 

Ellingwood,  N.  D.,  actions  in  N.  Y. 
against  Col  Stevenson,  v.  510. 

Elliott,  C.,  biog.,  vii.  736. 

Elliott,  S.  G.,  vii.  557. 

Emeric,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  187-8. 

Emigration,  by  sea,  1848-9,  vi.  127- 
42;  overland,  1849-50,  vi.  143-61; 
sufferings  of  emigrants,  vi.  149—55; 
routes,  vi.  155-8;  number  of  emi- 
grants, vi.  158-9. 


Eminent   domain,  right   of,  vii.  384, 

394. 
Emory,  Major  W.  H.,  mention  of,  vii. 

449. 

Empire  City,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 
Empire  guard,  mention  of,  vii.  455. 
Encarnacion  Arroyo  (see  'Penitencia 

creek '). 

Encino  rancho,  granted,  i.  662-3. 
Encino  valley,  proposed  site  for  miss., 

i.  553. 

England,  plan  to  occupy  Nootka,  i. 
505;  war  with,  Cal.  contributions, 
i.  427,  544;  war  with,  1797,  i.  542; 
alarm  caused  by,  i.  542^1;  peace 
with,  ii.  4;  treaty  with  Mex.,  1829, 
iii.  136;  proposed  cession  of  Cal. 
to,  1837,  iv.  110-12;  projects  for 
acquiring  Cal.,  iv.  260;  schemes 
of  1845,  iv.  591-2;  speeches  for 
annexation  to,  1846,  v.  59-63;  ex- 
aggerations in  regard  to  interfer- 
ence, v.  68—71;  commerce  with,  viL 
122-3. 

English,  trade  with  Russians,  ii.  63; 
Belcher's  visit,    1837-9,   iv.    141-7; 
fleet  in  the  Pacific,   1841,  iv.  303; 
departure    from    Callao,     iv.    302; 
vice-consul  app't'd,    1842,  iv.   384; 
squadron  in  Pacific,    1846,  v.  199; 
schemes  of,  1846,  v.  207-15. 
1  Enterprise, '  Amer.  ship,  ii.  2. 
Ercila,  A.  M.,  to  collect  miss,  debt  in 

Mex.,  iii.  682. 

'Erie,'  U.  S.  ship,  v.  199,  254,  287. 
Escalante,    exped.    to   Cal.    1776,    i. 

278. 
Escalante,  E.  V.  de,  sindico  in  Mex., 

1820-5,  ii  406,  518,  657. 
Escarpin  rancho,  ii.  615. 
Eslenes,  natives,  i.  175. 
Espojo,  exped.,  1582-3,  i.  12. 
Esteva,  on  treatment  of  the  'Aguiles, ' 

iii.  27. 
Esteves,  Jose,  named  for  Cal.,  1780, 

i.  379. 

Estill,  Senator  J.  M.,  biog.,  etc.,  vi. 

656;  quarrel  with  Broderick,  1852, 

vi.  669-70;  project  of.  1S53,  vi.  676. 

Estrada,   Serg't,   app't'd  to  Cal.,  iii. 

236. 
Estrada,    Ignacio,    gindico    for   Cal., 

1820,  ii.  398. 
Estudillo,  J.  J.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi 

10. 

Etchebarne,  P.,  Sutter  and  Suftol  cor- 
respondence, iv.  129. 
Eureka,  hist,   of,  etc.,  vi.   503-4;  vii. 
589. 


778 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Eureka  mine,  vii.  637. 

Eureka  and   Eel  River   R.    R.,    vii. 
589. 

'Europa,'  ship,  ii.  293. 

'Europe/  ship,  iii.  461. 

Europe,  effect  of  gold  discov.  in  Cal., 
1848-9,  vi.  124. 

Evans,    Col   G.  E.,   mention  of,   vii. 
469. 

Evans,  Rich.  S.,  i.  69  et  seq. 

Execution,  public,  first  in  Cal.,  1777, 
i.  316. 

Expeditions,  hist,  of,  1520-1769,  i.  1- 
25;  first  from  S.  Diego  to  Monterey 
&  S.  F.,  i.  140-63;  Sta  Clara,  Ala- 
meda,  and  Contra  Costa  counties, 
first  explor.  to,  i.  184-7;  Anza's 
first,  i.  220-4;  voy.  of  Perez  to  N. 
coast,  i.  227-9;  northern  explora- 
tions, 1775,  i.  240-68;  Anza's,  1775- 
6,  i.  257-73;  Garces.  273-8,  of  Bo- 
dega and  Artega,  1779,  i.  3'29;  to 
punish  Yumas,  1781-2,  i.  367-71; 
to  open  routes,  1783-5,  i.  454-5; 
Malaspina's,  1789-91,  i.  490-1;  in- 
land explorations,  1800-10,  ii.  43- 
57;  explor.  of  S.  Joaquin  and  Sac- 
ramento, 1811,  ii.  321-3;  of  Sola's, 
1815,  ii.  326;  to  the  north,  1821,  ii. 
445-9;  S.  Argiiello,  1823,  ii.  506-7, 
Capt.  Jose  Romero,  1823,  ii.  507-9; 
Wilkes'  visit,  1841,  iv.  240-8. 
Explorations.  See  expeds. 
Exports,  quicksilver,  1856,  vii.  116, 
120;  cereals,  1856-81,  vii.  116-23; 
volume,  etc.,  1849-56,  vii.  117; 
treasure,  1848-81,  vii.  118-20;  effect 
of  civil  war  on,  vii.  119;  of  railroads, 
vii.  119;  details  and  distribution  of, 
vii.  119-23;  in  1884,  vii.  442-3. 
Express  companies,  vii.  149-51. 
Eyre,  Major  E.  E.,  mention  of,  vii. 
469. 


K 


'Facio,'  ship,  iii.  365. 

Fages,  gov.,  rule  of,   1782-91,  i.  383- 

480. 
Fagoaga,  F.,  of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex., 

1825-7,  iii.  3. 

Fair,  James  G.,  vii.  591,  676. 
Fair,  L.  D.,  trial  of,  1871,  vii.  216. 
Fairfax,  C.  S.,  biog.,  vi.  682. 
Fairtield,  founding,  etc.,  of,  vi.  499. 
Fall,  J.  C.,  vii.  586. 
'  Fama,'  ship,  iv.  305. 
Farias,  V.  G.,  Mex.  vice-pres.,  in  col- 

oiiy  scheme,  iii.  259,  263-4. 


Farley,  J.  T.,  senator,  1878,  vii.  431- 

2;  biog.,  vii.  431-2. 
Farmers'    Protective    Union   league, 

mention  of,  vii.  65-6. 
Farmingtou,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
Faruham,    life    and    adventures,    iv. 

157. 
Farralones,    explored,    ii.   84;  sealers 

left  at,  1810,  ii.  93. 
Farrington,  Miss  R.,  school  at  Grass 

Valley,   1851,  vii.  718. 
Faun  tier  oy,   Col  T.  T.,  in  command, 

1857,  vii.  472. 

'  Favorita, '  explor.  ship,  i.  329,  444. 
Fay,   C.    T.,   candidate  for  gov.,  vii. 

324-5;  biog.,  vii.  324. 
Fay,  John,  vii.  638. 
Fayerweather,   A.   H.,  signed  memo- 
rial in  Honolulu,  1836,  iv.  141. 
Feather   river,   mining  on,   1848,   vi. 

69-71;  1850-6,  vi.  361-3. 
Federal    constitution,  ratification   of, 

1825,  iii.  2,  7-8. 
Felix  rancho,  ii.  353. 
Feliz,  F.,  mention  of,  vi.  509. 
Fellow  brothers,  mention  of,  vii.  654. 
Felton,  J.  B.,  vii.  317,  580,  587. 
Ferguson,     mention     of,    vii.    637-8; 

school  at  Sacramento,  vii.  717. 
Ferguson,    Col    D.,   mention   of,   vii. 

469. 
Ferguson,  W.  I.,  duel  with  Johnston, 

etc.,  1858,  vi.  699,  729. 
Fernando    VII.,   received    Cal.    alle- 
giance,   1809,    ii.    87-8;   return   of, 
celebrated,    1814,    ii.    203;    accepts 
liberal  constitution,  ii.  264. 
Ferrel,  congressman,  mention  of,  vii. 

622. 
Field,  J.  G.,    assist   sec.    to  constit. 

convention,  1849,  vi.  290. 
Field,  S.  J.,  supr.  judge,  1858,  vi. 
714;  election,  etc.,  of,  1857,  vii. 
221-2;  the  act  of  1851,  vii.  226-7, 
231;  chief  justice,  1859,  vii.  227; 
decisions  of,  vii.  227-30;  biog.,  vii. 
227. 

Fields,  Timothy,  vii.  638. 
Figs,  varieties,  etc.,  of,  vii.  42-3. 
Figueroa,   gov.,   rule  of,    1833-5,  iii. 

240-69. 

Figueroa,  Francisco  Garcia,  made 
copy  of  Palou's  Noticias,  1790,  i. 
419. 

Finance  (see  also  Revenue),  provin- 
cial, 1791-1800,  i.  629-30;  of  Mont. 
dist.  1800,  i.  684-5;  statistics,  1801- 
10,  ii.  186-9;  1821-30,  ii.  670-1; 
affairs,  1829-30,  iii.  86;  economic 


779 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vola.  II  to  V. 


measures  of  Micheltorsna,  iv.  358; 
troubles,  1844,  iv.  401-2;  the  Dai- 
ton  scheme,  184(5,  v.  332;  troubles, 

1847,  v.  435. 

First  California  Guard,  see  national 
guards. 

First  Congregational  church  of  S.  F., 
vii.  727. 

First  Presbyterian  church  of  S.  F., 
vii.  727. 

'First  Steamship  Pioneers,"  vi.  130. 

Fish,  Clinton  B.,  vii.  607. 

Fisheries,  vii.  81-3. 

Fitch,  H.  D.,  raiicho,  etc.,  of,  vi.  21. 

Fitche,  H.  S.,  mention  of,  vi.  478. 

Flag,  change  of,  1822,  ii.  458-9. 

Fletcher,  Geo.,  vii.  590. 

Flint,  W.,  mention  of,  vi.  698-9; 
biog.,  vi.  699;  remarks  on  Broder- 
ick,  vi.  735. 

'Flora, 'ship,  ii.  202,  268. 

Flood,  James  C.,  mention  of,  vii.  591, 
676;  pres.  Nevada  bank,  vii.  679. 

Hood,  O'Brien,  Mackay,  and  Fair, 
bonanza  firm,  vii.  676-80. 

Florence,  T.  B.,  the  Phil.  R.  R.  con- 
vention, 1850,  vii  516. 

Flores,  viceroy,  instructions  to  suc- 
cessor, i.  448-9. 

Flour,  export  of,  1854-81,  vii.  116-23. 

Flouring-mills,  vii.  84. 

Fluming,  vii.  77. 

'  Flying  Fish, '  U.  S.  explor.  ship,  iv. 
245. 

Folsom,  Capt.  J.  L.,  the  gold  discov., 

1848,  vi.  53;  mention  of,  vi.  265-7, 
485;  at  San  Fr.  1849,  vii.  453. 

Folsom,  founded,  etc.,  1855,  vi.  485. 

Foote,  H.  S.,  candidate  for  senate, 
1856,  vi.  697. 

Forbes,  A.,  'Hist,  of  Cal.,' iv.  151-2; 
mention,  vii.  656. 

Forbes,  A.  B.,  vii.  604;  biog.  of,  vii. 
186. 

Forbestown,  mention  of,  vi.  361,  491. 

Forderer,  J.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  749. 

Foreign  relations,  fear  of  Russians,  i. 
112;  isolation  of  Cal.  427;  war 
contributions,  427-8;  visit  of  La 
Perouse,  428-32;  fears  of  English, 
i.  505;  English  visit,  1792--4,  i.  510- 
513,  517-29;  foreign  vessels,  i. 
515-16;  war  with  France,  1793,  i. 
537;  foreign  vessels,  i.  537-9; 
war  with  Engl.  1797,  i.  542-4; 
war  with  Russia,  i.  546;  ports 
closed  to  foreigners,  1805,  ii.  31; 
complaints  against  Americans,  ii. 
32;  Cal.  neutrality,  1812,  ii.  273; 


rumors  of  plots,  1818,  ii.  290-1; 
ports  opened,  1827,  iii.  127;  schemes 
of  encroachment,  iii.  39H-401;  rev- 
olution, 1836-40,  iv.  107-8,  atti- 
tude of  dif.  classes,  iv.  109;  French 
relations,  iv.  110,  261-2;  rumored 
cess,  of  Cal.  to  Eng.,  iv.  110-12; 
plans  of  foreign  nations,  iv.  256; 
foreign  opinions,  256-9;  British 
projects,  260-1;  Amer.  immigra- 
tion, 1843,  iv.  379-81;  Eng.  col- 
onization, iv.  3S2-3,  451;  annexa- 
tion schemes,  1844,  iv.  449;  consu- 
lates, 1845,  iv.  589-90;  1846-8,  v. 
614-15;  British  schemes,  591-2;  of 
the  U.  S.,  594-8;  impending  war, 
600-3;  Larkm  as  U.  S.  agent,  1846, 
v.  54-6;  fears  of  invasion  of  Eng., 
v.  57;  of  France  and  U.  S.,  v.  59- 
63;  Eng.  interference,  68-71. 

Foreman,  Col  F.,  mention  of,  vii. 
469. 

Forest  City,  mention  of,  vi.  361,  490. 

Forest  Hill,  growth  of,  vi.  483. 

Forests,  vii.  75-8. 

Forman,  C.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Forney,  J.  W. ,  remarks  on  Broderick, 
etc.,  1879,  vi.  737. 

Forster,  Juan,  manuscript  of,  i.  56. 

Fort  Bridger,  Donner  party  at,  1846, 
v.  531. 

Fort  Jones,  mention  of,  vi.  495. 

Fort  Leaven  worth,  Mormon  battle  at, 
v.  478. 

Fortifications,  appropriations  for, 
1854-6,  vi.  631. 

Foster,  S.  G.,  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, 1849,  vi.  286. 

Foster  bar,  mining  on,  1848,  vi.  72. 

Foundries,  vii.  94. 

Fowler,  L.  C.,  vii.  582. 

Fowler  and  Cowie,  murder  of,  v.  160-2. 

France,  war  with,  1838,  iii.  572,  592; 
projects  for  acquiring  Cal.,  iv.  261; 
annexation  by,  1846,  v.  59-63. 

Franciscans,  work  of,  1590-1600,  i. 
11;  consulted  abt  Cal.  miss.,  i.  114; 
transfer  L.  Cal.  miss,  to  Domini- 
cans, L  192-3;  first  annual  report, 
1773,  i.  198-206;  troubles  with  gov., 
i.  235-6;  service  as  chaplains,  i. 
240-1;  policy  of,  1776-7,  i.  299-300; 
administrative  machines,  ii.  165; 
guardians,  1800-10,  ii.  165-6;  poli- 
tic generosity  of,  ii.  436-8;  end  of 
regime,  1835,  iii.  689. 

'Franklin, 'ship,  iii.  132-4,  159,  165. 

Freeman,  D.,  biog.  of,  vii.  37. 

Freeport,  mention  of,  vi.  485. 


780 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Freeporfc  Railroad  company,  organ- 
ized, etc.,  1803,  vii.  5*9-40. 

Fremont,  J.  C.,  controversy  with 
Stockton  and  Kearny,  1847,  v. 
411-68;  first  and  second  expedt., 
1842-4,  iv.  434-44;  campaign  of, 
1846,  v.  169-86;  assumes  civil  govt, 
etc.,  1847,  vi.  259-60;  U.  S.  senator, 

1849,  vi.  311;  the  Mariposa  claim, 
vi.  561;  vii.  642-66;  bill  introd  by, 

1850,  vi.  538;  vii.  518;  map  of,  vii. 
514. 

Fremont,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  498. 

French,  P.  H.,  mention  of,  vi.  323. 

French,  treatment  of,  iv.  110. 

French  corral,  mention  of,  vi.  486. 

French  war,  contributions  of  Cal.,  i. 
535-6. 

Fresno  City,  mention  of,  vi.  517. 

Fresno  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  516-17; 
organized,  etc.,  1856,  vii.  441. 

Friars,  at  S.  Carlos,  1770-1840,  i.  171, 
ii.  146,  616;  iii.  679;  list  of,  1771, 
i.  173-4;  1801-10,  ii.  158-60;  con- 
troversies with,  i.  401-8;  ii.  162-3; 
at  Purissimia,  1786-9,  i.  425;  1791- 
1800,  i.  675;  1801-10,  ii.  123;  1811- 
20,  ii.  366,  580;  at  S.  Diego,  1784- 
1840,  i.  455,  654-5;  ii.  107,  345, 
551;  iii.  619;  at  S.  Juan  Cap., 
1776-1840,  i.  458,  657;  ii.  110,  348; 
iii.  625;  at  S.  Gabriel,  i.  459;  ii. 
113-14,  355,  567;  iii.  641;  at  S. 
Buenaventura,  1771-1840,  i.  466, 
674;  ii.  366,  578;  iii.  658;  in  Mont, 
dist,  1771-80,  i.  469;  1791-iSOO,  i. 
685-6,  688-9;  at  S.  F.,  1771-1840, 
i.  473-4,  712,  722;  ii.  131,  375,  595; 
iii.  713;  arrivals  and  departures, 
1791-1800,  i.  575-77;.  charges 
against,  i.  589-94;  at  Sta  Barbara, 
1791-1840,  i.  672-3;  ii.  121,  364, 
576;  iii.  656;  troubles  of,  1802-3, 
ii.  6-7;  S.  Luis  Key,  ii.  108,  346; 
iii.  621-2;  S.  Fernando,  ii.  115-16, 
357;  iii.  645;  at  Sta  Clara,  1801- 
40;  ii.  137,  377,  600;  iii.  726;  at 
S.  Jose*,  ii.  137;  iii.  723-4;  at  S.  L. 
Obispo,  ii.  148,  384,  618;  iii.  680-1; 
at  S.  Miguel,  ii.  149,  384,  620;  iii. 
683;  at  S.  Antonio,  ii.  151,  385, 
621;  at  Soledad,  ii.  152,  385;  iii. 
688;  at  S.  Juan  Bautista,  ii.  153,  386, 
623;  iii.  691;  at  Sta  Cruz,  1801-40, 
ii.  154,  387,  625;  iii.  693;  remissness 
of,  ii.  161;  orders  to,  ii.  165;  loy- 
alty of,  1816-17,  ii.  219;  at  S. 
Rafael,  1817-20,  ii.  330;  at  miss., 
1811-20,  ii.  37o;  1846-8,  v.  619, 


620-3,  628-9,  633-4,  638-43, 
6UO,  665;  duties  of,  ii.  400-2; 
autobiography  of,  1817,  ii.  403-4; 
violence  to,  ii.  488;  at  S.  F.  Solano, 
1824-30,  ii.  505;  troubles  with, 
1824,  ii.  516-18;  liberality  of,  ii. 
582;  protest  against  land  grantj, 
ii.  566;  list  of  deaths,  1821-30,  ii. 
655;  refuse  allegiance,  1825-30;  iii. 
16-19,  87-9;  flight  of  Ripoll  and 
Altimira,  1828,  iii.  93^t;  at  Sta 
Ines,  1821-40,  ii.  581;  iii.  661. 
Friedlander,  J.,  vii.  585. 
Frisbie,  John  B.,  vii.  582,  585. 
Frohling,  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  49. 
Frontier,  plots  on,  1837,  iii.  515-16. 
Fruit-growing,  development  of,  vii.  3; 
advantages  for,  etc.,  vii.  38-9;  hist, 
of,  vii.  39-41;  apples,  vii.  40-1; 
peaches,  vii.  41;  pears,  vii.  41; 
apricots,  vii.  41;  prunes,  vii.  41,  74'i; 
citrus  fruits,  vii.  42;  figs,  vii.  42-3; 
almonds  and  nuts,  vii.  43;  olives, 
vii.  43;  strawberries,  vii.  43;  viti- 
culture, vii.  43-50,  744;  raisins,  vii. 
745-6. 

Fruit-packing,  vii.  86,  742-6. 
j  Fry,    J.    D.,   postal   agent,    1857,    vi. 

711;  biog.  of,  vii.  681. 
1  Fueros,  with  Fages'  expedt.,   1781,  i. 

366. 

|  Fulweiler,  John,  vii.  651. 
;  Furniture,  manufact.  of,  vii.  90. 
;  Fur  trade,  plans  for,  i.  439-41;  skins 
collected,  441,  failure  of,  442-3; 
contraband  trade,  1803,  ii.  12-15; 
O'Cain's  expedt.,  1804,  ii.  25-6; 
Winship's  expedt.,  ii.  39-40;  Russ. 
exped't's,  1810-11,  ii.  82;  otter 
hunting,  1810-11,  ii.  93-6,  494,  648; 
catch  of,  1811,  ii.  95;  decrease  of, 
ii.  420;  of  L.  Arguello,  ii.  520-2; 
statistics,  ii.  633-5;  Arguello's  con- 
tract, ii.  645;  Cooper's  contracts, 
1824-6,  iii.  119-20;  importance  of, 
1831-5,  iii.  374;  arrangement  with 
H.  B.  Co.,  iv.  213. 


G 


'Gaceta  de  Mexico,'  i.  39. 
Gallagher,  M.,  suit  of,  vii.  242-3. 
Gallatin,  Albert,  vii.  187. 
Galvez,    viceroy,   offl   actions  in  Cal. 

affairs,     1781-5,    i.     399-404,    449; 

death,  448. 
Galvez,  Jose  de,  visitador-gen.,  Cal. 

affairs,   1769-84,  i.  113-25,   128-36, 


INDEX. 


781 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 

154,  155,  158,  167,  171,  173, 190,  192,  Gird,  R.,  bio<r.,  vii.  23. 

225,  231,  307,    318,  330,  355,   373,  Glass,  manufact.  of.  vii.  99. 

421-2,  474,  483,  671.  ^leeson,  W.,  'Hist.  Cath.  Church,'  L 

Gambling,    licensed,    1850,    vi    607;  43-4,  255. 


prevalence  of,  vii.  711-12. 
Gansel,  A.,  vii.  585. 


Glover,  \\m,  school  com.,  vii.  716-17. 
Gloves,  manufact.,  etc.,  of,  vii.  92. 
Garcia,    Col    A.,    app't'd    gov.    CaL,  '  Glue,  factories,  vii.  92. 

1829,  iil  54,  181,  182.  1  Goat  island,  R.  R.  terminus,  vii.  602. 

Garcia,    Coude   D.,  of  Cal.  junta  in    Goats,  herding,  etc.,  of,  vii.  60-1. 

Mex.,     1S25-7,     iii.    3;    in    colony    Godoy,  caused  Malaspina's  imprison- 

scheine,    iii.    263;    report  on    Cal. 

affairs,  1845,  iv.  525-6. 
Garijo,  A.  P.,  guardian  in  Mex.,  offl 

acts,  1809-  23,  ii.  89,  165,  197,  398, 


657. 

Garland,  W.  D.,  biog.,  vii.  185-6. 
Garratt,  W.  T.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  97, 

748. 

Garrison,  C.  K.,  mayor  of  S.  F.,  vi  766. 
Garrison,  Win  R.,  vii.  668. 
Gas,  natural,  vii.  662. 
Gasol,  Juan,  guardian,  offl  acts,  1801- 

22,  ii.  3,  41-2,  165,  657. 
Cause,  A.,  vii.  610. 
Gavilan  peak,  Fremont  at,  1846,  vii.  18. 


ment  in  Spain,  1795.  i.  492. 
Gold  discovered,   1820,  ii.  417;  1842, 

iv.  296-7;  1848,  vi.  32-41;  effect  of 

discov.,     1848-9,    vi.     110-25,    vii. 

102-7;  extent  of  region,  1848-9,  vi 

351. 
Gold  Bluff,  excitement  of,  1850-1,  vi 

364. 

Gold  HU1  Mining  Co.,  vii.  658. 
'Gold  Hind,'  Drake's  ship,  i.  81. 
'Gold  Regions  of  California,' vi.  118. 
'Golovnin.'  ship,  ii.  642,  644,  649. 
Gomara,  '  Hist.  Coronado, '  i.  108. 
Gomez,  (P.),  pres.  Dom.,  1791,  i.  484. 
Gomez.,    V.,    the    Panoche    Grande 


Geary,  J.  W.,  pres.  of  council,  etc.,  I      claim,  vi.  561. 

1849-50,  vi.  212-18;  biog.,  vi.  213;  i  Gonzalez,  lieut-gov.  L.  CaL,   1769,  L 


postmaster,  etc.,  at  S.  F.,  vi.  280- 
1;   chairman  first  democr.  conven- 


172. 
'Good    Hope,'  ship,    ordered    confis- 


tion,    1849,  vi.  304;   candidate   for)      cated,  ii/284. 
gov.,   1849,  vi.   305;   candidate  for  j  Goodall,  Capt.  C.,  bequest  of,  vii.  721. 
U.  S.  senate,  1840,  vi.  311.  I  Gordon,    M.   W.,   member  of  legist, 

1854,  vi    682;  bill  introd.    by,  vi 


Genoa,  stage  line  to,  1857,  vii.  541. 
Geographical    table,    places    bet.    S. 

Diego  and  S.  F.,  i  142-6. 
Geology,  vii.  636. 
George,    H.,    the   land  question,    vi. 

580;  \no<r.,  etc.,  of,  vii.  417. 
'George  Henry,'  ship,  iv.  395. 
Georgetown,  a  mining  centre,  1849, 

vi  354;  mention  of,  vi.  482. 
Germain,  Eugene,  biog.  of,  vii.  188. 
Gerry,  S.,  mention  of,  vii.  454. 
Geysers,  location,  etc.,  of,  vii.  664. 
Ghirardelli,  D.,  biog.  of,  vii.  101. 
Gibson,   quartermaster  at   Ft   Point, 

1861,  vii.  464-5. 
Gila  river,  Anza's  exped.  at,  i  221, 

260. 
Gilbert,  K,  mention  of,  vi.  279;  del 

to  constit.  convention,  1849,  vi.  286; 


684. 

Gordon,  W.,  mention  of,  vi  17. 

Gorham,  G.  C.,  candidate  for  gov., 
vii  323;  biog.,  vii  323. 

Gorraez,  Jose,  of  junta  in  Mex., 
Serra's  suggestions  submitted  to,  i. 
209,  211. 

Gould  &  Curry  Mining  co.,  vii.  667; 
stocks  of,  vii.  671. 

Government,  mil.  reglamento,  i.  317- 
19,  333-8;  reforms,  i  318;  condi- 
tion, 1791-1800,  i  637-8;  right  of 
represen.  in  Spain,  ii.  190;  civil  and 
crim.  cases,  ii.  191;  authority  of 
ruler,  ii.  675. 

Gower,  I.  T.,  vii.  641. 

Goya,  R.  M.  de,  supplies  for  Cal., 
1776-85,  i  630. 


nominee  for  congress,  1849,  vi  304;  j  Graham,  Maj.  J.  D.,  of  court  at  Fre- 
represent.  in  cong. ,  vi.  306.  mont  trial,  v.  456^ 


Gillespie,  Lt  A.  H.,  meets  Fremont, 

1846,  v.  24. 
Gilliam,  A.  M.,  consul  at  S.  F.,  1844, 

iv.  450. 

Gilroy,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 
Gilroy,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  525. 


Graham,  Major  L.  P.,  in  south,  diat, 
1848-9,  vii.  446,  448. 

Graham  affair,  1840-2,  iv.  1-41. 

Grain  supply,  plans  for,  i  310-12. 

Grangers'  Bank  of  California,  organ- 
ized, 1874,  vii  66. 


782 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Grangers'    Business    Association,    or- 1 

ganized,   1875,    vii.    65,    67;   opera- 
tions, etc.,  vii.  65. 
Grant,  Joseph,  vii.  668. 
Grapes   (see   also   Viticulture),   varie- 
ties of,  vii.   43-4;  cultivation,  etc., 

of,  vii   44-6. 
Grass  Valley,  gold  ore  found  at,  1 850, 

vi.  356;  quartz  mining  at,  vi.  356- 

7;   mining    yield,   1850-64.  vi.  357; 

hist,  of,  vi.  470-2. 
Gray,  Geo.,  vii.  588. 
Gray,  Geo.  E.    vii.  568. 
Gray,  N.,  biog.,  vii.  731. 
Gray,  Rev.  T.  F.,  vii.  729. 
Grayson,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 
Great    Salt    lake,    Jedediah    Smith's 

party  at,  iii.  157;  emigrants  on  the, 

1849,  vi.    151-2. 
Greeley,  H.,  on  the  Cal.  gold   fever, 

1848,  vi.  119;  on  mining,  vii.  639. 
Green,  Spnator,  mention  of,  vi.  315. 
Green,  E.,  at  Mormon  island,  1848, 

vi.  49. 
Green,  T.  J.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850,  vi. 

319. 
Greenhow,  History  of  Oregon,  ii.  65, 

115,  135,  299,  509. 
Greenwood,  a  mining  centre,  1849,  vi. 

353-4;  mention  of,  vi.  482. 
Gregg,  J.,  exped.,  etc.,  of,  vi.  501-2. 
Gregory,  E.  J.,  biog.  of,  vii.  188. 
Grewell,  Senator,  mention  of,  vi.  686. 
Griffith,  G.,  vii.  664. 
Grigsby-Ide  co.,  journey  to  Cal.,  1845, 

iv.  578-81. 
Grimes,  E. ,  member  of  legisl.  coimcil, 

1847,  vi.  260. 
Gross,  F.  W.,   clerk   of  supr.   court, 

1880,  vii.  408. 
Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  treaty  of,  v.  590- 

2;  vi.  262. 
Guapos,  Inds,  Vallejo's  fight  with,  iv. 

71;  treaty  with,  iv.  72. 
Guerra,  De  la,  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, 1849,  vi.  285;  chairman  of  com. 

on  counties,  1850,  vi.  317. 
Guilitoy,  Ind.  tribe,  treaty  with,  1836, 

iv.  71. 
Guilbert,  E.  D.,  theory  of  name  Cal., 

i.  66. 
Guilez,    Jose,     procurador     for     Cal. 

miss.,  1809-10,  ii.  166. 
Guilucos,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  72. 
Guio,  Jose  de,  exped.  of,  1789,  i.  490. 
Gully,  Lieut  S.  L.,  of  Mormon  bat.. 

v.  477,  483. 
Guruceta,    R.,   com.    of    Mex.    fleet, 

mutiny  against,  1824-5,  iii.  25. 


Gutierrez,  of  junta  in  Mex.,  i.  209. 

Guzman,  Diego  de,  exped.,  1533,  i.  6. 

Guzman,    J.    M.,    guardian    for    Cal. 
miss.,  1830,  ii.  657. 

Guzman,  Nuno  de,  in  Sinaloa,  exped., 
i.  3-5. 

Gwin,  W.  M.,  mention  of,  vi.  279;  del 
to  constit.  convention,  1849,  vi. 
286-7,  291-2,  299-300;  U.  S.  sena- 
tor, 1849,  vi.  311;  character,  etc., 
311-12;  conference  with  Calhoun, 
etc.,  1850,  vi.  342-3;  efforts  in  cong., 
1850-1,  vi.  538-9;  bill  introd.  by, 
1852,  vi.  572;  chairman  of  com., 
1851-5,  vi.  629-30,  633-4;  land  bills, 
etc.,  of,  vi.  634-5,  638-9;  dem. 
leader,  1851-60,  vi.  649-739;  policy 
of,  vi.  653-5;  vii.  518-19;  the  mint 
question,  vi.  667-8;  'Memoirs,'  vi. 
667-8;  speech,  etc.,  of.  1859,  vii. 
258-60;  treachery  of,  vii.  265,  273- 
4;  R.  R.  bill  of,  1855,  vii.  524-6. 
Gypsum,  vii.  662. 


H 


Habilitado,  duties  of,  i.  335;  iii.  60; 
troubles  with,  i.  396-7;  works  of, 
1791-1800,  i.  631-2. 

Habilitacion,  general,  office  of,  1811- 
20,  ii.  421-2. 

Hager,  J.  S.,  U.  S.  senator,  vii.  366; 
biog.,  vii.  366-7;  mention  of,  vii.  609. 

Haight,  H.  H.,  gov.,  1867,  vii.  325-6; 
administ.  of,  vii.  363;  biog.,  vii.  750. 

Haile,  I.  C.,  senator,  1856,  vi.  698; 
biog.,  vi.  699. 

Haines,  J.  W.,  mention  of,  vii.  77. 

Hale,  Edward  E.,  name  of  Cal.,  i.  66; 
Early  maps  of  Amer.,  i.  88. 

Hale,  James  E.,  vii.  556. 

Hale,  J.  P.,  biog.,  vii.  741. 

Hale  &  Norcross,  vii.  671. 

Hall,  'Hist.  San  Jose",'  i.  44,  312,  339,. 
479. 

Hall,  attorney,  mention  of,  vi.  323. 

Hall,  A.  I.,  biog.  of,  vii.  186. 

Hall,  A.  W.,  vii.  589. 

Hall,  C.  V.,  biog.  of,  vii.  735. 

Hall,  Rev.  J.  G.,  vii.  759. 

Hail,  Nelson,  1836,  iv.  141. 

Halleck,  H.  W.,  del.  to  constit.  con- 
vention, 1849,  vi.  285;  candidate  for 
the  U.  S.  sen.,  1849,  vi.  311;  rep't 
on  Mex.  grants,  1849,  vi.  536-7;  on 
Riley's  staff,  1849,  vii.  448;  gen.  of 
state  militia,  1861-5,  vii.  468,  472; 
mention  of,  vii.  656. 


INDEX. 


783 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Regitter,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Halley,  Cent.  Year  Book  of  Alameda 

co.,  L  707. 

Hallidie,  A.  S.,  mention  of,  viL  96. 
Halinan.  Mrs  G.  C.,  vii.  717. 
Hamilton,  (_'.  S.,  biog.  of,  vii.  634. 
Hamilton,  Lieut  J.,  mention  of,  vii. 

283,  466;  instructor  militia,  vii.  468. 
Hamilton,  village,  mention  of,  vL  490. 
Hammond,  R.  P.,  collector  of  customs, 

1853,  vi.  673-4;  mention  of,  vii.  585, 

633. 

Hamp  Williams,  The,  mine,  vii.  640. 
Hangtown.     See    Dry    Diggings    and 

1  Placerville. ' 

Hanks,  Harry  G.,  viL  644. 
Haraszthy,    A.,    vinicult.,    vii.    44-9; 

biog.,  vii.  745. 
'Harbinger,' ship,  ii.  93. 
Hardie,  Major,  at  Santa  Fe,  1847,  viL 

452. 

Hardy,  T.  M.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  17. 
Harman,    J.    B.,    code   commissioner, 

vii.  249. 

Harmon,  A.  EL  P.,  vii.  720. 
Harmon,  Rev.  S.  S.,  missionary,  viL 

7::o. 

Haro  Bros  and  Berreyesa,  murder  of, 

v.  171-4. 
Harriman,  W.  D.,  clerk  of  supr.  court, 

1863,  vii.  304. 

Harrington,  Rev.  Joseph,  vii.  729. 
Harris,  miner,  vii.  650. 
Harris,  A.,  contract  awarded  to,  1847, 

vL  128. 

Harris,  D.  D.,  viL  587. 
Harris,   S.  R.,   mayor  of  San   Fran- 
cisco,    1852,    vL    762;     biog.,    vL 

7G2-3. 

Harrison,  E.  H.,  vii.  727. 
Hart,  Miss,  school  at  Sac.,  1850,  vii. 

717. 
Hart,  A.  L.,  attorney -gen.,  1880,  vii. 

408. 
Hart,  W.  H.  H.,  attorney-geii.,  1887, 

vii.  434;  biog.,  viL  435. 
Harte,  Bret,  works  of,  vii.  724. 
Hartley,  H.  fl..  defeat  of,  1865,  viL 

319. 
Hartley,  Sir   Henry,  quartz  mill  of, 

vii.  638. 
Hartwell,  W.,  interpreter  to  constit. 

convention,  1849,  vi.  290. 
Hartson,  nomin.  for  congr.  1868,  vii. 

331. 
Hartson,  assemblyman,  report  of,  vii. 

301. 

Hartson,  C.,  vii.  586. 
Hartetein,    Lieut    H.    J.,    in   Wilkes' 

exped.,  iv.  241. 


Hartt,  M.  D.,  vii.  617. 

Haskin,  D.  C.,  vii.  582. 

Haskell,  D.  H.,  vii.  560. 

Hastings,  L.  W..  company  to  Cal., 
1843-^5,  iv.  389-92,  5S5-6;  'Emi- 
grant's Guide,'  iv.  396-9;  mention 
of,  vi.  18;  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, 1849,  vL  286,  292-3,  298-9. 

Hastings,  S.  C.,  election,  etc., of,  1850, 
viL  220;  biog.  of,  vii.  224:  chief  jus- 
tice, 1849,  vi.  314;  com.  on  R.  R., 
viL  604;  gift  of,  vii.  720. 

Hatch,  A.  T.,  biog.,  viL  745. 

Hann,  H.  P.,  senator,  1859,  vi.  737-8. 

Havilah,  town,  vi.  518,  640. 

Hawaiian  islands,  effect  of  the  gold 
discov.,  1848,  vi.  Ill;  commerce 
with,  vii.  122-3. 

Hawes,  H.,  prefect  of  council,  1849, 
vi.  213;  senator,  1856,  vL  698; 
biog.,  vi.  699. 

Hawley,  William,  vii.  586. 

Hayes,  B.,  bibliog.  of,  i.  44;  emi- 
grant notes,  L  656;  claimant  for 
rancho  S.  Bernardino,  iv.  635. 

Hayes,  F.  B.,  viL  607. 

Hayes,  John,  biog.  of,  vii.  634. 

Hays,  J.  C.,  sheriff,  1850,  vi.  217; 
surveyor-gen.,  1853,  vi.  674. 

Haymaker,  E.,  vii.  617. 

Haymond,  C.,  biog.  of,  vii.  249;  men- 
tion of,  vii.  631. 

Hayomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  363. 

Hayward,  Alvinza,  vii.  673-4. 

Hayward,  William,  vii.  587. 

Hayward  mine,  viL  641. 

Hazard,  H.  T.,  biog.  of,  vii.  759. 

'Hazard,'  Amer.  ship,  ii.  17,  21,  24-5. 

Hazeltou,  W.  P.,  vii.  717. 

Healdsburg,  mention  of,  vi.  508. 

Health  of  miners,  vii.  703-4;  death 
rate,  vii.  704. 

Heard,  Judge,  decision  of,  vii.  239. 

Hearst,  G.,  senator,  1886,  vii.  431-2, 
biog.,  viL  681. 

Heath,  bill  of,  1885,  vii.  427-S. 
I  Heath,  R.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Hebrew  church,  vii.  729. 

Hebrews,  societies  of,  viL  706. 

Hec'ox,  A.  A.,  vi.  317. 

Heintzleman,  Mayor  S.  P.,  at  San 
Diego,  1849,  vii.  448. 

'Helena,'  ship,  iL  648. 

Hemp,  culture  introduced,  L  717;  cul- 
ture at  L.  Angeles,  ii.  90;  gov't  en- 
couragement to,  ii.  178;  progress 
made,  1802-4,  ii.  178:  shipments, 
1809-10,  ii.  179-80;  failure  of,  iL 
181. 


784 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Hempstcad,    C.,    superin't    of    mint, 

1875,  vi.  711. 

Hempstead,  C.  H.,  mention  of,  vi.  687. 
Henderson,  J.  W.,  vii.  617. 
Heutlricks,    W.    C.,    seer,    of    state, 

1887,  vii.  434. 
Henley,  Barclay,  vi.  674. 
Henley,   T.  H.,  candidate  for  U.   S. 

senate,  1849,  vi.  311. 
Henley,  T.  J.,  postmaster-gen.,  1853, 

vi.  674;  biog.,  vi.  674;  superin't  of 

Ind.  affairs,  1857,  vi.  711;  vii.  490; 

measures,  etc.,  of,  vii.  490-2. 
Henriques,  David,  vii.  668. 
Henshaw,  H.  W.,  'Notes  on  Cabrillos' 

voyage,'  i.  69. 
Herbert,    P.    T.,    congressman,    etc., 

1854,  vi.  690. 
'  Hermosa  Mexicana,'   ship,    ii.    215, 

282. 
Hermosillo,    captured    by    Raousset, 

1852,  vi.  588. 
Herold,  A.,  biog.,  434. 
'Heros,'Fr.  ship,  ii.  650;  iii.  128-30. 
Heros,  biog.  of,  vii.  737. 
Herrera,    acc't   of  Cabrillos'  voy.,   i. 

69  et  seq. 
Herrera,  Pres.,  reception  of  Michel- 

torena,  iv.  513;  receives  Cal.  vote, 

1845,  iv.  535;  app'ts   Pico  gov.  of 

Cal.,  v.  40-1. 

Hester,  Judge,  decision,  etc.,vi.  323-4. 
Heydenfeldt,  Judge  S.,  election,  etc., 

of,  1852,  vii.  220-1;  member  stock 

board,  vii.  668. 

Hicks,  fortune  made  by,  vi.  192. 
Hides,  trade  in,  regulations,  1821-30, 

ii.  668-9;  annual  shipment,  iii.  641; 

business  in,  vii.  91. 
Hiester,  A.  C.,  vii.  674. 
Higby,   W.,  congressman,    1863,   vii. 

304. 
Higgins,     Wm     L.,    member     stock 

board,  vii.  668. 
Higuera,  N.,  vi.  19. 
Hijar  and  Padre's  colony,  hist,  of,  iii. 

259-81. 
Hijosa,   Francisco,  supplies  for  Cal., 

1795-1800,  i.  630-1. 
Hill,   Rev.,   church  at  Nevada  City, 

vif!  729. 
Hill,   D.   T.,  of  Bartleson  party,  iv. 

269. 

Hill's  ferry,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 
Hillegass,  Eugenie,  vii.  720. 
Hillegass,  Wm,  vii.  720. 
Hillyer,  Lieut-col  E.  W.,  vii.  469. 
Hinckley,  W.,  at  Yerba  Buena,  1836, 

vi.  164. 


Hinman,  L.  A.,  vii.  590. 

Hinton,  'Hand  book  of  Arizona,'  i. 
259. 

Hitchcock,  Dr,  mention  of,  vii.  720. 

Hitchcock,  Gen.  E.  A.,  vi.  594-5; 
commands  Pac.  division,  1851,  vii. 
458-60;  relieved,  1854,  vii.  462;  in 
command,  1851,  vii.  471-2. 

Hittell,  J.  S.,  works  of,  i.  10,  44,  90, 
158,  186,  190,  644;  views  on  the 
land  question,  vi.  579-80. 

Hobbs,  C.  S.,  biog.  of,  vii.  101. 

Hodge,  Ira,  vii.  621. 

Hoffman,  Judge,  0.,  election,  etc.,  of, 
vii.  238;  decision  of,  1859,  vii. 
242-3. 

Hoge,  J.  P.,  chairman  of  constit.  con- 
vention, 1878,  vii.  375;  biog.,  vii. 
375. 

Hoitt,  I.  G.,  sup't  of  public  instruct., 
1887,  vii.  434;  biog.,  vii.  434-5. 

Holbrook,  C.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Holden,  E.  S.,  the  S.  F.  R.  R.  con- 
vention, 1859,  vii.  543;  mention  of, 
vii.  557,  588. 

Holiyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  363. 

Hollister's   'Life  of  Colfax.'vii.   570. 

Hollister,  mention  of,  vi.  524. 

Holmes,   A.,  mention  of,  vii.  719-20. 

Holmes,  E.  H.,  vii.  720. 

Holmes,  H.  T.,  biog.  of,  vii.  635,  746. 

Hondiu's,  map  of,  i.  88  et  seq. 

Honey,  product,  etc.,  vii.  62. 

Honolulu,  Sutter  at,  iv.  126;  Bran- 
nan's  colony  at,  v.  549. 

Hoodlum,  origin  of  name,  vii.  708. 

Hope,  T.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  747. 

Hopkins,  C.  T.,  vii.  609. 

Hopkins,  E.  W.,  vii..  599. 

Hopkins,  M.,  R.  R.  affairs,  vii.  544, 
549;  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  533,  546;  men- 
tion of,  vii.  599,  612;. death  of,  vii. 
618;  residence  of,  vii.  624. 

Hopkins,  R.  C.,  the  land  question, 
vi.  580. 

Hopkins,  T.,  treas.  S.  P.  R.  R.,  etc., 
vii.  632-3. 

Hopland,  village,  mention  of,  vi.  509. 

Hoppe,  C.  D.,  mention  of,  vi.  18. 

Hops,  cultivation  of,  vii.  35-6. 

Horn,  B.  C.,  vii.  587. 

Homer,  J.  M.,  at  San  Jose,  1848, 
vi.  9. 

Horses,  Spanish,  vii.  57;  breeding, 
etc.,  of,  vii.  57-8. 

Horticulture,  vii.  47-50. 

Horton,  A.  E.,  biog.,  etc.,  vi.  480;  vii. 
745-6. 

Hose,  manufact.  of,  vii.  92. 


INDEX. 


785 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Houghtou,  J.  F.,  surveyor-gen.,  1863, 

vii.  304. 
Houston,   A.  H.,  R.  R  contract  of, 

1859,  vii.  537. 

Houston,   J.  S.,  comptroller,  vi.  314. 
Howard,  Bryant,  biog.  of,  vii.  184. 
Howard,  Geo.  H.,  vii.  610. 
Howard,    Gen.    O.    O.,   in   command, 

1886,  vii.  472. 
Howard,  V.  E.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  374-5. 


Hydraulic  mining,  vii.  645-9;  debris 

question,  vii.  646-8. 
Hyman,  P.  C.,  vii.  668 


Ibarra,  M.  G.  de,  Cal.  junta  in  Mex., 
1825-7;  iii.  3;  report  on  Cal.  miss., 
iii.  109. 


Howard,   W.  D.  M.,  mention  of,  vL  |  Icaza,    Isidro,    Cal.    junta    in    Mex., 


279. 

Howard,  W.  O.  H.,  lieut,  vii.  454. 
Howard  M.  K  church  at  S.  F.,  vii. 

727. 

Howland  flat,  mention  of,  vi.  490. 
'Hnascar,'  ship,  iii.  128. 
Hubbs,  P.  K.,  biog.,  vi.  656-7;  quar- 
rel of,  1852,  vi.  669;  revises  school- 
law,  vii.  718-19. 

Hudspeth,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  20. 
Hudson,     W.,    at    Mormon    island, 

1848,  vi.  48-9. 
Hudson,  W.  K.,  vii.  582. 
Hudson  Bay  Co.,  first  entry  of,  1828- 

30,   iii.     160-2;    trappers    in    Cal., 

1832-5,    iii.     392-3;    1840,    iv.    81; 

permanent  establishment,  1841,  iii. 

190,    211-18;    suicide   of   Rae,    iv. 

593;  estab.  abandoned,  iv.  594. 
Hueneme,   port,  mention  of,  vi.  523. 
Huiluc,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Humboldt  bay,  climate  of,  vi.  23-4. 
Humboldt    bay   region,    map   of,    vi. 

501. 
Humboldt  county,  mining  in,  vi.  365- 

6,  370;  hist,  of,  vi.  503-4;  creation, 

etc.,  of,  1853,  vii.  441. 
Humbug  City,  see  North  Bloomfield. 
Humphrey,     I.,     Bennett's     meeting 

with,  1848,  vi.44;  at  Coloma,  1848, 

vi.  67-9. 
Hunt,  Col  T.  F.,  at  Fremont  trial,  v. 

456. 
Hunt,  T.  D.,  chaplain  at  S.  F.,  1848, 

vii.  727. 

Hunter,  D.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Hunter,  M.  C.,  vii.  596. 
Huntington,    C.    P.,   biog.,   etc.,  vii. 

533,  545-6;    vice-pres't  Cent.   Pac. 

R  R  1861,  vii.  544;  R.  R  affairs  of, 


1825-7,  iii.  3. 

Ice,  consumption,  etc.,  of,  vii.  86. 

Ide,  W.  B.,  works  of,  i.  42;  in  Sono- 
ma revolt,  v.  115-19;  rancho  of, 
1848,  vi.  17. 

Illinoistown,  mention  of,  vi.  483. 

'Ilmen,'  ship,  ii.  210,  274,  293,  307-8, 
373. 

Immigrants  (see  also  'Pioneers');  from 
Mex.,  1775,  i.  258-60. 

Immigration,  parties  arriving,  1826- 
30,  iii.  176-80;  1831-5,  iii.  385-413; 
1836-40,  iv.  117-21;  1841,  iv.  263- 
80;  1842,  iv.  341-3;  1843,  iv.  389- 
400;  1844,  iv.  434-48;  Bartleson 
party,  1841,  iv.  267-76;  Workman's 
party,  iv.  276-8;  parties  arriving, 
1845,  iv.  571-88;  migration  after 
golddisccv.,  vii.  687, 696-7;  Chinese, 
vii.  696-7;  society  to  promote,  vii. 
697;  routes,  vii.  697;  foreign,  vii. 
699-702;  arrivals  and  departures, 
vii.  703. 

Imports,  articles  imported,  1849-56, 
vii.  112-14;  cereals,  1853-5,  vii.  113; 
meats,  vii.  113;  effect  of  civil  war 
on,  viL  115;  of  the  railroad,  vii.  115; 
of  mining,  vii.  115;  volume,  etc., 
1857-86,  vii.  115-16;  in  1884,  vii. 
442. 

'Inca,'  ship,  iii.  118. 

Ingersoll,  bibliog.  of,  ii.  631. 

Ingersoll,  J.  R.,  the  Phil.  R.  R.  con- 
vention, 1850,  vii.  513. 

Ingersoll,  T.  J.,  biog.,  vi.  658. 

Ingle,  S.  W.,  district  attorney,  1853, 
vi.  674. 

Independent  party,  policy,  etc.,  of, 
1851,  vi.  652-5;  principles,  etc.,  of, 
vii.  365;  defeat  of,  1875,  vii.  367. 


vii.  544,  549,  565-74,  601-24,  632-3.  !  'Independence,'  ship,  v.  428. 
Huntington,  W.  V.,  vii.  633.  Indians,  reception  of  Cabrillo,  i.  70-1; 


Kurd,  C.,  biog.,  vii.  741. 

Hurtado   de    Mendoza,    exped.   1532, 

i.  5. 

Huymen,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Hyde,  G.,  alcalde  of  San  Francisco, 

1848,  vi.  6. 

HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL    50 


reception  of  Drake,  i.  83;  reception 
of  exped.,  1769,  i.  127;  habits  of,  i. 
147;  cemeteries,  i.  148;  reception  of 
Pages'  exped.,  i.  185;  condition  of, 
i.  202;  iv.  52-3,  195-7;  vii.  474-5: 
Yumas  entertain  Anza,  i.  222;  re- 


786 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


ception  of  Heceta  and  Bodega,  i. 
'242;  Yumas  assist  Anza's  party,  i. 
260-1;  punishment,  1776,  i.  265; 
flight  of,  at  S.  F.  1776,  i.  291;  con- 
version, i.  296;  rite  of  confirmation, 
i.  321,  328;  neophyte  population, 
1790,  i.  387;  Vancouver's  acc't  of, 
i.  527;  neophyte  desertions,  i.  584; 
alcaldes  and  regidores  for,  i.  505; 
treatment  of,  i.  590-3;  ii.  163-4, 
415-16;  vii.  476-9;  epidemic  at  Sta 
Barbara,  ii.  2;  epidemic  among, 
1801,  ii.  120;  land  concession  to 
Russ.,  ii.  297;  friars' report  on,  1815, 
ii.  327;  baptisms  and  deaths,  1811- 
20,  ii.  394-5;  Colorado  tribes,  1821, 
ii.  442;  tribes  punishing  converts, 
ii.  506;  affairs  at  S.  Diego,  1826,  ii. 
549;  partial  emancipation,  iii.  231; 
population  in  1840,  iii.  699;  policy 
of  Gen.  Vallejo,  iii.  723;  iv.  70-2; 
settlers'  relations  with,  iv.  137-8, 
228;  Walla  Wallas  at  Sutter's  fort, 
1846,  v.  300-2;  co.  of,  at  Sutter's 
fort,  1846,  v.  359;  missions,  vii. 
475-6;  agents,  vii.  482-5;  reserva- 
tions, vii.  483-4,  489-94. 
Indian  hostilities  (raids,  retaliation, 
etc.),  raids,  attack  at  S.  Diego,  1769, 
i.  138;  1775,  i.  249-55;  hostility  at 
S.  F.,  i.  295;  burn  S.  Luis  Obispo 
miss.,  i.  298-9;  attack  Olivera's 
force,  1790,  i.  465;  hostility  of, 
1794-9,  i.  547-9;  hostility  at  S. 
Juan  Bautista,  i.  558-9;  revolt  at 
S.  Luis  Obispo,  i.  690;  hostilities  of, 
1804-6,  ii.  34-5;  attack  at  San  Jose 
miss.,  1805,  ii.  138;  murder  Padre 
Quintana,  ii.  388;  revolt  of,  1824,  I 
ii.  527-8;  massacre  of  gentiles,  iii.  i 
323^;  hostilities  of,  1831-5,  iii.  358- 
62;  depredations  in  S.  Diego  dist, 
183G-9,  iii.  614-15;  depredations  by, 
18315-40,  iv.  67-73;  hostility,  1842, 
iv.  338;  attack  Fremont's  camp, 
1846,  v.  25;  hostilities,  1846-8,  v. 
566-9;  massacre  at  Paum£,  v.  567; 
raids,  1850-9,  vii.  482-5;  other 
troubles  with,  1777,  i.  314-16;  in 
S.  F.  dist,  i.  708-12;  1781,  i.  351; 
1795,  i.  652-3;  troubles  at  S.  Ga- 
briel, 18)1,  ii.  323-4;  1845,  iv.  543- 
5;  horse  thieving  by,  1843—4,  iv. 
361,  409;  expeditions  against,  Fages' 
exped.,  1783,  i.  479-80;  Amador's 
exped.,  1797,  i.  710;  Moraga's  ex- 
pad.,  1810  and  1819,  ii.  91,  336-7; 
exped.,  1804,  ii.  132;  exped.,  1812- 
•14,  ii.  324-5;  exped.,  1819,  ii.  254; 


Sanchez'  exped.,  ii.  335;  exped., 
1826-30,  iii.  109-14;  Sutter's  exped., 
V.  104,  608;  Mormon  bat.,  exped., 
v.  489. 

Industrial  school,  state,  vii.  722. 

Industries  at  Ross,  1821-30,  ii.  639. 

Iniestra,  gen.,  raises  force  in  Mex. 
for  Cal.,  iii.  534;  proposed  exped., 

1844,  iv.  404,   528-9;   death  of,  v. 
33. 

Inquisition,  Lasuen   commissary   for, 

1,  579;  actions  in  Cal.,  1811-20,  ii. 
412. 

'Institute  of  Mechanic  Arts,'  at  S.  F., 

vii.  721. 

Insurance,  1852-81,  vii.  159-60. 
Inyo  county,  creation,  etc.,  of,   1866, 

vii.  442;  mines  of,  vii.  651. 
Iowa  Hill,  mining  camp,  vi.  355,  483. 
Irish    colony,    McNamara's    scheme, 

1845,  v.  215-23. 

Iron,  manufact.  of,  vii.  94;  ore,  vii. 
658. 

Iron  works,  vii.  94. 

Irrigation,  works  erected  at  S.  Diego. 
1810,  ii.  106;  advantages  of,  vii, 
8-9;  progress  of,  vii.  9-11;  riparian 
rights,  vii.  11-14;  legisl.  concern- 
ing, vii.  428-30,  742. 

Irwin,  Gov.  I.,  biog.  of,  vii.  367. 

'Isaac  Todd,'  Eng.  ship,  ii.  204,  271- 

2,  382. 

'Isabella,'  ship,  ii.  93-5;  iv.  251;  v. 

511,  514. 

Isbel,  Dr  J.  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  12. 
Ischislekof,    gov.    of   Sitka,    1828,  ii. 

650-1. 
Itnrbide,  actions  in  Cal.  affairs,  1821- 

3,  ii.  430,  450,  456,  483-5,  614,  642. 
Iturbide,   S.    M.,  Imestra's   proposed 

exped.,  iv.  528. 

Iturrigaray,  viceroy,  names  Sta  Ines 
miss.,  ii.  28. 


J. 


Jackass  gulch,  mining  camp,  vi.  374. 

Jacks,  David,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  721. 

Jackson,  J.  P.,  vii.  525. 

Jackson,  John  O.,  treas.  S.  P.  &  Ne- 
vada R.  R.,  1859,  vii.  557. 

Jackson,  S.,  biog,  vii.  67. 

Jackson,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  512. 

Jacumeno,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  338. 

James,  H.  B.,  S.  F.  sup't  of  schools, 
vii.  720. 

James,  J.  C.,  biog.,  vi.  682. 

James,  J.  G.,  biog.,  vii.  67. 


INDEX. 


787 


For  information  concerning  pioueers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Jamul  rancho,  Ind.  outrages  at,  1837, 

iv.  68. 

Jamestown,  mention  of,  vi.  515. 
Janssens,  A.,  '  Vida  y  Aventuras,'  vi. 

99. 

Jarrett,  H.  C.,  vii.  592. 
Jesuits,    expulsion    of,    1767,    i.    32, 

113. 

Jesuit  college  of  St  Ignatius,  vii.  722. 
Jesus,  J.,  career  of,  vi.  75-6,  miners 

furnished  by,  1848,  vi.  76. 
Jewelry,  manfact.  of,  vii.  97. 
Jimenez,  exped.,  1533,  i.  5-6;  discov's 

peninsula,  i.  64. 

'John  Begg,'  ship,  ii.  475,  478,  493. 
Johns,  Lieut-col  W.  M.,  mention  of, 

vii.  469. 

Johnson,  miner,  vii.  650. 
Johnson.    J.  A.,  congressman,    1868, 

vii.  331;  biog.,  vii.  331,  367;  lieut- 

gov.,  1875,  vii.  367. 
Johnson,  J.  N.,  mention  of,  vi.  690; 

gov.,  1855,  vi.  695;  biog.,  vi.  695; 

admin.,  vi.  700,  717-18. 
Johnson,  R.,  the  New  Almaden  suit, 

vi.  558. 

Johnson,  W.,  mention  of,  vi.  16. 
Johnston,    Gen.    A.    S.,    superseded, 

1861,  vii.  282;  resignation  of,  1861, 

vii.  467;  in  command,  1861,  vii.  472. 
Johnston,  G.  P.,  duel  with  Ferguson, 

1858,  vi.  699,  729. 
Jones,  E.,  assignee  for  Adams  k  Co., 

vii.  177. 

Jones,  J.  M.,  del.  to  const,  conven- 
tion, etc.,  1849,  vi.  287. 
Jones,  John  P.,  senator,  mention  of, 

vii.  619;  stock  transactions  of,  vii. 

674. 

Jones,  N.,  mention  of,  vi.  10. 
Jones,  Com.  T.  C.,  actions  in  capture 

of    Monterey,    1842,    iv.    298-329; 

mention  of,  vi.  65;  arrival  in  Cal., 

1848,  vi.  264,  266;  with  King's  ex- 
ped., 1849,  vi.  281. 
Jones,  M.  G.,  biog.  vii.  753. 
Jones,  W.,  biog.  of,  vii.  324;  mention 

of,  vii.  469. 
Jones,  W.  C.,  lawyer  in  S.  F.  land 

case,  iii.   708;    claimant  for  S.   F. 

potrero,  iv.  673;  defends  Fremont 

at  trial,  v.  456;   claimant  for  Cal. 

ranches,    v.    619;    rept    on    Mex. 

grants,   1850,    vi.    536-7;   reply   to 

Black's  rept,  1860,  vi.  572-3. 
Jordan,  A.,  colony  project,  1792-4,  i. 

503-4,  602. 
Jordan    colony,    attempt    to    found, 

1794,  i.  503. 


Journals,  i.  42,  59;  first  issued,  1846, 
v.  291-3;  'Mormon  Prophet,'  v. 
545,  657;  'Honolulu  Friend,'  549; 
'California  Star,'  v.  552,  658;  vi. 
54-60,  111,  261;  first  in  S.  F.,  1847, 
v.  657-9;  '  Calif ornian,'  v.  659;  vi. 
54,  60;  'Star  and  Calif orniau, '  vi. 
269;  'Alta  Cal.,' v.  659;  vi.  277-8, 
280,  286,  682;  'Tulare  Post,'  vii. 
2S9;  'Democratic  Press,'  vii.  312; 
'Occidental,'  vii.  312;  'Monitor,' 
vii.  312;  'Franco- Am ericaine, '  vii. 
312;  'Echo  du  Pacifique,' vii.  312; 
'News  Letter,'  vii.  31 '2;  'Placer 
Times,' vi.  460;  'Sacramento  Tran- 
script,' vi.  460;  'Settlers  and 
Miners'  Tribune,'  vi.  460;  'Sacra- 
mento Index, '  vi.  460;  '  Sacramento 
Union,'  vi.  460;  vii.  611;  'Sacra- 
mento Record,'  vi.  460;  'Demo- 
cratic State  Journal, 'vi.  460;  'So- 
nora  Herald/  vi.  470;  'Union 
Democrat,' vi.  470;  'The  Journal,' 
vi.  471;  'Alameda  Post,'  vi.  479; 
'Alameda  Eucinal,' vi.  479;  'S.  F. 
Chronicle,'  vii.  400,  611;  'Vallejo 
Recorder,'  vii.  583;  'Stockton  In- 
dependent,'vii.  597;  'S.  F.  Bulle- 
tin,'vii.  598,  611;  'S.  F.  Call, 'vii. 
611;'  Cal.  Mining  Journal, '  vii.  644; 
'Mining  and  Scientific  Press,'  vii. 
644;  'S.  F.  Stock  Report,'  vii.  674. 

'  Joven  Guipuzcoana, '  ship,  iv.  12,  15, 
35,  37,  95,  312,  332,  340. 

Juan  de  Fuca  strait,  explored,  1792, 
i.  506. 

Juan  Rodrigues  island,  Cabrillo  dies 
at,  i.  77. 

'  Juanita '  ship,  v.  32. 
!  Juarez,  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  19. 
!  Judah,  Col  H.  M.,  mention  of,  vii.  469. 

Judah,  T.  D.,  R.  R.  survey  by,  1855, 
vii.  538;  the  S.  F.  R.  R.  convention, 
1859,  vii.  543-4;  chief  engin.  C.  P. 
R.  R.,  1861,  vii.  544;  bill,  etc.,  of, 
vii.  548-9. 

Judiciary,  admin,  of  justice,  ii.  424- 
5,  677;  iii.  189-93;  vii.  222-33; 
crimes,  678-9;  districts  establ'd, 
etc.,  1850,  vi.  316-17;  Mex.  land 
titles,  1851,  vi.  543-76;  mission 
lands,  vi  562-5;  pueblo  lands,  vi. 
565-70;  descript.  of,  vii.  220-50; 
the  constit.  of  1849,  vii.  222; 
amendments  to  constit.,  1862,  vii. 
233-6;  the  new  constit.,  1879,  viL 
378-82;  proposed  changes  in,  1886, 
vii.  430-1;  members,  1889,  vii.  735- 
6. 


788 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


'Julia, 'ship,  v.  399. 

'Julia  Ann,'  ship,  iv.  210. 

Julian,  town,  vii.  641. 

Julian   Discovery,    quartz  mine,   vii. 

641. 

Julien,  N.,  biog.,  vii.  37. 
'Junius,'  ship,  iii.  24. 
'Juno,'  Eng.  man-of-war,  v.  217. 
'Juno,'   Amer.    ship,    voy.    to    Cal., 

1806,  ii.  66-7. 

Junta,  in  Mex.  or  Cal.,  1825,  iii.  2-6. 
Junta   departamental.      See   Diputa- 

cion. 

Juries,    the   new   constit.,    1879,  vii. 
-    378. 


'  Kadiak, '  Russ.  ship,  ii.  80. 
Kalloch,    I.  S.,  mayoralty,    etc.,    of, 

vii.  412,  420,  691. 
Kane,  M.,  appraiser,  1857,  vi.  711. 
Kane,   Y.  L.,  aids  Mormons,  v.  471; 

'The  Mormons,'  v.  476. 
'Karimoko,'  ship,  smuggling  adven- 
ture, iii.   133-5. 
Kate  Hayes,  mine,  vii.  638. 
Kavanaugh,    Bishop,  arrest,  etc.,  of, 

1864,  vii.  309. 
Kearny,  Gen.,  march  from  New  Mex., 

1846,    v.    334-9;    controversy   with 

Stockton    and    Fremont,    1847,    v. 

411-68;  designs,   etc.,   of,   1847,  vi. 

259-61;    land   policy   of,    1847,    vi. 

568. 
Kearney,     D.,    career,    etc.,    of,    vii. 

354-62. 

Kearsarge,  mines,  vii.  651. 
Kelley's    'Memoir  on  Or.  and  Cal.,' 

iii.  409-11;  iv.  147. 
Kellogg,  Lieut,  at  Ft  Point,  1861,  vii. 

464. 

Kellogg,  Col  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  469. 
Kellogg,   Hewston  &   Co.,  Adams   & 

Co.'s  failure,  vii.  176. 
Kelly,  Daniel,  vii.  617. 
Kelsey,  party  to  Cal.,  1844,  iv.  344-5. 
Kelsey,  diggings  opened  by,  1848,  vi. 

74. 

Kehey,  a  mining  centre,  1849,  vi.  353. 
Ketnble,   E.   C.,  editor  of  'California 

Star,'  1818,  vi.   55;  remarks  of,  vi. 

55,  57,  59-61;  journey,  etc.,  of,  vi. 

55;  biosr. ,  vi.  60. 

Kendall.  Amos,  aids  Mormons,  v.  471. 
Kenfield,    D.,  state   controller,   1880 

vii.  408. 
Kennedy,   J.    F.,  nominee  for  lieut- 

gov.,  1859,  vi.  723. 


'Kent,'  ship,  iii.  710. 

Kern  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  518;  creation, 

etc.,  of,  1866,  vii.  442;  first  quartz 

mill  in,  vii.  630. 
Kern  river,  Fremont's  party  at,  1846, 

v.  6;   mining  on,    1854-5,    vi.  377, 

392-3. 
Kessler,  J.  F.,  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vii. 

664. 
Kewen,  E.  J.  C.,  attorney -gen.,  1849, 

vi.  314. 
Keyes,  Capt.  E.  D.,  at  S.  Fe,  1849, 

vii.  448. 

Keyser,  S. ,  mention  of,  vi.  16. 
'Kiakhhta,'  ship,  ii.  640,  648-50. 
King's  river,  named,  ii.  45;  exped.  at, 

1806,  ii.  55;  Ind.  exped.  to,   1839, 

iv.  75;  Fremont's  party  at,  1846,  v. 

6. 

King,  Clarence,  geologist,  vii.  644. 
King,    T.    B.,    mention   of,    vi.    279; 

tour  of,  1849,  vi.  281;  report  of,  vi. 

281-2;   biog.,   etc.,  vi.  283;   candi- 
date for  U.  S.  senate,  1849,  vi.  311- 

12. 
King,  Rev.  T.  S.,  lectures,  etc.,  of, 

vii.  287;  church  at  S.  F.,  vii.  729- 

30. 

King,  Golden  Chariot  mine,  vii.  641. 
King  of  William,  J.,  murder  of,  1856, 

vi.    746-7;    banking   operations   of, 

vii.  160-1. 
Kingsbury,   Major  J.  J.  B.,  mention 

of,  vii.  448. 

Kinkead,  John  H.,  vii.  586. 
Kino,    labors    of,    i.    21-2;    sees   Cal. 

from  Gila   junction,   1699,  i.  67-8; 

map,  222;  efforts  to  establish  miss., 

i.  353. 
Kimball,    address   at   Mormon    bat., 

remon.,  v.  475. 

Kip,  Lieut,  at  Ft  Foint,  vii.  464-5. 
Kip.  W.  I.,  mention  of,  vii.  728-30. 
Klamath  county,  mining  in,  vi.  365; 

creation  of,  1851,  vi.  503;  hist,  of, 

vi.  505. 
Klamath  lake,  Fremont  on,   1846,  v. 

24. 
Klamath  reservation,  mention  of,  vii. 

490. 

Klamath  river,  mining  on,  vi.  365. 
Knight's  Ferry,  trading  post  establ'd 

at,    1848,    vi.    76;    mention   of,  vi. 

514. 

Knight's  Landing,  mention  of,  vi.  499. 
Knight,    H.  L.,  career,  etc.,  of,  vii. 

356—60 
Knight,   W.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  17; 

mention  of,  vi.  76. 


IXDEX. 


789 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vola.  II  to  V. 


Knownothing  party,  organization  of, 
vi.  691;  proceedings,  etc.,  of,  1854, 
vi.  691-701. 

Knutson,  Iver,  vii.  617. 

Kohler,  C.,  mention  of,  vii.  48-9; 
biog.  of,  vii.  101. 

Krebs,  C.  T.,  asst  seer.  S.  P.  R.  R.,  vii. 
633. 

Kremer,  Benedict,  Russ.  proclama- 
tion, 1810,  ii.  296. 

Krusenstern,  voy.  of  1803-6,  ii.  64-5, 
68. 

'Kutusof,'  ship,  ii.  216,  283,  441, 
642. 


La  Brea,  controversy  over.  ii.  171. 
La  Grange,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 
La  Jaboueria,  Stockton's  forces  at,  v. 

390. 
La  Paz,    Cal.    exped.    leaves,  i.    120; 

captured  by  Walker,  1853,  vi.  598. 
La    Puente  rancho,    protest   against 

grant,  1842,  iv.  331. 
La  Purisima,  events  at,  1791-1800,  i. 

675-6;  condition  of,   1844,  iv.  421; 

sale  of,  1845,  iv.  553. 
La  Rue,  H.  M.,  biog.  of,  vii.  741. 
La  Zanja.     See  S.  Rafael  rancho. 


grants  by  Pico,  1846,  v.  276;  legisL 
action,  etc.,  concerning,  1&50,  vi. 
326-8;  squatter  troubles,  vi.  328- 
35;  mission,  vi.  562-5;  pueblo,  vi. 
565-70;  titles  to,  vi.  529-81,  755-60; 
vii.  227-33,  691;  private  claims,  vi. 
634-5;  Gwin's  bill,  vi.  634-5;  act 
of  congress,  1851,  vi.  635;  commis- 
sion appointed,  vi.  636;  appropria- 
tions for  surveys,  etc.,  of,  1S51— 4, 
vi.  636;  homestead  act,  1802,  vi. 
639;  preemption  rights  granted, 
1853,  vi.  639;  school  and  college 
grants,  vi.  639-41;  taxation  of,  vii. 
383-4;  disposal  of,  vii.  393-4. 

Lander,  E.,  the  S.  F.  R.  R.  conven- 
tion, 1859,  vii.  543. 

Landman,  Capt.,  mention  of,  vii.  466. 

Lane,  Senator,  policy  of,  vii.  275. 

Lane,  Ft,  established,  1853,  vii.  462. 

Langlois,  Anthony,  organizes  St 
Francis  church,  vii.  726. 

Lankershim,  J.  B.,  biog.  of,  vii.  37. 

Lansing,  C.  L.,  sec.  S.  P.  R.  R.,  vii. 
632. 

Laplace,  'Campagne  de  Circumnavi- 
gation, '  iv.  153. 

Laquisimes  river,  fight  with  Inds,  iii. 
112-13. 

Larkin,  H.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  375. 


Labor  question,  gentiles  or  neophytes,    Larkin,  T.  O.,  doc.  for  hist,  of  Cal., 


ii.  174-5. 
Labor  agitations,  1877-8,  vii.  348-62, 

687-9. 

Lacatint,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Ladd  &  Co.,  memorial  in  Honolulu, 

1836,  iv.  141. 

'Ladoga,'  ship,  iii.  410,  644-5. 
'Lady  Blackwood,'  ship,  ii.  478. 
'Lady    Washington,'    ship,    off   Cal. 

coast,  1788,  i.  445-6. 
Lafayette,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  527. 
Laguna  Seca,  treaty  of,  1844,  iv.  469. 
Lake,  Judge  D.,  biog.,  vii.  239. 
Lake    county,    hist,    of,    vi.    509-10; 

creation,  etc.,  of,  1861,  vii.  442. 
Lake  Merced,  named,  i.  247. 
Lake  Tahoe  R.  R.,  vii.  591. 
Lakeman,  J.  M.,  vii.  590. 
Lakeport,  mention  of,  vi.  509. 
Lancey,  work  of,  i.  42. 


i.  49-50;  capture  of,  1846,  v.  364-,"; 
the  gold  fever,  1848,  vi.  70;  mem- 
ber of  legisl.  council,  1847,  vi.  2i>0; 
del.  to  constit.  convention,  etc., 
1849,  vi.  285-6;  biog.,  285-6. 

Larned,  Major  C.  £1.,  at  Ft  Steila- 
coorn,  1852,  vii.  461. 

Las  Animas  rancho,  ii.  594. 

Las  Flores,  Ind.  pueblo  established, 
iii.  339;  campaign  of  1838,  iii.  558- 
61 ;  treaty  of,  562-3. 

Las  Pozas,  proposed  site  for  miss. ,  i. 
552. 

Las  Pulgas  rancho,  ii.  592. 

Las  Verjeles,  capture  of  Larkin  at, 
1846,  v.  364. 

Las  Virgenes  rancho,  ii.  Ill,  354. 

Lascano,  Estevan,  sindico  at  S.  Bias, 
1806-7,  ii.  166. 

Lassen,  P.,  mention  of,  vi.  16,  493. 


Lancha  Plana,  town,  mention  of,  vi  I  Lassen  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  493-4; 
513.  organized,  etc.,  1864,  vii.  442. 

Land,  distribution,  1781,  i.  346-8;  Latham,  M.  S.,  nominee  for  congress, 
1801-10,  ii.  170-3;  Argiiello's  sur- I  1852,  vi.  671;  nominee  for  gov., 
vey,  347;  tenure  of,  early  hist.,  i.  !  1859,  vi.  723;  biog.  of,  vii.  251; 


607;  grants,  1794-8,  610-13;  list  of 
grants,  1795-1800,  i.  661-3;  decree 
of  Spanish  cdrtes,  1813,  ii.  414; 


senator,  1860,  vii.  253-4;  policy, 
etc.,  of,  vii.  255,  260-1,  274;  suc- 
ceeded by  Sargent,  1863,  vii.  301-2; 


790 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


speech  of,  vii.  547;  B.  11.  affairs  of, 
vii.  583-5. 

Lathrop,  H.  B.,  vii.  587. 

Laughborough,  J.,  the  St  Louis  R.  R. 
convention,  1849,  vii.  509;  pamph- 
let of,  vii.  511-13. 

'Lausanne, 'ship,  iv.  96,  120,  136,  171. 

Law,  delegate,  mention  of,  vii.  547. 

Lawrence,  W.  H.,  biog.  of,  vii.  736. 

Lawton,  Franklin,  originator  of  stock 
exchange,  vii.  667-8. 

Lawton,  Wm  W.,  vii.  668. 

Leather,  manufact.  of,  vii.  91-2. 

Leavenworth,  alcalde,  projects  Long 
Wharf,  1849,  vi.  196. 

Lecomptonites,  party,  mention  of,  vi. 
718-27;  policy  of,  vii,  254-5. 

Lee,  Capt.  J.  F.,  judge  adv.  at  Fre- 
mont trial,  v.  456. 

Lee,  Maj.  R.  B.,  com.  for  land 'claims, 
v.  465. 

Lee,  Lieut  S.  P.,  in  Wilkcs'  exped., 
iv.  241. 

Lee,  T.  R.,  adjutant  of  militia,  1850, 
vi.  319. 

Leese,  J.  P.,  mention  of,  vi.  20;  at 
YerbaBuena,  1836,  vi.  164. 

Legislative  council,  appointed  by 
Stockton,  v.  433. 

Legislature  (see  also  Diputacion),  es- 
tablishment of,  1822,  ii.  461;  elec- 
tions for.  ii.  462;  session,  1823,  ii. 
486;  1824,  ii.  512-14;  1825,  iii.  7-8; 
1849-50,  vi.  308-36;  1853-4,  vii. 
534-5;  1860-1,  vii.  251-79;  1861-2, 
vii.  293-4;  1863-4,  vii.  295-307, 
555-7;  1865-6,  vii.  319-22;  1867-8, 
vii.  327-9;  1869-76,  vii.  237,  363-9; 
1880,  vii.  409-13;  actions  of,  1826- 
30,  iii.  33-8,  42-3;  actions  in  Her- 
rera  affair,  1827,  iii.  62-3;  actions 
in  re  live  stock,  iii.  127;  Victoria  re- 
fuses to  convene,  1831,  iii.  187-9; 
at  L.  Angeles,  1832,  iii.  216-20; 
proceedings,  1849-50,  vi.  309-36; 
1851,  vi.  646-7;  1852,  vi.  659,  665- 
70;  J853,  vi.  675-6;  1854-9,  vi. 
684—727;  financial  measures  of, 
1851-7,  vi.  604-21;  extravagance  of, 
vi.  605,  614-25;  land  tenure,  1852, 

1856,  vi.  572;  members  of,  vi.  309- 
10;  1851,  vi.  644;  1852,  vi.  656-7; 
1853,   vi.    674-5;    1854,   vi.    681-2: 
1855,   vi.  692-3;    1856,    vi.    698-9; 

1857,  vi.  704-5;   1858,  vi.  714-15; 
1859,  vi.  721-2;  the  Smith  case,  etc., 
1861,  vii.  212-14;  the  constit.  con- 
vent., 1881-7,  vii.  416-36;  1878,  vii. 
368-70;    the  constit.    of   1849,   vii. 


370-1;  of  1879,  vii.  376-93;  recent 
acts  and  members,  vii.  734-5. 
Leidesdorff,  Wm  A.,   death  of,  1848, 
vi.  192;  character,  vi.  193;  mention 
of,  vii.  716. 
Leland   Stanford    jr   university,    vii. 

720-1. 

'Lelia   Byrd,'   ship,    trading   exped., 
1803,  ii.    10-14;  tight  at  S.   Diego, 
13;  on  coast,  1804,  ii.  21. 
Lent,  Senator  W.  M.,  mention  of,  vi. 

686. 

Leonard,  A.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
'Leonidas,'  ship,    iii.   435,   465,    481, 

580;  iv.  82. 
'Leonor,'  ship,  iii.   49,   142,   421;  iv. 

82. 

'Levant.'U.  S.  ship,  v.  199,  224,  254. 
Lewis,   Col   C.    H.,    mention   of,  vii. 

470. 

Lewis,  J.  E.  N.,  biog.,  vi.  657. 
Lewis,  T.  B.,  vii.  604. 
Lewis,  W.  J.,  vii.  537,  581. 
'Lexington,'  ship,  v.  429,   449,    514, 

519,  583. 
Lick,    James,    bequests   of,   vii.    693, 

720-3,  737. 
Light,  A.  S.,  vii.  641. 
Light-houses,  1850-6,  vii.  138. 
Liguaytoy,    Ind.    tribe,   treaty  with, 

1836,  iv.  71. 
Limaiitour,   fraudulent   claim   of,   vi. 

561;  vii.  243-4. 
Linayto,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Lincoln,  President,  reelection  of,  310- 

11;  assassination  of,  vii.  311-13. 
Lindley,  Hervey,  biog.  of,  vii.   759. 
Lingley,  G.  B.,  first  school  law,  vii. 

718. 

Linschoten,  'Itinerario/i.  95. 
Liquors,  manufact.  of,  vii.  86. 
Literature  (see  also  '  Journals '),  vii. 

723-6. 
Little,  J.  C.,  raising  Mormon  bat.,  v. 

471-3,  478. 
Little,    Wm  C.,   signed   memorial  in 

Honolulu,   1836,  iv.  141. 
Little  Fork,  mention  of,  vi.  486. 
Little  river,  first  name,  i.  242. 
Liverinore,    R.,   rancho  of,    1848,  vi. 

10. 

Livermore,  mention  of,  vi.  527. 
'Llama,'  ship,  iv.  85,  90. 
Llano  de  Buenavista  rancho,  ii.  615. 
Llave,     minister,    on     opposition     of 

padres,  iii.  19. 

Loans,  military,  1851-2,  vii.  456-7. 
Loaquiomi,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Locke,  D.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  751. 


INDEX. 


791 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Regitter,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Lockeford,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
Locnoina,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Locomotives,  manufact.  of,  viL  95. 
Loeb,  L.,  biog.,  viL  188. 
Loeser,  Lieut,  mention  of,  vi  115. 
Logan,   H.  C.,  member  stock  board, 

viL  668. 

Lok,  map  of,  1582,  L  108. 
Lombardo,     minister,     Mex.    colony 

scheme,  iiL  263. 

Lompoc  colony,  mention  of,  vi.  522. 
Long,  miner,  vii.  641. 
Long,    Lieut-col  S.    H.,   of  court  at 

Fremont  trial,  v.  456. 
Long    Bar,    mining  on,    1848,  vi.  72; 

mention  of,  vL  359,  361. 
Long  Hairs,  party,  viL  317-19. 
Longenour,  J.  D.,  biog.,  vii.  747-8. 
'Loo  Choo,'  transport,  v.  511,  513. 
Lorenzana,    A.,    image  for    miss.    S. 

Carlos,  1770,  L   170;  confirms  Cal. 


education  at,  1844,  iv.  403;  tumults 
at,  1845,  ir.  522-3;  diputacidn  at, 
1846,  v.  36-41;  flight  of  Castro  and 
Pico,  v.  277;  Stockton  enters,  v. 
279-81;  Gillespie  in  com'd  at,  1846, 
v.  286;  actions  of  Gillespie,  v.  305- 
11;  retaken  by  Calif ornians,  v. 
314-15;  affairs  at,  1846,  v.  329-34; 
Pico's  revolt,  v.  333;  affairs  at, 
1846,  v.  355-6;  Stockton  enters,  v. 
396-7;  Mormon  battle  at,  v.  489; 
Stevenson's  regt  at,  v.  514-15;  ex- 
plosion at,  1847,  v.  585:  local  an- 
nals of,  1846-8,  v.  624-8;  hist  of, 
vL  521;  pueblo  lands  in,  vi.  567; 
railroads,  viL  594,  616,  633;  first 
Eng.  school  at,  185),  vii.  7)8. 

Los  Angeles  county,  Ind.  raids  in,  vii. 
486;  hist,  of,  vi.  521-2. 

Los  Angeles  and  Santa  Monica  R.  R., 
viL  616. 

Los  Angeles,  San  Diego  and  Yuma  R. 


Ind.,  L  192. 
Loreto,  Rivera's  com'd  at,  i.  115,  308-  i      R.,  vii.  633. 

9;  Cal.  land  exped.  leaves,  L   122;  .  Los  Cerritos,  rancho,  v.  320. 

news  of  Cal.  occupation  rec'd  at,  L  '  Los  Coronados  islands,  named,  L  99. 

124;  Rivera  starts  from.  L  218.          j  Los  Coyotes,  Stockton's  advance  to, 
'Loriot,*  ship,  iiL  288,  289,  365,  367; ;      1846,  v.  388. 

iv.  85,  146.  '•  Los  Gatos,  mention  of,  vi.  525. 

Los  Angeles,   founded,   L  344-6;  list ,  Los  Metos  rancho,  grant  of,  1784,  L 

of  settlers,  viL  437;  i.  345,  460;  iL  j      609,  662. 


349;  maps  of,  1786,  L  348-9;  map 
of  region,  1800,  i.  660;  map  of  dist, 
1800-30;  ii.  352;  events  at,  1786- 
90,  L  460-2;  1791-1800,  L  659-63, 
1801-10,  ii.  110-13;  1811-20,  iL- 
349-53;  1821-30,  ii.  557-64;  1831- 
40,  iiL  629-40;  water  supply  at,  iL 
92;  increase,  1810,  iL  168;  hemp 
culture,  ii.  179-80;  ayunt.  at,  iL 
461-2,  676;  foreign  residents,  ii. 


Los  Ojitos,  Castro  at,  1S46,  v.  262. 

Los  Tularcitos  rancho,  ii.  594. 

Los  Verdngos,  CalHornians  at,  v.  402; 

council  at,  v.  403. 
Lott,  C.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  736. 
Loughly,  W.  R.,  mention  of,  vL  73. 
Lovett,  W.  E.,  defeat  of,  1875,  vii.  367. 
Low,  Col,    plan   to  build    R.    R.    to 

Pacific,  iv.  222. 
Low,  C.  A.,  stock  transactions  of,  viL 


558;    actions  of  ayunt.,  iL   560-1;  *      674. 

Dnhant-Cilly  at,   iiL   130;  troubles  \  Low,  F.  F.,  gov.  1863,  viL  303-4;  can- 

at,    1831,    iiL    195-7;    battle  near,  I      didate  for  sen.,  1865,  vii.  317;  men- 

1831,  iii.    203-8;     legislature    at,        tion  of,  vii.  562;  biog.  of,  vii.  306. 

1832,  iiL   216-20;  revolt  at,    1835,    Low,   F.  L.,  congressman,  1861,  vu. 
iiL  281-6;  1845,  iv.  540-1;  v.  307-       291. 

11;  the  capital,   1835,  iiL  292,  416; ,  Lower  California,  occupation  of,  i.  24; 

1845,  iv.  519;  committee  of  vigi-  j  natives  in  exped.,  i.  132-4;  cession 

of  miss,  to  Dominicans,  L  192-3; 
trouble  in,  1774,  L  235;  J.  Arguello 
appt'd  gov.,  iL  207;  joined  to  the 
com'd  of  Sonora,  iii.  54;  Stev.  regt 


lance,  iiL  417—19;  opposition  to  Al- 
varado,  iii.  493;  Alvarado  enters 
city,  iii.  501 ;  seizure  of  by  Bandini, 
iiL  518;  Castillero  at,  iii.  521; 
Carrillo  assumes  office  at,  iiL  534; 
Castro  takes  possession,  iii.  556; 
Carrillos  arrested  at,  iii.  565-6; 
plot  to  assassinate  Alvarado,  iiL 


in,  v.  514;  Lt  Col  Burton  sent  to, 
v.  583;  repub.  of,  procl'd,  etc.,  1853, 
vL  595-6. 
Luddington,  Lt  R,  v.  477. 


568;    tumult   at,    1839,    iii.    588-9;    Lull,  'Exposicion,' i.  581. 
smuggling  transactions  at,   iv.  95;    Lull,    Miguel,    guardian    ot^S.    Fer- 
gold  discovered,    1842,   iv.   296-7; ,      nando,  1812,  iL  398. 


792 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Lumber  manufactures,  vii.  76-8. 

Lux,  C.,  biog.,  vii.  747. 

'Lydia,'  ship,  capture  of,  1816,  ii.  213; 
seizure  of,  1816,  ii.  275-8;  mention 
of,  ii.  382. 

Lyon,  C.,  assist  sec.  to  constit.  con- 
vention, 1849,  vi.  290. 

Lyons,  H.  A.,  assoc.  judge,  1849,  vi. 
314;  election,  etc.,  of,  1850,  vii. 
220. 


M 


McAllister,  H.,  lieut,  1849,  vii.  454; 

the  New  Almaden  suit,  vi.  558-9; 

at  Benicia,  1861,  vii.  466-7. 
McAllister,   Judge    M.    H.,   appoint- 
ment, etc.,  of,  vii.  237. 
McCall,  Maj.  G-.  A.,  v.  456. 
McCarthy,  D.  0.,  vii.  609. 
McCarver,  del.  to  constit.  convention, 

1849,   vi.   287;   measures,   etc.,   vi. 

291-2. 
McCleave,    Col  W.,  mention  of,  vii. 

469. 
McClelland,  congressman,  R.  R.  bill 

reported  by,  1848,  vii.  505. 
McCollough,    J.    G.,     attorney -gen., 

1863,  vii.  304. 

McCord,  Miss.,  school  at  Fremont, 
vii.  717. 

McCullough,  Secretary,  R.  R.  affairs 
of,  vii.  572-3. 

McDonald,  gen.  of  militia,  1850,  vi. 
319. 

McDougal,  Gov.  J.  del.  to  constit. 
convention,  1849,  vi.  286;  speeches, 
etc.,  of,  vi.  291-5;  lieut-gov.  of  Cal., 
1849,  vi.  305;  gov.  of  Cal.,  1851,  vi. 
645;  biog.,  vi.  645;  president  of  con- 
vention, 1854,  vi.  688-9, 

McDougal  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vi.  448, 
450. 

McDougall,  J.  A.,  senator,  1860,  vii. 
273-4;  biog.,  vii.  273;  censure  of, 
vii.  302;  mention  of,  vii.  547; 
nominee  for  congress,  1852,  vi.  671; 
nominee  for  congress,  1854,  vi.  690. 

McDowell,    Gen.     I.,    in    command, 

1864,  vii.  471;  1864,  vii.  472;  1876, 
vii.  472. 

McDowell,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  498. 

McFarland,  T.  B.,  supreme  court 
judge,  1887,  vii.  434. 

McGarrahan  case,  the,  vi.  561. 

McGarry,  Col  E.,  mention  of,  vii.  469. 

McGarvey,  Robert,  vii.  589. 

McGinnis,  John,  consecrates  St  Fran- 
cis church,  vii.  726. 


McGlashan,  C.  F.,  'Hist,  of  Donner 

party,'  i.  42;  v.  536-7. 
McGlynn,  J.  A.,  vii.  315. 
McGowan,  E.,  pres.  of  convention, 

1854,  vi.  688-9 

McGregory,  Archibald,  vii.  617. 
Mclntosh,  E.  M.,  raucho  of,  1848,  vi. 

20. 

Mclntosh,  Stephen  D.,  signed  memo- 
rial in  Honolulu,  1836,  iv.  141. 
McKendry,  Col  A.,  mention  of,    vii. 

470. 
McKee,  R.,  Ind.  agent,   1850-2,  vii. 

482-5. 
McKee,  S.  B.,  supr.  court  judge,  1880, 

vii.  409. 

McKenna,     J. ,    congress,     delegate, 
1880,  vii.  408;  congressman,   Ib87, 
vii.  435;  biog.,  vii.  435. 
McKibben,  congressman,  mention  of, 

vi   722-3. 
McKinstry,   Major,  plan  to   conquer 

Cal.,  1843,  iv.  395. 

McKinstry,  Judge  E.  W.,  election  of, 
1873,   vii.    236;    supr.   court  judge, 
1880,  vii.  409. 
McKinstry,    G.,    sheriff    of    Sutter's 

Fort,  1847,  vi.  14. 
McLaughlin,  C.,  R.  R.    contract  of, 

etc.,  1859,  vii.  537,  567. 
McLellan,  Golden  Chariot  mine,  vii. 

641. 

McMeans,  Treasurer,  S;  A.,  defalca- 
tion of,  vi.  617. 
McMahon,  Clyman,  Co.,  to  Cal.  1845, 

iv.  572-4. 
McNamara  colonization  scheme,  1845, 

v.  215-23. 

McNutt,  Dr  W.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  731. 
Machado,  mention  of,  vi.  80. 
Machin,  T.  N.,   lieut-gov.,   1863,  vii. 

303-1. 

Maclay,  C.,  biog.,  vii.  369. 
MacNeil,  H.  L.,  biog.,  vii.  185. 
Macomber,  F.  S.,  vii.  662. 
Macomber,  H.  S.,  vii.  662. 
Macondray,    F.    W.,    pres.    of    State 

Agric.  Soc.,  1854,  vii.  63. 
Madden,  D.  W.,  vii.  561. 
'  Magallanes, '  Manila  ship,  i.  545,  670. 
Mailliard,  A.,  vii.  590. 
Mails,  1848-50,  vi.  128-9,  138;  legisl. 
etc.,  concerning,  1855-8,  vi.  726-7; 
contracts,   etc.,   1851-6,  vii.   143-5; 
pony  express,  vii.  146;  post  offices, 
vii.  147;  cost  of  service,  vii.  147-8; 
in  1861,  vii.  281;  1847-9,  vii.  453. 
Maitorena,    F.,    habil   gen.  for   Cal., 
1812,  ii.  421. 


INDEX. 


793 


For  Information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,'\ola.  II  to  Y. 


Maize,  cultivation,  etc.,  of,  vii.  25. 
Malaca,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
'Malek  Adhel,' ship,  v.  326. 
Mallou,  John,  biog.  of,  vii.  758-9. 
Mamaneli,  Nicolas,  petition  to  make 

trading  voy.  from  Cal.,    1794-5,  L 

627. 
Mangino,   Fernando    I.,    rep.    of,    i. 

214-15. 
Manila,  galleon  of,  arrives  at  Mont. 

1779,  i.  330;  effect  of  gold  discov. 

in  Cal.,  vi.  124-5. 
Mansfield,    J.,    lieut-gov.,   1880,    vii. 

408. 

Mansfield,  T.,  vii.  590. 
Manufactures,  at  miss.,  ii.  175;  1821- 

30,  ii.  665;  in  San  Francisco,  1856, 

vi.  782-3;  vii.  683;    drawbacks  to, 

vii.  68,  72-3;  mining,  etc.,  vii.  69- 

70;    lumber,    etc.,    vii.    70,    76-8; 


S.  Jose,  i.  350;  Palou's,  1787,  L 
407;  S.  Diego,  1782,  L  456;  La 
Perouse's,  i.  434;  Sta  Barbara, 
1788,  L  464;  La  Perouse's,  of  S.  F., 
i.  475;  Cal.  of,  1792,  L  508;  Van- 
couver's, 1794,  i.  528;  S.  Diego  dist, 
1800,  i.  650;  L.  Angeles  region, 
1800.  L  660;  Sta  Barbara  dist,  1800, 
L  667;  Monterey,  i.  691;  S.  F., 
1792,  i.  695;  Castillo  de  S.  Joaquin, 
i.  699;  S.  F.  dist,  i.  703;  Tulare 
valley,  ii.  49;  S.  Joaquin  val.,  ii. 
51;  Bodega  bay,  1775,  ii.  81;  S. 
Diego  dist,  1801-30,  ii.  105;  Mon- 
terey dist,  ii.  145;  Pacific _coast, 
1818,  ii.  290;  Bodega  &  Ross,  ii. 
300;  L.  Angeles  dist,  1800-30,  ii. 
352;  S.  Francisco  dist.  1800-30,  ii. 
376;  Contra  jCosta,  ii.  499;  Sta 
Barbara  dist,  1830,  ii.  577;  S.  F. 


agric.     machinery,    vil    70-1,    96;  j      bay,     1826,     ii.     589;    S.    F._dist, 
canneries,  vii.  71,  86;  leather,  etc.,        1830,  ii.  593;  Russian  settlements, 


vii.  71,  91-3;  woollen,  vii.  71,  75, 
88;  jute,  etc.,  vii.  71;  paper,  vii. 
71,  101 ;  effect  of  Chinese  labor  on, 
vii.  71-3;  of  the  war,  vii.  73;  of  the 
railroad,  vii.  73;  volume,  etc., 
1860-89,  vii.  73-4;  prospects  for, 
vii.  75;  ship-building,  vii.  78-9; 
vehicles,  vii.  79-80;  cooperage,  vii. 
80;  box-making,  vii.  80;  willow- 
ware,  vii.  80-1 ;  billiard-tables,  vii. 
81;  pianos,  vii.  81;  flouring-mills, 
vii.  84;  beer,  vii.  85-6;  liquors,  vii. 
86;  soda-water,  vii.  8(5;  cotton,  vii. 
88-9;  silk,  vii.  89;  clothing,  etc., 
vii.  89-90;  furniture,  vii.  90;  bed- 
ding, vii.  80-1;  carpets,  vii.  91; 
cordage,  vii.  91 ;  soap,  vii.  93;  pig- 
ments, vii.  93;  brushes,  vii.  94;  iron, 
etc.,  vii.  94-7;  copper,  etc.,  viL  97; 
jewelry,  vii.  97;  bricks,  vii.  98; 
marble,  vii.  98;  clay,  vii.  98-9; 
glass,  vii.  99;  powder,  vii.  99-100; 
matches,  vii.  100;  meat-packing, 
vii.  86-7;  sugar,  vii.  87;  cigar,  vii. 
87-8;  in  1889,  vii.  748. 

Manuscript  diaries,  i.  50-8. 

Maps,  California,  i.  1;  northern  New 
Spain,  i.  8;  where  did  Drake  land  ? 
i.  86;  from  Arcano  del  Mare,  1647, 
i.  87;  Arcano  del  More,  L  88; 
Hondius,  i.  88;  Vizcaino's,  i.  100, 
103;  Spanish  chart,  1742,  i.  106; 


ii.  629;  Mont,  dist,  1830,  ii.  617; 
Coulter's,  iii.  407;  S.  Rafael  lands, 
1834,  iii.  717;  Forbes'  1839,  iv. 
152;  Simpson's,  iv.  22ljNew  Hel- 
vetia, 1841,  iv.  230;  Wilkes^ 
1841,  iv.  244;  Fremont's,  1844,  iv. 
442;  Mofras',  of  Cal.,  iv.  254; 
region  north  of  bay,  v.  _j65;  S. 
Francisco,  1848,  v.  677;  vi.  8; 
central  Cal.,  1848,  vi.  5;  scene  of 
gold  discovery,  1848,  vi.  30;  Mor- 
mon Island,  vi.  48;  Tuolumne_to 
Trinity,  vi.  68;  Isthmus  route,~~vi. 
131;  Nicaragua  transit  route,  vi. 
139;  from  the  Missouri  to  Great 
Salt  Lake,  vi.  147;  across  the 
desert,  vi.  153;  burnt  district  (San 
Francisco),  May  1851,  vi.  204; 
northern  mines,  1849-50,  vi.  368; 
southern  mines,  1849-50,  vi.  369; 
Humboldt  bay  region,  vi.  501; 
Lower  California,  vi.  597;  head- 
quarters of  vigilance  committee, 
vi.  748;  San  Francisco,  1856-7,  vi. 
756;  rnilit.  reserv.  S.  F.,  1849,  viL 
453. 

Marble,  vii.  662-3. 

Marcou-Jules,  essay  on  the  name  Cal., 
criticism,  i.  67. 

Marcy,  Sec.,  orders  Gen.  Kearny  to 
CaL,  v.  197;  comni'n  on  Stevenson 
reg.,  v.  499. 


ancient,  i.  109;  movements  of  dis-  j  Marcy,  W.  G.,  seer,   to  cons  tit.  con- 

coverers,  i.  161;  Fout's,  1776,  i.  263;        vention,  1849,  vi.  290. 

peninsula  of  S.  F.,  i.  281;  Colorado  I  Mare  Island,  site  for  navy  yard,  etc., 

miss.,   i.    359;  L.    Angeles,    1786,  i.  j      vi.  630-1. 

348;  pueblo  of  L.  Angeles,   i.  349;    'Maria  Bate,'  ship,  iii.  48. 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


'Maria  Teresa,'  ship,  iv.  524,  601. 

Marin  county,  name,  etc.,  vii.  438. 

Marin,  peninsula,  name,  etc.,  vi.  21. 

Marine  list,  iii.  146-9. 

Mariposa  county,  mining  in,  1849-56. 
vi.  377-8,  415;  hist,  of,  vi.  olfel'4) 
515-16;  division  of,  1852,  vii.  209; 
name,  etc.,  vii.  440. 

Mariposa  mine,  vii.  666. 

Mariposa,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  516. 

Mariposa,  name  first  applied,  ii.  53. 

Maritime  affairs,  see  shipping. 

Markham,  H.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  753. 

Marquesas  islands,  effect  of  gold  dis- 
cov.  in  Cal.,  vi.  125. 

Marquez,  R.,  trading  license,  1793,  i. 
627. 

Marquina,  viceroy,  urges  division  of 
two  Cals,  1800,  ii.  20. 

Marsh,  C.,  director,  Cent.  Pac.  R.  R., 
1861,  vii.  544. 

Marsh,  Dr  J.,  letter  of,  iv.  348;  men- 
tion of,  vi.  10. 

Marshall,  E.,  at  San  Jose",  1848,  vi.  9. 

Marshall,  E.  C. ,  candidate  for  senate, 
1856,  vi.  697. 

Marshall,  J.  W.,  biog.,  vi.  27-8;  ex- 
ped.,  etc.,  of,  1847,  vi.  28-9;  char- 
acter and  career,  vi.  31-2,  97-107; 
the  gold  discov.,  1848,  vi.  32-41, 
47. 

Marston,  teacher,  school  at  S.  F., 
1847,  vii.  717. 

Martell,  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  97. 

Martiarena,  Juan,  sindico  for  Cal. 
miss.,  1819-25,  ii.  398,  418,  458, 
518,  657;  app't'd,  iii.  319;  death  of, 
iii.  351. 

Martin,  D.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 

Martin,  E.,  biog.,  vii.  184-5. 

Martinez,  I.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  10. 

Martinez,  Lt-col  M.,  app't'd  to  Cal., 
1832,  iii.  236. 

Martinez,  Pedro,  procurador  for  Cal., 
1812,  ii.  398. 

Martinez,  mention  of,  vi.  527. 

Marvin,  J.  G.,  supt  pub.  instruction, 
vii.  718. 

'Maryland,'  ship,  iv.  207,  224,  250. 

Marysville,  hist,  of,  vi.  463-5;  promi- 
nence of,  vi.  487. 

Marysville  &  Benicia  R.  R.,  mention 
of,  vii.  581. 

Mason,  Col  R.  B.,  rule  of,  1847-8,  v. 
582-615;  proclamation  of,  1848,  vi. 
64;  report,  etc.,  of,  1848,  vi.  115- 
16;  gov.  of  Cal.,  1847-8,  vi.  260-2; 
vii.  445;  difficulties  of  adininistr., 
vi.  272-4;  death,  vi.  274. 


Masons,  society,  mention  of,  vii.  706-7. 
Massett,  S.  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  243. 
Mata,  Capt.  Juan  de,  pirate  on  Cal. 

coast,  1828-30,  iii.  53. 
'Matador,'  ship,  iv.  562. 
Matches,  manufact.  of,  vii.  100. 
Matheson,  Col  R.,  death  of,  1862,  vii. 

297. 
Maury,  Lieut  M.  F.,  mention  of,  vii. 

508. 

Maxey,  A.  E.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
May,  Julius,  vii.  585. 
Mayacma,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Mayer,  Simon,  vii.  608. 
Mayhew,  J.  A.,  vii.  587. 
Mayorga,   viceroy,   offl    acts   in  CaL 

affairs,  1779-82,  i.  325,  379,  382. 
Mazatlan,    Sloat   at,     1846,    v.    201; 

blockade  of,  1846,  v.  284. 
Meat-packing,  mention  of,  vii.  86-7. 
Mechanics'  institute,  vii.  693. 
Meiggs,    Alderman  H.,    defalcations, 

etc.,  of,  1854,  vi.  765. 
Memphis,  R.  R.  convention  at,  1849, 

vii.  510. 
Mendocino  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  508-9; 

name,  etc.,  vii.  439;  first  R.  R.  in, 

vii.  589. 

Mendocino  R.  R.  co.,  vii.  589. 
Mendocino  reservation,  mention    of, 

vii.  490. 
Menendez,  A.,  Mex.  consul  at  Lima, 

1845,  iv.  555. 

Menlo  park,  mention  of,  vi.  526. 
Merced    county,    creation,   etc.,     of, 

1855,  vii.  441. 

Merced  river,  expedt.  at,  1806,  ii.  54. 
Merced,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  516. 
Merchant,  Col  C.  S.,  vii.  282,  465-6. 
'Mercury,'  ship,  hunting  expedt.,  ii. 

79,  93-5;    deserters  from,  ii.  87-8; 

seizure  of,  1813,  ii.  202,  268-70. 
Merrill,  J.  C.,  vii.  604. 
Merritt,  E.,  operations,  1846,  v.  109- 

10. 

Merry,  W.  L.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Mesa,  Campo  de  la,  Castro  with  force 

at,  1846,  v.  266,  272. 
Mesa,  the,  battle  of,  v.  395-6. 
Mexican  cortes,  deputy  chosen,  1822, 

ii.  453-4. 
Mexican    land    titles,     1851-87,     vi. 

529-81. 

'Mexicana,'  voy.  of,  1792,  i.  506-7. 
Mexicans,  persecution  of,  vi.  403-5; 

indolence  of,  vi.  429-30. 
Mexico,    news   of   Monterey  occupa- 
tion, i.  173;  Serra's  labors  in,  1773, 

i.  207-19;  preparations  to  colonize 


INDEX. 


795 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Regitter,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Cal.,  1775,  i.  258;  controversy  in,  [ 
17S 1-2,  i.  379-80;  reeuforcements 
from,  i.  540-1;  ii  252-t;  appropri- 
ations for  Cal.,  1801-10,  ii.  102; 
revolution  in,  ii.  104;  effects  in 
Cal.,  ii.  105-7;  Guerra's  miss,  to, 
1819,  ii.  261-2;  independence  pro- 
claimed, 1821,  ii.  430;  manifestos 
of  imperial  junta,  1822,  ii.  450-1; 
Iturbide  proclaimed  emperor,  ii. 
456;  fears  of  Cal.  in  1822,  ii.  455; 
agent  sent  from,  ii.  455-6;  actions 
of  cong.,  1824,  ii.  515-16;  con- 
stitution ratified,  ii.  563;  fears  of 
Russians,  ii.  642;  Junta  de  Cal.  in, 
1825,  iii.  2-6;  Spaniards  driven 
from,  iii.  32;  Guerra elected  to  cong., 
1827-8,  iii.  33;  Maitorena  elected 
to  cong.,  iii.  45;  aid  from,  1825-30, 
iii.  58;  treaty  with  England,  1829, 
iii.  136;  actions  of  cong.,  1831,  iii. 
214-15;  deputies  to  congress,  1834, 
iii.  258,  292;  Wrangell's  miss,  to, 
1S36,  iv.  167-9;  Prudon's  miss,  to, 
1842,  iv.  281-5;  Eng.  claim  against, 
iv.  298;  Com.  Jones  affair,  iv. 
323-5;  war  prospects  with  U.  S., 
1844,  iv.  406;  C'astanare's  acts  in, 
1844,  iv.  412-18;  1845,  iv.  5'24-(5; 
Alvarado,  diputado  to  cong.,  1846, 
v.  31;  CaL  representatives  in,  v. 
32;  preparations  for  exped.,  1846, 
v.  33;  U.  S.  war  with,  v.  191-207; 
flight  of  Pico  and  Castro  to,  v. 
277-8;  efforts  to  assist  Cal.,  1846, 
v.  409-10;  orders  suspending  sale 
of  miss.,  1845,  v.  560-1;  treaty  of 
Gnad.  Hidalgo,  v.  590-2;  effect  of 
gold  discov.  in  Cal.,  1848,  vi.  113; 
Morehead's  filibust.  exped.  to,  1851, 
vi.  584;  Raousset's,  1852-4,  vi. 
585-92;  Walker's,  1853-60,  vi 


593-600;  Crabb's,  1857,  vi.  601-2. 
Mexican  congress,  elections  for  cong. 

1839-40,  iiL  590;  1843,  iv.  361. 
Mezzara,  P.,  vii.  723. 
Micheltoreua,  gov.,  rule  of,  1843,  iv.  :  Millerton,  mention  of,  vi.  517. 

350-67;  1844-5,  iv.  40 1-20,  455-517.  ,  Mills,  C.  T.,  Mills  college,  vii.  721-2. 
Middletown,  mention  of,  vi.  509.          ;  Mills,  D.  O-,  gifts  of,  viL  720;  biog. 


98-103;  1811-20,  ii.  340-4;  1831-40, 
iii.  608-10;  records  Sta  Barbara, 
1791-1800,  i.  665;  1801-10,  ii.  116- 
18;  1811-20,  ii.  358-32;  1821-30,  ii 
570-3;  1831-40,  iii.  650-3;  records 
Monterey,  1791-1800,  i.  677-82; 
1801-10,  ii.  140-2;  1811-20,  ii.  379- 
81;  1821-30,  ii.  607-11;  1831-40, 
iii.  671-2;  records,  S.  F.,  1791-1800, 
i.  692-702;  1801-10,  ii.  125-6; 
1811-20,  ii.  370-2;  1821-30,  ii. 
583-8;  1831-40,  iii  700-3;  artillery 
co.  organized,  1805,  ii.  30;  force  in 
Cal.,  1801-10,  ii  189-90;  arrival  of 
reinforcements,  1819,  ii.  252-4; 
character  of  troops,  ii  254-5;  force 
on  duty,  1811-20,  ii.  422-3;  1821- 
30,  ii.  672-5;  complaint  of  troops, 
1826-8,  iii  39-40;  hard  times  with 
troops,  1826-30,  iii  56-9;  revolt  of 
troops,  1828-9,  iii  66-84;  causes, 
iii.  67-71;  Vallejo's  organization 
scheme,  iii.  590-1;  condition  of  es- 
tablishments, 1811,  iv.  197-8;  con- 
vict troops  from  Mex.,  iv.  287-90; 
expedition  prepared  in  Mex.,  iv. 
527-9;  reorganization  of  insurgents, 
1846,  v.  179,  184;  militia,  organi- 
zation, etc.,  vi.  318-20;  vii  280-3, 
454-71;  rule,  etc.,  of,  1848-9,  vii. 
445-54;  disposition,  vii  446-51, 
461;  desertions,  vii.  446-50;  loans 
and  appropr's,  vii  456-7;  defences, 
1861,  vii.  463-7. 

Military  junta,  at  Monterey,  1846,  v. 
41  -i,  59-63. 

Miller,  A.,  biog.,  vii.  185. 

Miller,  Major  A.  S.,  mention  of,  vii. 
448. 

Miller,  E.  H.,  sec.  Cent.  Pac.  R.  R,, 
vii.  546-7,  599,  634. 

Miller,  H.,  biog.,  vii.  67. 

Miller,  J.,  biog.,  vii.  747. 

Miller,  J.  F.,  senator,  1881,  vii.  417- 
18;  biog.,  vii.  417;  death  of,  1886, 
vii.  431. 


of,  vii.  183. 
Mills  college,  vii  721. 
Millville,  mention  of,  vi.  493. 


Mier,  S.,  of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex.,  1825- 

7,  iii.  3. 

Miles,  N.  A.,  biog.  of,  vii.  758. 
Military,  Echeveste's  plan  for  Cal.,  i.    Mineralogist,  state,  office  created,  vii. 

211;  reinforcements  arrive,  1796,  i.        644. 

540-1;   expenses  of  establishment,    Minerals,  miscellaneous,  vii.  662-4. 

1799,  i   545;    force  in  terr.,  1791-    Miners,  characteristics,  etc.,  of,  1848, 

1800,  i.  634-7;  salaries  paid,  i  634;  j      vi.  86-96. 
discipline,  i.  636;  records  S.  Diego,  [  'Minerva,'  ship,  ii.  642. 
1791-1SOO,  i.   645^51;   1801-10,  ii  |  Mines,  R«v.  F.  S.,  vii  718,  728. 


796 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Mining,  soldiers  killed  while  pros- 
pecting, i.  465-6;  mines  discovered 
in  S.  F.  dist,  1795,  i.  705;  Goycoe- 
chea's  views,  ii.  33;  early  attempts, 
1802,  ii.  144;  Ortega's  discovery, 
1800,  ii.  176;  Sola's  report  on,  1818, 
ii.  417;  discoveries,  1821-30,  ii.  666- 
7;  discovery  of  the  New  Almaden, 
v.  3;  gold,  1848,  vi.  67-81;  1848-56, 
vi.  351-83;  methods  and  yield,  1848, 
vi.  85-9,  409-26;  geologic  theories, 
vi.  381-5;  regulations,  vi.  396-402; 
taxes,  vi.  404-6;  quartz,  1850-6,  vi. 
415-18;  vii.  636-45;  yield,  etc., 
1848-56,  vi.  418-26;  statutes  and 
decisions,  vii.  228-9;  tax  on,  1864, 
vii.  300;  effect  of  speculation,  vii. 
372-3;  improvements  in,  vii.  639; 
quartz  miners'  convention,  vii.  641; 
origin  of  companies,  vii.  642;  school 
of  mining,  vii.  643;  hydraulic  min- 
ing, vii.  640,  645-8;  ditches,  vii. 
645;  debris,  vii.  646-8;  capital  in- 
vested, vii.  648;  river  bed,  vii.  649; 
silver,  vii.  649;  table  of  productions, 
vii.  652;  expense  and  profit,  vii. 
653;  gold  nuggets,  vii.  653-5;  de- 
cline of  mining,  654-5;  quicksilver, 
vii.  656-9;  iron,  vii.  658;  copper, 
vii.  658-9;  borax,  vii.  659;  salt,  vii. 
659;  sulphur,  vii.  660;  tin,  vii. 
660-1;  coal,  vii.  661;  petroleum,  vii. 
661-2;  asphaltum,  vii.  662;  mineral 
soap,  vii.  662;  limestone,  vii.  662; 
marble,  vii.  662;  gypsum,  vii.  662; 
lead,  vii.  662;  manganese,  vii.  662; 
plumbago,  vii.  662;  miscellaneous 
minerals,  vii.  663-4;  stocks,  vii. 
666-80,  687-8;  mining  companies, 
vii.  666;  Fraser  river  excitement, 
vii.  682. 

Mining  machinery,  manufact.  of,  vii. 
94-5. 

Minns,  Geo.  W.,  vii.  720. 

Mint,  bills  for  establishing,  vi.  628-9; 
establ'd,  etc.,  vi.  629;  vii.  167-8; 
appropr.  for,  1852,  vii.  167. 

Miranda,  agent  in  Spain  for  Gov. 
Borica,  1794,  i.  728. 

Miranda,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  20. 

Misroon,  Lieut,  miss,  of,  1846,  v.  156- 
9. 

Missions,  archives  of,  i.  47-8;  S. 
Diego  founded,  i.  137;  S.  Carlos 
founded,  i.  170-1;  S.  Antonio 
founded,  i.  176-7;  S.  Gabriel 
founded,  i.  179-80;  S.  Luis  Obispo 
founded,  i  188-9;  number  of  friars 
at,  1773,  L  200;  military  force,  i.  ' 


200;  conversions  in  first  five  years, 
i.  201;  Serra's  report  on,  1773,  i. 
212-13;  want  at,  1774,  i.  220;  S. 
Diego  moved,  i.  229-30;  second  ann. 
report  on,  i.  238-9;  attempt  found- 
ing S.  Juan  Cap.,  i.  248;  destruction 
of  S.  Diego,  1775,  i.  249-55;  alarm 
at  S.  Antonio,  i.  256;  S.  F.  estab- 
lished, i.  292;  progress  at,  1776-7, 
i.  298-306;  1791-1800,  i.  575-99, 
654-9,  671-6;  Cuadra  presents 
image  to,  i.  329;  extension  plans, 
1781,  i.  338;  new  regulations  for, 
i.  374-5;  list  of  friars  at,  1783,  i. 
388;  Sola's  plan  to  secularize,  i. 
394-6;  Gov.  Pages' report  on,  i.  408; 
successor  to  Serra,  i.  416-17;  war 
contributions  of,  i.  428;  La  Perouse 
on,  i.  435-8;  events  at,  1783-90,  i. 
455-60.  466,  468-70,  473-7;  1811- 
20,  ii.  392-412;  1791-180!),  i.  654-9, 
671-6,  685-90,  712-15,  722-5;  Sta 
Cruz  founded,  i.  493-5;  search  for 
sites,  1794-5,  i.  550-4;  S.  Jose 
founded,  i.  555;  S.  Miguel  founded, 
i.  559-60;  S.  Fernando  founded,  i. 
561-2;  S.  Luis  Key  founded,  i.  563- 
4;  industries  at,  1800,  i.  617-18; 
land  controversies,  1802,  ii.  7;  Pres. 
Tapis  report,  1803-4,  ii.  26-9;  Sta 
Ines  founded,  ii.  28-9;  regulations 
for,  1806,  ii.  41-2;  agric.  at,  1801- 
10,  ii.  104-5;  manufactures  at,  ii. 
175;  statistics  of,  1801-10,  ii.  107, 
108,  110,  115,  116,  121,  123,  132, 
137,  138,  148,  149,  151,  153,  154; 
1811-20,  ii.  346,  347,  349,  350,  355, 
358,  364,  366,  368,  374,  377,  380, 
383,  384,  385,  387,  390;  1821-30,  ii. 
567,  578,  580,  581,  582,  5<»5,  596, 
599,  601,  602;  iv.  62-4,  616,  619, 
620,  622,  624;  1831-40,  ii.  552,  554, 
556;  contributions,  1817,  ii.  217; 
Sola's  report  on,  1818,  ii.  250-2; 
supplies  from,  1818-20,  ii.  257-9; 
1822,  ii.  479-80;  1831,  iii.  310; 
presidents  of,  1811-20,  ii.  396-8; 
1821-30,  ii.  657;  1831-3,  iii.  338; 
cession  of,  in  s.  Cal.,  1817,  ii.  407- 
11;  report  on,  1822,  ii.  460;  condi- 
tion, 1821-30,  ii.  655-7;  1836,  iv. 
42-3;  1841,  iv.  194-5;  supplies  and 
finances,  1825,  iii.  20-3;  prefect 
audpres't,  1826-30,  iii.  87;  proposed 
secularization,  1830-1,  iii.  301-10; 
secularization  of,  iii.  346,  353;  iv. 
43-4,  546-7;  destruction  of  prop- 
ertyr'348;  slaughter  of  cattle.  348- 
9;  acts  of  authorities,  1836-8,  iv. 


INDEX. 


797 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


44-6;  new  miss,  proposed,  iv.  48;  [ 
plunder  of,  iv.  49-51 ;  reglamentos,  ! 
1839,  1840,  iv.  55-6,  58-60;  acts  of 
visitador  gen.,  iv.  57-8,  61-2;  man- 
agement of,  1842,  iv.  330-2;  decree 
of  restoration,  iv.  330;  local  items, 
iv.  331;  decree  restoring  to  friars, 
1843,  iv.  369-71;  change  effected, 
iv.  370;  lands,  iv.  371;  tithes,  iv. 
372;  report  on  southern  miss.,  1844, 
iv.  421-2;  secularization  of  S.  L. 
Obispo,  iv.  423;  grant  of  lands  to 
the  church,  iv.  424;  sale  of  estates 
for  war  expenses,  iv.  425;  Pico's 
policy,  iv.  547;  debts,  iv.  548;  reg- 
ulations for  sale  and  renting,  iv. 
549-53;  sale  of  estates,  1846-8,  v. 
558-64;  eccl,  v.  535-6;  land  claims 
of,  1845-58,  vi.  5(52-5." 

Mission  bay  lands,  donation  of,  vii. 
579.  -_^^ 

Missouri,  immigrant  parties  organized 
in,  1840,  iv.  265. 

Mixton  war,  i  10. 

Modesto,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 

Modoc  county, creation,  etc.,  of,  1874, 
vii.  443;  hist  of,  vi  495-6. 

Moffat  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vi.  629. 

Mofras,  'Exploration,'  i.  40;  iv.  253; 
visit  of,  1841-2,  iv.  240-55. 

Mojave  desert,  Garces  exped.,  1776, 
i.  277. 

Mo.iaves,  raids  of,  vii.  486. 

Mo'telumne  City,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 

Mokeluume  Hill,  trading  post,  1848, 
v  .  77;  gold  deposits  of,  vi.  373; 
mention  of,  vi.  512. 

Mokelunme  river,  mining  on,  1848, 
vi.  74,  77. 

Mouasterio,  minister,  instructions  on 
secularization,  iii.  325-6. 

Monk,  Hank,  vii.  723. 

Mouo  county,    hist,    of,    vi.    518-19; 

.  creation,  etc.,  of,  1861,  vii.  442; 
mines  of,  vii.  652—3. 

Monoville,  vi.  519. 

Monroe,  designs  in  re  CaL,  1805,  ii 
32. 

'  Monsoon,'  ship,  iv.  93. 

Montague,  S.  S.,  vii.  568. 

Montanya,  J.    de  la,  biog.,  vii.  754. 

Monterey,  failures  to  occupy,  1607-8, 
i.  23;  'Extracto  de  Noticias,'  L  38; 
Cabrillo's  name  for,  L  76;  Vizcaino 
at,  i.  101-2;  named,  L  101;  occupa- 
tion of  ordered,  i.  113,  114;  unsuc- 
cessful search  for,  i.  150-1;  causes 
of  the  error,  i.  152-5;  discovery  of, 
168-70;  want  of  supplies,  L  187;  j 


buildingsat,  1773,  i.  204;  Rivera  ar- 
rives at,  i.  226;  Anza  brings  his  force 
to,  L  268;  immigrants  left  at,  269; 
Ind.  fright  at,  1776,  i.  298;  Manila 
galleonat,  i.  330; presidioco;npleted, 
i.  331;  court  scandal  at,  1784,  L 
391-3;  La  Perouse's  reception,  i. 
430-1;  events  at,  17S3-'JJ,  i.  466-8; 
1791-1800,  L  677-85;  1801-10,  ii. 
140-6;  1811-20,  ii.  379-83;  1821- 
30,  ii.  607-15;  1831-40,  iii  667-9; 
1845,  iv.  514-16;  1846,  v.  288-93; 
council  at,  to  app't  temp,  gov.,  L 
501;  Arrillaga's  arrival,  L  502;  re- 
ception of  Vancouver,  L  511,  518— 
19;  Gov.  Borica'a  journey  to,  i. 
532-3;  military  force,  i.  677;  build- 
ings, i.  681;  battery,  i.  682;  maps,ii 
145,  617,  691;  mining  excitement, 
1800,  ii.  176;  reception  to  Gov. 
Sola,  1814,  ii.  208-9;  preparations 
for  defence,  1818,  ii.  222-4;  Bou- 
chard attack,  ii.  225-34;  Padush- 
kin  at,  ii.  313;  education  at,  1811- 
20,  ii  427-8;  vaccinating  at,  1821, 
ii  441;  junta  at,  1822,  ii.  451;  Can- 
onigo  Fernandez  arrives,  ii  457; 
raising  of  new  flag,  ii  459;  execu- 
tion of  Pomponio,  ii.  537;  foreign 
residents,  1821-30,  ii  6J9;  ayunt. 
at,  ii  676;  crime  at,  1821-30,  ii 
678-9;  surrender  of  Mex.  warships, 

1825,  iii    24—7;    meeting    against 
convict  settlers,    1830,  iii.  49;  free 
fight  at,  1830,  iii.  49-50;  revolt  at, 

1828,  iii  66;  revolting  troops  take, 

1829,  iii    69;  recaptured,    iii.    82; 
trial  of  rebels  at,  iii.  84-5;  flood  at, 
1827-8,  iii.  115;  chief  port  of  entry, 

1826,  iii.    117;  Beechey  at,  iii.  122; 
Duhaut-Cilly   at,    iii    129;  foreign 
trade,  1828,  iii.   131;  custom-house 
at,  1829,  iii  136;  Jedediah  Smith's 
party  at,   iii.   158;  ayunt.  at,  1831, 
iii.    182.    187:  executions  at,  1831, 
iii  190-1;  Zamorano's  revolt,  1832, 
iii.  220-9;  arrival  of  Figueroa,  iii 
238;    Padres'   Bijar  colony  at,  iii 
268;  removal  of  capital,   1835,  iii. 
293;  Figueroa's  death  at,   iii.   295; 
revenue,     1834,    iii.    3G6;    case    of 
Dona  Ildefonsa,    1836,    iii    436-9; 
revolutionary  party    attack,    1836, 
iii  459-62;  loyalty,   1836,   iii  481; 
revolt  against  Alvarado,   iii   523- 
26;  port  closed  by  Carrillo,    1838, 
iii.   545;  visit  of  Vallejo  and  Inds 
to,   iii.  598:   declared  the  capital, 
1840,  iii  606;  foreign  men-of-war 


798 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


at,  iv.  35-8;  earthquake  at,  1836, 
iv.  78;  value  of  exports,  1840,  iv. 
80;  opened  to  foreign  trade,  1837, 
iv.  82;  custom-house  officers,  1835- 
40,  iv.  96;  arrival  of  Sutter  at,  iv. 
127;  Belcher's  visit  to,  1837,  iv.  145; 
trading  regulations,  1841,  iv.  20(3; 
Hudson  B.  co.  party  at,  1841,  iv. 
212;  occupation  by  Com.  Jones, 
J842,  iv.  298-329;  revolt  of  cholos 
at,  1844,  iv.  404-5;  reception  of 
Bishop  at,  1844,  iv.  427;  Michel- 
torena's  departure  from,  iv.  512- 
13;  capital  removed,  1845,  iv.  519; 
junta  of  officers  at,  iv.  601;  mili- 
tary junta  at,  1846,  v.  41-4,  59-63; 
revenue  disputes  at,  1846,  v.  34-6; 
U.  S.  ship  'Portsmouth'  at,  v.  200; 
U.  S.  s.  'Cyane'at,  v.  203;  Com. 
Sloat  at,  1846,  v.  224,  230-3;  Stev. 
regt  at,  v.  514-15;  duties  collected 
at,  1847-8,  v.  571;  local  annals, 
1846-8,  v.  635-8;  effect  of  gold 
discov.,  1848,  vi.  63-5;  minstrel 
performances  at,  1847,  vi.  243;  first 
jury  at,  1846,  vi.  257-9;  constit. 
convention  at,  1849,  vi.  284-303; 
pueblo  lands,  vi.  567-8;  name,  etc., 
of,  vii.  4ISS;  defences,  etc.,  of,  1849, 
vii.  452-3;  Eng.  school  at,  1836, 
vii.  716. 

Monterey  county,  mention  of,  vi. 
523-4. 

Monteros,  Juan  J.  E.  de  los,  of  Oal. 
junta  in  Mex.,  1825-7,  iii.  3;  re- 
port on  Cal.  miss.  109. 

Montezuma  mine,  vii.  641. 

Moore,  B.  F.,  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, 1849,  vi.  287;  biog.,  vi.  287; 
mention  of,  vii.  197. 

Moore,  G.  R.,  purchases  Sutler's 
Russ.  claims,  iv.  186. 

Moore,  J.  B.,  postmaster,  vii.  147. 

Moore,  Jos.,  mention  of,  iv.  141. 

Moore,  Jos.,  biog.,  vii.  748-9. 

Moore's  flat,  mention  of,  vi.  486. 

Moquis,  Ind.,  recep.  of  Garces,  i.  278. 

Mora,  Pres.  of  Dom.,  actions  against 
Franciscans,  1773-4,  i.  235-7. 

Moraga,  J.,  vi.  10. 

Morales,  Gen.,  proposed  Cal.  exped., 
1846,  v.  33. 

Morchou,  N.,  claimant  for  rancho 
Cahuenga,  v.  627. 

Morehead,  J.  C  ,  quartermaster-gen, 
of  militia,  1850,  vi.  319;  filibust. 
exped.  of,  1851,  vi.  584. 

'Morelos,'  ship,  arrives  with  colony, 
1834,  iii.  9,  265-8,  366. 


Moreno,  gov.  interenos,  L.  Cal.,  i.  172. 
Moreysa,  R.,  Sindico  at  S.  Bias  for 

Cal.,  1806,  ii.  166. 
Morgan,  J.  S. ,  biog. ,  83. 
Morgan,    Maj.    E.    W  ,   of   court  at 

Fremont  trial,  v.  456. 
Mormon  battalion,  arrival  of,  v.  428; 

hist,  of,  1846-8,  v.  469-98. 
Mormon  island,  map  of,  vi.  48;  name, 

vi.  49;  mass  meeting  at,   1849,  vi. 

279-80. 
Mormons,  Ide  charged  with  belonging 

to,  v.  158;  westward  migrations  of, 

v.  469-70;  plan  to  occupy  Cal.,  v. 

470-2;    appeals    for    gov't   aid,    v. 

476;  recruiting    for   the   battle,    v. 

471;  march  of  battle,  v.  478-83;  in 

Cal.,   v.    483-98;    vi.    3;   arrival  of 

Brannan's  party,  v.  544-54;  preach- 
ing in   S.  F.,    v.   506;    at   Sutter 's 

mill,   1847,  vi.  30;  1848,  vi.  47-50; 

hist,     of    in    Cal.,    vi.    49-51;     at 

Spanish  bar,  1848,  vi.  73;  mention 

of,  vii.  727. 

Moro  Cojo  rancho,  ii.  615. 
Morrison,  the  Phil.  R.  R.  convention, 

1850,  vii.  515. 

Morrison,  P.,  at  San  Jose,  1848,  vi.  9. 
Morrison,  R.,  chief  justice,   1880,  vii. 

409;  biog.,  vii.  409. 
Morrow,  W.  W.,  congressman,   1887, 

vii.  435;  biog.,  vii.  435. 
Morse,  E.  W.,  biog.  of,  vii.,  184. 
Morse,  H.  N.,  biog.  of,  vii.  188. 
Morse,  J.  F.,   director,   Cent.    Pacific 

R.    R.,    1861,  vii.   544;   speech   of, 

1863,  vii.  550. 

Mortgages,  taxation  of,  vii.  384. 
'Moscow,'  ship,  v.  177,  279,  514. 
Moss,  J.  M.,  vii.  610. 
Moti,  Ind.  chief,  iv.  72. 
Mott,  T.  D.,  biog.  of,  vii.  634. 
Mottiyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  362. 
Moulder,  A.  J.,  vii.  719-20. 
Moulter,  Jacob,  vii.  651. 
Mount  Vernon  Mining  co.,  vii.  650. 
Mount  Diablo,  ascent  by  Dr  Saudels,— 

1842,  iv.  346. 

Montsomes,  Ind.  tribe,  i.  558. 
Mud   Springs  (see   also   El   Dorado), 

mining  at,  1849,  vi.  353. 
Mugginsville,  mention  of,  vi.  495. 
Muldrow,    Win,    purchases    Sutter 's 

Russ.  claims,  iv.  186. 
Muletown,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
Municipal     affairs.       See     'Ayunta- 

rniento.' 
Municipalities,    the    new    constitut., 

vii.  395-8. 


INDEX. 


799 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Murieta,  J.,  career  of,  vii.  203-4. 
Murphy,  B.,  biog.,  vii.  740. 
Murphy,  J.  M.,  mention  of,  vi.  76. 
Murphy,  M.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  12; 

biog.,  vii.  740. 
Murphy,  T.,  at  San  Rafael  mission. 

1848,  vi.  21. 

Murray,  manuscript,  i.  56. 
Murray,  Judge  H.  C.,  slection,  etc., 

of,  1851,  vii.  220-1;  biog.,  etc.,  of, 

vii.    224-6;    decision  of,    1854,    vi. 

324. 

Museum,  state,  vii.  644. 
Mussel  Slough  troubles,  vii.  617-18. 
Muticolmo,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Myres,  mention  of,  vii.  658. 
Myriek,    M.    H.,  supr.   court  judge, 

1880,  vii.  409. 
Myrick,  Thos  S.,  vii.  720. 


N 


Naglee,  H.  M.,  viticult.,  vii.  49;  re- 
ceiver for  Adams  &  co.,  vii.  178; 
capt.,  1849,  vii.  454;  biog.  of,  vii. 
744-5. 

Naglee  &  Sinton,  vii.  160. 

Napa,  surveyed,  1848,  v.  670;  hist, 
of,  vi.  510;  name,  etc.,  vii.  438-9. 

Napa  Consolidated  mine,  vii.  657. 

Napa  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  510-11;  aid 
to  Napa  Valley  R.  R.,  vii.  586. 

Napa  valley,  settlers  revolt  in,  1846, 
v.  77;  Merritt's  party  in,  1846,  v. 

no. 

Napa  Valley  R.  R.,  vii.  586. 
Napato,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Napoleon,  Joseph,  King  of  Spain  and 

Indies,  1808,  ii.  87. 
Napoleon  ledge,  silver  mine,  vii.  650. 
Narboua,  invites  Cal.  to  join  federa- 
t         tion,  1823,  ii.  486. 

Narratives  of  voyages,  i.  40. 
Narvaez,  J.  M.,  habiL  gen.  in  Mex., 

1818,  ii.  252. 
'Naslednik,'   ship,    iv.    187,    562;    v. 

578. 

'Natalia,'  ship,  iii.  263,  265-8,  366. 
National    Guard,    organization,    etc., 

of,   vi.   319-20;    vii.   454;   services, 

vii.  454-5. 

Native  Sons,  society  of,  vii.  707. 
Natives,  see  Indians. 
Natividad,    Graham  arrested  at,   iv. 

12,  18-22:  tight  at,  1846,  v.  366-72. 
Natividad  rancho,  ii.  615. 
Naturalization,    regulations    on,    iii. 

177-8. 


Nauvoo,  migration  of  Mormons  from, 

v.  469. 
Neva,  Gen.  Pedro  de,  offl  acts  in  Cal. 

affairs,    1790-5,    i.    398,    448,    485, 

491,  502-3,  573,  610. 
Navarrette,  M.  F.  de,  bibliog.,  i.  69, 

87,  98,  509. 
Navarro,  G.  G.,   dispute  with  Serra 

referred  to,    1780,   i.   323;   advises 

land  grants  in  Cal.,  i.  609. 
Navarro,  J.,  1836,  iv.  141. 
Navarro  y  Noreiga,    report  on   Cal. 

pop.,  1810,  ii.  158. 
Navy  Yard,  site  for  selected,  vi.  630; 

appropriations     for,      1851-6,     vi. 

630-1. 

Neal,  at  Long  Bar,  1848,  vi.  71. 
Negrete,  Cal.  trade  with,  1811-20,  ii 

420. 

Neophytes,  see  Indians. 
Nesmith,  T.  L.,  biog.  of,  vii.  634. 
Nesselrode,  Count,  complains  of  Russ. 

in  Cal.  1817,  ii.  314-15. 
Nevada,  mining  regulations  in.  1852, 

vi.    399-400;  R.   R.   affairs  in,  vii. 

559-60,  568. 
Nevada  Bank,  vii.  678. 
Nevada  City,   mining  at,   1850-6,  vi. 

357;  hist,  of,  vi.  470-2;  mention  of, 

vii.  590;  churches  of,  vii,  729. 
Nevada  county,  mining  in,  1850-6, 

vi.  356-7;  hist,  of,  vi.  485-7. 
Nevada  County  Narrow  Gauge  R.  R., 

vii.  590. 

Nevada  &  Cal.  R.  R.,  vii.  590. 
Nevada  &  Oregon  R.  R.,  see  Nevada 

&  Cal.  R.  R. 
Neve,  Gov.  Felipe  de,  rule  of,  1775- 

82,  i.  306-83. 
Nevins,    Col  J.  T.,   school  in  S.  F., 

1850,  vii.  718-19. 
New  Albion,  Drake  names,  i.  84. 
New  Almaden  mine,  mention  of,  vi. 

525;  suit  for  possession  of,  vi.  554- 

61;  output  of,  efc.,  vii.  656-7. 
New  Helvetia,  see  Sutter's  fort. 
New  Hope  (see  also  '  Stanislaus '), 

Mormon     settlement,      v.     552-3; 

founding  of,  1848,  vi.  11. 
New  Idria  mines,  mention  of,  vi.  561; 

vii.  657. 
New    Mecklenburg,    mention   of,   vi. 

463. 

New  Mexico,  conquest  of,  i.   11;  re- 
volt in,  i.  18;  aunals  of,  1701-19,  i. 

26-8;  plan  to  open  communication, 

i.  573;  proposed  route  to,   ii.  3-4; 

traders  in  Cal.    1831-5,   iii,   30.")  ti; 

trade  with,   1836-40,  iv.  80;  Sutter 


800 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


in,  iv.  124-5;  overland  trade,  1841, 

iv.  207;  Kearny's  march  from,  1846, 

v.  334-9. 
New  Orleans,  R.  R.   convention   at, 

1849,  vii.  510. 
New  York,   raising  of  Stev.  reg't  at, 

v.    502-3;    departure   of    Mormons 

from,  v.   545-6. 
'  Newcastle,'  ship,  iii.  364. 
Newhall,    H.     M.,    mention    of,    vii. 

610;  biog.  of,  vii.  186. 
Newspapers,  see  Journals. 
Nicaragua,     transit   across,    1849-56, 

vi.  140;  Walker  in,   1855,  vi.  599- 

600. 

Nicasio  rancho,  iii.  717. 
Nichols,  J.  G.,  vii.  718. 
Nickerson,  Thos,  vii.  615. 
Niebaum,  G.,  biog.,  vii.  187. 
Niel,  P.,  'Apuntaciones,'  i.  87. 
'  Nieves, '  ship,  iii.  9. 
'  Nikolai, '  Russ.  ship,  iv.  159,  171. 
Niles,  Judge,  A.  C.,  election  of,  vii. 

235. 

'Niles  Register,'!.  42:  iv.  139. 
'Ninfa,'  ship,  iv.  249.' 
Nipaguay,  S.  Diego  miss,  moved  to, 

i.  230. 

Niza,  Marcos  de,  expedt.,  i.  7. 
Nogueyra,    names     friars    for     Cal., 

1796,  i.  554. 
Nogueria,  elected   to  prelacy,   1795, 

ii.  9. 
Nome    Cult,    Ind.    reservation,     vii. 

491. 

Nome  Lacke,  Ind.  reserv,,  vii.  490. 
Nootka,     Spanish     post    established, 

1789,  i.  505;  attempt   to  settle,  i. 

506;  settlement  abandoned,  i.  524. 
Nordhoff,  mention  of,  vi.  523. 
North    Bloomfield,    mention    of,    vi. 

486. 
North  Pacific  Coast  R.   R.,  vii.  589, 

591. 

North  San  Juan,  mention  of,  vi.  486. 
North  Star  mine,  vii.  641. 
Northern  mystery,  chief  element  of, 

i.  107-8. 

Northern  Railway  co.,  vii.  590. 
Norton,  M.,  mention  of,  vi.,  279,  295; 

lieut,  1849,  vii.  454. 
Norwich,  recruiting  for  Stev.  reg't  at, 

v.  502. 

Nouveau  Monde,  mining  co. ,  vii.  666. 
'Nouvelles  Anuales  des  Voyages,'  i. 

Nueva  Galicia,  conquest  of,  i.  10. 
'  Nueva  Reina  de  Loa  Angeles, '  ship, 
ii.  292. 


Nueva   Vizcaya,  province  formed,  i. 

11;  miss,  dists  of,  i.  14-22. 
Nunan,  Matthew,  biog.  of,  vii.  749. 
Nunez,  Alvar.,  escape  of,  i.  6-7. 


0 


Oakdale,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 
Oakland,    hist.,    etc.,    of,    vi.    475-7, 

526;  the  labor  riot,  1877,  vii.  354, 

360;  R.  R.  terminus,  vii.  580,  686- 

7;  churches  of,  vii.  730. 
Oakland  ferry,  vii.  578-91. 
Oakland  Water  Front  co.,  vii.  579. 
Oats,  yield,  etc.,  1860-80,  vii.  25. 
O'Brien,  W.  S.,  death  of,  vii.  680. 
'  O'Cain, '  Amer.    ship,  ii.  25,   39-40, 

79,  82,  84,  93-5. 
Ochejamnes,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  600. 
Odd  'Fellows'  Society,  vii.  706-7. 
O'Donnell,  C.  C.,  the  labor  agitation, 

1877,  vii.  359;  coroner  of  S.  F.,  vii. 

691. 
Ogden,  Major  C.,  arrival  of,  1849,  vii. 

447. 
Ogden,  W.  B.,  pres't  of  Phil.  R.  R. 

convention,  1850,  vii.  513,  516. 
Ogden  R.  R.  junction,  vii.  572-6. 
Oil,  consumption  of,  vii.  93. 
'Okhotsk,'  ship,  ii.  649-51. 
Olampali,  battle  of,  1846,  v.  165-8. 
Old  S.   Francisco  port,  discovery  of, 

i.  156-7;  errors  concerning,  i.  157-9. 
Olema,  mention  of,  vi.  511. 
Oleomi,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
'Olive  Branch,' ship,  iii.  118. 
Oliver,  D.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Olives,  cultivation,  etc.  of,  vii.  43. 
Olney,   James  N.,  mining-stock  sale, 

vii.  667. 

Olney    &    Co.'s   Washoe   Stock    Ex- 
change, vii.  667. 
O'Meara,  J. ,  '  Broderick  and  G  win, '  vi. 

683-4;  state  printer,  1858,  vi.  714. 
Ophir,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  484. 
Ophir    Silver    Mining   co.,    vii.    666; 

stocks  of,  vii.  671. 
Oranges,  crop,  etc.,  of,  1889,  vii.  42. 
Ord,  P.,   del.  to  constit.   convention, 

etc.,  1849,  vi.  286. 
Oregon,    cattle  trade  with,  1837,  iv. 

85-7;  immigration  from,    1843,    iv. 

390;  1844,  iv.  444;  1845,  iv.  574-7; 

1847,  v.     555;    Fremont's     return 
from,    reasons    for,  v.    86-92,   101, 
parties  returning  to,  1846,  v.  525- 
6;   effect   of  gold  discov.   in  Cal., 

1848,  vi.  112. 


INDEX. 


SOI 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


'  Oregon, '  U.  S.  explor.  ship,  iv.  245. 
'Oregon,'    steamer,   voy.  of,  1848-9, 

vi.  129,  134,  137. 
Orford,  Port,  milit.  post  at,  1851,  vii 

460. 

'  Orion, '  ship,  ii.  478. 
Orleans  Flat,  vi.  486. 
Ormaschea,  J.  I.  de,  HabiL-gen.  for 

Cal.  in  Mex.,  1810-16,  ii.  189,  421; 

of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex.,    1825-7,  iii 

3;  report  on  Cal.  miss.,  iii.  109. 
Oroville,  mention  of,  vi.  361;  hist,  of, 

vi.  490-1. 

Osio,  manuscript  of,  i.  55. 
Osos,  Ind.  tribe,  i.  558. 
Otis,  James,  viL  603-4. 
'  Otkruitie,'  ship,  ii.  293. 
Otter,  see  '  Fur  trade. ' 
'  Otter, '  Boston  ship,  i.  539-40. 
Oulton,    G.,    state    controller,    1863, 

vii.  303-4. 
Overland  route,  first  visitors  by,  iii. 

151-2. 

Overton,  W.  P.,  iv.  269. 
Ovineta,   J.    B.,    commercial   scheme 

of,  1800,  i.  628. 
Owen,  D.,  1836,  iv.  141. 
Owens,  Rev.  Isaac,  vii.  728-9. 
Owens    River    valley,    massacre    of 

Indians  in,  1862,  vii.  486. 
Oysters,  vii.  83. 


Pacheco,  R.,  state  treasurer,  1863, 
vii  303;  gov.  1874,  vii.  367;  de- 
faat  of,  1875,  vii.  307;  congress- 
man, 1880,  vii.  408;  biog.,  vii. 
408. 

Pacheco,  S.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  10. 

Pacheco,  town,  mention  of,  vi  527. 

Pacific  Glass  Works,  vii.  99. 

Pacific  Improvement  co.  (see  also 
Western  Development  co.  and 
Contract  &  Finance  co.),  organized, 
etc.,  vii.  614-19. 

Pacific  Mail  Steamship  co.,  establish- 
ment of,  1847-3,  vi.  127-9;  opera- 
tions, etc.,  vi.  129-42;  bought  by 
R,  R.  co.,  vii.  633. 

Pacific  Mill  &  Mining  co.,  vii.  680. 

Pacific  Railroad  (see  also  Central  Pa- 
cific R.  R.),  bill  introd  by  Gwin, 
1852,  vi.  726;  fund,  vii.  559; 
amended,  vii.  565,  627-8. 

Pacific  Railway  Commission,  rep't  of, 
1888,  vii.  624. 

Pacific  republic,  scheme  for,  vii.  689. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL  51 


i  Pacific  Stock    Exchange,    organized, 

vii.  669-70. 
Pacific  Wood,    Lumber,  and   Flume 

co.,  vii.  680. 

Pacific   and  Atlantic   Rpilroad  com- 
pany, organized,  etc.,  1851-3,  vii. 

536. 
Pack-trains,    descript.,    etc.,    of,   vii. 

152-4. 

Padres,  see  *  Friars. ' 
Page,  H.  F.,  congressman,  1880,  vii. 

408;  biog.,  vii.  408, 
Page,  Robert  C.,  vii.  668. 
Page,  Bacon  &  Co.,    mention  of,  vii. 

161;  failure,  vii.  174-9. 
Pague,  Ind.  tribe,  iL  506. 
Paguenjelayomi,  Ind.   tribe,  iv.  363. 
Pajaro,  mention  of,  vi.  524. 
Pajaro  rancho,  ii.  615. 
Pale,  proposed  site  for  miss. ,  i.  554. 
Palen,  Matthew,  vii.  641. 
Palmer,  C.  H.  T.,  vii.  717. 
Palmer,  Henry  D.,  vii.  592. 
Palmer,  Robert,  vii  640. 
Palmer,  Cook  &  Co.,  breach  of  trust, 

vi.  616;  failure,   etc.,  of,   1856,  VL 

618;  vii  177-80. 
Palmer  mine,  vii.  651. 
Palo  Alto,  battle  of,  1846,  v.  193. 
PalosVerdes,  rancho,  v.  320. 
Palou's    'Vida  de   J.    Serra,'    i    38; 

'Noticias,'  i.  39. 

Pamo,  rancherfa,  fight  at,  i  316. 
Panama,  city,  descript.  of,  1849,  vi 

132. 
Panama,   isthmus,    gold-seekers    at, 

1849,  vi.  130-6;  map  of  route,  vi 

131. 
Panama'    railway,    opening,    etc.,   of, 

1855,  vi.  139;  mention  of,  vii.  522. 
'Panama,'  steamer,  voy.  of,  1848-9, 

vi  129,  134,  137. 
Pangua,  T.,  guardian  for  Cal.  miss., 

1803-6,  ii.  27,  165. 
]  Panoche  Grande  claim,  vi.  561. 
'  '  Panther, '  Amer.  ship,  ii.  457,  475, 

478. 

Paper,  manufact.  of,  vii.  101. 
!  Paredes,  Gen.,  sends  troops  to  Cal., 
!      1842,  iv.    288;   pronunciameuto  in 

favor  of,  v.  41. 
'  Parker,  J.,  vi.  509. 
Parker,  R.  B.,  vii.  588. 
i  Parker,  Wm  H.,  vii.  668. 
Park,  T.  W.,  Adams  &  Co.'s  failure, 

vii.  174-5. 
Parks  bar,   mining  on,  1848,  vi  72; 

richness  of,  vi.  359. 
j  Parrott,  John,  vii.  610. 


802 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Parsons,  G.  F.,  'Life  and  Adventures 

of    James   W.    Marshall,'  vi.    102; 

biog.,  vi.  102-3. 
Pascual,  Father,  labors  and  death  of, 

i.  20. 
Paso  de  Bartolo,  Flores'  forces  at,  v. 

390. 

Passports,  regulations  on,  iii.  177-8. 
Patten,    Major   G.    W.,    establ's    Ft 

Lane,  1853,  vii.  462. 
Paterson,    A.    Van    R.,    supr.    court 

judge,    1887,    vii.    434;    biog..    vii. 

434. 

Patterson,  James  N.,  vii.  618. 
Paty,  Wm,  1836,  iv.  141. 
Paul,  A.  B.,  vii.  639,  666. 
Pauly,  A.,  biog.  of,  vii.  184. 
Pauma  rancho,  massacre  at,  1846,  v. 

567. 

Paxton,  John  A.,  vii.  586. 
Payne,  Col  M.  M.,  at  Fremont  trial, 

v.  456. 

'Payuches,'  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  338. 
'  Paz  y  Religion, '  ship,  ii.  283. 
Peabody,  I.,  1836,  iv.  141. 
'Peacock,'  ship,  visit  of,  1806,  ii.  37-9; 

iv.  82,  141;  wrecked,  iv.  245. 
Pearce,  Wm  H.,  1836,  iv.  141. 
Pearne,  T.  H.,  Or.  del.  to  S.  F.  R.  R. 

convention,  1859,  vii.  543. 
Pears,  quality  and  yield,  vii.  41. 
Pearson,  Capt.,  mention  of,  vi.  137. 
Pease,  E.  T.,  vii.  557. 
'Pedler,'ship,  capture  of,  1814,  ii.  203, 

271,  305. 

Peel,  mention  of,  vii.  567. 
Pel  ton,  J.  C.,  establishes  free  school, 

vii.  717;  first  school  law,  vii.  718. 
Pelton,  Mrs  J.  C.,  vii.  717. 
Penal    colony,  Cal.    as,   1825-30,   iii. 

47-50. 
Penasquitos  rancho,  Kearny  encamped 

at,  v.  352. 
Penitencia  creek,  Fages'  expedt.  camp 

at,  i.  184. 

Peralta,  A.  M.,  mention  of,  vi.  478. 
Peralta,  D.,  mention  of,  vi.  479. 
Peralta,  J.  D. ,  mention  of,  vi.  476. 
Peralta,  J.   M.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi. 

10. 

Peralta,  L.,  mention  of,  vi.  65-6. 
Peralta  estate,  litigation    concerning 

the,  vi.  561. 

Peralta  grant,  mention  of,  vii.  580. 
Perez,  B.,  gold  discovery  of,  1848,  vi. 

79. 

Perez,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  317. 
Periodicals,  see  'Journals.' 
'Perkms,v'  transport,  v.  513. 


Perkins,  G.  C.,  gov.,  1880,  vii.  408, 
410-11;  biog.,  vii.  410-11. 

Perley,  D.  W.,  challenges  Broderick, 
1859,  vi.  725. 

Perrin,  E.  B.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  604,  753. 

Perris,  F.  F.,  vii.  618. 

Perry,  miner,  vii.   650. 

Perry,  H.  A.,  mention  of,  vii.  78. 

Perry,  J.,  jr,  vii.   668. 

Pertf,  effect  in,  of  gold  discov.  in  Cal., 
1848,  vi.  125. 

Pestilence,  prevalence  of,  1833,  iii. 
357. 

Petaluma,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Petaluma,  town,  first  visit  to,  ii.  331; 
settlement  at,  1833,  iii.  255;  hist,  of, 
vi.  507-8;  mention  of,  vii.  583-4. 

Petaluma  creek,  first  Europeans  on,  i. 
290. 

Petaluma  and  Cloverdale  R.  R.  co., 
vii.  589. 

Petaluma  and  Healdsburg  R  R.  co., 
vii.  589. 

Petit-Thouars,  works  of,  i.  40;  iv.  148. 

Petroleum,  vii.  661. 

Pette,  Professor,  vii.  647. 

Phelan,  Jas,  biog.,  vii.  169. 

Phelps,  'Fore  and  Aft,'  iv.  156. 

Phelps,  T.  G.,  congressman,  1861,  vii. 
291;  defeat  of,  vii.  301,  367;  men- 
tion of,  vii.  547;  biog.,  vii.  735. 

Philadelphia,  R.  R.  convention  at, 
1850,  vii.  513-16. 

Phillips,  C.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  185. 

'Phoenix,'  Eng.  ship,  i.  537,  669. 

Phoenix,  quicksilver  mine,  vii.  657. 

Pianos,  manufact.  of,  vii.  81. 

Pickett,  C.  E.,  mention  of,  vi.  270. 

Pico,  J.,  manuscript,  i.  55. 

Pico,  J.  de  J.,  mining  operations, 
1848,  vi.  77. 

Pico,  Pio,  manuscript,  i.  55;  rule  of, 
1845,  iv.  518-45;  farewell  address, 
v.  275. 

Pierce,  Andrew,  vii.  607. 

Pierce's  'Journal,'  iv.  224-5. 

Pierpont,  James,  missionary,  vii.  730. 

Pigments,  manufact.  of,  vii.  93. 

Pilascitos  rancho,  ii.  615. 

'Pilgrim, 'ship,  iii.  142,  367. 

Pilot  Hill,  a  mining  centre,  1849,  vi. 
353. 

Pinart,  'Document'  on  Russ.  settle- 
ment, ii.  641. 

Pindray,  C.  de,  exped.  to  Sonora,  1851, 
vi.  585. 

Pine  Tree  Mine,  The,  vii,  641. 
|  Pinole,  Point,  mention  of,  vi.  527. 
1  Pinole  valley,  Fages'  exped.  in,  i.  185. 


INDEX. 


803 


for  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Pioche  &  Co.,  vii.  660. 

Pioche,  F.  L.  A.,  vii.  720. 

Pioneer  Register,  ii.  683-795,  iii.  733- 


92;  iv.  688-786;  v.  687-784. 

Pioneers,  first  Ainer.  to  arrive,  1791,  i. 
491;  first  foreign  resident,  1814,  ii. 
272;  first  Anier.  settler,  ii.  276; 
additions  to,  in,  1821,  ii.  444;  ar- 
rivals, 1822,  ii.  475-9;  1824,  ii.  525- 
7;  1825,  iii.  29;  1826-7,  iii.  176; 
1828,  iii.  178;  1829,  iii.  179;  1830, 
iii.  180;  1831-5,  iii.  385^413;  1836- 
40,  iv.  117-20;  1841,  iv.  279;  1842, 
iv.  341;  1843,  iv.  399;  1844,  iv.  453; 
1845,  iv.  507;  1847^8,  v.  554-7; 
1814-30,  ii.  681;  foreign  residents, 
1823,  ii.  495-6;  residing  at  L.  An- 
geles, 1830,  ii.  558;  character  of  old 
settlers,  iv.  115. 

Pious  fund,  report  on,  1773,'  i.  214; 
conditions,  etc.,  of,  1773,  i.  214; 
1840-5,  iv.  67,  335-8;  proposed 
hacienda,  i.  581;  Revilla  Gigedo, 
report  on,  i.  631-2;  revenue  from, 
iii.  350;  unsold  property  restored, 
1845,  iv.  554. 

Piru  rancho,  ii.  566.  • 

Pittsburg,  Cal. ,  mention  of,  vi.  528. 

Pixley,  F.  M.,  pres.  of  repub.  conven- 
tion,  1868,  vii.  329;  biog.,  vii.  329; 
noinin.    for   cong.,    1868,    vii.    331;  t 
mention  of,  vii.  668. 

•Pizarro,'  ship,  iii.  24,  118,  519. 

Placer  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  483-4;  R 
R,  affairs  in,  vii.  556-7,  562-3. 

Placerville,    hist,    of,    vi.   467-9;    co 


Point- Sur,  Cabrillo's  name  for,  L  76. 

'  Polif emia, '  ship,  iv.  159. 

Polk,  Pres.,  war  proclamation,  1846, 

v.  193. 
Prlitics,  discord  in  S.  F.,  1848-51,.  vi. 


209-20,  271-3;  admission  of  state, 
vi.  251-350;  slavery  question,  vi. 
251-6,  290-6,  321,  336-46,  653-6; 
hist,  of,  1848-50,  vi.  251-350;  1850- 
9,  vi.  641-739;  1860,  vii.  251-74; 
1861-5,  vii.  275-314;  1865-8,  vii. 
315-34;  1868-7Jfc-ii.  335-69;  1878- 
9,  vii.  370-406^T9-89,  vii.  407-44; 
constit.  convention,  1849,  vi.  261  et 
seq. ;  1879,  vii.  370  et  seq. ;  boun- 
dary question,  vi.  291-6;  elections, 
first,  vi.  304-6,  672;  1860,  vii.  272; 
1863,  vii.  303;  1864,  vii.  307;  1867, 
vii.  323;  1868,  vii.  330;  1872,  vii. 
332;  1875,  vii.  367;  1879,  vii.  407; 
1880,  vii.  414;  1882,  vii.  421;  1884, 
vii.  425;  1886,  vii.  433;  democratic 
party,  1849,  vi.  304;  1851,  vi.  648- 
50;  attitude  of,  vi.  672;  victory, 
1852,  vi.  672-3;  state conven.,  1860, 
vii.  258,  1868,  vii.  330;  in  election, 
1879,  vii.  408;  1881,  vii.  415-16; 
1882,  vii.  421;  1884,  vii.  426;  1886, 
vii.  432;  senatorial  elections,  first,  vi. 
311;  1851,  vi.  646;  Gwin  and  Brod- 
erick,  vi.  658  et  seq.;  1861,  vii. 
•273;  1865,  vii.  317;  1867,  vii.  327; 
1886,  vii.  432;  state  capitol,  vi. 
321-5;  whigs,  vi.  650-2,  670;  inde- 
pendents, vi.  652;  knownothings, 
.  j  vi.  691-701;  campaign,  1860,  viL 


seat  of  El  Dorado,  vi.  482;   R.  R.  i      251;  state  rights,  vii.  262  et  seq.; 
);    stage        republicans,  vii.  257-S,  291,  329-32, 

p^.-».»  «*/»  t      er         jno      11          Jl~      1  "*         4  OX       A  OO     K. 


meeting   at,    1854,    vii.   540 

line,  vii.  541;  churches  of,  vii.  729- 

30. 

Placerville  &  Sacramento  valley  rail- 
road, vii.  554-5. 

Plans.     See  'Maps.' 

Platte  river,  emigrants  on  the,  1849, 
vi.  147-50. 

Plum,  C.  M.,  biog.  of,  vii.  187. 

Plumas  county,  mining  in,  1850-6,  vi. 
361-3;  hist,  of,  vi.  492;  creation, 
etc.,  of,  1854,  vii.  441. 

Plumbago,  vii.  662. 

Plumbe,  J.,  R.  R.  scheme  of,  iv.  223; 
vii.  499-500. 


364-5,  408-11,  415-17,  425,  433-5; 
union  meeting,  1861,  vii.  277;  union 
state  conv.,  vii.  307;  copperhead, 
1864,  vii.  308;  party  changes,  1S65- 
8,  vii.  315  et  seq. ;  railroad  influence, 
vii.  323,  444,  629;  Chinese  question, 
vii.  334  et  seq.;  primary  elections, 
vii.  315-17;  short  hairs  party,  vii. 
317-19;  labor  agitations,  vii.  348; 
the  sand-lot,  vii.  355;  workingmen'a 
party,  vii.  355-6,  361-2,  372-4,  408- 
11;  Dolly  Varden's  party,  vii.  365; 
reform  party,  1875,  vii.  367;  water 
rights  in,  vii.  4'JS;  American  party, 


'Pocahontas,'  ship.  iii.   143,  210,  364.        vii.  436;  in  S.  F.,  vii.  689-90. 
Point  Concepcion,  Portola's  exped.  at,    Pollock,  congressman,  R.  R.  rept  of, 

i.  H8.  1848,  vii.  505. 

Point  Reyes,  'Cermenon'  wrecked  at,  i  Pollock,  Rev.  D.  W.,  viL  729. 

L  96;  Portola's  exped.  at,  i.  158.        Pollock,  Col  R.  mention  of,  vn.  469. 


Point  S.  Pedro,  Portola's  exped.  at,  L 
155;  first  name,  i.  156. 


Pond,  W.  C.,  missionary  to  CaL,  vii. 
730, 


804 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Pony  express.     See  'Mails.' 

Poole,  U.  S.  marshal,  vii.  621. 

Poorman's  creek,  mining  yield,  1850- 
6,  vi.  357. 

Pope,  Gen.  J.,  in  command,  1883,  vii. 
472. 

Pope,  W.,  mention  of,  vi.  19. 

Population,  statistics  of,  1801-10,  ii. 
107-8,  110,  115-16,  121,  123,  132, 
137-8,  148-9,  151,  153-4;  1811-20, 
346-50,  355,  358,  364-8,  377,  380, 
383-7,  390;  1821-30,  ii.  552,  554, 
656,  567-8,  580-2,  595-6,  599,  601-2, 
609,  616,  619-20,  622,  624;  1830-48, 
v.  524,  643;  vi.  3;  at  San  Diego 
miss.,  iii.  610;  at  S.  L.  Key,  iii.  622; 
at  S.  Juan  Cap.,  1831-4,  iii.  625; 
at  S.  Gabriel,  1831-4,  iii.  643;  at 
S.  Fernando,  1831-4,  iii.  646;  at 
Sta  Barbara,  1831-4,  iii.  656;  at 
S.  Buenaventura,  1831-4,  iii.  660; 
at  Sta  Ines,  1831-4,  iii.  660;  at  S. 
Carlos,  1831-4,  iii.  680;  at  S.  L. 
Obispo,  1831-4,  iii.  681;  at  S. 
Miguel,  1831^,  iii.  684;  at  Soledad, 
1831-i,  iii.  690;  at  S.  J.  Bautista, 
1831-4,  iii.  691;  at  Sta  Cruz,  1831- 
2,  iii.  693;  at  Dolores  miss.,  1831- 
4,  iii.  714;  at  S.  Rafael,  1831-2,  iii. 
716;  at  Solano,  1831-4,  iii.  719;  at 
Sta  Clara,  1831-2,  iii.  727;  increase, 
1811-20,  ii.  392-3;  increase  at  pue- 
blos, 1811-20,  ii.  413;  foreign 
arrivals,  1816-18,  ii.  393;  at  Ross, 
ii.  631-2;  decrease  in  S.  Diego  dist, 
1840,  iii.  611;  S.  Antonio,  1831-4, 
iii.  686;  S.  Jose  miss.,  1831-4,  iii. 
724;  character  and  composition,  vi. 
2-4;  of  San  Francisco,  1849,  vi. 
168;  early,  vii.  695-6;  number  of, 
1849-SO,  vii.  698-701;  amusements 
of,  vii.  711-13;  female,  vii.  709-10, 
715-16. 

'Porpoise,'  U.  S.  explor.  ship,  iv. 
245. 

Port  Costa,  mention  of,  vi.  527. 

Port  Harford,  mention  of,  vi.  523. 

Porter,  B.  F.,  biog.,  vii.  749. 

Porter,  G.  K.,  biog.,  vii.  749. 

Portezuelo  rancho,  granted,  i.  662. 

'Portsmouth,'  U.  S.  ship,  v.  63,  102, 
129,  199,  200-1,  224,  254,  295,  356. 

Portu,  Lt  Jose,  app't'd  to  Cal.,  iii. 
236. 

Postoffice,  see  'Mails.' 

Potosi  mine,  vii.  673. 

Potrero  rancho,  ii.  615. 

Potter,  mining  operations,  1848,  vi. 
71. 


Potter,  Geo.  C.,  vii.  587. 

Poultry,  raising,  etc.,  of,  vii.  62. 

Powder,  manutact.  of,  vii.  99-100. 

'Preble,'  U.  S.  sloop- of- war,  v.  511- 
13. 

Pratt,  O.  C.,  biog.,  vii.  223. 

Preciado,  name  Cal.,  1539.  i.  65. 

'  Predpriatie, '  Russ.  ship,  ii.  522,  645. 

Prefects,  appointment  of,  iii.  585; 
duties,  iii.  586. 

Prefectures,  restored,  1845,  iv.  533. 

Presbyterian  church,  vii.  727. 

Presidios,  reglamento  de,  1772,  i.  206- 
7;  S.  F.  established,  i.  289;  in- 
spectors of  app't'd,  i.  334;  Sola's 
report  on,  1818,  ii.  250-2. 

Preveaux,  Rev.,  vii.  728. 

Prevost,  I.  B.,  Russ.  settlement  at 
Ross.,  1818,  ii.  317. 

Prevost,  L.,  experiments  in  sericul- 
ture, 1853-4,  vii.  32-3. 

Price,  R.  M.,  del.  to  constit.  conven- 
tion, etc.,  1849,  vi.  286. 

Price,  Col  Sterling,  at  Sta  Fe,  1846, 
v.  482. 

'Princess,'  explor.  ship,  i.  329,  444, 
542,  653,  670;  ii.  83,  88,  96. 

Principio  river,  see  'Little  river.' 

Printing,  first,  1833,  iii.  241. 

'  Providence, '  Eng.  man  of  war,  visit 
of,  i.  538-9. 

Provincias  Internas,  Cal.  separated 
from,  i.  503. 

Protestants,  vii.  727-31. 

Pry  or,  W.  L.,  vii.  618. 

'Public  institute,' school  at  S.  F. 
1848,  vii.  717. 

Pueblo  lands,  title,  etc.,  vii.  565-6; 
grants  of,  vi.  566-70;  litigation 
concerning,  vi.  568-70. 

Pueblos  of  Xexu  province,  1542,  i. 
73;  beginnings,  i.  306-16;  experi- 
mental, i.  312;  regulations  for, 
1781,  i.  337;  not  prosperous, -i.  600- 
2;  population,  1800,  i.  601. 

Pulnomanoc,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Punta  de  Pinos,  named,  i.  101. 

Purcell,  J.  D.,  vii.  618. 

Purdy,  lieut-gov.,  1854,  vi.  681. 

Purisima,  founded,  i.  424-5;  revolt  of 
neophytes,  ii.  547;  events  at,  1791- 
1800,  i.  675-6;  events  at,  1801-10, 
ii.  123;  1811-20,  ii.  366-8;  1821-30, 
ii.  580;  1831-40,  iii.  664-6;  hemp 
culture  at,  ii.  179-80;  earthquake, 
1812,  ii.  201;  revolt  of  Indsat,  1824, 
ii.  529-30;  foreign  vessels  allowed 
at,  iii.  127;  secularization  of,  iii. 
346;  slaughter  of  cattle,  iii.  349; 


INDEX. 


805 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  Tola,  n  to  V. 


value  of  export*,  1840,  iv.  80;   re- 
stored to  friars,  1843,  iv.  369;  con- 
dition  of,    1844,    iv.   421;    sale  of 
miss,  estate,  iv.  533;  v.  558. 
Putto,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 


Quartara,  A.,  comd't  at  S.  Bias,  1819, 

ii.253. 
Quartz  miners'  association,  organized, 

vii.  642. 

Quartz  mining,  method,  vii.  637. 
Queen,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  279. 
Quicksilver,    discov.,    1796,    L     670; 

export  of,  1856,  vii.  116;  mining  of, 

vii.  656-9. 

Quimby  &  Co.,  vii.  638. 
Quincy,  town,  mention  of,  vL  492. 
Quintano,    Lieut     F.,   with    exped., 

1791,  L  490. 


Rabe,  W.,  vii  543. 

•  Raccoon,'  Eng.  ship,  ii.  204,  271-2, 

373. 

Railroads,  overland,  early  efforts  for, 
iv.  222-4;  the  new  constitut.  1879, 
vii.  383,  386-9;  taxation  of,  vii. 
427 -S;  proposed,  vii.  498-508;  con- 
ventions, vii.  508-16;  routes,  vii. 
509-17;  surveys,  viL  520-1,  547; 
Panama,  vii.  522;  legislation,  vii. 
519-35,  598;  Pacific  &  Atlantic,  viL 
536;  subsidies,  viL  598;  debt  and 
discrimination,  vii.  620-32. 

*  Rainbow,'  schooner,  see  '  Sitka.' 
Rains.    Major   E.   J.,   at   Ft  Dalles, 

J.  viL  461. 

Raisins,  product,  etc. ,  of,  viL  45, 745-6. 
Ralston,    Senator,    bill    introd     by, 

1853,  vi.  675-6. 
Ralston,  W.  C.,  career  of,  viL  163; 

R.   R.  director,  viL  610;    manager 

Bank  of  Col.,  viL  674;    death  of, 

viL  678. 

Ramirez,  revolt  of,  1837,  iiL  523-5. 
Ramirez,  Padre,  chaplain   to  constit. 

convention,  1849,  vi.  290. 
Ramirez,  Pedro,  agent  for  Cal.  bishop, 

1840-2,  iv.  67,  335-7,  427. 
Rancherias,  of  S.  Juan  Cap.,  list,  L 

563;    of  8.  Juan   Bautista,  list,  L 

557. 
Rancho  del   Rey,  stock   at,  1800,  L 

648-9;  Mout.  dist,  condition,  1800, 


L   682-3;    S.  F.   dist    controversy 
over,  L  707-8. 

Ranch os,  early  grants,  1795-1800,  L 
661-3;  of  Mont,  dist,  L  683;  iL 
614-15;  iiL  676-9;  v.  637;  iiL  676-9; 
v.  637;  S.  F.  dist,  L  707-8;  ii.  592-4; 
iiL  711-13;  v.  659;  of  southern 
dist,  1802-10,  ii.  111-12;  of  L. 
Angeles  dist,  iL  565-6;  v.  627;  list 
of  grants,  1821-30,  ii.  663-4;  list 
of,  1831-40,  iii.  633-4;  Sta  Barbara 
dist,  iiL  655-6;  v.  632;  official 
plunder  of,  1846,  v.  358;  of  S. 
Diego  dist,  v.  619. 

Randol,  A.  M.,  biog.,  viL  758. 

Randolph,  oration,  i.  157. 

Randolph,  E.,  in  8.  F.  land  case,  iiL 
708;  the  New  Almaden  suit,  vL 
559;  biog.,  vL  679;  nominated  for 
attorney -gen.,  1859,  vL  723;  men* 
tion  of,  viL  337. 

Raousset,  Count  G.  R.  de,  appear- 
ance, etc.,  of,  vL  585-6;  filibust. 
expeds  of,  1852-4,  vL  586-92;  exe- 
cution of,  1854,  vL  592;  character, 
vL  592. 

Ravenswood,  mention  of,  vL  526. 

'  Rasselas, '  ship,  iv.  142. 

Rattlesnake  ledge,  mine.  vii.  651. 

Reading,  P.  B.,  mention  of,  vi.  17; 
exped.  of,  1848,  vL  72-3;  mining 
operations,  1848,  vi.  69-70,  364; 
rancbo,  etc.,  of,  vL  492-3. 

Real,  Padre,  of  Santa  Clara  mission, 
1848,  vL  6. 

Ream,  Dr  D.,  biog.,  vii.  731. 

Red  Bluff,  hist,  of,  vL  496-7. 

Redding,  B.  B.,  seer,  of  state,  1863, 
viL  303;  mention  of,  vii.  561,  599. 

Redington,  John  H.,  viL  588. 

Redman,  Louis,  vii.  641. 
;  Redwood  City,  hist,  of,  vL  526. 
\  Reed,  mention  of,  vii.  638. 

Reed,  J.  F.,  at  San  Jose,  1848,  vL  9. 

Reed,  Major  J.  S.,  mention  of,  viL 
470. 

Reese,  Michael,  vi  315;  viL  584-5, 
610,  655,  720. 

Refugio  rancho,  Bouchard's  attack 
on,  iL  236-7;  foreign  vessels  al- 
lowed at,  iiL  127. 

Reichert,    T..    surveyor-gen.,     1887, 

viL  434;  biog.,  viL  435. 
i  Reid,  Dr  R.  K.,  biog.,  viL  705. 

Reid,  James,   W.  E.,  in  Wilkes'  ex- 

pedt.,  iv.  241. 

I  'Reina  de  Los  Angeles,'  ship,  iL 
253. 

'Relief,'  U.  S.  store  ship,  iv.  314. 


806 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Religion,  observance  of  the  Sabbath, 

vii.  712;  hist,  of,  1849-89,  vii.  726- 

31. 
Rengel,  Gen.,  offl  acts,  1784-6,  i.  422, 

424,  448-9,  454. 
'  Republican©, '  ship,  iv.  340. 
Republicans,     state     convention     of, 

1800,  vii.   257-8;  attitude  of,  1861, 

vii.  278;  victory  of,  J861,  vii.  291; 

convention    of,    1868,    vii.    329-30; 

progress    of    party,     1868-84,    vii. 

331-2;   success   of,   1871,    vii.   364; 

split  among,  vii.  365;   election  of, 

1879,  vii.  408-11;  1881,  vii.  415-17; 

1884,  vii.  425;  1886,  vii.  433-5. 
Revely,   Win,  translator  of   'Costan- 

so's  Diario,'  i.  139. 
Revenue,  i.   632^4;  officers,  1828,  iii. 

65;  1831-5,  iii.  376-8;  for  1828,  iii. 

131;   1831-40,  iii.  367,  617;  iv.  80; 

1841,  iv.   191;  1842,  iv.  340;  1843, 

iv.  377;    1844,   432;    1845,   iv.  560; 

admin,  of,  1836-40,  iv.  96-8;  state, 

1850-75,  vi.  605-22. 
Revilla-Gigedo,   viceroy,  offl  acts  in, 

1789-94,  i.  449,  481,  502-25,  5.'M)-1 

534,  579-81,  602,  631-2. 
Rex  Moates,  mines,  vii.  651. 
Reyes,  Ant.,  bishop  of  Cal.,   1782,  i. 

378,  420,  421. 
Rhoads,  T.,  vi.  12. 
Rhodes,  Judge  A.  L.,  biog.,  etc.,  of, 

vii.   235;  supreme  judge,   1863,  vii. 

304. 

Rice,  cultivation  of,  vii.  25. 
Rice,  DeWitt  Clinton,  vii.  582. 
Richards,  aids  in  raising  Mormon  batl., 

v.  476. 

Richards,  C.  J.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Richardson,  at   Yerba  Buena,   1835, 

vi.  164. 

Richardson,  W.  A.,  rancho  of,  vi.  21. 
Richardson,  W.  H.,   U.   S.  marshal, 

1853,  vi.    674. 
Ricks,  C.  S.,  vii.  589. 
Ridgeville,  mention  of,  vi.  506. 
Riley,  Gen.  B.,  gov.  of  Cal.,  1849,  vi. 

275;  vii.  447;  administr.,   vi.   275- 

306. 
Ringgold,  Lieut-col,  mention  of,    vii. 

470. 
Rio  Grande,  crossed  by  Mex.   force, 

1846,  v.  193. 

Riparian  rights,  see  'irrigation.' 
Riverside,  mention  of,  vi.  421. 
Riverside,  Santa  Ana  R.  R.,  vii.  616. 
Rix,  A.,  vii.  719. 
Roach,   Senator  P.  A.,  biog.,  vi.  657; 

the  labor  agitation,  1877,  vii.  355. 


Roads,  work  on,  1811-20,  ii.  416; 
construction,  etc.,  of,  1849-56,  vii. 
142-3. 

Roberts,  E.  R.,  vii.  663. 

Roberts,  S.  W.,  the  Phil.  R.  R.  con- 
vention,  1850,  vii.  515-16. 

Roberts,  Rev.  Wm,  vii.  727-8. 

Robinson,  H.  C.,  biog.,  vi.  657. 

Robinson,  J.  R.,  vii.  607. 

Robinson,  'Life  in  Cal.,'  iv.  343-4. 

Robinson,  delegate,  the  Phil.  R.  R. 
convention,  1850,  vii.  515. 

Robinson,  David,  vii.  654. 

Robinson,  E.  I.,  vii.  599. 

Robinson,  J.  C.,  biog.,  vii.  634-5. 

Robinson,  L.  L.,  vii.  539. 

Robinson,  T.,  vi.  679. 

Robles,  Leodero,  vii.  656. 

Robles,  Secundino,  vii.  656. 

Rodewald,  Frederick,  vii.  585-6. 

Roelofson,  W.  F.,  vii.  582. 

Roether,  C.,  vi.  16. 

Rogers,  of  Barleson's  party,  iv.  269. 

Rogers,  Rev.  J.,  vii.  717. 

Rogers,  Major  W.,  mention  of,  vi. 
319. 

Rohrer,  J.  B.,  biog.,  vii.  741. 

Rolling  mills,  vii.  95-6. 

Roman,  R.,  treasurer,  1849,  vi.  314; 
appraiser-gen.,  1857,  vi.  711;  as- 
signee for  Adams  &  Co.,  vii.  177. 

Romen,  gov.,  rule  of,  1791-2,  i.  481- 
500 

'Rosa, 'ship,  iii.  288,  367. 

Rose,  J.,  vi.  20. 

Rose  bar,  mention  of,  vi.  359. 

Rosecrans,  W.  S.,  congressman,  1881, 
vii.  416-17;  biog.,  vii.  416. 

Ross,  commercial  relations  with,  ii. 
202-3;  Russ.  ordered  to  leave, 
1814,  ii.  204;  founding  of,  ii.  298-9; 
map  of,  ii.  300;  Moraga  visits, 
1812-14,  ii.  300-4;  viceroy's  orders 
concerning,  ii.  304-6;  G.  Arguello 
at,  ii.  309;  proposition  to  abandon, 
ii.  319-20;  communication  with-S.  F., 
ii.  373;  windmill  at,  1816,  ii.  416; 
visit  of  Fernandez,  1822,  ii.  463-5; 
visited  by  Kotzebue,  1824,  ii.  523; 
events  at,  1821-30,  ii.  628-52; 
bibliography  of,  ii.  640-1 ;  expenses 
of  colony,  ii.  652;  Patties'  medical 
service  at,  iii.  169;  Russ.  prepara- 
tions to  abandon,  1841,  iv.  177; 
proposed  sale  to  Vallejo,  iv.  177; 
sold  to  Sutter,  iv.  178-81;  depart- 
ure of  Russians,  iv.  186. 

Ross,  C.  L.,  'Experiences  of  a  Pio- 
neer,' MS.,  vi.  58. 


INDEX. 


807 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 

S 


Ross,  E.  M.,  supr.  court  judge,  1880, 
vii.  409. 

Ro*s,  James,  vii.  590. 

Roop,  I.,  vi.  493. 

Roop  county,  creation,  etc.,  of,  1864, 
vi.  494. 

Hough  and  Ready,  town,  hist,  of,  vi. 
485-6. 

'Roumantzof,'  ship,  ii.  640. 

Rouset  de  Jesus,  F.,  bishop  of  Cal. 
1802-14,  iL  166-7;  death  of,  ii. 
411. 

'Rover,'  ship,  ii.  404,  520;  iiL  24, 
119-20, 

Rowe,  E.  A.,  vi.  618. 

Rowe's  circus,  mention  of,  vi.  543-4. 

Rowland,  W.  R.,  biog.  of,  vii  759. 

Rucker,  Major  D.  H.,  at  San  Luis 
Rey,  1849,  vii.  448. 

Ruelle,  J.  B.,  vi.  67-9. 

Rufus.  E.,  raiicho,  etc.,  of,  1848,  vi. 
19-20. 

Rule,  John,  vii.  638. 

Rulofson,  W.  R,  vii.  585.    ' 

Rumiantzof,  fits  out  explor.  ship, 
1816,  ii.  278. 

'Rurik,'  Kotzebue's  ship,  ii.  278,  373, 
645. 

Rush  creek,  mining  yield,  1850-6,  vL 
867. 

Rusk,  T.  J.,  letter  to  Phil.  R.  R, 
convention,  1850,  vii.  513-14. 

Russ,  A.  G.,  biog.,  vii.  694. 

Russell,  W.  H.,  sec.  of  state,  1847, 
vi.  259. 

Russian  Amer.  co.,  L.  Arguello's  con- 
tract with,  ii.  494. 

Russian  Fur  co.,  proclamation  of, 
1810,  iL  294-6. 

Russian  river,  flood  on  the,  1863,  vii. 
16. 

Russian  settlements,  description  of, 
ii.  628-31;  map  of,  iL  629. 

Ryder,  J.  M.,  viL  582. 

Russians,  Spanish  fears  of,  i.  112,  227; 
ii.  483;  war  with,  news  rec'd,  i. 
546;  peace  with,  ii.  4;  contract 
with  O'Cain,  1803,  ii.  25;  fur  hunt- 
ing in  Cal.,  1805-6,  ii.  40-1;  dis- 
coveries of,  1741,  ii.  59;  other  hunt- 
ing contracts,  1810-11,  ii.  93-4; 


Sacalanes,  Tnds,  exped.  against,  i.  548. 
710-12. 

'Sachem/  h'lip,  iL  475,  478,  493;  iii. 
18,  24. 

Sacramento,  climate,  etc.,  of,  vi. 
23-4;  dramatic  performances  at, 
1849,  vL  244;  mass  meeting  at, 
1849,  vi.  279;  seat  of  gov't  establ'd 
at,  vi.  322-5;  hist,  of,  vL  447-63; 
courts  of,  vii.  239;  legisL  removed 
from,  1862,  vii.  293-4;  co.  conven- 
tion at,  1865,  vii.  317-19;  repub. 

•  convention  at,  1868,  vii.  329-30; 
railroads,  vii.  537-9;  R.  R.  meet- 
ing at,  1861,  vii.  544;  terminus, 
vii.  577-8;  early  schools  of,  vii.  717; 
churches  of,  vii.  728. 

Sacramento  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  484- 
5;  crime  in,  185&-80,  vii.  215;  name, 
etc.,  vii.  439;  aid  to  R.  R.,  1863. 
vii.  556. 

Sacramento,  Placer  and  Nev.  R.  R. 
co.,  authorized  to  sell  the,  1863,  viL 
556. 

Sacramento  river,  exped.  on,  1811,  iL 
322;  exploration  of,  1818,  ii.  331; 
Kotzebue  on,  1824,  iL  523;  Sutter's 
voy.  up,  iv.  130-1;  first  passage  of 
a  ship  up,  iv.  135;  Belcher's  survey 
of,  iv.  144-5;  Fremont  on,  1846,  v. 
170. 

Sacramento  valley,  pestilence  in, 
1833,  iii.  357;  settlers  revolt  in, 
1846,  v.  77;  Ind.  outrages  in.  1847- 
8,  v.  568-9;  name,  vi.  2;  soil,  etc., 
vii.  21. 

Sacramento  Valley  Railroad  co., 
operations,  etc.,  of,  vii.  537-9. 

Sacred  Heart  college,  vii.  722. 

Sacred  Heart  Presentation  convent, 
vii.  722. 

Saddlery,  manufact.,  etc.,  of,  viL  92. 

St  Helena,  mention  of,  vi.  510. 

St  Louis,  R.  R.  convention  at,  1849, 
vii.  508-9;  deputation  A.  &  P.  P. 
R.  to  S.  F.,  vii.  606-7. 

'St  Louis,'  U.  S.  man  of  war,  iv.  36, 
96. 

St  Louis  &  S.  F.  R,  R.  co.,  viL  616. 


trade  with,    1806,  ii.   183;  1817,  ii.    St  Mary's  college,  vii.  722. 


216;  form  settlement  at  Bodego,  ii. 
199;  doings  in  Cal.,  1821-30,  ii. 
628-52;  policy  of,  ii.  641-2;  Ech- 
eandia  vs.,  ii.  649;  actions  in  Cal., 
1831-41,  iv.  158-189;  departure  of 
colony,  iv.  186. 
Rylaud,  C.  T.,  biog.  of,  vii.  334. 


Salcedo,  Col,  inspects  troops  for  Cal., 

1795,  L  536. 
Salgado,  T.,  of  Cal.  junta  in  Mex., 

1825-7,  iiL  3;  report  on  Cal.  miss., 

iiL  109. 

Salinas,  town,  mention  of,  vL  523-4. 
Salinas  rancho,  iL  615. 


808 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Salinas  river,  first  name  for,  i.  150; 
Fages'  exped.  cross,  1772,  i.  184-7; 
immigrants  at,  1776,  i.  268;  Fre- 
mont encamps  at,  v.  9. 

Salmon  fisheries,  vii.  82. 

Salmon  river,  mining  on,  vi.  365. 

Salt,  ii.  651;  vii.  659. 

Salt  Lake  City,  return  of  Mormon 
bat.  to,  v.  496;  festival  at,  1855,  v. 
497-8. 

Sampelayo,  Gerdnimo  de,  sends  sup- 
plies to  S.  Cruz,  1790,  i.  492. 

'San  Agustin,'  Camenon's  ship,  i. 
96. 

San  Andreas,  town,  mention  of,  vi. 
512. 

San  Andreas  Vallecito,  mention  of,  vi. 
374. 

San  Antonio,  mission  established,  i. 
176-7;  want  of  supplies,  i.  187; 
miss,  force  at,  1773,  i.  196;  locality 
'  of,  i.  200;  condition  of  Inds,  1773, 
i.  203;  buildings  at,  1773,  i.  204; 
agric.  at,  1773,  i.  205;  alarm  at, 
1775,  i.  256;  prosperity  at,  1776,  i. 
298;  alcalde  and  regidore  chosen, 
1778,  i.  331;  friars  serving,  1783-90, 
i.  469;  events  at,  1791-1800,  i.  688- 
9;  1801-10,  ii.  151-2;  1811-20,  ii. 
385;  1821-30,  ii.  621-2;  1831-40,  iii. 
686-8;  secularized,  iii.  353;  restored 
to  friars,  1843,  iv.  369;  local  annals, 
1846-8,  v.  639-40. 

'San  Antonio,'  ship,  i.  116,  121,  124, 
126,  136,  166-7,  175,  189,  215,  241, 
282,  287. 

San  Antonio  rancho,  ii.  594. 

San  Benito  region  explored,  1795,  i. 
551. 

San  Benito  county,  creation  etc.,  of, 
vi.  524;  vii.  442-3. 

San  Bernardino,  Jedediah  Smith's 
party  at,  iii.  155;  Ind.  attack  at, 
iii.  359-60;  hist,  of,  vi.  520-1. 

San  Bernardino  county,  hist,  of,  vi. 
519-21;  creation,  etc.,  of,  1853,  vii. 
441;  S.  P.  R.  R.  in,  vii.  617;  min- 
ing in,  vii.  640. 

San  Bernardino  R.  R.,  vii.  619. 

San  Bernardino  valley,  Fages'  exped. 
in,  i.  184. 

San  Bernardino  Valley  R.  R.,  vii.  616. 

San  Bernardino  &  Los  Angeles  R.  R. 
Co.,  vii.  616. 

San  Bernardino  &  San  Diego  R.  R., 
vii.  616. 

San  Bernardo,  skirmish  at,  1846,  v. 
348-50;  advance  of  Stockton  from, 
1846,  v.  386. 


San  Bias,  expenses  of  establishment 
at,  i.  208;  Cal.  bound  fleet  from, 
1775,  i.  240;  explor.  fleet  fitted  out, 
i.  328;  suppl.  to  be  sent  from,  i. 
334;  trade  with,  ii.  184;  Graham 
party  at,  iv.  15;  list  of  exiles,  iv. 
17;  blockade  of,  v.  284. 

San  Buenaventura,  founding  post 
poned,  i.  181;  events  at,  1791-1800 
i.  674-5;  1801-10,  ii.  121-2;  1811- 
20,  ii.  365-6;  1821-30,  ii.  578-80; 
1831^*0,  iii.  658-61;  founded,  i. 
373-7;  friars  assigned  to,  i.  376; 
miss,  church  consecrated,  ii.  89; 
earthquake,  1812,  ii.  201;  disaster 
at,  1819,  ii.  332-4;  occupied  by 
Carrillo's  force,  iii.  549;  battle  at, 
1838,  iii.  552-4;  secularization,  iv. 
46;  restored  to  friars,  iv.  369;  con- 
dition of,  iv.  421;  Micheltorena  at, 
iv.  501;  leased,  1845,  iv.  553;  miss, 
estate  rented,  v.  558;  sale  of  miss, 
estate,  v.  561;  local  annals,  1846-8, 
v.  634-5;  mention  of,  vi.  523. 

San  Carlos,  news  of  founding  of  miss., 
i.  124;  miss,  and  presidio  founded, 
1770,  i.  170-1;  miss,  transferred  to 
Carmelo  bay,  i.  177-8;  residing 
ministers,  i.  178;  conversions  at, 
1770,  175;  Crespi  returns  to,  i.  187; 
miss,  force  at,  1773,  i.  196;  locality 
of,  i.  200;  condition  of  Inds,  1773, 
i.  203;  buildings  at,  1773,  i.  203; 
agric.  at,  1773,  i.  205;  immigrants 
arrive,  1776,  i.  268;  alcalde  and 
regidore  chosen,  1778,  i.  331;  death 
and  burial  of  Serra,  i.  409-1 1 ;  frairs 
serving,  1783-90,  i.  469;  Gov.  Romen 
buried  at,  i.  490;  reception  of  Van- 
couver, i.  512;  events  at,  1791-1800, 
i.  685-8;  1801-10,  ii.  146-8;  1811- 
20,  ii.  383-4;  1821-30,  ii.  bi6; 
1831-40,  iii.  679-80;  wife  murder 
at,  i.  688;  land  troubles,  1802,  ii.  7; 

§ov.  and  offls  swear  loyalty  to 
pain,  1808,  ii.  88$  secularization 
of,  iii.  346.  u 

'San  Carlos,'  ship,  for  Cal.,  i.  116, 
328;  ii.  253,  292,  473;  leaves  La 
Paz,  i.  120,  voyage  of,  i.  128-30; 
returns  to  S.  Bias,  i.  168;  arrives 
with  supplies,  i.  189;  enters  S.  F. 
bay,  1775,  i.  246,  288;  with  supplies 
at  Mont.,  i.  287;  voy.  to  Alaska, 
1788,  i.  444;  brings  news  of  Eng. 
war,  i.  542;  wreck  of,  1797,  i.  706; 
at  Mont.,  1809,  ii.  88,  212;  conveys 
Fernandez  to  Cal. ,  ii.  456. 

San  Cayetano  rancho,  ii.  615. 


IXDEX. 


809 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Regitter,  vols.  II  to  V. 


San  Clemente  island,  named,  L  99; 
inhabitants  of,  1803,  iL  11. 

San   Digueto.    Ind.    pueblo,    iii.   339, 

628. 

v    S.  Diego,  Ferrelo  at,  1543,  L  80;  oc- 
cupation    of    ordered,    i.    113-14; 

•  messages   from,  at  Loreto,  i.    124; 

•    occupation  of,  1769,  L  126-39;  first 

«  settlement  at,  1769,  i  134;  Portola's 
march  to  Monterey,  L  140;  return 
of  Portola's  exped't.,  i.  163;  affairs 
at,  1770,  i,  164;  the  'San  Antonio' 
at,  i.  167-8;  events  at,  1771,  i. 
178-9;  1772-3,  i.  189-92;  1776-7, 
L  299-303;  1791-1800,  L  645-54; 
1801-10,  ii.  97-107;  1811-20,  ii 
340-6;  1821-30,  ii.  539-52;  1831- 
40,  iiL  608-21;  events  at,  1846-8, 
v.  326-9;  355-6,  616-20;  want  of 
supplies,  L  187;  miss,  force  at, 
1773,  L  195;  locality  of,  i  200; 
rancherias  near,  L  202;  buildings 
at,  1773,  i.  204;  Ortega  in  com'd  at, 
L  216;  Serra  at,  from  Mex.,  L  225; 
miss,  moved,  L  229-30;  destruction 
of  miss.,  1775,  i  249-55;  martyr- 
dom of  Padre  Jaume,  i.  250-2;  a 
night  of  terror,  L  251;  Anza  goes 
to  relief  of,  i.  265;  alcalde  and  regi- 
dore  chosen,  1778,  i.  331;  old  pre- 
sidio church  burnt,  i.  385;  map  of, 
1782,  L  456;  Vancouver  at,  i.  522; 
school  at,  1795,  i.  643;  military 
force,  i.  646-S;  population,  L  648; 
buildings,  L  651;  Vancouver's  de- 
scription, i.  650;  presidio  officers, 
i.  451-2;  presidio  force,  population, 
L  452;  buildings,  L  453;  garrison 
life,  L  453;  miss,  frairs  at,  1784- 
95,  L  455-6;  report  on,  L  457;  con- 
versions, 1790,  i.  457;  agric.,  1790, 
L  457;  affair  of  the  'Lelia  Byrd' 
at,  1803,  ii.  11-14;  fight  at,  ii  13; 
explor.  exped't.  from,  1806,  ii  47; 
map  of  dist,  ii.  105;  earthquake  at, 
1803,  ii.  106;. earthquake,  1820,  ii 
344,  cloudburst  at,  1821,  ii.  443; 
oath  to  Mex.  empire,  1822,  ii.  452; 
friars  refuse  taking  oath  to  rep., 
1825,  iii.  7;  transfer  of  office,  1825, 
iii  10;  junta  at,  1828,  iii  41;  con- 
victs not  allowed  to  land,  1830,  iii 
48;  revenue,  1826,  iii  118;  1828, 
iiL  131;  1830,  iii  145;  1831,  iii 
363;  Duhant-Cilly  at,  iii.  129;  cus- 
tom-house at,  18*29,  iii.  136;  Amer. 
flag  raised  at,  1829,  iii  138;  Fitch 
romance,  iii.  110-4;  Jedediah 
Smith's  party  at,  iii  154;  Patties' 


visit,  1827,  iii  162-8;  pronuncia- 
mento  at,  1831,  iii.  290-4;  colony 
arrives  at,  1834,  iii.  267;  emancipa- 
tion at,  iii  351;  secularized,  iii 
353;  troops  refuse  duty,  iii  481; 
loyal,  1836,  iii  483;  plan  of,  1837, 
iii.  516-18;  reception  of  Bandini, 
iii.  519;  oath  of  allegiance  taken, 
iii  521 ;  Carrillo  retires  to,  iii.  556; 
arrests  at,  iii.  577-8;  Ind.  plot  at, 
1837,  iv.  69;  value  of  exports, 
1840,  iv.  80;  arrival  of  Michelto- 
rena,  iv.  290;  guns  for,  spiked  by 
Phelps,  iv.  320;  swearing  to  the 
bases  at,  1843,  iv.  359;  restored  to 
friars,  1843,  iv.  369;  condition  of 
miss.,  1844;  iv.  422;  Fremont  at, 
1846,  v.  266-7;  reoccnpation  of, 
1846,  v.  325;  Kearny  reenforced 
from,  v.  351;  Mormon  battl.  arrive 
at,  v.  486;  Stev.  regt  at,  v.  514; 
sale  of  miss,  estate,  v.  561 ;  climate, 
etc.,  of,  vi  24;  hist,  of,  vi  479-80, 
519-20;  mention  of,  vi  520;  pueblo 
lands,  vi.  567;  name,  vii.  437;  Ind. 
outbreak  at,  1851,  vii.  455;  R.  R. 
enterprise  at,  vii.  595,  633. 

'San  Diego,'  Vizcaino's  flag  ship,  i. 
98. 

S.  Diego  bay,  Cabrillo  at,  1542,  i.  70; 
Vizcaino's  exped't.  at,  i  97-8; 
named,  i  98;  arrival  of  the  'S. 
Carlos,' i  130. 

San  Diego  Central  R.  R.,  vii.  616. 

San  Diego  co.,  quartz  excitement  in, 
vii  641. 

San  Diego,  Cuyamaca  &  Eastern  R. 
R.,  vii  633. 

San  Diego,  Gila,  S.  P.  &  Atlantic  R. 
R.  co.,  vii.  595-6. 

San  Diego  mission,  founded,  i  137; 
events  at,  1791-1800,  L  654-7. 

S.  Fernando,  founding  of,  i.  561-2; 
events  at,  1797-1800,  L  562;  1801- 
10,  ii.  115-16;  1811-20,  ii  357-8: 
1821-30,  ii  569-70;  1831-iO,  iii 
645-8;  1846-8,  v.  629-30;  seculari- 
zation of,  iii.  346;  fall  of,  1837,  iii. 
498-9;  retreat  of  Castro  to,  iiL 
520-1 ;  occupied  by  Portilla's  forces, 
iii.  521;  Alvarado  joins  Castro  at, 
iii  556;  restored  to  friars,  1S43,  iv. 
369;  Fremont's  march  to,  v.  399- 
402;  condition  of,  1844,  iv.  42-J; 
treaty  with  Micheltorena  at,  iv. 
509-10;  leased,  iv.  553;  miss,  es- 
tate rented,  v.  558;  sale  of  miss,  es- 
tate, v.  561;  gold  mining  at,  1842, 
vi  36. 


810 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


San  Fernando  college,  priest  from  for 
Cal.  i.  118. 

San  Fernando  tunnel,  vii.  620. 

S.  Francisco,  miss,  site  selected,  i. 
233;  Heceta  and  Palou  land  trip 
to,  i.  247;  annals  of,,  i.  293-7;  vis- 
ited by  gov.,  1777,  i.  296;  Serra's 
first  visit,  i.  297;  list  of  settlers  at, 
i.  297;  founding  of  miss,  and  pre- 
sidio, 1776-7,  i.  279-97;  Serra's 
confirmation  tour  to,  i.  351;  Cam- 
bou's  gifts  to  miss.,  i.  378;  miss, 
church  built,  1782,  i.  385;  Serra's 
last  visit,  i.  409;  events  at,  1783-90, 
i.  470-4;  1791-1800,  i.  692-715; 
1811-20,  ii.  370-5;  1821-3Q,  ii. 
583-96;  1831-40,  iii.  698-715;  v. 
295-6;  slaughter  of  cattle,  i.  «72; 
complaint  of  climate,  i.  472;  maps, 
La  Perouse's,  i.  475;  of  dist.,  i.  703; 
ii.  376,  593;  of  1848,  vi.  8;  1849, 
vi.  169;  of  burnt  dist,  1851,  vi. 
204;  1856-7,  vi.  756;  reception  of 
Vancouver,  i.  510,  518;  troubles 
with  Ihds,  1795,  i.  547;  education 
at,  1796,  i.  643-4;  1847-89,  vii. 
716-17;  1855-6,  vi.  784;  officials,  i. 
692;  military  force,  i.  693;  finance, 
i.  694;  buildings,  i.  695-7;  bat- 
teries, i.  698-702;  plan  of,  1792,  i. 
695;  1848,  v.  676-86;  'Alexander' 
at,  ii.  16;  Rezanof  at,  1806,  ii. 
67-7_6;  earthquake,  1807,  ii.  87; 
1808,  ii.  129;  1868,  vii.  684-5; 
Kotzebue's  visit,  1816,  ii.  278-81; 
Roquefenil's  visit,  1817,  ii.  287-8; 
conference  with  Russ.  at,  ii.  309- 
10;  oath  to  Mex.  empire,  1822,  i. 
452;  crime  at,  1821-30,  ii.  678-9; 
1851,  vi.  652;  1849-82,  vii.  215-16; 
oath  to  rep.  taken,  1825,  iii.  7; 
severe  storm,  1825,  iii.  30;  insubor- 
dination at,  1828,  iii.  67;  captured 
by  Solis,  1829,  iii.  74-6;  revenue 
1826,  iii.  117-18;  1828,  iii.  131; 
1831,  iii.  363;  Beechey  arrives  at, 
iii.  121;  Duhaut-Cilly  at,  iii.  129; 
Jedediah  Smith's  party  at,  iii.  159; 
Rubio  case  at,  1831,  iii.  191-3; 
destitution  of  soldiers  at,  iii.  322; 
port  closed  by  Carrillo,  1838,  iii. 
545;  first  foreign  settler,  1835,  iii. 
709;  value  of  exports,  1840,  iv.  80; 
Capt.  Belcher's  visit,  1837,  iv.  143; 
Rae  at  for  H.  B.  co.,  1841,  iv.  216; 
insurgent  parties  at,  1846,  v.  136; 
guns  of  spiked,  1846,  v.  177;  U.  S. 
ship  'Portsmouth*  at,  v.  201;  cap- 
ture of  by  U.  S.,  1846,  V.  238-41; 


Col  Mason  at,  1847,  vi.  436,  5M; 
arrival  of  Stev.  reg't  at,  v.  513; 
Brannan's  colony  arrive  at,  v.  550- 
2;  Mormons  preaching,  1847,  v. 
566;  local  annals,  1846-8,  v.  644- 
59;  character  of  population,  1848, 
vi.  2;  descript.  of  miss.,  1848,  vi. 
9;  climate,  etc.,  of,  vi.  23-4;  effect 
of  gold  discov.,  1848,  vi.  53-61; 
arrival  of  the  'California,'  1849, 
vi.  136-7;  accident  of  location,  vi. 
164;  advantages  of  site,  vi.  165; 
name,  vi.  165;  growth  of,  1848-9, 
vi.  166-7,  195-7;  shipping  at,  vi. 
167-8;  vii.  123-9;  population,  vi. 
168;  aspect  of,  vi.  168-71;  streets 
and  buildings,  vi.  171-90;  business 
firms,  vi.  173-86;  hotels  and  res- 
taurants, vi.  188-91;  real  estate 
values,  vi.  191-3;  wharves,  vi.  196- 
7;  pavements  and  grades,  vi.  197- 
200;  plan  of  city,  vi.  200-1;  con- 
flagrations, 1849-51,  vi.  202-7; 
fire  department,  vi.  207-9;  muni- 
cipal affairs,  etc.,  in,  vi.  209-19; 
lawlessness  in,  vi.  211-12;  society 
in,  1849-50,  vi.  221-48;  town  coun- 
cil of,  1849,  vi.  271;  legisl.  assem- 
bly at,  1849,  vi.  271-2,  277-8; 
mass  meeting  at,  1849,  vi.  278-9; 
pueblo  lands,  vi.  568-70;  vigilance 
comm.  in,  1851-6,  vi.  742-54; 

Progress,  etc.,  of,  1851-6,  vi. 
75-83;  laud  titles,  1850-4,  vi. 
755-60;  new  charter  of,  1851,  vi. 
760-2;  1856,  vi.  769-71;  munic. 
affairs  in,  1856,  vi.  762-74;  debt 
and  bonds,  1850-6,  vi.  772-4;  taxa- 
tion, 1850-7,  vi.  774-5;  val.  of 
property,  1850-7,  vi.  775;  expend., 
1850-7,  vi.  775;  buildings,  etc.,  of, 
1851-5,  vi.  776-81;  business  de- 

Sression  in,  1855-6,  vi.  781-2;  in- 
ustries,  1856,  vi.  782-3;  social 
features  of,  vi.  783-5;  churches,  vi. 
784;  vii.  726-30;  a  manufact.  cen- 
tre, vii.  74;  prices,  etc.,  1848-56, 
vii.  103-12;  shipments  to,  vii.  105- 
11;  commer.  panic  in,  1851,  vii. 
107-8;  imports  and  exports,  vii. 
112-23;  distrib.  of  trade,  vii.  122- 
3;  port  of  entry,  1849,  vii.  141-2; 
mint,  vii.  167-8;  businesss  failures 
in,  1855-6,  vii.  174-84;  land  titles 
in,  vii.  229-33;  judiciary  of,  vii. 
240-1;  mass-meeting  in,  1861,  vii. 
277-8;  loyal  demonstration  in,  vii. 
279;  defences  of,  1849-61,  287-8; 
vii.  451-3,  463-6,  472-3;  Lincoln's 


INDEX. 


811 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 

reelection,   vii.    310-11;    assassina-    S.  Francisqnito  creek,    Anza's  camp 

tion,   vii.  311-13;  democr.   conven-        at,  i.  280. 

tion  at,  1868,  vii.  330;  the  Chinese    San  Gabriel,  established,  1S71,  i.  179- 


question,  vii.  341-5;  labor  agita- 
tions in,  1877-8,  vii.  348-62;  the 
new  constitut.,  1879,  vii.  395-400; 
charter  of,  vii.  397;  election  of, 
1879,  vii.  411-12;  1881,  vii.  415-16; 
charter  of,  viL  412-14;  name,  viL 
438;  clearances  at,  viL  443;  duties, 
etc.,  rec'd  at,  vii.  443;  gov't  ap- 
proprs  for,  1851-87,  vii.  443-4;  R. 
R.  affairs  in,  vii.  542—4,  556-7, 
601-3,  605-8,  685  et  seq.;  stock 
exch.  board,  vii.  666-8;  mining 
excitement  at,  1858,  vii.  682-3; 
real  estate  decline,  vii.  683,  685; 
manufactures  of,  vii.  683;  street 
car  lines,  viL  684;  bulkhead  bill, 
vii.  684-5;  trade  increase,  viL 
687;  labor  troubles,  1877,  vii. 
687-9;  workingmen's  party,  viL 
689;  loyalty  to  union,  vii.  689-90; 
politics,  etc.,  of,  vii.  690;  land 
titles  in,  vii.  691;  Chinatown  in, 
vii.  691-2;  future  of,  vii.  692-4; 


80;  troubles  at,  L  180-2;  want  of 
supplies,  i.  187;  events  at,  177-.  i. 
189;  1783-90,  i.  459-60;  1791-lfcOO, 
L  663-5;  1801-10,  ii.  113-15;  1811- 
20,  iL  355-7;  1821-30,  ii.  567-9; 
1831-40,  iii.  641-5;  miss,  force  at, 
1773,  i.  196;  locality  of,  i.  200;  con- 
dition of  natives,'  1773,  i.  202; 
buildings  at,  1773,  i.  204;  agric.  at, 
1773,  i.  205;  Anza's  exped.  at,  L 
223;  tedious  march  to,  1776,  i.  264; 
consultation  between  Rivera  and 
Anza,  L  271-2;  Garces'  reception 
at,  i.  275-6;  friars  serving  at,  1776, 
L  299;  alcalde  and  regidore  chosen, 
1778,  L  331;  deserters  arrested  at, 
iL  88;  trouble  with  Inds,  1810,  iL 
92;  attempt  cotton  cultivation, 
1808,  ii.  177;  hemp  culture,  iL  180; 
earthquake,  1812,  ii.  200;  Inds 
troublesome  at,  1811,  iL  323-4; 
Colorado  Inds  at,  1822,  ii.  480;  in- 
dustries at,  iL  6G5;  Ihihant-Cilly 


millionaires    in,    viL    693;    Golden  j      at,  iiL  630;   trappers  at,   1826,  iii. 


Gate  park,  vii.  693. 
San    Francisco    bay,    question  as  to 

Drake  anchoring  in,  L  86-7,  90-4; 

discovery  of,  i.  159;  third  explora- 
tion of.  L  231—4;  explored  by  Ayalo, 

i.  245-7;    Moraga  explores,  i.  290; 

Aleuts  hunting  in,  1808,  ii.  81 ;  map 

of,  1826,  iL  589;  Aleuts  hunting  in, 

ii.  296;   Kotzebue's  visit,   1824,  ii. 

522;  surveyed  by  Beechey,  ii.  588;    San   Gabriel   river,  name,  i.  179;  iL 

iii.    121;    Belcher's    survey   of,    iv.  i      47. 

144.  !  San  Gabriel  valley  R.  R.,  vii.  616. 

San  Francisco  Bible  society,  viL  729.  [  San  Ignacio  rancho,  iL  594. 
San  Francisco  Bay  R.  R.  co.,  vii.  578.    San  Isidro  rancho,  ii.  594. 
'San  Francisco  Javier,'  ship,  ii.  474.       San  Jacinto  Valley  R.  R.,  vii.  616. 


154;  Padres  and  Hijars  colony  at, 
iii.  267;  secularization  of,  iii.  346; 
slaughter  of  cattle,  iii.  348;  Ind. 
depredations  at,  1834,  iii.  359;  re- 
stored to  friars,  1843,  iv.  369;  con- 
dition of,  1844,  iv.  422;  battle  at, 
1846,  v.  391-5;  sale  of  miss,  estate, 
v.  561;  local  annals,  1846-8,  v. 
628. 


'San   Francisco  de   Paula,'  ship,    iL 

293,  477. 
San  Francisco  peninsula,  Anza's  ex- 

plor.  of,  1776,  i.  279-S80. 
S.  Francisco  rancho,  gold  discovered 

on,  1842,  iv.  297. 
San  Francisco  Solano,  see  Solano. 
S.   F.,  Oakland  and  Alameda  R.  R. 

co.,  viL  587. 
S.  F.   &   Humboldt  Bay  R.  R.  co., 

vii.  583. 

S.  F.  4  Marysville  R.  R,,  viL  581. 
S.  F.  &  North  Pacific  R.  R.,  vii.  583. 
San   Francisco  and  San  Jose  R.  R. 

co.,  organized,  etc.,  1859,  viL  537, 

598. 
S.  F.  &  Washoe  R.  R.,  viL  560. 


San  Jose,  founded,  L  312;  early 
annals,  1776-81,  312-14;  agric.,  L 
331,  478;  settlers  at,  1782-3,  L 
349-50;  map,  i.  350;  events  at, 
1783-90.  L  477-80;  1791-1800,  L 
715-21;  1801-10,  ii.  132-6;  1811-20, 
ii.  377-9;  1821-30,  ii.  602-6;  1831- 
40,  iii.  729-32;  1^6,  v.  294-5;  first 
school  at,  i.  642;  proposed  removal, 
L  719;  boundary  dispute,  i.  719-21; 
pueblo  regulations,  i.  721-2;  boun- 
dary dispute,  1809,  ii.  135-6;  ayunt. 
at,  ii.  461-2,  676;  visited  by  Kotze- 
bue,  1824,  ii.  523;  crime  at,  1821- 
30,  ii.  678-9;  Ihihant-Cilly  at,  iiL 
129;  Jedediah  Smith's  party  at,  iii. 
158;  case  of  Alcalde  Duarte,  1831, 


812 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


iii.  194-5;  arrest  of  Weber  at, 
1846,  v.  157;  Protestant  services 
at,  1847,  vi.  566;  local  annals,  v. 
660-5;  condition  of,  1848,  vi.  4-5; 
settlers  of,  1848,  vi.  9;  effect  of  gold 
discov.,  1848.  vi.  62-3;  seat  of 
gov't  at,  1849-51,  vi.  308-22;  men- 
tion of,  vi.  524;  pueblo  lands,  vi. 
567;  railroad  to,  vii.  536-7. 

'San  Jose,'  Manila  galleon,  ii.  330. 

'  San  Jose, '  ship,  misfortunes  to,  i. 
123-4. 

San  Jose  mission,  founding  of,  i.  555; 
events  at,  1797-1800,  i.  556;  1801- 

10,  ii.   137-40;    1811-20,  ii.    375-7; 
1821-30,  ii.  598-600;    1831-40,    iii. 
723-6;    Ind.    attack,    1805,    ii.    34; 
Langsdorffs    visit,     1806,    ii.     138; 
church    consecrated,    1809,    ii.    89; 
hemp  culture  at,  ii.  179-80;  visited 
by  Beechey,  iii.  121;  secularization, 
iv.  47;  Ind.  plot  at,  1842,  iv.   338; 
restored  to  friars,,  iv.  369;   sale  of 
estate,  v.  561. 

San  Joaquin  city,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
San  Joaquin  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  513- 

14;  name,  etc.,  vii.  440;  railroads, 

vii.  588. 
San  Joaquin  river,  exped.  on,  i.  186; 

11.  46,  56,  322;   Garces   at,   i.  277; 
discovery   and   naming   of,    ii.    47; 
fight  with  Inds,  1814,  ii.  204. 

San  Joaquin  valley,  map  of,  ii.  51; 
exped.  to,  1810,  ii.  92;  pestilence 
in,  1833,  iii.  357;  Fremont's  party 
in,  1846,  v.  6;  Mormon  colony  in,  v. 
551;  name,  vi.  2;  settlers,  etc.,  in, 
1810,  vi.  11;  irrigation  in,  vii.  9-11? 
soil,  etc.Tvii.  20-3;*  Ind.  raids  in, 
vii.  480-1. 

San  Joaquin  Valley  R.  R.  Co.,  vii. 
587,  594. 

San  Joaquin  &  King  River  canal, 
construction  of,  1871-8,  vii.  9-10. 

San  Joaquin  &  Sierra  Nevada  R.  R., 
vii.  591. 

San  Joaquin  &•  Tulare  R.  R..  vii. 
589. 

S.  Juan  de  Arguello,  iv.  196. 

San  Juan  Bautista,  Ind.  attacks  at, 
1798-9,  i.  548-9;  founding  of,  i. 
557-8;  Ind.  troubles  at,  i.  558; 
earthquake,  i.  559;  events  at.  1797- 
1800,  i.  558-9;  1801-10,  ii.  153-4; 
1811-20,  ii.  386-7;  1821-30;  ii.  623- 
4;  1831-40,  iii.  691-3;  land  trou- 
bles, 1802,  ii.  7;  secularized,  iii. 
353;  sale  of  miss,  estate,  v.  561; 
local  annals,  1846-8,  v.  640;  men- 
tion of,  vi.  524. 


San  Juan  Capistrano,  attempt  found- 
ing, 1775,  i.  248-9;  founded,  i. 
299,  303-4;  conversions  at,  i.  304; 
affairs  at,  1787-90;  i.  458-9;  events 
at,  1791-1800,  i.  657-8;  1801-10, 
ii.  108-10;  1811-20,  ii.  3-1 7-9;  1821- 
30,  ii.  555-6;  1831-40,  iii.  625-8; 
fire  at,  1801,  ii.  3;  '  Peacock '  pris- 
oners at,  ii.  37-8;  new  church, 
1801,  ii.  109;  earthquake,  1812,  ii. 
200;  Bouchard  at,  1818,  ii.  240-1, 
strife  between  padres  and  Ar- 
guello, ii.  242;  foreign  vessels  al- 
lowed at,  iii.  127;  secularization  of, 
iii.  346;  Ind.  pueblo  at,  1833,  iii. 
332-9;  restored  to  -friars,  1843, 
iv.  369;  condition  of,  1844,  iv.  422; 
sale  of,  1845;  m  553;  sale  of  miss, 
estate,  v.  558;  local  annals  of, 
1846-8,  v.  623-4. 

San  Leandro,  hist,  of,  vi.  52G-7. 

San  Leandro  creek,  Fages'  expedt. 
at,  i.  185. 

San  Lore*nzo,  mention  of,  vi.  527. 

San  Lorenzo  creek,  Fages'  expedt. 
cross,  i.  185. 

San  Lucas  mine,  vii.  651. 

San  Luis  Obispo,  founding  of,  i. 
188-9;  miss,  force  at,  1773,  i.  196; 
condition  of  Inds,  1773;  i.  .  202; 
buildings  at,  1773,  i.  204;  agric.  at, 
f77$  i.  205;  new  church,  1774,  i. 
239;  immigrants  at,  1776,  i.  268; 
fire  at,  1776,  i.  298-9;  friars  in 
charge,  i.  299;  alcalde  and  regi- 
dore  chosen,  1778,  i.  331;  friars 
serving,  1783-90,  i.  469-70;  revolt 

—  of  neophytes,  i.  547;  events  at, 
1791-1800,  i.  689-90;  1801-10,  ii. 
148-9;  1811-20,  ii.  384;  reported 
gold  discovery,  1820,  ii.  417;  1821- 
30,  ii.  618-19;  1831-40,  iii.  680-3; 
Ind.  revolt,  1794,  i.  694;  hemp 
culture  at,  ii.  179;  industries  at, 
ii.  665;  foreign  vessels  allowed  at, 
iii.  127;  secularization,  iii.  307,  353; 
emancipation  at,  iii.  331;  death  of 
Ramirez  at,  iii.  587;  horse  stealing 
from,  1840,  iv.  77;  value  of  ex- 
ports, 1840,  iv.  80;  lauds  ordered 
distributed,  1842,  iv.  331;  condi- 
tion, 1844,  iv.  421 ;  secularization 
of,  iv.  423;  sale  of,  1845,  iv.  553; 
headquarters  of  M.  Castro,  1846, 
v.  321,  361-2;  sale  of  miss,  estate, 
v.  558;  annals  of.  1846-8;  y. 
638-9;  mention  of,  vi.  523;  vii. 
595;  name,  etc.,  vii.  437-8. 

San  Luis  Obispo  county,  descript.  of, 
vi.  523. 


INDEX. 


813 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


iSan  Luis  Obispo  R.  R.,  vii.  595. 

San   L.  Obispo   &   Santa   M.    Valley 

R.  R.,  vii.  595.  «^^ 

San  Luis  Rey,  founding  of,  i.'5W"4; 

events  at,    1798-1800,  i.  564,  657; 

1801-10;     ii.     107-8;     1811-20, 


San  Pedro  river,  named,  ii.  47;  Mor- 
mon  battl.  fight  with  wild  bulls,  v. 
485. 

San  Pedro  y  San  Pablo,  founded,  L 
359;  massacre  at,  i.  362. 

San  Qnentin,  vi.  511;  vii.  737-8. 


346-7;  1821-30,  ii.  553-4;  1831-40,  !  San  Rafael,  founding  of  miss.,  ii.  316, 


iii.  621—5;  earthquake  at,   1821,  ii. 

•  443;  industries  at,  ii.  665;  Padres 
and  Hijars'  colony  at,  iii."  267;  sec- 
ularization of,  iii.  346;  slaughter  of 
cattle,  iii.  348;  Hartnell's  troubles 
at,  1840,  iv.  61;  restored  to  friars, 
1843,  iv.  369;  condition  of,  1844, 
iv.  422;  Bidwell  at,  v.  286,  318; 
Mormon  battl.  at,  v.  488;  Capt. 
Hunt  at,  v.  492;  sale  of  miss,  es- 
tate, v.  561;  local  annals  of, 
1846-8,  v.  620-2;  mention  of,  vi 
520. 

San  Mateo,  town,  mention  of,  vi. 
526. 

San  Mateo  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  526; 
creation,  etc.,  of,  1856,  vii.  442. 


329-31;  events  at,  1821-30,  ii. 
596-8;  1831-10,  iii.  715-18;  mis- 
conduct of  Padre  Mercado,  iii. 
323-4;  secularization  of,  iii.  346; 
arrest  of  Hartnell,  1840,  iv.  61; 
value  of  miss,  prop.,  1845,  iv. 
551;  campaign  of,  1846,  v.  171; 
retreat  of  Torre,  v.  176;  sale  of 
miss,  estate,  v.  561;  local  annals, 
1846-8,  v.  669-70;  condition  of 
miss.,  1848,  vi.  21;  mention  of,  vi. 
511,  590. 

San  Rafael  rancho,  i.  609,  661-2;  ii 
565. 

San  Ramon  valley,  Fages'  expedt.  in, 
i.  186. 

'San  Ruperto,'  ship,  ii.  251,  291. 


San   Miguel,  founding  of,  i.  559-60;    San  Salvador  de  Horta,  see  '  Alameda 
events  at,  1797-1800,  i.  560-1;  1801-  '      creek.' 

10,    ii.    149-51;    1811-20,    ii.    384;    Sanborn,  F.  C.,  member  stock  board, 
1821-30,  ii.  620;  1831-10,  iii.  683-6;  j      vii.  668. 

fire  at,  1806,  ii.  150;  secularization    Sandels,  Dr,   'Visit  to  Cal.,'  1842-3, 
decree.  1831,  iii.  307;  secularization,        iv.  345-6. 
iv.    46;    condition,     1844,    iv.    421;  j  Sanderson,  S.  W.,  biog.,  etc.,  of,  vii. 


pronunciamento  at,   1844,  iv.  458; 

value   of   property,   J845,    iv.    551; 

sale  of   miss,  estate,  v.  561;   local 

annals,  1846-8,  v.  639-40. 
San  Miguel  river,  named,  ii.  47. 
San  Nicolas  island,  natives  removed ' 

from,  iii.  360-1. 
San  Pablo,  Castro  at,  vi.  135;  murder 

of    Berreyesa    and    Haros    at,    v. 

171-4. 
San  Pablo  bay,  Fages'  expedt.  at,  L  | 

185;  explored,  1775,  i.  246. 
San  Pablo  raucho,  ii.  59-4. 
San   Pascual,   pueblo,   iii.   628;    fight 

at,  1846,  v.  341-8. 


235;  supreme  judge,  1863,  vii.  304; 

reflected,  1865,  vii.  319. 
Sandwich  islands,  trade  with,  1847-8, 

v.  570. 
Sanitary    commission,    contributions 

to,  vii.  295. 
Santa    Ana,    town,    mention    of,    vi. 

522. 

Santa  Ana  rancho,  ii.  565. 
Santa    Anna,    Pres.,    instructions   to 

Figueroa,  iii.  270;  offl  acts  in  Cal. 

affairs,  1841-3,  iv.  285,  336-7,  360, 

380;    precautions  ag'st  filibusters, 

1853,  vL  589. 
'  Santa  Apolonia,'  ship,  iii.  93. 


San  Pedro,  cannon  at,  left  by  Amer's,  Santa  Barbara,  Cabrillo  possibly  at, 
ii.  270;  events  at,  1821-30,  ii.  564;  ;  i.  72;  founding  delayed,  i.  377-8; 
1831-40,  iii.  641;  Duhaut-Cilly  at,  I  gov.  inspects,  1782,  i.  378;  founded, 
iii.  129;  closed  to  foreign  traders,  i  i.  422-4;  conversions  at,  1790,  L 
1828,  iii.  131;  Padres  and  Hijaras'  j  424;  events  at,  1783-90,  i.  462-6; 
colony  at,  iii.  267;  Stearns'  opera- 
tions at,  iii  375;  value  of  exports, 
1840,  iv.  80;  Com.  Jones  at,  iv. 
322;  defeat  of  Mervine,  1846,  v. 
219-20;  Stockton  at,  v.  267;  de- 


parture of  Stockton,  v.  430. 
San  Pedro  bay,  named,  i.  99. 
San  Pedro  rancho,  i.  662;  ii  565. 


1791-1800,  i  665-73;  1801-10,  ii 
116-21;  1811-20,  ii.  358-65;  1821- 
30,  ii.  570-8;  1831-40,  iii.  649-58; 
plan  of  presidio,  i.  464;  Vancouver 
at,  i.  521;  execution  at,  1794,  i 
638-40;  school  at,  1795,  i  643; 
map  of  dist,  1800,  i.  667-  1830,  ii 
577;  earthquake  at,  1806,  ii  42; 


814 


INDEX. 


For  Information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


1812,  ii.  201;  1821,  ii.  443;  Bou- 
chard's ship  at,  ii.  237-40;  smug- 
gling adventure  at,  ii.  440-1;  oath 
to  Mex.  empire,  1822,  ii.  452;  re- 
volt of  luds.  at,  1824,  ii.  530-3;  in- 
dustries at,  ii.  665;  ayunt.  at,  ii. 
676;  revolt  at,  1829,  iii.  76-9;  Padre 
Martinez  arrested,  iii.  98;  revenue, 
1826,  iii.  117;  Duhaut-Cilly  at,  iii. 
129;  ship  built  at,  1829,  iii.  139;  Fig- 
ueroa's  remains  removed  to,  iii. 
295;  secularization  of,  iii.  346; 
favors  general  junta,  1836,  iii.  484, 
491;  Alvarado  rec'd  at,  iii.  492; 
election  at,  1837,  iii.  506;  plan  of, 
iii.  506—8;  Castro  retires  to,  iii. 
521;  failute  of  attack  on,  1838,  iii. 
550;  flight  of  Carrillos,  iii.  569; 
gov.  and  gen.  at,  1839,  iii.  579-84; 
Carrillo  conspiracy,  1840,  iii.  606-7; 
foreigners  arrested,  1840,  iv.  15; 
value  of  exports,  1840,  iv.  80; 
headquarters  otter-hunting,  iv. 
209;  '  Cyane  '  sent  with  despatches 
to,  iv.  311;  Com.  Jones  meets 
Micheltorena  at,  iv.  321-2;  recep- 
tion of  Bishop  Garcia  Diego  at, 
1842,  iv.  332-3;  cathedral  com- 
menced at,  1842,  iv.  335;  miss,  re- 
stored to  friars,  1843,  iv.  369;  con- 
dition of  miss.,  iv.  421 ;  opened  to 
coasting  trade.  1844,  iv.  431;  revolt 
at,  1845,  iv.  541-2;  value  of  miss, 
property,  1845,  iv.  550;  miss, 
leased,  1845,  iv.  553;  consejo  coun- 
cil at,  1846,  v.  65-71;  Lt  Talbot  in 
comd  of  garrison  at,  1846,  v.  287; 
Talbot  quits,  v.  316-17;  Fremont 
and  battl.  at,  v.  376;  Fremont's 
march  from,  v.  399;  Stev.  regt  at, 
v.  513;  miss,  estate  rented,  v.  558; 
sale  of  miss,  estate,  v.  561,  632, 
fears  of  revolt  at,  1847,  v.  584-6; 
local  annals,  1846-8,  v.  630-5;  min- 
strel performances  at,  1847,  vi.  243; 
mention  of,  vi.  522;  pueblo  lands, 
vi.  567;  name,  vii.  437;  R.  R.  con- 
test at,  vii.  594-5;  school  at,  1850, 
vii.  718. 

Santa  Barbara  channel,  villages  on, 
i.  47-9;  to  be  occupied,  i.  335. 

Santa  Barbara  county,  hist,  of,  vi. 
522-3. 

Santa  Catalina  island,  named,  i.  99; 
population,  i.  100;  inhabitants  of, 
ii.  22;  proposed  miss.,  ii.  33;  otter- 
hunting  at,  1807,  ii.  84. 

Santa  Clara,  founded,  i.  305-6;  lay- 
ing corner-stone  of  church,  i.  351; 


Serra's  last  visit,  i.  409;  new  church 
erected,  474;  events  at,  1VS3-90,  i. 
474-7;  1791-1800,  i.  722-5;  1801- 

10,  ii.  136-7;  1811-20,  ii.  377;  1821- 
30,  ii.  600-2;    1831-40,    iii.    726-8; 
reception    of    Vancouver,    i.    511; 
Ind.  plot  at,  1805,  ii.  35;  visited  by 
Kotzebue,    1824,    ii.    523;   Duhaut- 
Cilly    at,    iii.    129;    Ind.   revolt    at, 
1835,  iii.  362;  Ramirez  arrested  at, 
iii.  525;  marriage  of  Alvarado,  iii. 
593;    secularization,    iv.    47;    Ind. 
outrage   at,    1840,  iv.  76;   restored 
to  friars,    1843,    iv.  369;   value  of 
miss,  property,  1845,  iv.  551;  G-en. 
Castro  at,   1846,  v.  105;    battle   of, 
1846,    v.    380-3;   sale   of   miss,   or- 
chard,    v.     561;    local    annals    of, 
1846-8,  v.   665-7;   mention   of,  vi. 
524. 

Santa  Clara  county,  exploration  of, 
1772,  i.  184-7;  name,  etc.,  of,  vii. 
438;  hist,  of,  vi.  524-5. 

Santa  Clara  valley,  Fages'  expedt.  in, 
1772,  i.  184. 

Santa  Clara  and  Pajaro  Valley  R.  R., 
vii.  599. 

Santa  Cruz,  expedt.  lands  at,  1769,  i. 
127;  founded,  i.  493-5;  local  an- 
nals, 1792-1800,  i.  495-8;  1801-10, 

11.  154-5;     1811-20,     ii.     387-90; 
1821-30,    ii.     625-6;    1831-40,    iii. 
693-6;  murder  of  Quintana,  ii.  199; 
trouble  at,   1818,   ii.   242-5;    severe 
storm,  1825,  iii.  30;  foreign  vessels 
allowed   at,  iii.   127;    Duhaut-Cilly 
at,    iii.    129;    secularization   of,   iii. 
346:   earthquake  at,   1840,    iv.    78; 
U.  S.  flag  raised  at,  1846,  v.  245-6; 
Protestant    services    at;     1847,    v. 
566;   annals   of,    1846-8,   v.   641-2; 
mention  of,  vi.  525;  name,  vii.  438. 

Santa  Cruz  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  525. 
Santa  Cruz  island,  Mex.  convicts  sent 

to,  iii.  48. 
Santa     Cruz     mountains,     Fremont's 

trip  across,  1846,  v.  7. 
Santa   Cruz  and   Felton  R.   R.,  vii. 

591. 

'Santa  Eulalia/ship,  ii.  203. 
Santa  Fe,  founded,  i.  18;  occupied  by 

Gen.    Kearny,    v.    334;    march    of 

Mormon  battl.  to,  v.  478-82. 
'Santa     Gertrudis,'     ship,     conveys 

Gov.  Romen  to  Cal.,  i.  488. 
Santa  Gertrudis,  rancho,  ii.  565. 
Santa  Inez,  founding  of,  1804,  ii.  28- 

29;    events   at,    1804-10,    ii.    28-9; 

1811-20,     ii.    368-9;     1821-30,    ii. 


INDEX. 


815 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 

581-2;    1831-40,    iii    661-4;  hemp  j  Savage,  J.  D.,  mention  of,  vi.  515. 
cultur.  at,  ii.   179-81;  earthquake,  !  Savage,  miae,  stocks,  vii.  671-2-  out- 
1812,  ii  201;  Ind,  revolt  at,  1824,  '      put,  vii.  673. 

ii.   528;    secularization,  iv.  46;   re-    '  Savannah, '  U.  S.  ship,    iv.  459;   v. 
stored  to  friars,   iv.  369;  ecclesias-        1QO    nf>A    °~°  •*     """    ~»-  "     "•"* 


tical  seminary  at,  1844,  iv.  403, 
425-6;  condition  of,  1844,  iv.  421; 
value  of  property,  1845,  iv.  550; 
leased,  1845,  iv.  553;  miss,  estate 
rented,  v.  558;  sale  of  miss,  estate, 
v.  561;  local  annals,  1846-8,  v.  635. 

Santa  Margarita,  meeting  of  Pico  and 
Castro  at,  1846,  v.  562. 

Santa  Marina,  E.  J.  de,  member 
stock  board,  vii.  668. 

Santa  Monica,  Cabrillo  anchors  in,  i. 
71;  mention  of,  vi.  521-2. 

Santa  Paula,  town,  mention  of,  vi. 
523. 

Santa  Rosa,  settlement  at,  1833,  iii 
255-6;  murder  of  Cowie  and 
Fowler  near,  1846,  v.  160-2;  fight 
near,  1846,  v.  164;  mention  of,  vi 
507. 

'  Santa  Rosa, '  Bouchard's  ship,  ii. 
228. 

Santa  Rosa  island,  Cabrillo  at,  i  72; 
granted  to  Carrillo,  iii.  581;  Ban- 
croft hunting  at,  1838,  iv.  90. 

Santa  Teresa,  campaign  of,  1844,  iv. 
466-70. 

'Santiago,'  ship,  Serra  returns  on,  i. 


199,  224,  253-4,   290,   295-6,    318, 

320,  226-7,  436. 

Savings  and  Loan  Society,  vii.  164. 
Sawyer,  Judge  L.,  election,  etc.,  of, 

vii.  235;  biog.,  etc.,  of,   vii.  235-6; 

supreme  judge,  1863,  vii.  304;  men- 
tion of,  vii.  577. 
Scala,  bibliog.,  ii.  67,  299. 
Schmiedell,     Henry,    member    stock 

board,  vii.  668. 
Schofield,  Gen.  G.  M.,  in  command, 

1S70,  vii.  472. 

Schwartz,  J.,  mention  of,  vi.  17. 
Scorpion  Silver  Mining  co.,  vii.  667. 
Scott,  A.  B.,  vii.  561. 
Scott,  C.  L.,  nominee  for  cong.,  1859, 


Scott,  Dr,  excitement  against,  1861, 

vii.  286. 

Scott,  I.  M.,  biog.,  vii.  748. 
Scott,  Thomas  A.,  vii.  609-10,  613-15. 
Scott,  Win  A.,  vii.  729-30. 
Scurvy,  ravages  of,  1769,  i.  130-2;  on 

the  Juno,  1806,  ii.  67. 
Sea-otter,  see  fur  trade. 
Seal  Rocks,  first  drive  to,  i  233-4. 
Sealing,  vii.  81. 
Seals,  see  fur  trade. 


218-19;    built   for   Cal.    service,    i  !  Searles,  Niles,  vii.  590. 


224;  northern  voy.  of,  1775,  i. 
241-3;  first  voy.  direct  to  S.  F.,  i 
296;  voyages  of,  1778-9,  i.  328. 

Santiago  de  Santa  Ana  rancho,  hold- 
ers of,  1809,  ii.  112. 

Santillian,  claims  of,  vii.  243-4. 

Santillian  claim,  mention  of,  vi.  561. 

Santo,  Bernardo  del  Espiritu,  Bishop 
of  Cal.,  1818,  ii.  411. 

'Santo  Tomas,'  ship  in  Vizcaino's  ex- 
pedt..  i  98. 

Sargeut,  A.  A.,  congressman,  etc., 
18151,  vii.  291-2;  defeat  of,  vii.  301; 
congressman,  1868,  vii.  331;  biog., 
vii  331;  mention  of,  vii.  547;  bill 
of,  1861,  vii.  548;  in  R.  R.  affairs, 
vii.  561,  602,  615. 

Satayomi,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Satiyomes,  Ind.  fight  with,  iii  257. 

Sauzal  rancho,  ii.  615. 

Sauzalito,  Russ.  warehouse  at,  1836, 
iv.  164;  '  Portsmouth '  anchored  at, 
v.  156;  name,  etc.,  vi.  511;  men- 
tion of,  vi.  21. 

Savage,  e'xplor.,  etc.,  of,  1852,  vii. 
209;  death  of,  vii  210. 


Sears.  W.  H.,  speech  of,  1863,  vii 
550. 

Seawall,  Major  W.,  in  command, 
1851,  vii.  471. 

Secpe  rancho,  friars  object  to  grant, 
1817,  ii.  354. 

Secularization,  decree  of  Spanish 
cdrtes,  1813,  ii.  399-400;  decree 
forwarded  to  Cal.,  1821,  ii.  431; 
padres  offered  to  give  up  miss.,  ii. 
431;  policy  of  friars,  ii  431-5;  indi- 
cations of,  1823,  ii.  487;  legislature 
on,  1825,  iii.  17-18;  policy  of,  iii. 
100-2;  experimental,  iii.  102-4; 
Echeandia's  plan,  iii.  105-6,  301- 
5;  approved  by  legislature,  iii.  106- 
7;  Echeandia's  decree,  1831,  iii. 
184;  decree  of,  1831,  iii.  305-6;  at- 
tempt to  enforce,  iii.  307-8;  Duran's 
comments,  iii.  309-10;  Figueroa's  re- 
port, iii.  320-31 ;  views  of  prefect  and 
pres.,  iii.  333-5;  emancipation  ad- 
vised, iii.  335-6:  Figueroa's  policy, 
1834,  iii.  341;  Mex.  law,  iii.  342-4, 
Hijar  instructions,  iii  345;  regla- 
mento  in  practice,  iii  346-7;  local 


816 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


results,  iii.  350;  missions  secular- 
ized, iii.  346,  353;  views  of  padres, 
iii.  347;  of  San  Diego,  1835,  iii.  620; 
of  San  Luis  Key,  1834,  iii.  623;  San 
Juan  Cap.,  1834,  iii.  627;  San 
Gabriel,  1834,  iii.  643-5;  S.  Fer- 
nando, 1834,  iii.  646-8;  Sta  Bar- 
bara, 1834,  iii.  656-8;  S.  Buenaven- 
tura, 1834,  iii.  660;  Sta  Ines,  1836, 
iii.  663;  Purisima,  1834,  iii.  664-6; 
S.  Carlos,  1834,  iii.  680-1;  S.  Luis 
Obispo,  iii.  681-3;  S.  Miguel,  1836, 
iii.  685;  S.  Antonio,  1835,  iii.  688; 
Soledad,  1835,  iii.  691;  S.  Juan  Bau- 
tista,  1835,  iii.  692-3.  Sta  Cruz, 
1834-5,  iii.  693-6;  Dolores  miss., 
1834-5,  iii.  715;  Solano,  1834,  iii. 
720;  S.  Jose,  1836-7,  iii.  725;  Sta 
Clara,  1837,  iii.  728;  completion  of, 
1845,  iv.  536-53. 

Sedgwick,  John,  vii.  588. 

Selby,  T.  H.,  biog.  of,  vii.  186. 

Sellers,  J.  A.,  death  of,  vii.  210. 

Semple,  Dr,  mention  of,  vi.  18,  261; 
pres't  of  constit.  convention,  etc., 

1849.  vi.  289,  291,  295;  enterprises 
of,  vi.  497. 

Semple,  C.  D.,  mention  of,  vi.  497. 
Semple,  R.,  candidate  for  U.  S.  sen- 
ate,  1849,  vi.  311;  gen.  of  militia, 

1850,  vi.  319. 

Senate,    state,    organized,     1849,    vi. 

309-10;  members,   1849,  vi.  309-10. 
'  Senoriano, '  ship,  ii.  293. 
Septilveda,  D.,  mention  of,  1848,  vi. 

79-80. 
Sergas  of  Esplandian,  name,  Cal.,  i. 

66. 
Sericulture,  experiments  in,  vii.  31-3; 

premiums     for,    1866,     vii.     32-3; 

failure    of,    vii.    32-3;    revival    of, 

1880-8,  vii.  32-4. 
Serrano,  Leonardo,  land  grant  of,  vii. 

660. 

Sespe,  rancho,  ii.  566. 
Settlers,  arrivals  from  Mex.,  i.  343-5; 

at  Colorado  miss.,  list,  i.  359;  list 

at  L.  Angeles,  1706,  i.  460-1. 
Settlers'  revolt,  causes  of,  1846,  v.  77- 

100. 

Seymour,  S.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  755. 
Sexton,  tin  discov'd  by,  vii.  660. 
Shatter,  O.  L. ,  nominated  supr.  judge, 

1859,   vi.   723;    biog.,   etc.,  of,  vii. 

235;  supreme  judge,  1863,  vii.  304. 
Shanklin,,  J.  W.,  surveyor-gen.,  1880, 

vii.  408. 
Shannon,  T.  B.,  congressman,  1863, 

vii.  304. 


Shannon,  W.  E.,  del.  to  constit.  con- 
vention, etc.,  1849,  vi.  287;  speeches 
of,  vi.  292-5. 

'  Shark, '  U.  S.  ship,  v.  199,  201. 

Sharon,  Wm,  Pres.  Mining  co.,  vii. 
674;  biog.  of,  vii.  731. 

Sharpstein,  J.  R.,  supr.  court  judge, 
1880,  vii.  409;  1889,  vii.  735. 

Shasta  canal,  construction  of,  1856, 
vi.  365. 

Shasta  city,  mention  of,  vi.  364,  493. 

Shasta  county,  mining  in,  vi.  364—70; 
hist,  of,  vi.  492-4;  name,  etc.,  vii. 
440. 

Shaw,  F.,  in  Honolulu,  1836,  iv.  141. 

Sheep,  breeding,  number,  etc.,  of,  vii. 
59-60. 

Sheldon,  J.,  mention  of,  vi,  12. 

Sheldon,  N.,  biog.,  vii.  753. 

Shelton,  T.,  agric.  exhib.  of,  1851  viL 
63. 

Shepherd,  Prof.,  vii.  717,  728. 

Sherman,  W.  T.,  arrival,  etc.,  of, 
1849,  vii.  447. 

Sherwood,  J.  E.,  works  of,  vi.  117- 
18. 

Sherwood,  R.,  vii.  680. 

Sherwood,  W.  S.,  candidate  for  gov., 
1849,  vi.  305. 

Shinn,  Lieut,  at  Ft  Point,  1861,  vii. 
464-5. 

Ship  building,  by  Cortes,  i.  2;  at 
Russ.  settlements,  1821-30,  ii.  639- 
40;  1848-89,  vii.  78-9,  749-50. 

Shipley,  A.  J.,  vii.  668. 

Shipments,  foreign  and  eastern,  vii. 
105-9. 

Shipping,  to  be  admitted  to  port,  i. 
217;  arrival  of  transport  vessels,  i. 
287;  movement  of,  1777,  i.  310; 
1781,  i.  351-2;  transport  vessels, 
1778,  i.  328;  movement  of  trans- 
ports, 1783-90,  i.  444-5;  arrivals, 
1796,  i.  544;  1801,  ii.  2;  1803,  ii. 
10-17;  1807-10,  ii.  83-4,  86, 88,  93-6; 
1827,  iii.  125;  1828,  iii.  131;  1829, 
iii.  135;  1831,  iii.  363;  1832,  iii.  364; 
1833,  iii.  365;  1834-5,  iii.  366;  1836, 
iv.  84;  1837,  iv.  88;  1838,  iv.  89; 
1840,  iv.  95;  1841,  iv.  209;  1842,  iv. 
339;  1843,  iv.  377;  1845,  iv.  561; 
1846-8,  v.  569-70;  arrivals  at  S. 
Diego,  1793-1800,  i.  653-4;  foreign 
vessels  on  coast,  1804-6,  ii.  20-5, 
37-40;  maritime  affairs  and  contra- 
band trade,  1811-20;  ii.  267-93; 
visits  to  Mont.,  1811-20,  ii.  382-3; 
vessels  on  coast,  1822,  ii.  473-78; 
list  of  vessels,  1824,  ii.  518-20;  on 


INDEX. 


817 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pionfer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


the  coast,  1825,  iii.  23-8;  1826,  iii. 

116;  marine  list,  1826-30;  iii.  145-9; 

1831-5,  iii.  381-4;  1841-5,  iv.  562- 

70;  1830-40,  iv.  93,  100-6;  1846-8, 

v.  576-81;  at  S.  F.,  1849,  vi.  167-8. 
Shipping,   statistics,  etc.,  vii.  121-9; 

coast  and  bay,  vii.  130-5. 
Shirlaud,  E.  D.,  biog.  of,  vii.  758. 
Short,  J.,  vii.  590. 
Short  Hairs,  party,  vii.  317-19. 
Shotwell,  J.  M.,  vii.  586. 
Showalter,    D.,    arrest,    etc.,  of,  vii. 

289-90. 

Shuck,  bibliog.,  ii.  141. 
Sicard    flat,    gravel    mining    at,    vi. 

359. 

Sicotuyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv. -363. 
Sigourney,  J.  \V.,  vii.  590. 
Sierra  Butte  mine,  vi.  361;  vii.  642. 
Sierra  City,  mention  of,  vL  490. 
Sierra  county,  mining  in,  1851-6,  vi. 

361;    creation,    etc.,   of,    1852,  vii. 

440;  hist,  of,  vi.  489-90;  gold  mines 

of,  vii.  638. 
Sierra  Nevada,  first  crossed,  1827,  iii. 

157;    Donner  party  in,   1846-7,  v. 

533-44;  config.  of,  vii.  20-1. 
Sierra  Nevada  Silver  Mining  co.,  vii. 

666. 

Sierra  Santa  Lucia,  named,  i.  101. 
Sierra  Valley  and  Mohawk  R.  R.,  vii. 

591. 

Silk,  manufact.  of,  vii.  89. 
Silliman,  Prof.,  report  of,  vii.  661. 
Silver  mining,  vii.  649  et  seq. 
Simi  rancho,  hist,  of,  grants,  i.  663;  ii. 

Ill,  354,  565. 

Simpson's  Narrative,  iv.  220-2. 
Simpson,  A.  M.,  biog.,  vii.  187. 
Simpson,  H.  L,  'The  Emigrant's 

Guide  to  the  Gold  Mines,'  vi.  97. 
Sims,  Col  C.,  mention  of,  vii.  469. 
Sinaloa,   Jesuits  in,  i.  19-20;  annals 

of,  1701-69;  i.  29-30;  recruits  from 

for  Cal.,  i.  218;  enlistment  in,  1781, 

L  341-2. 
Sinclair,  J.,  alcalde  of  Sutter's  fort, 

1847,  vi.  14;  rancho  of,  vi.  15;  mining 

operations,  1848,  vi.  73;  mention  of, 

vi.  270. 
Sinton,  R.  H.,  mention  of,  vii.  454, 

668. 
Siskiyou  county,  name,  etc.,  viL  441; 

hist  of,  vi.  494-5. 
Sitka,  Sutter  at,  iv.  127. 
'Sitka,'  first  steamer  in  Cal.,  iv.  159; 

v.  576. 

Skaggs  Hot  springs,  vii.  664. 
Slate  creek,  diggings  at,  vi.  361. 
HIST.  CAL.,  VOL.  VIL    62 


Sloat,  Com.  J.  D.,  actions  in  conquest 
of  Cal.,  v.  199-251;  proclamation 
of,  1846,  vi.  256-8. 

Small-pox,  1828-9,  iii.  167-9;  among 
Inds,  1837-8,  iv.  73-4,  165. 

Stnedes,  H.  M.,  vii.  587. 

Smith,  Col  C.,  com.  for  land  claims, 
v.  465. 

Smith,  Capt  A.  J.,  at  San.  Fe,  1848, 
vii.  446. 

Smith,  C.  K.,  vii.  668. 

Smith,  Joseph,  Mormon  colony  for 
Cal.,  1843,  iv.  342,  395. 

Smith,  N.  T.,  asst  treas.,  etc.,  S.  P. 
R.  R.,  vii.  632-3. 

Smith,  P.,  contract  of,  1849,  vi.  215; 
mention  of,  vi.  676;  claim  against 
S.  F.,  1851,  vi.  773. 

Smith,  Gen.  P.  F.,  gov.  of  Cal.,  1849, 
vi.  272;  administr.,  vL  272-3;  with 
King's  exped.,  1849,  vi.  281. 

Smith,  Gen.  P.  F.,  arrival  of,  1849, 
vii.  447;  at  Sonoma,  vii.  451;  in 
command,  1849,  vii.  471. 

Smith,  S.,  at  Bodega,  1846-8,  vi.  20. 

Smith,  S.  V.,  vii.  590. 

Smith's  landing,  see  '  Antioch.' 

Smuggling,  attempt  to  break  up,  ii. 
36-7;  accusation  against  Baudini, 
iii.  371-3;  1836-40,  iv.  81;  843,  iv. 
375. 

Sneath,  Richard  G.,  vii.  609. 

Snelling,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  516. 

Snyder,  J.  R.,  del.  to  constit.  con- 
ven.,  etc.,  1849,  vi.  286;  quarrel 
with  Hubbs,  1852,  vi.  669. 

Soap,  manufact.,  etc.,  of,  vii.  93;  vii. 
662. 

Society,  in  1748,  vi.  82-5;  component 
elements  of,  1849-50,  vi.  221-3; 
1850-80,  vii.  699-702;  dress  and 
appearance,  vi.  224-5;  vii.  710, 
715;  traits,  vi.  225-8;  vii.  714-15; 
moral  character  of,  vi.  228-30; 
diseases,  etc.,  vi.  231-2;  women, 
vi  232-5;  vii.  709-10,  715;  mail-day, 
vi.  235-6;  housekeeping,  vi.  236; 
drinking  and  gambling,  vi.  237- 
41;  vii.  711-12;  bull  and  cock- 
fighting,  vi.  242;  the  drama,  etc., 
vi.  243-5;  vii.  712;  the  Sabbath, 
vi.  246;  amusements,  viL  711-13; 
sports,  vii.  713;  education,  viL 
716-23;  charity,  705-7;  fraternal 
societies,  706-7;  houses,  vii.  710. 

Sola,  Gov.,  rule  of,  1814-21,  ii.  208- 
430. 

Solano,  founding,  ii.  496-506;  events 
at,  1824-30,  ii.  505-6;  1831-40,  iii. 


818 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


719-23;  Hijar  and  Padres'  colony, 
iii.  269,  278-9;  secularized,  iii.  353; 
value  of  miss,   property,   1845,  iv. 
551. 
Solano  county,  hist,    of,  viv  497-500; 

name,  etc.,  vii.  438. 
Soledad,  founding  of,  i.  498;  annals, 
1791-1800,  498-500;  1801-10,  ii. 
152-3;  1811-20,  ii.  385-6;  1821-30, 
ii.  622;  1831-40,  iii.  688-91;  death 
of  Arrillaga,  1814,  ii.  204-5;  sale  of 
miss,  estate,  v.  558;  local  annals, 
1846-8,  v.  641. 

'Soledad,'  ship,  iv.  534. 

Soldiers  de  cuedra,  meaning  of,  i.  132. 

Soldiers'  relief  fund,  founding  of  the, 
vii.  297. 

Solomon,  P.  L.,  U.  S.  marshal,  1857, 
vi.  711. 

Soneto,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Sonoma,  first  visit  to,  ii.  331 ;  severe 
storm,  1825,  iii.  30;  Ramirez  and 
prisoners  sent  to,  iii.  525;  pueblo 
laid  out,  1835,  iii.  294;  pueblo 
founded,  iii.  721;  iv.  164;  swearing 
to  the  bases  at,  1843,  iv.  359;  taken 
by  bear  flag  party,  1846,  v.  101-21; 
affairs  at,  June-July,  v.  145-68; 
Merritt's  party  at,  1846,  v.  110; 
arrest  of  Vallejo,  v.  171-13;  Fre- 
mont's march  to,  1846,  v.  171; 
Fourth  of  July  at,  1846,  v.  178-9; 
U.  S.  flag  raised,  1846,  v.  242-3; 
events  at,  1846,  v.  296-8;  Stev. 
reg't  at,  v.  514;  case  of  Alcalde 
Nash,  v.  608-10;  murder  at,  1847, 
v.  610;  local  annals,  1846-8,  v.  667- 
9;  condition  of,  1848,  vi.  20;  first 
dramatic  performances  at,  1847,  vi. 
243;  mention  of,  vi.  507;  pub.  school 
at,  1851,  vii.  718. 

Sonoma  county,  hist,  of,  vi.  506-8; 
R.  R.  building  in,  1865,  vii.  589. 

Sonoma  valley,  descript.  of,  1848,  vi. 
20. 

Sonora,  town  and  state,  mission  work 
in,  i.  20-2;  annals  of,  1701-69,  i. 
29-30;  overland  route  from,  i.  221- 
3;  enlistment  in,  i.  341;  flight  of 
Flores  to,  v.  407;  name,  vi.  77;  dry 
diggings  of,  vi.  373;  a  mining  cen- 
tre, vi.  374;  hist,  of,  vi.  469-70; 
filibustering  in,  1851-7,  vi.  584-602. 

'Sonora,'  ship,  northern  voy.,  1775,  i. 
241-4. 

Sons  of  Temperance,  vii.  706. 

Sosa,  Castano  de,  exped.,   1590-1,   i. 

Soto,  F.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi  10. 


Soto,  L.,  mention  of,  vi.  80. 
Soto,  R.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 
Sotoyomes,     Inds,     exped.     against, 

1839-40,  iv.  74. 
Soule,  bishop,  vii.  730. 
Soule,   F.,  annals  of  S.  F.,  i.  44;  on 

Drake's  anchorage,    i.  90;  mention 

of,   vi.   659;   vii.   313;    first   school 
law,  vii.  718. 

South  America,  revolution  in,  ii.  221. 
Southern  Cal.  R.  R.,  vii.  633. 
South  Pacific  Coast  R.  R.,  vii.  591. 
Southern  Pacific  R.  R.,  incorporation 

of,  vii.  593;  aid  to,  vii.  594;  route, 

vii.  595-6;  land  grant,  vii.   596-7; 

purchase  of  S.  F,  &  S.  J.  R.  R.,  vii. 

598;  aid  asked,   vii.   598;  contract 

and  finance  co.,  vii.  599;  change  of 

route,  vii.  600;  proposals  to  S.   F., 

vii.  607-8;  T.  &  P.  R.  R.  co.,  vii. 

612-13;  affairs  of,  vii.  619-20;  Cal. 

Southern,  vii.  614;  Mussel  Slough 

troubles,  vii.  617-18;  system,  oper- 
ations, etc.,  vii.  617  et  seq. 
Southern  Pacific  Branch   R.  R.  co., 

vii.  599,  615. 

S.  P.  &  N.  R.  R.,  aid  to,  vii.  557. 
Soquel,  mention  of,  vi.  525. 
Spain,  need  of  northern  port,  i.  112; 

policy   respecting   north,   i.   505-6; 

startling  events  in,  1808,  ii.  87;  Sp. 

constitution,  rec'd  in  Cal.,  1812,  ii. 

264-6. 
Spaniards,  expulsion  of,    1827-9,   iii. 

51-3,  95-8,  401. 

Spanish  bar,  yield,  etc.,  of,  vi.  73. 
Spanish  dry  diggings,  mention  of,  vi. 

354. 
Spear,  Mrs,  school  at  Sac.,  1851,  viL 

717. 

Spear,  N.,  vi.  164. 
Specific  contract  act,  passage,  etc.,  of, 

vii.   299-300;  attempted  repeal  of, 

1865,  vii.  317-18,  321. 
Speculation,  prevalence  of,  vii.  16.S-70. 
Spence,  D.,  member  of  legisl.  council, 

1847,  vi.  260. 

Spence,  E.  F.,  biog.  of,  vii.  184. 
Spencer,  J.  D.,  clerk  of  supr.  court, 

1887,  vii.  434. 
S  perry,  Willard,  vii.  588. 
Sprague,    Senator,    mention    of,    vi. 

686. 
Sprague,    R.    T.,    nominated     supr. 

judge,  1859,  vi.  723;  biog.,  etc.,  of, 

vii.  236. 

Spreckels,  Claus,  biog.  of,  vii.  101. 
Spring,  T.  W.,  biog.;  vii.  188. 
Springs,  mineral  and  hot,  vii.  664-5. 


INDEX. 


819 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  Tola,  n  to  V. 


Spring  Valley  Water  co.,   viL   684, 

736. 

Spurgeon,  W.  EL,  biog.  of,  viL  184. 
'Spy,*  ship,  iiL  24. 
Squatters,   effect  on  land  titles,  vL 

535-6,  571-2. 
Stage  lines,  viL  151-2. 
Standard  mine,  vii.  653. 
Stanford,  It,  nominee  for  gov.,  1859, 
vL   723;   vineyard,   viL    48;    stock- 
farm,  viL   58;  gov.    1861,   viL  291 ; 
senator,  1886,  vii.  431;  biog.,  etc., 
vii.  532,  545;  pres't  Cent  Pac  R. 
R.,   1861,   vii.  544;  acts  approved 
by,    1863,  vL  555-6;  R.  R.  affairs 
of,  vii.  544,  549,  555,  559,  561.  565, 
567,  580,  599,  603,  612,  632-3;  univ. 
viL  7'20. 

Stangroom,  M~  M.,  viL  557. 
Stanislaus  City,  mention  of,  vL  513. 
Stanislaus  county,  hist,   of,  vL  514- 
15;  creation,  etc.,  of,  1854,  vu.  441. 
Stanislaus  river,  mining  on  the,  1848, 
vL  75-80;  gold  deposits  on,  VL  373. 
Stanislaus  and  Manposa  R.  R.  co., 

vii.  589. 

Stanton,  James,  vii.  638. 
Staples,  D.  J.,  biog.,  etc.,  vL  739;  vii. 

717. 

•Star  of  the  West,'  ship,  iv.  555,  562. 
'Starling,' Eng.  man-of-war,  iv.  142, 

145. 

Starr,  A.  D.,  viL  582. 
State  Agricultural  society,  hist.,  etc., 

of,  viL  63-4. 

State  normal  school,  viL  720. 
Stannard,  E.  O.,  viL  607. 
Steam  engine,  first  in  CaL,  1843,  iv. 

395. 

Steamer,  first  in  CaL,  v.  575-81. 
Stearns,  Abel,  viL  660. 
Stebbins,  Rev.  H.,  viL  313,  730. 
Steele,  Frank,  viL  596. 
Stephens,  J.  D.,  biog.,  viL  185. 
Stephens,  JL,  the  Panama^  R.  R.,  viL 

522. 

'Sterling,'  ship,  v.  296,  357,  432. 
Steuart,  W.  M.,  mention  of,  vi.  278; 

candidate  for  gov.,  1849,  vi.  305. 
Stevens,    delegate,  the  Phil.    R.    R. 

convention,  1850,  viL  514. 
Stevens,  Charles,  viL  590. 
Stevens,    Elisha,   party  of,   to  CaL, 

1844,  iv.  345-8. 
Stevens,  H.  P.,  in  Honolulu,  1836,  iv. 

141. 

Stevenson,  A.  M.,  viL  590. 
Stevenson,  Col  J.  D.,  raises  N.  Y. 
vds,  v.  499. 


Stevenson  regiment,   raising  of,  and 
hist,    in  CaL,    1846-S,  v.  499-518; 
list  of  officers,  v.  503-4. 
Stewart,  Capt.,  mention  of,  viL  282; 

at  Ft  Alcatraz,  1861,  riL  463-4. 
Stillman,  on  Drake's  voy.,  L  90. 
Stock-raising,    statistics,      1773,     L 
205-6;  1774,   L  239;    1790,  L  388; 
statistics,  1791-1800,  L  577,  621-3, 
656,  657,  672,  676,  686,  688,  690, 
713,  723;    1801-10,   iL   104-6,   108, 
110,  115,  116,  121-3,  132,  137,  138, 
148,    149,    153,    154,    161,    181-3; 
1811-20,  iL  346,  347,  349,  350,  355, 
358,  364,  366,  368,  374,  375,  377, 
384-7,  390,  395;    1821-30,  iL  362, 
554,   556,  567,  578,  580-2,  595-6, 
599,  601-2,  616,  619,  620,  622,  624; 
18S1-40,  iiL  619,  643;  statistics  at 
S.  K  Rey,  1831-40,  iiL  622;  at  S. 
Juan.  Cap.,  1831-4,  iiL  626;     S.  J. 
Bautista,    1831-1.  iiL  691;  S.  Fer- 
nando,   1831-1,    iiL  646;  Sta  Bar- 
bara, 1831-4,  iiL  656;  S.  Buenaven- 
tura,   1831-4,    iiL    660;    Sta    Inez, 
1831-4,  iiL  662;  Purisima,  1831-t, 
iiL  664;  S.  Carlos,  1831-i,  iiL  680; 
S.  L.  Obispo,   1831-1,  iiL  681;  S. 
Miguel,    1831-40,  iii.  684;   S.  An- 
tonio,   1831-10,  iiL    686;   Soledad, 
1831-4,  iiL  690;  Sta  Cruz,  1831-2, 
iiL  693;  S.  Rafael,  1831-2,  iiL  716; 
Solano,    1831-4,   iiL  719;    S.   Jose 
miss.,  1831-2.   iiL    724;  Sta  Clara, 
1831-2,  iiL  727;  slaughter  of  cattle, 
1784,    L   472;   of  Dueblos,   1800,  L 
601;    at  rancho  del   Rey,    1800,  L 
682-3;   slaughter  of  horses,    1805, 
iL  182;  superiority  of  CaL,  iL  418; 
in  Los  Angeles  dist,  iL  558;  at  Rus- 
sian settlement,  1821-30,  iL  638-9; 
1821-30,   iL  668-9;    stat.  of  cattle 
at  miss.,   1831-5,  iii.  356;    Dolores 
miss.,   1831-4,  iiL  714;  at  Sutler's 
fort,  1841-2,  iv.  228;  under  Span- 
ish regime,   viL   1-2,  53;    pasture, 
viL  52;  after  the  gold  discov.,  viL 
53-61;    droughts,    1862-4,  viL    53; 
cattle,  viL  53-6;  hist,  of,  viL  54-6; 
horses,  viL  57-8;  mules,  viL   58-9; 
sheep,  viL  59-61;  goats,  vii.  60-1; 
swine,  viL  61-2;  in  1889-90,  viL 
746-7.   ' 

Stocks,  mining,  gambling  in,  vu.  666- 
81;  exchanges  organized,  viL 
667-9. 

Stockton,  Commodore,  arrival  of, 
1846,  v.  251 ;  rule  of,  1846,  v.  255- 
87;  controversy  with  Kearny  and 


820 


INDEX. 


For  Information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Fremont,    1847,  v.  411-32;  policy, 

etc.,  of,  1847,  vi.  259-61. 
Stockton,  founding  of,   1 848,  v.   674; 

vi.    11;    hist,   of,    vi.   465-7;    C.   P. 

R.   R.,   vii.   597;  early  schools  of, 

vii.  717. 

Stockton  Mining  company,  vi.  74. 
Stockton  and  Copperopolis  R.  R.,  vii. 

588. 
Stockton   and  lone   R.    R.    co.,    vii. 

588-9. 

Stockton  and  Visalia  R.  R.,  vii.  588. 
Stock  well,  E.  R.,  vii.  588. 
Stone,  Rev.  A.  L.,  vii.  730. 
Stoneman,  Gen.  G.,  with  King's  ex- 

ped.,  1849,  vi.  281;  R.  R.  cornmis., 

1880,  vii.  409;  gov.,   1883,  vii.  421; 

biog.,  vii.  421,  432. 
Stonewall  mine,  vii.  641. 
'Stonington,'  whaler,  v.  318,  324,  327. 
Stoughton,   Juan,   Spanish  consul  at 

Boston,  ii.  15. 

Strentzel,  J.  T.,  biog.,  vii.  741. 
Strode,  C.  B.,  mention  of,  vi.  477. 
Strong,  D.  W.,  director,   Cent.   Pac 

R.  R.,  1861,  vii.  544. 
Story,  W.  W.,  723. 
Stoves,  manufact.  of,  vii.  96. 
Stubbs,  J.  C.,  vice-prest  S.  P.  R.  R., 

vii.  632. 
Sturgis,  Bryant  &  Co.,  trade  with  Cal., 

1822,  ii.  475. 
Suarez,  G.,  sec.  of  Cal.  junta,  1825-7, 

iii.  3. 
Suarez,    Padre  J.    M.,    mention    of, 

1848,  vi.  78. 
Sublette,    party  to    Cal.,    1845,    iv. 

577-8. 
Sugar,  production,  etc.,  of,  vii.  36-7; 

manufact.,  etc.,  of,  vii.  87. 
Suisun,   fight  with  Inds  at,    1810,   ii. 

91;  mention  of,  vi.  499. 
Suisun,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Sullivan,  E.  L.,  vii.  585. 
'Sulphur, 'ship,  iv.  93,  142,  145. 
Sulphur  in  Cal.,  vii.  660. 
Sulphur  bank  mine,  vii.  667. 
'Sultana,'  ship,  ii.  213. 
Solzbaoh,  Rudolph,  vii.  585. 
Summit  mine,  vii.  657. 
Sumner,  Gen.,  supersedes  Johnston, 

1861,  vii.  282;  gen.  order  of,  1861, 

vii.   290;    in   command,  'ISul,    vii. 

467,  471-2. 

Sunderhaus,  G.  H.  O.,  biog.,  vii.  681. 
Sunol   valley,    Pages'   expedt.    in,    i. 

186. 
Superior  court,   officers  and  actions 

of,  1842-3,  iv.  296. 


Supply  system,  i.  334. 

Supreme  court,  established,  iii.  605; 
reorganized,  1845,  iv.  531. 

Supuyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  363. 

Surveys,  coast,  progress  of  the, 
1849-59,  vi.  633-4;  appropriations 
for,  vi.  633-4;  1841-50,  vii.  136-7. 

Sutherland,  J.  B.,  the  Phil.  R,  R. 
convention,  1850,  vii.  515. 

Sutherland,  T.  J.,  departure  of  Col 
Stevenson,  v.  508-10. 

Sutro,  A.,  biog.,  vii.  750-1. 

Sutter,  J.  A. ,  settlements  founded  by, 
etc.,  1839-46,  vi.  12-15;  rancho  of, 
vi.  15;  influence  of,  vi.  26;  mill, 
etc.,  erected  by,  J847,  vi.  28-30; 
the  gold  discov.,  1848,  vi.  32-41; 
weakness  of,  vi.  42-3;  attempt  to 
secure  title,  vi.  43—4;  mining  op- 
erations, 1848,  vi.  77;  career  and 
character,  vi.  97-107;  candidate 
for  gov.,  1849,  vi.  305;  del.  to  con- 
stit.  convention,  1849,  vi.  285,  295; 
failure,  etc.,  of,  vi.  447;  industries 
promoted  by,  1839-48,  vi.  484; 
title  to  New  Helvetia,  vi.  562;  jr, 
mention  of,  vi.  447,  450. 

'Sutil.'  voy.  of,  1792,  i.  506-7. 

Sutter  county,  name,  etc.,  vii.  439; 
hist,  of,  vi.  488-9. 

Sutter  Creek,  town,  mention  of,  vi. 
5)2. 

Sutter's  fort,  Ind.  hostility  at,  1840, 
iv.  74;  settlement  of,  1839,  iv.  131; 
description  of,  iv.  132;  vi.  13,  94; 
naming  of,  iv.  133;  annals  of, 
1839-40,  iv.  134-9;  progress  at, 
1841-2,  iv.  226-40;  description  of 
fort,  iv.  227;  affairs  at,  1843,  iv. 
387-9;  co.  for  Micheltorena,  1844, 
iv.  479;  affairs  at,  1845,  iv.  608-16; 
efforts  to  sell,  iv.  613;  Fremont  at, 
1S46,  v.  3,  129,  185;  treatment  of 
Vallejos  at,  1846,  v.  124-6;  Gi  lies- 
pie  at,  v.  127;  U.  S.  flag  raised  at, 
1846,  v.  244-5;  events  at,  1846-8, 
v.  298-302,  675;  recruiting  at, 
1846,  v.  359;  Mormons  at,  1847,  v. 
493-5;  relief  to  Donner  party,  v. 
538-9;  arrival  of  party  at,  v.  54. 

Sutter's  mill,  gold-hunting  near, 
1848,  vi.  46-8. 

Sutterville,  founding,  etc.,  cf,  1846, 
vi.  15;  descript.  of,  vi.  447. 

'Susan  Drew,'  transport,  v.  511,  513. 

Susanville,  mention  of,  vi.  494. 

'Suvarof,'  ship,  ii.  210,  274,  306, 
373. 

Swasey,  W.  F.,  mention  of,  vii.   727. 


INDEX.  821 

For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 

Swasey-Todd   Co.,   journey  to  Cal.,    Tehama,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  496. 
1845,  iv.  576-7.  j  Telegraph  lines,  hist,  of,  vii.  154-6. 

'  Sweden, '  transport,  v.  511.  j  Temecula     raticho,     protest    against 

Sweet,    W.   B.,   Cal.   trade,  1822,  ii.  i      grant,  Hi.  361. 


475. 

Sweetland,  mention  of,  vi.  486. 
Swett,  John,  vii.  720. 
Swine,  raising,  etc.,  of,  vii.  61-2. 


Teinescal  mine,  vii.  660-1. 

Temple,  J.,  supr.  court  judge,  1887, 

vii.  434. 
Tepehuane,  mission,  revolt  at,  1616, 


i.  15. 

Tepehuanes,  conquest  of,  i.  15. 
Tepic,  Graham  prisoners  at,  iv.  29-30. 
Territorial  Pioneer  society,  vii.  707. 
Table  mountain,  mining  at,  1855,  vi.  j  Terry,   D.    S.,  speech  in  convention, 
373-4.  etc.,  1859,  vi.  724-5,  735;  duel  with 

Tagle,  Lt  L.  P.  de,  scheme  for  colo-  i      Broderick,  1859,  vi.  731-2;  trial  of, 
nizing,  1S01,  ii.  4.  1856,    vi.     750-1;    vii.    225-6;    ac- 

'  Tagle,'    ship,    ii.    202-3,    268;    cap- 1      quittal  of,  vii.   211-12;  election  of, 
tures  the  Pedler,  1814,  ii.  271,  305.        1855,    vii.    220;     the     Hill-Sharon 
Tait,  Geo.,  vii.  720.  case,  etc.,  vii.  430-1. 

Talbert,  T.  A,,  vii.  668.  Tevis,  Lloyd,  vii.  580. 

Tallant,  D.  J.,  mention  of,  vii.  161.      j  Texas,  independence,  v.  192. 
Tallow,  trade  in,   1817,  ii.  283;  1821-  ;  Texas  Pacific  R.    R.,  subsidy  asked, 
30,  ii.  669;  annual  shipment,  iii.  641.  j      vii.  595;   aid  from   S.    Diego,    vii. 
Tamal,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506.  596;  affairs   of,  vii.  609-10,  612-13. 

'Tamana,'   ship,  visit  of,   1805  6,  ii.  <  Texas  &  Cal.  Construction  co.,    vii. 


24. 


613. 


Tamariz,    F.    de    P.,    of    Cal.   junta,    Thomas,     Admiral,    comd.    of    Eng. 
1825-7,    iii.   3;  author  of    politico-.!      fleet,  1842,  iv.  302-3. 
mercantile  plan,  iii.    6;    report  on    Thomas,  Capt.,  vii.  727. 
Cal.  miss.,  iii.  109.  Thomas,    Lt-col    C.,    com.    for    land 


Tanneries,  vii.  91-2. 
Tarahumares,  war  with,  i.  16-17. 
'Tartar,'  ship,  iii.  28. 
'Tasso,'  ship,  iv.  207,  210,  319,  340, 
558,  562. 


claims,  v.  463. 
Thomas,  Gen.  G.  H.,  in  command, 

1869,  vii.  472. 
Thomas,  I.  R.,  in  Honolulu,  1836,  iv. 

141. 


Taxation,    1831-5,  iii.  379-80;   state,  !  Thomas,  O.  H.,  the  S.   F.  R.  R.  con- 
1850-75,  vi.  604-22;  in  S.  F.,  1850-  i      vention,  1859,  vii.  543. 


7,     vi.    774—5;    exemptions    from, 
1866,    vii.    333;    of  Chinamen,  vii 


'Thomas   H.  Perkins,'  transport,  v. 
511. 


337-45;  of  land,  vii.  383-4;   of  in-    'Thomas  Nowland,'  ship,  iii.  99,  118. 
comes,    vii.     384-5;     poll-tax,    vii.    Thompson,   Major  DeWitt   C.,  men- 
385;    of    railroads,    vii.  427-8;  co.  j      tion  of,  vii.  471. 
and  state,  vii.  440-1.  Thompson,  Waddy,  on    Jones  affair, 


Tay,  G.  H.  &  Co.,  vii.  97. 
Taylor,  Dr,  vii.  720. 


1842,    iv.    311,    323-4;    actions    re 
immigration  to  Cal.,  iv.  380-1. 


Taylor,  C.  I.,  harbor  commiss.,  1863,  :  Thornton,  J.  D.,  supr.  court  judge, 
vii.  304.  1880,  vii.  409;  1889,  vii.  735. 

Taylor,  Lt-col  J.  P.,  at  Fremont  j  Tikhinenef,  bibliog.,  ii.  314,  315,  640. 
trial,  v.  456.  Tilford,  F.,  biog.,  etc.,  of,  vi.  707. 


Taylor,  Rev.  Wm,  vii.  729. 
Taylorsville,  mention  of,  vi.  511. 
Teacle,  D.  W.,  member  stock  board, 


Timinous  diggings,  vii.  654. 

Tin,  vii.  66O-1. 

Tingley,    Senator  G.    B.,  bill   introd 


vii.  668.  by,  1852,  vi.  665-6. 

Tea  plant,  attempt  to  cultivate  the,  Tinnin.  Senator,  vii.  622. 

1855-70,  vii.  36-7.  j  Tinnin,  W.  J.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  375. 

Tecate  rancho,  plundered,  1837,  iv.  68.  Tirador,  adventures  of,   1848,  vi.  80- 
Tehama  county,   mining  in,  vi.  364;        1. 

hist,  of,  vi.  496-7;  organized,  etc.,  Titcomb,  C.,   in  Honolulu,  1836,  iv. 

1856,  vii.  441-2.  141. 


822 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Tithes,  refusal  to  pay,  1843,  iv.  373- 

4. 

Tlayacma,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Tobacco,   cultivation,  etc.,  of,  1854- 

79,  vii.  34-5. 

Toberman,  J.  R.,  biog.  of,  vii.  184. 
Tobias,  Ind.  chief,  iv.  72. 
Todd,  Dr,  mention  of,  vi.  73. 
Todd  valley,  mining  camp,  1849,  vi. 

355. 
Todos  Santos  bay,  Walker  at,  1853, 

vi.  596-8. 
Toland,  Dr   H.    H.,  biog.,   etc.,    vii. 

720-1. 

Toledo,  Gov.  B.,  Cal.,  i.  172. 
Tolen,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Tomales,  mention  of,  vi.  511. 
Tomales  bay,  Bodega's  expedt.  at,  i. 

243. 
Toomes,   A.  G.,  rancho  of,   1848,  vi. 

16-17. 

Tompkins,  E.,  vii.  720. 
Topayto,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Toral,   Serra's  suggestions  submitted 

to,  i.  209. 

Torquemada,  bibliog.,  i.  96,  98,  152. 
Toro,   Serra's   suggestions   submitted 

to,  i.  209. 
Torre,  M.  O.  de  la,  rep.  in  congress, 

1824,  iii.  2, 

Towle,  Allan,  biog.  of,  vii.  634. 
Town  councils,  see  ayuntamientos. 
Towne,   A.   N.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  597, 

632,  634. 
Townsend,    J.,    town    laid    out    by, 

1649,  vi.  194. 
Tozer,  C.  W.,  vii.  560. 
Tracy,  J.,  vii.  719. 
Trahern,  G.  W.,  biog.,  vii.  747. 
Trappers,   early  expeds,   iii.    151-75. 
Trask,  Dr  John  B.,  vii.  636. 
'Traveller,'  ship,  ii.  216,  285-7,  389. 
Treadwell,  J.  P.,  biog.,  vii.  250. 
Treasure,  export,   etc.,   of,    1848-81, 

vii.  118-20. 
Treaties,     Cahuenga,     1847,    vi.   256; 

Guadalupe  Hidalgo,   1848,  vi.  262. 
Tres  Pinos,  mention  of,  vi.  524. 
'  Tres  Reyes, '  ship,  i.  98. 
'Trinidad,'  ship,  iv.  312,  318,  340. 
Trinidad  city,  hist,  of,  vi.  503. 
Trinidad  bay,  '  Lelia  Byrd  '  in,  ii.  22. 
Trinidad  port,  named,  i.  242. 
Trinity  county,  drawbacks  to  mining 

in,    vi.  363-4;   mining  in,  vi.  365, 

370;  hist,  of,  vi.  500-6;  name,  etc., 

vii.  440. 
Trinity  river,  explor.,  etc..  of,  1848, 

vi.  364;   name,    etc.,  vi.   500;   ex- 


ploration   of,    1849-50,    vi.    500-2; 

mining  on  the,  vi.  502-3. 
Trot,  Cal.  trade,  1822,  ii.  475. 
Truckee,  founding,   etc.,   of,   1863-4, 

vi.  486. 

Tubbs,  A.  L.,  biog.,  vii.  754. 
Tucson,  Mormon  battle  at,  v.  485. 
Tulare,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  518. 
Tulare  county,  hist,    of,  vi.    517-18; 

creation  of,  1852,  vii.  2C9,  441. 
Tulare   valley,  discovery  of,    i.    197; 

exploration  of,  1776,  i.  276-7;  map 

of,  ii.  49;  refuge  for  neophytes,  ii. 

204;  visit  of  friars,  1816,  ii.  327-8; 

rancherias  in,  1817,  ii.  331-2;  exped. 

against  Inds  in,  ii.  335-6. 
Tulares,  Cabot  explors,  1814,  ii.  325; 

Ind  rebels  defeated,  1824,  ii.  533-5; 

explorers  in,  1846,  v.  2-3. 
Tuleburg,  see  Stockton. 
Tuliyomi,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  363. 
Tully,  P.  B.,  biog.,  etc.,  vii.  375. 
Tully,  R.  W.,  vii.  590. 
Tuolumne  city,  mention  of,  vi.  514. 
Tuolumne   county,  mining   in,  1848- 

56,    vi.    373-6;    hist,    of,    vi.    515; 

name,  etc.,  vii.  440. 
Tuolumne  co.,  mention  of,  vii.  587. 
Tuolumne  river,  mining  on,  1848,  vi. 

77-8. 

Turner,  E.  D.,  vii.  729. 
Turton,&  Knox,  contractors,  vii.  590. 
Tustin,  W.  L,  mention  of,  vii.  96. 
Tuthill,  'Hist,  of  Cal.,'  i.   43-4,  90, 

92,  157;  ii.  176;  vi.  717. 
Tyler,    Pres.,   on   cession   of  Cal.  to 

Eng.,  1843,  iv.  382. 
Tyler,  mention  of;  vii.  717. 
Tylers,  D.,  hist,  of  Mormon  battle,  v. 

477-80. 
Tyson,  Dr,  with  King's  exped.,  1849, 

vi.  281. 


U 


Ugalde,  Comd't  Gen.  of  E.  provinces, 

i.  448. 
Ugarte,    Gen.,    offl    actions    in   Cal. 

affairs,    1785-7,   i.  401,  443,  448-9, 

451,  460,  479,  487,  609. 
Ukiah,  mention  of,  vi.  508-9. 
Ulloa,  exped.  of,  1539,  i.  7. 
Ululato,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 
Umpqua  river,  J.  Smith's  trappers  at, 

iii.  160. 
Union,    town    (see     also    '  Arcata '), 

mention  of,  vi.  504. 
Union  Consolidated  Mining  co.,  vii. 

651. 


INDEX. 


823 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vola.  II  to  V. 


Union  mine,  vii.  639,  659. 

Union  Mill  Mining  co.',  vii.  674. 

Union  Pacific  R.  R.,  name,  vii.  528; 
charter,  etc.,  of,  viL  528-33;  stock, 
vii.  52$;  laud-grant,  vii.  529;  char- 
ter, vii  531;  legisl.,  1864,  vii.  550- 
2;  land-grant,  vii.  550;  bonds,  vii. 
550-1;  construction,  vii.  569;  join- 
ing with  C.  P.,  1869,  vii  573;  con- 
solidations, etc.,  of,  vii  632. 

Union  party,  mention  of,  vii.  291-2, 
295-6,  301;  mention  of,  vii  307-8; 
measures  passed  by,  vii  319-20; 
decadence  of,  vii.  327. 

Unitarians,  vii.  729. 

United  States,  '  Explor.  exped.,' 
1838-42,  iv.  242;  projects  for  annexa- 
tion, iv.  257-8;  offer  to  purchase 
CaL,  iv.  299;  war  imminent,  1842, 
iv.  300,  600-3;  U.  S.  man-of-war, 
iv.  302-3,  313,  322;  actions  re- 
specting Com.  Jones'  affair,  iv. 
3*25—8;  report  of  war  with,  1845,  iv. 
524;  schemes  of,  1845,  iv.  594-8; 
U.  S.  artillery  service,  1847,  v. 
518-20;  congress,  actions  on  Cal. 
affairs,  v.  592-601;  U.  S.  dragoons 
service,  1848-9,  v.  522-3;  effect  of 
gold  discov.  in  Cal.,  1848,  vi.  114- 
21;  attitude  of,  etc.,  1846-7,  vi 
252-5;  the  conquest  of  Cal.,  vi. 
255-7;  effect  of  the  admission  of 
Cal.,  vi.  344-5;  filibust.  expeds 
from,  1851-60,  vi.  582-603;  Ind. 
policy  of,  vii.  477-8;  railroads,  vii 
498,  635. 

University  of  California,  the  new 
constit.,  1879,  vii.  392-3;  hist  of 
the,  vii.  392,  644,  720. 

University  of  Southern  Cal.,  vii.  720. 

University  of  the  Pacific,  vii.  721. 

University  college  of  S.  F.,  vii.  722. 

Urizar,  J.  A.  de,  address,  1787,  i. 
401-2. 

'Urup,'ship,  iii  213;  iv.  159. 

Utah  lake,  crossed  by  Jedediah  Smith, 
iii.  152. 

Utinomanoc,  Ind.  tribe,  ii  506. 


Vaca,  Cabeza  de,   reputation  among 

natives,  i.  7. 
Vaca  Valley  &  Clear  Lake  R.  R.,  viL 

589-90. 

Vacaville,  name,  etc.,  vi  500. 
Vaccination,   Patties'  tour,  1829,  iii. 

168-9. 


Valdes,  Serra's  suggestions  submitted 

to,  i.  209. 

i  Valencia,  C.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  10. 
'••  Valencia,    Gen.   G . ,  admin,  of  pious 

fund,  1842,  iv.  336. 
|  Vallejo,  A.,  dficial  of  pious  fund,  1809, 

ii.  166. 

•  Vallejo,  J.  J.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  10. 
Vallejo,  M.    G.,  private   archives,  i 

49;  'Hist,  de  Cal.,' i  55;  influence 

of,  1848,  vi.  20;  member  of  legisl.        ? 

council,   1847,  vi.  260;  del.  to  con- 
stit. convention,  1849,  vi.  285;  Sos- 

col  claim,  vi  562. 

Vallejo,  Major  S.,  mention  of,  vii.  470. 
!  Vallejo,  seat  of  gov't  at,    1851-2,  vi 

322;    1852,   vi.   656;  1853,   vi.   674; 

rival  of  S.  F.,  vii.  685-6. 
Vallejo  &  Sonoma  Valley  R.  R.,  vii 

589. 

Van  Lokeren,  A.,  vii.  668. 
Van  Ness,   J.,    ordinance,    1851,   vi. 

759;  vii.  229-30,  245;  mayor  of  San 

Francisco,  1855-6,  vi  767. 
Van  Nuys,  I.  N.,  biog.  of,  vii  759. 
Van  Orden,  S.,  vii  587. 
'  Vancouver, '  ship,  iv.  594. 
'  Vandalia,'  ship,  iv.  433;  v.  319,  357. 
Vanderbilt,  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  140. 
Vargas,  gov.,  reconquers  N.  Mex.,  i 

19. 
Vassault,    F.,    claimant    for    rancho 

Camaritas,  iii  711. 
Vea,   A.   M.  de,  CaL  representative, 

1823,  ii.  484. 
Vega  de  Pajaro  rancho,  granted,  1820, 

ii.  383. 
Vegetables,  cultivation,  etc.,  of,  1851- 

89,  vii  27-30,  86. 
Vehicles,   manufact.   of,   1856-81,  vi. 

79-80. 
Ventura  county,  created,  etc.,  1872, 

vi.  523;  creation,  etc.,  of,  1872,  vii 

442;  petroleum  wells  of,  vii  662. 
'Venus,'  ship,  iv.  147. 
Ver  Mehr,  missionary,  vii.  729. 
Verdugo,    J.    G.,    licensed   to  trade, 

1820,  ii.  293. 
Verger,   Rafael,    guardian,    offl  acts, 

1772-82,  i.  192-1,  325,  378. 
Vermeule,  T.  L.,  mention  of,  vi  323. 
Vernon,   founding,   etc.,   of,  1849,  vi. 

488. 

Victor's  'Atchison  Svstem,'  vii.  620. 
Victor,  J.  N.,  vii.  618. 
Victoria,  pres.,  orders  arrest  of  Sarria, 

iii.  19. 
Victoria,  gov.,  rule  of,  1831,  iii  181- 

215. 


824 


INDEX. 


For  Information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


'  Victoria, '  ship,  iv.  224. 

Vigilantes,  first  committee,  1835,  iii. 

417-19;     proceedings    against,    iii. 

431-2;  proceedings  of,    185J-6,   vi. 

742-54;    plan  of    h'dq'rs,    vi.    7.48; 

medal  of,  vi.  753. 

Vincennes,  U.  S.  explor.  ship,  iv.  243. 
Vineyards,  at  S.  Jose  miss.,  1806,  ii. 

139;   at  S.   Diego,    product.,    1839, 

iii.  619;  at  S.  Miguel,  1836,  iii.  685; 
*          at  miss.,  1844,  iv.  421-2. 
Visalia,  mention  of,  vi.  518. 
Visitador,   Hartnell   app't'd,  iii.  600; 

actions  of,  1836-40,  iv.  57-8,  61-2. 
Viticulture,  hist,  of,  vii.  46-50,  744. 
Vizcaino,  exped.,  1597,  i.  13-14. 
Vizcaino,  Sebastian,  voy.  of,  explor., 

1602,  i.  22-3. 
Volcano,  discovered  near  Sta  Barbara, 

i.  465. 

4  Volga, '  ship,  ii.  640,  643-4. 
'Volunteer,   ship,  iii.  85,  365. 
Voorhees,    W.    Van,   mention   of,  vi. 

687;  vii.  146. 

Voorman,  H.,  biog.,  vii.  86. 
'Vulture,'  ship,  iii.  141. 


W 

Wages,  miners',  vii.  639. 

Wakelee,  C.  H.,  member  stock  board, 

vii.  668. 
Wakelee,  H.  P.,  member  stock  board, 

vii.  668. 

Waldeiiar,  Peter,  vii.  641. 
Waldo,  W.,  whig  nominee  for  gov., 

1853,  vii.  679. 

Walkinshaw,  Robert,  vii.  656. 
Walker,  James  D. ,  vii.  590. 
Walker,   J.  P.,  del.  to  constit.   con- 
vention, etc.,  1849,  vi.  287. 
Walker,    W.,    mention   of,    vi.    589, 

character,  vi.  593,  600;  filibust.  ex- 

peds  of,  1853-60,  vi.  593-600. 
Walkup,  J.,  lieut-gov.,  1858,  vi.  714. 
Walla   Wallas,  Inds,    troubles   with, 

1845,   iv.   544-5;  fears  of,    1846,  v. 

567. 
Wallace,    Attorney-gen.  T.,   mention 

of,  vi.  617. 
Wallace,  Judge  W.  T.,  biog.,  etc.,  of, 

vii.  235. 

Walworth,  E.  B.,  missionary,  vii.  730. 
Warner,  bibliog.,  i.  44. 
Warner,    Capt.,  death   of,  1849,   vii. 

449-50. 

Warner,  W.  H.,  mention  of,  vi.  447. 
Warren,  G.  R.,  defalcation  of,  vii.  307. 


Warren,  Rev.  J.  H.,  vii.  729. 
'Warren,'  U.  S.    ship,    v.    254,    284, 

287,  384. 
Warren  &  Son,  agric.  exhibs  of,  1852- 

3,  vii.  63. 
Warwick,  J.  H.,  speech  of,  1863,  vii. 

550. 
Washington,    pres.,    passport    from, 

for  Capt.  E.  Dorr,  i.  539. 
Washington,  B.   F.,  collector  of  cus- 
toms, 1857,  vi.  711. 
'Washington,'  ship,  iii.  139. 
Washington,  Fremont  court-martial, 

at,  v.  456-62. 
Washington  guard,   mention  of,  vii. 

455. 

Washington,  mine,  vii.  657. 
Washoe  district,  mining  cos  in,  1860, 

vii.  666-7. 
Washoe  Gold    &  S.  Mining  co.,  vii. 

666. 

Wasson,  Joseph,  vii.  644. 
Water,  rights  to,  etc.,  vii.  394,428-30. 
Waterman,  R.  H.,  mention  of,  vi.  499. 
Waterman,  R.  W.,  lieut-gov.,  1887, 

vii.  434;  gov.,  vii.  434,  737. 
Watkins,  H.  P.,  mention  of,  vi.  598. 
Watson,  N.  A.,  member  stock  board, 

vii.  668. 

Watson,  N.  S.,  vii.  587. 
Watsonville,  mention  of,  vi.  525. 
Watt,  William,  vii.  590. 
Watts,  S.  T.,  vii.  586. 
'Waverly,'  ship,   iii.   118,   130,    317, 

364. 

Waymire,  Jas  A.,  biog.,  vii.  735-6. 
Weaverville,  hist,  of,  vi.  506. 
Webb,  S.  P.,  mayor  of  San  Francisco, 

1854,  vi.  766. 
Webb  &  Co.,  vii.  638. 
Weber,    master    'Trade   Wind,'   vii. 

730. 

Weber,  C.,  mention  of,  vi.  74. 
Weber,     C.     M.,     founds     Tuleburg 

(Stockton),  etc.,  1848,  vi.  11,  465. 
Weber  creek,  mining  on,  1848-9,  vi. 

74,  352-3. 

Weberville,  founding  of,  1848,  vi.  74. 

Webster,  sec.,  on  conquest  of   Cal., 

1842,    iv.    300;   instructions    in    re 

Jones  affair,  iv.  325-6. 
Weeks,   J.   W.,  alcalde  of  San  Jose, 

1848,  vi.  4. 
Weil,    J.,    state  treasurer,  1880,  vii. 

408. 
Weller,  C.  L.,  arrest,   etc.,  of,   1864, 

vii.  308-9. 

Weller,  J.  B.,  U.  S.  senator,  1852,  vi. 
659,  662-3;  gov.,  1858,  vi.  713-14; 


INDEX. 


825 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  the  Pioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


bill   introd  by,   1855,  vi.   726;  bill 

reported  by,  1855,  vii.  526. 
Wellock,    W.,    career,    etc.,    of,   vii. 

359-60. 
Wells,  Judge   A.,  election,  etc.,    of, 

1852,  vii.  220-1. 

Wells,  H.  S.,  the  S.  F.  R.  R.  conven- 
tion, 1859,  vii.  543. 
Wells,  T.  G.-,  mention  of,  vii.  160. 
Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  transactions  with 

the  state  treasurer,  1856-7,  vi.  618; 

express  business  of,  vii.  150-1. 
West,  M.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  20. 
West,  S.N.,  vii.  654. 
Westcott,   Capt.    G.    C.,   on  Riley's 

staff,  1849,  vii.  448. 
Western,  J.,  vii.  719. 
Western  Development  co.  (see  also 

Contract  and  Finance  co.,  and  Pa- 
cific Improvement  co.),   organized, 

vii.  610-11. 
Western   Pacific  Railroad  company, 

organized,  etc.,   1862,  vii.  557;  aid 

to,  vii.  558;  Oakland  terminus,  vii. 

579-81. 

Whaling,  i.  185;  vii.  82-3. 
Wheat,  yield,  etc.,  of,   1850-88,  vii. 

26-8;  export  of,  vii.  116-23,  412. 
Wheatland,  mention  of,  vi.  487. 
Wheaton,  mention  of,  vii.  717. 
Wheeler,  Rev.  A.  C.,  vii.  727-8. 
Wheelock,  A.  A.,  vii.  717. 
Whigs,  convention  of,  1851,  vi.  650- 

2;  .1852,  vi.  670-1;  defeat  of,  1852, 

vi.  671-2. 
Whipple,  Lieut-col  S.  G.,  mention  of, 

vii.  470. 

Whisman,  J.  W.,  mention  of,  vi.  6. 
White,  T.  J.,  speaker  of  assembly, 

1849.  vi.  310. 

White  Sulphur  springs,  vii.  664. 
Whiting,  C.  A.,  surveyor -gen.,  1849, 

vi.  314. 
Whitney,  A.,  railroad  scheme  of,  vii. 

501-7;    R.  R.  scheme  of,  vii.  517- 

18;  mention  of,  vii.  570. 
Whitney,  J.  D.,  geologist,  vii.  636. 
Wicks,  Rev.,  mention  of,  vii.  718. 
Wicks,    M.   L.,    biog.,   etc.,  vii.  8-9, 

707. 

Widney,  J.  P.,  biog.  of,  vii.  250. 
Widney,  R.  M.,  biog.  of,  vii.  250. 
Wieland,  John,  biog.  of,  vii.  101. 
Wilkes,  works  of,  i.  40. 
Wilkes'  expedition  in  Cal.,  1841,  iv. 

240-2. 
Wilkes,    Capt.    C.,    mention  of,  vii. 

508. 
Wilkes,  G.,  advice  to  Broderick,  1850, 


vi.  662;   project  of,  1853,  vi.  676; 

R.  R.  scheme  of,  vii.  502. 
Willamette    Cattle    co.,   actions    of, 

1837,  iv.  85-7- 
Willcutt,  J.  L.,  vii.  633. 
Willey,   S.    H.,  chaplain   to  constit. 

convention,  1849,  vi.  290;  school  at 

Monterey,   1849,  vii.  717;  mention 

of,  vii.  727. 

Williams,  T.   H.,  nominee  for  attor- 
ney-gen., 1859,  vi.  723;  bicg.,  vi. 

723;    suggestions  of,   1859-60,   vii. 

248-9. 

Williams,  Virgil,  vii.  722. 
Williams,  bibliog.,  i.  571. 
Williams,  A.  P.,  senator,  1886,  vii. 

432;  biog.,  vii.  432. 
Williams,  Rev.  Albert,  vii.  717,  727. 
Williams,  D.  C.,  member  stock  board, 

vii.  668. 

Williams,  H.,  vii.  640. 
Williams,  H.  B.,  vii.  586. 
Williams,  J.  S.,  mention  of,  1848,  vi. 

17. 

'Wm  Thompson,'  ship,  iii.  364. 
Willis,  Rev.  E.  J.,  vii.  730. 
Willis,  I.,  at  Mormon  island,  1848,  vi. 

49. 
Willis,  S.,  at  Mormon  island,  1848,  vi. 

48-9. 

Willow -ware,  manufact.  of,  vii.  80-1. 
Wilmington,  mention  of,  vi.  521-2. 
Wilson,  H.  C.,  biog.,  vii.  741. 
Wilson,  Judge,  assault  on,  1852,  vii. 

210-11. 

Wilson,  J.  D.,  vii.  668. 
Wilson,  James,  vii.  654. 
Wimmer,  P.  L.,  mention  of,  i.  30-1. 
Windmill,  at  Roso,  1816,  ii.  416. 
Winder,  Capt.,  vii.  640. 
Wine,  product,    quality,  etc.,   1850- 

89,  vii.  44-9,  743-5. 
Winlack,  Miss  J.  B.,  vii.  718. 
Winn,   W.  M.,  gen.  of  militia,  1850, 

vi.  319. 

Wisconsin  Hill,  mining  camp,  vi.  355. 
Wise,  J.  H.,  biog.,  vii.  187. 
Wise,  minister,  indiscreet  speech  of, 

1846,  v.  512. 

WTitherby,  0.  S.,  biog.  of,  vii.  183. 
Wolfskin,  J.  R.,  rancho  of,    1842-8, 

vi.  17. 
Wood,  L.   K.,  exped.,  etc.,  of,  1849, 

vi.  501-2. 

Wood,  W.  G.,  report,  etc.,  of,  vii.  177. 
Wood,  W.  W. ,  '  Wandering  Sketches, ' 

iv.  452-3. 
Wood  creek,  mining  on,  1848,  vi.  76-7; 

gold 'deposits  on,  vi.  373. 


82i> 


INDEX. 


For  information  concerning  pioneers,  see  also  ihcJPioneer  Register,  vols.  II  to  V. 


Woodbridge,  Rev.  S.,  vii.  727. 

Woodbridge,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 

Woodland,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  499. 

Woods,  I.  C.,  Adams  &  Co.'s  failure, 
vii.  174-5. 

Woods,  Mrs,  school,  1850,  vii.  717. 

Woodside  mine,  vii.  640. 

Woodville,  mention  of,  vi.  518. 

Woodward's  gardens,  vii.  693. 

Woodworth,  Senator  S.  E.,  mention 
of,  vii.  200. 

Wool,  Gen.  J.  E.,  supersedes  Hitch- 
cock, 1853,  vi.  595;  in  command, 
1854,  vii.  462,  472. 

Wool,  growth  of  industry,  etc., 
1855-80,  vii.  59-61;  mauufact.  of, 
vii.  88. 

Wool-pulling,  vii.  92. 

Workiuginen's  party,  organized, 
1877,  vii.  355;  principles  of,  vii. 
355-6;  progress  of,  vii.  361-2;  the 
new  coustit.,  1878-9,  vii.  372-4; 
election  of,  1879,  vii.  408-11. 

Workingmen's  trade  and  labor  union, 
organized,  1877,  vii.  354;  resolu- 
tions of,  vii.  355. 

Workman,  Win,  journey  of  party  un- 
der, 1841,  iv.  276-8. 

Works,  J.  D.,  supr.  court  judge, 
1889,  vii.  735;  biog.,  vii.  735. 

Wozencraft,  O.  M.,  del.  to  constit. 
convention,  etc.,  1849,  vi.  287; 
Ind.  agent,  1850-2,  vii.  482-5. 

Wright,  Gen.  T.  F.,  mention  of,  vii. 
469;  in  command,  1861,  vii.  471. 

Wright,  Gen.  G.,  supersedes  Sumner, 
1861,  vii.  284-5;  measures  of,  vii. 
289-90;  measures  of,  vii.  301;  at 
Ft  Reading,  1852,  vii.  461;  in  com- 
mand, 1861,  vii.  472. 

Wright,  G.  W.,  represent,  in  con- 
gress, 1849,  vi.  306. 

Wright  &  Co.,  mention  of,  vii.  160. 

Wyatt,  Blackburn,  vii.  640. 

Wyatt,  Rev.  C.  B.,  vii.  728. 

Wyllie,  R.  C.,  colony  scheme,  1843, 
iv.  382-4. 


Xucu,  native  town,  i.  72. 


Yalesumnes,  Ind.  tribe,  iv.  138. 
Yamajabs,  Ind.  tribe,  i.  274. 
Yanez,  Gen.,  defeats  Raousset,  etc., 
1854,  vi.  591. 


Yankee  Hill,  mining  camp,  vi.  374. 
Yankee   Jim's,    name,     etc.,    vi.    73, 

483-4;  mining  camp,  1849,  vi.  355. 
Yankee  Silver  Mining  co.,  vii.  667. 
Yanofski,  actions  in  re  loss,  colony, 

1820,  ii.  318-20. 
Yanonalit,  Ind.  chief,  i.  377. 
Yellow  Jacket,  mine,  vii.  (>73. 
Yeomet,  town,  mention  of,  vi.  513. 
Yerba  Buena,   name  first  applied,  ii. 

590;    settlement  at,   1840,   iii.  708- 

10;    survey    of,     iii.     711;     name 

changed  to  San  Francisco,  vi.    1  ('>.">. 
Yerba   Buena   island,   R.   R.   designs 

on,  vii.  581,  601-2. 
Ygnacio,  mine,  vii.  651. 
Yolo  city,  mention  of,  vi.  498. 
Yolo    county,   hist,    of,     vi.     497-9; 

name,    etc.,   vii.   439;   R.    R.    laud 

grants  in,  vii.  582. 
Yolos,  Inds,  Vallejo's  expedt.  against, 

1835,  iii.  360. 

Yoloytoy,    Ind.    tribe,    treaty    with, 

1836,  iv.  71. 
Yorba  ranch o,  ii.  353. 
'Yorktown,'  ship,  iv.  38,  313. 
Yorva,  T.,  rancho  of,  1848,  vi.  12. 
You  Bet,  camp,  mention  of,  vi.  486. 
Young,  Brigham,  plan  to  occupy  Cal., 

1846,  v.  470-1;  raises  Mormon 
battl.  for  Cal.,  v.  474,  476,  478,  481, 
497-8. 

Yount,  G.,  mention  of,  vi.  19. 

Yountbville,  mention  of,  vi.  510. 

Yreka,  hist,  of,  vi.  494-5. 

Yuba  city,  hist,  of,  vi.  488-9. 

Vuli.-i  county,  mining  in,  1850-6,  vi 
358-60;  hist,  of,  vi.  487-8,  name, 
etc.,  vii.  439;  R.  R.  aid,  vii.  581. 

Yuba  R.  R.  co.,  vii.  586. 

Yulni  river,  mining  on,  1848,  vi.  72; 
1850-6,  vi.  357,  359. 

Yumas,  clamorous  for  missionaries,  i. 
353;  disgust  of,  i.  367;  massacre 
by,  i.  362—4;  efforts  to  punish,  i. 
365-71;  captives  ransomed,  i.  367; 
remain  independent,  i.  370;  raids 
of  the,  1849-50,  vii.  481-2,  486. 


Zacatecafios.  arrival  of,  1833,  iii.  318- 
20;  troubles  with,  iii.  321;  support 
Carrillo,  1837-8,  iv.  47;  reputation 
of,  iv.  195. 

Zacatecas,  arrival  of  friars  from,  iv.371. 

Zaclom,  Ind.  tribe,  ii.  506. 

Zampay,  Ind.  chief,  iv.  72.